The ‘who, what, why, when, where‘ approach
Step 1 – Why?
Start with the why
Define why you are looking to move. Firstly, there is no such thing as browsing, if you are browsing then you are looking, if you are looking then you are not happy, if you are not happy then you should move jobs.
Common factors include:
- Underpaid
- Wrong Practice Area
- Never see your friends and family
- Hate your boss
- Hate your team
- Just want a change
- Want Bigger, or smaller
Step 2 –What?
Define what you want
- What salary ideally
- What country/state
- What partners
- What practice area
- What work type
- Ideally, what company or firm
- What are you willing to flex on and what are your essentials
- What is your personal plan (fit life plan into this process as it can have a drastic effect on what you can/should do)
Step 3 – How?
Get help – There isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ approach
You are probably going to need help. Not necessarily from a recruitment consultant (but this is their job in theory). You are going to need to talk through your reasoning and get support and feedback from friends, family, mentors etc. It’s a Marathon, not a sprint.
Step 4 – Who?
The CV
Your CV is your masterpiece. Its what skills you are selling at this moment. Think of all the products that you buy, most of them will fill a need in your life. The same is true for job searching. Your skills are the product that fills the needs of a client. You have to match.
Spelling, Grammar, Structure, Experience, Title, Contact Details etc. All are highly relevant (ask us to review it for you)
Step 5 –Where?
Get Online
If you are not on LinkedIn at this point. Sign up NOW. Not only will the job search tool of LinkedIn help you identify current relevant roles, it is also a useful tool for researching companies, industries, networking and more.
Seek, Indeed, Recruitment Firm Websites (www.egconsulting.com.au/opportunities ) , Company Websites, Linkedin company job posting etc. All are accessible on the go, on your mobile and with minimal effort.
Meet recruiters (I know one you could speak to!)
Recruitment consultants are there to pass on information about the current options that you have. They will be able to advise what you can and cant do. They should give you a good understanding of the broader market and your place within it.
Ideally you should meet with a few and see who you get on best with. Agents have access to a wide range of roles, but it is going to be your personal connection to each that is going to help you make decisions. Again, not ‘one size fits all’.
Generally, if you are working with one or two agencies then you are probably covering off a large proportion of the market. You can always meet others if these don’t work out.
Meet potential hiring managers
Not every meeting can/will result in a job offer. The more people you meet, the better understanding of what is on offer you will have.
Network with Partners, General Counsel, Senior Associates etc. The more people you meet the better!
Step 8 – When?
Don’t leave it to the last minute to start looking
If you leave it until you really hate your current role before you start looking then you are more likely to make a bad decision.
The best time to look for a new role is when you have gained everything that you can from your current position. Think of your career as a skill building exercise to get you to where you want to go. Things could be going very well in your current job, but you are not learning, developing or building your network. Now is the time to start looking.
Remember we are here to help you! Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us here at EG – Tom @ 0420880835 or tom@egconsulting.com.au Alex @ 0423261608 or alex@egconsulting.com.au
