New Entrants Can Improve Their Employment Prospects in a Challenging Employment Market

Copyright (c) 2011 Alison Withers

New graduates and public sector workers who are being made redundant can find their first entry into the jobs market particularly challenging.

They will both compete for positions in a private sector intent on keeping down its overheads and likely to be cautious about taking on new people and to be spoiled for choice.

Candidates therefore need to prepare themselves well if they want to have a chance of standing out from their competitors and being shortlisted for interview but both groups have the advantage that they have time to do so. Graduates know when they will complete their degrees and anyone being made redundant is given notification 12 weeks in advance of the end date.

The most important point is that candidates need to understand the culture of the private sector work place. It is driven by results and often very highly pressured.

Good academic qualifications are no longer enough to guarantee a job. Employers want someone who can master the culture of their particular work place and perform efficiently from day one.

It is not only a matter of having the basic administrative skills to do the job. Computer literacy, record keeping, accuracy and so on are as essential for low level general clerical work as they are for the high-flying executive PA. Candidates also need to demonstrate that they are competent in the so-called "soft" skills, like communication, working well in a team, being able to use common sense and take initiative, being versatile and creative in dealing with any problems they may be presented with.

Some universities already offer students an opportunity to develop these skills through restructuring courses to include in business skills, cold calling, marketing, creative advertising and HR within each topic and asking students to work in teams with people they may not know well.

The BBC Dragons' Den investor and successful entrepreneur Deborah Meaden recently offered advice to public sector workers facing redundancy. She advised anyone who knows they are going to lose their job to be proactive and start to plan before it happens.

They also need to tailor their CV to each job being applied for in such a way that it dispels the perception in the private sector that people in the public sector are unwilling to take risks, want long holidays and short hours, she said.

The CV should also demonstrate that the skills they have gained in their current workplace are transferrable to the role they are applying for in the private sector. Networking to find possible opportunities is also important as is being realistic about what work a candidate is willing to accept. It is better to be working, even if the position is less than perfect, than to end up with a long gap on the CV, which can be seen negatively by an employer.

For both groups interview skills are essential and a good way to practice might be to sign up with a specialist recruitment agency. Candidates will face an interview by experienced people who know what their private sector clients consider essential and the agency interview will help polish interview skills as well as the CV. It may also be worth taking temporary positions to gain experience and prevent gaps in the CV.

Finally, being positive and enthusiastic no matter how a person may be feeling may be difficult but will make all the difference to how they come across at interview and whether they are successful in finding a permanent position.

The best advice that can be given to new graduates and to public sector workers facing redundancy and looking for jobs in the private sector, from low-level administration to executive PA, at a challenging time is to prepare thoroughly. By Ali Withers. http://www.rmsrecruitment.com