Great tip lostindust, I will give that a go.
Lost, I didn't think much of Linkedin until someone who specialises in headhunting through Linkedin spent an hour with me updating my profile and going through job searching and connection making.
It is actually a really powerful tool to network with and I can certainly see it being more and more important in the job search industry.
Also a lot of jobs are advertised through Linkedin and not on the main job sites.
Bunyip
Hi bunyip,
yep, dont underestimate the power of linkedin, im not a fan of social networking sites like facebook but when i was made redundant feb last year linkedin became mandatory for professional networking with recruitment mobs and potential employers, its the one place to list a detailed work history, your references from your fellow workmates and employer this provides feedback to the potential employer in whether to get you in for an interview, particular important in centain areas like IT industry that i work in. Of the last 2 years it has become an extremely difficult area to gain employment in with the onsalught of outsourcing, 457 visa holders particularly from india and surrounding countries. I considered myself lucky to have gotten a contract with my current employer that led to a permanent role there coming up which i was succesful in applying for.
A photo is an absolute must, i put a photo (my 2nd one) in a suit with hair just cut as i was going for an interview that day, i got more hits since then than my first photo that wasnt as professional looking in the first place. As they say a picture tells a thousand words.
What industry do you work in? Also apart from seek i kept an eye on applydirect, careerone, jobs.nsw.gov.au, snipey websites.
Lastly your resume is a living document so to speak, sometimes i had to customise certain sections of my previous roles to highlight meeting the skills that potential emploers were looking for, particularly if you were over qualified for the role, dumbed down the resume a little and highlighted those skills relevant to the role i was applying for, in the end i ended up getting into a lessor role than my previous job on slightly less salary then work my way back up to the sort of role i used to do, my skills lie in managing corporate enterprise networks and doing implementations, i ended back back in network operarions as step back but the amount of sites i now manage is 15 times the size that i used to manage and a hell of a lot more technology that i hadnt worked with before, so this has been a great learning experience for me.