Physically In New Zealand, Could We Be Job-Hunting Differently?

[Vann]

This might be completely redundant a question but I'm wondering if there's some "trick" to job-hunting that we're missing. My husband submitted his EOI in July and he's had three interviews with different city councils in New Zealand, via Skype when we were still in Europe. None of those panned out and, after reading multiple posts that suggested that job-hunting is easier when you are actually in New Zealand, we decided to take the opportunity for him to take sabbatical and come to New Zealand for a few months. (This also allows us to get a feel for different parts of the country, make certain it's where we'd like to be, etc.) We're finding that even having contact information in New Zealand and his physically being in the country has had absolutely no effect on his job search. Regardless of the few recruiters that have shown interest, it really does seem to come down to the famous "catch 22" of no work visa. His field is ICT, specifically Business/Data Analyst. At this point we're considering simply heading over to Southeast Asia after next month so that we can conserve our funds for the duration of his sabbatical. Anyone have any suggestions about what we could be doing differently? We'd really appreciate pointers.

Regards,
Vann

[wellywearer]

Hi Vann,

Sounds like you've taken a great move in coming here to look.
You mention the catch 22 of needing a visa. If he's not able to get hold of a temporary visa then he really needs to look at his skills and make it obvious to employers the new competencies he can bring to them. He needs to differentiate himself from the NZ applicants. Why would he be better for them?

Has he been to talk to any recruitment agencies in his field? They would be able to advise if his CV suits the market. Though as he had some interviews I guess it does. Did he get any feedback from the interviews? Why didn't he get the post? Was it visa based or other? That will help your strategy.

Does he have some target companies he would like to work with? In that case he needs to see if he can go in just for a casual chat. Talk to someone currently doing what he'd like to do and about how they got the position. Talk to managers so he can get advice on how things work there and potentially how he could get in there. Inviting people for coffee is very common here - well at least in Wellington !
ICT is a growing field and I know companies in Wellington where migrants make up a lot of the staff.
What location is he looking at?

Is he on LinkedIn? I find it is used here in Wellington, as a job seeking tool and for making connections. Connections are very important. Get to know people!

Are social events happening near where you are staying? Join a walking group, a coffee group, a sports group, meet new people and who knows what fields they work in and who they know!

I think it's great that he's here and I wish him the best of luck!

[Vann]

Thanks so much, wellywearer. We plan to follow your advice and have also decided, in the interim, to look into potential remote work opportunities.

[wellywearer]

Best of luck!

[Elleon2wheels]

Hi Vann
I was in a similar situation to you. I gave up looking online from the UK because employers seemed biased towards those who were actually in NZ as it shows 'commitment'. So I moved to Dunedin, to live with family and look for a job, but I still struggled - several interviews (database developer), but no job offers.
Then, finally, I had a breakthrough & now I have a 3 yr work visa and will be eligible for residency after 2 years.

The Kiwi recruitment process seems quite different. You may be required to supply a CV and a cover letter & I found that the cover letter was more important. Work on the process of writing those letters so they stand out.

Also, in my new job, I've learned that the BA role isn't a particularly well-understood position in NZ & this may also be why your husband is struggling. He needs to target some of the bigger companies directly, don't wait for a job advert. This is how I got my job

[darzren]

Hi Elleon2Wheels,

How did you target the company directly? Did you write to the HR or call them?

Cheers

Hi Vann
I was in a similar situation to you. I gave up looking online from the UK because employers seemed biased towards those who were actually in NZ as it shows 'commitment'. So I moved to Dunedin, to live with family and look for a job, but I still struggled - several interviews (database developer), but no job offers.
Then, finally, I had a breakthrough & now I have a 3 yr work visa and will be eligible for residency after 2 years.

The Kiwi recruitment process seems quite different. You may be required to supply a CV and a cover letter & I found that the cover letter was more important. Work on the process of writing those letters so they stand out.

Also, in my new job, I've learned that the BA role isn't a particularly well-understood position in NZ & this may also be why your husband is struggling. He needs to target some of the bigger companies directly, don't wait for a job advert. This is how I got my job

[Vann]

Elleon2Wheels,

I think you've hit the nail on the head regarding the lack of understanding in regards to the BA role. My husband recently met with some recruiters that suggested he specify his role as a Business Intelligence Analyst, and I have been continually frustrated by what seems to be a lack of genuine understanding of the BA role - by the very people hiring for the role. We have until December 1st to find something and, after that, I'm uncertain what our next step is. With him a Norwegian and myself American we have 90 days on visitor visas so we're throwing everything we've got at it. If it's meant to be, it will happen.

Vann

[G-Mo]

I posted this in the other thread and I'll repeat it here... Having worked with (and occasionally as) BAs in internationally with everything from SMEs to F5s -- including some of the largest companies in each region across various verticals including retail (B2B, B2C) and Public Sector -- the BA role is completely understood for the NZ market. Not all jobs, or the requirements of the job, transfer exactly market to market. Personally, I would suggest people don't particularly understand the BA role as required in NZ... One of the reasons local experience is so preferred in an over saturated market.

[Vann]

Um, okay. Thanks?

[jawnbc]

Like many places, the recruitment agencies are more a barrier than facilitative. Most recruiters lack the technical knowledge to substantively engage with employers or candidates. It's very frustrating.

Has your husband tried bypassing applying for jobs and networking for informational interviews first? My husband has found this the most effective tack, both in Canada and NZ. Even the "nice" recruiters proved largely useless. He dug around for names of women and men in roles that would have influence in hiring someone like himself, then looked for phone numbers and cold called. He never asked about jobs--he focused on finding out about their business, and how the sort of work he did overseas fits in their way of doing things.

The public sector (like councils) will still, however, be obligated to post positions and follow the application process. But the known quantity gets ranked ahead of the unknown, similarly qualified persons almost every time.

Good luck!