Senior headhunters say that the current situation has made it harder than ever for professionals to be found and hired.

According to recenty study, more than two thirds of job seekers do not hear back from the firm they are applying to. This was before the COVID-19 crisis. Now more than ever, with millions of unemployed professionals looking for a job, it is more important than ever to be able to stand out, in the right way. 

At InHunt World, we recently had a day in which we received dozens of messages in one day from job seekers informing us that they were available for video call and discuss new opportunities. Unfortunately no headhunting company possibly has the time to do such an endevour. 

However, we all know that headhunters play a crucial role during the job search process. 

You are at least 10 times more likely to be hired at your future job if you get mentioned by a headhunter or a HR professional. So here are a few tips that can significantly increase your odds of being found and contacted.

Become Visible

Headhunters often receive hundreds of resumes for a given open jop position, but this doesn’t mean that they immediately spot the best candidates. Often a second search on trade associations in the field in which they are looking for or job platforms (e.g. Linkedin) is required to get a complete scenario of who is out there. This is why we strongly encourage you to do whatever you can to be able to stand out more than others, especially when it is relatively easy to differentiate yourself from other potentially similar job-seekers.

Post articles on Linkedin, write articles or try to improve your online personal brand by demonstrating your experience and knowledge in your field. Videos, presentations and any meaningful way to increase your online presence will indicate to the recruiters your leadership skills. Make it easier to be noticed, attach a summary of your additional works to your Linkedin page together with your resume, so it is immediately clear for the headhunters that you actually do have the experience required for that particular job opening.

Make sure you CV is updated on your Linkedin page and that your profile is clear and shows in a simple way what your main strenghts. You want to be able to stand out and especially not frustrate the recruiter because he cannot find the right information about you where it should be. There are some good examples here if you want to take a look: 

Keep Calm and Search On

We totally understand these are difficult times if you recently lost your job and the news every day definitely don’t help at making you feel hopeful. However try to keep calm and avoid desperate messages to headhunters, remember that they are 100% on your side and it is in their best interest to be able to find you and help another company employ a successful professional. Try not to be too insisting and understand that recruiters might be overwhelmed with applications at the moment. So try to keep calm and proceed calmly towards your search. It is just a matter of time, the right job is waiting for you, do not worry.

Prepare your pitch

Try to have rehearsed a short pitch in which you can outline briefly your professional experience within a few minutes. If you are a highly skilled executive, most of your path can be seen from you resume or professional corporate biography. Make sure you can outline your 2-3 main strengths very clearly and don’t forget to include some regarding your emotional intelligence, or ‘soft skills’ as they now call it.

This is valid of course both if you are having a conversation with a recruiter over the phone or in person. Often asking ex-colleagues and people who know you professionally about this might help you get an external point of view on what are your most visible skills. 

Give the Recruiter a Hand

Building a meaningul and solid relationship with a headhunter might mean that they will be able to help you not during one specific job-hunt but perhaps throughout your whole career. It is not only them doing you a favor, but also you are helping them. Headhunters are of course always interested to enlarge their network of contacts, together with increasing their knowledge about a segment of the industry. 

So if you can manage to keep in touch and develop a solid relationship with a headhunter guess who they will contact first when there is an opportunity that might somehow match your profile? They will be also grateful if you are at least interested to meet their clients, even when the opportunity on the table is not the perfect match at this stage of your career.

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