Navigating the job market can be daunting, especially with the unpredictability brought on by economic shifts, high interest rates, and organizational changes. It's crucial to craft an effective job-hunting strategy to navigate these uncertainties successfully.
Fortunately, you can harness the power of Microsoft Copilot, an AI-powered chat tool, to craft effective job-hunting strategies to secure your next career opportunity. Let's use the capabilities of Copilot to formulate a tailored job-hunting strategy.
Step by step
1. Go to Copilot.Microsoft.com
To access Microsoft Copilot, download the Microsoft Edge browser.
2. Type “Help me determine a job-hunting strategy.”
3. Interpret the results and come up with actionable steps for each suggestion.
Action plan
Based on the results that Microsoft Copilot gave us, let’s determine an action plan using some of the strategies provided.
1. Networking
2. Online job boards
3. Recruiters
4. Referrals
5. Direct approaches
6. Create a schedule
7. Review strengths & skills
8. Research
1. Networking
Reach out to people you know for leads on prospective job opportunities. Friends, family, colleagues, coworkers, mentors, managers – anything goes. Think of all the people you know, then set some time aside to reach out to them.
You can potentially find opportunities that you never thought existed.
Social media platforms make it easy to reach out to those you know for job opportunities. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date and start sending messages or posting that you are open to new opportunities.
Copilot even has the capabilities to write networking emails to these contacts.
Type in “Write me a networking email that I can use to reach out to friends, family, colleagues, coworkers, mentors, or managers for new job opportunities."
Now we have an email template that we can use to reach out for job opportunities. Make sure to attach your resume. Microsoft Create offers free resume templates to get you started.
Personalize the template and make sure to fill out:
- Recipient’s name
- Your current company/position
- Mention a key achievement or responsibility
- Recipient’s industry/field
- Mention specific job roles, industries, or responsibilities you’re interested in
- Your name
- Your contact information
Goal: Reach out to 5 new contacts per week and send a networking email to look for your next job opportunity.
2. Online job boards
Use online job boards like Indeed or LinkedIn to apply to as many jobs as possible that fit your skillset. Job hunting gets very competitive and sometimes, it turns out to be a numbers game.
As you're applying, think, “the worst that will happen is they say no.”
Goal: Apply to 10 jobs per week using job boards such as Indeed or LinkedIn.
3. Recruiters
Recruiters work with companies to find qualified candidates for their open positions. If you feel that working with a recruiter is right for you, research recruiting firms and reach out. They may be able to find you your next job opportunity.
If you use a recruitment agency, you will be working with a professional who helps you find a job that matches your skillset. They will consider things you are looking for in a job such as salary, benefits, or work environment.
Because recruitment agencies get paid from the hiring company for placing you with them, they don’t charge you for their services.
Goal: Get in contact with 1 recruiter to look for your next job opportunity.
4. Referrals
Referrals go hand in hand with networking. Sometimes, companies will even offer incentives to existing employees to refer those outside the company for jobs. This is a win-win situation if you leverage referrals. You will end up with a job and the person who referred you gets a bonus!
Goal: Reach out to your existing network and see if any employees will get a referral bonus. Ask them to refer you to increase your chances of landing a job interview.
5. Direct approaches
Although this can sound intimidating, you have nothing to lose by directly approaching a person for a job opportunity.
Find some prospective contacts to reach out to, make a list, draft up an outreach template using Copilot, and reach out.
You can use the networking email generated by Copilot above to reach out to your contacts.
6. Create a schedule
It’s important to stay accountable during your job search.
Set a clear schedule for actionable items that we have discussed such as:
- Reaching out to your existing network
- Applying to X number of jobs
- Contacting recruiters for positions
- Researching companies offering referral bonuses and reaching out to employees who work there
- Directly approaching people who are hiring
Make sure to set a clear and reasonable time frame to meet these dates.
Microsoft Excel is a great tool to create a schedule and track action items such as these. Check out free scheduling and tracking templates from Microsoft Create to get started.
Goal: Create a schedule to track each of these items and spend X amount of hours per day focused on your job search strategy
7. Review your strengths and skills
Take some time to review your strengths and skills. Understand where your specific expertise lies and look for job opportunities that align with those respective strengths.
Make sure to brush up on skills related to your core competencies regarding the career path you have chosen.
It will also be good to practice behavioral and technical interview questions associated with skills for the position you’re looking for. Copilot can help with this, too!
Go to Copilot and type in “Help me prepare for behavioral and technical job interview questions.”
Goal: Use Copilot to come up with a list of 10 behavioral and technical questions specific to your job search
8. Research and plan
Understand what you are looking for and what it will take to get there. Make sure you understand the education, career path, and skills you will need to get to the position you want. Your job should align with your strengths, work type, and impact.
Now, use Copilot to get an action plan to become a competitive candidate for your desired role.
Example 1
To research your desired career path, type in (for example) “What are the average skills needed for an entry level graphic designer?”
Example 2
If you want to reach out to recruiters in your desired field, type, "Create me a direct approach message to send to recruiters or hiring managers.”
Expanding further on the graphic designer example above, we get:
Now we understand what a graphic designer needs and we have a professional, attention-grabbing message we can use in our job search.
Goal: Research the skills needed for the job that you want and create a direct approach message that can be sent to recruiters and hiring managers.
Conclusion
Using Copilot, you now have an 8-step plan to develop a job-hunting strategy.
If you implement the actionable steps and achieve the goals that have been laid out above, I have no doubt that you’ll be able to find your next job. Good luck!