How Top Recruiters Really Use Your Resume Data: Insights from Recruiter, Edward Rodriguez

In our latest Wellfound "Ask a Recruiter" series, we had the pleasure of hosting Edward Rodriguez, a global talent acquisition expert with eight years of experience building teams at innovative companies, including Celonis, Rhino, LeafLink, and multiple tech startups. With certifications in talent sourcing, data-driven storytelling, and as a licensed project recruiter, Edward has established himself as a leader in strategic talent acquisition.

Watch the full video of the Q&A here:

Key Takeaways from Edward's Q&A Session

The Data Points Recruiters Actually Look At

"I would say that it really depends on the role," Edward explains. "For example, a go-to-market role as an account executive will be very different from a software engineer."

When reviewing resumes, Edward looks for:

Role-specific metrics: Sales professionals should highlight achievement against targets, while engineers should focus on languages and technologies used
Hard skills: These are more important initially than data points, as Edward notes, "The reality about the data points within the resume at the end of the day is that a recruiter doesn't know if that's true or not. That will be investigated throughout the interview process."
Clear experience alignment: For example, if it's a sales role, explicitly state if you're a "hunter" acquiring new accounts versus a "farmer" nurturing existing relationships.

The Story Behind Your Numbers

While quantifiable achievements can set you apart, Edward emphasizes the importance of being able to substantiate them: "If you're going to say, for example, on the account executive side, you have reached your target 150% every year that you've worked at X company... you're going to have to speak to me and then a hiring manager about that specifically."

This points to an essential job search strategy: only include metrics you can thoroughly explain.

As Edward puts it, "Anything that you're going to put on your resume that is quantifiable, make sure that it is something that you're completely comfortable talking about, not just with the recruiter, but even beyond that."

Standing Out in a Crowded Applicant Pool

With hundreds of applications for single positions, how can you ensure yours gets noticed? Edward's advice is clear: be proactive after applying.

"If you apply to a role and it's something that you're really passionate about and something that you know you would 100% be a very strong candidate for, I would suggest that anyone in this position reach out to the recruiter, reach out to every single recruiter that works at that company, reach out to folks that you think would be on that team, reach out to the hiring manager."

This approach demonstrates genuine interest and commitment. "It really shows everyone that this person really wants to be here, really wants to work at X company," Edward explains. He shared a personal example where a candidate from an impressive company reached out directly on LinkedIn: "Whoa, who is this person? I have a quick chat with them. They tell me that they applied to X role and I'm like, you seem like you would be a great fit. Let's get on the phone."

The key insight: Your resume isn't your whole story. As Edward notes, "You're trying to make your experience as concise and relatable as possible to the person that is hiring. But at the end of the day, there could be a few points on your resume that aren't, that you never really thought about as standout things."

Optimizing for ATS Systems

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) play a crucial role in filtering candidates. Edward recommends:

Use readable PDFs: "Make sure that you're applying with a readable PDF and run it through something even like ChatGPT to make sure that everything on the resume is readable."
Mirror job description language: "The keywords that you need to make sure are on your resume for that given role are things to be found in the job description. If in the job description, a certain company calls something a certain way, you want to make sure that you're changing the wording on your resume."
Highlight technical skills clearly: "Make sure that's very clear as part of your skills in a skills section of your resume, but also make sure that that's very clear on each section of your experience."

Signaling Cultural Fit Beyond Technical Qualifications

When asked what indicates a candidate might be a good cultural fit versus just technically qualified, Edward pointed to mission statements at the top of resumes.

"If you're an account executive at a Salesforce and you've been a farmer for the last two years, but you have experienced hunting and you want to make a bigger impact... if you're going to go through the motions of doing that, it makes it more appealing for me to have the conversation."

This applies equally when moving from startup to corporate environments. The key is to "explain to me why. Why do you want to do that? Why is that so appealing to you? And make sure that that's clear in the first thing that I see about you."

Surprisingly, Edward doesn't spend much time on cover letters: "A lot of the time it's very arbitrary, and it is just something that they have, almost like a template that they're using per company. I really more care about what's on your resume."

How Experience Is Measured: Quality Over Quantity

For candidates with less traditional experience, Edward focuses on impact rather than time: "One year at one place can mean one thing, and five years at another place can mean the same thing."

He shared his personal experience: "When I was at Celonis, my first two years there, I learned more in two years in that first two years there than I've learned in my entire career."

The key is being able to articulate this condensed experience: "You're not going to be able to really tell that story in your resume fully. You're going to need to have these types of conversations."

How Data-Driven Recruiting Has Changed Candidate Evaluation

Data has transformed how recruiters identify and assess talent pools, particularly in the post-COVID era of remote work. Edward shared a powerful example where data-driven location analysis completely changed a hiring strategy:

"We ended up pulling things like LinkedIn's talent mapping to really see where the pool of candidates actually exists that fit this profile. We found out that outside of New York, Chicago had a very big presence... it was an untapped pool that we hadn't even sent a message to a single candidate there."

The result: "We hired 30 people within the first three to four months," from a location they wouldn't have considered without data analysis.

This evolution benefits candidates too: "It's really making things a lot more flexible for the candidate at the end of the day."

Signals That Someone Might Be Open to New Opportunities

When sourcing passive candidates, Edward looks at tenure as a primary indicator: "The years of experience at their current employer. If they're at a startup company, I would say like two, two and a half years. That's really the point where most people start to look elsewhere."

For larger companies, he estimates the timeline extends to "closer to that three and a half, like four year mark."

Stagnation in a role is another sign: "If someone's been at a company for longer than that, that has been pretty stagnant in their role, it's another indicator as well."

Avoid These Job Search Mistakes

Edward shared two common mistakes candidates make:

Unrealistic salary expectations: "Don't just put the highest number in that band. Just don't do it. Be realistic. We're going to get in the conversation. I'm going to look at your profile. I'm going to roughly know how much you're making."
Overplaying negotiations: "Don't think that you know more about this than we do... You're not going to win in the sense of you're not going to outdo me in this negotiating situation because I do this for my job and you don't."

He cautions that excessive demands can backfire: "If you're going to then negotiate to get way more than what I offered you, it's a bad signal to me. I'm then going to tell the hiring managers and they might change their mind."

Edward's Favorite Interview Question

"What is going to get you out of bed in the morning? Like, what is really going to get you pumped to get up and either log into your computer, go to work, whatever it may be."

Edward asks this question first because "their answer is extremely telling." It quickly reveals alignment between candidate motivations and company reality: "I can basically save myself time, save them time if we are not aligned from the get-go."

He prefers this approach over asking why someone wants to leave their current position: "It's one thing for someone to say, 'I'm looking to leave my ex-employer because of the work-life balance.' Great, that's one thing that is on the checklist. But tell me why, outside of that, like what's gonna get you excited?"

By approaching your job search with a data-informed strategy — optimizing your resume for ATS systems, being proactive after applying, articulating your experience effectively, and understanding what truly motivates you — you'll be better positioned to stand out in today's competitive market.

This article summarizes key points from Wellfound's 'Ask a Recruiter' Q&A episode featuring Edward Rodriguez, Talent Acquisition Expert. To find out more candidate tips, check out other 'Ask a Recruiter' sessions on the YouTube playlist here.