IDENTIFYING CANDIDATES FOR JOB OPENINGS USING A SCORING FUNCTION BASED ON FEATURES IN RESUMES AND JOB DESCRIPTIONS
A computer-based method, and computer system, for matching candidates with job openings. The technology more particularly relates to methods of providing a candidate with a score for a particular job opening, where the score is derived from a comparison of features in the candidate's resume with job features in a description of the job opening, as well as use of external data gathered from other sources and based on information contained in the candidate's resume and/or in the description of the job opening. Particular features are weighted to take account of their significance in matching candidates to job openings in a statistical survey of such matching. The technology further provides for notifying employers that one or more high scoring candidates have been identified.
1 . A method comprising:
receiving a resume of a candidate;
receiving a job opening provided by an employer;
identifying a plurality of job features in the job opening;
identifying a plurality of candidate features in the resume; and
calculating, using the processor, a suitability score for the job opening based on the plurality of candidate features and the plurality of job features.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
calculating a feature score for each candidate feature in the plurality of candidate features by calculating an overlap between the candidate feature and a corresponding job feature in the plurality of job features;
multiplying the feature score for each candidate feature in the plurality of candidate features by a coefficient value derived a statistical analysis of sample resumes and sample job descriptions; and
wherein the calculation of the suitability score is further based on combining the feature score for each candidate feature in the plurality of candidate features.
3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving information about the candidate from a social media source; and
wherein the identification of the plurality of candidate features is further based on the received information.
4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold.
5 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
determining a preferred threshold, wherein the preferred threshold is higher than the first threshold; and
transmitting an immediate notification of the resume to the employer if the suitability score exceeds the preferred threshold.
6 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
transmitting a notification to the candidate when the suitability score exceeds a second threshold.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the resume has an associated tag indicating a preferred job type for the candidate, the method further comprising:
transmitting a notification to the candidate when the suitability score exceeds a second threshold and the preferred job type corresponds to one of the plurality of job features in the job opening.
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the employer has identified a candidate feature, the method further comprising:
transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold and the identified candidate feature is present in the plurality of candidate features of the resume.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the employer has identified a candidate feature, the method further comprising:
transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold and the identified candidate feature is absent in the plurality of candidate features of the resume.
10 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining an interest level for the candidate based on behaviors by the candidate; and
transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold and the interest level exceeds an interest threshold.
11 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining a at least one preference for the employer, wherein the at least one preference includes at least one candidate feature; and
transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold and the at least one candidate feature is present in the plurality of candidate features of the resume.
12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the at least one preference for the employer is determined by statistical analysis of previous decisions by the employer on candidates for previous job openings.
13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the suitability score is further based on salary information about the positions the candidate has previously held.
14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the suitability score is further based on ranking information about the schools that the candidate attended.
15 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
presenting a skill to the employer, the skill being based on similar job descriptions submitted by the employer;
receiving a relative importance rating for the skill from the employer; and
wherein the suitability score is further based on the relative importance rating for the skill.
16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein each feature of the plurality of candidate features is selected from the group consisting of:
job title for each of one or more jobs previously held by the candidate;
length of time the candidate held each of one or more previous jobs;
subject matter of each of one or more qualifications obtained by the candidate;
job title of most recent job held by candidate;
whether the candidate has previously held a management position;
ranking of school attended;
highest educational level attained by candidate; and
number of commonly misspelled words in the resume.
17 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the suitability score is calculated according to a metric selected from the group consisting of:
cosine overlap;
Tanimoto coefficient;
Jaccard coefficient;
Dice coefficient; and
Tversky index.
18 . A system comprising:
a first input connection that receives a resume from a candidate;
a second input connection that receives a job opening from an employer;
a memory to store the resume and the job opening; and
one or more processors configured with instructions to:
identifying a plurality of job features in the job opening;
identifying a plurality of candidate features in the resume; and
calculating, using the processor, a suitability score for the job opening based on the plurality of candidate features and the plurality of job features.
19 . The system of claim 18 , further comprising a communication device for transmitting a notification to the employer when the suitability score exceeds a first threshold.
20 . The system of claim 19 , further comprising the communication device transmitting a notification to the candidate when the suitability score exceeds a second threshold.