Automatic Job "screeners"
So, automation and computers have done all these great things......super, so what. Let's move on to one of the giant downsides of all this "great" technology and move away from actual human interaction.
At some point, someone had the smart idea of creating these automatic "job filters". They come in several flavors, some that automatically scan your resume for certain words or phrases, personality tests, blah blah.
My absolute favorite is the "black and white" questionaire. This will often have some "black and white" disqualifier, which probably would be overlooked in lieu of other skills the candidate might have.
For instance, sometimes, the "screener" will ask you if you have a certain degree. There are no responses other than "yes" or "no". It does not allow for the entry of a "related" degree, such as if you happen to have, say, a Finance degree rather than an Accounting degree. Even though these are interchangeable amongst most of the planet, the black and white questionaire is often programmed to reject you immediatley.
Another awesome one I recently ran in to was what essentially amounted to an Actuarial assistant. You pretty much just ran canned reports, and kicked the spit up to a higher ranking person. The description flat out stated it required no actuarial experience. However, they are completely hung up on one tiny question that was built into their "black and white" questionaire, did you pass one part of the Actuary exam? Its simple, yes, your resume gets by the stone wall, no, you get an automated rejection letter.
Nevermind that I have spent the better part of the last 10 years constructing every imaginable report, and analyzing data quantitatively. I clearly would not be a good candidate for a job.....running reports and analying data quantitatively because I didnt take ONE PART of a multi part exam.
This is something an actual PERSON might recognize, but the black and white questionaire just tosses you aside.
Thanks technology for taking the "human" out of "human resources".
At some point, someone had the smart idea of creating these automatic "job filters". They come in several flavors, some that automatically scan your resume for certain words or phrases, personality tests, blah blah.
My absolute favorite is the "black and white" questionaire. This will often have some "black and white" disqualifier, which probably would be overlooked in lieu of other skills the candidate might have.
For instance, sometimes, the "screener" will ask you if you have a certain degree. There are no responses other than "yes" or "no". It does not allow for the entry of a "related" degree, such as if you happen to have, say, a Finance degree rather than an Accounting degree. Even though these are interchangeable amongst most of the planet, the black and white questionaire is often programmed to reject you immediatley.
Another awesome one I recently ran in to was what essentially amounted to an Actuarial assistant. You pretty much just ran canned reports, and kicked the spit up to a higher ranking person. The description flat out stated it required no actuarial experience. However, they are completely hung up on one tiny question that was built into their "black and white" questionaire, did you pass one part of the Actuary exam? Its simple, yes, your resume gets by the stone wall, no, you get an automated rejection letter.
Nevermind that I have spent the better part of the last 10 years constructing every imaginable report, and analyzing data quantitatively. I clearly would not be a good candidate for a job.....running reports and analying data quantitatively because I didnt take ONE PART of a multi part exam.
This is something an actual PERSON might recognize, but the black and white questionaire just tosses you aside.
Thanks technology for taking the "human" out of "human resources".
posted by Lethal_Poison at 12:04 PM
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