Workers edit resumes for political gain

Job candidates add and delete politically polarizing language from resumes before and after presidential elections to show alignment with employers who share their views.

Companies favor ideologically aligned candidates

Businesses often choose applicants who appear politically aligned over others with stronger skills and experience, according to research by Harvard Business School Professor Joseph Pacelli.

Quality suffers when politics drive hiring

Companies chasing current political trends can end up hiring less qualified workers, sacrificing quality for ideological alignment, Pacelli says.

“companies chasing the current political trend can actually end up hiring potentially less qualified workers. The companies are sacrificing quality for that alignment.”

Study tracked nearly three million workers

Researchers analyzed two point nine million workers at U.S. public firms who revised job descriptions between two thousand eighteen and two thousand twenty-five, covering periods around the two thousand twenty and two thousand twenty-four elections.

ESG language surged after Biden's election

In the month Biden was elected, about thirty-five thousand workers added ESG or DEI language to past job descriptions. After Trump's two thousand twenty-four win, about twelve thousand deleted this language.

Corporate ESG commitments followed elections

First-time ESG commitments on earnings calls peaked at roughly two hundred thirty firms in the third quarter of two thousand twenty, just before Biden won.

Resume tweaks improved hiring odds

Workers who added ESG language were about two point six percentage points more likely to change employers the following year and slightly more likely to be promoted internally.

But hired workers were less qualified

Among workers who changed employers after adding ESG language, predicted job fit was about two to three percent below average. Fit mattered about ten percent less in hiring decisions when candidates had added ESG language.

Pacelli urges employers to refocus on skills

Employers should not depend too heavily on algorithms to screen resumes, prioritize experience and skills, and deemphasize political leanings when hiring, Pacelli advises.

“Experience and skills are the core competencies that workers need to do the job, right? Pay more attention to them.”

Political swings will change hiring priorities

Companies need to remember that political swings will occur and issues important today may be completely gone tomorrow. Hire workers for the long haul, not for current political alignment.

“Issues important today may be completely gone tomorrow. It's important that you're hiring a worker for the long haul.”