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It could also be because they're looking for easy ways to filter out candidates if the applicant pool is particularly large. Think of it as dimensionality redu

It could also be because they're looking for easy ways to filter out candidates if the applicant pool is particularly large. Think of it as dimensionality reduction—many people claim to be detail-oriented, but mistakes on a resume are an easy way for reviewers to verify that claim.

tomnipotent 5y ago
> because they're looking for easy But they're not easy ways. There's absolutely no correlation between resume quality and candidate performance, and they're just idiosyncrasies we develop over time. We trick ourselves into believing these signals are important, when they're not.
- imiric 5y ago
  > There's absolutely no correlation between resume quality and candidate performance I don't think that's entirely true. The resume is a product of a potential hire, and it gives off the first impression of their organizational and writing skills. While it shouldn't be the _only_ deciding factor, that first impression is an important signal for a hiring manager who has to filter potentially hundreds of candidates.
  - tomnipotent 5y ago
    > The resume is a product of a potential hire That's like saying a first date is in indication of a couples future. It's a bit silly. Sure, if it's absolutely chock-full of errors that could be a sign, but one or two are the kind of things you're supposed to ignore. > that first impression is an important signal for a hiring manager Only because people have been trained to judge others based on petty things, so people have responded in kind. Not because it's actually a valuable effort, but to give people one less reason to throw it in the "No" pile.
spideymans 5y ago
I fear this would filter out a lot of perfectly competent engineers whose native language is not English. Spelling issues are inexcusable given how easy they are to catch (I hear Microsoft Office has a spell check feature), but grammar issues beyond that should largely be overlooked.
wilsonrocks 5y ago
I used to work with someone who had been a manager in 80s Britain (high unemployment) and he said they threw any applicable in a brown envelope in the bin. It wasn't about skills or experience or culture fit, but about getting the hiring done in a sane amount of time.

tomnipotent 5y ago

> because they're looking for easy But they're not easy ways. There's absolutely no correlation between resume quality and candidate performance, and they're just idiosyncrasies we develop over time. We trick ourselves into believing these signals are important, when they're not.

imiric 5y ago
> There's absolutely no correlation between resume quality and candidate performance I don't think that's entirely true. The resume is a product of a potential hire, and it gives off the first impression of their organizational and writing skills. While it shouldn't be the _only_ deciding factor, that first impression is an important signal for a hiring manager who has to filter potentially hundreds of candidates.
- tomnipotent 5y ago
  > The resume is a product of a potential hire That's like saying a first date is in indication of a couples future. It's a bit silly. Sure, if it's absolutely chock-full of errors that could be a sign, but one or two are the kind of things you're supposed to ignore. > that first impression is an important signal for a hiring manager Only because people have been trained to judge others based on petty things, so people have responded in kind. Not because it's actually a valuable effort, but to give people one less reason to throw it in the "No" pile.

spideymans 5y ago

I fear this would filter out a lot of perfectly competent engineers whose native language is not English. Spelling issues are inexcusable given how easy they are to catch (I hear Microsoft Office has a spell check feature), but grammar issues beyond that should largely be overlooked.

wilsonrocks 5y ago

I used to work with someone who had been a manager in 80s Britain (high unemployment) and he said they threw any applicable in a brown envelope in the bin. It wasn't about skills or experience or culture fit, but about getting the hiring done in a sane amount of time.