In my last well-read post talked about how LinkedIn makes it easy to find and apply for open positions, sharpen resumes, and remain competitive. It may have sounded like an advertisement for LinkedIn. It was not. It was only half the story and these tools, for all their strengths and importance, will not lead to an interview or land a job. In today’s post I will describe the situation from the other side of the table – that of the recruiting manager.

Those same tools that make it easier for a searcher to pursue opportunities make it harder for an internal recruiter to do their job. A decade ago, a gate keeper would receive a few dozen (tops!) resumes for every open position. Some would be better than others, and the best ones would likely include a recommendation from a trusted colleague. Now recruiters are receiving hundreds of applications, most containing the right skills, industry experience, and polished wordsmithery. They are all good and kind of the same. As a result, many or most applications are never viewed by human eyes.

I am applying for senior manager positions and am a competitive candidate. I have great schools, interesting job experience, and a well written CV (if you disagree, please tell me!). When I first started my search, I blindly applied for hundreds of LI positions without a single request for a phone interview. Most never even merited a “no thanks.”

Note: I am using the term “blind application” to refer to an application sent through LinkedIn without a personal connection to the hiring manager or internal recruiter. In other words, I followed the “Apply Now” path to its completion and did not take addional steps to engage the company.

So what happened? Was it ageism? Tight purse strings? A system gamed against candidates? I tested these ideas by mixing things up. I tried loosening my salary expectations and metaphorically changing my hair color. I tried customizing my resume and writing cover letters. The results were the same. The evidence is not that bias is at play, but that recruiters are not looking at or responding to individual applications.

My frustrated peers recount similar stories. The market for senior managers with technology backgrounds is tough right now, and applying for unearthed positions on LinkedIn can feel like spinning tires. This is not the fault of hiring companies. They understand the cost for senior people and do not post roles for senior managers hoping to fill them with cheaper juniors. Nor is it the fault of hiring managers. With so many strong and similar applicants, they can’t look at individual applications and must rely on other methods for selecting differentiated candidates. And finally, it is not the fault of LinkedIn. LinkedIn provides great tools for both parties – even if those tools can further complicate the process.

In my next post, I will discuss strategies for leveraging these drawbacks to get past the gate keepers. In the meantime, keep working hard and don’t take any of this personally. To bastardize the words of Sgt. Phil Esterhaus from Hill Street Blues, “Let’s stay positive out there.”