Where are the IT jobs hiding? Some of the most promising avenues are the old tried-and-true methods.
Posted by : Dan Heilman
After returning home in August from a two-year hitch in the Peace Corps,
Dave Blake had little optimism that he'd be able to resume his systems
administrator career where it left off in 2002. While he was in Eastern
Europe, he'd heard nothing but bad things about the U.S. job market,
especially in the tech sector. So when he started sending out résumés,
answering want ads, and haunting job boards upon his return, he expected
to encounter a lot of indifference and not much else.
But a funny thing happened on the way to the unemployment office: He got
a job with a nonprofit organization after being home less than a month.
It was nothing special, but it paid OK and it was in his field. And
craziest of all, it resulted from a want ad in the Sunday paper. "They
told me they got a good response to the ad, but not what they expected,"
Blake said. "I'm still looking, because I think I can do better. But
until something better comes along, this isn't bad."
Even though it's only anecdotal, evidence is evidence: Jobs are
returning to the tech industry. The United States gained a net total of
213,639 IT jobs between the first quarter of 2003 and the first quarter
of 2004, according to the Information Technology Association of America.
Like Dave, not everyone is getting the plum gig they've been dreaming
of, but at least they're getting something--which isn't a claim that
could be made two years ago.
That net job figure is nice, but you can bet there's a good handful of
candidates gunning for each of those jobs. So want-ad luck of the draw
aside, how are people finding work?
Networking
As much as we introverted Type-Bs hate to do it, glad-handing and
cultivating connections is a never-ending source of potential
employment. The more confident and persistent you are about planting a
bug in people's ears, the better your chances.
"This is still one of the best ways to find a job: Have a strong
network," Kevin Hudson, vice president of Product Management Technology
for Tampa, Fla.-based Kforce Inc. "Who do you know? Who do they know?
Can they recommend you to a hiring manager or company? I am much more
inclined to call someone back or even hire them if someone I respect put
us in touch."
One of many rules of thumb when it comes to networking is, don't count
anyone out. Think your uncle Earl doesn't know anyone who's hiring? You
won't know until you ask him, will you? Also, seek out and attend any
and all social and professional events in your field, make it easy for
people to get in touch (keep business cards in your purse or wallet),
and follow up on any promising meeting, no matter how limited its
potential seems.
Job boards
After trawling through the contents of some online job boards, you might
find yourself reluctant to join the mob of applicants who are hounding
every available job. But in the words of the great philosopher Wayne
Gretzky, you miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take. Job boards
can bring results if used cannily.
"The days of the individual line manager calling his buddy to find a
COBOL programmer are gone," says Lamont Meeks, Midwest recruiting
director for Houston-based COMSYS Information Technology Services. "Most
IT jobs are advertised on the Web through job boards, whether
proprietary or commercial. Or, sometimes, they're found via a network of
consulting firms that have been asked to staff positions for their
client base."
"For tech jobs paying under the $100,000 level, I'd definitely try job
boards," agrees Marc Lewis, president, North America, for Stamford,
Conn.-based Morgan Howard Worldwide.
There are oodles of IT online job boards (see RealRates.com for a nice-sized list), and
everyone seems to prefer a different one. So do some shopping around,
and start posting your résumé to the online outlets that look most
promising--you don't have anything to lose but your free-agent status.
As it is for other tech job-related services, Dice.com is
highly regarded for its search function, which can narrow down by
location the 50,000 or so jobs it usually has posted.
Job fairs
Yes, they're forced, corny, overcrowded meat markets. But job fairs can
also be lucrative if you play them right. "Companies don't typically
invest in attending job fairs if they aren't actively recruiting," says
Hudson. "But there is still no better way to find out about a company
that you know is hiring or that you're interested in. Plus, they get to
meet you."
Keep in mind, however, that general-profession job fairs are usually a
huge haystack with very few needles. If you're going to go, make sure
the one you've got your eye on is at least somewhat geared toward your
profession--or, if it isn't, scan the list of exhibitors to see if any
attractive potential employers will be in attendance.
Job fairs in your area are usually heavily advertised, but for a
national schedule, sites such as JobExpo.com have
explicit details about upcoming fairs, down to exhibitor lists and
driving directions.
Agencies and recruiters
Staffing services and agencies are no longer for serial temps and
big-dollar earners only. Most metro areas now have at least one agency
devoted to matching up tech employers with job seekers.
A typical example is Seattle-based CSR Tech Services, which maintains a
database of 20,000 workers in every imaginable area of high-tech who can
be counted on when the right employer comes a-calling with a temporary
or long-term vacancy. Best of all, as with almost all staffing services,
the employer pays all associated costs. Odds are good that a similar
agency resides near you, even if its focus isn't on IT.
"Agency recruiters know their clients, they know the industry and they
know how to polish up your résumé and get it in front of the companies
who are hiring," says Hudson. "To maximize their effectiveness, however,
you should stick with just one firm instead of trying to cast a broader
net by working with multiple agencies. The fastest way to make a
recruiter not want to help you is to tell them you're working with four
or five different firms."
Keep looking
The brewing baby-boomer labor shortage that's often
touted seems to be a myth in the tech world--IT is still a young
person's game in many ways, and the mass exodus of retirees won't come
for a while yet. That means tech job seekers have to be more creative
than the average bear.
The main thing is to use the job-seeking method that feels right for
you. Perhaps the most potent job-seeking recipe is a custom mixture of
the above methods, plus a few secret tricks of your own.
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