It's the chicken or the egg. Should you find a job and then move to a new city, or move to a new place and then look for employment? If you’ve ever done the latter, you’ve probably learned it can make the job hunt harder when you’re navigating a career path in an unfamiliar landscape.
Artisan Talent is in the business of matching people with work, so we've seen almost all the employment situations. Need to find employment?
Here are our lucky seven list for what to do after you’ve unloaded the U-Haul and are ready to find your next job.
New City Job Hunt Resources
Let’s be honest. Moving doesn’t happen overnight – unless there’s a warrant out for your arrest. Assuming you have time to pack a suitcase, here are a few "new city new job" tips.
#7 Change social media settings to reflect the city you’re moving to
(Assuming you don’t have to hide where you’re moving from the police.)
Many hiring managers or recruiters will conduct a geographic search for candidates. For example, on LinkedIn, they’ll do a keyword search by location and job type to find a qualified candidate pool.
#6 Change Your Social Location
Speaking of Social Media, networking is real, so it’s important to let your close friends and distant colleagues know your plan. If you understand the concept of “six degrees of separation,” you’ll realize it’s possible that your people might know someone who knows someone else -- who might give you a job.
#5 Explore the community by getting involved
Join Meetups and let people know you’re either planning to move or have recently arrived. Let them know you’re looking for a job. What other groups can you join? Does your new city have a local chapter of the AIGA?
#4 Don’t carpet-bomb your resume
Once you’ve arrived, research where you’d like to work. There are a few steps to this process:
- Find local businesses with jobs matching your skills. If you’re a programmer, where are the tech companies? If you’re a barista, find the Starbucks.
- Hone your search by using sites like Glassdoor. Was the company a “best place to work?”
- Consider geography. How far are you willing to commute? Weed out employers that are further than you’d want to travel.
#3 Go back to school
It’s not a terrible idea to stop in at the local university career center. If you’ve completed your degree, why not reach out your old college professors to find out if they know anyone who is hiring in the region?
If it's taking a while to find a job, why not check out an education center like General Assembly and learn a new skill?
#2 Don’t rule out the want ads
It might be Captain Obvious, but make sure you’re perusing everything from Craigslist to your local newspaper.
#1 Call a staffing agency
Of course, we’ve saved the best for last. Make sure you call an agency like Artisan Talent first when (or even before) you hit your new city.
Staffing agencies spend years networking with hiring managers so we hear about the hot jobs first. Contact us to see how we can help welcome to your new home.
Already Moved?
Check out our available jobs! While we have offices in Chicago, Denver, Indianapolis, and New York, we place talent in jobs all over the country including Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Nashville, Las Vegas, and more!
