The job searching process has undergone a huge transformation over the past year, with the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and online recruitment tools.
This is according to Advaita Naidoo, the Africa managing director at Jack Hammer, an executive search firm which helps companies find executives that can build and diversify leadership teams and company boards, said that in 2024, job seekers were faced with a new set of challenges and opportunities that require a proactive and strategic approach
The advancement of new tech and AI could mean that your candidacy when you are looking for a job falls through the cracks before you even get a chance to land your dream job.
While these tech tools can reduce the time and effort required to find the right job and increase your chances of success, it can also reduce a candidate’s chance of being noticed in the first place.
“If you are looking for a new position in 2024, you are going to have to be a lot more proactive to catch the eye of hiring managers, as well as being significantly more organised on your job search journey,” Naidoo said.
Here are five ways you can update your job search strategy:
1. Update your LinkedIn
It is essential to have the most up-to-date information on your LinkedIn page. LinkedIn is the first place hiring managers go to screen a candidate so you should not drop the ball there.
2. Fix
Make sure your CV and resume are meticulously drafted in line with current best practice. These days, CVs should be a maximum of 2-3 pages so even if you have several decades of experience, you need to condense that information.
Naidoo said: “In particular, eliminate long and rambling copy, and get your keywords right for the automated parts of the process, before a human eye would even land on your application.”
Do your homework to determine what the current requirements are for your industry including what works and what doesn’t work for CVs.
3. Track your job search activity
Keeping a spreadsheet of all your job search activity can help you track any job leads and and conversations on the go. If you don’t coordinate and track your actions, it’s going to get messy and make you look unprofessional.
4. Put in the effort and network
Data shows that particularly at senior levels, around 75% of the time, people land their next role through networking.
Networking is a non-negotiable skill that every single person, particularly those who are on the hunt for a job, need to master.
5. Get your mindset right
Job search in 2024 can take longer than you expect, and can cause anxiety and frustration.
It is important that people stay positive and don’t take it personally when they get declined, or if they are asked to send their CV multiple times to the same person, or they get called back for 10 interviews.
