A Little Extra: 4 Steps to Stand Out in a Tough Job Market, with Kareem Rogers

With hundreds to thousands of applicants for the most desirable openings, you need your application materials to stand out. It’s not enough to submit a resume and cover letter; they have to be unique from the rest, says Find Your Dream Job guest Kareem Rogers. Kareem has a 4-step plan for standing out in this market, and it starts with networking. Use your network to find companies that are hiring or to get referrals. Kareem also suggests making a list of things that differentiate you from other applicants and adding those to a well thought-out cover letter. 

About Our Guest:

Kareem Rogers is a recruiter, a career coach, and the owner of the HR Depot.

Resources in This Episode:

• Want your resume to stay at the top of the pile? Let Kareem help you; find out more at his website, HR Depot.
• Connect with Kareem  on LinkedIn.

Transcript

Find Your Dream Job, Episode 467:

A Little Extra: 4 Steps to Stand Out in a Tough Job Market, with Kareem Rogers

Airdate: September 11, 2024

Mac Prichard:

This is Find Your Dream Job, the podcast that helps you get hired, have the career you want, and make a difference in life.

I’m your host, Mac Prichard. I’m also the founder of Mac’s List. It’s a job board in the Pacific Northwest that helps you find a fulfilling career.

Every Wednesday, I talk to a different expert about the tools you need to get the work you want.

In every career, there’ll be times when you face more competition for fewer jobs.

When this happens, you need strategies that give you an edge over your competitors.

Kareem Rogers is here to talk about four extra steps you can take to stand out in a tough job market.

He’s a recruiter, a career coach, and the owner of the HR Depot.

Kareem’s company improves the quality of life of job seekers through resume and coaching services.

He joins us from Chicago, Illinois.

Well, let’s jump right into it, Kareem. We’re talking about the extra steps that you can take to stand out in a tough job market and let’s start with a strategic question because many candidates don’t take these extra steps. Instead, they choose a strategy that focuses on only applying for jobs. They don’t network, they don’t do informational interviews, they don’t ask others for help.

What do you think of this approach, both as a recruiter and as a career coach, of just sending out applications and not doing anything else?

Kareem Rogers:

While I understand why a lot of job seekers do it, because that’s what we’re usually told to do when finding a job, and it’s not what’s going to give you the most value. It’s not going to increase the likelihood of you landing the job because I’m a huge proponent of this: if everyone is doing the same thing that you’re doing, how do you stand out?

In today’s market it’s a very competitive field right now. A lot of people are looking for many jobs, so when it comes to the job search, remember, it is a process, and so if it’s a process, there are so many different strategies that you can utilize to increase the likelihood of you landing a job because since it is such a competitive market out here, you have to think of different ways to make you stand out and as someone who has recruited for the last two years, I have seen many job seekers utilize many different strategies to help them stand out and some of them have been effective.

I really think that if a lot of job seekers understand these strategies, they could utilize to increase their likelihood, then they would definitely get more interviews, more job offers, more opportunities in general, overall.

Mac Prichard:

We’re going to talk about those extra steps in a moment, and you’ve already outlined some of the benefits, more interviews, more offers. What about job search length of time, Kareem? In your experience, both as a recruiter and as a career coach, if all you’re doing is sending out applications, are you going to have a longer or shorter job search compared to your competitors?

Kareem Rogers:

I would definitely say it varies. In my opinion, I would argue that it would take a longer process because, like I said, a lot of people who are applying for jobs, some of them may be more qualified than you, or they may have other advantages, so if the only thing you’re doing is applying for jobs I’m not saying that you won’t get a job, period, but you are limiting the likelihood of you getting a job in general.

If I was a job seeker, I would definitely say, utilize many different strategies, instead of just applying for a job, and that’s it.

Mac Prichard:

What stops candidates, in your experience, from doing more than sending out applications? Is it because they don’t know how to do it or fear? What’s been your experience?

Kareem Rogers:

From my experience, it’s a lot of factors, some of which you said. For one, a lot of job seekers are not taught how to increase the likelihood of getting interviews and offers. I can say from my experience, I’ve only really been taught, just apply for a job and wait to hear back from them. If you don’t hear anything, that means that they don’t want you.

Like I said, I’m not saying that that’s wrong, but it really limits the other information that is available to job seekers to inform them on what strategies they can utilize to receive more job opportunities.

Also, it’s fear. Some people, when they know that other job seekers are applying for a job, I don’t know if you’ve seen it on LinkedIn, but you’ll see a job application or a job posting, and it will say how many people applied or over hundreds of people applied. It really demotivates people to apply for jobs because they may feel that they may not be qualified compared to the other applicants.

For some people, too, there’s just a big confidence in themselves, where they feel like, “I know that I am a qualified candidate or a qualified job seeker. With jobs, they should be the ones to reach out to me.” And I have had those conversations with people looking for jobs where they say, “Well if they want me, they should seek me out.”

Don’t get me wrong, as recruiters, we are proactive in looking for ideal job seekers for the openings that we are recruiting for, but at the same time, I would not recommend just waiting to hear from someone. It works both ways. Yes, recruiters are trying to be proactive at finding job seekers, but as a job seeker, you also have to be proactive yourself in order to find the job that you want.

Mac Prichard:

Well, let’s talk about how to be proactive. You’ve got four recommendations that you make; you call it, “The Little Extra,” steps you can take to stand out in a tough job market. The first one on your list, Kareem, is to get your network on your side. What do you have in mind here, and why is it important to do this?

Kareem Rogers:

I will say this, I don’t care what industry you work in, what’s your job, et cetera. Networking is one of, if not the most important, skills that you need to have in your professional career. There’s a saying, I know we’ve all heard it, “It’s not what you know. It’s who you know.”

If you are a job seeker and you are looking for job openings, reach out to your network. Find people who you know that may have connections with who are looking for professionals in whatever field you are in. If you don’t have those networks, seek those networks. That could just speak for LinkedIn specifically.

What a lot of people do that I’ve noticed on LinkedIn is they create their LinkedIn page, and they only apply for jobs. That is one function of LinkedIn but what’s so amazing about LinkedIn is you have the ability to connect with so many people on LinkedIn that you need to take advantage of that. There are people, ??? HR person, there are people in the HR field that have more experience, that may have connections to people in other companies you’re applying for, or who just may help you in general.

If you utilize that networking opportunity and you actually gain a connection with them, you’ll be surprised by how far they’re willing to go with you. A prime example, I know someone who, during the interview process, they had the opportunity to network with someone who was part of ERG.

Mac Prichard:

Can you tell us what that acronym means?

Kareem Rogers:

Employer Resource Group; those are usually the groups of employers within the organization. Whether it’s based on ethnicity, based on career development, et cetera. Basically, what this company did is that they gave the candidates the opportunity to network with someone from an ERG if they wanted to. Since that person connected with this individual from an ERG, and they actually had a position in the company, the person liked them so much that they put in a good word of them to the recruiter.

Something as small as that can work to your advantage if you utilize your network correctly.

Mac Prichard:

What advice do you have for someone who’s not sure who to reach out to in their network and how to find them, and what to ask for? What’s your best advice there?

Kareem Rogers:

If we are speaking specifically on LinkedIn, I would first say, think about what type of role or what your long-term career goal is. Say your career goal is to be a software engineer, a manager, a CEO, or a CHRO. Once you figure that out, just do a search on LinkedIn. See who currently possesses those positions that you’re looking for. Once you see someone who you ideally want to reach out to, reach out to them. Introduce yourself, say who you are, say why you’re messaging them, and ask, “Hey, is it possible that we can have a conversation?”

Now, will that always be successful? No. There may come a time that people do not respond to your request; that’s okay. In that case, try to find other people that may be willing to help you.

Here’s another thing that you can do: find groups. There are a lot of organizations, a lot of groups, whose intention is to provide mentorship to people who are trying to get connections or just people to guide them. If you seek those mentorship groups or those organizations, then you will be able to find like-minded people, or people who are more experienced that are willing to help you.

Mac Prichard:

Let’s pause here, Kareem, and take a break. I want to dig into more of this in the second segment.

Stay with us. When we come back, Kareem Rogers will continue to share his advice on four extra steps you can take to stand out in a tough job market.

We’re back in the Mac’s List studio. I’m talking with Kareem Rogers.

He’s a recruiter, a career coach, and the owner of the HR Depot.

Kareem’s company improves the quality of life of job seekers through resume and coaching services.

He joins us from Chicago, Illinois.

Now, Kareem, before the break, we were talking about four extra steps that you recommend to stand out in a tough job market. The first one on your list was to get your network on your side, and you gave us specific examples of how to do this, specifically working on LinkedIn.

I want to talk more about LinkedIn at the end of this segment because it’s also on your list of four extra steps to stand out.

Let’s go to number two, which is to think about things that make you stand out. What are you thinking here? How does a candidate do this?

Kareem Rogers:

This is definitely for candidates who just graduated or people who do side projects. If you’ve done a project, if you’ve accomplished something in your classroom, or something that if a recruiter or hiring manager saw it and would be impressed, I highly recommend bringing that up during the interview process, or you can post it on your LinkedIn page, as well, because it’s those little things that may make someone curious to learn more about you.

Mac Prichard:

Can you give us some quick examples? You mentioned side projects, work in a classroom, but doesn’t this also apply to professionals, wherever they might be in their career?

Kareem Rogers:

Oh, certainly. Say, for example, you are a part of an organization like Toast Masters, and in Toast Masters, for those of you who do not know, it is a nonprofit organization that helps you with your leadership and public speaking.

If you’ve gained certain things, as in a leadership development program, where you’re helping young people learn to be better at communication and public speaking, or if you’ve been an area director where you’re responsible for a whole district and making sure that they accomplish their goals, little things like that will really make you stand out because it shows that you’ve done more outside of the job than inside.

Little things like that will really make you stand out as a job seeker and make someone interested.

Mac Prichard:

You make that list, and you’ve mentioned perhaps featuring it in your LinkedIn page. What else can you do with these accomplishments, whether it was in the classroom or a side business, or in your professional work, to help you stand out to recruiters and employers? Where else can you share that information?

Kareem Rogers:

A website. If you create a website where you showcase your work, say you’re someone who does design, or maybe you’re a software engineer, and you want to show off some of your codes. A website would be a great place to showcase that work because I do know that on some applications, and even on your resume, you can post a link to your website, and if recruiters and hiring managers see that, that can also make them more curious to learn more about you.

A website is also an important place where you can showcase some of your side projects or your work.

Mac Prichard:

The third of your four steps that you recommend for standing out in a tough job market is to do what other candidates don’t do. What do you have in mind here, Kareem? Can you give us some examples?

Kareem Rogers:

One is a cover letter, and it’s funny because I used to be an advocate of the idea that cover letters are worthless. No. Cover letters are very effective because it actually provides more information about you that a resume or application may not be able to tell you, so definitely creating an effective cover letter.

Another thing, too, are 30, 60, 90-day plans. What 30, 60, 90-day plans are is you’re essentially letting the recruiter and hiring manager know what your plans are the first 30-90 days once you are starting at a job. I can tell you from experience, as a recruiter, hiring managers love that. Especially if you really thought this out in showing what your plans are.

Small things like that and just going a little bit above and beyond really makes you stand out.

Mac Prichard:

Well, let’s dive into both of those topics. First, cover letters: If you’re active online, there’s a constant debate about whether cover letters are a good idea or not. What changed your mind as a recruiter, Kareem, that you now recommend cover letters to candidates?

Kareem Rogers:

You know, I think that for me, for one, it was never a universal thought. One was talking to some of my colleagues about why they thought cover letters were very effective, and I think that the main thing is that we have to realize that cover letters just provide more information about, maybe, a person’s personality, about what they’re passionate about, what they’re looking for.

I think what it is with some recruiters because we’re already looking at the resume and the applications, we sometimes overlook the cover letters, but the cover letter may provide more information that we may not have thought about. Say they did something that they didn’t put on their resume. Say they won a public speaking contest or a case competition or something like that.

They may not have put that on their resume, but they probably put it on their cover letter. Cover letters are just that little extra information that may make you be more interested in that candidate if you give it a chance.

Mac Prichard:

You mentioned doing a 30, 60, and 90-day plan for an employer. When should a candidate prepare this, and how do you get the information that you need to do it effectively?

Kareem Rogers:

Personally, I say you submit it with the application. From my experience, with applications that I’ve seen, of course, they ask you to submit your resume, and usually, they’ll ask you as an option to submit your cover letter, but they’ll ask, “Are there additional documents that you want to submit?” I usually recommend submitting the 30, 60, 90-day plan with that information because you never know who’s reading that.

I mean, if you want to, you can wait til you’re being interviewed, but I prefer putting it there because you never know who’s going to see that. Like I said, from my personal example, and that’s what made me realize how effective they are, I have had meetings with hiring managers where they’ll tell me, “Hey, I saw this person’s application. I see they have a 30, 60, 90-day plan. I love the information they’ve got on there.”

Where to find it, as well, I’d say it depends on the research you’ve done. Research on the company, research on the job function, research on maybe what some feedback is from the people who currently work there. Use that information to create a thought-out 30, 60, 90-day plan to really show how serious you are about trying to attain this job.

Mac Prichard:

The fourth and final recommended extra step on your list of ways to stand out in a tough job market is to be active on LinkedIn. You’ve talked a lot about LinkedIn, in both the first and now in this second segment. Why do you keep coming back to LinkedIn as a way to stand out, Kareem?

Kareem Rogers:

LinkedIn, as a recruiter, is my best friend. What I mean by that is, and I think if I recall, there was a study that said this, and it may have changed, but if I recall, 95% of recruiters use LinkedIn to find job seekers. I can tell you from my personal experience, I use LinkedIn a lot to find job seekers because, as I told you, we are very proactive as well in trying to find our ideal candidates.

What I mean by that, since this is where recruiters usually go to find job seekers, you may want to use LinkedIn to showcase why you stand out as a job seeker overall, and if you stand out, a recruiter will most likely reach out to you about the job openings they have.

Mac Prichard:

LinkedIn can be overwhelming. There’s so much that you can do, and there’s only so much time in the day. Do you have a short list of things that you recommend a job seeker absolutely do on LinkedIn, and how much time does it take to do that in a typical week?

Kareem Rogers:

There’s a plethora of things. I definitely recommend posting content. If you’ve accomplished something, if you’ve attended an important event, if you want to showcase some of your expertise and some of your projects, you can post it on LinkedIn.

Engaging with other people’s content. For example, there are some people in HR, people who are just professionals who post content on LinkedIn, so engaging with their content, liking their content, commenting on their posts. It increases the likelihood that they’ll start to notice you and say, “Hey, this person regularly comments on my stuff.”

Actually, I think I’ve seen the same way with companies, too. If you regularly engage with their content, the company does take notice of that. LinkedIn lets them know, “This person regularly engages with your content.”

In terms of time, in terms of thinking about it, it may take time, but one thing that’s beautiful about LinkedIn, especially in the context of creating content, posting content, it gives you the ability to schedule your content in advance.

If you already have an idea of what content you want to post on LinkedIn to start to garner attention from recruiters, hiring managers, maybe professionals from whatever company you’re in, you can start posting that content in advance, so that when it is posted, you are probably already doing something else if that’s what you want to do.

I definitely recommend being active on LinkedIn because a lot of people have received opportunities just for being active on there.

Mac Prichard:

Terrific. Well, it’s been a great conversation, Kareem. Tell us, what’s next for you?

Kareem Rogers:

Yeah, so I am currently writing a book called “7 Second Resume.” It is a book that provides job seekers resume tips on how to optimize a resume so that they can increase the likelihood of receiving job interviews in whatever job they do. A lot of people, they create these resumes, but they don’t know the key things that are needed to really make their resume stand out.

As a resume writer and a recruiter, I’ve seen that, so I really just want to help job seekers optimize their resumes.

Mac Prichard:

Terrific.

I know that listeners can learn more about you and your work by visiting your website, thehrdepot.com, and that you also invite listeners to connect with you on LinkedIn, and when they do reach out to you, Kareem, I hope they mention they heard you on Find Your Dream Job.

Now, given all of the great advice that you’ve shared today, what’s the one thing you want a listener to remember about your four extra steps to stand out in a tough job market?

Kareem Rogers:

I want to let everybody know that it is possible. Especially right now, in the job market,  that a lot of people got laid off, and I know that a lot of people are trying to find another job. Getting rejections and dealing with the application process, et cetera, is very stressful. Believe me, I understand, but I want everybody to know, whether you’re a job seeker or someone who may be interested in finding another job, it is possible. I believe in you. Please, do not give up.

Mac Prichard:

Next week, our guest will be Ann Tropea.

She’s the cohost of the Career Bitches podcast.

Ann is also an author, a public speaker, and an advisor for student media at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

A job interview isn’t a legal deposition.

As with any business meeting, you need to know what you want to accomplish before you walk into the room.

Join us next Wednesday when Ann Tropea and I talk about why you need to do more in an interview than answer questions.

Until next time, thanks for letting us help you find your dream job.

This show is produced by Mac’s List.

Susan Thornton-Hough schedules our guests and writes our newsletter. Lisa Kislingbury Anderson manages our social media.

Our sound engineer and editor is Matt Fiorillo. Dawn Mole creates our transcripts. And our music is by Freddy Trujillo.

This is Mac Prichard. See you next week.