Tony Jacowski asked:


What Employers Want

Awareness of employer’s expectations is essential to finding a job. Older job-hunting techniques focused on “you”, the person. It laid emphasis on your work history, accomplishments, academic background and other credentials. It focused on your qualifications and objectives as well. But that has changed and today, employers expect you to know what their needs are and tell them how you can complement the organization.

Energy

Displaying the right energy and initiative is very important. Energetic people are credited with enthusiasm, vigor and drive and that is exactly what employers want. Most jobs require you to be proactive. Employers can easily evaluate this ability, almost as soon as the candidate enters the room. If you are not an energetic person, you should practice ways to look and act accordingly, in order to make a good first impression. It can make a huge difference; most of the time, job opportunities are won or lost on approach and preparation.

Specific Skills

Every job involves a set of specific skills and education or training, with the required background and experience. Most often, these skill sets are mentioned in the advertisement. If, however, they are not mentioned specifically, find out about the company and its hierarchical structure. This will help you to prepare to present specific abilities and initiative, creating a positive impact on the employer. Your primary concern, once you have the list of required skills, should be to present evidence that you have those skills.

This could involve your academic qualifications, projects and achievements. In addition, you need to project the capability to meet job responsibilities, work experience, voluntary activities and tasks in personnel management. The key is to try to match your skills and capability to the specific requirement of the employer. Highlight the relevant areas, since recruiters usually do not have a lot of time on hand and have to deal with a number of applications. They show interest only in particular skill sets that are required by the organizations that they represent. Make these skill sets noticeable. Precision and brevity are important too, but it is also important to highlight the skills you possess and how you can be an asset to the firm.

Transferable Skills

There are particular skills that most employers look for that have nothing to do with the competencies required for the particular job. These skills indicate the development potential and not the knowledge level. These so-called transferable skills include communication, teamwork, leadership, initiative, problem solving, adaptability, motivation and numerical skills. In addition to this, private sector companies prefer the candidate to have some idea of how the firm operates, current business news and trends and their impact on the organization. The courses completed, work experience and hobbies are of value as well. Be ready to answer clearly if asked at the interview as to how your education has prepared you for a specific job. You should be prepared with a good and precise answer. It is important to plan in advance.

By applying the steps above, you will be well on your way to giving employers what they want and conducting a highly successful job search.

Paul Megan asked:


One of the most dramatic changes in the 21st Century job market is in the way employers consider you when they first lay eyes on you.

For example, if you think that it’s your resume that will get you a job, you’re in for a long, LONG job search!

Or if you’re intent on proving yourself based on your work history . . . what you used to do for someone else . . . get ready for disappointment and rejection.

And if your confidence is based on your ability to passively answer all the questions an interviewer throws at you, you already lost.

Today’s employers are looking for people with energy. And they pick up on your energy before they even formally meet you. Do you exhibit the energy employers are looking for?

Energetic people exude vigor, enthusiasm and drive. They want and need to be active. Employers can sense this quality in a person almost as soon as they enter the room. They have a spring in their step and a drive that puts a sparkle in their eyes.

All this occurs even before you open your mouth. We know from experience that an employer or interviewer will make a go/no-go decision about you in a matter of seconds all based on the sense of energy you communicate when they first lay eyes on you.

So, if you are not this type of person, it would be wise to practice how to look and act energetically so that you can make a good first impression. It really makes a big difference because job opportunities are literally won or lost depending on how you enter a room.

Being aware of employers’ expectations is critical to your job search success. The old-fashioned job hunting techniques focused all the attention on YOU . . . your work history, your past accomplishments, your academic and other credentials, your qualifications, your objectives.

But all that’s changed. Today employers expect you to know what THEIR needs are and how you can fill them going forward. Displaying energy is the first step.