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 .

Recruiter

Lavendo · Mexico City

About Lavendo

Lavendo is a US-based boutique recruiting agency specializing in sales, GTM, and tech roles for fast-growing startups and tech companies. We're a small, close-knit remote team who care deeply about results, relationships, and doing great work.

We move fast, take ownership of our work, and genuinely enjoy what we do. If that sounds like your kind of environment, we'd love to hear from you.

The Role

We're looking for a Recruiter to join our team and help us find and place exceptional candidates for our clients. This is a full-cycle role - you'll be responsible for outbound sourcing, screening candidates, managing relationships, and driving placements from first outreach to signed offer.

This is a remote, flexible role. We ask that you're available for team syncs and client calls during US Pacific Time hours, with overlap until at least 3 PM PT (San Francisco time).

You don't need years of recruiting experience to apply. What we care about most is that you're thoughtful, motivated, coachable, and take ownership of your work. We'll teach you the rest - including every tool in our stack.

What You'll Do

  • Proactively source candidates using outreach tools, social media, and creative sourcing strategies

  • Conduct HR screening calls and assess candidate fit for open roles

  • Manage candidate pipelines and keep records up to date

  • Collaborate with teammates and communicate clearly with clients and candidates

  • Meet weekly activity targets and monthly placement goals

  • Share ideas, flag issues early, and contribute to team improvements - not just execute tasks

You'll Thrive Here If You

  • Speak fluent English - you'll be conducting calls, writing outreach, and communicating with US professionals daily. This is a hard requirement.

  • Are genuinely proactive - you notice what needs to be done and take initiative without waiting to be asked

  • Have a strong sense of ownership - you treat your roles and candidates with care, as if they're your own responsibility

  • Are coachable and curious - you welcome feedback, ask good questions, and enjoy learning

  • Care about results - you're focused on placements and real outcomes, not just checking boxes

  • Are collaborative and easy to work with - you support teammates, share knowledge, and contribute to a positive team environment

  • Have experience in any outbound or client-facing role - sales, customer success, account management, or recruiting (a plus but not required)

What We Offer

  • Competitive market-rate compensation for your country + performance bonuses tied to placements

  • Deel contract for simple, reliable, international payments

  • A structured work environment with daily team syncs, weekly team trainings, and regular 1-on-1s

  • A real team - not a solo gig. We collaborate on Slack daily and support each other's work

  • Hands-on onboarding and coaching from an experienced US-based recruiter

  • A modern, best-in-class recruiting tech stack - we use top tools and autonomous AI agents, and will train you on everything: Ashby, Juicebox, Metaview, Slack, Perplexity, Claude, and more

  • Autonomy to manage your own pipeline once you're up to speed

  • A chance to grow with a company that is expanding its client base and team

Hiring Process

We've designed a straightforward process that respects your time and lets your actual skills shine:

  • Async video - 2–3 minutes recorded

  • Intro call with our Founder - mutual fit check

  • Work sample task - a short sourcing exercise to show us how you think and work

  • Behavioral interview - structured conversation focused on your experience and approach

  • Reference check + offer

We review applications on a rolling basis. Apply early.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, gender identity, or expression, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

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