My prior two blogs have focused on how desirable L&D skills are for more than just traditional L&D roles and on how effective personal branding helped three L&D professionals find their ideal new positions. In this blog, we will focus on the search process itself. Landing your ideal job is a bigger challenge today than it was even five years ago.
Years ago, searching for a job was a straight-forward process. A job seeker mailed or emailed a responsibility- and task-focused resume to the prospective employer or recruiter, or they would send their resume directly to recruiting firms to request their assistance to find a new job.
Today, a job search is a more multi-dimensional process. Even with elaborate applicant tracking systems (ATSs) to streamline the process, it is not unusual for resumes submitted online to become lost in the big black hole of cyberspace and never receive a response.
Organize your resume
An L&D job seeker needs to take time to carefully align the content of their resume to the specific job description—not only so ATS will recognize the key words in the resume, but also for the recruiter or hiring manager to pinpoint a right fit among hundreds of resumes. For this reason, it can be helpful to have more than one version of your resume to align with the requirements of the job.
For example, if the open position is in change management, your resume highlighting curriculum design experience may not be pulled for consideration. One effective strategy is listing core competencies of the desired position at the top in a summary or highlights section. Don’t assume the resume “reader” will make assumptions about your skillset.
Focus on accomplishments
Resumes must also focus on accomplishment and achievements rather than just tasks. They also should show some type of metrics. Ask yourself, “What programs did I create, implement, and facilitate? What was the outcome of these efforts?”
Below in the experience section, bullet accomplishments that highlight the broader skillset to attract positions in training, leadership development, OD, change management, continuous improvement, or other areas seeking a broader skillset.
Market your personal brand
Candidates must know their personal brand, and market themselves more proactively. This means searching jobs regularly on the ASTD Job Bank, along with other related professional association websites for HR professionals or talent management professionals as well as industry-specific associations, such as healthcare, aerospace, automotive, financial, food and beverage, wireless, and pharmaceuticals. In addition, one of the best job search engines that combine open positions from various career websites is Indeed.com.
Create an action plan
Take the time to create your career action plan to encompass the following six steps:
- Assessment. Highlight relevant knowledge, skills, abilities with outcomes/metrics.
- Resume versions. Develop two to three resumes or a resume that can be adjusted to highlight specific skills for target positions.
- Job search. Search the ASTD Job Bank and related professional and industry association job boards, company websites, as well as aggregators, such as Indeed.com.
- Proactive branding. If you receive no response after submitting into an ATS, identify talent acquisition leaders on LinkedIn within these employers of choice, and email them requesting permission to forward your resume for the specific position.
- Interviewing preparation. Consider using a career coach to help you prepare for the interview.
- Onboarding. Even though the employer might have an onboarding program, ensure you’re setup for success once in the position with an onboarding plan.
These actions provide a high-level roadmap for your successful job search. L&D professionals have a unique skillset that is needed across industries, business sectors, functions, levels, and geographies.
Clearly, each action requires deeper attention and commitment. If your approach yields little to no results, consider connecting with a career coach to assist you in your efforts. Many find doing so a worthwhile investment in their professional success and development.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to post or reach out to me directly at [email protected].
