Online Job Hunting Guide

Gone are the days of printing a resume and snail mailing it to the company. Now, the unemployed can simply log on and apply for a job using anything from the usual email, to monster.com, and now through Facebook.

Yes, as I mentioned before, social networking has its uses and gaining employment is just one of them. Here are some tips we found on Secrets of the Job Hunt:

• Visit the Facebook Application sections and pick up some of the apps created by job boards to make your job search more efficient. Ones for Jobster, SimplyHired and TMP are pretty cool.
• Keep your Facebook profile updated, especially the Education and Work sections Seek out people from companies you admire and might want to work for.
• Don’t post unflattering photos of yourself. Self explanatory

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While going through job online sites, you might come across old job openings. Usually, you’d ignore these and think they were already filled up and go straight to the new openings and look for a job there.

However, most jobs are posted once and never given “refreshed dates” as this would mean more expense for the company. A new post for the same position would not be good for the company, so usually they just leave it there as it is and keep mum about it. There might be even be a chance that the the chosen candidate decided to not take the job. So what’s this to you?

It means that these jobs may still be open and available. So don’t be afraid to apply for these old ads.

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You may expect the company to be on its best look when visitors come in. Well, interviewees are considered as visitors, right? Not all the time, sometimes the company’s real face (sometimes the ugly one) appears right in front of you: HR Personnel not courteous enough, employees public displaying their discontent about the company, or a whole group of ex-employees finishing their Clearance documents.

These should be considered as red flags that you should consider when deciding whether you’ll be continuing your application. Most applicants may turn a blind eye to such events because they need a job, but how long will you last if the environment is THAT bad?

To lighten up this blog, I’ve decided to throw this in for good measure. Here are some humorous stories regarding just some of the dumbest interview mistakes one can ever make:

• Accounting Job Applicant said she was a “people person” and not a “numbers person”. Okay, we know that accounting deals more with numbers than people, right?
• The interviewer offered food to the applicant. However, he refused because he didn’t want to line his stomach with grease before going out drinking. Nice to know that this person has a social life, eh?
• The applicant admitted to beating up his boss. I think this applicant can apply as a boxer instead.
• Lastly, an applicant flushed the toilet while on the phone with the interviewer. Mute it next time.

More hilarious stories here!

Although, online jobsites are well secured these days, it’s still wise to be careful what information you place in your online resume. There was a report by ABC news a few years ago, that’s still relevant today—with all the phishing and scams going left and right.

You post it on the net, and anybody with the right tool and knowledge can take it. According to Pam Dixon, founder of World Privacy Forum:

“There is just so much information that a job site has access to that a fraudster would be interested in.”

All we’re saying here is be careful with your personal information. Here are some tips you can follow:

• Beware of employers who ask for background checks before offering you the job
• Verify the employer’s legitimacy
• Limit personal information on your online resume
  

Protect yourself out there.

Everyone’s looking for jobs online these days—it’s everywhere in the internet. If you’re clueless as where to start, you’ve come to the right post. Here are some cool tips via canadajobs.com:

Use Search Engines. Yes, just type in the job you want and where you want it. I tried typing in “Human Resource Assistant Canada Job” (without the quotes) and I got 261,000 results! Not all of them might be a job opening, but at least it’s a start, right?

Check Niche Sites. If you want to work in the car manufacturing business, I suggest you go to forums where they discuss such things. Most likely, there’s going to be someone there who’s got a job opening just for you. Also check out the sites of car manufacturers and look for Careers or Jobs links. There’s bound to be lots of them near your area.

There’s more tips for you on canadajobs.com.

Happy hunting!

Admit it already, if you have internet access in your office, you’re bound to surf around those online job sites. Don’t feel guilty about it; your boss might be going to the same places as you do. However, we suggest that you pick your time carefully just to be sure that you still have a lot of time to do your work and that no one can see you.

When the Recruitment Manager calls, we suggest you reschedule. So you send in that resume and then a call goes through: it’s the company you’re applying for! Instead of whispering during your phone interview, we suggest that you reschedule it during lunchtime or after working hours.

Timing is everything.