Getting a dream job in Nigeria is a challenge for a lot of people. It is common to hear unemployed Nigerians especially the youths saying there are no more jobs in Nigeria. Is this assertion true? No. For the fact that unemployment rate is 18.8% in Nigeria as at December 2017 according to the National bureau of Statistics (NBS), many people still get fantastic job offers by using some tips.
Your first class degree or advanced degree will not land you that dream job. Times have changed, what employers want today is the value you can bring to their organization not big paper qualifications. Even if you have these values, you may not know the way to make employers know that you can turn their organizations around.
The world is changing and the traditional job sectors are being disrupted. The usual jobs we see around will be gone in the next 20 years. Software and robots now work as Accountants, engineers, receptionists and architects in developed countries, these innovations are gaining inroads in developing countries too like Nigeria.
It is worthy of mention to note that new jobs in digital marketing, information technology and artificial intelligence etc will be created. As some jobs are going so are new jobs created.
I will discuss some tips that you can deploy to make you land your dream job in a difficult terrain like Nigeria.
Identify Inefficiencies: One of the top tips to get a good job is investigating the inefficiencies of the company you want to work for and proffering solutions. This initiative can wow any employer; it shows that you are better than even their current employees and that you can add great value.
A young man noticed that the website of a multinational company is poorly designed with several bugs. He contacted the multinational about these problems, sent a website mockup and proffered solutions. He volunteered to provide the solutions free of charge. Surprisingly, this young man landed a job of about N8.2 million annually. Here is a young man who has been unemployed for three years.
A young lady contacted a bank and told them she could assist them to open bank accounts for a number of market women. The young lady is the daughter of a market leader. She opened about 1,061 bank accounts within 4 months, the bank was impressed and she was offered employment as a Graduate Trainee. Here is another example of how a young graduate turned her situation around by being proactive.
Apply using courier services: Yes, this may sound odd but it may be the tip that will make you get your dream job. Most big organizations are inundated with online applications for jobs. Some organizations do not even accept hand delivery of CVs except if you use courier services.
You are sure that your CV and cover letter will be delivered if you use a courier service.
Apply for hidden jobs: Kayode got a job as Bank Executive Trainee lately; his friends wondered how he got the job because the bank did not place a job advert in any newspaper or job board.
According to Forbes, about 80% of vacancies may not be advertised at all. This may be like a joke for job seekers but it is real.
To the employers, it saves them money by not advertising for jobs. It may also help them reduce the work load of looking through thousands of CVs especially in a country like Nigeria.
To know the hidden jobs in organizations in your niche, you may consider applying directly to your choice organizations. Networking with people from various backgrounds also helps.
Consider gaining experience through voluntary jobs: The fact is that most organizations prefer to employ experienced worker who will start adding value to their organizations from day one of employment.
Why should I employ a fresh graduate with no work experience at all? Why should I spend thousands or millions of Naira on a fresh graduate that may leave my organization after spending a fortune on him or her?
As a fresh graduate, it may not be a bad idea to work in an organization without pay in order to gain valuable experience. In a country like Nigeria, this may be a challenge given the poor state of a lot of graduate. However, if you can endure, you will reap the fruit of your labour in no time.
A fresh graduate committed 1w months to work for a web development company, he learnt web design and programming, after 12 months he got a good job with a bank with a very juicy package. Today, he owns a web development company that makes over N35 million annually.
Continue learning: Mr. Chukwudi studied history as his first degree discipline. After graduation, he got job as a teacher earning N15,000 per month. He was not comfortable with this so he started learning about digital marketing.
He enrolled on several internet courses on digital marketing and how he can use it to add value to companies in Nigeria.
After arming himself with good knowledge about digital marketing, he applied for a role in digital marketing in a top school in Lagos. He shared stories about how digital marketing has helped in increasing students’ enrolment by 98% in some schools around, his zeal and eagerness to turn the school around was noted during interview. He was offered the role of a Digital Analyst in the school.
12 months on the job, he achieved a 79% increase in students’ enrolment through digital marketing. Today Mr. Chukwudi runs one of the best Digital Marketing Agencies in Abuja, Nigeria.
Have a good database of your past projects: Projects you have worked on while you are unemployed can be used as references to land a dream job. A Graphic Artist who has developed a number of good designs can easily get a good job in a multinational if he shows them the projects he has worked on.
This applies to almost all sectors; learn to have a database of your past projects.
Targeted CV: Do not send same CV for all the jobs you applied for. It is a good strategy to develop different CV for different roles. Learning how to write a very effective CV is also a top tip in getting great jobs.
Do not say anything bad about past employers: No matter the grudges you have with your previous employers, do not ever bad mouth them while attending interviews. You should dwell more on the positive things you learnt while working with your previous employers and the value you brought to their organization. No employer wants to employ a disgruntled worker.
Mining for email addresses of top members of staff: Using search engines like Google to get the email addresses of top members of staff of an organization like the Managing Director, Executive Directors or departmental heads can be your joker to get a dream job. Once you get these email addresses, you can send an unsolicited job application including your CV to them.
This can be very effective. CVs referred to human resources by top members of staff are given better attention than direct application to human resources by the job applicants.
There are some web applications that you can use to mine email addresses. You should also be mindful of using some spam trigger words to avoid your email going to spam folder instead of the inbox folder.
Share stories during interview: Being lively at the interview session can make a great difference. Sharing stories about yourself and the tasks you completed can impress the interviewers.
Telling stories about how some skills you have turned a situation around can boost your chances of landing a great job.
Do not always think about the negatives in Nigeria, apply the tips I have discussed above and others you know to get employed.
If you enjoyed reading this article, please do not forget to share on Facebook and Twitter.
