Most of us know of the need to be resilient and ever-ready for changes in today’s uncertain world; as Covid-19 affects entire nations and the global economy, this rings true more than ever. In this article, we offer you five tips on how you can stay prepared in today’s competitive job market.
1) Update your CV from time to time
When was the last time you saw your CV? If you can’t remember, it’s time to pull it out for an update! By refreshing your CV regularly, you’ll be able to beat the competition and apply for exciting job postings immediately without losing any time. An updated CV will also come in handy if you’re nominated for awards like ‘Employee of the Year’ or special project teams, as it will better reflect your achievements and how far you’ve come.
As you list down your past roles and accomplishments, take the chance to review your current skills and qualifications—as well as the current trends in your chosen field(s). Where do you need improvement in, and are there any skills you should pick up? If you’re a student with us, do take advantage of the Career Clinic sessions that are held once a month! The Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) also offers career coaching sessions by appointment to all Singaporeans at no charge.
2) Build up on relevant and transferable skills
After updating your CV, you should have a better idea of the skills you have and what you’d like to improve on. The next thing to do is to upskill, and PSB Academy offers short professional courses that’ll help you do this at home during the weekends. Fully delivered online during the Circuit Breaker period, these courses let you study topics like business analytics and digital marketing in just two days.
The July intake is currently open and accepting applications, so why not take a look? NTUC members can enjoy funding through the Union Training Assistance Programme (UTAP) for short professional courses offered by the School of Business and Management!
Apart from industry relevant skills, it will also be good to pick up soft skills that you can use across multiple industries like creativity and business communication. If you need a second opinion on what you should work on, try checking in with a career coach.
3) Look toward growth industries
Covid-19 has disrupted numerous industries and caught countless companies off guard. Economists have predicted that the number of retrenchments in Singapore could fall between 150,000 and 200,000 —at least 14 times the amount of retrenchments in 2019[i]. It’s a sobering reminder of the need to be open to and prepared for new opportunities outside of our areas of expertise.
You can find out more about Singapore’s growth sectors by taking a look at the Ministry of Manpower’s annual job vacancies reports. Presently, the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), professional services, financial and insurance services, wholesale trade and healthcare sectors have been identified as sectors with an “above-average proportion of vacancies for newly created positions[ii]”. There has been demand in particular for roles such as software, web & multimedia developers and systems analysts, commercial & marketing sales executives as well as business development managers[iii]. If you’re interested in these fields or positions, PSB Academy offers a number of relevant programmes from diploma to degree level that can help you gain a foothold in them.
4) Continue networking
Social distancing measures have made networking hard, but not entirely impossible!
Take some time to update your LinkedIn profile: over 50 million companies and close to 690 million members from around the world use it today[i], making it a resource you shouldn’t neglect. Apart from updating your profile and reaching out to former colleagues or schoolmates, do consider joining relevant LinkedIn groups to actively participate in! This will raise your profile visibility, and you might also find like-minded individuals to foster meaningful connections with.
Don’t forget to follow companies you’d like to work for, as well as the movers and shakers in your chosen industries. Like, comment on and share their content regularly. You’ll be able to stay on top of hiring notifications, and show these companies that you’re genuinely interested.
You can also consider joining professional groups on other social platforms like Facebook and Meetup!
5) Maintain your interview skills
Keep your interview skills sharp; you never know when an interview opportunity will come your way! Even if you don’t have specific organisations in mind, do stay posted on the industries you’re interested in. This will be helpful when you’re asked to share industry knowledge on topics like the company’s major competitors, for example, showing that you have a deep understanding of the bigger picture.
Don’t forget to prepare yourself for virtual interviews too, as many employers have halted on-site interviews for the time being due to Covid-19. Get well-acquainted with popular video conferencing platforms like Zoom so that you can adjust settings in advance wherever necessary, and find a spot at home that is well-lit and tidy. Practice maintaining eye contact and smile whenever appropriate—just remember to look into your webcam and not at your interviewer or yourself!
Lastly, do dress for success and keep your usernames professional!
We hope you’ve found these suggestions to be helpful and applicable! If you’re currently a student with us, PSB Academy’s Career Services team has been hard at work organising webinars that you can sign up for. We also have a Career Cookies series on our Facebook page that you can watch for tips and tricks on useful skills such as networking and design thinking.
PSB Academy wishes you all the best in your career: may you never stop learning and becoming the best you can be!
[i] https://news.linkedin.com/about-us
[i] https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/covid-19-pandemic-could-lead-150000-200000-retrenchments-say-economists
[ii] https://www.mom.gov.sg/newsroom/press-releases/2020/0320-job-vacancies-2019
[iii] https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Job-Vacancies-2019.aspx
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