Juggling Multiple Job Searches

One jobseeker may get an offer too soon: I cast a wide net in my job search and interviewed with some companies that I am not that interested in just to practice and get out there. Well, I am far along in the process with some of these and just beginning with my first choice companies. I am afraid that an offer will come along that I don't really want. At the same time, in this market I am afraid to turn down a sure thing with just the hope of something better. What can I do to buy time?

In this market, more candidates are casting a very wide net with their job search with good reason. Hiring targets change constantly as budgets get slashed, companies get acquired or restructured, or circumstances change the needs over time as firms take longer and longer to decide. The downside of applying to a lot of places is that it is hard to control the pace of the search. Some companies move through the process faster than others. You may find that you are in the final rounds at one company and just starting the first round elsewhere. If your first choice is the slower company, how do you slow down the faster search without seeming disinterested?

Just as you negotiate salary, here you need to negotiate for time. The same rules of negotiation apply: know who you are negotiating with - their wants, their constraints - and frame your requests accordingly. Prospective employers want their company to be your first choice. They want to know that you're excited and genuinely interested in the position. They also have very real time and budget constraints. Maybe you are filling a spot for someone who is leaving in two weeks and they need to have the replacement there next week to transition. Maybe their fiscal year ends in two weeks so if they don't hire for this spot before then they lose that space in the budget. When a company pushes a process through quickly or pushes for a decision quickly, they may have good reasons and not just giving you a hard time.

Therefore, ask about timing for all employers as you go through the process. How quickly do you expect to make a decision? When do you need this person to start? How many rounds/ how many people will be involved in the decision? Once you know that a firm is interested in you, these are all fair questions and will help you know how quickly the process may move for all companies in your pipeline so you can effectively juggle your schedule and negotiate for time.

You can go to your first choice company and let them know what is happening with the other company. Don't be pushy but let them know that you have another company who is interested and close to a decision. Get a commitment or at least a good estimate from your first choice as to when you will hear from them. Then you know how much time you need to negotiate for. You also remind the first choice company that you are desirable on the market!

At the same time, ask your second choice for the time you need. Reiterate your interest, but let them know that you have committed to certain meetings and don't want to cut these short. I do not recommend continuing to interview with companies that you are not genuinely interested in because it wastes everyone's time. But if you would potentially accept an offer at a firm but it is just a lower priority, it is worth negotiating for more time so you can make an informed decision. Your second choice may become more desirable as you learn more about it (or about your first choice). In this way, negotiating for time means a more informed job search.

Caroline Ceniza-Levine helps people find fulfilling jobs and careers, as the co-founder of SixFigureStart®, career coaching by former Fortune 500 recruiters. Caroline has recruited for leading companies in financial services, consulting, media, pharmaceutical/ healthcare, and technology. She is the co-author (along with Donald Trump, Jack Canfield and others) of the best-selling "How the Fierce Handle Fear: Secrets to Succeeding in Challenging Times" 2010; Two Harbors Press.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Caroline_Ceniza-Levine

Tips to Help You Customize Every Resume

Create a Master File, including everything you have to offer to any employer. Don't let this be a roadblock! It's just the on ramp. Start entering and keep entering as you think of other information that might interest an employer. This will never be "final" since it's a living document, growing throughout your career. You never delete anything from the Master File but you are always adding to it:

1. Format your existing resume to your advantage before you start to add things. If you've worked in one profession your whole career and steadily advanced, a chronological resume can be a winner. If you haven't had that kind of career, consider a functional resume or a hybrid so you can focus attention on what you bring to the job instead of your work history.

2. Add a summary - a paragraph that gives an overview of who you are professionally. This can be long and include more than you would ever send for any individual opportunity. Don't edit as you go. Just get every high level statement about you that you can offer into your Master File. If you wind up with 100 pages it doesn't matter. No one but you will ever see it all.

3. Add as many general objectives as there are for what you know you can do well. You should be able to think of several positions that you're qualified for and several industries where you have something to offer. Objectives are theirs, not yours. Each one is a Job Title in an industry.

Example: General Manager for a solar panel manufacturing company.

4. Show your skills. Use the keywords and search engine terms that you know employers are looking for. Showing them near the top of the resume will keep you from landing in the reject pile. Using the terms the company is looking for will keep you in the running whether your resume is being reviewed by a human or a machine. The skills that will stay in your customized resume are the ones that support the objective you use.

5. List your accomplishments in concise, bulleted paragraphs - two to five lines. This is the part that differentiates you and shows that you do more than just meet expectations. Start with the most powerful verb that fits and then mention the results. After that you can elaborate about how you did it.

Example: Decreased costs 40% for a large packaging machinery company by performing gap analysis in three days and implementing the highest priority changes over a two month period.

6. List your job experience as one-liners. Start with your job title because you are the product, not the companies you worked for or the dates and places that you worked for them. Follow your position title with the company name and location. Put the from and to dates out at the right margin. List your present or last job first and work backward.

7. List your education. If you are a recent graduate, show it right after your objective. A recent degree will explain light experience and avoid unreasonable expectations. If you have relevant experience from your jobs as you went to school, the recent degree will show you to be a real go getter with your eye on the prize. Most of the time, the degree is a company requirement for a position and it can go at the end.

Conclusion: When you find a position that interests you, it's a simple matter to turn a copy of your Master File into an excellent example of relevant clear, concise communication by deleting everything that does not apply from the copy of the Master File. You will get more interviews and you get interviews for the kinds of jobs you want. The hidden benefit in this process is that you will remember how good you are.

Got drama in your workplace? Drama comes from confusion and resulting dissatisfaction. Put a solid, structured business system and clear, concise communication in place and end the drama.

Joy Montgomery saves time and money with skilled business systems analysis and accompanying clear, concise communication in a way that strengthens teams - a friendly way. She puts you in a position to succeed with consistently satisfied customers and employees. She applies the same skills as a career coach.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joy_Montgomery

Tips To Help You In Your Search For A New Job

Many people despise the grueling process of searching for a new job but it can be easier than you think if you follow a few simple steps. With it becoming harder and harder to find a new job due to the lack of them you want to be sure your maximizing your search results by staying organized and dedicated. You don't want to become discouraged in your search so you should follow some rules in order to avoid this and get the most out of your job search.

The first thing you want to do is make sure that you have a killer, updated resume. You don't want you resumes cluttered with a bunch of work from your teenage years but instead want relevant work history to the type of job you're applying for. Your resume should be a testament to your professionalism regarding both your work history as well as your ability to put together a great resume with relevant information. It also doesn't hurt to buy some nice resume paper to print your resume on. You should make sure that you have ink and the printing capabilities to do this so that you can adjust your resume anytime you want according to the specific position you are applying for. With a great resume you will be on your way top job search ease in no time.

Organize the materials that you will use to determine what kind of position you are looking for. Filing information so that you can have easy access to it will help you to determine what information you need for a particular resume or interview. It is always better to know exactly what you want to say when attempting to get a particular job and having the right research and easy access to it will help you to achieve this.

Develop a realistic schedule for your search each day and stick to it. Plan certain times to deliver your resume as well as a certain time frame each day that you will use to make call backs to check on your applications. Having a set schedule to do everything in will not only help to alleviate stress from your job search but will also help you to stay used to carrying out daily activities as if you were still working. This can make the transition much easier on you and the lack of stress will help you land a great job in the end.

Making a quiet space for you to perform your search activities will also help you in your search. Being able to go to your space and having everything where you need it will greatly reduce job search stress. Organization is always key when searching for work

Finally, be sure you track each of your job search possibilities. Be sure to make adjustments to your schedule and your job application lists so that you are not doing unnecessary work and much stress will be eased.

Following these few simple tips will not only make the process of job searching easier but more enjoyable as well. Not to mention you will be much more likely to land the perfect job.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Syed_Abik

The Job Market in Central Europe

Since the European Union started to expand towards east, multiple Central and Eastern European countries profited from a wide range of investments from Western countries looking forward to enjoy the benefits of implementing branches in new economies with high possibilities of return and low competition. Thanks to that, the job market in Most of EU's new members (Slovenia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary) grew considerably since 2004 specially in the areas of finance and information technology.

After spending the last century being destroyed by wars and oppressed by a socialist unviable regime, the Central European nations were freed in the 90's, following the collapse of Soviet Union, but only from the year 2000 the job market could profit from this freedom as internet allowed multiple jobs to be done from remote locations, beneficing also from the announcement that the European Union would be enlarged, allowing most of the former socialist republics to ascend towards the region's Economic bloc.

Nowadays, virtually all banking sector in Central Europe is maintained by Western groups, which either installed their subsidiaries in the formerly socialist countries, or bought the banks which were already present in the region, partially or entirely, creating a whole new hierarchy of employment in these countries' financial sector.

The information technology also created a huge inflow of vacancies to the countries which had their economies stagnated for decades thanks to the failed socialist system: with lower costs of production (lower salaries, tax incentives, less burdens to the employer), and highly educated personnel, a hysteria of IT outsourcing could be witnessed in these countries, allowing major companies to cut their costs moving back offices firstly to countries as the Czech Republic and Hungary, spreading out later on as far as Lithuania and Bulgaria.

As many of these jobs created in the east reflected in cuts in the west, the inflow of expatriates from Europe and third-part countries to the new EU members grew considerably, and profiting from an easier work permit legislation, several IT professionals from other continents also came to join the job market revolution in central Europe, as well as locals, which, using the freedom of movement in the block could as well look for opportunities in different countries regionally.

Today, cities like Prague, Budapest and Sofia profit from a cosmopolitan and multinational job market, highly connected to the west with low cost airlines, as well as the traditional means of transportation (mostly by railways). These cities attract not only workers from the region where they are located, but also professionals from the West, considering the high standards of living of countries like Slovenia and the Czech Republic, which already surpassed former Western EU members in GDP per capita, such as Portugal.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jan_Baros

The Government Groom People For Jobs?

This is a question that popped up on a very popular site recently and here is an answer after some thought about it. More times than we would like to believe there is a good buddy system in place inside the government. People will get hired by who they know more often than anyone will tell you about.

Promotions are granted based on popularity in many instances. It is an exception and not the rule, so don't lose your mind here. All of this discussion leads back to the grooming question. The answer is, in some cases. Think about it, when you are at work some employees show natural leadership ability. When the manager notices the person's ability then they may start to train them for a position of more responsibility.

If that is considered grooming then it happens pretty often. Our schools are also grooming our children for the future so it isn't a bad thing. Often people consider grooming is a negative aspect of a working person. Bosses aren't always going to be there so their bosses need to prepare for the day employees move up or out. Grooming a person with a little aptitude for a higher calling will help with the transition.

If a valuable member leaves the workforce without much warning then production could drop and drop a lot in no time at all. We can use many analogies here; let's look at the most important position in football. When the quarterback goes down doesn't the remainder of the season look very bleak?

There are 32 professional teams and at most there are maybe 40-ish players that can play that position at that high of a level and then it drops off considerably. Well in business where the so called grooming does happen, there would be a similar effect. They need to prepare for the next generation of employees.

Is it fair to fellow employees? Not really because not all positions at a company have the same visibility as the next. A person working on an assembly line who comes in and works hard every day isn't going to impress the boss as much as someone who has the bosses ear at free will. There are jobs that require constant contact between the employees and of course the more exposure to the higher ranking person will put the lower ranking employee on top of others.

This sort of thing happens in all aspects of the government. It most definitely happens in the military. Meritorious promotions are given to those who go above the call of duty. All too often they go to people who don't really deserve the promotion, but are good talkers and seem to show up when there it's time to take credit for work that is done by others. War time is a completely different topic. We won't go there in this article.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Joseph_Flood

Summer Jobs at Ski Resorts

Many students find themselves without any money when the fall begins and they have to pay for back to school clothes, school supplies, textbooks, and backpacks. For those high school or university students out there who want to work through the summer months and make decent money to afford all that stuff, why not apply to a ski resort and get an exciting and fun job! Many ski resorts stay open year round and they hire fresh, students as help during the summer months. Not only are students a great way for ski resorts to get young, fresh assistance during busy tourism months, but it's also a great way for students to make great money and have a job they look forward to going to!

There are many different job positions available at different ski resorts. Not all jobs have to be outside in the snow and cold either, you can find jobs such as office administrative assistance, jobs in the resorts restaurant, jobs at the front desk of the ski resort greeting customers as they arrive, or as assistance renting out ski equipment. There are many other jobs as well which don't require you to spend all your time in the snow and cold.

For those of you who especially want to be in the great outdoors, there are many positions such as ski lift operators who are responsible for ensuring the ski left is functioning properly and you would also be responsible for assisting skiers onto the lift seat. If you are a good skier or snow boarder you could also get a position as a ski or snowboard instructor where you would give private lessons or teach groups. There are also ski park maintenance teams who ski around and ensure that there is no debris on the slopes, ensure all skiers are following the rules, and all slopes are functioning properly.

One of the great aspects of obtaining seasonal employment with ski resorts, is that usually is you continue coming back to work for that resort each summer, they continually raise your pay each year you come back so you can make more and more money each summer. So if you find yourself without any employment this summer, why not apply to your local ski resort and get a good paying job that you enjoy going to each day!

These jobs aren't just for students either! For all you professionals out there who would like a nice change of pace from your regular job, why not try out a fun and exciting position at your local ski resort? There are administrative jobs for professionals such as marketing, finances, and operations management as well as training positions such as a ski instructor and ski lift operator. A job at a ski resort is the perfect blend of work and fun!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jason_Kay

When Size Really Does Seem to Matter

In a tough and uncertain economic environment, it seems that size really does matter. A company large enough to be in the FTSE Top 100 quoted companies in the UK is clearly providing something that the general public either wants or needs. It's very status as a Blue Chip company means that, if necessary, it can raise capital quickly and relatively cheaply. This is a huge advantage if one either wants to expand at a faster rate or simply survive a sharp downturn in business.

Secondly, a very large organisation almost invariably depends on a very large workforce. Apart from providing a huge variety of different roles, a large workforce means plenty of opportunity for advancement as hundreds, if not thousands, of employees either retire every year or leave for other reasons.

A large and well diversified company also provides insurance against making the wrong decision early on. Different roles are suited to different personalities and temperaments and new entrants to the jobs market very often make a mistake and find they are stuck in a role which is not, in fact, suited to them at all. Those who find themselves in this position in a small company usually have to move to find a new role which is hopefully more suitable. In contrast, large corporations employ human resources specialists who can spot when a square peg is in a round hole and can rectify matters by finding a more suitable function within the company.

At the end of the day, big employers would prefer to retain staff even if it involves trying them in different positions. It is much more expensive and time consuming to recruit new employees rather than get the most out of existing personnel resources. Most of today's larger companies are really quite enlightened and recognise that happy staff make good staff.

A well established retail organisation will have a very wide variety of retail careers within their strong workforces. The staff we see in local stores are merely the tip of the iceberg. Behind them is an army of logistics personnel concerned with the distribution of stock, e-commerce and call centre staff and a wide variety of head office specialists handling areas like buying, marketing and human resources. Most big employers nowadays have their own recruitment website and it is well worth seeing how much attention they seem to pay towards personal development. This demonstrates the value they place on ensuring that individual employees are not wasting everybody's time by persevering with something to which they were never suited in the first place. It also aids staff retention levels by making sure that existing employees feel valued and are that they are maximising their potential.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Cal_Harvey

10 Things Successful Job Seekers Do to Get Employed Quicker

When I first came into recruitment, one of the things that interested me was why successful job seekers were successful. On initial analysis they were no better qualified, skilled or capable than any other human beings that they were applying against, and yet they got employed quicker, and in doing so applied for fewer jobs.

My research also led me to asking the question why we - recruitment and human resources - as an industry rejected good job applicants? Were there better techniques and tactics that these people were not applying, that conversely the successful job seekers were?

The answer to both question was yes, and here are the top ten issues that successful job seekers apply to get employed quicker.

1. They have a specific target job in mind: Just like successful people in life have specific goals, successful job seekers have specific jobs or roles in mind. These fulfil three employer questions: that they have the required skills, qualifications and experiences; that this position is the next logical step in their planned career path; that they have a next step in their career
2. They can communicate who they are and what they offer: they know what they offer, what the market seeks, and can communicate this to a potential employer. Many call this a lift pitch
3. They research the market: lets say that you were the worlds best driver of horse drawn carriages. Everyone you talked to today would tell you that there were few paying jobs in that market. Yet every day, unsuccessful job seekers go looking for jobs in their geography that don't exist, or won't pay them enough on which to live their lifestyle. The successful know what is being recruited for, who is recruiting, and at what rates
4. They do some research on that employer: when they find what looks like a suitable job advert, they research that employer. The best often do this at multiple levels, through both reading the companies website and news reports, through to networking themselves into and around that organisation
5. They engage with employers BEFORE they apply: many professional employees get confused by the new world of recruitment. They think that the whole world is driven by job boards. Ah, wrong! People still employ people. While possibly utilising multiple techniques to find new potential positions, at the core of their search and application technique, successful job seekers always engage at the human level with a potential employer, often BEFORE they apply
6. They only apply for positions that they are suitable for: one of the statistics that most struck me, was that the most successful job seekers often applied for fewer than 10 positions, and yet the least successful often had statistics showing 100's or 1000's of applications. The successful only applied for the jobs where they knew they fitted the requirements. If you have applied for and been rejected from more than 20 positions, there is something wrong in your application technique
7. They get close to the hiring manager: as people employ people, then the most important person in any successful employment exercise - yes, beyond the successful applicant themselves - is the hiring manager. The hiring manager always has the final hire or reject decision. Successful employees get closer to the hiring manager early
8. They offer more than what is on their CV/resume: while many try to over write their CV's and resumes, trying to claim skills, experiences, or at worst qualifications that they neither have done or don't have, successful job seekers reveal more of the depth of their capability as their application progresses. This means that they don't over claim, they just have more communicated capability around the claimed skills
9. They know what they are worth: over 20% of successful job applicants fail to get the position because they didn't ask the first questions first: what could and should this job pay in this market, and what does this position actually pay? Before you apply, know what its worth in the current market, and hence what you could and can negotiate with that employer
10. They listen to feedback: this is a key issue for unsuccessful job seekers, that in my experience they never apply, and yet the successful are always aware of. The unsuccessful stop listening, and therefore stop learning, and hence become less successful in their now elongated job search. The wise and successful listen to both market experts, and learn to apply what works for them

Job search success is not a mere bagatelle in any market, and success has as much to do with approach and technique, as it has to do with what you offer and the type of position you seek.

So if any job will do, and just applying to adverts is your choice, then expect to go beyond the average current unemployment time scale of 37 weeks. But if you know what you want, and apply some easily learnt techniques that communicate your value clearly to a potential employer, then job search success can easily be yours. It really is just a matter of choice, application and resultant success.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ian_R_McAllister

Success Story - A Transitioning Veteran

Steve was coming home to California from Texas after 8 years in the Army and a couple deployments. He was in the habit of making good decisions. One of his best was to finish his Bachelor's degree in Computer Science while he was still in the service, leaving his GI Bill for a Masters Degree. Another good decision was to volunteer to do some mobile applications before he got out. Steve positioned himself well for the transition.

In his transition assistance class, the other members told him not to bother to go back to California because he would not find a Veteran-friendly employer or career coach in California. Steve took that as a dare and got online. His success story is a big LinkedIn success story. He found a Veteran-friendly career coach on LinkedIn and reached out, not knowing if they would help someone who wasn't already local. They got to work while he was still on active duty. LinkedIn research connected him to appropriate groups and helped the coach make good connections for Steve.

By the time Steve was ready to use some of his leave to head to California and do some recon, he had four interviews set up for the kinds of jobs he wanted, not for the low-hanging fruit. He knew where his real value was and he knew exactly which weakness would come up in interviews. He didn't have years of mobile apps development experience. He just had a couple projects and his degree. To balance that, time as a recruiter had allowed Steve to develop his interpersonal skills. Some software developers don't have that as a strength. So, he was prepared to focus attention on his strengths - great customer-facing skills, a passion for the career, and a willingness to learn and learn fast.

The interviews helped him decide which direction would work best for him and his family. There were considerations about company size, industry, location, housing availability within budget, transportation. Considering all of the options, Steve focused his attention on the job that best fit his goals. He started that job while still on leave and receiving his last checks from the Army in a job market that seemed dismal and an area where Veterans think they won't be welcomed.

Conclusion: Keeping your eye on the goal and making sure that you use clear, concise communication to market yourself as a product will make you rise to the top. Don't let the naysayers discourage you. Identify your value and make the decision to use all the tools at your disposal so you can take a giant step toward success.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joy_Montgomery