Were you sidelined in your career – either voluntarily or involuntarily? Now might be the moment you are considering rejoining the workforce. Nearly 90% of career re-entry candidates are women, and women often face unique job search challenges. For more than 10 years, Spot On Talent’s team has been in the business of matching the best people to the best opportunities. Understand your goals clearly and know that we are invested in your success, whatever success looks like to you. Rejoining the workforce can happen for you and here are a few tips to get you started.
#1. Choose Your Path when rejoining the workforce
Examine where the intersection of your skills and your passions come together and you’ll have a clearer picture of your next move. Now is the perfect time to reassess your career goals and pursue a more individualized path for yourself, prior to jumping into the job search. There are many more choices for meaningful work structures available now – remote work, job sharing, part-time roles, flexible schedules, entrepreneurship and asynchronous roles.
Spot On Talent believes these non-traditional roles will continue to grow and accommodate more re-entry workers’ needs. So we recommend you ask for what you want! If you need a staggered start and end times to your day, some work-from-home if the job allows, or the opportunity to earn working from home, ask for it. If you prefer a shorter work week and are willing to take less money for it, let your prospective employer know.
#2. Laser-focus Your Resume
A well-thought-out resume is the ticket to your next career move. It’s important to examine the state of your resume and build an updated, current one, focused on the job you want next. Document your wins – making sure to include statistics. Have well-rehearsed anecdotal stories at the ready as well, that illustrate your value in a particular situation. Spiff up your LinkedIn profile and any website that represents a portfolio of your work. Be realistic if you’ve been out of the workforce for years – you won’t re-enter where you left. But you can present your experience in the most effective and modern ways to catch the attention of employers.
#3. Plug Into Your Network
It’s still who you know – or, who your friends know – that can get your foot in the door or even move you to the next level in an interview. Research the companies that you find interesting as potential employers, and use LinkedIn to discover who you already know that works there. Set up a weekly coffee with someone in your network every week during your job search. Be of service to them, ask questions about the company, culture or daily work they do.
People are ready and willing to help each other succeed and find meaningful work. Empathy is high, and kindness is flowing. Plug into your own network and discover all the opportunities and connections you never knew you had.
#4. Surround Yourself with Yay-Sayers when rejoining the workforce
Women are hard enough on themselves in a typical year – but women, and especially mothers who are the consummate multi-taskers all deserve a trophy. Keep reminding yourself of your stellar accomplishments, your perseverance and your fortitude. Surround yourself with a squad that echoes those sentiments. Don’t listen to that discouraging voice in your head. You need people who say “Yay!” every step of the way on your job search. Take their word for it – you are unique and will bring value to the employer you choose when rejoining the workforce.
#5. Up-skilling to Make a Killing
Are you missing one certification that would make your next career move possible? Do you need a refresher course on a technology platform or software? Now’s the time to identify what you need to add to your techstack and your toolbox and make it happen. The smartest employees are the ones are not afraid to seek out innovations, learn new skills and pivot. Curiosity, fearlessness and determination signal to potential employers that you are a serious candidate.
Read and research as much as you can about your chosen industry. Make sure you are up on the news, innovations and experts in your field so that you can hold your own in an interview or conversation about your industry.
Let’s Raise the Workforce Participation Rate Together
The current workforce participation rate for women in the US is 56.2%. While that might seem low, women have come a long way since 1920 when that percentage sat at 20%. And the participation rate of mothers with children under the age of 18 right now is a whopping 72.3%. Women, even mothers, are choosing to re-enter the workforce after taking a break – but more and more on their own terms. Our recruiting and placement resources are years in the making, we have been sharing tips and references since 2012. Please utilize our blog archive to search relevant topics to your job search or choose from the categories below.
