Looking for a job may never be the same. With the huge growth of employment-related Web sites on the Internet, a job-seeker cannot afford to overlook searching for a job electronically. Successfully navigating this frontier, however, requires new skills and strategies. The focus of this article is to provide you with a roadmap that will guide you through the maze of Web sites related to career development and job-hunting and give you directions to the best resources currently available to job-seekers.
Before we begin this journey, one caveat: Job-hunting on the Internet should, in no way, be your sole means of looking for a new job. The traditional methods of networking, job boards, classified ads, and targeted job searches should still be part of your overall job-hunting plan. The Internet simply expands the job-hunting resources that are available to you.
For those unsure of their career direction, the first step might be to one of several Web sites that offer Career Assessment Tools, such as the Ansir Self-Perception Test or the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, which score results from online questionnaires and provide suggestions of appropriate careers for your type.
Most others will start the journey by going to one of several career development Web sites, such as Quintessential Careers or The Riley Guide, which can provide assistance with developing or honing your resume and cover letter writing, finding the best sources for researching companies, strengthening your interviewing skills, learning how to network, mastering salary negotiation, as well as perfecting other key career and job-hunting skills. If you only have one type of resume, then you should definitely start here. Most job-hunting experts now talk about three kinds of resumes:
the traditional resume: this version has all the bells and whistles, including nice formatting. The focus is on action verbs and accomplishments.
the scannable resume: this version is a stripped down version of your traditional resume, in plain text for easy scanning into computer databases. The focus is on nouns and phrases, as well as key accomplishments.
the Web-based resume: this version is similar to your traditional resume, but published on your personal Web site so that is always available to potential employers.
See some sample Web resumes.
Once you’ve honed your skills in these areas, the next step is to develop a strategy for job-hunting on the Internet. If you’re a college student or recent college graduate, your approach will be much broader than if you are a seasoned veteran, partly because of the need for confidentiality of people currently in the workplace, partly because of the availability of Web sites at different career levels, and partly because a less developed network. Keeping these issues in mind, there are four different types of Web resources for job-seekers:
Job networking Web sites and discussion lists. There are thousands of Internet-based discussion lists on almost every subject and profession imaginable. Join one or more of these lists and network with people in your field; employers sometimes subscribe to these lists to screen potential candidates. Finally, many professional organizations have Web sites that have forums to facilitate networking. Visit The Art of Networking for more information and links.
General job databank and resume sites. Websites such as theQuintessential Careers Job Board, Yahoo! HotJobs, andMonster.com have large databases of job openings where you can search by profession or keywords. A complete list of the best of these site can be found at Quintessential Careers: General Job Resources. College students should visit College Recruiter in addition to the ones mentioned previously. A complete list of the best of these site can be found at Quintessential Careers: College Grad Resources. Many of these sites allow you to post your resume for free, and some even offer job and applicant matching services. Some of these sites allow you to post your resume without revealing your name for the sake of confidentiality.
Specialized job sites. There are also hundreds of specialized job Websites, from employment recruiters of all types to specialized job databank sites that focus on a specific industry. If you’re an executive, you might want to go to FutureStep. If you’re an accountant, you might want to go to JobsinThe Money. And if you’re a marketer, you might want to go to Marketing Jobs. A list of the best of these specialized job sites can be found atQuintessential Careers: Career and Job-Hunting Resources by Industry.
Company sites. If you have a specific set of companies you would most like to work for, the best solution might simply be to go the each company’s Web site and review job postings. Many of these companies allow you to apply online, and they often list the contact person so you should be able to easily follow-up, as you would if you sent a cover letter and resume to an employer. We link directly to the career centers of hundreds of firms in ourQuintessential Directory of Company Career Centers. Will these steps guarantee you success in finding a new job or career? No. No method is guaranteed to work, but as more and more companies go to the Internet for faster and more efficient job searches, it does not make sense to ignore this new avenue of networking and job-hunting.
