Step One: Finding the Best Mining Jobs

As the mining industry continues its rebound from the downturn of a few years ago, some industry experts are saying that the mining employment sector is now a “candidate-driven” market. The recent mining slowdown still has lingering effects, one of which is the skills gap left behind when experienced mining professionals chose to leave the industry to pursue other lucrative opportunities such as starting their own consultancies or taking early retirement.

Now, with the mining industry showing robust growth in 2018 with more of the same projected for 2019, candidates and mining employers all find themselves operating in a very competitive business environment, and demand for experienced mining professionals is high.

Resource Erectors: The Staffing Advantage For the Mining Industry

What mining professional candidates need is a mining recruitment specialist with direct contact to North America’s best mining company hiring managers. We have the “inside” advantage that comes with 16 years of experience working with these companies, many of which still count Resource Erector candidates among their most valued employees years later.

Mining employers who work with Resource Erectors already know they can rely on us to provide the best available talent. Consequently, we can open doors to mining industry positions which aren’t posted publicly. We offer specific guidance on resume’ preparation for professionals in the mining industry, helping yours to stand out from the crowd.

Now that we’ve gotten your foot in the door with a polished industry-specific resume’, it’s time to bring your best to the interview.

Step Two: Acing the Interview

Preparation is the key to acing an interview in any industry, so it’s wise to be ready for the questions common to all hiring managers across the board including:

• Can you tell me about yourself?– Go beyond past job roles and be ready to talk about specific accomplishments and achievements. Mention those times when you resolved or identified problems, accomplished more with fewer resources, and increased efficiency. If these accomplishments are listed as the eye-catching bullet points on your resume, be ready to explain in detail at the interview. If you’ve been out of the industry for a while be prepared to explain why you’ve chosen this job to make a comeback.
• Why do you want this job?- This is the opportunity to show the interviewer that you’ve researched the company and you know exactly how you can contribute to the their success. It’s time to explain why you’ve chosen THEM as a good fit for YOU in terms of career advancement and job satisfaction.
• What are your greatest strengths?– This is not the time to mention vague soft skills such as “good communicator,” or “detail-oriented.” Instead, talk about accomplishments showing you possess these skills such as “I managed a union team” or “I coordinated MSHA certification” or “I developed a new system or procedure to improve uptime at a 24/7 operation.”
• What’s your biggest weakness?– One strategy is to mention non-essential weaknesses which may not apply to the position you’re after, for example making presentations to large groups when the job requires supervision of a small crew, which is the work environment you prefer. Or you could mention your lack of fondness for negotiating union contracts if you’re applying to a non-union operation. The purpose of this question is not to trip you up so much as it is asked to measure your level of self-awareness. You can answer, for example, “I know my attention to details can sometimes cause some time management problems, so I have to be careful about this tendency.”

Give yourself the upper hand by downloading our Interview Preparation packet and improve your chances of success!

Two common denominators we’re seeing on the 2019 jobs list at Resource Erectors is the ability to shoulder responsibility and fill critical leadership roles. Filling these positions may give experienced older professionals an edge, but for these candidates, it’s important to conduct the interview just as if you’re going after your first mining career job, being careful not to come off as condescending or overqualified for the position based merely on a long string of experience. Younger professionals can benefit by being ready to discuss the number of sites, tons per year, and the types of deposits and operational environments they’ve worked with before, and why they’re ready and willing to take on more responsibility now and for years to come.

In fact, we currently have several positions available for both junior and senior engineers with process engineering and mechanical design experience. For more seasoned professionals, there are materials sales and operations manager positions open. At Resource Erectors we’re fully equipped to match you with the best companies in North America. When you’re ready to make a move to advance your mining career or want to discuss any of these available positions, contact us today.