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Make contact with the hiring manager before you send your CV
It may seem like a very direct approach, but speaking with or e-mailing the hiring manager can have its rewards. Unfortunately the job advert doesn’t always provide the entire picture. So if you want to know more about the role, you should contact the hiring manager for more information.
Here are some of the benefits of contacting the employer before you write or send your CV…
Gain some insider info
Although the job advert describes the daily tasks, you never truly know what is required until you do the job. By speaking directly to the hiring manager you can gain some valuable inside knowledge. If they are open to a conversation, you will be able to get ahead of the other candidates.
If you are only able to speak with an employee, consider asking them for some help with applying. Assuming they work in the same or similar role, they are likely to be able to offer a few tips. Specifically on how the role functions, and even how their interview was conducted.
Find out which skills are the most important and what’s expected of an employee. This will help you to write a better CV and also gain an advantage in the interview.
Make sure you’re remembered for the right reasons
With such a huge amount of applications your goal is to be remembered. If you manage to speak with the manager and give them your name, there is a good chance they will remember you.
Making a great first impression is a must, because if you mess this part up you have actually made your chances worse. Be careful not to bore them with your questions, and keep everything brief. Always thanks them for their time and the opportunity, and ask if you are able to send your CV directly to them. This would work really well if they agree and you now have their direct email address.
Finally, you could even consider visiting the office and handing them your CV in person. This would also put a face to your application, and make for a friendlier approach. You may even find that they decide to interview you right there and then, which could be before the official interviews have taken place.
Decide if this is someone you’d want to work with
Applying for a job is often looked at from the perspective of ‘will this person be a good fit for our company?’ But what a lot of people forget is that it’s equally as important to ask the question ‘is this company a good fit for me?’
You can learn a lot from a phone conversation, and you may be able to build up a good picture of whether or not you’d get a long with the manager. Do they sound passionate about the role and the company they work for? Or do they sound uninterested and lacking in enthusiasm?
Ultimately you will never really know if the manager is going to be someone you enjoy working with. So don’t be completely put off from sending in your CV if the phone call or e-mail doesn’t go very well. However, it will at least give you some more perspective if you have other options.
