The rise of the job board
As technology has developed, the way people have worked has evolved. This is also the case in terms of the way people now find a new job.
The rise of the online job board over the last decade, with some of the early adopters now being in existence for nearly 15 years, has been prominent and the job board is now becoming the most popular method of finding a new role. Whether you’re looking for a new challenge, you’ve unfortunately been made redundant or you’re taking your first step on the career ladder, the Internet has become an invaluable tool in seeking to further your career.
Across every industry, the legal sector being no exception, the online battleground is fierce, with different media companies launching websites offering advertising services for recruiters and career advice for candidates. With the Internet being adopted into everyday life in both business and personal use, the ease and speed of being able to find a new job has improved markedly, taking content and ultimately revenue away from trade magazines and regional publications.
Generalist vs. niche
In the beginning, the methodology behind job boards was to provide candidates from all industry sectors easy access to all jobs, across all locations, in one convenient place. For the larger brands in this online environment, this has remained the same, although larger sites continue to develop their offering for candidates, providing valuable information on general career advice, such as video tips for interviewing and CVs, and integration with social or professional media platforms.
However, the argument against generalist job boards has always been: how can a career website provide in-depth, dedicated content for a multitude of highly specialized job sectors?
As online job boards themselves have evolved, ‘niche’ specialist sites are now commonplace. Niche development, which works particularly well in industry sectors where significant experience, education and training are required, allows websites to provide the dedicated industry content and roles desired from an audience that has overall career aspirations in that sector.
Law is one such sector, with several boards now well established in the industry as an effective means to finding the right job in law.
One of these boards is LegalProspects.com, part of the Jobsite Group of recruitment websites, which are pioneers of online recruitment in the UK.
Covering the entire legal spectrum, from partner-level jobs to general support roles, LegalProspects has been operating for five years and has become one of the main job boards associated with legal recruitment. Throughout this period, LegalProspects has continuously provided legal secretary roles across all specialisms of law.
Employment trends on LegalProspects
With nationwide coverage of all legal hubs in the UK, interest in secretarial roles on LegalProspects has always been one of the more popular types of roles available on the site.
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However, the recession hit the legal industry hard, particularly in late 2008 and early 2009. Secretarial vacancies posted fell dramatically as firms looked to make savings, often with roles associated with general support staff, including legal secretaries, being the first to face the risk of redundancy. The resulting influx of applications to secretarial vacancies outstripped the supply of roles for the remainder of 2009.
Thankfully, the recovery was established at the turn of the year, and the number of vacancies rose steadily during 2010. The general election caused a minor blip in vacancy numbers as firms looked to steady themselves ahead of the change in Government, but with vacancies on the rise again in recent months, the outlook looks good for those looking to find careers as legal secretaries.
Concluding the process
Finding a new role on a job board is one way of starting down the road to that perfect new position, but it is just the beginning of the process. CV preparation and a number of interviews to get through are pretty standard before the ultimate decision is made on whether or not you are offered the job.
Thankfully, assistance in this area is something that recruiters who advertise on LegalProspects are renowned for, and they regularly help our registered candidates. One candidate has received guidance recently, and after working with specialist legal recruitment agency Owen Reed was successful in her job application:
“I wanted to say a big thank you to Owen Reed for all the help they have given me in my job search. I felt they really listened to what I wanted and managed to secure me several interviews and helped me get my ideal job! I couldn’t fault the service I received and would definitely recommend you to others. I would also like to point out that had it not been for LegalProspects I would not have found out about Owen Reed — what a great combination for a prospective job seeker! Thanks again.”
Jo Black – Legal Secretary