The Dog Days of Summer...

We have to always be on our toes, looking for the next opportunity, keeping your resume updated.  It doesn't do to just "keep my eyes open;" you MUST proactively look for jobs in your field.  Not only does this keep you learning what jobs are open, but it will also help you keep abreast of changes in your field.  Can't find jobs for you by the title you're used to searching?  Could be that it's been  renamed/rebranded.

I describe myself as a corporate trainer, as most people have some idea of what that kind of person does.   Of course, I can also go by the following monikers:  Trainer, Facilitator, Talent Manager, Organizational Development professional, L&D (learning and development), Performance Consultant, and so on.   When I started in the "training world," you were a "trainer," which usually meant you taught classes.   It's true that I teach classes occasionally (and still enjoy it), but the field has changed so much in the last 20 years, and I have adapted along with it, not only picking up new titles, but the skills needed to compete in the marketplace should my current company decide to reorg, rightsize, downsize, or I think the newest term I've heard is "align talent."  All the same thing--someone is likely to have to move on.  Of course, we all hope it's the other guy.

I recently worked with a woman who'd been in her job for almost 12 years, and she was looking to update her resume, as she was concerned about a coming layoff.  I asked her about her resume, and she asked for my help.  When I looked at it, it was very appropriate for a new college grad, which she was 12 years ago.    Knowing her as I do, I asked, "so, basically, you are looking to catch up all these years, right?"   Her field, "engineering," has taken almost as many twists and turns as mine in learning and development.   To keep yourself employable, I can't stress enough that you have to keep your skills current (find out what the industry trends are), keep networking, and plan for having to search for a job sooner than you think.  These are important skills regardless of what your next job title will be.

I think a lot of folks who've been in a job for a long time struggle with job hunting, as the world has changed dramatically during their long tenure at a job.  I see this all of the time in places where people live under the illusion that things will never change....and they always do.

The Riley guide can help get you moving in keeping sharp on what is changing in the working world... 

Haven't Job Searched in a While? (or Ever?)

• Need pointers? Start with How to Job Search for guidance on everything from resumes to interviews to employer research and to finding job leads online. The first article, How to Use The Internet in Your Job Search helps you get going quickly.
• Unsure what kind of job or career you want? Explore Career Options points to all kinds of career tools, including our own Career Research Center with detailed employment and education summaries for each line of work.
• Need to talk to someone? Check our list of Networking and Support Groups resources to help you locate Counselors, Coaches, and Mentors.
• Just want to find lists of recruiters or job sites? Head to our list of Sites with Job Listings for pointers to job banks, executive seach firms, recruiters and staffing firms for all 50 states. 

http://www.rileyguide.com 

7 Ways to Land Great Consulting Work While In Between Jobs

Most of us have been there.....

 http://www.personalbrandingblog.com/7-ways-to-land-great-consulting-work-while-in-between-jobs/ 

Neglect Networking at Your Peril!

Never forget that you are always "selling yourself" by broadening your network.  Even if you are not in the job market today, odds are that you will be sooner than later.  Maintain your networks!   If you are currently in job search mode, carefully select a few of the excellent networking groups in your area to sharpen your presentation skills as well as learn of new and different ways to enhance your job search.

In the DFW area, a large list of networking groups can be found at http://careerdfw.org/J/groups/40-networking-groups/52-networking-meetings-all.html.

100 Interview Questions to Ask Employers

Every interview is a two-way street!  Great list of questions to consider for your next interview: http://www.basilv.com/psd/blog/2009/100-interview-questions-to-ask-employers

Great article by a business acquaintance of mine, Fiona Hunter.  Fiona captures a lot of what job hunting should be today, but few execute their search like this!

Plan B – Are You Ready For Your Next Job Search?

How long is it since you last started a job search? Have you considered whether your job search skills are still current?  I meet people who have not looked for a job in many years and others who last searched in the depth of the recession.  The unexpected happened, and they are unprepared for today’s challenges.  It would be wonderful if Plan A works for you, and you never need to look for another job, but do you have a Plan B?  Are you prepared?

Not only does the current economic climate influence what skills and knowledge you need to succeed, but also the job search tools you may have learned earlier in your career have been redesigned with the impact of social media and technology.  Are you approaching your job search by looking through the lens of the "hiring manager", their needs and their preferred methods of communication?

Your toolkit used to include a resume, business card, cover letter, letters of reference, marketing/networking profile - all hard copy, beautifully laid out and printed on quality paper, or, if emailed, then it would be ready for printing - in black and white.  How the world has changed.

A resume is no longer "a piece of paper."  Do you still design it as though it is?  The information it contains is accessed electronically either as data in an ATS or as a word document in an email.  It is rarely printed by the recipient for the first initial scan, as it will be viewed on a screen - and in color.  Not only are we saving trees, we are saving time by cutting out this step.  A few years ago, the screen may have been almost square - a 17" or 19” monitor.  Today information is retrieved on elongated screens that perhaps show only the top third of the page, or it may be viewed on an iPad,  tablet or mobile device  - considerably smaller.  So how will this change impact the way you present information and market yourself?  Consider replacing the long summary paragraph with an eye catching, easy to read, short value add statement.  This may be the only thing the person sees when they open your file.  Look at it in the same way as the reader would - what do you see?  Why would you read more? What other changes will you make?

Is the business card obsolete?  Not quite yet, but every now and then someone wants to scan my QR code.  It is instantaneous electronic transfer of contact info (similar to reading a barcode) - no business card necessary.  How many HR leaders have the time to transfer the information manually from a business card into their contacts manager?  Consider leading the pack with this – show you embrace technology and change,….  and keep a handful of business cards handy for those of us still catching up.  

How quickly the information on a business card can become out-of-date – the phone number and email are associated with the company.  How will you contact the HR leader who moved companies?  How will someone contact you?  LinkedIn is a valuable tool for reconnecting with people you know or have met.  Is your LinkedIn profile up-to-date?

Cover letters….  Yes, we all know recruiters rarely read them.  However, the recruiter is the gate keeper, and you should instead focus on what the hiring manager will want to see, especially if you are contacting them directly.  The cover letter is often now replaced by an email.  The content is essentially the same – a compelling reason to open the attached resume – but it is shorter, concise, high impact.  A hiring manager is unlikely to look at a cover letter if it is in a separate attachment – in a separate file to your resume.   However nicely you format it in your system before you press the send key, it will look different on the iPhone or smart phone it may be read on.  How much of the message will be visible?  That 7 second scan may have just gone down to 2 seconds.  What is the chance that the reader will open the email again later?  If so, is the header compelling and relevant making it easy to find again? How much information did you include in the letter?  Less is more.

Letters of reference have been replaced by recommendations on your LinkedIn profile.  Do you have any?  It is one of the things a recruiter will check in your profile.

The one page networking profile – the summary or mini synopsis of your skills, target roles, target companies, etc. – is now replaced by the LinkedIn profile.  You should still complete your personal marketing plan, but the opportunities to pass a person this as a sheet of paper are limited.  Information is now stored electronically and paper copies are likely to be recycled.   Rather than a push strategy, LinkedIn is more effective as a pull strategy.  Marketing is less about sending info to a person, and more about making interesting information about you visible, accessible and easy to find.

The use of technology is also impacting interviewing.  Not only prepare for the interview, but be prepared for a video live or recorded interview.  Skype and other web based video tools are becoming more common for recruiter screening calls and for interviews where the candidate and interviewer are in different cities.  Standing while you take the call or referring to notes may no longer be the best advice.  

As new vocabulary is added to the toolbox and tools evolve, we will continue to see the job search landscape change and we should change with it.  We live in a world of sound bites.  The challenge of making your message compelling in 140 characters or less reflects the time you have to grab someone’s attention.  “Do you want to hire the best?  Contact me."

What is your job search marketing strategy? What is in your toolbox?  Embrace change and position for success.

Fiona Hunter    

http://fionah.posterous.com/plan-b-are-you-ready-for-your-next-job-search

Abandon all hope, ye who enter....

Ok, so, it's been a while.  For November-December, I was waiting for the axe to fall that would put me out of my job.  3 days before Christmas, I got an offer to stay at my company, which I accepted.   After the holidays, I returned to chaos and the twilight zone.  Titles had been changed, staff had be reduced by 40%, and the future was an evaporating grey mist--but I was thrilled to have a job, as the unemployment figures are high (higher than reported, I fear). 

I plodded forward in my new job, having performed the function needed in the new job for the last 10 years, and outside of the company I am now in, so I felt ready to roll and up for the challenge.  It was hard, even having experience doing the job I got, but I was a great deal better off for past experiences.  I had vision, the same vision my boss had, and I had energy and a desire to win.

After 6 months, I think I saw a new sign above the office door from the door of hell in Dante's Inferno, "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."  There were 40% less people to work the same amount of work, and most of my colleagues struggled (and still struggle) with new responsibilities on top of the old, and at this point of the game, we are being tasked with yet more projects.   The projects are the kind I would expect in the job I am in, but I have multiple projects piled on top of one another.  I am now feeling what my co-workers felt 6 months ago, and with a vengeance. 

People who previously got along are now irritable with each other, as no one has any bandwidth to help someone else, and we are all getting very defensive of the time we have to work on the two jobs we already have.  Couple this stress with a lack of leadership from far above us, and you're almost in the perfect storm, as none of us see an end to the madness….and almost everyone is talking about who is hiring.

My energy, vision, and determination to win have been worn down after 6 months.  My co-workers and I are unanimous in our belief that our boss isn't in touch with what we do or the volume of work that we attempt--he's too worried about pleasing his own boss.  All the other departments of the company are under the same kind of stress and the ever-tightening rules designed to save money.  It's not pretty to see a company that could be great experience melt down. 

As I write this, it is 5 hours after I left the office, and I am still seething from the day's events.  This can't be healthy, and it certainly isn't how I or my family wants to see me live.