I officially started working again this week after a surprisingly long tenure on the unemployment line. Now, I’m no slouch when it comes to finding a job but this environment felt especially adversarial and baron of opportunity.
Turns out, this past interest rate hike cycle ranked as the worst for job cuts and hiring freezes in banking & financial services since the Great Recession of 2008.
According to the Financial Times, twenty of the world’s biggest banks cut at least 61,905 jobs in 2023. That compares with more than 140,000 jobs slashed by the same companies during the global financial crisis of 2007-08. Throw in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th largest bank failures in U.S. History and 2023 gave many in the industry a rude awakening.
But my resume was picked, interviews completed and I have signed on the dotted line so below, quickly, are some of the the job hunting trends I’ve identified for 2024 because……
1. It’s Still a Numbers Game
Finding a job is a numbers game. Pure and simple. For some context, on the day I received a job offer, I had 245 submissions logged on LinkedIn, 25 submissions (on average) across the top 6 major employers in the metro area and dozens more submitted to each of the top 4 recruiting firm portals. I’d estimate over 500 submissions in total over a 5 month span.
I received 4 interview requests from employers.
1 Job offer.
2. Networks are Force Multipliers
Conventional wisdom says it’s easier to find a job when you have a job. This is true for a few reasons but one of the most obvious is the network which comes along with the job.
Co-workers, managers, ex-co-workers will vouch for your competency or give you the heads up for a role coming along soon in their current team. Internal moves are also possible and employees are often given preferential treatment.
After leaving NYC for greener pastures in 2021, there was only minimal time to rebuild a professional network locally. It quickly became obvious the loss of that network definitely slowed down the job finding process.
3. Modern Interviews Are Cold
In a post-covid world, hiring has become a cold, virtual and impersonal process.
Ghosting by recruiters and employers mid way through the process is now common
HireVue is the norm - requiring candidates to record themselves answering questions like a reality show confessional. No feedback. No re-dos. No human interaction.
Interviewers distracted by screens while on a Microsoft Teams video call.
Fake/Out dated Job Postings with no intention to hire; just to accrue resumes
Episodes of After the Close podcast turned out to be super helpful for video interview prep though. I’ve had lots of hours in front of a camera - eye contact, posture, lighting, technical configurations etc. Video is a feature here to stay in Corporate America.
4. Small City means Small Opportunity
A major city like New York City is enormously diverse with different industries, companies and supporting businesses intertwined and feeding off each other. Orbiting the largest financial institutions are smaller boutique firms, hedge funds, software vendors, research firms and more to do business and many will pounce on a chance to scoop up talent during a hiccup of another area.
Smaller towns and cities are much more 1 dimensional for employment. If the only guy in town isn’t hiring, you’re kind of S.O.L. making for a much more boom/bust local economy.
I have a new understanding & empathy for rust belt cities/suburbs like Detroit or Cleveland which struggled once the “factories” shut down back in the day.
What other traits does a modern job hunt have?
Interested in being on the Trader Dads Podcast in 2024? Shoot me an email! I’d love to have subscribers on to sit for a discussion
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Thoughts? Questions? Comments?
Reach out! Maybe I’ll do a full post on the topic or as a Q&A
traderdads@substack.com