It’s hot and sticky on the subway and when I try to reach someone on the phone or send them an email, I am reminded that some people actually take vacations! Yet as moderator of the CM Crossroads job board I am seeing lots of activity! Here’s a confession. I often troll other job boards – to search for CM related jobs - and offer to post CM related positions (as a courtesy) on CM Crossroads. I am seeing a lot of activity and frankly I am hearing recruiters complaining that they can’t find qualified candidates! So why are there so many jobs right now and are they for real? Are we in a recovery? Are you ready – do you know what to do? Read on if you’d like to know how to respond successfully to today’s exciting and challenging environment!
Nobody Said This Would be Easy
The Market is certainly still tough. Younger job hunters may have missed the downturn in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. Older workers complain that many companies are hesitant to hire technology professionals who have a lot of experience, but perhaps lack some current hot (advanced) technical skills (e.g. J2EE, Web Services, Java etc.). Many of us may find ourselves reporting to managers who are younger (and less experienced) than we are. Job security, company loyalty and charismatic corporate leadership seem difficult to locate these days. No wonder many people face the depressing experience of interviewing over and over again without being able to land a solid position.
So Where do we Start?
I get this question all the time! Where should I start when I am searching for a job? Should I update my resume? What should I put on there? How long should it be? Do I have to lie to get an interview?
My answer is always the same. The best place to start with a job search is to scan the job boards and classified ads for information on highly sought skills and experience. Too many people focus on creating a resume that accurately (and positively) represents their own experience and background. Don’t be offended – but no one is really interested! What really matters is do you fit the position that the hiring manager is trying to hire?
What’s Good for the Goose is Good for the Gander…
Most companies give you a slanted view of their own organization. When was the last time that a hiring manager said to you, “my companies’ management is always making silly short term decisions, so you should expect to be frustrated on a regular basis!” What you might hear is, “we need someone with a strong tolerance for shifting priorities and an ability to handle change.” Well it’s fair game for you to represent yourself as positively as possible too. In fact, my father-in-law used to say that being able to represent yourself well on an interview is the best indicator of how you will do on the job! It’s basically a very realistic job selection test that is closely linked to the actual required job responsibilities.
Putting Yourself Down
Many job hunters get very depressed and they create a cycle where they do, in fact, fail! Imagine trying to learn to ride a bicycle or swim if you were convinced that you would fall or sink? The challenge is to strike a healthy balance between self introspection and confidence. I usually like to paint the picture that there are often three separate dynamics going on during an interview.
1. They just aren’t going to like me…
The employer might just dislike you for reasons that you cannot control or change. This might be because of his/her bias or just some interpersonal dynamics. I remember an interview that went bad right after I mentioned that I am a Sabbath Observer. On the way out the manager walked me to the elevator and we chatted for about 20 minutes in the hall way. He seemed to want to ask me every question he could think of about implementing ClearCase in a large organization, but obviously he didn’t want to deal with an employee who won’t answer the phone on a Friday night. His loss.
2. They love me ! – when do I start?
The employer might urgently need to fill the position and you seem like the best fit. This is easier to get over, but sometimes we are invited to work for companies even if we are not the most expert candidate (sometimes we are not really qualified or well suited). The employer might just feel that it’s a good fit with room for the candidate to grow and the value for the organization.
3. They wouldn’t like anybody!
This is hard to believe but, I have actually seen employers interview candidates to keep the requisition open with the full intent of not hiring anyone. Sometimes corporate dynamics can be real strange this way. The group does not want to loose the open “req”, but they also are not really serious about filling the position either. There has been an open Senior ClearCase position that has been widely (very widely!) marketed in NYC for over six months. If they really wanted to hire someone they would have already. There may very well be something else going on. (They’ll probably reorganize and the new hiring manager will fill the spot in a week!)
Resumes That Count
The resume gets you in the door. It should be slanted to the position that you are interviewing for. I know that sounds like a lot of work. But if you are unemployed or in danger of being unemployed than THIS IS YOUR JOB! Aside from CM Crossroads, I troll many job boards. This helps me realize what skills I should be trying to develop (or at least what books I should be buying!). My resume is descriptive in that it paints a picture of what I did and which skills I have developed. Make sure that your resumes explains what you did with your C++ programming in terms that a human being understand.
Knock 'em Dead
The market is quite tough these days. But I am definitely noticing more activity in the last couple of months. This is significant because the summer has always been slow for jobs and the overall hiring process (e.g. vacations, staff shortages). The first test of how you will do on your new job is how well you do at hunting and landing that new position. Please let me know what you find most difficult and most effective at winning in challenging job market!
The Market is certainly still tough. Younger job hunters may have missed the downturn in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. Older workers complain that many companies are hesitant to hire technology professionals who have a lot of experience, but perhaps lack some current hot (advanced) technical skills (e.g. J2EE, Web Services, Java etc.). Many of us may find ourselves reporting to managers who are younger (and less experienced) than we are. Job security, company loyalty and charismatic corporate leadership seem difficult to locate these days. No wonder many people face the depressing experience of interviewing over and over again without being able to land a solid position. I get this question all the time! Where should I start when I am searching for a job? Should I update my resume? What should I put on there? How long should it be? Do I have to lie to get an interview? My answer is always the same. The best place to start with a job search is to scan the job boards and classified ads for information on highly sought skills and experience. Too many people focus on creating a resume that accurately (and positively) represents their own experience and background. Don’t be offended – but no one is really interested! What really matters is Most companies give you a slanted view of their own organization. When was the last time that a hiring manager said to you, “my companies’ management is always making silly short term decisions, so you should expect to be frustrated on a regular basis!” What you might hear is, “we need someone with a strong tolerance for shifting priorities and an ability to handle change.” Well it’s fair game for you to represent yourself as positively as possible too. In fact, my father-in-law used to say that being able to represent yourself well on an interview is the best indicator of how you will do on the job! It’s basically a very realistic job selection test that is closely linked to the actual required job responsibilities. Many job hunters get very depressed and they create a cycle where they do, in fact, fail! Imagine trying to learn to ride a bicycle or swim if you were convinced that you would fall or sink? The challenge is to strike a healthy balance between self introspection and confidence. I usually like to paint the picture that there are often three separate dynamics going on during an interview. The employer might just dislike you for reasons that you cannot control or change. This might be because of his/her bias or just some interpersonal dynamics. I remember an interview that went bad right after I mentioned that I am a Sabbath Observer. On the way out the manager walked me to the elevator and we chatted for about 20 minutes in the hall way. He seemed to want to ask me every question he could think of about implementing ClearCase in a large organization, but obviously he didn’t want to deal with an employee who won’t answer the phone on a Friday night. His loss.The employer might urgently need to fill the position and you seem like the best fit. This is easier to get over, but sometimes we are invited to work for companies even if we are not the most expert candidate (sometimes we are not really qualified or well suited). The employer might just feel that it’s a good fit with room for the candidate to grow and the value for the organization.This is hard to believe but, I have actually seen employers interview candidates to keep the requisition open with the full intent of not hiring anyone. Sometimes corporate dynamics can be real strange this way. The group does not want to loose the open “req”, but they also are not really serious about filling the position either. There has been an open Senior ClearCase position that has been widely (very widely!) marketed in NYC for over six months. If they really wanted to hire someone they would have already. There may very well be something else going on. (They’ll probably reorganize and the new hiring manager will fill the spot in a week!) The resume gets you in the door. It should be slanted to the position that you are interviewing for. I know that sounds like a lot of work. But if you are unemployed or in danger of being unemployed than THIS IS YOUR JOB! Aside from CM Crossroads, I troll many job boards. This helps me realize what skills I should be trying to develop (or at least what books I should be buying!). My resume is descriptive in that it paints a picture of what I did and which skills I have developed. Make sure that your resumes explains what you did with your C++ programming in terms that a human being understand. The market is quite tough these days. But I am definitely noticing more activity in the last couple of months. This is significant because the summer has always been slow for jobs and the overall hiring process (e.g. vacations, staff shortages). The first test of how you will do on your new job is how well you do at hunting and landing that new position. Please let me know what you find most difficult and most effective at winning in challenging job market!
Bob Aiello is a Senior Contributing Editor for Crossroads News and an Associate Director at Bear Stearns & Co. where he is engaged in Software Process Improvement on a large scale basis. He is also on the Board of Directors for the Organizational Development Network of Greater New York (ODNofGNY) and a member of the Steering Committee of CitySPIN in New York. Mr. Aiello has a Masters in Industrial Psychology and a BS in Computer Science.
You can reach Mr. Aiello by email at raiello@acm.org
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