Sydney, Australia
(9th June 2009) 

Job seekers need to revamp to rejoin the work force

Leading recruitment specialist reveals job seekers are contributing to the economic slowdown with an ill-advised approach to new employment opportunities.

Cameron Recruitment, a leading recruitment and career placement agency has released a set of revealing findings that suggest job seekers are unconsciously sabotaging their own career prospects with a disturbing lack of basic recruitment etiquette.

According to a recent internal study conducted by Cameron Recruitment, many of Australia’s newly unemployed are ill equipped to handle the rigours of the recruitment process due to the fact that they have enjoyed successive employment for many years or they have been caught off guard due to sudden retrenchment, redundancy or business collapse.

“Up to 90% of résumés that cross a recruiter’s or HR manager’s desk are not up to scratch and are not a selling document,” claims Cameron Recruitment director Diane Humphries.

Ms Humphries states that the disturbing rise in an unprofessional approach to job seeking is making the recruitment process more complex than necessary for candidates during times where job placements are becoming highly competitive at every level due to scarcity.

”Now is not the time to be taking a haphazard approach to preparing your cv or practising for interviews,” Ms Humphries warns job seekers. “The sudden surge in qualified and talented executives in the job market means the bar has to be raised to its highest level in pursuing and securing your next position. This means being armed with a strong and vibrant cv and delivering a high performance interview presentation.”
Of the most common errors, Ms Humphries highlights that résumés are:

1. Too long
2. Littered with grammar and spelling errors
3. Lacking attention to detail on dates and chronological order
4. Omitting vital information such as phone numbers, email addresses or qualifications      
5. Stylistically lacking engagement with poor structure and layout

While in the interview arena, Ms Humphries claims there is a serious lack of experience and inherent issues that need to be addressed across all age demographics. “This down turn has hit the entire work force not just a certain demographic and as such, the skill sets required to find new work are far more challenging.”

For instance the most recent group to enter the employment market, Gen Y, is perhaps most well prepared to go through the recruitment process.  Yet they are perceived as “job hoppers” and are not attune to job insecurity in the same way Gen X would be, nor have they paid attention to currency in a well constructed cv. “These subtle generational attitudes come across loud and clear in the interview room,” Ms Humphries warns, “and stigmatises candidates in job procurement”.

Meanwhile at the other end of the employment spectrum, the baby boomer generation, although highly experienced and qualified, are lacking the modern technology tools to allow them maximum visibility to a prospective employer.

“Certainly baby boomers are largely not hooking into networking sites, even though more and more are joining Linked In - perceived as the business networking site, they are not using it adequately as their digital calling card,” Ms Humphries states.

In the interview arena Ms Humphries nominates 5 basic key areas that need to be addressed:

1. Conquering nerves  
2. Learning pace, posture and the art of presentation
3. Being prepared and knowing your own job history thoroughly
4. Responding to the job specification
5. Articulating strengths and achievements

Cameron Recruitment’s advisory arm Cameron Careers has devised a series of half day, highly targeted seminars across Sydney and Canberra to help candidates make the most of the recruitment process. “The demand for credible advice and guidance is overwhelming,” says Ms Humphries. She explains that the courses were created as a direct result of requests from job seekers who have been disappointed by their own performance in job interviews and perplexed as to why they were not “getting the job”.

 “I strongly urge candidates to invest some time in this crucial plank to their next career move and ensure that every job opportunity is met with your maximum personal potential,” Ms Humphries added.

For further details please visit www.cameronrecruitment.com.au/training_information.htm