findings from our full-time employee surveys
The text that follows reveals some of the latest findings from our full-time employee surveys. If you complete one of our surveys then we’ll send you a free excerpt from one of our Knowledge Insight Packs to thank you for your inputs.
- how did you find out about your current job?
The three most popular ways that our full-time employees found out about their current jobs were:
- By word-of-mouth [22%]
- On the internet [17%]
- In the national Press [16%]
Other ways included:
- Through a recruitment company or agency
- From a Careers Advisor
- From a head-hunter
- From the Jobcentre
- did you have to attend an interview to secure your current job?
Our findings suggest that interviews are still widely used by employers to recruit new employees. 91% of the full-time employees that took part in our survey had to attend at least one interview to secure their current job.
- how many interviews did you have to attend before securing your current job?
Of the full-time employees that attended an interview to secure their current job:
- 67% attended one interview
- 22% attended two interviews, and
- 11% attended three interviews
- what type of interviews have you attended?
According to our findings, the three most common types of interview are:
- Face-to-face interviews [52% of our sample attended this type of interview]
- Telephone interviews [19% of our sample took part in this type of interview]
- Informal interviews [10% of our sample attended this type of interview]
Other types of interview included:
- Competency-based interviews
- Panel-based interviews
- Group-based interviews
- Technical interviews
- what were the main problems and difficulties that you had to face and overcome when you were looking for and securing full-time employment?
Our survey suggests that the three most common problems and difficulties that need to be addressed when securing full-time employment are:
- Lack of experience
- Not knowing what I really want to do
- How to go about describing my skills
Other problems and difficulties included:
- The amount of time that it takes to find, apply for, and then secure a job
- Completing application forms
- Updating my CV every time I applied for a different job
- The application process wasn’t dyslexia-friendly
- Trying to find out what my ‘ideal job’ actually is
- Having to re-locate for my job
- Trying to remember what I’ve actually done and achieved in the past
- Identifying relevant examples of my skills that I can use during the application process
- Finding the time to attend interviews and assessment centres when I’m employed full-time
- Overcoming nerves at interviews
- The industry that I want to work in is very competitive
- The perception that I’m too young to do the job that I want to do
- what advice would you give to someone who is looking for a full-time job?
Our respondents provided the following advice:
- Think about what you really want to do before you start applying for jobs
- Be honest about what you can and can’t do
- Gain as much work experience as possible
- Participate in lots of different social activities
- Make sure that the job you think you want to do really is your ‘ideal job’
- Make sure that you’ve prepared properly for every interview that you’re asked to attend
- Use your contacts
- Gather as much information about the job that you want as possible
- Keep a record of all your achievements and examples of your skills
- Keep a physical record of when you do things that are ‘work-related’ that you can use during your application process
- Make sure that your CV and application form are written specifically for the job that you’re applying for
- Do lots of research on potential employers and on the jobs that you want to do
- Don’t oversell yourself… your employer will find out if you do
- Don’t get stuck in one job for too long… always keep an eye out for new opportunities
