Despite the unemployment rate being at its lowest rate in 5 years (5.4%), there is still an atmosphere of uncertainty in the labour market in Australia. Many employers are reducing headcount and you often speak with someone being made redundant at the weekend BBQ. Regardless of whether your role is secure, there are strategies that you can implement that can increase your likelihood of being retained, as well as super-charging your career.

‘Recession-proofing’ your career is all about developing your personal brand, both inside and outside your workplace. Here are our recommendations:

Become a ‘go-to’ person

Every organisation has these people – they are the problem solvers and the individuals who are the major cogs in the business they work in. They know ‘stuff’. But even if they don’t know how to answer a question or problem, they will know who you should go to for help. If you want to be deemed valuable in a company, you need to be perceived as one of these people. So how do you do that exactly? You offer to help, you become deeply invested in an area of the business and develop domain expertise.

Be visible

If you want to increase your visibility, you need to find your unique selling point (USP) – yes, even people have them! – this could be related to domain expertise or a certain ‘edge’ that you have over other employees. Focus on this when you start showcasing your achievements both inside and outside of the business. Different ways to do this might include updating your LinkedIn profile, writing articles related to your USP and publishing them through LinkedIn or offering to conduct a ‘brown bag’ training session on an area of expertise that you have in your company.

‘Own’ your role

Having ownership of your role or career means that you are always looking at ways of working more efficiently and you work towards exceeding the expectations of your employer. It shows employers that you are engaged with the company and your role and is a great way to cement your value in an organisation.

Keep your Resume current

Quite often, Resume’s are dusted off when you start the process of looking for a new role. However, it’s good practice to regularly update your Resume as you take on more responsibility and learn new skills. Even if you don’t plan on leaving the business, it pays dividends to work on challenging projects that increase your skillset. Always try to refresh your Resume with new skills you are learning even while you may be currently employed.

We hope that you’ve discovered some strategies to recession-proof your career. If you are looking for more career guidance, speak to the recruitment team at Flexi Personnel.