Tag Archives: help wanted ads

Going Beyond the Ordinary Job Search

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While job creation has picked up in recent months, the long-term unemployed continue to struggle in attempting to re-enter the workforce. Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas offers the following for those caught in that predicament:

Re-ignite and re-connect with your network
There may be a large portion of your network with whom you have not spoken to in several months.  Now is the time to re-connect with and expand your network.  If you have not joined online networking communities like LinkedIn, do so now and start connecting with former colleagues, classmates and other acquaintances.  If you are on LinkedIn, revisit your list of contacts, because chances are good that their professional or personal situations have changed in recent months.  So, not only do you have a reason to check in with them (to congratulate or otherwise acknowledge their changed circumstances), but that change could put them in a better position to help your job search.  From each existing contact in your network that you reconnect with, make a goal to get the names of two to five new contacts they know who might be able to help with your employment search.

Move away from resume-centric job-search strategy
Most Americans take the traditional approach to job search: scour the help wanted ads and send out resumes by the hundreds.  The only difference is that the help wanted ads have moved from the print newspaper to the Internet.  The biggest problem with this approach is that the resume is really just a way to weed out candidates.  A long employment gap on the resume is going to stand out and not in a good way.  Even without the red flag of prolonged joblessness, relying on a resume to get your foot in the door is a numbers game that favors the employer.  You might as well be playing the lottery.  

Uncover the hidden job market
The other problem with relying too heavily on help wanted ads — whether online or in print — is that these represent a small fraction of the available jobs.  We estimate that as few as 20 percent of the available jobs are ever advertised.  The other 80 percent will be filled through employee referrals, personal connections and other backdoor channels.  This is why expanding and staying connected to one’s professional and personal network is critical.  It increases the chances of being in the right place, at the right time, when one of these hidden opportunities arise. 

Reset expectations
You may need to consider working for less money than you imagined, working in a different industry or accepting a job title that differs from your aspirations.  However, your primary objective at this point needs to be getting back on the payroll so you can start filling in the experience gap.
 
Remain positive
Don’t be defensive or take on the role of the victim when it comes to your prolonged unemployment.  Avoid phrases like, “no one is hiring” and “nobody wanted me.”  Focus only on the positive attributes you possess, what you have done to keep your skills fresh.  If the topic of your prolonged unemployment comes up, don’t dwell on it.  Move past it quickly with a statement like, “There have been many opportunities, but a mutual fit has been difficult to achieve.  During this time, however, I have had the opportunity to round out my experience through (education, professional development, volunteer work, etc.)”
 
Step outside of your comfort zone
An aggressive job-search strategy often requires you to do something that makes you uncomfortable.  You will have to tell people you have not seen in ten years that you lost your job.  You will have to cold-call employers about job opportunities.  An aggressive strategy also includes asking a friend or former business associate for the names of five people who might be able to help with your job search, and then calling those people to request a meeting.  

Networking Helps Net That New Job

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I guess I better keep working hard and keep the job I’ve got. Because while I’m very comfortable sitting down with business and political leaders for interviews when I’m asking the questions, I’m not a big fan of social events or that one-on-one process of making contacts.

New survey results, however, put networking at the top of the effectiveness list for job seekers. In somewhat of a surprise, HR pros ranked social/professional networking sites (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter) second on the list of top tools. Least effective among the respondents were job fairs and newspaper help wanted ads.

While the Internet has the potential to be very useful for job seekers, John Challenger of the Challenger, Gray & Christmas firm said that it has become the primary tool for many, when it should be considered secondary to the traditional technique of networking and meeting prospective employers in person.

“It is important to remember that the job search is a multifaceted process.  Those who rely on just one tool, even if it is networking, will take longer to find a position.  The problem with the ease and accessibility of the Internet is that many job seekers make it their primary job search tool. 

“Overuse of the Internet also threatens to prolong the hiring process on the employer’s end, as well, by inundating employers with irrelevant resumes.  Some human resource executives complain that for every qualified candidate that comes in from the Internet, there are 10 to 20 who do not even come close to being a good fit,” said Challenger.

“The more irrelevant resumes that hiring managers have to wade through in order to select the handful to bring in for interviews, the longer it takes to fill the position.  One result of this has been the increased use of digital screening software that scans incoming resumes for keywords.  Resumes without the right words are filtered out of the process.  This will make it even more difficult for job seekers to get their resume in front of the hiring executive," said Challenger.

“Job seekers must learn how to use all of the tools at their disposal, including networking, the Internet, newspapers, job fairs and even cold-calling employers,” he concluded.