Recruitment: The End of Playtime for Candidates?

Due to the current economic slowdown, employers are less inclined to initiate major projects. They are more cautious about recruitment and think twice before hiring. After a grace period where the market favored candidates, they must now tighten their game.

Siva Martinez, CHRP, an employability and talent management specialist, issues this first warning:

“In a recession (even a small one), the balance of power between companies and job seekers changes. Individuals looking for a new position are obligated to invest more.”

Sarah Mongeau-Provençal, an orientation and employability advisor, adds to this point.

“We continue to see many job postings. However, there are also many candidates applying for these positions. In a balanced market, there is a form of competition among candidates. The priority for the candidate is then to stand out from the others if they want to be called for an interview.”

Here are some tips to stand out:

1. Clarify Your Offer

In a “balanced” market, Siva Martinez emphasizes the importance of being intentional and proactive in your approach.

“If I could give one piece of advice, it would be to reach out to employability assistance centers, orientation services, and private or public coaching, depending on individuals’ financial capacity. The goal will be to assess skills to find relevant offers matching the individual’s profile within the timeframe of the posted positions, and, with this exercise, better perform in interviews.”

2. Look Beyond the Usual

In a market where employers are less aggressive in advertising their positions, Sarah Mongeau-Provençal suggests revising how you search for new job opportunities.

“To stand out, it’s important to vary the places where you look for offers. Many job seekers visit generalist websites. I suggest visiting specialized sites by industry or professional function.”

This is also the time to remind about the existence of a “hidden” job market.

“One way to explore the hidden job market is to make a list of companies likely to hire us and submit a spontaneous application,” explains the advisor. “This allows us to anticipate a company’s needs.”

3. Personalize, Again and Again

Gone are the days of mass CV submissions. When you want to draw an employer’s attention to your application, you must prioritize precision.

“We must create a precise, concise, and concrete CV – for the targeted position,” says Sarah Mongeau-Provençal. “No generic CVs,” she insists. “Create a different CV for each type of job you want to apply for.”

Depending on the context, it may be relevant to include a cover letter to contextualize your application.

“In the social economy sectors, organizations tend to ask how we share the organization’s values and how we can contribute to its mission. We can also write a cover letter when we don’t have a typical profile for the position. For example, if we are changing careers.”

This letter, she clarifies, can also take the form of a “pitch email” or a message on LinkedIn.

4. Update Your Skills

If you’re receiving no responses after weeks of concerted efforts… don’t panic. Sarah Mongeau-Provençal suggests this:

“By comparing the offers we apply for with the experience listed in our CV, we may realize that we need to update our skills. We can then take short courses on specific skills.”