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A Career Coach’s Top Tips

Episode 221 - A Career Coach's Top Tips for Job Hunting Success

As we venture into 2024, the job market demands adaptability and a strategic approach from professionals seeking a new job and career advancement. As a career coach with years of experience, I’ve seen firsthand how the right tactics can significantly shape one’s career trajectory. This is a rebroadcast of Episode 169 and I share with you seven strategies that are essential for anyone looking to make meaningful progress in their career this year.

1. Rethink Networking:

I know you’re tired of hearing that networking is vital for career advancement. But how are you engaging with your network? Now may be a good time to rethink how you proceed in 2024 and beyond. Networking is more than a tool for immediate job searching; it’s a resource for lifelong learning and relationship building. I encourage you to engage with your network for industry insights and knowledge sharing. This approach not only broadens your professional horizon but also cements your reputation as a knowledgeable and proactive individual in your field.

2. Discuss Job Dissatisfaction with Tact:

Addressing dissatisfaction in your current role requires finesse. My advice is to focus on future aspirations rather than the negatives of your current situation. This strategy maintains your professionalism and keeps your conversations positive and forward-looking.

3. Foster Long-term Relationships with Recruiters:

Your relationship with recruiters shouldn’t end with the job search. Building and maintaining a genuine connection can yield long-term benefits, opening doors to future and unanticipated opportunities, as well as invaluable industry insights.

4. Navigate the ATS Landscape:

Today, your resume will likely encounter an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) before it’s seen by human eyes. I recommend keeping your resume formatting simple to ensure it’s ATS-friendly, thus increasing your chances of standing out.

5. Choose Your Referees Wisely:

Selecting referees is a strategic decision. Opt for individuals who are familiar with your current work and understand your career aspirations. Keep these referees updated about your professional journey to enhance your applications.

6. The Imperative of Continuous Learning:

In a volatile job market, the value of continuous learning cannot be overstated. Stay updated with your industry’s latest trends and skill requirements. This commitment to learning ensures you remain a relevant and competitive candidate.

7. Consider Structured Career Support:

For those seeking more guided career development, programs like ‘Job Hunting Made Simple’ offer comprehensive guidance, combining community support with expert insights. These programs are an invaluable investment in your professional growth.

Next steps towards your career success:

Implementing these strategies can significantly impact your career advancement. From strategic networking to understanding the nuances of modern recruitment processes, each approach is a step towards a more fulfilling professional life. As we embrace 2024, I encourage you to apply these strategies and witness the transformation in your career journey.

Renata Bernarde

About the Host, Renata Bernarde

Hello, I’m Renata Bernarde, the Host of The Job Hunting Podcast. I’m also an executive coach, job hunting expert, and career strategist. I teach professionals (corporate, non-profit, and public) the steps and frameworks to help them find great jobs, change, and advance their careers with confidence and less stress.

 

If you are an ambitious professional who is keen to develop a robust career plan, if you are looking to find your next job or promotion, or if you want to keep a finger on the pulse of the job market so that when you are ready, and an opportunity arises, you can hit the ground running, then this podcast is for you.

 

In addition to The Job Hunting Podcast, on my website, I have developed a range of courses and services for professionals in career or job transition. And, of course, I also coach private clients

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Timestamps to Guide Your Listening

0:00 – Introduction

07:34 – The Art of Networking

12:52 – Handling Job Dissatisfaction

18:19 – Building Relationships with Recruiters

46:20 – Navigating ATS in Job Applications

49:27 – Choosing the Right Referees

55:47 –  Continuous Learning and Skill Development

56:16 – Career Support Programs

57:21 – Next Steps

These are real questions, but they are also good examples of common questions about job hunting that I often get from you listeners, from social media followers, and from early clients. I find that all of these questions are beginners’ questions in many ways, you know, if you are trying to work things out on your own, which you very well might be, especially early in the year. We know recruiters, career coaches, and employers know that people are most likely to rethink their careers, rethink their job hunting, look for jobs, not necessarily apply, but certainly go to job boards and have a good look around. It could be because of New Year’s resolutions and just that reset and restart with the new year.

Everybody’s fresh and keen to move ahead with their careers and start tackling some of those plans that have been gathering dust during the pandemic. If that’s you, this episode is a good one to start with. We’re going to work with seven questions that I received that I believe are common questions for people who are trying to job hunt on their own.

By that, I mean people who are not actively working with a career coach and don’t yet have a very mature understanding of the recruitment process. And a lot of professionals find themselves in that situation. That’s very common. You could be super experienced in the work that you do, whether you’re in marketing, accounting, engineering, or if you’re a teacher or consultant, but that doesn’t mean that you have been job hunting much.

It could be that you’ve been in the same job for years, sometimes decades. And you know, that’s a muscle you haven’t used recently, and a lot has changed in the recruitment world. So these seven questions may be just what you need to get started in 2023.

Okay, so the first one. These are all anonymous, but they are real questions, so I had to make sure that I read them with care.

‘I am in job search mode. I have a state government job, which I’ve been in for one year, and I’m not wanting to stay. I am just now starting to seriously look for opportunities and to work my network connections. Do you have recommendations on how open to be about my dissatisfaction with my current employer with folks I am networking with? My thought is that I should be open about whether I am looking to change jobs, but not about the details behind why, because of the sector that I’m in or the profession that I’m in,’ she mentions here what profession it is, but I’m not going to mention it here, saying that this is kind of a small network and my boss is very well networked.

Okay, so this is a very common question. How much do I share when I’m in job search and I’m talking to recruiters or I’m talking to my network? How much do I tell about how unhappy I am with my job? The interesting thing about this person in particular is that at the beginning of the question, there’s a very interesting clue here about her knowledge of job hunting and recruitment.

Because she says she’s been in this job for one year. So, we are at the beginning of 2023. This person has applied and been recruited during the pandemic in 2021, 2022. In which case, you know, she’s quite aware of job hunting in the sort of post-pandemic world. So that’s good.

So there’s a lot here that she may already know about looking for work in 2023. So, here’s my advice to this specific question. I don’t believe that you need to be open about your dissatisfaction with your current job or your current boss. I am assuming here that you want to change jobs after being in this job for one year because it’s not working for you.

Either you’re not working well with your boss, or you don’t like the current work that you’re doing, or maybe it’s a combination of both. It would be interesting for you to reflect on why you are unhappy where you are. There is an episode coming up next week that will be episode 170 where I will share with you some tips and strategies on identifying and developing some sort of career reflection and design. Because this is not only important to you, but it’s important for you to discuss that with recruiters and with your network. So you mentioned at the beginning that you’re working, for example, in state government, right?

State government jobs are usually very bureaucratic. Are you seeking a different type of culture? Could that be the reason why you are unhappy where you are? So think about those things. Sit down and reflect and take time to identify what are the little things that are getting in the way of you being happy where you are so that you don’t repeat the same issues by just changing jobs without having that analysis and strategic thinking done before you move.

But you don’t necessarily need to be too open about your dissatisfaction with your current boss or current job in that way because, even though it’s probably the strong reason why you want to move, in general, professionals should be in control of their careers. They should have a robust career plan, and they should be working towards their career goals step by step.

And changing jobs is part of career advancement. It’s part of your professional and leadership development. So right now, you’re kind of naval-gazing and thinking, ‘Oh, I’m so unhappy in this job. I need an urgent job.’ But externally, people will look at you and think, ‘Oh, you know, it’s normal for somebody who is a professional in X sector or industry and, you know, at that age or stage in their careers to be looking and to be interested in what else is out there and other opportunities in the market.’

So I don’t feel like you need to overshare information about your dissatisfaction because this is important to you and you are kind of in this situation right now. But externally, people will think it’s pretty normal for you to be looking for work. So, I don’t think anyone would question that you would be looking for a career advancement and looking for better opportunities as part of taking control of your career journey.

One thing to be careful about is that when you’re doing networking and connecting with your folks, you mentioned your colleagues, they could be coworkers, they could be people that you went to university with, they could be former bosses and people that you know from your professional connections, this communication with them should never be transactional. What I mean is that networking should be ongoing. See, people have this idea that going to work and doing your job is what you need to do as a professional, but in fact, that’s only 70 to 80% of what you should be doing as a professional. You also need to be developing your skills, learning, and not just by formal learning environments, like enrolling in a course, but it could be reading a professional book or a magazine.

It could be going to a conference, it could be catching up with your network, and that should be ongoing. It shouldn’t be just transactional when you are looking for a job. That’s when networking feels icky and people don’t like it. You don’t like doing it, and people that you’re connecting with can sense and can feel that you’re only meeting with them because right now you need a job.

So, my advice is to seek the advice of others and not just their help. Listen to what they’re doing and how their career is progressing. Ask questions about, you know, what they think about the job market, what they think about specific industries or areas of expertise, or areas of growth within both your sectors and industries professionally.

Try to gather that intelligence. It will make your career planning and design much richer by having that connection with people. And then, ask for their advice. For example, “If you were in my shoes, what would you do? What do you think my next steps should be?” So, do that in a very gentle, not too needy, not too transactional way, and always seek advice.

Try to reduce the number of times you reach out for help. I think seeking advice and asking great questions makes people feel really good about themselves. People love mentoring, and I think that would be the best way. Always make it part of your routine to contact those people who matter to you, who are important for your career on a regular basis, not just when you need them, but when you think of them, when you find something that you think they will enjoy reading or knowing about.

Send them a note when it’s their birthday or a special festive holiday that they celebrate. So, make sure that you are always in touch with your professional network regularly. And you haven’t mentioned this, but I wonder if you are concerned that one year is not too long. This may be why you feel like you need to explain your dissatisfaction. But look, during the pandemic, a lot of professionals accepted less than desirable roles because there was a lack of opportunities out there. And now, many professionals are self-correcting. They either accepted roles that they, in a normal job market, wouldn’t have accepted, may have been lower pay, or it may have been in an area that they don’t necessarily like, but it was what was available. I have had many clients like that, and it goes both ways. Sometimes, employers hire without a lot of due diligence and thought in the process, and it kind of backfires both ways. So, I feel like people changing jobs a year in is not uncommon in this day and age, and I don’t think you need to overexplain that either. But, you know, if there are other things that you feel I haven’t addressed here, it’s because it’s very hard. So many things may be very tailored to your situation or to your profession or area of expertise. And this is why sometimes the best thing to do is to book a consultation with a career coach to unravel all of that and brainstorm ideas.

And even look at some common questions that you think you may get or are already getting from your network so we can review those answers and see what works best. I can give feedback on that. So, you know, sometimes it’s worth the investment. It will save you time and money to workshop with an experienced career coach. And if you want to know how to book a consultation with me, you can go to my website, and my services are all listed there for you.

Okay, now we have a second question. Again, it’s a real question, but it’s a very common one. I have several versions of this from podcast listeners, from social media followers, from clients, people that book consultations with me, clients in the group coaching program, and so on. And this is a question related to when and how you should contact a recruiter after an interview because many of you feel like you’ve been ghosted by recruiters. And, funny story, recruiters, when they talk to me, also often complain that they are ghosted by candidates. So, if you think about a situation where you are applying for lots of jobs, maybe you got an offer, and then the recruiter is trying to reach out to you for another opportunity, and you’re not answering back… Recruiters, you know, you may not have seen it yet or experienced it, but it also happens to them.

So, it’s an interesting process, the recruitment process. But in this case, the person is saying, “I sent an email to the HR contact at the name of the organization. So I’m not going to say, and I got a bounce-back email saying she is out of the office. I’ve now called and sent an email without a reply. Is it a case of just waiting, or do I follow up with the hiring manager who interviewed me and who I know from my days working at such and such?” So, okay, this is the situation here. This person was interviewed and they were interviewed by the hiring manager, after potentially a phone screen or a previous interview with HR. So there’s no recruiter involved. There’s no agent involved. It’s all in-house. They know the hiring manager because of a previous work experience where both of them worked at the same organization. A different version of this question is, “After my interview with X, I haven’t heard anything. Should I follow up with HR to get clarity on the next steps?” Okay. So let’s unpack this longer version of this question line by line.

Okay? And this is the reason why doing one-on-one coaching when you are job searching is so good and so important. Because at every step, at every interaction, you have a coach on call, and clients can have me on retainer for three months, six months, or a year. During their recruitment, I am there for them. They can call me anytime, they can say, “What do I do next? What happens next?” And I can also, most importantly, prep them before they have interviews or screens, and so on. So, if you don’t understand how career coaching works in that sort of scenario, at least for me, how I do it and my philosophy, that’s how I do it. I am on call for my clients, supporting them as they navigate the process. Because there is no one-size-fits-all for these types of questions. A lot depends on how the process went from the get-go and the sort of rapport that you built with the recruiter and what the instructions were about the next steps.

There’s not a lot for me to work on here when I get this sort of question without a lot of context around it, but I will give you the rule of thumb. In my experience, you have to use your intuition and your experience to kind of tailor this and tweak it and pivot it to make sure that it fits what’s happening to you. It’s not a one-size-fits-all. But when I think about the recruitment process and your interactions with the recruiter, be it over the phone, be it via Zoom, via face-to-face, it’s important to, first of all, always thank the recruiter for their time, during the time you’re with them and immediately afterwards via email. This is common etiquette. You know, you would do that if you go to someone’s house. I recently had a lot of friends here at my place over for my birthday. They came, they said thank you as they were walking out the door, and the next day I got all of these text messages, people thanking me again. And that’s the sort of thing you do. Like if a recruiter calls you and books a time to talk to you, you say, “Well, thank you so much for your time. Thank you for including me in your shortlist,” or whatever stage you’re in. And then immediately afterwards, send an email. Most importantly, during that conversation, when you have that person with you, it is an excellent opportunity for you to ask what the next steps are. Make sure that you do that before the call ends. “Okay. Tell me what the next steps are.” And I think it’s important for you to know that so that you don’t then have to reach out and ask, because when the recruiter hangs up with you, I mean, it’s exciting for you because you have that one connection. But the recruiter will be calling about 10, 15 people. So there will be lots of people. I think that you know, it gets so busy because then they have to write a report and send it to either their client if it’s an agent or to the hiring manager if it’s in-house. But there’s a lot of work that that HR recruiter person needs to do.

If you are well connected with the recruiter, if you feel like you built great rapport, keep in touch, not just because of this role, but because of what it means for your career sustainability. I have a recruiter; her name is Libe. Today’s my first day back at work, and I was checking my LinkedIn. And Libby, I posted sort of an end-of-year post, you know, saying Happy New Year to everybody, and Libby said, “Oh, Happy New Year to you too, Renata.” Guess how long I’ve known Libby for? We are in 2023. I’ve known Libby since, I kid you not, 2009. So you know what I mean? Like these people should be part of your network. I’ve only been a career coach for three years. I mean, I started coaching in 2016, but nobody knew about this. So Libby has been in my network.

You know, when I was a professional, looking for work, referring friends to her, and vice versa, it was important. So, you have to build great connections with recruiters if you feel you’ve gelled well with them during a conversation. Connect with them on LinkedIn. Sometimes, I say to people, don’t connect with recruiters on LinkedIn. What I mean is, you shouldn’t connect with like 60 recruiters on LinkedIn because it’s too much of a red flag for other recruiters and people like me. It feels like too many. But, if there are a couple of recruiters you’ve really enjoyed working with, and they are in your area of expertise, they will be people you’ll likely work with again in the future.

Here in Melbourne, there’s a handful of recruiters that, during my time as an executive, I had to know and work well with, like it or not. It’s important to keep in touch and stay connected if you don’t hear back at all.

If there’s nothing else to do, you have to move on. Stalking, insisting, and sending too many messages may not be the best move for your career. Remember, this is not just about this role. It’s about the reputation you leave behind for other opportunities. Learn how recruiters work. Understand their day-to-day. There are several episodes of the Job Hunting podcast where I interview recruiters. They are very candid, and these interviews offer great insights, even if the recruiters are not in your country. For instance, I’ve interviewed recruiters in the US and Australia. Check out those episodes, and you’ll see many similarities.

There’s also an episode called ‘How Recruitment Works’. This episode is actually one lesson from my group coaching program, Job Hunting Made Simple. It’s in week four and gives a sneak peek into the program. Job Hunting Made Simple is comprehensive, and I wanted to share a bit of what I teach.

I hope this answers some of your questions. Sometimes you need to tailor advice to your situation. If you want to save time and headache, consider something like Job Hunting Made Simple, which I offer twice a year, or private coaching while you’re job hunting. Working with a career coach for three to six months can really speed up your results.

Here’s another real, yet common question I get: ‘I’ve been looking for a job for about three months. I’ve had three interviews and got to the last stage in two of those roles. I’m also getting shortlisted for interviews, subject to the hiring manager’s interest. Unfortunately, I’m not making it through the process in many of these situations. Do I need to change anything?’

Of course, the short answer is yes. But let’s analyze this step by step. If you’ve been job hunting for three months, had three interviews, and reached the last stage in two of those roles, we can’t immediately tell if your conversion rate from application to interview is good or bad. It depends on how many applications you’ve sent. If it’s three, then your conversion rate is 100%. If it’s ten, it’s 30%, and if it’s a hundred, it’s only 3%. You want to assess your suitability for these roles, which I cover in my course, ‘Reset Your Career’.

Now, getting to the last stage in two out of three interviews is good. The focus should now be on converting those final stage opportunities into job offers. Each stage of the job hunting process requires different skills and techniques. For instance, the skills needed for interviewing are different from those for writing job applications. Identifying bottlenecks in your process, like the conversion from phone screen to actual interview, is crucial. Working on these areas can significantly improve your chances.

In summary, understanding where you’re struggling in the job hunting process and seeking targeted help, whether through courses or coaching, can be incredibly beneficial.”

Again, every stage requires a different technique, a different muscle that you need to work on and strengthen to allow you to go through this qualification process all the way to the end, all the way to the prize, which is getting a job. So, what do you need to change? You asked, “Do I need to change anything?”

And I’m like, “Yes, of course, you do.” So, the first thing you can do is review your application conversion ratio. If the job is suitable for your skills and experience, why aren’t you converting to the next stage, from, let’s say, job application to phone screen? Is it HTS compliance? Is it the cover letter? Is it the resume format?

Are you addressing the dot points in the selection criteria in your cover letter and resume? Are your job application, LinkedIn, and reputation all aligned? Can the person reviewing your application see how you fit into this role? Are you applying the right way? Are you following the instructions?

Follow what the job ad is asking you to do. And again, you know, there are things that a masterclass in researcher career can help you with. There’s actually more than one. There are four masterclasses in researcher career, but all of them are really designed to support you in applying for roles successfully.

Review your phone screen to interview ratio. Okay, you have already identified that the phone screen is not converting to an interview. You will need to work on how you present yourself against the position description, how you answer the “Tell me about yourself” question. That’s the pitch question. How much do you know about the role, how much do you understand about the position?

If they’re calling you and identifying you as a good candidate and you’re not progressing to the next stage, there is something that you’re saying there that may be bottlenecking you. And if you’re saying—I mean, the question is a bit hard for me to read—if you’re saying that you’re getting a good vibe during the call, that they’re going to shortlist you, and then they don’t, could it be that it is your job application that’s not convincing the hiring manager or the client? Could it be that your LinkedIn presence and reputation are not convincing them?

So, if the recruiter is saying, “Oh, I think this is a great candidate,” but they look at your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn and they say, “Well, I don’t feel it,” then, you know you need to go back to the drawing board. This is a very interesting situation. I have a few clients who have been in this situation where they had such strong networks that they were always sort of put forward for interviews, but then I would look at their resume and think, “Dear, the resume was really out of date in the formatting and styling,” and it gets to a point where the advocates and the champions can only take you so far.

And then from that point onwards, there is a panel of people that will ultimately decide which candidate they will put forward for the role. And they will be sitting down at a desk with all those papers, with all the resumes and cover letters. And if your presentation is not professional enough and not aligned with the role, if your LinkedIn is not professional enough when they check you out on LinkedIn.

you’re going to miss out. Okay? So that’s the thing that you need to think about. Everything needs to be consistent. Every layer of that onion needs to amplify and add to your reputation, not remove or add any doubts to it. So consider booking a consultation with me for those really important pivoting times so you can get feedback tailored to your needs.

If you feel like you’re going to go through the job-hunting process for a couple of months, consider investing in working with somebody like me or another career coach specialized in job hunting and recruitment. Okay? Now, oh, by the way, you can go to the episode show notes and see all the services there.

Or you can go to my website. Okay. Let’s look at another question.

What if one’s house cannot be reconfigured to allow for bookcases, paintings, and sofas, etc., to be in the background for job interviews? I know how important you think backgrounds are for job interviews. Well, well, well, okay. If you haven’t heard this before from me, here I go again. Backgrounds are very important for your professional presence and the buildup of your reputation for job interviews. And as you start a new job, I think after you’ve been in an organization for many years, it doesn’t really matter anymore. People know the value of your work. They know how good you are as a professional. These things, still, sort of, external layers and first impressions are not so important.

But if you’re going for a job interview with people that you do not know, first impressions matter. Now, if you remember, back four or five, six years ago, people were going for job interviews. They were buying a new suit. They were making sure that they had the right attire. I mean, even if it wasn’t a suit, depending on the sector that you work, it could be something completely different and more casual, and that’s fine, but you would put an effort into making sure that the first look at you, you know, the first impression, counts and adds to the case that you’re trying to make, that you will make a great professional for that organization. Now the background is the same. That’s what it means, especially if you’re going to be working from home, you’re going to be representing that organization from your home.

Making sure that you can tell with those cues that I have a space here at my house dedicated to my work, I can work here and I can talk to your clients. If you’re, you know, you’re sort of, this is the message, right? You’re not going to say this, this is just the message that you’re trying to convey by having a natural good background behind you.

When you’re going for job interviews, I can sit here and I can talk to you, I can talk to your clients, I can lead teams, I can be part of a team in this environment that looks very professional. So, you know, I’ve said this many times, it’s part of ‘Reset Your Career’ and definitely part of ‘Job Hunting Made Simple,’ to help people present themselves well in interviews and networking conversations.

And so, a lot of my clients at first have been kind of, “Oh, I don’t know that I can do this.” And in the end, they found a way. They have found a way to add a very thin, you know, not too deep Ikea bookcase and add books and a pot plant and something. And that made a difference. So I remember talking to a client who was applying for a Chief Research Officer position and, poor guy, I felt bad for him because he was going through renovations at home and, you know, everything was upside down at his house. But I explained to him, “Look, you are excellent at your job and so is John, Mary, and Peter, right? They will be interviewing four people. If John, Mary, and Peter are sitting behind a bookshelf filled with books and not just any books, you know, the books that matter, you know, books about economy and business, and all of the things that chief economists or chief research officers should have.

I can’t remember if it was a Chief Economist or a Chief Researcher. Doesn’t matter, these things make a good impression. It makes those candidates look smarter, more put-together than you. So we need to fix this before you go into interviews. Right. So this is something that you have to figure out.

It’s hard to believe that nothing can be done. So sorry, but I don’t buy that. And I do believe that there are little things that you can do. I have a client and she didn’t have a blank wall, like a white wall like many people do. And very quickly, you know, she was so good at like, “Yes, yes, I will do everything I can to find a job.” She really wanted a new job. She got a low, I think it was an Ikea Billy, one of those half Billy bookcases. And she had a photo of her girls, you know, a family. So she had a few girls, and her husband and a lamp, a little pot plant, and a pile of books just sitting on top of each other.

And it made such a difference, you know, her room was completely changed by that. And, you know, she got a job very quickly after looking for work. I mean, we’d worked on several things, so it’s hard to say it was that, you know, when you work with a career coach like she did, you know, we do lots of things. We update her resume, we update her cover letter.

We make sure that she’s prepared for every interview. And, and look, she did all her homework and she got a job, but I just, you know, she was reluctant at the beginning, but very quickly figured something out and it made a difference. So please don’t underestimate the power of first impressions and at least get a very good camera and a very good microphone and a light.

Expensive items are not a concern these days. You can easily purchase a good camera, microphone, and even lights at a reasonable price on Amazon. Personally, I don’t like ring lights as I find them harsh on the eyes; they’re simply too bright. Instead, I use two IKEA lamps that provide a nice, soft light.

They offer good lighting for me, and they’ll do the same for you.

Look, I have more questions, but I think I’ll stop here. Should I keep going? Okay, let’s continue. I have three more questions, and I need to be quick because we’re already at 47 minutes, and I don’t want to take up too much of your time. One question is very short: Where can we find the ATS compliance rules?

ATS stands for Applicant Tracking System, and several software options are available, particularly in larger companies like banks, consultancies, manufacturing firms, and places like Amazon, Apple, or Google, as well as smaller and medium-sized organizations. Typically, the first thing to read your job applications is not a person but a bot, which is part of the ATS. There are various types, some expensive and others free. The best way to learn about them is to watch an episode of the Job Hunting Podcast with Michael Inga. The link is in the show notes. Michael and I discussed important topics, but unfortunately, the sound quality was poor. I’ve invited Michael back because the content is crucial.

If you can endure the bad sound, the episode is worth listening to. Recording podcasts with overseas guests sometimes leads to unexpected issues, but this episode is informative. When dealing with ATS compliance, it’s safest to avoid columns, tables, hyperlinks, and images. Opt for a simple black and white Word document for your resume and cover letter, or both, if required for your job application.

Be wary of people who offer to design your resume. I recently had a senior client in banking and finance who paid someone to create her resume, and it came back purple, filled with ATS non-compliances. We had to redo it entirely, so be careful with those who may not understand ATS requirements. If you’re considering hiring someone for your resume, ensure they know about ATS compliance.

Another question, number six, is about identifying suitable referees. Depending on the job’s required skill set, some of your former supervisors or team leaders might not be the best referees. Sometimes they’ve moved on or don’t understand the sector. Also, depending on the country, referees are contacted either early in the process or at the end, typically when there’s a final shortlist.

This was a specific question I received, but it’s a common issue. Having good referees is crucial for sustainable career progression. If you’ve burnt bridges at your previous workplace, it’s important to work with a career coach to find ways to mitigate any issues that arise during the recruitment process’s tail end. Recruiters and organizations won’t hire without checking references. While there are occasional exceptions, it’s best to assume you’ll need strong referees.

If this discussion is causing you anxiety, it’s important to calm down and focus on forming connections with current and former coworkers, managers, clients, or suppliers. Avoid being transactional with potential referees in your network. Keep in touch with them, send Christmas cards, birthday messages, or notes when something relevant comes up. Even though I no longer need references, I still contacted my referees last year to wish them a Merry Christmas and catch up.

Maintain your connections; they’re important. If you’ve had workplace issues and find it difficult to connect with former employers or managers, consider working with a career coach or at least booking a consultation.”

If you want to work with me, go to my website, and we can have a chat. So, let’s say you are job hunting, right? And you have your referees. Make sure that you keep your referees in the loop about what’s happening in your career from time to time. Let’s say every year, or every six months, send them an update on what’s happening to you.

If you are thinking about job hunting in 2023, or if you’re currently job hunting, send them your resume and say, ‘Do you have any feedback for me? This is my most recent updated resume. I just wanted to make sure you have one. I hope that you can be my reference when the time comes, and if you have any feedback on my resume, please let me know.’

Let them know what you are looking for, what you’re trying to achieve, and when they will be contacted. Send them the job ad, send them the PD, send them some pointers – a brief summary of what you know about the position, what you heard from the recruiter, the things that you’ve done already to get to that stage during the recruitment process.

Send them a little note. Don’t send them an essay, but just a little note. And of course, send them your complete job application – your cover letter, your resume, the PD – so that they have everything in place. Because, if you’ve worked with that person five to ten years ago, they may not know what you’ve been doing.

And these people are busy. Like, I was a reference for somebody just this week, right? And I haven’t worked with her in a little while. So, it’s important for you not to give your referee too much work. Make the job of being a reference as easy as you possibly can for them. Then, of course, thank them.

Ask how you can help them and help them. Even if they say there is nothing, even make, send them a note. If you get the job, send them flowers. Make sure that you are appreciative of the work they’ve done for you. Not that they’ve said nice things about you, but that you appreciate them championing your career and mentoring you and supporting you along the way.

Okay, final question. I have received quite a few of those in this end of year and early January. I want to do the ‘Job Hunting Made Simple’ program with you in February.

Do I need to do anything? Do I need to register? Look, I’m assuming, if you’re wanting to do it, you already have registered your interest, but if you haven’t, you can go to my website to the ‘Job Hunting Made Simple’ page and register your interest in participating in the next group coaching program.

So, the group coaching is great because, A, it’s a group – groups are fun – and B, it’s cheaper than doing private coaching. So that is a very good reason for you to do ‘Job Hunting Made Simple.’ It’s seven weeks long, so that’s enough to give you a good time with me.

Even though it’s in a group, it’s so wonderful to get questions that you hadn’t thought of from other people in the group. It just adds to your knowledge bank of how recruitment works and to see how other people are doing it. So register your interest on the website as soon as possible, and there will be more news about the program in the weeks ahead.

I’ll keep everyone posted, and if you haven’t yet signed up for my newsletter, of course, people in my newsletter are always the first to know about everything. So go to the episode show notes and sign up for the newsletter. Or you can go to my website, and you can sign up.

Alright, everyone. What a long episode. Thank you so much for sticking around and staying here with me. If you’re still here and you think that this episode will help someone else that you know, make sure that you forward them this episode, let them know that it’s here. You can also follow the podcast if you’re not yet following it on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you found this audible.

Also, YouTube. And, yeah, I look forward to seeing you again next week. Bye for now.

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