houston job search tactics shell outpost – january 20 th 2011 presenter – jackie verity
TRANSCRIPT
Houston Job Search Tactics
Shell Outpost – January 20th 2011
Presenter – Jackie Verity
AgendaThe Starting Point: Self – Assessment then
‘Find Your Focus’
How to ‘market’ yourself
Resume tips
The Power of Effective Networking
Houston’s Job Market
ABILITIESINTERESTS
STRENGTHS *
Values, Needs and Motivators
Personal Style and Preferences
Preferred work environment – the PLACE
Skills Analysis
Accomplishments
* STRENGTHS = where skills/abilities match your interests
Don’t do it alone – need feedback, balance, insight
Be honest and true to your own instincts
Allow yourself freedom to ‘blue-sky’
‘Toot your own Horn’
Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Strong Interest Inventory Kerwin Values Survey
Strengths Finder (Tom Rath) What Color is Your Parachute – Richard Bolles Values Card Sort –www.CareerNetwork.org
Look for a MATCH between
what you have to OFFER and
what the market NEEDS
OPPORTUNITIES in your TARGET market (s)
What sets you apart?
Your ‘differentiators’ ( Unique Selling Points USPs)
What are you offering to a prospective employer?
Who is your ‘competition’
Concept of ‘Personal Branding’ – be AUTHENTIC
Use ‘tools’ :-
- your ‘Elevator Pitch’ or ‘30 second commercial’
- your Resume
An overview of the skills, experience, education and accomplishments YOU have selected to highlight your key selling points
Targeted to highlight what is important to meet the needs of the hiring manager
Focused on what you have achieved (accomplishments) – not a laundry list of tasks ( ‘Sell’ versus ‘Tell’)
An honest portrayal! Present yourself accurately but focus on the positive and leave out the negative / irrelevant
Your success stories!
TELLING IT SELLING IT
Describes features Describes benefits
Tells ‘what’ and ‘how’
Sells why the ‘what’ and ‘how’ are important
Details activities Includes results
Focuses on what you did
Details how what you did benefited your employer, your team members, customers…
TELLING IT SELLING IT
Supervised development of next-generation voice recognition software for IBM
Led 8-person team in design, development, prototype development and full-scale marketing launch of IBM’s next-generation voice recognition software. Project delivered $20 million in first-year sales
Expert Resumes for Managers and Executives, Wendy Enelow & Louise Kursmark
CHRONOLOGICAL FUNCTIONAL/HYBRIDYour career shows steady progression
You have a ‘patchwork’ of experience in different fields
You are looking for a job in a similar field to recent work experience
You are changing careers or industries – needing to highlight transferable skills
You are applying for a job in a very traditional field
You are applying in a less ‘conservative’ field
You have no (or few) gaps in your career
You have a long gap or several gaps in employment
Short sentences and short paragraphs - ‘sound bites’ Strong ACTION verbs to start sentences/phrases Use the first person voice but avoid ‘I’ ‘My’ etc Font – Arial, Times New Roman, Garamond (not ‘flowery’) Eleven point minimum size if possible Avoid overuse of use bold, capitals – italics best avoided * Plenty of ‘white space’ Conservative choice of paper for hard copies (white, ivory)
Using the words ‘Curriculum Vitae’ or ‘CV’ and the CV format unless you are applying for an academic or medical job
Anything longer than two pages
Personal details like Age, Date of Birth, Marital Status, Social Security Number, Nationality, Place of Birth
Lies !!
Do…make it clear you have valid US work authorization
Include Keywords
Use formatting that can be read electronically
Online Job Search Guide from Public Library has resources at
http://jobstar.org/tools/resume/res-elec.php
The process of meeting people, making contacts, developing friendships and building professional relationships
Relationship BuildingRelationship Building
‘Pay it Forward’‘Pay it Forward’
Be respectful of people’s timeBe respectful of people’s time
Information – gathering Interviews
Information – gathering Interviews
Mutual SupportMutual Support
Seek information and advice
Seek information and advice
65% - 70% jobs are gained through personal referrals
Relevant Professional Associations and Conferences
Chambers of Commerce
Home country affiliations (e.g. Consulates)
Ex-pat / International groups
Job Search Ministries
Linked In
Linked In
BlogBlog
Bebo – fallen star!
Bebo – fallen star!
Recruiters in both agencies and corporations increasingly using Linked In to source – recommend you start there 90% of recruiters Google an applicant’s name Clean up your ‘digital dirt’ Be consistent across media Keep your promises ! (weekly, monthly, quarterly…) Never post anything that you would not want everybody to see (how confident are you setting up Privacy settings??)
Houston Unemployment rate January 2011 - 8.6%, up from November 2009 rate of 8.1% [Workforce Solutions]
79% of assignees have accompanying spouse – 85% are female and 15% male
50% of spouses employed prior to move (and increasing)
What % employed after the move?
Historically 14%... now9% spouses employed after relocation
Seen other figures – around 30%
I say ignore the statistics!
Where should you look for a job?
Networking ( targeting individuals and groups) – and don’t forget your social network
Online applications to job postings : company websites yield better results than major job boards
Posting resume online
Career Fairs
Recruiters and Search Firms
See two - page Handout
