The technology sector has continually outpaced other sectors in terms of employment numbers. However, getting your feet through the door is still difficult. In this piece, we take a look at how you can get into this competitive sector.
Network extensively
Regardless of popular opinion, networking remains a major way to land a role. You can do this in a variety of ways but the easiest way is to meet up with other technology professionals at events. Find out where the events are taking place and go to as many as you can. During the course of the event, introduce yourself and your expertise to as many people as you can. Secondly, you should take advantage of LinkedIn. With proper used of LinkedIn and joining the right groups, you may get your first position without leaving your city. Here is a good article on how to use LinkedIn properly in your job search.
Research properly
This is important if you are applying for roles through recruitment agencies. You don't want to accept a role in a company that is known to treat employees poorly for example. The biggest recruitment agencies like wenhamcarter.com know how to weed out these companies but the smaller ones will care about getting you a placement more than your actual working conditions. Research is therefore the best way to learn how the company operates, the management style, what the work environment feels like, etc. Start you research from the company website, the social media platforms and history in Google results.
Understand the interview process
For technical and creative roles, the interview is often of two types. The first is geared towards proving your technical skills and the second is geared towards proving your personality. You need to understand what is expected in the interview so you can prepare adequately for it. In an interview for demonstrating your skills, you may be required to show your abilities on a white board or a projection screen in the presence of everyone. Not being prepared for this can cost you the position regardless of what your CV says.
The personality screening on the other hand is important for some companies as they want to make sure you have the right personality trait to help the company achieve its goals and objectives.
Thank the interviewer
Most job seekers don't do this so you can leverage it and put yourself in the reckoning with the recruiter. A simple "thank you for having me at the interview today" can go a long way. Don't just thank the interviewer for the time, but also restate your interest in the role. Additionally, you can go out of your way to send notes to every other person you met in the office building it is a great way to get yourself bonus points with the recruiters. Remember, you are competing with other people that may have matched your performance at the interview!
Finally, do not make the mistake of tweet or posting updates about the interview. Don't do it during the process. Don't do it after either. Keep that topic away from the social media. Your employer will keep an eye on your feeds if they are interested in hiring you. This is an example of how social media posts you didn't deem harmful can lead you to losing a role before you've even started. Granted it is not a technology role but this should drive home the point!
