Here are 5 ways to get free career intelligence. This can help you find and land a job.
1. Every day I give away useful business intelligence. I am an expert in a few job markets. I’m a recruiter. Every time you talk to a recruiter, grill them. If a recruiter calls you out of the blue, you have a right to be very nosey.
2. HR (human resources) people give away business intelligence. They are experts in their company and will tell you how you fit in. If you ask they will often tell you where you stand in the job competition. Hiring projection for 3 to 6 months into the future are often on the tip of their tongues if you just ask them.
3. Salespeople are incredible sources of information. They also like to talk a lot. Take a salesman from your own company, a supplier, or a place you want to work, out to lunch. Or just talk to them. You’ll find out more than you would think possible. Often they can tell you about all the competing companies in your area.
4. The web. Indeed. Monster. CareerBuilder. Look for “trolling” job ads. What ads are there for months? Often they are renewed weekly, but they are the same ad forever. Those are jobs that constantly need people. Sort by company and look for ad clusters. Is a company creating a new project team? Often they advertise for 3 different jobs while they have other unadvertised openings for the team that will be created. The manager job may be unfilled. Or another team has an opening because the manager for this team came out of that team. Keep all the possibilities in mind.
5. Every industry has a trade magazine or ten. Subscribe. Many are free. There are even more industry trade publications appearing as email magazines. There are specific trade publications for cement, computer banking systems, turkey processing, pizza shops, jewelry making, dog kennels, dairy farmers and more. Even if you just read the cover you will be better off than if you didn’t get the magazines.
Open your eyes. Look around. Where do the experts go to become experts or to show off their expertise? That’s where you need to go to get career intelligence.
Something to do today
Subscribe to 3 trade publications.