Lisa LaCivita
If you not have not read Job Searches Using Reference USA Part I, It would be good to familiarize yourself with that content, since it will not be repeated here. The previous blog may provide you with all you need to search for a job. Although we are in a pandemic with 20 million people unemployed, there are companies in our area that are hiring. A basic search (on August 11.2020) for the last seven days, within a 25 mile radius of the 22601 zip code results in 631 hits! This includes 500 full-time and 191 part-time (some are both which is why they add up to more than 663). It may sounds good to have 631 jobs available but you really do not want to scroll through all 631 entries. You will want to refine your search. This is addressed in the Job Searches Using Reference USA Part I, so take a look at that blog.
In this blog I want to share some other features of the reference USA database that may be of interest or useful to you. The business database is used for marketing as well as to promote job openings. If you have a product or service then you can use the database to find companies that may be interested in it. By identifying companies that have jobs that you are interested in, you could contact them before they post a job opening and perhaps avoid the competition. This type of search can also be useful if you are thinking of relocating and want to know about the businesses and job opportunities in a particular area. If you are thinking of gaining credentials or certifications in a particular field, you will want to know what companies may be hiring in which locations. Click on U.S. Businesses; similar to the job searches there are quick and advanced tabs.
We will visit the advanced tab (clicking on additional filters takes you to the advanced tab.) Here we want to look at the filter for Business Type, specifically SIC and NAICS codes. SIC stands for Standard Industry Classification. SIC codes range from 100 (Agriculture Production Crops) to 9995 (Non-Operating Establishments. Using SIC codes in the search can be helpful if you want to limit your search to specific industries, but you do not have to put in a SIC code at all. NAICS stands for the North American Industry Classification System, which gives a numerical code to specific job titles. If you can find a NAIC code that matches your skills, then searching for a job using the NAIC code can save you a lot of time.
