Is it time for a change? Looking for a job? Traditional methods are not enough. According to estimates, between 50 and 80 percent of job offers are never officially published while remaining in the hidden job market. What is the hidden job market and how to become its beneficiary?
Imagine that you are an employer. You are developing your business and need new people to work, or you are struggling with staffing shortages caused by maternity leave, the employee’s departure or transition to another department. Ahead of you is the multi-dimensional challenge of finding a valuable person. You face the passage of time, loss due to an unfilled position, you are afraid of the right choice, and you want to significantly reduce the costs of the process itself. It is these factors that make the open job market increasingly a Plan B, pushing employers to take less formal action. Why is this percentage constantly increasing?
When you don’t know what’s going on…
It’s about the money. An extensive recruitment process entails high costs. Depending on the method of its conduct, they are very different. The most expensive option is to use the help of headhunters. Recruitment agencies are also available, and the most economical solution is by far the publication of job offers on recruitment portals and in newspapers. However, these are time-consuming processes and, despite the multi-stage selection mechanism, are considered by some to be insufficient. The candidates and they way of working is still a great unknown. Why such perception?
By referral is the best, that is, a perfectly matched employee is worth its weight in gold.
As it turns out, even the most qualified employee can cause various types of problems. They can be hidden at the recruitment stage. How does the employer mitigate this risk? A “referral institution” comes to the rescue, which shifts some of the risk burden onto the referrer. It becomes a kind of guarantor of the quality of choice. Ensuring that he is a perfectly matched person both in terms of competence and all other characteristics required for a given position. The decision affects the image of the referrer, so it becomes more reliable as to the accuracy of the selection. Jack Mia, the founder of one of the largest companies in the world – Alibaba Group, of which the AliExpress online store is a part, emphasized the importance of this choice in the words: “Hire the person who best fits the job, not the most talented. This can be a very painful lesson. If you want to start a tractor, there is no point in installing an airplane engine in it.” What would you do if it were you?
Establishing contacts and business relationships is your ally.
Once you know how valuable the prize is, it’s time to find a recipe for success. The good news and the bad news are the same: a lot depends on you. So what can you do to make sure the hidden job market isn’t a secret? Open yourself to others, learn the benefits of networking. Build a business relationship at the early stage of employment. Losing a job or changing it effectively pulls you out of your comfort zone and makes it equally uncomfortable to talk about it. However, as experience shows, it is openness and authenticity that paves the way for success. What kind of contact should one look for? Start with friends, but don’t forget about former colleagues, especially when the cooperation was successful. It is in such cases that the proposal often emerges. But what do you do when all these actions have been taken and have not worked? Use the benefits of modern solutions. Enter the industry you want to be in. Linkedin, career fairs, specialist forums – this is where you should start to be visible. Update your data, set goals, let know you’re going for more. Do you dream of working in a specific company? Do not hesitate to contact it, declaring your willingness to work. Are you awaiting a revolution? You want to change profession? Act methodically by creating further links between you and your new activity. Additional cooperation, even on the basis of volunteering, further education are the next places where valuable interaction takes place. After all, you will always be moving within the goal you are striving for. It will open your eyes to what the hidden market has to offer for you.