Past Five

Observations from a Job Fair

Job fairs are an invaluable resource, and in this competitive job market, a great way to set yourself apart from other candidates. Are you making the most of your school’s career fairs? You should be and I’ll tell you why.

 

Career fairs are a prime way to practice networking and/or obtain job leads. Networking is an activity in which you will participate your entire working life, no matter your profession.  It doesn’t stop once you land a job. Job fairs are just the place to practice putting yourself out there and building a professional network. The more people who know you’re looking for a job, the better your chance at getting a job!

 

As campus recruiter for my company, the LaSalle Network, I spend a good deal of time at career fairs. And I’ve seen it all. Career fairs showcase a unique cross-section of candidates, and not just in the areas of academic pursuits or career aspirations.  Some job fair attendees are more prepared than others. Some slink by my booth - their body language begging, “don’t talk to me, don’t talk to me, don’t talk to me.”

 

Now, I tend to be chatty and motivated by being around college students at job fairs, so I engage a lot of students in conversation. Not every representative you talk to will be as engaging. Not everyone will coax a conversation out of you.

 

So, once you’ve arrived at the fair, don’t be afraid to step up, put out your hand, smile, and introduce yourself. Job fairs are usually pretty busy for recruiters because we want to speak to as many folks as possible, too! Therefore, it’s important that your introduction briefly describes who you are, why you’re there, and what unique qualifications you bring to the table.  

 

 Other students will come up to me with that confident handshake and strong verbal communication, but are dressed for a night in “da club.” I am here to tell you that, yes, even in today’s increasingly casual culture, a suit speaks volumes. The students who visit my booth at job fairs dressed as if they are on an interview stand out every time over those in hoodies and Chuck Taylor sneakers.

 

Based on my observations, here are a few tips on how to make the most of a job fair:

 

· Obtain a list of employers attending the fair from your career center

· Research the companies in which you are most interested. You won’t have time to talk to everyone, so plan to talk to 5-10 employers once you’ve arrived

· Prioritize your time once you arrive, meeting first with employers at the top of your list

· Make a strong, first impression. Dress professionally. Offer a firm handshake. Smile. Make eye contact. Communicate briefly and enthusiastically who you are and why you’re interested in each employer

· Before leaving each employer, obtain contact information, find out what hiring procedures are and what you can expect as far as next steps. To make it fun, I suggest setting a goal for yourself before the fair such as collecting a certain number of business cards

 

Finally, just because the career fair is over, doesn’t mean you’re done. Now it’s time for follow-up!  This job market is competitive, so remember that you want to stand out. In order to do that, I suggest you follow-up by

1. sending a thank you note or email depending upon preferred method of contact and 2. call a week later to see where each company is in their hiring process.

 

 

 

 

Keep it Clean

Google yourself.  Go ahead, we'll wait...

 

What did you find?  Anything good?  Anything bad?

 

If you discovered something your mother wouldn't be proud of, it’s time for change.  If you're an active job seeker, you need to clean up your online profiles immediately. 

With the unemployment rate approaching 10%, job seekers can't afford to miss out on exciting job opportunities due to the content of their on-line profiles.  Whether you have a profile on Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Flickr or Twitter- content is king and it better be clean. 

1. Privacy- You wouldn't leave your doors and windows of your home open all day, leaving it vulnerable for anyone to enter and snoop around.  So why would you let anyone view your online profile?  Social networking sites offer various degrees of privacy.  It's easy, but so many job seekers neglect to take advantage of this setting.  Block or limit users who aren't your friends from gaining access to your profiles. 
2. Content - Your online profile can show friends and connections a broader perspective of who you are, what you are doing right now, what books you read this summer, what your interests are, etc.  When presented well, this can portray you positively as a person.  However, when the content presented is negative, it can drastically impact how a colleague or employer feels about you.
3. Photos - Yes, visiting Cancun during your senior year was fun, but potential employers are going to think otherwise when they see the photos.  Untag and block any photos that may be inappropriate.  Upload photos that will strengthen your personality, not show the world how much you love being the center of attention.
4. Posts – Once you author a post on any social networking profile, you cannot go back.  Despite the ability to “delete” the content later, you have no control over who has already seen the material, commented about it, or forwarded the post/image to someone else.
5. Etiquette - Many of you have probably been friended by moms and dads of your close friends, and dare we say a grandparent or two?!?!  Yikes!  But remember “friending” a potential employer isn’t a professional way to go about getting hired.  Save the MySpace and Facebook friending for close friends, coworkers and colleagues that you have already established solid face-to-face relationships with.    

There is no denying that the Internet is one of today’s primary communication tools.  The popularity of social media has grown exponentially in the last several years.  Twitter, for example, grew from 1.6 million users in 2008 to more than 32 million today.  No one is expected to stay off the Internet, but people should be savvy social networkers while still maintaining a professional reputation online. 

 

We continuously urge our candidates to keep their networking profiles clean.  Think about it, you wouldn’t want to risk losing out on a new career because of the scandalous photos your friend tagged and the 37 comments that you made on them about how drunk and wild and irresponsible you all were on your summer vacation.  Your personal life is all your own, but employers, universities, and organizations see is put online, so keep your image clean.

 

 

 

Posted by guest author Bobby Wilson

Who Are Your Friends at Work?

Year after year, month after month, day after day....it still surprises me.  People gravitate to those like them in the work place...no matter if they have a good work ethic, similar intelligence level or attitude. Girls hang out with girls, boys with boys, ethnic group with ethnic group, people just out of college hang out with others who just graduated too and older workers do the same.

The motto I have said to my employees for over 10 years is “You will not grow and advance your career if you only associate with those who are equal to or below you on the food chain.”

In order to grow, you need to spend time with people of the opposite sex, opposite gender, different age bracket, different work experiences, etc. It will make you a better worker, because you will hear what people outside of your demographic think and feel. It will make you a better manager, because you will see and learn that everyone has different beliefs and motivators. When people only associate with those of a similar ilk, they are preaching to the choir.  But when the only black person in the office talks about it with a white employee who happens to be of a different age, gender, etc.…perhaps they will get a different view? Just a thought.

The next time you're thinking about who to go to lunch with, try and find someone who wouldn't have been in your fraternity or sorority.

A Stand-Up Guy in Fortune Small Business

I wrote an article for Fortune Small Business a few months back for its How I Work section. It was about how I ditched my chair for a stand-up desk I had custom made from a Canadian company called Groupe Lacasse, and how my unusual work habit increased my productivity and improved my relationships with my staff. Check it out here.

The Candidate Experience

I was reading Dave Lefkow's blog yesterday, and it refreshed a mantra that I have had since I started our our recruiting and staffing firm nine years ago - "The Candidate Experience." In his post, Dave suggests that candidates are the only thing that is "virtually guaranteed to grow your revenue and attract customers." So how do you attract candidates?

There is a need for companies, whether they are third-party recruiters or traditional hiring organizations, to create an experience for the job seeker/interviewer/candidate. How can a human resources or hiring manager make the process an experience that the candidate will relish? Why would you want to, unless the candidate is terrific? I get a little holistic here, so hold on for a second.

The majority of us are in business to make money. We hire people to make our unit/company stronger, which will result in more revenue, achieving more goals, and for us as employees to make more money and take on new challenges. The stronger our firm's reputation is in the marketplace and the stronger your reputation as an individual within the firm, the better the opportunities for growth all around. I interview candidates every day from a variety of backgrounds, and many, if not all, say they want to get into recruiting, at least in small part, because they like the idea of helping people.

While this is a terrific notion, the reality is, in business most people like the idea of helping people who can help them. So, if you are an HR recruiter for a corporation, how much help do you provide to those who don't make it past the initial interviews? If you are a third-party recruiter, how much do you help those you don't have a position for today? If you are a hiring manager, how do you help people you don't like for your position?

We should all believe that what goes around, comes around. If you were interviewing for a position and came across in a way that was less than flattering, wouldn't you hope someone would share with you how to improve? We all need development, and there is nothing harder than being confrontational with someone to share some less-than-flattering thoughts. You may ask, "This is creating a positive candidate experience?" Yes, it is.

When people feel that someone they have met with has made an emotional connection or taken the time to "work with" them rather than simply ask questions, they feel a connection. In fact, we get as much business from candidates we did NOT find jobs for, but purely  gave advice and helped refine their styles, as we do for job seekers we actually find jobs for. Why? Because people want to help people who have helped them.

So, how wonderful would it be if you interviewed someone, and when you were running a few minutes late, you actually apologize rather than take the attitude that because the other person is looking for a job, it doesn't matter if you are late? Wouldn't it be terrific if you gave a candidate a tour of the office to the candidates that come in, even if you only think the office is cubes and files? Four minutes isn't going to kill anyone. And how awesome would it be if one of these candidates who you opened up to and helped improve their resume, or gave a tour of the office to, actually referred the "right" candidate to your company down the road? Or, what would you feel like if one day, they were in the position to become a client to your company? It happens, believe me!