<p>The recent Flight Crew Futures conference and networking event offered current and prospective pilots the opportunity not just to speak with operators about jobs on offer, but also the chance to learn from experienced recruiters about how to enhance their prospects of getting a new post.</p>
<p><img alt="Mark Charman Goose Recruitment" src="/getasset/ac6df370-ebbb-4bb3-a1e4-c256d45d3040/" /></p>
<p>Mark Charman, CEO of Goose Recruitment, <a href="#Mark Charman Videos">who has featured in a four-part video series here on Flight Jobs</a>, expanded on the advice in those videos with the presentation, “How to land a great pilot job – a headhunter’s perspective”.</p>
<p>Charman has personally placed over 1,000 people “of all types, ages and experience” into jobs. So when creating Goose, his aim was to bring something different. “It’s about being high touch not high tech – having the human touch,” he remarked.</p>
<p>Setting short-term goals is the first challenge Charman poses to candidates – knowing what the next job is meant to be. “They need to think, ‘Is this a stepping stone?’ or ‘Am I going to travel or stay local?’ All this needs to be thought about at this point in order to achieve the longer term goal,” he advised.</p>
<p>The CV is clearly important in any application. “Every great job starts with a great CV. The key question a candidate must as themselves is: Does it introduce you, impress, inform, interest and get an interview. Rather than thinking of the CV as a career history document, think of it as a marketing document to get you an interview,” Charman commented. “For example, is your early school career relevant or is it white noise? If it’s the latter, it can hide the stuff that would interest the recruiter. If you have lots of interesting things to talk about, it can be as long as you want. If not, make it short and punchy.”</p>
<p>That doesn’t mean there aren’t some ‘dos and don’ts’. “Take grammar and spelling,” Charman noted. “Why do so many come in with it so bad? Also, we see some pasting of recent work into the CV, but it’s left in a different font. What does that say?</p>
<p>“Then there’s contact details – it’s incredibly basic, but they must be clear and easy to read,” he added. “Also, in these days of electronic communication, while it may have been fun to have had a humorous email address in the past, it is not appropriate, so choose another.</p>
<p>“A personal statement is valuable. It can be just a couple of sentences about you, but it simply brings the CV to life. The context of this is for the candidate to emphasise what they bring to the party. Perhaps give the CV to someone outside the industry and ask them to tell you what they can glean about you. And be ready for the response.”</p>
<p>Inclusion of flying hours and experience is an imperative of course, but here again there is the potential for a pitfall. “You would not believe how many pilots make this incredibly complex,” reported Charman. “It needs to be super-easy to read and well positioned. A recruiter who is under pressure might look at something complex and dismiss it. Basically, if someone has to get a calculator out, forget it.”</p>
<p>Returning to modern communications, the Goose CEO warned about social media content and how it might harm a candidate. “If all your pictures on Facebook or Instagram are you drinking at the pub, will a carrier in a different part of the world be influenced by that?” he said. “About 80% of agencies or employers check social media, so think about the image you wish to portray. And think about privacy settings. You can prevent a recruiter from looking at those pages.”</p>
<p>Charman stressed that looking for a job is itself a full-time job and those using recruiters must be sure that the recruiter is working hard for them. “Good recruiters <em>want</em> to know about you, to lift the lid on you as a candidate (preferences, ambitions, goals and so on). And they should definitely ‘know their EASA from their ICAO’,” he quipped. “Above all, you should <em>trust</em> them, otherwise you probably shouldn’t be working with them.”</p>
<p>Having used the CV and application to attract attention and be afforded an interview, the candidate must display their communication skills. What may come as a slightly surprising piece of advice from Charman is that even on a telephone interview, the candidate should try to smile as such a demeanour can be conveyed to the interviewer.</p>
<p>“In addition, listen – and ask your own questions, whether in a phone or face-to-face interview,” the CEO stated. “Do your homework and ask something pertinent. It can reinforce your credibility – demonstrating your desire by having done the research.”</p>
<p>At a face-to-face interview, dress to impress, he advised. “This is you on show. It doesn’t matter if the airline has a dress down policy, be well presented. First impressions count.”</p>
<p>Finally, the candidate has to control their nerves. “It’s not easy,” Charman acknowledges, “but it’s because you want to do well. Embrace it, but once you get going, get over it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<hr />
<p> </p>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitments-ceo-and-founder-mark-charman-episode-1/?s=10" id="Mark Charman Videos" itemprop="url" name="Mark Charman Videos" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitments-ceo-and-founder-mark_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: Top tips from Goose Recruitment's, CEO and Founder, Mark Charman - Episode 1</a></h3>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitment-s-ceo-and-founder-on-what-makes-a-good-candidate-stand-out-episode-2/?s=10" itemprop="url" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitment-s-ceo-and-founder-on-_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: Top tips from Goose Recruitment's CEO and Founder on what makes a good candidate stand out</a></h3>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-find-out-what-candidates-can-do-out-of-hours-that-airlines-will-notice-/?s=10" itemprop="url" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-find-out-what-candidates-can-do-out-of-hours-that-air_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: Find out what candidates can do out of hours that airlines will notice.</a></h3>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-how-pilots-with-low-hours-can-get-ahead-of-the-job-hunting-game-/" itemprop="url" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-how-pilots-with-low-hours-can-get-ahead-of-the-job-hu_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: How Pilots with low hours can get ahead of the job hunting game</a></h3>
<p><img alt="Mark Charman Goose Recruitment" src="/getasset/ac6df370-ebbb-4bb3-a1e4-c256d45d3040/" /></p>
<p>Mark Charman, CEO of Goose Recruitment, <a href="#Mark Charman Videos">who has featured in a four-part video series here on Flight Jobs</a>, expanded on the advice in those videos with the presentation, “How to land a great pilot job – a headhunter’s perspective”.</p>
<p>Charman has personally placed over 1,000 people “of all types, ages and experience” into jobs. So when creating Goose, his aim was to bring something different. “It’s about being high touch not high tech – having the human touch,” he remarked.</p>
<p>Setting short-term goals is the first challenge Charman poses to candidates – knowing what the next job is meant to be. “They need to think, ‘Is this a stepping stone?’ or ‘Am I going to travel or stay local?’ All this needs to be thought about at this point in order to achieve the longer term goal,” he advised.</p>
<p>The CV is clearly important in any application. “Every great job starts with a great CV. The key question a candidate must as themselves is: Does it introduce you, impress, inform, interest and get an interview. Rather than thinking of the CV as a career history document, think of it as a marketing document to get you an interview,” Charman commented. “For example, is your early school career relevant or is it white noise? If it’s the latter, it can hide the stuff that would interest the recruiter. If you have lots of interesting things to talk about, it can be as long as you want. If not, make it short and punchy.”</p>
<p>That doesn’t mean there aren’t some ‘dos and don’ts’. “Take grammar and spelling,” Charman noted. “Why do so many come in with it so bad? Also, we see some pasting of recent work into the CV, but it’s left in a different font. What does that say?</p>
<p>“Then there’s contact details – it’s incredibly basic, but they must be clear and easy to read,” he added. “Also, in these days of electronic communication, while it may have been fun to have had a humorous email address in the past, it is not appropriate, so choose another.</p>
<p>“A personal statement is valuable. It can be just a couple of sentences about you, but it simply brings the CV to life. The context of this is for the candidate to emphasise what they bring to the party. Perhaps give the CV to someone outside the industry and ask them to tell you what they can glean about you. And be ready for the response.”</p>
<p>Inclusion of flying hours and experience is an imperative of course, but here again there is the potential for a pitfall. “You would not believe how many pilots make this incredibly complex,” reported Charman. “It needs to be super-easy to read and well positioned. A recruiter who is under pressure might look at something complex and dismiss it. Basically, if someone has to get a calculator out, forget it.”</p>
<p>Returning to modern communications, the Goose CEO warned about social media content and how it might harm a candidate. “If all your pictures on Facebook or Instagram are you drinking at the pub, will a carrier in a different part of the world be influenced by that?” he said. “About 80% of agencies or employers check social media, so think about the image you wish to portray. And think about privacy settings. You can prevent a recruiter from looking at those pages.”</p>
<p>Charman stressed that looking for a job is itself a full-time job and those using recruiters must be sure that the recruiter is working hard for them. “Good recruiters <em>want</em> to know about you, to lift the lid on you as a candidate (preferences, ambitions, goals and so on). And they should definitely ‘know their EASA from their ICAO’,” he quipped. “Above all, you should <em>trust</em> them, otherwise you probably shouldn’t be working with them.”</p>
<p>Having used the CV and application to attract attention and be afforded an interview, the candidate must display their communication skills. What may come as a slightly surprising piece of advice from Charman is that even on a telephone interview, the candidate should try to smile as such a demeanour can be conveyed to the interviewer.</p>
<p>“In addition, listen – and ask your own questions, whether in a phone or face-to-face interview,” the CEO stated. “Do your homework and ask something pertinent. It can reinforce your credibility – demonstrating your desire by having done the research.”</p>
<p>At a face-to-face interview, dress to impress, he advised. “This is you on show. It doesn’t matter if the airline has a dress down policy, be well presented. First impressions count.”</p>
<p>Finally, the candidate has to control their nerves. “It’s not easy,” Charman acknowledges, “but it’s because you want to do well. Embrace it, but once you get going, get over it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<hr />
<p> </p>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitments-ceo-and-founder-mark-charman-episode-1/?s=10" id="Mark Charman Videos" itemprop="url" name="Mark Charman Videos" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitments-ceo-and-founder-mark_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: Top tips from Goose Recruitment's, CEO and Founder, Mark Charman - Episode 1</a></h3>
<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitment-s-ceo-and-founder-on-what-makes-a-good-candidate-stand-out-episode-2/?s=10" itemprop="url" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-top-tips-from-goose-recruitment-s-ceo-and-founder-on-_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: Top tips from Goose Recruitment's CEO and Founder on what makes a good candidate stand out</a></h3>
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<h3 itemprop="headline"><a href="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-how-pilots-with-low-hours-can-get-ahead-of-the-job-hunting-game-/" itemprop="url" onclick="s_objectID="https://jobs.flightglobal.com/article/video-how-pilots-with-low-hours-can-get-ahead-of-the-job-hu_2";return this.s_oc?this.s_oc(e):true">VIDEO: How Pilots with low hours can get ahead of the job hunting game</a></h3>