Monday, July 12, 2010

Dave Jacks' 7 Step Guide to Finding a Job

Dave Jacks’ 7-step guide to finding a job

Most of you know me and know I’m a recruiter and that I try to get out and attend networking events as much as possible. Often people ask what do you do and as soon as I say “I’m a recruiter,” they explain that they or someone close to them needs a job. They probe a bit and I explain the areas we focus in and encourage them to send me their resume regardless of whether their in an area we focus in and remind them that we’re a small company to try to temper their expectations. I then usually suggest that the person follow-up with me so I could give suggestions on how to go about their job search. Typically, I never hear from them again or if I do it’s because they email me their resume and then never have time to talk unless I have a job for them. Though there are some that have taken my advice and have succeeded in landed jobs so I’ve decided to share it with as many people as possible.

Step 1: Set-up a Facebook account! You already have one; great, you are one step ahead of the game. What’s that, your too old or too cool – get over it, it’s 2010 and there are new ways of networking that could help you grow professionally and keep in touch with friends and family.

Step 2: Set-up a LinkedIn account! You have that too – amazing!

Step 3: Invite all Facebook connections to LinkedIn. Trust me; you’ll see where I’m going with this.

Step 4: go to www.indeed.com . Indeed is a job aggregator – that is a site that pulls data from other similar sites. In other words any posting from any major job board, i.e. Monster, Dice, The Ladders, etc. or any major company such as IBM or Google will appear on indeed.

Step 5: Save your search as an agent on Indeed. Do a search for a job based on your skills or title (or do 2 separate ones) and then save them as an agent. When a new job is posting that meets your criteria you’ll get an email.

Step 6: When you see a job you are interested in posted by a company or a (lazy) recruiter that mistakenly mentioned the client name in a post look up the company on LinkedIn. LinkedIn will then pull up all your contacts at that company. Connect directly or via introduction to someone at that company and see if you could get them to be your internal advocate and submit your resume internally.

Step 7: Still no job…don’t fret…network and learn. Grow your network on LinkedIn and Facebook. Search your schools alumni, go through your old business cards, and attend networking events. Seek out experts in networking and job searches such as Keith Ferrazzi and Jim Stroud. You can download Keith’s guide to landing your dream job at his website www.keithferrazzi.com . Jim Stroud’s website is www.jimstroud.com . Lastly, think about joining a professional networking organization such as Gotham; which could be found at www.gothamnetworking.com . I belong to Gotham and you could attend an event as a guest of mine – all I ask is that you reach out to me first and/or mention me when you contact the group administrator of the event or group you are interested in.

Notes: Career coaches and Posting your resume.

I believe career coaches are a great resource although they could be expensive. If you are currently employed and looking how to leverage your existing experience to get a higher level job at your current employer or get a job elsewhere they could be helpful. If you are unemployed I suggest you hold onto your money or see if they will take some payment up-front and the balance when you land a new job. Lastly, consider seeing a younger person who just became credentialed or is training to become certified – chances are they’ll be helpful and much cheaper or even free.

As far as posting your resume on Monster or some other job board there’s nothing wrong with that as long as you don’t overdo it. That is if your resume has been live on a job board for 3 or more months take it down. The reason is that chances are the employer or recruiter most likely to hire or place you has already downloaded your resume. Recruiters (internally and externally) get desensitized to resumes they’ve seen countless times and start ignoring them after a while. Take a 6 month break and then re-post if you’re still looking and want to post your resume.

Good Luck!

Sincerely,

Dave Jacks

What's there to be Thankful about during a Recession?

What’s there to be Thankful about during a recession?

For starter’s Thanksgiving is an American Holiday and it is OK to wish someone a Happy Thanksgiving regardless of their religion or race; there is nothing offensive or politically incorrect about saying Happy Thanksgiving. In fact, in the last week many people have said “Have a Happy Holiday” to me and I found that to be somewhat insulting as a proud American.

Along those lines despite our current economic climate being an American is one thing to be thankful for, it is here in America that you could choose your profession; it is here in America that Obama proved no matter what your background is you can be anything you want to be. Be thankful for Obama for he was elected perhaps because, more than any other candidates from the primaries to November 4th, Obama was the candidate not just for change but for hope and optimism. Obama was hired as our president because optimism was more important than any other prerequisite or anyone’s resume. IMHO he was hired because hope was the ultimate requirement for America.

Be thankful that you are an American, free to vote, free to demonstrate, free to bear arms, free to be whoever or whatever you want to be. And lastly, if you are a recruiter or salesperson in the search industry the next time you are in front of a client you may want to ask, “Mr. Client – if there was one thing, it could be a hard skill or an intangible – if there is one thing that you want in a candidate above everything else what would that be?” The answer may help you find your client’s next president!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Written by Dave Jacks - November 27, 2008 at 10:21 pm republished here to move from wordpress to blogger

Heroes of the Economic Recovery

Yesterday I received my copy if the Inc 500 issue in the mail. Inc magazine is in my opinion the best publication dedicated to entrepreneurship. As I read the introduction it occurred to me that the CEOs of the companies on this list are today’s heroes.

There are other role models, and other inspiring figures from Obama to Lance Armstrong to Steve Jobs but who is really going to create the most jobs over the next few years. Who is manufacturing their products here in America and who refuses to layoff or succumb to the very real and natural fears associated with today’s economy?

You can read about them in this month’s issue. They are the champions of capitalism and the heroes of our economic recovery. They are my idols. They are the American dream personified. Congratulations to the members of 2009’s Inc 500. I admire you all and hope to become a member of your community one day.

See the list here http://www.inc.com/inc5000/2009/the-full-list.html

Originally published by Dave Jacks August 23, 2009 at 8:24 pm



5 Things that Make me a Smart Recruiter

From the ebook available at recruitingblogs.com – “How to be a Smart Recruiter”

“5 things that make me a smart recruiter”

5. Know your role as a recruiter. Our role is to work for the client and as an advocate for the candidate. This means that if someone isn't right for your client no matter how much you like them doesn't matter. Helping people, especially in times like these, is a nice thought though we are not social workers. When we do find who we feel is the right candidate however it is up to us to be an advocate for them and convince the client to meet and hire them.

4. I see recruiting as a Contact Sport. The more (quality) contacts you make and the more tools you use to make those contacts the more likely you are to win - use everything, call people, text them, chat with them, tweet them, facebook them, use linkedin, get referrals to introduce you and then get referrals from your candidates if they are not interested or get rejected. Be more aggressive than the competition. Recruit like the Steelers and Ravens play defense.

3. Collaborate. If you're on recruitingblogs chances are you've realized that the way we connect and recruit are evolving and the internet is playing a huge role. When I first got into the business I didn't want anything to do with recruiters from other firms or corporates unless they were going to give me business. Today things are different, make friends, network, and learn from your competitors, share candidates, share sourcing methods.

2. Go Beyond. To be a smart recruiter - no to be a great recruiter you need to go beyond the boards and go beyond the job description and beyond the resume. It's fine to use the job boards for active candidates - there are good people there, Monster is one of the top 50 brands in the world last I heard but don't stop there. Go beyond the boards, Google, Facebook, Linkedin, referrals, zoom info, blogs, etc. Go beyond the job description -visit the client and think of them holistically, the culture, the environment, their unique selling points, why people thrive and why they sometimes fail. Go beyond the resume - meet and "see" the person, what motivates them, what makes them unique, what kind of people are they most likely to gel with and what type of culture are they likely to fit in.

1. Intuition. Some call this EQ, Emotional Quotient which is basically the ability to understand people's emotions and motivation and behavior. This is the number one reason I am a smart recruiter, I have a high EQ, a sixth sense regarding who will fit in a certain role and environment.

Everything I needed to know about buisinesss I learned from Football

Everything I needed to know about business I learned from football

Intro

Every year in this country we have “the big dance,” otherwise known as the Super Bowl and the most recent game was watched by 97.5 million viewers making it the second most watched show of all time, next to the series finale of “Mash.” In that game the New York Giants, who had a regular season record of 9 wins and 7 losses, knocked off a seemingly unbeatable 16-0 New England Patriots.

What are the main aspects of a championship football team? What qualities must one possess to win a game or championship? Are the same things applicable to creating a winning culture and team in business? Let’s see…

Team

Football is a team sport. The most important aspect of a winning team is that everyone works together to achieve the desired result. In football, it’s executing the game plan to result in a victory and in business it’s executing a defined strategy to make money.

Need an example, ask Keyshawn Johnson author of “Just Give me the Damn Ball!” what happens when you think you are bigger than the team. I’m sure the now matured NFL analyst has learned a thing or two about hogging the ball after being cut twice, traded twice and suspended for over half a season in his prime. Certainly you want to get the ball to your playmakers but it is a team sport and to succeed you need to stay within your game plan.

Game Plan

In order to ensure that everyone is on the “same page” it is imperative that you have a good game plan. To develop a winning game plan you need to learn about the competition, study their weaknesses and look to exploit them, study their strengths and develop schemes to overcome them. In business we call it a business plan.

The most important part of a game plan is the proper execution of that plan or playing how you were coached. This means playing your position according to the individual play called while keeping the big picture in mind. While executing a game plan or business strategy it is important to be mindful of the score (or budget) and communicate any challenges or surprises so that the team knows if they need to make adjustments.

Communication

Communication may be the most important aspect of any business or team across all facets of the game. The best strategy in the world can’t be carried out if the quarterback doesn’t talk to his receivers or if marketing doesn’t talk to sales.

Effective communication happens when players are comfortable talking to coaches and leadership is able to speak to their team. If you can’t talk to people the right way you are not a true team player. Vicious emails in all caps with exclamation points are akin to unnecessary roughness in football – that’s a 15 yard penalty which really hurts your team. Too many penalties and you won’t win in football or the office.

If leadership is the one that fails to properly communicate they will get fired. The player has to remain with the team until their contract expires and they become a free agent and are able to go to another team. In real life everyone is a free agent.

Discipline

Penalties like unnecessary roughness are caused by a lack of discipline. Discipline is at the very foundation of every great performing team or individual. The coach of the New York Giants, Tom Coughlin has been criticized throughout his career for being too much of a disciplinarian until the Giants beat the previously unbeaten and anointed greatest team of all time, the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. You can see here that in almost every facet of the game the Giants were among the least penalized teams in football http://2008playoffs.nytimes.com/matchup/NYG_NE/penalties .

My coach always talked about the little things and that is what discipline is all about, at work it is getting there on time, showing up for meetings, attending conference calls, getting your reports in on time and filled out properly. The little things, or discipline, can be the difference between mediocrity and excellence.

Coaching

Tiki Barber, who thrived under Coughlin’s tutelage, may have been the most outspoken critic of Coughlin’s tough style. Tiki decided to take his opinions outside the locker room and retire early for a career in broadcasting. His departure resulted in the team becoming more coachable and winning the Super Bowl. The Giants had the same team and the same coach as the prior season proving that both coaches and players are accountable and it doesn’t matter how great your coach is if you are not coachable.

It doesn’t matter how great your leadership is if not surrounded by great people and it doesn’t matter if you have great people if you don’t provide them with great leadership.

Passion

Last but not least is passion. Brett Favre, Quarterback of the New York Jets will go to the Hall of Fame for his numbers but he will be remembered for the way he played the game, with great passion. Obviously we can’t pick up our office mates and carry them across the room and jump and down at work like Favre has been known to do, but we can show some enthusiasm. Perhaps no player in NFL history is a better role model for the modern employee who works in a team environment than Favre.

Be like Brett; work hard, do your job the right way, have some enthusiasm and you’ll be able to achieve a “hall of fame worthy” career of your own!


***This was initially published prior to the 2008 football season