From The Job Hunters Chronicles:
A new submission by Alex Alborzfard, a systems administrator, took up the question we posed at the launch of our new Chronicles section: "Does Anyone Really Find a Job Online?"
The answer in Alborzfard's case, at least, is: "Absolutely".
There's no going back for this IT professional, who says he has found his last three jobs using online job boards, search agents and networking tools, and that he will "Never Buy the Sunday Paper Again!"
But, he cautions, the time- and cost-saving convenience of online job sites does not mean that old rules don't apply: using online measures alone cannot replace good, old-fashioned networking. In addition to making use of online job search and automated-search technologies, he suggests that social networking sites such as LinkedIn are have also played an important role in his success finding employment online.
Read the full submission here.
Showing posts with label Chronicles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chronicles. Show all posts
Monday, July 28, 2008
Thursday, June 5, 2008
New Feature: The Job Hunters Chronicles
New on the IMDiversity Career Center, we're pleased to kick off our new feature, The Job Hunters Chronicles, with three submissions.
Although the software engineer, a dot-com executive, and a journalist who works as a government liason for a non-profit service agency are all in very different occupations, they share a common theme in their job hunting stories.
K.D., a software engineer who wanted to relocate from San Francisco to Chicago, took a fairly traditional approach to posting his resume on an online job board, and was lucky to be contacted by a desirable employer. However, he recalls that that first contact was just a foot in the door. He had not anticipated the highly time-consuming electronic back-and-forth that ensued, including multiple interviews and a sample of original code programming solving a problem the company sent him.
David Fox, a dot-com executive, focuses on the importance of using online tools to thoroughly research a prospective employer. In his case, the time spent researching the products and even the flaws of his current employer's websites -- and then corresponding with a hiring manager about them at length and in detail -- paid off.
Shawn Chollete, who had worked as a journalist, similarly landed a good job at a NPO through a seemingly round-about fashion: through networking on sites like Facebook and MySpace, and ultimately cross-referencing these social resources with contacts in job postings he wanted to apply to.
If there's one common thread among our inaugural user contributors to The Job Hunters Chronicles, it seems to be that simply posting to job boards and applying to jobs is only the first step in a job search process. Following up by using the widest range of online tools to research, communicate with, and present themselves to their prospective employers is key to successfully concluding a job hunt online.
Amen.
Do you have a story to share with other jobseekers abot what worked or didn't work for you in online job searching? Please submit it to The Job Hunters Chronicles, or feel free to leave a coment posted here on this thread.
Although the software engineer, a dot-com executive, and a journalist who works as a government liason for a non-profit service agency are all in very different occupations, they share a common theme in their job hunting stories.
K.D., a software engineer who wanted to relocate from San Francisco to Chicago, took a fairly traditional approach to posting his resume on an online job board, and was lucky to be contacted by a desirable employer. However, he recalls that that first contact was just a foot in the door. He had not anticipated the highly time-consuming electronic back-and-forth that ensued, including multiple interviews and a sample of original code programming solving a problem the company sent him.
David Fox, a dot-com executive, focuses on the importance of using online tools to thoroughly research a prospective employer. In his case, the time spent researching the products and even the flaws of his current employer's websites -- and then corresponding with a hiring manager about them at length and in detail -- paid off.
Shawn Chollete, who had worked as a journalist, similarly landed a good job at a NPO through a seemingly round-about fashion: through networking on sites like Facebook and MySpace, and ultimately cross-referencing these social resources with contacts in job postings he wanted to apply to.
If there's one common thread among our inaugural user contributors to The Job Hunters Chronicles, it seems to be that simply posting to job boards and applying to jobs is only the first step in a job search process. Following up by using the widest range of online tools to research, communicate with, and present themselves to their prospective employers is key to successfully concluding a job hunt online.
Amen.
Do you have a story to share with other jobseekers abot what worked or didn't work for you in online job searching? Please submit it to The Job Hunters Chronicles, or feel free to leave a coment posted here on this thread.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Job Hunters Chronicles: Does Anyone Really Find a Job Online?
This was a question that we overheard recently, and that became the topic of an extended discussion on Facebook. The frustration in it was clear as a bell, and it ultimately led the editors at IMDiversity to decide we wanted to explore the topic more deeply.
From the inside perspective of folks who work with web technology and in the areas of student and professional recruitment (online and offline), we can say with some authority and certainty that the answer is, "Yes, some people do find and get jobs using online tools..."
But from the same perspective, we also have to add, "...but it's not always as quick and straightforward as it seems."
Remember those Super Bowl commercials a number of years back where an office worker just posted a resume on an online job board just sat back and waited for the job offers to flood in along with piles of gifts and bouquets of flowers? Well, we've been in the business for some time, and while we've certainly seen jobseekers get connected with hiring employers and ultimately close on good employment opportunities through using online tools, we've never seen one get a floral bouquet with it...not one!
Just "going fishing" by taking a 10 minutes to drop a resume on a job board may be an adequate job hunt strategy for a very elite job seeker with stellar credentials, mounds of experience, an eloquent writing style that allows his or her winning personality to radiate off the virtual page, and the ideal skillset and references, background and presentation style to make a perfect organizational fit that is recognized by a highly active, dedicated and keen-eyed recruiter just itching to make this one hire out of several ASAP.
But you and me ain't that very elite person. Folks like us have to, as the old adage goes, "treat finding a job as if it was our job." We know that getting a good job can take some thought, resourcefulness and sometimes a little luck.
We also know that no matter how clever the technology that stands between us and the job of our dreams, that doesn't mean that more traditional strategies, preparation, negotiation and yes, offline action, can be tossed out the window. We've seen that even the most advanced resume database tool cannot save the applicant with the sloppy and unproofread resume, or lackluster or cocky or careless cover letter. We've seen some great jobseekers and great jobs pass each other by like ships in the night just because of slightly mistyped or outdated contact information on one side or another or both.
All we have to do is look at the spam in our email in-boxes to be reminded that sometimes, the powerful automating and communications technologies that are created to make our lives easier can tend, as they evolve and spread, to become so complex that we have to stop and periodically reassess how we can make the best use of them.
The editors will address this issue in a number of ways on our site this year, and we want to invite you to share stories about your online job search experiences for an upcoming new feature, The Job Hunters Chronicles.
We are seeking submissions from you -- the jobseeker, our readers or other site visitors -- in short-article format sharing your insights about how you used the Internet in a job search, and your frank experiences of what "worked" or "definitely did not work" for you in locating, applying to, or negotiating for job opportunities using online methods and tools. What tips or strategies or pitfalls to avoid?
If you have a good story to share with other jobseekers, please send them in to The Job Hunters Chronicles.
From the inside perspective of folks who work with web technology and in the areas of student and professional recruitment (online and offline), we can say with some authority and certainty that the answer is, "Yes, some people do find and get jobs using online tools..."
But from the same perspective, we also have to add, "...but it's not always as quick and straightforward as it seems."
Remember those Super Bowl commercials a number of years back where an office worker just posted a resume on an online job board just sat back and waited for the job offers to flood in along with piles of gifts and bouquets of flowers? Well, we've been in the business for some time, and while we've certainly seen jobseekers get connected with hiring employers and ultimately close on good employment opportunities through using online tools, we've never seen one get a floral bouquet with it...not one!
Just "going fishing" by taking a 10 minutes to drop a resume on a job board may be an adequate job hunt strategy for a very elite job seeker with stellar credentials, mounds of experience, an eloquent writing style that allows his or her winning personality to radiate off the virtual page, and the ideal skillset and references, background and presentation style to make a perfect organizational fit that is recognized by a highly active, dedicated and keen-eyed recruiter just itching to make this one hire out of several ASAP.
But you and me ain't that very elite person. Folks like us have to, as the old adage goes, "treat finding a job as if it was our job." We know that getting a good job can take some thought, resourcefulness and sometimes a little luck.
We also know that no matter how clever the technology that stands between us and the job of our dreams, that doesn't mean that more traditional strategies, preparation, negotiation and yes, offline action, can be tossed out the window. We've seen that even the most advanced resume database tool cannot save the applicant with the sloppy and unproofread resume, or lackluster or cocky or careless cover letter. We've seen some great jobseekers and great jobs pass each other by like ships in the night just because of slightly mistyped or outdated contact information on one side or another or both.
All we have to do is look at the spam in our email in-boxes to be reminded that sometimes, the powerful automating and communications technologies that are created to make our lives easier can tend, as they evolve and spread, to become so complex that we have to stop and periodically reassess how we can make the best use of them.
The editors will address this issue in a number of ways on our site this year, and we want to invite you to share stories about your online job search experiences for an upcoming new feature, The Job Hunters Chronicles.
We are seeking submissions from you -- the jobseeker, our readers or other site visitors -- in short-article format sharing your insights about how you used the Internet in a job search, and your frank experiences of what "worked" or "definitely did not work" for you in locating, applying to, or negotiating for job opportunities using online methods and tools. What tips or strategies or pitfalls to avoid?
If you have a good story to share with other jobseekers, please send them in to The Job Hunters Chronicles.
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