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Targeting Your Job Search

In the now 13 years that I have been a coach, concentrating on helping those in job search with their strategies and approaches to their job search, admittedly there have been newer innovations that have become part of the process.   Linked In which certainly existed when I started this work, continues to grow in its importance in providing one a professional presence on social media.   Automated tools, such as Artificial Intelligence and software that compares your resume to the job description have become part of the process.  Most jobs are required to be applied for online, meaning the completion of long and arduous application forms in many cases.

One thing that while not spoken about much, that I believe is an essential part of the search, is being able to very finely define that which you want in your next job.  That was defined to me when I did my studies to be a career coach, and even today, can best be labelled “TARGETING” one’s job search.  Targets allow one to focus their search to specific opportunities, industries, ways of working and sizes of companies.  It is the direct opposite of applying for every opportunity that one sees, and just hope that they are the one selected for a possible interview for that role.

While targeting may sound like a lot of work (and it is), I am seeing with the clients with whom I have been working, it still be a very effective approach.  A recent client who for years has worked in food manufacturing discipline as a process engineer, would during his search, look to find 1 or 2 opportunities a week that matched well to his skills.  He put all his efforts in ensuring his resume wording aligned to the wording of the job description.  When reaching out to recruiters or talent acquisition personnel, he could be very precise in what he offered the role, and how it aligned with what he had done in his career to date.  He came very close to being a candidate selected for one opportunity, and shortly after that was quickly contacted for another with a different firm.  He started in the month of January 2025 on the next chapter in his career.

Of what does a target consist in job search?  It can be broken down into 3 broad areas.  What are the job roles/functions, for which I am most qualified based on my skills and experiences?  The second component becomes, which industries are looking for those type of skill sets?  And, the 3rd component is where are those opportunities located geographically.  Even these 3 broad components have added nuances to them over the years I have been a coach.

For example, the geographic component, while still an important factor, does not always require the individual doing the role to live in the geographic area the organization is located.  Remote work opportunities have become far more possible.  While saving companies on relocation costs of individuals, they also may require those performing the roles to be in the office only maybe a few days a week or a few days a month.  The type of industry option has also seen the dawn of many different types of companies, (both sizes and specialties) than may have existed over 10 years ago.  Some of this is due to technological advances.  Other reasons for it, is capital being focused by industries to solve specific problems in the market place, as opposed to being a provider of services and resources to all that are out there.  The number of possible permutations of the three factors continues to grow as the years go on.

Will some job seekers find using the targeting approach frustrating? Absolutely they will.  May it mean that one may have to understand if there are individual certifications and skill trainings they must pursue.  Yes, that is likely also.  However, the more finely you can define the type of job function(s) that you are able to perform, the audience(s) and clients whose need you meet and your ability to do so working in a style that both supports your preferences and the preferences of those for who you perform your work, will assist you in moving a job search forward that can be both fruitful and one where you have more “control” of the outcome.