📝 This blog post was written back in October 2017 and offers suggestions for your search strategy when looking for a new career opportunity. Fast-forward to 2024, where the job opportunity market is more competitive, I’ve developed a MICRO-COACHING solution to support you in your search for that new career challenge.
Back to 2017, and here are a few of my suggestions…
Asking a favour of friends
I recently conducted a short survey by inviting friends from Facebook to complete a questionnaire entitled ‘How do you look for a new career opportunity?’. The questionnaire was quite easy to create using Google Forms (for anyone that might be thinking of doing something similar) and I separated the questionnaire into two specific parts; the first part has already been mentioned as it’s the title of this blog post (see above) and the second was entitled ‘The perfect experience’.
In an attempt to not overload the blog post, I have detailed the first part of the survey results below as a list of ‘Questions’ and ‘Suggested action’; let me know what you think…
How do you look for a new career opportunity?
❓ Searching Question
When asked ‘How do you look for a new job typically?’ and where the individuals were given the chance to choose more than one option, the top options came out as 1). LinkedIn (64%) and 2.) Recruitment agencies (64%) and then 3).
Referral from a former colleague (58%) and finally 4). Applying direct to companies (52%). It’s interesting to note that ‘Referral from a former colleagues’ (58%) was more popular than a ‘Referral from a current colleague’ (23.5%).
✅ Suggested action
Individuals want interactivity; whether this is via an immersive platform or through the curation / brokering of a 3rd party (recruitment agent) and I think this is based on assumed trust.
Additionally, a degree of separation from their current employer is preferable and direct contact with an employer (via LinkedIn or direct applications) is also important. Create a list of people and agencies where you have pre-existing relationships and contact them with the specific goal of talking about new career opportunities; it’s important to ask for what you want, don’t delay with introductory chat, as those individuals that are prepared to help/support you will respond (and those that won’t will probably delay or engage in polite chit-chat).
Always remember to record those that help you for a follow-up afterwards; professional courtesy is key.
❓ Timing Question
Another interesting result was illustrated when individuals were asked ‘How much time per day do you spend looking for new opportunities?’; an overwhelming majority (52.9%) stated that they spend 30-minutes per day looking for new opportunities and this appears to be on LinkedIn as 82.4% stated this was their primary platform compared to others in the market.
✅ Suggested action
Time is precious! If you are searching for a new opportunity, it’s often in your own personal time; therefore, the ability to find, review and apply to new opportunities quickly is important (and perhaps why LinkedIn is preferred platform). Set yourself alerts and reminders on the apps/platforms you are using to keep to a strict schedule of applying and following-up on open applications. Ensure you have a singular view of all the applications you have ‘live/active’ if you are using multiple channels.
❓ Challenges Question
Pain points in searching for a new opportunity can be different depending on your approach, so when the individuals were asked ‘Do any of the following things make job searching difficult?’ it was surprising to note that the two main ‘pain points’ were dominate.
Firstly, more than 41% state that ‘Filling in an online application for each role’ was prohibitive, and secondly; over 35% stated that ‘Not being able to apply to the company directly’ was also restrictive to the process.
✅ Suggested action
Again, I think we return to the idea of time efficiency when it comes to applying for new opportunities; however, closely behind these two front-runners was the issue of ‘Lack of information on a companies latest vacancies’ and ‘Taking time to update your CV’ indicating that the provision of information appears to be time-consuming for both parties in the two-sided market.
Therefore, get prepared with an updated CV (if required) or update your LinkedIn profile for the ‘Apply via LinkedIn’ option.
❓ Making It Easier Question
In contrast to the previous question, individuals were asked to select 3 options that ‘Would make your search for a new career opportunity easier’.
There were 3 clear leading responses to this question — 1). Direct contact with an employer and/or hiring manager 2). A shorter timeline between application and response from employer/hiring manager 3). Being able to ask more questions about the role/opportunity before applying.
✅ Suggested action
From mapping your contacts, you’ll be aware of the individuals you can contact at specific companies; if any of them are at companies on your ‘interest list’ then approach them directly and ask them and start a specific dialogue.
This action will also facilitate being able to ask more questions about the opportunity, company, culture and environment; also, it will invariably reduce the timelines for feedback.
❓ Source of Information Question
Individuals were asked ‘Who is the most trusted source of information when you’re applying for a new career opportunity?’; the conclusive result for this question was, the Hiring Manager (58.8%).
✅ Suggested action
If you can contact the Hiring Manager or can be referred to her/him via a friend/contract, then absolutely do it! It’s the ultimate approach! If you do not have direct contact with the Hiring Manager, can you make contact with her/him through LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or via corporate e-mail?
For the latter, use Google Chrome and add the Hunter plug-in to find the e-mail address.
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