Why Do We Still Use Resumes?

Have you ever stopped to think about all the things we didn't have 15 years ago? It's quite insane to realize how many of the devices, apps, and other inventions that we use on a daily basis weren't even a thought back in 2005. The iPhone was the catalyst that created the smartphone revolution and it only came out in 2007. Since then we’ve seen Uber, AirBnB, ultra high definition TVs, tablets, smartwatches, Alexa, Siri, etc. I could go on and on. These are things that have drastically changed our lives, communications, and productivity yet the resume which has been around since 1482 has changed very little in hundreds of years.

Why is it that we’re making exponential advances in so many areas of our lives yet we’re so reluctant to give up this archaic invention? So, let’s take a closer look at the resume and see if we can’t come up with something a little more 2020.

I may have been slightly off when I said that the resume hasn’t changed since the 1400s obviously, there have been some changes. For instance, we don’t typically send resumes in the mail, it’s digital now. Some people put their photos on their resume and can make it fancy with some cool colors and fonts but for the most part, the actual content of a resume is exactly the same. It’s simply a summary of an individual’s work experience.  

It’s not like the resume is perfect, we all have seen its shortcomings. It’s very easy to embellish experience if not outright lie on the document. It doesn’t effectively demonstrate any soft skills or ability to excel in a position and can cause substantial bias however we still seem to consider the resume the gold standard to initiate the job application process.

Having worked in the staffing and recruiting space for almost 11 years I’ve dealt with situations on numerous occasions where a manager has hired me to find a candidate for a position, we’ve then thoroughly screened the candidate, taken references for prior work and submitted them to the job only to get a rejection based on resume. Many times I’ve pushed back on these situations only to find that the very candidate the company was about to reject ends up being perfect for the job once again proving that we’re putting too much stock in the value of a resume.

Owning my own firm now, we rarely look at resumes when hiring internally and it has been a game-changer for us. Back in 2014, while employed by the Specialist Staffing Group, we made a push to adopt a video interviewing platform and I honestly thought that this would be the future of the recruiting industry but once again people are very averse to change and despite the fact that multiple video interviewing platforms exist they haven’t caught on at all.

Video is a powerful medium and in the tech-savvy society we currently live in I suggest that we eliminate the resume altogether and replace it with short (1 minute tops) video summaries by which a candidate can not only share their experience, passion, and reasons for wanting the job but can also demonstrate their communication skills, charisma, and wit. Not only would companies get a better understanding of the individual they could potentially hire but it would also eliminate mountains of useless resumes that apply for a job. I can’t tell you how many technical architect roles I’ve seen posted online that have been applied to by actual structural architects. There’s no barrier to entry when submitting a resume. It’s so simple to click upload and in the current economic turmoil, companies are being inundated with stacks of irrelevant resumes that are siphoning off productivity as individuals scour through them trying to find someone relevant.

 Let’s face it, video is here to stay, and although we may not be embracing it the way we could I can tell you from personal experience that it works. Over the past 2 years, I’ve been experimenting with candidates using video for everything from initial introduction videos to thank you videos after the interview and the response has been overwhelming. Not only are these candidates getting more offers but they’re standing out from the crowd in an incredible way. We recently were looking to hire an intern and out of 481 applications one individual sent in a video, guess who got the job? Now I’m not saying he got the job because of the video but that’s what got his foot in the door and separated him from all the other “boring” candidates. 

Video is 2020, it eliminates the issues of the resume, it showcases an individual’s soft skills and is personal. I say it’s time we retire the resume to its rightful place in history, embrace the video introduction, and start putting people before paper.