Hot Topic of The Month
The autumn is when people are returning from their long summer breaks and preparing
for Christmas and it can be a busy time for employers and job-seekers. Many vow
on holiday to stop moaning and start looking for alternative employment, which
can lead to employers finally filling their vacancies. Autumn, as well as the
New Year, are the busiest times of year, evidenced by the thickness of the jobs/careers
supplement in the national press, local newspapers and trade magazines.
What can you do stand out from the crowd and win your perfect job?
Redundancies are becoming more common so there is a lot of competition, resulting
in both salaried and self-employed workers needing to do something a little bit
different ….
1. INFORMATIVE BLOGS – They can be time consuming but also very effective,
ask me for some examples.
2. SOCIAL NETWORKING AND WEB 2.0 - Contrary to popular opinion, people
do find jobs on Facebook! Other sites that we recommend include: Bebo, Glassdoor,
Hirescores, JobTonic, LinkedIn, MySpace, SecondLife, Vault and Zubka.
3. CVS - Video CVs are no good if you’re as ugly as me, but if you are
seeking a position that is customer-facing (maybe sales) give it a try. They’re
proving particularly popular in the entertainment industry for singers, dancers,
musicians etc: take a look at resumetube.com. Try to keep a traditional CV to
two pages of high quality paper, three as an absolute maximum - we recommend you
use the same CV for each role with an emphasis on figures such as profits achieved,
size of team managed and/or costs reduced.
4. COVERING LETTER - We advocate a bespoke covering letter that tailors
your application to the job.
5. OWN WEBSITE - A recent trend in the IT and creative sectors is a personal
website that showcases examples of work, including new software developed and
innovative designs patented.
6. PR - Try to obtain speaking slots at conferences, deliver workshops,
write editorials, volunteer to undertake ‘webinars’ and get quoted in industry
journals read by your target audience.
7. JOB SITES - Be careful what you say on the likes of Jobsite and Monster
as your employer, clients, customers or suppliers may be looking….
8. AGENCIES - There are many to choose from so seek recommendations from
people whose opinion you value. Go to see them at their office, ask for a copy
of your consultant’s personal CV and testimonials.
9. SPECULATIVE APPROACHES - If time allows send an email or letter and
then follow up with a telephone call the following week. Suggest an exploratory
meeting at a neutral venue with the objective of stimulating thoughts - even if
a vacancy does not exist you should leave them with a desire to go and create
one.
10. NETWORKING - It goes without saying that the Met Club is a fantastic place
for meeting interesting people who are often only too happy to share ideas and
suggest potential contacts!
Tim Holden is the Managing Director of Fluid (www.fluidconsultinglimited.com), a specialist Human Resources consultancy. He has spent 12 years in Human Resources
working in both Leeds and London.
Harrogate