Top 20 Your Job Hunting Checklist
With an average career of between 40 and 50 years and large percentage of your waking time spent at work, don’t waste time unless you are working in the perfect job. Although the job hunting process may seem intimidating, use the following job hunting checklist to help you achieve a fantastic career that compliments your amazing life.
- Hiring Process Drags On… and on!
It takes about 40 to 60 days on average to fill a job opening. Rather than rush to send off your application it is better to take the time to get your application right.
- Update Your LinkedIn Profile
For many recruiters, particularly executive, professional or white-collar roles, if you aren’t on LinkedIn you don’t exist. Creating a fantastic profile and a strong online presence will build your professional credibility and help you secure your next job. Once you have updated your LinkedIn page and packed it with relevant keywords, not only will you be surprised how much attention your profile will get but you can also see who has viewed it. Remember to: (1) Professional profile photo (preferably a headshot with a simple background); (2) Engaging headline (not just your current job title); (3) Features an concise and yet engaging personal summary; (3) Ensure all your information is up-to-date (includes my most recent work history); (4) Highlights my career achievements and accomplishments; (5) Keywords are optimized; (6) Education and professional certifications are included; (7) You feature a comprehensive list of my skills; (8) Seek our testimonials and recommendations from current and former colleagues and supervisors; (9) Your profile is free of spelling or grammatical errors; (10) Is genuine and accurate; and (11) Is reviewed and even updated every week so that it appears active in talent searches by recruiters.
- Network - 80% Jobs Never Advertised
Most jobs are not posted and are only found through networking. Visiting your favorite 1-2 jobs boards is not enough. Supplement your online research with real-world activities. As a first step, map out who you know. You can start by creating a list of former co-workers, classmates, teammates, and more. Then, reach out to friends and acquaintances for informal advice and to learn more about their roles. Connect with everyone you know, because you never know which contact may be able to help you with your job search or put you in touch with someone who can.
- Test Your Resume
It is easy to convince yourself you have perfected your resume until you go to Pinterest and see the efforts some people go to present and write their resume. Start with friends and family who you trust to be blunt in their feedback. As you perfect your CV expand your resume testing to your professional network. Even consider trying different versions, whether it be style or pitching yourself for different types of roles, until you settle on the resume that best represents your brand and it most likely to secure you an interview. Remember to ask for a summary rather than an opinion. Don't ask "What do you think of my resume?", but rather "How does my resume distinguish me from other candidates?" If you are not pleased with the feedback go back to the drawing board.
- Competing with 60-250 Applicants for 1 Job
On average corporate job posting receive 60 to 250 applicants. In China it is not unusual for some roles to have more than 10,000 applicants. Make sure you really want this position, because if you don’t it is unlikely you will do enough to be short-listed for an interview. If you can’t be bothered tailoring your application and putting in that extra energy then maybe skip applying for that job.
- Accomplishments… not simply Attendance at work!
Communicate what you have achieved and how a prospective employer will benefit from employing you. Highlight what you have achieved, not simply stating your responsibilities. You may need to “think outside the box” to identify tangible results of your skills and experience. You might highlight sales results, budget achievements, internal promotions, company awards, client testimonials, number of rapports and other similar achievements that stand you apart and take the imagination out of why a hirer should not offer you the role. Prospective employers can now see how your skills can benefit them much more easily.
- Actively Looking for Work – Don’t Be Shy!
There’s no shame in being out of work so let everyone know that you are looking for a job, including “friends” on Facebook and professional contacts in your industry. Remembers to update your CareerController and LinkedIn status to indicate you are actively looking for work.
- Research… Research… Research…
Do your homework thoroughly about yourself, the marketplace and industries, target employers, roles and even learn all you can about who you are addressing your resume to. Ideally for every job you apply you spend at least two hours of research. If you are short-listed for an interview, make your research even more thorough. Start with the organization website and any press – good and bad – before you deep dive into identifying via LinkedIn or Facebook someone who works or has worked at the organization (for major corporates anyway). Try to understand what the organisation is trying to achieve and the kind of talent they are trying to attract.
- Attitude & Personality
Try to convey confidence and mirror the personality of recruiters in an interview. Whilst making sure you don’t appear arrogant, convey your confidence in being one of the best candidates for the role and enthusiasm for the position. Seek out family or friends to practice your elevator speech and interview skills. The more you practice how you convey your skills and values the more confident and articulate you will be in the interview where it counts.
- You Have 5-7 Seconds to get Noticed
Recruiters spend on average 5-7 seconds scanning your resume before deciding if they will read it. Some resumes will never be read because they are rejected by the recruitment software for not having enough experience, skills or keywords that are relevant to the role. Make sure your resume is as user-friendly as possible. Include relevant experience and keep it to 1-3 pages.
- Who Do You Know?
Look back over your job history and identify the relationships that may assist you to secure a new role. Very few job candidates collect reference letters from previous employers however it is definitely a worthwhile exercise. Even if you can get an endorsement from past managers on your LinkedIn profile.
- Customize Your Resume & Cover Letter
It's important to take the time to write targeted resumes and cover letters that specifically link your qualifications to the hiring criteria for the jobs you are applying for. Although this advice is repeated by us regularly, it can’t be overstated the importance of this task. Recruiters will be able to see at a glance why you are a good match for the role.
- Targeting a new Industry?
You will need to assess the relevancy of your skills and experience to the new industry you are targeting. Research basic skills expected for a candidate in the position and then aim to match your work history with the basic and expanded skills in the new industry. Look for common skills in your background that will be an asset in the industry where you are currently targeting your efforts. For more senior role is quiet common for executives to move from industry to industry utilizing their general skills, however for more junior roles you should strive to retain your salary and seniority if at all possible.
- Interview Preparation
Research the company before you go for the interview, dress appropriately, practice answering and asking interview questions, and make a concerted effort to impress the interviewer with your skills, experience, confidence, and expertise. The more prepared you are, the less stressful it will be.
- List of Companies Where You Want to Work
Rather than wait for a Job Ad, research company information and create a list of companies to target. Generally all the information you require is on the web or just one phone call away. Once you have a list of dream employers it is time to approach them to ensure your get noticed. Many larger corporates will even let you register your interest in working for them directly on their website.
- Compete to Win
Be proactive and go the ‘extra mile’ to investigate prospective employers and understand their hiring needs. Put in the extra time to prepare for and follow-up every job application. If you are really serious about getting work fast, invest in job search, resume writing, and interview coaching resources contained here.
- Job Offer – Accept or Decline?
If you are fortunate to be offered a role, take the time to carefully evaluate the offer so you are making a well-considered decision as to accept, reject or negotiate. Don’t be afraid to request a coffee or catch-up with prospective manager to better understand their personality, management style, reason for the vacancy and opportunities for promotion. Remember most people cite their relationship with their immediate manager as the main reason for resigning a role, so now is the time assess your professional compatibility. Most candidates over time will have a choice of jobs, so don’t waste time (which you don’t get back) by accepting the wrong job offer.
- Deep Dive on Your Career
Before you start shooting off job applications and madly networking, draw up a long and unfiltered list of your achievements, training course you have attended, contacts and even past roles (for those in the workforce along time). List every skill you possess, industries where you have work experience and computer system you have worked with. Try to gather several pages of material before undertaking to write or updated your resume.
- Recruitment Agency Networking
Try to establish a rapport with senior managers, or better still owners, of recruitment agencies and gradually establish a network of 10 to 30 recruiters whom you can reach out to throughout your career. Whether it is touching base every year or so to get an update on the jobs market or average salaries, it is this network who will often be contacting you when your perfect job crosses their desk. Who better for them to place into a role than someone who they know or even possibly have placed into an earlier role. Recruitment agencies are paid by their clients, however need to operate quickly and efficiently to be successful, which means you may be the only candidate for a role if you know the right person at the right time.
- Best Job Listings
What are the best sites to use to find job openings fast? Check out and bookmark the best job search engine sites, jobs boards, company websites, networking sites and sites listed by type of job. Create your own ‘black book’ of recruiters who appear to work in your industry (e.g. retail), job type (e.g. accountancy) or target client (e.g. Staffing may be contracted by a company to manage all their hiring needs).
Sources (Updated March 2021):
- American Staffing Association
- RCSA
- The Sydney Morning Herald
- The Financial Review
- Recruitment & Employment Confederation
For more Senior Tax Manager Career Advice see below additional resources to find the perfect job:
