Job Hunt - My experience with truth

Six months back, when I was searching for job in USA with all my efforts, contacts and relations, I was not sure what would be the outcome of that effort. It was really a nightmare for me as I was struggling a lot. I got couple of offers in Feb 2017 but they were not like what I was looking for. But that tenure experienced me a lot.

When anybody is hunting for a job, there are three factors based on which the employer is looking the  candidates - Skill, Experience and Achievements.

Skills -
Almost 40 to 50. % of technology companies (including my current employer - Microsoft) are technology agnostic in their hiring. Almost all the companies that I faced in past 10 months during my interview, asked primarily about my technical and managerial skills. Primarily focused on technical aspects, the interviewer was less focussed on managerial side of my professional career. One have to weave a story of how your past experience leads into this future opportunity. I did the same and succeeded.

Experience -
If you have a zero management experience and your goal is to become a manager at a new job, it's more challenging. So stick to your profile what you have done in the past and bridge that to your future opportunity. During the interviews, it's important to showcase your potential experience and status as your responsibilities. You can demand a loftier title when you switch to a smaller company or startup. The smaller company appreciates your big company experience, maturity, expertise and skill set. But this is something really difficult to handle when you switch from a smaller company to biggest technology giants. I faced that.

Achievements -
Your past achievements would be your future pillars of growth. Showcasing your achievements play a vital role during interviews. A list of convincing achievements makes an impression about yourself and increases your chances.


Final words - Be a self-aware software engineer with strong communication skills and good technical chops. Be confident and believe in yourself. Maintain a positive attitude. Remember it's your attitude, not aptitude, that decides your altitude.

- Sanat Sharma