Understanding, Finding, and Mastering Virtual Career Fairs

Unsplash.com | Andrew Neel

Virtual Career Fairs (VCFs) recreate in-person job fairs online with varying degrees of success but the same goal – connect employers with job seekers.

VCFs give you the opportunity to bypass normal job seeking barriers and speak directly to recruiters, hiring managers, or human resources representatives of companies who are actively hiring.

While VCFs have been available alongside the more prevalent local in-person career fairs for some time, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a dramatic increase in going virtual that is likely to continue as the demand for work surges and health concerns around large gatherings remain. In our current climate, VCFs have the added advantages of reducing costs (you’re not traveling) and allowing job seekers willing to relocate to participate in fairs in other regions.

Who hosts Virtual Career Fairs?

There are several different types of VCFs worth exploring.

·      Regional VCF. Regardless of host, job fairs are most often organized by region and co-hosted by a local government or job development entity. The Catalyst Career Group (CCG) and Coast to Coast Career Fairs (C2C) hosts VCFs all over the country and are normally area-specific. CCG recently hosted different Southern California VCFs for Los Angeles, Woodland Hills, and the Inland Empire. C2C is currently hosting a series of VCFs with employers in a single Florida city (e.g. Tampa Job Fair, Ft. Lauderdale Job Fair, Orlando Job Fair, etc.).

·      Single Company VCF. Many companies host their own VCFs and some have the resources to host job fairs in multiple cities. For example, Network Capital Funding Corporation, a financial services company based in Irvine, California, is holding a “surge hiring” VCF this month to fill at least twenty open positions in Irvine, Los Angeles, and New York City. However, it can be any type of company. Sports teams (e.g. the Los Angeles Dodgers) and leagues (e.g. the NFL) host annual job fairs, as do academic institutions (e.g. Harvard University). Due to Covid-19, many of these regular events are now virtual.

·      Industry VCF. “Industry” VCFs bring together different employers in the same field. These are usually regional as well, so instead of a single nationwide VCF for, say, “sales professionals”, there are typically multiple “sales professionals” VCFs based on region organized by the same organization. For example, there is a VCF later this year hosted by HireLifeScience.com with over ten pharmaceutical industry leaders signed on to participate (and that number will climb).

·      Other VCFs. There are no rules governing who can host a VCF, so some VCFs do not fit into the categories above. VCFs can be organized by political offices (e.g. Governor’s Job Fair, Mayor’s Job Fair, etc.), Chambers of Commerce, non-profits, or organizations supporting a certain group (e.g. Veterans jobs fairs, Diversity job fairs, Women job fairs etc.).

Which communications platforms are used to host VCFs?

Every VCF uses the communication platform of their own choice. There are many companies that specialize in hosting VCFs like Brazen, Easy Virtual Fair, and vFairs. Even big-time job site Indeed.com is in on the action with its new virtual arm, “Indeed Hiring Events”, which is everything from remote job interviews to job fairs. Regardless of how the VCF is run, the attendee only needs a computer and internet access.

Others VCFs, like ones hosted by a single company, are more minimalist, and use well-known online communication tools like Skype and Zoom instead of going full throttle on creating an experience that mimics an in-person event. Attendees will need to install any applications required to participate.

VCF user interfaces and formats vary from fair to fair, but for the many entities that strive to recreate the in-person experience, which take place at venues like hotels and convention centers. To that end, many include video, chat forums, and networking “rooms’ on top of an expedited virtual hiring process.

How do I find a Virtual Job Fair?

First stop – jobfairsin.com.  You can search for job fairs, including virtual, and follow the links for more information and registration.

Here is a place that may not leap to mind when you think “virtual job fairs” -- Eventbrite. As of this writing, Eventbrite lists 220 virtual job fair events.

Job boards such as LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Monster have listings for virtual job fairs if you do a search for them.

How Should I Prepare for a Virtual Job Fair?

A Virtual Job Fair is no different than a virtual job interview.

·      Be prepared. Research the participating company or companies and the roles for which they are hiring.

·      Dress as if you are going to an in-person job interview.

·      “Attend” the virtual fair in a private, quiet place free from distractions.

·      Have your resume, references, and websites (i.e. LinkedIn profile) at the ready.

·      During the virtual one-on-one interview remember to look into the camera.

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

How to Ace The Screening Interview

Unsplash | Hassan OUAJBIR

First impressions matter, and the very first dance you’ll experience with an employer is the screening interview, also known as phone screen. This is a 15-20 minutes call with a recruiter or hiring manager where an employer tries to determine if you have the basic skills and disposition to progress through the rest of their job interview process.

Keep in mind that screening interviews are not meant to be full-fledged interviews. Thus, you have a limited amount of time to accomplish your one goal – impress the recruiter or hiring manager enough to secure a full-length in-person (or Zoom) interview with the team.

Here’s how you can ace the screening interview:

1.     Treat a screening interview like a real interview. Because it is! Find a quiet place to have the call, away from any distractions. Be friendly and outgoing. If you’re an introvert, pretend you’re extroverted. If receive an unexpected or unscheduled call from a recruiter, it’s fine to ask for a minute to get situated or to call back after you’ve found a quiet place to conduct the call in a professional manner.

2.     Know why you are interested in the company and job. You will most likely be asked why you applied for the position and what interested you in the company. Be prepared with a stellar answer. If, on the other hand, the company found you, it’s fine to ask for more information about the company; but it’s better to do some quick on-the-fly research on your computer or phone while you dazzle your interviewer with your wit and charm.

3.     Be ready to give detailed answers. The recruiter or hiring manager will want to know (in broad strokes) if you have the hard skills that are required to perform the role (e.g. a technical specialty), but they also want to feel out your quality-of-life parameters (e.g. commute). Under no circumstances give a simple yes/no answer. Be detailed, but succinct. Be confident and positive with your answers. Sometimes the delivery can do wonders for the content.

4.     Ask questions. Like all interviews, you should have questions at the ready. This shows you’re prepared, you’ve done your homework, and have genuine interest in the job. If you’re well versed with the company, ask about the business; if not, focus on questions about career trajectory and job goals.

5.     Navigate around the salary question. Every job is a line item in a budget and the recruiter/hiring manager want to know if you are in the budgeted salary range. Too high or too low, you may be ruled out.

a.     Tactic #1. Defer the question with some variation of this, “I’m not focused on compensation at this stage. I’m more interested in finding a company where I’m a cultural fit, somewhere I know I am going to add value on day one, and, ideally, is the last place I ever want to work.”

b.     Tactic #2. If the question is pressed, offer a large range with a $20,000-$30,000 gap. “I’m currently looking for positions in the $50,000 - $80,000 range, total compensation.” By focusing on total compensation, you can make it a bit more difficult for an employer to pin you down to accepting a specific figure before even interviewing for the job, and give you negotiation room down the road.

c.     Tactic #3. Sometimes a company will make this question easy for you to answer by publishing the salary range in the job posting. If that is the case, choose the top part of the range. For example, if the job posting says, “$75,000 - $90,000 Depending On Experience”, focus in the range of “$80,000 - $90,000.”

d.     Tactic #4. If you live in California, New York, or Massachusetts there are laws against asking a job candidate his or her previous salary, however there are all sorts of clever ways to request salary information that may break the spirit of the law, but not the actual law. Or you may find yourself in a position where you are asked outright in direct and obvious violation of the law. In both cases, it’s decision time. How badly you do you want the job? If you want the job, you will look the other way and fall back on Tactic # 1, 2, and 3. If you don’t want the job, you can tell the recruiter/hiring manager that his or her question is against the law.

6.     Be gracious and thank the interviewer for his/her time . You want to send shock waves of good vibes through the phone to end the interview. You are making a first impression and this is the big finale. Make it easy for them to schedule an in-person (or Zoom) interview with you on the spot by being polite, expressing gratitude for the opportunity, and asking about the next steps.

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

The Fine Art of Collecting Professional References

Unsplash | Dane Deaner

Almost nobody thinks about their job references until asked. Far too often an afterthought, references play an important role in the application process, are a critical part of any job search portfolio, and can be an influential factor when under consideration for a job offer.

For an employer, each hire is a risk. A lot of time and effort go into filling an open position but there is never a guarantee the right person has been recruited until the new hire is actually working at the company each day. If a recruiter and/or hiring manager can speak to someone who has had a professional relationship with a candidate, he or she can mitigate some of that risk.

When a recruiter or hiring manager likes a candidate, a good reference can bolster their case and, perhaps, carry the candidate over the finish line. References are more than a good speech on your behalf. A good reference has portability. During the course of a job search, a strong set of references can open doors on its own.

There are two types of references – personal and professional. Between the two, it’s no contest. Professional references carry a lot more weight, however some job applications request personal ones as well. Behind the scenes, it’s the professional references that count. That doesn’t mean there aren’t specific cases a personal reference helps. There are, but it’s the exception not the rule.

Here are some recommendations to help you master the fine art of collecting references:

#1 – Line up at least three professional references before you need them – multiple individuals from various points in your recent career can give an employer a robust perspective into you and your work habits. If you wish to include a personal reference in your arsenal, one will suffice (especially if it’s a heavy hitter in the company you’re applying to).

#2 – References do not necessarily need to be from individuals with whom you currently work or from someone who works for your current company. Even if you and your references are now at different companies, they can still provide input upon your time together. That said, professional references from your current (or last) position will give you a slightly sharper edge. 

#3 – This is important – when you ask a colleague for a professional reference, do not assume he or she will sing your praises. Wise attorneys know not put a witness on the stand unless they know what their testimony will be – same concept here. Know what your reference is going to say about you. When you make the request, have a discussion with them about what you anticipate they would say. When a recruiter or hiring manager calls your reference, you don’t want them to be told, “That person gave me as a reference? Are you kidding me?” (BTW – true story, I once was checking references and had the employee’s former manager unload their displeasure with them). To the greatest extent possible, vet what your references will say about you. Be selective in whom you list.

#4 – When considering who to ask to be a reference, go to your allies. If you have a co-worker with whom you pulled off an amazing project, he or she may be a better reference than your immediate supervisor or the owner of the business. You want references to speak to the quality of your work and how great it is to work with you.

#5 – Consider the form of the reference. Formal written references still exist, but are no considered longer the ideal – especially ones that seem to be only marginally better than a form letter. The best professional reference is vocal. When someone agrees to be a reference, he or she expects they may be called by a recruiter or hiring manager in the future, and a discussion lends itself to a robust conversation about the value you can add to an employer.

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.