Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom New Study Shows What Successful Job Seekers Do Right

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom New Study Shows What Successful Job Seekers Do Right In late 2014, the Career Advisory Board’s Job Preparedness Indicator study revealed a startling fact: only 7 percent of hiring managers feel that most job seekers have the right combination of skills and traits needed to fill open positions. This means that while the market is robust and candidates are flooding pipelines, a company might interview 25 people and hire no one. It’s very rare that a candidate applies for whom hiring managers can check all the boxes. In the interest of providing actionable advice to job seekers, we set out to discover what candidates who are perceived as the “complete package” are doing in order to secure a desirable job offer. In our newSuccessful Job Seekers research, we surveyed over 550 professionals of varying ages and in different roles and industries. Our respondents had one thing in common: they were either recruited by a desirable company and received an offer without having to search for a new job at all (referred to as passive job seekers), or they received an interview for a job they ultimately accepted less than six months after starting a search (referred to as active job seekers). Here, I highlight the results of the research, including that the most effective candidates target, customize, and are organized and realistic about their opportunities. Successful Job Seekers TARGET A short and fruitful job search is apparently not the numbers game that many think it is. Active job seeker respondents, on the whole, did not apply to dozens of positions and hope to get lucky. Instead, they targeted individual companies and applied to open positions very selectively. Fifty-one percent of active job seekers applied to five or fewer positions and 66 percent applied to 10 or fewer. Ninety percent of active job seekers wanted to be at least 75 percent qualified before applying for a position, and 41 percent wanted to be more than 90 percent qualified before applying. This discerning attitude works, as nearly a third of active job seeker respondents received an interview for more than half the positions to which they applied. Successful Job Seekers CUSTOMIZE An essential tool in our respondents’ arsenal was customization. Before applying, 67 percent of active job seeker respondents reached out to the contact person to inquire about the position, and 32 percent reached out to their network to get inside information on the role and company. Alongside their applications, 67 percent included a resume containing the keywords and skills listed in the job description, and 56 percent wrote an email or cover letter pertaining specifically to each open position. Once an interview had been secured, 84 percent of both active and passive job seekers updated or created a new resume for that opportunity. In preparing for individual interview conversations, 63 percent reviewed the company website, 52 percent Googled the company, 46 percent brainstormed concrete examples of how the job description matched their skill set, 28 percent talked to current employees at the company, and 26 percent Googled the interviewers. Successful Job Seekers ORGANIZE Organization is important to successful active job seekers: 73 percent kept files on each opportunity, 64 percent stuck to a weekly to do list, and over 50 percent used an online calendar or smartphone app to manage appointments. As one might expect, timely follow up was critical to securing an offer. Sixty-five percent of both active and passive respondents emailed thank you notes after an interview, 17 percent mailed hard copy thank you notes, and 16 percent called to thank the interviewer(s). They didn’t follow up too much, however. While 64 percent of respondents followed up after the interview at least once, only 6 percent followed up frequently. Finally, successful seekers managed their time carefully. Though many career advisers suggest treating a search like a full-time job, most of our respondents didn’t. Only 7 percent spent more than 3 hours a day on their search, 47 percent spent 1-3 hours a day, and 45 percent spent less than an hour each day. Successful Job Seekers ARE REALISTIC The most successful active and passive job seekers were willing to settle to some degree. Most accepted jobs that were superior in only a few ways (role, industry, company, geographic location). Sixty-three percent accepted roles they felt were desirable, 55 percent accepted a role at a desirable company, 51 percent accepted a role in a desirable location, and 46 percent accepted a role in a desirable industry. Only 21 percent felt they received an excellent offer, 61 percent thought the offer was good enough, and 19 percent thought the offer was not good, but they wanted the work. Have you been very successful on the job search? What made it possible for you?

How to Be Proactive to Exceed Goals - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

How to Be Proactive to Exceed Goals - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Looking at the biggest picture possible for what you wish to ultimately accomplish will help you to develop a robust plan to make it happen. Notably, your grand vision is more likely to be achieved if it comes from a deeply rooted desire to see it come to life. It is something you carry with you each day and night. Goal setting has little meaning unless the process is attached to your ultimate vision. 2 Essential Elements Follow up is the first element that gives meaning to the effort of goal setting. And it is the follow-through that demonstrates you possess a personal brand worthy of trust and an offer to move forward. This is when the more serious conversations with prospective clients will take place that lead to sales. Dealing with Setbacks When circumstances appear to be bleak however, it is helpful to listen to thought different from your own. The reason is our usual actions have us stalled while new thought will help to get out from under. Alternative action just might ease the burden and help to regain hope for an improved tomorrow. If you are struggling with a current situation, turn to your close friends with whom you may confide to ease the situation. Communicating with a trusted friend, and one who possesses entirely different thought may quite possibly give you the insight you need. Advance More Quickly Enhance your long-term vision with a comprehensive plan to acquire the skill sets still needed to be learned. Consider the one goal you absolutely wish to achieve by the end of this year. Write it down. Underneath list the keywords that come to mind for associated projects to be implemented. Your  Plan Of all the projects that come to mind, which will require help or would make good use of a collaborative effort? List the people who share your values for conducting business and are able to help. Prioritize the projects, and then prioritize the people to contact. Before you launch into what you have in mind, inquire as to their new ideas for the coming year. By being the one to ask first, you might improve your original idea of how you may work together. Should this prove to be the case, synergy will develop and the project may find a life of its own. As you begin to learn and implement a new skill set, consider which aspects you find to be most appealing. Decide which are complementary and best-suited for what you already have in place. Your Big Picture Remember to not just add the newfound skills to your repertoire, but also embolden the entire plan. Always have your eyes on the bigger picture. In this case, it’s about having a well-run operation whereby each segment supports all the rest. This becomes known as your power branding program and will make an enormous difference in your outcome. Following these guidelines will enable you to achieve goals quickly and enjoy the Smooth Sale!

Social Recruiting Start Somewhere!

Social Recruiting Start Somewhere! Recruiters are  pretty social beings by nature. Good thing that, because  being social is a big part of the job. Client meetings, candidate coffee dates  and industry  events; it really is just another day at (or out of) the office. Recruiters connect people with opportunities and to do this, they rely on their  solid network which they build and fine-tune over time, to the highest quality. It goes without saying social recruiting is  the flashiest new talent acquisition  method of the 21st century. When your internal rating, size of a your  income or success of your team is at the mercy of unpredictable  human elements  and other variables outside of your  control,  its important to stay abreast of online candidate  trends and get  ahead of the game where you can. Recruiters have to give themselves every chance at  attracting as much of  the best possible talent  into their  people  pool, and that means utilising social media properly. We know LinkedIn is a huge resource for recruiters, employers and employees alike. Anyone who is anyone should  really be on there, after all, it is the professional networking platform of our time with 400+ million members worldwide. What a talent hotspot! But researching people and  sending in mails or random invitations to connect is not all there is. There are a number of other ways to start recruiting socially. Thanks to Betterteam  for creating the below  infographic to showcase  whats its all about. It starts with unfilled positions Did you know that apparently 60% of employers are worried about  empty chairs and staff shortages? Struggling to find the right talent is a huge concern for many  businesses,  and subsequently recruiters, who attempt to find the right people on their behalf.  The avergage  time to hire is now tipped at 27 days quite a long time when you consider most employers say they needed their next hire to start yesterday. Failing to find good, available  staff not only creates stress, but burns through money too. Its believed  48% of CEOs have said talent acquisition inefficiency costs them financially. Time is of the essence!! Add in some candidate competition The talent shortage is a huge problem for some companies, and recruiters agree that more and more candidates are being shown  and  won-over by various different roles at any one given time; 67% of them say the fight for talent will only get harder!  It just reiterates the point that filling more jobs requires tapping into more potential candidate platforms. Our #londontoparis #champions made it in one piece. Amazing effort! @SSChospices #donate now https://t.co/BX7IDwiKoa pic.twitter.com/fveiPJVQ8m Investigo Ltd (@InvestigoLtd) May 9, 2016 Enter social media Hiring managers sing its praise: 80% have said  social helped them find passive candidates, and  70% have said its helped them make successful hire. On  top of this, apparently  89% of companies plan to recruit using social media! They are cottoning on, it seems! Time to step up your game Here are some tips to  get started on your social recruitment regime: Hold weekly Q A sessions on Periscope to inform engage candidates #Hashtags on Twitter: Use a mix of branded ones job-related  words to maximum exposure Update your LinkedIn profile opener to let people know youre hiring, without them even having to click! Use Facebook audience insights to drive your posting strategy   Use Instagram Twitter to showcase the fun side of your company, not just live roles You can also check out these other posts on employee advocacy and social selling for extra tips. Top image: Shutterstock

Why Competencies are Crucial to Your Businesss Growth

Why Competencies are Crucial to Your Business’s Growth The current generation of employees are unlike those that have gone before, as they’re motivated by more than salary and their overall earning potential. In fact, employees now rank the opportunity to learn new skills amongst the top five drivers of attraction and retention in the contemporary workplace, and this has created a unique opportunity for companies to thrive and create the next generation of leaders. The reason for this is simple; as it allows businesses to teach competencies rather than skills to enhance the long-term value offered by individual employees. But what exactly are competencies, and why are they crucial to your business’s growth? What are Competencies? It can be hard to distinguish between competencies and skills, with many people considering these to represent one and the same thing. In simple terms, competencies represent broader combinations of knowledge, skills and abilities, which can be developed over a period of years and actively aid career development. In contrast, skills demonstrate more niche and learned activities that relate to a specific role or job, making them less transferable between jobs and unlikely to contribute directly to long-term career success. To put this into context, the term medical negligence is actually defined as ‘a mistake that a competent person would not make’. This hints at the broad range of expertise, knowledge and experience required to undertake many medical procedures, in addition to the core practical skills that are applied to patients. Other examples of competencies include communication or time management, which are inherently transferable and provide a broad knowledge base that can be applied in various different circumstances. Contrasting skills include forklift operation and Java programming, which are far more targeted in their nature and equip employees with the ability to perform specific and non-strategic business tasks. Why are Competencies Important to Your Business Venture? Historically, savvy companies have always used competencies as a framework to help focus employees’ behaviour on the underlying factors that drive commercial success. The reason for this is simple; as this represents a more holistic approach that makes it far easier for entrepreneurs and managers to identify and develop talent over an extended period of time. In this respect, competencies also help to create more rounded employees, by developing the core standards of excellence for both current and future roles. These standards create a long-term guideline that future leaders must adhere to, creating the type of succession planning that can lay the foundations for success and reduce recruitment costs going forward. On the other hand, organisations that focus solely on skills rather than competencies when growing will struggle to develop talent for senior positions, whilst also creating a scenario where your employees fail to realise their full potential.

Is Public Accounting Right For You

Is Public Accounting Right For You There are so many different career options for accountants, bookkeepers, and CPAs that many students have a difficult time deciding where they want to focus their careers. The most obvious and well-known option for accountants is public accounting. Although this area of accounting might sound intriguing, it’s not for everyone.Photo Credit â€" Pixabay.comIn this article, we’ll discuss what you can expect from a career in public accounting along with how you can determine if it’s right for you.What is Public Accounting?evalBefore we discuss some of the pros and cons of this career path, I think it’s only fitting that we discuss what public accounting actually is and the possible career paths within the profession.evalPublic accounting involves providing accounting and financial services publicly traded or privately owned companies. The reason it is called public accounting is because the CPA firm providing the services is an outside entity from the company purchasing the servic es. Compare this to private accounting where the accountants are employed and work for the company itself as internal employees.Public firms typically provide services that include tax, consulting, auditing, and advisory services, among others. Each of these different services provides a unique career path with different opportunities for anyone starting a career in public accounting.Tax accountants are responsible for performing any number of compliance related activities. They prepare individual and corporate income tax returns, deal with complex inter-state and international tax issues, and advise clients on tax saving business formation strategies.Consultants and financial advisors aid companies in decision-making processes that involve operations, efficiencies, and investments.Auditors perform inspections of companies’ assets and internal reports to validate their accuracy. Since they must physically be at the clients’ business to perform the audits, auditors tend to do a l ot of traveling. This can be a big perk.Now that we know what public accounting is, let’s talk about some of the pros and cons to see if this is an area where you would like to focus your career.Career OpportunitiesOne of the biggest benefits of starting a career in public accounting is the vast amount and variety of opportunities. Unlike other professions that are pigeon holed into a single job description, accountants can fill many different roles.evalLike we talked about before, there are four distinct career paths that you can take: tax, audit, assurance, and consulting. There is also some degree of flexibility between these different paths as well. For instance, if you started your career as an auditor, you could switch to a tax accountant down the road if you got tired it.This type of flexibility and range of opportunity doesn’t exist in other professions or private accounting for that matter.In Demand EmploymentPublic accountants are in demand and will continue to be need ed more and more in the future. The increased government regulation, more complex business environments, and international financial markets necessitate the need for public accounting more now than ever before in history.The Bureau of Labor and Statistics estimates that public accountant and auditor jobs will grow another 11 percent in the next ten years. That type of job growth is rarely seen outside of medical and tech careers. Needless to say, if you go into public accounting, you will never have a problem finding employment.Certification RequirementsevalThis point is both a benefit and a drawback of public accounting. It’s pretty much expected that all accountants in the public industry become certified.That is, they are almost required to become certified public accountants. I think this is a major benefit for the profession because it restricts the amount of people who are qualified to perform the work. The restricted supply of qualified workers increases the demand and cons equently increase the pay and salary for accountants.On the flip side, if you want to move up the corporate ladder in the public accounting world, you will have to get your CPA license. This isn’t an option. If you don’t get it within a few years of being hired, you will face a promotion and pay ceiling that you won’t be able to break through without your license.My advice would be to use one of the many training courses available to study for the CPA exam and get it out of the way. It’s a difficult exam, but it’s not impossible. You’ll be happy you did it in the long run.Travel OpportunitiesevalLong gone are the days where CPAs sat in windowless conference rooms staring at stacks of papers and reports. This stereotype still plagues the profession, but it is unwarranted. Today’s public accountants are hands-on and interact with clients on a daily basis. Communication skills are paramount.As such, CPAs are often required to travel to their clients’ businesses to perfo rm audits, discuss operational advice, and collect documents. In fact, it’s not uncommon for public auditors to work more on the road than in their own offices.Bigger public firms also have branches worldwide. It’s not uncommon for individuals to request transfers to different countries for a year or two. For instance, if you have always wanted to travel Europe, you could transfer to the London EY office for a few years. Seeing the world is a real possibility in public accounting.Busy SeasonsNo matter which career path you take in public, you will always have a busy season. The most notable is tax season. Tax accountants can work 70-90 hours per week during tax season. Unfortunately, there is no way around this. This is one of the major drawbacks in the profession.To combat this, many firms offer generous vacation policies outside of their busy seasons for accountants to regroup and recoup.Is This The Right Career For You?evalWe’ve discussed several benefits of starting your c areer in public accounting and a few drawbacks as well. This brings us to the question, is it right for you?Public accounting offers so many opportunities to start and grow your career, but it’s not without its drawbacks. Licensing requirements and long hours during busy seasons can drag you down.I think the important thing to remember is that if you start your career in public accounting, you aren’t stuck there. You can always take the experience you gained and switch to private accounting if you want to.That being said, I would recommend anyone who is serious about starting a career in accounting to look into public accounting. You will gain experience, respect, and a lot of opportunities if you do.

How to become a financial trader - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

How to become a financial trader Are you ready to take the next step and become a financial trader? If you have money sitting in the bank not doing much for you, then why not put it to work? Trading is something you can do from home without much equipment beyond a fast computer and internet connection. Establish your goals Before you start trading, think about your aims. Are you looking for an immediate source of income? Do you want to build up a fund to live on when you retire, or to put your children through a private school? Do you simply want to build up your trading skills so that you can try to get an interview with a professional finance company? Having a clear idea of your goals will help to ensure that you go into trading with the right strategy. Establish your risk tolerance Every trader has a different tolerance for risk â€" this means the amount you’re willing to lose if things go wrong. No matter how good a deal looks, you should never trade with money that you can’t afford to lose. Setting clear rules for yourself will help to protect you from impulsive decisions that could put you in jeopardy, but it’s still important to take some risks or you’ll never make any money at all. Every individual has a different level of risk that feels right. Learn about different asset types Even if you use a subscription stock analysis service to ensure that you get the latest information about the assets you’re most interested in, learning about other asset classes can strengthen your hand, enabling you to balance your trading portfolio and giving you additional options at times when the market is slow. Bonds are not especially lucrative but can provide stability. Forex trading is higher risk but can generate money quickly if it goes well and can be used for hedging. Property requires big money upfront but can pay off well if you make the right decisions. Develop your skills The most successful traders are those who treat every day as a learning experience. There are always ways that you can improve, but it’s especially important to focus on this early on â€" indeed, some traders choose to learn through fantasy trading before they risk any money at all. As well as familiarising yourself with the practicalities of how trading works, you will need to learn about yourself so that you can correct for your psychological biases (everybody has them) and improve your decision-making.   Follow financial news It’s always easier to make good decisions if you’re well-informed, so you should make following the financial news part of your daily routine. You’ll need to know about global economic trends (and the political and military events that might influence them) and also about the particular market sectors where your investments are based. Don’t obsess over it, but make sure that you have good general knowledge so that when you research specifics, you can understand them in context. Finding your feet as a trader takes time, but it can be very rewarding. If you work hard, then you’ll have the opportunity to make good money and you’ll really sharpen up your skills.

Adjusting Your Career Path for the Local Market

Adjusting Your Career Path for the Local Market Adjusting Your Career Goals to Local Market When deciding on a career path, I often talk about needing to find a career that fits with your personality, skills, values and interests. Another major factor that impacts your career path choice is opportunity. This means that when deciding on potential careers, you need to understand the job and labor markets where you live and think about how they affect your career options. Adjusting Your Career Goals to Local Market Consider the following questions: Are you considering a career that is needed in your city or nearby cities? Are there current opportunities in that field? Are you considering a niche field that has a lot of opportunities, but not in the area you reside? Are you willing to relocate? I often tell clients that you cannot separate your life from your career. Your life and your career are intertwined. What is currently happening in our lives directly impacts the career decisions we make. Sometimes, as much as we would like to follow a career path, we cannot relocate to pursue opportunities outside of our living area. This doesn’t mean that we can never relocate to follow that career path but, at the current time, our lives dictate that we must stay in our city and state. How to Use Local Career Search to Your Advantage A vital piece of your career management is understanding the local outlook for the jobs you are considering and the opportunities in your area. A great website to find information on job outlook is the Occupational Outlook Handbook from the Bueara of Labor Statistics at www.bls.gov/ooh. Additionally, you can find helpful reviews of job search sites at http://www.reviews.com/job-sites/. It is also important to ask yourself and your family the question, “can we move if the right job opportunity arises?” If the answer is “no”, then it’s time to consider if there are ways to work in a similar career path or apply your knowledge in a particular area in a way that exists in your city’s job market. If there is no way to include this type of work in a job in your area, then re-evaluate your short-term goals. Consider finding a job that will help you develop transferable skills that would be valuable to this particular area. While you wait for the right time and opportunity, you can continue to make yourself valuable for your ultimate long-term goals.