When I refer to references…

References are so often an after thought, but they shouldn’t be. They should be on your mind (at least once a month). Even if you are not currently looking for a job. Let me explain. I will start with the negatives (those things you should pay attention to not do!).

1. Don’t give me (the recruiter) or your employer conquest a reference that can hardly remember you.
2. Make certain that your reference can see you in the job that you are looking to get….(I had one lady tell me that all she could say about my sales candidate was that she was very good in her laboratory – very meticulous). Great. That same lady could have said that the candidate showed a lot of leadership, was very persuasive and thrived in interactive meetings. What a difference that would make.
3. Prepare your references. So and so may call. This is the type of job that I am pursuing. This is very important to me. Please call me once you have talked with the “reference checker” (this will make the reference more responsive to the “reference call” and will give you a heads up about how the process is moving. Remind them of what amazing things (specifically) you did for the reference when you worked there. Help their memory along….
4. Don’t give me your college roommate. I want a work reference. A relevant reference. A great reference.

Read the Five Tips From A Professional Reference Checker, By Paul W. Barada.
Collect references in your career. Stay in touch. You can’t expect to get the incredible reference that you are looking for if the reference has not heard from you in 5 years. This all goes to the networking needs of the professional. Before you exit a company, ask your current boss for their personal email and phone number. Stress that you want to stay in touch and could you use them for a reference in the future. Then stay in touch. Every 4-5 months, drop them an email or call. Ask them if there is anything that you can do for them…..Help others, they will definitely help you! Link up with them on LinkedIn.Com. Collect these references. When someone that can speak to your skill sets announces that they are leaving for greener pastures…what am I going to say? Yes. Ask them if you can have their personal email and phone number. Explain that you really enjoyed working with them and you want to keep in touch. Then do so…If a manager (not your direct manager) is leaving…perhaps they will feel comfortable attesting to your work ethic, drive, success at whatever task you took on.
I had a great candidate that my client company was not excited about…The candidate perceived that there was a roadblock and had one of his references call me to proactively tell me about this candidate. That is impressive. And that is what gets you the job.
By: Peggy McKee, PHC Consulting
Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching entry-level jobs and other career opportunities.

The “Dead Zone” – Why Some Resumes Go Unnoticed

The “CIO” had an interesting article by Phil Rosenberg in which he elaborates on what he calls “the dead zone.” The dead zone is basically what happens to resumes which are sent in, but never read. With the advance of technology, many multinationals now use computer programs to screen applications to retain only the ones which match specific criteria.
Many job seekers don’t know this or are just too lazy to tailor their resumes. They might not know this, but this contravenes to one of the key rules of resume writing, which is to research the employer (including the employer’s recruiting practices) and write your resume accordingly. This means that if a company only accepts applications online, it may be wise to assume that a computer program will be used to screen your application. What Phil Rosenberg suggests is that you include specific keywords in your resume and customize your resume for the specific position. That way, your resume will not end up lost in the digital world.
The Dead Zone – Why 97% of Resumes Are Never Read, CIO.com
Article courtesy of WorkBloom, an employment blog incorporating a comprehensive career resources section, including the largest database of professionally written resume and cover letter samples on the Web.

What’s Your Score?

No, I’m not talking about your favorite team, or even a sport at all.
A company called Scorelogix has come up with a statistically valid way to predict the probability of an individual losing his or her job.
“Job Security Score‚Ñ¢ is an innovative, proprietary score from Scorelogix which predicts the probability of an individual losing job and income based on his/her personal profile and economic factors impacting his/her job. Find out what is your Job Security Score‚Ñ¢ and where you stand!”
If you’d like to know where you stand, within a reasonable margin of error, you can get your Job Security Score‚Ñ¢ here.

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LinkedIn Recommendation Requests

Heather over at One Louder posted yesterday about Facebook and the silliness that takes place – a beer here a beer there, friend invites from people who have nothing in their profile, dating stalkers, who’s hot who’s not, etc. I posted about this a few months ago too.
She has inspired me to post about LinkedIn recommendation requests. What is the protocol here?
I asked my former boss to write a recommendation for me – he was also on my reference list when I applied for and was offered this position. That seems like a reasonable request, don’t you think? I will one day ask my current boss for a recommendation – I’m still new with the company – maybe at 6 months I’ll ask. There are several co-workers that I have started to draft a recommendation for not because they have asked but because I have been impressed with them. I think this is a reasonable approach to the LinkedIn recommendations – don’t you?
So here is my question. Is LinkedIn just for professional references or can it also be for personal references?
For example, last month I received a recommendation request from a friend. I’ve never worked with this person and although I consider her a friend, we don’t reach out to each other and really only see each other on occasion. So what do I say in my recommendation?
“Sally” is a lovely person, who is always well dressed, well spoken, organized, and eager to volunteer. Her children are very well behaved and very polite which is a direct reflection of their mother. The articles she has written for our local community magazine are always very entertaining and informative. Although I have never worked with Sally, I would welcome the opportunity.
It just doesn’t seem right, does it? Or does it? Again, I have to ask the question is LinkedIn just for professional references or can it also be for personal references?
And for those who ask people they really do not know, have never even met, and probably will never meet for a recommendation… I would love to ask them if they are joking! Now, I know THAT is just not right.
Courtesy of Sodexo Careers Blog Making every day a better day.

Employment “Assistantace”

I saw a post on a job search group in Yahoo! Groups and sent an email to the job seeker with several suggestions. I’m not including the original post here but am including the text of the email I sent her, in the hopes that someone else can also benefit from this. In case you’re wondering, the title of this blog entry is “inspired” by the subject of this person’s email. The person is an MBA candidate seeking an “an Entry to Mid-Career position in Project Managment/Business Analyst.”(sic) While this is Atlanta-specific, the advice can be tailored to any metro area.
1) Use spell-check and grammar check. You have a lot of errors in that short post, making you substantially less attractive to a prospective employer. Even the title of your post has a misspelled word.
2) Be more specific. Are you looking for an entry level or a mid-career position? Companies want people who know what they want and that can clearly explain how they can contribute to a company. Companies don’t want just any employee, and they aren’t looking for employees who want just any job. Have you come up with a list of companies you want to work for, and why you want to work for them? The Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Book of Lists can be a good place to start.
3) Get my free report on the Top 7 Resume Mistakes at http://www.thegetajobbook.com. My book can also help you, as can the Job Search Strategist blog at http://jobs.jimstroud.com.
4) Attend Project Management Institute meetings. PMI-Atlanta is one of the largest PMI chapters in the world and is a great organization from both a networking and a learning standpoint. Their URL is http://pmiatlanta.org/ and they also have Project Management job postings on their site.
I hope this is helpful and I wish you the best of luck in your job search.
To your success.
Article by, David B. Wright and courtesy of Jim Stroud, “The Job Search Strategist” providing strategies, tips and tutorials on how to find work and advance your career.

How to Take Control of the Interview

Ever get all excited for an interview, only to be frustrated that it didn’t go as well as planned? Maybe your experience wasn’t portrayed in its best light, or your many accomplishments weren’t valued.
How can you avoid this outcome, and take control of the interview?
It’s really not that hard….partially it’s how you approach the interview, and partially how you employ some interview tactics.
Change your approach:
So how do you change your approach to gain control of an interview? Stop being defensive – most job candidates take a defensive interview stance and answer questions that the interviewer asks. The stronger candidates go on the offensive…they interview the company.
So take a strong offense in your interview approach. As a candidate, interview the company to see how the fit is for you. Get a feeling to see will your skills will be valued? Do you see a mentorship relationship with anyone you’ve interviewed with? Does the company “feel” right? Can you succeed here? Does the company’s management style and culture fit your personality comfortably? Is there growth potential for the company, and for your career?

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IT Resume Services – Your Ticket To High-Tech Success

If you are an IT professional and are looking for a job, then you have lots of competition. That means you can’t leave your job search to chance. You need a professional resume – one written by an IT resume services company.
When you work with IT resume services, you’ll get a well-written resume targeted specifically to high-tech employers.
More to the point, your resume will get RESULTS.

Let IT Resume Services Do the Work

Should you prepare your own resume – or would it be better to let a specialist do it for you? There are many IT resume services to choose from – and no matter which one you pick, it would be well worth your time and money to invest in their services.
By using a company whose only job is preparing IT resumes, you’ll have the confidence that your resume will do what it is supposed to do – get you the interview.
What you will need to do is approach an IT resume services with your requirements and a complete profile of your qualifications, skills, and experience. Then leave the rest to them.
Because they have the knowledge, expertise and contacts in the IT industry, they’ll be able to locate the job you want, but may not be able to find on your own.
IT Resume Specialists
Remember, your resume will likely be one among thousands lying on the recruiter’s desk. Will it catch his or her attention? Does it focus on the company’s needs? Do you fit the bill? By hiring an IT resume service, you’ll leave the preparation of your resume to the experts – and avoid worrying if your resume is up to par.
IT resume services handle everything from the cover letter to the resume itself. Once you submit your profile details, they will craft a resume that will appeal to technical employers – and you’ll get interview calls purely on the strength of your resume.
When you leave your IT resume to the experts, you’ll get a final document of excellent quality and one that sells your technical skills and abilities. The language, precision, and presentation will leave no doubt in employers’ minds that you are the candidate they are looking for.
If you are an IT professional looking for a new position, you can save valuable time by contacting an IT resume service. You could have a new job sooner than you think!

Easy to do cover letter tips

Reprinted courtesy of TheCareerNews.com
SEATTLE, WA — “Most people would prefer not to write a cover letter,” says Nancy Buysse, a Twin Cities career consultant and facilitator. “They’re not sure what to put in it.” A handout prepared by HIRED, an employment and job-seeking organization that Buysse works with, suggests a three-paragraph approach:

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Academic High Achievers Recruited Like Star Athletes

Small liberal arts university Wilkes University is investing over $200,000 to recruit academic high achievers like many schools recruit star athletes. In addition to sending the typical acceptance letters, Wilkes has created mall kiosks with the names of the targeted students on them, put ads on pizza boxes delivered to households in the areas in which the students reside, created pages on MySpace, and even run light hearted commercials on MTV and VH1 that identify the students by name.
“It’s like I’m famous,” said one of the targeted teens at Neshaminy Mall, where he works at the Hollister Co. clothes store which is around the corner from a kiosk with his name in foot-high letters. “The girls like it.”
Source: YPulse

Naked Teacher Photos – Who Cares if We’re #1?

I was trolling through our web site traffic reports yesterday when I noticed sometime weird. Actually, very weird. We get a lot of traffic from Google and other search engines for short tail keyword phrases such as entry level jobs and internships so seeing traffic from candidates searching for long tail phrases such as entry level jobs for engineers or accounting internships isn’t much of a surprise.
But what was a surprise was to see that over the past year we’ve had thousands of clicks for the keyword phrase naked teacher photos. If we were running a porn site that would be great news. But a college job board? Not so much. Traffic from people who are obviously not thinking about their careers isn’t terribly helpful. I suspect that the visitors didn’t do us or our clients any harm, but it was an interesting reminder that the value of one visitor is often quite different than the value of another visitor. A lot of traffic can be great, but only if that traffic is qualified by being interesting in the product or service that you’re offering.

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