Finding my dream job took me less than 1 month and I was only looking for SaaS job openings. You may feel like you’re stuck in a rut and want to find your dream job sooner rather than later. Maybe you’re discouraged because COVID-19 spiked and unemployment rates reached an all-time high in 2020. I felt the same way you’re feeling right now and want to provide critical insights on how I found my dream job in the middle of a pandemic.
How I found a job during COVID-19
Beginning Your Search for SaaS Job Openings
- What are your long-term career objectives?
- What’s most important to you? (e.g., compensation, culture, growth, etc.)
- Where should you begin your search?
I wish I could give you all the answers to the above questions, but everyone has different values. However, the question that I can answer is, ‘Where did I begin?’ Finding SaaS job openings was one of the most stressful events I went through in my life, and my goal is to alleviate that stress by informing individuals of where to start.
Where To Start
- Establish what’s important to you and what you want to be doing. For me, culture, vision, and growth opportunities were significant, and I wanted to go into SaaS sales. So, I started searching for SaaS job openings across the web.
- Take the time and write a good resume. The average recruiter or hiring manager spends 6 seconds reading a resume (Glassdoor). If you want tips on how to write a resume, please reach out; I was in HR and recruiting prior to this role.
- Your LinkedIn should have a professional profile picture and outline what’s on your resume. Customize your LinkedIn URL, it looks more professional, makes it easier for others to find you, and adds to your personal brand.
- Find out who’s hiring on job boards. There are hundreds of job boards out there, but I would highly recommend using LinkedIn, AngelList, Indeed, Dice, Monster, Glassdoor, and ZipRecruiter, to name a few.
My Story
Before I dive into details of why I joined CRI, I want to give you some context of where I was at in life. My wife and I were both born and raised in Montana and got married in September of 2018. We moved to Boise, ID, bought our first house during the summer of 2019, and both landed great jobs. My wife joined Cole Valley Christian School as a Music Teacher, and I started working at Quest Groups as a Technical Recruiter.
Shortly after, we found out on our first anniversary that she was pregnant. We had our first baby girl in May of 2020 during the pandemic, and I left Quest Groups a month later. Financially, leaving my job didn’t make sense – I was making great money, had health insurance, bought a new truck, had our first child, own a home, and my wife moved to part-time. Long-term, I knew I wanted to look for SaaS job openings and join an organization where I could have a significant impact and opportunity to grow. So, I started looking for a new job while unemployment rates were at an all-time high. The good news though, companies were and still are hiring amid the pandemic.
Why I Joined CRI Advantage
During June of 2020, I applied to more than twenty SaaS job openings, interviewed with seven companies, and received three offers. During the interview process with CRI, everyone I had the opportunity to talk with always had my best interest in mind. They were honest and transparent from the very beginning, which goes a long way in our culture. Throughout all of my interviews with recruiters and hiring managers, I had the best experience with Gabe Halleus, Director of Talent, and Christopher Claunch, the VP of Solutions at CRI. They had the fastest response time, answered all of my questions, and were genuinely kind and cared about the importance of my career decision.
Furthermore, I had no connections at CRI and just applied to their job posting on LinkedIn – within a day, I had my first interview scheduled. After a couple more interviews it was clear that I wanted to be apart of the team. The biggest reason I accepted the offer from CRI over the others was that I experienced first hand how much they value their employees. My experience with CRI inclined me to write this blog to encourage everyone that their dream career isn’t out of reach – by the way, CRI is always hiring. If you’re looking for a new job and would like to talk, please fill out the information below and I’ll see how I can help.