Become the Solution To The Job Interviewer’s Problem

Carole Martin, The Interview Coach

The absolute worst way to go to an interview is with the attitude of: “Please, please – hire me.”

When you go to an interview with that attitude you appear desperate. And even though you actually may be desperate in a difficult job market, you don’t want to appear that way.

The demeanor and attitude that you bring to the interview will set the tone for the entire interview.

Let’s look at it from the employer’s/interviewer’s point of view. Continue Reading

Recruiter’s Advice: 5 Things Employers Look for in Entry-Level Job Candidates

Dunya Carter

A fresh graduate is always intimidated when going in for his or her first real job interview, and many feel that no matter what they apply for they are woefully unprepared and unqualified – especially in this economy, when even jobs advertised as entry level are apparently seeking years of experience. But regardless of how many flourishes are requested in the help wanted ad, many employers are really looking for a few basic things for entry level positions, and all of them are more than attainable for the new worker. Continue Reading

Volunteering Your Way to Steady Employment: How to Gain Experience Without Having a Job

Young man carrying a box with food donations. Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

One of the main attributes employers look for when reviewing potential candidates for a job is experience in the field. Unfortunately, there’s a catch-22 with this because job-seekers can’t exactly gain experience for the job when employers only hire those with experience. Although this fact might make the situation seem hopeless, one viable solution for gaining experience is by taking advantage of volunteering opportunities relevant to your industry. If you’ve been struggling to gain experience and/or find a job in your field, consider the following advice for finding the right volunteer work for you. Continue Reading

THE Most Important Question a Candidate Needs to Ask

Over the years we have accumulated a vast amount of data to help our candidates get the position they want.   And time after time the one piece of feedback we get from hiring managers most often is “Great candidate, they would be a great fit but we are not sure if they want to work here?”

How can this be?  We quickly follow up with the candidate to see what their interest is and most often the response is over whelming, “I want that position.”  After a moment or two we will ask, “Did you ask for the job?“  And the standard reply is “No, but I went to the interview, obviously I want the job.” Continue Reading

Closing Candidates: A How-To in a Hot Job Market

Joanna Edwards, Executive Recruiter, High Tech Sales & Marketing Division Manager at RedFish Technology

An undisputable fact: the job market is heating up. Candidates seeking employment no longer go months without returned phone calls, but rather, quite the opposite.  This morning when speaking with a candidate who declared he was ‘actively looking’ for a new role,  I was informed that since beginning his career search on Thursday of last week  he had received 152 emails regarding job opportunities.  An entirely separate call indicated the same trend. This candidate, who was directly recruited out of her organization, had to choose from one of four offers – all with a 10% increase in base salary and a significant equity component.  These are all very solid signs that the job market is better than last year. But with a positive shift in the economy comes a new set of challenges that hiring managers must be prepared to combat.   After 17 phone interviews, six on-site meetings, three reference checks and everyone on your team agreeing that this (and only this) person is the ideal fit, you cannot afford to lose him. So in a candidate’s market, what is the best approach when at the offer stage? Below are some suggestions to help you and the team make a successful hire. Continue Reading

Why Recruiters May Not Be Honest With Candidates

You have probably heard the expression: you don’t get a second chance to make a good first impression. Job candidates should consider this thought if they plan to work with recruiters. This means having what I believe is the total package of skills and personality. After all, recruiters want to present the best candidates to fill employers’ positions.

However, if recruiters don’t feel you are the best candidate, they may not tell you why. Here are a few reasons why: Continue Reading

Interview by MSNBC’s The Dylan Ratigan Show About the College Job Market

I had the pleasure of being interviewed earlier this afternoon by MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan about the terrible job market for college students and recent graduates. The topic was essentially that today’s college students searching for internships and recent graduates hunting for entry-level jobs are on the front line of the job wars. They’re facing the worst job market in 35 years. If you’re looking for work, what do you do?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

If the above video won’t load, try http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/college-grads-on-the-front-line-of-the-job-wars/6h3dmzq .

Learn Proper Interview Techniques and Get the Job of Your Dreams

A lot of people were recently forced back into the job market, placing career veterans in direct competition with recent college graduates for entry level jobs. Despite the recession, a lot of companies are still hiring, but employers are more selective because mistakes in the current economy are twice as costly as they were before the recession hit. That means a lot of great people are going to have to work really hard to get themselves noticed.
If you already know your resume is impressive and up-to-date, then it’s time to start honing your interviewing skills.
Carole Martin, “The Interview Coach,” is hosting a “ Live Speed Interview Event” on January 14 and 15 at 8:00 p.m. EST, via teleconference, to help people learn how to shine once they land an interview with an employer. Martin’s live teleconferences are actually two 60-minute “tele-classes” that can be attended by anyone interested in acing an interview and getting a “dream job.”
Four brave candidates will be interviewed during each session and receive immediate feedback. I say brave because the other candidates will be listening and – I hope – taking notes and learning from Martin’s expert advice.
Candidates who register for Martin’s Live Speed Interview Event will receive all the relevant details by email.

Don’t Lose the Best Candidates Before They’ve Even Started

In a previous post, I wrote about how important it is to engage new hires the moment they walk in to start their new jobs. Lee Salz of SalesArchitecture.com wrote an article for ERE – “The New Employee’s First Day” – that illustrates that point beautifully.
Salz created a composite character, Steve Harmon, and sent him to work for a company -probably also a composite – called Newman Industries. Newman Industries did everything right when they recruited Steve, a much sought after candidate. Sadly, Newman Industries made the mistake that many employers, according to Salz, make when recruiting top candidates – they didn’t follow through.
Like a lot of employers, Newman Industries put all of their time, money and effort into wooing Steve away from the job he already had and completely forgot about making preparations for his first day at work. As a result, Steve introduced himself to a receptionist who had never heard of him, got assigned to a cubicle that still contained the belongings of the previous occupant – which he was asked to throw away – and spent all day trying to meet with his elusive mananager, Jamie. And those are just a few of the indignities Steve suffered.
By the end of the day, Steve was thoroughly disillusioned. Newman Industries wasn’t what he thought it would be when he first accepted their offer. When his wife asked him how his first day of work went, Steve replied, “‘I’m really happy that I didn’t pull my resume off the job boards or tell the recruiters that I was off the market, because I don’t know if this is going to work out. We’ll have to see.’”
“The company thought they had Steve when he accepted the offer. That was their error. They failed to recognize that they had only completed the next step of the process,” Salz explains. What Newman Industries lacks is a program that will preserve the positive impression made during the recruiting and interviewing process once the new employee arrives on his first day, he concludes.
Although Salz’s scenario was specifically about recruiting and hiring salespeople, I believe his advice applies to any employer trying to recruit and hire the best college students looking for internships and recent college graduates looking for entry level jobs.
It should also be noted that Steve was a “passive candidate,” which probably made Newman Industries feel even more proud of their accomplishment. Unfortunately for them, all that time and money was in danger of going down the drain before Steve had even been given a company email address. In this economy, it’s safe to say that companies can ill afford to make such a costly mistake when hiring new employees.

Is Temp to Perm Still a Good Strategy?

The following guest post by Susan Kenndy will help keep job seekers up-to-date with what’s going on in temp agencies
You hear it everywhere… get a temp job and it may turn into a permanent position. Good idea, right?? After all, it gives you the opportunity to really see what the company is like and how the employees are treated. And, it lets the company see you in action. So why isn’t everyone doing it?
Well, almost everyone is, or trying to. A local temp agency told me the other day that they were “saturated” with candidates who are all trying to do the same thing. It’s a tough market out there and there is a lot of available and experienced talent trying to do the same thing. And although about half of their college grad candidates are able to go from “temp to perm”, this agency offered up some specific ideas to help.

• First, do whatever the agency asks of you, no matter how short term or menial it may be, to the best of your ability. Once you get positive feedback from the company, the recruiter, who only has about 10 minutes to fell a slot, is more likely to call you back for better assignments.
• You need to have a top notch resume and make a positive impression on everyone you meet and work with. Employers want to see some part time work experience and a strong work ethic. They want to know you are competent and willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done.
• Finally, be patient. If there is an opportunity to become a permanent employee, it will most likely not happen right away. Most employers have to pay a finder’s fee to the temp agency if they hire you within a specific time frame so that will have an impact on any decisions they make.

Going from temp to perm is still a good strategy but it now takes more effort and patience.
Article by, Susan Kennedy, career counselor for college graduates and young professionals