How to get More Job Interviews

If you are actively looking for a job or you recognize the need to start looking for a new job, either way-where do you begin?

If you look around, jobs are everywhere.  There are recruiters leaving you voicemail messages, sending you emails about jobs.  You are receiving job alerts everyday on your mobile device.  And there are job postings popping up on your computer screen and on the news feed of your social network accounts.

So how do you find the right job today?

Even when there are so many job openings around, there are only four ways to find a job.

Either you will be referred, recruited, search for a job or a combination of all three. Those are the four ways to find a job today.

Let’s look at all four.

REFERRED

This is the most preferred and the most effective method in matching an individual to the right job.  Who knows your skills better that someone who has either worked with you, trained you or competed against you, is the concept behind this method.  So most likely your next job will be referred to you by someone who knows your capabilities.  And, being referred for a job can occur when you are actively looking for a job, but it is mostly likely to occur when you are not actively looking for a job. And that is also why it is the most proffered method-it removes the emotional stress from the job search process.

RECRUITED

If your skills are in high demand, then there is a strong possibility that you have received communications from headhunters.  Headhunters are professional recruiters. Employers pay headhunters if they can successfully sell their job vacancies as a vehicle for career advancement-to the individuals with a specific skill-set.  Just like the referred method, it is highly effective in matching the right individual to the right job, but it is the least often used method by employers.  The number one reason why it is the least often used method is the high cost associated with the headhunter fees..   Also, like the referred method, it occurs most likely when you are not actively looking for a job.

JOB SEARCH

This is where someone is pro-actively marketing their skills to prospective employers in return for monetary and non-monetary annual compensation, otherwise known as job security.

This method is primarily used when there is a high number of individuals with similar skill-set, or a low demand for a particular skill-set, or when skills and compensation level/expectation are not aligned with the market, or when someone is unemployed.

It is the most often used and the least effective method for finding the right job.  The reason it is the most often used method is because not only is it a compliance requirement, it is the fastest, easiest and the cheapest way for employers to generate an instant pool of job applicants to begin the screening process in filling a job vacancy.    That is why job advertisements are everywhere.

Another reason why it is the most often used method is because it is easily understood and requires the least amount of effort on the part of the job seeker.   The reason why it is the least effective is that most job seekers have not developed sales and marketing skills to effectively present their work ethic and work experience as a solution of value to specific employers.  This I believe is the main reason why so many people cannot find jobs while many jobs remain unfilled.

MANAGED SEARCH

Even though this is the least often used method, it is highly effective and it is the cheapest method for both the job seeker and the employer.  It is a combination of all three methods where the job search is outsourced to a specialized headhunter.  It has the urgency component of the job search; the marketing ingenuity of the recruited and the effectiveness of the referred in matching the right person to the right job.

How it Works

For a small fee, an individual who meets one or more characteristics of the job search will leverage a headhunter’s trade secrets and professional relationships to identify and sell his/her skill-set as a solution of value to specific employers. That is also why this method is highly effective-the headhunter does the heavy-lifting parts of the job search in terms of identifying possible employers and making introductions for job interviews.

It is the cheapest method because the small fee paid by the job seeker to the headhunter will be reimbursed by the hiring employer, in the form of a sign-on bonus or a higher annual salary.

The reason why it is the least often used method is because it is not the right solution for all  job seekers.  It is only effective for job seekers with highly marketable skills, who are either seeking to transition their careers into another Industry or when they want to limit the time between being unemployed and gainfully employed.

If you are actively searching for a job or if you have reasons to begin pro-actively searching for your next job,  we will be happy to provide you with  more details on which job search method is right for you, click this link.