5 Things Hiring Managers Want From Job Seekers

5 Things Hiring Managers Want From Job Seekers 5 Things Hiring Managers Want From Job Seekers Has your job search only been met with frustration in 2014? Wouldn’t it be great to start the new year with a new job? Let’s assume you have all the experience, knowledge and skills necessary for role you seek. You might think that's all that should be important. But then your applications get ignored, and the answers you do get amount to a pile of rejections.  You might ask yourself: “What’s wrong with this system?”   Step back, and use this season to get a better sense of the process in which you are engaged. Try looking at it from the vantage point of human resources screeners and hiring mangers.  When you forget your own frustrations and focus instead on how to make those of the hiring manager disappear, you’ll turn your  résumé  and your presence into presents that every hiring manager will prize. The intent here isn’t to garner pity for those who control the hiring process, but rather to understand the world as they experience it and use this understanding to create a professional persona that will be both refreshing and valued. First and foremost, remember that for all the talk of nameless, faceless hiring processes, behind the veil are real human beings who are besieged by far too many things to do in a day, with limited resources to get them done.  They see scores of cover letters daily, each boasting how great their authors are for the job. But rarely do these letters actually build the case and lead them to make that conclusion for themselves. Hiring managers see candidates who present themselves variously as entitled, desperate, inarticulate, rude and disrespectful. Hint: When you can avoid all of these things, you are well on your way to making friends and allies among those who can really be of great help to you. Keep in mind that there are a few elements that HR staff and hiring managers regularly have to deal with:Applicants blithely sending in their  résumés for jobs for which they aren’t remotely qualified.Applicants bending themselves into pretzels to try to be whatever the hiring manager wants them to be, rather than telling their own story in a compelling fashion. For example, take the person who at one moment describes himself as a self-starter lone-wolf type, and then goes on to talk about how he relishes working as part of a team. Define your narrative and stick to it, and don’t contradict yourself!Almost every candidate claims to have excellent communications skills  â€" and then they demonstrate quite the opposite by making simple spelling and grammatical mistakes.Applicant tracking systems are stuffed with  résumés that are slapped together with little care and others  using the same standard Word templates that everyone else uses. There are countless  résumés that  con vey lots of data but offer no clear narrative. At the other extreme, hiring managers encounter over-the-top, professionally composed  résumés  with form and  content clearly not those of the candidate himself. Hiring managers cringe when they take the trouble to actually phone screen a potentially good candidate, only to find someone who is "too smart by half." These are the people who say that something like salary is “negotiable” without giving a more reasonable, if not more revealing, answer.Hiring managers are bored out of their minds when someone talks for five minutes nonstop in response to a simple icebreaker question like, “tell me about yourself.” With the above factors in mind, here’s what you can do to make yourself a truly valued candidate: 1. Can the canned or over-produced cover letter and  résumé. Take pains to make sure each sentence actually conveys information in a compelling, articulate fashion. And avoid the overworked cliches, like, “I was excited to see your opening.”   2. Don’t play games or waste time. Listen carefully for clues to the kind of information that the decision makers need, and respond in a forthright, honest fashion. Yes, they want to get to know you, but they probably don’t care about what you minored in when you were in college in the ‘80s. 3. Do your homework.  This is true not only at the interview stage, but even at the beginning. Show that you’ve researched the company and why you want to work there. (Hint: It's more than a paycheck!) Don’t ask about things you can and should find out for yourself! Job interviews are anything but casual “get to know you” networking meetings. If you are invited in, you can bet that the HR team, hiring manager and perhaps others have thoroughly evaluated your background. They expect you to research them, the company, their challenges and competition. Failing to do so can be seen as a sign of disrespect and laziness  â€"  neither of which are highly valued qualities for potential new hires. 4. Understand and convey your personal brand and value. Don’t just claim you are different and better than your competition. Show how and why this is the case. Demonstrate how you can make a difference and why you find the job interesting. 5. Tell your story  â€"  not the story you think someone else wants to hear. This is partly about being authentic, but it's also about creating a clear narrative that portrays the arc of your career bending toward the opportunity at hand. When you present your case in a clear and compelling way and focus on meeting the needs of the hiring authority, your job search will take giant strides toward a happy conclusion. Happy hunting! Arnie Fertig, MPA, is passionate about helping his  Jobhuntercoach  clients advance their careers by transforming frantic “I’ll apply to anything” searches into focused hunts for “great fit” opportunities. He brings to each client the extensive knowledge he gained when working in HR staffing and managing his boutique recruiting firm.

How to Know if Quitting Your Jobs a Good Idea - The Muse

How to Know if Quitting Your Jobs a Good Idea - The Muse How to Know if Quitting Your Jobs a Good Idea If you’ve ever dreamed about speaking your mind to your horrible boss and then walking out, head held high, you’re not alone. Enticing as it is to fantasize about sticking it to the man (or woman) who’s largely responsible for making your life miserable, few of us actually act on these impulses- and for good reason. Burning bridges and acting without a modicum of professionalism isn’t recommended. And so, whether it’s a bad manager or a disorganized company with a questionable mission, we stay. We’re essentially in limbo, not happy but not quite miserable enough to leave. We sit in meetings, mentally rehearsing our parting shots to our sarcastic boss, grumpy co-workers, and high-maintenance customers. After all, they’re obviously the problem, right? Sometimes it’s as cut and dry as that, but it’s not always the case. Blaming other people or the company itself for your dissatisfaction without ever stopping to consider if the problem is you is a dangerous move. And so is just quitting your job if you haven’t fully thought things through. Over the past decade of assisting professionals in transitioning to new roles, I’ve confirmed that career happiness (or lack thereof) depends on a number of different factors- it’s not always about good or bad co-workers. To help you get a more complete picture, I’ve developed a three-part framework to help you decide if, in the infamous words of the Clash, “Should I stay or should I go?” Part 1: What’s the Problem? What tasks, activities, and projects occupy most of my day? If I were performing those same activities with different people within my same company, would I be happy? What if I were performing those activities with the same team in a different organization? Sometimes unhappiness in one area (you sit in an extremely loud area of the open office, your regional manager is intolerable) colors your entire work experience, and before you know it, you're going from, “I hate the quarterly supervisor’s visit” to “I hate my job! I need to get out of here.” But what happens when you put your emotions (and their source) in perspective. Realizing you love your team but hate taking customer complaints is valuable info, as is knowing that your daily commute is causing you mental anguish. Of course, if your list includes literally everything about your job- your micromanaging boss, the work itself, the CEO, the location, your compensation, limited perks, and so on- then it may really not be you that’s the problem Part 2: How Long Has the Problem Persisted? When I think back over the past six to 12 months, are there similar patterns of unhappiness? Have I always been unhappy in this position, or is this new? If I haven’t always felt this way, can I trace my unhappiness to a particular incident? There are bound to be ups and downs no matter where you are. If you’re an accountant, tax time’s always going to be a stressful period. If you’re a teacher, quarterly progress reports may always make you slightly crazed. If your team is being restructured, you can expect to feel some turmoil during the transition. If your dissatisfaction’s relatively new, it may be a blip on the radar that’ll resolve itself over time, particularly if you can trace your discontent to a temporary situation, like a co-worker going on leave, or a new boss bumbling along as he finds his way. Sometimes, though, your job is just a bad fit. If you’ve never really been satisfied in your current position, expecting things to “get better” on their own is probably unrealistic. And if there’s nothing that you can do personally to make your situation better, it probably is a signal that it’s time to leave. READY TO START LOOKING AROUND, JUST TO SEE WHAT'S OUT THERE? No harm in doing that! Especially when we know a ton of great companies hiring. Just click here Part 3: What Do You Want? What would my ideal work experience- activities, team members, company- look like? If I were in charge of this company, what three changes would I make immediately? By comparing your uncensored “ideal” to your “reality,” you can identify mismatches. Once you see those gaps, ask yourself, “How likely is it that this will change for the better?” If your first move as company president would be to fire the entire management staff and re-create the company’s product line, you’re in for an uphill battle. But if your top priority would be to pipe music in the employee cafeteria, you’ve got a better chance of finding lasting happiness at your current company, because your disconnects are relatively minor. Before you give up on your current company, see what you can salvage. It’s often much easier to transfer to a new role within your same team or company, than to start over from square one somewhere else. I’d love to say there’s an absolute “right” and “wrong” time to leave your company, but it’s not that easy. Choosing whether to quit is a multi-faceted decision that requires some serious reflection. These questions are a great start. Compare your reality with your dreams, and see how far off you are. The “ideal” position for you is out there somewhere, but finding it may be like moving across a chessboard: You might have to make a few lateral moves before you get headed in the right direction. Still trying to figure out your path? Ditch the confusion for clarity by downloading The Ultimate Guide to Finding the Career That Fits You. Here at The Muse, we love introducing you to people who can boost your career. We are working with this contributor on an affiliate basis (meaning we earn a little money when you choose to use their services), but rest assured that we don’t just work with anyone. When it comes to articles like this, we chose to work with this coach not because he wanted a Muse byline, but because his advice was truly awesome. Here’s to finding the career of your dreams!

What a Shift in the Supreme Court Could Mean for Recruitment

What a Shift in the Supreme Court Could Mean for Recruitment What a Shift in the Supreme Court Could Mean for Recruitment What a Shift in the Supreme Court Could Mean for Recruitment Rossheim With a new administration and Congress poised to take charge in Washington, many in the business community are pondering the possible impact on employers. The same anticipation surrounds the potential impact of new Supreme Court nominees on 2017 recruitment and the staffing industry. If President Donald Trumps first nomination to the Supreme Court is conservative and pro-business, the court may return to an approximation of its composition before the February 2016 death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. Trumps first nominee might not make a difference; Kennedy would still be the swing vote, says Jo Bennett, a labor and employment partner with Schnader Harrison Segal Lewis. But if any of the courts three eldest members are replaced during Trumps term, the court is likely to shift to a decisively conservative majority. Staffing firms should take note. A lot of our Supreme Court justices are elderly, and who is put in there will be pivotal, says Rena McDonald, attorney and owner of McDonald Law Group in Las Vegas. Heres how some Supreme Court scenarios could play out for 2017 staffing. Employers may be less motivated to curb W-2 employment. In recent years, employers have been reaching out to staffing agencies because of all the regulatory requirements in how they treat employees, says Nancy Hammer, senior government affairs policy counsel at the Society for Human Resource Management. With a more conservative top court, staffing firms could see some of their clients keep more jobs in-house. While Hammer sees this impact as very industry-specific, were going to see changes in how employers behave if they are relieved of some of that burden. Government may retrench on co-employment claims. A more conservative court may back off on controlling the workplace, going back to existing statute, says Hammer. Joint employment is at the top of the list, because Browning-Ferris was a real sea change. Staffing agencies have a fear of being considered a joint employer. In Browning-Ferris, the National Labor Relations Board(NLRB) opened the door to the interpretation of supplier-customer relationships as joint employment arrangements. I think the Federal government will go back to a more traditional view: that the host employer must exercise control for there to be joint employment, says Fiona Coombe, director of legal and regulatory research at Staffing Industry Analysts. Maybe employers shouldnt fear joint employment but rather recognize that it exists, adds Coombe, and ensure that their staffing employees fall outside the criteria for co-employment. More employers may be able to count on arbitration to resolve disputes with employees. In many cases, under President Obama, theNLRB ruled against employers who attempted to force employees to arbitrate disputes. The evolving NLRB and Supreme Court may be friendlier to arbitration as an acceptable alternative to expensive legal battles as a means for resolving disputes between employers and employees, Hammer says. This could, in turn, give companies one less reason to turn to staffing firms. The legal and regulatory gap between the U.S. and progressive states may widen. With a conservative Federal government and dozens of blue states heading in opposite directions, the patchwork regulatory environment of these divided United States is a possible source of concern for both staffing firms and their clients. Differences among workers rights in Federal, state and local jurisdictions may well be a greater strategic consideration in coming years, says Coombe. Across the country, for example, there are now 39 jurisdictions, cities and states, with respect to paid sick leave. This creates a lot of work for employers, and its a selling point for staffing firms. Its not just the extra pay; its administering requests for leaves and ensuring coverage for workers on leave. Although the gap between Federal paid-leave mandates and the requirements of some states like California may widen over the next four years, employers who have treated employees better have gotten payback in the form of employee loyalty, says Deborah Widiss, a professor of law at Indiana University. Less aggressive protection for workers on sexual and gender orientation. I do think the configuration of the court will be important to cases involving discrimination by sexual orientation, says Widiss. If the court is less aggressive about protecting the workplace rights of people with minority sexual orientations, staffing firms may feel competitive pressure to accommodate client companies that have discriminatory hiring policies. Lower court appointments could accelerate change. Supreme Court replacements are not the only judicial appointments of interest to staffing firms and their customers. The labor and management law agenda is shaped first in Federal trial courts. With many of his nominations stalled by partisan politics, President Obama leaves office with approximately 100 vacant judges benches in Federal district and appellate courts. Thats about twice as many lower-court vacancies as were left by President George W. Bush. With the GOP in control of the Senate, President Trump is likely to see his judicial nominations confirmed relatively quickly. Appointments in the lower Federal courts matter a lot too, says Widiss. Were likely to see more pro-business judges.

Career Directors International Offers Free 2012 Teleclasses For Self-Employed Resume Writers and Career Coaches

Career Directors International Offers Free 2012 Teleclasses For Self-Employed Resume Writers and Career Coaches Career Directors International Offers Free 2012 Teleclasses For Self-Employed Resume Writers and Career Coaches Tactical Biz Tech Buss will assist professionals stay abreast with new technologies and strategies to help their businesses grow. Presenters from LinkedIn, BeKnown, Job-Hunt.org, and RileyGuide will share, along with Eric Enge, author of The Art of SEO. The Next Practices teleclass will focus on successful business strategies for the self-employed to maximize productivity. Key areas of focus will be pricing and selling, marketing, blogging, customer management, and financial planning. Presenters include Pat Schuler, Alexis Grant, Karen Callahan, and Montell McDowell. The Honing Your Craft teleclass will offer practical tips on resume writing, career coaching, social job search, online identity and reputation management, and salary negotiation coaching. Presenters include Laura Labovich and Miriam Salpeter, authors of the soon-to-be-released 100 Conversations for Career Success, and TORI-Award Winner, Donald Burns. For more information on the variety of free calls for CDI members, visit careerdirectors.com/tele_free.htm.Master the art of closing deals and making placements. Take our Recruiter Certification Program today. We're SHRM certified. Learn at your own pace during this 12-week program. Access over 20 courses. Great for those who want to break into recruiting, or recruiters who want to further their career.

Software Engineer Job Description and Pay

Software Engineer Job Description and Pay Software Engineer Job Description and Pay Good news for software engineers: The coming year is likely to be a good one for you, similar to the previous one. Demand is very high for software engineers and software developers, and IT managers often find it challenging to hire them. Top candidates may receive multiple offers and are not on the market  for more than one or two weeks. In addition, software engineer jobs are projected to grow 24 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations.   Let's take a close look at a software engineer salary and job description. Software engineer salary Perhaps it’s not surprising given the demand for these IT professionals that, according to the 2019 Robert Half Technology Salary Guide, the salary midpoint for software developers is $124,500. You can use our Salary Calculator to adjust an entry-level software engineer salary for your city. Software engineer job description If only we could all be software engineers, right? In case you’re wondering what it takes to make it in this specialty, here’s a list of qualifications: Broad information systems experience, as well as a bachelor’s degree in computer science, electrical engineering, computer engineering or a related discipline. Several years’ experience in specific programming languages, such as C#/C++, Java or Visual Basic .NET, depending on the employer. Some employers also seek SQL skills. Excellent communication and problem-solving skills, and the ability to work well in a team environment. A typical software engineer job description includes: Designing and creating engineering specifications for software programs and applications Working with quality assurance to develop software test plans Collaborating with hardware engineers to assess and test hardware and software interaction Implementing a specific development methodology Documenting software specifications It's not just about the money A few final words of advice for software engineers in the job market: While you’re in demand, remember it’s not always about the money. Candidates often only focus on bonus or salary, but it’s also important to look at the overall strength of a firm, and the company’s technology and leadership to get a complete picture. This post has been updated to reflect more current information.

The Secret To Success at Clorox Is...

The Secret To Success at Clorox Is... The Secret To Success at Clorox Is...   5 Modern Career Skills & Advice That You Don’t Learn In College The Clorox Company seems to have no problem with diversity. They have a diverse range of products- from bleach, to chapstick, to cat litter. And this diversity carries over into their core values. So what does Benno Dorer want his employees to bring to work every day? All the 2017 Highest Rated CEO wants you to bring to work is your best, unique self. He doesn’t want you to be cookie-cutter. “We want people to add to us as a company versus just blend in,” says Dorer. According to Dorer, The Clorox Company knows that because their customer base is diverse, their employee base has to be too. Dorer says reading his company’s reviews on Glassdoor helps his leadership team to foster the working-environment and company culture that employees take pride in. Glassdoor reviews on The Clorox Company say that employees feel “Like Clorox is a family,” “That the leaders are inspiring,” and as though “They are constantly challenged.” Dorer says he loves to hear such positive reviews. “We always look at ourselves as a people company. And if that matters than people feel important, empowered, and accountable… that’s exactly the type of environment that we want to create.” Employees at The Clorox Company rave about the great work-life balance that is inherent to the company’s culture. Dorer says people at Clorox take great pride in their work and results, but follows up with “if that means people can leave the office earlier, all the better.” If a widely-approved CEO, great company culture, and a challenging, yet rewarding work environment sounds like you, look for open positions at The Clorox Company,  

6 Great Books About Models and Modeling

6 Great Books About Models and Modeling 6 Great Books About Models and Modeling Model fans are rewarded with a more intimate view of a model’s life than ever before. With the introduction of social media, models have become major celebrities who offer their fans tips and tricks to mimic their looks and style. Thanks to this fascination into the lives of models, books about models and the modeling industry are more popular than ever before. Modeling books range from instructional to visual, ensuring there truly is something for everyone. 01Nigel Barker’s Models of Influence Victor Boyko/Getty Images   Created by Kate Moss, in collaboration with creative director Fabien Baron, Jess Hallett, and Jefferson Hack, Kate Moss book is a highly personal retrospective of her career, tracing her evolution from “new girl with potential” to one of the most iconic supermodels models of all time.Often held responsible for starting the waif movement in the modeling industry, At just 5 7 Kate Moss broke stereotypes and became a giant among other Amazonian supermodels like Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington,  and Claudia Schiffer.The Kate Moss Book is a gorgeous collection of iconic photos and photos that have never been seen before that Kate shares with her fans from her own personal collection.