Key Takeaways

  • 75% of U.S. employers use automated applicant tracking systems to screen resumes before a human reviews them (Harvard Business School & Accenture, 2021)
  • The most common ATS failures are missing keywords, incompatible formatting, and incorrect file types
  • ResumeGeni scores your resume across 8 parsing layers — modeled on the same steps enterprise ATS platforms like Workday, Greenhouse, and Taleo use to evaluate candidates

How ATS Resume Scoring Works

Applicant tracking systems parse your resume into structured data — extracting your name, contact info, work history, skills, and education — then score how well that data matches the job requirements. Many ATS rejections happen because the parser couldn't extract critical fields, not because the candidate wasn't qualified.

LayerWhat It ChecksWhy It Matters
Document extractionFile format, encoding, readabilityCorrupted or image-only PDFs fail immediately
Layout analysisTables, columns, headers, footersMulti-column layouts break field extraction
Section detectionExperience, education, skills headingsNon-standard headings cause sections to be missed
Field mappingName, email, phone, dates, titlesMissing contact info is a common cause of immediate rejection
Keyword matchingJob-specific terms, skills, certificationsKeyword overlap affects recruiter search visibility and ATS scoring
Chronology checkDate ordering, gap detectionReverse-chronological order is expected by most ATS
QuantificationMetrics, numbers, measurable outcomesQuantified achievements help human reviewers and some scoring models
Confidence scoringOverall parse quality and completenessLow-confidence parses get deprioritized in results

Frequently Asked Questions

Is ResumeGeni free?
Yes. ResumeGeni is currently in beta — ATS analysis, scoring, and initial improvement suggestions are free with no signup required. Full guidance and saved reports may require a free account.
What file formats are supported?
PDF, DOCX, DOC, TXT, RTF, ODT, and Apple Pages. PDF and DOCX are recommended for best ATS compatibility.
How is the ATS score calculated?
Your resume is processed through an 8-layer parsing pipeline that extracts structured data the same way enterprise ATS platforms do. The score reflects how completely and accurately your resume can be parsed, plus how well your content matches common ATS ranking criteria.
Can ATS read PDF resumes?
Yes, but not all PDFs are equal. Text-based PDFs parse well. Image-only PDFs (scanned documents) and PDFs with complex tables or multi-column layouts often fail ATS parsing. Our analyzer will flag these issues.
How do I improve my ATS score?
Focus on three areas: use a clean single-column format, include keywords from the job description naturally in your experience bullets, and ensure all sections (contact, experience, education, skills) use standard headings.

ATS Guides & Resources

Built by engineers with 12 years of experience building enterprise hiring technology at ZipRecruiter. Last updated .

Human Resources (HR) & People Manager

FullyVested · London

Vested is a world-leading integrated marketing and communications consultancy focused exclusively on the financial services industry. Founded in 2015 with a mission to help shape a better financial services system that is more accessible, transparent, and sustainable, today Vested is the world's fourth-largest financial services agency, with over 100 employees widely recognised for their industry expertise, creativity, and passion for financial services.

 

We are proud that Vested is recognised as a Sunday Times Best Place to Work. As a “Vestie”, you become an owner, an entrepreneur, a builder, and a value creator. At Vested, we are proud to do the right thing, even when it's hard. We are relentlessly curious and consistently challenge the status quo. Join us as we lead the way in transforming the industry and delivering exceptional results for our clients.

 

As our newly created Human Resources (HR) & People Manager, you’ll have a highly visible impact in a small, fast-paced marketing and comms agency—shaping how we support, develop and connect our team while continuing to build a positive, high-performing culture. Working closely with the CEO, our external HR Director and a global People team, you’ll be the UK team’s go-to HR partner, combining hands-on, pragmatic day-to-day delivery with people initiatives focused on wellbeing, team connection, inspiration and growth across the full employee lifecycle.

Vested is a world-leading integrated marketing and communications consultancy focused exclusively on the financial services industry. Founded in 2015 with a mission to help shape a better financial services system that is more accessible, transparent, and sustainable, today Vested is the world's fourth-largest financial services agency, with over 100 employees widely recognised for their industry expertise, creativity, and passion for financial services.

 

We are proud that Vested is recognised as a Sunday Times Best Place to Work. As a “Vestie”, you become an owner, an entrepreneur, a builder, and a value creator. At Vested, we are proud to do the right thing, even when it's hard. We are relentlessly curious and consistently challenge the status quo. Join us as we lead the way in transforming the industry and delivering exceptional results for our clients.

 

As our newly created Human Resources (HR) & People Manager, you’ll have a highly visible impact in a small, fast-paced marketing and comms agency—shaping how we support, develop and connect our team while continuing to build a positive, high-performing culture. Working closely with the CEO, our external HR Director and a global People team, you’ll be the UK team’s go-to HR partner, combining hands-on, pragmatic day-to-day delivery with people initiatives focused on wellbeing, team connection, inspiration and growth across the full employee lifecycle.

Location: London / Hybrid (weekly presence within the office)
 
Qualified candidates will not require sponsorship to work in the UK.

Key responsibilities will include but not be limited to the following:

Strategy, culture & values

 

  • Partner with the CEO and external HR Director to support the delivery of the UK people strategy in line with business goals.

  • Help shape initiatives that strengthen employee engagement, wellbeing and development.

  • Ensure people and cultural initiatives are clearly aligned to the business plan and support our values across the employee lifecycle and day-to-day ways of working.

  • Serve as the “eyes and ears”, gathering feedback, spotting trends early, and turning insights into action.

  • Proactively recommend and deliver continuous improvements to people policies, processes and initiatives as the business grows.

  • Translate global HR frameworks and philosophies into pragmatic, locally appropriate practices for the UK team.

  •  

    Employee Relations & HR Compliance

     

    • Be a present, approachable HR resource - providing timely guidance, coaching and support to managers and employees.

    • Manage the employee lifecycle including onboarding, probation, performance reviews and offboarding.

    • Provide guidance on employee relations matters, including performance management and workplace matters, ensuring fair, balanced and legally compliant outcomes.

    • Provide practical, balanced advice to managers on people matters, helping them navigate performance conversations and workplace issues confidently and fairly.

      • Support absence management, flexible working requests and wellbeing initiatives.

      • Provide support to employees and managers during key moments across the employee lifecycle.

      • Work with the external HR Director to maintain HR policies

      • Support wellbeing, DSE and health & safety obligations alongside the Office Manager.

      • Support managers to run an effective, well-documented performance cycle—setting meaningful objectives, giving constructive feedback, managing performance, and delivering UK learning and development initiatives aligned to the global programme.

      • Stakeholder Management and Reporting

         
        • Build strong, trusted relationships with employees and managers across the UK business.
          Work closely with the external HR Director who provides strategic oversight and guidance.

          • Collaborate with the global People team in the US to ensure alignment with global frameworks and culture.

Ideal candidate will have:

Skills & Experience

  • CIPD Level 3 qualification at a minimum

  • Solid HR generalist experience, ideally within an SME, agency or professional services environment.

  • Strong knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice.

  • Experience advising on employee relations matters.

  • Comfortable operating as the primary HR contact within a small business.

  • Experience working alongside or within a global HR function.

  • Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the confidence to advise managers

  • Experience in communications, marketing agencies, professional services or start-up companies is preferred

  • Experience working with external HR consultants or outsourced HR models is preferred

  • Personal Attributes

    • Passionate about creating a positive employee experience.

    • Pragmatic, commercially aware and solutions-focused.

    • Approachable, discreet and trusted.

    • Forward-thinking with a continuous improvement mindset.

    • Flexible and adaptable with a strong sense of ownership.