Nothing seems to work with the job search

13 Comments

1. AnonymousMarch 12,2023 at 12:11PM UTC

   Hi,

   I understand. I am in your situation. I will even relocate (suburb, city even country) if it means an opportunity. It is really really competitive. I am too experienced, not experienced enough and if the recruiter gets negative feedback post the interview (if the hiring company ever bother to provide that), the recruiter will drop you even if the hiring manager was out of line. For example I was approached to interview for a compliance role, however, in the interview, the hiring manager decided that I might be better suited to a security focused role and proceeded to interview me on business security factors. No jd, no preparing. Needless to say, I struggled. This was fed back to the reruiter who discussed it withe organisation's HR team. But after that, i never heard back from the recruiter. It is challenging we must keep at it. Keep persevering!

2. AnonymousMarch 12,2023 at 1:11PM UTC

   You’re not doing anything wrong the truth of it is the hiring process in many companies is broken, misunderstood and many people are just passed over because the resumes are parsed through an artificial intelligence.The only suggestion I have is that you make your résumé, artificial, intelligent acceptable.If you Google, the subject, résumé, writing for parsing and applicant tracking systems you’ll see that there are hints on how to change things on your résumé that are not incorrect, but maybe need to be reworked for example certain capital letters, highlighting, colors, things of that nature might just make it a pass. Other than that employers disappoint me, the ones I’ve worked for as a recruiter and the ones that I’ve worked with to find myself a position. it’s disgraceful?? no candidate care, proper review of candidates with just a follow up email and ghosting seems to be the norm. For these reasons I’m retiring from recruiting, my old school approach worked for 30 years. I spoke to as many people as possible, I met ever person qualified and talked to people. I was a very successful recruiter, and it gave me great joy and satisfaction, but now employers keep using Covid as an excuse to zoom/video to possibly discriminate really bothers me a great deal. Good luck but you have to keep at it if you’re going to find a new job.

3. Veronica NikkiMarch 12,2023 at 1:43PM UTC

   I had the same problems years ago. Here is some advice I'd use myself if I were looking right now. Ghosting is so rude and discouraging and when I looked out of curiosity, there are often over 500 people already applying (LinkedIn shows you that)..

   1. Find recruiters "headhunters" who sell you into opportunities -finance is hot and recruiters do a lot of the work and have trusted relationships in organizations where their referral is gold. Also, good recruiters will critique your resume as well as interviewing skills
   2. Find jobs you want on LinkedIn, and hone in on companies where someone you've worked with works there and contact them.
   3. Rethink your networking strategy - really contact and single out people in your network, not just let them know you're looking. If local, meet them for coffee to catch-up. Sometimes it feels awkward or embarrassing to make contact with ex-colleagues you hadn't spoken to in a long time, but they understand! This is how it works and everyone realizes this might be them at some point...
   4. Make sure your resume and LinkedIn Profile are polished -- specifically take some time to update ALL of your skills.
   5. Also use Facebook to reach out to friends and colleagues

   It's hard work and discouraging when you get no feedback how to improve or what happened. Wishing you luck and resilience - eventually you WILL find something.

4. Mo Faul, Founder, CEO, Exec CoachMarch 15,2023 at 2:50PM UTC

   This is going to sound like a promotional post- I mean it in all sincerity- when you have a job loss or trauma you are called in to do inner work- you must get to the place where you feel awesome, worthy and truly ready to soar! As women we get so beaten down that we have our guard up and walls and our vibrational energy is not aligned with our highest self- I call it your soul! You can do the inner work to bring yourself along or hire and expert, proven track record coach and get the lift and all the strategies your really need- it’s a HOLISTIC approach to reviving yourself and SOUL! And finding the right role, right company, right for you, right salary- that means being clear and strong about what all of that is- not just winging it! Love and blessings! Coach Mo ❤️❤️??

5. AnonymousMarch 15,2023 at 2:57PM UTC

   For everyone that is saying resumes are screened by AI and you have to have those buzzwords, etc., that is not true for all companies. I work for a top retailer and I promise you that real recruiters are looking at every resume that comes in. Sometimes that is over 600+ right now. I have had postings with over 1000. You definitely want your resume to have the right words and showcase the correct skills, but I promise many companies are using real people to get through it all.

   My advice, network with someone at every company and ask if they would refer you, or apply where you know some someone and again ask if you can list them as the referral. At least where I work, applicants that are referrals show up in a separate section and are contacted every single time.

   With mass layoffs across industries, more people than ever are applying right now and good chance many of them are taking the same steps as you. Keep trying, but right now, knowing someone, may be the best bet.

6. QMarch 15,2023 at 3:00PM UTC

   You mentioned it is a toxic work environment. Is it possible that others outside the company know this and may be shying away from anything, or anyone, associated with them? Is there any possibility that people have badmouthed you to others in the industry where you work? Toxic environments are bad for so many reasons, but the icing on the cake is that they can often come with extra baggage like this to deal with. It may not be either of these things, but I'd try to take an honest assessment of whether or not either is a possibility hurting your applications.

7. RichMarch 15,2023 at 3:53PM UTC

   Instead of targeting jobs, target companies. Less than 40% of jobs are ever posted anywhere, because most are filled internally or by referrals or retained recruiters before they need to be posted. If you are pursuing postings, you are competing with the maximum possible number of candidates.

   Instead, go to the US Department of Labors Careeronestop.org website, and hover over Job Search. On the lower right you will see a tool called "Business Finder." Click on it, and enter your desired job title, and zip code. It will list every company that told the Federal Government that they employed at least one person with that job title in the previous fiscal year and how to contact them. That doesn't mean they have an opening, but they might. You can download the list.

   Next, go to your local public library and get the Reference Librarian to help you with research the most interesting of those companies. (NOTE: Reference Librarians love helping people! They are always very nice.) They will connect you to tools that will make Google look like a 2nd Grade Reader. That isn't Google's fault - they can only report on public information, and the Library has paid subscriptions to private research services.

   Once you have a list of "Target Companies," start seeing who you know or can reach at those companies. Ask if you can help them, and naturally, most will ask if they can help you. On LinkedIn, you can go to the company page, click the People button, and you'll find everyone at that company who's on LinkedIn. (If you have a paid account. A free one will only show you the first 600, but you can search within People to find the right department, etc...)

   We suggest you become an expert company researcher, and process 10-15 companies each week.

   BTW - When I recently taught a class on Careeronestop, I chose the job title, Mathematician. I'm near Houston and we have lots of colleges, and so I expected around 600 - there were 7700 and included NASA, every engineering company, every construction firm, insurance actuaries, international finance companies, statistical analysis consulting, and, oh yes, schools...

   Good luck!

8. AnonymousMarch 15,2023 at 3:54PM UTC

   It's a tough job market. I left my job (nonprofit sector) over a year ago and I've only had two interviews. I have been steadily applying to jobs. Most jobs I see are not in my area of expertise or they don't pay a living wage or benefits. Or they don't work with my disabilities - I need a remote job. Hang in there and keep applying. It's largely a numbers game.

9. Tiana MumfordMarch 15,2023 at 4:03PM UTC

   Good day ,

   Sorry , how unprofessional of the recruiter. I am hearing it’s tough , I work for a large corporation and for internal transfers is tough as well . With me I know my pay is a huge factor. Keep pushing!

10. Farah BajwaMarch 15,2023 at 6:21PM UTC

    First let me start by saying the struggle is real and you're definitely not alone! I was laid of three time and this last time it took me 23 months to find a suitable role (but to be fair it was during the heart of COVID and I was trying to jump industries). Companies seems to have way more demand on employees after COVID. Ghosting is a new norm as often recruiters are overwhelmed or simply don't have an answer back because something happened to post (like the company froze hiring, for example, or within their own rush realized they needed something about the role tweaked. many reasons).

    It sounds like you're open and doing everything you can. Since you use LinkedIn, have you tried first looking for a contact with a company you're applying to? Its very helpful if you can make a connection and have them put in an internal referral prior to you applying for the position. Have you been attaching cover letters to your applications to give yours more personality and character?

    Continue being patient, open, and going with the flow. You're doing everything right.

11. Kelly HammerMarch 15,2023 at 10:38PM UTC

    What specifically are you looking for in financial services? I work in the same industry

12. MandyMarch 15,2023 at 10:39PM UTC

    You’re probably doing great in your job hunt, but three months isn’t a very long time — but it feels like a long time when you’re in a toxic work environment.

    Keep keeping on with the hunt in a way that is sustainable so you aren’t burning yourself out even more.

13. GlennMarch 15,2023 at 10:50PM UTC

    If it makes you feel any better, recruiters are losing their jobs left and right, too. In fact, the recruiting industry created a free webinar to help (tips are mainly geared to recruiters, but many are generalizable). Free recording here: https://www.bigmarker.com/ere-media-inc/Job-Hunting-and-Networking-for-Recruiters-Flipping-the-Talent-Acquisition-Script and some related tips at the bottom of www.recruiting-online.com/glenn