Here are some top tips and strategies that career experts Austin Belcak and Sarah Johnston are recommending to get results in your job search during the COVID-19 pandemic…
Austin Belcak | Job Search Strategist & Founder of Cultivated Culture
From your experience with clients and candidates, what is one good thing you’re seeing in the market?
Right now, companies are still hiring! I’ve had two clients receive offers this week and two more in remote final round interviews.
The keys for them have been:
- Targeting industries and companies that are growing despite the outbreak
- Leveraging LinkedIn to increase visibility and take their networking online
- Being politely persistent by following up with empathy during the interview process
If you follow the same steps, you can get the same results right now.
What is one thing candidates / job seekers should be wary of or concerned about?
The future of the job market is a big unknown right now. Chances are good that a lot of companies and a lot of industries will suffer. As that happens, and as people begin to recognise which companies are still growing and hiring, competition will drastically increase.
The best bet for job seekers is to be proactive and put the pedal to the metal right now. There are a ton of resources listed further down in this article to help you do that.
What is your best piece of advice for job seekers during this period?
First, keep applying!
Don’t let up, the market still has opportunities and the people who land them are going to be the ones who are intentional and persistent with their search.
Second, leverage LinkedIn!
The platform is an amazing resource right now for two reasons:
- It’s a search engine that recruiters are using to find candidates. If you want to show up you need to optimise your profile for the roles you want (here’s a link to my comprehensive guide on that)
- With a spike in remote work, relationship building is moving online. There’s no better place to do that then on Linked. Start getting active! Comment on posts, engage with people, share things you like. All of those things will push people to your profile.
Finally, if you’re in the middle of the interview process, follow up with empathy. Everyone is dealing with a lot right now. Being mindful of that while showing your commitment and enthusiasm for the role is going to win you some jobs. I included the template I’m using with my clients below in the resources section.
Sarah Johnston | Executive Resume Writer & Founder of Briefcase Coach
From your experience with clients and candidates, what is one good thing you’re seeing in the market?
The two major things I’ve noticed are that hiring is still happening and people are really coming together during this time.
As people begin to settle into a routine, we should see a lift in “virtual networking.” Referrals are still just as important as they were before the outbreak and I’m optimistic that we’ll see a good environment for relationship building despite those relationships happening remotely.
What is one thing candidates / job seekers should be wary of or concerned about?
As we’ve seen from the past week, situations can change rapidly – even overnight. The job market is shifting on a daily basis and people need to be prepared for anything.
Most people have removed a commute from their schedule. Reallocate that time to updating your resume, optimizing your LinkedIn, and creating a list of contacts that you want to network with.
What is your best piece of advice for job seekers during this period?
Job searching almost always takes longer than you think.
Putting together a great resume can take you a whole week (most executive resume writers who do this professionally spend 15 to 20 hours on document creation).
Putting together a well researched target company list can take days.
Setting networking appointments can take weeks.
And that’s under normal circumstances!
The job market is evolving rapidly, if you want to get results you have to act now. Define your job search process, create a daily schedule, and stick to it. That’s how you’re going to get results in this market.