Career Talk JDR

Archive for April, 2009

Back in 1989, I was a Staff Accountant with a financial institution and found myself in a bit of a rut.  This was my first job out of college and I had interned there during college.  Every month…month end, accruals, account analysis and reconciliations.  At the time, the bank was in a slump (seems like a tiny, tiny slump compared to the slump we’re in today) and I couldn’t transfer to another department.

Many truly great Technology Leaders and Executives find themselves in the job market unexpectedly and sometimes, have not actively sought a position in a long time.  However, getting interviewed and hired is all about distinguishing oneself and engaging the audience.  If you become downsized and unexpectedly find yourself “in transition” and looking for a new opportunity, it is time to reverse the interview process and become an interviewee!

Most interviewers hiring for permanent positions have a series of questions designed to hear how you present yourself and how you would be perceived by executives and peers in their organization.  Here are some of the basic questions we see most often:

Give me a brief overview of yourself and why we should hire you and/or tell me about yourself:

How many voice messages have not been returned because you could not understand the message?  How many because they rambled on and on and on…?  Please think about what you are going to say before the beep. 

In today’s economy, it is more important than ever to have people return your calls.  If you want a call back, why would you speak like a snail trying to move through quicksand when leaving your name and then, speak like someone on the highway trying to break the sound barrier when leaving your telephone number? 

During tough economic times, obtaining a good job can be more difficult than ever.  There are more people than usual looking for work and there are fewer jobs.  So how do you ensure that you will make it through the tough times?  Here are some tips for finding a position and other things that you can do to help make it through and keep yourself marketable.

·         Drop any unnecessary expenses immediately.  You can probably survive without getting your nails done or going out to dinner every night of the week, and cutting down on these things will be a big help in getting by on less money until you have found a job. 

As this is a subject very near and dear to those of us here at JDR, we thought it should be mentioned here on our blog.  Jill’s talented son, Ian Herrin, is all grown up and about to go off to college! 

Being “downsized” and facing the prospect of unemployment can be both a personal and a professional strain. It is important to stay positive and focused.  Keep 9am-4pm hours on weekdays, working on structured tasks that are aimed toward getting a job.  Then, relax and have fun in the evenings and on weekends!

Do’s and Don’ts to finding a technical job:

Don’t spend time on job sites; it will only lead to frustration.  Today it’s highly unlikely that an employer will hire someone they don’t already know, or someone that is not represented by a reputable recruiting firm with existing relationships and success within their organization.

Growing up, you start forming ideas early on about the job that you want to have when you get older.  If you ask most children what they want to be “when they grow up,” they will likely rattle off a list of some of the more exciting and well known jobs…Police Officer, Fireman, Astronaut, etc.  Early on in my childhood, I thought that I wanted to be an Archaeologist!