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 .

Chief Marketing Officer

Smalls · Remote US

The Chief Marketing Officer is the primary owner of top-line revenue and demand generation. This role is responsible for building, scaling, and optimizing the company’s long term growth and marketing engine across the funnel and media, in all sales channels. The CMO will also acts as GM of our digital business, while simultaneously shepherding our built-for-subscription growth org into a multi-channel, multi-category marketing org.

What you'll own

Top-Line Revenue & Growth

  • End-to-end responsibility for revenue growth.

  • Demand generation strategy across all categories and channels.

  • Forecasting, targets, and performance reporting across all categories and channels.

  • CAC, LTV, ROAS, conversion, retention, cohort health.

  • Budget ownership for TOF and growth amplification.

Top of Funnel (TOF) Marketing

  • TOF strategy and targets.

  • Paid prospecting and awareness.

  • Paid social, paid search (non-brand), upper-funnel video.

  • Media planning, spend allocation, reach & frequency.

  • Cost per session, consideration metrics.

  • Funnel health from impression → visit → conversion.

E-Commerce/Digital Sales Vertical

  • Digital product roadmap prioritization tied to revenue impact.

  • Website & digital product performance.

  • Digital merchandising, pricing and offer presentation.

    • Conversion rate optimization (CRO).

  • Personalization and segmentation.

  • Experimentation velocity and learning loops, A/B and multivariate testing, testing infrastructure.

  • Tertiary management of engineering team.

How this role works cross-functionally

  • Partners with the CBO, who owns brand meaning, creative, product design, and People functions.

  • Works with Brand Creative to translate brand expression into scalable, high-performing experiences.

  • Partners with retail on multi-channel strategy, marketing-in-retail.

  • Scales brand and product marketing initiatives through paid amplification.

  • Enables Brand Marketing and GTM without redefining narrative or positioning.

  • Ensures growth velocity without eroding trust or experience quality.

  • CBO: What we sell & stand for. CMO: Drive demand against that. COO: Drive supply against that.

What we’ll love about you

We are looking for a leader who blends high-level commercial strategy with the tactical instincts of a builder. You are likely a CMO or Senior Marketing executive who has scaled a premium consumer or DTC business and thrives at the intersection of performance and brand vision.

  • The Hybrid Expert: You possess deep digital fluency but understand that a premium brand lives beyond the screen. You are highly experienced in digital growth but recognize that a "100% digital-only" playbook isn’t enough for a multidimensional consumer brand.

  • The Revenue Architect: You have a proven track record of scaling top-line revenue through aggressive Top-of-Funnel (TOF) strategies and relentless Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).

  • Digital Product Intuition: You have led experimentation and growth within digital products, treating the site experience as a living, breathing commercial engine.

  • The Visionary Driver: You lead with speed, a desire to win, and a bias for action. You are the "accelerant" on a team, pushing for big swings rather than playing it safe.

  • Founder Partner: You are energized by working alongside visionary, brand-led founders. You know how to respect and amplify a brand’s soul while owning the commercial results.

  • Culturally Plugged In: While you respect the numbers, you aren't "data-obsessed" to the point of paralysis. You lead with instinct, understand cultural zeitgeists, and know how to pivot a brand to capture a moment.

  • Operator Mindset: You are not a theorist or a consultant. You are an executor who values "doing" over "deck-making" and can get your hands dirty when you need to.

  • You’re a cat person!

Why this role is unique

This is a seat designed for a leader who wants true autonomy over the engine of the business.

  • Unrivaled Revenue Ownership: You have end-to-end accountability for the top line. Your success is measured by the growth of the business, giving you a clear mandate and high impact.

  • Product as a Growth Engine: You won’t just "market" the product; you will own the commercial roadmap of our digital surfaces, leveraging engineering and data to drive outcomes.

  • Clear Strategic Boundaries: We’ve eliminated the "gray areas" that plague most marketing roles. With a Founder-CBO owning brand authority and creative clarity, you are freed from brand-policing to focus on scaling and winning within clear brand guardrails. You get brand and creative but don’t need to own it.

  • Scale Without Dilution: You have the rare opportunity to scale a company with a strong, established cultural identity. You will build the systems that bring Smalls to the masses without ever losing the distinct "magic" that makes us who we are.

  • A Culture of Big Swings: If you are tired of risk-averse environments, this is your home. We are looking for a CMO who wants to push boundaries, move fast, and make a massive mark on the industry.

What you’ll love about us

  • Mission-Driven Company: We love cats and we're here to make nine lives ten.

  • People-Driven Company: We treat our people like people; we're committed to Smalls, and we work hard but also respect everyone’s lives outside of work.

  • Data-Driven Culture: We love using data to guide decision-making where appropriate, but we also know when to move quickly and go with our gut.

  • Competitive Salary: Make some $$$.

  • Very Competitive Benefits: Fully paid Health, Vision, and Dental insurance. 4-day work week. Unlimited PTO.

  • Fully Remote Office & Culture: Our team is spread across the US day to day, but we travel for department & company off-sites and retreats.

  • Free Product: Free cat food every month.