Everything's different now

We're hearing from our clients that the volume of work is bouncing back, and they're also hiring more temporary workers. This is good news for us at LandaJob, and also good for our associates whom we can unite with project work. But, it's confusing and hard-to-adjust-to for many displaced workers. And even some employers don't realize how easy it is to use temporary workers for project purposes; they mistakenly believe there's an extra layer of complication for them, but in reality it's easier (no 1099 hassles, easier administration).

In fact, "contingent staffing" (that's the buzzword which encompasses all temporary, freelance, and project work) has been an enormous part of California's mode of work for years, and now it is rapidly growing in other parts of the country, including the Midwest. Some estimate that by 2019, 40% of the U.S. workforce may be independent contractors (source: Time, May 2009). Workforce Management recently reported that 73% of employers expect an increase in their contingent workforce in 2010, with nearly 35% planning increases of 50% or more.

It's different from the way many employers and workers have operated. But this mode of just-in-time solutions is the way we will get people back to work and maintain the productivity and even the innovation of American businesses. Many companies will keep their full-time employed workforce in their core competencies and outsource other necessary functions plus added capacity. This will create a need to adapt, but also outstanding opportunities for many workers who want to expand their flexibility and work longer before retirement.

What might this mean for your company or your career?

Giving Thanks

Just a quick note to say thanks to all the businesses, hiring managers, human resource pros, and job-seekers who have entrusted us to help them find great people and great jobs over the years.

As 4th Qtr. begins wrapping up, give us a call if you need temporary help in any marketing communications area (direct or database marketing, creative, interactive, production, etc.). Using a temporary agency can help you avoid this:

http://www.businessbrief.com/feds-plan-6000-biz-audits-what-theyre-looking-for/

How I got the job | Jennifer Foster, 33 - Kansas City Star

How I got the job | Jennifer Foster, 33 - Kansas City Star

What's that about?

I heard it this morning on The Today Show: "men don't apologize." It should have answered my question about the last two men who were in our office to interview for upcoming jobs with our clients. But it really didn't.

One candidate was a stellar, experienced designer with a great track record working for large corporations; the other was more of a beginner with real potential for front-end web design and programming. They were both 15 minutes late and, given the opportunity ("Did you have trouble finding our office?"), neither mentioned their tardiness (or regret).

What's up with this?

"...just got a new job!"

We're hearing that more & more as we call our temporary associates to tell them about new opportunities. It's music to our ears!

Here's a note from one of our long-time temporary associates who has just transitioned to a full-time senior graphic design job at our client:

"Thank you for the kind words, Elisa. It's really exciting for me considering
> where I was before talking with you that very first time. I had been with the
> same company for 11 years and had just started looking for a new job in an
> already depressed economy. Thanks to YOU and a wee bit of 'perfect timing',
> here I am, one year later with the best opportunity I could have imagined! I'm almost giddy. It's been a wonderful transition and I feel that I
> owe you SO MUCH for referring me in the first place. I know I've worked really
> hard but it's more than that. I feel like it was a perfect fit - for me and for my new employer!"

Thank you, Tami! We're thrilled for you!

Susan's Success!

How I Got the Job: Susan O'Neil, 24

Susan O'Neil was a very savvy job-seeker ... take a look at the steps she took to find her job in Kansas City at River City Studio (http://economy.kansascity.com/?q=node/2691) FYI, we're thrilled with how successful Yoda’s tweets have become! He’s such a smart cat to have persuaded you to do all his work for him. You can hear Yoda here: http://www.rivercitystudio.com/

The Importance of Being Interesting (and Earnest)

As a career coach, one of the activities I spend a lot of time on with clients is their use of language. How we talk about ourselves, and what we say to describe our skills and experience, has a huge impact on whether people want to engage with us, especially if we're looking for referrals to a job or freelance opportunity.

Here are a few simple ways you can be more interesting when you find yourself in those situations when people ask you, "and what do you do?"

1. Instead of using a passive verb ("I am a writer/graphic designer/marketing manager"), use an active verb. Try telling people what you actually do instead of stating your title or past title, which does not create a conversation. In doing this, you may need to just select one aspect of your professional portfolio, but that's okay. You may end up with five or six alternative statements you can use, according to the situation.

2. Find new and compelling words to use. Words are fun! The English language has so many synonyms that there's no excuse for using the same tired terms everyone else does. Devoting just a few minutes to identifying new language for your accomplishments and skills can give a big boost to your personal presentation.

3. Think about describing what you do in terms of its results or impact. There's always a larger purpose for how your function influences the enterprise, and using a few words to reference that helps your listener understand and connect.

4. If you're looking for a job, be prepared to assist your listener with a concise and accurate description of the sort of position and accountabilities you're seeking, maybe even with examples of the kind of company or category you are targeting. Make it as easy as possible for someone to help you.

Implementing these tips requires just a little time, experimentation, and practice. Find a friend, colleague, or coach to help you. In my experience, it's really worth it. When someone's interest is piqued and they truly hear you, a conversation develops, and then some connection may emerge that will genuinely help your quest!

Tell me if you have other tips that have worked for you. Or, if you'd like some help with your own personal pitch, let me know.

Rentokil

One Response to “What’s in a Name?”

1. # Eric Morgenstern on 18 May 2009 at 10:14 am
   
   

   Two of my favorite company names are:

   Rentokil (a plant rental service that recycles dying office plants with healthy ones)

   LandaJob (a career placement service owned by proprietor Landa Williams).

   Words evoke emotions. Existing words bring both good and bad baggage.

   Naming conventions should be taken quite seriously.

   Nice post!

Thanks to our great talent!

Debby Malone, Partner at Hickerson Wahaus, just wrote us to say that our temporary talent did a great job for them in proofreading:

"...did a fabulous job. We had three different people and we liked _______ the best. They were all good but she was fabulous! She was so knowledgeable on style trends, etc."

Thanks, Debby -- we really appreciate the feedback!

It's a New Day -- Selling Interns

I just noticed that Crispin Porter + Bogusky is auctioning their summer interns on EBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270392380113

Here's a link to the Ad Age piece about it and all the juicy posts that follow:
http://adage.com/talentworks/article?article_id=136729

The current bid, when I last looked, was $5,600. No matter what, that sure will pump up someone's resume, don't you think?

We're so happy to congratulate...

Jamie Corning for winning KC/IABC's Best in Show at the 2009 Bronze Quill Awards Friday night.

To win a coveted Bronze Quill Award, entrants must show how they impacted their organization’s bottom line. From publications, to employee communication, to government relations, and now Social Media, Bronze Quill winners have shown they combined research, strategy and clean execution to reach their audiences with their messages.

More winners to follow. If you would like more information on KC/IABC, please visit http://kc.iabc.com

Good Advice

Kevin really knows what he is talking about.

If you are just beginning your career in the exciting field of Advertising or Marketing, check out Kevin Fullerton's blog at:

http://springboard501.blogspot.com/

His latest post, "Why Can't I Get a Job?" exposes errors job seekers make and gives advise on how to stand out.

Do you know any other blogs or podcasts that give solid, relevant advise to job seekers?

Biggest Mistake on a Resume is...

not proofreading or getting somebody else to proofread your resume. Many, many times a resume will be thrown directly into the trash if there is even one tiny typo.

IABC Members: Get your résumé proofread for free: Exclusive offer for IABC members from ProofreadNOW.com. Expires 30 May 2009.

Here are some links that can help:

20 Most Common Grammatical Errors - this is a great refresher in basic grammar.

Common Words That Sound Alike - the its/it's, there/they're/their etc. site; some of the MOST COMMON problems I see.

Punctuation - The University of Ottawa also has this site on correct punctuation usage.

What other mistakes will get your resume into the recycle bin?

Persistence is EVERYTHING.

Susan Boyle for Queen!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY&feature=related

local resources for the unemployed

From Diane Stafford's ever-so-useful column on kansascity.com today:

Help for job hunters is close to home

Out of work and don't know where to turn?

Check out a new web site launched this week that can point you to job-search and job-retraining resources near you.

The site is a service of the AFL-CIO and Working America. But it's not just for union members. It's for anyone who's looking for work.(WorkingAmerica is the AFL-CIO affiliate created for workers who aren't union members.)

The sponsoring organizations call UnemploymentLifeLine.com "a Yellow Pages meets Wikipedia" for the unemployed. It works when you enter your Zip Code, and a host of nearby agencies and services pop up.

Do the math

As we talk with more job seekers every week, it seems that a growing percentage of them are challenged with out-of-date job search skills. But even with those who've been in the job market in the past five years, we see low levels of outreach activity.

This was confirmed in a recent teleconference I attended through the Association of Career Professionals International (I'm a member and a former president of the KC chapter). The speaker was Orville Pierson, who is a senior executive and director of program design and service delivery for Lee Hecht Harrison, a leader in outplacement and career services (also the author of The Unwritten Rules of the Highly Effective Job Search and Highly Effective Networking). He has spent his entire career analyzing the metrics of job search activity, to be able to pinpoint what tends to work.

Mr. Pierson shared that the average unemployed job hunter spends five hours per week in search activity, compared with ten to twenty average hours spent by the executive level candidate. Reasons for low activity include a lack of organization, fear of rejection, and a lack of knowledge about how to proceed, among others.

Over time, he has concluded that the job seeker's overall search plan is more important than the resume, and that focus on the quantity of good contact work is the most influential variable in the success of the search! He's long been a believer that the successful job search plan will have qualified an initial target list of 40 to 50 companies. That's the initial list, just to have a place to start.

Here's the interesting part. He has determined that the average job seeker talks to 25 decision-makers before he/she gets an offer that results in a hire. And, that job seeker averages 15 networking conversations to get to each (1) decision-maker. 

So, do the math. That means in normal market conditions, an average job search could be expected to have close to 400 networking conversations to result in a new job. Those numbers are probably higher in the present situation.

That's why our personal and professional connections are so valuable to us. They are the most precious and effective part of any job search. They are golden!

And, that's why we advise so many of our job candidates and coaching clients to stop fooling around with their resumes and get busy making contact with human beings.

Tell us what you think of Mr. Pierson's formula. Does it match with your expectations or experience?

Perception is reality

Our greatest New Year's wish for both employer clients and job-seeker candidates, and for ourselves as well, is that we all not psych ourselves out. It's easy to get pulled into the current of negativity that is driving a lot of media content, whether it's in print, broadcast/cable, or online. Just as a smart swimmer will avoid the invisible undertow, we observe that our smartest colleagues and clients avoid absorbing the negative -- and instead see them creating their own positive energy and opportunities.

Every day we are encouraged at the news of people hiring and being hired, taking the leap to start new businesses and new careers, and following through on long-planned dreams.  We know there are sectors of the economy that are doing well, local employers who are flourishing, and eager talent waiting to be tapped.  But when we're all hearing so much bad news, we temporarily lose our uniquely American competence for getting on with it.

Here's what we remind ourselves of on a regular basis:

1. Hang around with positive people. If you're getting bummed out by the news, change the channel. If the friends you usually hang out with are too negative, get together with someone who has a terrific positive attitude or a great sense of humor. I remember a year when I resolved to make three new friends who were cheerful and glass-half-full types, and it changed my life forever.

2. Get back to the basics. Example: making personal connections, whether it's for networking, sales, or job seeking. Person-to-person connections are the building blocks of all commerce. Another example: making an honest assessment of the impression you make on others, and adjusting where necessary to make sure there are no barriers to connection. Appearance, posture, manners, and articulate communication go a long way.

3. Try one new thing. When frustrated at lack of progress, pick one simple change you can make. Or, choose one new activity to add into another area of your life. Feed your brain. Or just focus for ten minutes on a task you've been putting off. Making tiny changes can freshen the energy of the entire enterprise.

So, what are some things that you do to feed positive progress? And what are your New Year's intentions?