Unemployed will not be considered

In a recent article by Chris Isidore, CNN Money, Chris mentions that some companies are not considering unemployed workers. Some of these companies are even going a far as mention in their job posting that "unemployed candidates will not be considered". See Chris article at http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Outofwork-job-applicants-told-cnnm-3498252371.html?x=0.

Employers want to know you are employable. They want to see you have been working in your trade recently and that your skills are up to date. Employers do not want candidates who last “worked” in 2008 or 2009 and have done nothing to keep their skills up to date since their last job.

So how do you get around this?

There are two ways. One is to form your own consulting firm and go after your own paying clients. The other is to find an organization that you could volunteer your time. I don’t mean filling bowls at the local soup kitchen, but using your trade and professional skills to help that organization.

Let’s say you are a report writer and have outstanding MS Access, or better yet, SQL Server or Oracle skills. I bet your local church is doing their finances or parishioners’ lists manually. This could be a good opportunity to build them a parishioner database that can print labels for marketing and events. If the system is more complex, maybe it will have email capability to alert parishioners of events and so on. A project like this could take 40 to 120 hours plus ongoing maintenance. You can add the volunteer project to your résumé just like any other job. Not to mention your skills will be sharp and recent as you apply and interview for jobs.

Be honest with the organization about your goals. Let the organization know that this can be a win-win for both of you. If you are still unemployed after completing the project, do another project. I’m sure the local Red Cross, SPCA, Republican Party and Democratic Party, to name a few, could use your professional services. Shortly after you start the project you should update your résumé to reflect the job or project. Once you complete the project you will have a new reference to add to your reference list.

Good luck!

Agenda Week 4

• Résumés Line Test + Exercise
• Psychological Impact of Long-term Unemployment – from email
• Chas’s thoughts on Long-Term Unemployment
• Recession vs. the Employment Recession
• Reasons you are not getting an interview
• Reasons you are not getting an offer
• Networking – Networking - Networking

Road to Employment Recovery

Unemployed or Underemployed in 2010

So is it better to be unemployed or underemployed? The answer really depends on three conditions. The economy, the job and the person.

In the past, during a growing economy, I had met with active job seekers that honestly wanted more in their careers. Money was not a motivating factor for their job search. These job seekers wanted something more challenging, more responsibility and in some cases maybe even a management position. These job seekers were underemployed. Some of these job seekers would even welcome unemployment because unemployment would give them the time and motive to find their dream job. As a recruiter, if I found a passive candidate that felt underemployed, I knew I found a gem. So these candidates felt it was better to be unemployed than underemployed.

But today, March of 2010, things are different. The national unemployment rate is 9.7% (www.bls.gov) and the unemployment rate for professionals in information technology and accounting may be well above 10%. (I am guessing 15% to 20%) At least 75% of candidates I talk to are unemployed. Many have been unemployed for 6 months or longer and many have exhausted their unemployment benefits. Most of these people will, and should, consider any job in their field. I would also suggest to these people to not to get hung up on salaries, hourly rates, or if the job is contract verses permanent. Any job, like “any port in a storm for a ship” is better than no job.

My friend Paul emailed and stated, “I can tell you my thoughts! Underemployed is better.”

I asked, “Why?”

His reply, “As you know I had been unemployed for a 6 month period. It was the worst time ever. I am now employed with a company at a level I feel is below my skill level and is below my pay grade, but it is a job.”

He also added, “I feel that since I feel I am underemployed, I have the opportunity to learn a new skill set and strengthen my existing skills. Also if I can prove myself as a valuable employee, I can get noticed and move into another position that allows me to demonstrate my talents.”

Great answer! And that is why Paul is employed now and will eventually move into a more challenging and better paying position.

Lore told me, “That is a no-brainer: Underemployed definitely. Having been laid off from a 6-figure income, unemployed for the first time in my professional life…the emotional distress has been debilitating.”

Lore also adds, “I am currently working a $9/hourly rate, and thriving mentally in spite of the fact that I have to rely on my savings to pay for my basic needs. The constant exposure to customers has been uplifting, at the same time allowing me to "network"…”

Another great answer as Lore finds something good in the job she has.

Daniel wrote, “My job search has been going on for nine months now and it is very draining…If I was 'only' underemployed, I could at least take pride in my achievements. Being unemployed when you really want to work and contribute something is very frustrating.”

Daniel’s comments seem to be the sentiments of most of the people I have talked to recently. Being unemployed and looking for a job is not only hard work, daunting in a recession, costly, at times depressing, it is also boring and distracting. So the general consensus today is that being underemployed is way better than being unemployed. So join a user group, take chances, read employment articles that lend advice, attend free employment groups and of course stay tuned to this blog. Most of all, consider any job at any salary or rate. If you get that job work hard, do your best even if you feel underemployed.

And remember, most employers and companies will not care what you were making per hour in your last job. However they will want to know you did a good job, worked hard and added value like Paul and Lore.

Stimulus II

I keep getting asked about a second stimulus or more stimulus. I’m all for it! Let’s call it Stimulus II.

This second stimulus should be aimed at job growth only. The money would not go to banks, or cash for clunkers or whatever but job growth only. A large portion of this Stimulus II money would need to flow down from the federal government to the state governments.

1. With Stimulus II money we would get the state departments and agencies back to their pre recession employment figures and then add additional fulltime or contract/temporary employees to finish up information technology projects that have been shelved.

2. Some of this money would go to the educational system. Schools are closing and staff is being laid off. Let’s reverse this trend if the schools are closing because of lack of money rather then enrollment.

3. Local transportation projects can be funded with Stimulus II too. Our roads are a mess and bridges are not safe.

4. Fire and police departments could benefit too. Let’s stop and reverse any trends in laying off fire and police personal and maybe even fund a few new projects, police vehicles, fire and rescue trucks and so on.

These four areas alone would “jump start” the local economies. Let’s face it, our local state governments have lots of work that needs to be done and it never gets done because of the lack of money. Let’s get these projects funded, staffed and eventually completed. As the local governments employ more people and buy more from the local economy the private sector will come back to life.

Reach out to your Network

If you are seriously looking for employment you need to let your network know you are looking. Otherwise if someone you know, who knows about a job, won’t know you are looking and won’t contact you. So you need to contact them.

Even if you make initial contact with key folks in your network, you must periodically remind them you are seeking employment. Otherwise they may forget! I suggest job seekers email their contacts once a week and call every other week.

As a recruiter I stress to some of my candidates that it is okay to remind me that they are still on the job market. If I don’t hear from them I tend to forget them. I try not to let this happen but with unemployment at 10% I average 25 new résumés and contacts a week.

Also f someone if your network gives you a name or lead on a job, you better follow-up on that lead. An old friend called me today to see if someone she knew called me after she suggested the person contact me. I told her I did not recognize the name. She immediately understood the person did not follow up.

If you are seriously looking for work, use your network, maintain regular contact and follow up on leads and referrals.

Job Seekers: Don’t give up in December

Although job postings, interviews, callbacks and offers seem to slow down in December, it is not a holiday for job seekers.

It is important to hit your job hunting activity goals and keep an eye on your target companies. While other job seekers take December off, this is a good time for the active job seekers because of the lack of competition.

Continue your job seeking activity throughout December. The jobs you apply to in December will become interviews, and maybe an offer, in January.

If you like what you are reading and want to read more, check out my eBook at www.blackholesresumesjobs.com/

If you are an IT professional and want to send me your résumé, please feel free to email your résumé to me at chas.bollow@triad-corp.com.

Professional Networking Sites: LinkedIn

The world is much different today than it was ten years ago. Today we have social networking sites for both personal and professional purposes. We all know the personal social networking groups such as Facebook, match.com, atlinks.com, YouTube and others that have become common words in our vocabulary. We also know about LinkedIn, Focus, ZoomInfo and others for professional networking sites. It is very important to use these professional networking sites in your career search and it is just as important to be sure there is nothing incriminating on these personal networking sites.


LinkedIn Rules for the Job Seeker:

• Invite Others: Make sure you know the person you invite and don’t expect people you do not know to connect. If you feel the need to connect with someone get an introduction.
• Accept Invites: Don’t accept invites from people you do not know unless you were introduced from someone else and it was recommended for your career.
• The quantity of connections is not important as the quality of your contacts. More VP, directors, managers, team leads and fewer peers is better.
• Subscribe to a few local LinkedIn groups: Skip the bad news and look for articles and discussions about companies hiring. Look for job seeker tips. Most importantly, be informed about your local business climate.
• Ask for recommendations: On LinkedIn I have been asked by colleagues to write recommendations and I have asked for recommendations from others. In a sense these recommendations are references.
• Reconnect: If you have lost track of people you worked with, LinkedIn is a great way to reconnect with those you liked and the people with whom you worked well. I stay connected to those who I generally want to succeed in life as they want me to succeed.
• Ask people for introductions: Make sure you ask the person you know if it is OK to use their name. Don’t “name drop” unless you have permission.
• Ask connections for job leads: If you get a lead that is not good for you, try to pass the lead on to others in your network. They may do the same for you in return.

Using LinkedIn is a form of professional self marketing. Using your connections, is a good way to get your name “out there” to those that are hiring or know of others that are hiring. Your LinkedIn recommendations tell employers that you have performed well, are well liked, respected and can do the job. Social Networking is a tool in your toolbox that needs to be used, but don’t forget about old fashion networking.

If you like what you are reading and want to read more, check out my eBook at www.blackholesresumesjobs.com/

Are you using Career Builder, Monster, Dice, Hot Jobs, and so on as part of your job search? http://polls.linkedin.com/p/66041/roibz