Picture this….
You’re sailing serenely on calm waters, in fact you’re so serene that somehow that iceberg fast approaching has skipped your notice entirely. Its easy to do; your interim assignment has been ticking over, taking all your attention, and suddenly there’s only two weeks left and – uh oh – you’ve found nothing to move onto…..and that family holiday you’ve booked isn’t going to pay for itself…..and then the project finishes early….. the perfect storm has hit and it’s flinging you into that iceberg.
So how to avoid this?
Here are 3 top tips to help avoid a big gap between assignments:
1. You did a lot of networking and met a lot of agency’s – Keep in touch with them! They are very keen to make sure whatever happens at the end of your assignment it won’t be unemployment. It’s sort of what they’re paid to do. I don’t mean speaking to your consultant every week like you do when you’re immediately available, I simply mean ‘touching base’ perhaps every couple of months. You will probably be committed to your assignment and not actively applying for roles but just a quick catch up call to see how the contract is going, when you expect it to finish and any skills you have gained.
2. Before you leave the office for that quick farewell drink grab a testimonial – Everyone is busy; nobody wants to be bothered by an email months later. A good testimonial could get you half way to that next assignment. In today’s market I am finding testimonials, formal references and LinkedIn recommendations highly beneficial, they will make you stand out head and shoulders above other candidates without them. Your agency having up to date references will ensure you can start that next interim role without hesitation (there’s nothing worse than not being able to start a new assignment as your old manager is off on holiday!)
3. Keep up to date with current legislation, yes it’s not fun doing this in your spare time especially when you have other stuff to concentrate on. As I am sure you are aware – there is currently a significant amount of legislative change impacting the reporting entities in both the UK and Ireland. Even if you are doing a role that is slightly different to the norm, it’s always worth keeping in touch with current legislation e.g. IFRS, FRS 101, FRS 102, SORP Accounting rules etc. Keeping up to date will both develop your skills set and provides you with the knowledge to ‘wow’ at interviews.
I hope this helps and assists you in securing your next assignment. If you would like any further advice or help in securing that next role, I am a specialist in senior interim Finance and Accounts recruitment in the East Midlands please feel free to call me on 0115 960 7000. At BTG Recruitment we are experts at helping accounts professionals land their dream role. In fact we have over 12 year’s experience of doing exactly that.
