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Your #Career : 15 Surprising #Negotiating Tricks to Boost your #Salary ..In Face-to-Face Negotiations, a Study Out of Imperial College London Research Finds That the More Powerful Person Will Usually Win Out.

Whether you’re Asking for a Raise or Negotiating your Salary at a New Job, One Thing Stays Consistent: It’s Nerve-racking.   But it’s also necessary. An analysis by Salary.com suggests that not negotiating could potentially cost you more than a million dollars over the course of your career. Not that knowing that makes it any easier.

Screen Shot 2015 07 17 at 2.50.11 PM

You can do better.

We combed through research to collect some of the simplest — and most surprising — strategies that help lead you to what you want.

Max Nisen contributed to an earlier version of this article.

 

Always use precise numbers in offers and counter-offers.

Always use precise numbers in offers and counter-offers.

REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko

Throwing out your target salary as $103,500 seems a little bit silly — doesn’t $100,000 tell pretty much the same story? — but research from Columbia Business School suggests that using precise numbers makes a more powerful anchor in negotiations.

According to Malia Mason, the author of the study, kicking off a negotiation with exact-sounding numbers leads the other party to think that you’ve done research to arrive at those particular digits — and that, in turn, makes them think you’re likely correct.

But…

 …It’s better to suggest a salary range rather than a single number.

Using precise numbers doesn’t mean using single precise numbers. In a separate study, Mason and her Columbia Business School colleague Daniel Ames found that presenting a salary range — including and above your desired target — is the best way to get results.

In the past, organizational psychologists thought a range would work against you — wouldn’t people just fixate on the lower number? — but Ames and Mason found that’s not the case.

Presenting a range works for two reasons, they say: It gives your boss information about what you’re actually asking for, and it makes you seem polite and reasonable — which means you’re less likely to get hit with a hard-line counteroffer.

 

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Open with something personal, and your negotiating partner will respond in kind.

In an experiment where Kellogg and Stanford students negotiated by email, those who shared unrelated personal details over the course of the negotiation — hobbies, hometowns, etc. — ended up getting significantly better results than those who kept things to name, email, and the dry monetary details.

Opening up a bit sends a signal that you’re trustworthy, according to Wharton professor Adam Grant in a LinkedIn post, and makes it more likely that they’ll reciprocate.

Think of the negotiation as a competition.

In most salary negotiations, you’re going after something that the other party doesn’t particularly want to give you. That makes it a competition, and viewing it such leads to better results, according to research from George Mason Professor Michelle Marks and Temple Professor Crystal Harold.

The team looked at five different negotiation strategies: accommodating, avoiding, collaborating, competing, and compromising. And — spoiler alert — compromising was not the best strategy.

Instead, Marks and Harold found that people who use competitive or collaborative strategies — employing “open discussion of issues and perspectives” — ended up with higher salaries than those who were “accommodating” or “compromising.”

Women might consider employing their ‘feminine charms’ — very, very strategically.

According to a study from Berkeley professor Laura Kray, using “feminine charm” — a balance of friendly and flirtatious behavior — can substantially increase gains from a negotiation. It’s a “strategic behavior aimed at making the person you are negotiating with feel good in order to get them to agree to your goals,” she told The Independent.

It’s an adaptive strategy that helps our general cultural discomfort with aggressive women. But — as there always is — there’s a caveat: a little bit of feminine charm can work for you, but if you’re seen as too overtly flirtatious, you’re less likely to be trusted by your coworkers, the study suggested.

Don’t go face to face until you have to.

Generally, if you’re the one asking for a higher salary, you are not the one in the position of power — the person who is hiring you or determining your raise is in control. They have to agree to the number in the end, and they usually have more power over your career and work environment at the organization.

In face-to-face negotiations, a study out of Imperial College London research finds that the more powerful person will usually win out. People think differently when they’re apart, and power hierarchies matter less from a distance. If you’re negotiating with your boss, you have a better chance when negotiations are conducted by email.

If you’re meeting in person, make steady eye contact.

If you're meeting in person, make steady eye contact.

Business Insider

Not every negotiator resorts to deception. But it’s often in their interest to hide how excited they about a candidate — and how willing they might actually be to bump up their offer.

According to a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the most effective ways to keep people honest is to make steady eye contact.

Put any concerns you have on the table all at once.

Put any concerns you have on the table all at once.

Julia La Roche for Business Insider

When getting an offer, many people want to seem happy, and avoid looking too needy or disappointed. They might bring up a concern or two, but gloss over other issues that — inevitably — end up coming up later.

That drives hiring managers crazy, according to Harvard professor Deepak Malhotra. The best strategy is to reveal all of your concerns at once, and note which ones are most important, so you can work through them together.

Make the first offer.

Make the first offer.

AP

Conventional wisdom is that you should wait for the other party to make the initial offer in order to get more information to act on. The problem with that thinking, though, says Wharton professor Adam Grant in a LinkedIn post, is that it’s wrong.

In reality, it’s much better to make the first offer because you get to set the “anchor,” the figure that affects the trajectory of the negotiation. People who make very high first offers end up with a much better result.

The first offer pulls the other person in its direction, and it’s difficult to adjust the other way.

Get them to talk about themselves.

While you clearly want to make an assertive case for your position, it might be wiser to open negotiations with a little chit-chat — especially if you can get your negotiating partner to talk about themselves.

According to Harvard neuroscientist Diana Tamir, the author of a recent study on the neurological effects of talking about yourself, it can trigger the same sensations of pleasure as food or money.

But…

…Chatting works better if you’re a man.

Unfortunately for female negotiators, another study — this one by led by researcher Brooke Ann Shaughnessy, of Technische U. München, in Germany — opening with small talk only works if you’re a man.

The researchers found that chatting before diving in leads men to get “more favorable final offers.” But the study found that small talk didn’t do anything for women (though it also didn’t do any harm, and it’s possible that women could also get results if they were really, really, really good small talkers, the researchers say).

That’s likely because of long-standing gender stereotypes: Going into a negotiation, men are traditionally seen as aggressive, and friendly small talk can be disarming — and get you what you want.

 

Rank your priorities, and share them.

“In a job offer negotiation, for example, you might say that salary is most important to you, followed by location, and then vacation time and signing bonus,” Wharton Professor Adam Grant writes in a LinkedIn post. “Research shows that rank-ordering is a powerful way to help your counterparts understand your interests without giving away too much information.”

Then follow up by asking them for their priorities, and look for mutually beneficial trade offs on the most important issues.

Which brings us to…

Strike a ‘power pose’ before you get started.

According to research from Harvard Business School Professor Amy Cuddy, adopting a “power pose” with legs widely spaced and hands on hips (channel Wonder Woman) can actually alter body chemistry, making you feel measurably more powerful and willing to take (and stick to) risks.

It boosts testosterone, which increases confidence, and it also reduces the stress hormone cortisol. Just what you need before a negotiation.

Be a little unpredictable.

Be a little unpredictable.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

The default for negotiations is a relatively level and less emotional approach, an attempt to be as rational as possible. But injecting some passion and unpredictability can create an advantage.

A study from Columbia Business School professor Adam Galinsky found that emotional inconsistency from negotiators leads to greater concessions from the other party because they feel less in control of the situation.

Expressing anger, alternating between anger and happiness, and alternating between anger and disappointment all yielded bigger concessions.

Consider tears (but tread carefully!).

Going into a high-pressure negotiating situation, it makes sense to try to stay on an even keel: you’re controlled, you’re balanced, you’re in charge of your emotions.

But a recent study from ESSEC, the University of Michigan, the University of Paris, and EMLYON, found that in certain situations, expressing sadness — and even tears  — can apparently make you more likely to get what you want from the negotiation.

If your negotiating partner sees you as “low power,” if they anticipate continued interactions with you, and if they see your relationship as collaborative, then it’s possible that what Science Alert calls a “warranted display of pathos” could — maybe — get you what you your raise.

But even if it’s true, it’s very very very risky (do you really want to be seen as low power forever?). In the long run, it seems likely you’d be better off with a power pose, a well-chosen salary range, and a competitive spirit.

 

Businessinsider.com | July 20, 2015 | Rachel Sugar

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-negotiate-a-higher-salary?op=1#ixzz3gSheVcoY

Your #Career : 19 Terrible #LinkedIn Mistakes you’re Making…There Are Some Things you Just Shouldn’t Do on LinkedIn.

Kim Brown is an Assistant Director for Syracuse University’s Career Services Department. She spends a good portion of her day looking over LinkedIn profiles for job seekers and students.

LinkedIn coffee

She makes sure candidates are putting their best foot forward on LinkedIn.  Here are the most common mistakes Brown sees job seekers make on LinkedIn.

Your profile is full of typos

Brown says she’s spotted typos in company names, job titles, and even in the user’s name.

Unfortunately, LinkedIn doesn’t have a built-in spell checker, but your browser might. Safari, Chrome, and Firefox underline misspellings in red. Bottom line, whatever you use: Be as careful on LinkedIn as you would be with a paper resume.

 

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You have no picture in your profile

You have no picture in your profile

LinkedIn

Adding a picture to your LinkedIn profile can make a world of difference to a recruiter. Studies have shown that LinkedIn profiles with pictures are much more likely to get clicked on than those without.

LinkedIn says you’re 14 times more likely to be viewed if you have a photo.

You have a profile picture, but it’s a photo of you and your significant other (or worse)

Do not get LinkedIn and Facebook confused, says Brown.

Facebook is for personal pictures, LinkedIn is for professional ones.

Brown recalls one student who came to her, frustrated because he couldn’t find a job. When she checked out his LinkedIn, she saw that he had chosen a photo of himself doing The Chicken Dance at a wedding. Oof.

Stereotypical, duck-faced selfies are another big no-no that Brown’s started noticing more often.

She also says she sees a lot of people link to their Facebook profiles from their LinkedIn pages. Don’t do this. It’s best to keep the two profiles separate.

 

You don’t have a background photo or any other visuals either

You don't have a background photo or any other visuals either

LinkedIn

You can now add a background photo to make your profile stick out, too. You should pick something that matches your brand, Brown says — for example, hers is of the SU campus — and make sure that your file is big enough that it doesn’t end up looking stretched and pixelated.

LinkedIn also allows you to upload all sorts of rich media — like documents, photos, links, videos, and presentations — to your profile, and if you don’t take advantage of that you’re missing out.

“Your LinkedIn isn’t just words anymore,” Brown says. “You should really be paying attention to the visuals you can add to your profile.”

 

You haven’t put any thought into your profile headline

You haven't put any thought into your profile headline

LinkedIn

Brown says she sees a lot of people simply put “Student at X University” as their lead LinkedIn headline. She also sees a lot of professionals who are looking for jobs with old titles as headlines.

You have a lot of room to be descriptive in this area of your profile!

“If you’re a job seeker and you have a [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][vague or outdated] title, I have no idea you’re looking for work,” says Brown.

So, it’s better for a student to write that they’re an “Advertising major at Syracuse University who has experience with nonprofit work” or for a job seeker to write, “Experienced advertising professional looking for a opportunities in the med-tech space.” Her official job title comes in the “Experience” section of her profile.

Even people with concrete job titles should use the headline space to give more detail about what they do and are passionate about. Brown’s headline, for example, reads “I help SU students and alumni to craft their career stories | Connector | Speaker | LinkedIn Trainer | CNY Promoter.”

Never, never write “unemployed” — highlight what you’re looking for, instead. 

 

Very Important: You’re not reaching out to people through LinkedIn Groups 

You're not reaching out to people through LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn can be a great tool for networking, but messaging a complete stranger can be awkward. Try finding people who are in a group you share in common. This helps break the ice, says Brown.

For example, if you’re a Syracuse University alumnus, message a fellow Syracuse person from the Alumni Network before sending a blind InMail.

But pick and choose your recipient carefully: You’re only allowed to send 15 messages a month to other group members.

 

You’re not personalizing LinkedIn connection requests

You're not personalizing LinkedIn connection requests

LinkedIn

When you connect to someone for the first time on LinkedIn, don’t just use the generic message option, “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.”

Take a few moments to write something personalized, says Brown. It will make the recipient more open to your request and the message feel less spammy.

Also, never lie about how you know the person. Lying is almost a guaranteed way to kill your chances at connecting.

You’re “connecting” with people from LinkedIn on your phone

You're "connecting" with people from LinkedIn on your phone

LinkedIn

LinkedIn’s now has a whole suite of useful apps. The flagship lets you connect to people with a click—but you can’t customize the message.

“People will say to me, ‘Well, I didn’t personalize my message because I couldn’t on my phone,'” says Brown. “It’s not an excuse. Get on your computer and connect that way.”

Wiggle room: The nice thing about connecting via smartphone is that you can do it immediately after meeting someone, in which case a message isn’t as important.

You also run a greater risk of typos on your phone though.

You haven’t created a unique LinkedIn URL

You haven't created a unique LinkedIn URL

LinkedIn

“The head of business development for a big company contacted me, and he had his LinkedIn profile link in his signature,” says Brown. “It was [Joe]-[Smith]-8346974. Who would think [all those numbers] look okay? It looks terrible. Definitely customize your URL.”

To customize your LinkedIn URL, press the “Edit Profile” button. Click the gear symbol next to your URL, which will take you to a separate page where a “Your public profile URL” box will let you change the link. Try to get as close to your first and last name as possible. Avoid cutesy nicknames or usernames.

You never bothered to fill out a summary

You never bothered to fill out a summary

LinkedIn

Filling out the summary portion of your LinkedIn profile is crucial if you want to pop up in search results.

“The summary is the most important part,” says Brown. “Having search terms and key words in your summary that are related to the job you’re doing or want to do is going to make you more likely to be found by the recruiters and hiring managers who are searching LinkedIn for talent.”

You don’t “stalk responsibly” or take advantage of it when someone’s checking *you* out

You don't "stalk responsibly" or take advantage of it when someone's checking *you* out

LinkedIn

Any LinkedIn user can see who’s viewed their profile recently, but if you limit your public profile settings, less of your information will be revealed to the person you’ve checked out on LinkedIn. The trade-off: You won’t see as many details about who’s visiting your profile, either.

Getting insights can be super valuable, so being public is a plus. Just stalk responsibly.

“If you’re job seeking and you’re looking at the same person’s profile 59 times in a two-week period, you should probably make yourself anonymous,” says Brown. “Don’t be creepy.”

If you’ve noticed someone checking out your profile in a field or at a company that interests you, though, it can’t hurt to message them to start a dialogue.

 

You haven’t broken your profile out into sections

You haven't broken your profile out into sections

LinkedIn

It’s not just about your summary and work experience: You can add volunteering experiences, organizations you’re part of, honors you’ve received, projects you’ve worked on, and more to your LinkedIn.

A lot of profiles are just one long block of text, but breaking it into different parts makes it easier for people to scan and for you to highlight certain parts that you think are particularly important.

“Don’t be afraid to play around with the order of the sections,” Brown says.

For example, if you’re a recent grad and your course work is more valuable than any of your previous jobs, drag the “projects” section above the “experience” section.

You list “skills” that LinkedIn doesn’t recognize

You list "skills" that LinkedIn doesn't recognize

LinkedIn

Adding a bunch of skills to your profile is a good way to easily flaunt your chops and make yourself more searchable, but if you write something obscure that LinkedIn doesn’t recognize, it doesn’t do you much good.

When you start typing a skill on your LinkedIn profile, make sure it appears in the dropdown menu. If it doesn’t, it may be spelled wrong, or it’s not a frequently searched item, which won’t help your resume get found by recruiters.

Stick to the thousands of skills LinkedIn already has in the system and your profile will pop up more often in search results. You can also allow people to “endorse”

You don’t have (credible) recommendations

You don't have (credible) recommendations

LinkedIn

Brown says it’s important to have recommendations on your LinkedIn profile. But not just any old recommendation—it should come from someone who’s reputable and it should speak to your specific qualifications.

“A lot of times recommendations are really generic,” says Brown. “Such as, ‘Alyson would be an amazing asset to your company because she is a hard worker and a wonderful addition to our office.’ Well, great. How about something more detailed, like about that time you worked on a specific project together?”

Make sure the recommendation someone writes for you isn’t applicable to every other candidate.

Getting these recommendations may require asking for them. Navigate to the “Privacy and Settings” tab, then to “Profile,” and you will see a link for “Manage my recommendations.” That section will prompt you to send a message to a boss or coworker.

You’re not posting photos, posts, or work-centric updates

You're not posting photos, posts, or work-centric updates

LinkedIn

Don’t fill out your profile and then forget about LinkedIn. Radio silence on your feed is bad news.

More than ever before, the site makes it easy to keep your network up-to-date on what’s going on in your professional world through updates, photos, posts, and comments.

“Make it a point to once a week do something,” Brown advises. “Share an update with your network. Put up a photo of an event that you attended. Comment on someone’s post. You want to show up in the network feed, and the way you show up is by doing those things.”

You can solidify yourself as an expert on a topic by publishing posts, too, which often get thousands of views from professionals across LinkedIn.

You’re not engaging with your network

You're not engaging with your network

LinkedIn

“The ‘Keep in touch’ section is a lazy networker’s dream,” Brown says.

Under the “Connections” tab, LinkedIn makes it dead simple to find little ways to connect with people in your network. You can see congratulate someone on a work anniversary, new job, or switching cities.

There’s no excuse to feel overwhelmed by the prospect of maintaining a relationship.

You haven’t left yourself helpful little reminders or scheduled reconnection nudges

You haven't left yourself helpful little reminders or scheduled reconnection nudges

LinkedIn

Every time you connect with someone new on LinkedIn, you should get into the habit of feeling out information in the “Relationship” tab that will appear on their profile.

You can add notes about their interests, info about how you met, and even reminders to reach out to them again in a week, a month, or on a recurring cycle.

“Don’t worry, it’s only visible to you,” Brown says.

You’re not exporting all your contacts

You're not exporting all your contacts

LinkedIn

Want to make it easy to take your LinkedIn conversations off the site, or make sure that you’ll still have access to your contacts if you lose access to your account?

You can export all of your contacts into an Excel file with their name, job title, and email.

Go to the main Connections tab, press the gear symbol in the right-hand corner, and then click “Export LinkedIn Connections” under “Advanced Settings.”

Viola! There are a bunch of different file formats you can use when exporting

“This is one of the biggest ‘a-ha’ moments that everybody has when I teach LinkedIn classes,” Brown says.

BONUS: You’re not using advanced search tools when hunting for a job

BONUS: You're not using advanced search tools when hunting for a job

This one may seem a little obvious, but if you use the advanced search tab, you’re much more likely to turn up relevant career opportunities than if you just conduct broad queries.

Instead of just searching by the name of the company or person, you can search by keyword, industry, location, and more.

You can also save searches, save jobs you’re interested in, and even apply, right through the site.

You’re not taking advantage of the “Find alumni” option

You're not taking advantage of the "Find alumni" option

LinkedIn

Recently, LinkedIn has really amped up the way it lets you find people who went to your university.

You can see all the people who attended your college who studied a certain major or were in your year. You can even search for a specific company, and see all the alumni who worked there. This is great for networking, reconnecting, or planning reunions.

“You can use it for a ton, a ton of different purposes,” Brown says. “It’s like an in-depth yearbook.”

Businessinsider.com | July 17, 2015 | 

 

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Your #Career : Is It Ever OK To Accept A Job Offer And Continue To #Interview?…Picture this Job Search Conundrum: a Job Seeker has Multiple Hot Leads in Play. One of Them Extends an Offer.

It’s Solid but Not Ideal, So the Job Seeker Tries to Hurry the Other Leads Into Additional Offers While Buying More Time to Respond to the First Offer. Eventually, that decision deadline can be pushed no further, and the other leads, while still interested, are not in a position to decide just yet.

  • Should you turn down the first offer, keep interviewing and run the risk that you don’t get anything else?
  • Should you accept the first offer and stop your search, forever wondering if you should have held out for something better?
  • Or do you accept the first offer, continue discussions with other companies, and take something else if a better offer comes? Is it ever OK to accept a job offer and continue to interview?

manage-irrational-employees

In general, it is a terrible idea to accept an offer and continue to interview.

While most work agreements are employment-at-will so you can quit at any time, you don’t want to be someone who quits shortly after accepting an offer. You do want your word to mean something.

In addition, being new to any job requires transition time. If you accept a role but haven’t 100% let go of the prospect of something “better” coming along, then you’re not really giving your new employer your full attention. During the inevitable awkwardness of adjusting to the new role, work environment and culture, you are not giving your best effort, and you may be too distracted to integrate fully. Your half-hearted acceptance is thus the start of a downward spiral.

Finally, it’s a small, small world. Confidentiality is paramount in the hiring process, but so many people are involved that you can’t lock things down 100%. If your new employer finds out you didn’t break off ties with previous prospects, this breach of trust could derail your stint right from the start, if not cause your new employer to cut ties immediately.

 

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That said, there are legitimate reasons why you still might interview even after accepting another job.

You can get closure on the other opportunities. You see your options fully play out, since clearly this new employer is not exactly right. You might even feel better about your new employer, if the other opportunities don’t end up as you expected.

You will have to manage the confidentiality very closely – when exactly are you going to complete these other interviews? If another offer does come through and you want to accept that, you need to make as little disruption for your new employer as possible – helping them secure your replacement, or helping with messaging around your premature departure. Keep in mind that your positive gestures may be rebuffed entirely – the risk of burning bridges when you renege on an acceptance or quit shortly after starting a job is high.

So proceed with caution, whatever you decide to do.

If you turn down an offer for other imminent, but still uncertain prospects, this is the time to really step up your search, including generating brand new leads. Seemingly imminent offers have a nasty habit of disappearing. If the other offers don’t pan out, having newer leads can distract you from regretting to accept that first offer.

If you decide to accept a job that is less than ideal and stop interviewing elsewhere, then don’t drive yourself crazy with what-if scenarios. It’s easy to convince yourself that some other offer would have been better, but that’s just fantasy. Embrace the new role you do have and make a go of it. Pour your energies into doing an amazing job and into changing over time the factors of the job you were less than ideal when you accepted.

If you accept the job but continue to interview, manage your risks in the immediate term as you sort out all the different options. In the longer-term, manage your career more proactively. You felt the need to accept an offer that is less-than-ideal. Why? If you felt you had no other alternatives, shore up your network, your job search technique, and your financial foundation so you increase your capacity to think and act long-term. If you needed to get out of your current company, take a hard look about what didn’t work before and make a plan to correct any shortcomings because the problems you had before might follow you to your new employer.

Did you accept a job before your job search fully played out? What happened?

Caroline Ceniza-Levine is co-founder of SixFigureStart® career coaching. She has worked with executives from American Express, Citigroup, Condé Nast, Gilt, Goldman Sachs, Google, McKinsey, and other leading firms. She’s also a stand-up comic, so she’s not your typical coach. Connect with Caroline on Google+.
Forbes.com | July 14, 2015

Your #Career : 7 Ways To Deal With Today’s Long Job Hiring Process…If you’re Looking for a Job, You Might have Sensed that it Seems to be Taking Longer to Snag an Offer Than in the Past. You’re Right.

A Recent Study from the Employment Site Glassdoor.com Found that the Average Interview Process in the U.S. is Now 22.9 Days, Nearly Double the 12.6 Days in 2010.  It’s a maddening shift that’s only added stress for job hunters. I’ll provide tips on how to deal with this new reality in a moment, but first it’s important to understand what’s driving this change.

Interviewer3

On the surface, the trend towards longer hiring cycles seems counterintuitive. After all, as the war for talent has been heating up, you’d expect employers to act faster, not slower, to lock-in the best candidates. The unemployment rate just hit a seven-year low (at 5.3%) and the CareerBuilder jobs site says 49% of employers plan to hire full-time, permanent employees in the second half of 2015, up from 47% last year.

So what gives?

According to Glassdoor Chief Economist Andrew Chamberlain, there are several reasons why the interview process is taking longer these days.

“Overall, the interview process has become longer largely due to the fact that more employers are requiring more comprehensive interview processes,” Chamberlain told me via email. “For job candidates, that basically means more hoops and hurdles they may have to jump through.”

Screening methods such as group presentations, IQ tests, personality tests and drug tests have gained in popularity, each lengthening the hiring timeline.

Chamberlain also noted that there’s been a marked change in the composition of the workplace in recent years, with a shift away from low-skilled, routine jobs and towards higher-skilled positions requiring more sophisticated skills. Hiring specialized and technical workers requires a more careful — that is, longer — vetting process.

Of course, hiring timelines vary according to job type and industry. Glassdoor says hiring decisions for entry-level jobs like retail sales clerks take less than a week, while the process for senior-level execs typically drags on for two months or more. If you’re a law enforcement candidate, you’d better have a holster full of patience: the average hiring time for police officers clocks in at a painfully slow 128 days.

Glassdoor says neither age, gender or education affect hiring time, though.

7 Tips for Job Seekers

Its report leaves little doubt that you should expect your job search to last awhile. Given that reality, here are seven ways to better manage the wait and, with any luck, cut the time it takes for you to get hired:

1.  Do your homework about the employer’s hiring process.Learn what you can before you apply. This will help you tamp down expectations.

Many companies now post information about their particular hiring process on the career page of their websites; some even offer online chats for prospective applicants.  You can also research the interview process by reading employer reviews on sites like Glassdoor.com or Indeed.com as well as by speaking with friends who work at your target employers.

 

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2. Ask about “next steps” at the end of each interview. Find out if more interviews will be needed — and if so, roughly how many, how soon they’ll occur and how they’ll be done (group, individual, phone, etc.). Ask the employer if you’ll need to provide any additional information such as references. Or, if appropriate, whether you’ll need to schedule drug testing. The more proactive you are about handling needed tasks early on, the less chance of delays happening on the back end.

3.  Do what you can to nudge the process along. While you can’t do much to control the employer’s internal decision-making process, there are a few ways to bolster your standing and help speed up a potential offer.

For one, send a compelling thank-you note that clearly explains why you’re the best person for the job. It’s not only the polite thing to do; the note will provide a reminder that you’re a savvy candidate who might get snatched up by a competitor if the employer doesn’t act quickly.

If you know someone who works for the employer, ask him or her to put in a good word for you. As I’ve written before, a strong internal reference is one of the most effective ways to best the competition.

Of course, it’s wise not to appear too eager. There’s a fine line between good follow-up and looking desperate. So demonstrate your interest by touching base at the agreed upon checkpoints, but resist the temptation to check in every time you get anxious.

4. Don’t read too much into employer promises. Even if you’re told “We’ll definitely have a decision by next week” or “You’re one of our top two candidates,” take such comments with a grain of salt.

Employers’ plans change. A hundred things that have nothing to do with you can delay the decision: The hiring manager goes on vacation; an internal project suddenly requires attention; the company becomes the target of a takeover.

It’s fine to take a moment to relish any encouraging comments, but then plow full steam ahead with the job search.

5. Adjust your expectations (and advise your significant others to do the same). Reset your mental time clock and plan on the process lasting two or three times longer than the employer indicates. If it finishes sooner, great. But in the meantime, you’ll have an easier time managing your anxiety during the wait.

6. Keep your job application pipeline full. When you only have one prospect, you’ll obsess over it day and night. The best way to keep your sanity during a long interview wait is by generating a steady flow of new opportunities.

Even if your dream job seems within reach, keep searching, keep networking and keep applying. That way, you’ll feel like you’re making progress and you may uncover other interesting job openings in the process.

7. Snag a competitive offer. Nothing speeds up the hiring process faster than letting employers know you have another job offer. Just like dating, you’ll appear way more attractive to potential suitors once they know others are seriously interested.

Of course, there are risks involved with this strategy, so use it wisely. Once you tell an employer there’s a competing offer, you start the clock ticking. That’s why this approach can backfire if the employer’s lengthy interview timeline can’t be easily shortened. Also, some employers might resent being pressured into making a decision before they’re ready.

But when presented in a non-threatening and professional manner, having a bird in hand is one of the best ways to force the employer’shand — and maybe even get a higher starting salary to boot.

Nancy Collamer, M.S., is a career coach, speaker and author of Second-Act Careers: 50+ Ways to Profit From Your Passions During Semi-Retirement and a contributor to Next Avenue. Her website is MyLifestyleCareer.com; on Twitter she is @NancyCollamer.

Forbes.com | July 14, 2015 | Next Avenue 

Your #Career : 20 Words you Should Never Put On your #Résumé …Avoiding Overused Terms can Help #Job Seekers Convey their Message & Stand Out From the Crowd.

While Any Large Companies Use Automated Résumé Screener Software to Cut Down the Initial Pool of Job Applicants, Loading your Résumé with Meaningless Buzzwords is Not theSsmartest Way to Get Noticed. 

Woman Using Laptop at Home

Get ready to start hitting the ‘delete’ button.

Nearly everyone is guilty of using buzzwords from time to time, but professionals are evaluated increasingly on their ability to communicate,” says Paul McDonald, senior executive director for professional placement firm Robert Half.

One of the major problems with using buzzwords and terms, according to Mary Lorenz, a corporate communications manager at CareerBuilder, is they have become so overused that they’ve lost all meaning.

Another issue, she explains, is that many of these words don’t differentiate the job seeker from other candidates because they’re so generic. Instead, Lorenz says job seekers should speak in terms of accomplishments and show rather than tell.

“Avoiding overused terms can help job seekers convey their message and stand out from the crowd,” McDonald says. Here’s what you should avoid:

1. ‘Best of breed’

1. 'Best of breed'

When CareerBuilder surveyed more than 2,200 hiring managers last year, it found “best of breed” to be the most irritating term to be seen on a résumé.

“Anyone can say they are ‘best of breed,’ a ‘go-getter,’ a ‘hard worker,’ or a ‘strategic thinker,'” Lorenz says. “Employers want to know what makes the job seekers unique, and how they will add value to the specific organization for which they’re applying.”

 

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2. ‘Phone’

2. 'Phone'

Career coach Eli Amdur says there is no reason to put the word “phone” in front of the actual number.

“It’s pretty silly. They know it’s your phone number.” The same rule applies to email.

3. ‘Results-driven’

“Instead of simply saying that you’re results-driven, write about what you did to actually drive results — and what those results were,” Lorenz suggests.

 

3. ‘Responsible for’

Superfluous words like “responsible for,” “oversight of,” and “duties included,” unnecessarily complicate and hide your experience says Alyssa Gelbard, founder and president of Résumé Strategists.

“Be direct, concise, and use active verbs to describe your accomplishments,” she suggests. Instead of writing, “Responsible for training interns …,” simply write, “Train interns …”

5. ‘Highly qualified’

McDonald saying using terms like “highly qualified” or “extensive experience” won’t make you seem better-suited for the job — in fact, it could have the opposite effect. Instead, he suggests you focus on the skills, accomplishments, and credentials you bring to the role.

6. ‘Seasoned’

“Not only does this word conjure up images of curly fries,” says Rita Friedman, a Philadelphia-based career coach, “it is well-recognized as a code word for ‘much, much older.'”

 

7. ‘References available by request’

This outdated phrase will unnecessarily age you, Gelbard says. “If you progress through the interviewing process, you will be asked for personal and professional references.”

8. ‘NYSE’

Vicky Oliver, author of “Power Sales Words” and “301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions,” says you should spell out any acronyms first and put the initials in parentheses. For example, “NYSE” would read “New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).”

“For starters, acronyms are capitalized, and all caps are harder to read than upper and lower case,” she explains. “It’s also really difficult to wade through a piece of paper that resembles alphabet soup.”

 

9. ‘Team player’

9. 'Team player'

TaskRabbit

“Who doesn’t want to be a team player? If you’re not a team player, you’re probably not going to get the job,” McDonald says.

But using this term isn’t going to make you stand out from other candidates. “Instead, use an example of how you saved a company time, money, and resources on a team project or in collaboration with others.

10. ‘Ambitious’

10. 'Ambitious'

“Of course you would never say you’re ‘lazy’ either, but calling yourself ambitious doesn’t make any sense on a resume,” Friedman says.

“It can imply that you’re targeting this job now, but will quickly be looking to move up in the company because you won’t be satisfied in the role, leaving the employer stuck with doing a new job search in the very near future.”

11. ‘Microsoft Word’

Yea, you and everyone else.

It’s assumed that you have a basic proficiency in Microsoft Office, Gelbard says. Unless you have expert proficiency, there’s no need to include it on your résumé.

12. ‘Interfaced’

“Words like this make you sound like an automaton,” Oliver says. “Most recruiters would rather meet with a human being. Keep your verbs simpl

 

13. ‘Hard worker’

13. 'Hard worker'

War Production Co-ordinating Committee

It’s true that a company is less likely to consider you if you haven’t worked hard or don’t come across as someone who will put in what it takes to get the job done, but that doesn’t mean writing “hard worker” will convince hiring managers of your efforts.

“Give concrete examples of how you’ve gone the extra mile, rather than using a non-memorable cliché,” McDonald suggests.

14. ‘Honest’

14. 'Honest'

Screenshot

Honesty is one of those things you have to show, not tell, Friedman says.

“It’s not as if there are some other candidates out there vying for the job who are describing themselves as ‘duplicitous’ or ‘dishonest.'”

15. ‘Punctual’

15. 'Punctual'

Daniel Goodman / Business Insider

Being punctual is great, but it’s also pretty basic to holding down a job. Don’t waste the space on your résumé.

 

16. ‘@’

Unless it’s in your email address, avoid casual texting language like @.

“A resume is a formal document and is often the first impression a potential employer has of you,” Gelbard stresses. “Business language should be used to reinforce that first impression and text-style or casual words should be avoided.”

17. ‘People person’

Cliches like “people person” are impossible to prove, Oliver says, and recruiters have heard these phrases so many times they’re likely to feel their eyes glaze over as soon as they see them.

18. ‘Hit the ground running’

“This one is a pet peeve of mine,” McDonald says. “The expression is unnecessary and doesn’t add value. A recruiter isn’t going to be able to place you if you’re not eager to start the j

 

9. ‘I’

Avoid using personal pronouns like I, me, my, we, or our, Gelbard says.

“A person reviewing your resume knows that you’re talking about your skills, experience, and expertise or something related to the company for which you worked, so you don’t need to include pronouns.”

20. ‘Successfully’

20. 'Successfully'

Dogma / Wikimedia, CC

“It’s generally assumed that you were successful at whatever you are including on your resume,” Gelbard says. “There is no need to say that you successfully managed a marketing campaign or successfully led annual budget planning.”

 

Businessinsider.com | July 10, 2015 |  

 

Your Career: How to Optimize your LinkedIn Profile so Recruiters Come to You…Recruiting is What sets Linkedin apart as a Business, So it’s What Users Should Focus on, Too

As a business, LinkedIn relies on Talent Solutions, the professional social network’s influential recruitment product.  In the fourth quarter of 2014, Talent Solutions brought in nearly $369 million in revenue on its own — accounting for 57% of LinkedIn’s overall revenue, according to reports.

linkedin ceo jeff weiner

LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner.

As Harvard Business School professor Mikolaj Piskorski explains in his book, “A Social Strategy: How We Profit From Social Media,” recruiting is what sets Linkedin apart as a business, so it’s what users should should focus on, too.

“Most of the activity on LinkedIn is recruiters going and searching through your profiles again and again and again,” Piskorski tells Business Insider. “That’s where most of the action is.” 

With that in mind, check out the below infographic from British social media consultancy LinkHumans, which explains how to optimize your profile so that recruiters come to you.

LinkedIn Infographic FINAL

Businessinsider.com |  February 25, 2015  |  Drake Baer 

http://www.businessinsider.com/linkedin-profile-optimization-2015-2

Your Career: The Top 10 Jobs That Attract Psychopaths…Everyone I Have Ever Worked with has, at Some Point, Called Another Colleague or Coworker “Crazy”

Everyone I have ever worked with has, at some point, called another colleague or coworker “crazy.” But does your job actually attract true psychopaths? In the book “The Wisdom of Psychopaths: What Saints, Spies, and Serial Killers Can Teach Us About Success,” Kevin Dutton explains that there are jobs that can attract literal psychopaths – and also jobs that are least likely to do so.

Some bosses inspire to be your best self, both professionally and in your everyday life. Others make every day seem tense, dreary and frustrating. Learning how to deal with a bad boss is an important step to career happiness. (image credit: William (Tactum Macula) Walsh on Flickr)

It’s important to note that a psychopathic person isn’t necessarily one that is set out to kill others (even though you might feel as such on a Wednesday afternoon in the office.) In reality, psychopaths merely – and typically – just lack emotions and empathy, or the ability to identify with others. Dutton has said that ”a number of psychopathic attributes [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][are] actually more common in business leaders than in so-called disturbed criminals — attributes such as superficial charm, egocentricity, persuasiveness, lack of empathy, independence, and focus.”

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This may explain why many of the jobs attractive to psychopaths – such as CEO’s, salespeople and media types – are often found in the tech industry.

So what jobs are most attractive to psychopaths? Here’s the list, originally published online by Eric Barker:

1. CEO
2. Lawyer
3. Media (Television/Radio)
4. Salesperson
5. Surgeon
6. Journalist
7. Police officer
8. Clergy person
9. Chef
10. Civil servant
And for those looking to potentially avoid working with the least number of psychopaths, here’s the list of occupations with the lowest rates of psychopathy:

1. Care aide
2. Nurse
3. Therapist
4. Craftsperson
5. Beautician/Stylist
6. Charity worker
7. Teacher
8. Creative artist
9. Doctor
10. Accountant

 

Forbes.com |  January 5, 2015  |  Kelly Clay

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyclay/2013/01/05/the-top-10-jobs-that-attract-psychopaths/

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#BestofFSCBlog : #JobSearch -Five Things Your Recruiter Won’t Tell You. When You’re Working with a Recruiter, you Have to Ask a Lot of Questions.

If you work in business or the professional world, it will be helpful to you to have a relationship with a third-party recruiter, sometimes called a search professional or recruiter. Not every job-seeker has a recruiter-friendly resume, but many job-seekers do.

Some bosses inspire to be your best self, both professionally and in your everyday life. Others make every day seem tense, dreary and frustrating. Learning how to deal with a bad boss is an important step to career happiness. (image credit: William (Tactum Macula) Walsh on Flickr)

What’s a recruiter-friendly resume? It’s a resume that looks like what the hiring manager expects to see, or as we say at Human Workplace, ‘a resume that makes you look like you were born and raised in a petri dish to do this job.’

Recruiters are paid by employers to find them candidates they can’t find on their own, so if your resume is less conventional, or if it’s off-beat or quirky, you might not be a recruiter-friendly candidate. If not, that’s okay! There are plenty of other job search channels still available to you. 

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Article continued …

A well-established, credible and human recruiter in your corner is an incredible asset. That’s not only true for job-seekers. It’s true for hiring managers and HR leaders, too! When I was an HR leader, I relied on my search partners to fill jobs we couldn’t have filled on our own. They were an extension of our team.

In every field you’ll find solid and upright folks and people who have no business handing out business cards. We hear from job-seekers way too often who have horror stories to tell about unscrupulous or not-ready-for-prime-time recruiters who wasted their time, steered them wrong and crushed their mojo — but only temporarily!

When you’re working with a recruiter, you have to ask a lot of questions. You can’t blindly follow your recruiter’s advice. You have to determine whether your recruiter is a credible advocate for you, first.Here are questions to ask a recruiter when you’re contemplating allowing him or her to represent you in your job search.

Here are five things your recruiter may not tell you unless you ask, ask, and ask again. Don’t take ‘no answer’ for an answer!

1- They Won’t Tell You Their Client Has a Toxic Workplace 

One Monday morning I saw a new job opening posted in my news feed. “This is a great company!” said the recruiter who posted the ad. I had heard his name before. I wrote back to him right away. “I might have the perfect candidate for this job,” I said in my message. “What is it that makes this a great company, in your opinion?” The recruiter wrote back. “Are you kidding or serious?” he asked in his message. “It’s a job opening. It pays you money that you use to buy things.”

I wrote back. “I’m serious,” I said. “Do you just put ‘It’s a great company?’ in all your job ads, automatically?” The recruiter wrote back again. “Grow up,” he said. “Everyone knows that is filler.”

Imagine being so cynical that you’d add “Great company!” to every job ad, call it ‘filler’ and expect everyone to know that it’s not true? You deserve to work with people who deserve your talents.

Ask your recruiter to tell you why you should consider taking any job s/he’s proposing to you. What makes the company great? Ask for specifics! As my friend Marla says, “Whenever a company’s recruiting literature drones on about trust, that means there’s no trust. When they have it, they don’t need to talk about it.”

Let’s remember how recruiters get paid. They get paid to fill job openings. They get paid when you accept the job offer. You only have to stay for ninety days. If you bail within ninety days, the recruiter has to find someone else. Are they going to tell you it’s a toxic work environment? Not if they want you to take the job, they won’t!

The recruiter will not have to sit in your chair and do your job. That will be your burden, if you walk into the wrong place. Ask a lot of questions about culture. Ask about turnover. Ask the recruiter why the job is open, and don’t get all your research from your recruiter! Check out the organization’s Glassdoor reviews as well.

2- They Won’t Tell You If The Company’s In Trouble

We had a client years ago who went on a job interview and was surprised to walk through row after row of empty cubicles when she got there. The cubicles weren’t the sort of empty cubicles that scream “We’re trying to find people to fill these cubicles!” They were the kind of cubicles that say “Don’t work here! Three-quarters of the staff has already been laid off, and no one has taken the time to get rid of all these empty cubicles!”

Our client asked some pointed questions about the company’s future. The in-house recruiter was huffy. When our client got home, she called the third-party recruiter who had sent her to the interview. “Well, they’re going through a restructuring, and you’ll help them turn the corner,” her recruiter said.

Our client got suspicious. She started digging around and found the employer on every analyst’s list of companies most likely to declare bankruptcy. She cut her interview process short. The last thing the headhunter said to her was “You’re making a big mistake.”

The company went out of business a few months later. You can’t blindly go on a job interview assuming that because someone is hiring, they must be doing well. Organizations hire for a lot of different reasons. They sometimes hire new people to wind up the business and turn out the lights. That’s fine if it’s a consulting job at a healthy hourly rate.

Nobody wants a full-time job that’s not only going to end in a few months but also that’s going to elicit the question from every interviewer you ever meet in your life going forward, “Why did you go to work for those guys just as they were tanking?” Good question!

3- They Won’t Tell You It’s a Dead-End Job

When my youngest was a baby, I had a regular babysitter, Emily, who was a student at our local university. She moved to Chicago and got a job right away when she graduated. One day Emily got a call at work from a headhunter. She called me to tell me. “So exciting!” she said. “He told me about a better job at a company in downtown Chicago.”

“What makes it a better job than the one you have?” I asked her.

“He asked me some questions about my current job and said this new opportunity is a better job,” Emily said.

“Oh dear!” I said. “He will say that to get you to go to the interview. That’s how he gets paid. It may be a better job, or it may not. Most jobs don’t have six weeks vacation and free grad-school tuition at a top university the way your current job does.”

“I didn’t think of that,” said Emily. “The headhunter said one thing that was odd, I thought.”

“What was that?” I asked, my maternal instincts going on full alert.

“He told me not to mention the words ‘career path’ at the interview,” said Emily. “Evidently at this company they don’t like to have their job applicants ask about the career path.”

“What!?” I snorted. “That means there is no career path. That means it’s a dead-end job. They want you to take the job and come to work at the same desk for the next fifty years. Maybe you should go on the interview just for the learning experience. If you do, I have one suggestion. Make sure and use the term ‘career path’ at least once in every sentence, just to see what happens.”

Emily did just that. She said the interviewer nearly fell out of her chair. Emily never heard from the company or the headhunter again, but she got a tremendous job with a consulting firm soon after.

4- They Won’t Tell You When The Employer’s Requests Become Unreasonable 

Remember how third-party recruiters get paid. They don’t get a dime unless you accept the employer’s offer. An unscrupulous recruiter will encourage you (or even browbeat you) to stay in a broken and mojo-crushing recruiting pipeline. If you drop out, they lose.

They’ll tell you to do whatever the employer asks you to, down to creating free work for the employer and interviewing four, five or six times with different people. They’ll tell you to take endless online tests and putting up with delays and weeks of radio silence. They’ll tell you ignore red flags that scream “Believe me, you don’t want to work here!”

Know before you get into any recruiting pipeline how many interviews are reasonable (three visits to one employer is the limit we suggest — if they can’t make a decision in three visits, they’re too wimpy to be mentors who can help you) and what you will and won’t do before you see an offer letter.

I don’t want you to perform work for free. A good rule of thumb is this: one request for one one-hour project to see how you operate is reasonable during a hiring process. That could be the creation of a writing sample or some lines of code. After that, you can meet any additional requests for free work with the soft reply “I’d be happy to complete that project on a consulting basis. Shall I fill you in on my hourly rates?”

5- They Won’t Tell You To Refuse A Lowball Offer

Last on our list, a skeevy recruiter who’s trying to shove you into a new sardine can won’t tell you when a job offer is below market. They’ll tell you just the opposite. They want you to accept the job, so they’ll tell you the offer looks great. Way back in 1979 when I first hit Chicago as a nineteen-year-old punk rocker, I went looking for an office job.

I didn’t realize when I moved to Chicago that the drinking age there was 21. In New York the drinking age was 18, so I could work in good restaurants that served alcohol. I made great money waiting tables. I did the same thing when I got to Chicago, but when the outdoor cafe where I worked closed up for the winter, I needed a new job.

That’s when I got the bad news: I couldn’t work in any restaurant with a liquor license. I had to go indoors to type and answer the phone.

I walked into an employment agency and filled out some forms. Right away they sent me to interviews — one miserable environment after another. They said “It will be wonderful if you can get four dollars an hour” even though I saw tons of jobs in the Chicago Tribune advertised for five dollars an hour or more.

“Why are you diminishing my experience?” I asked my employment counselor. “Is it to prepare me to take the first offer I get, whatever that offer is?”

She nearly fainted in front of me.

Remember how recruiters get paid. If you don’t take the offer, they don’t get a penny. There are recruiters who will tell you that you have nothing of value to offer and that they’ll have a hard time placing you. Walk away from anybody who insults you or denigrates your background.

They will tell you that your skills are a dime a dozen. Don’t believe them! The first person who has to believe in you, is you.

Whether we’re talking about employers or recruiters, you have to remember that only the people who get you, deserve you. Take a huge grain of salt with everything you hear from a person whose financial interests lie in getting you hired into a new job, and keep your B.S. meter close at hand!

 

 Forbes.com | February 6, 2015  |  Liz Ryan 

 

Your Career: 5 Things Recruiters Look For on Your Social Media Profiles…Did you Know that 93% of Recruiters Currently Use or Plan to Use Social Media to Find Candidates?

It’s no surprise that recruiters are turning to social media to scope out potential employees. Therefore, it’s essential that candidates understand what recruiters are looking for online. These elements of your profiles are making a big impression on recruiters — for good or for ill.

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93% of recruiters currently use or plan to use social media to find candidates

93% of recruiters currently use or plan to use social media to find candidates

Did you know that 93% of recruiters currently use or plan to use social media to find candidates? That little fact should make you think twice about posting that potentially career-ending rant or pic online … hopefully. Here’s a list of how recruiters are using social media to find qualified candidates in today’s digital and social age.

1. Searchability

First things first, you want recruiters to be able to find you easily online, so help them out by keyword-optimizing your profiles, but also be wary of listing some of the most commonly overused buzzwords that turn recruiters off. In Jobvite’s 2014 Social Recruiting Survey, 82% of recruiters consider “their social recruiting skills to be proficient or less,” which makes your job as a qualified candidate trying to get discovered a bit more difficult than you’d expect. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. To learn how to attract more recruiters to your LinkedIn profile, see this post.

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2. Who You Know

Just as in real life, the better connected you are in the business world, the better your chances are of getting noticed. Recruiters use social sites to see whom you’re connected to, as well, so it’s wise to be strategic about whom you’re connecting yourself with on and offline.

First, look to expand your online network by using LinkedIn’s Get Introduced feature and start reaching out to your immediate contacts for referrals. You’ll also want to consider following some well-known influencers who can lend some expertise in your field of work. The bottom line is, recruiters like to see that you are well-connected and active in your given industry. Think about it, a recruiter is probably more likely to consider a candidate that is already a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree connection to someone within his individual LinkedIn network or the company’s network, than someone who isn’t. So, get connected, people!

3. Personality Is Key

Recruiters are looking for someone who is a good fit technically, but, more importantly, there needs to be a great cultural fit, too. Nadine Motaweh, a Recruiting Manager at The Creative Group, indicates that she looks for candidates who have personality and who are able to articulate that effectively online and in person.

“I typically feel most excited about presenting the candidates who I know would go in and show their personality, because technical skills can be taught — being someone I want to spend my whole day with five days a week is not,” Motaweh tells PayScale.

The lesson here is to express your personality in a way that is appealing and professional. Don’t fake the funk and pretend to be someone you’re not. Instead, convey tidbits about your professional and personal life that make you relatable and interesting.

4. Red Flags

Yes, it’s true that we live in the land of the free, but if you’re a job seeker looking for employment, you might want to reconsider the wisdom of practicing your right to freedom of speech on social media. According to Jobvite’s survey, an astonishing 55% of recruiters have reconsidered their decision about hiring a candidate based on their social media profiles, with 61% of those being negative decisions. Keep in mind that hiring personnel are searching for red flags such as posts with profanity, spelling and grammar mistakes, poor lifestyle choices (e.g. drugs and alcohol) broadcasted for all to see, and sexual references. Rule of thumb, if you don’t want your parents to see it, then don’t post it — chances are, a recruiter definitely doesn’t want to see it, either.

5. Engage

Last, but not least, continue to stay engaged with your networks. What does this mean? It means you’ll want to find conversations online that you can participate in and lend your expertise, whether they be industry-related or part of your personal interests.

Staying engaged with your community allows you to expand your network, keep up with the latest and greatest in your industry and hobbies, and provides an open forum for you to offer your expert advise, and so much more. Simply listing your skills on your resume isn’t enough anymore. Recruiters want concrete examples of how you utilized those skills in a real-life setting. Some great avenues to do so are: directly on your profile/resume, in LinkedIn recommendations, and in the conversations you participate in online.

Important note: be sure you know what you’re talking about in your discussions and not trolling, because the last thing you want to convey is that you’re an immature know-it-all. Let’s be smart about it, folks.

To learn how to land a job in three months, read about the seven smart habits of successful job seekers, here.

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Job Seekers: What To Do If You Aren’t Getting Called For Interviews…Go Through this Process for Several Other Jobs for Which You’ve Applied. Do You See a Pattern?

When you’ve been actively applying for jobs, it can get really frustrating when you aren’t getting called for interviews. If this is happening to you, don’t give up; but take a short ‘time out’ to analyze the reasonswhy you’re not making it to the next round in the hiring process.

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First, look at how much of a ‘fit’ you are for the jobs to which you’ve been applying. Review several of the job postings for jobs to which you’ve applied. Read through one job posting and as you read each requirement, ask yourself the following questions:

  • Do I meet the minimum level of experience required for the position?
  • Do I meet the minimum level of education required for the job?
  • Do I have most of the required skills for the job?
  • Do I have the certifications required for the position? (if any are required)

For each requirement, write down whether you meet, partially meet or don’t meet that requirement. Once you’ve done this for the first job posting, look at what you’ve written. Do you meet the majority of the requirements?

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Then, go through this process for several other jobs for which you’ve applied. Do you see a pattern? The most common reason I’ve found when people don’t get telephone or in-person interviews is that there are other candidates who are a better ‘fit’ (more qualified) for the job. As a hiring manager, I look for candidates who meet at least 80 percent of the job requirements. One reason you aren’t making it to the interview round might be because hiring managers don’t see you as qualified enough for the position.

If you believe this may be your issue, look for ways you can obtain the education, certifications, skills or experience required – so that you’ll be a better fit in the near future. Then, before you apply for any more jobs, conduct this same exercise of analyzing yourself against the requirements listed in the next job posting. Pretend you’re the hiring manager and take a critical look at your resume. If you were the hiring manager, would you hire this candidate for the job?

Some people have a tendency to apply for higher-level positions than what they’re qualified for, which is why they don’t get called for interviews. In this situation, try looking for lower-level jobs that are the stepping-stones to get you to those higher-level jobs you’d like to have in the future – and apply for those.

Another issue I’ve seen is where someone has the relevant skills, experience or education, but forgot to include many of these on their resume. For every requirement in the job posting that you meet, somewhere on your resume, you should explain that you have that skill, experience or education. If you aren’t customizing your resume to include the appropriate information, then your resume won’t get the attention it deserves by recruiters and hiring managers – and you won’t get as many calls for interviews.

~ Lisa Quast, author of the book, Secrets of a Hiring Manager Turned Career Coach: A Foolproof Guide to Getting the Job You Want. Every Time.   Join me on Twitter @careerwomaninc

 
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