James Watare is the founder and managing partner of Executive Jobs Hub. He is a human resource consultant, a LinkedIn expert, a project manager and a career coach.
Mr Watare holds a higher diploma in human resource management from the Institute of Human Resource Management, a Bachelors Degree in Science from Kenyatta University and a Masters Degree in Public Health from Moi University. Here is his career path:
“I grew up in a small village called Kiangoma in Karatina, Tumutumu. I was brought up by my grandparents since my mother was working in Baringo. I attended public schools from nursery to university. I grew up as a village boy and would accompany my grandfather to the fields to graze his cows and sheep. He would inspire me a lot with stories and his words of wisdom. He was a Mau Mau freedom fighter and he was jailed for years by colonialists. He loved education although he didn’t get the opportunity to study himself.
I run my firm together with short-term project management consultancies from various NGOs on a need basis. Before starting my firm, I was working with consulting company Ernst and Young (EY), as a project manager and human resources consultant in the advisory department.
During my time at EY, I learnt a lot about consulting. In fact, I was managing very senior consultants, who had been hired by EY to work on a government project that was being done in all ministries and counties.
Their focus was mainly on organisation development and institutional review of county and ministry structures known as ‘Capacity Assessment and Rationalisation Programme for the Public Service.’’ This is where I got the motivation to establish a HR firm.
When starting, I struggled a lot to land a decent job after my university education. Probably because there was nobody to guide me in job searching. That’s why I decided to set up a HR firm, with the aim of helping stop this kind of nightmare many job-seekers go through.
I’m very passionate about helping young professionals. This is mainly because I’ve realised that many of them are qualified but they lack adequate skills to stand out in the crowd and be noticed by employers. My main focus is to educate job-seekers on the current job trends which are dictated by technology and the industrial revolution. I wish job seekers understood the science behind recruitment is to customise your CV to the job you are applying for. It’s upon the job seeker to present the best set of qualities that match the opportunity at hand.
I have identified a major gap in the use of LinkedIn as a job search tool and after thorough research, I have noticed with a lot of concern that more than 70 per cent of job-seekers’ profiles are dormant and communicate nothing about their profession. This is despite the fact that employers and recruiters use LinkedIn to find potential candidates.
If the profile is optimised, the job-seeker will be found but unfortunately, that’s not the case. Many job-seekers are losing opportunities to get their dream jobs.
My advise to the youth is know your career goals. Plan ahead. Network, network, network. There are jobs for everyone just to be creative and proactive. Stop using analogue CV and LinkedIn profiles. Show how you add value. Look for a career coach and mentor that will help you chart your career path.
