Page 41 - TODAY magazine Issue 1 2021

YOUR TIME // JOB HUNTING
THE CASE FOR MULTISKILLING
Sivuyile Sibeko was 25 and had been unemployed for nine months before an HR company picked up his CV on LinkedIn and invited him to interview for a job as social-media marketer and community manager, which he got. ‘Social media plays a really significant role in providing job vacancy exposure to young graduates in particular,’ he says.
While unemployed, he used the time to work on his skills and completed online courses in data analysis and financial management. ‘My plan was to upskill myself with as many different skill sets as possible so that I could be considered for positions that weren’t directly aligned to my B.Com degree.’
Wolpert’s team, she says, are seeing many candidates that have used lockdown to upskill themselves. ‘Online courses can be quite pricey, but we’ve found that candidates are quite resourceful and some have done it via YouTube or by taking a free or discounted course.’
Sivuyile’s interview was completed online, too. ‘The experience was weird at first because you are used to having that human-to-human contact where you can read the interviewer’s body language and really get a sense of the vibe around the place,’ he says. 'Doing
it virtually took some getting used to, but I got there in the end.’
FOR MORE JOB-HUNTING TIPS, turn to page 42.
REACHING OUT ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Athi Mbovu (29) left his job in February 2020 to look for a better opportunity – and then lockdown happened a month later, leaving him with a near-exhausted provident fund and a brick wall in terms of opportunities. ‘Then, after four months, I found a job ad on Twitter for a pet-store manager. It didn’t pay much, but it kept me going while
I looked for something more in line with my experience,’ he says.
After a few more months of applying for positions online, he got a call to submit his CV and was subsequently hired as a sales representative. ‘Although I didn’t get my new job via Twitter, social media still helped me secure it. I was short of transport fare to go to the interview and asked for help on Twitter. A lady by the name of Dineo reached out and gave me the money to go. Because of her I went and got the job.’
While Athi was shortlisted digitally, he had to go to an in-person interview. ‘I was interviewed by a panel of four gentlemen and I was very nervous but presented myself as best I could,’ he says. ‘Afterwards, one of them gave me a nod to say I did well. That alone gave me hope”.
INTERVIEWS STILL COUNT
Wolpert says companies still like face-to-face interviews to get a feel for a candidate. ‘At the moment, we are seeing that the initial interviews are done online but that clients want to meet the shortlisted candidates in person in the next round.’
Preparation for an interview remains key, no matter whether it’s online or face-to-face, she adds. ‘Do your homework and research on the company and the role, be punctual and be presentable. If the interview is online, make sure you have a secure internet connection, even
if it means going to a friend’s house. Check beforehand that you are familiar with the platform – Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Hangouts – and have it downloaded.’