For Candidates

We provide to candidates access to premium companies with progressive management practices. Our clients are range from large European multinationals active in Ukraine to western-style local companies.

To land a job in these demanding environments, a first step is to submit your resume to Diamond Recruiters. Email us at cv@diamondrecruiters.net with "corporate finance profile", "financial profile" or "sales & marketing profile" in the subject/title field. We will match your profile and aspirations towards our current vacancies.

Furthermore, interview performance is a deciding factor. Having a properly structured resume helps communicate and builds confidence. As the job market gains maturity, interviews tend to be deeper as well as more incisive for the candidate. Engaging the employer in a two-way discussion is now a must.

Below what our experience tells to candidates:

• Choose a style of resume - Europeans have two prevailing types of resume formats. One is the "German resume" which is very detailed and tends to be 3 to 5 pages long. The wording is oriented towards activity description. In investment banking especially, the "Anglo-Saxon resume" is appreciated. It consists of one page with a clearly stated objective on top. Its core elements are the professional experience, "brand names" and future goals.
• Do not make a fool of yourself - it is considered to be good style by Ukrainians to add a couple of words about the candidate personality. First note that in Europe many candidates avoid "getting personal" in their resumes in order not to bias the interviewer. Some go as far as not to mention their full birthday in order not to give out their zodiac sign. Second, if you still want to mention your personality traits, make sure you understand the meaning of your word associations. Some direct translations from your mother tongue might sound rather cute to downward ridiculous to a native English speaker.
• Do your research - please visit the website of the prospective employer in advance. Understand the lines of services, the company history and familiarize yourself with the values of the company.
• Behave professionally during the interview - to convey professionalism, a firm dry handshake is typically customary. If offered refreshment, do not hesitate to ask for water, some interviewers will make you talk for a long time, think about your throat! Also keep a positive attitude and eye contact.
• Interact with foreign management - your English might be rusty or you might be unsettled by the others person's accent. When not sure about a request, ask to repeat the question using different words. If that still does not do the full trick, paraphrase the interviewer. A valid opening line can be "If I understood you right, you mean that".
• Mentioning past employers - Even if you did not leave a previous employer in the best terms, never bad mouth during a job interview. No exceptions, period.

A final thought for 2009, times haved changed - think about your employability. For the past three years in Ukraine, the plague for employers were "job hoppers" and "mercenaries". Indeed, due to lack of qualified English speaking personal and fragmentations in the service industry, a hot job market allowed "job hoppers" and "mercenaries" to change job or renegotiate contracts a couple of times a year. In the past, at Diamond Recruiters we always turned down candidates working at more than 3 different companies over a 2 years period.

As the Ukrainian labor market gains maturity, successful careers will require planning from the candidates while keeping longer term employability high. For a definition of employability refer to wikipedia here.

Our sister company "Up 2 the Stars" provides employability assessment, coaching and other career planning services to develop high potential. To have more information on "Up 2 the Stars" offers, please click here.