GILBERT GAZETTE
800.967.3846

http://resumepro

http://executiveresumewriter.com

A monthly publication of Gilbert Resumes, featuring timely career
articles, career websites, and suggestions for today’s job seekers.

To my clients and newsletter readers, I would like to express my sincere wishes to you and your family for a wonderful holiday season, filled with joy health, and prosperity.

This month’s article is a must-read. Within the career services industry much time has been spent discussing, researching, and developing strategies for capitalizing on Social Networking to secure a new position. While it doesn’t and won’t eliminate the need for a traditional résumé for years to come, it is becoming more and more important. Networking, getting your résumé into the hands of recruiters, and traditional networking are still vital, but Social Networking is no longer for kids or Internet junkies.

“Networking” – Instead of reading resumes, more employers are using social media to find job candidates.

Ask him how his job search is going, and Craig Stack will tell you he’s frustrated as hell. The displaced trade operations manager wakes up at the crack of dawn every morning, types Indeed.com into his browser and checks to see what new job openings have been posted. Next, he goes to LinkedIn to find out if anyone in his network is hiring, then he searches the major job boards like Monster, HotJobs and CareerBuilder.

“I apply for every job I qualify for,” says Stack, who estimates he’s sent out 600 resumes in his 13 months of unemployment. In response, he’s gotten fewer than a dozen e-mails even acknowledging that his material has been received.

“I feel like I’m sending my resume into a black hole,” says Stack, who used to earn big bucks providing services for the likes of Barclays, Computershare and Equiserve.

Ryan Hebert’s experience with job boards wasn’t much better. While the management consultant got occasional calls from recruiters when he used sites like Monster.com, they never amounted to much.

So instead of spending his time on job sites, Hebert decided to give social networks a try. He tweaked and updated his LinkedIn profile every few weeks, and worked at growing and cultivating his network of connections.

“Almost every time I added something to my profile, I was contacted by recruiters,” he says. It didn’t take long before he figured out that sites like LinkedIn send out notices to your connections whenever you update your credentials. As a result of his efforts, Hebert landed seven or eight quality interviews, one of which resulted in a job at Ernst & Young.

Hebert discovered something millions of other job seekers have yet to learn — that more and more employers are utilizing social networks as part of their hiring strategies. Instead of passively inspecting resumes that land on their desks, they’re using Twitter to broadcast job openings; they’re using LinkedIn to search for and connect with workers who meet specific job requirements, they’re using Facebook to brand themselves and to court potential hires, and they’re using social media widgets that deliver relevant information to potential candidates’ iPhones and Facebook pages.

“We will use every opportunity we have to connect directly with the job seeker as opposed to through a job board,” says Carrie Corbin, senior human resources manager at

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/jobs/net_working_xLfN0gZmlCFLe7lgHZQe7N#ixzz0Z0jnGdRQ

Gilbert Resumes remains in the forefront of providing cutting edge solutions for today’s challenging job market, including strategies to build your online presence and maximize your career opportunities.

Need assistance with your career endeavors?

Resume Writing, Job Search & Interview Coaching,
Recruiter and VC/Private Equity Distribution,
Cover & Thank You Letters
Online Identities
Linked Profiles
Networking Training

Contact Marty Weitzman
Gilbert Resumes
800.967.3846

http://resumepro

http://Executiveresumewriter.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/resumepro

To remove your name from our mailing list, please type remove in the subject line and send an email to martin.weitzman.

GILBERT GAZETTE

800.967.3846

Email: resumepro

http://executiveresumewriter.com

A monthly publication of Gilbert Resumes, featuring timely career

articles, career websites, and suggestions for today’s job seekers.

I would like to wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving

A timely article for today’s job seeker. Many years ago, as a recruiter I constantly reminded people that the holiday season was no time to stop job searching. “Remember,” I would say, “the people who get hired in January and February may have been interviewed in November or December.” The following article brought this to mind, so I wanted to share it.

Don’t Postpone This Strategic Timing Opportunity!

“I’m putting off MY job hunt until after the holidays. Nobody’s hiring now.” We have heard too many people say this. Often, job hunters think the time from Thanksgiving to the end of the year is a bad time for job hunting because people have parties, not business on their minds. They postpone their job search until January.  
 
This is a big mistake and can lead to missed opportunities.  The truth is, the holiday season, like any other time of the year, has job openings.    A position becomes open due to growth of the business or replacement of an employee who has quit, transferred, retired,  been fired, promoted or become sick. That  makes seven reasons for a job to open up, none of which have anything to do with a particular season.  
 
When January brings in the  new year, it is a great time to begin something new.  In many organizations, department budgets have been approved and fresh money is available for hiring new employees.  
 
Since the recruitment of candidates, initial screening, interviewing, final selection, and training all  consume lots of time, it is not unreasonable that a January hire would be put  into motion in October or November.
 
Any job hunter who slacks off during the holiday season risks losing a strategic advantage.  Part of this advantage stems from staying in the hunt while others sit on the sidelines, telling themselves there is no point in looking right now.   Then, the holiday season carries a psychological advantage.  There is a sense of good cheer in the air.  People are a bit more approachable due to the holiday spirit, which can’t help but engulf us at this time of the year.
 
Instead of contacts being hard to reach this time of year, they are in town this month because they’re planning to attend a lot of parties and do some networking themselves.  Here’s how to get the most job seeking mileage out of holiday events:
 
1) Check the newspaper for association-sponsored holiday events (or breakfasts and luncheons), and try to attend as many as possible.
2) Take your business cards or resumes everywhere.
3) Resolve to meet at least ten people at each event.
4) Search out and thank the party organizers, and be sure to compliment them on the good job they did.
5) Organize a networking event of your own, with people you have been meaning to contact.   
6) Attend your own trade or professional association’s holiday-season event.  This gives you a chance to meet all the new members and to see all of your old contacts who haven’t been at any recent meetings.
 
 A little partying can provide a lot of contacts. Every person you meet can give you additional names of people who can help you in your job hunt. By networking you can open the “hidden job market”—those jobs that have yet to be advertised, or never will be.
 
Remember, openings do occur without regard to the calendar. The need of the employer to get a suitable employee overrides all other considerations. When they need help, they will hire and there is no way to predict when it will happen. The best bet is to keep a job campaign moving at all times.   By Steve Frederick

GILBERT GAZETTE

Need assistance with your career endeavors?

Resume Writing, Job Search & Interview Coaching,

Recruiter and VC/Private Equity Distribution,

Cover & Thank You Letters

Online Identities

Linked Profiles

Networking Training

Contact Marty Weitzman

Gilbert Resumes

800.967.3846

resumepro" target="_blank">http://resumepro

http://Executiveresumewriter.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/resumepro

To remove your name from our mailing list, please type remove in the subject

line and send an email to martin.weitzman.

I Hate…

• I hate formal ‘networking events.’ The ones where you have to ‘work a room.’
• I hate ‘networking breaks’ at seminars and conferences where you have people madly collecting business cards and staring over your shoulder (instead of looking and listening to you) to see who else they can exchange business cards with after they’ve finished with you.
• I  hate breakfast networking events – I’m a night owl and so prefer to avoid early morning appointments and events wherever possible.
• I hate blogs where the people taking part in conversations are simply there to self promote: comments such as “Hey great article! By the way, your readers should take a look at my 6 part course on xyz – follow this link now!” (I never ever click on those links).
• I hate networking with anyone that doesn’t say ‘thank you.’ Good manners cost nothing. Bad manners tell me lots about the other person. 
• And don’t ask me why, but I don’t really like Facebook – it’s just not my thing.

I Love..

• I love hanging out in coffee shops and hotel lounges with nice sofas to catch up with friends and professional contacts.
• I love going for drinks in cool bars where you can actually hear yourself speak – especially if they’ve got nice sofas (..as you can see, it’s all about the sofas for me!).
• I love pinging an email or a LinkedIn note to introduce two people in my network who I think may be able to help each other. Not because I want a ‘kick back’ or a favour; but because I enjoy connecting people. And as a by product of this, I strengthen my relationship with them
• I love sitting in the lounge at my local gym (on a comfy sofa off course) with my Blackberry and emailing or calling people I haven’t spoken to for a while just to say “hey, long time no speak – how are things?” 
• I love catching up with old friends over an informal dinner
• I love LinkedIn – not sure why, but I feel more at home there than on Facebook
• I love blogs where there is an exchanging of ideas, resources, opinions and debate in the comments sections. A genuine desire to add to the content/discussion rather than it being all about self gain and self promotion.
• I think I’ll eventually get to love Twitter - I just need to spend more time there

Networking With Authenticity Is Effortless

I find networking effortless because I choose those networking activities that play to my strengths and natural style. So instead of it being a chore – it’s fun. Anything that is fun is effortless. And any activity that is effortless, is more likely to yield the results you want.

I mean, who says networking “should” involve going to fancy ‘networking events’ and ‘working a room?’ That’s just one version.

Networking is all about establishing and developing genuine relationships – you can’t build genuine relationships if you feel really uncomfortable and a bit of a fraud. So network in a way that feels natural and authentic to you and you’ll build deeper relationships and be better placed to attract the kind of results you want.

How To Network Effortlessly

1. Choose the networking activities you love

Those networking activities (or relationship building activities), that you really enjoy. The ones that come naturally to you and have always come naturally to you.

2. Avoid networking acitivities which you hate 

Activities which don’t suit your style and make you think “that’s just not me.”

3. Be honest with yourself

There’s a big difference between activities which are not your natural style – and activities which you’re scared to try out because they are outside your comfort zone.

So yes, play to strengths – but please don’t use this article as an excuse to avoid testing your comfort zone!

4. Keep a close eye on these 21 networking tips 

1. Focus on networking with your warmest contacts FIRST 

2. Be clear about your objectives and what you want (and don’t want)

3. Be generous in sharing ideas, resources, contacts

4. Don’t keep score

5. Be yourself

6. Ask lots of open questions – who? what? how? when?

7. Network with a wide range of contacts outside your immediate connections 

8. Ensure you have an online presence and are using social media platforms to establish an online brand (Eg LinkedIn.com, start a blog etc)

9. Take a genuine interest in other people, their challenges and their goals (and not just your own needs)

10. Be systematic

11. Listen twice as much as you talk

12. Focus on the quality of relationships rather than the number of contacts you’ve got

13. Keep asking “How can I help you?” rather than “How can you help me?

14. Share and help others without expecting anything back

15. Keep nudging yourself outside your confort zone 

16. Limit the time you spend on social media platforms. They can be great fun, but also a great drain on your time

17. Be spontaneous

18. If you’re not going to follow up religiously, don’t bother networking

19. Think long term relationships rather than short term job leads and opportunities

20. Don’t try and follow every tip on this list

21. Instead just incorporate ONE tip from above. Then another. Then another… 

By Sital Ruparelia

Received an email from one of my Supply Chain management clients this morning. He had two job offers and accepted one.
From start to finish in less than 50 days – wrote his resumes, cover letters, and distributed to recruiters.
That is what you like to see in your email early when you log in.

With improving corporate profits underscoring signs of increased economic growth, recruiters are forecasting an increase in hiring activity at the executive-level, according to the latest ExecuNet Recruiter Confidence Index (RCI) data.

According to October’s survey of 172 executive recruiters, 56 percent are “confident” or “very confident” the executive employment market will improve during the next six months — which is essentially unchanged from last month. Those who are not confident that executive employment market conditions will improve during this period of time dropped from 8 percent in September to 6 percent in October, which marks the lowest “not confident” reading since May 2008.

“Recent hiring activity indicates the recovery will be based on business re-investment and global economic growth,” says Mark Anderson, president and chief economist of ExecuNet. “While we expect the executive employment market to rebound at a slower rate when compared to the recovery that occurred after the last recession in 2001, fewer companies are planning to trim leadership staffs in 2010 and many are using the opportunity to get executive talent on board that will help them come out of this downturn profitably.”

Recruiters’ short-term confidence remained stable, as 24 percent of responding recruiters are confident or very confident the executive employment market will improve during the next three months — down slightly from a 12-month high of 27 percent in September.

The industries recruiters expect will generate the greatest growth in executive-level job opportunities through the end of 2009 include:

1. Healthcare

2. Clean/Green Technology

3. Energy/Utilities

4. Pharmaceuticals/Medical Devices/ Biotech

5. Environmental Products/Services

————

Marty Weitzman
Gilbert Resumes
800 967 3846

Last week a reporter interviewed me for an article he’s writing on how employer-supplied “smart phones” affect employees’ work-life balance. My first reaction was that work-life balance is a concept I haven’t heard much about lately. During the recession workers have been more focused on hanging onto their jobs at all costs – even cutting back to part time and reducing their salaries. But work-life balance? I haven’t seen people come out from under their desks and ask for that. Sure, there’s grumbling about long hours, work-related stress, and just-wait-until-this-recession-is-over-when-I’ll-look-for-another-job – but “balance” appears to be a dream right now for the distant future.
That being said, the issue of how smart phones affect work-life balance is an interesting one. When you accept or are assigned a PDA or Blackberry from your boss, how much of your life are you surrendering to your career? I can appreciate that fast-trackers like the idea of being on-call 24/7. An excellent example of how that works can be found in the movie, “The Devil Wears Prada,” where a career ladder-climbing fashion assistant always puts her personal life after the demands of her boss. But what about real life? What happens when you live your life on-call?
What does “on-call” can mean to you? If you categorize yourself as a 24/7 smart phone carrier, work issues will interrupt your movie, vacation, or son’s soccer game. Is this annoying, or do you just accept it as the way it is?
What does your business smart phone mean to those around you? What does your husband say when you leave the table at the restaurant during your anniversary dinner? Or how about your kids – do they “get it” that your work comes before them? Really?
The human mind is complicated. When it’s filled with only one thing (e.g., work), your creativity around that one thing will become stifled. Your brain needs to breathe! Only when you take a break and forget about work for awhile will you become more productive at your work. Really!
So when you interview for your next position, be sure to ask what is expected of you in the after-hours. Will you be assigned a smart phone? Then decide if this is the way you want to live your life before accepting a job offer. Meg Montford, Career Coach

I am bushed….just finished resume of entrepreneurial CEO and I have deadline for a CFO tomorrow. 5 am here I come

Busy Busy Busy

(My note – While this is not going to eliminate the need for a résumé, and the résumé as we know it today is not going away anytime soon, this may well become mainstream. Additionally, this company interview takes place after the screening of traditional résumé and the normal culling out process). Marty Weitzman – Gilbert Resumes

Get ready for a closeup: your next job interview might be on webcam. Looking to save time and money, companies are turning to video-chat software as a cheap, low-hassle way to vet job candidates. That means a growing number of people looking for work are meeting their prospective new bosses not at the office but in the comfort of their own home.

Naturally, the transition from in-person to online isn’t without its hiccups. Fuzzy transmissions, dropped calls (especially on wireless networks) and unusual disruptions are all par for the course. Tip No. 1: Get your dog out of barking range before you start the interview. (We’ll return to the pointers in a bit.)

What’s the draw? Largely money. Last year, as executives at online retailer Zappos.com looked to cut expenses, they noticed how much the firm spent on travel. In HR alone, it easily cost $1,000 a pop to fly out job candidates and put them up for the night. The firm had used Skype internally, so about six months ago, recruiters started trying it for interviews.

Their opinion: a video link does a pretty good job of replacing an in-person meeting — and in a way that a phone call can’t. “If you see facial expressions and body language, you have a different sense of what a person is saying,” says recruiting manager Christa Foley. Now, instead of flying out 20 finalists for a job, the company first screens with Skype and then brings in only the best two or three candidates.

Job seekers are hopping on board too. Last spring, after Stephen Bhadran got laid off, he quickly realized there were more openings for computer programmers in Dallas, Atlanta and Los Angeles than in South Florida, where he lived. So he cast a wide net — and got a bite from the University of California, Los Angeles. The university wanted to interview him but wouldn’t pay the airfare. “I was laid off and running out of funds,” says Bhadran. “I couldn’t fly on my own dime.” He suggested interviewing by Skype. He got his request — and the job.

Things don’t always run smoothly. Bobby Fitzgerald, a restaurateur who has been interviewing job candidates by Skype since March, has had his share of amusements. For instance: the candidate who leaned forward while he spoke, giving Fitzgerald an intimate view of his nose. Another, a college senior, didn’t bother cleaning up his dorm room before the interview; the mess was painfully visible in the background.

And then there was the dog that wouldn’t stop barking. Fitzgerald cut the interview short and said he’d have to reschedule. Did the disruption influence his decision? “Well,” he says, “a big part of management is handling problems as they arise.”

Still, webcam interviews are entirely worth it, he says. Fitzgerald runs restaurants in four states and likes to hire from the nation’s top culinary and hospitality schools. It’s rare that he, the job candidate and the job are all in the same time zone. And the benefit of video-interviewing for him isn’t just saved money — it’s also saved time. “More than once, I’ve flown someone in and within an hour, I realize it’s not a fit,” he says. “But I’m stuck with that person for six more hours.”

So what should you do if you’re asked to interview by Skype — or even brave enough to suggest it yourself?

First off, realize that we perceive people differently through a camera than we do in person. Bill McGowan, a former news anchor who now trains people to go on TV, starts his list of pointers with lighting: whether you’re sitting in your kitchen or an office borrowed from a friend, make sure there’s no bright light (like from a window) behind you. That will only darken your face. When your interviewer is talking, it’s fine to look at his image on the screen, but when you answer, look at the camera. That’s how to make “eye contact.” Avoid wearing patterns and the color white, since we notice white spots on a screen first — you want your interviewer drawn to your teeth and eyes, not to your shirt. And don’t forget that what’s behind you is visible too. “It’s best to put away the Mad Men bar,” says McGowan.

Next, think about framing. Sitting flush with a plain white wall will make you look like you’re in a police lineup, so angle your knees to the corner of your computer screen, and then turn your head slightly back to look at the camera. Sit tall in your chair, but not too close to the camera: the first three buttons of your shirt should be visible, or else you risk looking like a floating head, counsels Priscilla Shanks, a coach for broadcast journalists and public speakers. Most important, do a dry run with a friend to check your color, sound and facial expressions — neutral often comes off as glum onscreen.

After all that, don’t forget that this is still a job interview. Even though you’re not meeting face to face, dress as though you are. When you “walk in,” have your résumé ready — this time, as an e-mail attachment. And don’t forget to do all the standard prep work. Are you ready to talk about your greatest weakness?

Though that’s not to say you can’t acknowledge the medium. This past summer, Deanna Reed, principal of the Marie Murphy School in suburban Chicago, started doing Skype interviews and has already considered candidates from as far away as Asia. “The time difference was so great, it was like 1 in the morning for him,” she says about a teacher in Japan. “I said, ‘Oh, you had to get on your suit in the middle of the night?’ And he said, ‘No, I have my pajamas on the bottom.’ He was fun — he had a real sense of humor.” Even over video, it’s possible to make a great first impression.   Time/Barbara Kiviat

Marty Weitzman
Gilbert Resumes
800 967 3846

Career Conference – Online Identity

Home from an energizing and enlightening career conference hosted by Career Directors International. Great seeing old friends and participating in mastermind strategy sessions with other industry leaders.

• Participated in comprehensive workshop on the necessity of knowing your online identity and techniques required to overcome negative information.

• Brainstormed on cutting edge résumé and cover letter techniques.

• Collaborated on Linkedin bio strategy and value of Linkedin as a primary job search tool.

It is clear that the job market is challenging, but with the right tools and perseverance today’s job seekers can tilt the odds in their favor and reduce the time to find a new position.

Marty Weitzman
Gilbert Resumes
800 967 3846

Career Conference – Online Identity

Home from an energizing and enlightening career conference hosted by Career Directors International. Great seeing old friends and participating in mastermind strategy sessions with other industry leaders.

• Participated in comprehensive workshop on the necessity of knowing your online identity and techniques required to overcome negative information.

• Brainstormed on cutting edge résumé and cover letter techniques.

• Collaborated on Linkedin bio strategy and value of Linkedin as a primary job search tool.

It is clear that the job market is challenging, but with the right tools and perseverance today’s job seekers can tilt the odds in their favor and reduce the time to find a new position.

Marty Weitzman
Gilbert Resumes
800 967 3846