Oilcareers

Just as technology is evolving so too is the recruitment and hiring process and while there have been countless column inches devoted to advising job seekers on how to utilise social media to enhance their chances of getting a new job, the ‘grand dame’ of business networking tools, LinkedIn can be an often overlooked resource.  While many people use it primarily as an ‘online CV’ there are many other ways to make you more visible to people who may be able to help you find that next lucrative contract or permanent post.

Optimising your profile

A LinkedIn profile not only gives you an online professional identity but it also gives you the opportunity to showcase your skills. Most people will put their job title in the main headline – but if you are a Manager or even a ‘Project Manager’ it doesn’t tell a recruiter much. Consider using your skill set in your headline such as Petrochemical engineering specialist or ‘Project Manager – Subsea systems’ to really highlight your niche. Your LinkedIn Profile also allows you to add skills and expertise – ensure you enter as many as possible – this area is very search engine friendly and the more visible you are – the more likely you are to be found by recruiters.  Examples could include: project execution; drilling engineering; oil industry; subsea control systems etc.

Recommendations

Recommendations act as references that you can showcase, adding value to your profile and giving you credibility. Ask employers, colleagues or customers to write a short comment about your skills and the benefits of working with you, to give potential employers and recruiters an overview.

Endorsements

LinkedIn has recently introduced a new feature – endorsements. Arguably, they don’t have as much value as recommendations, but if other job seekers are utilising them, you should too. As with recommendations, you have to rely on others to endorse you by clicking on the skills they think you have. However, you have the responsibility of ensuring that you’ve added in all of your skills in the first instance, so really think about what you specialise in. Also, try to list them in order of importance so that those that are most significant will be the first ones on your profile, and the easiest to see.

Groups

Your LinkedIn commitment doesn’t end on your profile. Remember that it’s a networking site, so use it as one by being active. Search for relevant groups to join in your industry sector and specialisation.  It’s a great way of extending your network and keeping up to date with industry developments.

Researching companies

LinkedIn is also a first class research tool so if you are looking to shortlist companies with whom you may be interested in working before meeting a recruiter; this is a great place to start.  Additionally, if you are preparing for an interview then look at the LinkedIn company page as well as the website – it’ll give you insights into employees – where they tend to come from and what background they have. And obviously look up the people who will be interviewing you on LinkedIn because at the end of the day – knowledge is power!

 Guest blog by Dominic Morris, Director of Global Energy Business at Twenty Recruitment Group

OilCareers.com recently participated at the Australasian Oil and Gas Exhibition and Conference (AOG) in Perth, Western Australia as a sponsor and exhibitor. The conference attracted over 10,000 delegates from both Australia and worldwide, all in attendance to see the latest in oil and gas technology, practices and trends.

With the opportunity to win an iPad mini, the OilCareers.com booth was a popular stop for delegates, who each had 15 seconds within a glass booth to grab as many tickets as possible; the highest score each day awarded an iPad mini and well-deserved bragging rights.  With 900 participants the competition proved tough, and over the three day conference a total of five iPad minis were awarded (following two score draws).

OilCareers.com also sponsored the Graduate Careers Day, which allowed OilCareers.com to meet with more than 850 tertiary students and new graduates from many of Perth’s universities. During an address to the congregation, Country Manager for Australia Jackie Kirk outlined some key tips for graduates entering the workforce:

• Identify companies you would like to work for and call them
• Research possible graduate schemes
• Participate in summer internship programs
• Attend career fairs, networking events & seek information from your careers advisors
• Register with recruitment agencies
• Network and utilise online job boards

We hope you enjoyed the conference as much as we did!

At OilCareers.com, the world’s largest online dedicated oil and gas jobs board, our objective is to provide our candidates with access to a variety of positions spanning the entire oil and gas supply chain and in turn provide recruiters and organisations with the highest quality skills to meet their needs.

That’s why, with the oil and gas forecast for the North Sea predicting a jobs boom of up to 50,000 new vacancies in light of recent prospects and developments, but the industry still feeling pressure from the lingering overcast of the global skills gap, our job has never been more important.

In line with supporting employers in their search, OilCareers.com in association with Forces Employment Fairs, an organisation with 26 years of experience in running events for the Armed Forces, recently introduced the Armed Forces Employment Fair to Aberdeen’s Exhibition and Conference Centre for the first time. This introduction aimed to attract fresh talent to the sector by means of transferable skills.

The fair saw 34 major multinational oil and gas organisations exhibiting and over 400 armed forces personnel turning out in search of new career opportunities and was open to all individuals regardless of whether they were in resettlement phase or just thinking of leaving.

The event not only offered sought after opportunities to employers, but in light of The Ministry of Defence announcing that a third round of 5,300 Army redundancies are to be made in June, the transferable needs of the energy sector also present a sustainable and secure outlook to families who face an otherwise uncertain future.

The Armed Forces Employment fair created a crucial shared value platform for all parties and with such a high level of turn out and positive feedback, it can be said that the event was a resounding success and just one of the on-going commitments that OilCareers.com continue to make in order to meet the growing recruitment needs of the oil and gas industry going forward.