In a field so crowded, how do you stand out from the pack? How do you set yourself apart and show employers you really are the best person for the job? Before hitting the submit button on your application, take a look at the five attributes of the best hires and make sure you’re positioning yourself as a top-notch candidate:
Creative
With the field so intense, creativity might just be the answer to standing out from the crowd and getting hiring managers to notice you. All companies need creative hires—these are the people who dream up big ideas and come up with new solutions to old problems. Fostering creativity is the reason tech giants like Google offer their 20 percent time program so employees can work on new concepts.
Good Communicators
Every company, whether it builds apps or bakes apple pies, needs to be staffed with good communicators. Communication skills are necessary in all aspects of business life, whether you’re speaking to a client or writing an email to a colleague. Showing off your communication skills in the application process is a smart way to brand yourself as a great candidate. One smart way to show off your communication skills is to record a video resume: on video, you can talk about your qualifications and experience, while also showing off your ability to communicate and your confidence. Anyone can list “superior communication skills” on a resume, but video resumes force you to back up your claims.
Team Players
No matter how smart, capable, or creative a candidate is, it’s all moot if they don’t fit into the company culture. Employers are looking for candidates who will be excited to come into the office every morning. No-one wants to hire a superstar who will soon start searching for an exit strategy. Employee turnover can be extremely costly, so it’s important to position yourself as a candidate who will fit into the company culture with ease. Do some research into the company, review their website, and scan their social media. Find out what the organizational environment and values are like, and be sure to explain in the application process why you’re the perfect fit for the company. You know you’d be a great fit for the team, so help employers understand why you’re the right person for the job.
Highly Skilled
The skills gap is a big problem for companies looking to hire workers with specialized skills: a recent survey by Towers Watson showed 70 percent of employers are having a hard time finding the critical skill employees they need. Whether the job you’re looking for is in media or in tech, it’s important to highlight and underline your critical skills. Use your social profiles, online channels, and even video in order to show off what you can do. Show concrete examples by putting together an online work portfolio or starting an industry-specific blog. Show employers you possess the critical skills they need in their open positions and you’ll be likely to rise to the front of the pack.
Passionate
The final, and perhaps most important ingredient, is passion. Employers know that the best hires are truly passionate about their industry, their jobs, and their company. It’s not merely fitting into the corporate culture—it’s being excited to get up in the morning and go into work. It’s being thrilled by the challenges presented and looking forward to finding the best solutions. It’s important that you show off your genuine career passion in the application process, as this attribute is more vital than all the others. There are plenty of people with the same skills, the same qualifications, and the same experience as you, but there’s no-one with the same amount of passion. Use the application process to show employers how passionate you are, whether it’s in a video resume, through a blog post, or on social media. Employers want passionate employees, so don’t be afraid to show how much you care. It’s not easy to stand out from a packed field of contenders, which is why you need to consider the attributes employers are looking for, and show off these top qualities as early in the hiring process as possible. This way you’ll nab your dream job and become the company’s dream employee. What are some ways you show off these top attributes? What do you think employers are looking for? Share in the comments!
