Benchmark Search Employment Insights – July 2023
I hope you’re having a wonderful summer filled with lots of sunshine and fresh air.
In this month’s newsletter, how to shake up your resume, how to announce a job search appropriately on social media and good ways to get started learning more about generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Bard.
Unemployment Update
The national unemployment rate declined to 3.6% while the unemployment for college degreed professionals declined to 2.0%, as reported by the BLS.
Employers expanded their payrolls by 209,000 jobs in June. While this number is lower than economists’ expectations, June’s growth is still higher than the average job growth for the 5 years pre-pandemic (186,000). Notable job gains included government (60k), healthcare (41k), professional and business services (21k) and leisure and hospitality (21k).
There are currently 1.6 job openings for every unemployed worker.
Referral Needed
Here are a few of our top opportunities. We pay referral bonuses for candidates successfully placed.
ACCOUNTING
Controller, SAAS Company, NetSuite, M&A Required, (Hybrid) – $175 + Equity
Assistant Controller, Dallas, Private Equity (Hybrid) $175k
Assistant Controller, Coppell – Real Estate (Hybrid) – $125k
Accounting Manager, Flower Mound, GASB Required (In Office) – $105k
Accounting Manager, Irving – Private Equity (Hybrid) – $100k
Senior Accountant, Southlake, Public Acctg Req (In Office) – $100k
Staff Accountant, Dallas – Real Estate (Hybrid), 70k
Accounts Receivable, Lewisville – Consumer Services (Hybrid) – $65k
Accounting Assistant, Dallas – Real Estate (Hybrid) – 65k
FINANCE
Senior Finance Manager, Coppell (Hybrid) – $140k
Senior Financial Analyst, Lewisville (Hybrid) – $110k
Financial Analyst, Flower Mound (Hybrid) – $95k
Financial Analyst, Frisco (Hybrid) – $85k
TAX
Tax Partner, Professional Services, FTW (Hybrid)
Tax Manager, Financial Services, Dallas (Hybrid) – $120
Tax Senior, Financial Services, Dallas (Hybrid) – $110k
Tax Research, Professional Services (Remote) – $95k
Experience Staff, Professional Services (Hybrid) – $75k
View more open roles on our website!
Resume needs a shake-up?
If it’s been a while since you needed a resume, or if your current resume isn’t getting a lot of traction, it might be time for a shake-up.
One thing to consider is the balance of demonstrated hard skills versus soft skills on your resume. For most people, hard skills are easy to define. They’re things like computer skills, accounting acumen and language fluency. They might include types of software you’re comfortable working with or experiences you’ve had with explicit job functions.
Soft skills are a little more difficult to define. They include things like communication, teamwork, leadership and problem-solving skills. They’re a little murkier because just saying you have them doesn’t really mean much. You have to prove it by presenting scenarios you’ve been in and how you’ve handled them — which generally comes later during the interview process.
Nevertheless, mentioning soft strengths on your resume is key.
How to announce your job search on social media
Posting about a job search can be a delicate thing on LinkedIn and other social media platforms. Yes, you want to get the word out as widely as possible, but you don’t want to come across as desperate. You want to put your best put forward and control your “personal brand” — but you may in fact not want to share your job status with absolutely everyone.
Nuances aside, the best way to post about your job search on LinkedIn and other platforms is in a friendly but professional way. Make it positive (always, no exceptions) and get a little bit personal, but not too much.
Include information like:
- Why you’re looking for a new job (A move? A merger? Layoffs?)
- What you’ve been doing most recently — not just the job but perhaps an interesting project or professional success
- Relevant skills and experience
Also, it is a great idea to get a recruiter involved in your job search early on. You want to do both — personal networking and leaning into a professional resource like myself. Get aggressive, be positive and get ready for the next phase of your career.
Take the time to learn how to use generative AI tools now
Generative AI — the realm of tools like #ChatGTP — gets a lot of airplay these days. Just as more and more job postings require experience working with #GenAI tools, online education platforms like Coursera are also logging an uptick in interest in learning about generative AI.
If you’re currently conducting a job search or even just interested in staying current with marketable skills, this is one way to brush up. A quick Google of “generative AI online courses” brings up plenty of options.
You can also sign up for ChatGPT or Bard — or any of the other brand-new generative AI tools available to the public — and teach yourself how to use them. Simple familiarity with these tools is step one to mastery.
Also, it is a great idea to get a recruiter involved in your job search early on. You want to do both — personal networking and leaning into a professional resource like myself. Get aggressive, be positive and get ready for the next phase of your career.
