International Job Search FAQs
- Is international experience absolutely essential to landing an international job?
- No- there is a 1st time for everyone…
- Your reason for wanting the job/international assignment, and how you present it, IS essential.
- Unless you completely match the skillset desired, or you are looking at an internal assignment, you must demonstrate sincere, long-term interest in the local country. These days you’re competing with many more local candidates, and companies are looking for loyal leaders. The LOCAL OFFICE wants to benefit in the LONG-TERM. They do not want to be a training ground, which is expensive.
- Demonstrate by:
- Taking language class (or other form of education- graduate or certification program?) in the country of your interest
- Seek any opportunity for a project abroad- internally/with a former employer?
- Visit. Travel/backpacking experience (3 months/more) is valued. Talk to people you meet to *really* learn about what local life is like (expats and locals), and think about what you like about it. Be ready to talk about that.
- What other avenues are there besides working for a large multi-national?
- Early in your career? Eurograduate and Leadership programs
- Look on Monsterboard to find out. What jobs are advertised in the country/region you’re interested in? Do a search in English to identify expat opportunities
- Where are expats working in the country/region you’re interested in? Do an advanced search on LinkedIn- alumni network- by location
- Research- TALK to people in your networks- alumni, friends, clients, headhunters, VAULT
- Small & mid-sized companies
- MANY jobs are never promoted- filled before posting, either by internal candidates or a referral. A lot of favors are happening. Who is willing to cash in a favor for YOU?
- What should I be looking at in terms of areas of greatest opportunity?
- Look at your competition. Consider going where others are not.
- Less-popular cities, non-English speaking environments. For example: how many are competing for jobs in the UK vs. Sweden or Norway? German-speakers- how about Austria?
- What businesses from your home country operate in the country of your interest? Why do they work in that country? What does it say about the local market? What are they doing?
- Knowledge Migrant programs offered by the local goverments are a good indicator of which countries want to attract expats. These days, really have to look at CURRENT laws. Local employment rates are down and in practice, pressure to hire locals
is significant. Look at recent trends and amendments in skilled migrant/knowledge worker laws.
- Subscribe to local business reads like www.EurActiv.com – for Europe
- example: Headline “EU mulls gender quotas on company boards”- EU commission considering introducing quotas to tackle imbalances on company boards- BIG OPPTY for female leaders- companies have seen this coming and hi -priority to hire women.
- What do you offer above and beyond the local candidate pool?
- Do a SWOT. What are your Unique Selling Points? What is your niche- what can you offer that others can not?
- Is there anything to be particularly cautious about when applying for positions? For example, how do I evaluate the legitimacy of a company or job opening?
- Glassdoor.com- look for patterns expressed by multiple individuals
- Alumni/Ask your network
- LinkedIn (be careful what you post on the web, your future potential employer may be reading!)
- Is it worth just picking up and going to the country I am most interested in working in before I actually land a position?
- If you can, absolutely. You are cheaper to interview and easier to hire from their perspective. Assimilation process takes time and you will perform better once you are settled and passed the initial tourist phase. But look into residence and work permits first if you are not a local citizen!
- A 1 or 2 week trip can be VERY effective- schedule appts ahead of time w/headhunters, companies,
alumni (is there a local chapter? are they meeting?), local office for own employer
- How/why an international job will affect your career story (traditional linear careers versus portfolio careers; how might it open or close subsequent opportunities?)
- Depends on YOUR story and your job function. What were your objectives- did you achieve them? How will you position your decision to take the assignment/move abroad? If you don’t see the value, no one else will.
- In practice, this is a challenge, and according to research by a large multinational professional
services firm, their returning Expats report their int’l experience is not valued by their home country, or leveraged.
- How do I learn about local regulations, prepare for culture shock, etc.?
- Learn how business works: look at leadership and managment in that country/company. Who makes up the management teams? Who influences? How accessible is leadership? Who is invited to meetings, who has a say? How does change happen?
- How many pages does a good resume have? How should I adapt
the content?
- It depends what country you are applying to. There are significant cultural differences regarding what people are looking for in a resume. For example: a resume in the US or the UK would be 1-2 pages long (max), but a CV (yes, it’s called something different in Europe) can be longer in the Netherlands and in Germany. The expected content will be different and the writing style will be very different (the American focus on “I” vs. Chinese “we”).
- Americans need to tone down the “I” in their resumes and cover letters for applications abroad (or they come across as arrogant), and Asian job seekers often struggle in the US and European job markets unless they work on feeling comfortable expressing their personal achievements. A good exercise is to review resumes on a global resume portal like www.monsterboard.com by country and familiarize yourself with the local protocol.
- Regardless of length, your resume should be easy to read: -job titles in bold -use bullets to list SMART info (Specific, Measurable, Action-oriented, Results, Tangible/Time-oriented). To keep it interesting, make every line count. Keep in mind most recruiters will not read past the third bullet of any job at a first glance.