During a job interview I had last week (yes, interview! Woo-hoo!!), one of the questions I was given is "What advice would you give to someone looking for a job?" Well, of course, being the HR pro that I am, I was all over that. As I reflected later, I realized my answers could be helpful to others, so I'll share them with you.
A. Tell everyone you know you're looking for a job
Networking is where it's at. Here are 3 reasons why.
1. When you think of how many people you know and how many people they in turn know, you see what a huge job search resource this truly is.
2. Many jobs are never advertised. They are filled solely through word of mouth. This saves companies tons of money in ads, recruiter fees, etc.
3. A recommendation from an employee is a huge leg up. Many companies have a formal referral program that financially rewards employees who successfully recommend candidates. This has nothing to do with altruism. Companies know that referrals save them money for the same reasons listed in #2, plus referrals tend to have a higher success ratio than non-referrals. In my company, we don't have a referral program, but anyone recommended by an employee is pretty much an automatic interview
B. Get the basics right
This should be obvious, but from my experience, it's not. Have a resume (you laugh, I've seen it). Your resume needs to be current (this doesn't mean to cross out old info with a pen and hand write the corrections) and error free. Confession: my resume had a typo in it until recently, and I'm a good proofer. Other people had read it and never seen it either. My sister found it straight off. Lesson learned: it's hard to check your own work. Instead have several people read over it.
c. It's always an interview
I've mentioned it before, but it bears repeating. Every interaction is part of the hiring process. Yes, everything. Responding to the ad (Do you include all the data requested?, Are your spelling and grammar good?, Do you have a professional e-mail address?), how you park your car in the lot (yes, we check this out), how do you treat the receptionist, etc. I would go so far as to tell you if you have a phone interview, wear formal interview clothes, even if it's not a video interview. It's all about being in the right mindset.
I hope this is information that is helpful to you and anyone you know doing a job search.
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