Know what to apply for

In the last 2 and a half years, the market has changed.

An employee market

Post pandemic, the roles of many people have been made redundant and businesses have closed – forcing employers and employees in the most affected industries into the mix of people looking for work. With that influx of job applicants it could be expected that the market would be flooded with people looking for work. For a while, that seemed to be the case.

However, across many occupations it seems that we have levelled off in what most would now call an ‘employee market’.

For a whole range of reasons, people already in secure employment are choosing to sit tight. And with immigration at an all-time low, it has become increasingly difficult for employers to find good people.

In 20 plus years of recruiting, I have never seen the pendulum swing so quickly from one extreme to the other.

However, even if there were just 10 applications for the role you want, that’s still 9 other potentially suitable applicants who are in competition for the same vacancy.

Which applications get shortlisted?

So, let’s not look at it like a numbers game.

The applicants who are shortlisted will be those whose CV and covering letter show that they paid attention to what the employer is looking for – and have those skills, experience or personal attributes.

That said, it can be tricky for an employer to decide which applications to shortlist when there are a number of applications that appear to be similarly qualified.

For example, in roles like accounting, most applicants have an appropriate tertiary qualification – or have established themselves with years of practical experience. In customer service there is often no formal qualification.  So, the decision may turn on a range of factors that suggest very close alignment to the employer’s requirements.  Employers might favour past experience in the same industry or use of the same software.

Recognising that the employer might give a different weighting to each of the skills their advert called for, it is important to pay attention to the things that they state as essential – and to read between the lines a little, to see if you can detect what might matter most to them.

If your experience falls short in some areas, use your covering letter to draw attention to the areas you do excel in.

For example, note projects, tasks or teams where you have made a positive impact. Without breaching the confidence of your previous employers, use volumes, percentages or timeframes to illustrate how the pace or scale that you have worked at before might line up with the size and scope of the new role.

Changing career?

If you want or need to change career entirely, pay attention to the ‘must haves’ that a prospective employer may not be willing to negotiate on.

That reality check may necessitate taking an interim step whilst on the way to getting to your dream job – like further study, or a drop in pay while you re-train and get up to speed.

But don’t let that stop you from applying for jobs where you have transferable skills, personal values and interests that line up with the job, the culture or their particular business.

A positive attitude, coupled with the aptitude to learn, may be preferred (even more than experience) by some employers. Some employers favour hiring someone who isn’t coming into the role with pre-conceived ideas about how the job is done. Even similar businesses will have unique selling points – and being ready to do things their way can be a real advantage.

If an employer considers hiring you when you don’t have everything the role requires, then they will likely be trying to gauge if they will get a good return on their investment.  Be prepared to commit to an interim role in the same way that you would give to your preferred job. That’s just common decency. And you may benefit later when you’re ready to move on – from new skills, connections and a good reference from that employer.

Things to look for

Have regard for the skills that are:

• Required (words like: must have, essential)

• Preferred (advantageous, desired, ideally)

• Implied

The CV

The job of a good CV is to get you to interview.

Not getting calls from agencies or employers?

If the phone isn’t ringing and you’re not securing interviews, it suggests that your CV either doesn’t say what the employer is looking for – or it does say what they’re looking for – but that information is not clearly presented.

What should a CV contain?

It’s a given that your CV must evidence experience, skills or personal attributes that the employer said they require.

This information must be easy for an employer to see at a quick read. It is helpful to:

• Start with a template (MS Word has template resumé documents that you can personalise).

• Use bullet points.

• Re-order bullet points to lead with the most relevant.

• If need be, re-word your personal objective to show how your goals line up with that particular role.

• Steer clear of long sentences anywhere – in your CV and in your covering.

• Follow instructions, e.g. include a covering letter, ID, or qualifications if any of these are requested.

• Add a photo if you have one you’re happy to share (the CV is a marketing document – photos can help to build trust and engagement).

Avoid ambiguity

• Include the dates that you started and finished in each role.

• Start with your most recent employment and work backwards in chronological order.

• Do not put years only.

  If someone worked from 2020 to 2021 in a job, what does that really mean? Did they work from the end of 2020 to the start of 2021 only, i.e. 2 months? Or did they work the full two years?

• Ambiguity with dates may cause an employer to favour other CV’s where they can be more certain of an applicant’s length of service (and the experience that may have been gained in that time).

• Explain gaps. For example, if you left a role to return to full-time study for a year, insert that year in amongst your work history so every year is covered off (and show qualifications obtained under a separate heading).

• Under the headings of ‘Duties’ or ‘Achievements’ put enough detail to succinctly differentiate your skills from the skills of someone else in a job that has the same job title. One mechanic might spend most of their time doing WOF’s. Another might be expert in diagnostics. Don’t expect an employer to be able to guess what you did in your particular role.

• Add reasons for leaving – at least for the last job or two. It could be a statement as simple as, “Seeking advancement” or “Role made redundant when function moved off shore”. Ideally, it will give the employer an impression of what motivates you or what changed that made you look for something new.

• Include relevant qualifications obtained.

• If a qualification does not directly relate to the job sought, consider leaving it out. If for example, you studied Make-up Artistry years ago – but you’re now applying for a role in HR – what value does that qualification add? Left in, it may imply to the employer that the job you really want is not what they have to offer.

Sometimes less is more

• White space and headings (like in a newspaper) make content easier to read.

• As stated above, the purpose of a CV is not to get you the job. It is just to get you the interview!

• Think of your CV as an invitation to the employer to have a discussion with you. It should inform on skills and achievements – yet still leave room to chat about how you might fit in with their needs.

Think ahead to an interview

• If you secure an interview it will be because of what’s in your CV.

• Be ready to back up what your CV says.

• Your CV might say you improved productivity. Expect to be asked how you did that. What did you do that made a difference? And how much of a difference did you make?

Interviews

The key thing is to be yourself.

Good news

Most employers will interview no more than five applicants for a role. Sometimes only one or two people get shortlisted. This is not just good news, really. It’s great news!

It means that something in your CV made the employer think you can do the job.

At interview, the odds of you getting the job are so much better than they were when you first hit Apply Now.

Behavioural interviews

Employers often ask for specific examples of what, when and how you have tackled the similar requirements of previous roles.

This is called behavioural interviewing.

If they ask you to give an example, they don’t want to hear how you think you might tackle the situation. They want to know that you have encountered this type of thing before.

Some of the best prep you can do for any interview is to jot down situations you’ve handled well, so they’re easier to remember when you get asked these kinds of questions.

However, if they ask for an example of something you have no experience in, you can do one of two things:

1. Tell them how you think you would deal with it based on how you have dealt with similar situations in the past, OR

2. Draw on your experience outside of work if need be.

   For example, if they ask how you have reacted when a colleague was not pulling their weight – and if you haven’t had that happen in your work – you could perhaps share a similar situation from a sports team or other group that you’re a member of.

Be ready to talk about what you have learnt, what you are still learning, and what study or experience you might like to undertake as part of your ongoing professional development.

Answer on point

It may seem self-explanatory, but sometimes silly things happen. Perhaps nerves kick in. You talk fast, or you waffle. And before you know it, you’ve headed off at a tangent to what was being asked.

If you’re not sure that you have answered on point, perhaps seek to clarify. You could say, “Does that answer your question?” Or, “Is that what you were meaning?”

If it’s really not clear what the hiring manager is driving at, ask them. For example, if they say, “Tell me about yourself”. What does that mean? Do they want to know about your values, your upbringing – just your work history? Or something else?

Clear communication in an interview does more than facilitate the exchange of information.  It can go some way towards demonstrating your readiness to ensure understanding between yourself and others, generally, your ability to follow instructions and the timeliness of your delivery.

Team fit

A lot of employers say team fit is important.

However unscientific it might sound, fit includes a sense of connection that happens between you and the hiring managers. It’s a measure of whether or not you think you could work well together. And more.

It’s difficult to define and may encompass a number of factors.

A decision may be influenced by the employer’s perception of what you’ve said you are looking for (and whether or not that fits with what they can give you), or on skills or personal attributes that compliment the existing team – or the weighting that an employer places on one attribute over another.

Ideally, an interview will be a discussion that helps both parties to make a well informed decision.

Ask them questions too

This might be the most important thing you will read here.

If you ask questions, a few things happen.

• You get the information you’re curious about.

• You get them speaking ‘off script’ and perhaps get a little more insight into what they’re like as people.

• They are left with the positive impression that you have genuine interest in their job – not just any job – because they can see that you’ve given thought to some of the practical aspects of the role, or their business.