Sunday, March 29, 2009

Job Search in a Tough Economy

With recruiting budgets slashed to zero, most new positions are not being advertised in the paper or on sites like Monster.com. In the new recession world of job hunting jobs are going to be found in less traditional ways. There is word or mouth and networking, which has always been one of the best ways to find a job, but now the unorthodox get the jobs. Craigslist, the free posting service, which often has been considered the place to find jobs that are a bit questionable, is now a legitimate place to find a job. Additionally this is the time to send out resumes with well written cover letters to companies that might hire people with your skill set.

Remember, the candidate who has the great resume, with a good cover letter and the willingness to do research to find companies they might work for are the first to get hired. In addition to research into companies you might work for, make sure you do research for your cover letters so that prospective employers know you understand them and have put effort into your application.

You also have to be flexible about what you will accept as a job offer in these though times. Many companies have hiring freezes, so in order to bring you aboard, you might need to start out as a temporary. Though you might prefer something that is permanent immediately, remember as a temp you get to show exactly what you have to offer and in the long term might even get a better package when they do make you a regular employee because they already know what you have to offer.