Looking for a job during these times is a real challenge, with new difficulties, which did not exist two years ago, for example. The unemployment rate has indeed risen sharply during the year 2020, the needs are lower due to partial unemployment and the reduced activity of many companies, the future prospects are weak with numerous uncertainties. In addition, job forums, social events and company meetings are mostly canceled or postponed due to the pandemic. In fact, looking for a job is particularly difficult. Here we will give you some tips and some key pointers on how to optimize your job search and put the odds in your favor.
Continue research
Even though many countries have entered a new period of lockdowns, many companies continue their activity in full, without any interruption. In fact, employment needs are being felt, and it is, therefore, wise to continue your research despite the confinement and not to postpone it.
For example, it is important to mention in cover letters or emails that you send to potential recruiters that you are available immediately and that you are also ready to conduct job interviews by videoconference if necessary. This will demonstrate your adaptability to the situation and context and your ability to anticipate the needs of your recruiter. You must, therefore, remain available, motivated, and continue your research over anything else.
Consult available job offers
Job boards continue to operate in exactly the same way as they did before the COVID19 pandemic. Ads are posted every day on different job search sites, and it's easy to subscribe, so you can receive alerts as soon as an ad matches your profile. They offer dozens of ads classified by category and geographic location so that you can quickly identify those that suit or interest you.
Activate or reactivate your professional network
At a time when a good part of the world is in partial or total teleworking, contacts and social relations are much less frequent than before. However, activating your personal or professional network, or reactivating it, is possible even remotely. It is a good idea to take fifteen minutes each day to contact someone you know to check on them. The conversation will allow you to let them know that you are looking for a job, and word of mouth can begin. Most employees currently feel isolated and cut off from their professional social relationships, as well as from friends, and some in your network may be happy to help you, for example, by contacting some of their relationships or former professional relationships themselves. The CEO of LinkedIn says that in 7 connections, any person on the planet can be reached through LinkedIn. Activating your professional network, taking the news, updating your status on sites like LinkedIn to clearly indicate that you are looking for a job can all contribute to your success.
Contact recruitment firms
Contacting recruiting firms that specialize in your field can also pay off. Recruitment firms have registered fewer job applications in recent months due to the pandemic, but they continue to conduct selection interviews with candidates. Of course, they may not immediately offer you a job in your sector, but you will then appear in their database and appear quickly when they register a request that matches your profile. The strategy is not immediate, but in a few months, if the economic recovery is confirmed and job offers are pouring in, you will have already passed the preliminary stage of selection by the recruitment firms. This step is important and, therefore, should not be neglected, even if the firms do not have any offers corresponding to your research to propose to you at this moment in time.
We are living in difficult times in terms of employment and job search. It is, nevertheless, important to continue your research as best as possible, to optimize your preparation, and to anticipate at best any possible improvement in conditions in the coming months. Being well prepared, staying tuned to the market, betting on recruitment firms, activating or reactivating your network, all of these elements will allow you to optimize your job search and minimize the time before landing a job.