“Do I meet the qualifications and experience requirements?” That’s probably the most common question a young professional has heading into a job interview. As a “young professional” manager for an Orlando based technology company, I feel like I may be able to rest some of those overly worried minds. My brief management experience has been insightful on many levels. Specific to this post, it has made me aware of Corporate America’s tremendous flexibility with supposed “job experience requirements”.
Employers Can Be Clueless
Most companies only have a vague idea of what they want in an employee. In addition, on paper it’s extremely difficult to decipher one job applicant’s abilities from another. It is because of these two points that companies usually compile a list of job qualifications and experience requirements that actually overshoot the position’s functional needs. The employer’s goal is to simply weed out the inexperienced folks before they apply, leaving more time to interview the top candidates. However, most of the time all this method does is scare young, capable talent away.
Flexibility Always Exists
One essential point you must be aware of is that most job requirements, especially those related to experience, are extremely flexible. Requirements listed in an employment ad are usually just a rough sketch of the ideal hard skills specific to a job description. Soft skills, on the other hand, are usually loosely mentioned in employment ads. Yet when it comes to a formal interview, soft skills have the greatest impact on an employer’s perception of a potential employee.
People Hire People They Like
Managers will hire people they like before they hire the most qualified or experienced applicant. That’s the bottom line. Never let the supposed job qualifications or experience requirements stand in your way of applying. If you know you can handle the job, you are probably the employee the employer wants. All you have to do is make them aware of your potential.
Here are 15 key qualities that can offset job experience and qualification requirements: