Don't be a "Wrong Job Seeker".

We all know how adversely the pandemic has affected our lives. Being a Talent Acquisition professional I can very well understand how people of all segments across the hierarchy have lost their jobs. Few industries like event/hospitality lost business overnight & hence started downsizing. The good news is that the other industries have become considerable in the hiring of laid-off people first. The job portals & platforms like LinkedIn have come up with the option of highlighting COVID affected job seeker. Well, this is an overall view of the situation.

Now the other aspect of the story, jobseekers. I come across many posts of my connections where people are posting about their job search and how nothing converted in the past few months. How they feel demotivated since it is difficult to keep trying without any ray of hope. Well, perseverance comes into the picture here (refer to my last article for the same).

Sticking back to the main topic, Being a Recruiter/Job Agent/Talent Acquisition (whatever terminology is used in your region), I shall be highlighting few pointers to help you not be a wrong job seeker.

Points to follow:

Don’t apply for any job where you will be a misfit.

This is a very relevant point, in the haste of securing of job, people apply for jobs abruptly without realizing the eligibility for the role offered. I have actually seen people who made a target of applying for 50 jobs every day (irrespective of the skills matching the role), with the intention that at least something will convert. BOOM!! BAD IDEA!!

Focus on the relevant job opportunities for you. Read the details of the role. Skills, location, joining timeline. Read all these, carefully, and only then apply.

FYI- An irrelevant job applicant becomes annoying to the hiring professional. Screening a wrong application wastes their time. Hence your purpose was never served. In the longer run, the recruiter might end up ignoring your emails or messages.

Hack for this situation – If you feel there is some recruiter in your connection, who keeps on hiring for your skillset but not having any relevant job for you at the moment. And you still want to connect with them and take their help in your job search. Then write to them, separately. Email is the best way. 

Secret: It (email inbox) is a personal database for a recruiter. (Laughter…)

Highlight a few things in your email.

The Subject line should specify your skill. Your availability is the next important information for a recruiter. Your location preference or shift flexibility. Mentioning expected compensation is a choice & it is always open to discussion hence not a must-have. Provide these details to your agent/recruiter/talent acquisition person in an organized way.

Keep working your resume

Dynamic resume- Stop sending one resume for each job profile you apply.

A resume is a living document. Make sure you are keeping it alive. Not only will your resume change with each position you hold, but it should also evolve in response to the jobs you apply for. A targeted resume leads to a more successful job application.

The bottom line remains the same. SKILL. A java developer will be a java developer. You can’t change it. But make changes as per the required job. Highlight the projects matching the offered job. You can highlight the industries as well. Your other behavioral attributes as per the role requirement. For e.g team handling or stakeholder management.

Go Beyond the job portals

Apart from the various job portal. LinkedIn is also emerging as a perfect platform to find a resource for the job. Well! we recruiters believe so. Explore LinkedIn as a platform to search for a new job. 

LinkedIn job group. Every professional recruiter goes to LinkedIn groups to post about their job openings. Their first preference is the group with maximum members. Become part of those groups. Use your LinkedIn more often like Instagram or Facebook (if you are still using it).

The power of hashtags.

Follow the relevant hashtags on LinkedIn. A determined recruiter will always put hashtags on the job postings. Following hashtags pertaining to your skillset. It will also display relevant information about your field on your screen. Example: #javadevelopersjobs

Recognize the platform - Whenever you get a call from a recruiter/agent for any job opportunity, do ask them, where they got to know about your profile & then work more on that platform. It means that’s what recruiters are using.

Recognize the recruiter of your skill in the market. Or you can identify the agency hiring in your market or your industry. Visit the websites/LI pages/Insta accounts of these companies regularly. The job opportunities on the career page of any company/end client could or couldn’t be open. But if any agency /recruiter posts any anywhere it means it is real-time hiring. So it is better to direct efforts in that direction.

And even if it is taking longer to hear back regarding your job application, have patience.

Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting.

All the best to the jobseekers.

As much as you are waiting for a new job, I am waiting to congratulate you on the same.