What Do You Do When You Are In-Between Roles?
Over the last few months, I have met with a number of highly skilled HR candidates. In fact, I have been pleasantly surprised by the depth of skill talent within the NZ market.
But, because of the candidate strong market at the mid to senior level, I’ve been posed with these questions..…
“How do I stand out in a strong candidate market…?”
“How do I communicate my point of difference…..?”
“What should I do when I am in-between roles to strengthen my job search…?”
There are some of you reading this that are standing in the ‘in-between’ stage. You may be contracting and have found yourself in-between contracts; not knowing when the next contract will come through. There may be others of you who are ready for that next opportunity, but feeling restricted and frustrated at the lack of senior level roles in the market.
If you find yourself standing in that ‘in-between’ season then….
1) Keep positive!! This time will end – you will look back on this season and wonder why you ever stressed about finding the right role, or wished you had made the most of the down time and the breathing space!
2) Update your CV. Look at your CV again….and I mean really look at it! Shred it to pieces if you have to and start writing it from scratch! HR professionals seem to know how to read and analyse a CV, but when it comes to writing one...now that's a different story! Your point of difference in the recruitment process needs to be your CV. If your CV is too long, or doesn’t list your key achievements and what you contributed to your role - both at a strategic and operational level, then chances are you won’t get an interview!
3) Update your linked-in profile and make sure that your dates correspond to that of your CV! (Yes, that’s right – attention to detail is critical!) Connect with other HR professionals within the market on your linked-in page. And ask your current and ex colleagues to recommend you on linked- in. These recommendations are read by future employers!
4) Reflect on and evaluate your career to date and where you see yourself moving forward. Do you want to remain in a generalist role, or perhaps specialise? What brands would you like to work for? What skills or part of the HR toolkit do you need brushing up on? Are there e-learning courses that you could enrol in, or day courses you could attend? Research companies and their people policies!
And whilst doing this…..
Breathe!! Go for long walks each day, visit cafes you’ve never been to and dream!! Sometimes ‘breaks’ in our career (though not wished for!) end up being the stepping stone into something bigger!
And ultimately as I said…. you'll look back on this time and think that all that time ‘worrying’ about your next job was just that... wasted time!
