http://economy.ocregister.com/2012/06/16/5-tips-for-writing-a-post-interview-thank-you/109268/
Career Advice
The New Graduate Job Search Guide
June Houston Economic Update from GHP
Kids choose your major wisely! Good article from Bloomberg
Article: 10 Things to Remove from Your Resume – Don Goodman, Expert Resume Writer, Career Coach and Job Search Strategist.
Don Goodman, Expert Resume Writer, Career Coach and Job Search Strategist.
20 seconds
That’s the average amount of time that an employer will spend scanning your resume. The phrase “Less is more” has often been used for design purposes, but it can apply just as well to your resume.
The point is to keep only information on your resume that is clear, simple and that supports your brand and message. It’s a balance of having just enough information to draw the interest of an employer, while leaving room for you to further explain during an interview.
The more irrelevant information you add to your resume, the more it dilutes your “key message”. Employers today also look right through fluff words and are rather annoyed by them.
So, you ask, “How can I power up my resume and make sure it contains the precise balance of information?”
Consider the following:
- Replace the “Objective” statement on your resume with “Professional Profile.”
- Employers today are not that interested in what you want. Your opening paragraph needs to be a strong message that summarizes your background and indicates what you are best at. That creates a theme that is then followed by proving that you are great at these things by showcasing supporting accomplishments in each job.
- Eliminate superfluous, or “fluff” words.
- I can’t tell you how many resumes start with “Dynamic visionary…” I call these fluff statements as anyone can make them and they add no real value to your resume. Keep your message on point and stick to the facts. If you want to express these traits, demonstrate it with what you have achieved or accomplished.
- Watch your grammar.
- Sentences in resumes are written like headlines and are in the first person. In other words, the statement “I am known for consistently exceeding my sales quotas” becomes “Known for consistently exceeding sales quotas.” Another one of the biggest mistakes when writing a resume is when people mix first person and third person. For example, although “Easily learns new software” sounds right, that is the third-person (“she learns”) and should really be “Easily learn” (“I learn”). Small but important point, as you do want your resume to be grammatically correct.
- Include one telephone number rather than multiple numbers.
- If you must list more than one number, make sure to specify under what conditions the other numbers should be used.
- Do not include discriminating information.
- Avoid information that can lead one to discriminate against you, including age, sex, religion, marital status, and ethnicity. This includes the use of photos that should never be on a resume unless your face is an important part of your job (e.g. modeling, TV, etc.). In fact, some employers are forced to ignore your resume if it contains such information because of the chance that they may be accused of discrimination later in the process.
- Keep information on your education specific to the degree received, major, institution attended, and if appropriate, your GPA.
- You do not need to reveal your graduating year, the institution(s) you transferred out of or high school attended.
- Include only experiences that are relevant to the job.
- Employers are not interested in achievements or abilities that are not applicable to the job. If you are in sales and you helped develop an Access database to track supplies, that’s nice, but not relevant. Also be cautious about listing your associations or volunteer work that is irrelevant or may be in conflict with the potential employer.
- Eliminate skills for basic software programs.
- Most employers today expect you to be familiar with the basic computer programs.
- Do not include references unless requested.
- Employers today expect you to offer references when requested, which is typically during the latter part of the interview process. A top five Peeve of recruiters is seeing “References available upon request” on the resume. Do you really know anyone who would refuse to give references?
- Maintain a reasonable length for your resume.
- If you are a recent graduate, most employers do not expect your resume to be more than one page. However, if you have had considerable professional experience then your resume should be two to three pages. Note the notion all resumes should be one page is not true especially in this market. Resumes need to have enough detail to support your positioning so a two to three page resume is acceptable. I always tell my clients a resume has to have a compelling message and be easy to read, so after you have tightened up your content, format it to have a decent amount of white space.
Finding the right balance of information for your resume can make it impactful. It’s not about how long or short your resume is or how many employers you’ve worked for, but finding the right information and words to present it in the best light to demonstrate that you have the specific experiences and skills the employer is seeking.
So, keep in mind the phrase, “Less is more” when creating or updating your resume.
Don Goodman, president of About Jobs, has assisted thousands of people with their career search. A Certified Career Management Coach and Expert Resume Writer, he has been a Featured Keynote Speaker at dozens of Job Fairs, Executive Conferences, and State Agency events and has worked with the Career Placement Services of Johns Hopkins University, Clark University, and Fairleigh Dickinson University.
April Newsletter for Houston Accounting Professionals – dcd@fittsroberts.com
I hope you’re doing well. I wanted to get back in touch and let you know a little about what’s going on the Houston job market these days. It seems that Houston is doing much better than the data from last year revealed. We actually added 3500 more jobs in 2011 than initially released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. At this point Houston has recovered all the jobs lost during the recession. I have also read several articles that reference Houston having more demand for Accountants than any other city in the U.S (check out this article: http://wp.me/puDjI-jX ). I can certainly attest to the fact that Q1 was a very busy quarter for us and Q2 is not slowing down. Not only is Houston doing very well, but our other offices across the nation are also experiencing more jobs and a tighter candidate market. If you’re considering a move, now’s the time to dust off that old resume and get back in touch. If you’ve got any new updates on your search, I’d love to hear about them!Stay tuned for my next newsletter in June.
http://www.linkedin.com/in/dianedelgadolemaire (I accept all invitations)
Local Statistics:
- National / Houston Unemployment rate: 8.9% / 7.2%
- Houston’s recession officially ended in November ’11 when we recouped all lost jobs since the peak in December 2008. Houston remains the 1st of the nations largest 20 metro areas to emerge.
- From Feb ’11 to Feb ’12 Houston created 93,400 jobs. This represents a 3.7% increase. This ranks 1st in Texas metro areas.
- Trade records abound – for the 6th consecutive month, the Galveston Customs District reports a record value of $269B
- Auto sales on the rise – Looks like people are spending money on cars again. 36.8% increase YTD.
- Foreclosures are down 12.6% YTD
- Price of Oil: $103.57 (last year $109.57)
- Oil Rig Count:1979 (last year 1782)
- Industries hiring:
- Services, Exploration & Production, Manufacturing, Service Companies, Oil & Gas Field Services. Healthcare & Hospitality
- Positions in demand:
- Senior and Staff Accountants, Financial Analysts, Internal Auditors, Public Accounting, Operational Accounting Managers, Treasury, International Ta
- Industries not hiring or flat: Telecommunications, Government, Real Estate, Financial
Fight for talent puts crunch on Houston accounting firms – Houston Business Journal
Date: Friday, April 6, 2012, 5:00am CDT
If you’re looking for an accounting job anywhere in the country, Houston is your best bet. you’re looking to hire a number cruncher, it’s thin pickings.
Houston has more job openings in the accounting field than any other U.S. city, according to Charlotte, N.C.-based recruiter Accounting Principals. That means Houston companies that want to build up their accounting staff are finding it difficult, as intense demand has dried up the talent pool, accounting sector officials say.
Big companies favor Houston for their back-office operations, seeking the city’s relaxed tax environment and large workforce, while the city’s still-booming oil and gas industry is hungry for accountants, Accounting Principals said. Add it all up, and the spike in demand for accounting skills accompanying that growth has slowed down the recruiting process.
It’s frustrating, and it takes more effort,” said Thomas Wright, an executive at Margolis, Phipps & Wright PC, a Houston-based public accounting firm. “We’re able to hire sufficient people, but it’s not easy. The process has lengthened itself, it takes longer, and you spend more time to find the candidates.” Wright says he sees plenty of resumes, but it’s tough to find the right fit because his firm looks for experienced tax accountants, rather than the recent college graduates who are ideal for other positions, especially at the much larger, so-called “big four” accounting firms. Experienced candidates are in demand and harder to find, he said.
Employment in accounting is expected to be among the fastest growing in the Gulf Coast area, growing 26 percent between 2008 and 2018 to 33,000, according to the according to the Texas Workforce Commission. Even the pool of talented college graduates is shrinking, in large part because college students have turned to other pursuits, such as investment banking, area accountants say.
Demand for recent accounting graduates is at its second-highest level since 1971, and companies nationwide hired 33,321 recent grads last year, according to the New York-based American Institute of Certified Public Accountants . “The pipeline of the university has begun to dwindle somewhat,” said Charles Swanson, Houston managing partner at New York-based Ernst & Young LLP. At the state’s major universities, such as The University of Texas at Austin, fewer college graduates are interested in the audit side of accounting — they’d rather snatch up tax accounting jobs, he said.
And even when firms hire strong candidates, it’s tough to keep them. Edward Hlousek, a human resources officer at Houston-based McConnell Jones Lanier& Murphy LLP, said the firm has difficulty retaining talent longer than one or two years. “The market here is hot,” Hlousek said. “We’ve lost people to the big four, we’ve lost people to the large oil companies. They’re coming in and offering a lot more money — we go and train somebody, and then those assets are hard to hold on to.”
With those jobs in demand, salaries for accountants in Houston are now 4 percent higher than the national average, according to Robert Half Management Resources.
At a large CPA firm in Houston, a senior manager in tax services could make between $114,140 and $182,000 in 2012, up 3.6 percent from the previous year. A tax services accountant with one to three years’ experience could make between $55,120 and $69,940 at a midsize Houston firm.
Skills in Demand
The skills most in demand in Houston, according to Accounting Principals, are payroll and compensation analysis, vendor auditing, internal auditing, cash posting, and taxes; senior accountants and energy specialists are also sought after.
Still, accounting recruiters say they’re not lying down; they’re trying out different recruitment methods, especially at colleges.
“Our policy has been if we find a talented person through our network of business relationships or being out in the market place, we try to hire them,” said Bo Brackendorff, a shareholder at Houston-based EEPB PC. “We’re comfortable that we will be able to plug that person into oil and gas, and we’ll certainly need them sooner rather than later.”
When looking for more experienced tax accounting candidates, Margolis, Phipps employs a national recruiting firm, said Wright. He expects the demand for accountants will divert business school students back into the field — but right now, they see greater rewards elsewhere.
Nevertheless, when McConnell Jones Lanier & Murphy goes on campus recruiting tours, it creates “orchestrated campaigns,” with a lead recruiter and digging through professors’ classes, Hlousek said. But the firm has also turned to poaching talent from others. “We’re good at giving people a home and work-life balance so we look at some of these other firms where kids are burned out. We can offer them a better
But for the short term, at least, most Houston accounting sector observers say the recruiting wars will continue.
“I don’t see it changing,” said Swanson of Ernst & Young. “We all have to pedal really hard to keep up with the demand we have. The need to attract talent is something you can’t ease up on. I’d say on the horizon that’s my biggest concern.”
Collin Eaton covers banking, finance and securities.
Diane Delgado LeMaire | Senior Managing Director, Accounting & Finance Recruiting | Creative Financial Staffing, a division of Fitts, Roberts CPA Firm | 5718 Westheimer Suite 800 | Houston, TX 77057 | 713-260-5238 |
dcd@fittsroberts.com| Blog| Twitter| LinkedIn
Creative Financial Staffing (CFS) is the nation’s largest, privately-held accounting and financial staffing firm. We provide qualified accounting and finance professionals on a temporary and permanent basis across a broad range of industries. Our affiliation with leading accounting firms provides us with resources that help us better understand our client’s needs, attract a higher caliber of candidate, and best assess candidate potential. For more information please visit our website at
Great information about the Houston ACCOUNTING job market…..the talent pool is slowing drying up….
Houston, You May Have a Problem
The Texas oil-and-gas town tops a new list of U.S. cities where finance organizations may find it difficult to staff up this year.
If you’re a CFO in Houston and need to fill out your accounting staff, you may have a problem. Houston is the best city in the country for accounting and finance professionals, from accounts-payable clerks up through senior accounting managers, to find work, because of the plentiful supply of openings and a lack of qualified candidates to fill them.
So says Accounting Principals, a temporary staffing firm, which has released its second-annual study identifying the top cities for such professionals to find work. The firm tracked the orders coming in from its 110-plus U.S. branch locations over the past six months, and added in data from its sister company Parker & Lynch, a finance-executive search firm.
While the national unemployment figure stands at 8.5%, in finance and accounting it’s half that at about 4.2%, says Accounting Principals vice president Mike McNamara. In the cities that were among the 10 where finding such jobs was easiest, the incidence of unemployment in the field was even lower. The squeeze is being felt in markets across the country (see chart).
Houston, which didn’t even make last year’s list of best jobs cities, shot to the top this year based on a sudden boom in the cyclical oil-and-gas industry. That also hoisted Tulsa onto the list. Meanwhile, in New York, San Francisco, and Chicago, the staffing and recruiting firms were filling more jobs in the financial-services sector than they had in several years.
The position of Richmond, Virginia, at No. 2 on the list, was something of a puzzle, McNamara admits. There was a noticeable uptick in hiring at the many supply-chain logistics firms located in and around Richmond, a port city that is close to Washington, D.C., and mortgage and loan-processing business was also up in the area. But McNamara says Accounting Principals is still analyzing why Richmond placed where it did.
In Atlanta, No. 5 on the 2012 list, the real estate and hospitality businesses are stronger this year, McNamara says, while unemployment in the accounting and finance field is very low, creating a good market for those who are looking for jobs there.
Diane Delgado LeMaire| Senior Managing Director, Accounting & Finance Recruiting | Creative Financial Staffing, a division of Fitts, Roberts CPA Firm | 5718 Westheimer Suite 800 | Houston, TX 77057 |713-260-5238 | dcd@fittsroberts.com|
Texas No. 4 in U.S. for new manufacturing jobs – Houston Business Journal
Houston Business Journal
Date: Friday, August 12, 2011, 6:32am CDT
While the vast majority of U.S. metropolitan areas have seen manufacturing jobs dwindle in the past five years, Houston is among only four metro areas nationwide to see a gain in that job sector.
According to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by The Business Journal’s On Numbers, a division of American City Business Journals Inc.American City Business Journals Inc. Latest from The Business Journals Milwaukee faring better than most metros in factory jobsDFW is mid-pack in manufacturing job growthLike most of U.S., Buffalo factory jobs down Follow this company , Houston gained 227,500 manufacturing jobs between June 2006 and June 2011.
That 1.02 percent increase put Houston No. 4 in the metro rankings. Bakersfield, Calif., ranked No. 1 with a 3.94 percent increase in manufacturing jobs, followed by Modesto, Calif., Charleston, S.C., and then Houston.
But Houston’s gain of 227,500 jobs over five years dwarfed the actual job gains in those other three markets combined. The three metros added a total of 59,600 jobs during that period.
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla. reported the biggest percentage of manufacturing job losses, down 49.4 percent.
Click here for the full On Numbers report and an interactive database showing each U.S. metro’s manufacturing job numbers
Global Tax Manager &International Tax Staff – 50 to 135K plus bonus – dcd@fittsroberts.com
- Maintain the Global tax compliance including the filing of tax returns and other statutory periodic filings.
- Coordinate and monitor significant tax projects with external tax advisers.
- Ensure timely and efficient compliance of all periodic filings.
- Prepare summarized issues matrix to identify and alert management of tax risks and work with Director of Tax to mitigate risks.
- Coordinate the expatriate personal income tax compliance with external
- Assist Director of Tax to review and compile tax information from regional finance managers on a continual basis with high emphasis on quarterly close, annual tax returns, tax audits, etc.
- Assist with the preparation of the Company’s tax disclosures for US GAAP reporting purposes.
Education:
- Must have a bachelor degree.
Professional Experience:
- Must have a strong attention to detail.
- Must have willingness to learn new skills.
- Must have willingness to perform necessary tasks hands on.
- Must possess strong working knowledge of all Global tax issues (direct taxes, service tax, withholding tax, individual tax, etc.).
- Must be able to provide accurate quality information and reports when requested and within specified timelines.
- Must be open minded regarding improvements and suggestions.
- Must be able to identify tax issues and develop a solution to minimize costs/exposure to Company.
- Must be familiar with Sarbanes-Oxley compliance requirements.
- Must demonstrate excellent written and verbal communications skills and computer skills.
- International tax experiences a significant plus.
- Oilfield service experiences a significant plus.
- Public accounting experiences a plus.
- Minimum 6 years experience in tax, preferably in a public company.
- Ability to build relationships with cross-functional teams.
- Ability to work independently and with a team.
Licenses, Certificates, Credentials and Other Requirements:
- Certified Public Accountant or equivalent a significant plus.
- Medical Certificates needed as required by local regulations.
- Must pass Company Medical Examinations and random drug tests.
- References and background checks completed to the satisfaction of the company.
- Ability to travel
Diane Delgado LeMaire | Senior Managing Director, Accounting & Finance Recruiting | Creative Financial Staffing, a division of Fitts, Roberts CPA Firm | 5718 Westheimer Suite 800 | Houston, TX 77057 | 713-260-5238 | dcd@fittsroberts.com| Blog| Twitter| LinkedIn
SAP Business Analyst – Houston, Texas – dcd@fittsroberts.com
Overview:
The successful candidate will report to the Supervisor of IT-Finance and Accounting Services. This individual will be the liaison between IT and the Tax and the Financial Planning organizations. He/she will work with the business to develop a business strategy as well as articulate business requirements and translate them into effective information technology solutions. The candidate should have project management skills.
Responsibilities:
• The “face” of IT for the client organizations represented. Partners with client organizations to identify business opportunities and translate them into value added IT deliverables.
• Facilitates requirement setting and prioritization for system enhancements/projects.
• Liaises with the Internal IT Team to channel demand – coordination point for work involving Application and Architecture groups; key resource for project management on broader initiatives for their clients which involve all the IT groups.
• Requires a good understanding of technology and trends, particularly Hyperion and SAP. Will be key architect as we move forward with identifying and implementing functionality which improves our business processes.
• Responsible for understanding ramifications of configuration changes to business processes as well as making configuration changes.
• Manages the Hyperion application for the Financial Planning group. Works closely with the clients for direction and to set direction.
• Contribute and assist in assignments in a team environment that includes multiple vendors supporting IT, taking direction or providing direction as appropriate.
• Manage projects in accordance with Companies project management standards and provide governance over projects and enhancements involving our vendor partners.
• Participate in relevant industry, professional and academic organizations to remain current on trends, best practice, processes, systems and technology.
Qualifications:
Degree: Bachelors Required
Major Discipline: Information Systems or Business
Years Experience Required: At least three years experience working as a liaison between IT and the business.
Computer Proficiencies: SAP FI, Hyperion. Experience/familiarity with SAP ECC 6.0, ABAP, Microsoft applications (PowerPoint, Excel, and Word). Project Management
Senior Accountant – Houston – dcd@fittroberts.com
Job Summary Responsibilities:
- Receive, code or confirm and submit AP invoices to facilitate timely general ledger recording and vendor payments
- Work well under pressure in a high volume and fast paced environment
- Provide professional customer service to vendors and internal customers
- Perform general ledger account reconciliations
- Create vendor records according to IRS regulations
- Participate in the monthly accounting close cycle and ensure that all deadlines are met
- Assist in month-end accrual process
- Prepare AP related journal entries
- Review C Card statements and receipts for adherence to company T&E policy
- Prepare Officers’ T&E reports quarterly
- Post Corporate and inter-company journal entries
- Back-up the Corporate location requestorq Corporate SOX liaison
- Special projects and other duties as assigned
Requirements:
- Degree in accounting or finance
- At least 3 years of accounting experience
- Basic understanding of GAAP
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, etc.)
- Experience with J.D. Edwards, SAP or other robust accounting system preferred
- Attention to detail and excellent analytical skills
Excellent inter-personal skills
Accountant – Houston – dcd@fittsroberts.com
JOB SUMMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Reconcile various company-wide bank accounts
- Coordinate and resolve various issues with the bank and/or Treasury department such as cleared check differences, bank fee anomalies, escheatment, etc.
- Perform journal entries and general ledger account reconciliations
- Analyze financial statements on a monthly basis and report on variances
- Analyze and report on vehicle leases company-wide
- Participate in the monthly accounting close cycle and ensure that all deadlines are met
- Provide reports to and communicate with SOX and external auditors as needed
- Work well under pressure in a high volume and fast paced environment
- Provide professional customer service to internal customers
- Special projects and other duties as assigned
Requirements:
- BBA or equivalent in Accounting from an accredited university.
- At least 2 years of public accounting experience.
- Basic understanding of GAAP.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, etc.)
- Experience with J.D. Edwards, SAP or other robust accounting system preferred.
- Attention to detail and excellent analytical skills
Houston in top 5 for Q2 U.S. job growth – Houston Business Journal
Houston ranks fifth in the nation for second-quarter job growth among the largest 100 markets, according to an On Numbers analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Houston had a score of 1.113. Scores were based on annual private-sector growth rates during the past five years, jobless rates over the past 12 months and raw changes in private-sector employment in half a decade.
The city had a five-year job growth of 4.98 percent and a one-year job growth of 2.57 percent. That is despite an unemployment rate of 9 percent, which put Houston in the middle of the pack.
Boston is No. 1 in the latest standings with a score of 1.457. Rounding out the top five are Ogden, Utah; Worcester, Mass.; and Dallas-Fort Worth.
Boston is one of just 13 markets, including Houston, that has more private-sector jobs now than five years ago. Its growth rate in the past 12 months was 2.7 percent, and its unemployment rate is a relatively low 7.1 percent.
The bottom five are Fresno, Calif.; Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif.; Palm Bay-Melbourne, Fla.; Stockton, Calif.; and Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla.
Survey: Houston entrepreneurs boost hiring – Houston Business Journal
Houston Business Journal – by Chelbi Mims, Editorial Intern
Date: Friday, August 5, 2011, 6:30am CDT
More Houston-area entrepreneurs will hire part-time workers rather than full-time employees in the next six months.
About 51 percent of Houston-area entrepreneurs expect to hire full-time workers in the next six months, while 61 percent will hire more part-time workers, according to a survey by The Entrepreneurs’ Organization.
Globally, more entrepreneurs on average will hire full-time workers (67 percent) while 51 percent plan to hire part-time workers, the survey said.
About 6 in 10 global entrepreneurs believe the world’s economy will rebound within the next six months.
In fact, 63 percent said they expect to start a new business within the next six months.
The survey included company owners with revenue exceeding $1 million annually, with an average of $18.4 million in annual revenue and an average of 191 employees.
Click here to download a PDF with results of the global survey.
Houston Economic Update August 2011 – Greater Houston Partnership
Private job growth robust in Texas – Houston Business Journal –
Date: Wednesday, August 3, 2011, 2:36pm CDT
Texas added 251,900 jobs in the private sector for the year ending in June, said the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M UniversityTexas A&M University
Texas’ 3 percent growth rate beats the nation’s rate of 1.7 percent.
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metro area posted an annual employment growth rate of 2 percent for the period and ranked ninth among Texas metro areas.
Texas’ mining and logging sector ranked first in job creation, posting an annual employment growth rate of 16.8 percent and the construction industry was second with 30,900 new jobs with a 5.4 percent growth rate.
Diane Delgado LeMaire | Senior Managing Director, Accounting & Finance Recruiting | Creative Financial Staffing, a division of Fitts, Roberts CPA Firm | 5718 Westheimer Suite 800 | Houston, TX 77057 | 713-260-5238 | dcd@fittsroberts.com| Blog| Twitter| LinkedIn
Private sector adds more jobs than expected in July – Houston Business Journal
Date: Wednesday, August 3, 2011, 8:37am CDT
July job gains were higher than anticipated — 114,000 jobs in the private sector, but planned layoffs were the highest since March 2010.
Reuters reported a survey of economists that predicted the ADP National Employment Report would show a gain of 100,000 jobs. That is down from June’s job increase of 145,000.
Meanwhile, planned layoffs at U.S. firms were at a 16-month high, according to consultants Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. Latest from The Business Journals Number of Colorado layoffs down in JulyColorado job layoff numbers dropped in JulyCEO turnover heavy in June, report says Follow this company
The company’s July layoffs report said employers announced 66,414 planned job cuts, which is up 60.3 percent from the 41,432 announced layoffs in June.
In July, the pharmaceutical and retail sectors led the job cuts at 20.32 percent and 16.93 percent of announcements, respectively, Reuters reported. But, so far this year, government and nonprofit jobs have planned for the most layoffs, according to the report.
Diane Delgado LeMaire | Senior Managing Director, Accounting & Finance Recruiting | Creative Financial Staffing, a division of Fitts, Roberts CPA Firm | 5718 Westheimer Suite 800 | Houston, TX 77057 | 713-260-5238 | dcd@fittsroberts.com| Blog| Twitter| LinkedIn
Job Seekers: Stop Working So Hard! Posted by Julie Pentis on July 27, 2011
I had someone apply for 15 of our job openings the other day. Fifteen! And all the job openings called for completely different skill requirements. Before even opening this person’s resume I’m thinking: What a waste of my time. Just seeing those 15 messages in my inbox, I was completely turned off. I didn’t even want to look at his resume, but I did. Sure enough, this was not a candidate I could market or present to any of my job openings. His resume bared no resemblance to any of my postings. What was he thinking?
They say job hunting is a “numbers game,” and that is partially true. It usually takes more than one application to equal a placement. However, too many people are taking this concept to the extreme. This job seeker was probably thinking: “If I apply to all of these jobs, one of them has got to be a match,” or “If I send my resume to 100 job postings, one of them will stick.”
Instead of reading each job description, considering his qualifications, and highlighting the relevant experience in his resume, this applicant simply flooded our database with 15 separate job inquiries. This “flooding” can be very frustrating to hiring managers as it is a huge waste of time and it slows down the process for candidates who are actually qualified.
When I notice an applicant who clearly did not read or comprehend what I was asking for in my job posting, it creates a very poor impression of that person. Why would I want to hire someone like that? Someone who does not follow instructions, or who does not value my time? Whether you are a recruiter, in human resources, or the hiring manager, this can be very frustrating.
If you read my job postings and don’t see a match, but you want me to have your resume to consider for future job openings, just tell me. Put a note in your email or add a line at the top of your resume that says something like, “I have read your job postings, but please keep my resume on file for future help desk positions.”
Here is a tip for all you job seekers: stop working so hard! Don’t apply to 15, 50, 100 jobs just to see what happens. Take charge of your search. Don’t waste your time filling out paperwork and interviewing for jobs that are not a good match for you. Narrow down your applications to no more than three to five at a time and make them count.
Create a customized cover letter that highlights your relevant experience and qualifications. Don’t send a generic cover letter to every job posting boasting that you’re a “perfect match.” Back up these broad statements with facts like, “I am a strong candidate for your systems administrator position because…” Show me that you have the specific skills I am looking for.
Then, tailor your resume to the position at hand. If a job looks like a good match and you meet many of the qualifications, make sure your resume reflects this! I am surprised at how few people do this. Stop sending the same resume all over town. Your resume should be a reflection of your qualifications to the position for which you are applying. Make it as obvious as possible that you deserve the hiring agents time for a personal interview. The more tailored your cover letter and resume are to my job description and needs, the more likely I am to interview you.
Start working smart in your job search so you don’t have to apply to 15, 50, or 100 job postings. Spend time narrowing down your options, selecting the right positions, and then give it all you’ve got. Recruiters and hiring managers can tell when you are a serious applicant and when you are just flinging resumes to see what sticks. Stop working so hard, and start landing a good job by working smart.
Most companies report losing top talent this year – Houston Business Journal
Most companies report losing top talent this year
Houston Business Journal – by Ashley Furness, Austin Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, July 26, 2011, 2:14pm CDT
Despite the lagging job market, 75 percent of employers reported involuntarily losing their most high-performing employees this year.
A new ManpowerGroup survey showed just 13 percent of respondents saying their most-valued staff stuck around in the last 12 months. The workforce solutions company polled 268 firms nationally between June and July.
“We found that most organizations are finding it tough to hold onto their best people even when there are relatively few job openings,” said Tony Rogers, a talent management practice leader for Right Management, a Manpower division.
“There’s a furious war for top talent under way, constant poaching of high performers by competing companies and, overall, a very restive workforce.”
The trend is a significant increase from last year’s report when just 54 percent of companies said high-performing workers left. About 12 percent in the poll this year said they didn’t know if they lost top talent.
“Top talent always has employment options. They’ll usually find some place that they feel appreciates what they bring,” Rogers said.
Houston-area unemployment jumped to 9 percent in June from 8.2 percent a month earlier, despite job gains in all but two industries tracked by the Texas Workforce Commission.
Houston's F&A Recruiter and Talent Connector 