Resume

Recommendation, 2007 April 15

Editors:

Kim Bartkus

Authors:

Chuck Allen, HR-XML Consortium

Kim Bartkus, HR-XML Consortium

Kathi Dolan, Manpower

Todd Abel, Microsoft Corporation

Jorge Sanchez, Volt Information Sciences

Contributors:

Members of the Recruiting and Staffing work group

Randy Charles Morin, KBCafe.com

Abstract

This document describes HR-XML’s new Resume schema. The schema allows the capture of resume information used by hiring or staffing-related organizations.

Table of Contents

1 Overview.. 5

1.1 Specification Modifications. 5

1.2 Terminology. 5

1.2.1 Resume vs. Curriculum Vitae. 5

1.2.2 Resume vs. Candidate Profile. 6

1.2.3 Shared Components. 6

1.3 Design Requirements. 7

1.4 Scope. 7

1.4.1 Items Within the Design Scope. 7

1.4.2 Items Outside of Design Scope. 8

2 Business Use Case. 8

2.1 Data Exchange. 8

2.1.1 Roles. 8

2.1.2 Hiring Company Transaction. 9

2.1.3 Staffing Agency Transaction. 10

2.1.4 Job Board Transaction. 11

2.2 Formatted Publishing of Resumes. 11

3 Schema Design. 12

3.1 Resume. 12

3.1.1 Resume Schema Diagram.. 12

3.1.2 Resume Definitions. 12

3.1.3 StructuredXMLResume Schema Diagram.. 15

3.1.4 StructuredXMLResume Definitions. 16

3.1.5 NonXMLResume Schema Diagram.. 18

3.1.6 NonXMLResume Definitions. 18

3.1.7 Example. 19

3.2 Executive Summary. 19

3.2.1 Example. 19

3.3 Distribution Guidelines. 19

3.3.1 Schema Diagram.. 19

3.3.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 20

3.3.3 Example. 21

3.4 EmploymentHistory. 21

3.5 EducationHistory. 21

3.6 MilitaryHistory. 21

3.7 Licenses and Certifications. 22

3.7.1 Schema Diagram.. 22

3.7.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 22

3.7.3 Example. 24

3.8 Security Credentials. 24

3.8.1 Schema Diagram.. 25

3.8.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 25

3.8.3 Example. 26

3.9 Patent History. 27

3.9.1 Schema Diagram.. 28

3.9.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 28

3.9.3 Example. 30

3.10 Publication History. 30

3.10.1 Schema Diagrams. 31

3.10.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 36

3.10.3 Example. 41

3.11 Speaking Events History. 43

3.11.1 Schema Diagram.. 44

3.11.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 44

3.11.3 Example. 46

3.12 Qualifications. 47

3.13 Language. 47

3.13.1 Schema Diagram.. 48

3.13.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 48

3.13.3 Example. 49

3.14 Achievements. 49

3.14.1 Schema Diagram.. 49

3.14.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 49

3.14.3 Example. 50

3.15 Associations. 50

3.15.1 Schema Diagram.. 51

3.15.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 51

3.15.3 Example. 53

3.16 References. 53

3.16.1 Schema Diagram.. 54

3.16.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 54

3.16.3 Example. 55

3.17 Resume Additional Item.. 56

3.17.1 Schema Diagram.. 56

3.17.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 56

3.17.3 Example. 57

3.18 Staffing Supporting Materials. 58

3.18.1 Schema Diagram.. 58

3.18.2 Element and Attribute Definitions. 59

3.18.3 Example. 59

4 Implementation Considerations. 61

4.1 Country Codes. 61

4.2 Employment Recommendation or Verification. 61

4.3 Use of Competency. 61

4.4 The “Contact” in ContactInfo. 61

4.5 Anonymous Submittal 62

4.6 Volunteer Experience. 63

4.7 Data Privacy. 64

5 Appendix A – Document Version History. 64

6 Appendix B – Related Documents. 65

1 Overview

The Resume is an XML-based messaging specification that allows the transaction of resume or CV data. This schema may be used individually or within the Candidate specification.

1.1 Specification Modifications

The original resume was required to have at least one of the XMLResume elements:

1) StructuredXMLResume only

2) NonXMLResume only

3) StructuredXMLResume and NonXMLResume both (but not more than one of each)

Unfortunately, this structure caused validation errors with some parsers. Therefore, the choice between the two XMLResume elements has been removed. Now a transaction may have one XMLResume, both, or none. Although less restrictive, this backwards compatible change will correct the validation errors.

Additionally, implementers identified the need for contact data when using DistributionGuidelines. ContactMethod is now part of the DistributeTo structure.

A final change was to correct the references to SupportingMaterials. At the time the Resume schema was developed, the CPO SupportingMaterials did not exist. In the interim, a StaffingSupportingMaterials was created but the documentation referred to it as SupportingMaterials. This has been corrected.

1.2 Terminology

1.2.1 Resume vs. Curriculum Vitae

Distinctions are sometimes made between the terms “Resume” (also spelled as Résumé) and “Curriculum Vitae” (frequently abbreviated as “CV”). Distinctions between these documents are sometimes based on the length, content, and purpose of the document. A resume is frequently thought of as a summary (one or two pages) of a candidate’s skills, experience, and education. A CV may be longer and include details on academic and research experience, publications, inventions (patents), presentations, awards, honors, affiliations, and other details.

The use of the terms “Resume” and “Curriculum Vitae” or “CV” also varies based on local custom. In some jurisdictions the use of one term may be more common than the other in referring to a document containing a job seeker’s qualifications.

For purposes of this specification, the term “Resume” will be used to include both the Resume and CV document types. While the two types of documents are sometimes distinguished based on length, content, and purpose, the HR-XML Consortium Resume schema can flexibly accommodate the underlying structure for both of these document types.

1.2.2 Resume vs. Candidate Profile

A Candidate Profile may be described as a set of data pertaining to a job seeker that has been compiled and structured in a way to optimize automated matching of supply and demand for talent. Candidate profiles are created to capture overall work related preferences, skills and historical information that are not specific to a particular position. A resume, however is frequently customized to particular positions, so that the most relevant information is emphasized. There is usually a core intersection of common data between a Resume and a Candidate Profile. However, a resume can include some data not included in a corresponding Candidate Profile and vice versa. For instance, a resume may include “avocational” information (hobbies, demographic data, and personal interests) and histories of publications, patents, presentations, awards, or similar information not generally used for matching against position requirements. A resume would not typically include details on the job seeker’s work preferences and salary requirements. While a Candidate profile may exclude some of the information included in a corresponding Resume or CV, it might support the ability to link to or retrieve the full Resume/CV.

Another way that Resumes and Candidate Profiles differ is that Resumes more commonly are a “formatted” representation of job seeker qualifications. One of the goals of a job seeker in creating a Resume is to have a formatted document (paper, HTML, Flash™, Portable Document Format (PDF), or other means of online presentation). Data within a Candidate Profile may be flexibly formatted (even formatted as a “Resume”). However, formatting and display are typically not the primary reason for creating Candidate Profiles.

Resumes and Candidate Profiles also differ in the way they are created and maintained. Resumes commonly are created within word processing software or desktop office software and stored locally. In a Profile-based system, candidates are provided the ability to create and maintain a personal profile on a career website or company’s employment portal. The Candidate Profile is stored in a database, accessible through the career web site or portal by the job seeker using a password. The job seeker can login to modify and update the information on file.

A Resume can serve as a source for some of the data necessary to build a Candidate Profile, although it often has to be “manually integrated” from the Resume into the Profile. For instance, the job seeker or a recruiter keys the data from the Resume into a Web-based form. In other cases, a resume extraction tool (a piece of software that lexically parses and interprets a resume file) takes information from the Resume and populates appropriate fields within a Candidate Profile. It may not be possible to complete the Candidate Profile from the Resume. A recruiter may follow up with the job seeker in an initial screening interview or the job seeker might be asked to provide the additional information through a web-based interface. Information in a Resume may need to be interpreted or verified, through assessment tests and screenings, in building a Candidate Profile.

1.2.3 Shared Components

Many of the modules used in the Resume may also be useful in other schemas. These ‘shared components’ are stored in the CPO library and may be included in other HR-XML schemas. Examples include EmploymentHistory, PatentHistory, LicenseAndCertification, etc.

1.3 Design Requirements

The Resume schema is a combination of resume information and insertions of several shared components. Competencies, Employment History, Education History, and Military History were approved in prior specifications and are compatible with Resume 2.1. The shared schemas (Associations, License and Certification, etc.) are part of this specification but may be used within other schemas outside of Resume 2.1.

The schema provides for two types of resumes: structured and non-structured. The structured resume is defined as discrete XML elements. A non-structured (non-XML) resume may be included as a URL to the resume or an insertion of the resume text (as opposed to an attachment).

1.4 Scope

The HR-XML Consortium’s Recruiting and Staffing workgroup recognizes the need to support requirements for both Resumes and Candidate Profiles by publishing two separate specifications. This is essential for meeting the requirements of job seekers as well as the recruiting community. The Resume specification is defined in this document. A new specification for Candidate Profile will be published in the near future. The two specifications are designed to share key components, such as the Consortium’s EmploymentHistory, EducationHistory, MilitaryHistory and Competency schemas.

Although resume transactions may be used in a broad range of business cases, this specification focuses on business cases for use in the recruiting of regular and contingent workers.

This specification was developed to enable global use and therefore, may contain (optional) information that is acceptable to collect in one location and unlawful to collect in another location. It is the responsibility of the implementers to comply with the appropriate regulatory requirements for each transaction.

1.4.1 Items Within the Design Scope

Enables data interchange among:

Hiring Organizations
Staffing Companies
Candidates
Recruitment Systems Vendors
Recruitment Service Vendors
Screening Service Vendors

Resume modules include:

§ Distribution Guidelines

§ Executive Summary – This string is for bullet points or summary of the resume details.

Objective
Employment History
Educational History

§ Licenses and Certifications

§ Military History

§ Patent History

§ Publication History

§ Speaking Events History

Qualifications (Competencies 1.1)

§ Languages

§ Achievements

§ Associations – (Replaces Professional Associations which is now deprecated)

§ References

§ Security Credentials

§ Resume Additional Items

1.4.2 Items Outside of Design Scope

Resume Attachments
Job Preferences
Demographic Information
Remuneration/Compensation

2 Business Use Case

The HR-XML Consortium’s Resume specification can be used within a variety of contexts. As described in the sections that follow, the Resume schema is useful within a wide-range of data exchange scenarios. There also is significant interest in using the HR-XML Consortium’s Resume schema as a neutral file type from which a wide variety of formatted representations can be produced.

2.1 Data Exchange

2.1.1 Roles

The current Internet recruiting and staffing environment involves a diverse range of end-users and intermediaries. Because the types of end-users and intermediaries can vary significantly and may be subject to change as new staffing and business models emerge, this specification uses the following generic descriptors to identify process-compliant parties:

Staffing Supplier (SS). The agent role that submits candidates for consideration for a job or position. A job board or staffing service provider typically fills this role.
Staffing Customer (SC). The role that receives candidates either directly or through a staffing supplier. A hiring organization often would fill this role.
Candidate. An individual (job seeker) submitted to a staffing customer or a staffing supplier in response to a job or position opening.

2.1.2 Hiring Company Transaction

The Resume schema can provide a standard means of transmitting critical resume information between a candidate and a staffing customer (SC). Depending on the staffing strategy and operations of the SC, this transmission may occur in many different ways, as described in the following three examples:

· The candidate may log onto the SC’s external web site and input resume information, which would then be returned to the SC’s internal database via the Resume schema.

· A SC staffing operations may involve a 3^rd party firm that will aggregate and store applicant resumes from one or many different sources (paper, e-mail, job boards, etc). In this case, the 3^rd party firm may rely on the Resume schema to transmit resume information of pertinent resources back to the SC.

· The SC may also solicit resumes from staffing suppliers (SS). In this case, which is outlined in more detail in section 1.4.3, the SC would receive resume information transmitted by the SS via the Resume schema.

2.1.3 Staffing Agency Transaction

The following example describes the transactions between a staffing supplier (SS) and a staffing customer (SC).

The SS provides resources to the SC based on orders (requirements) submitted by the SC. The SS matches candidates to the requirements from the SC. Once a match is found the resume information is submitted to the SC. The SC determines if the candidate meets their needs and returns the information back to the SS.

The Resume schema is used during the transaction between step 3 and 4.

2.1.4 Job Board Transaction

The following example shows a transaction between an SC and a candidate by way of a job board.

In a typical job board environment, the requisition or job posting takes place on the job board site. The candidate also views the posting on the job board’s site. At that point, the candidate may submit a structured or text resume in response to a job posting. Depending on the business model or Trading Partner Agreement of the job board, staffing customers may either review resumes directly on the site (Option “a”), or the site may pass the candidate directly to the hiring organization or a third party site (Option “b”). This example does not address the aggregation or screening of resumes.

Candidate

2.2 Formatted Publishing of Resumes

Much of the HR-XML Consortium’s work has focused on enabling data interchange. However, there is particular interest in using the HR-XML Consortium’s Resume schema as a structured, archival file from which a variety of formatted representations can be produced (for example, text, .rtf, .html, html, flash™, etc.).

The development of stylesheets for formatting resumes is outside of the scope of the HR-XML Consortium’s work. However, the need to format and group resume elements for presentation was considered in the design of the HR-XML Consortium Resume schema. A variety of commercial and open-source initiatives are underway to develop tools for the creation and transformation of HR-XML resumes.

3 Schema Design

3.1 Resume

Resume information may be exchanged in structured components, as a textual document, or as a link. In addition to the resume data, transactional information may be exchanged, such as an Id to relate the resume to a posting, distribution guidelines, comments, and a revision date. An optional contact information module is included in StructuredResume but is only intended to contain information about the candidates themselves. (See the implementation guidelines towards the end of this document)

3.1.1 Resume Schema Diagram

3.1.2 Resume Definitions

Elements and Attributes [Global types listed alphabetically in following table.]	ContentModel* Data type Occurrence: Sequence \| Choice \| All (minOccurs/maxOccurs) Attributes	Definition
/ Resume	xml:lang - - ResumeId - EntityIdType - S (0/1) DistributionGuidelines - DistributionGuidelinesType - S (0/1) StructuredXMLResume - StructuredXMLResumeType - S (0/1) NonXMLResume - NonXMLResumeType - S (0/1) UserArea - [see include/import] - S (0/1)	The resume or CV of a candidate.
/ Resume/ ResumeId	- EntityIdType - S (0/1)	A unique identifier for a specific instance of a resume or CV
/ Resume/ DistributionGuidelines	- DistributionGuidelinesType - S (0/1)	Allows a person to specify guidelines for distributing the resume or profile information.
/ Resume/ StructuredXMLResume	- StructuredXMLResumeType - S (1/1)	A structured resume with discrete XML element tags.
/ Resume/ NonXMLResume	- NonXMLResumeType - S (0/1)	A section to insert the entire resume text or a link to a resume.

Global types (alphabetically listed)	ContentModel* Data type Occurrence: Sequence \| Choice \| All (minOccurs/maxOccurs) Attributes	Definition
/ [NonXMLResumeType]	TextResume - xsd:string - S (0/1) LinkToResume - xsd:string - S (0/1) SupportingMaterials - StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*) Comments - xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence) RevisionDate - AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	Globally scoped data type. See element or attribute declaration for definition.
/ [StructuredXMLResumeType]	ContactInfo - SEPContactInfoType - S (0/1) ExecutiveSummary - xsd:string - S (0/1) Objective - xsd:string - S (0/1) EmploymentHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) EducationHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) LicensesAndCertifications - [see include/import] - S (0/1) MilitaryHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) PatentHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) PublicationHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) SpeakingEventsHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) Qualifications - [complexType] - S (0/1) Languages - [complexType] - S (0/1) Achievements - [see include/import] - S (0/1) Associations - [see include/import] - S (0/1) References - [see include/import] - S (0/1) SecurityCredentials - [see include/import] - S (0/1) ResumeAdditionalItems - [complexType] - S (0/1) SupportingMaterials - StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*) ProfessionalAssociations - ProfessionalAssociationType - S (0/1) Comments - xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence) RevisionDate - AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	Globally scoped data type. See element or attribute declaration for definition.

3.1.3 StructuredXMLResume Schema Diagram

3.1.4 StructuredXMLResume Definitions

Elements and Attributes [Global types listed alphabetically in following table.]	ContentModel* Data type Occurrence: Sequence \| Choice \| All (minOccurs/maxOccurs) Attributes	Definition
/ StructuredXMLResume	- StructuredXMLResumeType - (1/1)	A structured resume with discrete XML element tags.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ ContactInfo	- SEPContactInfoType - S (0/1)	Contains information to contact a person or entity.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ ExecutiveSummary	- xsd:string - S (0/1)	A text field where the contents of the resume can be briefly summarized.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ Objective	- xsd:string - S (0/1)	The description of the job or position being sought, or information about the Human Resource's desired career path or professional objectives.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ Qualifications	QualificationSummary - xsd:string - S (0/1) Competency - [see include/import] - S (0/*)	Contains the qualifications of the human resource. This includes the skills, competencies and other applicable comments.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ Qualifications/ QualificationSummary	- xsd:string - S (0/1)	A descriptive field used to further comment on the qualifications of the Human Resource.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ Languages	Language - [see include/import] - S (1/*)	Contains information about one or more languages.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ ResumeAdditionalItems	ResumeAdditionalItem - [see include/import] - S (1/*)	Contains one or more flexible, structured containers to accommodate a wide variety of information types that might be included on a resume.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ SupportingMaterials	- StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*)	Allows the exchange of supporting information. [BusinessRule(s): Supporting materials may also include visual/audio media and binary data. ] [Example(s): A picture associated with a resume, a copy of a drivers license sent as part of a background check, proof of good health sent with a life insurance enrollment, a copy of diploma or license, or a copy of a pay stub. ]
/ StructuredXMLResume/ ProfessionalAssociations	- ProfessionalAssociationType - S (0/1)	[Deprecated – Please use Associations]
/ StructuredXMLResume/ Comments	- xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence)	Defines unstructured data for a group of elements as in Comments or Description.
/ StructuredXMLResume/ RevisionDate	- AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	The date the information was last updated.

Global types (alphabetically listed)	ContentModel* Data type Occurrence: Sequence \| Choice \| All (minOccurs/maxOccurs) Attributes	Definition
/ [SEPContactInfoType]	PersonName - [see include/import] - S (0/1) ContactMethod - ContactMethodType - S (0/*)	Globally scoped data type. See element or attribute declaration for definition.
/ [StructuredXMLResumeType]	ContactInfo - SEPContactInfoType - S (0/1) ExecutiveSummary - xsd:string - S (0/1) Objective - xsd:string - S (0/1) EmploymentHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) EducationHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) LicensesAndCertifications - [see include/import] - S (0/1) MilitaryHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) PatentHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) PublicationHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) SpeakingEventsHistory - [see include/import] - S (0/1) Qualifications - [complexType] - S (0/1) Languages - [complexType] - S (0/1) Achievements - [see include/import] - S (0/1) Associations - [see include/import] - S (0/1) References - [see include/import] - S (0/1) SecurityCredentials - [see include/import] - S (0/1) ResumeAdditionalItems - [complexType] - S (0/1) SupportingMaterials - StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*) ProfessionalAssociations - ProfessionalAssociationType - S (0/1) Comments - xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence) RevisionDate - AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	Globally scoped data type. See element or attribute declaration for definition.

3.1.5 NonXMLResume Schema Diagram

3.1.6 NonXMLResume Definitions

Elements and Attributes [Global types listed alphabetically in following table.]	ContentModel* Data type Occurrence: Sequence \| Choice \| All (minOccurs/maxOccurs) Attributes	Definition
/ NonXMLResume	NonXMLResumeType - (1/1) TextResume - xsd:string - S (0/1) LinkToResume - xsd:string - S (0/1) SupportingMaterials - StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*) Comments - xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence) RevisionDate - AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	A section to insert the entire resume text or a link to a resume.
/ NonXMLResume/ TextResume	- xsd:string - S (0/1)	The contents or text of a resume in an unstructured (and possibly un-formatted) form
/ NonXMLResume/ LinkToResume	- xsd:string - S (0/1)	Deprecated. Recommend using Supporting Materials. A link or URL to the resume.
/ NonXMLResume/ SupportingMaterials	- StaffingSupportingMaterialsType - S (0/*)	Allows the exchange of supporting resume information.
/ NonXMLResume/ Comments	- xsd:string - (see Comments group occurrence)	Defines unstructured data for a group of elements as in Comments or Description.
/ NonXMLResume/ RevisionDate	- AnyDateTimeNkType - S (0/1)	The date the information was last updated.