Job Seekers Tips & Tricks

The Best Places To Look When Searching For A New Job

Searching for a new role can be daunting but there are so many places to look. From newspapers to online, here are our favourites:

• Newspapers – Advertisements in the national and local press
• Trade Press – Advertisements in industry specific trade press, for example The Grocer. Libraries usually have copies of the trade magazines of the larger business sectors.
• Online – Job boards such as CV Library, Reed, Total Jobs and Indeed are amongst the largest across the UK. Also, recruitment agencies local to yourself or specific to the industry sector you are looking in.
• Recruitment agencies ‘on the high street’ – walk in and register
• Specialist Job Preparation agencies (you will have to pay but they have access to the ‘unadvertised’ job market)
• Find a Job (Jobcentre Plus online vacancies)
• My Work Search – online job vacancy search tool (available to join on the web or available at local library computers)
• Advertisements on company own websites
• Social Media – Twitter, Linked In, Facebook
• Job vacancy cards in shop windows (usually retail)
• Billboards and banners outside company premises on industrial estates
• Write speculative letters with CV to companies you would like to work for
• Cold calling – ‘knocking on doors’ to enquire if there are vacancies
• Word of mouth from your personal network of family, friends, former colleagues, etc. (make sure your network knows you are looking for a job)
• Setting up your own business – funding is available if you look for it e.g. The Prince’s Trust

Use the structure for your CV layout:

• Name, location,  telephone number and email address
• Profile – Briefly what experience you have and the role you are looking for
• Key Skills – Bullet list of the key skills you have such as IT, Communications and Customer Service giving an example of where you have used the skill if possible
• Employment – Details of previous roles undertaken (most recent first working backwards) including company name, position held and a bulleted list of duties and responsibilities – include personal achievements with any relevant metrics
• Volunteering – Brief paragraph on any volunteering undertaken present and past
• Education – Full time education University/College, Secondary schools together with exams passed with grades if possible
• Training – Bullet list of training courses attended with any certificates achieved – limit to maximum 4-6
• Interests – Short paragraph on your interests and hobbies

Key Skills Employers Want

Interview Questions Frequently Asked By Employers

Q: Tell me about yourself

A: Give a brief overview as to your work history, keeping it relevant to the role you are interviewing for and why you’re looking to progress into a new role.

Q: Why do you want this job?

A: Real reasonings such as an interest in the company and what they stand for (perhaps quoting some information from their website) or wanting to progress/gain a new skill set.

Q: Why do you want to work for this company in particular?

A: Again, quoting some information from their website or other sources would be helpful, e.g. if you have seen online/in the press an interview with their Director stating what the company itself does, it would be worth mentioning that you have read this.

Q: What achievements are you most proud of?

A: This can be either something achieved in the workplace, a qualification or something you have achieved through one of your hobbies, keeping it relevant to the role that you are interviewing for.

Q: What are your key strengths?

A: State a few along with how they have been relevant/useful in the workplace.

Q: What would you describe as your greatest weakness?

A: Sometimes potential employers will ask this one to keep you on your toes. Have a think of something not too bad, perhaps this could be that sometimes you are too organised.

Q: Tell me about a time at work when things did not go well and how you acted

A: Consider your problem solving skills, perhaps this is resolving an issue with a customer or if you are working within a warehouse environment, a piece of machinery breaking and how this was tackled quickly and efficiently.

Q: Why did you leave your last position?

A: Remember not to include any negatives about the company, such as not getting on with your Director. Keep it positive, for example that you want to progress now and that your previous employer unfortunately could not provide this.

Q: What are your future career aspirations?

A: This can be asked in many ways, such as “Where do you see yourself in five years time?” Have a think about your career path, perhaps you want to be a supervisor/team leader/manager.

Q: What do you like to do in your spare time?

A: Interviewers will want to get to know the real you also. If you have some hobbies which are relevant to the role you’re applying for, it’s worth mentioning these first.

Q: What do you know about us? / What would you like to ask us?

A: Ensure you always ask a question to the interviewer at the end, even if they do not ask if you have any more questions. This could be asking about how the company is progressing/where the company is going within the next five years or something such as asking how big the team is.