> home
> About
> Contact Us
> Editorial Info
> IEEE-USA

11.11

How How to Land a New Job Faster:
Be Your Own Talent Agent

By Debra Feldman, JobWhiz, Executive Talent Agent

Before the recession, it was not unusual for employers to hire external recruiters to identify candidates, screen applicants, recommend top prospects and be a critical part of the hiring process. Today, companies spend less on talent acquisition, have fewer open positions to fill and internal movement and referrals account for nearly 65 percent of candidate sourcing.

Most employers have adopted online recruiting resources (e.g., corporate career sites, job boards, social networking and so on).  The number of available positions has decreased while the size of the qualified applicant pool has grown. The corporate job market has been turned upside down and it has created the perfect storm, challenging candidates to find new solutions.  Job seekers must adopt job search strategies and tactics that are effective in today’s environment in order to gain a competitive advantage, expedite the search campaign process and get the best offer in the shortest time possible. Responding to print advertisements with paper resume submissions used to generate interviews which led to job offers.  Now, most job hunters find that applying online is not productive. 

In the past, candidates depended on recruiters to find the openings, present them to employers and orchestrate the process for them.  Without a liaison, candidates must be more proactive and develop connections with their target employers, rather than relying on recruiters to maintain relationships with decision-makers for them.  To find a new executive position, professionals must be their own agents, promote themselves and represent themselves unabashedly as singular, reliable, outstanding resources who will always deliver, fit in with the team and increase profits, decrease costs and/or improve processes.  With recruiters eliminated, they can interact directly with employers and describe their accomplishments firsthand. 

Once a connection is established, both parties benefit — if they keep in touch.  Employers have ready access to screened prospects that they can tap for future opportunities, and new contacts that are not hired immediately gain precious insider knowledge, can cultivate deeper trusting relationships and offer help leading to more opportunities.  From the perspective of the potential candidate, networking delivers lifetime career insurance — an inside track to unadvertised or the “hidden” jobs.

The best method to eliminate job searching roadblocks is to Network Purposefully,  coupled with:

• the right go-to-market strategy (including precise positioning)

• a memorable, remarkable value contribution (tailored to each employer)

• clear communications about the candidate’s expertise to the correct individual (with hiring authority or someone whose recommendations the decision maker trusts)

• volunteered assistance and polite and persistent follow-up (to stay top of mind)

While recruiters used to devise the marketing plan and sell the candidate to the employer, today's job seekers must do their own planning, packaging, promoting, and pricing. They must also manage the process and transact the sale.  For candidates, transitions take more effort, but by networking purposefully before needing a job, they will have the right connections to accelerate a smooth landing.

Comments may be submitted to todaysengineer@ieee.org.

All rights reserved, Debra Feldman 2011.