By Clive Dunne MSc. Director, Elk Recruitment
Finding a Job can be very daunting, it may seem at times that you are not making any headway and you may be correct! There are a couple of key things that must be done by you the jobseeker to ensure the process is effective & efficient.
Pre-Start –
1. Be sure before you start the process what job it is that you would like to do, if you are not sure then seek career guidance to help you answer this very important and fundamental question. Your working career is a huge part of your life and at the very least you should be working at something you enjoy.
2. If after career guidance you realise a career change afoot, do make sure you have the skill set to enable you to make the transition, this may involve upskilling both practically and academically. If you find that upskilling on the academic side is a must why not in parallel, approach a suitable company in your new chosen field and offer your services to them even for free, possibly at the weekend, that will mean that you are gaining experience both academically and practically at the same time, it will make things happen much more fluidly for you. I never said it was going to be easy!
Let the games begin –
3. Don’t apply for jobs that don’t match your skill set. If you don’t have the required experience detailed in the job spec you are applying to, you are wasting your time. Recruiters will scan through and measure your CV against the job you have applied for, if you don’t match you won’t proceed, its unfortunately that simple.
4. I see in a lot of unsuitable applications with the following comment “I am a quick learner, if given a chance I am sure I will make it work” although this may be true, it is in the majority of cases ignored and seen as a sign of desperation and has no impact at all on the success of your application. You have to remember, the time is ticking for recruiters, recruiters have been given a very clear brief for the role by their client and submitting an unsuitable candidate who does not have the required experience is not going to happen. Stop wasting time here.
5. Ensure your CV is professional and in a format that is pleasing to the eye. Ensure there are no grammatical or spelling mistakes, ensure all of your experience is included and there are no gaps. Don’t cut and paste information from one part of your CV to the next, it portrays taking the easy way out and try to have your CV on 2 -3 pages’ max, any more and you will bore the life out of the reader and run the risk of frustrating them. Also, do make sure your email address is a professional one, I have seen so many CV’s come from email addresses that would make you cringe.
6. Don’t apply for every position available on the internet, this is a big mistake. Unfortunately, most Jobseekers blitz the market with the same CV, they upload to recruitment companies, upload to job boards, apply to 100’s of positions and have no success. Why? ask yourself, what are the chances of your current CV matching a job on the web without modification, the answer is slim to none,
7. Choose the job you want to apply for and strategically apply to it. Meaning, tailor your CV to suit, this does not mean fluff your CV and lie, it means make sure that your CV clearly indicates why you are suitable for the role. In your work history section, give examples of how you have carried out the tasks they have identified in the job spec as important.
8. Do make sure you choose your recruitment company wisely and ensure they are experts in your chosen field, this will ensure they have a broad network of suitable companies that may be interested in your profile, thus increasing your chances of placement. Build up a relationship with the recruiter you feel is most proactive and talk to them, they may not get you placed today but when you stay close without stalking them of course, it means that your profile stays to the forefront of their mind should a suitable position arise. Do also tell them that it is not acceptable to carpet bomb the market with your CV or send to a client without your prior consent.
9. Do apply to companies directly also, remember there is a fee for clients associated with the recruitment process and they may well welcome an application outside of the process to reduce cost. But remember make sure the CV goes to the hiring manager, if not you run the risk of your application ending up in the pile of junk mail or worse the bin.
10. Network, Network, Network, use every social media platform known to man, LinkedIn, Xing, Twitter, Facebook, Google+ etc. which are super tools for the job seeker to find contacts to help him/her secure that new position also attend seminars, breakfast meetings and expos.
Happy Hunting!
