Interviews After Application Tracking Systems (ATS)? (applying, interview, job, companies)

[Canaletto 1697]

I really want to hear from people who actually gamed the e-bot ATS systems and got interviews. Do programs like Jobvite or Preptel help you pull out the keywords and pepper your resume AND then, actually get you picked by the "system"? From what everyone says online and otherwise, your chances are phenomenally low. I wonder if anyone has ever gotten picked for interviews. I already know how bad Taleo, Brassring, Kenexa and others are. But seriously, is there any way to game them and have the e-bot give you a "score" that gets you an interview? Otherwise it's pointless to do all this data entry, play with Preptel sorting and sifting keywords, paste them and then just have it go into the black hole. Curious to hear from some warriors who got IN.

[UniGrad2015]

I've applied to companies that use Taleo or Brassring. I've gotten interviews with those companies before. My success rate is probably 1 out of 5 so far. I have never used an internal reference either. So it's completely possible.
I typically just reword the qualifications in the job post on to my resume. As long as the job pertains to you and you optimize your resume and application, it's completely possible to score an interview.

[pmelon]

A lot of companies configure the ATS software with "kick out" questions. Sometimes the questions are obvious, sometimes not. If you don't answer one question the right way, your resume will not see the light of day. So no, I personally haven't gamed the ATS software system. There are too many variables with different software platforms and company specific configuration to waste my time trying to figure out how to get past the front door.

[mcq]

I have had interviews for positions after applying through just about every ATS. In fact, I just had an on-site interview Monday for a position I applied through Taleo. I didn't game it, but took nearly a month before I heard back. I apply to positions that I am a good match to and my resume already has the keywords in place. ATS or not, I think in the current environment, most (not all) people will have a success rate of hearing back from someone less than 20% (maybe even much lower) with a cold application.