The Speed-Jobing is a special event organized by Canada Talents and SDE. As the title suggests, this event matches, as much as possible, employers who are interested in hiring French-speaking employees and francophones who are looking for a job.
First of all, even if the event is free, you need to register through Eventbrite. The data from your registration ensures that your profile can be matched with the proper employers and jobs.
Before the event: Rehearse
Now that you have registered, it’s time to get ready for the game!
Gather information
An important step of the preparation is to find information about the companies that will be there. Stating the obvious: go to their website where you’ll find a description of their activities, their organization, objectives and financial data to get the whole picture. Another essential step is to check their LinkedIn page for recent news. It will also give you an insight into the career paths of their employees within the company. All this information will help you make a dedicated resume for the companies you want to work for as well as two or three questions to ask during the interview.
Check your resume
Your resume will be your main tool for the day. A week in advance, start reviewing it: make sure it is up to date, following the Canadian standards. Once you have checked the spelling and grammar of your document, have someone review it. Better safe than sorry! If you found your dream company while gathering information for the event, don’t hesitate to prepare a targeted resume for them.
The last step is to prepare at least ten copies of your all-purpose resume to hand out on the day of the event. Printing them a couple of days before is a simple way to lower your stress. You can find printers in libraries or using private companies such as Staples.
Work your elevator pitch
While working on your resume, you will spend some time thinking about your professional project. This reflection is not only useful for the resume’s objective: it’s also a good input for your elevator pitch. During the Speed-Jobing, each interview will last 6 minutes, so you’ll want to introduce yourself quickly.
It’s another crucial element to prepare.The key to the elevator pitch is to know what you want and be able to state it in a very short time. Prepare it both in French and in English as the employers who attend the event might speak either language, or both. Don’t forget that Canadians are very positive and enthusiastic when they talk, and you should do the same: focus on your strengths, qualities and achievements.
As with the resume, don’t hesitate to get feedback from someone. If you’re a member of Canada Talents, you can ask for a Face-to-Face with one of our volunteers who will be able to help you with it. Make sure you repeat it numerous times until you are comfortable. You are more than welcome to attend one of our CONNECTWorking events where you will be able to practice your elevator pitch before and after the presentation.
Prepare your outfit
The elevator pitch will help you make a good first impression and is part of the way you present yourself. Your appearance matters too and should match your professional objectives: dress according to the position you’re looking for, introduce yourself with the appropriate elevator pitch, and the recruiter will have a consistent understanding of who you are and how you can fit into the company.
You’ve ticked all the boxes on the list? Rehearse, rehearse and… rehearse. You are ready for the interviews when you can make your discussions last around 6’.
During the event: Focus
Picture a room with 20 tables, one for each company, represented by their HR, looking for their future employees. Every company has at least three open jobs to fill. There will be different kinds of jobs, including entry-level jobs: you could find the first Canadian experience you’re looking for, or a chance to integrate a company you're interested in before moving on to a job that will be more in phase with your expectations.
Review your speech
Upon your arrival at the event, our volunteers will provide you with a list of your meetings. It will give you time to flip through your notes and remember what you had prepared for each of those companies.
If you find the list of companies surprising or disappointing, put yourself together! In any case, the different interviews will be a chance to practice: you couldn’t ask for a better networking opportunity. HR people network together and taking your interviews seriously can only help you find your dream job. On top of that, you can take advantage of the two breaks to go and meet the companies you targeted.
Manage the interviews
Going from one interview to another may feel stressful. Take some time to relax and breathe. For each discussion, you’ll have 6 minutes with the HR representative to introduce yourself, talk about the position and discuss the different questions you both may have.
Should the position or the company sound like the right fit for you, find something that will make you stand out and fix a date for a second interview. If you don’t feel like you’ll be the right fit for the job and/or the company, seize the opportunity to discuss with the recruiters; they may know other companies interested in your profile and could introduce you to some of them.
Take notes for the follow-up
Writing down a few words about each interview is key to remembering what you talked about during the different conversations. It can also help you customize the thank you emails you will send after the event. In order to do so, don’t forget to grab your interviewers' business cards!
During the break, make the most out of your time: you can either sit with companies that are not on your list, relax before the next round or talk to other candidates and grow your network.
After the event: Follow-up
After the Speed-Jobing is over, you can take a nice break for the rest of the day but remember that you still have a couple of actions to take to derive all the benefits of your day.
To begin with, go through your notes and send a thank you email to every recruiter that you met. Personalize your message with the specific details you shared during the interview so that the person can remember who you are. If you scheduled a second interview, now is the time to confirm it.
Even if you were not interested in the position that you discussed, this email is an important step in the Canadian culture and it will send a good image if you want to apply for another job in the company in the future.
Last but not least, connect through LinkedIn with everyone you networked with during the day, recruiters and candidates alike. Write a short message to remind everyone how you met to make it easier for them to accept the request.
If you liked the event and appreciated the efforts put into it, why don’t you join our team of volunteers and help us build the next one! It’s a great experience to add to your resume.