Where to Find a Job in Today’s Market

Everyone and their next-door neighbor has an opinion on the best route to finding a new job in today’s market. Here are some of the most popular recommendations and a brief summary of pros, cons, and who is best suited to use each route to get to their ideal job. Often, the best approach combines several of these, to ensure you get your name and resume noticed by the right gatekeepers!

1. Posting Online. From Monster to Indeed, these sites advertise that they are the most modern way to have the best jobs come knocking at your door. They work by making your resume searchable by keywords. The positives: It’s relatively easy to upload your resume and submit some basic information. The negatives: The employers who use these sites tend to be looking for entry-level employees, and many responses are from recruiters and others who are not terribly careful to closely match keywords. Most job-seekers find that using these sites means sorting through many poor matches and very few real offers. It’s hard to recommend this route for anyone.
2. LinkedIn. This site is a must for most professionals. It provides an opportunity for networking, professional branding, and for researching potential employers and colleagues. Much like the online job boards, LinkedIn offers the opportunity to put your resume, keywords, and a personal statement in a public spot. The positives: It’s just as easy as the online job boards, and a well-respected networking tool that can help you spot opportunities to network and connect further afield than your current city. The negatives: Unless you’re at the executive level, it’s rarely the place to find your next job. While it’s not an efficient way to find your next position, many thousands of job-seekers use LinkedIn as a place to search for networking opportunities and to offer potential employers a way to research YOU before your job interview. Every professional should use LinkedIn, but not as a stand-alone job search tool.
3. Job Fairs. Unless the job fair in question is an industry-specific event at an IT or Engineering conference, job fairs are overwhelmingly about finding minimum-wage or entry-level talent to fill unskilled jobs. The positives: They can offer a chance to polish and practice your elevator pitch and introductions, and if you’re looking for an entry-level job, they may offer some connections. The negatives: They tend to be crowded and exhausting, with very few jobs for knowledge workers or experienced professionals. If it has been a decade since your last job search, or it’s your first, this might be a way to get your feet wet.
4. Networking. Making connections with your local professional community is a must. The positives: Attending networking events, joining local chapters of professional associations, and becoming a visible part of your professional community is an invaluable way to promote your personal brand as a valuable, skilled professional in your field. The negatives: It can be difficult to get started, so consider bringing a friend or colleague in your field with you. Having a copy of your resume on hand at these events is always wise. You never know when you’ll run into someone searching for your exact skills. Offer your card to everyone, but have the resume on hand just in case. Just as with LinkedIn, this can be a way the job finds you, but it’s not a primary search tool.
5. Direct approach. Contacting hiring managers directly can be an effective way to get your foot in the door. The positives: You communicate directly with a gatekeeper to the jobs that interest you, and to your ideal employers. The negatives: Hiring managers are busy, and often use recruiters and others to screen applicants. Overall, this is a worthwhile approach, since the response often includes specific directions on how to be considered (immediately, if there are openings, or for future opportunities). This often includes contact information for the company’s primary recruiting firms. If you know where you want to work, this can be a great option for any level of experience.
6. Recruiters. Many organizations use recruiting firms to search out and vet applicants, so their HR managers can focus on choosing the best-fit candidates of a field of qualified and experienced candidates. From executive searches down to the entry-level IT associate, recruiters are often the primary gatekeepers to the jobs you want. The positives: Recruiting firms like Step Up Recruiting are always very upfront about the fields they specialize in, so it’s easy to find the ones that have access to the job openings that interest you. The negatives: While a recruiter wants to place candidates with their client, they’re looking for best-fit candidates, just as the HR managers are. You’ll need to have a solid resume, practice your interview skills, and polish your personal branding before contacting the recruiters. Many are willing to help you get ready for interviews, but they don’t do the work for you. This is often the best way for highly skilled professionals such as Engineers, Design and IT professionals to find the jobs they’re seeking.