Despite having a wealth of experience and very impressive CV David was routinely getting rejected with little or no feedback, and usually no acknowledgment at all to his applications when trying to return to Electrical Engineering, an incredibly skills short area after a career break. Hugely frustrated he felt that a return would never happen until he found an alternative opportunity to bypass the process and get in front of a hiring manager to demonstrate his commitment and capability. Here is his story:
Have you ever been deeply frustrated by the way recruitment today has become so virtually anonymous and impersonal? Does your cv have gaps in it when you took time to pursue other interests apart from work? Do you still have great skills and expertise borne out of years of experience but you never get past the ‘sifters’ to reach the hiring decision makers?
If any of this sounds familiar then you know how I felt over the last few year attempting to ‘break back in’ to the electrical engineering world at the age of 58 after a period out of mainstream employment, rarely getting past the uploading and submission of my cv, rarely getting to even speak to the recruitment consultant who would sift out my application because my wide experience did not fit the exact ‘job spec’ and never, ever getting to discuss the role with the eventual hiring manager……
Well that’s where I was when I came across the ‘STEM Returners’ programme where at last somebody had realised that there was a huge waste of talent going on in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths fields as a result of the current recruitment methods, especially when there are acute shortages of experienced candidates in all these areas and had set about creating a ‘try before you buy’ scheme for employers. The candidates actually get to meet the hiring managers during an ‘open’ day visit and if successful you work for a maximum 13 week period in the actual department with the vacancy on a trial basis with the aim of converting to a permanent role before the short term contract ends.
It sounded just what I needed, so I signed up and with the tremendous help and support from Natalie Desty and her team here I am three months later with a permanent job working for BAE in Portsmouth as a senior electrical engineer in the Naval Base Facilities department alongside great people, doing a fulfilling job and I suspect I am a ‘senior’ engineer because of my experience and not because I am the oldest one there!
With the aid of the STEM Returners programme I have maintained my record of being offered every job that I have ever got to interview for and I can wholeheartedly recommend the scheme to anybody suffering the ‘if you do not hear from us in seven days your application has not been successful’ blues…..