Somewhere between panic and distraught :(

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The company I work for are letting some people go, including me. It’s a cash starved company. So, they aren’t being any kind of generous with the “bye bye” package.

I remember just a month ago, I was looking for new roles and got so many interviews, at my level: Senior SDET (Java/Python and some JavaScript) - but this gave me false confidence and I chose to stay at the current place, see if I make the cut.

Now that I actually need a job, I am NOT getting an interview every time I send a CV… Actually, I’ve sent a LOT of CVs for the interviews that I got.

And the interviews aren’t going well. Had 2 final interviews so far and they keep delving and digging into very weird questions.

Last time I was doing interviews, they always gave me some homework project and then I was talking about it and as long as it showed that I know all the cool stuff, than I got an offer.

This time, they want the project to be perfect. As a matter of fact, even a really highly develop test automation project (we’re talking about an interview assignment!) - they rejected it because of stylistic issues, like “this test should be in its own file”, “this comment should be inline and not at in the readme”…

It looks like there are less and less SDET / QA Automation jobs, salaries are going down and lots of candidates per each job offering. Don’t know what is your feeling?

Genuinely worried with the level of cash vs. expenses, going down rapidly now that I don’t have an income…

Any discussion appreciated.
Of course, if you know something about any work going around, happy to send my CV - it’s really good!

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If you’d like you can DM me your CV so I can have a look, maybe I’ll have some suggestions. How many remote job sites do you use? A lot of them have newsletters to get notified about the role you’re after.

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I never used any remote job sites.
I mostly just sit in the office and then some recruiter calls me - if I have been working for 2 years and think I am due for a raise, I pick up the call.
But now, it seems to me in the UK it has gone the other way, need to start chasing recruiters!

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LinkedIn has a lot of jobs, on-site and remote, and maybe tidy up your profile with any certifications you have, and set your self as opened to work.

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LinkedIn doesn’t really help for jobs in my case. Maybe it’s a UK thing but I never get any replies from LN applications… Maybe it’s because “3 days ago 161 applicants”…

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I usually get contacted by recruiters and don’t get any replies most of the when applying for LinkedIn jobs, or I contact recruiters directly and people working at other companies, like former co-workers.

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Can I ask for those sites?

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Here are but a few :smiley:

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Here are some links I hope you will find useful:

https://nicolalindgren.com/2022/09/17/software-testing-job-sites/

https://youtube.com/c/ALifeAfterLayoff

Have you posted on LinkedIn you are looking?

Have you reached out to past colleagues directly saying you are looking?

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If you want another opinion on your CV and/or LinkedIn profile, feel free to reach out.

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I second the recommendation to get your LinkedIn profile updated and set to looking for work. I am recently newly employed in QA and still have recruiters reaching out to me after having set my profile to “not looking” - I’d be surprised if you didn’t find more opportunity there. I’m also happy to connect with you on there and share your search out to my network. I’m at https://www.linkedin.com/in/thejenbauer/ if you’d like to connect.

I found my current role through Otta, and it was free to use, so I recommend trying that site as well.

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How about calling again the companies were you have applied before?
I guess aside another rejections nothing worse could happen. And it might be a chance for you. Maybe the haven’t found yet a good candidate or looking for more people.
I suggest to be honest about your situation, why you are reapplying. People with a little empathy will understand that.
Live is complex and surprising things happen …

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I just saw this in a job group, maybe try reaching out directly to recruiters?

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@lutuvarka You should change something on you LI profile - it will trigger recruiters to contact you. If they contact you - you have a better chance.
Also check Salesforce, they are hiring a lot:
https://salesforce.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/External_Career_Site?q=qa%20automation

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great one. My Android isn’t so good. I can get things done but if they put it as a top priority, I wouldn’t feel comfortable trying to get that job.

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I think you’re more seeing the general slow down in the tech industry than for the SDET/QA role. While the Twitter and the rumored upcoming Meta layoffs are definitely high profile, there’s also a lot more smaller/less flashy layoffs and hiring freezes. I’m also hearing of hiring freezes from connections at other big tech companies that they’ve essentially got soft freezes on hiring, so unless someone has a referral or a very specialized skill set, it’s unlikely to get interviewed, much less hired.

This has trickle down effects in that the number of applicants per position is going to go up, so each role is now more competitive - i.e. fewer open positions with more candidates due to those who’ve been laid off looking. This is also why companies might have silly screens like you’ve encountered, where they can pass on candidates for things that seemed trivial, as they have other candidates who matched what they wanted - i.e. companies can be pickier now.

I don’t think you’re doing anything “wrong” per se, it’s mainly the market has changed, so finding a role today is not the same as it was, even 3 months ago.

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Hi @lutuvarka,

I hope things are going ok for you right now.

Keith Klain recently shared this helpful post (if not on your radar already).

I like how the post describes the following helpful advice:

  1. Be able to demonstrate your test approach ALIGNMENT to business risk
  2. Tie efficiencies you’ve made DIRECTLY to operational savings
  3. Report on INSIGHTS not just data
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Update:
Actually this has been a thing for 7 days now but I am still wrapping up my affairs.

I landed a job with a very reputable company! I guess they didn’t get the memo because the interview process was a lot more like 2021 than 2022… We had a pleasant chat and got homework, I discussed the homework and they were impressed they go all they need to make me an offer.

Very decent offer - it all feels a little too good.

Anyway: Another thing I want to share is that I’ve made myself available over Calendly to book - got booked out real fast… First 4 sessions were no shows :slight_smile: But 5’th guy showed up and he’s in a similar situation like mine. So, I am trying to help (Java skills, interview prep, mental support).
I guess it’s a zero sum game - if he gets a job, that’s someone else who isn’t… But then, he did the effort to reach out and get help. So, maybe there’s some justice…
I am now fully occupied with preparing for new job and helping this guy - but I will try to continue this idea of helping other people with as much as I can, once I have time freed up again.

Very important: Thanks guys for your support here and those who went the extra mile and reached out in person with specific ideas - really appreciate it!

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Many congrats, @lutuvarka. That’s such good news! :trophy: Good luck with the prep and your next adventure.

And thank you for coming back to this thread to share an update.

What you’re doing for the community to help others by using Calendly sounds amazing.

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Actually this has been a thing for 7 days now but I am still wrapping up my affairs.

@lutuvarka you want to make sure that your LinkedIn profile is up to date and looking good in case anything like this happens again. I’m happy to review it for you as, I’m sure, many other people in the community. I have seen statistically that most of the jobs are landed through LinkedIn. When you just update your profile - it notifies millions of recruiters in the area that you are looking.

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