A Job Search Plan

A guide to creating an effective job search plan

Your first impulse may be to surf the web for job ads or to grab the wanted section of the newspaper. But your job search will be more effective if you first take the time to create a plan. Before you start searching for a job you should have some clarity about your career. Here we have created a framework to follow, which consists of two stages:

1. Define
2. Actions

Make a weekly or daily schedule of job search activities. This plan will keep you on track during your search. Write down the checklist and develop your own schedule.

1. Define

   • Write down your job goals Before you start posting your resume everywhere, identify the job roles that are right for you. You should know which fields or industries you are interested in, and what types of positions are best suited for you. Along with that, you can list both your long and short-term life goals. But if you are a fresher, you may be confused about the job position you would like to apply for. Try to figure out what your main soft skills and hard skills are, write them down and then try to identify a field related to your core skills. The next step is to figure out what type of company work culture you would want to inculcate in your career as a fresher. If you would like to leverage your career you can either go with large companies that give you broad exposure or small scale startups that give you more space and freedom to experiment with different things in a collaborative work environment.

     Checklist A

     • Soft skills
     • Hard skills
     • Industries
     • Job role
     • Culture If you can write these points down, it would give you more clarity to create the right search plan, and then you will be more likely to achieve your goal.

   • Well crafted resume Your resume is the most important factor in your job search. The goal of your resume is to showcase your value as an employee and to show the employers, why hiring you is beneficial to their company. A well-crafted resume reflects your professionalism and enthusiasm for the role and the industry that you are targeting. You can use different online resume builders to get one ready in minutes, and also try digital resume platforms like Hiveboard.in. One reason is that online presence is the key aspect of a job search. According to Forbes, 56% of hiring managers are mostly attracted to a personal portfolio than any other branding tool. If you want to make sure that companies can find you quickly and easily, it’s vital that you create a digital resume for yourself.

2. Actions

   • Research ideal companies you’d like to work for Research about the ideal companies that resonate with your values and mission. Always look at your long-term goals and ask yourself whether joining the company is worth your long-term goals. Give priority to your ideal companies, list them down. You can approach the company in two ways, either go to their website and check the career options section and apply or write a mail to the HR with your resume . You can also visit the LinkedIn page of the company and set up a job alert so that each time they post any vacancy, you will get a notification.

     Checklist B

     • List down ideal companies
     • Visit the company website and check career options to apply or mail the HR
     • Setup LinkedIn job alert on their company page

   • Job hunting websites If your ideal companies do not have openings, you can start looking for other companies . Search the matching job titles based on your list of skills and past experience. Select one or two active job-hunting websites and post your resume there. Continue applying for all relevant jobs, note down each company you apply to. Try to contact the HR Manager only 3 or 4 days after the submission deadline.

     • Job website 1 :
       • Company name 1 :
         • Deadline for submission :
         • Link :
         • Status: Pending /Rejected
       • Company name 2 :
         • Deadline for submission :
         • Link :
         • Status: Pending /Rejected
     • Job website 2 :
       • Company name 1 :
         • Deadline for submission :
         • Link :
         • Status: Pending /Rejected
       • Company name 2 :
         • Deadline for submission :
         • Link :
         • Status: Pending /Rejected

   • Follow hiring managers and set up a google alert Try to follow hiring managers, who keep posting many job vacancies on social media, and also follow placement and career coaches. Many of us do not take advantage of a feature Google has, one can set a Google alert by adding the right keywords and one would get all the updates of the added keywords. For example, one can set Marketing internship Bangalore or Fresher’s vacancies in Delhi as the keywords. Set up your ideal company's vacancies as keywords and the Google alert would send emails to the user when it finds new results such as web pages, newspaper articles, blogs, or anything that matches your Google alert keyword.

   • Network and Reference Attend various free events such as startup events, HR training sessions, hackathons, and community meetups. There is a possibility that at least one event will give you the right connection or contact to get your first job. Startup community events and hackathons are the best way to get connected with many well-connected individuals. Reference is another best way to get hired. If you are fresher, then your college seniors are the right people to add as your reference. Connecting with your college seniors will help you to stay informed of their company’s vacancy updates. Try to connect with more people through your network. Before listing a reference, be sure to ask for their permission to give their information to the hiring manager.