iMPact Business Group is a staffing agency specializing in Information Technology, Engineering, Finance/Accounting, and Business Administration/Process positions. To connect with one of our professional recruiters, view our job board for all available positions, or submit your resume for consideration here.
In this episode, we talk about job searching tips for the holidays.
Contrary to popular belief, the end of the year can be a great time to apply for jobs. Many job seekers have the incorrect impression that employers aren’t hiring during the end of year holidays, and hold off on their job-seeking activities until January. This makes January a much busier month, resulting in more resumes and competition for open positions. Here are 5 tips for how to find job opportunities during the holiday season.
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Networking
With all the social events at the end of the year, it’s a great time to network and connect with people who can help you with your job search. Connect with acquaintances you haven’t talked to in a long time and let them know you’re looking for new job opportunities. But don’t limit your networking to attending events. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date and connect with people there as well. Also, look at sites such as meetup.com, and local Facebook and Reddit groups to find local networking events in your field of interest.
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Less Competition
While many job seekers are taking a break from job searching with a lot going on during the holidays, or thinking there’s no point applying for jobs this time of year, it opens up the door to get your resume in front of hiring managers who are seeing a reduced number of applications coming in. This is a great opportunity for you to land an interview when there’s a less competitive candidate pool for employers to choose from. You may also be able to make a connection with hiring managers who aren’t always as busy during the holiday weeks.
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Connect with Recruiters
Connect with any recruiters you know to let them know you’re in the market for new opportunities and provide them with an updated resume. If you don’t have relationships with any recruiters, ask your friends to introduce you to recruiters they know who work in your industry. If they have a good relationship, ask if they can make a referral. You can also look up staffing groups and recruiters on LinkedIn (using advanced search and filters) and make a connection that way. Before connecting with a recruiter, be aware of the types of job roles they are working on so you can highlight how your background may align when you make your instruction. Sending a personalized message will increase the chance of a response.
If you’d like to connect with us here at iMPact, share your resume with us and one of our recruiters will review it.
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Patience
Although employers continue hiring; and searching for jobs during the holidays can offer up opportunities, also be aware that things may move a little slower than at other times of the year. Key decision-makers will be out of the office resulting in the interviewing process taking longer than you may be used to. Don’t let that discourage you from applying, and make sure you are still following up like you normally would, and if given the opportunity, inquire about the decision-making timeline.
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Education
If you have some down-time during the holidays, consider taking an online course, or adding an industry certification to your resume. This is especially important if it’s been a long time since you finished school. It’s important to show employers that in addition to your experience, your skills are also up to date and relevant. It’s a great way to stand out from other candidates as you start out your job search in the new year.
Bonus tip:
Take advantage of the different AI tools to help you find a new job. Use a site such as Perplexity.ai or Google Gemini, paste your resume, and ask it to list companies that would look for candidates with your skills and experience. You ask it to narrow down by industry, company size, location; and anything else that’s important to you in your job search. Also,ask it to explain why that company would be a good match. With this information, you can now use the 5 previous tips to see if the companies of interest are hiring. Even if they don’t have a matching position open, send your resume and include a short explanation of why you’re interested in working for them. It may still lead to some kind of opportunity.
Working with iMPact
Before we start working with a client, we will research them, have in-depth conversations with their hiring team and visit their facilities to get to know them and what makes a candidate successful in their company culture. To connect with a recruiter and find out about our currently available opportunities in Information Technology, Accounting/Finance, Engineering, and Business Administration/Process, please visit our job board to view all available job opportunities. Or, submit your resume here for consideration to connect with one of our experienced recruiters in either our Grand Rapids, Michigan, or Tampa, Florida location.
