Could December Be The Best Time To Look For A New Job?

The festive season is nearly upon us and as we start to creep towards 2018 and the start of another year, there will be much soul searching. Are we happy with our lives? Could we be in better shape? Could our relationships be better? Better job?

The new year is always the impetus for many people to begin to address where they want to go in life, many new year resolutions are made and fall by the wayside, but those resolutions that are the result of genuine reasons for wanting a change tend to become habit.

However, there appears to be a growing trend and number of experts who are suggesting those wanting to switch jobs should not wait until January and consider doing it in December for various factors:

Competition

For many the thought of having job insecurity or interview hassle around the holidays is too daunting a prospect, but because of these reasons, there is likely to be significantly decreased amounts of competition.

Some reports suggest that there is almost a 33% drop in the number of applicants in December, significantly helping the chances of your CV leaping off the screen and into the interview process. On top of that, recruiters have less demands for their time from recruitment events and conferences in December, so can often consider each applicant thoroughly, opposed to just going on the CV headline during the busier times of the year.

In direct comparison, January normally sees many more motivated job seekers wade into the process, resulting in competition levels spiking and interview slots harder to come by.

Festive Fun

Even the time of the year plays into jobseekers’ hands as many recruiters or human resource managers get caught in the festive spirit. With work slowing down, excitement building for a well earnt holiday, many candidates find that hiring managers are more likely to be more helpful with the application process or simply progressing them to the interview stage.

There also still occasions were the application process can be partly bypassed due to the fact that you are asked to apply for a role. While the likes of LinkedIn have grown in recent years to dominate the recruiting and networking scene, Christmas social events and company hospitably events present the perfect opportunity to expand your connections . Instead of having one too many, use these events as an opportunity to impress and let influencers know that you are in the market for a new role.

Departure

If you are lucky enough to secure a job offer from a new company, then the timing of your departure often works well for all concerned. Many companies are anticipating and calculating their needs for the new year and can be looking to resize departments. By engaging with your employers, you could potentially negotiate a redundancy package or employ the services of a settlement agreement solicitor in order to resolve a dispute.

Depending on the length of your notice period, then you might be afforded the opportunity of an extended break without using any annual leave. Your new company is often going to be happy with you joining after the Christmas break, while potentially inviting you along to their festivities to get a head start on team building and  allow you to hit the ground running in January.

There is no doubt that December can be a challenging and risky month to motivate yourself to make a significant change in your career. However, the evidence suggests that those who can muster the time and courage could get the new year started early.