I recently went through an exercise that was more revealing than I expected.

I rebuilt my resume with the explicit goal of beating an ATS system.

In the process, my ATS score moved from 61 to 93.

That shift isn’t about ego. It’s about understanding the reality of how hiring actually works today.

The uncomfortable truth is this: most companies don’t “read” your resume — a machine does. Before a human ever sees your experience, your ideas, or your impact, an algorithm has already made a judgment.

Left to my own devices, my resume reads like my career actually unfolded — messy in places, creative in others, nonlinear, and driven by building things rather than climbing ladders. It reads like someone who has started companies, experimented with platforms, built communities, and cared more about outcomes than titles.

In other words, it reads like me.

But that version of “me” does not perform well inside a filtering system that values structure, pattern matching, and keyword alignment over nuance and context.

So I adapted — not because I believe the system is right, but because I understand how it works.

“We judge others on their actions. We judge ourselves on our intentions.”

Years ago, I interviewed Chris Widener on my podcast. He said something that has stuck with me ever since:
“We judge others on their actions. We judge ourselves on our intentions.”

That line perfectly captures the tension of modern hiring.

My intention is straightforward: share my story, connect with the right opportunity, and contribute meaningfully to a company that actually understands how marketing works today.

But my actions on paper — the words, formatting, and structure of my resume — are what determine whether I even get a conversation.

If my resume fails the filter, my intentions are irrelevant. My experience is irrelevant. My results are irrelevant. My track record of building real things is irrelevant.

So I treated my resume like any other strategic problem: identify the constraint, and design around it.

Why I Used a Tool — and Why That Matters

I’m a CMO.

That role is not about doing every task myself. It’s about seeing the bigger picture, setting a direction, and assembling the right people, tools, and technologies to execute.

A good CMO is less of a solo operator and more of an orchestrator.

Reworking my resume through this lens wasn’t a confession that I “needed help.” It was simply how I operate professionally:
• Recognize the bottleneck (ATS screening).
• Find the most effective tool to address it.
• Optimize for results, not pride.

• Move faster than traditional processes would allow.

What could have taken weeks with a traditional resume consultant — and cost thousands of dollars — took hours. It was iterative, practical, and outcome-driven.

That’s exactly how I approach marketing challenges inside organizations.

What the New Version of My Resume Reveals

Beyond the improved score, the process forced me to be clearer about what I actually do.

My resume now better reflects:
• Building platforms instead of campaigns
• Designing systems instead of isolated tactics
• Growing through community rather than paid acquisition alone
• Creating real monetization pathways rather than chasing vanity metrics
• Delivering measurable traction rather than theoretical strategy

It makes more explicit that I haven’t just “run marketing teams” — I’ve built engines that help people tell their stories, grow their audiences, and benefit from the platforms they participate in.

That thread runs through everything I’ve built, from:
• Only Fans Insider Magazine
• Open To Work Social
• Sxgram
• GetPRx

• Dezignwall

• The Realtor Magazine

• The Live Broadcast Network

• Scan Unlock

• Scavenger Hunt

• Design Talk Live

• Let's Talk Breast Health with Talia Maddock

• Jennifer Farrell's Design Hot Seat

• LIVE with Angie Everhart

• A Student's Perspective

• Startup Job Fair

• Hospitality Roadshow

• The 3ft Project

• Morning Wakeup Call

• Design Porn

• Ignite Business Insider

• One Bite Foodie

• Design Tank

• Trade Show Preview

• TISEtalks

• TISEtv

• In-Home Shopping Streamed LIVE on Facebook

• etc.

All of these projects are rooted in the same philosophy: Customer-Centric Marketing — designing businesses where users gain tangible value first, and growth follows naturally.

What Companies Get Wrong About Hiring CMOs

Here’s where I’m going to be direct.

Too many companies hire CMOs based on prestige rather than capability.

They over-index on things like:
• Elite degrees
• Big-name brands on a resume
• Linear, “safe” career paths

• Traditional playbooks that worked ten years ago

Those signals may look impressive — but they don’t necessarily predict whether someone can actually build something new.

What companies should prioritize instead:
• Real experience building from zero
• Comfort navigating uncertainty
• Evidence of original thinking
• The ability to design systems, not just manage campaigns
• Leaders who practice what they preach

If a company wants a CMO who understands modern marketing, they should look for someone who has actually created platforms, communities, and businesses — not just optimized budgets inside established brands.

The Part That Really Matters

If my resume gets me through the filter, that’s great. It clears the first hurdle.

But the interview is where the real evaluation happens — for both sides.

That’s where I can talk about strategy, philosophy, and real-world impact rather than keywords and formatting. It’s also where I determine whether a company truly understands marketing as infrastructure rather than just advertising spend.

Because my goal isn’t simply to land a role.

My goal is to find alignment — with leadership, with culture, and with how a company thinks about growth.

Once we’re face to face, I’m confident I’ll be judged not by an algorithm, but by the substance of my thinking, my experience, and my ability to create value.