If you’re on the lookout for assets that can assist you discover goal corporations on your job search, you’ve come to the precise place. You’ll discover lists, databases and instruments to assist establish potential employers.
Conducting a proactive job search requires that you’ve got a plan.
Your job search plan must transcend simply spraying-and-praying your resume to a whole bunch of job postings.
As a substitute, learn to construct an organization checklist of prime employers on your job search.
The next checklist of 9 totally different sources offers you with choices to develop your familiarity with new corporations and goal alternatives BEFORE they’re marketed!
How To Start If You Don’t Have Any Concepts?
My guess is, you in all probability do have some concept of locations you want to work or a job or two you’d be inquisitive about.
Possibly you heard about an organization within the information or have heard individuals rave in regards to the firm they work for. It is a start line. Add these corporations to your goal checklist. You must belief within the exploration course of.
Additionally, take into consideration corporations you’re a buyer of. How nice wouldn’t it be to work for them?
1. Greatest Firm Lists
Yearly, the next assets replace their checklist of “greatest locations to work” or “greatest corporations to work for.” Use every checklist to get you began:
- Glassdoor.com’s Greatest Locations to Work
- Fortune’s 100 Greatest Corporations to Work For
- American Alternative Index Prime 100
- Seek for “Prime 100” and “Greatest Employer” lists on your metropolis
Step 1:
Undergo the checklist and establish 3-5 corporations that sound fascinating. You don’t have to do a number of exterior analysis. Simply learn the write up.
Step 2:
What, if something, do the businesses you’ve chosen have in widespread:
- Business
- Variety of workers
- Geographic location
Step 3:
Discover extra corporations which have comparable qualities. What number of extra? It relies upon, however typically, you need not less than 50 corporations in your goal checklist. To search out extra corporations, use among the databases and instruments under.
I’m going to make use of a standard instance that can assist you see what you are able to do to broaden your checklist of goal corporations.
Let’s say you’d like to work for Google as a result of it’s modern, appears like a very good place to work and most significantly, they rent individuals who do what you do…technical writers, for instance.
Your subsequent query must be, what corporations are much like Google or do what Google does?
2. Databases
As soon as the trade title (generally associated to NAICS codes), you’re prepared to make use of it on your checklist constructing. You’re on the lookout for the names of corporations that fall into the identical or comparable trade.
Most databases value cash to entry. However here’s a free one.
CareerOneStop Enterprise Finder
This free database can present good data if you lastly get it. Begin your search on the Enterprise Finder web page.
Enter the Enterprise Identify, Business or Occupation or choose a Zip Code.
Your Native Library Has Databases
There are many analysis instruments on the market, however if you’re not a researcher by nature, I recommend you go to your library and ask for assist researching corporations inside a particular trade.
Libraries even have entry to databases you might not, comparable to Reference Options (previously often called ReferenceUSA). As a member of the library, you’ve gotten entry to this database without charge. And also you could possibly entry it from house.
Crunchbase
With out subscribing, Crunchbase means that you can search by trade, variety of workers, headquarters and different standards. Nonetheless, you’ll solely see a restricted variety of outcomes. It’s beneficial for researching a particular firm.
3. Lists & Directories
Listed here are another checklist assets so that you can try:
- Your native Chamber of Commerce
- Skilled and Business Associations
See what corporations are sponsoring occasions or providing shows.
4. Alumni Databases
Your school or college both has a database of alumni or a LinkedIn web page you need to use that can assist you establish standard corporations alumni work for. Should you aren’t conversant in how LinkedIn’s alumni pages work, verify this text out.
5. Discover Out About Small Corporations
Smaller corporations account for a very good share of jobs. The factor is, smaller corporations are more durable to seek out. They don’t have the advertising and marketing finances, they don’t have the worker community, they’re working lean and imply. So how do you discover out about them? Listed here are locations to verify:
- Recipients of Enterprise Capital funding
- Members of Chambers of Commerce
- Skilled associations
- Native financial improvement website
Should you actually need to work for a small employer, I recommend you search all these assets. Plus, verify your native newspaper recurrently for information about corporations and tasks in your space.
6. Use the Energy of Google
You may seek for corporations utilizing Google, for instance:
“Greatest Advertising and marketing Corporations in Detroit Michigan”
Additionally arrange Google Alerts to extend your odds of discovering out about new corporations.
7. Use Synthetic Intelligence
One of many many advantages of AI is that it does the analysis. Utilizing real-time web search is normally extra correct. For that purpose, I like to recommend utilizing Claude.ai, Perplexity.ai, Gemini or Copilot.
The key to getting good outcomes is asking the precise query. And the extra particular you’re the higher.
Begin with a immediate like this:
Create a listing of employers in [Rochester, NY] which have employed [digital marketing] roles.
However don’t cease there.
Ask a followup query like “What industries do these employers characterize?” This could make it easier to goal different employers in these industries.
And to uncover extra alternatives, ask this followup query: “What startups within the Rochester, NY space rent digital advertising and marketing professionals?”
Deal with AI like you’re giving directions to somebody. Refine the outcomes by asking extra questions inside the thread.
8. Ask Folks You Know
Associates & Household
Family and friends members could LOVE their employer. However don’t ask if they’re hiring. As a substitute, ask in the event that they like the place they work and why.
Service Suppliers
You too can ask service suppliers (hairdressers, accountants, monetary planners, mechanics) in the event that they learn about corporations which are in your trade. You may say one thing like:
“Have you ever heard about any tech corporations within the space?”
Previous Co-Employees/Colleagues
A few of the individuals you used to work with could have moved on to different corporations. Ask them the identical query:
“Have you ever heard of any tech corporations which are doing nice issues?”
Purchasers/Prospects
Your previous shoppers or prospects, suppliers or distributors even have their finger on the heartbeat of what’s occurring in your trade. Ask them what corporations they’re watching.
9. Job Boards
I’ve saved the best for final. Utilizing job boards will present you what corporations are promoting jobs. That is an apparent place to uncover employers, not only for the present job they’ve open, however for future jobs too. Add these to your goal checklist so you’ll be able to take proactive steps to fulfill insiders earlier than the subsequent alternative is posted.
DO NOT ELIMINATE COMPANIES YET
You will have fairly an extended checklist as you undergo these lists and databases. That’s nice.
Truly, it’s higher to have extra corporations than not sufficient. Concentrate on the highest 10 first. Right here’s what to do:
- Create alerts on every firm’s job board.
- Observe every firm on LinkedIn and if obtainable, choose “I’m ” on the corporate’s LinkedIN web page.
- Hold researching the opposite corporations on the checklist. (You don’t need to miss out on any alternatives that is perhaps instantly obtainable).
Earlier than you are taking an organization off your checklist, have a purpose for taking it off your checklist. Simply because one particular person says they don’t like the corporate or they’ve just a few unhealthy opinions doesn’t essentially imply it will likely be unhealthy for you. Proceed pursuing every firm till you’ve gotten stable data (or higher but, land a job interview).
Put It In Writing
Checklist all the corporate names on a spreadsheet and even higher on your advertising and marketing plan.
Your spreadsheet will make it easier to hold observe of:
- Contacts at every firm
- Folks you need to meet at every firm
- Profession web page hyperlink
- Jobs you utilized for and standing
Don’t Go Away…You’re not executed but!
You aren’t simply what jobs they’ve posted. They could not have something listed.
The next step is to seek out individuals you’ll be able to have an informational assembly with inside every of your goal corporations.
With the intention to do that, it’s essential to establish who or are related to inside the corporate. Right here’s methods to discover the names of individuals inside goal corporations.
Hannah Morgan speaks and writes about job search and profession methods. She based CareerSherpa.web to coach professionals on methods to maneuver by means of immediately’s job search course of. Hannah was nominated as a LinkedIn Prime Voice in Job Search and Careers and is a daily contributor to US Information & World Report. She has been quoted by media retailers, together with Forbes, USA As we speak, Cash Journal, Huffington Publish, in addition to many different publications. She can also be creator of The Infographic Resume and co-author of Social Networking for Enterprise Success.