I sent this alert back in April, as Boutique was reported to be hiring.
Bizjetjobs is advertising them as hiring still. We know for a fact they are currently interviewing people (thank you Facebook), we just don’t know if they are still looking at new applications coming in, and if they are, what exactly it is they’re looking for in terms of experience, what’s competitive…
Here’s the link to apply, but by now, you probably get how solely putting your app in is a gamble. I won that gamble for my current job so I’ll forever encourage people to just apply, what’s there to lose.
However, here are some extra steps we could give a shot:
Find and connect with some of their team on LinkedIn. Recruiter, Captain or First Officer, anyone works. We just want the ability to message.
Start a conversation, DO NOT ASK FOR A REFERRAL. Instead ask about the job/company. Genuine questions like “hey X, it’s about Boutique! I want to fly the PC-12 at some point, and I’m trying to learn more about the options to do that. I’m still low-time, but I wanted to ask you a couple questions about your job if you don’t mind.”
This is pretty much how I pitched pilots to do the Deep Dives on the 50-ish companies, all just from an honest question. Plus, referrals from a stranger won’t do anything, if they even agree to put in a good word for you, a complete stranger.
A simple conversation probably won’t lead to the job now. But if you do this enough, you will get lucky at some point.
About 2 weeks ago, someone I connected with (on Reddit) dm-ed me that his company was probably hiring 2 guys last-minute if I was interested. He doesn’t know me or even this newsletter, and I didn’t ask him to keep me in the loop. He just remembered our conversation from back in April.
No, I won’t be quitting my skydiving job for that one, but I still can’t disclose the name because when I did last year, the company got flooded with random cold emails, for a position not advertised anywhere but only offered to a few shortlisted pilots… That was poor professionalism on my end, not letting that happen a second time.
My point is, shoot the app BUT ALSO try and connect with people at the company because for some reason, pilots just like helping eachother. Boutique could be hiring again in the near future and you’ll know better how to stand out by then. Linkedin, Reddit and Facebook are great to find that out.
I genuinely believe that is the way into any of these 135 operators nowadays, unless you have exceptional experience.
If you do try it, let me know!
P.S: I also think you should drop the whole LinkedIn slang when dm-ing a fellow pilot. It’s more fun for everyone and feels less transactional, which is the goal.