The Executive Update

From Polyanna to Positive Psychology

A recent op-ed piece in the Washington Post by Robert J.
Samuelson “Why job creation is so hard”  contends
that the real culprit behind slow job growth is the “psychological shift”
caused by the Great Recession and economic meltdown. The dramatic and “largely unpredicted” collapse created a pervasive psychology of restraint - consumers and companies alike are less willing to take a risk or try something new whenconfronted by uncertainty. Call it behavioral economics or “animal spirits”there is no question that attitude and perception can shape reality.

How is your attitude affecting your career or job search?
Many people I speak with are coping with uncertainty on a daily basis. Some
people view the future as full of opportunity while others struggle with a
sense that their best years are past. It's a choice that all of us get to make
every day of our lives.

From Pollyanna to Positive Psychology, the idea that we are shaped less by circumstances than
by our attitude toward those circumstances is not new. While I'm not going to
suggest that we all play the “glad game” every time life throws us a curveball, I do believe that attitude matters.

Take interviewing. No matter how qualified you are for the position, it’s your attitude that registers with the interviewer. And it's not just about your level of confidence. How do you feel about your search? Are you angry? Still have unresolved resentment about your situation? Don't kidyourself. That resentment comes through loud and clear in any interview.

So what can you do?

Start by paying attention. Observe your thoughts. Make a conscious decision about how you frame your circumstances. Recognize that while you cannot control everything in your life, you do have a choice in how you react.

 

 

 

Ask the Coach: How ATS Systems Affect Hiring Decisions

Every week, NETSHARE hosts Ask the Coach, a phone-in coaching session with leading career management experts. Last week we welcomed a new career coach to the team, Sue Hansen. Here is an excerpt from last week’s coaching session with Sue.

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) have become an integral part of the machinery that influences the hiring process behind the scenes, and if you understand their role you can better understand how to position yourself for your next job. ATS’s have come into common usage, especially among larger employers, as a means to both track candidates as they progress through the hiring process, and to objectively rank employees based on their qualifications against preprogrammed criteria. Here are the basics of how an ATS works:

ATS are designed to be sold to organizations as a means of providing a centralized tracking system to manage the recruitment process. Tracking candidate applications using software improves the workflow and reduces the cost to fill a position.

Candidate information is typically gathered through a job board or web application and then entered into the submission process. The ATS then tracks the applicant, gathering information about interviews, background checks, reference checks, etc. Once a hiring decision is made the system generates the offer letter, then tracks the candidate’s acceptance and the start date. Once the start date is set, the ATS is used to alert all necessary departments, such as IT, telecom, payroll, and HR operations and facilities, to ensure a smooth first day.

One of the real advantages of using an ATS is to prevent legal hassles over employment discrimination. The ATS has a built-in point system that provides an objective ranking of applicants. Sue cites one experience she had working with a large consulting firm. The ATS vendor working in collaboration with the firm preloaded the names of national and regional and boutique competing firms into the ATS system so any applicants with credentials referencing those competitors would rank higher in the ATS’s point system. This is common practice with ATS systems. Google, for example, tends to rank candidates with degrees from specific schools higher than other candidates.

What this means for job applicants is that you may not be perceived as visible by the ATS system unless you meet enough of their preprogrammed criteria. Rather than trying to “game” the ATS system by guessing at those criteria, your best defense is networking. Sue says that her experience shows that 60 to 75 percent of hires at every level come from employee referrals. Making referral connections and networking your way into the company is still your best bet to be considered as a serious job candidate.

Ask the Coach: Providing References

Here is the latest insight from our weekly Ask the Coach calls with NETSHARE members. This week’s session features career transition coach and career management consultant Randy Block.

One of the questions posed during this week’s Ask the Coach call had to do with job references: do you provide them when you first submit your resume or express interest in a position?

Randy’s response was a firm and resounding “No!” Do not provide the references until someone asks for them, and even then be judicious.

Whether you are dealing with an internal hiring manager or an outside recruiter, be sure to ask what types of references they want. Normally, they ask for managers, subordinates, and a few peers to get a 360-degree view of the candidate. When determining which references to provide, remember that there are two kinds of reference checks that are typically performed:

1. Fact – did you do exactly what you said you did? This will include information about titles, salary, and skill set, and also about your accomplishments. If you embellished your achievements, this is where you will be found out.

2. Fit – what’s your style? Part of the recruiter’s job is to determine if you are a good fit for the company’s culture. They will ask your references about your ability to work as part of a team, your temperament, and about other character traits that determine cultural fit.

If you are not sure about your references, you want to mitigate the “surprise” factor. Tell the recruiter that you had a difference of opinion, or a difference in approach to a problem. Be frank and be honest. Randy noted that in his recruiting practice, he found that references often reveal more about themselves than about the candidates.

Be sure to give as many references as have been requested – no more, and no less. Also be sure to prepare your references and give them a “heads up” to receive a phone call or email. Also be sure to tell your references what position you are applying for, what qualifications are expected, and, if you can, what types of questions or specifics the recruiter or hiring manager may ask about. You want to be judicious about using your references because you don’t want to burn them out with overuse, particularly if you prep them and they never get called.

You may also want to ask if the recruiter if they are using a third-party or independent agency for a background check. It’s become common practice to review a candidate’s background for a criminal record or financial problems, although there are new laws in some states that limit what types of financial information can be used in hiring decisions.

Your best approach to providing references is to provide what you are asked for and no more. Be honest with both the recruiter and your references. And try to make sure everyone knows what to expect.

Ask the Coach: Be Found, Be Flexible

Every week, NETSHARE hosts Ask the Coach, a phone-in coaching session with leading career management experts. Here is an excerpt from our most recent session with Christine Dennison, The Job Search Coach.

This week, career coach Chris Dennison fielded questions from NETSHARE members about their online profile, and how to position themselves for work either full time or on a contract basis. No matter what type of work you are seeking, your LinkedIn profile is extremely important. It serves as your online calling card, whether you are looking for full-time employment or contract work. You want to make sure your LinkedIn profile effectively represents your personal brand and that it’s structured so hiring managers can find you for all the right reasons.

Here is the advice that Chris fielded from callers regarding LinkedIn and finding the best job opportunities”

Question: What does a great LinkedIn profile look like?

Chris: When building out your LinkedIn profile, you need to think about it from the perspective of a recruiter or hiring manager who is looking through hundreds of profiles seeking just the right candidate. Your LinkedIn profile should be concise and readable, and it should focus on accomplishments rather than presenting a long chronology of jobs or a rehash of your resume. Think of your LinkedIn profile as if you were hanging out your shingle – you want to present your expertise. Emphasize your areas of specialization in the summary and the skill sets. Remember it’s what’s “above the fold” that sets you apart.

Question: I’m interviewing for two opportunities: one contract assignment and another full-time position. Both are with target companies. How do I handle this?

Chris: It’s important to evaluate each opportunity individually. Prepare a list of pros/cons for each position, being sure to eliminate any emotional and timing issues. That should give you a clearer understanding of which opportunity might be the best one. Also let each company know that you are interviewing for another position as a courtesy, but don’t try to play them off each other in a hardball way.  Keep the conversations positive – just be sure to keep each party informed and clarify where you are in the process. It’s important to express a strong interest in the position you want, but you want to make sure that all parties are kept in the loop.

Ask the Coach: Screening the Screeners

It’s been a while since we shared insight from our weekly hosts Ask the Coach calls with NETSHARE members. Here is an excerpt from this week’s session with career transition coach and career management consultant Randy Block.

When going through the interview process, you will have to run the screening gauntlet, negotiating your way past the various pre-screeners that stand in the way between you and the hiring manager. The first screener will more than likely be the third-party recruiter who will make the initial contact and conduct the initial telephone interview. If you are armed with the right attitude and the right questions, you can learn a lot about the prospective position and position yourself to move to the next step in the screening process.

When you get that call from the third-party recruiter, one of the first questions you need to ask is “How long have you been working on this search?” There are two answers that should immediately raise red flags for you:

1. We just started. This should be a red flag because the first few candidates are rarely hired. Early in the search process the company typically does not have a sufficient sense of urgency to make a hire. Chances are the hiring managers want to see what kind of talent is available first.

2. We have been working on this for a long time. Ask a follow-up question about how many candidates actually have been interviewed. If the number is high, then the position may be too difficult to fill for some reason, either because the criteria are too narrow or there is some other challenge. And if the search has been going on for a time, the recruiter may be about to be fired.

When doing an initial screening interview, you should ask about the recruiter’s track record with the hiring company. You want to get a sense of how close their relationship is with the company and if they have worked with them before. This will give you a better sense as to whether the recruiter really has an inside track into what the company is really looking for.

Be sure to ask if they have already presented candidates for the open position. If they have, ask in general terms about what the company liked and didn’t like about the candidates. Also be sure to ask about the screening process and how it progresses through phone screening to in-person screening with the recruiter, in person with hiring manager, and in person with hiring manager’s boss. The recruiter should have this information. Also be sure to ask about the next steps and when they will be done screening candidates. Be sure to schedule a follow-up call for the next day.

As an interesting side note, recruiters are using video screenings more frequently. Research shows that about 20 percent of screening interviews are now being done over Skype. Be sure to treat every interview, including telephone screenings, as if they were face-to-face interviews.

How Do You Find the Right Career Coach?

At NETSHARE we work with a number of career coaches to support our weekly Ask the Coach call and our monthly Experts Connection webinars. Over the years we have encountered a number of talented coaching professionals who have demonstrated their value to executive job seekers and career changers. What makes a good coach? It’s someone who challenges you to take a hard look at your goals and objectives and help you find new ways to become masters of your career destiny.

Career coaches can be invaluable if you are looking to make a career change or transition to a new profession. However, a good career coach will not find a job for you, but he or she will motivate you and help you uncover what you need to know to advance your own career. A coach is just that, a coach; someone who trains you to perform at your best. There are a number of reasons to hire a career coach or professional mentor:

· To help you uncover and quantify your strengths to make you more attractive to a potential employer.

· To help you improve your career skills such as interviewing and networking

· To help you set career goals and create a better life/work balance.

· To push you to work harder on your job search

The challenge is finding a skilled, reliable, and experienced career coach that can help you achieve your goals. As career counselor Katharine Brooks wrote in Psychology Today:

Compared to psychology and counseling, the coaching field is something of the Wild West. It is an unregulated field or, as it is sometimes called, "self-regulated." Coaches are not accredited or licensed by states-- there are no required standards or training in the field. Anyone can call themselves a coach-- and, in fact, many people do. In my field of higher education career services, I often encounter candidates who apply for career coaching openings in my office with a basic attitude of "I have looked for jobs, so I can help others look for jobs." That philosophy is fine in a self-help group or as a volunteer, but I wouldn't pay any money to such an individual.

So how do you find a coach that is qualified and offers the skills you need? You ask around. Check with your friends, family, and colleagues. Check with their former clients. And use your own checklist to determine if that career coach you are considering has the qualifications you are looking for. Here are 10 questions that Brooks suggests asking:

1. Does the coach belong to a professional coaching association? Do they adhere to a code of ethics?

2. What is their background? A bio or resume should tell you a lot about their experience, accreditations, and certifications. Although certification is not required, you can tell a lot by their experience.

3. Ask about costs and fees. Make sure there are no hidden costs. Remember that you are entitled to an “informed consent” form that lists the credentials of the career coach, their fees, includes a confidentiality clause. Be sure you both sign it.

4. Ask for client references. Be sure to talk to clients and former clients, not just look for client references on the web site. (Note: because of confidentiality issues, you may not be able to get references.)

5. Check them out. Check with the Better Business Bureau and other services to determine what the level of satisfaction is.

6. Ask about how the coach likes to work and what his or her coaching philosophy is. What approaches do they use? Good coaches will have a perspective developed from their training.

7. Ask about their specialization. Do they work with executives in transition, specific markets? If, for example, the coach specializes in recent college graduates they he or she may not be for you.

8. Ask for an introductory appointment, either for free or at a reduced rate. See if you have a connection with the coach. 

Once you find the right career coach, be prepared to invest the time and energy you need to get the most out of their knowledge and expertise. If the coach is good, you will become an active participant in the coaching process. You will learn more about yourself and your expertise, and ultimately you will find the job you are seeking.

Honesty is the Best Hiring Policy

I was reading the news about Baseball legend Roger Clemens being acquitted of lying to Congress and I started to think about professional ethics. Sports are not the only place where cheaters don’t prosper. There has been a lot of corporate scandal recently in the news, from the Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson resigning after it was found he lied on his resume to Richard Schulze resigning as CEO of Best Buy for turning a blind eye to an inappropriate office affair between a senior executive and a subordinate.

In business, ethics are everything. So if you are looking to get ahead or move on, you need to make sure your reputation is squeaky clean, especially online. Anything discoverable on the Web or elsewhere can come back to haunt you.

What steps can you take to maintain a clean record? They’re pretty simple. Here’s what Deborah Jacobs of Forbes recommends:

1. Remain trustworthy. You need to be reliable so others can rely on you. If you can prove to senior management and your coworkers that you are trustworthy, then they will trust you because they know they won’t have to look over your shoulder or police your conduct. Especially in senior positions, where if something goes wrong it could impact the company’s performance, you want someone who knows right from wrong and who can be trusted to report wrongdoing to the board or the appropriate senior managers.

2. Stay beyond reproach. Follow your own code of ethics and do the next right thing, even if you believe that course of action may not be what others want. If you can be true to yourself, no one can question your motives.

3. It’s okay to say “no”. If your boss asks you to do something you feel is wrong you have a right to say no, or even to disagree on gray areas. As Jacobs points out, saying “yes” to the boss all the time elevates that manager go “deity status”, and that’s when weaknesses are eclipsed by power and influence. Retain your right to disagree.

4. Watch your back. We live in a world of open data exchange, which means transparency. If you do something that could come back to haunt you, it probably will. Be honest and admit when you make a mistake so someone doesn’t have to point an accusing finger.

5. Project your image. Whether in business affairs or online, maintain a profile that projects integrity. Think about how others perceive you and your actions. Do you tend to hide or are you forthcoming? Knowing how the world perceives you will help you maintain your integrity.

In the age of the Internet your life is an open book. Be careful what your history says about you because you can be sure that someone will read it.

Your Gadgets May Be Cool, But NOT at a Job Interview

Here’s an interesting new problem I never anticipated – job candidates showing up for their interviews armed with iPads, tablet computers, and laptops. Granted, these toys are becoming more prevalent in a host of business settings, such as meetings and presentations, but at a job interview? Apparently it is becoming a prevalent problem, so much so that U.S. News had a recent article on the subject.

Granted, laptops, iPads, and smart phones have become ubiquitous. Everywhere you look there are people walking down the street, with their eyes glued to their cell phones. Or they are sitting in Starbuck transfixed by their tablet or laptop computer. And that’s the real problem; the technology detracts from the interview and, more importantly, from the interviewer.

According to etiquette experts Diane Gottsman, even using a small device for note taking gets in the way of the interview:

"I have spoken with many hiring managers and recruiters that say they're not positively affected by an applicant that comes in and opens their laptop to start taking notes," she says.

The exception is if you have a creative job and your tablet or iPad could be useful for displaying samples of your work. Or if you need to use a tablet or laptop for some sort of interactive discussion with the hiring manager, then it might make sense to use your computer or iPad. But remember to bring paper backups. There is nothing worse than having all these great ideas or examples ready only to have the presentation technology fail when it comes time to present them. And there may be multiple people in the meeting, so trying to crowd around a small screen would be very awkward.

However, technology always gets in the way of making a personal connection with the interviewer. How many of you have experienced the frustration of trying to hold a conversation with a spouse or friend who is immersed in their smart phone? If you are looking at your phone (or computer, or iPad), you can’t make eye contact, and you aren't giving your undivided attention to the interviewer. Most hiring managers will tell you that they find it distracting and disturbing when a candidate breaks out their iPad or laptop to take notes. They should be paying attention to the interview, no their computer.

So if you want to avoid technology trauma in an interview, remember the basics:

1. Be prepared. Do your homework and prepare with as much information about the hiring company and the position you are looking to fill. Don’t be afraid to ask beforehand what the interviewer would like to see during the initial interview so you are adequately prepared.
2. Rehearse beforehand. Think about the most common interview questions and how you would answer them. Be sure to preplan to arrive on time. If for whatever reason you do decide to make a presentation or use your laptop, be sure to arrive sufficiently early to set up and make sure everything is running properly.
3. Follow their lead. Remember, the interview is the hiring company’s agenda, not yours, so even if you have a killer presentation, wait until it’s clear that it’s time to pull out the PowerPoint. You will be given the right opportunity to produce your laptop only if the opportunity is right.
4. Paper is still useful. Be sure to bring paper copies of everything you may want to leave behind, starting with your resume. Hard copies are always useful to reference and share with other managers, and if you don’t need to worry if your laptop fails.

Technology certainly has its place, but usually not in a job interview. Bringing the new toys to show off your stuff is not the best way to make a first impression, and too often the tools get in the way of the message. It’s always better to show up for a job interview prepared, but without the additional bells and whistles that get in the way of presenting the genuine you! After all, they are hiring you, not your PowerPoint or your toys.

The Unicorn Theory – Why Companies Take So Long To Hire

Guest post by Matt Gill

Matt Gill, is the Managing Partner and a founding member of MICA Consulting Group, a retained recruiting and consulting firm specializing in connecting people in marketing, interactive, creative and advertising disciplines. Matt has been a key participant in the recruiting industry for the past 17 years. He is also a certified Behavioral Interview Trainer.

Marketing teams have been re-orged and RIF’ed - some of them multiple times over the past few years. As the tide rises, slowly but it is rising, companies are approving headcount additions to their marketing teams. Good news. Unfortunately, the hiring managers are hesitant to pull the trigger.

I’ve consulted with a number of CMO’s over the past couple of quarters on how to get the most out of their precious few hires. The conversation usually starts out with the CMO trying to figure out how to get all the skills and capabilities from three hires that are approved when he really needs seven people to get everything done. For example, they may have a position approved with a list of requirements that looks like this:

· 12+ years mobile, Ecommerce experience – (one of my absolute favorites)

· 10+ years in consumer goods marketing with expertise in channel development with major retailers

· Brand planning expertise with products for the baby boomer demographic

· Social and digital media expertise for new product launch in the infant care category with significant experience managing a co- branded product launch

· 5-7 years managing a global PR campaign

· One horn protruding no less than 12” from the middle of the forehead

I know CMOs and marketing folks fancy themselves able to solve difficult problems, but no matter what the impact of the recent economy, it hasn’t changed the rules of common sense. Unfortunately, the apprehension about making the wrong hire and the hope that this person exists is drastically impacting the length of our jobs recovery and why hiring managers will pass over great candidates.

To combat the Unicorn Hunter you have to start early on in the interview process. Work very hard at uncovering what the priorities are for the job. These will vary based on who you ask during the interview process, not only do you have to prioritize for the position but you have to assess the influence of the person you are asking. For example if the CEO ranks “Brand planning expertise with products for the baby boomer demographic” as #1 and the junior team member ranks it as #6 you can estimate where it sits on the overall list. If you make uncovering the “experience priorities” part of your interview process from the very first contact and all of your research you may be able to coach and consult your potential new employer in the direction of your strengths. At the very least it will allow you to self-select out if you don’t fit so you can focus your time in higher potential opportunities.

Features, Benefits and the Principle of Timely Relevance

If you have participated in one of my strategy calls, you know that I like to use marketing and sales metaphors when talking about job search and career management. One of the most important concepts to understand in either case is the difference between features and benefits.

Features are your skill set - your innate skills, as well as everything that your experience has taught you.

Benefits are the positive outcomes produced by your skills – what your features enable you to accomplish.

So why is the distinction important? People buy and hire based on benefits not on features. This simple distinction should inform every part of your search process. Take your resume, for example. I see a lot of resumes and sadly, more of them focus on features than benefits – responsibilities rather than accomplishments. The same goes for most elevator speeches - long on experience and short on deliverables.

Where it really falls apart, however, is when you get in front of the decision maker. If you are still trying to get by on features without bothering to understand the benefits, it is unlikely that the conversation will result in a positive outcome for either of you.

If you lead with your one size fits all resume, trusting that your experience will speak for itself, you are behaving like an inexperienced sales person who dumps every brochure he has onto the prospect’s desk and says, “Just tell me what you need.” Like the hapless salesman, you need to do your homework and understand what they need. You must then be able to articulate how your features will benefit that company – and it doesn’t hurt to have a tailored resume!

If you can’t turn your features into benefits and answer the decision maker’s unasked question “what’s in it for me?” you are wasting time, no matter how impressive your experience is.

Finally, there is the “Principle of Timely Relevance”, a phrase coined by Nicola James in her presentation for Experts Connection. Nicola used the expression in discussing how to get on a recruiter’s radar – i.e. you have the experience I want for a search I’m conducting now! Relevance and timing are everything when it comes to a successful landing. Understand that it’s not personal. You can be recognized as the best electrician in the world but if I need a plumber, I’m not going to call you.