I recently retired after serving 21 years in the U.S. Army. I have went through several resume writing companies and utilized a ton of professional organizations to help with transitioning from military life into the civilian sector. I utilize a targeted resume approach when applying to corporations all to end with the same canned email response "not selected as a candidate". What am I doing wrong, have others experienced this as well? I know I am qualified for these positions and just need to get in front of a hiring manager in order to show case my skills and capabilities. Any guidance and direction would be appreciated. Thank you
Answers
Hello Robert. I suggest that you network and try to get a referral instead of just going through the ATS process. The thing that will get your resume into a hiring managers hands is a referral. Try reaching out through LinkedIn to people at your target company and ask them to submit you as a referral. You are welcome to connect with me on LinkedIn and try to find useful connection through me if that would be helpful for you. Good luck.
Robert, i may be the exception, but I have never landed a position by going in the front door. What is the type of position you are seeking? Happy to help direct you if I could know a little more. Generally figure out where the people go that you want to work with. Take a contract gig for a while. In general you know how important a network is from your time in the military. It is no different our here in the wild.
You could potentially apply to smaller organizations which don't use such formal ATS systems. You may be more of an individual to them than just an applicant in the system. From there, it maybe easier to transition to a larger org with more applicable experience in the civilian sector.
I'd start with looking for an employment section on the company's website, and/or use the typical job sites (ZipRecruiter, Indeed, Glassdoor, Monster, etc) although those may end up putting you back in some sort of ATS.
Good Luck, Paul
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