CONFIDENCE CONFIDENCE

COMPREHENSIVE JOB SEARCH STRATEGY™

Feb 24, 2022

Kickstarting your job search can be very daunting. A comprehensive job searching strategy is what you need therefore let us start with a list.

1. Establish Your Career Objective and Define Your Goals

2. Create A Schedule

3. Prepare Your Job Search Tools

a. Resume

b. Optimized LinkedIn Profile

c. Appealing Cover Letter

d. Thank You Note

e. Communication Strategy and Messaging

4. Understand How the Applicant Tracking System Works

5. Learn to work with Recruiters

6. Sanitize Your Social Media Accounts

7. Network

8. Nail Your Interview

9. Nail Your Negotiation

10.Prepare Your references

Establish Your Career Objective and Define Your Goals

I recently created a poll on LinkedIn and asked "When looking for a job what is the first thing you do?"

Many people said that they would update their resume first.

Before you update your resume and start applying to open opportunities, know WHAT you are looking for in a new role first.

Define your goals ensuring that they are SMARTER

Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely, Execute, Reflect (implement a system of reflection to review your progress).

Consider and Examine:

· Company Culture

· Opportunities for Growth

· Pay and Benefits

· Stability

· Level of Responsibility

Consider whether you prefer to work with a stable company or a start-up.

If you prefer opportunities for growth, a start-up could be a good choice, but if you prefer stability a well-established company would be a better.

Analyze your experiences and skills (both core and transferable).

Transferable skills are those that can be applied across industries; such as, communication, team building and analytical skills.

2. Create A Schedule

Organize your job search by creating a schedule

Schedule time for all areas of the search.

Schedule time for searching job sites; responding to connections, prospective employers, and recruiters.

You should also, work smart by setting up alerts.

It is a numbers game: Successfully applying for jobs is a numbers game. The higher the number of applications, the higher the probability of job offers received. It takes approximately 50 applications to yield 3 job interviews and land 1 job offer.

Create an schedule and track your applications: This will help to keep you organized and consistent.

When should you apply?

Early in the week. Mondays are the best days as opposed to Fridays.
As soon as you find an opportunity, because sometimes jobs close early.

3. Prepare Your Job Search Tools

a. Resume

b. Optimized LinkedIn Profile

c. Appealing Cover Letter

d. Thank You Note

e. Communication Strategy and Messaging

a). Resume:

Your Resume is your Interview Winner: It should be clean and uncluttered without fancy boxes and icons.

It is not your work history and should show your accomplishments, tell your compelling story of how your experience would translate into a new role.

You need to create two resumes.

Prospecting Resume targeted to the role, e.g., Project Manager and
Job Description Friendly Resume, customized for the specific job you are applying for.

Prospecting Resume:

If you are sending your resume to a prospect and there is no job description, conduct research of job descriptions that match your skill- set and customize the resume based on the information you gather.

If you have a job description (JD), make your resume JD friendly

Structure:

Your Resume should be clean and uncluttered and it should have distinct sections Your resume is personal, customized for your particular needs.

Contact Information:
Career Summary:
Selected Professional Experience:
Skills Summary:
Education & Certification:
Professional Development (if necessary):
Publications (if necessary):
Volunteer Experience (if necessary):
Language Profile:

Resume Audit: Update these elements before submission:

Contact Information: Exclude street name and number and include including LinkedIn URL
Properly customized to the job description with appropriate core key words.
Properly customized to the job description with appropriate engaging verbs such as; develop, establish, configured.
Highlight career achievements and accomplishments
Proofread by a trusted associate
Complete and accurate to your best knowledge

b). Optimized LinkedIn Profile:

Your LinkedIn profile is your Opportunity Magnet

Once your Prospecting Resume is written, you should update your LinkedIn profile

LinkedIn is the hottest career development tool out there right now because 95% of recruiters are using the platform to search for candidates.

An enticing LinkedIn Profile that effectively advertises you is essential. As a candidate, if you aren’t on LinkedIn you don’t exist.

Optimizing your profile means that it is SEO friendly, packed with relevant keywords to make you stand out and get selected by recruiters when conducting their search.

LinkedIn Profile - Most Important Sections to optimize:

Professional Profile Photo:
Headline: (LinkedIn puts the most recent position as the headline but you can enhance it):
About Section (Profile Summary):
Experience:
Education:

LinkedIn Profile Audit: Update These Elements:

Feature a professional picture preferably a headshot with a simple background
Use an engaging headline - including your job title and some notable skills.
Customized URL (i.e., www.linkedin.com/in/myname)
Craft an engaging summary
Up tp date Experience section with most recent work history
Include career keyword optimized achievements and accomplishments
Include education and professional certifications
Include volunteer experience (if applicable)
Include a list of relevant skills
Features recommendations from current and former colleagues and supervisors
Check spelling and/or grammatical errors
Proofread by a trusted associate
Complete and accurate to your best knowledge

c. Appealing Cover Letter: Update These Elements:

Some employers do not require cover letters, hence the debate around whether they are still necessary.

As long as some prospective employers still require them, I suggest you continue to provide them.

Watch this video to gain some perspective.

Cover Letter Audit: Update these elements:

Customize for each role
State the position in the opening paragraph
Address to the hiring manager, recruiter, or human resources representative at the target company
Include up-to-date contact information
Concise - not more than one page sectionalized into paragraphs
Free of spelling or grammatical errors
Proofread by a trusted associate
Complete and accurate to your best knowledge

d). Thank You Note

Gratitude is an elevated life skill and a great thank you note can make a difference and make you stand out.

You need to curate contact information of the interviewers or panel members and send follow-up messages within the next two days.

Sample Follow up message:

Dear Jim and Joan,

Thank you for speaking with me yesterday afternoon regarding the [ Director of Sales] position. I appreciate much that you shared your individual insights on the scope of this role as it relates to [ ].

I will be able to bring with me these key qualities to provide a solid foundation for success:

[List some qualities here]

The pleasure that I have had to speak with the interviewers, [X ] company culture and the the opportunity for me to make a difference in this area of responsibility have confirmed to me that this is opportunity is a great fit.

I am ready to get to work and make a positive impact for company [X].

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Sincerely,

John

e). Communication Strategy and Messaging

An unprofessional outgoing voice mail or tacky email could limit your chances of advancing in interviews.

Phone etiquette:

Record a clear and professional, outgoing voicemail
Clear your voicemail box
Return all calls within 24 hours

Email etiquette:

Use a professional personal email address
Proofread and spell check each and every message before hitting send
Respond to people within 24 hours

4.Understand How the Applicant Tracking System Works

Most companies use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to manage their hiring process.

You will need to ensure that your resume has the right formatting (clean and uncluttered) and key word optimized to the Role and Job Description in order to get your resume selected from the ATS.

5. ❤️ Forge good relationships with recruiters.

Recruiters should be an integral part of your network. They can give sound career advice as well as job leads — including those not listed on public job boards.

People like to work with others who they know, like and trust and recruiters are no exception, therefore, you should take full advantage of recruiter relationships and ensure that you do your part.

The main types of recruiters are; agency recruiters that work for employment agencies (act as brokers between the candidate and the hiring firm), and corporate recruiters who work in house with the company that is hiring.

Two main types of recruiters

Corporate (in house) recruiters

They are either permanent or contract staff working directly for the company that is hiring.
Have working relationship with the hiring manager (employees)
Are on the ground and can get your questions answered timely
Usually receives a salary and benefits from the hiring company

Agency Recruiters (work for a headhunter or staffing agency)

A Staffing Agency is similar a broker. “middlemen” between the job seeker and the hiring company
Some agencies specialize in permanent staffing and some in contract staffing, and others have a hybrid model (permanent and contract hiring)
Some agencies hire only for Government and some only for private sector clients
Government hires permanent staff on their own but they will work with agencies to hire contract workers and consultants.
Some agencies work with both private and public sectors.

Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and Vendors of Record

Most government contract hires are done through Requests for proposals (RFPs).
Private sector companies require the agency to submit a proposal to get on their Vendor of Record (VOR).

How Do Professional Staffing Companies or Agencies Earn Revenues?

Fees are set depending on whether the hire is for a contract or for permanent staffing.

Contract Hires:

The Agencies charge the the government and the corporate firm a marginal rate say 15-20% margin which they in turn pay a percentage to the consultant/contractor.

This explains the reason why agency recruiters are usually interested in a consultant's pay rate or range.

The Government (Canada) pays the agencies at the rates they submitted to win the RFPs. If the RFP had a long duration e.g., 3-5 years, and the rates for resources change, the agency is stuck to finding contractors/consultants at those rates.

Permanent Hires:

The private sector may also use an agency to find permanent staff for roles that are challenging to fill.

The government hires permanent staff directly. These hires come out of different budgets.

The private Sector pays the agencies a finder’s fee, for example, 15 – 20% of the employee’s yearly salary. This amount does not impact the salary of the jobseeker when they are hired.

How Does An Agency Recruiter Get Paid?

The most common Payment Models are:

100% full salary
100 % commission
A hybrid - base salary plus commission

'Forge good relationships with recruiters. People love to work with others they Know, Like and Trust.' ❤️

Networking with recruiters is not a one-time event.

Build a long-term relationship

Stay in touch, even after you land an assignment

Recruiters can provide guidance while you're on assignment and assist you with

issues you might be experiencing with a company

Three tips:

Set Expectations:

Ensure that you are selecting the right recruiter who can put you forward and recommend opportunities that you are qualified for and also, ensure that you understand the relationship.
Do not stalk the recruiter by following up every day or every week. Find out how often you are expected to follow up.
Be transparent about your resume, particularly about gaps in your resume
Be transparent about your salary range so that the recruiter will know which jobs you are a good for in terms of your desired rate or range.

2. Be Respectful

Build a good long-term relationship.
Do not get defensive with feedback – they can give you great tips, do not take the tips personal
Stay in touch: Keep the recruiter in the loop about your prospects and you find a new job. You may need them at another time when you are out of work. A recruiter can continue to provide guidance even when you are on assignment. This is especially helpful to consultants/contractors.
Your recruiter should be your first contact regarding issues you might be experiencing with a company

3. Communicate - Ask the right questions (relationship, position, logistics and benefits).

A. Relationship:

Do you specialize in my industry or domain?
Have you placed people with my skill sets? In what industries? How often?
Do you proactively market your candidates? How does the process work?
How can I make myself more marketable to employers?
How do you suggest we communicate to keep a good relationship? How often should we communicate
Do you have an alternate contact or back-up person for when you are on vacation? If not, how will I be informed when you are on vacation?
How can I get in touch with you?

B. Position Basics:

Do you have one opening or multiple openings?
How long has the position been open?
Why is the position open? Was there someone performing the role”? if so, why did they leave?
How many people are interviewing?
Why do you think my background is a good fit?
Are there other roles that you are recruiting for that fit my background and if so, can you share them with me?

C. Logistic and benefits:

Confirm location of the role
Can the work be done remotely?
Does the job require travel?
What is the salary range?
What are the specific benefits you offer – e.g., vacation, sick leave, health, dental, vision, RRSP/401k, tuition reimbursement, free gym

D. Interview:

How many interviews will be conducted?
What are the stages?
Who is the final decision maker?
What topics will the interviewer/s be covering during my interview?
Are there any questions that I did not ask that are important for me to know?
What are the questions candidates generally ask?
Is there anything specific to this role that they usually ask?
Do you know anything technical about the role that I need to know, and can you answer Can you domain/technical questions for me?

6. Sanitize Your Social Media Accounts

Some hiring companies will search your social media foot print to find out if there is any unprofessional or undesirable information in cyber world. If you are nervous of the possibility that there is information that can prevent you from getting hired you should set your social accounts to private. If not, you should scrubbed them clean of controversial or inappropriate content.

7. Network

Networking as a Job Searching Tool

Many jobs are obtained from networking. You should start leveraging relationships in your network and/or form new ones.

When you are beginning a new search, do not be afraid to reach out, let everyone know. You do not know the entire network of other people's network. They may know someone working at your dream company or know a recruiter looking for someone with your skill-set.

Create a list of Companies:

Once you know the type of job you are searching for and the specific industry you are targeting, create a list of companies you would like to work for. Reach out to persons at those companies, ask them to introduce you to connections or refer you to a job with their employer if there is an open position.

Have a copy of your prospecting resume ready so you can connect and reach out to them on LinkedIn

Sample in-mail message:

Hello []

“I am in the market for a new role in the IT Industry. Currently, I’m a Business Process Development Manager for a large corporation in Toronto and I am hoping to move into an Account Executive role at a smaller company.

If you hear of any director opportunities in this area, I would greatly appreciate a referral or an introduction.

[Say something about your skills here

I’ve led the BA team for the past 5 years and streamlined many processes that increased productivity by 50 % in the last year.]

I’ve attached my resume to this e-mail for your reference.”

Thank you,

8. Nail Your Interview

Perfect Your Interview Skills

Preparation is the main key to succeed in an interview.

The more prepared you are, the more confident and successful you will be.

Here are 10 of the most difficult interview questions and answers.

Interview Preparation Audit:

Review the job description thoroughly before the interview.
Develop a solid understanding of what the company does by researching company.
Practice explaining your experience and how it will compliment the role.
Research your interviewers: Check out their company bios or LinkedIn profiles
Research the organization’s dress code and select an outfit that reflects the company culture.
Phone Interviews: Secure a quiet place to talk with great reception
Video Interviews: Stage the background of the room you will be using.
In-person Interviews: Ensure that you arrive five to 10 minutes ahead of time (not too early).
Be ready to answer questions about your availability to start the new job.

9.Nail Your Salary Negotiation

Nail Your Salary Negotiation

Salary: Know what your skills, expertise, and experience are worth.

Know your numbers: Establish a range (a lower and an upper rate) or band within which is acceptable.

To establish a range, research industry standard rates for comparable salaries for similar roles in your industry.

Here are some sites (resources) to check out:

LinkedIn Salary Calculator

Salary.com

Glassdoor

Payscale.com

Treasury Board Canada

US Dept. of Labor STATS: Occupational Outlook Handbook

Paid Time Off (PTO)

Research the company’s competitors’ offerings to obtain more certainty of the industry standard.
Standard vacation time is two to three weeks.
Does the company roll sick and vacation time together into PTO or are they separate?

Benefits

Typically, company benefits offerings aren’t very negotiable, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be prepared with a list of expectations.

Ask about medical, dental and vision, (401k - USA or RRSP - Canada), profit sharing, and wellness benefits so that you will have a full picture of what you will be getting.

Start Date

A delayed start time request should be acceptable within reason if you need it.

Pre-Planned Vacation

If you need to take time off for future trips or personals business prepare your list in advance.

List of Benefits that can be negotiated:

Vacation days
flexible hours
retirement savings matching
working from home
Ongoing professional development
A better job title
Stock options
Relocation expenses
Childcare expenses
Expense reimbursements
Signing bonus
Higher commission rate

Salary Negotiation Audit:

Ideal salary:
Minimum salary:
Standard salary range for the type of role is:
Paid time Off (PTO) required:
Standard amount of PTO for this industry is _____:
Pre-planned vacations/commitments dates:
Additional benefits:
Additional “nice to have benefits” would be:
Preferred start date is_____:
Earliest day I can start is_____:

How To Delay The Offer Acceptance:

You can make the offer breathe.

You don’t have to accept or present a counter right away.

Sample Offer Acceptance Message:

Can be done by email, or phone (Phone preferable)

'Hi []

“Thank you for this opportunity.

I’m excited about this offer, but would like to take a few days to review the information.

Would it be possible for me to get back to you on [date]?”

Thank you,

John'

10.Prepare Your References

Maintain a list of at least five verifiable references of supervisors ready to go.
Do not include them on your resume or cover letter.
Most companies have strict policies around references and will only confirm your job title, dates of employment, and salary information to a prospective employer .
Ask each person in advance if he or she would be willing to serve as your reference if they agree ensure that you obtain their contact information - email and phone number.
When your prospective employer is ready to check your references, notify them. Only use references that will provide the glowing recommendation you’d hoped for, otherwise take them off your list.

Hi,

I am Yvonne Robinson Jackson. As a past university professor and teacher, technical recruiter and director of recruiting, now career advancement coach.

Are you having problems expressing your achievements on your resume? Are you not getting any interviews with the resume that you are submitting for jobs?

I can help you. I teach you to write your own WINNING RESUME.

If you would like to know how to tell your career story , please let me know.

If you do not have a clear plan and strategy for advancing in your career or a clear vision of where you want to go, I will work with you until you achieve your results and your transformation.

Send me a message and let’s talk about it.

https://goalinspiredcareercoaching.com/lets-connect

Email: [email protected]

“𝑮𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒂 𝒇𝒊𝒔𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒔𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆,” - 𝑴. 𝑳𝒐𝒂𝒏𝒆