Founder Interview With Ezra Rose, Beat the Bots Résumé Services
Photo Credit: Beat the Bots Résumé Services
Ezra Rose, the Founder of Beat the Bots Résumé Services, has carved out a unique niche in the career coaching and résumé writing industry since its inception in 2023. His journey to starting Beat the Bots Résumé Services was shaped by his own experiences navigating the job market as a gay and transgender veteran transitioning back to civilian life. Despite submitting over 100 applications, Ezra didn't receive a single call back, and it wasn’t until years later that he learned his résumé's formatting was the root of the problem. This pivotal moment not only helped him land a job within a week but it also sparked the inspiration behind Beat the Bots, which would help people secure employment, thrive in their roles, and make informed decisions about their careers.
During the interview, Ezra shared deeper insights into the origin story behind Beat the Bots, describing how his transformative realization about résumé formatting not only altered his own career path but also shed light on the systemic barriers faced by LGBTQ+ individuals and other marginalized groups. By opening up about his journey, Ezra hopes to encourage others to advocate for themselves and recognize one's worth in the job market. His commitment to this mission reflects both his personal resilience and his desire to offer guidance and hope to those navigating similar challenges.
Can you walk us through your professional journey and how you got to where you are today?
I had my 'first career' in the Navy. As a part of the standard separation process when transitioning from the Navy back to civilian life, you’re required to attend a class where you are taught how to be a civilian, which includes résumé writing. When I got out, I struggled to find work even after submitting over 100 applications. I never got a single call back. I went from working in an office to suddenly needing to take random physically demanding jobs to make ends meet, which was hard for someone with some disabilities.
It wasn't until I completed my undergrad that I read a Harvard study called 'Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent' and realized that the résumé formatting I had been taught as part of that separation class was what had kept me underemployed and broke for years. After I fixed my formatting, I started receiving a bunch of calls back from employers and was able to land a good job I was qualified for within a week. It was like whiplash and came with both a lot of exhilaration and also anger at the systems in place that had kept me financially insecure.
This struggle, combined with my personal experiences as a gay and trans man navigating the workforce, sparked the idea for my company. I wanted to create a space that not only rewrites résumés but truly empowers people, particularly in the LGBTQ+ community, to advocate for themselves and find fulfilling work. My mission is to provide the kind of support and guidance I wish I had, helping others overcome the systemic barriers that kept me financially insecure for too long.
What inspired you to offer the services you provide?
I realized that not only veterans were impacted by bad résumé formatting advice. I met one of my now best friends at a support group at my local LGBTQ+ community center, and he encouraged me to share my knowledge. I started offering to fix people's résumés for free because the center didn't provide that training yet. At first, I thought that surely my story was a fluke. Sure enough, I was helping people who were highly discouraged, and often in poverty, land interviews with legitimate employers. That felt really good. I decided that I could provide education full-time and help make that knowledge accessible and affordable, and even address specific concerns of the community that few people in the career development industry even know or care about.
What is one of the biggest challenges you have faced in your journey as a service provider, and what did you do to overcome this?
At first I didn't want to be seen as a queer business because of internal conflicts that I needed to unpack and past experiences of being doxxed. This fear stemmed from my time in Texas, where my personal information was uploaded to a far-right website. So the thought of putting my face on my brand and advertising myself in queer spaces was scary, considering the targeted nature of our community.
Despite these challenges, I ended up joining my LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce, networking with local nonprofits that shared my vision, attending Small Business Development Center (SBDC) mentorship meetings and classes, and even just asking friends for their contacts.
“Through this process, I learned that our community wants to see us succeed, so putting yourself out there is crucial. We can all uplift each other.”
It was a journey of overcoming personal fears and learning to value my experiences and the niche market I could serve.
If you could give one piece of advice to future LGBTQ+ service providers within your field, what would it be?
Don't be afraid to be seen as a queer brand. It’s scary out there. I get it, speaking as someone who has been doxxed, but the LGBTQ+ community is strong. We hold a lot of economic power, especially when we choose to spend our money with queer business owners or companies that support us. Together, we can create a more inclusive economy.
Quite a few of the clients I work with are a part of the LGBTQ+ community and they often prioritize finding workplaces that uphold ethical standards for both people and the environment. When we choose to be ethical consumers and vote with our dollars, it helps to create fair world.
How does being openly a part of the LGBTQ+ community inspire or impact your business?
Being gay and trans has given me first-hand insight into how to navigate getting, keeping, and leaving jobs, as well as my rights as a worker. There are a lot of intersections of identity that impact a person's ability to participate in both society and the workforce. So a big part of what we do is educate and empower people to advocate for themselves. Many résumé services stick to a traditional, white-collar approach, ignoring the unique challenges our community can face. They typically will send you a document and call it done, but we pass on community and self-advocacy knowledge in our eBook guides and through coaching. We address the reality of workplace discrimination and the importance of being a 'defensive driver' in one's career. For example, I’ve had clients wondering how to navigate gender transition in the workplace and based on my own experience I can tell them exactly how to do it and what not to do.
Our goal is to equip our clients with the tools they need not just to land a job, but to thrive in their roles and make informed decisions about their careers. We educate them on interviewing techniques, negotiation strategies, how to advocate for themselves, how to create a paper trail, how to prove they have been laid off, etc.
“We understand that most of our community member's life journeys and needs are going to be different because of the society that we live in so our end goal is to help facilitate queer economic liberation.”
Photo Credit: Beat the Bots Résumé Services
What brands or services by LGBTQ+ founders are your go-to's and why?
I love FOLX Health! I had some pretty negative experiences at my local VA the last few years trying to get the healthcare that I needed. Switching to FOLX Health was a breath of fresh air. They have been affordable, exceedingly knowledgeable, and professional.
Who is your favorite LGBTQ+ celebrity and why?
I think everyone should read James Baldwin, as his writings still ring painfully true today. For living celebrities, I would love to meet Laverne Cox. I think she is the epitome of intelligence and class. I loved seeing her speak in the documentary Disclosure.
Can you share one fun or unusual fact about yourself?
I'm a big amateur entomologist. I love digging into really dense studies about all of the natural world, but insects have a big place in my heart. You can contribute to citizenship science and conservation by uploading your findings (for all living things, not just bugs!) to a free app called iNaturalist. My favorite insect is the 17-year cicada, Magicicada septendecim. Imagine waiting that long to emerge, fully transformed!
