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 .

Account Executive - Sterling Technology

TransPerfect · San Francisco, California, United States

Sterling Technology, a subsidiary of TransPerfect, is the leading provider of premium virtual data room (VDR) solutions for the secure sharing of content, business process automation, and collaboration for the M&A, corporate development, real estate, capital markets, private capital, banking, and legal communities. Sterling has been supporting the M&A and capital markets for over 30 years, initially with financial printing services. Since opening our first VDR in 2010 we have helped customers from over 187 countries and 90 industries successfully complete thousands of deals. With offices in seven major financial centres, Sterling is trusted by its users to deliver exceptional levels of service on their most critical transactions.

Sterling is a fast-growing B2B SaaS technology business. We have recently been acquired by TransPerfect, the world’s largest provider of language and technology solutions for global business with offices in over 100 cities on six continents.

Requirements

The Account Executive has a dual responsibility, focused around developing business relationships and serving as the first level of support to existing clients.

Key position responsibilities:

  • Develop a full understanding of the capabilities, benefits and competitive advantages of Sterling Technology services and technology offering

  • Educate and drive understanding with your clients with regards to TransPerfect’s value add processes and services

  • Build client relationships across existing and new companies

  • Engage in understanding clients’ industries, business needs and company culture to work strategically with your client and support their growth

  • In coordination with your manager, identify opportunities and contacts that will lead to growing your book of business and expanding our partnership with clients in a strategic way

  • Provide customer support and manage client expectations

  • Quote, manage and bill projects on a daily basis, coordinating with clients and production teams to ensure these run smoothly and profitably

Essential skills and experience required:

  • Previous Account Management and Strategic Business Development experience in the VDR industry

  • Ability to build and maintain relationships

  • Superior written and spoken communication skills

  • Good analytical skills needed to project revenues, monitor budgets and other necessary calculations

  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)

  • Minimum Bachelor’s Degree or its equivalent

  • Management and experience in building sales teams a plus

  • Most importantly, the ideal candidate must demonstrate ability to: multitask in a fast-paced environment, work well with people from a variety of different backgrounds and cultures, build strategic relationships with clients and co-workers, work as part of a team, take active measures to solve problems and commit to a high level of service

Sterling provides equal employment opportunity to all individuals regardless of their race, color, creed, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by state, federal, or local law

New York City Salary Transparency

Compensation range: $70,000 - $110,000

Additional earnings: Eligible to earn commission

Benefits: Health insurance, retirement benefits, paid time off, other voluntary benefits

By applying, I confirm I have read and accept TransPerfect's Privacy Policy: https://www.transperfect.com/about/data-privacy-recruiting

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