Barely a week goes by without a new award for the ‘best’, ‘most socially responsible’ or ‘diverse’ (etc) employer to work for. Yet it seems the same 10 employers win all the awards.  No disrespect to PwC or HSBC for being recognised for their latest innovative campaign, but truth-be-told I tend to stop reading once I see a big brand. I feel like I’ve heard it all before.

As a job-seeker what I’d really like to hear about are the innovative businesses that operate without multi-million pound advertising / PR / recruitment budgets. The best part of job seeking should be looking for companies that relate to your interests. The problem with job boards and the internet is the biggest companies have the loudest and often most visual voices.

So here’s my contribution. The theme is using topical news to find alternative employment opportunities that match your interests. Examples:

London 2012 Olympics http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/work-for-2012/index.php

No shortcuts will be taken in delivering a world-class event, meaning the Olympic delivery authorities will be continually hiring over the coming months. What can you bring to the table?

Alvarez & Marsal http://outsideus-careers-alvarezandmarsal.icims.com/jobs/intro

A&M help companies in financial difficulty. Given the current economic climate it’s unsurprising they are a real success story. If you have first class financial skills then look no further.

Insight Public Affairs http://www.insightpa.com/careers.html

2010 is an election year, so if PR, Lobbying or Communications is your game then what perfect time to join a very topical organisation. They’re always interested in hearing from applicants and run a 3-month paid internship for young candidates.

Merlin Entertainments http://www.merlingroup-jobs.com/working-for-us

The recession has favoured Merlin, who operate and develop visitor attractions and theme parks. More Brits are holidaying in the UK and the weak pound means more overseas tourists. Thus Merlin’s announcement last week of record visitor numbers to the London Eye. A healthy business in time of recession is not a bad thing – plus they have a graduate scheme, commercial, finance, administration and marketing roles on the go.

Lovefilm http://www.lovefilm.com/corporate/jobs.html

Consumers are cocooning themselves on the sofa rather than splashing out on evenings out – this is good news for LoveFilm. Since the credit crunch hit, membership of their site has increased by 40%. Opportunities exist for product management, web/technology developers and internships.

Try relating your interests to the themes of today – it might just lead you down a more fulfilling path than just responding to the biggest companies or the flashiest adverts.

To compare over 1,000 exciting employers, log into the abintegro employer directory for a fresh, impartial perspective without all those flashing ads