Around 160 million people are employed in the USA, but 4.10% of people are still unemployed. When applying for a job, it can be difficult to stand out against the competition, but it’s not impossible. No matter the industry, recruiters are looking for specific traits when hiring. This article will cover what recruiters really look for when hiring new talent. Let’s take a look.
Relevant Experience and Skills
Relevant skills and experience is important to any recruiter. Depending on the industry and job you’re applying for will determine how much your experience and skills will sway their vote. Most recruiters look for a combination of the following:
- Hard skills: Hard skills refer to more technical and specific skills which are required for a job. For example; if you’re applying for a job as a website developer, a hard skill would be your ability to code.
- Soft skills: Soft skills are skills in line with teamwork, problem-solving and communication. These skills are essential for businesses because they need to know you can work together with other employees.
- Assessment techniques: Some recruiters will create pre-employment assessments to test your ability to perform simple but important tasks in relation to the job. Sometimes these will be shown as practical exercises, questionnaires, or a written test. Assessments give recruiters a chance to see how you do under pressure.
While not every job will require hard skills, a lot of employers will require the soft skills and assessment techniques. Keep this in mind when applying for jobs depending on the industry you’re interested in.
Background Checks
Some jobs, such as daycare, firefighters, aged care, support workers, and other employment opportunities where you’re in a position of interacting with vulnerable individuals or the community, require background checks. Depending on the job you’re applying for a background check could include:
- Criminal record check: This check will bring up any criminal activity you’ve been associated with that is on police record.
- Social media checks: This will allow employers to see how you conduct yourself online. Some businesses take online reputation very seriously and a potential candidate with a poor history of abusive posts may be a red flag for a recruiter.
- Employment background checks: This can involve the recruiter calling your references on your resume to validate your employment background, how you conducted yourself during that time, and your work ethic.
- Education verification checks: Some employers may require a certain degree in order to be employed. Doctors, nurses, and childcare specialists, for example, all require set certificates and degrees in order to qualify for the position.
As a potential employee you could set yourself apart by paying for your own background checks from sites such as Triton Canada, and supplying them to the recruiter during the application stage. The recruiter may like the initiative as it’ll save them time and money.
Professionalism and Reliability
Reliable and professional employees are long term employees. These traits are categorized in the following way:
- Professionalism: This can include how you communicate, your appearance and how you dress, as well as your punctuality.
- Reliability: This is determined if you show up to work on time, if you get deadlines done in time, and whether you take on new tasks when asked without questioning, arguing, or refusing.
A recruiter sometimes can assess this through pre-employment assessments, tests, questionnaires or reference checks. Failure to complete a test, for example, can show you’re not a reliable person.
Passion and Enthusiasm
Your passion and enthusiasm will also be looked at when applying for a job. Recruiters will sometimes look at these key traits to determine your level of enthusiasm for the job.
- Passion: This is about whether you have degrees, skills and an interest in the position you’re applying for.
- Enthusiasm: Whether you’ve researched their company, what they do and the services they provide to get a better understanding of their business. They’ll take note if you ask questions about them and their company as this shows you’ve taken an interest in them as well.
Your passion and enthusiasm, along with many other personal qualities, can lead to a higher engagement from the recruiter and it may also allow you to perform better during an interview.
Endnote
Vying for a position in any industry can be tough. Make yourself stand out from the competition by taking initiative and showing your future employer why they should choose you. Don’t be afraid to learn, grow and upskill yourself as this will give you a higher chance of being successful in your employment journey.
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