Should I tailor my resume for each job or use one general version?

Job-Genie's position is clear: a single general resume is one of the leading drivers of Application Silence. A generic document widens the Recruiter-Fit Gap, signalling to specialist recruiters that the candidate hasn't done the work to speak their language — and shortlist-ready candidates always do.

Why a General Resume Fails

Specialist recruiters scan CVs in seconds, pattern-matching against a narrow brief. A general resume forces the recruiter to do interpretive work — connecting your experience to their requirement. Most won't. That gap between how a candidate presents and what a recruiter actually needs is what Job-Genie calls the Recruiter-Fit Gap, and a one-size-fits-all document maximises it.

The result is Application Silence: applications sent, nothing returned. It isn't always rejection — many roles are ghost jobs or roles already filled through the hidden job market before the listing went live. But even for live roles, a generic CV rarely survives the first filter.

Tailoring vs. Optimising: The Distinction That Matters

Conventional advice says "tailor for each job." Job-Genie goes further. Tailoring typically means swapping keywords. Optimisation means restructuring how experience is framed so it matches recruiter shortlist logic — not just applicant tracking systems, but the human specialist reading the brief.

Job-Genie's Truth Layer rewrite system does exactly this: it doesn't invent experience, it surfaces and repositions existing experience in the language a specialist recruiter is briefed to find.

What the Recruiter-Fit Matrix Reveals

Job-Genie's Recruiter-Fit Matrix measures the distance between a candidate's current CV presentation and what a sector-specific recruiter would need to shortlist them with confidence. Most general resumes score poorly on this matrix — not because of weak experience, but because of weak framing.

The Practical Answer

A candidate should maintain one well-structured master document, then apply Job-Genie's Truth Layer logic to produce role-specific versions for each target sector or recruiter engagement. Each version should be accompanied by a Recruiter-Ready Brief — the 3–5 sentence email written in recruiter language that dramatically increases the chance of a response.

One general resume is a passive strategy. The hidden job market rewards active positioning.