When the company you want to work for is in a hiring freeze, you need to boost your marketability, says a top AWS exec

• As hiring freezes and layoffs spread across the tech industry, job seekers are caught in the middle.
• But they shouldn't sit idle, Nancy Wang, a top AWS exec and the founder of a nonprofit, says.
• Instead, they need to develop new skills and expertise and forge relationships with mentors.

Big Tech companies including Amazon, Salesforce, Google and Meta, have shed tens of thousands of workers in recent weeks, citing a slowing economy, and some others have introduced hiring freezes. You need to spend only a little time on Blind — the go-to app for tech workers to find jobs and anonymously trade industry gossip — to know how candidates in limbo feel about it. In a word: frustrated.

"You have a situation where so many talented folks who just graduated from school and are looking to land their first job or who are in the industry and excited about their next move are caught in a hiring freeze," Nancy Wang, the director of product and engineering at Amazon Web Services, told Insider.

The predicament is not their fault, she said: "They're casualties of economic trends."

But while venting on Blind might be cathartic, job seekers shouldn't sit idly by, Wang said. Instead, they need to boost their marketability by developing expertise, exploring career opportunities, and forging relationships with mentors. Once the freeze ends and they're up against other applicants, they'll have an upper hand. 

This is especially critical for women and members of marginalized groups who are underrepresented in technology, Wang said. As the youngest general manager ever at AWS and the youngest director in a technical role there, Wang speaks from experience. Throughout her career, she was often the only woman or person of color in the room. So in 2017, she founded Advancing Women in Tech, a nonprofit dedicated to helping women and minorities rise in technology roles.

Here's Wang's best advice for how to productively wait out a hiring freeze.

Learn new skills

It helps to think of yourself as a product when you're looking for a job, Wang said.

"To make a product more successful, you add more features," she said. "To increase your competitiveness in the job market, you add more skills."

That's why Wang advises job candidates to develop skills by taking certification courses or learning additional programming languages. Wang favors Java but also recommends Go and Scala — particularly for those interested in mobile and web development. 

Skills are especially important for early-career professionals, as employers tend to cut back on entry-level roles when business is slumping.

"In tough economies, managers lean toward hiring more experienced people because there's a training period required for those early in their careers," she said. "The more you can come in and immediately bring a project forward, the better off you are."  

Build connections in the industry

"This is an industry where a lot of people have connections who can hook them up," she said. "Women don't necessarily have those connections off the bat." 

But Advancing Women in Tech and a growing number of organizations, including Chief, Ascend, and Tech Ladies, are trying to change that. AWIT, for example, offers free or low-cost one-on-one mentorship and career coaching. The goal is to help women and underrepresented groups create personal relationships with hiring managers and senior leaders. 

When opportunities or promotions arise, "they can make an introduction for you," she said.

Think broadly about your career

While scoring a job at a name-brand company like Apple or Netflix might be your dream, you need to be open to exploring other opportunities in a downturn.

"These companies are not the end-all, be-all," she said. "Sure, you can join a top-five tech company and slowly get promoted, but that's not the only path, and our careers are not linear." 

Wang knows this well. She's worked for startups, consultancies, venture-capital groups, and Big Tech companies.

"You always need to be reinventing yourself," she said.

Don't discount entrepreneurship. AWIT, for instance, recently beefed up support for female entrepreneurs by working with AWS startup teams and its Impact Accelerator for Women Founders. AWIT's mentorship programs also include founders on both the mentor side and the mentee side. 

 "If you have an idea you're passionate about, and you take the time to build it, maybe get a little funding, and launch it — that shows ownership, drive, determination, and initiative," she said.

Even if the idea flops, the skills you pick up and connections you make will serve you well and impress hiring managers down the road.

Finally, don't get discouraged, Wang said: "Market trends are cyclical. The hiring freeze is not going to last forever."

An earlier version of this story appeared on October 26, 2022.