New Year’s Resolutions for IT Job Seekers!
Challenge your Existing IT Job Search System
As you begin your technical job search, keeping track of various companies and roles within those companies seems easy enough. As time goes on, and you apply for more roles and work with additional IT Recruiters and IT Staffing companies, the list can seem endless! Sooner or later your “system” gets sloppy and starts to break down – and things begin to fall through the cracks. You lose track of where you’ve applied, who you spoke with and what was said, you forget to follow-up with contacts you’ve made, and so on. It’s time to get re-organized, and try to re-invent your system. Use Excel, or Word, or a simple notebook – whatever means is most comfortable for you. Find a system will work best for you and try to go back and re-create and record everything you’ve done to date that was part of your current IT job search. Then as a second part of your resolution, re-dedicate yourself to maintaining your “new” system. Stick with it, and don’t let things slip through the cracks in 2011!
Spend More Time on your Job Search!
Everyone says it – looking for a job is a full-time job in and of itself. It would be easy to say that you should put in a full 8 hours a day, 5 days a week doing it … but that’s a bit much for just about anyone (although don’t let us stop you if you are that motivated!). I would suggest that a minimum goal should be 4-5 hours a day. That’s time spent online, on the phone, speaking with IT recruiters Boston, traveling to and from meetings, and (most valuable of all) actual face time with people who are part of your targeted search plan. Set goals for yourself that you can realistically achieve. For example, research and contact two new IT recruiting companies each day. I’m sure you can think of other similar goals that make sense for yourself. Whatever goals you set, make sure they are measurable and easily achievable, and keep track of each day’s progress for yourself. This will help you stay on task and not waste too much time with useless distractions.
Don’t Let Technology be your Downfall
The internet is one of the best tools for job-seekers. However, it can also be a huge distraction and waste of time. Make sure you are not spending your days in front of a screen without having actual meaningful conversations with people that are part of your job-search plan. Answering online job postings is probably the least effective way to find a job. Limit the amount of time you spend doing that to no more than 15%. Sending emails to targeted people is often a good first step… but at the end of the day, direct live communication with actual people is the only way to get decisions made, and people hired. Overcome your trepidation; stop stressing about rejection, step outside of your comfort zone and pick up the phone!
Join New Networking Groups
There are some really great local Networking Groups (sometimes called “meet ups”) in almost every city and community. They’re easy to find with a simple Google search or meetup.com. Many job-seekers attend regular meetings of those groups, and derive a lot of help, guidance, and advice … and also meet many other job-seekers who can often be very helpful and supportive. After a while, though, attending those same meetings month after month can get repetitive – and you keep seeing the same people over and over. Try seeking out a new local group or two and drop in on their meetings. You just may find a fresh perspective, hear a new idea, or meet new people that you can add to your network. Break out of your comfortable routine!
Revise your Online Presence
You’ve probably labored for hours perfecting your resume and tweaking your online profile on LinkedIn, Monster, Careerbuilder and other job boards and social networking sites. You tend to think of it as a finished work. These avenues were not meant to be stagnant. Sometimes a fresh perspective from a new set of eyes is needed to show you things you’ve missed, or could improve upon. Consider how you might improve or re-vamp your own resume and online profiles. Show it to, and ask for feedback from someone else you trust who knows the art of resume-writing. Always remember to be open to new styles and information, you never know what pique’s the interest of hiring managers or IT Recruiters!
Pro’s and Con’s of the IT Recruiting Industry
Many people jump right into the IT staffing industry….then soon jump out. Quite simply, it’s not for everyone. There are many great parts about the IT recruiting job. However, like any position, with the good also comes the bad. Therefore, before you diving into technical recruiting, think more about the Pro’s and Con’s of the IT recruiting industry:
Pro’s:
For most IT recruiters and salespeople, IT staffing Boston is a very lucrative industry. If the technical recruiting company specializes in placing IT contractors, then the commissions are residual for those responsible for making the job placement. In addition, while the money is good, you’re also helping provide IT jobs for people at the same time. There aren’t many careers where you’re actually helping people while making a healthy living at the same time. Finally, for those who enjoy a very fast paced/sometimes hectic work day (in which you rarely have time to even look at the clock), then send your resume out to IT recruiting companies Boston.
Cons:
Over my 15 years in the IT recruitment world, I thought I have seen it all. The reality is, I haven’t. Because we’re in the “people business,” I never will. Nobody ever will. One of the most difficult parts of the IT staffing industry is quite simply the fact that we work with people. You never know what a person will do. For example, as an IT recruiter, you could identify a candidate, meet them, run references, ask a hundred probing questions and provide the absolute best customer service possible. The candidate in turn tells you how much they appreciate your hard work; they accept the position, complete all of the necessary paperwork, then continually thank you over and over for providing them with this opportunity. Then the candidate never shows up for his or her first day of work. They won’t return your call, your email. Nothing. No explanation. Ever.
If you work for an IT recruiting company, you can guarantee that this unfortunately will happen to you. There just is never a guarantee when it comes to people.
Fortunately, for every one of these situations, there are dozens of success stories. The technical staffing industry is a very fast-paced, exciting, financially and intrinsically rewarding industry. However, for those who might “grip the bat” too tight or can’t roll with the ups and downs, it’s certainly not for them.
Getting Past a Gatekeeper: Advice for IT staffing salespeople
Getting past the gatekeeper is one of the most key aspects in becoming a solid IT staffing salesperson. If you are unable to get past them, then your chance of making a sale of your product or service is slim. Most people that you ask about the subject will try and teach you tricks of how to do it but theres really just a couple of fundamental tips that you can use and you should be successful more often than not.
The most important thing you can do when you first reach someone in your target company is to be nice and polite. Your chances of succeeding in your mission rise exponentially when you are polite. It’s really just common sense but if someone is rude to you not only do you not want to help them out but you usually go out of your way to stop them from doing what they are trying to accomplish. Treat every gatekeeper like you were actually speaking with the CEO/Decision Maker.
Another important point to remember is that most of the time the gatekeeper’s responsibility is help their boss decide what is the best use of their valuable time. If you can convince them that you IT recruiting services can provide a value/cost savings, then you’ve just transformed the gatekeeper from a road block to an ally. Ask them questions about their companies growth strategies, how their trying to increase their value to their customers, how you can leverage your value into creating more for them. You don’t have to spend an hour on the phone with them but a quick 5-10 minute conversation can go along way and help you immensely in the long run. You can also leverage this conversation into solving another problem that some people run into: targeting the wrong person. Most gatekeepers are assistants to someone important in the company so they probably have a good understanding of what’s going on in the company. Knowing that they could probably point you in the right direction if you have some misinformation that’s leading you astray.