Networking with recruitment agents
In Australia, recruitments agencies are generally gatekeepers to jobs. This is an extra layer of barrier that migrants must navigate around and succeed. Once you have them on your side, your chances will be better.
Recruitment agencies advertise specific positions in newspapers and on employment websites on behalf of employers. You know this by the lack of employer details in their job advertisements because employers don’t want to deal directly with job seekers.
If you noticed that one recruiter is advertising several positions in your area of expertise or chosen industry, contact them to discuss your career plans and register your interest for upcoming opportunities.
Recruiters are your gatekeepers
These agents can sift out good and bad candidates very easily because of their expertise. When you pass their ‘test’, they will forward your application to the potential employer for review and if accepted, an interview.
To earn their fees, they will want to make sure that only the best-short-listed candidates are passed on to their client – that’s their job.
But if the agent doesn’t support your application, it is game over for you!
Get recruiters on your side
Your best bet to secure a job is to work with an agency that specialises in your area, industry or expertise. Arrange for a coffee catch up with them – you must pay for it!
It is best to present yourself in person to them so that they know who you are. Having a face-to-face conversation with them and selling your skills and experience to them will be your prime objective. In their minds, they are also ensuring that there is a cultural fit with their client and you are what the client is looking for.
Networking through LinkedIn
Connect with people in your industry through LinkedIn, Twitter and other social media. Be careful of what you post online as prospective employers may see a side of you that convinces them to not hire you. Potential employers or recruiters do check your social media activities!
Get an account on LinkedIn, if you don’t already have one. Think of it as Facebook for work. Complete your entire LinkedIn profile by listing your skills, experience, and employers.
It’s your online resume where you can link your LinkedIn profile to your resume.
You can even write professional articles on LinkedIn showcasing your experience and authority.
Get job leads via LinkedIn
Depending on your industry or job title, you can get job leads via LinkedIn.
You can reach out and connect with potential employers or professionals to establish friendships first. Ask them about their job and how they see their job market.
When appropriate, tell them about your job situation. Be natural when asking about potential job vacancies that they know about. It may not be specific to their organisation as they may know of other people looking for people.
Asking for job referrals, if appropriate
You should always go out of your way to get a warm introduction.
Once you’ve established a genuine relationship with a person whom you met online or face-to-face tell them about the job opening you are interested in and ask if they can recommend you.
At least, this will ensure that your resume will get read.
While it may not guarantee you the job, the fact that your resume came through a recommendation from someone within the organisation can play a significant role in getting your first interview. That is why your communication skills must be good enough to sell yourself and what you can do for the employer.
Like recruitment agents, these people who can recommend you to the hiring managers are your gatekeepers. If they don’t think you are qualified or don’t fit their values and culture, they will not make that recommendation.
People can find you on LinkedIn
Potential employers and recruiters can search for potential candidates on LinkedIn. They may find you via your LinkedIn profile if it matches what they are looking for.
That is why your LinkedIn profile is so important as if it is your online resume.
Ask for a LinkedIn endorsement
To enhance your LinkedIn profile, contact your previous employers or managers to ask if they can give feedback about you and your skills on LinkedIn. It’s a powerful way of creating online credibility that others can see.
Online recommendations are a great way to provide future employers with an insight into the person they might be hiring by knowing you more.
Join industry LinkedIn groups
One of the best ways to meet people online is to join relevant LinkedIn groups. This is where recruiters or people in your industry hang out.
Once you’ve joined a few groups, read and contribute to the discussions. You can also start discussions of your own by posing a question or posting articles of interest to the group.
As part of the current paradigm of job search, this is about building your online brand and expertise.
Networking through Facebook
The power of Facebook in finding jobs should not be underestimated.
I know of migrants who secured their jobs even before arriving into Australia by responding to posts of employers looking to hire people in a community Facebook group. Community groups like “Malaysians in Melbourne” and business groups do offer a lot of avenues and leads for you to seek out job opportunities.
You can also use these Facebook groups to ask questions about jobs and living in Australia. Get advice from the people who have done it before. Seek job referrals.
Professional and trade associations
Professional and trade associations represent the interests of their members. They provide networking opportunities, business advice and support, training and education and advocacy on behalf of the industry or profession they represent.
Being a member of a professional or trade organisation is useful, especially when you are looking for jobs. They advertise jobs that may not be in the newspapers or on general job seeker websites.
Finding a job with no local experience
There are often many stages and hurdles before you even get an interview. As a migrant trying to break into the local job market, the barriers of entry are much higher.
Be persistent in your job search and hang in there. It may take weeks, months or even years.
Accept the fact that you most likely need to take a step or two back to get a foot in the door and gain the essential Australian experience before ever moving forward.
If you need a job just to pay the bills, then you can just apply for any jobs that you can perform competently. But if you want to continue your career in Australia and climb the corporate ladder, then you need to work harder for this to materialise.
Be truthful that you don’t have local experience
Tell people that you don’t have local experience and that you should still be given a chance. Convince hiring managers by what you have done where showing rather than telling is required for you to secure a job.
Play on your strengths
Highlight your diverse skills and experiences of working in different countries, with multinational organisations and multicultural teams. These are transferable skills that you must capitalise and highlight in your resume and cover letter.
Overseas migrants can bring different perspectives and experiences into the local team and environment.
In organisations where diversity is celebrated, your skills and experience may be an advantage to you.
Get transferred within the same organisation
If you work for a global organisation with local offices in Australia, then this is the best option where you can request for a job transfer to Australia doing the same or similar job.
Get hired in these organisations when you are overseas. Playing your cards right will be the key for you to migrate and secure a job before landing in Australia.
This is the ideal way to get a job where you may need to recalibrate your salary expectations for the local job market. Be flexible and be prepared to invest in your relocation, especially if your employer does not provide any relocation benefits.
Go part-time, casual, contracting
Try looking for contracting work on Gumtree where it allows anyone to post job advertisements for free. Smaller organisations, cafes, and shops that need temporary workers are more likely to post job vacancies on Gumtree.
Big job sites, like Seek and Career One, are filled with job advertisements from recruiters with very few options for temporary workers.
Work for cheap
If you want to do something in a field that you are new to, then you are going to earn it.
If you know that the starting salary is $25 per hour, offer to work for $15. Tell the employer that you expect your salary to be revisited in six months or a year.
Work for free
While it’s not ideal, free is everyone’s favourite four-letter word.
If your cover letter opens with “I’m looking for an opportunity to learn – and I’m available for free”, you are likely to at least grab attention.
Consider volunteering
Apply for volunteer work or internships to enter the job market. Please be mindful that this is different from unpaid work.
Volunteering provides a great opportunity for you to build your local experience while meeting new people and brushing up on your English skills if that’s an area of concern or weakness.
It will help you acquire new skills, learn about the Australian culture and meet new people. It demonstrates to recruiters that you are proactive. You can also ask for a reference after a while on the job, which is another positive for local recruiters.
Approach work experience in the same way you would any job search or networking activity. Research and preparing what you are going to ask before contacting the employer. Ensure that you have an updated resume ready.
Ways to find suitable voluntary work or work experience include:
(1) Directly approaching employers like Salvation Army or charitable organisations.
(2) Letting family and friends know that you are looking for a voluntary work experience role.
(3) Searching online for internships and volunteering opportunities.
For more information about volunteering and internships visit:
https://www.goodorganisation.com.au/default.aspx
https://www.volunteer.vic.gov.au/
https://www.volunteermatch.org/
https://www.volunteeringvictoria.org.au/
If you want to continue your career in Australia
This requires some strategising and planning on your part.
You could consider taking on any job just to pay the bills for the short-term or temporary basis. Then come back later to continue your career path when you do find a more suitable job that fits your career aspirations.
Unfortunately, I know of people where their ‘temporary job’ has become permanent as they have gravitated away from their professional intentions and career aspirations forever.
Be realistic in your expectations
Chances are that you will never have the same job title you once enjoyed in your home country. But there will be exceptions.
I know of a person who was a Chief Financial Officer of a medium-sized insurer in Asia. He expected to land himself into a job with the same job title in Australia. After many years, he has never found any job that matched his expectations!
Focusing on specific job titles
When you have decided on which direction you want to go in your career, design the appropriate strategy to achieve that objective.
Having multiple career objectives will confuse your target audience.
Bearing in mind that Australia is a very small employment market. Your resume for different positions may reach the same employer or recruiter. It will end up confusing them regarding your multiple work objectives.
Be prepared to make sacrifices to meet your career goals
You may need to do the relevant voluntary work in Australia to get the required ‘local experience’ and contacts that employers expect. This may require you to live off your savings for a while as you gain your local experience and until you land that job.
You may even try getting temporary or part-time work in the same or similar niche or job title. Once you get the temp work, work hard and try hard to exceed expectations. This will lead to more work. It will give you that local Australian experience that can lead to better long-term options.
Be focused on what local experience you want to build up including going back to university to acquire some local content or education.
Ultimately, you should be intentional in getting back on track with your career path to climb the Australian corporate ladder.