Last week, we put our community in the driver’s seat and allowed all of you to submit your burning recruitment questions to ask the talent acquisition teams from some of Australia’s top employers who are embracing flexibility. It is no wonder the final FlexConnect session in our inaugural series was sold out in a matter of days! Our wonderfully engaging panelists gave rich insights into how the recruitment process works, what they expect to receive in a job application, how to handle rejection and so much more. Below is a summary of the tips they all shared if you are currently in the process of looking for flexible work.
Top tips direct from the employers to you:
1. Be upfront about your flexibility needs and have a plan to share on how you can make the role work within these
2. Be findable online and make sure the information is what you’d like employers to know about you
3. Keep your online profiles like LinkedIn updated and include specific keywords relevant to your skills and experience so when recruiters search keywords your profile will feature.
4. Make sure your application is acronym free. Have an out of industry friend review it for you.
5. Follow and connect with employers you want to work for through social media and sign up for their alerts. Show them you’re interested in them before you apply for a role.
6. Tailor your CV and cover letter for the specific role advertised.
7. Use your CV to showcase your achievements and skills with the aim of securing an interview where you can share more detail about your roles and responsibilities.
8. Maximum length for a CV is 5 pages. Make sure it is easy to read, no spelling mistakes and showcases the best of you for the role you are applying for.
9. Your cover letter should be 1 page in length and give the reader an insight into your suitability and motivation for the role you are applying for.
10. Don’t be afraid to call the hiring manager to ask a question about the job or your application.
11. Online screening tests are becoming common practice to take the time to practice before one of these tests stands between you and your ideal job.
12. A good cultural fit with an organization is becoming more important than pure technical skills for a job so make sure you buy into what the company stands for.
13. Don’t underestimate the power of networking. Connect where you can – old managers and colleagues, industry events, prospective employers, HR professionals.
14. Hiring managers want to hire someone who is genuinely excited and motivated for the role they are applying for.
15. Don’t hide a career gap on your CV and highlight the skills you acquired whilst away from work.
16. If you have international work experience, then provide some details about the employer to help the recruiter contextualize your experience.
17. Prepare well for a job interview and research the company, the manager, the people interviewing you. Understand the key drivers and values of the company and know what questions you are going to ask at the end.
18. Be Yourself. Use your own style and personality to attract opportunities. Pretending to be someone you or not goes against your own Purpose and will ultimately lead to dissatisfaction and failure.
19. Realise Your Purpose. Knowing what gets you out of bed in the morning is important. Work to sharing this unique purpose in all conversations.
20. Get creative with your job application if you really want to stand out from the crowd.
21. Don’t underestimate your worth and if you’re not in your ideal role yet you must persevere.
It was so encouraging to hear our community members left the event feeling inspired and re-energised to persevere in their job hunt. What was also motivating for our community was to hear the employers reinforcing the fact that performance is more important than presence and that they are not only hiring in skills bur behaviours and competencies versus purely skills and experience. While every business is at a different point in its flexibility journey, businesses realise that flexible working is the way of the future and those who truly value talent will thrive in this new era.
Heartfelt thanks again go to our panel of experts and the progressive businesses they represent. Times are changing and we’re proud to be associated with these businesses who are embracing flexibility:
Renee Read –Resourcing Specialist, Risk Management, Macquarie Group
Daniel Chase – Talent Acquisition & Strategic Sourcing Leader, Macquarie Group
Katharine Davidson – Talent Resourcing Specialist, Lion
David Broughton – National Talent Acquisition Delivery Lead, Audit & Assurance, Tax and Private Enterprise, KPMG
Kim Lawry – Partner, KPMG
Hassanah Rudd – Australia Recruitment Manager, Fletcher Building
Skye Cracknell – National Talent Acquisition Manager, Lendlease
-->