Trying Job Market
The job market is really rough these days. I have done plenty of hiring in the past, and this is the worst I have seen. I am in tech so this may vary, but there are two salient threads from my perspective:
Experienced people are staying put a lot longer than usual
Inexperienced people are flooding recruiters and HR reps with resumes
Since the market is so weak, the experienced stay where they are. This means the firms who have the experienced people, are not hiring the way they used to. It was once that a person could use a mid tier position to get a good salary while awaiting a high-tier opening at another firm; now, if the job is “good enough” no one is willing to take the risk leaving for whatever grass might be on the other side of the fence. With this backup in employee churn comes significant headwinds for those looking to break into the industry.
The more difficult it is to break into an industry, the worse it feels to those at the bottom. We are seeing 100+ resumes per open position. One’s chances of success are marginal especially if there is nothing special about the applicant. The longer someone has on their resume between graduation and their first employment, the more questions it raises in the recruiters’ heads making things even worse. These difficult times call for new and varied approaches to get one’s foot in the door.
With 100+ applicants, HR needs some way of knowing how to pick the “1st one”. The easiest way is by referrals; they take the referrals first. Those searching and finding themselves at a dead end should show up to meetups and conferences. Some of these events are free of charge, and if you are not working, you should be able to find one to attend nearby. Talking to people and shaking hands is the fastest way into a job. The people you meet will likely know of an open position or know of someone who is searching for candidates. You don’t need to work for a fortune 500 company to earn a fortune; anywhere that pays enough should do just fine.
I also see a lot of people clout-chasing and title-choosing. None of this matters. No one cares if you are a Widget Designer I or a Widget Designer II; they only care that the widgets work and you only care that you are fairly compensated. Apply for everything, even if it looks out of reach. HR people often write the job descriptions, and as a result, you can usually get through an interview process successfully without everything on the list. Even if the job is not the one you want, once you work inside of an organization it is easier to transition to a different department if you play your cards right. The biggest drag on a candidate is a long period of non-employment; do not fall into this just because the words on your name tag might not be what you want. Take what you get and put a plan together to make your pivot.
While you are not working, do some community service. It will fill in the gap and get you in front of more people, shaking more hands, and potentially lead to a fruitful connection with a job at the end of the tunnel. There is no rule that you cannot socialize and network while volunteering; you might as well be getting something out of it.
The real point is, no matter what is going on, one cannot wait around for random happenstance or the Government to fix the job market. A successful person adapts and moves with the winds of change. Be your own hero.