Diagnose resume problems for a specific job: the 5-minute method

Generic resume reviews miss the JD-specific problems. Here is a 5-minute method to diagnose your resume against one job posting.

Generic résumé reviews catch generic problems. The problems that actually get you rejected are JD-specific — meaning a résumé that’s perfect for one role can be a hard reject for another.

To diagnose against one specific job, run through these four checks.

Check 1 — Seniority axis

  • Read your most recent title.
  • Read the JD level cues (“IC3,” “mid-level,” “no direct reports,” “individual contributor”).
  • Are they at the same altitude? If not, seniority mismatch.

Check 2 — Execution-verb density

  • Count execution verbs (ship, write, deploy) in your most recent role’s first 5 bullets.
  • Count execution verbs in the JD’s “you will” section.
  • Are densities close? If your résumé is strategic-flavored and the JD is execution-flavored, you fail the verb test.

Check 3 — Relevance / domain

  • Read your most recent role’s domain. Read the JD’s domain.
  • Match? If “B2C consumer mobility” → “B2B fintech,” you have a domain misread to address.

Check 4 — Tacit disqualifiers

  • Read the JD’s “about the team” / reporting structure / team size lines.
  • Does your résumé contradict those implications? If so, tacit disqualifier.

Or skip the manual check

Run a diagnostic. Two free runs. The output is the same four-axis read with evidence — and it doesn’t ask you to count verbs yourself.