As the workplace has evolved and changed in recent years, and as competition for jobs has gotten fiercer and tougher, it makes more sense than ever to tailor your communication with companies in ways that will best serve their interests. Few, if any, hiring managers want to continually hear you sing your praises – unless, of course, those songs simultaneously offer an opportunity to solve a company’s problems.
One of the realities of the constantly evolving workplace is that hiring managers, no matter how expert and savvy, don’t always know what they need in terms of personnel. This doesn’t mean that hiring managers are clueless about their company’s needs; it’s just that, with needs and landscapes changing rapidly, they may not see a problem area arising before it is finally staring them directly in the face.
At that point, the first options that can come to the hiring manger’s mind are how to possibly reassign or juggle work responsibilities so that the salesperson who was tasked with doing digital marketing can drop the latter responsibility in order to focus on the new digital app that streamlines sales.
You get the idea: What are the changes within corporate culture and the marketplace that you might be able to serve, well before the need for finding someone to do so becomes apparent? Why not get ahead of the curve, show everyone you’re a go-getter and pitch the hiring manager on how you can specifically help an emerging situation?
Fair enough. Nothing to be harmed by making a professional, one-time comment. You may, however, need to follow up. When you do, consider the following:
It wouldn’t hurt to re-send the letter (and your resume, if you included one the first time), with the current date the only new piece of information. Hiring managers, like anyone else, can get sidetracked. If the initial pitch rung anything of a bell, an identical follow-up could be helpful.
Wait a couple of weeks and then try following up by email, if possible. You also might consider sending a message through a networking program such as LinkedIn, while seeing if you and the hiring manager know anyone in common who could facilitate communication. And then try making a phone call, not leaving a message but trying a few times until you get the hiring manager on the phone.
After all of that, you’ll be in a better position to offer to solve a company’s problems. And possibly be hired to do so.
