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Job Search Research Beyond the Ads |
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Prayer-Soldier writes "
The conventional wisdom is that the best job opportunities are found outside the classified ads. Submission of resumes through career and corporate web sites has a very low chance of leading to an interview. The challenge is to find means of gaining human contact when companies are increasingly hiding themselves behind the corporate career site curtain.
In tight job markets, companies have fewer opportunities and a large market going after what is available. To wade through the mountains of resumes, companies rely upon technology and keywords to sort through hundreds of submissions to zero in on the most qualified candidates. It appears to make work easy for the hiring manager, but the reality is that such systems only measure the effectiveness of the candidates to get the right keywords into their resume. Still, that is the environment with which we are faced. As one wise philosopher once stated, “It is what it is.”
Another conventional wisdom is that small businesses can provide more opportunity to ride the elevator as the company grows. For established companies, promotion to higher levels is partially a waiting game for someone to leave. Unless a company is growing, organizations are stable or contracting. Subsequently, promotion opportunities to management or higher level technical opportunities are fewer, especially in a tight market.
As economies shift, successful small businesses are positioned to ride the wave to expansion. A small company with a successful track to customers and expanding business will have a growing organization and the need for qualified managers to lead. And there we are, already with experience with the company business model and years of leadership and management experience behind us.
So, where do we find these opportunities and gain human contact to increase our chances of actually getting to talk to a hiring manager? The answer comes back to the one two punch of research and networking. The research strategy may start with the Internet, but we must not limit ourselves there.
Search engines provide a powerful means of accessing mountains of information with a few good key words. We can start with the name of the city in which we would like to research opportunities and follow with the word “business.” Of course, that is a wide net. We can narrow the search by using the career field of our interest, but with and without the word “business.” We can also adjust the search to the type of business to which we seek.
Two resources that should be visited is the local Chamber of Commerce and the library. Ever think of the librarian as a job counselor? The key assistance they can provide us is to help with tips about how to use the various resources to conduct research. The library also provides access to publications that may not be available on line. We can tell them for what we are looking and they can help guide us to the means to sift through the wide ranges of information available to us.
Another resource is the local work force center or labor office. These offices will provide similar access to research resources, but they are focused upon helping the job seeker. They can also provide tips on how to conduct research beyond the ads.
It is simply common sense that small business is the womb from which big business is born. The risks are naturally higher, but the ride can be quite rewarding. Small businesses and other opportunities will require some searching to find. Reading the business section of the local paper might yield a business name or contact to research. The same may come through a networking associate. The key to research is identifying leads, learning about them, and then seeking ways to gain human contact.
Printed with Permission. Copyright © 6 Jun 09 - http://www.guardianangelstore.com"
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Posted on Monday, June 08 @ 23:09:10 MDT by drbonebrake
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