TOPS Corner
If
you have found the information on this page of value to you, and especially if
it has helped you find a job, please let me know (Jim.Shiffrin@gmail.com).
I need to determine how worthwhile it is to maintain this page.
This page will present timely information from the Maryland Council TOPS Representative, Jim Dittbrenner. TOPS is The Officer Placement Service, a MOAA-provided source of information for those of us entering the Second Career phase of our lives, or those already in the Second Career phase who are interesting in moving on.
You can reach Jim at jimditt@verizon.net.
Click here for the latest list of Career Fairs and Open Houses, as of 29 Jan 2012.
You can visit the MOAA TOPS Web Site for more job hunting tips and information from the National MOAA organization.
Good hunting!
On another matter, the question periodically arises about opening some of the listings. These come to me from a variety of resources. In the next listing I will provide the several URL sites that provide me with job listings. There are any number of other resources, individuals, employers sending their notices directly and of course the LinkedIn Groups have their listings that when forwarded do not include the link itself.
An option to open those listings that do not immediately open that sometimes works is to first place the document that they cannot open into a Save File. I have suggested to several who have indicated they have the problem to set up a Vacancy Announcement folder and “save” the attachment to that file. Then go in to open the file. In most cases, the individual’s system will offer several options for opening the file. I know that for me, using Microsoft Outlook (not Outlook Express), when I save the document in MS XP I can open the document. Not always. This is why I suggest to those who cannot open the document that they join the various “boards” and systems that offer vacancy announcement themselves. The biggest problem item I have found is with the LinkedIn. I can forward it and check to see that it is legible for me as a secondary recipient but others who receive it as a third tier recipient are unable to open the document.
Below are first, several of the links that send me vacancy announcements. Not sure which ones do not open for you.
Note the attached Best & Worst Jobs in the USA for 2011. The source is www.Careercast.com.
Mountain
View, Calif. — December 13, 2011 — LinkedIn (NYSE:LNKD), the world's
largest professional network with more than 135 million members worldwide,
today released the most overused words and phrases in members’ LinkedIn
Profiles for 2011. The number one most overused buzzword in LinkedIn Profiles
globally and for professionals based in the United States is
“creative.” Here is LinkedIn’s 2011 list of the top 10 terms
that are overused by professionals in the United States:
1. Creative
2. Organizational
3. Effective
4. Extensive experience
5. Track record
6. Motivated
7. Innovative
8. Problem solving
9. Communication skills
10. Dynamic
“Competition for opportunities can be fierce, so craft your LinkedIn
Profile and all resumes to stand out from the professional pack,” said Nicole
Williams, LinkedIn’s Connection Director.
Here are some recent Job Postings (links will
usually be removed from this page after two weeks):
·
Andrews AFB Job
Fair Flyer Mar 28 2012 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
NEW
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT NSP GS-0343-12 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
Jobs of the Week -
1-2-12 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
Jobs of the Week -
12-26-11 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
SAVE
THE DATE JANUARY 14 2012 L.E.E.N.C. JOB READINESS WORKSHOP (added 8 Jan
2012)
·
Seeking
Smart People with Big Ideas. Join SAIC. 1-3-12 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
ServiceSource Job Announcement 1-3-12 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
Top
10 Tech Skills for 2012 CIO Insight 12-27-11 (added 8 Jan 2012)
·
C2 Job opportunities
1-11-12 (added 15 Jan 2012)
·
fastest-growing-jobs-for-veterans
1-3-12 (added 15 Jan 2012)
·
Invitation
to February 9 Corporate Gray Job Fair in Virginia Beach (added 15 Jan 2012)
·
STOMP IS COMING (added 15 Jan 2012)
·
Veteran Career Fair and Expo
(added 15 Jan 2012)
Notes from 29 Jan 2012
Finally people are getting around to
telling me that job search is a full time job. But more importantly to
me, the smarter folks are acknowledging that the generic approach to job search
is for losers. Just this week I have read in various
professional and trade publications the points that the real pros have been
telling me all along.
1. Know what you want to do before starting the
search. – So I can speak to that with passion.
2. Identify the skills that work for me and how I have used
them.
3. Then research and identify how I can use my best and better
skills to the benefit of employers of my choice. (Here I must accept that
I cannot use the same skills the same way with each employer.)
4. Network my way into decision-makers circle of exposure.
5. Have my sound-bites down pat so they are heard as
conversation rather than a memorized “pitch.”
6. Make sure each resume is focused to the specific situation,
and the cover letter, when used, is also focused to the specific situation.
7. Gain exposure through both the social networks, LinkedIn,
and by volunteering with professional and service organizations where I can
gain exposure to other professionals.
8. Have quality, focused questions to ask when in conversation
with and in interviews with individuals inside the organizations I am
interested in affiliating with.
9. Follow up my interviews with a letter that addresses the
points made in the interview, with suggestions or ideas that are relevant.
10. While
in this process, look for ways to help others and also identify
what opportunities there may be to create my own business, or work
as either a consultant or independent contractor.
11. While
in the search mode consider working with a temp agency to gain greater
experience in desired areas as well as exposure to a wider range of decision-makers.
12. Practice
throughout the search process so good language, posture, grooming and
enthusiasm for life, the role sought, and dealing with others becomes natural.
There are a number of cautions
throughout the search process and as a professional, among them:
1.
Listen before speaking.
2.
Watch my language. There are
too many “you knows” and “like awesome” phrases
inserted into conversations for listeners. Great turnoffs!
3.
Take every advantage and don’t
be afraid to make the opportunity to help another, don’t wait to be
asked.
4.
In all written communications both
spell check carefully read all documents before sending the documents on their
way.
As you have noted there has been an increase in the number of Virtual Career Fairs just in the past six months. MilitarySpouse.com offered helpful counsel in the announcement of their first Virtual Career Fair for military spouses. The advice applies to all virtual career fairs. Basically this is the set of guidelines offered by militaryspouse.com as printed in the 1 May Washington Post Jobs section:
Treat the virtual career fair the
same as the “in-person” career fair.
Notes from 15 Jan 2012
It’s a given that we perform
significantly better when performing activities that we enjoy. Part of
that is the fact that we are good at what we enjoy doing, and quite often put
off to last that which we don’t enjoy doing as much or as well.
At the same time there are those who
tell us that we need enough of that which keeps us on our toes, so that we can
grow, and hopefully perform well at the same time. What all of this is
directed to is the recognition that more and more we are hearing and reading advise that says “do what you love, and the best will
follow.”
Jennifer Kalita,
a contributing writer for the Baltimore Sun, offers six steps to
transferring talent to a career one loves. Her six steps are: One:
Open one’s mind to new ways, means, vehicles and attitude; Two: Think
and use the term “transferable skills” in our conversations,
thinking, planning and implementation. Three: Identify those
unique skills that are transferrable. Four: Identify and accept
those genuine interests; and Five: Prepare properly. Study,
research, talk with those who you admire and who do what you believe your
passion to be. And Six: Use current job search tools,
techniques and attitude.
These are quality suggestions and
found just about everywhere. However, there are a few basics that need to
precede these six steps, if we want to truly be successful, as we personally
choose to define success. These earlier steps that make the difference
begin with setting goals. The critical goals to “success,”
i.e., achieving what is important to us as individuals while ensuring that we
are happy in the long run are five in number. We have talked to these in
the past but it is important to renew and see if we have indeed set these goals.
1.
What are my Life’s goals?
2.
What are my family’s goals?
3.
What are my financial goals?
4.
What are my career goals?
and then,
5.
What are my immediate career
goals? What role do I want?
Research
has shown that those who develop their goals and write them down have ten times
the success of those who do not have goals. Those who believe that they
have goals but do not write them down do have greater success, up to three
times that of those of us who do not have goals. The research looked
documented net worth over 10 and 20 years, and happiness that included
remaining married to the same partner over the measured periods. The
studies did look at individuals who graduated from a four year college, and
started there.
Here are several web sites that have been identified locally that can be of assistance to those stepping away from active duty.
Job
Central has been around for a while. It is managed/run by DirectEmployers Association. DirectEmployers
also recently launched two new dot-jobs websites that seem to be getting some
positive feedback: http://veterans.jobs/ and http://militaryfamily.jobs/.
Employers need to pay to be a member of DirectEmployers
- but get some really good bang for their buck.
on behalf of America’s Heroes at Work
<http://www.AmericasHeroesAtWork.gov>
U.S. Department of Labor
Veterans' Employment & Training Service and
Office of Disability Employment Policy
301.237.1660
Also
check this out. http://www.jobcentral.com/
It’s connected to all of the state job banks.
Check out the vet jobs link for employment services for returning veterans
(www.veterans.jobs)
The best way to locate posted openings on LinkedIn is for the job seeker to register his or her own listing, but then to join those groups that interest them, including localities. Currently one can join USA, regional, state and local LinkedIn groups and checkout the dialog as well as job listing. The LinkedIn attachments only provide the recipient with the link of the sender.
Additionally I would like to remind all of my earlier suggestion for those in the search mode. Connect with the various LinkedIn “Job and Career Networks” that are in the geographic areas of your interest. While most of the messages are not job listings more and more are, from recruiters, third parties and individuals who work at the company. I am seeing jobs listed in all communities around Washington, DC as well as in the city, and additionally, throughout Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and North Carolina. There is no limit to the number of selections one makes. It is more a matter of looking at the Subject Line to know, in most cases.
Do not ignore the LinkedIn route, more and more the job sourcers are using LinkedIn along with those companies that do not use a Job Sourcer.
Notes
from 2 Oct 2011
The challenges continue to grow in
my search for challenging opportunities that match my interests as well as my
abilities. If I haven’t reached out to all of the resources
available to me now is the time for me to do this. I need to review my
approaches so I can then review my strategies, based on those organizations I
find that I am interested in considering.
Preparation:
☺ Review my written goals
– Life, Family, Financial, Career and then role I am seeking.
☺ Identify
achievements/accomplishments focused to what I can do for each employer.
☺ Focused sound bites for each
role.
☺ Resources: Family, Friends,
Network connections versus contacts, web conntections.
☺ Organization affiliations I
am connected and volunteering with.
☺ Internet sources such as
Glassdoor.com and specific interest groups.
☺ Researched current trends
and technologies being used in my selected employers.
☺ Gained experience, training
and knowledge in those areas needed to make me competitive.
☺ Identified targets
(employers) with priorities and strategies for each.
☺ Incorporating
recommendations from those who have critiqued my resumes and bios.
Reaching Out:
☺ Reviews with mentors of my
selected employers, documents, and approaches.
☺ Practicing
and applying approaches, sound bites, and selling points with friends and
professionals, including mentors.
☺ LinkedIn Profile,
experience, affiliations, recommendations; Facebook,
and other social media I am comfortable with that I have been advised by
recruiters as helpful in my job search.
Implementation
☺ Working
to get Employee Referrals, as I know this is the most effective source of hire.
☺ Keeping
my network connected with what I am doing and how they can help me.
☺ Updating
my social media sites on a weekly basis.
☺ Following
up on my contacts and connections inside organizations of interest.
☺ Volunteering
where I will gain relevant experience and exposure.
☺ Applying
online and following up wherever possible with those applications.
☺ Attending Career Fairs and
Expos for exposure, information and contacts that I can turn to connections.
☺ Applying
to decision-makers, using a letter resume, and following up with those
contacts.
Follow Up:
☺ With
each contact, taking appropriate action in each situation.
☺ Continuing
to update my connections and expand my contacts making them connections.
☺ Continuing
to help others as I learn of information that will be helpful to them.
☺ With interviews, following
up with a letter that offers suggestions for improvement in an area discussed
or proposing an approach to something that has worked in other similar
situations.
☺ Continuing
to update, improve my skill sets, insuring that this information is on my
social media sites.
☺ Taking
some time to renew myself.
There are, of course other actions
and activities I can incorporate into my endeavors in seeking a new role.
I can always add and delete as I find what works for me.
Notes
from 21 Aug 2011
I would like to start this epistle with
a statement I was reminded of in reading Morgenson
and Rosner’s Reckless Endangerment.
George Bernard Shaw was asked shortly prior to his death to name a famous
deceased person, artist, statesman, philosopher, or writer, whom he missed the
most. Shaw’s reply was “The man I miss most is the man I
could have been.”
Welcome to the worlds of reality and
dreams. I offer this as a starting point for both those of us in the
search mode and those of us employed in what we enjoy and are good at or
otherwise. Today’s employment picture offers challenges and
frustrations for all. Economists and knowledgeable career counselors are
encouraging the enhancement of current skills that are needed in the workplace
and the development of new skill sets. Just a bit of the data that
supports this position include the facts that the average number of employers
for those in their late forties and early fifties is now 10+
for those working. Salary increases are half what they were
in 2007. Another is the projection that the self-employed percentage of
the workforce will rise to 40% by 2017, from the 34%
now. This is 2/3rds of the current unemployment picture.
Additionally, the number of new positions being created is less than that
necessary to move the economy forward at the minimally accepted economic growth
rate.
Today
is the first day of the rest of my life, as the saying goes. What do I
really want to make of it? Pride in what I do and what I stand for, what
I work to achieve for myself and for others? Then what am I doing to meet
those goals? I may need to start over, and if so, can I take the pride in
doing that rather than staying where I am due to my not finding opportunities
in what I have done?
The August issue of Washington
Technology lists the 2011 Fast 50 small businesses and their eyes on the
challenges ahead. Forty-seven are headquartered here in the metro
Washington DC area. The other three have offices here.
As an unemployed or under-employed
individual what am I doing in developing new skills, what am I doing in the
volunteer arena to include on my resume to show contributions to the economy
and that I am using my skills as well as honing them. I can use some of
my skills in another direction from what I have in the past. The Society
of Technical Communicators, STC, offered a listing of alternate or overlooked
opportunities that communicators should and could consider. The same can
apply to other career fields. An example is the Human Resources
function. Here any professional is first and foremost a problem
solver. That can lead to many opportunities outside the HR
function. The same for many fields, such as Social
Work, Finance and the legal field to name three.
otes from 31 Jul 2011
What new skill have you picked up
over the past six months?
We have been hearing and reading
about the growth of technology and what it is bringing to the world of
work. The question above needs to be answered by all who wish to continue
working or return to the working world. An example being the requirement
recently established by some firms and employment agencies for senior HR
professionals: they must be highly proficient with the social media and be able
to offer examples of specific achievements using the various social media,
particularly the top three, LinkedIn, Facebook and
Twitter.
Are you aware of the directions
technology is moving and are you keeping up with the one or ones that are
relevant to your career growth. The delta between the number
of positions in the US versus the number of people eligible to work continues
to widen. This makes finding and keeping a position all the more
challenging. With the stalemate in hiring, particularly outside the
security clearance arena, the entrepreneurial world is beckoning more and more
professionals. However, even here, planning and preparation are critical
to establishing, much less moving, forward in that
world.
Whether completing one career, such
as the military, and looking at beginning another or just starting out, or returning
to the marketplace, few of us do what we need to do in an effort to give
ourselves the best chance and opportunities at succeeding at our chosen next
step.
We learned a long time ago that the
individual who has established written goals and builds a strategy around those
goals is 10 times as successful as the individual who does not have personal
goals. The person who has the goals but does not put them to paper has
about a 300% better achievement rate. This all begins with establishing
my personal goals of Life Goals, then Family Goals, thirdly Financial Goals,
fourth Professional Goals and lastly, Position or Job Goals. Having these
allows me to have the best chance of achieving my goals, as I define them.
Having the Life, Family and
Financial goals allows me the greatest opportunity to move in the career
directions of my choosing. This way I am prepared to negotiate for what
is most important to my goals as I look at any opportunity, both in terms of
work and compensation.
So what are my next steps?
And, what are yours? Remember the Boy Scout Motto: Be Prepared.
Have a quality three weeks and make
sure you take time to help another and time to smell the flowers.
Notes
from 10 Jul 2011
With these very tight employment
times every option always needs to be explored and taken advantage of when and
where possible. Example being, once I know clearly what I am bringing to
the table I can create focused resumes for the identified targets. With
the identified target I prepare my resume for that specific reader and role;
obviously I am sending the resume to the decision maker in the functional area
of my interest. With that approach I start with a strong, exampled
Summary or Profile Statement. This is followed by the Professional Section
that again identifies specific, focused and relevant Accomplishment Statements
that show how my background and experience fits the needs of the
decision-maker. If the position calls for a security clearance and I have
one I place that immediately under my name and address at the top of the
resume, as this is the first item the reader will look for.
In my transmittal letter I will want
to advise the decision-maker, in the last paragraph, that I will be following
up with a telephone call on a specific time frame of a specific day that I
identify. I want this to be in the seven to ten day period after I send
it.
When I post my resume online with
any of the commercial web sites (as opposed to an employer’s web site), I
can use an Objective preceding the Summary or Profile, but it needs to be clear
while somewhat generic. An example could be “Program Manager
– Aeronautics” or something like that. Other examples can
be “Database Administrator – Healthcare”. If I
am an Engineer, a Programmer, Business Analyst or any other role or job title I
need to identify the field that my experience supports in listing the job
title. The resume need not identify “Objective” and then follow
with a generic title, rather center the title and bold it. The one thing
I need to remember with online postings with the commercial, versus corporate,
web sites is that I need to update the resume periodically. I can keep it
current by going in weekly and making a simple change of deleting an then
replacing a period. This will keep my resume current in the database for
those potential employers that will reach in to see what is new. The
resume should also be updated whenever skill sets are upgraded that are
relevant to the career field and industry that my job title infers.
According to the latest studies the
success rate using the commercial web sites is under five percent, so I need to
build that fact into my time application of my search. Spending hours
posting my resume on web sites other than employer, and expecting to find
results in a reasonable amount of time are not realistic. What is
becoming more clear each day is the need to network
into the contacts that make the decisions, using company Employee Referral
Programs, direct contacts, and my inner circles (Advocates and Allies) of my network.
Notes
from 18 Apr 2011
The 3 April newsletter transmitting the career fair and open house listing offered some helpful information from Garry Crispin’s and Mark Mehler’s annual report on “Source of Hire.” This elicited a number of comments relative to the need to perform quality networking, and what that effort contains and requires. The comments encouraged me to create a clear and focused Profile on LinkedIn and Facebook to start. This can be used as a springboard for my sound-bites when I network. Here are suggestions that were offered and that are totally viable and appropriate in today’s market:
● Join a group of my career choice and attend the group meetings.
● Volunteer to serve on a committee, - Program and Membership committees are great ways to make new contacts.
● Put up the message saying what I am looking for in a position, both on my LindedIn and my Facebook pages.
● Be specific as to what I am looking for. Example, if I am looking for a Program or Project Management role, in what industry and what type of project/program.
● Ask my close friends to post my search on their page – it works.
● Talk to my neighbors and folks at my church, the grocery store, the hairdresser, the barbershop, etc. Again, offering the specific not a generic comment.
● Join the area Career and Job Search links on LinkedIn and post the role I am seeking.
● Look for the announcements from other members of the page that offer positions in their company. (It doesn’t matter whether they get a placement fee or not, the need here is to get the interview and the offer.)
● Critical for me is to have my sound bites down clearly and comfortably so I can talk them rather than recite them. I also need to have several examples of past achievements to support each of my sound bites. And yes, I can have more than one objective and my sound bites need to be focused to my listener.
●
I also need to be sensitive to the needs and interests of the individual I am
talking with, looking to how I can be of help to him or her.
What is important for me, and all of us, is to understand that the suggestions above do work and have worked for more years than many of us have worked and since the inception of LinkedIn and then Facebook.
The March 2011 “Source of Hire” remains available at www.careerxroads.com.
Every wish for a joyful and renewed time beginning with the Easter holidays and lasting the year ahead.
Notes
from 3 Apr 2011
If you saw CareerXroads “Source of Hire” report you saw several most interesting numbers:
Here in the Metro Washington area, the major sources of hires continue to be Employee Referral as number one, with several local employers exceeding the 27.5% by a significant percentage.
Additionally, with the Metro area having one of the better unemployment rates two items from the CareerXroads report are at variance with experience here. One, career fairs and those who register and attend have a significantly higher rate of hire than the low percentage shown in the CareerXroads report. Two, the growth of the social networks, in particular LinkedIn, as resources for recruiters, job sourcers and employers has grown almost exponentially here in the Metro area.
Interestingly also, the Temp/Contract-to-hire rate was shown to be 2.4% of the external hires. One can download a copy of Gerry Crispin’s and Mark Mehler’s report from www.careerxroads.com. The report is dated March 2011
What this tells me is that I need to truly work my networking skills and hone them for my career, not just for the next role.
There are numerous aspects of job search; however, critical to success are: 1. Goals, preferably written. 2. Search strategies for each position sought and skill sets that meet the needs and interests of the preferred employer. And, 3. Effective networking so I can get in to talk with the decision-maker in each situation.
Notes
from 4 Feb 2011
As I look at the employment picture
and the fact that I continue to be in the search mode, I need to re-examine my
approach to and use of my networking techniques. The questions I need to
have answered include the following basics. I do recognize that these
actions are all part of my career management responsibilities:
I keep remembering comments made by
my friends as they looked for their next position. All made the same two
comments:
1. “I didn’t maintain my network when I stepped into my last
position.”
2. “I won’t
let that happen to me again, but I did.”
I know that “networking”
is a life skill and a career builder but am I treated
it that way or am I using the technique only during my job search
periods? And who said that “networking” and job search are
not full time activities.
Notes
from 16 Jan 2011
Virtual career fairs are making the
scene. This is just one more area of technology that I need to be
competent in as well as conversant in. The Virtual Career Fair has been
around just over two years now and seems to be making an increasing footprint
on the recruitment aspects of job search and career management for those firms
that have embraced the concept.
The latest developments I have
encountered allow me the opportunity to check out some 50+ employers.
Fortunately I had my list of the top 20 and had researched those before I
learned of the virtual career fair. That proved to be a most helpful and
beneficial move on my part. I can thank Kate Wendleton’s
book, Targeting the Job You Want, for that preparation. What I did
find is I still needed to work on my 30 second sound bites for each of the
companies at the virtual career fair. Then I could put those forward in
response to queries posed to me. I should have had those notes organized
and on one side of the screen. I realized that the key to being ready for
the virtual career fair is knowing what I want to do
for each of my chosen employers, and having my notes organized so I knew where
to look for my keyed responses.
Each provider operates a little
differently, offering slightly different services. However, all are
getting more sophisticated and thus are able to offer more and more in the way
of services to be used by both the employer and by the job applicant.
Today’s Baltimore Sun (16 January) has an informative ad in their
“Jobs” section (Page 5) that offers a good picture for the neophyte
virtual job seeker. A key point made by Ms. Grace Lee, Executive
Director, Maryland New Directions, Inc., is that both audio and visual
components may be part of the particular virtual job fair. Thus, the job
seeker needs to be sure his or her computer has working speakers or headphones
and updated versions of Java and Adobe Flash Player.
The virtual career fair does not
replace the actual career fair and while the virtual is easier to access, it
also makes the job seeker a bit less prepared, psychologically. In
talking with several who have participated in virtual career fairs the
following counsel is offered:
The article in the Baltimore Sun
referenced above was written by Nancy Menefee
Jackson.
Have a great two weeks, be sure to
reach out and help another and take time to have some fun.
Notes
from 5 Dec 2010
December is the month
that confounds many who are in the search mode. There are perceptions out
there that are terribly incorrect and misleading. Among the most
erroneous are the ideas that:
The actual facts are that
employers are hiring so there are jobs out there and December is a great month
to network, offering multiple opportunities to network, particularly on the
face to face basis. The Five O’Clock Club
organization (one of career coaches) has for years pointed out that December
offers multiple opportunities for the wise job seeker, as many in the search
mode don’t network over the big holidays. The Weddle organization
sent out their weekly message this week making the same points so there has to
be something to the reality
In truth we know that
some 39,000 new hires were made in November and that the metropolitan
Washington area is one of the top labor markets. More and more we read
that dissatisfied employees are expanding their efforts to find another
opportunity, opening up their positions. Others just leave out of
frustration.
And December is the month
of social events, more so than almost any other time of the year. So the
word to the wise, do a bit of preparation of your second sound bites. Remember
to include an accomplishment or two and focus the sound bite on the background
and interests of the listener.
Now go out and have some
fun while networking!
And a most merry and
joyful set of holidays and a Happy New Year to all. Every
wish for a truly successful 2011. See you on January 2nd.
Notes
from 31 Oct 2010
First,
an apology to Bob Corlett of Staffing Advisors, to
his family and the staff of Staffing Advisors. I inadvertently identified Bob’s
excellent organization as Career Advisors, not Staffing Advisors. This is
an example none of us want to have happen but particularly so throughout the
search process.
Attached is the current
listing of career fairs and open houses scheduled through the end of the
year. Beginning with the December 5th Career Fair & Open
House listing we will begin showing the identified career fairs and open houses
scheduled through February 2011.
Let’s talk about
career/job fairs for a moment.
The question is
perennial: Why should I go to a Career or Job Fair today when the recruiters
tell me to apply online?
There are any number of
reasons to go and reasons not to go.
The number one reason not
to go is attitude. Without a positive attitude about gaining something
positive at a career fair I should not waste anyone’s time, much less my
own. Additionally, if I am not prepared for the job fair I should not
waste time.
Beyond that the reasons
to attend are numerous from practicing my thirty second sound bites that I have
focused to the organization I am speaking with to obtaining specific
information from the recruiter that I can use in tightening my resume to send
to the employer that evening. If I can “tweak” my resume so
it is anywhere near more focused to the specific role I want with the company I
have benefited by going.
I can practice and
sometimes get some feedback from others at the career/job fair that I talk
with, asking for feedback on my sound bite that I in talking with them.
Example, are the examples that I include with my sound bite clear and
understandable to the person I am talking with?
I want to validate my
research and improve it as I research the companies I am interested in so I
know the key words each company uses in its job announcements, and other
information that I glean from other areas of the employer’s web site.
I can talk with other job
seekers at the event and perhaps find an employer to talk with that I had not
considered, based on my conversation with another. If I have been to a
career fair earlier I can check with the recruiters I spoke with at the earlier
event to see if any of the same recruiters are at the employer’s
booth. If so, begin developing a relationship with that individual.
Also, have I been able to
help someone else who was at the career/job fair?
Am I forgetting that job
search is a full time job? Am I treating the search as a professional bit
of work that I am proud of? See you in two weeks.
Notes
from 17 Oct 2010
Two interesting and useful bit of information have surfaced this week. First, the CEO Update, a publication for executives in the association world, noted that the publication had the largest listing of professional opportunities that it had published in the past nine years. Second, Montgomery Works, Montgomery County’s employment organization, announced that this immediately past September brought in the largest number of new positions, from the hourly to the executive, than it had received in recent years. Additionally, the Washington Post indicated that a survey of IT needs showed again a larger than expected requirement over the next six months.
This does mean that I need to get to work on the research aspects of my career. This way I can find those employers who have needs in areas of my best skills and experiences. This will allow me to begin the necessary comparisons to assure myself that I have all the skills being sought. Where I am “short” I can begin enhancing those “shortatges” through reading, tutoring, class work, and working with those who hold the necessary skills to step into optional positions.
Another area that I can check out for assessing where I am in my career development and search is ClearedJobs.Net. Check out http://cjnblog.squarespace.com for highly useful YouTube presentations on the critical areas of job search and career management. These are presented by Patra Frame, one of Washington’s leading and knowledgeable professionals in the area of career issues.
If you cannot locate or need the current listing of career fairs and open houses in the mid-Atlantic you can always find them at Bob Corlett’s Career Advisors, www.careeradvisors.com, and click on “Job Seeker Links” and then “Upcoming Job Fairs.” This will bring up a downloadable copy of the current listing. You will also find a wealth of excellent counsel and valuable resources as well as very current information of use particularly in the metro Washington, DC area.
You can also find the current distribution of the career fair at
the Washington Post’s web site by going to www.WashingtonPost.com/
Have a great couple of weeks and be sure to stop to help someone else.
Notes
from 12 Sep 2010
Today’s news talks about
employers hiring to the replacement level and some employers hiring to a modest
increase. At the same time the news speaks to more consolidations and
cutbacks by the government. So what am I to do as I continue my search
for a role that will allow me to do some of what I want to do while meeting an employer’s
requirements?
When talking with others about
building my own board of directors I received a number of comments that the
idea was good but they didn’t have time to develop a personal board of
directors. The interesting thing about that comment is that I made the
comment in 1984, and those friends still do not have their
own board of directors. Creating one’s own board is not an
overnight process but it does need to start. And it starts with
one. And in today’s market I want every option I can
generate. Having one or two, or a full board of five or seven, will
assure me of more information flowing my way on the things I need to keep in
touch with. My board member or members will be advocates for me,
information collectors and disseminators for me, serve as references and
certainly help open more doors than my normal contacts or my network
overall. This is not to say that I should let my network and my
associates’ relationship slide. Not at all! The value of the
“board” concept is there and needs to be developed along with all
of the other tools that I will use throughout my career and my life.
So my message is that while I have
my board and am working on keeping current with some of the technologies and
reading the business publications, what are you doing to begin the creation of
your board?
Make the time worthwhile and take a
moment to lend a hand to another.
Notes
from 22 Aug 2010
The employment picture is
beginning to offer some conflicting data. Executive Search is gradually
moving up and the IT and Financial career fields are
showing growth along with the health care. However, the IT and Financial
fields are also the most vulnerable due to the fast changing technologies in
those fields. For these two career fields it is critical for those professionals
to continue their own technology growth. While not seemingly directly
involved in career strategy it is obvious that the two activities are
integrated.
Developing a career
strategy is essential for ongoing as well as future success in any career field.
While there is a need for a strategy for each search there is also a need for
an overall strategy that allows for the greatest collection of useful
information that can be applied to more than one search. This requires me
to have long term goals and short term goals that support the move forward
towards the longer term goals. These long term goals really begin with
identifying my life goals, then my family goals (I define
‘family.’). Then come my financial
goals, and fourthly my Career Goals. I need the financial goals in order
to clearly set my objectives in the career area, particularly for negotiatons. From the career goals I can then look at
the variety of position opportunities and needs to set my strategies for the
positions of interest. Here again, the opportunities that I look at need
to be within my career field. Further, I need to recognize that the old
“tried and true” career ladders are no longer relevant as they once
were. This only increases my need to have a career strategy not just a
strategy for secure my next role. Along with developing my overall career
strategy I need to incorporate into that effort an ongoing learning process in
my career field and continue to expand my professional and personal network of
contacts.
Perhaps now it is more
obvious as to why I need to have my own Board of Directors rather than
References that would need to vary according to my search. My Board
members quickly become my primary advocates while References are reactive in
nature and need to be changed more frequently than Board members.
Notes
from 1 Aug 2010
The employment picture is
a challenge I need to face and not to get discouraged and want to walk away
from everything. I read that we lost 8 million jobs during 2008 and
2009. I also read that we have added 7.5% of those jobs back over the
past seven months. There are a number of actions that I can and need to
take to ensure that I move forward to find my role of choice. My attitude
is certainly a key action to retain at the positive level. Learning new
technologies is another. These are ongoing endeavors. Two that I
need to work on immediately are getting a board of directors for me and putting
together a career strategy that will get me the roles and exposure I want and
need to move my career forward over the rest of my working life.
Corporations have
them. “C” suite types and executives have been encouraged to
develop their own for the past 20 years. Executive coaches work with
their clients on developing personal boards of directors. The better
transition coaches have been encouraging their clients to develop their own
board members. So, why have I not done this? It takes time and
effort and I have my “references.” Okay, so I know having a
board is better but where do I start?
If I think of my board as
a combination of “inside” and “outside” consultants
with me as the CEO, what should I have? These are folks who know both
some of my skills and talents and how I have used them. They also know me
as a professional and as a person. They know many of my professional and
some of my personal aspirations. All of my “board members”
will know enough of who I am that they can and will speak on my behalf; and
counsel me both when I ask and when they see the need. These are the
professionals I admire and respect as well as like. When I think of
networking, these individuals will be the most inner circle. They will
also become my advocates on a career level and contribute to the ever expanding
pool of network contacts that we all need. These “board
members” will become my most effective “references,” that
will help me identify and plan career moves and choices. And, as time
moves forward, like corporate boards my existing members and I will
periodically separate as our interests and needs grow more diverse.
Now, where do I get my
board? The books suggest that two of my board members come from my
industry, two from outside and different industries. My fifth board
member would be, in a perfect world, a consultant to the industry that I want
to be a part of. Perhaps I am already in that industry, but in
today’s world that does not have to be the case. A way to start
could be with my current top five references. I can approach each and ask
if they would be willing to serve as a board member for a specific period of
time as a tryout. My one caution is to keep my board to an odd number so
I can always get a consensus.
What is also nice with
the board approach is that my board members do not have to be located
geographically together. Rather, as time goes by, they can and will be
spread out over the country. This will give me a stronger picture of what
is happening elsewhere that could affect what I am doing. More later. Next time I need to look at my career
strategy.
Notes
from 6 June 2010
On this the 66th anniversary of D Day it is appropriate to pause, and again give thanks, offer a prayer and honor our military for their strength, credibility and humanness in addition to their bravery. Not just for D Day but for all the “D Days” each time there is a conflict somewhere in our troubled world.
On the local level, a few items have surfaced that possibly impact on our job search. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced that it will be hiring some 300 individuals to support the new initiatives in healthcare. These positions are to be located in Bethesda, Maryland. Hiring is to begin later this year.
A rumor has been floating that
there will be a freeze in Government hiring next year (2011). Derrick Dortch, in his Jobs Chat column in Sunday’s
Washington Post (June 6, 2010, Page H1) points out that a number of federal
agencies that he has consulted indicate they are or will be hiring. These
include DoD, Department of
Justice, the Intelligence Community with its 22 agencies; the Veterans Affairs
and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The VA announced earlier that it
was intending to hire 5,000 in 2010. Congressional funding is the key to
all of this. Derrick’s column will be on the Washington Post Web
site. He will be on the Post’s online discussion on 11 AM
Wednesday, July 9th. The link is www.washingtonpost.com/
The federal government has also established a Veteran Employment Office in each agency. This office is to serve as the Advocate for the veteran interested in stepping into a federal position. References have been made to the website www.fedshirevets.gov; however, the site currently has information and links to information that are a bit dated. If one is trying to play “catch up” on general information it is a start.
Karol Taylor, a metro Washington DC career coach, cautions her LinkedIn network to read Government announcements closely and follow directions completely. Do diligent research on each agency that lists positions of interest including the agency’s web site, Google the position for new, relevant information; and be sure to read carefully the material you have keyboarded for accuracy, for relevance, and for completeness. This is after very carefully reading the vacancy announcement and identifying each and every requirement. She applies for positions to ensure that her counsel is current and accurate. When following directions completely she has had success in her applications. As she points out, the resume has only the purpose of getting one the interview. She also points out that the “effort” does not stop there. It is up to the individual to continue the research, practice handling different types of interview style and format, and to research the culture of the agency for fit.
While looking at the search process one can feel overwhelmed. Stay cool, take the process one step at a time, do it fully and accurately and move forward. And be sure to step away periodically to have a bit of fun.
Notes
from 16 May 2010:
Why should I go to a Career Fair or
an Open House? Let’s take Career Fairs first. There are a
number of reasons, and we need to remember why we go to Career Fairs.
Here are primary reasons:
Going to Open Houses is another
story. Whether I am required to register, send an advance resume or just
show up, I need to really research the company and what it does, who are its
sub contractors (if any) and who are the prime contractors (if any). I
also need to carefully review my background so I can comfortably discuss how I
can contribute to the potential employer. Using focused
Accomplishment/Achievement Statements to illustrate my points
shows that I come prepared and have researched the company. Here are
reasons to participate in Open Houses, whether held at the employer’s
facility or at an outside location such as a hotel:
If I am asked to complete an application I know that I want
to ask to take it home so I can be sure I cover all relevant information and so
I can take the time in completing the Application so it is neat and fully
legible. I can indicate this so it is clear why I am asking. If I
am required to complete it at the Open House I need to remind myself to go
slowly enough that I can neatly print my information.
Notes
from 28 Mar 2010:
Good evening,
Derrick Dortch,
President of the Diversa Group and weekly commentator
on the Washington Post’s weekly online column, advised an inquirer on
responding to a posted federal position. His clear and relevant advice is
to “make sure your package is powerful, persuasive and
targeted.” Additionally, Dortch points out one needs to
tell relevant success stories showing how one can truly benefit the specific
agency should they hire you.
This wise counsel can also be found
in Karol Taylor and Janet Ruck’s new
“Guide to America’s Federal Jobs” and also in all editions of
Kate Wendelton’s “Targeting the Job You
Want.” The better recruiters will also tell us that to be effective
with the resume it has to be focused to the specific role we want to go
after. So, for most of us that means that we will have
a number of resumes, no two exactly alike. Beyond that, part of
the responsibility I have as a job seeker is to research the role or roles I
know I can perform extremely well, their location and determine my level of
interest in each. I am reminded of an article in the Wall Street Journal
back when it published its Employment Weekly publication. The story dealt with
Astronomers and pointed out that in that particular year there were 20 new
Ph.D. graduates in Astronomy but only five positions available. If this
is my situation, whether because there are only so many positions or only so
many in the geographic area or areas I am willing to consider, then I need to
look at other types of opportunities and determine what additional training,
education and/or skills I will need to secure a role that will meet my
requirements. I also need to reassess my criteria if I have not done this
over the past few months.
Today, this is critical if I am to
be successful in securing another position. Once again it has been
announced by Government officials, following a year behind the more
knowledgeable economic prognosticators, that it will be at least 2014 before the
nation returns to the 4.5% to 5.0% unemployment rate that we have come to
understand as the most viable level of unemployment. Don’t mean to
be negative but rather a strong advocate for follow-on education and training
as well as possible volunteer experience to better prepare for the challenges
over the next few years. I need to recognize and accept that even with
the best connections I am not likely to find and retain a position of worth
without being fully prepared and able to perform any role I seek. Remember
also, a positive attitude goes a long way in getting and keeping me prepared.
I leave you with warm wishes for a
quality and warm Easter holiday. Stay well and stay safe that we may meet
again on the 11th of April.
Jim Ditt
Skillful behavior may be said to be
guided by master programs in individuals’ heads, programs that
automatically produce the behavior in everyday life. … Chris Argyris
Notes
from 14 Mar 2010:
Good afternoon,
In today’s tightening
job market I know that the two most prominent and pre-eminent hiring sources
are Employee Referral Programs and Networking. For me to connect with
Employee Referral employers I need to do my research. I must identify
those employers with Employee Referral Programs,
establish which ones offer the types of roles that I am most interested in and
where I can perform quite well. Then I need to identify the
decision-makers with those employers and begin reaching out to my
network. Where I do not have current connections with or into those
selected employers, I need to let my network know what it is that I am looking
for and what I bring to the employer’s table.
Along with the excellent
books on networking by Lynne Waymon and her sister
Anne Baber, Harvey MacKay, Kate Wendleton, and Howard
Armstrong, Maribeth Kuzmeski
offers solid counsel on networking in her book, “The Connectors: How the
World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win
Clients for Life.” Ms. Kuzmeski strongly
suggests:
Networking is not easy
for many, but practice does make for greater comfort in the activity. As
Lee Travino says, “the more I practice, the
luckier I get!”
Make it a good week for
yourself and someone else.
Jim Ditt
Always dream and shoot
higher than you know how to. Don’t bother to be better than your comtemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than
yourself. …William
Faulkner.
Notes
from 28 Feb 2010:
Good afternoon,
I keep hearing that I need to have my profile completed on LinkedIn and that a lot of job seekers are going to Facebook. I do know that recruiters search LinkedIn, particularly for the passive candidates. LinkedIn is seen as the professional website. The other sites are social networking sites whose initial and primary purposes are social rather than career in focus. I need to clearly consider the fact that my information would be open to the public. Using the social networks for career search needs to be carefully examined. What do I want from the social networks?
Last
Sunday the Washington Post, in its Jobs section, had an article on the
U. S. Labor Department and its spotlighting of job sites chosen in an online
contest, www.careeronestop.org/
In years past, when it was not so much a buyers market, I could apply for positions where I had most of the required qualifications as well as others and stand a chance of getting an interview. Not today. Today I need to identify those employers that interest me, and then find positions that those employers have where I hold all those qualifications. Then if I am really “with it”, I will network my way in while at the same time sending my resume in via the employer’s web site.
I need to remember that the successful employers have identified Employee Referral as their number one source of new hires. Therefore, that is where I need to spend much of my effort. I need to network with the focus of making connections with the decision-makers in those employers of my choice.
This is where my own Board of Directors comes into play. These individuals are going to be my best resource for making the connections I need. If I have not yet developed my own Board, then I can reach out to my References. And when I reach out to these individuals I truly need to be able to present who I am and what I bring to the tables of my choice. Until I can do this I know that this is what I need to work on. Until then make it a great two weeks, see who you can help and be sure to take time to have some fun.
Jim Ditt
It is not enough to aim, you must hit. … Italian proverb.