In today's episode, I'm talking to the brilliant and straight-shooting Ruairi Spillane, who runs Moving2Canada and Outpost Recruitment.

Ruairi is one of the OGs when it comes to helping newcomers move to Canada, find jobs, and settle in nicely. So he was a must-have on The Newcomers Podcast.

As someone who's been recruiting local and global talent for Canada for over a decade, he's seen what works, what doesn't, and he's not afraid to tell you the difference.

And he dished out dollops of that tough love on this episode.

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Ruairi and I chat about:

• The red flags that tell him an immigrant is likely to struggle in the job search
• The three risks employers are evaluating you on during the interview process
• Why Canadianizing your resume is about the content, not the format
• How to proactively address your immigration pathway in an interview

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Dozie's Notes

A few things that struck me as I listened through this week's conversation:

1. "I can do anything" is a red flag, not a selling point. It screams you haven't done the research. Pick one or two job titles that match your skills in Canada and build your resume around those. Spraying and praying something sticks is exhausting.
2. Canadian employers are evaluating three risks you probably aren't addressing. Settlement risk: Will you stay? Immigration risk: Can you stay? Local experience risk: Can you adapt? Ruairi says employers in professional roles aren't hiring for six months. They're investing in training you for three to four years. If your answer to "How long will you be in Canada?" is "I have a two-year work permit, we'll see if we like it," you've just told them you're a flight risk.
3. Refusing to adapt your resume can mean you might struggle to adapt to the role. Ruairi says it's a pattern he's seen over the last 12 years. When he suggests improvements and a candidate says "my resume is fine the way it is" or "I paid someone to edit this so I'm not changing it," he steps away. Time and time again, that response has usually meant the individual might not be exactly willing to adapt to a new way of doing things in a new country. Brutal? Right?

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Official Links

✅ Connect with Ruairi Spillane on LinkedIn

✅ Check out the Outpost Recruitment Jobs Board

✅ Join the 170K+ strong newcomer community on Moving2Canada

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