The recent statistics indicate that unemployment is falling, in spite of the downturn in the economy over the past few years. One area that is doing well at the moment is PAs, Secretaries, Administrators and Receptionists. These areas are continuing to witness high levels of hiring; this is visible to all now that recruitment agencies are using Facebook and Twitter to advertise and recruit staff for new vacancies.

Unemployed People and the New Year

Should you be unemployed, this is the ideal time to make yourself ‘highly employable’ and develop your career again. However, this means that you need to carefully look at the skills required in the jobs advertised; then compare these with your skills; this will then clearly highlight any shortfall.

If you identify a shortfall, this is now the opportune time to update your skills or add a new skill by enrolling on a course.

Why now?
After the end of the year, many companies get their budget approved for hire. So there will be more vacancies than in the last couple of months.

New Opportunities to further your career

It could be that you need to update your IT skills. Microsoft updates their programs every three years therefore you will need to bring yourself up to date with their packages. It could also be the need to familiarise yourself with audio typing. Or maybe you need to learn or update your general office skills again or take a PA Course.

People who are bored of their current job. Should you be in a job where there is no likelihood of a promotion, then the decision to change jobs needs to be carefully considered. The economy is not good, so you need to be sure that any other employer is stable. You need to check the finances and reputation of the company, which can be researched on the internet.

You can even impress interviewers by demonstrating your knowledge of the company. This assessment will show how safe your new job will be in the next two years. You also need to check that your skills are up to date; maybe undertake advanced courses in your field or management courses. This will make you more appealing to any future employer and also ensure that you are moving forward in your career.

Other examples of courses that may provide this benefit are minute taking training courses, Project Management Skills Courses or influencing skills, but the list is very long and entirely depends on your current positions and ambitions.

You may feel that you would like to move into a completely new field. This is not impossible as you can also be trained in more specialised areas such as medical secretary, legal secretary, finance etc. The training in a new area can open new doors for you.