In A Competitive Market, Networking Sites Can Help CRE Professionals Find The Perfect Job

It’s a tough time for job seekers. The U.S. unemployment rate remains historically high, and more than 17 million Americans are on the hunt for a new job. If you’re searching for a career in commercial real estate, however, you may be in luck.

The CRE unemployment rate is estimated to be as low as one-third the national rate, and some areas of the industry, including property management, remain a “candidate’s market.” While there have still been layoffs across the industry, there are places where talented individuals looking to start or boost their career in CRE can turn. 

“The pandemic has been a tumultuous time for many CRE professionals,” said Oliver Medcalf, director of operations at SelectLeaders, an online job networking community that helps connect CRE job seekers and employers. “This is why it’s more important than ever for sites like ours to continue our mission to offer relief to those in the industry who are looking for a new position.” 

Job seekers who are hoping to put their best foot forward need to make sure their résumés are not only up to date, but also compelling and highlighting their best attributes. Working with a résumé-building company and networking website that can connect them to employers looking for their level of expertise can help them stand out from the rest.

SelectLeaders has more than 20,000 employers and 300,000 job candidates on its platform. Marc Torrey, SelectLeaders’ vice president of growth, said that the company’s mission is to connect employers to their most important asset — talent — and to help CRE professionals reach the next level of their careers. The site is an alliance of the real estate industry’s most prominent professional associations including NAIOP, CCIM, ULI and more.

SelectLeaders recently partnered with TopResume, a résumé-writing service that can match candidates with a writer who can work one-on-one with them to craft the best possible résumé that is tailored to their career goals. SelectLeaders candidates can take advantage of this new partnership by getting a free résumé critique from the TopResume staff, with an option to upgrade to a full résumé update at a competitive rate.

“We want to make sure our users present themselves in the best possible light, to give them a higher chance of success when it comes to locking in their next career move,” Torrey said. “We believe that TopResume can help them do just that.”

Candidates who are interested in joining the SelectLeaders website should first register, and then upload their cover letter and résumé to the site. They can upload multiple versions to apply for different positions. Candidates can also set up job alerts to make sure they are among the first to apply for new openings. 

But it’s not just about uploading a résumé and hoping to hear from potential employers. Throughout the entire process, SelectLeaders can provide access to its database of schools that offer accredited real estate degree programs, a job barometer with an in-depth assessment of the U.S. commercial real estate job market and perspectives on hiring trends from top real estate professionals.

SelectLeaders also offers a biweekly Top Talent Brief designed to help people stay on top of what’s happening in the real estate industry job market. The brief offers insights, tips and strategies to help candidates become top-notch real estate professionals. 

This feature was produced in collaboration between the Bisnow Branded Content Studio and SelectLeaders. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.