Welcome to The #OpenToWork Metrics Merry-Go-Round

TLDR: Spending time hyper-tweaking your resume is a fool's errand and you should be spending most of your time networking instead.

Have you ever felt like applying for a job in our field is akin to riding an endlessly frustrating merry-go-round? As someone currently navigating the tumultuous seas of job hunting, I can tell you, the hiring process is borked beyond belief. It's almost as if organizations are actively seeking reasons to say "no" rather than "yes." The kicker of applying at this level is you've got to impress two audiences: the business leaders who will be your peers and the technical team you'll manage. Up until this most recent round of duck-duck-job, I thought I was pretty good at presenting myself in this light, typically with a tech-focused resume as most first-round draft picks go through that team. This time, however, it seems like more and more organizations are pulling in the business teams earlier in an attempt to expedite the process (but only end up experiencing premature rejection).

First off, let’s address the elephant in the room: my hybrid resume. Mine's been expertly crafted (for just $399.99 several times over) to showcase both my technical prowess while sprinkling in enough delicious business metrics most companies will enjoy. Well, it turns out that in the current job market, the feedback has been I'm either too technical and not enough business or too business and not enough technical. It's like trying to balance on a tightrope made of spaghetti.

Take, for example, this job listing for a Director of IT Applications at American Foods Group . (https://www.dhirubhai.net/jobs/view/3988393582) They want someone who’s managed and improved legacy Infor ERP systems. Perfect! In my last role, we did just that – upgraded Infor ERP, integrated EDI, and implemented data reporting with Power BI and Qlik, all while maintaining 24/7 manufacturing lines for over 30,000 users across 7 sites. Please note, this is the first time I've seen this posted directly by AFG, but based on the matching language used in the post, it looks like it's been open for a while.

What I want to highlight with this role in particular, because, based on my records, I’ve been rejected multiple times. Each time, the feedback is different and contradictory. It's as if the job posting is a mirage, constantly shifting and impossible to pin down. Granted, I've only dealt with various recruiters up to now who may just be fishing (using extremely similar language and referencing a major food manufacturer), but something wonky this way comes.

The core issue boils down to metrics and the impossibility of understanding your remote audience. Crafting the perfect resume to thread the needle and get you in front of someone for an actual discussion is like hitting a moving target blindfolded, and at the end of the day, you REALLY need to get in front of a human and avoid the resume machine as much as humanly possible. Matching the language in the JD is great, but if the business team is reviewing that you're bound to miss the mark on performance metrics, but too many of those metrics and your resume either explodes to 6 pages or won't be technical enough to pass that side of the screening.

Timeline of Rejections

• January: First time seeing this job posting and pretty stoked as it's exactly what I've been doing. Sent my hybrid resume the the recruiter at some unknown agency. Result? Crickets.
• February: Saw the same posting agaiin, this time by an agency I worked with before. Resubmitted the same resume. After reaching out to one of my contacts at the agency they were able to get me the following feedback: It looked like I wasn't technical enough. I tried to explain my hands-on experience with UAT and EDI vendors. Outcome? Radio silence.
• April: Round three. Seeing this come up again, so I tweaked the resume to emphasize technical skills. After post-stalking a recruiter who worked at that agency I got the feedback I was overly technical; the business team wouldn’t understand the jargon.
• Today (August 7, 2024): So, seeing this job posted yet again, this time by Tristan Ziolkowski from AFG, I’ve decided to give it another go. This time, I’m focusing heavily on business metrics, hoping to strike the right chord - but because this is the first time it's getting in front of them I'm not really sure what they're looking for at this juncture.

I know I'm not the most perfect or most awesome Software Development Leader out there - heavens knows I've got my full share of issues and quirks, so I'm not going to be a fit everywhere. For all I know they might be biased against Floridians and think we don't each enough cheese. But with such an extensive matching profile and to not even get a conversation or opportunity to address those concerns; that's the real issue.

PS: I’ve tried reaching out to Steven Van Lannen , Nathaniel Sego , and a few others at the organization in hopes of bypassing the recruiter rejection loop and having a more in-depth discussion. If anyone has connections at American Foods Group, a little help would be greatly appreciated! ??