Job Hunting Strategies after the 2024 Stock Market Crash

Are you in the job market after the stock market crash? Don’t panic. Make these adjustments to your resume, LinkedIn profile and in-person interviews to overcome the fear and uncertainty in the marketplace.

What you'll learn:

• Which industries were hardest hit?
• Will the unemployment rate rise?
• How to overcome the fear in the marketplace

About the Author

Tony Moore

Before stepping into his role as the head of Marketing at Timpl, Tony spent over 20 years as a headhunter and corporate talent acquisition expert. His career focused on finding and developing top talent across different industries, offering valuable insights into negotiation strategies and market trends that empower professionals to advance their careers effectively.

Before we reveal the adjustments, it is important to put this crash into perspective and understand what the marketplace fears.

Which industries were hardest hit?

• Technology: The tech sector, which had been driving market gains earlier,
  stumbled significantly.
• Communication Services and Information Technology were among the hardest hit, with declines of 4.2% and 2.1%, respectively (Investopedia).
• Consumer Discretionary: Retailers and companies reliant on consumer spending faced severe downturns due to reduced consumer confidence and spending power amidst economic uncertainty (Fox Business).

Will the unemployment rate rise?
Yes, based on historical data, but how severe remains unknown.

This quick video looks at what happened during past stock market crashes.

Overcoming fear in the marketplace

The VIX or the Volatility Index is how fear is measured by institutional investors in the stock market. VIX tracks what they think will happen in the stock market in the next 30 days. They use the VIX to gauge market sentiment and as a tool for hedging and speculative purposes. A normal index is 9-13. Currently it is 60. In 2008 it was 80. During Covid it was 82.

The root of fear with employers is losing money. Use this two-part strategy to offset the fear.

1. Show how your skills and experiences can make money.
2. Show how your skills and experiences can save money. If you can show both, you are a rare professional. Most people can highlight one or the other.

Let’s look at some examples of HOW to implement this strategy with LinkedIn, the resume and in-person interviewing.

1. Write down specific examples of how you have saved money for your employer. Savings are time, motion and activities, money, referring employees, IT Automation, and in some cases timely filing of reports for rebates etc. Get creative and estimate how much is saved per week, month, and year.
2. Do the same for making money. For sales and business development professionals, this is an easy exercise. For those in accounting or operations, get creative. 
   Have you enhanced a product or service leading to higher margins? Have you improved customer service and support leading to higher retention? In HR, have you trained and upskilled workers? Have you increased margins by renegotiating sales and supplier contracts? Calculate the annual benefit you contributed.
3. Scan the job description for the summary of the role and the first 3-4 responsibilities. These statements tell you exactly what they want you to accomplish in the role. Here is a video explaining this technique in greater detail.
4. Rewrite your summary to reflect that you are known for what they want and included a sentence highlighting your sales or savings on a yearly basis.

For example, I am a senior accountant known for creating efficiencies, automation and (what the job wants you to accomplish). Recently I saved my current employer an estimated $$ per year because of my XYZ improvements.

Update your LinkedIn using this new summary and drop the 3^rd attribute (which was job specific) and add a third quality of yours. Here is my LI profile. LinkedIn has “Case Studies” and “Featured” sections. Here you can add examples of your work. Check out my featured podcast episodes listed there. That is the proof in the pudding!

As for the resume, make sure you back up your summary with relevant experiences and accomplishments. You do not need to list everything on your resume! Delete irrelevant or outdated experiences that do not support the summary.

You are now ready for the in-person interview.

These questions will open up the opportunity to reiterate your ability to make or save money which is a benefit to the employer. You may be surprised by what you learn. If you would like a complete listing of best questions to ask, check out this blog and video.

Much success to you in your job hunt!