Proactive candidates
Finding the job or career of your dreams is a goal that few people achieve in life – except for a lucky few who happen to be at the right place at the right time. For most of us the harsh realities of a competitive world means that even with the right qualifications, experience and aptitude the chance of landing that perfect job is still frustratingly small.
Every day thousands of job seekers scour newspapers, web sites and Job Centre bulletin boards in the hope of finding that most elusive of targets, the ideal vocation opportunity, but for some people seeking a job by traditional means is simply not enough. These are the proactive types who are not prepared just to sit back and wait for the perfect job to miraculously appear. Instead they take the initiative and actively promote themselves to prospective employers.
Direct job applications
Such individuals will rigorously undertake their own research in order to identify the companies they wish to work for and then, instead of waiting for that company to advertise a vacancy they will make contact offering their services. Yes, it might sound a bit presumptive and cheeky, but sometimes it works. Not only that but many prospective employers can be more impressed by a specific, albeit unsolicited, approach than having to sift through the CV’s of very average job seekers.
The other advantage for employers is that direct and specific job applications often come from highly skilled individuals who are very clear about the career niche they want to carve out for themselves.
Raising your employer profile
Very often they are alerted to a specific organisation because they read the relevant industry press or trade journals. This clearly underlines the value of good marketing on behalf of the organisation. In other words marketing is not just about raising the profile of an organisation – it can also indirectly attract good people to apply for a position within the company.
Today there are a number of new channels open to organisations to raise their profile as well as more opportunities for job seekers to promote themselves.
LinkedIn is a particularly good example of a social media website that links professionals together in a way that is now overtaking more traditional recruitment strategies.
Power of PR & talent pool
I have personal experience of the successes that can be derived from using the power of PR to attract good people. One of our recent press releases was featured in a number of local publications which resulted in some direct approaches from highly qualified individuals, well suited to the needs of our organisation.
Obviously there are not always immediate vacancies to be filled but I don’t see this as an issue. If I am approached by an individual who understands our business and has the right skills then a relationship can be established so that when a future need arises we can get back in touch.
Very often someone who is very focused on their long term career objectives will be prepared to wait for the right opportunity to come along and this suits us both.
Employer branding
Clearly then, good positive PR and regular news updates can have a ‘hidden’ benefit in not only raising awareness of your business in the wider community but also in attracting the right calibre of prospective employees to your business. To my mind it’s a strategy that all prospective employers should take heed of.