The End of Resumes?
Posted by EmployTest - on Mon, Aug 10, 2009 @ 09:26 AM
Last month's article by David Spinks (BrazenCareerist.com) lists three reasons why resumes should be irrevelant to hiring managers during the selection process.
The top reason, according to Spinks, is that resumes do not accurately give the true picture of a person. They are overly formatted and "show how the candidates want to be viewed, not how they are actually viewed".
Very true. There has likely been more fiction created in resumes than in all the literary works on the shelves in our nation's libraries. Resumes are kind of like an interview, except that the applicant has the opportunity to misrepresent himself on paper from home, instead of doing so in front of the hiring manager during the interview.
Other reasons to eliminate resumes, as listed by Spinks, seem to be that resumes are "old school" and not very tech savvy. Why not just read their blog or Linked in profile instead?
And these are all valid points. But the reality is that Human Resource staff (and hiring managers) are pressed for time and the submitted resumes give a somewhat standardized opportunity for all candidates to present themselves, without the hiring manager having to chase various online profiles/blogs to get a truer picture of the applicant. And if they are using an automated system to scan resumes, it's even more of a timesaver. It's not a perfect solution but the best standardized way for candidates to initially present themselves.
On a different note, we are strong advocates of eliminating the in-person interview and just relying on a pre-employment tests. Let's keep the resumes, cancel the interviews, and just give everyone an employment test :)