Three Ways to Enhance Your Job Search With AI

You're probably somewhat exhausted by all the talk about AI disrupting the world of work. Headlines are shouting about predictions of mass unemployment, companies using the new technology instead of hiring people and other not-so-great possibilities. The truth is that we don't know exactly how AI will ultimately affect us or our professional lives. We do know it will affect us, though. We also know that workers are not powerless amid this digital revolution.

As organizations and employers start harnessing the power of AI in their businesses, you should also be taking advantage of the technology whenever possible — including during job searches. The technology can act as a guide, sounding board and much more to job seekers. In today's edition of Get Hired, I want to highlight three ways you can use AI to enhance your job search.

My hope is that these suggestions will be just a starting point in your experimentation with AI. The technology offers a lot of possibilities, but it takes experimentation to unlock some of the biggest benefits. The three suggestions I make below are relatively simple to use on almost any AI platform, such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot*, Perplexity, Claude and others.

Find New Pathways to Explore

People have shown a willingness to jump into new fields and careers over the past decade. Experts generally agree that workers will need to continue being nimble in the workforce as AI disrupts many industries. Exploring new possibilities now with the help of technology can help you prepare for that reality and unlock new opportunities right now.

To get started, open your AI platform of choice and ask it to help you find new roles and careers to explore. What's nice about most AI platforms is that you can talk with the tools as you would with any person. You can just type, "Can you act as a job search coach or career consultant and help me find new roles and careers to explore?" The AI should start asking you questions about your background, interests and more. If not, you can volunteer that information. "I'm an accountant who has worked in the publishing industry for 13 years, managing audits for a publisher's various imprints," for example. "I like working with numbers, but I would like to find a role that allows me to explore my creativity and work more with non-profits. I am based in Omaha, Nebraska."

When I plug the fictitious information above in ChatGPT, it suggests non-profit financial manager, grants manager/writer, operations manager and others as possible areas to explore. Of course, the "explore" part is crucial since only you can decide what really is the best fit for your wants, needs and experience. Whatever AI suggests should serve as just a starting point.

Also, don't forget that you can continue refining the results and suggestions with the AI tool. You can say that certain roles it suggests aren't quite right for you. The tool should offer better suggestions as you provide it with more specific information.

Analyze Job Postings

Once you decide on the role you next want to pursue in your career, start saving recent ads you find for those jobs in a document. Don't worry if the postings are no longer active. The goal is not to apply to these actual positions. Instead, it's to showcase yourself as the best candidate by finding out what hiring managers are looking for in that type of role.

Once you have five to seven job ads in a document, download it to your computer. Then, upload it to an AI platform and say, "These are the types of roles I want to pursue in my job search. Analyze these job descriptions and create an easy to understand single inventory of the minimum qualifications a person needs to be a successful candidate for this type of role. Also, highlight any other information that would be necessary or helpful to know as a candidate for this type of role."

The above prompt should lead the AI to offer you a helpful summary of what recruiters and hiring managers will be looking for in candidates for similar roles — based on those descriptions. You can then analyze yourself against the information the AI provided to see what skill or knowledge gaps you may need to close or address.

Resume Reviews

Resumes are often the most frustrating part of the job search process. While AI shouldn't write a resume for you, it can help make the one you create much more effective. How? It can make sure what you write is packing the biggest punch for potential employers.

Similar to the tip above, you can upload or paste the job ads into the AI platform along with your resume. Then, you can tell the AI, "I plan to apply to roles along the lines of those job ads uploaded/pasted below. Please analyze my resume, which I also uploaded, against the ads and provide constructive feedback that will make my resume and candidacy a stronger contender for these roles."

Then, consider the critiques the AI provides to make your resume stronger. You don't have to accept every suggestion, but it's good to consider those suggestions and another point of view.

Now, I'm sure some of you are wondering why AI shouldn't just write your resumes. There are several reasons to avoid farming out that work to AI. One is that the technology sometimes introduces errors — known as hallucinations — into content. You don't want to get into a situation where your resume doesn't align with your actual skills and abilities. AI can also make resumes and other content seem overly generalized, which is a big red flag to recruiters and hiring managers. Lastly, the technology employers use continues to evolve, meaning there may be some who can identify AI-generated resumes.

AI Experimentation

The key in all of this is to use AI as an assistant — not your replacement. Otherwise, the AI will just reproduce content and work that anyone can create on their own. The best way to stand out from the crowd is to have the AI take your work to the next level.

It's important to note that you should also keep privacy top of mind whenever you're navigating the internet, including when using AI. All AI tools I've experimented with over the past few years allow a person to control how much is shared and stored on the platform. Take time to explore those options and consider removing overly personal information from the materials and prompts you upload into the systems.

Lastly, I want to reiterate that you shouldn't be afraid to experiment with AI. There are no perfect prompts or ways to interact with the technology. We all have different working styles and systems. Use the AI in ways that align with your approaches to work.

* As always, I want to be transparent that Microsoft is LinkedIn's parent company.

Job seekers are undoubtedly frustrated by headlines claiming that the labor market is healthy while they struggle to get interviews. On the latest episode of Get Hired with Andrew Seaman, LinkedIn Chief Economist Karin Kimbrough joined me to explain what's going on and why the market seems so disjointed. We talk about the latest hiring data, industries that are booming and much more.

A transcript of the conversation is available here. You can listen to the episode at the link above or on your favorite podcast platform by clicking here.