A Job Seekers Boot Camp organised by Migrant Careers Support Trust in West Auckland was a revelation says Chairman and Founder of the Trust Garry Gupta.
The ongoing four-day workshop, first of four planned by MCST in Auckland kicked off on Tuesday, December 8 to Friday, December 11 at Massey Library in West Auckland.
The workshop is supported by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and co-partnered by Henderson-Massey Local Board.
Speaking to the Indian Weekender, Garry Gupta said this job seekers boot camp has been a revelation and a resounding success.
“We have had 40 registrations for the first workshop and have witnessed people from different age groups, visa status and educational backgrounds come to the four-day event,” Garry said.
“We are surprised to see a vast diversity in attendance as people who have been in the job industry for up to and more than a decade came to the workshop alike new migrants on temporary work visas living in New Zealand for a few years.
During the four-day (half days) workshop participants will be trained not just on CV writing Cover Letters but also key aspects of job hunting needed in the ever-changing industry landscape.
“We have experts from several industries and national level companies who gave their insights on what is the best way to attract employers, how to be job-ready, prepare for interviews, acquire and improve soft skills, and not just land a job but also survive and thrive in the New Zealand workplace environment.
“We had speakers from English Language Partners NZ, Dress For Success, Safety ’n Action, Work Connect and more who shared their insights and experiences that what employers look for when hiring a new candidate,” Garry said.
Garry further added that very few people were active on business social media ‘LinkedIn’ and a special session was held on creating a LinkedIn account, populating and maintaining it, update it with a list of skills and experiences as most of the hiring is done through the site.
“LinkedIn is a crucial part of a person’s resume, people underestimate it, but they are oblivious to the power of what it can do when it comes to screening the experience and skills by the hiring managers and employers.
“Only five of the 35 participants in the first workshop had active LinkedIn accounts, and we made a point to emphasise a section of the workshop on creating and maintaining an active LinkedIn account,” Garry added.
The organisers say the age group of people who attended the first workshop ranged from 22-55, over 60 per being local residents and citizens and the rest new migrants with limited work visas.
“Participants included highly qualified individuals, both men and women from different backgrounds such as IT professionals, tourism and hospitality, people who took a break from their work due to family priorities, business students, PhD students with universities, chefs, new migrants, and more,” Garry said.
Garry said three more such boot camps had been planned for the coming months in the south, east and central Auckland.
“We had an overwhelming response in registrations from West Auckland which was surprising as most of the time we look for migrant populations in the south and central Auckland,” Garry said.
He added that the feedback so far has been positive both from the participants and industry experts and for the upcoming three workshops, they have received a good number of registrations so far.
“As we had estimated, this kind of job hunting or sustained workshop is very much needed for our migrants and wider New Zealand communities as through times the industries are adapting to latest technology and practices and job hunters, novice or experienced should be upgraded with their skills and up to date with the market needs,” Garry said.