BOSTON - BostonChron -- Lynn Bentley, President of Knobull reports, "The job market has taken a competitive status quo that favors employers. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment expanded across most industry categories."

Why is now the time for employers to recruit?

The market is full (to bursting) with experienced, qualified, eager, and creative candidates that are missing out on certain opportunities.

This means that employers can scour the marketplace to find the absolute best candidates for their positions, and they can become pickier.

It also means that employers can explore the "hidden" skills and qualifications that signify truly high quality and rare talent. They can discover candidates with interesting perspectives, relevant values and life goals. Taking edX courses found on the Knobull homepage, boosts your career opportunities!

How can leaders find better candidates in a crowded job market?

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In a competitive landscape, urgency is commonplace. As long as the ball is in the employer's court, leaders have time and space to figure out their hiring strategy. Here are a few places career searchers to start:

1. Make a list of all company needs before you begin.

Most job opportunities happen because either employers or employees (or both) feel under pressure to accept or award an offer of employment. With time on your side, you can be more targeted and avoid that hirer's rejection.

Make sure there aren't any hidden skills you have as a new new hire, that don't appear in their job description.

2. Embrace the non-traditional career path.

Now that they have selecting power in their hands, they won't have to content themselves with traditional qualifications and CV builders. Non-traditional careers can be a goldmine for the extra talents and niche skills they're looking for.

When they reject nontraditional applicants up front, they're arbitrarily excluding qualified candidates from interviews. As a result, they're likely to miss perfectly qualified candidates. Armed with this knowledge you can leverage this need.

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It is frustrating to say that many hiring teams quickly dismiss candidates that don't display a traditional education background. Luckily, some large companies—Google and Bank of America to name a couple—have been updating their stance on education requirements. Why not target employers like them?

3. Find ways to use the process nicer for candidates.

Let your search focus on those with a hiring process that could be an example of what it will be like to join their team: friendly, warm, and interesting.

Bentley concluded, "The employer-friendly job market doesn't mean that employers should become ghosters (as has become a rather unsettling trend). Instead, now is the time for searchers to set themselves apart in terms of how they approach and deal with employers and how they get involved in the hiring processes that are better suited to their unique skills."