Modern technologies will change the way you apply for jobs...

Accessibility of internet enabled technology and mobile devices has, and will continue to change the way we look at recruitment and how job seekers will apply for roles... SOON 

Many of you have seen this photo of St Peter's Square - which went viral a month or two ago.  Great depiction of how epodemic change is, and how we interact with the world around us changes as a result.

Mobile Recruiting

This is a hot topic among the corporate recruiters and agency recruiters out there these days.  Companies are trying to stay ahead of the curve, and be able to cater to a more savvy candidate base, meeting applicants' needs for convenience / time / desire to apply which have now become an issue.  

As an internal corporate recruiter, I know that it's painful to apply for roles, especially when you are putting your information into multiple Applicant Tracking Systems, and having to re-enter the same info over and over again. 

My team is looking at how we can reduce the pain in the application process, while still getting the information we need from candidates, in order to reduce our efforts too. 

Some businesses have optimized their web application processes to enable Mobile Applications - which would give you a quicker, simpler, easier-to-view experience on your mobile device.  This increases the applicant pool for us, by eliminating some of the tedious work on the part of the applicant, and making job postings available to individuals who may be on their phone or tablet, not at a desktop computer. 

A lot has changed in applying for a job over the years!!

Great graphic I found online.

Not all businesses have made the decision on their strategy around Mobile, and Social Media recruitment, so you have to be patient.  This is unchartered territory, and very little data exists to show the value it will add to a business long term.  Don't judge a company, for not having the coolest website, or the best Social Media presence.  It may mean that they are a little more conservative, or dont have a strategy in place... YET.  They may want to see how things play out in the industry before commiting valuable resources to this emerging technology.

This means, being patient, and working with the systems that were created 5-10 years ago, if you want to work for some leading companies. 

It may be painful, but it will get better. 

cuppa java please!!!

Wake yourself up with a cuppa delicious brew - then get down to business.

As I am sure many of you do, I use my BlackBerry as my alarm clock... which is awesome, but also very dangerous.  I tend to hit the "disarm" button, (ok... maybe the snooze button a few times first!) and then look at the little red star, symbolizing my neverending stream of emails. 

I have made a rule for myself - not to lay in bed and browse through them, as I can not commit to remembering everything I have looked at and hence had a tendency to forget what was already read, and what I needed to atend to. 
For the job seeker - especially the not-working job seeker - the temptation of laying in bed, surfing the web and "phonemailng", can be extremely tough to say no to... but try the alternative:

•   Get up and put some real pants on!    LuluLemon just announced that their famous Luon Pants are being recalled, as they are nearly sheer!  (this is no attire to be conducting a job search in!)
•   Get to your stations!   Set up an area in your house that is seperate from the TV, bed, and any other loungy area in your home.  It doesn't have to be a hard wooden chair, but somewhere you feel like you can focus.
•   Plan / Organize the day!    This is a key step - you can quickly get distracted in this land of social media!  With the number of different ways to communicate with people, and the variety of distractions, block off time for the important things;
• check emails and flag which ones you need to respond to
• checking job boards
• setting up email alerts
• connecting with key folks on LinkedIn
• thank you emails - to those folks helping you in your searc
• phone calls - plan who you want to try to reach out to that day, and set time aside for it to prepare for the calls
•   HYDRATE!   This can be coffee, tea, or whatever you fancy; never underestimate the power of a great coffee shop to kick-start your energy levels, and motivate you to try harder to find that dream job!