How Alex Went From Laid Off to a New Audit Job in 6 Weeks

Success Stories

Nov 30

Alex had a thriving career and has always been employed within the accounting and audit industry. But like so many this year, he too was not spared from devastating layoffs and for the first time was thrust into a job search that he didn’t plan to have.

Alex’s background is in the financial services sector and has also worked as an Auditor for county governments and as a National Bank Examiner.

Despite economic headwinds blowing in a direction that was unfavorable to Alex’s job search, he was able to secure many interviews and land a new job with Farmers within a few weeks of his layoff.

Keep reading to find out:

How he got the job at Farmers
How much the job is paying
His top job search strategy
His thoughts on his resume
His thoughts on networking
How much time he spent searching for a job
His favorite resources and tools
the biggest challenge he faced when finding a new job
What he wished he knew when he started job searching
His biggest job search mistake

Why Did He Target the Farmer’s Job

I applied to Farmers Insurance Company for a Senior Audit role in the operations wing of the insurance company 6 to 8 weeks ago. I didn’t get the job but I did have a great phone screen with the HR person.

HR asked to keep my information on file and reach out if they had another opening that aligned with my background. I said yes, but surprisingly these guys actually meant it when they said it.

Within a few weeks, they called me about an IT Audit role and passed my name along to the hiring manager. I made it all the way to the final interview for this job, but again, didn’t get the job offer.

A few weeks later, they had another opening with their credit union and because of the great feedback I was given during my previous interviews, they called me again and asked if I would be interested in interviewing for this job.

I saw the position posted online the day it became available and was going to apply, but before I could, my HR contact called me and put me on the shortlist of candidates for the hiring manager. Because they already knew me and liked me, I was interviewed very quickly and ended up getting the job.

It really just goes to show you how important it is to kill every interview and stay in touch with people. The entire process took about 6 to 8 weeks and I start the new job next week.

Did He Get a Pay Raise

I was laid off from a smaller public accounting firm, so I did take a slight pay cut, but I’m still well within the typical payscale for senior roles in this job family. Plus, I have a good bonus and a 10% contribution to my 401(k). I feel really good about the job, the pay, and the benefits.

His Top Job Search Strategy

Following up with folks was big for me. This is what got me the job and kept my name top of mind for them.

Most people apply and wait for someone to reach out to them. I think following up helped push me forward with this company and showed them I was interested in working for their organization.

By following up I was able to secure interviews for jobs that I wasn’t 100% qualified for, but because I expressed interest and followed up (the right way), I was able to get these interviews.

How He Followed Up

I paid for a LinkedIn premium account so I could do this. If there was a job poster listed on a LinkedIn job ad, I would message them after I applied.

I told each one that I applied for XYZ position and included 2-3 qualities that I thought made me a good fit for the job. The key was to keep it short and sweet.

It was rare that I got a response from anyone, but I did start getting interviews once I implemented this. So I think it had to have helped.

I know people don’t usually go the extra mile and send personalized messages like this and my goal was to do what everyone else wasn’t doing.

With Farmers in particular, I would follow up with them after I was rejected for a job. This helped my cause because it showed them that I was interested in working for them. This is why they kept pushing me to other jobs at their company. Most of the time recruiters email candidates, but they would call me every time because of the rapport I was able to build with them.

There’s power in having good interviews, being friendly and likable, and letting people know that you’re interested in working with them.

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His Thoughts on Resumes

I think the resume is key to success. But one thing I changed after meeting with you (Cole) was the length. I was always pushed to do a 1-page resume, but I’ve found that never worked for me. Since changing it to a 2-page resume, I’ve gotten many more interviews.

Another thing that was big for me was listing software on my resume. Every interview I went to they asked about my software experience. No one really cared that I knew a specific software, unless it was an IT audit-based role, but they were more concerned with the fact that I had experience with different types of software. I didn’t even need experience with their particular software, but with something similar. I think this showed them that I could learn software quickly and on the go.

Another thing that helped me was knowing my way around Python programming languages. I’m an auditor, so no one expected me to know how to write scripts in python, but it was a huge advantage that I had seen it done and was familiar with it.

Audit is moving into data analytics and skills like this (even being familiar) is seen as an advantage.

His Thoughts on Networking

I didn’t attend networking events or have much success networking on LinkedIn either. But reaching out to former colleagues helped me get interviews quicker.

I also used an app called Fishbowl. It’s like LinkedIn but you are able to remain anonymous. The app verifies to make sure you work where you say you work, but your name doesn’t come up for other members. For most it only lists a job title.

I knew about this app because before the economy slowed down, CPA firms were hiring like crazy and everyone wanted to get the referral bonus for new hires. They joined this app to do that. So I decided to put myself on the app with my experience, the positions I was interested in, and the companies I was interested in working for. I let everyone know that if they were at a CPA firm and they worked with any of these companies that I would like to speak with them about a possible referral.

Then we would set up a coffee or zoom chat and if we aligned, they would refer me to their clients and contacts. I got so many more responses here than on LinkedIn.

People were more willing to give information about a company, positions, and hiring managers because it was anonymous.

How Much Time He Spent Job Searching

When I was first laid off, I was on the job hunt like I didn’t have anything to eat the next day. I probably spent 35 hours a week for the first few weeks trying to get my job search off the ground.

My situation is more unusual than most because I also do tax work on the side and I had to slow down a few weeks into my job search to balance the side income with searching for a job.

Once tax work started coming in, I was more picky about the roles I applied for and only spent 2 hours a day max job searching. At this point, I also started looking at only remote jobs because I had a cushion and could afford to be more selective.

His Favorite Resources and Go-To Tools

Fishbowl for networking.

Biggest Challenge He Experienced

I had two big challenges, but the biggest was probably keeping a positive outlook. The second was juggling my interview schedule.

After 3 weeks of applying, I was getting 8 to 9 interviews every week. It was mentally draining.

So on one hand you’re desperate to find a job, you’re still dealing with the pain of losing a job, and you’re expected to keep a straight face while you interview and be excited. Keeping my head on straight and not feeling exhausted was hard.

I did find it helpful to try and space out my interviews and this helped.

Another thing that helped me was to journal after every interview. I wrote down notes of what I thought I did well and what I thought I didn’t do well or what I wish I would have said instead. I then used those journal notes to improve my responses for different interviews.

Another thing that helped me was to ask the hiring manager during interviews if they had any reservations about anything I said or if I said anything that wasn’t clear. I found everyone was receptive to this question and they gave me feedback. No one ever had anything bad to say, but they did tell me things they liked about my interview. I then carried those things into future interviews and tried to do more of them.

What You Wish You Knew When You Started

I wish I would have known to be more patient. I felt like I had good interview skills because my job in public accounting required me to use similar skills.

I never felt I didn’t get a job because I had a bad interview, but it was usually because someone else had specific experience that I didn’t or they had more experience than I did in a particular area.

Everyone said I interviewed well, but this person had a CPA or this person had 10 years of experience doing this one specific thing. It was almost always an experience reason when I didn’t get a job.

His Main Mistake

I expected to find a job right away and that made me impatient in some interviews. It was almost like I was entitled. I thought I have this experience, why don’t you just hire me.

I expected that the process would move quicker and this was my biggest mistake because it showed in my initial interviews.

His Advice For Others

Be patient, trust the process, and realize that no one owes you anything.

Debrief with yourself after every interview and take notes of what you can improve on and what you should keep doing.

I don’t have an answer for it yet, but finding a way to stay positive yet giving yourself time to heal from a layoff is important.

Following up with people really works and shows you’re interested.

Contributor: Alex is an Internal Auditor with a mix of public, private, and government industry experience. Alex has led over 50 audit engagments during his career and worked extensively in the banking and financial services sector. This week he sat down with Optim Editor, Cole Sperry to share his job search success story.

Author & Editor: Cole Sperry has been a recruiter and resume writer since 2015, working with tens of thousands of job seekers, and hundreds of employers. Today Cole runs a boutique advisory firm consulting with dozens of recruiting firms, oversees Optim’s Resume Revision Service and On-Demand Coaching Program, and is the Managing Editor at OptimCareers.com.