If your firm has work coming in during this economic crisis, consider yourselves lucky! If your firm has enough work coming in that you are in a position to hire new talent, you're in a very good position!

Posting a job during the economic downturn can be tricky. Tricky in a good way. Firms have the pick of the litter this year. There is an unprecedented number of accomplished architects looking for work. Job listings are often answered with a record-high response from highly qualified, even over-qualified, potential employees. The level of positive response to a job listing may be overwhelming to some, but who's complaining? This is a great problem to have.

Archinect would like offer advice on how to get organized and prepared during this unique employment period. Here are few simple tips to make the resume and portfolio filtering process a little less complicated.

• Be extremely specific with job requirements in your listing. Specify years of experience, software knowledge - don't be afraid ask that only respondents meeting these requirements submit applications.
• Specify a portfolio format, size, file format for portfolio submissions. Example: It may be much easier for your email to handle portfolios that are condensed to a certain size. Job seekers are more than happy to meet your requirements. This also shows the employer that the applicant knows how to follow directions and is being intentional about their application to your firm specifically.
• Specify a title for email submissions. This will help the employer keep track of incoming applicants. A title such as "Senior Architect - Applicant Name" can be sorted and filed quickly.
• Set up a dedicated email address. If you would like to skip the sorting process, a better idea is to set up a dedicated email address for resumes so that your personal inbox is not flooded with resumes, portfolios but also numerous inquiries regarding the status of the position.
• Set up an auto response. Many employers set up an email auto response that indicates to the job seeker that their application was received with a statement regarding what to expect as far as a response. A common auto response would be " Thank you for inquiring about the position at XYZ Architects. We have received your resume. Due to high number of applicants we will not be able to contact each applicant personally. All applicants that will be interviewed will be contacted within 2 weeks. Good luck in your employment search."
• Specify no calls or drop ins. Many firms are reporting that job seekers are often calling or dropping by to inquire if their resume was received and to find out the status of the open position. If it is important that your firm not get calls or drop ins regarding the position, don't be afraid to state it gently. "Please no calls or drop in inquiries, thank you."
• Don't be afraid to require some unique application instructions.During this economic slowdown many job-seekers are becoming so desperate for work that they are submitting applications without fully reviewing the job advertisement. A simple set of instructions may provide a valuable way to filter out applicants who haven't followed the application instructions properly.

Though resume and portfolio filtering can seem a daunting task, the upside is that firms are at a major advantage. Many firms will secure a star employee with nowhere near the recruitment efforts it took before the economic slowdown.

Please feel free to contact us with questions or comments at

jobs@archinect.com or (213) 863-4550 for further assistance in your recruitment efforts.