Why Isn't My Job Search Working?

It may be the case that your job search is not working and you are just not getting the interviews that you would wish to have. Here are some ideas to consider that may well help you fix the problem and start interviewing with the right firms and for the right role.

1. Wrong Target. It may be that you are targeting roles in an area that is not growing or may even be in decline. As a result, they are more interested in laying people off than hiring new recruits. Such a decline may be cyclical or, more worryingly, systemic. Furthermore, you may be trying to get a job in an area that is very popular and for which there is an abundance of well-qualified candidates - perhaps even better qualified than you. It might be worth reviewing the level of appetite that your target industry and sub-sector has for your skills and what level of competition you face.
2. Wrong Offering. Equally, it may be that the area of business that you want to work in does have a healthy appetite to grow and expand, but just not for the skills that you are offering. If that is the case, it might be that you go and find areas that are looking for what you can bring to the table. Ideally, you want to find firms that don’t just want what you have to offer, but need your skills. Imagine that a start-up has grown to the point where it is no longer cost- or time-effective for the founder to be dabbling in marketing - the business needs to take things to a much higher level. They need someone to create a professional marketing strategy and implement campaigns that will achieve predetermined results, which are critical to the continued growth of the firm. If you find a firm in this situation, they need what you have and will be highly motivated to find you (and hire you).
3. Poor Marketing. The reason that your job search campaign may have been unsuccessful thus far could be that you are not known to the decision makers, have poor levels of visibility and are simply not findable. To remedy this, consider three things:
4. First, create a long -erm and consistent networking campaign with the purpose of keeping in touch with and serving those you would consider being in your network.
5. Second, use LinkedIn effectively and make yourself ‘findable’ with good use of keywords, activity and other methods.
6. Build relationships with well-informed professional recruiters, not just because you want help now, but with a view to fostering a long-term relationship that works for both of you.
7. Weak Messaging. It may be that even when you are talking to people about a job, they find you on LinkedIn, or they are reading your CV, your messaging is weak. Creating a clear and unambiguous value proposition will really help here because you want to make it very easy to understand the value that you can offer - it needs to be convincing and compelling. That value proposition will inform what you say in interviews, your CV and your LinkedIn profile. You want potential hirers you find your LinkedIn, for example, and to immediately ‘get’ what you can offer. Your Profile needs to be written in a way that will keep the people who have found you reading it. The same goes for your CV and the answers you give in interviews. Clear, concise and compelling is what we are aiming for. One last note on this point: Please ensure that your online job applications are completed is such a way that they will get through the Applicant Tracking System. I have written many blogs on this topic elsewhere.
8. Timing. Most firms have activities that they do at certain times of the year, such as end of year reviews, bonus payments, planning and deciding on hiring requirements. This means that getting your timing right is important. Factor in the ‘summer’, school holidays and other miscellaneous events, and you can now see that there may be reasons for the delays in getting interviews or a slowing down in their recruitment process. Timing is a key consideration.
9. Stuck in one modality. In my experience as a Career Coach, most people stick to just a few ways of trying to find a new job. Talking to friends, job applications and trying to engage with recruiters are the obvious. I believe that there are seven ways to get in front of potential hirers. So, it may be an idea to think about how to go beyond those two or three well-trodden paths.
10. Not enough data. Finally, it may be that you are actually doing a number of the right things very well but you have not been doing those things for long enough or in sufficient volume to get the job. The result is that you may think that you are failing, but in fact you just don’t have enough data points to justify that conclusion. Sometimes you have to play the long game.

I hope you find these ideas useful. If you would like to have a conversation about how I may be able to help you with any of these points, then please do get in touch. I will put a link in the comments below or send me a message in LinkedIn.