How to write a client submittal that gets interviews

A great candidate with a bad submittal gets passed over. A good candidate with a strong submittal gets an interview. The submittal is your sales pitch — and most recruiters phone it in.

What hiring managers actually read

They don't read your email. They skim. You have about 4 seconds to prove this candidate is worth their time. That means:

• 4-5 bullet points. Not paragraphs. Not "I'm pleased to present." Bullets.
• Bold headline labels. The hiring manager reads the bold text first. If the bold text sells it, they read the detail.
• Specific facts. "Built data pipelines processing 2M events daily at CenterPoint Energy" beats "experienced in data engineering."

The format that works

Each bullet follows this structure:

[Specific skill/strength + years/tools] — [One sentence with real metrics from the resume]

Example:

Telematics and Fleet Data Analytics (6+ years) — Built real-time vehicle telemetry pipelines processing 2M+ data points daily at Nikola Corporation using Azure and Databricks.

The bold label is the headline the hiring manager skims. The sentence after the dash is the proof.

What to leave out

The candidate's name. The hiring manager knows who it is from the email subject line.

Pronouns. No "he" or "she." Use action verbs: "Built," "Led," "Managed," "Delivered."

JD references. Don't say "aligns with your requirements" or "matches the job description." Just state the skills. The hiring manager knows their own JD.

Filler. "Strong communicator," "team player," "passionate about technology" — these phrases signal that you don't have anything real to say.

The bill rate line

Always include it. Format: $85/hr W2 or $80-$90/hr range. Don't make the hiring manager ask.

Template

Name: [Candidate Name] Position: [Role Title] Bill Rate: $XX/hr Interview Availability: [Available this week / 2 weeks notice] Start Date: [Available immediately / Date]

• [Specific Headline] — [Proof sentence with metrics]
• [Specific Headline] — [Proof sentence with metrics]
• [Specific Headline] — [Proof sentence with metrics]
• [Specific Headline] — [Rate, availability, or honest differentiator]

That's it. Four bullets, the details, done. The hiring manager gets everything they need in 10 seconds.

Generate a client submittal automatically from any resume and job description with Candid.ai.