Job Description Analyzer

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when the user:

• Wants to analyze a job posting
• Asks "should I apply to this job?"
• Wants to know their match percentage for a role
• Needs help understanding job requirements
• Wants to tailor their resume for a specific position
• Mentions: "analyze this job", "am I qualified", "match score", "should I apply"

Use this BEFORE resume tailoring to ensure effort is worth it.

Core Capabilities

• Extract and categorize job requirements (must-have vs nice-to-have)
• Calculate match score between user's experience and job requirements
• Identify skill gaps and strengths
• Detect red flags in job postings
• Prioritize which experiences to highlight
• Generate resume tailoring strategy
• Create cover letter talking points
• Assess company culture fit indicators

The Strategic Problem

Most job seekers waste time on:

• Jobs they're under-qualified for (<60% match)
• Jobs they're over-qualified for (flight risk)
• Jobs with red flags (high turnover, toxic culture)
• Applying to 50+ jobs blindly hoping something sticks

Better approach:

• Apply to 10-15 jobs strategically
• Target 70-90% match jobs
• Customize deeply for each
• Higher response rate, less burnout

Analysis Process

Step 1: Extract Requirements

Break job description into categories:

Required (Must-Have)

• Education requirements
• Years of experience
• Specific technical skills
• Certifications/licenses
• Industry experience

Preferred (Nice-to-Have)

• "Bonus" skills
• Advanced certifications
• Domain expertise
• Specific tool experience

Soft Skills/Culture

• Communication style
• Work environment
• Team structure
• Company values

Step 2: Keyword Extraction

Identify three types:

Hard Skills (Technical abilities)

• Tools: Salesforce, Python, AWS, Excel
• Methodologies: Agile, Six Sigma, SDLC
• Certifications: PMP, CPA, AWS Certified

Soft Skills (Interpersonal)

• Leadership, collaboration, communication
• Problem-solving, critical thinking
• Adaptability, initiative

Industry/Domain Knowledge

• B2B SaaS, healthcare, fintech
• Enterprise vs SMB
• Regulatory knowledge (HIPAA, SOX, GDPR)

Step 3: Calculate Match Score

MATCH CALCULATION:

Required Skills:
- User has 8 out of 10 required = 80%

Preferred Skills:
- User has 3 out of 5 preferred = 60%

Overall Match:
- Weight required 70%, preferred 30%
- (80% × 0.7) + (60% × 0.3) = 74%

INTERPRETATION:
90-100% = Overqualified (may be flight risk)
75-89% = Excellent fit (apply immediately)
60-74% = Good fit (apply with strong cover letter)
50-59% = Stretch role (apply if passionate)
<50% = Under-qualified (skip unless dream job)

Step 4: Gap Analysis

For each missing requirement:

• Critical gap: Deal-breaker (don't apply)
• Major gap: Significant but addressable (mention in cover letter)
• Minor gap: Easy to learn (downplay or emphasize related skills)

Step 5: Red Flag Detection

Scan for warning signs:

Workload Red Flags:

• "Wear many hats"
• "Fast-paced environment"
• "Hit the ground running"
• "Self-starter in ambiguous situations"

Culture Red Flags:

• "Rockstar/Ninja/Guru"
• "We work hard, play hard"
• "Unlimited vacation"
• "Like a family"

Compensation Red Flags:

• "Competitive salary" (won't tell you range)
• "Equity-heavy" (low cash compensation)
• "Commission-based" (no base salary)
• "DOE" with no range

Match Score Output Format

A full worked report (score, requirement breakdown, strengths, gaps, resume strategy, cover letter points, red flags, timeline, decision) is in report-example.md next to this file. Read it only when the user asks for the full written report; the ScoutJobs flow below needs just the score and gaps.

Requirement Classification Guide

Identifying "Must Have" vs "Nice to Have"

Language indicating REQUIRED:

• "Must have..."
• "Required: X years of..."
• "You have..."
• "Essential qualifications"
• Listed under "Requirements"
• Mentioned 3+ times in description

Language indicating PREFERRED:

• "Nice to have..."
• "Bonus if you have..."
• "Preferred qualifications"
• "Ideally, you'd have..."
• "A plus if..."
• Mentioned only 1-2 times

Dealbreaker Detection

Absolute dealbreakers (don't apply):

• Required license you don't have (medical, legal, CPA)
• Required clearance you can't get
• Years of experience 50%+ below requirement
• Required degree you don't have (when stated as "required")
• Location requirement you can't meet

Not dealbreakers (apply anyway):

• Years of experience slightly below (e.g., 3 years when they want 5)
• "Preferred" degree you don't have
• Nice-to-have tools/skills you can learn
• Industry experience when you have transferable skills

Implementation Checklist

When analyzing a job:

1. ✅ Extract all requirements (required vs preferred)
2. ✅ Identify all keywords (hard skills, soft skills, industry terms)
3. ✅ Calculate match score
4. ✅ Identify strengths to emphasize
5. ✅ Identify gaps and strategies to address
6. ✅ Detect red flags
7. ✅ Create resume customization plan
8. ✅ Generate cover letter talking points
9. ✅ Research company
10. ✅ Provide application recommendation and timeline

Edge Cases

Vague Job Descriptions

• Flag as potential red flag
• Extract what keywords you can
• Recommend reaching out for clarity before applying
• Use industry standard requirements as baseline

Multiple Roles in One JD

• Identify the core role vs "other duties"
• Focus match score on primary responsibilities
• Flag scope creep concerns

Internal Postings (Already Working There)

• Different strategy - emphasize internal knowledge
• Highlight cross-team relationships
• Reference specific company initiatives

Reposted Jobs

• May indicate: Previous hire didn't work out, role expanded, or first search failed
• Worth applying, but research why it was reposted
• Check if requirements changed from original posting

ScoutJobs integration

Save the analysis as analysis.md in the application folder and summarize must-haves into scoutjobs job set <id> --tags "<comma list>". The job-fit skill uses this analysis when present.