Rob writes:
I’ve found your website to be an incredibly helpful resource. I’m a systems administrator laid off — and still searching to find a job a year later.
Your site repeatedly urges job-seekers to call companies and ask for interviews, and to make commitments to do so in cover letters. Does this advice still apply in today’s technical job market?
Aside from the large number of ads that clearly state “no calls,” I’m finding that most employers in my profession make it difficult or impossible to ascertain contact information. Some companies don’t even list a phone number or address on their web site, meaning that more serious detective work is needed to make contact. When one does make the call, the response seems to always be a variation on “don’t call us, we’ll call you.”
If you could address this situation on your site, I think it’d be most helpful to job-seekers in my position. Thanks for your attention, and the wonderful web site.
The bottom line is this: yes, technology and the current job market make it even easier for employers to toss all etiquette aside. Employers do not even need to bother to acknowledge job-seekers. The better companies, of course, still do…but their numbers are small.
When we say it’s important to follow-up, we mean to follow-up. Employers often say “no phone calls” because they don’t want hundreds/thousands of people calling them to apply for the job. That wording does not mean, however, that a week or so after you have applied, that you cannot follow-up to be sure they have received your application. “No calls” is only for the initial contact, not follow-up.
Of course, the best solution is to have a network contact within the company who can feed you information and help make your case for an interview…and that’s more and more where job-seeking has to go. Building contacts through professional organizations to provide you with more information about potential openings, as well as more company information and inside details that can improve your chances for getting an interview and job offer.
You still need to be politely aggressive in this job market. You need to find a way to break through barriers and make yourself known above the simple database searches of keywords that many companies are indeed using — especially technology companies.
Fearing being too aggressive or seen as impolite and not following up ALL your job leads is simply bad job-hunting.
We also have an article on Quintessential Careers, 10 Reality Checks of Job-Hunting…and follow-up actually is so important it is two of the 10!
Categories:
EmpoweringSites.com -- DeLand, FL 32720
Home Page: http://www.empoweringsites.com/
Copyright � EmpoweringSites.com. All Rights Reserved
Serviced by Movable Type Solutions Company
Leave a comment