THR Partners

It is important that you stress your accomplishments and the impact they had on your past employers. A hiring authority does not want you to restate your job description. They want to know what you did that was better, faster, or more efficient than other individuals who had your same job. If you are a student, they want to know what you did, that would make you stand out from other students.

Pay special attention to the questions you are being asked. They often emphasize the priorities of the interviewer. You will also gain insight into the specifications of the opportunity by the questions you ask the employer.

Effective questions you may consider asking during your next interview:

• What are the primary responsibilities of this position?
• What are the greatest challenges of this position?
• What is most important to you in the person you hire?
• I’m interested in working for you and this company and I am confident that I have the appropriate skills and experience. Do you feel that I am a good fit for this position? <x{(}>(Listen for the word “but” in their response, and overcome any objections that follow.)

When answering questions, provide examples of the facts you’re sharing. Rather than say I’m a strong leader, provide examples of your leadership. When you do not have a job description it is more important than ever than you ask the best questions. There are times when a company is trying to create a job around your talents.

Many of you feel when you apply at a major corporation that your resume ends up in a black hole with no acknowledgement from your targeted companies. The reason for this practice is the high volume of resumes received as a result of job postings. Most of these companies react positively to resumes sent to the attention of specific hiring authorities and/or recruiters within an organization. Login to our Career Portal and review the information on directly marketing yourself to hiring authorities.

Many employers prefer to hire an individual who has been recommended by someone else or has uniquely positioned themselves on social media sites. Corporate and third party recruiters do utilize their networks and research Linkedin profiles of prospective candidates. When you read your Linkedin profile, would a potential employer want to contact you? Are your recommendations impressive and sending the right message to these employers? Are the individuals in your professional network actively helping you connect with their network? Do you comment on blogs related to your profession which positions you as an expert?

It is estimated that over 3 million job seekers who have been in long term job searches, have actually stopped looking for a job. If you are re-engineering your career or contemplating a new occupation, it’s wise to review the ten hardest jobs to fill according to a recent Talent Shortage Survey. These include: Skilled Trades, Engineers, IT Staff, Sales Representatives, Accounting & Finance Staff, Drivers, Mechanics, Nurses, Machinists and Machine Operators. If you are contemplating additional education, over 75% of the new jobs created in the next five years will utilize Math, Science, Technology and Engineering Degrees.

It is the job seeker who is the most proactive and has expertise in areas where there is a talent shortage that will have the greatest chance of succeeding in landing a great job.

There is a lot of frustration when you hear nothing after you have submitted a resume, gone on an interview or even after you’ve had multiple interviews with a company. You Job Search is a sales process and if there is one thing I’ve learned it’s that time kills deals!

If you’ve been “pending” for an extended period of time it could mean one of the following scenarios:

• The employer is keying in on someone else
• The employer has hired someone else and you have not been told
• The employer is still interviewing looking for the perfect candidate for this job
• The hire has been put on a back burner because another priority is more important than this hire
• The employer is waiting on salary approval or the approval to hire
• They are waiting on reference or background checks to be completed

They did not misrepresent the truth during your interview. At the time you were interviewed, there may have been a high level of interest in you, but since your interview they have interviewed stronger candidates. Hiring authorities are no different than anyone else. They do not like to deliver bad news and have probably had job seekers in the past get very defensive when they were told they were selected. As a result, many companies do not communicate and assume you will realize you’re out of contention when you don’t hear back from them.

In this instance, the best thing you could do is thank them for their time and ask to be considered for future opportunities. Most job seekers will not do this because they are upset – so this will set you apart from your competition. If you are still being considered they will reach out to you. If you are not being considered, they will be impressed by the way you handled yourself.
Never burn any bridges in your job search because you never know who could open the door that represents your next logical career move. Always be gracious, ask for advice how to improve and continue your job search activities.

Most job seekers underestimate the importance of stressing soft skills that should be included on resumes, in cover letters, during telephone conversations and most of all during interviews. These are also the skills that are most transferrable if you are considering new targets for your search.

Some examples of soft skills include: written and verbal communication skills, organizational abilities, problem solving skills and leadership. Most jobs require strong communication skills which are revealed in your resume, cover letter and during verbal conversations. The first impression you make on a prospective hiring authority is often before you ever meet this person. You are
being judged on your written and verbal communication skills.

Refrain from using inappropriate language or words that are trendy or slang and not necessarily professional. Something as simple as answering a question with yeah rather than yes can cause you to be screened out. You have one chance to make a good impression on a prospective hiring authority.  Role-play with family and friends and ask them to provide constructive criticism
about your communication skills.

Also take time to review your social media sites. Do you have any errors on your LinkedIn Profile? If I was judging your writing ability, what grade would you receive? Reviewing your online presence has become your unofficial first interview with most employers. Employers can learn things about you that they could never question during an interview. If you find errors, correct them as soon as possible.

If you improve your ability to stress your marketable soft skills, you will increase your chances of scheduling more interviews and obtaining job offers.

Over 50% of individuals who find a job, credit their networking efforts as their primary reason for success.  How many people did you add to your network yesterday?  How many people do you plan to add today?  When is the last time you provided the people in your network valuable information?   If networking is the #1 way to find a job, how much of your current time is spent focused on networking?  Obviously, where you place the highest level of focus is where you will enjoy the greatest results.
Starting today, make networking a daily function of your job search.  You never know who could open a door that could represent your dream job.  We often hear job seekers complain that they don’t have the connections to build a strong network.  Let’s discuss great targets for your network:

• Anyone who has been or is in the profession you have targeted   (also targets for informational interviews)
• Past employers and co-workers
• Past clients
• Alumni Associations of schools you’ve attended
• ANYONE who is currently working (you don’t have to be employed in a profession, to know people in a profession)
• Family, Neighbors and Friends
• Contacts you establish on Social Media sites
• Other Job Seekers (often they surface opportunities that don’t interest them – but could interest YOU)
• Everyone you use as a reference
• Anyone who provides you with services i.e. insurance man, realtor, cleaners, pharmacist – they all know people
• Members of trade associations who represent your targeted profession or industry
• Published experts in your field of interest
• Attendees and speakers at Job Clubs or Job Fairs

This list could go on and on, but at least this will provide you with a starting place.  Over the next ninety days, focus on increasing your network and reach out to your current network with an article of interest.  You too could be a job seeker who found your job as a result of your networking efforts!