
Ask HN: How have you hacked the job search process? - thomaswang
Applying to jobs nowadays feels like throwing applications into black holes. What specific tools or strategies have you found to be the most effective? What potential new strategies could work in 2018?
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indescions_2018
Google for Jobs aggregates many listings and supports advanced terms, range
and salary queries, etc.

But my perspective from the opposite side of the table. Build something that
can't be ignored. Something I would share with clients or colleagues.

A recent example is the wind visualization map Ventusky. I had a lot of fun
passing around that link during the recent "bomb cyclone". It not only serves
as an eye-popping demo of what is possible with WebSockets, Canvas2D on mobile
web. It represents a level of polish that commands your attention.

Good luck and I hope you find what you are looking for in 2018!

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telebone_man
note: have been happy with my current job for a while now. But as a contractor
for a few years, I have experience with the job search process.

It's not enough to just be the best. You have to be (one of) the first
applicants. I wrote a simple scraper for a bunch of job-aggregators (indeed...
jobserve...) that would send me a SMS and e-mail when a job matching my
keywords was posted.

On the subject of keywords, sometimes jobs are posted with bad spellings. I
work in 'telecommunications'. But there would be jobs posted under telecoms...
telecomms.. telecomunications...

Sometimes you were a near perfect fit for a role, and sometimes you're a
perfect fit. If you're a perfect fit, spend an extra few minutes finding the
recruiters direct email and phone number. Then apply both via the website and
then communicate directly with them.

Make the recruiter's life as easy as possible. In any e-mail you send, attach
your CV again. Make sure you finish your email with your contact details.

Try to get good at understanding what an employer wants. Sometimes it's
unwritten (someone hardworking.. someone loyal..) and sometimes it's written
between the lines (e.g. 'experienced xyz needed' = 'we currently don't have
skilled people or have too little of them'). Sometimes it's these unwritten
requirements that are more or just as important as the written ones.

And finally, if you're unsuccessful, do your part in contacting the recruiter
to thank them for their time.

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EnderMB
I've got a few that have worked for me in the past.

1\. Find your local job boards. A large number of agencies in my local area
post on a local media job board, even though in my experience on the other
side of the hiring process not many people use it. When going for senior roles
this is a huge advantage, as many agencies I've worked with will pay 15% or
more of a candidates salary as commission to a recruiter.

2\. Go to user groups. It's by far the best way to know who is hiring, who you
want to work for, who you don't, etc. Being a part of the "community" is also
a great way to get "in" with an employer on the outside. It's shocking how
many employers will hear that you regularly attend or talk at user groups, and
think "wow, this guy must be an expert!"

3\. This is kinda a mixture of the two above, but follow dev leads on Twitter
for local companies. It cuts out the drivel from company accounts, and more
often than not if their employer is hiring for a dev role they'll either
retweet or tweet the job post themselves. There's probably some cool filtering
you can do with a Twitter list and a few search queries.

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ecesena
I always had the best results reaching out directly to recruiters in my
network via linkedin.

Typically your connection will redirect you to the colleague in charge of your
role, and you ho from there.

Every time I tried the fried/friend of a friend/connection route, I ended up
wasting a ton of time.

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jackgolding
This is a really good, recent, data backed article on how to write a resume:
[https://talent.works/blog/2018/01/08/the-science-of-the-
job-...](https://talent.works/blog/2018/01/08/the-science-of-the-job-search-
part-i-13-data-backed-ways-to-win/)

It is very surprising how poor the average person is at selling themselves in
their resume (i.e. not using action words and displaying leadership.) I would
suggest looking at investment banking interview books/blogs for some examples,
thats how I learned so well (think last time I was applying for jobs I had a
20-40% interview rate.)

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JSeymourATL
Pick three or four companies you really want to work for. Choose carefully and
wisely. Then invest yourself totally in pursuing those companies. Raise your
odds of success dramatically by controlling the playing field. Pursue those
few companies like a bulldog — latch on and don’t let go.

Success is all about one thing: Identifying a company that has a problem. >
[https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/ask-the-
headhunter/ask-...](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/ask-the-
headhunter/ask-the-headhunter-why-cant-this-former-ceo-get-a-job)

~~~
ambivalents
> Raise your odds of success dramatically by controlling the playing field.
> Pursue those few companies like a bulldog — latch on and don’t let go.

This is somewhat vague. Do you have specific actionable steps one could take
once they have identified those companies?

~~~
JSeymourATL
Do you have specific actionable steps >

Find ways you can get referred-in to someone senior (anyone) who works at the
target company. Look to connect with people, network at meet-ups, conferences,
industry trade events.

Finally, don't be afraid to go direct. Ping decision-makers at the target
company via Linkedin (C-Level, VPs, Directors). See if they would be open to a
brief phone conversation. You're interested in learning more about them, what
they are working on. And explore if you can help.

Generally, avoid HR Flunkies- their job is to say no.

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PaulHoule
I've modified this system

[http://ontology2.com/essays/ClassifyingHackerNewsArticles/](http://ontology2.com/essays/ClassifyingHackerNewsArticles/)

so that it sucks down job listings from "Who's hiring?" and does the same
classification. If it hadn't worked on the first try I probably would have
modified it to scan the local job board (which is unusable otherwise because
it is choked with spam, such as a place called "CyberCoders" that lists
hundreds of jobs in Atlanta in other places.)

