Riia O’Donnell* says new data reveal women are underselling their talents and abilities in their résumés and job searches.
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Based on data accumulated by job search engine Adzuna’s résumé service, ValueMyResume, women consistently “diminish their talents and abilities by perpetually omitting valuable information about their core skills, and fail to acknowledge key achievements” on their résumés.
Women fail to promote soft skills like time-management and leadership on their résumés, according to Adzuna.
They also leave professional achievements off their résumés, making it more difficult for them to compete for high-paying jobs in particular.
The data suggests women are less informed about their value in the market, Adzuna said; women submit only 31 per cent of résumés to its website, while men submit the other 69 per cent.
The report found women make up only 11 per cent of workers who make more than $100,000.
The findings revealed by Adzuna track with previous research.
A recent study from LinkedIn found women are 14 per cent less likely to apply for a job after viewing it than were men, signalling their reluctance to go after jobs for which they may not be fully qualified.
But female job seekers aren’t the only ones guilty of selling themselves short.
A study of gender-biased language in résumés and recommendation letters showed the way women describe themselves and the way supervisors describe women discredit women’s professional capabilities.
As employers move to add more women to their ranks, leaders — and anyone in hiring, especially — may need to consider how they perceive and talk about women and how women describe themselves.
Of course, it’s also important that employers review their compensation practices as they work toward better inclusivity and equity between the sexes.
The pressure to resolve gender pay equity continues as more light is shone on the subject.
As employers look for ways to correct inequalities, some predict it could take more than 100 years to get to parity.
Adding to the problem, the allocation of bonuses appears to also be tipped against women in the workplace.
Employers who voluntarily audit their compensation practices are often surprised to find how wide the gaps can be.
For some the gap is even wider than they previously thought.
* Riia O’Donnell is a HR professional with experience in every discipline of the field and a contributor to HR Dive.
This article first appeared at www.hrdive.com.
