Hiring managers don’t read résumés. They scan them. And they decide—often in seven seconds or less —whether to keep going or move on. If beating ATS filters is your first hurdle, passing the 7-second scan test  is the real gatekeeper. Most résumés fail here—not because the candidate isn’t qualified, but because the résumé doesn’t communicate value fast enough. There is one factor that consistently separates résumés that get read from those that get skipped: The opening statem