Small Business Owners Workshop

I just came across this announcement and thought it was worth sharing:
Winter 2009 Small Business Certificate Series - "Workshop #6 - Current Marketing Strategies"Friday, February 20, 2009 - 9:00 A.M. Through 11:30 A.M.

Location: New Jersey Department of Labor Workforce DevelopmentUnion County One Stop Career Center200 West Second Street, 2nd FloorPlainfield, NJ 07060County: UnionWhat to Bring: Pre-registration is required. To register call NJ Small Business Development Center at Kean University (908) 737- 4220.

Event Details: This Workshop will show you how to define, target, and reach the markets where your service or products will be most successful; how to understand your competitive edge; develop your USP (Unique Selling Proposition); and how to create a powerfulLow-cost, high-impact MAP (Marketing Action Plan) to deliver your message; andMarketing in a down economy. *Snow day Feb. 27th-call first*

Legal Holiday? - Bah Humbug!!

Many folks automatically assume that Presidents Day means a day of rest for the job seeker. I don't think so! Certainly, most banks, some financial services firms, public schools and others are closed but most telecommunications, manufacturing, accounting, and for profit educational services will be open. Guess what, many staffing companies will be open for business too! Show some initiative tomorrow and let employers know you are pulling out all the stops to getting a great job!

The Trap Door

Trap doors are dangerous! You never know where you will end up. Counter offers are the job market's version of trap doors and could lead you into some messy situations. Many people will tell you that all veteran recruiters, like myself, will guide you away from counter offers simply to make a commission off your new placement. Not true! I have witnessed too many unhappy endings based on these last minute attempts to retain an employee.

Think about it for a moment. you have been a highly regarded member of your organization for a number years, received a lot of praise, and perhaps a few awards. What you have not received are raises and promotions commensurate with your performance. Someone else comes along and offers you a 12% increase, a higher level position, more vacation time, and a decent environment. When you inform your current employer of this, they get upset and beg you to stay. They offer you a promotion, 14% raise, and agree to add a week's vacation. Wow! What a great deal! Who could refuse this? YOU CAN REFUSE IT AND SHOULD REFUSE IT!

I used to work for a firm that behaved exactly like this. As soon as the president thought you were leaving, she rolled out the red carpet. All went well for a month or so then she would add someone new to the team and, a few months later, the recipient of the counter offer was gone! I hear similar stories from candidates all the time. I recently placed someone with a firm doing scientific research. He called me two days ahead of the start date to tell me his employer made a counter offer he could not refuse. I tried to rationalize with him and explained that it made no sense that he, all of a sudden, became that much more valuable and irreplaceable. He did not listen and stayed put. Six months later, he sent me his resume after being fired because the employer did not feel his job justified what he was being paid.

Think long and hard before you trap yourself with a counter offer!!

P.S. Happy Valentines Day!

Philadelphia Area Job Fair

Here is a job fair announcement from JobCircle:

Celebrate Diversity! Philadelphia, PA Since 2003, Jobcircle.com has been hosting THE Premier Diversity Career Fair in Philadelphia. We call it "Celebrate Diversity! Philadelphia" and we'd like you to be a part of this fantastic day. Meet with representatives from dozens of companies and discover the great career opportunites that await you. We also offer free career workshops throughout the day to assist you with your job search. You won't want to miss this great day of career development and education. Professional attire. Thursday, March 26, 2009 10:00AM - 2:30PM The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts 300 S. Broad St., Philadelphia, PA

Re-Training Options

Recessions usually open all sorts of doors. One doorway could lead to new directions for your career. Before walking through the passage way and hearing the latch click behind you, investigate your options extensively.

First, completely research the program you are considering. Check for the job options it will lead to, average salary range (though that is tough to figure right now), extended career path it might lead to, length of time you will need to be in school, tuition, availability of financial aid.

Next, find out if the school is accredited to teach the curriculum, how long they have taught, graduation rate, and placement rate. Ask to see testimonials of past employers and past graduates. If they are all over a year old, something is wrong. You need to know that all accredited proprietary trade schools must have current testimonials, a list of employers, and placement rates available to review. If not, run to the nearest exit!

I have a lot of experience in this area so ask away!

The Dreaded Reference Check!

Reference checks seem to be taking on more significance as the job market grows tougher. For some reason, companies are starting to ask for this to be done even before a resume is submitted by a recruiting firm. Other than slowing down the process (which could be by design), I am not sure how valuable a tool this is. Anyone could and will say nice things in most cases because either they want to help the candidate secure their next job or they do not want to be sued for causing the candidate to be rejected. Have you ever had a call from one of these reference checking agencies? Half the time, the caller ended the conversation without asking me any decent questions.

Unfortunately, this is reality at least for now. Make sure you keep your reference list updated with proper contact information and keep in touch with these folks to make sure they are still ready, willing, able to help you!

Confidentially Speaking

There has been a lot of chat around my office of late. While it is not unusual for candidates who are employed to leave off the name of their current employer, it is odd to see the word CONFIDENTIAL used for 2 or even 3 jobs on one resume! This raises flags of every color for me and several colleagues in the recruiting field. Our assumption is that a candidate must be hiding something really awful to not tell us where they worked 10 years ago. Give this decision some serious thought when writing or updating your resume and remember that it serves as your advertising brochure!

Etc.

• Did you notice there were a few less ads during the Super Bowl this year? NBC was filling with a ton of promos for their programming schedule. Did they really need to push Leno's switch to prime time 8 months before it happens or were they simply filling space?
• Macy's announced massive cutbacks at their regional operations centers today. Perhaps they will focus on better customer service rather than paying executive salaries to too many people.
• Mayor Bloomberg of NYC says he knows he cannot put everyone in his city to work but promises to make sure they have food and lodging. How will he do this and who will pay?
• The busiest area I am noticing in the job market the past few weeks is education, especially at the secondary and proprietary trade school levels. This might be the time to pick up some chalk (I am dating myself with this concept) and start teaching if you need a new career path to follow!!