When you are looking for data and BI jobs this holiday season, it may be tempting to look everywhere at once, scouring the job feeds, keeping an eye on Twitter, and directly seeking a variety of jobs.

Only a rabbit hops everywhere! It may be better to focus in on those roles you really want… ones that also match your skills and experience. So send your resume in for select jobs and then let niche recruiters like Data Talent zero in on you.

To do this, firstly ensure your resume is the best it can be: updated with your current position and containing your industry keywords. Also go over your LinkedIn profile, which should reflect a slimmed down version of your resume. The Summary can let people know where your main career interest lies, as well as your strengths.

Tip. As many employers now check social media accounts prior to hire, it would pay to make ‘private’ your Facebook posts, just in case.

Focus at Interviews

While employers are interested in your specialist skills, when interviewing you, some will pay attention to little things that could detract from your professionalism: is that Apple Watch distracting you, can they hear constant beeps from your phone, are you confidently looking at the speaker or nervously looking everywhere, and do you keep on topic?

Clear focus on the present moment is always a plus in interviews. It lets employers or recruiters know that you’re one of the few who can block out distractions and concentrate on what the people present are saying.

Saying particular words that they have asked for in regard to strengths can also have a subliminal positive effect. “I focus well on tasks” I said in my job interview… Six months later at the performance review, the manager repeated back to me “well, you’re very focussed”. Read the job advertisement again and keep a keen ear out to pick up the personal strengths that they are looking for.

Keeping Abreast of the Data Industry

In your downtime you might also want to spend time keeping up with the industry. Look up the future of your industry, like this short summary on future of predictive analytics (Smart Data Collective) or a longer survey like these Gartner 2016 Business Intelligence predictions.

Also follow this Data Hub as we scour the globe for exciting data career news and views.