How to improve your chances of getting a job in a post COVID world

As we settle into an uncertain future, we’re all trying to work out what we need to do to adapt. To make sure we’re ready for the challenges we might face. If you’re looking for a new job or hoping to change roles in the near future, this adds an extra level of complexity - one that might seem particularly unwelcome right now! 

The good news is, there’s plenty that job-seekers can do to improve their chances of finding their dream role. Read on to discover some top tips for finding your perfect procurement and supply chain job in a post-COVID world.

Include skills in your application that are relevant to the current health crisis

Right now, recruiters will be looking for candidates who they feel can cope with the new ways of working that the pandemic has brought about. Even if you weren’t working when the crisis hit, try to demonstrate some of the new skills and resilient approaches you took to tackle the impact of COVID-19 on your job search and life in general. This could include identifying opportunities for upskilling or simply keeping positive and motivated. If you were working, tell recruiters about how you’ve been bringing different skills to your work; time management, coordinating remote workers, maintaining productivity etc. 

Incorporate these strengths into your application and your interview answers. Alongside reassuring your recruiter that you have the right approach, it also shows initiative, resilience, creativity and honesty. 

Look for ways to enhance your soft skills

It’s likely that in a world adapting to the impact of COVID-19 workers will need to improve their soft skills. These include collaboration, creative problem solving and negotiation. All skills which are vital for a successful procurement and supply chain professional. We already live in a digital world, of course, though our operations and communications will be conducted even more remotely in the future. 

For those in management positions, learning how to motivate and engage teams remotely will be critical. People in sales or customer relationship roles may have good remote working skills already, but those who usually excel in face-to-face meetings will need to get comfortable with pitching, negotiating and managing relationships across digital platforms. From my own experience, the best advice I can give here is to practice and workshop your skills. Practice with colleagues or in front of the mirror. Find ways to project and present well to a camera and how to bypass any distractions such as connectivity issues, or your cat wandering about in the background, with good grace. 

Get comfortable with remote working

Remote working is here to stay. So, it’s time to get comfortable with all aspects of working at home. This includes the technology involved with remote working, such as virtual meetings and interviews. It also means making sure you are comfortable with the whole concept of remote working. Alongside ensuring that you’ll be happy in your future roles, it is important to demonstrate this mindset and capabilities during the recruitment process. Recruiters are likely to be looking out for candidates who will flourish in this environment.

Another important element to consider is getting comfortable with presenting remotely. Job seekers are likely to be asked to present to prospective employers, or at the very least, answer questions engagingly during the interview process. For many, this can be a difficult task. The following tips can help you get it right: 

1. Check your tech beforehand. Make sure the connection is good, all your logins work, the microphone is on and all your viewing settings are saved. 
2. Prepare the room. Remove any clutter from the background, let the cat/dog out and adjust the lighting accordingly.
3. Try to treat the interview as if you were in the same room. Use open body language, maintain good eye contact, listen well, don’t speak too quickly and most importantly, be yourself. 

If you need some tips on remote working, take a look at our blog on top tips for working at home.

Plan for the future

We know this is a particularly tricky ask. One of the most unifying aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic is the fact that no one is really sure what the future brings, so how on earth do we plan for it? This is where your creative problem-solving skills come into play. The best any of us can do at this stage is to plan the best we can with the information we have and maintain a positive and flexible attitude to the future. Think about where the demand for work in procurement and supply chain will exist in the future and what you might need to do in order to prepare. Ideally, you’ll be able to focus on roles that are likely to be needed in the event of a variety of different scenarios - but, of course, that is not always going to be knowable or possible. 

We hope these tips for improving your chances of finding the perfect role in a post-COVID 19 world have been helpful. With so many what-ifs and unknowns, searching for jobs right now can be hard. At Bramwith we are doing all we can to support our candidates during this challenging time. If you need any advice on next steps or if you’d like us to help you find that perfect role, get in touch today. We’d love to help.