Now is a great time to connect with professionals and observe the marketplace to seek roles that would suit us long-term.
Here are some tips to match your capabilities with organizations and advertised roles:
- Research the company: make sure to look up the organization and get a sense of what the culture is like. If possible, link up with people working there on LinkedIn to get a sense of the environment there and don’t be afraid to reach out, you never know what great insights you might get.
- Job specification: remember to view the job specification on the advert. Although there will be tasks that you have no experience in yet, it has been indicated that it can be beneficial to apply for roles that outline responsibilities that you have not learned about yet as it allows for room for development. As long as you demonstrate learning agility and thirst for progression, you will demonstrate capabilities to carry out the role.
- Observe the context: what is the company doing right now to cope with the pandemic? Depending on whether you are prepared to go into an office one day a week, consider the hybrid model, or if you would like to work remotely on the long run, you should take these factors into account whilst searching for a suitable role. For example, how is the company looking after its employees at this time of uncertainty? Is there a mentoring/coaching stage along with initial training? How are they ensuring new recruits are positively experiencing a new workplace and meeting current employees? Questions that can give you an overall impression of how the company cares for its workforce will give you an idea of whether the environment is feasible for you.
- Match your own values: make sure the job and the company match your own beliefs and what you would like to see yourself doing long-term. Although you might feel impatient to start your first role, it is more important to choose a career that you can feel comfortable in and where you feel you will be able to develop relationships at the same time as developing your own skillset.
- Other resources: there are further websites where you can find information on organizations such as Glassdoor, Indeed, JobAdvisor, Ratemyemployer amongst others can provide you with information such as current and past employee comments and ratings on important factors such as culture, diversity and inclusion, salaries, work/life balance and so on.
If you need further advice on careers or would like more support on interview practice, CV editing and job searching you can find more information and make bookings on https://www.ucc.ie/en/careers/