But that doesn’t mean I’ve given up on the web entirely. Here are my favorite ways to strategically use the web in your job search and boost your chances of success.

1. Google yourself. See what comes up. Some employers are doing this, so it’s best to know what they might see. Clean up any blogs, youtube contributions, myspace sites, etc that could diminish your professional image. You can also google potential bosses, coworkers or companies to learn more about them.

2. Set Google Alerts (http://www.google.com/alerts) on the focus of your career search. You can set an alert for articles about a specific company, specific job title, or just a set of keywords related to the work you want to do. You can set local, regional or national alerts.

3. Target Specialized Job Search Sites. I like www.RileyGuide.com for links to specialized job search sites such as Non Profits, Political, Women, Over 50, Religious careers and more.

4. Expand Your Network. A great online networking site is www.LinkedIn.com.

5. Expand Your Possibilities. Use sites like Monster, CareerBuilder, and Indeed.com to help you research job titles you may be a fit for. Search for keywords using skills you have or want to use in a new job and see what titles surface. Then begin searching for similar titles in your preferred city or state. Sample job postings can also be great tools to figure out what the most important skills and abilities are for the type of job you want. Then you make sure to orient your resume around these themes.

6. Research Jobs or Careers. O*Net Online is a great database that describes jobs in detail . You can run searches using keywords to find out about job titles that fit your skills, experience or interest or you can look up detailed job descriptions of specific titles. Visit it at http://online.onetcenter.org/.

7. Find Out What The Going Rate Is. Visit www.Salary.com to research salary ranges for common jobs.

8. Add pizzazz to Your Resume. www.VisualThesaurus.com can help you find just the right words for your resume and other job search materials.

9. Research Potential Employers. Get the inside scoop on what employees really think (versus what the company website says). Visit www. Vault.com to read up on companies of interest.

10. Considering Relocating? Find cities that may suit you (and your family) best by taking the online quiz at http://www.findyourspot.com/.

These are my top 10 sites for supporting you in finding a fulfilling career that fits your priorities and goals. I’d love to hear what sites you like to use and why. I may feature some of your spotlight sites in future newsletters.

About the Author

© 2006, Shawn Driscoll, Succeed Coaching & Development. This article is provided courtesy of Shawn Driscoll, Career Success Coach and owner of www.succeedcoaching.com. Professionals: upgrade your work life today! We provide products and services to help you succeed at work, in business and in life. Sign up to receive your free Success Wise ezine–and get success tips, inspiration, and resources to skyrocket your success–at www.succeedcoaching.com.

Hello! I am Elena Brouwer, International Etiquette Center in Hollywood, Florida. You can find us on the web at etiquettecenter.com. On behalf of Expert Village.com, I would like to welcome you. In business etiquette, sometimes you do the right things and sometimes you do the wrong things. Let’s observe and see what we have here.

When you are getting ready for an interview, allow enough time to get there, yes sometimes traffic is heavy but there is no excuse to be late. If you are on time or a few minutes early, you have time to relax, put yourself together, and feel that you are in charge.

]]> http://www.jobsearchsecrets.net/2007/07/11/video-business-etiquette-do-not-be-late-for-the-interview/feed/ http://www.jobsearchsecrets.net/2007/07/04/interview-tips-from-the-winners-of-the-apprentice/ http://www.jobsearchsecrets.net/2007/07/04/interview-tips-from-the-winners-of-the-apprentice/#comments Wed, 04 Jul 2007 05:38:19 +0000 Jeff Bosco Interview Strategies On the job Video Career Advices Job Searching http://www.jobsearchsecrets.net/2007/07/04/interview-tips-from-the-winners-of-the-apprentice/ They went through a tough 15-week interview to “win” the opportunity of their lifetime to work with Donald Trump. Hear from their direct experience on what tips, ideas and strategies they can provide to you if you either are looking for a job or you want to excel in your career.

Dear HR Guy,

I was laid off from a company back in November, they laid off 20
employees. I was a team manager and I had one staff member that went also. Now the company is doing better and I’ve noticed ads in the paper for different positions. One of the last is an HR recruiting position. Are there any guidelines that companies follow in regards to calling back employees in a different position. Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Laid off and waiting for the call

Dear Laid off,

Sorry to hear about that. Getting laid off is no fun.

On to your question, do companies have guidelines they follow to call back on employees in other positions that they’ve previously laid off? I have found that only in rare cases do companies have any strategy for rehiring after taking an economic dive (unless they do it often). Even more so, considering other people for different positions.

The real question is whether working for a company that is just recently recovering is a good idea for you personally. Or whether or not being an HR recruiter for a company regaining momentum is a risk you’re ready to take. If this company has the risk of hitting the ropes again, an HR recruiter can be the first person to go. Even though HR is seen as a relatively secure area in the corporate field, recruiters are sometimes seen as expendable during economic downturns.

If you feel comfortable with all of that though, I encourage you to contact the hiring manager by phone to show interest in the position. Bypassing the standard application method is probably appropriate at this point.

Originally
from YourHRGuy.com

by Your HR Guy

on May 17, 2007, 1:30AM

If you find yourself in a similar situation, here’s some “hindsight is 20/20″ advice I can share.

First, get to know your new peers - i.e. the people with whom you’ll be working. Try scheduling informational meetings and interviews with other managers and peers. This will give you the opportunity to ask them what they think it takes to succeed within the organization. Don’t forget to schedule a similar meeting with your boss to find out the departments’ togals, company goals, etc. Then, set up more meetings (are you sensing a theme here?) with each of your new team members to discuss their individual goals.

Review their prior performance appraisals and make a note of their strengths and weaknesses. Discuss their career goals and let them know that you are there to help them succeed. And remember to keep goals and expectations realistic and don’t make any promises you can’t keep regarding future merit pay or other rewards.

Instead, make sure you provide ongoing rewards and recognition. Employees want to feel valued more than once per year. Do things like find out what your team members like to do outside of the office and provide gift cards or time off for them to pursue their hobby. Or, distribute a note to the entire team acknowledging a team member’s recent success.

Delegate, delegate, delagate. Enough said.

One of the most important tips I would offer is to establish office hours. Make yourself accessible to your team as often as you can. If you are regularly unavailable due to all day meetings or business travel, set up office hours for your team members so that they know that you are available to mentor and support them in meeting their goals and objectives.

Lastly, listen and learn from your team. Although you are now serving as the teacher in many instances, don’t underestimate the value of listening to different points of view to solve problems and improve processes. Your team members may have been around longer than you and could have valuable historical information to offer.

As the saying goes, first impressions mean everything. Giving a first impression to your new subordinates and co-workers that you are prepared and qualified to do the job will go a long way in building respect, loyalty and productivity from your team. Good luck!

Originally
from Spherion Career Blog - The Big Time

by Brent Short

Then I saw his resume. His resume was 5 pages long, and had too much detail to read quickly. It also seemed to repeat information from one page to another.

Candidates, remember you don’t have much time to impress a hiring manager. Those of you looking for senior management positions–you probably have less time because once the more senior manager takes a look at your resume you may only have 10-15 seconds to impress that manager.

It’s ok to have two versions of your resume: the short one that’s no more than 3 pages long (one overview page and two reverse chronological pages), and a longer one that you explain is available if people want more detail.

Remember, a resume is a marketing piece. Your job is to whet the hiring manager’s appetite, not kill it. Think about how long you really need your resume to be.

Originally
from Hiring Technical People

by Johanna Rothman

I have always found mentoring to be a worthwhile venture for both me as a mentor and me being mentored. I don’t know exactly what the cause of this worthwhile feeling is but for me at least, it stems from a couple different things.

1. Face to face contact with the same person and the subject matter isn’t about necessarily improving work but improving yourself. A person who can be a check and monitor your progress over a period of time. And, when structured right, the lack of obligation to do so.
2. Being a positive part of a non-reporting employee’s life. I had a fellow mentor who persuaded a person to stick with a job when they were growing tired of it. With that mentors help, instead of taking a path with lower pay and in a totally different industry (starting from the ground up), they got their foot in the door of an internal leadership position. No mentor = that person is gone.
3. It gets results. I see time and time again where mentoring results in positives for both parties. And it boosts productivity for both workers. Sitting down for a cup of coffee a half an hour each week and being a mentor. For that 15-30 minute period, you gain more than 15-30 minutes of extra productivity.

Great leaders can make a big difference by mentoring other employees and with such a small investment, can make a big impact not only on your own performance but the performance of others.

Share This

Originally
from YourHRGuy.com

by Your HR Guy

on Apr 20, 2007, 1:08PM

And I really hate to make blanket statements like that because all of the MBA guys and gals I know are swell and they work great together. That doesn’t mean though that I haven’t talked to a lot of dweebs coming fresh out of MBA’s not knowing anything about working at the executive level. At some point, I almost want to question if they actually knew the whole point of getting an MBA was to move up or move out?

A MBA is a great concept and if these changes are adopted widely, it could do a lot to bolster confidence. The best part about a MBA is that it compresses time in a high pressure, deadline sensitive world. If you come out of that program having worked with 10-15 different teams, those are a lot of different personalities you’ve been forced to cope with. And from the hiring side, that’s pretty exciting. I feel confident hiring from a program that teaches these skills than the alternative.

Ultimately, this problem points back to poor undergraduate work which could point back to poor high school work and so on. What some educators have called “slippage” in the curriculum: not being able to teach kids the same things they used to because it isn’t getting covered earlier. Is the MBA or Masters going to become the bachelor degree of today? It already is in some Engineering and Scientific fields.

And well, that is a different post altogether.

Share This

Originally
from YourHRGuy.com

by Your HR Guy

on Apr 24, 2007, 11:31AM

That’s a question I posed to the Twitter community recently, after noting that my own creative juices tend to flow best first thing in the morning. The responses I received were telling. Here are some of my favorites:

• ChipGriffin: When I’m not trying to be creative and mind is just relaxed and wandering — shower, bed, long drive, beach, etc.
• TedDemop: Creative best? Occurs in random spurts at unplanned times. Often early a.m. — sometimes before sleep/sometimes upon awakening.
• comedy4cast: Usually when I’m trying to concentrate on something else. My mind wanders and…bingo!
• DanYork: In regular activities, I find some of my most creative times (in terms of idea generation) are when I’m out walking or biking.

Like me, these four members of the Twitterati spend hours upon hours at the computer and online each day. And yet, for all of us, creative thoughts or solutions often bubble their way up through our brains precisely when we’re away from our machines.

Now, don’t get me wrong: I’m all for the tools of technology that I write about here each week — instant messaging, RSS, blogs, podcasts, wikis, etc. — and know that they lead to terrific brainstorming sessions, project collaboration and the start of the creative process. But I also know that it’s those very un-technical activities — eating breakfast, showering, taking a walk — when the creative thoughts they produce finally crystallize for me.

How does technology work for you in the creative process? Take our Monster Poll.

You can also check out these other Monster resources on creativity:

• “Think Outside the Career Box“
• “A Walk, a Shower, Yard Work and a Long Ride“
• “Be More Creative“

Originally
from The Monster Blog

by Bryan

on Apr 20, 2007, 4:19AM

1. Put first things first. As with traditional job hunting, update and polish your resume. Revise your resume weekly so that it appears higher in an employer’s search results. You can create “confidential” resumes, which allow employers to see your experience but not your name. Label your resume appropriately - how you name your resume can impact how often it is viewed. An employer is much more likely to click on a resume title “Senior Financial Consultant” than on one titled “Sam’s Resume.” Most resume postings must be made in ASCII (plain text). Online sites can help with this.

2. Use proper ‘netiquette.’ Think before you send a message, and realize the impression you are making. Electronic correspondence requires the same level of professionalism as traditional methods. Avoid being too casual when online. Keep the length of your message reasonable, and use correct grammar and spelling. The way you communicate using email is just as important as the way you communicate face-to-face. You must have an acceptable email address (i.e. your name/initials@xxxx.com). Do not use email addresses that are unprofessional, too casual or just have no relevance (like BigMomma@yahoo.com).

3. Mega sites. Start browsing mega career sites that offer multiple resources and services for free. Network through bulletin boards , newsgroups and user groups . Set up job search agents on all the sites you visit to receive the latest openings as soon as they are listed. Job search engines alow you to search many of the major job databases at once. Though helpful, don’t limit yourself to posting your resume or applying only to jobs you find on these major job sites.

4. Niche sites. Search the niche job sites in your respective profession. Search local job sites and Chamber of Commerce sites. Check the newspaper Help Wanted ads, both online and off. Some employers still only use the classifieds offline to advertise job openings so be sure to use every available resource.

Using technology when job hunting helps, but is should be used as a set of tools. The most effective strategy is to use a variety of job seeking methods. Make finding you as easy as possible for the employer whether that is through technology based or traditional methods.

Originally
from Spherion Career Blog - The Big Time

by Karen Person