With the new year comes renewed interest in changing jobs. If you want to move into a career poised for growth or one that is more stable, consider this first. While it may be tempting to drastically change careers, it may make more sense to switch companies within your current industry. You’ll be able to leverage your knowledge of systems, processes and customer behaviors within your field. Often, a change in company culture and management is enough to reignite your enthusiasm for the work you do. Plus, changing industries is more difficult. You’ll have to work harder to prove you have the relevant skills.
If it has been a while since you last looked, you may want to brush up on some job-search trends and what to look out for in 2016.
1. Mobile, analytics, automation and health care technology will continue to flourish. According to a statement from Dan Finnigan, CEO of Jobvite, this is true even though there’s been a decline in growth within some areas of the tech sector.
There is room for technical innovation within these sectors that touch upon some of the fastest-growing industries. Anything health care-related holds potential for opportunity given the aging population. And we are just beginning to learn to make sense of the reams of data collected on potential buyers and customers.
2. School is not as important as skills earned. According to Finnigan, “although a college degree remains essential, as time goes on, we will see increased acceptance of grads from modest, more inexpensive schools who have the key skills needed.”
This means you must take control of your skill development on a continual basis. Stay ahead of the curve and attend online classes to build the skills you’ll need to stay in demand. Everyone, not just those in technology, needs to pay attention to skills employers look for and often have difficulty finding. You will find community colleges starting to offer certificate training and master’s degree programs with more specific focus.
3. Talent communities are better than career sites. If you’ve ever been disillusioned by the generic job postings lacking detail on a career site, there’s hope. Talent communities are interactive discussions between human resources, employees and potential employees where real questions get asked and answered. Not only do talent communities save you from wasting time applying to jobs that don’t “fit,” they also serve as a platform to keep you in the pipeline for jobs that may come available in the future. These communities tend to play better on your mobile device, too, for an improved user experience. Most importantly, companies that create and use talent communities are seeing better and faster hiring results.
Established talent communities, such as Dice’s talent community for IT professionals or Mediabistro’s community within the communications industry, become go-to online destinations for professionals looking for almost any information related to their field. Look for a talent community in your niche.
4. Mobile solutions make headway. You rely on your mobile device to stay connected and get things done. This includes finding and applying for jobs. There were several mobile apps developed in 2015 for job seekers, and it’s conceivable that they’ll continue to grow in popularity. Switch and Jobr both work like Tinder, the online dating app, where you swipe through to the jobs that interest you. These apps still lack some of the personal interaction millennial job seekers crave, but the apps cater to the instant-gratification generation.
5. Virtual work is worth considering. Finding a new job gets easier if you eliminate the geographic boundaries. The technology exists, and more companies have embraced the idea of a virtual workforce. Managing remote workers requires more effort, but with improvements in collaborative tools and the reduced costs associated with a virtual workforce, companies are finally beginning to adopt this practice.
Embrace change. We all live in an ever-changing world. The best way to keep up with change is to stay current. Begin to acquire new skills, keep abreast of trends and learn everything you can about your current industry. Don’t become complacent or fall asleep at the wheel. Your career needs someone alert to drive it forward!
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5 Trends for Job Seekers in 2016 originally appeared on usnews.com