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Get Shortlisted, Get Hired With Nitasha Shridhar, Peepul
Know The Social Sector
Overview
This video features an interview with Nitasha Shridhar, Head of HR at Peepul, discussing strategies for job seekers to get shortlisted and hired, particularly within the social sector. The conversation covers advice for freshers, individuals returning to work after a break, and career changers. It delves into resume best practices, emphasizing impact and contribution over length and vagueness. Shridhar also touches upon the importance of relevant education, compensation expectations, the future of work, and emerging hiring trends, highlighting adaptability as a key skill. The discussion aims to demystify the hiring process and provide actionable insights for candidates.
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Chapters
- Understand the social sector is competitive and dynamic, not just a place to 'give back'.
- Research organizations and roles that align with your specific interests, skills, and experience.
- For freshers, consider starting with fellowships or volunteer roles to gain exposure and understand the sector's culture.
- Be prepared to be versatile and adaptable, as social sector roles often require wearing multiple hats.
This chapter helps aspiring professionals understand the mindset and preparation needed to successfully enter and contribute to the social sector, moving beyond idealistic intentions to strategic application.
Freshers might start with a fellowship to 'wet their toes' and understand the expectations within a civil society organization before committing to a full-time role.
- Individuals returning after a break (e.g., UPSC preparation) can find roles in founders' or directors' offices to gain a broad organizational overview.
- Fellowships are structured opportunities that provide exposure and act as a testing period for career direction.
- Skills developed during competitive exam preparation, such as research, documentation, and long-form writing, are highly valued.
- Career transitions into the social sector are encouraged, leveraging transferable skills like program implementation and partnership management.
This section provides guidance for individuals with non-traditional career paths or breaks, showing how their existing skills can be valuable and how to re-enter the workforce effectively.
Candidates who prepared for UPSC exams bring valuable research and writing skills that are useful for social sector organizations.
- Resumes should be concise and focus on quantifiable contributions and impact, rather than lengthy, vague descriptions.
- Clearly articulate your core responsibilities, career trajectory, and areas of greatest impact.
- A strong cover letter is crucial for explaining your motivation for applying to a specific organization and role.
- Prioritize the last three most significant roles or achievements, and consider a brief summary of key successes at the top.
Understanding how recruiters sift through numerous applications is key to making your resume stand out and effectively communicate your value proposition.
Instead of listing duties, a resume should highlight achievements like 'Increased program participation by 20% through targeted outreach' to demonstrate impact.
- While college prestige is less important, the relevance of your field of study (e.g., education for teaching roles, specific technical fields for M&E) is considered.
- Certifications are valuable only if they can be directly linked to how they've enhanced your work or professional development.
- Compensation in the social sector is often tied to organizational funding and can involve trade-offs between salary and impact opportunity.
- Organizations like Peepul aim for competitive compensation through market benchmarking and transparent salary bands.
This chapter clarifies how educational background, certifications, and salary expectations are viewed by employers, helping candidates set realistic goals and present themselves effectively.
A master's degree in education is considered mandatory for teaching roles, demonstrating theoretical grounding and practical application.
- The suitability of remote or hybrid work is highly contextual, depending on the organization's nature and stakeholder engagement.
- Roles requiring high community or stakeholder interaction (e.g., core program delivery) are less likely to be fully remote.
- Hiring trends in the social sector are positive across all levels, with significant mid-level and entry-level recruitment.
- Adaptability, the ability to handle complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity, is a premium skill for all roles.
Understanding current and future work trends, including the nuances of hybrid models and essential skills, prepares individuals for evolving job market demands.
At Peepul, due to the high engagement required with school systems and teachers, a fully remote or hybrid model is not feasible, necessitating a primarily office-based setup with some flexibility.
- Organizations often use competency rubrics to ensure alignment between HR screening and vertical interviewer expectations.
- Joint screening of resumes by HR and hiring managers can improve alignment and efficiency.
- Candidates should be aware that salary expectations might need adjustment to fit organizational bands, potentially involving a pay cut.
- Referrals are valued because internal employees can vouch for a candidate's fit with the organization's culture and pace.
This chapter demystifies the internal workings of hiring processes, helping candidates understand potential discrepancies and how organizations strive for fairness and efficiency.
HR and hiring managers at Peepul screen resumes together for the first batch of applications to ensure alignment on required competencies.
Key takeaways
- Intentionality and thorough research are crucial for entering the social sector, moving beyond a desire to simply 'give back'.
- Versatility, adaptability, and a willingness to learn are essential, especially for those new to the sector or returning after a break.
- Resumes must highlight quantifiable impact and contributions; a compelling cover letter is vital for explaining your specific interest.
- While formal education matters, the relevance of your skills and how you've applied them is often more critical than the institution's name.
- Compensation in the social sector can vary significantly; be prepared for potential trade-offs and transparent discussions about salary bands.
- Adaptability to complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity is a highly sought-after skill in today's dynamic work environment.
- Understand that hiring processes involve multiple stages and alignments, and be prepared to demonstrate your fit against defined competencies.
Key terms
Social SectorFellowshipsCompetency RubricImpact MetricsCover LetterSalary BandsHybrid WorkAdaptabilityTransferable SkillsApplicant Tracking System (ATS)
Test your understanding
- Why is it important for individuals seeking to enter the social sector to conduct thorough research on organizations and roles?
- How can candidates with career breaks or those transitioning from other sectors effectively showcase their transferable skills?
- What are the key elements that make a resume stand out to recruiters in the social sector?
- How should an applicant approach discussions about salary expectations when applying for roles in non-profits or social organizations?
- What does 'adaptability' mean in the context of the future of work, and why is it considered a premium skill?