Job Hunting with Job Boards
Almost everyone does job hunting with job boards at some point in a job search. Why? Because people still find jobs by utilizing the information publicly found on these sites. New methods for job hunting have always come along over the years, but all methods have one core goal - to lead you to the person who has the power and desire to hire you. And job boards still play a role in that goal and most likely will continue to do so for many years. In this article, we’ll discuss how you can use job boards in your job hunt successfully, a few things not to do, and provide some advice on how to maximize your efforts.
Posting Your Resume on a Job Board
Technology to the rescue! This is what a majority of people do first in their job searches. Understandably, it’s the easiest thing to do. Yet, it’s very ineffective and poses risks to your search. Think about this for a moment. Sites like Indeed.com have boast over 12 million resumes posted to their site. That is 40 times the number of job listings which is why the success rate of this strategy is less than 3% on average.
More importantly, it poses risks to your job search. By posting a resume to a job board, you relinquish your power to control your information. Anyone can purchase a subscription and view the information you’ve shared. There is minimal vetting if any at all on these sites. Furthermore, these sites can do what they want with your information. Just read the terms and conditions; I’ll say no more.
Anyone with a subscription to these sites will be collecting your information. Staffing agencies are a huge piece of business for many of these job listing services and typically they will collect your information for future use which isn’t so bad in most cases. But some people are more malicious and fish for your contact information to perpetrate one scam or another, so beware.
Lastly, this method surrenders your control and ability to customize or tailor your resume for a particular job when you apply. Depending on the job you wish to apply for, you may want to highlight different information to align with the requirements of the job and show how your background matches best. But what happens when that same hiring manager comes across a slightly different resume that you posted online in the past? You look disingenuous and there’s a good chance you’ll have the door closed on you before you have a chance to explain.
To recap the drawbacks, here they are:
You lose all control of what happens with your resume and contact information. Anyone could pick it up, post it in other places, or it could end up in front of Pam in HR at your current company and now you’re fired. It has happened. Or perhaps the site you posted it to re-posts it after a month or two making it appear you’re still on the job market and now Pam 2.0 gets the jitters.
A good job search strategy involves making changes to your resume to align it with the job you are applying for. If you have multiple versions of your resume for the world to see, you’re going to have some explaining to do - assuming they even give you the chance to explain. Although all versions of your resume may be accurate, you seem disingenuous.
You could be the subject of identity theft. It’s not worth it.
If You Decide To Post Your Resume Online
If you do decide to post your resume online, here are five things you can do to mitigate your risks.
Don’t identify yourself. Write your name Cole S. or C. Sperry. The only contact information that should be listed is an email address that you specifically set up for your job search. If you don’t have one, create a free one. Don’t use your personal email address.
Consider removing company names from your resume. Instead of writing Optim Careers, you might say “A $10M privately-held career coaching company.” Remember this advice is only for posting your resume publicly online, not for applying to job listings.
Save the resume in a way that does not give your name away. Many people don’t realize this and save their resumes with their full names.
Don’t post it everywhere. If you’re in IT, consider DICE and a couple of other niche boards. I’ll discuss more on niche boards later.
Never post it anywhere that charges you a fee for the “privilege” of posting it on their site. Posting your resume should always be free.
Applying to Job Listings
The first thing most people do when they see a job posting on Indeed or ZipRecruiter is hit the “easy-apply” button like a knee-jerk reaction. Before you do so, do some research first. Find out if you know anyone who works at the company of interest and talk to them. Think about it, what do you think will fare better, being one of 200 resumes that the new guy in HR has to go through or finding out you know a woman who plays golf with the hiring manager and asking her to set up a casual lunch?
What if you can’t find a personal connection? Then gather as much information as possible. Look at your resume. Are there minor edits you can make that show how you match the job qualifications more closely? Don’t be untruthful, but if it’s possible to highlight more relevant information and omit non-relevant information to show you are a stronger applicant than others - take the time to do it. If you’re applying for an accountant opening, you can leave out the two years you were a barista. Once you’ve edited your resume, save it and rename it using the company name and job title you are applying for. This will ensure you have a record of what was sent to whom.
Don’t send it yet though. After you’ve done some research on the company, write a short essay for yourself on why this company should hire you. List the reasons you are a good fit for this role and why you want to work for this organization. If you can convince yourself - you will be able to convince the hiring manager. If you have more experience than is required, you can say so in your cover letter or with a handwritten note that you can personally send with your resume if you’re able to drop it off in person still.
And lastly, after you’ve done all of this and sent your resume, act as if you’ll never hear from them and continue working on all your job search strategies.
Niche Job Boards
Niche job boards can improve your odds of receiving a reply. I like to think sophisticated recruiters use niche job boards to locate the right talent. If a company is searching for a Software Engineer, they may elect to spend their money on a job board like DICE which specializes in IT jobs. A company searching for an accountant may use a job board such as IHireAccounting. To find niche job boards check out the related article below where we’ve assembled some of our favorites by industry and job function.
Related: 73 Best Job Search Websites
The reason this works is that fewer people will use niche boards compared to the behemoths like ZipRecruiter, Indeed, or CareerBuilder. Fewer people mean fewer applications which means greater chances you’ll be seen. This isn’t always the case. Larger companies especially may use a combination of niche job boards and large, generic ones. But it certainly can’t hurt your odds either.
The Gold in Old Postings
Generally, you’ll want to apply for jobs asap as they are listed. Once a recruiting team finds what they’re looking for, they may stop looking at additional resumes depending on their workload - so it’s important to be at the front of the line. But, if you find yourself in a prolonged job search, old postings are like gold. To understand this, step into a third-party recruiter’s shoes for a moment. Everyone is calling on today’s latest postings to try and secure new business, “I saw that you’re looking for a VP of HR, I have the perfect fit.” The same way you are applying to that opening with everyone else. But a good recruiter knows the best time to call on that opening is 30-90 days later after they’ve hired someone. Why? Because many new hires don’t work out and between 30-90 days is when the honeymoon wears off. No one is applying to the job anymore and no one is calling about the job either. The job isn’t reposted because hiring managers hate candidate hunting just as much as you hate job hunting.
But that dynamic can change when a recruiter, or in this case you, forward over information on a rock-star candidate that could ease their silent pain. The email may go something like this:
Dear Hiring Manager,
I know you made a hire for your Controller opening and I hope the new team member is off to a great start; however, your company is on a short-list of companies that I’ve made it my goal to work for and I know from experience that many times new hires don’t work out. At the risk of being too forward, I’ve included my resume and a cover letter indicating why I think I am still the best fit for this role and why I would be excited to work with you and your team. If on the small chance your new hire isn’t a perfect fit, I’d welcome a conversation to discuss my background, your goals, and explore further if I could be that perfect fit you need.
Does it work all the time? No, but your odds are certainly greater than applying with the hoards of others vying for an open job. And while no one wants to take a job away from anyone, there is a home for everyone and sometimes we all take jobs that we find out later aren’t the best fit. There’s always a chance an individual won’t work out for a job. Waiting until someone re-posts the job to apply with hundreds of others is not helping you or anyone else. Get in front of the opportunity and you’ll only be competing with yourself.