But with a few keystrokes on his computer, Schade can narrow his search to almost exactly what an employer is looking for ­— say, a Java software developer who knows the computer languages jQuery, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS; lives within 20 miles of Framingham; and last earned a $75,000 salary. When the 10 best matches pop up, Schade can see the notes he’s taken on each job-seeker, e-mails they’ve ­exchanged, and companies they’ve interviewed with before — helping him decide which candidates to recommend.

This pinpoint screening is made possible by software developed by Bullhorn Inc., a Boston firm that pioneered the concept of making candidate and client information accessible online. Nearly every firm in the country uses some form of applicant tracking system, which means the first hurdle job-seekers must negotiate is software like Bullhorn’s, which slices and dices resumes into the key words that hiring managers want — or don’t want to hear.

Founded in 1999 by Art ­Papas, a Weston native and Tufts graduate, Bullhorn is growing rapidly as job openings increase with the improving economy, particularly for the temporary and contract positions that make up the bulk of staffing firms’ placements. Revenues at Bullhorn have doubled in the past two years, and the company expects revenue to hit $40 million this year. Earlier this summer, the private equity firm Vista Equity Partners in Austin, Texas, acquired Bullhorn for more than $100 million.

Today, some 30,000 recruiters at 2,500 staffing firms around the world use Bullhorn’s applicant screening and tracking system. Winter, ­Wyman has had the system for almost eight years, using it to sort through tens of thousands of candidates and fill about 2,500 jobs a year.

Steve Kasmouski, president of search divisions at Winter, Wyman, remembers taking notes on 3-by-5 cards and writing follow-up reminders in his day planner. Now, task reminders pop up when he logs in, and skills from applicants’ resumes are automatically transferred into their files.

“You couldn’t do your job today without a system like this because everything moves so quickly, and information is the key for us for building relationships,” Kasmouski said. “I can’t imagine life without it.”

Bullhorn was one of the first companies to offer Internet-based tracking software for recruiters, allowing them to log on to the system from any computer and freeing staffing firms from housing servers on site. Papas, 37, started Bullhorn as an online marketplace where creative types such as designers, artists, and copy writers could find contract work. It didn’t take off, but a friend mentioned that the system operated like an online staffing agency, and he started pitching it to recruiters.

Papas coded the software himself, talking to recruiters as he built the functions they wanted — “almost like being a painter on commission,” he said. It took a few years for businesses to become comfortable housing their data on the Internet, but by 2004, the concept started taking off. Today, about a third of the country’s staffing firms use online tracking systems.

There are two major components to the software, one that tracks candidates and another that tracks job postings. Recruiters use these databases to manage the process from job posting to hire: contacting companies, searching for people with just the right skills, recording notes and correspondence, plugging in follow-up reminders, and tracking employees they’ve placed.

Recruiters can narrow their resume searches by assigning different levels of importance to each key word by designating them as required, desired, or excluded. If an ideal candidate pops up but isn’t interested, recruiters can request comparable applicants and save that search for a similar job down the road.

Knowing that a machine ­often takes the first pass at a resume should keep job-seekers on their toes, Papas said. If an applicant misspells a word or doesn’t use the exact phrase from a job description, the software may skip right over it. In short, he said: “You don’t exist.”

Candidates should also be aware that all their interactions with recruiters are available at the touch of a button.