At a time when the job market is experiencing its most toughest period for a generation, speaking from a jobhunter's perspective, it is in these times that you need to ask yourself or you should be asking yourself 'what is most important to an employer?'. Well to kick off, worth considering that every employer or business has two main functions, and I was recently reminded of this fact by a successful internet entrepreneur friend of mine. A business in its simplistic state is primarily there to make money while reducing as much cost. And so what side of the coin are you on? Worth thinking about before your next interview perhaps.
However, the main point behind this article is that in a week when one of the largest and most valuable companies in the world, Facebook, current value of $100 billion dollars, achieved in less than 10 years! Has now just made a purchase of $1 billion dollars for a relatively unknown silicon valley startup, called Instagram, founded in October 2010, less than two years ago, by two Stanford University graduates, it does beg the question what is mostly wanted by employers: achievement or experience?. In short, I would say both, but that is a kind of sitting on the fence stance, and so if I had to make a choice between the two, I would say 'achievement' gets the nodge slightly ahead of experience.
Indeed, if I was recruiting a candidate for a job, which I have had to do in the past, I would want someone who has good experience but coupled with achievements, as opposed to someone who just simply had lots of years of experience. The 16th century french essayist, Michel de Montaigne said 'The value of life lies not in the length of days, but in the use you make of them'. Similarly, if I had the choice of two surgeons, one with 20 years experience and the other with 5 years experience coupled with the successful carrying out of 10 heart surgeries, I know which one I would go for.
Reading the story behind the dramatic rise of Instagram, the photo sharing app which allows users to upload and share their personal pictures online, and the instant fortune it has given to the founders as well as investors who got in early on, shows the significance and impact highlighting your achievements on your CV or in conversation with a prospective employer could have on your chances of finding work. Now, you may not be in line for a windfall of £250 million pounds as the founder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom, 27, is about to earn from his idea, but nonetheless, this mindset of focusing on achievements can certainly go a long way to helping you land your dream job.
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