Update - #TwitterJobChallenge

On Tuesday I began the #TwitterJobChallenge as set by the Guardian. The idea was simple - I had to tweet 5 companies/charities that I would like to work for and see what response I got. Below are the tweets that I sent:

I wrote an individually tailored tweet for each company/charity as I wanted to show that I knew the company/charity and their business. So for example when I tweeted @ReadingRoom_UK I knew that they do not not like people who define themselves as social media gurus. Granted because of this they are unlikely to hire through social media, but I admire their work and thought they might appreciate the tongue in cheek nature of my tweet!

However, it wasn't the tweets that I spent the most time thinking about. It was who to tweet, as I could only tweet 5. In addition, Twitter is a public medium and so is my profile so those I tweeted could see who else I tweeted. In the end I decided to hedge my bets and tweet a mixture of organisations who all work in an area that I am interested in, rather than sticking to one sector.

The things they have in common are:

• They have a good online presence.
• They are in or work with the Third Sector, Sport or Theatre.
• A job with them would give me an opportunity to be creative, fundraise or grow the company/charity.
• I have followed their work and I am generally interested in them.

At the time of writing this post I have had 4 responses and 6 new followers. 3 of those that responded requested my CV; including the response from my original post. 1 recruitment company asked me to register on their website. I would say that for something I have not tried before and very forward that it has been pretty successful. Especially as I have been given personal email addresses of people who work for these organisations and not just a generic vacancies or info inbox. As of yet, I have not been given a job or asked for an interview (not that I was expecting the former) but I have made it on to some organisations radars and that, I think, is half the battle. 

Another happy outcome is that by limiting myself to 5 tweets only I have realised what I want for my next role. I only want to work in a couple of sectors, for places who are embracing technology and who's values I believe in. In future I am only going to put my energy into applying for jobs that include these 3 things, because as my Dad says, "Don't apply for a job you don't want, because the buggers will offer it to you!"

@emlgx is a graduate who was also tweeting in the #TwitterJobChallenge at the same time as me. Her blog of her experience can be read here.