Dear Friends:
This is the last Gilbert Gazette for 2008 and I want to wish a happy and healthy holiday season and New Year to you and yours.
As we face a poor economy, with widespread layoffs and for many an uncertain future for our current positions, I have selected several articles that can help you weather the proverbial storm. For those of us in secure career situations, let's remember to help those who seek our assistance.
Sincerely,
Marty Weitzman, Executive Director
Gilbert resumes
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1. Six Ways to prepare for a layoff.
2. Job Boards for 50 and over
3. Put your job-search eggs in many baskets
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Six Ways to Prepare for a Layoff
CareerBuilder
Bill Healy never saw it coming. The head of a successful division of a major financial institution, he'd just been interviewed for his company's newsletter when he got the call. He was to be one of the 103 employees let go as part of a corporate restructuring.
Healy felt blind-sided and betrayed. "I had over 15 years of service and even sat on a restructuring task force," he relates. "I had no idea I was vulnerable."
When layoffs are ahead, you need to watch your behind. Here are six ways to prepare and protect yourself:
1. Get Organized.
Print and take home personal files on your computer and locate copies of your performance appraisals and other personnel records. Review your status reports and project files to help you update your resume so that it reflects all of your recent accomplishments and newly acquired skills. Think about what you might want to do next and whom you might want to use as a reference.
2. Get What's Coming to You.
Take advantage of any perks and benefits to which you are entitled. Schedule your checkups and tend to any dental or medical issues while you're still insured -- especially if you've already met your deductibles.
If you've got a flexible spending account, turn in all outstanding claims to avoid forfeiting any balances. In addition, know exactly how much vacation and floating holiday time you've used and make sure you've taken credit for your holidays. (Most companies will not honor unused holidays, but will pay you for any remaining vacation.)
3. Get Connected.
Spend at least one to two hours a day networking. Call your friends, former co-workers and clients. Attend your professional association meetings. Talk to headhunters and corporate recruiters. This is a good time to help others who may be helpful to you in the future.
4. Get Searching.
Update or prepare your resume. In addition to networking with colleagues and recruiters, visit the Web sites of any relevant trade and professional associations as well as companies where you'd like to work. Check print and online job postings to see what the requirements of your desired next job are and note any gaps in your experience or skill base.
5. Get an Exit Strategy.
The HR folks will be working from a script when they give you the news. Make sure you know what you should say, too. If no information about severance pay has been communicated, check the company policy manual to find out what is standard practice. Do not agree to sign anything then and there; say that you need to review the proposed agreement with your legal and financial advisers.
The National Employee Rights Institute contends that employees have more bargaining power than they realize. And it's not only the amount of severance pay that is negotiable. Thoroughly assess your situation, so that you can negotiate aspects of the termination that will have the most value for you. For example, if the layoff occurs shortly before a bonus will be paid or before a service anniversary that would increase your vesting rights in any company-sponsored retirement or profit-sharing plans, prepare a case that you should be entitled to receive that payment or additional vesting.
Also think about receiving your severance payment as salary continuation rather than a lump sum agreement. Salary continuation often allows for a continuation of disability benefits and also lets you answer "yes" when asked if you're still employed.
6. Get Fired Up!
When layoffs are looming, the best course of action is to stay positive and place yourself in a position of strength. Remember, change is an accelerating mechanism. It can bring about hardship and anxiety if you try to avoid it, but tremendous opportunity if you accept and welcome it.
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Job boards abound for retirees, 50-and-overs
by Dave Carpenter
While looking for work in an economic downturn can be challenging, it's easier today than it used to be -- and that may hold truest of all for the retirement set.
Those who are in or near retirement and looking for work can find abundant online resources aimed at them, which may prove invaluable as the ongoing financial crisis drives many back to the workplace or keeps them there longer.
Many in fact steer clear of mainstream job-search Web sites such as CareerBuilder and Monster because they think their chances are better when their "maturity" is specifically targeted, according to Scott Wingerter, chief operating officer for RetireeWorkforce.com, a job board for retired workers. "Mature workers won't generally apply for positions (advertised) for the general population -- they fear age discrimination," he said. "So they come to boards like ours."
Here are some online resources for retirees looking for part-time or full-time work, many of which target anyone 50 or over:
-- RetirementJobs.com (http://www.retirementjobs.com) has more than 30,000 listings nationwide from companies specifically seeking candidates older than 50. A combination job board, adviser and coach for boomers and seniors looking for work. RetirementJobs also partners with AARP.
-- RetireeWorkforce.com (http://www.retireeworkforce.com) also focuses on the 50-plus job candidate. Currently gets about 200,000 visitors a month, doubled from a year ago and up sharply during the financial crisis.
-- RetiredBrains.com (http://www.retiredbrains.com) is a resource for older boomers, seniors, retirees and those about to retire who are looking to find jobs, volunteer opportunities, educational resources and retirement information.
-- Retirement Jobs Online (http://www.retirement-jobs-online.com) offers advice about online retirement jobs, helping retirees evaluate the various ways to use the Internet to find work.
-- AARP offers both a job search engine (http://jobs.aarp.org) and a National Employer Team (http://www.aarp.org/employerteam) which lists employers that are actively recruiting mature workers nationwide. Most are corporations; also cites three government agencies: the Internal Revenue Service, the
Peace Corps and the Small Business Administration's Office of Disaster Relief.
-- Aging Workforce News (http://www.agingworkforcenews.com/aginglinks.html) is not a job board but provides a useful collection of work-related links.
-- BoomerCareer.com (http://www.boomercareer.com) is a collection of career articles and resources targeting baby boomers, those born from 1946-64. Job-seekers can search job listings and post their resume.
-- Encore.org (http://www.encore.org) provides news, resources and connections for individuals and organizations establishing "encore careers" designed to combine social contribution, personal meaning and financial security. Many of the jobs posted are in education, health care and human services.
-- Experience Works (http://www.experienceworks.org) helps low-income seniors get training to find jobs in their communities.
-- Quintessential Careers has a comprehensive listing (http://www.quintcareers.com/mature--jobseekers.html) of job and career resources for mature and older job-seekers.
-- Senior Helpers (http://www.seniorhelpers.com) with offices in 230 U.S. cities, hires many older workers to provide in-home personal and companion care for seniors. Caregivers' services include help with housework, meal preparation, errands, transportation, medication reminders and Alzheimer's
care. The pay is $8-$12 per hour; most work an average of about 20 hours per week.
-- Senior Job Bank (http://www.seniorjobbank.org) is a site where job-seekers age 50 and up can search for jobs by category, industry or location, post resumes and register for a job-search agent.
-- Seniors4Hire.org (http://www.seniors4hire.org) is another nationwide online career center and job bank with openings posted by businesses actively recruiting the 50-and-over population. Also includes targeted career resources and articles for older workers.
-- WiserWorker.com (http://www.wiserworker.com) enables baby boomers and older workers to search for job listings by keyword or location and provides career articles and resources plus listings of local job fairs across the country.
-- YourEncore (http://www.yourencore.com) seeks to match retired engineers and scientists with companies that need to meet a capacity surge or fill a short-term need, with clients that include Fortune 500 firms such as Boeing, Eli Lilly and Procter & Gamble. The retirees sometimes are brought in as temporary mentors for new hires.
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Put your job-search eggs in many baskets
Amy Lindgren
Newspaper ads, Internet postings, networking, cold contacts . . . These are all important sources of leads for job-seekers. Each tool plays its part in a successful job hunt. Unfortunately, job-seekers often don't use
these methods in balance.
If newspaper classifieds didn't work, they wouldn't be around after all these years. People do get jobs from ads and will continue to do so. But the fact that not all -- and probably not even most -- jobs will be advertised in the paper reminds me that every job-search tool has its place on a continuum. When job-seekers put more emphasis on a tool than its place on the continuum justifies, they're leading a job search that's out of balance.
Internet job postings and job boards are the best example of this concept. The actual effectiveness of this tool is nearly unmeasurable, yet many job-seekers devote almost all of their job-search efforts to electronic
ads.
It would be impossible to count the job openings posted on the Internet because there are literally thousands of independent sites where leads appear. The best studies I've seen ask employers how many new hires came from the Internet. This is at least measurable, even if employers may not always accurately assess how candidates found the leads.
If we don't really know the effectiveness of the Internet, and we understand that relatively few openings are advertised in the newspapers, why do job-seekers use these two tools almost exclusively? First, it's always easier to react than to act. When you see an ad, you know what to do; when you don't see an ad, you have to make up the next steps yourself.
Another reason may be a lack of understanding about how a job opening develops. When I'm talking with job-seekers, I'll often draw a simple graph I call the "life cycle of a job opening." The graph consists of a horizontal line with a vertical flag rising from about the center point. This flag represents the point in a job opening's life cycle when the company's human resources department hears about it. On the line to the right of the flag are all of the HR-based steps that we know so well: the advertising of the opening, the application process, the phone interviews, the in-person interviews and, finally, the job offer.
Job-seekers forget that the job wasn't created by HR; it was created by some need in the department where the work will be performed. That means the opening was "born" in a manager's mind, perhaps months before it was brought to HR. It existed -- and could have been filled without any public announcement at all -- in the months before it crossed to the right side of the graph.
It's pretty clear that the left side of the graph is the hot spot for job-seekers. If the job is not yet advertised in any form, there is no competition for it. Better yet, this is the side of the graph where all jobs appear. Every job opening has a creation point. But not every job crosses over to the right side of the graph and gets advertised.
Which brings us back to the balanced job search: To be successful, you need to include networking and cold contacts in your strategy. Next week's column will look more closely at these tools.
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Job Hunting While Employed
Robert Half International
It's a common dilemma: You have a job but you want a better one. Whether you've outgrown your current role, seek increased compensation or need a change of scene, you're ready to explore new employment options. But how should you go about tracking down opportunities and meeting with hiring managers without jeopardizing your current position?
Following are some do's and don'ts for conducting a job search while employed:
- DON'T overlook opportunities within your own company. Before updating your resume and hitting the job boards, consider employment opportunities that may be right under your nose. Many companies looking to fill vacancies give preference to internal candidates and make an effort to encourage these individual to apply for other positions within the company.
Share with your boss your interest in pursuing a new or higher-level position. He or she may be able to help you transfer to a different department, move into a role of increased responsibility or give you a chance to work on projects that will expand your skill set and prepare you for advancement.
- DO be discreet. If you want to keep your job search a secret, don't talk about it. If you tell your co-workers, you can be sure that it will get back to your boss, one way or another.
- DON'T search on your employers' time. You're being paid to work for the company, so you shouldn't be surfing the Web for job openings during business hours. Any activity related to your job search, including scheduling interviews, should be completed on your own time.
- DO get organized. Set aside blocks of time that you can devote to your employment search; you will be amazed by how much you can get done in just a few hours. In addition to focusing on your job hunt at night and on weekends, you can use your lunch break to scour the want ads or review your resume. This also is a good time to return prospective employers' phone calls on your cell phone.
- DON'T use company resources. No matter how convenient it may be, don't use office stationery, stamps, fax machines or copiers. It's not only an inappropriate and unethical use of company resources but also an easy way for colleagues to find out about your job search from evidence you accidentally leave behind. Along the same lines, avoid using the office's computers and phone systems to reach out to hiring managers. Many employers monitor Internet usage and review phone call logs, making it easy for them to learn of your job hunt.
- DO be careful where you post your resume. If you don't want your current firm to accidentally find your resume when searching for new hires, post on a job site where you can keep your employer and contact information confidential. For example, CareerBuilder.com offers three levels of privacy from which job seekers can choose.
- DON'T make up excuses when meeting with hiring managers. Most hiring managers will understand that accommodations may have to be made for you to attend an employment interview. Try to schedule meetings for either the beginning or the end of the day, or during your lunch hour. If a prospective
employer can't interview you during those times, take a personal day.
- DO pay attention to how you dress. If your normal work attire consists of jeans and sneakers, showing up to the office in a business suit is likely to arouse suspicion. Avoid the attention by bringing a change of clothes.
- DON'T forget to network. More jobs are obtained through word of mouth than any other method, so take every opportunity to expand your circle of contacts. In addition to getting involved in professional associations and other networking groups, focus on meeting people while doing everyday activities. Try striking up conversations with those around you, from the coffee shop barista to the person sitting next to you at the doctor's office. These discussions can help you gain job leads or other valuable contacts.
- DO register with a staffing firm. Consider partnering with a recruiter, who can work discreetly on your behalf to distribute your resume and uncover job opportunities. These professionals also can offer guidance on enhancing your resume, improving your interview skills and increasing your chances of landing a new position.
If you want to find a new job, stick to your game plan, be persistent and, perhaps most importantly, be respectful of your current employer. Though you may be tempted to conduct a quick search between projects or work on your resume on the job, think twice before doing so. You wouldn't want to do anything that could jeopardize your current position and future references.
It's been a very busy year and it has been my pleasure to assist hundreds of new and returning clients in meeting their career goals, but it's time to recharge the batteries and take a vacation. My office will be closed from December 18th through January 4th.
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GILBERT GAZETTE
Need assistance with your career endeavors?
Resume Writing, Job Search & Interview Coaching, Recruiter and VC Distribution, Cover & Thank You Letters
Contact:
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Gilbert Resumes
800 967 3846
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