After only 5 months after their layoff from a slowly dying organization, Recently Laid-Off Colleague #1 got a great job offer this week at a growth-economy firm, at a salary higher than their last job.
The only place their new job was posted was on LinkedIn.
#1's new boss called me for a reference. She already knew about my background and relationship to #1, because she looked up my profile on LinkedIn before she picked up the phone. A new network connection was born, and I look forward to meeting #1's new boss in the near future. We both agreed that #1 was a great find, given their esoteric skill set and how difficult, in any economy, to source talented candidates like #1 in that particular discipline.
Yet another reason why I love LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is like a multi-dimensional Rolodex (and much more!) for me: I grow and keep track of my network and my business on LinkedIn. It is a wonderful tool that perfectly complements my in-person networking / connecting, as I network for both fun and profit.
How is LinkedIn working for you, and how are you working LinkedIn? Connect with me here or on LinkedIn, and share your LinkedIn experience, strength, hope and success! too.
Showing posts with label job. Show all posts
Showing posts with label job. Show all posts
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
A Job Interview Transformed Into a Sale
A Dear Colleague of mine went on an employment interview last week, in response to a job posting for which they were imminently, if not a bit, over-qualified.
They are clearly the lead candidate for the advertised job. While the salary rate is below what they made in their last position, it would be a logical career move, given the economy, to take the position and gain the resume' experience.
And then something magical happened. During the interview, the Decision-Maker identified three projects for which Dear Colleague was also imminently qualified, which were also a bit out of the scope of the advertised job but clearly a priority for the Decision-Maker.
Dear Colleague, as a result of their recent experience in building a consulting / contract client base, was able to on the spot hear the needs of a potential Customer through the artifice of an employment interview. Dear Colleague nimbly then asked some key intake questions to confirm the needs of the Employer-Turned-Potential-Customer. Then, Dear Colleague proposed potential and viable solutions to the Decision-Maker in a consulting role.
Long story short: Dear Colleague is putting together a project proposal for the Decision-Maker. And Dear Colleague is still in the running for the advertised job, which for bureaucratic reasons, will take longer for Decision-Maker's organization to process than Dear Colleague's consulting project proposal.
The supplicant candidate transformed the discussion - and themselves - into a Vendor (read: Entrepreneur) meeting the needs of the Customer; building the product (read: Dear Colleague's skills and abilities to meet / exceed the Decision-Maker's needs) just-in-time, on the spot; asking for the order; and closing the sale.
Supplicant transformed into Entrepreneur: now that's an economic turnaround I can get behind.
How - and in what direction - will you transform your Decision-Maker meetings this week?
They are clearly the lead candidate for the advertised job. While the salary rate is below what they made in their last position, it would be a logical career move, given the economy, to take the position and gain the resume' experience.
And then something magical happened. During the interview, the Decision-Maker identified three projects for which Dear Colleague was also imminently qualified, which were also a bit out of the scope of the advertised job but clearly a priority for the Decision-Maker.
Dear Colleague, as a result of their recent experience in building a consulting / contract client base, was able to on the spot hear the needs of a potential Customer through the artifice of an employment interview. Dear Colleague nimbly then asked some key intake questions to confirm the needs of the Employer-Turned-Potential-Customer. Then, Dear Colleague proposed potential and viable solutions to the Decision-Maker in a consulting role.
Long story short: Dear Colleague is putting together a project proposal for the Decision-Maker. And Dear Colleague is still in the running for the advertised job, which for bureaucratic reasons, will take longer for Decision-Maker's organization to process than Dear Colleague's consulting project proposal.
The supplicant candidate transformed the discussion - and themselves - into a Vendor (read: Entrepreneur) meeting the needs of the Customer; building the product (read: Dear Colleague's skills and abilities to meet / exceed the Decision-Maker's needs) just-in-time, on the spot; asking for the order; and closing the sale.
Supplicant transformed into Entrepreneur: now that's an economic turnaround I can get behind.
How - and in what direction - will you transform your Decision-Maker meetings this week?
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Love in the Time of Layoff
The Cold War had ended during the previous decade, sealing the downward spiral of the aerospace business where I started my HR career. I had spent more than 3 years as part of an HR team charged with laying off nearly 5,000 people in a small and isolated city. The repetitive finality of our work was wearing us down, and we were all tired.
So when Tom, the site HR Manager, took me out to the nicest restaurant in town to lay me off over lunch, it was at first viscerally a relief. It was not my first visit to the Recession Rodeo. I had been laid off by a non-profit a few years earlier after a major stock market flop eradicated their endowment: the non-profit went out of business and I was unemployed for 8 months. I networked with over 150 decision-makers during that time period, which resulted in one immediate job, and one eventual job: the eventual job was working for Tom.
While it would be flip of me to recommend the layoff experience as an opportunity to cleanse the vocational palate and gain clarity regarding life / career goals and priorities, that experience without exception has consistently delivered gifts that I never expected in the form of career, mentoring, self-development and entrepreneurial opportunities. I always gain skills and strengthen my ability to earn money for myself and my employers / customers.
Over a luscious and extravagant lunch, Tom, my site HR Manager, was far more upset than I was during the layoff discussion: uncharacteristically so, as his usual demeanor was laid-back and affable in a typically reserved HR manner. He then gave me an unexpected gift: the gift of transparent authenticity. "Headquarters unexpectedly told me that I had to cut another HR headcount," Tom related, his eyes suspiciously moist. "While you're one of my strongest performers and promotable, you have the shortest service in the group. I had no choice but to lay you off, Deb."
Tom was always a wonderful mentor and coach. His first coaching to me was my nickname. "You're definitely a Deb and not a Debbie," he advised me. "Deb is more serious and commanding: Deb you are."
I was a mix of emotions: genuinely grateful for Tom's support and positive feedback in the moment of laying me off; and a bit anxious, given that Joel and I were planning to be married in 4 months. "Tom, I'd like to thank you for your kindness, and your mentoring, it has really meant a great deal to me. I'd like to be able to use you as a reference, How can I help with transitioning my work in return?" I replied. Tom smiled for the first time during lunch. "I'll do better than that," he said. Let me work my internal company network and see what I can do."
I continued to work during my 60-day WARN notice period, while Tom reached out to his network in other divisions of our company. A week before I was due to hit the street, Tom recommended me for another job locally in a different division, at a 14% pay increase.
And it happened because Tom and I stood up for each other, authentically. Even at the time of layoff.
Recently, I have borne witness to another example of love in the time of layoff manifested in Peter, the Executive Director at Mediation Matters, in the form of authentic and transparent communication to the organization's volunteer community, paraphrased here:
Dear Volunteers:
By now, you all know that we absorbed a significant cut in our state allocation, virtually cutting our budget in half.
As a result, we have had no choice but to make some wrenching staffing decisions.
I have laid off both Heidi and Quent, effective Friday, April 28, 2011. Both Heidi and Quent are amazing employees and exceptional human beings, and they will be sorely missed.
This decision was almost certainly the most difficult of my life.
Peter.
This decision was almost certainly the most difficult of my life.
Peter.
Here is Heidi's good-bye email to us, paraphrased:
Dear Volunteers,
My last day is Friday and I wanted to take a moment and thank all of you for an amazing nine years.
I worked for Peter for a month before going out on maternity leave. Peter took a chance on me in 2006 and hired me back on with Mediation Matters and for this I will be forever grateful.
You all will always be very near and dear to my heart.
Thank you and I wish you all the very best!
Heidi.
As an HR practitioner, I strive to walk the talk authentically and with love, even in the time of layoff. Peter, however, has taken that love to a new and even more authentic level.
More importantly, however: for those hiring authorities who without exception screen out laid-off candidates: how can you resist hiring authentic and passionate talent such as Heidi and Quent, who have been lucky enough to be mentored by managers like Peter, who will unconditionally and publicly stand up for them in the time of layoff?
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| Donate to Mediation Matters |
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Keep Your Success Saw Sharp
Thanks to my regular attendance at Social Media Breakfast Tech Valley (SMBTV) since the summer of 2009, I have learned and implemented several new skills and initiatives:
I also endeavor to read at least two new books a month, as well as take the opportunity to participate in formal training and work opportunities to focus on and codify other strengths, e.g. Mediation Training or Project Management for Professionals.
It is one of the habits that sticks with me from Covey's timeless standard, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People:
As you renew yourself in each of the four areas, you create growth and change in your life. Sharpen the Saw keeps you fresh so you can continue to practice the other six habits. You increase your capacity to produce and handle the challenges around you. Without this renewal, the body becomes weak, the mind mechanical, the emotions raw, the spirit insensitive, and the person selfish. Not a pretty picture, is it?
Feeling good doesn't just happen. Living a life in balance means taking the necessary time to renew yourself. It's all up to you. You can renew yourself through relaxation. Or you can totally burn yourself out by overdoing everything. You can pamper yourself mentally and spiritually. Or you can go through life oblivious to your well-being. You can experience vibrant energy. Or you can procrastinate and miss out on the benefits of good health and exercise. You can revitalize yourself and face a new day in peace and harmony. Or you can wake up in the morning full of apathy because your get-up-and-go has got-up-and-gone. Just remember that every day provides a new opportunity for renewal--a new opportunity to recharge yourself instead of hitting the wall. All it takes is the desire, knowledge, and skill.
What opportunity will you take this week to Sharpen Your Success Saw?
- Setting up a blog site and writing a weekly blog post, exercising several skill and cognitive "muscles" in one fell swoop; (I actually encouraged my friend Katie to follow her writing talent bliss and start her blog first - then, after watching her produce great work for a few months on her blog, I waded tentatively into the blogging pool and starting writing too);
- Setting up a website, Google Map and Facebook fan page for my husband Joel's custom-picture framing business, The Best Framing Company, which has generated new customers;
- Setting up an even better website for my dear friend and colleague John Crowe, promoting the great counseling work he does with male sexual abuse survivors and other trauma victims;
- Setting up a blog site for Joel's fiction writing and self-publishing;
- Linking (in a rudimentary fashion) the custom domains purchased for the above sites so they actually work;
- Complementing my LinkedIn SME (Subject Matter Expert) knowledge with related forays into Twitter and Facebook, and conducting workshops and one-on-one coaching thereof, particularly on LinkedIn;
- Experimenting with all three channels (LinkedIn, LinkedIn Groups, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) to broaden the audience of my blog conversations as well as innovate my recruiting and marketing projects;
- Engaging in Twitter conversations during presentations at relevant meetups like SMBTV (the endorsement to do so is as much fun and much more interactive than passing surreptitious notes in class).
I also endeavor to read at least two new books a month, as well as take the opportunity to participate in formal training and work opportunities to focus on and codify other strengths, e.g. Mediation Training or Project Management for Professionals.
It is one of the habits that sticks with me from Covey's timeless standard, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw
Sharpen the Saw means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have--you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual. Here are some examples of activities:
| Physical: | Beneficial eating, exercising, and resting |
| Social/Emotional: | Making social and meaningful connections with others |
| Mental: | Learning, reading, writing, and teaching |
| Spiritual: | Spending time in nature, expanding spiritual self through meditation, music, art, prayer, or service |
As you renew yourself in each of the four areas, you create growth and change in your life. Sharpen the Saw keeps you fresh so you can continue to practice the other six habits. You increase your capacity to produce and handle the challenges around you. Without this renewal, the body becomes weak, the mind mechanical, the emotions raw, the spirit insensitive, and the person selfish. Not a pretty picture, is it?
Feeling good doesn't just happen. Living a life in balance means taking the necessary time to renew yourself. It's all up to you. You can renew yourself through relaxation. Or you can totally burn yourself out by overdoing everything. You can pamper yourself mentally and spiritually. Or you can go through life oblivious to your well-being. You can experience vibrant energy. Or you can procrastinate and miss out on the benefits of good health and exercise. You can revitalize yourself and face a new day in peace and harmony. Or you can wake up in the morning full of apathy because your get-up-and-go has got-up-and-gone. Just remember that every day provides a new opportunity for renewal--a new opportunity to recharge yourself instead of hitting the wall. All it takes is the desire, knowledge, and skill.
What opportunity will you take this week to Sharpen Your Success Saw?
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Who Am I, Anyway? Am I My Resume'?
When I was a freshman in high school, our Social Studies teacher, Mr. Treacey, and his wife (who also taught at the high school), took us to see A Chorus Line at the Schubert Theater in New York City. (What that field trip had to do with Social Studies, I don't know, but it was great and cemented my love of the theater.)
That's where I first heard the word "resume'," in the opening song, I Hope I Get It,
Here are the lyrics:
That's where I first heard the word "resume'," in the opening song, I Hope I Get It,
Who am I, anyway?
Am I my resume'?
That is a picture of a person I don't know.
What does he want from me?
What should I try to be?
So many faces all around, and here we go.
I need this job, oh God, I need this show.
Am I my resume'?
That is a picture of a person I don't know.
What does he want from me?
What should I try to be?
So many faces all around, and here we go.
I need this job, oh God, I need this show.
I always found those lyrics poignant and haunting on a visceral level. Now, as an adult, I have the perspective and the language to say why.
For me, whatever side of the interview table I sit on, candidate or hiring authority, it's all about authenticity.
I can't dance. Not at all. I have no talent for it. So, I would never put myself - or the decision-maker - through the rigor / torture of a dance audition. In A Chorus Line, however, some of the characters can't really dance either, but audition anyway because they're passionate about dancing. And they subsequently, one by one, don't get selected. Don't get me wrong: my heart breaks a little every time one of them doesn't make the cut. However, the kid from Queens inside of me wonders what the hell they were doing there in the first place. I know, it's just a play. I'm just sayin'.
Passion without talent, or talent without passion, is the same: inauthentic. And inauthentic doesn't make the cut.
For that reason, I mentor those who seek career guidance from me to first and foremost identify the authentic intersection(s) between their talent and their passion. And for most people, including me, there are several potential talent / passion intersections to discover and/or confirm. With the assistance of a mentor, an independent assessment, or any combination thereof.
Without consciously and thoroughly determining those talent / passion intersections, any resume' - or proposal - will ring hollow with potential decision-makers, employers and customers. But most importantly, with the candidate themselves, undermining confidence and bottom-line authenticity.
For example: I love to sing; and I'm a good singer. I know it, and others have confirmed it: they let me stay in the church choir.
What are your authentic talent / passion intersections? Have you validated those intersections with a knowledgeable and equally authentic third party? Are those intersections clearly outlined on your resume'?
And most importantly, are you ready to win the audition?
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Thank You Fer Teh Job Oppertunity
Gentle reader: whether you are looking for a new job, or you're looking to be retained and/or promoted in your current organization, I beseech you, I beg you, I implore you. Please proof what you send to hiring authorities and decision-makers. Emails, documents, etc. It's so sad and tragic when you don't. Repeatedly.
Seriously, stop it. You need a job.
Speaking of which: I'm not going to repeat verbatim in today's blog post my blog post from last August, Write Your Life, Write Your Career. Read my advice as a hiring authority and a decision-maker to you there. Not learning to write and proof to minimal business standards is, at the very least, a career-killer.
Those of you who don't proof your work and are subsequently not hearing back from the job applications you submit: I'm going to give you some brief yet poignant examples as to why:
- state university of ny, albany ny
- Shift Manger, Ruby Tuesday's
- Sent From My Verizon Wireless mobile phone
- Subject: Your Career Oppertunity
(Big ouch. You misspelled the email subject line. I don't even open up your email, I just move it from my email Inbox to the Candidate Regret folder);
- Education: Saratoga Springs High School
- Hi: I'm interested in teh job.
Note: please consider any typos you find in this blog post as a pop quiz.
Happy education; happy hunting; and happy holidays to you and yours!
Happy education; happy hunting; and happy holidays to you and yours!
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Are You My Mother? No. Especially Not at Work.
Everywhere I've worked, the employee lunchroom always has some version of this sign posted:
A variation of the theme of "Don't Mess Your Nest."
Both concepts are related and should be taken to heart, mind and spirit. It comes down to the hard work of self-awareness and its resultant emotional intelligence / maturity. The implications of the unexamined life are not only sad; they are, more importantly, life- and career-changing, and more often than not, for the worst.
Cleaning up -- better yet, preventing -- your own mess within the context of the workplace is critical, particularly in an economy where it's a buyer's market for employers (customers). If for no other reason, check your therapeutic baggage at the door of your workplace. Think about examining your (inner) life to the extent that it saves you from jeopardizing your livelihood. Wherever else that journey of self-examination takes you is up to you.
Taking responsibility for recognizing and keeping your therapeutic baggage in check at work is a key step towards ensuring your own vocational success.
As an HR practitioner, I see the lack of responsibility on the part of the employee (employees mean managers here too) play out again and again as the employee hits their bottom in a performance, disciplinary or termination discussion. I've seen it happen at every level, from executives to warehouse clerks. Their psychological baggage is so obvious to me that it's not only in the room, but all of their bags are open and the contents are strewn everywhere and hurtled at everyone.
For that employee, as a brief example, their manager is their abusive dad, I'm their detached mom / aunt and their co-workers are their trench-buddy siblings.
And when compounded by substance abuse and unresolved trauma: I estimate at least half (probably more) of the employee relations issues that I have adjudicated in my career should have been handled through professional mental health treatment rather than the workplace disciplinary process.
If those same employees had taken the responsibility to drag their therapeutic baggage to a therapist rather than to work, we could have taken that time and energy wasted in resolving those employee relations issues and applied it to more productive endeavors such as new product, process and customer development, as well as resultant profit-sharing.
The time to raise your hand for help is not at your termination discussion. If your employer offers help in the form of employee assistance programs (EAP) and/or mental health benefits, ask for and accept the help before you begin sliding down the slippery slope of the disciplinary / termination process.
One employee who will always have a place in my heart asked for the help before he jeopardized his employment, while he was experiencing withdrawal symptoms. His courage inspired us all. We were all committed to his treatment, and he not only became a stellar employee, he was also subsequently promoted.
That, in my book, is how you engender mutual loyalty and respect in the workplace.
Now I'm not a therapist, nor do I aspire to that vocation, and I don't weave anything remotely therapeutic into my HR practice: I'm clear about both my boundaries and my limitations, personally, professionally and legally. However, I will reflect back when an employee has dug themselves into such a hole of hitting bottom at work that perhaps they should consider working it out with a therapist, mentor, spiritual counselor -- whatever will get them through the night of their unexamined internal wound(s).
The workplace is not parental, or familial: it is a place of business, and the interaction of the employer with their employees is a business transaction. Plain and simple. Services are sold by one party (the employee) and purchased by the other party (the employer). The extent to which that business transaction is conducted creatively, collaboratively and functionally separates tolerable workplaces from great workplaces. And tolerable employees from great employees / contributors / partners.
Leave your baggage at your workplace door: solutions sell.
Your Mother Doesn't Work Here: Clean Up Your Own Mess.
A variation of the theme of "Don't Mess Your Nest."
Both concepts are related and should be taken to heart, mind and spirit. It comes down to the hard work of self-awareness and its resultant emotional intelligence / maturity. The implications of the unexamined life are not only sad; they are, more importantly, life- and career-changing, and more often than not, for the worst.
Cleaning up -- better yet, preventing -- your own mess within the context of the workplace is critical, particularly in an economy where it's a buyer's market for employers (customers). If for no other reason, check your therapeutic baggage at the door of your workplace. Think about examining your (inner) life to the extent that it saves you from jeopardizing your livelihood. Wherever else that journey of self-examination takes you is up to you.
Taking responsibility for recognizing and keeping your therapeutic baggage in check at work is a key step towards ensuring your own vocational success.
As an HR practitioner, I see the lack of responsibility on the part of the employee (employees mean managers here too) play out again and again as the employee hits their bottom in a performance, disciplinary or termination discussion. I've seen it happen at every level, from executives to warehouse clerks. Their psychological baggage is so obvious to me that it's not only in the room, but all of their bags are open and the contents are strewn everywhere and hurtled at everyone.
For that employee, as a brief example, their manager is their abusive dad, I'm their detached mom / aunt and their co-workers are their trench-buddy siblings.
And when compounded by substance abuse and unresolved trauma: I estimate at least half (probably more) of the employee relations issues that I have adjudicated in my career should have been handled through professional mental health treatment rather than the workplace disciplinary process.
If those same employees had taken the responsibility to drag their therapeutic baggage to a therapist rather than to work, we could have taken that time and energy wasted in resolving those employee relations issues and applied it to more productive endeavors such as new product, process and customer development, as well as resultant profit-sharing.
The time to raise your hand for help is not at your termination discussion. If your employer offers help in the form of employee assistance programs (EAP) and/or mental health benefits, ask for and accept the help before you begin sliding down the slippery slope of the disciplinary / termination process.
One employee who will always have a place in my heart asked for the help before he jeopardized his employment, while he was experiencing withdrawal symptoms. His courage inspired us all. We were all committed to his treatment, and he not only became a stellar employee, he was also subsequently promoted.
That, in my book, is how you engender mutual loyalty and respect in the workplace.
Now I'm not a therapist, nor do I aspire to that vocation, and I don't weave anything remotely therapeutic into my HR practice: I'm clear about both my boundaries and my limitations, personally, professionally and legally. However, I will reflect back when an employee has dug themselves into such a hole of hitting bottom at work that perhaps they should consider working it out with a therapist, mentor, spiritual counselor -- whatever will get them through the night of their unexamined internal wound(s).
The workplace is not parental, or familial: it is a place of business, and the interaction of the employer with their employees is a business transaction. Plain and simple. Services are sold by one party (the employee) and purchased by the other party (the employer). The extent to which that business transaction is conducted creatively, collaboratively and functionally separates tolerable workplaces from great workplaces. And tolerable employees from great employees / contributors / partners.
Leave your baggage at your workplace door: solutions sell.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Write Your Life: Write Your Career
Disclaimer up front: as a serial and life-long reader and writer, I tend to focus on writing quality more than the average hiring authority, business partner, customer, colleague, friend or relative. However, I do not believe that I'm in the minority of potential decision-makers. And in the spirit of full disclosure, I do not claim to be a perfect writer or editor, with my solid B in my college Grammar 101 course. However, please do read on before you hit the send button on your next job application.
Bottom line: I continue to consistently see unprofessional correspondence from job candidates. Cover emails and letters as well as job applications riddled with spelling and grammatical errors.
The C.V. attachment that arrived with nothing but "Sent from My Verizon Wireless Blackberry" in the body of the email with the word "sex" embedded in the job applicant's email address is the most recent and memorable.
Twice recently I have seen the mangled "oppertunity" (sic). Once in the email subject line. Ouch.
The immediacy of error-ridden electronic job applications is perhaps even more heart-breaking than the old-fashioned hard-copy cover letters and C.V.'s sent to prospective employers via snail mail. That fading process at least, in theory, baked in some more time to review and proof your correspondence before you stamped it and dropped it in the mailbox (the red, white and blue metal ones). As a recruiter, just for the record, I do not miss at all managing hard-copy job applications.
When a job candidate (or for that matter, anyone else who is writing with the intention of marketing a product) corresponds as carelessly as exemplified above, the telegraphed impact about you as a candidate on the hiring authority and / or decision-maker is deafening:
Managing poor performance on the front end (e.g., the candidate hiring stage) saves me and my organization a great deal of work and money on the back end (Payroll time wasted training, disciplining and making available to industry a substandard performer.)
In other words, I had to clean up my own mess, HR-wise, if I inserted a candidate with the issues above into the hiring process and they were subsequently hired. Not to mention the poor reflection on my assessment skills. It certainly motivates the drive for quality candidates.
There is so much information out in both the media and social media channels about the importance of accurate business writing in both the job application process and in the workplace, I'm once again at a loss to understand the substandard writing and grammatical errors I continue to experience in the work of others, especially in this competitive economy.
And I'm not advocating that candidates with poor writing skills engage ghost writers to win the job. Because once you win the job, you still need to write at least emails. I had a manager who worked for me whose emails were borderline illiterate, and they had been in the workforce for almost 20 years. Intrigued, I checked their personnel file (I had not originally hired them). I was astonished to find a C.V. and cover letter better written than my own. Ghost-written. And, as I later found out, by their spouse. But their spouse wasn't there to help, post-hire, with their business email composition.
My intention is not to come off as a writing snob. My own career Achilles heel is MS Excel spreadsheets -- they make my head throb. I winced and squirmed through Intro to MS Excel and Intermediate MS Excel courses. After nearly 10 years of formal and on-the-job instruction, I can for the most part use MS Excel at a satisfactory level. My next frontier is pivot tables.
If writing is your Achilles hell (sic intended!), then please consider continuing education courses in business writing, and then please practice writing at every opportunity. In your volunteer work. Helping your children with their homework. Writing love letters. Facebook posts. If I can white-knuckle MS Excel, you can do the same with your writing for business.
Before I send any important piece of writing out - proposal, job application, blog post - I let the best writer I know proof my work: my husband Joel. He just edited out a repeated word and pointed out two of my signature marathon sentences in this blog post, as a matter of fact. (Thanks, Hon!)
If I'm at work: I read and re-read my work at least 4 times. And then I wait a while before I hit send, sometimes until the next morning. It's worked consistently for me.
Sending in a job application is not a speed competition; if you send in your job application within the first week a job is posted, that is considered an expedient response.
If yours is the first application I receive and it has multiple errors, I will continue to look at the other applications. Clearly, quality counts in this as well as other business writing scenarios.
I believe writing is one of the ultimate acts of human manifestation: you can literally write your life. I have. And I love witnessing that act of creation in others.
I have only one request: please don't write and send out crap. Because what's inside you is so much better than that. And decision-makers are waiting to discover and purchase the gifts you have to offer.
A prosperous week to you and yours!
Bottom line: I continue to consistently see unprofessional correspondence from job candidates. Cover emails and letters as well as job applications riddled with spelling and grammatical errors.
The C.V. attachment that arrived with nothing but "Sent from My Verizon Wireless Blackberry" in the body of the email with the word "sex" embedded in the job applicant's email address is the most recent and memorable.
Twice recently I have seen the mangled "oppertunity" (sic). Once in the email subject line. Ouch.
The immediacy of error-ridden electronic job applications is perhaps even more heart-breaking than the old-fashioned hard-copy cover letters and C.V.'s sent to prospective employers via snail mail. That fading process at least, in theory, baked in some more time to review and proof your correspondence before you stamped it and dropped it in the mailbox (the red, white and blue metal ones). As a recruiter, just for the record, I do not miss at all managing hard-copy job applications.
When a job candidate (or for that matter, anyone else who is writing with the intention of marketing a product) corresponds as carelessly as exemplified above, the telegraphed impact about you as a candidate on the hiring authority and / or decision-maker is deafening:
- No attention to detail, does not proof their work
- Makes frequent mistakes
- Cannot write, perhaps cannot speak professionally
- Poor judgment
- Might have been impaired when they sent their email application.
(Friends don't let friends email; text; dial; drunk.)
- (Insert your own assessment here.)
Managing poor performance on the front end (e.g., the candidate hiring stage) saves me and my organization a great deal of work and money on the back end (Payroll time wasted training, disciplining and making available to industry a substandard performer.)
In other words, I had to clean up my own mess, HR-wise, if I inserted a candidate with the issues above into the hiring process and they were subsequently hired. Not to mention the poor reflection on my assessment skills. It certainly motivates the drive for quality candidates.
There is so much information out in both the media and social media channels about the importance of accurate business writing in both the job application process and in the workplace, I'm once again at a loss to understand the substandard writing and grammatical errors I continue to experience in the work of others, especially in this competitive economy.
And I'm not advocating that candidates with poor writing skills engage ghost writers to win the job. Because once you win the job, you still need to write at least emails. I had a manager who worked for me whose emails were borderline illiterate, and they had been in the workforce for almost 20 years. Intrigued, I checked their personnel file (I had not originally hired them). I was astonished to find a C.V. and cover letter better written than my own. Ghost-written. And, as I later found out, by their spouse. But their spouse wasn't there to help, post-hire, with their business email composition.
My intention is not to come off as a writing snob. My own career Achilles heel is MS Excel spreadsheets -- they make my head throb. I winced and squirmed through Intro to MS Excel and Intermediate MS Excel courses. After nearly 10 years of formal and on-the-job instruction, I can for the most part use MS Excel at a satisfactory level. My next frontier is pivot tables.
If writing is your Achilles hell (sic intended!), then please consider continuing education courses in business writing, and then please practice writing at every opportunity. In your volunteer work. Helping your children with their homework. Writing love letters. Facebook posts. If I can white-knuckle MS Excel, you can do the same with your writing for business.
Before I send any important piece of writing out - proposal, job application, blog post - I let the best writer I know proof my work: my husband Joel. He just edited out a repeated word and pointed out two of my signature marathon sentences in this blog post, as a matter of fact. (Thanks, Hon!)
If I'm at work: I read and re-read my work at least 4 times. And then I wait a while before I hit send, sometimes until the next morning. It's worked consistently for me.
Sending in a job application is not a speed competition; if you send in your job application within the first week a job is posted, that is considered an expedient response.
If yours is the first application I receive and it has multiple errors, I will continue to look at the other applications. Clearly, quality counts in this as well as other business writing scenarios.
I believe writing is one of the ultimate acts of human manifestation: you can literally write your life. I have. And I love witnessing that act of creation in others.
I have only one request: please don't write and send out crap. Because what's inside you is so much better than that. And decision-makers are waiting to discover and purchase the gifts you have to offer.
A prosperous week to you and yours!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
What Dating and Interviewing Have in Common (Except Please Don't Date Who You Interview)
Among several passions, interests, entrepreneurial endeavors and job experiences, I've been an inside (corporate) recruiter for about 21 years. I've been a salesman's daughter all my life. My daddy, who worked as a wedding and bar mitzvah photographer on the weekends as a second job, had me cold-calling prospects when I was 14 years old.
Howard (my father) taught me then and since that selling is not shoving unwanted products down customers' throats: it is instead first determining the customer's needs and then meeting those needs. It was a great and early introduction to my own native skills, and it definitely formed the basis of my success as both a recruiter and a candidate.
As a result of my journey to date, in both robust markets and during several rides to the Recession Rodeo, I've come to the conclusion that the following skills are congruent: interviewing; selling; marketing; networking; and dating. Had I recognized these skill intersections when dating was a primary interest in my life, I definitely would have dated more.
However, in the spirit of full disclosure as an HR practitioner, you definitely should not date who you interview.
There are several opportunities at play within these skill intersections, for both employers and prospective employees. These are not meant to be inclusive or ranked in order of importance; merely thought- and continuous improvement-provoking.
I also use these skill intersections to illustrate how accessible the recruiting and interview process can be when I train others to both interview and recruit.
First: an intense curiosity to learn about new people and to have new experiences with them. My friend Nan (who is a writer and an English teacher) and I share this gift. Nan applied her skill masterfully in the dating category. To this day, I marvel at her ability when she was single to secure at least one date in nearly every social situation. As a runner-up to Nan, I always make a new networking connection no matter what the setting, because of my native curiosity to draw out and learn people's individual stories, which more often than not, are wonderful takeaway nuggets.
Second: the ability to read signals, verbal and non-verbal, and determine whether or not needs are being met for both parties. I have ended meetings or revised the original meeting agenda, no matter what side of the interview table I sit on, when I determine that there isn't a needs match on both sides, in the spirit of saving time and preserving mutual esteem and credibility.
One example was an interview for a senior HR position as a candidate: once the recruiter finished his clearly rote description of the position, I then asked him why he wasn't considering our mutual friend Lynn -- she was a perfect match for the position, which substantiated my intuitive conclusion that the position was not for me. He subsequently recruited and hired Lynn. I love vocational matchmaking.
And then there was the guy with a strong Accounting background who came to my then-company's job fair booth and began our interaction complaining that he had been job-hunting for several months and that he couldn't catch a break because his last boss was an asshole and that his age was a problem and that's why he couldn't get hired. Yikes. I stopped him and told him the truth: that he needed to resolve his frustration before he approached the next hiring authority, as he was clearly undermining himself. He was grateful: no one had ever given him that feedback.
Speaking of signals: watch-checking -- whether on a date or an interview -- telegraphs a clear "Stick a fork in me, I'm done" message. A strategically placed clock over the candidate's (or date's, or customer's) shoulder is a more subtle and respectful time-tracker.
Third, and perhaps most important: knowing what you want, whether you're the candidate or the hiring authority. I'm a big advocate of defining exactly what you want (and what you have to offer) affirmatively and in detail before recruitment (or job search) begins. This preparation invariably produces expedited screening processes, specific and meaningful interview questions and dialogue, and on-target needs identification for both candidates and hiring authorities, which in turn translates into focused marketing that invariably produces better results. Covey's classic "begin with the end in mind."
However, the human experience often presents these nuggets in the form of learning from our mistakes, e.g. learning first what you don't want.
Like dating the newly recovering medical student for a year and a half despite the fact that on the first date, he took me to dinner knowing full well that he did not have the money to pay, but cutting him slack because he was adorable. Unfortunately, just being adorable was not enough to sustain a relationship. I subsequently learned my lesson after that relationship on the first date with the immature lawyer who took me to the movies knowing that he did not have the money with him to pay. There was no second date with the immature lawyer, lesson learned.
And then there was the wonderful 5-hour first date with the man I knew would become my husband. Except I had the sense by then not to mention that intuition during that first date.
Fourth, as noted above: the ability to identify red flags, large and small, and to assess whether or not, according to what you have clearly defined as what you want, if the red flags you identify are manageable or deal-killers. And to not ignore those red flags, instead to drill down into them with additional questions / discussion to confirm or deny your red-flag intuition.
A candidate example was the nonprofit Executive Director who called me before 8 AM the Saturday morning after my first interview with her to spontaneously continue the interview -- I respectfully withdrew myself from consideration. I could easily extrapolate what it would be like to work for her: she'd show up on my doorstep early every Saturday morning expecting coffee.
One of the sadder hiring-authority examples was the guy who showed up still drunk for his first day of work from celebrating his new job into the wee hours the night before. His employment offer of course was rescinded.
Because here's where the first date and the first interview are identical: for both the hiring authority and the job candidate, it's as good as it gets: we're all on our best behavior. So if the red flags bleed outside the boundaries of your standards on that first date or interview, more likely than not, it's not going to get any better than that first encounter. Then both parties need to decide whether or not to move forward -- whether or not needs will be met on both sides.
Hiring authorities: The manner in which you recruit employees should be the same as the manner in which you attract customers, as it requires the same passion and energy. And you never know when a job candidate can end up as a customer, especially in a local economy like SmAlbany. Recruiting is part of your branding and your reputation. Everyone, internally and externally, is a customer -- it's a win-win set-up and ultimately reflects best on your organization.
Job candidates: you are the product that you're selling to the prospective employer. Have you determined their particular needs? Can you clearly demonstrate how you will meet / exceed their needs in the interview? Have you asked for the order by telling the hiring authority that you want the job, and that you're the best candidate for the job because you've laid out the true facts of how you will meet and / or exceed their needs? (Asking for the order without making the factual case of meeting the hiring authority's needs is like saying "I love you" on the first date, by the way -- it cheapens everyone in the conversation.) It's a lot more work, but it feels much better than the stereotypical candidate paradigm of supplicant, don't you think?
That symmetry goes for subsequent interviews too: I'm a big fan of Ask the Headhunter, where among other nuggets, I wholeheartedly support his philosophy of doing the job during the interview, as this benefits and identifies needs on both sides of the interview table. One of my best career interview experiences as a candidate was the interview task to write a sample press release as if there was currently a plant emergency. I loved it, and my hiring (and subsequent) manager, Bill, picked up on my energy. Needs met and matched!
Seriously though -- please don't date who you interview. I'll talk more about that in a future post.
Good hunting: have a great week.
Howard (my father) taught me then and since that selling is not shoving unwanted products down customers' throats: it is instead first determining the customer's needs and then meeting those needs. It was a great and early introduction to my own native skills, and it definitely formed the basis of my success as both a recruiter and a candidate.
As a result of my journey to date, in both robust markets and during several rides to the Recession Rodeo, I've come to the conclusion that the following skills are congruent: interviewing; selling; marketing; networking; and dating. Had I recognized these skill intersections when dating was a primary interest in my life, I definitely would have dated more.
However, in the spirit of full disclosure as an HR practitioner, you definitely should not date who you interview.
There are several opportunities at play within these skill intersections, for both employers and prospective employees. These are not meant to be inclusive or ranked in order of importance; merely thought- and continuous improvement-provoking.
I also use these skill intersections to illustrate how accessible the recruiting and interview process can be when I train others to both interview and recruit.
First: an intense curiosity to learn about new people and to have new experiences with them. My friend Nan (who is a writer and an English teacher) and I share this gift. Nan applied her skill masterfully in the dating category. To this day, I marvel at her ability when she was single to secure at least one date in nearly every social situation. As a runner-up to Nan, I always make a new networking connection no matter what the setting, because of my native curiosity to draw out and learn people's individual stories, which more often than not, are wonderful takeaway nuggets.
Second: the ability to read signals, verbal and non-verbal, and determine whether or not needs are being met for both parties. I have ended meetings or revised the original meeting agenda, no matter what side of the interview table I sit on, when I determine that there isn't a needs match on both sides, in the spirit of saving time and preserving mutual esteem and credibility.
One example was an interview for a senior HR position as a candidate: once the recruiter finished his clearly rote description of the position, I then asked him why he wasn't considering our mutual friend Lynn -- she was a perfect match for the position, which substantiated my intuitive conclusion that the position was not for me. He subsequently recruited and hired Lynn. I love vocational matchmaking.
And then there was the guy with a strong Accounting background who came to my then-company's job fair booth and began our interaction complaining that he had been job-hunting for several months and that he couldn't catch a break because his last boss was an asshole and that his age was a problem and that's why he couldn't get hired. Yikes. I stopped him and told him the truth: that he needed to resolve his frustration before he approached the next hiring authority, as he was clearly undermining himself. He was grateful: no one had ever given him that feedback.
Speaking of signals: watch-checking -- whether on a date or an interview -- telegraphs a clear "Stick a fork in me, I'm done" message. A strategically placed clock over the candidate's (or date's, or customer's) shoulder is a more subtle and respectful time-tracker.
Third, and perhaps most important: knowing what you want, whether you're the candidate or the hiring authority. I'm a big advocate of defining exactly what you want (and what you have to offer) affirmatively and in detail before recruitment (or job search) begins. This preparation invariably produces expedited screening processes, specific and meaningful interview questions and dialogue, and on-target needs identification for both candidates and hiring authorities, which in turn translates into focused marketing that invariably produces better results. Covey's classic "begin with the end in mind."
However, the human experience often presents these nuggets in the form of learning from our mistakes, e.g. learning first what you don't want.
Like dating the newly recovering medical student for a year and a half despite the fact that on the first date, he took me to dinner knowing full well that he did not have the money to pay, but cutting him slack because he was adorable. Unfortunately, just being adorable was not enough to sustain a relationship. I subsequently learned my lesson after that relationship on the first date with the immature lawyer who took me to the movies knowing that he did not have the money with him to pay. There was no second date with the immature lawyer, lesson learned.
And then there was the wonderful 5-hour first date with the man I knew would become my husband. Except I had the sense by then not to mention that intuition during that first date.
Fourth, as noted above: the ability to identify red flags, large and small, and to assess whether or not, according to what you have clearly defined as what you want, if the red flags you identify are manageable or deal-killers. And to not ignore those red flags, instead to drill down into them with additional questions / discussion to confirm or deny your red-flag intuition.
A candidate example was the nonprofit Executive Director who called me before 8 AM the Saturday morning after my first interview with her to spontaneously continue the interview -- I respectfully withdrew myself from consideration. I could easily extrapolate what it would be like to work for her: she'd show up on my doorstep early every Saturday morning expecting coffee.
One of the sadder hiring-authority examples was the guy who showed up still drunk for his first day of work from celebrating his new job into the wee hours the night before. His employment offer of course was rescinded.
Because here's where the first date and the first interview are identical: for both the hiring authority and the job candidate, it's as good as it gets: we're all on our best behavior. So if the red flags bleed outside the boundaries of your standards on that first date or interview, more likely than not, it's not going to get any better than that first encounter. Then both parties need to decide whether or not to move forward -- whether or not needs will be met on both sides.
Hiring authorities: The manner in which you recruit employees should be the same as the manner in which you attract customers, as it requires the same passion and energy. And you never know when a job candidate can end up as a customer, especially in a local economy like SmAlbany. Recruiting is part of your branding and your reputation. Everyone, internally and externally, is a customer -- it's a win-win set-up and ultimately reflects best on your organization.
Job candidates: you are the product that you're selling to the prospective employer. Have you determined their particular needs? Can you clearly demonstrate how you will meet / exceed their needs in the interview? Have you asked for the order by telling the hiring authority that you want the job, and that you're the best candidate for the job because you've laid out the true facts of how you will meet and / or exceed their needs? (Asking for the order without making the factual case of meeting the hiring authority's needs is like saying "I love you" on the first date, by the way -- it cheapens everyone in the conversation.) It's a lot more work, but it feels much better than the stereotypical candidate paradigm of supplicant, don't you think?
That symmetry goes for subsequent interviews too: I'm a big fan of Ask the Headhunter, where among other nuggets, I wholeheartedly support his philosophy of doing the job during the interview, as this benefits and identifies needs on both sides of the interview table. One of my best career interview experiences as a candidate was the interview task to write a sample press release as if there was currently a plant emergency. I loved it, and my hiring (and subsequent) manager, Bill, picked up on my energy. Needs met and matched!
Seriously though -- please don't date who you interview. I'll talk more about that in a future post.
Good hunting: have a great week.
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