How will you be finding your next job post-recession? This is on the mind of literally millions of people right now.
The problem: just because we are now 'post-recession', it doesn't mean there is a deluge of job vacancies hitting the job sites. The thing is, business now needs to recover. This means careful spending, prolonged headcount freezes (no more recruitment) and, in essence, making do until the effects of recovery are experienced.
So, this means that for those people who continue look for the next great job, there is still massive competition for too few jobs that pay lower rates than before the recession. It's still tough out there.
Can I make it seem even more challenging? You betcha. Guess what... the recruitment agencies and job sites that we normally rely and depend upon to make these vacancies available to us have had a tough time. These organizations too have had to let people go, and will continue to survive on the few people they have. They have operating costs that still need paying. This means (to our detriment) that as job hunters and applicants, we won't enjoy the same attention we did previously. To them, we're just a number. One of many!
We can't rely on recruitment agencies and job sites to help us get a great job like we did before, at least for now.
The other post-recession phenomenon is when job hunters take jobs much lower than their ability and pay-grade. When you need a job, you've got to take what you're offered, right? Maybe so, but it's then a struggle to get back onto an even keel. Too many people accept jobs that are way below their abilities, and it hurts later on. It isn't just about the lower pay, it's also about the frustration with working below a manager that is less experiences and capable than you. It often ends in misery.
The thing to do, when accepting a 'lower' job, is to check out growth opportunities within the organization and to ensure that promotion and progress isn't just a result of 'dead-mans shoes' (where promotions only happen when a manager moves on, or passes away). This isn't always easy, so you have to give it your best guess. We're often sold the wonderment of a new job to then found out we've been sold a turkey. This is the risk of accepting these jobs, post-recession. But the outlook isn't as gloomy as I am making out. The green-shoots of recovery do create opportunity to find your ideal job if you invest your time finding them. In a labor pool of millions, we must stand out and be noticed by taking using less conventional methods such as using social networking platforms to make useful connections and building relationships inside the organizations we want to work in. Doing this takes more guts than waiting for the phone to ring from a recruiter. But if it means you get the ideal job for you, then it must be worth the effort.
Who wants to be a number? Not me!
'Fortune Favors the Brave' Virgil Roman epic poet (70 BC - 19 BC)
The author of this article, Simon Stapleton, is a leader and coach helping professionals with their Career Development, Job Hunting and Personal Development. He is an MBA, has 15 years in the IT Industry and shares his knowledge in his latest course 'JobGuerrilla' ([http://www.jobguerrilla.com]) which helps professionals at all levels search the hidden job market to land their dream jobs.
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