Jobworksaz.com - Job Seeker Tips

Need a Job? Don't Sweat It, Swot It!
By Joyce Lain Kennedy

Dear Joyce: I'm graduating from college in June. I thought I was set with a good job, but the company just downsized, and I received a letter rescinding the offer. The withdrawal of the offer was a shock, but now I am ready to jump back in and pursue a new position. What do you advise? -- A.C.A.

Dear A.C.A.: First stop: Chat up your school's career services office staff for new leads. While there, don't miss checking out an important publication titled "Corporate Jobs Outlook!" by Plunkett Research. Recent CJO editions identify big companies that are still growing and with significant hiring needs.

If you're in a bit of a muddle, Brian J. Bohling, senior vice president of CDI Corp., a leading recruitment and global staffing company, suggests you preface your relaunch with a personal SWOT analysis.

What, you well may ask, is a SWOT analysis? Bohling explains: "You may be familiar with the marketing exercise that plots a company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Apply the exercise to yourself. The strengths and weaknesses are internal; the opportunities and threats are external forces that affect your career advancement."

Figure out how you can market and leverage your strengths, correct and minimize your weaknesses, maximize and seize opportunities and anticipate and overcome threats to your future.

In addition to the handy SWOT formula for thinking your way through a vocational maze, redouble your efforts at networking and identifying published job openings through print and online media. Comprehensive catalogs of job books are available at Impact Publications.

Dear Joyce: I attended two job fairs this spring, but nothing came of them. Should I bother spending the time on fairs? -- C.J.

Dear C.J.: If you have the hours, here are suggestions:

Carry ample self-marketing materials in your backpack, say 50 to 100 résumés, and equal numbers of résumé summaries of several paragraphs and reference sheets.

Identify in advance your top 12 choices of employers. Research them online and visit them before you work the rest of the room. You look like an amateur if you ask "What does your company do?"

Be prepared to briefly summarize your strengths and to answer questions about your interests, goals, experience and willingness to relocate.

Don't approach a recruiter asking "What do you have?" A smoother way: Offer your résumé summary, asking "Do you have positions appropriate for my background?"

Dress with care, even if you come straight from work. Consider the three or four minutes a recruiter spends talking to you to be a prescreening interview. Do all the intuitive things -- firm handshake, eye contact, pleasant smile -- that suggest you're a confident, sociable individual.

Use your Palm™ handheld to make notes of happenings and expressions of interest as you move through the aisles of the fair.

Should you follow up after the fair? Recruiters, will tell you: "No, don't call us, we'll call you." Recruiters understandably don't want to be burdened with a blast of telephone calls.

But does sit-and-wait work best for you? Not if you need a job quickly. After a week, you can call: "I've had an offer, but I'm very interested in your company. Should I expect an interview to be scheduled within the next couple of weeks?"

If you want to stand out in a recruiter's memory and leave the door open for a follow-up, here's a relationship-building strategy. This one unfolds from the piecemeal distribution of your self-marketing materials.

At the fair, offer the recruiter only your résumé summary. Say you'll send your full résumé the following day, asking what the recruiter prefers -- e-mail, fax or postal mail?

But what if the recruiter wants your full résumé right now? Your answer: "I need to make a few changes on it, and I only want to release it to chosen employers."

Send your full résumé the next day. Then follow with a telephone call a few days later: "As you suggested, I sent you my résumé by e-mail. Has it been routed? Do you see a fit with an open position?" How well this strategy works largely depends on your making a favorable impression at the fair.

Send career questions for possible use in this column to Joyce Lain Kennedy at Box 368, Cardiff, CA 92007, or e-mail her at jlk@sunfeatures.com. Sorry, the volume of mail makes personal replies impossible. ©2001 Tribune Media Services, Inc.