Job Search

Practical job search advice including CV writing, job applications, hidden job market strategies, and recruiter insights to help you land interviews faster.

Beat The ATS – How Applicant Tracking Systems Actually Work

Beat The ATS – How Applicant Tracking Systems Actually Work

The ATS isn’t new. Applicant Tracking Systems have been around since the mid 90s and were used so recruiters and companies could organise all of their jobs and candidates in one single database. Then they got a little more advanced. The ATS could parse CVs (extract and recognise text)

How to Turn a £50K Salary into a £70K Offer

How to Turn a £50K Salary into a £70K Offer

There’s a common mistake that happens in salary conversations all the time. And it’s costing people thousands. Let’s say a recruiter asks you: “What are your salary expectations?” Most people panic a bit, think about their current salary, add a bit on, and say something like: “Well,

You're Writing Your CV for the Wrong Person

You're Writing Your CV for the Wrong Person

Think you know how to write a CV? Seems simple enough right? Open a Word doc, type in all of your work experience, your responsibilities, your skills and education. There are even a million CV templates you can use to get you started, I mean I’ve even created one.

Why You’re Not Getting Interviews (Even When You’re Qualified)

Why You’re Not Getting Interviews (Even When You’re Qualified)

It’s one of the most frustrating parts of the job search. You’ve got the skills, you’ve got the experience, you’ve applied for roles you know you can do — but your inbox is full of silence, or worse, rejection emails landing within 48 hours. If that sounds

The First 30 Seconds of Your CV Decide Everything

The First 30 Seconds of Your CV Decide Everything

Here’s the brutal truth: recruiters don’t read CVs. They skim them. I’ve been in recruitment and talent acquisition for almost two decades, and I can tell you the average recruiter spends no more than 30 seconds on a CV during that first look. In fact, for most,

The Shadow Job Market: How Jobs Really Get Filled Before They’re Posted

The Shadow Job Market: How Jobs Really Get Filled Before They’re Posted

If you’ve ever sat scrolling job boards late at night wondering why nothing decent is coming up, here’s the truth you need to hear: most of the best jobs never make it onto job boards. In fact, depending on the industry, somewhere between 70–80% of roles are

Should You Apply If You Don’t Meet All the Requirements?

Should You Apply If You Don’t Meet All the Requirements?

You’ve found a job ad that looks perfect. The company’s exciting, the role matches what you want, and the salary’s decent. But then you hit the requirements list — and you don’t tick every box. Sound familiar? This is one of the most common dilemmas jobseekers face: