How To Use Slack for Your Job Search

Millions of people use Slack, a messaging app for the workplace, every day. The app makes it easy to communicate with co-workers and share files. 

While the original intent of Slack may have been to further communication within a company, the app can also be useful for networking and other job search tasks, including learning about industries, connecting with recruiters, making new connections, and finding job opportunities.

Here's how to use Slack for career networking, connecting with hiring managers, getting job leads, and job searching.

Slack Communities Are a Gathering Place 

Many social media platforms offer a way to gather with like-minded people. For instance, on Facebook and LinkedIn, you can join groups.

Communities are the comparable option on Slack. Many are available, so there’s a high likelihood that you can find a community that’s relevant to your industry or demographic. For instance, there’s a Design Hangout community, along with Women in Technology and Remote Work communities. On Resources for Humans, human resources professionals gather to build connections, share job opportunities, and chat about HR-related issues.

How To Find Communities on Slack 

There is no single place where all the communities on Slack are listed, so you’ll have to hunt down the ones that are relevant to you. Try the following tactics: 

• Search online: Use your favorite search engine to find communities. You can search “Slack community women” or “Slack community sales,” and so on.

• Ask around: Ask your existing network about any Slack communities they recommend. To do so, you can post on LinkedIn or Twitter or ask on Facebook Groups, Reddit, or any other networking-related platforms you participate in.
• Check out databases: There are also plenty of databases and articles that list communities. For instance, you can take a look at this list from Standuply or search by keyword on Slofile. To find more lists, search for “list Slack communities.”

Once you’re in the community, you may find it very beneficial.

“Being part of one exposes you to a whole network of viable professional connections and a pipeline of relevant topics and tips ready for the taking,” Steven McConnell, director of sales and marketing at Arielle Executive, a career consulting company, wrote in an email interview with The Balance.

How Slack Can Help Your Job Search 

Slack communities can help you grow your network and potentially further your job search.

Gain Industry Knowledge

One way to take advantage of communities and the channels within them is to follow the conversation. What issues come up for this industry? What are people concerned about and celebrating? Having a sense of the industry's pulse is helpful for answering interview questions about industry trends.

Build Your Networks

As is often the case, you’ll get out of the experience what you put in. Take time to start and contribute to conversations.

“Interacting with others in public Slack channels is the first step to networking in that space,” McConnell said.

These kinds of conversations with like-minded people in your industry will “create a bond with them that leads to great career opportunities,” he said. 

Use the Search Functionality

Within Slack, you can perform searches and filter your results by type—messages, files, people, or channels. This will help you find conversations about relevant topics.

“Engage in threads about topics close to your industry and look for useful projects, courses, and/or hobbies that can boost your professional growth,” McConnell said. 

Set Up Keyword Notifications

Along with searching, you can also set up notifications so that you’re alerted to conversations that mention your industry interests or refer to job opportunities in your field. 

To do this, select "Preferences" from within your profile, then add words or phrases under "My keywords." You’ll only receive alerts from the Slack channels you’re in. 

Search for Jobs

Once you’re in a community, see which channels are available. Often, there will be a job-related channel, which you can then join to find out about job postings. 

Do's and Don'ts of Using Slack for Networking and Your Job Search 

Do: Participate

Just joining a group won't really further your job search-related goals. If you want to network, you have to be a part of the conversation. If you want to learn more about your industry, you have to read the chat and click on articles. 

It’s only by participating—whether that’s talking with the community or reading up—that you’ll benefit from being in a group. 

Do: Follow the Group Rules 

Be a good internet citizen: Follow all the rules that the group establishes. These may include policies on being nice and limiting self-promotion, for example. 

Do: Be Thoughtful About Communities

Since there are communities that are geared toward job searching, seek them out.

“If you are using Slack for job-seeking, I would suggest you join different Slack communities that have been created to connect recruiters with job seekers,” Andrei Kurtuy, co-founder and CCO at Novorésumé, an online resume builder, said in an email interview with The Balance. “There are multiple such communities where headhunters post about job opportunities in different firms,” he notes. 

Don’t: Fritter Away Time 

Slack can be an engaging activity, and alerts can make it tempting to spend lots of time on the app. That can be helpful if you’re getting something out of it. But it can also become a time suck, eating up hours that would be better spent applying to a job, updating your resume, or meeting someone for a virtual or in-person, one-on-one networking coffee date. 

Be mindful about what you’re getting out of Slack, and assess whether it’s the best way to use your time. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)