For over 30 years, the General Social Survey is sent out to about 3,000 adults in the U.S. in order to asses trends, behaviors, and attitudes of Americans. With 450 questions, the survey covers a diverse set of issues, ranging from belief in the afterlife (steady at 72%) and trusting others (35% said that generally people can be trusted), to gun permits (80% favor a law requiring a police permit before being able to buy a gun) and legalization of marijuana (32% think it should be legal). Though it shouldn’t come as any surprise, the survey also indicated that fewer and fewer Americans are reading a daily newspaper every day. This year, only about 32% of respondents indicated that they read a newspaper every day, down from 40% in 2004, 50% in 1989, and 70% in 1972.

Posted by Toby Dayton on February 27, 2007 at 8:58 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

CEOs have many responsibilities and one of them is to influence company culture. Company culture affects everything from employee morale to the extent which internal controls are emphasized. In a post-Enron world in which Sarbanes-Oxley has become ever more important, it is increasingly important for top executives to communicate the importance of internal controls to employees. So, how can you, a busy CEO/CFO/CIO, mold your company culture in such a way that internal controls (and other important issues) become woven into the fabric of your company's culture?

Following are a few tips to help chief executives to set the tone from the top:

1. The CEO should prepare and communicate periodic messages to employees

* Explain why the information you are communicating is important

* Send successive messages to praise progress and to highlight specific, positive results

2. Meet with your senior executive team to communicate their responsibilities in influencing culture

* Follow up with senior executives to monitor progress

* Communicate specific objectives and, if possible, talking points regarding the message you want to send to employees

3. Coach senior executives to initiate a similar process throughout their chain of command communicate the importance of the cultural issues you wish to modify

* Explain the reasons it is important for employees to embrace the changes

* Outline consequences of failure to embrace and comply with the cultural changes that you are championing

4. Give employees time to understand and question the changes you propose.

* Offer them the opportunity to make suggestions about enhancing the changes to culture that you have proposed

* Acknowledge and reward good ideas

Edward G. Maier is the CEO of the Maier Consulting Group LLC in Chicago and may be contacted at egmaier@ameritech.net Ed will be a featured speaker BroadPeak's Spring CFO Forum. Mr. Maier serves as the CFO for and is a director of Millennium Park, Inc. He is also a former partner at Arthur Andersen.

Source: Ultimate Resumes LLC

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 22, 2007 at 9:59 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

I was saddened to see the news last week that Daimler Chrysler is planning to lay off 13,000 workers in the US and Canada over the next three years. I am sure that it makes good business sense to do this but I feel for the workers who will lose their jobs. Chrysler projects that 11,000 production workers and 2,000 salaried employees will be affected.

If you are affected by this layoff or any other it is important to think quickly and don't spend too much time dwelling on your loss. Move into job search mode as quickly as you can. It's natural to be frightened, angry, and sad when you lose a job but you have to focus on your job search as soon as possible.

The first step is to update your resume and to start networking. Find a good recruiter or two with whom to work. Prepare for the possibility of relocation. But most of all try to keep your spirits up as you move past your current job. Things will work out for you but you have to get your job search underway as soon as possible.

I would like to offer my condolences and support to anyone who is affected by this massive layoff. If you or someone you know is affected by the 2007 Daimler Chrysler layoff please pass along the word that Ultimate Resumes will give a 10percent discount on resume or cover letter services to any Daimler Chrysler employee who is being laid off this year.

Source: Ultimate Resumes LLC

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 22, 2007 at 9:52 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

Career management is a scary thing. I hate wondering what my next gig is going to be. Shoot, I hated wondering what my major was going to be (I think I seriously considered about 60 majors during my first two years of school).

I'll tell you right now, the "wondering" is common. Most people don't have a methodical process the use to figure out their future. And it actually starts way before the resume is prepared. On our teleseminar we had a question asked that I think will resonate with many of you:

I have experience in different areas - which direction should I go? Do I have to start at entry level in my job search with out a degree (this applies to recent grads also, doesn't it??), but with work experience? Is there a time limit on an internship?

No one can really tell you which direction you should go. You need to go through exercises to figure that out. Susan Strayer's next teleseminar will address this very question, and the answer will be different for each person - the key is the model.

Do you want to be asking yourself this question in 20 years? I don't either.

The next question is about starting in an entry-level role. Before I graduated with a CIS degree I asked my advisor what kind of job I was looking at upon graduation. He said it would be an entry-level tech support job making about $30k a year... I was absolutely not interested in starting there (after all, its a long journey to the president's office from that post!). I asked him what I could do to set myself apart from my competition. He had one word:

Internship.

He was absolutely right. I had an 18 month internship as a web developer at a huge company, and that changed my career path forever. About a month before I graduated I had a soft offer from the company where I had an internship, and a solid offer to be the IT manager of a growing $175M company. Way different than doing tech support.

Finally, is there a time limit on an internship? Sometimes there is, I think it depends on the employer. I know guys that had internships during the summer, and that was it. I think a valuable internship is one where you aren't necessarily treated as an intern, rather you are given professional work and expected to deliver like a professional. If you find the right company, an internship position might mean:

- better pay than the average student
- flexible hours (professionals don't clock in and out - they work to get the job done)
- real projects that have an impact on the bottom line
- excellent experience in a corporate environment with some immunity from the politics
- incredible opportunities to be mentored by industry leaders
- a terrific way to complement your education

... and more. I strongly recommend getting an internship. It changed my career in a big way.

If you want an internship, or get an internship, make sure you save all the contact information of people you meet - these people are now in your network! Go get a free account at JibberJobber.com to keep track of these people, and the various contacts from companies that you look at. You'll thank me later!

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 22, 2007 at 9:46 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

Interviewing for a job is a very stressful process. Invariably, during the course of a job interview, every candidate must meet with a representative from Human Resources (which is a misnomer because most of these folks are not resourceful and sometimes I wonder whether they are really human). This usually makes the interview even more stressful. That said, I decided to compile a list of common questions that HR professionals are likely to ask a job candidate during the interview process. The list is based on my own experiences as both a job seeker and a professional recruiter.

1. Where do you see yourself five years
from now?
2. What are your strengths?
3. What are your weaknesses?
4. Why this company and not our competitors?
5. May I contact your current employer?
6. Are you willing to relocate?
7. Why are you looking for a new job?
8. Tell me about your greatest achievements
9. Tell me about your most disappointing
experience
10. Describe how you overcame adversity in
your life

For a long time, I thought that the only reason that HR professionals ask these “boneheaded” questions is because they were told to in HR school. However, when you think about the real intent of some of the questions, the answers that a candidate offers can provide a great deal of insight into an individual’s motivations, character and abilities. I think that the two most revealing questions that are frequently asked are: “What are your strengths” which is almost always followed by “What are your weaknesses”. Typically, job candidates do not hesitate to talk freely and wax romantically about their strengths.

However it is a very different story when it comes to a candidate’s weaknesses. When HR representatives ask these questions, they are more interested in what a candidate has to say about his/her weakness as compared with his/her strengths. The job candidate who says “I have no weaknesses” signals to the HR professional that he/she is not very self critical and may lack the self awareness to work well with other employees. It also tells the HR representative that a person who believes that they have no weaknesses may not be able to see the need to improve while working for the company. On the other hand, the job candidate who can identify one or more weaknesses is a self aware individual who recognizes that he/she can always improve to become a better employee. That said, it is probably wise to cite a weakness that can actually be perceived as strength. For example, “I am a very detail oriented person and sometimes it takes me a little longer than others to complete a task. I recognize this and I frequently work longer hours to compensate for it”

As silly as some of these questions may sound, I have no doubt that some or all of them will be asked during your next job interview. I highly recommend that you spend some time crafting well thought out responses to these questions because your answers do count.

Source: bioinsights.com

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 22, 2007 at 9:38 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

Many people think that networking during a job search means calling everyone you know and asking them for a job. They associate networking with being pushy, overbearing, and an overall pest. People often shy away from networking because they don’t want to be labeled as this type of person. But research shows that 70-80percent of all jobs are filled through networking. How can this be so, if networkers are such an annoying, self-serving lot?

Successful networkers are not egocentric, aggressive jerks. They show a sincere interest in their networking contacts. They work hard to develop a relationship, establish their credibility, and share information. They follow the rules of the game where everyone has something to gain. Like the lottery, you have to be in it to win it. Below are seven rules to follow for successful networking.

Do not ask for a job. Ask for information.

Networking is not about asking everyone you know for a job. As a matter of fact, when you network you should never ask someone for a job. You ask them for information that will help you in your search. Your goal is to build a relationship and establish rapport so that if a potential opportunity becomes available in the future, they will want to refer you. Compare these two scenarios:

Scenario One
“Joe, I have been out of work for six months and I am really strapped for cash. Do you know of any open positions in your department?”

You have put Joe in a very difficult position. Sure, he can sympathize with your situation, but he may not be able to offer you a job. Perhaps he is not in a position to refer you, or there is a hiring freeze, or there are no openings right now. Whatever answer Joe gives you, it is bound to be disappointing. So to redeem himself, Joe says, “I do not know of any open positions, but give me your resume and I will send it to the HR department where I work.” Bad move. Unless your skills match a specific opening in the company at that point in time, it is bound to never be looked at. Joe will feel that he has done what he can for you, but you will be no better off.

Scenario Two
“Joe, as you know, I recently graduated from XYZ College with a degree in Marketing. I know that you have been in Pharmaceutical sales for the past 15 years and I am very interested in learning more about the role of customer service within your industry. I do not expect you to know of any open positions in your organization, but I would like the opportunity to speak with you briefly to learn more about your organization and the pharmaceutical industry in general.”

Joe may think, OK, here is a friend that wants some information and sees me as some sort of expert on the topic. That is kind of flattering. I guess I could spend a few minutes with him. Does Joe know you are looking for a job? Probably. But you are not asking him for a job; you are just asking him for advice and insight. The stakes are low and the expectations are reasonable, so he is more likely to help you.

Do not take up too much of the other person’s time.

Have an agenda and keep the meeting on track. Nothing scares people more than the prospect of someone eating up a lot of their time. Many people do not want to cram yet another meeting into their already jam packed day. Contrast these two situations:

Scenario One
You meet with Mary after a mutual friend has agreed to help you set up a brief 20-minute meeting. You neglect to prepare for the meeting, ramble, get off topic and spend an hour and a half with her. Mary feels that you have abused the use of her time and you have not gotten to the critical questions you had hoped to ask during the meeting. Mary feels burned and vows never to network again.

Scenario Two
You walk into the meeting with a prepared mental agenda that includes:
* A reminder of who referred you and perhaps some brief chit-chat about that mutual acquaintance.
* A statement up front that you have no reason to believe Mary can offer you a position and a reiteration of why Mary’s information is of interest to you.
* An explanation of your agenda. “Today I would like to tell you a bit about myself and get your perspective on the future of the high-tech industry.” Remember to discuss your skills and accomplishments and show how you can add value to an organization.

By planning out your meeting ahead of time, you establish your professionalism, gain credibility, and cover all the critical agenda items.

Give the other person a chance to speak. Ask questions.

When you network it is imperative that you do not do all the talking. If you have asked another person for advice, make sure they have the opportunity to offer it. Also, when you do all the talking, the other person might feel confused and unsure of what they are supposed to do with the information you have supplied. Here are some questions you can ask to keep your exchange balanced and establish rapport.

* How long have you been with this company/field?
* What do you like/dislike about your job?
* What type of training do you need for positions such as yours?
* What is the culture of this company and what are its guiding principles?

Ask for suggestions on how to expand your network.

One of the main goals of networking is to tap into the network of the people you are meeting with. Each person you meet knows 200 or more people. If you can gain introductions to some of them, you quickly increase your network and your chances of finding the right connection. Ask your contacts if they can recommend a professional organization or the names of some other people you should be talking to.

Create a vehicle for follow up.

If you want to establish rapport with another person, you need to create ways to keep the relationship going. Ask the person if you may keep them informed of your search progress. If you read an article that pertains to a discussion you had at a networking meeting, cut it out and send it to them with a brief note. Try to find at least two to three opportunities per year to reconnect with members of your network.

Find ways to reciprocate.

Building a network is about creating a genuine, caring relationship. Thank your contact for the information they have supplied and see if you can help them in some way. Maybe your contact is interested in living in an area that you are familiar with or has a child interested in attending the same school you just graduated from. Share your knowledge of the school and your experience there as a way to help the other person. Keep notes on what you learn about your contacts so that future correspondence can have a personalized touch like “How was Jane’s first year of school?”

Send a thank you letter.

Always thank your contacts in person and follow up with a letter. If your handwriting is legible, the personalized touch is always appreciated

Networking is an ongoing process. It requires persistence, attention, organization, and good will. Incorporate the art of networking into your job search campaign now and you will gain opportunities and build relationships that will last a lifetime.

Barbara Safani, owner of Career Solvers, has over ten years of experience in career management, recruiting, executive coaching, and organizational development. She is a triple certified resume writer and frequent contributor to numerous career-related publications.

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 21, 2007 at 7:09 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

Think of your resume as an advertisement. It is what will bring the customer in the store. Once they have arrived, it is time to sell them the goods. You have scored an interview, and now it is time to prepare.

Here are some suggestions for preparing for an upcoming interview.

How to Prepare for an Interview.

A day or two before an interview you should take the time to really think about how you want the interview to go, what impression you want to leave on the employer and what unique pitch you will use to stand out from other applicants. Equally important, think about what items on your resume you do not want to spend a lot of time on and come up with ways to transition from that particular experience to others that you would like to highlight more.

Next, throughly research the employer, and when possible, the position. Be sure to ask for at least a title, if not a detailed description of exactly what position they are interviewing you for. Then list the 3 or 4 strong qualifications that you bring to the table. This way, you know going in what they are looking for and why you are a good fit.

There is a time and a place for name dropping, and interviewing is one of them. Review any names or details that could be helpful to reference during your discussion. If you are the networking type, go back through your PDA and find the exact date of the dinner party where you met the person who passed along your resume. If you used a job search engine, recall what day you first saw the advertisement and perhaps the detail that helped the posting stand out. If the organization reached out to you, recall the Human Resources contact who first gave you the call or e-mail. It never hurts to compliment their friendly conduct, and helps create a positive, thoughtful persona.

From here the old adage rings true: "Practice makes perfect." Make a list of questions that you think the employer might ask. Think through how you would want to answer them. Your goal is to leave the ideal impression, highlighting your best selling points and avoiding weaker aspects of your experience. Typing this out (and saving it) can help you not just prepare for this interview, but all future interviews as well (including your year end review!)

Once you have come up with some sample questions, ask a trusted friend to help you role play through a few of them randomly. The employer ultimately controls the flow of an interview and role playing can help prepare you to bounce between subjects and think quickly. Your friend may also be able to point out any nervous quirks you might have or important details that you are leaving out.

The night before the interview, after you have crafted your pitch and researched the employer, make sure to print out directions to the office. Pick out your clothes, relax with a book and get to bed early. In the morning, eat a non-offensive breakfast to hold you over and make sure to drink your coffee. It is show time!

Source: Emurse.com

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 21, 2007 at 7:06 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

This week JibberJobber and CollegeRecruiter co-sponsored the first of 6 teleseminar calls, and it was a success! Dozens of people have already registered for the rest of the calls, and there's still more space left.

Susan Strayer is the featured guest in this series of teleseminars. Susan's book recently came out – The Right Job, Right Now. It is a book that every career professional (or career center) needs in their library.

The first call (and the next one coming up) is based around the core of this book - which is a model to help you figure out what the right job is for you and how to go after it. This is a great model to help you boil down where you should be, where you would be most happy, and where you would be most likely to succeed.

Sound cliché? It isn't. I am amazed at the registrant's questions, and the questions that I typically get, where people ask "what am I supposed to do in life?" Or, "I'm not happy and need to change - how do I do that?"

Here's a real question from one of Monday's participants:

I am currently working in my first "real" job. I am struggling to balance my time and not overwork. I am also struggling to understand the political climate in the office. How do you know when it is time to leave a job and career? What are some of the mistakes new (young) people make that unconsciously sabotages their career? I know everyone is different, but are there certain things that people often look to get out of a career that really should be left to personal pursuits?

I admit that I was in heaven right out of school - my first job was a dream job (it was also $10,000 less than another soft offer I had) - but it didn't last forever. And what I found is that most people have questions similar to the one above.

My mantra has become "no one cares about your career more than you."

Make sure you sign up for the next teleseminar... its the same topic as last Monday (each topic is repeated once) - if you have ANY questions about your own career it will be worth the 45 minutes.

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 16, 2007 at 3:43 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

Okay, so you went to the Career fair, you collected all your prizes, you went home and sorted through all your business cards and company information and now.........the phone rings.

Someone has reviewed your resume again and after talking to you at the career fair, wants to bring you in for an interview!

YES! I knew that advice I gave you would pay off someday!

Okay, but now what......you already wore your best clothes to the career fair. You can't possibly wear the same thing to the interview.

Well, here are the things not to wear. (Well, most of them anyway, some are self explanatory and need not be listed here)

The Top Ten Things Not To Wear To An Interview:

* Wild Nail Polish. (By the way, this goes for men and women)

* Jewelry that jangles (I might add that if you are in to piercings in places that are very open, you might take them out)

* Open Toed or Backless shoes (I think this is a judgement call depending on the time of year, but if you want to be safe, don't do it)

* Bare Legs (this means wear stockings, even when it's 105 outside. Men, no bare legs for you period, even with stockings)

* Out of date suits for Men (No lapels that are too wide or too narrow. You don't want to look like you are from the 50's or from the 70's)

* Short Skirts (Even with stockings, don't be a distraction. I believe the rule is no shorter than 3 inches above the knee)

* Leather jackets for men or women (This one threw me a little but I can see it. They are not professional dress)

* Turtlenecks for Men (Even if you don't have a tie, at the very least wear a dress shirt)

* Printed or trendy handbags (You should be conservative. Some people differ on this because they think it is an expression of themselves. Don't express too much on the first interview)

* Red Briefcases (I don't know what to say. I can't remember the last time I saw one and if I did, I would definitely be distracted. Be conservative)

Okay, so there you go. You made it through the Career Fair mall.

Don't forget to do some more research. You look great!

Good Luck!

Chuck Vlasin
Sr. Military Recruiter
T-Mobile USA
WirelessJobs.com

Posted by Dennis Smith, T-Mobile Recruiting on February 14, 2007 at 12:51 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

We spend a lot of time talking about "finding" a new job (cuz that's the fun part).

Rarely do we talk about "leaving" your current job, even though they do go hand-in-hand. I guess because of the negative connotation of "leaving."

So when Sherri Howe forwarded me this article, Ten Ways to Know It's Time to Go (by Caroline Levchuck), I read it and chuckled. Why? Because I've been in a job where I was was hitting on at least 5 of the 10, and at that point, it's hard to find humor in anything.

Here's Caroline's top 5:

1. You start to dread Monday as soon as you leave work on Friday.

2. It becomes more and more difficult to get up for work each day, and tardiness becomes a way of life.

3. You cannot muster enthusiasm for anything related to work - other than your paycheck.

4. You spend most of your time complaining to colleagues or about your colleagues (say what?). ; )

5. You act defensive and even hostile in company meetings when there's little cause for defensiveness.

Have you pegged yourself yet? If not, you can read Caroline's final 5 HERE.

If you find it unnecessary and know that your time has come, just send me an email and let's talk about your new gig.

Dennis
Sr. Manager, Recruiting
T-Mobile USA

Posted by Dennis Smith, T-Mobile Recruiting on February 14, 2007 at 12:47 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

Finishing up some thoughts on personal branding (what it is, and how to quantify it), I wanted to talk about "what place your branding strategy has in your career management."

Let me start this with my previous personal neglect of my brand.

In my last job I was the general manager of a computer company. We did hardware and software. I had written some articles and our products were pretty cool - I had been developing a small personal brand within the industry. I never thought I'd need to have a PERSONAL BRAND for my own career management.

Did I think I was immune to the statistic that I'd change jobs 9 times in my career? Or did I just not understand the power of a personal brand?

Probably both. I thought I was with a pretty secure company, but things change. Management changes, the economy changes, priorities change - no matter how comfortable I was in my position, things were changing around me. The security that I thought I had was pretty hollow - and I've learned that this is the new job security.

I wish that I would have gone through some personal branding exercises and then begun to execute the marketing of my personal brand. This is not something that happens overnight - its a constant, long-term component of career management strategy.

I encourage you to learn more about personal branding - figure out what yours is (or should be), figure out how to market it, and then make sure you pay attention to it throughout your entire career. It may be one of the most important things you do for your career.

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 13, 2007 at 2:11 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

Recently I posted a question about whether or not a Career Fair was an interview.
Then today, I'm cruising the http://www.military.com website and I come across the Top Five things to take to a Career fair and guess what? I was right?

"Pretty Scary Huh?"

So, here they are, the Top Five:

Five Things to Take to a Career Fair

*Copies of Your Resume (They say at least 34, I say depends on the size of the fair)
*A smile, A strong handshake, and a positive attitude. (Duh...)
*A 30 second sales pitch (told ya)
*Information about the organizations that will be attending (told ya again)
*Energy! (Yea, I get tired just watching people walk around those things)

Five Things Not To Do at a Career Fair

*Don't cruise booths with a group of friends (it's not a social event)
*Don't carry your backpack or other paraphernalia with you (it's not a shopping event)
*Don't come dressed for rugby practice (it's not a lounge)
*Don't "wing it" with employers (you remember, the what are you guys here for question?)
*Don't come during the last 1/2 hr of the event (employers get cranky or leave early)

Five Things to Take Home from a Career Fair

*Business cards from people you have met (told ya..........again)
*Notes about contacts you have made (good idea, you will forget before you get home)
*Information about organizations you have contacted (you know, the handouts)
*A better sense of your career options (Think about which ones are really a good fit)
*Self-Confidence in interacting with employer representatives

So, with the Career Fair season heavy upon us, pick up the paper, search the Internet (CollegeRecruiter.com, of course), and find out where the next big career fair is.

You are now prepared to do battle in the employment shopping mall we call career fairs.

Good Luck!

Chuck Vlasin
Sr. Military Recruiter
T-Mobile USA
www.WirelessJobs.com (Blog)

Posted by Dennis Smith, T-Mobile Recruiting on February 12, 2007 at 8:02 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

In my last post I talked about personal branding, and what it is. This post will give some examples of HOW you can share it. Actually, I like to call it "quantifying" your personal brand.

So this is about how to quantify your breadth, depth and passions (aka, personal brand). There's no way you can do this with a resume - you are so complex and have much more to offer than what can fit on a resume. Don't get me wrong - a resume has its place and should be taken seriously. But its the difference between a table of contents and the actual content in a book - there's no way that you can get all the knowledge from a book by just reading the table of contents, right?

There are three easy ways to quantify your personal brand. You can even start on this today (and if you are senior or a recent graduate, I'd say you BETTER start on it today!).

Personal Website

That is, a nice website with a good URL. So don't go bland or boring (but not overly flashy either). And don't use a generic domain like geocities or something like that. You are branding yourself - so try and get a URL with your name!

The website could have things like basic contact information (I recommend against putting phone numbers and home addresses), a resume (take out that nice contact info), and a portfolio. Your portfolio can be anything to quantify what you do - even a list of articles you have written.

Here's an excellent example of a website used to quantify a personal brand - HeatherHendricks.com. Click here to see why I like it so much.

If you don't know how to do this, go make friends with an Internet junkie - they are all over the place ;)

A Blog

This is the easiest thing to start and maintain. Don't write about what you ate for breakfast, and don't blog about details of a job search or something else that isn't professional. The purpose isn't to be 100% transparent and show how cool you are - its to quantify your personal brand!

Here are three excellent examples of professionals that use a blog to quantify their personal brand:

Kent Blumberg - Leadership, strategy and performance (click here to see why I think its cool!)

Adelino de Almeida - Profitable Marketing (click here to see why I think its cool!)

Mike Shaffner - Beyond Blinking Lights and Acronyms (or, Mike Schaffner on Creating Real Value Through Information Technology)

For more info on using blogs to quantify your personal brand check out my "Winner of the Month" awards. One last blog thought - if you think you don't have any time to have a blog while you are in school, just realize that your competition is - check out the Owen Bloggers from Vanderbilt!

Articles

Articles, white papers, stuff like that. This is a chance for you to show your expertise in a professional forum. For a mere $20 (more or less) you can distribute these articles to thousands of places which might reprint them. This does two things immediately:

1. It gets your name and expertise out into professional "rags" - my experience is that most of these are online, but that's ok.

2. It allows you to put an Articles Published section on your resume.

There you go - you can do this right now - there's nothing stopping you from beginning to quantify your personal brand - even if it is nascent!

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 8, 2007 at 1:31 PM | Leave a Comment (2)

A few weeks ago I made a presentation at a local university which led to a discussion in the hallway with a pre-business student. She was concerned about how to prepare for the competitive job market once she and her husband graduated, and was curious about my thoughts on personal branding. We had a really cool discussion and it made me think about what YOU can do to begin to develop your personal brand.

First, what is a personal brand?

My favorite analogy is one that came up on a recent podcast with branding expert Anna Farmery. During our discussion she said something like "personal branding is taking my two dimensional presentation (a resume) and showing the prospective employer who I am in three dimensions." What a cool way to put it - how powerful would it be to communicate to a prospective employer who you are with much more power than even the coolest, best resume?

There are many people that have identified their personal brands, and are actively promoting their brand. This is not to say that they are over-zealous self-promoters, nor are they doing this promotion in bad taste. But in this world where we are expected to change jobs every three to five years, developing and quantifying a personal brand is a significant part of your career management strategy.

And you can begin right now!

First, I'll tell you that I'm not a personal branding expert. And you should know that some people think "personal branding" is an over-hyped thing, perhaps a fad (my words, not theirs)! But I'm convinced that having a personal brand that is quantified and accessible by others is key to job security. Where our parents got some kind of job security from their employers, we must look at our career management strategy for job security!

In the next few posts I'll build on some of the ideas here - but my hope is that you can spend some time considering what your personal brand is, how to quantify it, and what place your branding strategy has in your career management!

Let's start with one simple thought:

You already have a personal brand!

It might be that you are a good student. Or a bad student. Or an intern. Or a party animal. Luckily your brand that you have right now likely won't be your last, and lasting, brand. Think about where you want to be in 10 or 20 years, and think about what your brand will be then. What kind of expertise will you have? Who will know about you? Will reporters want to have you in their roladex as a subject matter expert? Will peers come to you for advice?

This is a good place to start... we'll dive into more of this over the next few posts!

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 6, 2007 at 9:46 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

So you want to find a job, and the first thing you do is sit down at the computer and start searching Monster for jobs. You flip through hundreds of posted positions, merrily clicking Appy Now buttons and forwarding your resume to what you can only assume are hungry recruiters waiting for a resume to come to their attention.

Is that what you imagine? A room of listless monkeys sitting around waiting for a resume to pop up on your their desktop, with bells ringing and alarms shrieking and a bright red light in the room spinning as the manager says, "Stellar Candidate Number 863124 just submitted to an open position! This is the one we've been looking for!"

Now let's be honest. Didn't some of you, maybe just a little bit, imagine this is what happens when you apply online through a job board? That job description speaks to you man, it fits you so well it's like the manager was inside your head when she wrote it, and sure the qualifications list the need to be fluent in Mandarin Chinese but is it really that hard to learn? You made it through four years of Mrs Tingle's high school Spanish surely you can pick up some Chinese, and by golly they'll train you if it's that important.

Are there any of you that just know this job was meant to be...yours, meant to be yours, and clearly the universe made this job pop up in front of your computer screen on this day. Why, you almost didn't turn on the computer today, but something told you that you should sit down today and look for work, and wow - look what happened - you're here to apply to the job.

On the other side of the internet, you can see what's happening. The recruiter gets your resume, glances at the title and is intrigued. The name seems so familiar, but they can't place where. It's little bit of deja vu, it is. The recruiter reads the resume, (the world's best! resume), and almost falls out of the chair. He grabs for the phone and calls the hiring manager. "Cancel all your appointments, a stellar candidate just applied for the job!" The recruiter hangs up and mouths a silent prayer to whatever beneficent deity put this candidates in front of them.

But not everyone falls into that category. Maybe you're not the naive type who thinks there's someone on the other side of that terminal for you. Maybe you're a volume type of guy. Volume works - ask any cold-calling salesman. Every "NO" you get takes you that much closer to a "Yes."

So what do you do? You submit a resume to every position a company posts in the hope that the recruiter will read the resume, call the CEO, and demand a new position be created for the talented resume that just came across the desk. Sadly, even CEO's send their resumes to online job postings. Need a Help Desk candidate? Send a CEO resume!

Not satisfied with blasting your resume eight times to the same recruiter from one job board - you bounce around every board you can find, burning up your keyboard with multiple resume submissions, sure that if one person doesn't like your resume, maybe another one will. It's all just one big crap shoot anyhoo! Am I right or am I right?

It may seem harsh - but clicking submit on an online application is like sending your picture to a hundred suitors and begging for a date. Companies don't have the resources to process the hundreds or thousands of resumes that come through the pipeline every year, and many times your resume, the one you spent weeks getting just right, is never read.

That's right. It's never even looked at. If it's opened, it might be printed. If it's at the very top of the pile on the recruiter's desk, it might get passed to a hiring manager. If they have time, the hiring manager might glance over it - and if you have the perfect resume (which differs for every manager), you might get an interview. Do you know the odds of that happening?

So What's A Job-Seeker To Do?

Be smart. Use the job boards to find the companies that hire in your field and then find something about them. Find people inside the company, or call the switchboard , and make sure that if you send your resume to someone, that you've spoken to them and they are expecting it.

Don't ever send a resume to anyone that you haven't spoken to. I mean it. There are no monkeys and no bells and whistles to help you. This is your final warning.

Jim Durbin is the Director, Corporate Communications for the Durbin Media Group He writes several local recruiting blogs and has a book coming out later this year on surviving unemployment. This post is part of the College Recruiter and Recruiting.com Blogswap. Jim can be reached at jdurbin@durbinmedia.com

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 4, 2007 at 5:09 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

A topic that’s been coming up a lot in my discussions with twenty and thirty-something employees is empowerment. Today’s younger workers want to come into a job and have the autonomy to take hold of projects and run with them self-sufficiently. However, their baby boomer managers, more often than not, hold them back in some capacity. When a twenty-something is right out of college and doesn’t have enough experience or knowledge to complete projects without close supervision, the manager’s reticence is understandable. But too often, I hear of bosses micromanaging very competent employees because they’re uncomfortable delegating, want to have their hands in everything all the time, or are just obsessed with their own position of seniority.

Here are some of the problems with this epidemic of under-empowerment. 1) Having the reins clipped on tightly and needing to go to the boss for approval on every step of a project is demoralizing to younger employees. This leads to job dissatisfaction and high turnover. 2) Today’s managers are extremely busy folks, and whether they want to or not, it’s simply not possible for them to be involved in every task assigned to every employee. If they set up a system where they are the bottleneck to achieving results, then something important is likely to fall through the cracks. And no proud, independent employee wants to be responsible for a failed project, whether it’s her boss’ fault or not.

Some of the worst situations I’ve heard about pertain to middle managers who are under-empowered. Middle managers typically have the skill set to run initiatives without daily input from their bosses, but some senior executives still insist on closely scrutinizing any and all output. Middle managers who are expected to perform critical functions for the company like launching products or generating sales revenue, but are not permitted to make decisions about their initiatives, are in a no-win situation. And not only are their own careers and self-respect in jeopardy, but they constantly have to explain to their frustrated junior-level employees why their hands are tied.

So what do you do if you’re an under-empowered employee? There’s no easy solution to this, but a colleague recently suggested to me that the answer lies in assertiveness. Taking the attitude of pleasing the boss at all costs won’t work with a micromanager. Instead, perhaps you have a frank sit-down in which you explain why you need to work more autonomously in order to do your job effectively, and why it’s costing the company time, money, and resources to do otherwise.

What are your thoughts? Has anyone successfully navigated an under-empowerment situation?

Alexandra Levit, Author, They Don't Teach Corporate in College
http://www.getthejob.com/community/blogs/water_cooler

This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.

Posted by Shawn Augustson, CollegeRecruiter.com on February 4, 2007 at 5:06 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

This is the third of three posts on relationships that start in college. The first part was an introduction to the idea, the second part was a listing of who I could/should have lasting relationships with, and now we’ll talk about a system to actually manage those relationships.

This issue of lasting relationships really hit me about a year ago when I was laid off as general manager of an IT company. One of the places that I went to look for referrals and leads was back to my university. I had not maintained strong working relationships with anyone from school and I regretted it. Even though I did get significant help from a couple of professors, if I were to have maintained relationships since the time I left school it would have been different.

The system you implement should have certain characteristics. I’ll list a number of alternatives, but in choosing the right system for you, you’ll want to be sure to consider some of the following:

Will it last? You want the relationships to last and mature for many years – shouldn’t your system last that long also?

Is it easy to use? Even though there are some pretty sophisticated tools available to you, do you want to have to read through a manual, take a 3-day course, or have to try and remember how the thing works each time you try and use it.

Is it comprehensive? There’s nothing like using a system that doesn’t do what you want it to do. The system I want will give me birthday reminders, allow me to log important things, put in pictures, create reminders, and more.

Does it play well with others? As a software guy I’ve always been concerned when picking software solutions for my company about the ability to interface with other systems, and what would happen if the company went under. Would I be able to export my data in common formats? Or is it too proprietary? Is it easy to start, and if I want to switch, will it be easy to export my data?

There are more considerations – actually there are a ton of articles devoted to picking the right software. But these are some of the most important for you to consider while figuring out a system to manage your relationships over time. Here are some of the options available to you, right now:

Pencil and Paper: that’s right, this old technology still has a place. The benefits are that they don’t crash, and are super-portable. The weaknesses – well, there are many. This isn’t my style for a lot of reasons. One is that I’d never carry all of my important contact information around. Two is that I would want to “search” my information (and notebooks don’t have a search function yet!). Three is that I usually lose things when I move, or am decluttering. Fourth…. And the list goes on and on ;)

Traditional CRM tools: There are hundreds of CRM tools, also known as customer relationship management systems. These are the software packages that are common to a salesperson which allows them to manage all aspects of a relationship. If you are going into sales, strongly consider buying a package to begin using now – it will be a great training experience and you’ll be that much further ahead of your competition when looking for a job. Cons include price (some web-based systems carry a hefty monthly fee, especially for someone with better places to put their money), maintenance (if you buy the boxed software make sure you back it up regularly!) and ease of use (it is common to go to days of training to be able to use the functions – its geared towards sales more than relationships).

Excel: Many people list their friends and relevant information in Excel or Word or some other document like that. This is a good start but I don’t consider it to be a lasting solution. I have none of the documents that I’ve created just two years ago – because every time I switch computers I kind of lose things! But the biggest problem I see is that this will give you a false sense of relationship management. Having a list of names and contact information is NOT relationship management. There is much more to it than that, and I haven’t seen a spreadsheet with sufficient features to get the job done.

Contact Management 2.0: Ok, this isn’t my term, I got this in an e-mail from one of my buddies. My website is geared towards job search organization and long-term relationship management (surprised?). Take traditional CRM, twist it around so its optimized for a non-salesperson, make it web-based and easy to use, allow the user to put all kinds of important information, create action items, get birthday reminders, etc. Roll it all up and you get JibberJobber – which is a tool to manage things related to your career. The free version (about 90% of the system is free, and you can switch from the optional upgrade back to the free version without losing any data) allows you to actually manage 350 relationships – and that’s a lot!

Lots of options for you. The most important thing is that you have contact information, know who each person is and where you are at in the relationship with them, and can go back to the system to update the information (and see past changes). If it seems like overkill to you then you aren’t thinking of enough people in your network. Go back to Tuesday’s post about who you should have in your network, and begin to make a list of all of these people!

Bonus: Last week Shawn put up a post titled 10 Job Hunting Mistakes and How Not to Make Them. These are great points – but check out #8 (not following up) and #10 (being unorganized). A tool like JibberJobber would easily solve those two mistakes! What are you waiting for?

Posted by JibberJobber.com on February 1, 2007 at 7:46 AM | Leave a Comment (1)