u/sfresumewriter

Concerning email addresses as related to job searches:

Please stay away from legacy domains (aol.com; hotmail.com). These email domains are 25+ years old and can place the user in a negative light because of ageism. Ageism is a huge issue in job search, like it or not. You do not want to be ruled out of consideration because of potential age. Is it legal, no. Can you prove it, doubtful.

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Recruiter Scams - Part 4 - Fraudulent Messages 

More about recruiter scams...

What to look for in a fraudulent message:

1. Receiving an unexpected message from an unrecognized sender

2. A request for money or payment of unusual fees

3. Messages purportedly from recruiting professionals via social messaging apps like SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, etc., or generic personal email accounts like Gmail or iCloud

4. Extraordinary job opportunities where you are immediately offered high compensation packages and special benefits

5. Requests for unnecessary personal information

6. What to do if you receive a fraudulent message:

7. Do not engage with or respond to the sender

8. Do not click on any links or attachments included in the message

9. Do not share any personal information with someone you do not know

10. Report the message as spam or phishing by using the platform’s “report” feature and block the sender

Source:SpencerStuart.com

This is an example of how a scam works. A client of mine, a senior - level technologist was approached on several occasions. We worked together to figure it out. Below is summary of what can occur during one particular scam.

How an ATS Scam Can Work

The Unsolicited Hook: A scammer posing as an executive recruiter or headhunter reaches out via LinkedIn or email with an attractive, generic job opportunity.

The Fake Rejection: After you send your resume, they reply that you are a great fit, but their system's AI or ATS automatically flagged your resume as "non-compliant" or "unreadable".

The Paid Referral: They direct you to a specific website or a "trusted partner" to get your resume optimized, usually charging anywhere from $15 to over $200.

The Disappearance: Once you pay for the service, you either receive a poorly reformatted document or nothing at all. The recruiter cuts off communication because the job never existed.

Source: LinkedIn / Reddit

ATS Scam - Part 1

An ATS scam (Applicant Tracking System scam) is a fraudulent scheme where fake recruiters manipulate your fear of being rejected by hiring software to trick you into paying for useless resume reformatting services. 

The job listing is entirely fake, and the sole goal of the scammer is to steal your money and personal data. 

Source: LinkedIn

Instagram - Networking and the Hidden Job Market

https://www.instagram.com/p/C9RAZ7axEuE/

Resume Format and Fonts

In order to be accepted by ATS systems, when you format your resume, avoid multi-column layouts, charts, tables, pictures, logos, graphs, and text boxes.  Keep it simple - single column layout, margins between .4 and 1 inch on top, bottom and sides and stick with easy to read fonts (i.e. Calibri, Arial) sized from 9pt to 12pt (I like to go 10.5).  Stay away from Book Antiqua and Times New Roman - while easy to read, you may be a victim of ageism because these fonts are older. 

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)

Resume Format

Many of you have been told that you need to submit a visually enticing resume for the jobs that you are interested in. Helps you stand up. Shows more personality.

Well - that is nice to present in the interview but honestly, your resume that you submit online into web interfaces must be easy to read and easy for the software (ATS) to parse. The document needs to be clean, in reverse-chronological order (most recent job first), with your city, state and zip (yes ZIP CODE), a headline, professional summary, key word / core competency breakout and achievements, preferably in bulleted format for each job. Only need to go back 10-15 years (age discrimination issues) and always include any education / certifications / training.

If you want a graphically designed resume, bring it to the meeting but do not submit into a web interface.

And just as important - hiring managers can spot AI-driven resumes from a mile away. They don't like it. There is also software programs that scan all types of documents, including resumes to determine if it was written with AI software technologies. 

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)

Labor Market Statistic - July 2026

Labor Force Participation Rate - the % of working -age population that is either working or actively looking for work.  The rate measures the active portion of an economy's potential workforce, helping economists understand overall job market health beyond just the standard unemployment rate. 

The drop to 4.1% unemployment happened because 264,000 people left the labor force, dropping participation to 61.4%. Historically, the rate has averaged roughly 62.8% from 1948 to 2026, peaking at 67.3% in January 2000.

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The riskiest thing we can do is just maintain the status quo. - Bob Iger

Jack Welch, the late former CEO at General Electric, back when GE was a mammoth, successful organization, used to insist that managers raise the level of production by their staff by 10%+ per year or get let go.

Sounds harsh? NO! When you stagnant, you decay. We all now what happens when you decay. Therefore, keep raising the bar and find new ways to do your business better.

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Excellence or Mediocrity

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit - Aristotle

Friends, colleagues, managers, customers, vendors will define you by repeated, consistent performance, not "one-shot" successes. Excellence will always be treated different than mediocrity. Therefore, raise the bar and do not stand on your past laurels.

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)

What Are the Criteria that AI Review Tools Examine

These AI tools evaluate resumes and "suggest" missing industry buzzwords and skill requirements, as listed in targeted job listings. In addition, the tools will identify content where KPIs and other numerical / qualitative data is need to improve presentation and successes.

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)

Hidden Job Market - #3

A great way to identify the potential for new positions is to create news alerts for companies that you are interesting in working for as a full-time employee (even a contractor if necessary). The news alerts could be on LI, major trade journals, newspapers, magazines etc. You are looking for mergers, new product launches, product line expansion, etc - all of which provide new career opportunities. When an alert interests you, start attempting to make contacts within the organization.

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice)

Hidden Job Market - Post #2

Cracking the hidden job market - The hidden job market is not coming to you. You have to go find the opportunities. How you may ask? Well let's start with the fundamentals:

1. NETWORK NETWORK NETWORK - Connect / Reconnect with old colleagues (including your old managers), vendors, college classmates, friend and yes, family. Let them know what is happening in your life. In addition, make yourself top of mind to others in a professional, understated way by providing valuable information to others that is designed to improve their business and personal lives.

More on this topic this afternoon.

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice)

Hidden Job Market - Post #1

The hidden job market is a term used to describe jobs that aren't advertised or posted online. Most of these jobs are quality positions AND are not posted because the hiring manager does not want to spend the $$$ or dedicate the resources to review / interview alot of candidates. Another reason is that the hiring manager needs to keep this opportunity quiet for many reasons including a forthcoming termination, minimize disruption within the organization as well as competitive issues within the market.

Please read my posting later this afternoon about the best way to explore the hidden job market.

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice

 How AI Affects Recruiting - Part 2

While the use of AI automates sourcing, initial screening, and scheduling, it also enables job seekers to flood the market with polished, but often generic resumes with embellished information, lengthening hiring cycles and unfortunately, often resulting in bad hires, which are costly to the company.    The issue with authenticity prevails and many companies eliminate resumes written with computer technologies.  

Identification can be done via "the eyeball test" - not hard to spot generic, repeat content or with software programs that are specifically used to determine whether or not a document is AI-generated.

Why are the paths flaws?  

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)

ID Fake Recruiters

Red Flags:

Phone: No phone number in the signature text

Email: The "recruiter" contacts you from a personal account as opposed to an official corporate domain.

This is the structure you are looking for: __________________@name of firm.com

This is the structure you need to avoid:_________________.abccompany@gmail.com

How AI Affects Recruiting - Part 1

AI automates sourcing, initial screening, and scheduling, requiring recruiters to transition into strategic talent advisors.  While AI certainly makes data interpretation faster, people, not robots or technology, make the final hiring decisions.  But the problem is that the path used to make these determinatons are flawed, resulting in bad hiring decisions.  

Why are the paths flaws?  

1. AI interviewing enables lies, cheating and deceit beginning from step 1 through the end of the process.  

2. Bad candidates can embellish / lie, placing themselves on the same plateau as exceptional candidates and AI cannot determine which is better.  If the hiring manager is not very good at interviewing, the bad candidates can play the system.  Result - bad hires, which are costly decisions.

Information about AI Video Interviewing - Part 6

When AI starts to interview AI (This is funny and pathetic at the same time).

https://www.instagram.com/p/DJap1gyNJrs/

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Does this post add value to your business day? I post about job search best practices and issues related to the job market 2x per day M-F. Click "Follow" on my profile - Allan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrownresumewriter/ (posting job search advice 1 – 2x daily)