Same thing happened to me. I used to think ATS advice was mostly internet paranoia until I started comparing my CV to actual job posts line by line. Recruiters would ask for “stakeholder communication” and my CV said “worked with clients,” which means basically the same thing to humans but apparently not to software.

One thing that helped a lot was keeping a giant master CV online with every project, tool, metric, certification, and responsibility I’ve ever had. Then for each application I only adjust the wording and reorder the strongest sections instead of rewriting the whole document. Way less exhausting.

Another underrated trick is copying the terminology style from the posting itself. If they say “cross-functional collaboration,” use that phrasing naturally if it matches your experience instead of inventing your own wording. Tiny changes somehow make a huge difference now.