How to land that elusive job

Making speculative job applications is better than waiting for the same to be advertised.

NAIROBI: Most companies do not advertise job placements as a way of cutting costs and reducing on time wastage among other resources. This makes it hard for prospective career seekers to know if a particular career placement is vacant.

This should not dampen your prospects. You can still land that unadvertised job. Where a resume fails, a referral will do. If you have a friend working in a place you’re seeking a job at, chances are that friend will refer you to management.

Apart from a referral, he or she can give you insider tips to getting you that unadvertised job. “Referrals are good as they cut on costs of advertising and time in recruiting of new staff,” says Charles Kiaritha, who runs a business in Nairobi.

He has had few workers referred to him in this way. He started by putting them on a temporal contractual basis before hiring some permanently. He believes one can impress employers this way and give the management a reason to either hire or terminate a contract.

It would be tiring for the management to interview unknown applicants whose qualifications are unauthenticated. “Being referred is one thing but proving oneself is another,” he says.

He advises employees to have a pool of network sources, even if you’re in a good career. This will save you in case of downsizing or if a company becomes insolvent. Network sources can be instrumental in landing you that unadvertised job elsewhere.

Whereas many job seekers secure openings through referrals, Irene Woki landed her job through social media. While  people look for work through classified sections in the dailies or public boards, she began by following a firm and liking their posts as well as commenting on their social page. One of the members the company’s board became her friend on a social platform. When a job opening in that company was advertised through a social media alert, this connection was influential in landing her the job. In her experience, if one has right qualifications, knows what she is looking for and makes the right connections, the probability of finding an unadvertised placement is high.

“If you’re thinking of pursuing a career with a particular company, it would pay to follow them on social media but be positive in your posts on their social pages or websites. The Internet never forgets and negative remarks can be a career damper.”

 Convincing application

Juma Ogaro, a practicing public relations manager, says making speculative job applications is better than waiting for the same to be advertised. This would entail prospective applicants going from office to office asking for work opportunities.  “Show what expertise you have to offer. You may not be hired immediately or a temporary role may be found for you pending a future placement,” he says.

He says it is essential to do research on the company you’re submitting a speculative application to. “You know what you’re going to offer so state it in your application,” he notes. “It is better to write a convincing application showcasing your personality and that will make an impact. If you’re told to wait, make a follow up in a week or two.”

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