Asking for Help

It’s one of the most awkward things that job seekers need to do – calling people in your circle of business contacts, friends, or even family to let them know you just got laid off and are looking for a job.

Of course the person getting that call hates to have to tell you that they don’t have any open spots, or that their company isn’t hiring, so in a polite fashion they quickly try to distance themselves from the caller as if H1N1 was being spreading through the phone connection. A face-to-face conversation can be even more embarrassing for both sides.

Any suggestions Mr Big Recruiter??? Actually, yes.

First, you are just one of some 8 million people in this situation, so as the saying goes, it’s not personal, it’s just business. With this down economy the stigma that was associated with a layoff has disappeared – a lot of very talented people are out of work and not because of any deficiency in their work performance.

Second, change what you are asking for – ask if they can be a reference for you, and not give you a job lead.

Why does this work better?

• To begin with you’ve let that person know you are looking for a job, but avoids the social awkwardness of forcing your “reference” to say no.
• It allows them to do a good deed which doesn’t really cost them anything to say “yes”. Imagine the lift they will get from a request like this!
• Most people will feel a bit honored that you would want them as a reference. A little ego stroking is good for all of us.
• It opens ups the door for that “reference” to invest in helping you do some creative brainstorming on options you could explore for new jobs

So try asking for a reference, not a job.  It should make those conversations a lot easier for both you and the person you are reaching out to.

Twitter, Twitted, Twitting

I’ve add a new Twitter account that you can follow me on:  http://twitter.com/KenCRecruiter

No I’m not going to be sending updates on what I ate for breakfast or my views on global warming. Instead I will be letting followers know about new open positions I am working on for clients, or other relevant business information.

Do you have a twitter account?  If so, follow me….

Recruiters Do Use Social Network Sites

If you needed confirmation that more recruiters are using social network sites to find candidates, you only need to look at the recent one from CareerBuilder in which 45% of the employers/recruiters in the survey confirmed they use social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn.com, Myspace.com, and even twitter.com in their recruiting processes. Add on another 11% that said they would start this practice this year (a little slow aren’t you guys) and that means 56% of employers/recruiters use these sites.

I can confirm that at Hawthorne Search, our recruiters have been actively using most of these sites (not Twitter) for the past couple of years to find the right candidates.

So what’s your digital footprint look like??  Some suggestions to candidates — if you are searching for a job, the good news is you can use these sites to your advantage as part of your “networking”.    It doesn’t take long, it’s pretty easy, and these 5 steps are basic, yet important:

1. Google yourself first. You should know what potential employers are going to find out about you and you have a chance to make any changes, cleanup some things that may not be conducive to an employer wanting you.
2. Get on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a true business to business social network.  Set up or complete your profile.  There are also a slew of special “Groups” on the site.  Join several related to your professional interests.  You should find the discussions relevant to your job and career aspirations.  These groups can also be great network opportunities when/if the times comes that you need to be looking for new work situation.
3. Get on Facebook. BUT — make sure you delete any of those non-professional images (that half naked picture of you sprawled across the bar from the drunken binge you had on vacation really isn’t as cute as you may think, and what does it say about you as a serious professional), notes, wall posts, comments, and anything else that might cause an employer to disqualify you.  Simply put, what would be you grandmothers reaction if she read/saw what was up there???
4. Get on Twitter. I’m not as sure about this platform, but I’ll defer to others who swear by it.
5. Consider a personal blog or webpage. One that allows you to post relevant job information, achievements, and other commentary.  Again, keep it professional, nothing that is proprietary in nature.  Keep the opinions and company criticisms under control (what would be the boss’s reaction if he read it).  Consider it a brag book of your achievements

Now if you are worried about all this information about you spread all over hyperspace, all of these sites give you a lot of control over the content and messages. You can block users, delete messages, etc., but be vigilant and don’t post specific mailing address or phone information.  Consider listing your address information using the nearest large metro area and not your specific home city.

AND BE PROFESSIONAL – this is your image, your brand, your reputation you are posting…

1. I’m not as sure about this platform, but I’ll defer to others who swear by it.

Are Common Resume Mistakes Holding You Back?

We look at upwards of a hundred resumes a day.  Here some common problems we see which really hurt your image as a professional and viable candidate.

The benign resume:

Does your resume “zing?” Will a future employer be excited to bring you in for a face to face meeting based on what they see? Unless you can answer yes with certainty then there is a chance your resume isn’t doing you justice.

Your objective, summary statement is far too expansive.

An HR professional isn’t looking for prose; they are looking to see that you bring to the table what they need. Don’t tell them your entire narrative in your summary statement

Your bullet points are far too general.

You need to drill down to the specifics of your role within your current/past organizations.

What have you done?

A common mistake is not putting down the accomplishments you have achieved within your organization. If your resume doesn’t speak to what you have accomplished, whether it be hitting your sales numbers, finding savings in an accounting role, achieving more hits on a website in an online marketing role, etc. you need to show a future employer what is you have done, and why they should bring you in for an interview.  Your team isn’t interviewing — you are.

Make sure your resume is chronologically based.

Don’t make it a one page “overview” on your professional career, effectively “hiding” where you have worked, and when you have worked there. If you make an industry professional hunt for your work history, there is virtually no chance that they will select you for an interview.

Make it clean!

Your font, spacing, bulleting etc. should be easy to read and easy on the eyes. You would be surprised how many people pick type that is too small, put too many words on one page, etc. It sometimes isn’t just what you say, but the format in how you say it!

Make sure it is grammatically correct, and it has been spell checked

Simply put, if it looks like a third grader typed it, you’re only going to qualify for fourth grade. Have someone else also proof read it.

It’s longer than “War & Peace”

Keep it to 2, maybe 3 pages at most., not the 5 and 6 page epistles we’ve seen   For those slightly more experienced people, stop after about 15 years of work history.

Job Openings Leveling Off?

Another sign that the job market may be stabilizing – the total number of advertised online job openings has leveled off at 3.23 million month, per a report released Monday by the Conference Board (link).   This is obviously a far cry from the peak of nearly two years ago when posted online jobs were at 4.27 million (September, 2007).

The report confirmed what we noticed as requests from clients dropped off steeply  in November of 2008 through early March of this year

From the report:

“Online job demand has held relatively steady at around 3.3 million advertised vacancies per month for the last six months,” said Gad Levanon, senior economist at the Conference Board, in a statement. “While we are not seeing declines, the sluggish nature of labor demand is another indication that the path to recovery is likely to remain a long haul.”

The Conference Board noted what we have seen in requests from clients – areas most in demand are sales and sales related occupations, which had 375,000 vacancy ads in July.  That level is an increase of 11,700 positions.

Cover letters no longer needed??

It’s the age-old question every candidate I talk to seems to agonize over — must your resume be accompanied by a cover letter?  If you ask “professional career counselors”, they will say yes.  As a recruiter, I say no. Maybe back in the days when you use to print your resume and physically mail it to a prospective employer/recruiter it was a simple call, but now in today’s digital job search world, you should probably have those comments that would have been in the cover letter of the past just built right into your email message.

Some suggestions then on the content of that email/cover letter:

Be brief, be brilliant, be done.
Your comments should be of course tailored to the specific job to which you are applying for. Make them brief, easy to read, and always include your full name, address, email  and a phone number where you can be contacted.  Can I suggest you also check to make sure your voice mail is working.   If the mailbox is full, you risk losing that call you are really waiting on.  And with more candidates applying for fewer positions, your resume could get bypassed quickly if HR/recruiters can’t reach on the first attempt.

Don’t forget to proofread both your email/cover letter and resume. Spelling errors and typos are a HUGE red flag for most recruiters, and a sure knockout for many.  Have someone else look at them for you.   And dah — make sure the job title and employer name are correct, too.

Make it as personal as you can.
Avoid using “Dear Human Resources” or “To whom it may concern”.  Those emails/letters tend to find their way quickly to a dead pile.  Find out the name of the company’s human resources contact or recruiter, (which is usually on the company’s Web site somewhere), or call the company’s main phone number and ask the receptionist (if you can get one).  LinkedIn is another good source.  Even if you are sending it to a “info@” or “hr@” type email address, make it as personal as you can.

Be detailed.
State specifically which job you are applying for in the very first paragraph –include things like  job ID number and the source where you found the job posted.  Why so much info??  It is not unusual for a recruiter like me to have 5 or 6 open positions we are working on at one time, and will probably have called/emailed 50 people a day.  That’s a lot of things going on at one time.  As good as your resume may be, we can’t remember everyone.  Help me help you.

Have some personality.
One of the objectives of a good cover letter/email is to try to make a personal connection with the reader.   Make it snappy but not over the top.   Not cute, keep it business oriented.  Just a couple of sentences at most.

Do some homework first.
The best cover letter/email will require some research into the company’s history and recent accomplishments. It should show the reader that you have some knowledge of their company, the challenges it is facing, and that you made an informed decision when you decided to apply for a job at their company.

Show your worth.
When writing your email/cover letter, keep the requirements of the job in mind and address them specifically. Remember, it’s not what the company can do for you; it’s what you can do for the company that counts.

Get the interview.
Go ahead and tell the hiring manager (nicely) that you would like an interview. Express that your email/cover letter and resume are just the tip of the your skill set and you look forward to a face-to-face conversation.

Examples?

If you are still unsure about where to begin, find samples of dynamic cover letters online and even at bookstores in any of the zillions of books that talk about resumes/cover letters/finding a job.

How to Burn a Bridge. Permanently

It’s actually pretty simple if you are a candidate looking for a job and really want to piss off a recruiter, the very people who can most help you find a new spot in a tough economy.   Just try these favorites:

1. Don’t call them back. Maybe it’s a generational thing but if a recruitor called me, I’d rush to the first phone to return that call. There’s only one reason why a recruiter is calling you and it isn’t to inquire about your golf game.
2. Make an appointment for an interview and then don’t show up. My latest episode with this most inconsiderate behavior was that I drove 90 minutes out of my way to meet a candidate face to face, I talked to them 30 minutes before the interview to confirm, and then they never showed up.   I tired their cell phone and got voice mail.   Heck, I was even going to buy lunch.
3. Send me an email with a long list of job requirements you must have. Memo to those you looking for a job these days — the game has changed. It is now an employers market, they are calling the shots not you. And with the number of people we have unemployed, you’re going to be sitting on the sidelines a lot longer with an attitude like that.  Now is the time to be flexible, not rigid in your requirements.
4. Hang up on a recruiter when they call you to discuss your resume proudly posted on a job board.   Yep, happen just this week.  “Hi I’m Ken Clark from Hawthorne Search, saw your resume on line wanted to talk with you about a position we are working on for a client in your are..”   Candidate responds “not interested” and promptly hangs up.  I found that very interesting as I hadn’t even told him what the job was.  If you’re not interested in getting calls, why is your resume up on a job board then?

Needless to say I’ve had a run of some of the rudest, most impolite business behavior I have ever seen recently.   But in a way I am glad it happened now, and not when you are in front of my clients.  Just don’t bother to contact me again because I probably won’t give you the time of day.  Your behavior shows you are really not worth it

Are job fairs worth it??

On the surface, the odds may not seem good – several thousand people often vying for just a few hundred positions. Why even bother? Yes, for a couple of reasons.

You never know where the next opportunity will come from. The process, preparation and interviews you go through are at worse great practice. But if you are going to go, there are something’s you need to do if you are going to have any chance of success at these events.

Step 1 – Get Ready

• Research: find out more about the companies that will be at the fair. You will need questions specific to not only the company’s current openings but also what future business areas they may be headed.
• Resume: Tweak your resume to highlight your strengths for the specific jobs being recruited for.
• Practice: Practice your one minute introduction with a spouse, friend, or family member. You need to be concise and confident so the company contact/recruiter will know not only who you are but what you’re about. We often call this the “elevator drill” – if you had the ear of the CEO or President for the length of an elevator ride (about 1 to 2 minutes max), what will you say?
• Business Cards: Get some business cards with your personal information made up and then be sure to bring them and to hand them out everywhere. They can be made inexpensively at local copy shops or try www.VistaPrint.com, a great online source with thousands of formats and a very easy menu interface to walk you through designing a card.

Step 2 – Go For It

• Be positive: No one wants to hire or work with some grumpy person who still hasn’t gotten over why his last position didn’t work out
• Copies: Bring plenty of resumes. Some suggest a short cover letter, but I prefer a solid resume with a well put together overview at top, and 2 pages maximum in length.
• Be Organized: Bring a note pad and pens for note taking and filling out applications. Carry it all in a briefcase or portfolio so you aren’t fumbling around dropping papers while trying to shake hands.
• Dress for the job (as in professionally). We’ve had reports of people show up in cut-offs and a tank top. Don’t do it. We always suggest you go with shirt, tie, and jacket for men. Women — pressed pants or skirt with a nice shirt or blouse. Loose the Mr. T over-the-top accessories and wacky ties. Go light on the perfume.
• Keep the breath mints handy.

Step 3 – Work the Room

• Be polite, courteous and patient: You must assume recruiters/interviewers are observing your every move and action, don’t give them anything which might lower your chances.
• Be direct: Look people in the eye. Smile. Make your handshake firm. Thank people for their time.
• Approach recruiters at the booth right away — don’t expect them to come to you.
• Stop and talk to everyone: Network the crowd. There’s usually a fair amount of waiting in line time; use it wisely. Don’t let name/business of a potential employer turn you off – McDonalds also needs a CFO, programmer, and Human Resources professionals too.
• Ask if you are a fit: Do it nicely, but before moving on ask the recruiter if he or she thinks you’re a good fit for the position and when you can expect to hear more. Ask what the company’s time frame is for call backs and hiring.
• Thank the recruiter for his/her time, and express interest in the company. Mention again why the job is a good fit.
• Follow-up: Send an e-mail or note to the recruiter within a day or two of the job fair. Keep it professional, and make sure to proofread it just as carefully as your resume. If, after a week, you’ve heard nothing, call or e-mail. Jog the recruiter’s memory, thank them again for their time and say you’re checking on their time frame to see if anything has changed.

A Recruiters View of the Current Job Market

I was recently asked to talk to a local business network group on the status of the job market from our view as recruiters.

If you are not familiar with Hawthorne Search, we are a focused somewhat boutique search team. Typical searches are in the $50k and up base salary areas. Our efforts are nationwide in scope; with some International efforts (e.g. completed a search in Botswana last year). Approximately 65% of those searches are sales oriented. Our team of recruiters is made up of people who have actual business experience in their industry segments. Collectively we have over 150 years of business background. Half of our team is located in our main office in Wilmington, NC, and the other half are virtual. We cover a range of industries such as Publishing, Media, Online/Interactive, Advertising (agencies & suppliers), Travel, Associations & Non-Profits, and Healthcare & Bio-Tech

So from a recruiters view where are we now? We had noticed that the pace of employment began to slow in Q1 of 2008, and just continued to pick up pace from there. Total unemployment across the US is at over 8.5%, with pockets over 22+%, and over 10% in my home state of North Carolina. By contrast, 2008 which didn’t feel like a good year, had an unemployment rate that reached 5.8%. I’m not sure these numbers tell the complete story as the Labor Department no longer includes “discouraged” workers (not sure how they even measure that) in its unemployment figures. Additionally , the number of “underemployed” are also excluded. This category has those people forced out of full-time employment, and can only find part-time jobs with much lower salaries and benefits. Another measure is that job boards currently have 3.5+ million resumes posted, but even that number is understated since not everyone looking for work has a resume on a job board

But what is surprising in that some segments are still struggling with a shortage of talent, and are still hiring, albeit in a controlled fashion – those positions requiring engineering or medical background are the most common examples. However we do have clients that are still struggling to find experienced, qualified sales leaders in some parts of the country.

If you break the unemployment numbers down, the worst places in nation are in California, Michigan, and parts of South/North Carolina: Imperial County, CA – 24.2%, Monterey, CA – 15.9%, Baraga County , MI – 23.4% up 10.1%, Montmorency, Michigan – 21.2% up 5.4%, and Marion County, SC – 22.4% up 8.5%. The cities with the worst job outlooks are in those states and Florida — Port St. Lucie, Miami–Fort Laud, Cape Coral–Ft. Myers, Naples/Marco Island. California includes: Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana, Santa Barbara–Santa Maria—Goleta.

Among the best spots to find a job: Yakima & Kennewick, Wash., Anchorage, Alaska, Amarillo, Texas, Sioux Falls, S.D. and most college towns, like a Morgantown, WV which has only a 2.9% unemployment rate.

More importantly, where we are headed from here? First we advise clients and candidates to keep things in perspective – I know some of them don’t remember 1982/83 when we had 12% unemployment AND 10%+ inflation. Many Gen X/Y workers have never gone through down economic times at any point in their job careers.

The most encouraging point is that the next “new thing” is being developed right now in a garage somewhere. We are still getting calls from new start-up companies in need of talent. They may not have the big venture capital backing as others had in the past, but they are open for business and need people.

We also believe the rate of layoffs has slowed. Because a number of large scale layoffs were announced at the end of the 2008 calendar year so companies could include them in their end of year bookkeeping, the ripple effect wasn’t felt until the unemployment filings started in Q1 of 2009. The higher unemployment numbers you are seeing now are a lagging indicator.  We think the worst is over.

The good news for clients is that the “War for Talent” which was one of the biggest concerns for business leaders over the last few years has been replaced with bumper crop of “Overqualified” resumes. For our clients, this truly is a unique opportunity. There are people now available, motivated, and probably at a price range that they would never normally have access to in normal economic times. We have also noted much more recent activity and energy from our client base. Not a return to the robust good old hiring times of the recent past, but clear interest and motion.

I also get asked a lot about the impact of the Recovery Act/Stimulus package recently approved at a Federal level. If you look at the Act in more detail you will find four strategic sectors will receive money targeted for job creation, either directly or indirectly:

• Energy (459,000 jobs),
• Infrastructure (377,000),
• Education (250,000)
• Healthcare (244,000)

In more detail, Alternative Energy jobs got a clear boost. There is unprecedented spending on clean energy, including $60 billion in loan guarantees for alternative energy projects such as wind turbines and coal gasification. The money is needed since this “green” sector has been especially hard-hit in since October/November when the downturn hit.

Engineers and tradespeople should see more demand for their services when federal funding reaches their prospective employers. The question is when as government projects rarely move at any great pace. Likewise Construction and Infrastructure spending will be measured in the hundreds of billions of dollars, and so-called shovel-ready projects will receive funding as soon as this spring. The infrastructure stimulus component will include billions of dollars for projects such as public transit, railway repairs, the purchase of hybrid buses, and billons of dollars in school repairs

But here is my concern with all of this stimulus talk as the solution – many of these segments required skilled or advanced educated professionals. There is already a shortage of these people. Many of these professions require a minimum of 2 – 4 years of advanced education. Where does the President and Congress think we’re going to magically grow these trained people from???

I also noted that 2.3 million of the jobs projected by the Obama administration and other components of the stimulus package come from extensions of unemployment benefits, aid to states and tax cuts.

“…..These jobs will be born in diverse industries, including retail, leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, professional and business services, government, financial, wholesale trade, transportation and warehousing, information technology and services, mining and utilities…”

I’m not sure how that provides hope to the unemployed. One area where these new government moves has already helped job growth: Lobbyists. Spending is up over 12% already this year as industries scramble for their portion of the stimulus handout.

Should you even consider another job in this economy?

You are busily hunkered down in your current job, just keeping your head down and maybe a just a little worried about what’s next for your company and your job.  You may not be super happy at the job, but hey, in this economy, a job is a job, right?

And then it happens — the phone rings and a recruiter like me is on the other end wanting to talk with you about a new job somewhere.  Should you even consider another job in an economy like this?

Most definitely.  No matter what the current economic climate, it’s never a good idea to let any possible job opportunity pass you by.    Why?

1. In a down economy, you need to know what companies are hiring and thriving.
2. You need to know what skills sets you have that those hiring are looking for.
3. You never know when a change is coming in your company where you will need a network of recruiters that work in your industry
4. You can’t find out if there it’s an opportunity worth discussing if you’re not in to begin with.
5. Interview practice NEVER hurts

I always tell potential candidates I am pursing that they should at least have an initial phone call.  This is a lot like dating — both the hiring company (our client) and you the candidate, have to hear things that make it worth taking the relationship to the next level.  Are you a fit for their culture?  Is their culture a fit for you?  Are the job responsibilities where you are looking to take your career?  Are your skills sets a match for what the company wants?

You can’t know the answers to these questions if you don’t listen.  At any given point you can always walk-away if you don’t want to pursue the position.  But don’t close the door before you have even opened it….