How to Stay Proactive in Your Job Search during Crises

How to Stay Proactive in Your Job Search during Crises

In this time of uncertainty, many companies and job seekers are faced with a decision - disrupt the recruiting process or adapt to the situation. While some companies are reevaluating hiring needs as their industries may have plummeted (travel, hospitality and gig economy), others are seeing unprecedented spikes (tech companies with high site traffic and ongoing remote operations). Overall, tech talent is still in demand and you may have the opportunity to find your dream job even in this situation.

Companies that don't otherwise consider remote interviews are now revamping their recruiting process. The focus remains on hiring candidates and keeping their business running. This could be a silver lining for those who have been waiting for their dream digital job to show up.

But there may also be hope for those who prefer on-site work. Many of these companies will likely resume on-site work in due course.

The job search

As some candidates pause their job search, the reality is that there are many new positions available - and business owners are aware of this and ready to compete for talent. For you, however, this doesn't mean you can just sit back. Stay present on the various portals and be proactive in your job search. Keep yourself engaged with the market, as additional market knowledge can lead to you receiving a job offer that is even better suited to you.

Approach each interview well prepared

Often interviews are very limited in time, so you'll need to showcase all of your skills in a short amount of time. This means you need to prepare more and practice your pitch better to make sure you are at your best.

Be open-minded and find creative ways to negotiate your terms when you receive an offer from a company you may have slight concerns about. For example, if you're concerned about location, this may be the perfect time to negotiate a long-term remote work commitment (after all, you'd most likely be working mostly remotely for the time being, too). This can be a good time to gain a company's confidence in remote work.

When thinking about company size, consider team and/or department size. What tweaks can be made to address your concerns? How can a team dynamic be developed that will move you forward?

You can also consider doing fewer job interviews - but doing them at a high quality. With too many interviews, you run the risk of an interview going awry. And just that might have been your favorite job.

Follow-up with the company

The job commitment and time to get there can be quite volatile with a variety of factors causing delays in hearing back from companies. With the added crisis, you may need to take a more proactive approach and move the process along.

Add your updated availability to each follow-up email and adjust your language to appear cooperative and understanding. For example, "I enjoyed chatting with you last week! I just wanted to let you know again that I am willing to continue our conversation if you are as interested... " - sounds cooperative. On the other hand, "Is there any news ???" sounds unpolished and one-sided.

If companies are currently on a recruiting freeze, a different approach must be taken. In such a case, you can on the one hand show understanding that companies have to be a bit more cautious with new hires due to the current situation. You can also express your interest in joining the company at a later date.

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