Why go for jobs that everyone else is going for? With competition as high as it is nowadays, go for the jobs that no one else can get. Go for a job that’s niche and tailor-made for you.
The more special you are, the more likely you will get hired and the more you can ask for. I mean, I know how special you are, but now we have to just prove it to everyone else. 🙂
HUB what? Hub cap? No, HUBZones. Historically Underutilized Business Zones. Basically, where you live is a BIG deal. If you live in one of these areas that the SBA certified as HUBZones, YOU are in LUCK! Because you, my friend, are geographically desirable to these special HUBZone companies.
The US federal government approved $13+ billion dollars for annual distribution to HUBZone companies, which means that these companies are guaranteed to be awarded contracts.
If you are qualified and you live in a HUBZone, YOU will get hired, for sure. 😉
History of the HUBZone Companies and Set Aside Contracts
Back in the day, to break up the monopolies of the big companies from winning all the big federal contracts, the US Government decided to ensure that a certain number of contracts would be awarded to disadvantaged companies. They would “set aside” these contracts for companies who were owned by Veterans, women, minorities, and socio-economically challenged people aka those who lived in HUBZones. They called these types of contracts “set asides”.
In all my years working in Government Contracting (GovCon), I rarely saw a HUBZone goal met for any agency. Not many contracts were ever awarded to HUBZone companies — maybe it was that there weren’t enough of them in existence? Or maybe it’s a difficult certification to not only get but also keep because it requires a lot of the employees to live in a HUBZone. But what does this mean for you?
HUBZone companies are DESPERATE to hire people who live in HUBZones.
What is a HUBZone company?
It’s a normal company just like any other company. It’s just that their customer is one of the agencies of the US Government. They are certified through the SBA as a HUBZone and they meet the following qualifications of a HUBZone.
What qualifies as a HUBZone?
Back in 1998, the US Small Business Administration (SBA) qualified a company as a HUBZone company if:
-Small Size per the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) size standards
-At least 51% owned and controlled by U.S. citizens, or a Community Development Corporation, an agricultural cooperative, or an Indian tribe (including Alaska Native Corporations)
-The firm’s principal office (the location where the greatest number of employees perform their work, excluding contract sites) are in the HUBZone
35% of the firm’s total workforce must live in the HUBZone
The SBA has an interactive map here, where you can enter your address. Every state has HubZones all over the place. Also, for the most part, these areas are HUBZones:
-All Tribal land (Native American Territory)
-Most of Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and Guam are included.
Here’s a screenshot I took just so you can get a feel for it, because it CHANGES all the time — so don’t rely on this, ok? But look at all those colors — so many HUBZones. 🙂
Now, this is trickier, because, in 2018, there were 7,018 HUBZone companies because they have to renew their certifications every 3 years. BUT the way I’d find them is through the backdoor method I showed you guys here before on my Government Contract Jobs tip here and on my TikTok here.
Go to my Jobs For You Page here and click on the HubZone jobs. It will direct you to search results on Indeed.
For example, when I searched for HUBZone jobs yesterday, this is what I got (see below).
NOTE: Normally, I redact company names. But this time I didn’t, because I felt like this is really important for you guys to connect with them. It’s so darn hard to find HUBZone jobs and I know how hard it is for them to keep their HUBZone certifications, so I figured why make it harder by redacting their names, ya know? 🙂
Pro Tip: Just Google them and go straight to their company site to apply for these jobs, if you live in a HUBZone.
If you are a Veteran, definitely apply to these Government Contractor companies — they love hiring you!
Either this job or your next one within the HUBZone company could get you a Government Clearance!
Or with this government contractor experience job, your next one could be the one that gets you that Government Clearance. There are so many different ways you can get a clearance.
It’s never an easy time when you are in between jobs. Looking for work is not easy. It’s not easy when you aren’t sure when your next paycheck will arrive. But don’t keep doing the same thing and expecting a result. That is the definition of crazy. This is not the time to keep doing the same thing. Experiment and try different things.
The only thing you should keep doing is never giving up.
Always keep at it. Like I’ve said before, looking for a job is a full-time job. Getting no callbacks is hard on your ego, but it’s happened to me plenty of times. Just read all my tips and read others online. As long as you keep at it, it will change. You will find work and you will succeed. I believe in you and I cannot wait to hear about it. 🙂
For more valuable tips, don’t forget to check out the rest of them here and the videos. Stay connected with me for more career advice and more job alerts — subscribe to my newsletter below, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. I want to see you succeed!!! 😎🤗💪🏆👍😉
