Where jobseekers are hunting for opportunities

Indeed polled 1,371 Australian adults as the basis of its Job hunters: The complete guide 2018 report. It revealed a diverse range of methods that people had used to secure their most recent job.

Unsurprisingly, online job sites topped the list, and were favoured by more than half (54 per cent) of employees. Email alerts from these sites were used by 15 per cent of respondents.

The second most popular had nothing to do with technology at all – 18 per cent said they had obtained work through recommendations from a family member or friend.

That was slightly ahead of recommendations from colleagues or someone else within their professional network (both on 13 per cent).

Interestingly, while LinkedIn had been the source of 12 per cent of people obtaining their job, other forms of social media ranked almost as highly (11 per cent) – suggesting that employers can easily and cheaply leverage their existing social presence to seek out new recruits.

Other job-hunting methods used, in decreasing order of popularity, included:

• Company specific careers pages
• Directly dealing with recruiters
• Being headhunted by a company
• Industry-specific media (more popular in some sectors than others: this was most popular among people working in government, automotive and transportation)
• Newspaper or magazine ads
• Being approached directly by a recruiter for a specific role
• University job sites
• Window advertisement at the business’ premises
• Amazingly, 5 per cent said they obtained their last job by cold-calling prospective employers
• Being approached by a recruiter more broadly
• Other methods not stipulated

Beware though that not all candidates will act professionally during the recruitment process; My Business readers recently revealed a number of bizarre and frustrating behaviours they have experienced from jobseekers – from not wearing pants to fake references.

Adam Zuchetti

Adam Zuchetti is the editor of My Business, and has steered the publication’s editorial direction since early 2016. 

The two-time Publish Awards finalist has an extensive journalistic career across business, property and finance, including a four-year stint in the UK. Email Adam at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.