If you choose to search for work in your host country, a career coach can help you prepare for the crucial last step: meeting a prospective employer face to face and convincing them you’re the right candidate.
A hectic start
Some expat partners will take a break before beginning a job search in a new country but that wasn’t the case for expat partner Alejandra Villanueva Mátar: “For the first month, I was still working online for my old employer in Monterrey while my husband and I were also searching for an apartment in Amsterdam.” But as soon as everything was settled on the domestic front, Alejandra – an experienced professional in Supply Chain Management and Innovation – began to explore the local job market.
No strict time frame
“When you arrive in a new country, you can’t help feeling like you’re on holiday – and we did, of course, explore the city to get a feel for it. But I knew that a job search could potentially take a long time, so I wanted to get started as soon as possible,” says Alejandra, a dual citizen from Mexico and Spain. “That said, I didn’t want to pressure myself too much – so I didn’t set a strict time frame. In the beginning, I simply refreshed my LinkedIn profile and began looking for suitable roles.”
Crucial preparation
After chatting with her Global Connection consultant, Alejandra soon started working with a career coach, who began preparing her for interviews: “We actually did a mock interview and talked through some tricky questions I might face. When I started getting called for interviews, I was always excited to share the news with her. It felt good to know she was rooting for me. Even when one early interview didn’t go so well, she gave me great feedback and pushed me to keep going.”
Support that really works
Today, Alejandra is happily commuting to The Magnum Ice Cream Company, where she’s employed as an Innovation Planner: “It’s a great feeling to be a part of the city’s workforce; I love taking the tram to work and strolling home from the office to our new home. Speaking with a coach was definitely a huge help – it gave me a lot of confidence for the interview process, which makes such a difference when you are in a new culture. Instead of uncertainty about the direction you want to go, you have clarity.”
Photo: Alejandra and her husband
This article was originally published for the thousands of expat partners that Global Connection supports around the globe. It is reproduced here in its original form.
