Solving Big Problems

One of the best ways to understand how to get hired faster is by imagining the job search process through the eyes of a prospective employer.

A great book that helps do that is called Who: The A Method of Hiring by Geoff Smart and Randy Street.

Who coaches leaders on how to find and land the best possible candidates for their organization. While it’s often difficult to land work, it can be just as tough being an employer who needs to find that rare, talented employee who fits their business like a glove.

A critical tactic covered in Who is the art of networking from the employer’s standpoint. Great leaders and managers who regularly expand their network of talented people have a much easier time landing the difference-makers that can truly impact their organization when it’s needed most.

In Smart and Street’s view, if you’re not meeting someone new at least a once a week, you’re likely not going to field a competitive workforce in the long run.

What this means for you

A common mental block job seekers face is the idea that strangers at other companies won’t want to talk to them. Folks often feel they don’t have much to bring to the table.

Of course, this couldn’t be further from the truth.

We all have our own Unique Value Propositions (UVP): a set of skills, experiences, expertise and style that make us both special and valuable to an organization.

And if your UVP is well-aligned with what an organization is looking for, then there’s an excellent chance of that employer actually making moves to recruit you to their team.

Why would there be so much interest in you?

Because not having a great team is a massive business problem!

Employers need consistent access to great talent, often in a pinch. If you’re well-networked, you could be the first person who gets the call when the time to hire strikes.

Know thy value

If you’re someone who struggles to make new connections for fear you won’t bring value to their world, then it’s time to check in and really think through what you’ve accomplished and what you can accomplish as a professional.

In sales, there are so many skills that employers need: prospecting, needs discovery, stakeholder engagement, solution design, negotiation, account management, transactional sales, complex/enterprise sales, industry-specific knowledge…the list goes on.

Once you clearly identify the kind of organization and role you want, and you adjust your UVP for that target, then I promise you can land conversations with complete strangers. Not without some work mind you, but it will happen.

Simply put, you’ll be doing those employers a favour.