With the pandemic’s upheaval on the job market, it’s expected that 26% of American workers will be conducting a job search this year. In the last decade, however, job searching has undergone a serious transformation.
“In working with thousands of clients over the last few years, we've seen the same job seeker misconceptions pop up routinely,” said Brie Reynolds, Career Development Manager and Coach at FlexJobs. “Many of the missteps we see revolve around a misunderstanding of how the job search and application process has changed in the last decade, so we hope that highlighting the differences will help people be more successful in their job search,” Reynolds concluded.
If you are a savvy job seeker, you will be ready to adapt to the current environment. According to FlexJobs, these ten job search strategies will help you stand out from the crowd:
Focus on keyword-rich resumes
Many employers use an applicant tracking system (ATS), which enables searching resumes by keywords. To ensure a resume is "seen" by the ATS, it needs to be tailored specifically to each job using relevant keywords from the respective job posting. Not only that but, recruiters and hiring managers are only spending an average of six to seven seconds scanning resumes, so the keywords need to be seen immediately to attract their attention.
Add a summary and skills section to your resume
An objective statement on a resume is no longer standard practice. Today it's imperative to include the skills you bring to the table to match the company's expectations. Highlight top skills and accomplishments in the summary section, and be sure to tailor your resume by using keywords and phrases from the job description.
Remove references and street address from your resume
Employers expect candidates to have references, so there's no need to take up valuable real estate on a resume. Instead, references can be provided later when requested during the interview process. Also, there's no reason to include a home address, particularly when applying for a remote position. Instead, it's a common practice only to have the city, state, and zip code. This approach is also an excellent way to avoid the possibility of identity theft.
Only include the most recent experience on your resume
The focus of your resume is now expected to center around the most recent and relevant experience rather than your entire career history. Even you've done impressive things for many years, anything beyond the last ten to 15 years of work history can do a disservice to your candidacy for a position, especially as it relates to ageism...