I have shared in my earlier blog on how to organize your time during job hunting. Going one step beyond, I am going to discuss today how to test job waters & lead a successful job search without even going to a job board/portal.
The following is success mantra for quick job search success:
- Pull up & freeze your resume: The first step towards job search is to update & revamp your resume to align with the kind of roles, industry & geography you are aspiring to target. You can either do-it-yourself(DIY) or hire a professional resume writer. You need to spell out your career story in your resume that not only details what you did but also explain your accomplishments.
- Targeted approach: Start with your personal connections & professional network. Segment potential companies/employers into a dream & reach. The dream companies should be the most desirable one & should have a list of 4 to 6 companies that would be your first choice to join. Ideally try to include companies where you personally know someone/ part of your professional network. Reach should have a list of 2 to 3 companies with similar aspects to the first. You should never follow spray & pray approach. In order to stick to companies where your profile may be a good fit, do a detailed research about background the company & where it is going.
- Relevant inside information: Reach out to folks you know in the dream companies to get inside information on working in these companies- working culture, growth ladder, employer welfare policies, learning & development etc.. Dovetail to look at companies online presence, jobs they have posted, hiring trends & financials( publicly listed companies)
- Skill & Competency Mapping: It is important to look at your skills & expertise & compare/map it with those companies are looking to hire for & where industry was headed. This will help you evaluate & identify a gap so that you can rectify /ramp up the skills to ensure maximum appeal to companies of interest. This will also help you analyse which company’s culture is a right fit for you.
- Job Search Peek: Do job search on a weekly or once in 10 days basis Evaluate every week where are you standing in your job search. Then on bi-weekly basis ensure that you are on the top of the prospective company’s mailbox. This approach will allow you to show companies & hiring managers that you are still interested & allow them to gauge if you were a right fit.
- New recruiter relationships: Develop new recruiter relationships by locating people who have skills similar to yours & could refer to your profile.That person recommending you can make the job search much easier.
As the founder and executive resume coach at Sushant Kumar Ventures, I offer customized executive resume and LinkedIn profile writing services for modern day job seekers. Sign up here for our services/free consult.
