7 Things Recruiters Want You to Know

Mia Alanis

You are ready to find a new remote job. Your resume and online portfolio have been updated, and your questionable social media accounts have been cleaned up or deleted. With some luck and research, you find your dream remote job. But as you read the description carefully, you discover it does not support full-time telework arrangements. You are disappointed but quickly apply to the next few jobs that will allow you to work from home. Unfortunately, not many don’t feel like they are “the right fit” for you. Still more, there are things recruiters want you to know before applying, yet you’re still unsure of the next steps to take.

After applying, you send endless messages to different recruiters inquiring about the status of your applications. You upload your resume and answer the questions in your application. By now, you were certain you would hear something back.

But wait, there’s some good news. One of the jobs you randomly applied to offered you an interview. You hastily connect via video-chat, but when it was over…days become weeks of silence. You slowly realize that a potential employer has essentially ghosted you.

What could have possibly gone wrong?

The job search process is not easy. Whether it’s a remote or a traditional job search, finding a new position isn’t for the faint of heart. With the global pandemic freezing hiring processes and promoting online work, the remote job search process seems to be changing. For jobseekers curious to discover what they should be focusing on during their remote job search, here are seven of the biggest things that recruiters want you to know when searching for your next remote-friendly job.

1. Get Comfortable With The Video Interview

Among all the essential tools available to remote jobseekers these days, the webcam is probably the most important. Many remote employers and recruiters use it in lieu of an in-person interview. Consequently, it’s the remote jobseeker’s one shot to impress the hiring manager and one of the many things recruiters want you to know to succeed. The video interview is not new to remote jobseekers. But with social distancing as part of the new normal, jobseekers must come to the video interview prepared.

According to Lukas Vanterpool, Director at The Sterling Choice:

“It can be difficult to navigate a video interview if it’s not something you are used to doing as part of the interview process. If you are comfortable and confident in front of the webcam, this will shine throughout the interview.”

Nothing stresses out job candidates more than the idea of that all-important interview going wrong. Thankfully, you can take several steps to make sure you are comfortable and fully prepared. First, do a test run with a friend. Consider recording the session to review your performance, mannerisms, and tone. Ensure that the technology or application is compatible with your computer hardware. Finally, make sure you know how to control the audio and lighting.

Actionable Item: Because first impressions are important, clean up the area behind you. “Create a space that shows you want to work effectively— this will speak volumes about you as a candidate,” suggests Vanterpool. It is also important to dress professionally just as you would for an in-person interview. Although current global work-from-home attire seems to consist of sweats or loungewear, resist the urge. Instead, dress up to set the tone of the interview and visually project your professionalism.

2. Understand the Difference Between Remote and Remote-For-Now

Although the COVID-19 pandemic is creating problems for the global workforce, many companies are still hiring. Remote jobseekers will notice that more and more businesses are open to telecommuting. Companies that had been out of reach before because they didn’t offer telecommuting as an option are now viable options for remote professionals. But wait—just because a job lead has the word remote in it or says it is open to telecommuting, doesn’t necessarily mean that it will always be this way.
According to Nick Derham, Director of Specialist IT Recruitment for Adria Solutions:

“Job seekers need to keep in mind that although most companies are still offering near full remote working, this will change in time and it will be necessary to go to the office…it will be frustrating for the employer when lockdown ends if the new hire suddenly says I can’t commute on a daily basis.”

Pay attention to the exact wording companies are using in the job description. Some employers have geographic restrictions for their jobs because of meetings with clients. They may also require occasional on-site visits once the pandemic is over. Make sure that you look out for words and phrases such as COVID-19, pandemic, lockdown, coronavirus, stay-at-home orders, etc. that hint at a limited remote employment period.

Actionable Item: Take heart. Many large companies are currently transitioning to a 100% distributed workforce and are open to a fully remote workforce.

6. Learn to Network Online

Networking is an essential component of career development. Working professionals with wider professional circles simply have more opportunities to grow career-wise and obtain job transitions referrals. With in-person events canceled or moved entirely online due to COVID-19, remote workers who relished the camaraderie that develops with face-to-face conversations may need some time to get used to virtual-only events.
Although remote workers spend most of their time in front of a computer screen, this does not make it easier for telecommuters to transition to online networking. The differences between the two methods are stark. To this effect, some work-from-home professionals may be tempted to wait for things to normalize before they start networking again. Unfortunately, this is not a strong plan.

Actionable Items

• Spend a few minutes trying to expand your network every day. Be diverse with your connections. Don’t just stick to people in the same industry.
• Use professional networking tools like LinkedIn to connect and send personalized, professional messages.
• Join professional communities or groups on Facebook and become an active participant. Strive to provide value such as recommendations for products or services.
• Nurture your professional relationships. Nothing good comes from having 3,000 online connections or friends who don’t know anything about you or your respective industry.

See all 7 things and the complete Virtual Vocations article

 

 

Your Ultimate Guide to Answering the Most Common Interview Questions

Wouldn’t it be great if you knew exactly what questions a hiring manager would be asking you in your next job interview?

We can’t read minds, unfortunately, but we’ll give you the next best thing: a list of more than 40 of the most commonly asked interview questions, along with advice for answering them all. 

While we don’t recommend having a canned response for every interview question (in fact, please don’t), we do recommend spending some time getting comfortable with what you might be asked, what hiring managers are really looking for in your responses, and what it takes to show that you’re the right person for the job.

Consider this list your interview question and answer study guide.

1. Tell Me About Yourself.
2. How Did You Hear About This Position?
3. Why Do You Want to Work at This Company?
4. Why Do You Want This Job?
5. Why Should We Hire You?
6. What Are Your Greatest Strengths?
7. What Do You Consider to Be Your Weaknesses?
8. What Is Your Greatest Professional Achievement?
9. Tell Me About a Challenge or Conflict You’ve Faced at Work, and How You Dealt With It.
10. Tell Me About a Time You Demonstrated Leadership Skills.

See all 47 interview questions and how to answer them.

8 Top Tips to Nail a Remote Job Interview

• Amy Gallo

If you’re facing a job search right now, you’re not alone. There are record numbers of people filing for unemployment benefits in the U.S. and half of the global workforce is at risk of losing their livelihoods. Whether you were recently laid off, were unemployed before the global pandemic hit, or are choosing to make a change, looking for a job now — amidst hiring freezes and layoffs — will be different than it was a few months ago. But how different? How has the crisis affected how you approach a job search — from finding open positions to writing a cover letter and resume to (ideally) interviewing? Does the usual advice still apply?

To answer these questions, I spoke with Art Markman, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and author of Bring Your Brain to Work: Using Cognitive Science to Get a Job, Do it Well, and Advance Your Career and Claudio Fernández-Aráoz, an executive fellow at Harvard Business School and the author of It’s Not the How or the What but the Who. Here’s their advice for facing what feels like a daunting challenge at this time.

3) Prepare for a remote interview

Given that most people are working from home, there’s a good chance that if you’re lucky enough to get an interview, you’ll be doing it remotely. All of the standard advice about how to prepare for and perform during an interview still applies but you’ll also need to think about others aspects as well:

Technology. When the interview is scheduled, ask what video platform they’ll be using and then spend time familiarizing yourself with how it works, especially if you’ll need to use any features like screen sharing. Test out the link ahead of time. Be sure you have a way to reach the interviewer in case the technology fails. “The last thing you want is to be disfluent in a high-pressure situation,” advises Markman. “People are going to be as forgiving as possible, but if you can demonstrate that you’ve thought through the contingencies, it’ll convey competence.” And set up the best possible circumstances for the technology to work. For example, Markman suggests asking others in your household to not stream TV while you’re doing the interview.

Appearance. Your goal is to look professional. You don’t need to wear a suit jacket — that would look awkward under the circumstances — but you don’t want to wear a sweatshirt either. Choose a neutral background for your interview (it probably goes without saying to avoid one of those virtual beach backgrounds). Fernández-Aráoz says that if you have a professional-looking space you can show in the background, it can help to humanize you, and it’s better than being right up against a wall. However, a blank wall can be less risky when it comes to interruptions or accidentally displaying a messy room. You might also consider standing during the interview. “It’s more dynamic and your vocal chords warm up faster and it’s easier to project,” he says.

Company’s crisis response. In addition to the usual research you’d do on the company, Markman advises looking into what the firm is doing in response to the Covid-19 crisis. Try to get the latest information. “Things have changed so rapidly and you may have applied for the job a few months ago,” he says. “Make sure you’re as conversant as possible. Check their website, any newsletters, and social media feeds — up to and including the day of the interview.”

4) Rehearse ahead of time

Experiment with how you might answer common questions. “When we get nervous, we tend to start monitoring ourselves. Since you’ll be able to see your own image as you’re talking during the interview, you’re likely to get distracted. Staring at a face — especially your own — will make you lose your train of thought,” says Markman. Be sure to rehearse in the spot where you plan to do the interview so you can see how you look. If you can’t stop looking at yourself when you practice, you might want to close the window with your image in it. You don’t want to be self-conscious to the point of distraction. “But it can be useful to occasionally look at yourself during the interview,” says Markman, “to make sure you don’t have a tag sticking out or something.”

5) Go into the interview with a positive mindset

Remember that during the interview, you won’t be getting the same level of non-verbal information from the interviewer. And as Fernández-Aráoz points out, there’s lots of research that shows when we don’t have feedback, we tend toward a negativity bias. We think “this isn’t going well.” So experiment ahead of time with staying positive and assuming the best is happening. You might have a mantra you tell yourself when you start to doubt your performance. Or you might sit quietly for five minutes before the interview starts and mentally review all the reasons the interview is likely to go well.

Read all 8 Top Interview Tips and the complete Harvard Business Review article

Six Statistics That Will Change The Way You Apply To Jobs

There’s no way to sugar coat this: Amidst a public health pandemic and economic depression, it is a difficult time to be searching for a job. It is very easy to get discouraged, however there are job opportunities out there, so it’s just about being persistent, highlighting your value, and being strategic with your job search. With that in mind, I wanted to share six statistics that will change the way you apply to jobs.

There is a lot of information out there, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of data at your fingertips, but it’s important to be aware of the current market. Forbes originally gathered these statistics together, and my hope is that sharing these six statistics that will change the way you apply to jobs will help provide insight into the job search process so you can successfully navigate this challenging time and secure job that is in line with your goals!

1. Each online job posting receives an average of 250 resumes (however large companies such as Google receive up to 3,000,000 per year).

From these 250 applications, about 2% receive interviews according to Workopolis (only 0.2% at Google get hired and usually only with an internal referral).

4. Referrals have been noted to have a 50% shot of getting an interview whereas for non-referrals, that rate drops to just 3%.

In fact, it’s estimated that as many as 40% of hires come from the referral pool. Given that the referral pool equates to about 7% of applicants, non-referral applications are at a disadvantage. 

5. Data shows that more than 60% of job seekers who were recommended by a current employee were hired.

That number increased to 91% if the referral came from a director-level employee or above.


Read all 6 statistics and the complete article.

 

Your Résumé Can Beat the Bots – Here’s How 4 Top Tips

Nick Luallin

Ever wonder where your résumé goes after you apply to a job online? To organize the volume of applications, companies typically rely on applicant tracking systems to help keep them organized. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are used to—often manually—scan résumés for keywords and skills that match the job description. While they are great programs to assist with ranking likely qualified candidates, they aren’t perfect, nor are the people that use them. Because there are countless ways to format a résumé, some could parse into the system cleanly while others are a jumbled mess. Not only does your résumé need to articulate your skills and experience, but its formatting also needs to be easy to read and review inside the ATS.

Not sure how to design your résumé to be searchable by applicant tracking systems? Don’t worry! These are our top tips for writing an ATS friendly résumé.

3) Make Your Résumé Easy to Read

The biggest improvement you can do to make your résumé easily readable is to format it thoughtfully. Hiring managers and recruiters need to be able to find the information they’re looking for quickly. You’ll need to catch their eye in the first few seconds, so make sure the content is well-organized!

• Use standard headers: The ATS won’t recognize “What I’ve learned” as your education or skills section, so it could put those qualifications under something else, potentially causing a hiring manager to miss them. Stick to Summary/Professional Summary, Skills/Skills Summary, Experience, Education, Certifications, etc. as a best practice.

• Use bullets to break up blocks of text: Huge blocks of text or work history that’s out of order make for difficult reading. Short bullets are easier to read and can accommodate more information on the page.

• Check your font: Use common fonts like Calibri or Arial at 10-12 pt. size. Any font with too many details may be illegible to the ATS… or difficult for the person reading your résumé and countless others. Avoid using more than two different fonts or colors. This could be distracting for the reader. After the 100^th résumé that day, the recruiter will be thankful if you make things easier for them!

• Be clear about your education: If you have a degree, list it. If you only have coursework, be sure it’s clear that you haven’t finished the degree. Don’t misrepresent your education level on your résumé.

• In most cases, avoid graphics, charts, or images: Many ATS either can’t read them or completely jumble the content. So, even though it looks nice, avoid graphics on your résumé. Exceptions granted for creatives/designers in most instances here!

• Don’t put important information in the header or footer. Not all ATS can read the information in the header or footer sections of a document. Instead, list your contact information in a line under your name.

• Don’t overdo the keywords: It’s tempting to pad your résumé with as many keywords as you can think of but it may cause the ATS to rank you for jobs that don’t suit your skillset. Since you should be tailoring your résumé for each job, a quick search of the job description will have a list of keywords you can incorporate where applicable.

• Include all relevant information like portfolio or GitHub links. Providing access to examples of your work will tangibly highlight your skills. An interested hiring manager is likely to view these sites. Put your graphics, charts, and images there instead of on your résumé!

• Remove unnecessary sections: Résumés should be focused on the experience you have and how you used it. Personal interests like baking cinnamon buns and watching Netflix don’t need to be on your résumé.

• Remove professional references: If a manager wants your references, they’ll ask for them, so save the space on your résumé. Keep references on a separate sheet to easily send to any hiring managers who ask. You also don’t want anyone calling your references before you give them a heads up on the job you’re interviewing for and you advise them on what to highlight in your background.

4) Edit Your Résumé

• Follow common sentence structure and spelling guidelines. Not Every Word In A Sentence Should Be Capitalized. Spell check is also important. Adding keywords to your résumé is only helpful if you’ve spelled them correctly. Both Grammarly and ProWritingAid can help with sentence structure and spelling if that’s something you need.

• Not only does it need to be edited for spelling and grammar, but you should also edit for redundancy. Why say something in two sentences that can be said in one? When you think you are done editing your résumé, read it aloud (or have Google Docs read it to you). Your ears will hear problems that your eyes are skipping over.

• While you’re at it, check the length of your Skills Summary section. It’s great to list all the technologies and methodologies you’re skilled in, but showing how you used them within your Experience section will give an accurate picture of how you put them to use.

See all 4 Top Tips and the complete article

Feeling Stuck In Your Career? Add These 15 Podcasts To Your List

Laura Garnett

One of the most frustrating situations you can face when it comes to your career is feeling stuck, like you’re just spinning your wheels in the mud and getting nowhere. Even if you could free your car from the muck, you wouldn’t know which direction to drive. 

Trust me, I get it. I’ve been there before—more than once. So have many of my clients. Some people say that your happiness shouldn’t be tied to the job you do, but I don’t buy it. When so much of our time awake is spent working, why should we settle for jobs that are unfulfilling or that leave us downright miserable?  Finding your perfect-fit role takes some deep inner work, like identifying your Genius and Purpose and learning how to apply each to your career. But sometimes you need external inspiration too. 

In light of this, I’ve put together this list of 15 fantastic career-focused podcasts. When you get a chance, give one (or more!) a listen. Hopefully they’ll help you see a little more clearly which step you should take next.

1. Abundantly Clear: The Growth Mindset Podcast
Being able to turn difficult situations into opportunities for growth is paramount to being successful and happy at work. By addressing topics such as burnout, business blindspots and effective communication, certified performance coach Malorie Nicole and her guests will help you achieve the growth mindset you need in order to achieve that. 

3. Pivot
There’s no doubt about it: Change is hard. Fortunately, podcast host Jenny Blake will show you how to embrace all the pros and cons of pivoting—from facing fear head-on, to overcoming insecurities, to identifying your individual superpowers and knowing how to leverage them. As Blake says, “If change is the only constant, let’s get better at it.” 

6. Career Cloud Radio
Most of us dread putting together a résumé and going to interviews, but the job search is an inevitable part of breaking out of your rut. There’s good news, though: It doesn’t have to be as painful as you think. In “Career Cloud Radio,” you’ll hear practical and actionable job search tips from a slew of different experts, including resume writers, HR professionals and career coaches. 

9. Side Hustle Pro
Starting something from scratch is no joke, and neither is turning it into something bigger. But the Black female entrepreneurs whom Nicaila Matthews Okome interviews have figured out how to do it, turning their side gigs into profitable businesses. In each story, learn how they accomplished this and hear about actionable strategies so you can follow in their footsteps. 

See all 15 podcasts and the complete Forbes article

There’s A New Job Search Site You Need To Check Out

Robin Ryan

The tech world has gained a very savvy job search website that is practically unheard of by most Baby boomers, Xers, and even Millennials. It was my twenty-something son who was looking for a sales job who showed me the Built In job search site. I took a stroll around the site, played with it quite a bit, and I was impressed. This site features high paying jobs. So, it is well worth taking a good look to see if any opportunity is a fit for you or if you want to use this continually as a part of your job hunting activities. 

Of course, you’d expect to find highly technical jobs such as Dev, Engineers, Design + UX, Data, Analytics, Project Management, Content, and Product to be here. But have you considered that this site is a great way to find jobs in Sales, Marketing, HR, Finance, Legal, Operations, even Internships?  

Where are the Jobs

The main Built in site advertises it has 11,735 open positions today. You can search from this main site or drill down and get more specific by job area or search by location. Eight different “sub” site locations are featured. Also, there are the REMOTE option that employers are currently hiring for too. The eight “sub”sites are in tech hub locations that included:
·        Built in Austin
·        Built in Boston
·        Built in Chicago
·        Built in Colorado
·        Built in Los Angeles
·        Built in New York City
·        Built in Seattle
·        Built in San Francisco

Screenshot of Built in website

robin ryan

Search By Job Level and Industry
You can easily search for jobs at your level of experience. This is a beneficial function. The site allows you to search for:
 Entry Level jobs which had 1468;
 Mid-level jobs noting 3359 openings
Senior Level jobs that offered 7,190 positions
REMOTE only jobs with 1903 jobs

Read the rest of the Forbes article to find out who is hiring, additional searches, and alerts

Don’t make these 5 biggest resume mistakes, say Harvard career experts—and examples of what to do instead

Dustin McKissen
 
In such an uncertain and competitive job market, there’s never been a more important time to polish your resume (even if you aren’t on the job hunt right now).

Before you get started, take some time to think about your strengths, weaknesses and goals. Also keep in mind who your competition is and what unique skills you have that might set you apart.

Here are the five biggest resume mistakes to avoid (along with examples of what to do instead), according to advisors at Harvard University’s Office of Career Services:

5. Too long 

Unless you’re applying for an executive position, your resume shouldn’t be longer than a page (at most two pages).

Note: This does not mean you should abbreviate. Whatever it is, spell it out, or your reader will have no idea what you are talking about.
Examples of what will make your resume longer:

• Using a narrative style. If you’ve written the great American novel, put that on your resume — but don’t turn your resume into a novel.
• Using personal pronouns. The hiring manager already knows the resume is about you. So instead of “I achieved [XYZ]...,” just start with “Achieved [XYZ]...” Dropping personal pronouns will also make for a stronger and cleaner read.
 

 

4. Not well organized, concise or easy to skim

A black and white resume with clear headings and spacing will stand out more than a colorful resume with excessive use of boxes and line borders coming from all directions.
Make your resume easy to read and follow by balancing white spaces and using underlining, italics, bold and capitalization for emphasis. When listing details under a section, use bullet points (instead of numbers or letters).
Examples of bad formatting:

• Sentences and sections cut off. This often happens when you’re converting your resume to a PDF, so make sure your formatting translated properly before hitting the send button.
• Confusing order of headings and information. List your “Experience” heading in order of reverse chronological order (most recent job first), and the details (i.e., tasks, accomplishments) of each job in order of importance.
 

 

3. Missing or unnecessary contact information

At the very top of your resume should be: Your name (big and in bold), address (to let the hiring manager know where you’re based), personal email and phone number (so they can contact you).
In some cases, it may be appropriate to include a link to your website or portfolio. Anything else is just a waste of space.
Examples of what not to include:

• Photo of yourself. Save that professional headshot for your LinkedIn profile, which the hiring manager will likely look up if they think you’re a strong candidate.
• List of references (or note saying “references available upon request”). It’s already assumed that you have co-workers and senior-level colleagues who will vouch for your skills. Most hiring managers will only ask for references if you make it to the final stages of the interview process.

See mistakes #1 and 2 Plus the full CNBC article

8 Best Job Search Engines In 2020 For All Your Employment Needs

By Nishit Raghuwanshi

Numerous countries across the world are suffering due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and millions of lives have been affected by it. The most significant change witnessed in the last few months in working households in urban areas is that a lot of companies have implemented work from home policy.

However, work from home is not the only thing that has changed — a lot of companies have also laid off employees which created a hassle in the industry. Most of the laid-off people have already started looking for a job. The tool that works best during a job hunt is a feature-rich job-hunting site. Finding the best job search engine as per your requirement is also a complicated task as there are a number of job search engines available.

To simplify your task, we have curated a list of 8 best job search engines to connect you with the best opportunities.
 

8) Glassdoor

If you are the sort of person who checks reviews before applying to a company, then Glassdoor is the best job search site for you. Glassdoor provides you a keen detail about the company you’re going to join, its work culture, and environment. It gives you multiple sign-in options, including Facebook and Gmail.

Glassdoor provides interview preparation questions and other topics that are important in the process. You can also discover salaries and add salary insights into the app. It can be said to be one of the most popular job sites among millennials. 

You can rely on the above-mentioned best job search engines to find the most appropriate job for you. It hardly matters which profile you want as these job search engines have multiple options to choose from. Most of the job search engines are free but you can also use the paid services offered by them including resume building, interview preparation, and more. 

7) SimplyHired

As the name suggests, SimplyHired has a clutter-free and interactive interface along with a local job search feature. The job search engine has a salary estimator tool that shows the salary for a particular profile in a given region. You can browse jobs on the basis of different categories mentioned on the website. You can also click on the Browse All Jobs button to get all the job details.

To apply for the job, you just need to upload your resume on the platform and add your email ID to track the progress. It can be said to be one of the top job sites in the ongoing times. 

6) Jobs.com

What if you get a top job site that is based on an AI and your efforts are reduced? Well, in that case, Job.com is the best option for you. This portal just requires your resume to figure out the best options for you and matches you with the best employers.

This job-hunting site also provides you an opportunity to directly connect with the employers. This will boost your chances of selection by showcasing your skills. 

A highlight feature of Jobs.com is that it provides a bonus to people who get hired through their site. For example, if you get hired via this service and stay there for more than 90 days in your company, then you will get a reward amount that will be equal to 5% of your salary from Job.com.

5) Monster Jobs

Monster Jobs is among the few job search engines that provide special work from the home section; it has been introduced in consideration of the ongoing pandemic. It also has a different registration page for the people who lost their jobs due to COVID 19 pandemic.

Monster Jobs can be said to be the most interactive job hunting site available on the list. It provides a lot of options to find the exact profile you want to work for.

You can also read the career advice blogs on the platform and can subscribe for a paid resume creation service to make the best out of your resume.

 

4) Google For Jobs

It’s an initiative by Google that directly connects you with the main page of a job. Google for Jobs can be said to be the most convenient job search engine ever created. You just need to type the keywords for your job and you will get a listing by Google regarding the job search in a particular region.

Once you open the Google for Jobs page, you can change the title, create alerts, and search as per your location as well. You can also create a job alert for a keyword related to your job or a job profile.

See engines 1-3 and the complete article