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 .

Finn Partners

Head of Project Management

The Opportunity:

FINN Integrated Marketing is looking for an experienced and driven Head of Project Management to lead our project management team and ensure successful delivery of client work across the agency. In this role, you’ll focus on building scalable delivery practices, driving operational excellence, and enabling cross-functional teams to consistently deliver high-quality work on time and on budget.
With visibility across all client-facing and internal teams, you’ll partner closely with Account Management, Creative, Production, and Strategy to ensure seamless execution from planning through delivery, supporting both client satisfaction and business performance. 

Who are we looking for:
  • Operational Leader: You bring a system mindset to complex workstreams, ensuring projects are planned, resourced, and executed effectively across teams.
  • Team Builder & Coach: You excel at leading and developing project management teams, promoting clarity, accountability, and continuous improvement..
  • Relationship Builder: You cultivate high-impact partnerships with internal and external stakeholders to drive collective success.
  • Delivery & Risk Manager: You proactively identify risks, management dependencies, and solve problems before they impact deadlines, budgets, or quality.
  • Cross-Functional Collaborator: You partner closely with Account Management and discipline leads to balance client expectations with internal capacity and delivery realities. 
  • Dimensional Thinker: You are able to see in black, white and gray and balance objective clarity with situational nuance to manage complex outcomes.
  • Integration Facilitator: You are a marketing generalist and excel at connecting the dots across different disciplines to ensure every part of a program works in harmony.
  • Process Champion: You are passionate about improving workflow, tools, and ways of working to create efficiency, consistency, and transparency.
What you’ll be part of:
  • A fast-growing agency with exciting clients and a steady pipeline of projects.
  • A talented team of professionals eager to collaborate and support each other.
  • Peer leaders that genuinely care and support each other as we collaborate to achieve personal and group success.
  • A culture that values teamwork, accountability, and process improvement.
  • An agency that’s committed to maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Where will you work?
We're a remote-first workplace with optional in-office time. For this leadership role, we strongly prefer candidates based near one of our offices (Boston, Nashville, New York, or Portland) to support in-person collaboration and team connection. 

Responsibilities:
  • Develop Departmental Best Practices: Create and implement scalable best practices for project management, ensuring the team delivers consistent, high-quality service across all client engagements.
  • Lead Project Delivery Excellence: Oversee the successful execution of complex, multi-workstream projects, ensuring timelines, scope, budgets, and quality expectations are met.
  • Partner with Account Management: Collaborate closely with Account Management to align project plans with client goals, manage expectations, and support a seamless client experience from kickoff through completion.
  • Resource Planning & Capacity Management: Work with discipline leaders to align staffing and resourcing with project needs, balancing workloads while maintaining efficiency and delivery quality.
  • Risk & Issue Management: Identify delivery risks early and implement mitigation strategies, addressing challenges proactively to keep projects on track.
  • Financial & Operational Oversight: Support project financial management, including budget tracking, forecasting, and reconciliation, providing clear visibility into project health and performance.
  • Process Optimization: Evaluate and evolve project management tools, templates, and workflows to improve visibility, predictability, and team efficiency.
  • Advocate for Continuous Improvement: Drive initiatives that enhance delivery quality, improve internal processes, and foster client satisfaction. Champion and integrate automation and AI adoption where appropriate. 
  • Champion a Culture of Accountability: Instill a culture of ownership, clarity, and follow-through within the project management team and across cross-functional partners.

Qualifications:  
  • 15+ years of experience in project management within a marketing or advertising agency.
  • Proven experience leading complex, multi-disciplinary projects.
  • Strong people leadership and coaching skills
  • Excellent organizational, communication, and problem-solving abilities
  • Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution
  • Bachelor’s degree not req
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