Understanding The Hidden Job Market

We’ve all heard the story that says, 70% of all vacancies are never advertised.

Spending all your time on job portals alone means that you are missing out on the other share of the cake. It is advised that you spare some time to check up on unadvertised vacancies as you may stumble on something more.

According to Ms. Muthoni Ndegwa, a Recruitment Manager in Nairobi, the Kenyan job market is not different because not every company has the resources to put advertisements in the dailies.

SME’s have by far the majority of these hidden opportunities. They do not have the financial muscle nor the infrastructure to compete with the heavyweights such as the likes of Safaricom and the Deloitte of today.

We all know of a friend or family member who works for an SME that you have never heard of and you can’t get your head around how they got around to hear about the vacancy.

The question remains, why don’t employers advertise any of their vacancies? You ask?.

Recommended >>> 5 Simple Tips That Will Guarantee You A Job In 2017

Reasons Employers Don’t Advertise Their Vacancies

1.They don’t need to

SMEs are known to have so many people interested in their positions than the vacancies available. Such organizations rely on what they already have. Say that they happen to have an intern who is doing an impeccable job.

Why would they spend all that money advertising for a position when they already have someone who can comfortably fill the position.

This goes without saying, why internships are very important.

2. Other limiting factors

Most of these SMEs, don’t have the finances or human resources to process the high volumes of applications that come into their databases as a result of job advertisements.

This is why they don’t feel the need to bring in an additional hand owing to the cost of recruitment and job adverts.

How Do You Find These Hidden Opportunities?

The job search process can a toll on you. It becomes hard when employers don’t advertise their vacancies. How then do you find these opportunities in order to secure that job?

1.Do your research

“Any employer is likely to take you seriously if you understand their company.” Says Ms. Ndegwa.

As a job seeker, you know the kind of job you are looking for. Research on companies where you are likely to get these jobs.

For instance, if you are looking for a customer service job, you need to research companies like Safaricom or Start Times that are always hiring customer service agents. Get to understand what they do and what working as a customer service agent will entail.

2. Inform people that you are looking

This is called networking. Think about it, if people don’t know that you are looking for a job, how will they recommend you to potential employers?

You need to get off that sofa and get over feeling sorry for yourself for not being able to land a job, a year after graduation and start doing some serious networking.

Look for key players in your industry or friends or family who are already in the job market. They are your best chance at landing a job.

3. Work out a strategy

As Ms. Ndegwa advises, you need to work out a job search strategy that will work for you.

You are not doing yourself any favors by sending in so many generic CVs to different employers and keeping your fingers crossed that one of them night bear fruits.

Instead, identify different organizations and draw up a list of the best people to contact in this organization.

So many people think that HR is always the best person to contact in any organization but this is far from the truth.

Go to LinkedIn, create a professional profile for yourself and start contacting people in different organizations. Email them your CV, just to let them know that you are looking.

However be extra careful about this. Just network. Don’t become a LinkedIn stalker.

4. Get your CV in order

Before you send out any CV, ask yourself why would a recruiter spend, two-three minutes looking at my CV?

In order to have a shot at the dream job, you need to revamp your CV. Tailor your CV to fit the job you are applying for.

Most job seekers make the mistake of sending in generic CVs to every employer hoping to impress the hiring manager. This doesn’t happen.

If it you are having trouble compiling a CV that is likely to get shortlisted, you have the option of having your CV professionally written. Just go here for CV Writing Services.

Must Read >>> Free Sample CV Format for Kenyan Job Market 

The three Ps of Job Search

1.Be Persuasive

If you don’t market yourself well, no employer will take you seriously. Think of your CV and cover letter as your sales pitch. Make it hard for the hiring manager to resist meeting you for an interview.

2. Be Persistent

If you are applying for jobs at a certain company and not getting any responses, it may be a sign that you need to move on. However, you can still put an effort and turn that No into a Yes through your persistent.

Follow up on jobs you have applied through a phone call or an email. You can even go a step further and visit the offices. This will show that you are every interested in the job as well as the company.

3. Be philosophical

It’s never a guarantee that you will get a response with every job you apply for. However, the mere fact that you applied is worth so much more than just hiding behind the fact that you can apply for jobs because you won’t get any.

In conclusion, when it comes to job search, things will most of the time not go according to our plan. Most of the time you will get a No when you were expecting a Yes. The most important thing is to understand where opportunities lie and how you can find them and land yourself that dream job.

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