Archive for the ‘Job Boards’ Category
Are You Gambling With Your Career?
Tuesday, December 11th, 2012
Photo Credit: ThreeOak
When most people go to the casino, they do so for fun. If they win money, it’s gravy – not something to rely on to pay the bills. Why? Because gambling is notoriously unpredictable and the odds are always on the house.
So how come so many of us continue to gamble with our job searches? The odds of getting a call back after applying to a position online are extremely low, partly because of heavy competition. In addition, since many companies now use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to search for candidates by computer, the process for getting your resume picked up has become even trickier.
Though there are things you can do to improve the likelihood of getting your resume viewed – for example, checking the job ad for keywords – the bulk of your time and energy should be spent on the methods most likely to bring you results. They include:
Networking: You’ve likely heard this before, but it’s worth repeating since 70 to 80% of people find jobs through somebody they know. It’s worth placing a bet on this option.
Recruiters: In some industries, recruiters are the #1 way that people find a job. Even if yours is not one of them, it never hurts to cultivate relationships with anyone in a position to get you in front of employers.
Strategic Positioning: By determining the companies you’d like to work for and positioning yourself as a solution to a problem (based on information you found while researching the company) the results can be astonishing. Depending on how many companies you target and your follow-up strategy, this could end up being one of the most successful methods that you can use – in fact, I’ve had several clients get multiple job offers through this system.
Want to boost your odds even further? Diversify! Pick at least two methods, but give more of your time and attention to those likely to get you in front of decision makers.
Photo Credit: Three Oak
Tags: applicant tracking systems, ats, job boards, Networking, recruiters, strategic positioning
Posted in Job Boards, Job Search Strategies, Networking |
Three Keys To Finding Hidden Jobs
Tuesday, August 7th, 2012
Most people have heard of the hidden job market. It refers to the supposedly secret set of positions available that aren’t yet advertised. For various reasons, employers do often start sourcing for candidates or informally assessing potential new hires before an ad ever gets posted.
Strangely enough, it’s statistically more likely that you’d get a job this way than by responding to an advertised opening. Why? At this point, you’re only competing with yourself. Once an ad gets posted there could be hundreds – or thousands – of people vying for the same role.
You may be wondering how to go about finding these jobs since they’re hidden! The three strategies below will help you uncover opportunities before they’re made public:
1) Use the news: When you hear about a company moving its headquarters to your city, opening a new branch locally, or experiencing unprecedented growth, chances are they’ll be adding employees. One especially helpful resource – HiddenJobsApp.com – culls this type of news and organizes it by state.
2) Analyze ads: If you see an open position that interests you, by all means, apply for it. However, send your resume to competing companies as well. As there are often shifts within industries, there are likely to be vacancies across the board.
3) Ask around: Though you should have a list of target companies, uncover additional leads by asking your networking contacts, “who else do you recommend I talk to?” They may know of others thinking about hiring in the near future.
Though not nearly as straightforward as applying online, these methods are much more likely to get you results!
Tags: Applying Online, hidden job market, job hunt, job search, Job Search Strategies
Posted in Job Boards, Job Search Strategies |
Why Job Boards Still Matter
Tuesday, February 28th, 2012
In today’s tight job market, a company may get more than 200 resumes for a single job listing. This is depressing news to the job seeker that has spent hours culling through all the listings, customized his cover letter and resume, and hopes the hiring manager will at least acknowledge receipt of his materials. Feeling that job boards are a colossal waste of time, many job seekers give up on this time-intensive tactic. But there’s an important reason not to!
If you read between the lines, you can sometimes discern hiring patterns that may signal a particular industry is hitting up (or shrinking!) If you believe a particular industry is growing, why not send unsolicited resumes to the top ten employers in that segment?
You may also be able to notice when one of your target companies is going through a growth spurt. For example, if Acme Paper Co. is hiring four new customer service agents, might they also need a new manager too?
When perusing job boards, want ads or other online listings, stay alert for subtle signals you can leverage to get a leg up on the competition. If you want more job search tips you can use, check out 28 Stealth Job Search Strategies in the MarketMyCareer.com store.
Posted in Job Boards, Job Search Strategies |
Keeping Your Job Search A Secret From Your Employer
Monday, October 24th, 2011
Many people are understandably concerned that their current company will find out they’re looking for a new position. Though nothing is 100% foolproof, here is the most effective thing you can do: make managing your career a part of your lifestyle.
This is good practice even if you’re happily employed. It keeps you top of mind for great opportunities you might not have considered. But keeping your current company in the dark is a side benefit. If you always keep your LinkedIn profile updated, they won’t suspect you’re looking for a new role. If you wear a suit to work once a week, you won’t be advertising “I have an interview!” when you finally do dress up.
Applying online is the one place where things can get tricky. If the name of a company is kept confidential, you could end up inadvertently sending your resume to your current employer (this HAS happened)! If there’s even a chance this could be the case, it’s best to avoid applying to the position.
People are also concerned that having an online brand – a blog, Twitter account, etc. – would lead their employers to suspect they’re in the market for a new job. While you can’t control what anyone else thinks, it’s unlikely this would raise a red flag if you position it correctly. Again, since you should always be managing your career, this won’t seem like a sudden move. But establishing yourself as a subject-matter expert could benefit your company as well. You’ll build a positive reputation and can make valuable connections that could be an asset to your company (for example, sales prospects or vendors).
All this being said, you still need to use common sense. Don’t divulge any proprietary company information; don’t bash your company, job, or employer; and make sure everything you put online is appropriate.
Tags: interviewing, job search, keeping job search secret, online identity, personal branding
Posted in Interviewing, Job Boards, Job Search Strategies, Personal Branding, Social Networking |
Cut Down On The Time You Spend Searching For Jobs Online
Thursday, July 7th, 2011
By now you may have heard that networking is the number one way to get a job. While that’s true, people still find positions through job boards, or else they wouldn’t exist! However, it’s easy to get sucked into searching for hours on end, or worse, get so overwhelmed you give up on looking altogether. Still, with the rule of thumb being to limit your use of traditional job boards to just one hour a day, what is the alternative?
They’re called aggregators, and two of the most well-known are Indeed.com and SimplyHired.com. These sites pull millions of job listings from all across the internet. Instead of needing to go from one site to another each day, you can find all those listings in one place. By entering keywords and location, you’ll get a list of job ads that fit your criteria. You can then get more specific and search by date posted, title, and years of experience, just to name a few. You can even search under date posted, “since last visit.” In addition, you can register for a free account and get set up to receive customized email alerts.
Employers still tend to check their own sites first, so you may just want to use these aggregators to gather leads. When you find a job you’re interested in, go directly to the company’s website and apply there.
Though aggregators are a huge help, using job boards is just one method of searching. On top of that, it’s still the least effective way to find a position. Make online searching a part of your strategy, but spend the bulk of your time on other activities.
Tags: Applying Online, Indeed.com, Job Search Strategies, SimplyHired.com
Posted in Job Boards, Job Search Strategies |
