General advice on how to get a job. How to find a good job - a detailed guide for those who want to get their dream job

New technologies appear faster than knowledge about them spreads. Professions are mutating so quickly that the traditional education system does not have time to adapt to market demands, and employers have difficulty finding new employees, because university graduates do not have the necessary skills and competencies.

Contented Strategy and Development Advisor Kirill Brylev decided to figure out how the approach to education has changed and where companies should look for professional staff.

On the shores of the new economy

Post-industrial society has thrown us onto the shore of a new economy - the knowledge economy, which requires continuous development and advanced training from a person.

New demands from society lead to global changes in the field of education: open education, digitalization, boom, corporate universities, growth, firsts, freedom of choice and pluralism of methodologies. Today's zeitgeist is familiar to historians of the Enlightenment.

Despite all the positive changes in the market, there remains a shortage of qualified personnel. To solve this problem, companies are joining forces with educational institutions or creating new training centers - corporate universities.

Already now, in the scramble for talent, companies are organizing internships, conducting internships, collaborating with universities and “transporting” employees from other regions. The effectiveness and payback of these actions is a topic for a separate article.

But while we are talking about the future, young specialists are still left alone with questions:

1. Where can I get the knowledge I need in my profession?
2. Where to apply knowledge in practice and gain professional experience?
3. How to get into your dream company?

They find the answers in career-oriented education.

Let's give examples from around the world

1. General Assembly

An educational project aimed at bridging the gap between talented job seekers and companies in need of them.

“General Assembly is addressing the global skills gap,” says CEO and co-founder Jake Schwartz. Since 2011, the project has grown from a coworking space into an educational center with campuses in 20 cities around the world and 35,000 graduates.

The curriculum is built on the basis of requests and requirements for graduates' skills from employers. During their studies, students perform real tasks from companies and have the opportunity to prove themselves to a future employer. In addition, General Assembly has created an alumni community, which, through its GA Profiles service, provides access to more than 2,500 of its partners looking for talented employees.

What employers think

Nikita Cherkasenko, Director of the HRM Technology and Analytics Department at Rostelecom

I see that the concept of lifelong learning is turning from an abstract idea into a prerequisite for professionalization. Now the designer and organizer of the education process has become the person himself (not an educational institution, not the Ministry of Education, not an employer) and he has also become the main investor and beneficiary. At the same time, the education infrastructure is now so global and transparent that only laziness and lack of knowledge of English can prevent you from obtaining the necessary knowledge.

What does it change? Companies will compete not for strong specialists in a narrow field (unless they are the best or the only specialists in the world), but for those who are able to quickly and independently become specialists in a broader field.

Training is no longer 40 hours of advanced training courses once a year and not eight hours of “off-the-job” training. Now this is any situation in which I cannot do something and I go for knowledge or action algorithms right now, right from my phone.

Those who understand this and are ready to accept this as a basic condition for their professionalization are already winning the competition for the best jobs.

It's time to say goodbye to the usual corporate, higher or secondary education. Now it’s not interesting where you got your competence. We already live in a world of high school developers, CEOs without an MBA, and business school professors without a college degree.

Alexey Borisov, Head of the educational center "Alfa-Experience", Alfa-Bank

Business, and society, now faces a big task in revising the education system. It no longer keeps up with the development of technology and does not meet modern economic challenges. What to do is not yet very clear.

• On the one hand, educational projects are already appearing, thanks to which you can quickly master some competency or in-demand specialty without going through a university.
• On the other hand, we should not forget about fundamental education; it gives certain “metaskills” and allows us, in general, to be an intelligent professional and person.

Learning ability, systems thinking, ethical aspects, curiosity, erudition - we learn all this from early childhood. Therefore, we only have to understand how schools and universities should evolve taking into account the acceleration of the life cycle of knowledge.

It seems to me that what is happening now is that fundamental educational institutions are losing their position and educational initiatives in which practitioners themselves, business representatives, are increasingly gaining momentum. Their knowledge is gained through experience and is as relevant as possible.

We see this also through our educational project, in which our key employees and corporate clients teach. As we predicted at the start of the project, there is a great demand for their knowledge and experience. After all, they know better than anyone what is happening in their industry and profession.

Andrey Kravchenko, Head of Training and Development of IT Personnel at Avito

Now I see three main factors influencing the education market:

1. We are plunging into a demographic hole: there are fewer and fewer specialists and graduates every year.
2. At the same time, the need for highly qualified specialists is steadily growing. And we need not just labor, but professional personnel, especially in the IT field.
3. The role of universities should not be underestimated, because teaching complex things is also difficult. It’s just that there is a very big gap between the education system in universities and the needs of business. Graduates are not ready to work fully and autonomously on high-tech projects.

The market responds to this, including Avito. We attract young professionals to the industry, organize championships, competitions and career guidance events. Moreover, if previously companies did not pay attention to students, now everyone has focused on this target audience and is delving into it, right up to school education.

Employee motivation is changing: salary levels and other material benefits have a limit; companies cannot increase them indefinitely. Therefore, employees choose companies where they can develop comprehensively.

By the way, it is also beneficial for employers to further train graduates for themselves and implement them in their business processes. For this purpose, mentoring systems are created within companies. For example, the knowledge sharing format is popular, when employees teach each other. On the one hand, young specialists acquire new knowledge, on the other hand, the teachers themselves increase their level of qualifications and expertise.

Sooner or later we will come to a model of growing specialists from school. Selecting talented children, creating an educational environment for them, developing their strong abilities - such projects will be carried out primarily by corporations that need ideal employees.

Olga Augustan, Head of Education at Mail.Ru Group

Students lack focus and career planning. This is due to the fact that they do not know the real challenges they will face in their work.

Therefore, Mail.Ru Group is now actively working with the country's leading universities: we give children the opportunity to improve their skills, gain new knowledge and try themselves in different areas of IT. It’s one thing when students read information about work, salary, development prospects in a particular area, and quite another when they are faced with real challenges.

Half of the students immediately choose another specialization. That’s why it’s so important to try yourself in different areas during your studies. This can be done in offline or online courses.

I think more and more companies will create their own training projects and talk about real work tasks. Laboratories and business incubators will be developed. And companies will be able not only to receive a flow of fresh ideas, but also to buy a ready-made team.

our history

We saw a global problem in the fact that young people still experience enormous difficulties in finding and realizing themselves. A university diploma does not guarantee an interesting and well-paid job.

This is how the idea of ​​the Contented educational project was born - online training and employment in the professions of the future. We focused on areas that are already experiencing staff shortages or will begin to experience it in the near future - , and / (virtual and augmented reality).

Training is primarily about the feedback and mentoring that students receive. We abandoned the format of boring lectures, replacing them with interactive master classes.

Graduates undergo a series of interviews with HR specialists to assess soft-skills and independent technical experts to assess hard-skills. After which we form a database of applicants, which represents the best graduates of the country's leading universities and educational centers in the professions of the future.

Gone are the days when a lifetime job at one company was considered a successful career. Today you can change your profession at any age, and lack of experience is unlikely to become a barrier to employment. The main thing is to prepare for the search: write a resume correctly, present a high-quality portfolio and not be afraid to complete the test task.

Putting emphasis in your resume

A resume is the employer's first introduction to a candidate. If you don’t yet have work experience in your new specialty, your resume needs to be edited. First of all, change the title: from the old profession to the new one.

Education

List all training and continuing education courses completed that are relevant to your future job. If the applicant’s specialized education is philological, but in parallel with his studies at the university he attended design courses, this will be an argument in his favor.

Nevertheless, the first education should also be mentioned, especially if the specialty is quite general: sociology, management, history. Higher education is often one of the filters when selecting a candidate. If there are several educations, they are highly specialized - for example, medical, and the candidate wants to leave this industry - then you don’t have to indicate them.

experience

Be sure to tell us about your experience, even if it is not related to the new job. Pay attention to those aspects that will be useful in a new field: a candidate who has worked as a developer for many years can apply for the position of sales manager in an IT company.

Experience doesn't always mean working for money. Add participation in volunteer projects, internships and internships to your resume.

Career

Imagine a candidate who started working in a clothing store as a student and became a regional sales director before graduating from university. Most likely, such an employee has great potential for development even in a new professional field.

Therefore, it is important to present your growth within the company in your resume. Each role does not need to be listed in a separate section; they can be listed under the responsibilities and results of the last position held. There is no need to write a detailed story; it is better to do it in the format of short abstracts - this is a more suitable option for a resume.

Skills and personal qualities

If the applicant “grabs everything on the fly” and “learns quickly,” you definitely need to talk about this. It’s best with evidence: “I was a member of the student council and organized festive events,” “received gratitude from the dean of the faculty for...”, “became the best employee of the branch based on the results of the half-year,” and so on.

Compare the job requirements with your knowledge and competencies. Select exactly those that will be useful in your new position. Add them to the “Key Skills” and “About Me” sections.

Motivation

Pay attention to the final phrase in your resume or cover letter. It is this that ultimately shows that the candidate has an interest in a new field. For example, you can write like this: “Aimed at personal and professional development in the IT field, in the near future I plan to take educational courses/trainings or receive additional higher education on the topic.”

We are writing an accompanying

Don't start your letter with the phrase "I have no work experience." Use positive language:

• “during my studies, I gained knowledge from the field...”;
• “I have the personal qualities necessary for this position...”;
• “at my previous job I gained experience...” and so on.

Pay attention to motivation: tell why you are interested in a specific position in a specific company. Sometimes candidates without experience, but “with shining eyes”, due to motivation, bypass professionals who are tired of work.

Attaching a portfolio

Experience and work skills in some cases can be assessed without an interview, based on a portfolio. Using it, the employer will get an idea of ​​the professionalism of designers (web, graphic, landscape, interior, clothing), authors (content, rewriting, copyright), photo and video operators. A person who is familiar with computer layout and has experience in creating websites can start working in printing. Or a journalist with extensive experience always has a chance to retrain as a public relations specialist or press secretary.

Most employers also pay attention to general knowledge and basic skills: communication, presentation, analytical abilities of the candidate - regardless of whether he has experience or not.

Leave time for the test task

The test is a chance to prove yourself. If an employer has noticed an applicant without relevant experience on his resume and offers to complete a test task, it is worth taking the time to do it. In this way, the candidate will not only demonstrate his skills and knowledge in practice, but will also be able to assess for himself how ready he is to take on the job.

Experienced candidates have to take test tasks much less often. In their case, a portfolio is usually enough.

We respond to suitable vacancies

Often those who have no experience have to start with internships. But we recommend applying for entry-level positions too, especially if your resume already includes work experience in another specialty. Act confidently and persistently: everything will work out!

For those who still doubt themselves, we have compiled them with examples and useful formulations. Experts from the “Ready Resume” service can create this for you: HR specialists will conduct an interview and prepare a document suitable for your career plans.

First, look at open positions on the company website. Typically, available positions are displayed there not only within a country or region, but throughout the world.

Secondly, the websites of some companies have the “Submit Resume” function. If there is no suitable vacancy at the moment, but you are sure that the company will be useful, just send your resume. If interesting offers arise, you will be contacted.

The third option is vacancies on job search sites, for example, hh.ru. It is important to keep in mind that individual vacancies may be published on third-party sites, but not on the company’s website, and vice versa. If you're really interested in a company, it's worth checking out all the resources.

You also cannot neglect vacancies from recruitment agencies, especially if you do not live in the capital. In many regions of Russia there are representative offices of international companies, but not all of them have local HR departments. In this case, branches carry out the initial selection with the help of recruitment agencies. Typically, job descriptions do not indicate the name of the company, but only indicate its field of activity (for example, “international company in the FMCG sector”).

2. Interview with a recruitment agency

As a rule, an interview with a representative of a recruitment agency takes place in a calm and friendly atmosphere. The agency is interested in filling the existing vacancy in the best possible way, as well as creating a positive impression of the employer for the applicant.

The recruiting agency specialist will ask you about your education and work experience, and will also ask several questions to identify your personal qualities. If the interview is successful, you will be invited to the next stage.

Typically, a recruitment agency supports applicants through all stages of the selection process, provides feedback on each interview, and also helps with useful information and advice.

3. SHL test

Many international companies use this tool at the initial stages of selection. Typically the test consists of two parts: numerical and textual. You can complete it at the company’s office or remotely.

To prepare for the test, you need to find similar tasks on the Internet and practice. Recruitment agency representatives can also help and provide you with several options for similar tests.

It is important to pay attention to the test conditions. Incorrect answers do not always reduce the overall score. If you don't have time to think or calculate, you can choose an option at random. If the test conditions require penalties for each incorrect answer, you shouldn’t do this - it’s better to just skip the task.

The main stress factor when taking a test is time. You need to think very quickly and not get stuck on tasks that you can’t solve.

4. Interview with the company’s HR specialist

During your interview with a Human Resources representative, you will be asked to talk about your experience, accomplishments, and plans for the future. In addition, you will definitely be checked for compliance with the corporate culture.

In many foreign companies, openness, friendliness, the ability to find common language with other people and work in a team are welcomed, and the ability to set bold goals and achieve them is highly valued.

Moreover, simply saying: “Yes, I am result-oriented” will not be enough. Most likely, you will be asked to cite real life situations where you faced difficulties and how you overcame them.

There are no correct answers to these questions. Each company adopts a certain style of leadership and communication between employees. For an employer, meeting these criteria is as important as professional achievements. There is no point in pretending to be someone you are not - first of all, you yourself are not interested in ending up in an unsuitable work environment.

5. Interview with the line manager

If your future manager is an expat, and the work requires active communication in a foreign language, your level will definitely be checked. At a minimum, they will ask several questions in the language, and at maximum, they will conduct the entire interview in it. By the way, many foreign leaders speak Russian well, so be careful when speaking in your native language.

Also, the manager may ask you a difficult task - for example, counting how many gas stations there are in Moscow. Employers argue that, first of all, it is important to show the logic of solving a problem, but none of the numbers can be taken out of thin air. Whatever number you name, you need to explain why you think that way. In addition, the ability to think quickly “under pressure” will be very useful, as well as the skill of mental arithmetic - counting in a column or using a calculator is, as a rule, prohibited.

6. Assessment Center

Candidates who have successfully passed all previous stages of selection and have a real chance of getting the desired position are invited to the assessment center.

The assessment center may involve both individual tasks (for example, giving a presentation on a pre-announced topic and answering questions from opponents) and group work on solving a problem.

Many people think that the most important thing in such tests is to stand out from the crowd and draw attention to themselves. In fact, the main purpose of the tasks is to see how you really work in a team (you never know what you said during the interview). Moreover, you may even be asked to play a certain role.

Remember that in such tasks it is important to show not only your leadership qualities and ability to take the initiative, but also the ability to adapt to different conditions and effectively interact with other team members.

7. Final interview

The final stage in a long selection chain will be an interview with the head of your department, or with a matrix manager (functional manager), or (for example, if you are applying for a small regional branch) with the director of the branch.

Some candidates think that the most important thing is to pass the assessment center. Indeed, the selection center is one of the most stressful stages, but its successful completion does not guarantee employment. There are times when the director conducting the final interviews rejects all submitted candidates.

If this happened to you, don’t despair. The experience gained will definitely be useful in future employment. Now you have a better understanding of how to present yourself, what personal and professional aspects you need to work on, and in general, how an employer thinks. A little luck - and your dream job will be yours!

If the object of your interest is just such an organization, the first way to enter it is to try to find friends who will recommend you. Many people think that picking up and going to work based on an acquaintance is a relic of socialism. Nothing like this. This is a normal practice, widespread both here and in the West. Moreover, many companies welcome it when employees bring their friends to work. Another thing is that when considering your candidacy for the position, they will not make any concessions. Don't rush to lay down your guns before you've completed the interview. Having recommendations is only half the success. This is your chance to get a meeting with the employer. Then everything will depend on professional characteristics.

The second thing you should do if you don’t have any useful contacts is to send a letter with your resume attached. Please note: when you send a resume to a recruiter or company for an open vacancy, the role of the letter is often insignificant, or even non-existent. But when you write on your own initiative, it plays a very important role. The letter should be written in such a way that you want to see its author. The simplest technique you can use is this. Write why you want to work here, give examples from your professional experience, prove to the employer that you can benefit the company. Depending on what kind of company it is, you can choose the style of the letter itself. You shouldn’t indulge in bureaucratic language, but don’t turn your letter into an essay on a free topic. It must be both reasoned and emotional.

I had a friend who really wanted to get a job at a large oil company. It said nothing about vacancies. It was not possible to find people somehow connected with the organization. A well-written letter worked. Of course, this does not mean that by sending a letter you will definitely be able to get your dream job, but if you want to score a goal, you need to shoot on goal.

Some job seekers believe that the argument that will persuade an employer to hire them is to offer their services for less money than what their employees receive. Think carefully before suggesting this. I would not advise doing this, firstly, because in this way you belittle yourself, and strong and self-respecting organizations prefer to take winners. Secondly, even if you are hired, imagine how you will feel at work. Will you be accepted by a team that will be aware of the conditions under which you were hired? I don't think this game is worth the candle.

Valery Polyakov, head of the recruitment agency "Glasford"

In-demand specialists often find themselves faced with a difficult choice: which company to work for – large, medium or small? According to the Research Center of the recruiting portal website, more than half of Russians (54%), other things being equal, would choose a large organization. However, is it so easy to build a career in a well-known company? Does a position in a recognizable company guarantee a high income?

To evaluate all the pros and cons and make the right choice, listen to the advice.

Career and brand
So, what attracts Russians to work for a well-known and/or large company? There are really many advantages. According to a survey conducted by the Research Center of the website portal, first of all, these are career growth opportunities, significant for 48% of respondents. A large staff, a multi-level hierarchy, employee training programs and the likelihood of opening new branches or areas - all this creates a favorable background for a career. But are there any pitfalls here?

On the one hand, a line in a resume about working for a well-known brand can really impress a recruiter. In addition, being involved in the success of a large company can significantly increase your market value, that is, your salary. But this, of course, will happen after you, for some reason, decide to leave the company.

As for career growth within a well-known company, it is not a fact that you will quickly achieve a promotion there: competition in such organizations is usually very high, and besides, your area of ​​​​work may turn out to be narrow enough for you to be noticed quickly. This, however, does not exclude excellent opportunities for establishing numerous contacts with colleagues and networking, which, as we know, is in itself very useful for a career.

Stability or high income?
In addition, for 41% of Russians, working in a large company is attractive due to stability and confidence in the future. In fact, a company with a well-known brand is more stable than a lesser-known organization, because the brand itself is capital, and often a considerable one. As the well-known business wisdom says, in a crisis the strong become stronger.

Other advantages of large companies include the extended social package they often provide (mentioned by 9% of Russians), professional growth (8%), stable income (7%), prestige and strict compliance with labor legislation (6% each).

But you probably shouldn’t count on a very high salary when getting a job in a branded company. It is very likely that your income will be “white” and stable, but hardly much higher than the market one. There is a simple calculation by the employer at work here - why pay more if employees are motivated by the very fact of working in a well-known company? This is exactly the case when a brand brings benefits by helping to save money. However, there are many exceptions.

Study, study and study... at a corporate university
A major advantage of working in a large company is the good chance of professional development. Even if your functionality is quite narrow, you will almost certainly get the opportunity to learn. Large companies often invest not only in 1-2-day trainings and seminars, but also in long-term ones (for example, foreign language) and even in so-called corporate universities.

Obvious disadvantages
Are there any downsides to working for a big brand? There are few of them, but they are still worth considering when deciding on choosing an employer. First, it is very likely that in a large organization you will encounter a lot of bureaucratic procedures. If at your previous job in a small organization, in order to resolve an issue, for example, about organizing a buffet for journalists after a press conference, you only had to look into the next office and discuss it with your immediate boss and chief accountant, now you will have to write a dozen letters and carry out a lot of approvals.

The second disadvantage is, oddly enough, the division of labor. On the one hand, this is progressive and demonstrates the smooth running of business processes, but will narrow specialization benefit your career? An accountant who was involved in managing several areas of work at once in a medium-sized company has a better chance of growing professionally to the position of chief accountant than his colleague who was only involved in payroll calculations in a big-name industrial giant. The average position in a medium-sized company involves a significantly wider range of authority than a similar position in a large and well-known company.

When choosing a job, focus not only on the fame of the company, but also on the role that company can play in your career. It is important not only not to miss your chance, but also to use it correctly.