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By: George Marchant, Technical Recruiter
Published: August 2022
So, you are looking to change careers and you are wondering how to best position yourself to make this possible. Finding the perfect job is not an easy task but modern technology can help you overcome this challenge. Using technology can not only help streamline your ability to connect yourself with jobs you are interested in. It can also help connect prospective companies and recruiters to you with the opportunities they have available. Here are a few simple actions that can enable technology to work in your favor:
1) Tap in to the network
Create a profile on some of the most current and popular job boards available. Ask others who are in the line of work you are targeting where they have had the most success in this area and how to get started. Reach out to recruiters online and ask them how they can help. Make sure you research which job boards are best in class for the types of positions you are pursuing. The technology behind which job board is best for each situation is constantly evolving so make sure to do your homework on this front.
2) Make yourself stand out from the crowd
Consider changing your status on job boards to reflect that you are actively looking. As an example, on LinkedIn you can add the “#OpenToWork” feature on your profile which allows you to let recruiters and/or your network on LinkedIn know that you are open to new job opportunities. With this feature you have the ability to control who is able to see your job-seeking status. You can activate this status to be visible by all LinkedIn Members which also includes recruiters and people at your current company or conversely you can restrict this to be visible only to recruiters to help protect your privacy. If you opt in to this feature, a banner will appear around your profile picture that shows others you are open to new opportunities. This will allow recruiters to find you more quickly and see that you are in the job market.
Consider following company pages as this will show internal recruiters that you are more likely to respond to their inquiry if you are already following their company page. This shows a sign of interest and additional engagement to that company brand which can also help you stand out from the crowd.
3) Trust the algorithm, and use it to your advantage
On LinkedIn, under your “jobs” tab at the top of the page, you will get a “recommended for you” section that is based on your profile and search history. This algorithmic feedback is very accurate once you start searching and applying for positions online. The algorithm will help surface similar jobs based on your past behavior on the site. If you specify the types of job opportunities that you’re interested in and your preferred location, the site will help your profile show up in search results when recruiters look for suitable job candidates and will provide more targeted opportunities based on these preferences. The more inputs you submit in to the tool, the more accurate and prescribed the feedback will be on the site. This holds true for most all major job boards.
4) Turn on notifications
Many sites and job boards allow for recommended opportunities to be sent to you based on your search history and profile as well. This is a great way to passively get recommendations based on your preferences and can help save you time with your search efforts.
5) Go mobile
Most all reputable job boards will be available on your phone to download via mobile app. This will allow you to see the status of your applications in real time without the need of your desktop or to have to go into your email. You can manage application status and history on-the-go and can see updates in real time by using your phone to track your progress along the way.
Technology has the capacity to streamline and amplify your job-hunting efforts if used correctly. Modern conveniences enable us to locate opportunities we are seeking more rapidly and with higher accuracy than before. If you consider these small actions, it can save you both time and effort in landing that next career opportunity that you are looking for.
Mr. Marchant is a technical recruiter and has ten years strategic staffing experience for Fortune 500, large enterprises, and small-mid-sized companies. In this capacity, he works as a technical recruiter to analyze and identify hiring needs to develop a recruitment plan. He has extensive experience in screening and interviewing candidates over a broad spectrum – technical and non-technical, work force and executive levels. Mr. Marchant presents on career and employment issues and joined NITP as a visiting speaker in 2022
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