Job search cold contacts: call or email?
September 29, 2020 7:38 AM Subscribe
While job searching, my priority is to network and to apply to advertised positions. But inevitably a part of it will be sending out resumes to employers that I have no particular connection to and that aren't advertising any openings - a cold contact. In this case I could try to talk to a person in charge of hiring before sending them a resume. Or, just go straight to sending the resume. Which approach is best?
When starting with a call, the approach is this: give a short elevator pitch for myself, maybe 10-15 seconds long, and whenever possible tailored to the employer. I.e., I show that I know something about their company and that I would fit in there. And then I ask something like "Do you currently have any hiring needs for someone with my background?".
The upside of starting with a call, at least in theory, is that it becomes more of a warm contact than a cold contact. You have a more meaningful connection with the hiring person, which will then differentiate your resume from the ones coming in from complete strangers. This can be true even if (as would probably often be the case) the call results in your leaving a version of your pitch in a voicemail.
The downside of starting with a call like this is that some hiring managers might get annoyed at having to field such calls - so you get a negative edge compared to the email-first resumes, not a positive one. These hiring manager prefer going through resumes that come in and choosing who they want to talk to from that. Hence the fact that some company's jobs/careers pages include the line "no calls, please".
So which wins, on average - the upside or the downside?
When starting with a call, the approach is this: give a short elevator pitch for myself, maybe 10-15 seconds long, and whenever possible tailored to the employer. I.e., I show that I know something about their company and that I would fit in there. And then I ask something like "Do you currently have any hiring needs for someone with my background?".
The upside of starting with a call, at least in theory, is that it becomes more of a warm contact than a cold contact. You have a more meaningful connection with the hiring person, which will then differentiate your resume from the ones coming in from complete strangers. This can be true even if (as would probably often be the case) the call results in your leaving a version of your pitch in a voicemail.
The downside of starting with a call like this is that some hiring managers might get annoyed at having to field such calls - so you get a negative edge compared to the email-first resumes, not a positive one. These hiring manager prefer going through resumes that come in and choosing who they want to talk to from that. Hence the fact that some company's jobs/careers pages include the line "no calls, please".
So which wins, on average - the upside or the downside?
Goodness me I’ve been in the position of being a hiring manager for 15 years and I have never had someone cold call me for a job opening that doesn’t exist and I have to say this would be a complete waste of time for all involved (tech/design sector).
So with the spirit of answering the question, I guess send in your resume? Also likely to be ignored but you would have annoyed this hiring manager slightly less in the process.
But really please don’t send your resume with no context, for some unrelated field to some non-connected person. YOU are the one asking for a favour. At the very least write a stellar cover letter with an iron clad case as to why I shouldn’t just bin your entire resume without a second thought. If you can think why the business MUST hire you (despite not having recognised a need for your skill or the budget allocated) then don’t send anything at all.
posted by like_neon at 8:18 AM on September 29, 2020 [11 favorites]
So with the spirit of answering the question, I guess send in your resume? Also likely to be ignored but you would have annoyed this hiring manager slightly less in the process.
But really please don’t send your resume with no context, for some unrelated field to some non-connected person. YOU are the one asking for a favour. At the very least write a stellar cover letter with an iron clad case as to why I shouldn’t just bin your entire resume without a second thought. If you can think why the business MUST hire you (despite not having recognised a need for your skill or the budget allocated) then don’t send anything at all.
posted by like_neon at 8:18 AM on September 29, 2020 [11 favorites]
Urghhhh that should say “if you can’t think why the business must hire you.”
posted by like_neon at 8:24 AM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by like_neon at 8:24 AM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I guess it might depend on the industry, but as someone who has received a lot of software engineering resumes cold, “infuriating” doesn’t even begin to describe how I’d handle a cold call from a candidate.
I already keep a mental list of recruiting agencies that have done this, to make sure to never knowingly take their calls in the their future. I would likely add individual people to that list as well. I would for sure not forward their information to my internal recruiters.
posted by sideshow at 8:29 AM on September 29, 2020 [6 favorites]
I already keep a mental list of recruiting agencies that have done this, to make sure to never knowingly take their calls in the their future. I would likely add individual people to that list as well. I would for sure not forward their information to my internal recruiters.
posted by sideshow at 8:29 AM on September 29, 2020 [6 favorites]
For context, my career has been in tech, but within a variety of other industries including retail and government. I have run hiring processes multiple times in the past. I also work in and hire for jobs where communication and related 'soft skills' are a huge part of the job.
I have from time to time gotten unsolicited contacts from people looking for jobs. The degree to which I'm annoyed by this is basically a function of how appropriate they are in the first place, ie, if they're the kind of person I'd be hiring for and I happen to not have an opening, I might even read and respond; on the other hand I'm not a developer and I don't hire developers and there's no reason to believe I do, so that I found irritating when it happened.
I would be very annoyed at a cold call phone call. I dislike getting phone calls from anyone unexpectedly, and my day is already heavily booked with meetings - as are many managers.
This is an unalloyed bad thing. In fact even if I ran across your resume later under more normal conditions I might be biased against it because you've signaled with this cold call that you aren't familiar with normal business etiquette in my industry, and those communication norms are important for the type of work I hire for.
posted by Tomorrowful at 8:30 AM on September 29, 2020 [10 favorites]
I have from time to time gotten unsolicited contacts from people looking for jobs. The degree to which I'm annoyed by this is basically a function of how appropriate they are in the first place, ie, if they're the kind of person I'd be hiring for and I happen to not have an opening, I might even read and respond; on the other hand I'm not a developer and I don't hire developers and there's no reason to believe I do, so that I found irritating when it happened.
I would be very annoyed at a cold call phone call. I dislike getting phone calls from anyone unexpectedly, and my day is already heavily booked with meetings - as are many managers.
This is an unalloyed bad thing. In fact even if I ran across your resume later under more normal conditions I might be biased against it because you've signaled with this cold call that you aren't familiar with normal business etiquette in my industry, and those communication norms are important for the type of work I hire for.
posted by Tomorrowful at 8:30 AM on September 29, 2020 [10 favorites]
What industry is this? I would never, ever call for something like this. However, I have gotten two jobs in the past after connecting with someone over email. In both cases I talked about wanting to do particular projects with them that they weren't doing at the time. I would never send a random 'this is me, are you hiring?' message.
posted by pinochiette at 8:38 AM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by pinochiette at 8:38 AM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
I have never had someone cold call me for a job opening that doesn’t exist and I have to say this would be a complete waste of time for all involved (tech/design sector).
To explicitly explain why, I always want more people on my team. If I was allowed to be hiring, I would be. If I don't have an opening it's because I can't hire someone. Anyone who contacts me when I don't have an opening fundamentally cannot get hired from that cold call.
"But now you know my name and might remember me in the future!"
Yes - but as many people have pointed out this might be a bad thing. On the other hand this concenpt is decent and really gets close to what networking is. But networking isn't just knowing names, it's building connections, and this is where you get into that whole "personal brand" thing.
Teach me your abilities and I'll remember that.
But probably not over a phone call... are there industry events? Teapot Maker Happy Hours where you can give a 5-minute talk about your work on making lighter weight teapots? Teapot Twitter where you can post about your newest designs? Tea serving competitions where you can show off your style and flair? Those would all leave a good memorable impression. In fact, I have a list of connections on LinkedIn of local-people-who-have-demoed-cool-work that I go back to every now and then when I am hiring. Calling doesn't get you on that list, but catching my interest in the proper environment will.
Alternatively, you can look into contracting and becoming a vendor. That's even further down the road of personal branding but at least cold contacts are a little more normal in that world. I don't tend to respond well to the "Mechitar's Teapotting has some capacity coming up that we're looking to fill for short term projects" but I've certainly worked with people who love that sort of thing.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 8:42 AM on September 29, 2020 [9 favorites]
To explicitly explain why, I always want more people on my team. If I was allowed to be hiring, I would be. If I don't have an opening it's because I can't hire someone. Anyone who contacts me when I don't have an opening fundamentally cannot get hired from that cold call.
"But now you know my name and might remember me in the future!"
Yes - but as many people have pointed out this might be a bad thing. On the other hand this concenpt is decent and really gets close to what networking is. But networking isn't just knowing names, it's building connections, and this is where you get into that whole "personal brand" thing.
Teach me your abilities and I'll remember that.
But probably not over a phone call... are there industry events? Teapot Maker Happy Hours where you can give a 5-minute talk about your work on making lighter weight teapots? Teapot Twitter where you can post about your newest designs? Tea serving competitions where you can show off your style and flair? Those would all leave a good memorable impression. In fact, I have a list of connections on LinkedIn of local-people-who-have-demoed-cool-work that I go back to every now and then when I am hiring. Calling doesn't get you on that list, but catching my interest in the proper environment will.
Alternatively, you can look into contracting and becoming a vendor. That's even further down the road of personal branding but at least cold contacts are a little more normal in that world. I don't tend to respond well to the "Mechitar's Teapotting has some capacity coming up that we're looking to fill for short term projects" but I've certainly worked with people who love that sort of thing.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 8:42 AM on September 29, 2020 [9 favorites]
These hiring manager prefer going through resumes that come in and choosing who they want to talk to from that.
Also, consider that HR pre-screening means that the Hiring Manager may not actually see materials from every candidate that applied. You may also be assuming the HM has a greater amount of control over the hiring process, as well as staffing decisions regarding current or future openings, than is true.
I think LinkedIn is a better venue for "cold contact" networking than what you're proposing.
posted by sm1tten at 8:58 AM on September 29, 2020 [3 favorites]
Also, consider that HR pre-screening means that the Hiring Manager may not actually see materials from every candidate that applied. You may also be assuming the HM has a greater amount of control over the hiring process, as well as staffing decisions regarding current or future openings, than is true.
I think LinkedIn is a better venue for "cold contact" networking than what you're proposing.
posted by sm1tten at 8:58 AM on September 29, 2020 [3 favorites]
inevitably a part of it will be sending out resumes to employers that I have no particular connection to and that aren't advertising any openings
Why is this inevitable? As explained above, this will endear you to no one. If you have concerns that there arent enough advertised jobs to apply for in your chosen area, perhaps expanding your search into adjacent fields or those in which your skills overlap would be a better option.
posted by ananci at 8:59 AM on September 29, 2020 [7 favorites]
Why is this inevitable? As explained above, this will endear you to no one. If you have concerns that there arent enough advertised jobs to apply for in your chosen area, perhaps expanding your search into adjacent fields or those in which your skills overlap would be a better option.
posted by ananci at 8:59 AM on September 29, 2020 [7 favorites]
Not really saying anything that hasn't already been said, but just to add more data points... As a hiring manager, I don't really mind a cold email if it's polite, well-written, doesn't demand a reply/answer, and the person is someone I can plausibly see hiring at some point in the future. I don't know if I'd say it would actually buy the person a lot; I get a lot of resumes when I open a position, and I don't recall ever going back through emails to find the contact info from someone who cold emailed me in the past. But I guess if I recognized the name, it might give them a bit of a boost in terms of having shown long-term interest rather than just using the shotgun approach to applying.
Anyone who called me on the phone would quickly end up on my mental "do not hire" list.
posted by primethyme at 9:00 AM on September 29, 2020 [9 favorites]
Anyone who called me on the phone would quickly end up on my mental "do not hire" list.
posted by primethyme at 9:00 AM on September 29, 2020 [9 favorites]
Definitely look to people in the specific industry you're interested in for guidance here. Where I've hired (at a few different academic and medical organizations, filling research staff positions) calling the hiring manager is absolutely not done. You might cold-email about a volunteer position and eventually (after many months of volunteering) parlay that into a paid role, but you cold-call absolutely never. It's possible the HR people at those organizations were getting cold calls like that all the time, but if so, nothing about them was ever conveyed to those of us doing the hiring. Nor should it have been; the response would have been negative, so if the HR folks were keeping calls like that to themselves, they were doing the would-be applicants a favor.
If we had an open position we'd post it. When we do have an open position, we want to look at the people who have expressed interest in that specific position at that time; we're not going to go through old contacts looking for people who expressed an interest in someday having an unspecified position in our company. We would have to be pretty desperate to hire to think of digging up notes on someone who called us a few months earlier with a vague and annoying pitch.
So in my field, this would be an extremely hard no. If you've got some reason to think it's acceptable in yours, maybe it is, but I'd look to people in my field who I trust for guidance here, before moving ahead.
posted by Stacey at 9:21 AM on September 29, 2020 [7 favorites]
If we had an open position we'd post it. When we do have an open position, we want to look at the people who have expressed interest in that specific position at that time; we're not going to go through old contacts looking for people who expressed an interest in someday having an unspecified position in our company. We would have to be pretty desperate to hire to think of digging up notes on someone who called us a few months earlier with a vague and annoying pitch.
So in my field, this would be an extremely hard no. If you've got some reason to think it's acceptable in yours, maybe it is, but I'd look to people in my field who I trust for guidance here, before moving ahead.
posted by Stacey at 9:21 AM on September 29, 2020 [7 favorites]
There might have been a time and place where this might have worked before posting job openings was easy, instantaneous and nationwide.
The only time I've seen jobs open up where there were no job openings were an executive who likely brought some business with them, a personal connection or a specialized position. In all cases there was a mutual courting and HR or hiring manager was not involved.
posted by geoff. at 9:59 AM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
The only time I've seen jobs open up where there were no job openings were an executive who likely brought some business with them, a personal connection or a specialized position. In all cases there was a mutual courting and HR or hiring manager was not involved.
posted by geoff. at 9:59 AM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
You didn't mention your field/industry but unless it's one where jobs are not typically announced/posted, calling up a stranger to ask about employment opportunities seems unprofessional. Imagine if everyone did this.
What are your expectations for these calls?
1. I'm not hiring and you call me up out of the blue and I'm so impressed, I create a position for you? This is highly unlikely.
2. I'm not hiring and you call me up out of the blue and ask me to consider you for future positions? I would tell you that jobs are posted when there is an opening and it's your responsibility to check my company's job page.
3. You call me up out of the blue to talk about employment opportunities because a) you think there are unknown/unannounced positions or b) you want an informational interview? Neither of these shouldn't be requested via a cold call.
Reaching out to people in your network, via email, might be more effective.
posted by shoesietart at 10:43 AM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
What are your expectations for these calls?
1. I'm not hiring and you call me up out of the blue and I'm so impressed, I create a position for you? This is highly unlikely.
2. I'm not hiring and you call me up out of the blue and ask me to consider you for future positions? I would tell you that jobs are posted when there is an opening and it's your responsibility to check my company's job page.
3. You call me up out of the blue to talk about employment opportunities because a) you think there are unknown/unannounced positions or b) you want an informational interview? Neither of these shouldn't be requested via a cold call.
Reaching out to people in your network, via email, might be more effective.
posted by shoesietart at 10:43 AM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
To sell your services as an employee or contractor (which is what you are really doing here) there has to be demand for your "product." If you are targeting the right people the fact that there isn't a public job ad doesn't mean there isn't demand for your services. They (whoever they are) claim that up to 80% of job openings are filled outside the "post a job ad and collect resumes" workflow.
So if you frame your email (and I would start with email unless you are in a weird email adverse industry) in terms of what you can do for the company and how you can make their lives better...it can be more effective than waiting for the public job listing.
In the past when I needed/wanted to switch jobs I have emailed the CEOs of other firms in the industry with a very short, "I did X for you competitor last year but circumstances are in flux there and I think I need to move on." Are you interested in my doing X for you?"- where X is some measurable benefit to their business. It's how I got my current job, and one prior to it.
I don't care how "not hiring" a company claims to be - if somebody that can make their business more successful knocks on the door they will want to talk to you.
posted by COD at 12:38 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
So if you frame your email (and I would start with email unless you are in a weird email adverse industry) in terms of what you can do for the company and how you can make their lives better...it can be more effective than waiting for the public job listing.
In the past when I needed/wanted to switch jobs I have emailed the CEOs of other firms in the industry with a very short, "I did X for you competitor last year but circumstances are in flux there and I think I need to move on." Are you interested in my doing X for you?"- where X is some measurable benefit to their business. It's how I got my current job, and one prior to it.
I don't care how "not hiring" a company claims to be - if somebody that can make their business more successful knocks on the door they will want to talk to you.
posted by COD at 12:38 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
If you are going to cold contact someone in a company, it would be a lot better to try someone in a position or part of the organization that interests you and ask for an informational interview. If you ask the right way, some people will talk to you. If you end up having a good conversation, that is a much more useful connection than HR. But I, like other commenters, think calling is a bad idea, especially when a lot of people are working from home and not answering their desk phones.
posted by beyond_pink at 12:46 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by beyond_pink at 12:46 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
COD has a good counterpoint to my original comment, and I knew even before he mentioned emailing CEOs that he was more senior than me because I hire to get things done, not set direction.
If you're at a level to be explaining "what you can do for the company and how you can make their lives better", likely directly to CEOs, then yeah go nuts with your email marketing. Because at this point you're selling a service, not providing a body to fill a job posting.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 1:41 PM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
If you're at a level to be explaining "what you can do for the company and how you can make their lives better", likely directly to CEOs, then yeah go nuts with your email marketing. Because at this point you're selling a service, not providing a body to fill a job posting.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 1:41 PM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
I've been a hiring manager and have been heavily involved in hiring processes for other managers due to the nature of my previous roles.
It's been my experience that nearly everyone who cold-calls/emails/messages ends up asking for more and more, going from "Are you hiring?" (no) to "Do you know anyone who is?" (check our career site, everything we have is posted) to "Can you keep my resume on file for future openings?" (no, I'm not a recruiting agency) to "Can I meet you for a quick coffee to learn more about your role and what you do?" (my role is extremely busy and I don't have time for that) to "Can you connect me to a recruiter or another manager?" (no) and so on. I've become very reluctant to respond to any cold requests for this reason.
It is frustrating, and shows lack of respect for a manager's time, as well as poor business sense and social acumen in general. It also undermines any claims that one understands an organization and its needs when one expects an organization to bend over backward and receive one's requests outside of its well-established hiring processes. The larger the company, the more these types of requests will come across as clueless. For example, it demonstrates pretty poor awareness when one emails a manager in a company with hundreds of other managers, and asks "Do you know who else is hiring?"
This recent Ask regarding LinkedIn cold requests may also be informative.
BUT... having said all that, I always made time for a stranger when the request came in via a genuine connection, whether a friend, current colleague, past colleague, or professional acquaintance. So here is what I recommend:
1. Scour your network for anyone who can get you an "in" with the company you're interested in working for. Obviously, knowing someone who is currently at that company is the best, most straightforward way in. But do you know anyone who maybe worked there previously and may still have good connections? Or anyone who is tightly connected with someone who does or has worked there?
2. Read the room. When you reach out to someone to ask for help getting an in, remain cognizant of the fact that you are asking them for a favor. If they hold you in high esteem, they may happily offer to introduce you to their contacts. But if they seem less than enthusiastic, it could be for any number of reasons. They might be very busy themselves and don't have the time or bandwidth to help you, they might be unsure of the strength of their own connection, they might not think you'd be a good fit, etc. Don't take it personally. Just thank them for whatever info or advice they're able to give for the time being and move on. Badgering for more will hurt, not help you.
3. If you do get an offer of introduction, do your research. Understand who this person is and what they are going to be able to help you with. Come prepared with asks that they can likely accommodate, and don't go "fishing" with open-ended requests. Keep it short, 15-20 minutes at the most. The worst calls I've taken of this sort have been ones where the caller rambled on for half an hour all about themselves, seemed to have no awareness of who I was, and expected me to come up with ideas for how I could help them.
4. In some cases, your contact's contact may be someone who has little influence at the company and can't offer you much aside from connecting you to someone more senior. That's fine, and still worth the try, but recognize that this is not a particularly strong connection and it may go nowhere. The more degrees of separation between you and the person you need to talk to, the less likely it is for the connection to bear fruit.
5. If you're not able to come up with any good connections to someone internal, your best bet is going to be submitting an application to an open role. That's also fine. Keep building your network - attend events, join professional organizations, etc. but also keep applying to open job postings.
Best of luck with your job hunt, I know it's not easy out there.
posted by keep it under cover at 2:40 PM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
It's been my experience that nearly everyone who cold-calls/emails/messages ends up asking for more and more, going from "Are you hiring?" (no) to "Do you know anyone who is?" (check our career site, everything we have is posted) to "Can you keep my resume on file for future openings?" (no, I'm not a recruiting agency) to "Can I meet you for a quick coffee to learn more about your role and what you do?" (my role is extremely busy and I don't have time for that) to "Can you connect me to a recruiter or another manager?" (no) and so on. I've become very reluctant to respond to any cold requests for this reason.
It is frustrating, and shows lack of respect for a manager's time, as well as poor business sense and social acumen in general. It also undermines any claims that one understands an organization and its needs when one expects an organization to bend over backward and receive one's requests outside of its well-established hiring processes. The larger the company, the more these types of requests will come across as clueless. For example, it demonstrates pretty poor awareness when one emails a manager in a company with hundreds of other managers, and asks "Do you know who else is hiring?"
This recent Ask regarding LinkedIn cold requests may also be informative.
BUT... having said all that, I always made time for a stranger when the request came in via a genuine connection, whether a friend, current colleague, past colleague, or professional acquaintance. So here is what I recommend:
1. Scour your network for anyone who can get you an "in" with the company you're interested in working for. Obviously, knowing someone who is currently at that company is the best, most straightforward way in. But do you know anyone who maybe worked there previously and may still have good connections? Or anyone who is tightly connected with someone who does or has worked there?
2. Read the room. When you reach out to someone to ask for help getting an in, remain cognizant of the fact that you are asking them for a favor. If they hold you in high esteem, they may happily offer to introduce you to their contacts. But if they seem less than enthusiastic, it could be for any number of reasons. They might be very busy themselves and don't have the time or bandwidth to help you, they might be unsure of the strength of their own connection, they might not think you'd be a good fit, etc. Don't take it personally. Just thank them for whatever info or advice they're able to give for the time being and move on. Badgering for more will hurt, not help you.
3. If you do get an offer of introduction, do your research. Understand who this person is and what they are going to be able to help you with. Come prepared with asks that they can likely accommodate, and don't go "fishing" with open-ended requests. Keep it short, 15-20 minutes at the most. The worst calls I've taken of this sort have been ones where the caller rambled on for half an hour all about themselves, seemed to have no awareness of who I was, and expected me to come up with ideas for how I could help them.
4. In some cases, your contact's contact may be someone who has little influence at the company and can't offer you much aside from connecting you to someone more senior. That's fine, and still worth the try, but recognize that this is not a particularly strong connection and it may go nowhere. The more degrees of separation between you and the person you need to talk to, the less likely it is for the connection to bear fruit.
5. If you're not able to come up with any good connections to someone internal, your best bet is going to be submitting an application to an open role. That's also fine. Keep building your network - attend events, join professional organizations, etc. but also keep applying to open job postings.
Best of luck with your job hunt, I know it's not easy out there.
posted by keep it under cover at 2:40 PM on September 29, 2020 [4 favorites]
Nthing that unless you're extremely senior and specialized or that you're absolutely certain that cold calling is still considered acceptable in your industry, do not call a stranger to solicit them for work.
Sending me a resume out of the blue is just going to get it deleted in my neck of the IT woods. I'm not going to open an attachment from a stranger and I'm not going to take the time to read a plaintext resume of someone I don't know if I don't have any roles open.
But if someone I know professionally or personally reaches out about a friend of theirs that might have relevant skills, then I'll take the time to at least skim it.
posted by Candleman at 3:32 PM on September 29, 2020
Sending me a resume out of the blue is just going to get it deleted in my neck of the IT woods. I'm not going to open an attachment from a stranger and I'm not going to take the time to read a plaintext resume of someone I don't know if I don't have any roles open.
But if someone I know professionally or personally reaches out about a friend of theirs that might have relevant skills, then I'll take the time to at least skim it.
posted by Candleman at 3:32 PM on September 29, 2020
If you want to cold contact, find the person with the job you want and do an informational interview with no mention of hiring or jobs.
posted by amaire at 3:47 PM on September 29, 2020
posted by amaire at 3:47 PM on September 29, 2020
In the Year of our Lord 2020 literally no business wants you to cold-call them. Please do not do this. The best way to apply for a job is the way the company has told you to do it. And that usually means applying online.
posted by Violet Hour at 7:11 PM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by Violet Hour at 7:11 PM on September 29, 2020 [2 favorites]
Most big companies have an internal team of recruiters. I wouldn't hesitate to get in touch - and stay in touch - with at least one recruiter on the team. There are so many filters in place to obfuscate hiring managers' names and email addresses I take the hint and would never try to contact one directly.
posted by bendy at 11:35 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by bendy at 11:35 PM on September 29, 2020 [1 favorite]
Caveating that this can vary by field, but I think any time you'd consider devoting to cold reach outs would be better spent optimizing and personalizing your active job search materials. You may already be writing highly customized resumes and cover letters for every position you are pursuing, but if you aren't or if you are only customizing it a little each time, that is the biggest thing you can do to get you closer to finding a job. Also, make sure your LinkedIn page is built out and comprehensive, from the content of your roles and descriptions to your picture. I will never get over how many people have a truly bad LinkedIn picture, especially in the age of quality cell phone cameras. Maybe your field isn't heavily present on LinkedIn, but if it is, a sad LinkedIn page can be a surprisingly powerful negative. This is the case whether someone finds you without having first received your resume, or if they look you up as part of their evaluation of your materials. I'm not saying it has to be a freaking shrine of your accomplishments or you need a glamour shot, but I will eliminate people if they have a truly bad LinkedIn presence. It's an obvious and easy thing to create, and it says something about a candidate if they haven't bothered to make it relatively complete and coherent.
The second thing I'd focus on is creating digital content and participating in thought-leadership events like seminars or industry panels if possible. These forums and things like blog posts and articles give you a chance to build relationships and talk about/sell yourself without directly soliciting. This tracks back to the LinkedIn thing. You want people who are actively recruiting for any job to find you, and then, you want them to take interest in you when they comb through your digital presence which is inevitable. The second best way to get a job behind a direct network connection is to be actively recruited by a hiring company, and you'll get more reach outs like that if you have a compelling digital presence.
posted by amycup at 12:12 PM on October 1, 2020
The second thing I'd focus on is creating digital content and participating in thought-leadership events like seminars or industry panels if possible. These forums and things like blog posts and articles give you a chance to build relationships and talk about/sell yourself without directly soliciting. This tracks back to the LinkedIn thing. You want people who are actively recruiting for any job to find you, and then, you want them to take interest in you when they comb through your digital presence which is inevitable. The second best way to get a job behind a direct network connection is to be actively recruited by a hiring company, and you'll get more reach outs like that if you have a compelling digital presence.
posted by amycup at 12:12 PM on October 1, 2020
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posted by assenav at 8:04 AM on September 29, 2020 [22 favorites]