So, essentially the company that was hiring (KeepSafe), allowed applicants to submit highly flexible cover letters, and then they actually read the cover letters.
It would be great if the majority of companies used both the resume and the cover letter effectively. It feels like most companies that require a cover letter only do so to screen out the laziest 10% who can't be bothered to write up a generic 1 page essay filled with ass-kissing and vague jargon.
The cover letter is just a relic from the olden days when the application was slower and more formal. There were less applicants for each position so HR probably had more time to read/screen.
This study presents an interesting alternative: Let people submit some text along with their resume on any topic of any length, and see how their personality comes through in the writing. Probably wouldn't work extremely well at a large company, but it seems like it served KeepSafe quite well.
like the above commented, people would game the text, hire coaches, etc. I don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with the cover letter / resume process. i just don think companies use resources properly at hand.
I am biased, i think most HR are useless and most tech people aren't great at picking candidates either. they seem to have their own biases that they cant get over (for example: putting too much weight on technical skills and none on soft skills).
honestly, if i were a company i'd send select employees to school. either take classes or better yet teach a class. you'd get a semester long interview process and the employee would get something out of it.
It would be great if the majority of companies used both the resume and the cover letter effectively. It feels like most companies that require a cover letter only do so to screen out the laziest 10% who can't be bothered to write up a generic 1 page essay filled with ass-kissing and vague jargon.
The cover letter is just a relic from the olden days when the application was slower and more formal. There were less applicants for each position so HR probably had more time to read/screen.
This study presents an interesting alternative: Let people submit some text along with their resume on any topic of any length, and see how their personality comes through in the writing. Probably wouldn't work extremely well at a large company, but it seems like it served KeepSafe quite well.