The collective global workforce consists of Active (30%) and Passive (70%) talent. As many as 87% of Active and Passive workers would consider new career opportunities.

Source: LinkedIn

ACTIONABLE STEPS TO HELP REMOTE JOBSEEKERS SEARCH FOR NEW CAREERS

Remote jobs serve a variety of employment needs for workers across generations. The results of a the Virtual Vocations generational survey “How Millennials, Gen-Xers, and Baby Boomers Telework” showed that remote jobseekers and telecommuters of all ages view remote jobs as primary sources of income. However, remote jobs also provide flexibility for earning through gig work and freelancing, supplementing income in retirement, and exploring new careers from the comfort of home.

While at least half of professionals will consider a new job venture at some point in their lives, the choice to change careers is not one that should be made without careful deliberation. After all, switching careers could mean drastic changes in income and employment status including lower wages or a drop in seniority. Before making the decision to change careers, take these actionable steps:

• Consider why a career change is appealing and answer questions like the following: what inspired the career change; whether the same job would still be appealing with a different company; and what feelings would arise if working in the same industry were not an option?
• Evaluate skills and resources by examining career goals, transferable skills that could be used in a new career, and skills that need to be retrained or learned, and income security while pursuing professional development opportunities in order to be successful in a new career.
• Develop a vision for the new career target by learning more about the industry, researching employers hiring in that field, determining work environment criteria, and ensuring any potential new role reinforces career goals and values.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: 19 Questions to Ask Before Making a Career Change; this article also includes a downloadable, interactive worksheet to help jobseekers determine if a career change is right for them.

A single online job posting receives as many as 250 resumes.

Source: Forbes

ACTIONABLE STEPS TO STAND OUT AMONG REMOTE JOBSEEKERS

With so many talented professionals swimming in the remote talent pool, deciding how to stand out among the other applicants can be challenging. Start with this list of suggestions to boost your skills and develop your professional persona:

• Build a professional website or digital portfolio
• Clean up and improve social media profiles
• Evaluate and retool employment documents like resumes, cover letters, and work samples
• Earn an online certification or other industry credentials to bolster industry credibility and expand professional networks

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: 8 Ways to Boost Your Remote Profile & Land That Job

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are used by more than 98% of Fortune 500 Companies.

Source: Jobscan

ACTIONABLE STEPS FOR CREATING AN ATS COMPLIANT RESUME

ATS software, like Taleo, Homegrown, and Jobvite, is used by the majority of recruiters and hiring managers to save time during the hiring process and pre-qualify candidates who meet job posting criteria. In fact, as many as 75% of recruiters rely on ATS during the hiring process with more than 94% of ATS users saying it has improved their efficiency by cutting back on emails and lost applications. When writing a resume that will pass an ATS screening, take the following actionable steps:

• Use traditional resume section headings to ensure ATS programs correctly extract and structure the resume information.
• Include consistent work history descriptors—ranked in reverse chronological order—that order job information in the following order: company, title, city, state, and date.
• ATS software is designed to categorize jobseeker information based on predetermined criteria so ensure critical details like contact information and location are clear and positioned at the top of the resume.
• Strategically include keywords throughout the resume that also appear in the job posting. For example, a remote jobseeker applying for a development position should incorporate ATS-friendly keywords like HTML, PHP, and CSS into their resume.
• Update social media profiles with industry-related keywords that align with the desired remote job.
• Keep LinkedIn pages current and ensure they match the resume work histories submitted to remote employers.
• Research companies before applying and use their websites to find keywords that match relevant soft skills and achievements.
• Use SEO techniques to optimize and tailor a resume for each job description.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: Top Tips for Writing Resumes That Will Pass ATS Software

In the U.S., the average time to complete the hiring process is 24 days.

Source: Glassdoor

ACTIONABLE STEPS TO CHECK IN WITH AN EMPLOYER DURING THE REMOTE HIRING PROCESS

Finishing a remote job application can be quite a relief, however, waiting for a response is grueling. Following up with an employer during the hiring process is warranted when seeking more information like the start date for the role, as a formality and to implement job search best practices, to confirm that human resources received the application without errors, and to inquire about the application status, especially if it has been weeks since the final interview. When compelled to follow up with an employer, complete these actionable steps to ensure the communication helps, rather than hurts, hireability:

• Contact the hiring manager directly rather than making generic outreach to the human resources department.
• Opt first for a follow-up email before placing a phone call.
• Keep communications concise while reiterating interest in the position.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: How to Follow Up with an Employer or Hiring Manager

Before job openings are made public, as many as 50% of all job openings are filled internally.

Source: CareerProfiles

ACTIONABLE STEPS TO SEEK A PROMOTION AS A REMOTE WORKER

Despite misconceptions about career longevity and upward mobility associated with remote positions, working from home does not put remote workers at a disadvantages for internal promotions. It is clear employers prefer to promote from within, and successful remote jobseekers know communicating with employers is key to earning the career advancement they want. Before applying to remote positions with other companies, explore internal openings and take these actionable steps to score the promotion:

• Before pitching the promotion, determine job priorities and goals.
• Become more visible within the company by requesting meetings, participating in team building activities, promptly replying to emails, and giving meaningful feedback when asked.
• Establish a presence as an innovator by bringing fresh ideas and perspectives to the table.
• Strengthen industry expertise and company knowledge by attending workshops or seminars and taking advantage of opportunities for professional development.
• Determine self-value so that confidence is apparent when making the pitch.
• Connect with co-workers or network contacts who have earned internal promotions and ask for advice on best practices.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: 9 Steps Toward Getting Promoted as a Telecommuter

An average application to interview ratio is 10–20%, which is at least one job interview per 10 submitted applications.

Source: ZipJob

ACTIONABLE STEPS FOR INSPIRING INTERVIEW REQUESTS FROM EMPLOYERS

When applying to remote jobs, high-quality employment application documents, like a resume, cover letter, and portfolio, should be the catalyst to receiving job interview requests. If employers infrequently respond to a jobseeker’s applications, something is amiss. To improve the their application to interview ratios, successful remote jobseekers should ensure they complete the following actionable steps, some of which may appear obvious but can be easily overlooked in a high-pressure situation like applying to virtual jobs:

• Confirm that emails from hiring managers have not landed in the spam folder.
• Make sure that all contact information provided to employers is accurate.
• Review job postings to double-check that application instructions were properly followed and that mindless errors did not automatically end the hiring process.
• Ensure that all attachments were uploaded in the proper file formats.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: Employers Aren’t Responding to Your Job Applications? 12 Reasons Why

86% of organizations rely on virtual technology to conduct video job interviews.

Source: Gartner

ACTIONABLE STEPS TO SUCCEED IN VIDEO INTERVIEWS

Since April 2020, video interviewing has become the preferred method for conducting job interviews. Virtual job interviews allow employers to have more personal interactions with distributed candidates and better gauge how remote employees will adapt to the company’s culture and policies. Video interviews also establish a precedent for conducting at least some business for remote companies via video conferencing, which is preferred to text-only communication methods among remote teams. When preparing for a virtual job interview, successful remote jobseekers complete these actionable steps:

• Design a professional work environment that is quiet, distraction free, includes well-functioning equipment, and contains an appropriate background.
• Dress for success by wearing business attire fitting the position.
• Prepare to answer interview questions like “Why do you want this job?” while also knowing which questions to avoid asking in the virtual job interview, and which questions jobseekers should ask employers to prove they are engaged and knowledgeable.

Further Reading from Virtual Vocations: One-Way Video Interviews: Pros, Cons, and How to Prepare