Four items posted to LinkedIn from late summer to autumn 2017 regarding problems with, and future of, the resume. That future could involve automated resume-writing and eventual move to a dynamic “AI” curriculum-vitae.*

Time is ripe to automate resume writing – thoughts on another “how to” seminar, (posted August 2017)

Seminars about how to craft a resume/CV are common, but point to the need for more automation.

For example, I received a notice from Devex about one they were offering on “what you need to do to make your CV stand out from the rest,” covering four items (in quotes) that look like they are perfect for automation of writing of resumes/CVs [my comments in brackets]:

• • “Expert advice on how to create a stand-out global development CV” [advice could be disaggregated to specific items to program into app/software]
  • “An overview of recruiter-approved templates” [app/software could have these loaded as options]
  • “A simple formula to effectively showcase your talent” [this could govern overall approach to app/software design]
  • “Tips for optimizing your CV in a digital recruiting world” [if we’re now writing in large part for machines, shouldn’t we be leveraging the power of technology to do the writing for us?]

The time is ripe for more automated processes to assist people looking for employment, including for CVs/resumes, wording of content, format/design, and keywords/optimization, as well as their tailoring for specific companies and position announcements.

“Minorities Who ‘Whiten’ Resumes Get More Job Interviews,” Dina Gerdeman, Forbes, 17 May 2017 (posted October 2017)

Another problem with how we use resumes for job applications: discrimination. My question: Could “AI” resume bots that exchange relevant information with employer application systems avoid this problem? (Other advantages would be saving time for applicants and making hiring more objective overall.)

“This CEO believes resumes are becoming obsolete — here’s why,” AlexWilson, The Ladders, 9 November 2017 (posted November 2017)

While agreeing with the general theme of this head (ignoring the clickbaity pitch), I disagree with Jeff Weiner’s vision as I understand it from this Fairygodboss piece seen via The Ladders. Hard to see how to get around the need to communicate skills and experience – the oft mentioned “death of the resume” really means choice of new approaches. Personally I still think the best option would be for AI “self-driving” resumes working at the behest of job seekers to do preliminary interaction with automated systems of employers, freeing the people they represent to converse on a more human level.

“These Former Googlers Created An AI Tool To Improve Crappy Resume Writing: Leap.ai uses artificial intelligence to help rewrite resumes and match job seekers with the right companies,” Lydia Dishman, Fast Company, 16 Nov 2017 (posted November 2017)

Encouraging steps by Richard Liu & Yunkai Zhou at Leap.ai to automate resume writing/revising & aspects of the job search (in certain sectors). Next steps? Could one’s resume/CV actually become just a set of data the person curates, from which “AI” can selectively communicate relevant skills/experience to employers’ automated systems, & from which an appropriate printed resume be printed as needed for human eyes? Could such an AI bot – as a learning application – also work at the behest of a job seeker, not just to handle routinized filling of forms, but to scout out & apply for positions, in function of matches, employer feedback, & guidance from the owner/license holder (i.e., the job seeker). The latter points to a larger question: Is AI for job hunters only to be on third party sites working on their behalf (at least ostensibly), or could it actually be controlled by the job hunter, working at their behest?

(my response to reply by one of the designers [use of full name in text on LinkedIn activates link there])

Thx for the reply, Richard Liu. Are you familiar with Robert Coombs’ experiment with a bot to apply for jobs? http://tinyurl.com/y8z3uqtl Some interesting lessons there, tho he ran into an issue related to the one you mention – positions not being listed (so just going through contacts). Still, would it be possible to expand such experiments, in more than one selected industry, to see how they might fare? What is the potential for a job market powered by AI able to research vast numbers of potential matches from both sides (including job seeker driven), effectively without pause? Scary, perhaps, but also potentially offering many new possibilities…

______

* I’ve explored this and related concepts in a 3-part series on this blog about “AI & the self-driving resume,” as well as in various articles on LinkedIn.

---

Other blogs > LinkedIn > LinkedIn articles & posts, 2017 (Jul–Dec)