Unique jobs require uniquely fitting people

Lately I have been asked by a very good friend to help him land a job. This is a very tricky thing to ask. The Italian job market is hard and multilayered. Superficially it may look like there are more people looking for a job, than available jobs. But when you look and listen closer, you may notice that the market is hungry for right people at the right place. In the 90s, when I entered the job market, there were jobs that could be fit by many people. At that time you could group people into profiles. Nowadays, jobs are fragmented. Many unique jobs require many uniquely fitting people. The uniqueness is defined by how well a company's culture fits with the candidate's personal motivation, ability to cope with continuous change, capability and willingness to challenge oneself. Last but not least personality. And yes, competence, too.

Nonetheless, hiring professionals and hiring companies still talk about "right profiles". My question is:

"In a market where context and tools change daily and where being different makes the difference, is there really a right profile, or shouldn't hiring professionals and companies better look for the right person?"

In the light of this person-centric way of seeing the job market, you may understand why, what I have been asked to help with, becomes "tricky". The fact that I have never landed a job by searching for a job, adds up to the trickiness. On the other hand, I surely have a solid experience in hiring (the right) people. I know some of you may find this arrogant, but there is method behind what I call "hiring (the right) people". I will tell you more about this in my next articles.

Strong of this background and confidence, I accepted the challenge to help my friend and am happy to share with you the process. In a deeply personal and almost intimate conversation, I guided him in defining his personal vision, mission and ambition. Defining vision, mission and ambition of a person is about defining the role the person wants to play in the job market, the way she wants to make a difference and the results she wants her customer to achieve. This takes place into two steps and requires to see oneself as a enabling factor, a self aware and self confident piece of a bigger puzzle.

1. First we filled out a table with given fields and options.

2. Then, with his answers, I formulated an empowering phrase by putting his answers into a specific order. These steps needed to be repeated a few times because he was not used to see himself under this light and when faced with the resulting empowering phrase, he felt the need to revise the original answers so until the final outcome felt bold and comfortable at the same time.

3. He then adjusted his CV to reflect the outcome of the new professional view point of himself.

4. I was now equipped with a strong message and was able to activate my network and to scan for the right company.

Leading companies need solid people more than solid profiles. People who know their role (vision) and have an openly declared agenda (mission, ambition). Profiles are inanimate and will not go the extra mile for the sake of it. Profiles pursue a career, people pursue results. The down side of this approach is that before landing the right job, you may collect closed doors or have very few interviews. But the few ones that you will have, will have been attracted by who you are and not ny your need to find a job.

Do not hesitate to contact me if you want to have more details about how to define your own vision, mission and ambition.

PS: I first personally went through this way of positioning oneself some weeks ago during a digital marketing congress held by Roberto Ceré and found it powerful and worth sharing.

#Hiring #HiringPractices #JobSearchStrategies