Resume Parsing Helps to Speed up the Selection Process

A majority of companies use applicant tracking systems to handle large amounts of applicants at one time. Resume parsing is one key element to this technology that speeds up the application process. Although this may sound like someone chops up your resume into tiny bits, that image is somewhat relevant as to how the computer program operates.

How Resume Parsing Works

Resume parsing happens electronically within a computer program. The software strips any computer code out of your submission, whether you submit a resume through Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat or an online application system on a website. The parser then organizes the information in relevant ways based on what the employer feels is important.

Applicant tracking systems might organize information based on high-level skills versus qualifications, how much experience a candidate has or the relevancy of past jobs. Recruiters and hiring managers can alter the criteria of applicant data however they want, and the tracking system ranks candidates. Resume parsing speeds up this process.

How This Helps Recruiters

Recruiters and hiring managers can search through resumes much faster and easier after the computer software organizes the main text of each document. ATS programs let supervisors perform keyword searches and highlight the most relevant information important to recruiters for a particular position. Parsing technology extracts contact information, skills, work history, experience and educational background for quick and easy retrieval.

Considering that hundreds of candidates may apply for one position in a highly competitive labor market, this software saves time and money by making the search for top talent more efficient. While the general ATS software may rank candidates based on overall resume scores, resume parsing technology allows recruiters to go beyond rankings to find the hidden gems.

For example, a recruiter can search for someone who has a certain college degree using a keyword search regardless of where the person ended up on the ranked search. This occurs with any data set that managers want to find, bringing a bit of the human element to an automated search process.

What You Can Do

Parsing resumes, in some instances, produces 95 percent efficiency as it relates to near-human accuracy when it comes to finding top talent. Job seekers should still use relevant keywords versus qualifications when it comes to submitting resumes. However, as more and more recruiters use more advanced programs to sift through applications and resumes, accuracy improves for both employers and candidates. Rather than sweating over whether you made a high enough ranking on an ATS, you can relax a bit and simply submit the most relevant, accurate and targeted resume possible. If you see a job listing and the top-level qualifications fit your skill set, you shouldn't have to worry about rankings.

Resume parsing helps put a human touch on the rubber-stamped technological process of finding the best candidates among hundreds of possibilities. If applying through online job boards is your thing, then this type of computer program is an applicant's dream come true as it makes things easier for you to land the ideal job.

Photo courtesy of Luke Dier at Flickr.com