The Activity Hierarchy of Job Seekers

Given what we are currently seeing in the employment market, I thought it would be a good time to write an article that could benefit job seekers. I have worked in industry for a decade, so I am familiar with what it’s like being out there looking for the next big opportunity. The truth of the matter is that some folks will interview better than others; this could be attributed to factors such as interpersonal skills, presentation ability, articulation, and so forth. However, it’s about getting that interview, being put in front of that hiring manager, and that’s where the problem starts. We are never really taught how to be an effective job seeker; this skill is not taught in high school, university, internships, or, definitely not, in the current work environment.

Hence, the objective of this post is to:

• affirm standard practices when seeking a new role
• guide one on how you should approach a job search
• gauge market perception based on your actions (are you an active or passive job seeker)

Below is something I created for illustrative purposes, and I will term this “The Activity Hierarchy of Job Seekers”, which I borrowed ideas from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. That Economics 101 lesson has actually paid off! In Maslow’s diagram, he lists the human needs on a linear vertical scale. Starting at the bottom with basic needs (e.g., food, shelter, breathing, clothing), and moving up to self-actualization needs such as morality, acceptance, creativity, etc.

On the vertical axis is where you will find:

“active” – An active candidate is someone who’s actively trying to find a new job. They’ve updated their resume, searched for openings, and applied for jobs that interest them. new opportunities.

“passive” – A passive candidate is usually someone who already has a job and isn’t actively pursuing new positions. However, they would consider a career change if the right opportunity presented itself.

About 30-35% of the job market is active at any given point in time. The accounting industry is on the lower end of that scale, with jobs in technology and marketing being on the higher end.

Where you end up on the scale depends on your cumulative job-seeking activities, which I have broken down into five major categories. Note that these are cumulative, not pure standalones, e.g., someone applying for jobs online would have already relied on recruiter/agency outreach and would have also updated their online presence.

1. Rely on outreach from in-house recruiters and agencies. These are the candidates who may or may not have a LinkedIn profile. If they do, it’s very bare-bones, with minimal details. Those that don’t can be categorized into 2 groups: -Employees who don’t want to be on social media whatsoever, not realizing that LinkedIn really doesn’t fall in that category, and it’s the most powerful professional networking tool in the world. There is a reason MS paid some 26 billion for ownership of this platform. -I have already found my dream job, I don’t ever want to move, I will be here for years, so why bother having an online professional presence?
2. I don’t care what anyone thinks; at a minimum, everyone should have a LinkedIn profile. I’d suggest establishing one as early as your final year in university, or at least when you get your 1st internship. However, don’t worry if you are new to this platform; it’s never too late, and it’s very easy to build a network from your current connections. I’d recommend reviewing this for tips on maintenance of your LinkedIn profile. Top 15 LinkedIn Profile Tips for Job Seekers: The Complete 2025 Guide to Getting Noticed – The Interview Guys. This is older than but it is still very relevant. The 31 Best LinkedIn Profile Tips for Job Seekers | The Muse | The Muse. As a recruiter, the more detail I find on a LinkedIn profile, especially listing out responsibilities, the more I can immediately establish that such candidate is actually active in their search.
3. This is self-explanatory; however, I don’t know many 10-plus-year professionals who get a job offer through a pure application. Here is where you could be the perfect fit, i.e. education, experience, skills, etc., but this gets lost in the weeds. Often, I post jobs on the LinkedIn job board, and maybe 1-2% are actually a fit. I have had medical sales professionals apply for a technical accounting position. It can be the wild west if you’re relying purely on this route. I’m not saying don’t do this but just don’t expect correlating rewards on effort.
4. I may be biased here, as I’m approaching 13 years in the recruiting field, but even when I was a candidate, I always appreciated having a voice to my resume. The majority of the interviews I attended in the past were through recruiters. I’d suggest using 3-5 recruiters: one multinational, another boutique. The most critical selection criteria would be industry or job-function specialty. Many firms focus on a particular sector, e.g., asset management, and there are firms like ours that focus more on a functional area, e.g., accounting and finance support. You know you are using too many recruiters when you notice the same jobs being recycled by different firms.
5. My favorite and the route on the roadmap that all job seekers should leverage is the use of their professional network. When we look at this category, it’s not just current and past employees and employers, but also -University alumni -Professional organizations, e.g. The American Association of Hispanic Certified Public Accountants (AAHCPA) -Professional bodies, e.g., AICPA -Even your husband’s uncle, who’s a partner at the Big 4. Or the random CFO you met on a night out whilst having a cocktail at a bar. The ‘how’ is not as important as the ‘is’. Ask yourself, is this person part of my professional network? I once met a talent acquisition executive at a weekly Zogg Sports social dodgeball league, and she ended up hiring a controller from me. This category will organically grow the longer you stay in the profession. Also, the deeper you get in your career, the more likely you are to get a new job.

I hope this helped or at least refreshed your thinking when approaching the job market, especially about which side of the table you find yourself on, given your actions in the market.

My final tip to that on-the-job market, please take a look at this article as it highlights well how to turn on “open to new opportunities” but to hide this from your current employer.
How to Turn On (or Off) the “Open to Work” Feature on LinkedIn