[1/n] A while ago I was hiring for a data analyst role. We were looking for domain expertise, #rstats and some SQL if possible. That alone is a long wishlist ;). I had thought about writing a blog post about it but as I'm not getting to it, here's a thread of my notes

2/n Caveat: Please be kind, I'm putting myself out there a bit by listing free flowing thoughts

Background: I was reviewing ~100 CVs in two sittings

3/n) Do photos on resumes help/hurt? At first I thought it helped me remember the candidate but after a while that effect disappeared, so I would say I have no real comment or preference

4/n) I put a lot of effort into the job description and I think that helped the good matches reveal themselves. Spend time on your job description!

5/n) Good demographic mix of candidates, but I think it's cause we're a global co, with already a good mix and a bit due to my efforts with the ad ;)

6/n) Some ppl reaching out by email as an application but I always direct them to the form, can't process the application otherwise!

7/n) Someone saying someone else should apply. Ok... I guess? Still direct them to the website

8/n) For those that were clearly unsuitable matches due to lack of experience but reached out, I gave words of encouragement and some something of value to walk away with9

9/n) If you are clearly WAY over qualified, I'm concerned that you will find the work boring, which you will

10/n) If you lhave R and SQL skills, list them. I appreciate the honesty of people not listing them if they don't have them, but if you do have them and don't list them, how would I know?

11/n) We specified messy datasets, so if you come from a field where I might think there's high precision - note in your cover letter that you can deal with messiness. Know your audience :).

12/n) Bit odd to put yourself forward as a specialist in an unrelated field? Mention how you're pivoting else it just seems like a poor fit

13/n) I can see how important the first job is in directing your career. If you have had to get an unrelaetd job, explicitly spelling out that you have go transferable skills and what they are will HELP.

14/n) I think I do prefer skill list shown high up somewhere near top of CV

15/n) I think its ok to leave off listing MS Office as a skill- make space for somethign else or list how good you are at excel (that said, apparently GenZ thinks MS is "an old persons GSuite")

16/n) I assume the level of effort in customising CV and cover letter reflects how confident you are that you're a match - this makes sense.

17/n) Again, we've listed R, SQL as technical skills - mention them in your work!

18/n) Quite a few candidates that are highly technically competent but show no potential for these domain expertise

19/n) On paper, many people have really good skillsets and they've got good careers ahead of them if given the right oppotunities

20/n) If you are desperate to get out your job, don't mention it. Your depseration doesn't help match to what we need. I do feel for you but I cant do anything for you.

21/n) If you are saying you're a perfect fir for the tole, but everything you list in cover has nothing to do with the job, its an almost immediate rejection - why look at the CV?

22/n) We balanced need for tech skills + domain expertise, even opting for a little bit more on the tech side to look for DE growth potential - but listing a boatload of tech and no DE makes me think you'll get frustrated in our relatively tech-lite environment.

23/n) Why do some peopele hang onto their student email address? Switch asap!

24/n) Some added reccomendation letters (relavant ones) which was a bit of a boost

25/n) So far, no one who made shortlist didn't also have "good"rating for cover letter

26/n) Usually I can tell from the cover letter already that the CV woudl disappoint.

27/n) For a while I doubted whether our job ad was clear enough but then those who did match, seemed to understand the level of data skills we were looking for. Those who didnt match tended to pump up their technical skills way beyond what we would ever be able to support

28/n) I really think put skills right at the top, followed by roles, then education, thats the kind of natural drill down I followed

29/n) When I did start finding the right candicates, I had to re-assess my generous scoring of others

30/n) If you are spouting off lots of technical stuff and no domain stuff, I would say you are a poor match

31/n) Very long cover immediatly makes me wonder if you can communicate succinctly

32/n) Very wordy cover letters obscure the keywords I'm scanning for before I re-read the whole thing. I would say open with a line that hits all the keywords (if they are releavnt of course!!)

33/n) I can tell if you copy and pasted the cover letter. Not inherently bad unless it reads like it was for another role entirely!

34/n) Cover better suited to what your skills will bring to help us in this role and how this fits your plans, rather than going on too much about what you believe or feel

35/n) By the 70th applicant I could tell quite quickly if it was a no and I could scan pretty quickly as well. If I scanned too quickly I would go back again

36/n) If you are a total mismatch, I dont think its worth applying unless you dont have something better to do with your time

37/n) After first assessment which was easy, it was then that I looked more closely at CVs cut and the shortlist by more than half

38/n) Now I started looking more closely at the tradeoff between domain knowldge and tech skills

39/n) Now really hard - thinking much more about the day to day. Can they set up a pipeline? Can they communciate results? What is the eagerness/enthusiam? Started thinking about the more mudane work and assessing how they would cope.

40/40) And that's how I came to the interview shortlist.

I hope that helps other hiring managers and job seekers alike get a glimpse at an n=1 sample of others process :)

@threadreaderapp please unroll