Dive Brief:

• Of the 22% of job applicants who understand applicant tracking systems (ATS), 88% have optimized their resumes to better their chances of getting a job, according to a new study by TribePad of more than 1,000 U.K.-based workers and job seekers.
• To optimize their resumes, some candidates are doctoring their listed skills and lying about experience.

• Forty-two percent of respondents said they believe automation within the job application process may lead to poor candidate selection. 

Dive Insight:

Recruiting is a task-heavy space made lighter by automation. But automation may subtract more than to-do list items from the hiring process. As respondents in the TribePad survey highlighted, there is a fear that automated processes may cause poor candidate selection.

There have been several recent developments in recruiting tech tools designed to eliminate bias, however. HackerRank introduced a tool that hides applicants' names and identities in the screening process. And researchers at Penn State University and Columbia University created an artificial intelligence tool that detects discrimination based on protected characteristics such as race and gender in hiring and other areas.

Still, candidates who doctor their resumes may make worse the problem of poor candidate selection. And they may inadvertently doom their chances by lying; about half of hiring managers said a resume lie would cost a candidate a shot at a job, according to a survey from TopResume. The other half said the type of lie would dictate their reactions. Lying, the survey revealed, is fairly common from job seekers; 78% of respondents said they had seen a resume lie, with many citing lies about academic degrees, criminal history, certifications and licenses, work experience, and technical skills and proficiencies. Hiring pros may not have much room to judge, however. HR professionals were 10% more likely to admit to lying on a resume or during an interview than workers in other areas, a Comparably study found.