The Job Hunter

You are ready for a new job to fulfil your potential. You learn so much from your peers but should be working at a higher level. There is one vacancy and it has your name on it. Application submitted, visualising yourself in the role, higher salary, waiting for top marks and invite to interview.

The email arrives. What? Unfortunately your application has been unsuccessful. How can that be? If not you, then who? It's tough out there. So much competition. You need to be the best to get that job. Er, hello, you are the talent, right?

How can your talent not be recognised and rewarded? One rejection follows another with your application scores resembling a broken Fibonacci sequence where your scores for your CV and supporting statement never get higher or combine to get you over the line.

You are more than a number. You are a human being, but when other people cannot give you the answers to your dilemmas, you ask a search engine. According to Google AI, the UK job market is experiencing a period of significant challenge, with declining vacancies, low employer confidence and increased competition. The market remains tough for job seekers who need to be proactive and adaptable in their job search, focusing on skills development and networking to increase their chances of success.

Being honest is not imposter syndrome

When I achieved the highest HR accreditation status of Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, I believed it would give me the edge in job applications. A proven thought leader, influencer and expert change agent who can influence the future of work. Companies fighting to hire an HR superstar.

However, I discovered that accreditation does not equal essential criteria and your perception of your abilities might not match what recruiters want, even with letters after your name.

Like you, I want to work alongside some of the brightest minds, as I believe I am one, when my job is to be myself. I have the maturity and confidence to know what I am good at, what I can learn, what I need other people to do, and what I should avoid. But how do you find the perfect match?

When looking for a fresh challenge, you have a CV and 1000 words to salvage golden moments from a career of busy being busy to demonstrate why you are worthy of an interview. Why is it so difficult to describe five positive achievements from over 20 years of working?

A career can feel like a computer game you want to complete. It can be linear and structured or free roaming like an open world until you can go no further and realise you have been going round in circles. You have older experts ahead of you on the scoreboard and the next generation storming towards you.

You are sick of scouring job adverts online. Before swatting a fly with your laptop, remember technology and job adverts are not your enemy. You are part of the problem in the labour market and part of the solution

You cannot go back in time to gain the experience or qualification that would help you get the job you want. Focus on the present – do you have the time and desire to do what is needed to get the job or at least boost your prospects of career enhancement?

If an organisation has carried out an effective skills analysis to hone job design and identify what human capital it needs to complement its technology to execute policies and services, you have to show you are ready now or have the potential to meet what the business wants now and in the future.

Be brand you

Software is becoming more important than hardware and human beings are embracing or dancing around artificial intelligence in their work-life integration. Most people do not have the skills or aptitude to become social media engineers, data scientists or quantum computer experts. Most of us don’t want to do those jobs and want to excel in our profession or leave the corporate life to become our own boss.

Are we spending too much time complaining about mandatory office attendance when we should be investing in our personal and corporate brand? If an organisation wants an approachable and a great listener with strong communication skills and expertise in training managers and employees, what is the purpose of that role? To be an agony aunt cum coach or a skilled strategist who can manage interpersonal relationships and deliver outcomes that achieve results?

Demand should create work and people should turn tasks, responsibilities and outcomes into meaningful jobs. A mutually beneficial exchange of money for labour and a platform for learning, growth and development. Whether you are a builder, fixer, server-deliverer, knowledge worker, frontline responder, specialist, creator, athlete, politician or a profession that has not been invented yet, you should know what you offer, the impact you have and why organisations and customers need to pay you.

Unless you work in fast food, fix toilets, build houses or save lives, it can be difficult to explain what you do, especially when your boss is asking. I am a human resources and communications professional who provides an expert business partnering service for business and people priorities. I don’t just have experience but extensive experience in casework, employee engagement, presentations, advising senior management teams, working with lawyers and managing the employee life cycle.

See, it is difficult to stand out from the crowd when competing for jobs. In the ancient world, people told stories around campfires for social interaction, storytelling, sharing skills and creating culture and identity. Now we sit in front of laptops distilling our lives into powerful statements to secure interviews and jobs to keep the lights on inside our homes and our souls. Find your talent and make it count.