Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

By Barbara LaBier

Believe it or not salaries will actually do more than double in 2010. Since in 2009, they hit a historic low of 2.1 percent and one-third of all companies froze raises!
By 2010, salaries are projected to rise to 4 per cent a year according to a survey of employers conducted by WorldatWork, a global human resources association.
However, jobs don’t usually recover in sync with the economy. Some employers plan to use raises as a carrot to motivate and retain talent but not for everyone. They plan to give out raises based on performance. Some will get bigger salaries and others will get none according to WorldatWork experts.

Here are some tips for getting rewards


Do your job well – Optimize your efforts by doing your job professionally. Produce high quality work.


Be visible – Don’t try to hide because you believe if you disappear you won’t get on the layoff list. This is faulty logic because when it comes to recognition if no one thinks about you, no one will know what you’ve done.

Help out your boss – If you don’t know how just ask. Show a good attitude by offering to do chores.

Ask for a raise – Tell your boss what you’ve done and how it fits in with your department’s goals and why you deserve an increase. If the answer is no ask what you can do to improve your performance and don’t give up.

Excerpted from Margaret Steen’s article “Companies Cautiously Prepare to Raise Salaries.” and an employee survey at WorldatWork.org


Does Mailing Your Resume Make Sense?

By Barbara LaBier

While everyone in the world is sending their resume over the internet, a contrarian may be sending  his by old fashioned snail mail. Some people actually use snail mail to send their resume and it works if you apply the proper strategy. The best results come from a tailored resume that addresses a specific employer in the cover letter. Nothing gets attention more than saying “I want to work for you.” And it doesn’t matter how you send the resume say career experts.


Others for example, use a three pronged approach to get attention by starting with voice email. If you know the name of the hiring manager leave a voice mail to let them know you mailed your resume. Next, send a fax with a cover letter noting on the cover page that you sent your resume and cover letter both ways by mail and by fax. This works best with small companies who are less likely to have a sophisticated HRIS system that can slow down your job campaign.


Key to this technique is to know who the boss is. You send an InMail via Linkedin or if you have the title and address of the hiring manager send your resume in a Priority US Mail by special delivery the most cost effect way to send your job related materials.


Never use mass mailing according to experienced career coaches, because statistics demonstrate that the chance for success is very small and the resume can not be targeted to all the jobs descriptions.


However, targeted mailing works if you know the name of the potential hiring manager. If this is the case, send then your resume and cover letter. Another tip is not to send it to (whom it many concern) because it will never get to the right person. Next, call the hiring manager within three days to determine interest. This proactive approach can be a dynamite strategy that can gain an employers interest in you 15 seconds after they open the envelope!

McJobNews: Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

McJobNews: Golden Rules to Increase Your Salary in 2010

Saturday, March 20, 2010

What is more correct--- Chronological or Functional Resumes?

There’s a  hot controversy brewing when it comes to marketing your career with a chronological or functional resume. Resume writers have logical arguments for supporting the type of resume they recommend. Some strongly disagree about what kind of resume a potential employer wants to receive from a potential applicant.


Displaying your skills in a functional resume is still an important way of attracting a potential employer. Yet, it remains controversial. Other professionals see it as a red flag that a person is trying to use to cover up gaps in their work history. This is sometimes true in other cases it is not.


Still others believe that if a resume is well written and the skills and achievements are properly highlighted, it doesn’t matter what format is used.


"Whatever works is based on knowledge of the industry and company. Functional resumes are generally used for the mid to upper six figure jobs. I just coached an executive with a $155K income and he put together a functional resume and got four interviews.” according to Mark Harris, an Outplacement Consultant and Trainer.


Your resume is still the major way of capturing an employer’s attention. So it makes sense to become familiar with problems associated with these two resume styles and learn how to positively change them.

Chronological Resume 
A chronological resume starts by showcasing your work history with the most recent position listed first. The rest are written in reverse order containing details about what you did. You also should list the beginning and end date of each job. This resume works for job applicants who have a strong, solid work history with a series of the same types of positions. It is easy for an employer to see how you’ve moved up in the company and have a consistent work history with few job gaps.


However, this type of resume does not normally focus on your job skills. You can change this into more of a hybrid resume by breaking out your most important achievements in a section called major  skills or accomplishments. These skills can also be described in a summary at the top of your resume located under your name, address, phone etc.

Similiar to a proposal
Writing your resume is similar in some ways to writing a proposal—you must know everything about the product and the prospective customer to make a sale. Strategy, content and design must be superior to get noticed. and the average length is two pages for an experienced professional. Candidates with less experience can format their background and qualifications into a one page resume.

Functional Resume
The functional resume divides your resume into a summary of your work experience and two or three different skills sets. For example, one heading could be management, another administrative and the last sales skills. Relevant jobs are formatted and fit under the appropriate heading. Generally, the dates are not included. This style resume is good for someone who has had several different types of jobs and wants to focus on experience. Often this job seeker wants to change careers. They may have job gaps or want to emphasize a particular set of skills that would not be highlighted in a chronological resume. Perhaps the skills they want to emphasize occurred at a job that is more than ten years old. This style resume acknowledges that work was performed but does not focus on the dates. Some employers object to the functional resume because it may hide job gaps but not always. In some cases, the person has a steady work history but the type of career they want in the future uses different skills than those mentioned in a chronological resume. To show consistent employment, you can always turn your resume into a targeted resume by adding a section entitled Work History. The work history section lists the job title, name of business and the dates. A targeted resume highlights only the experience and the skills you have that are relevant to the job you’re applying for.

If for any reason the functional resume is not getting interviews, you must try another kind of bait to meet the conditions to attract new fish.






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Friday, March 12, 2010

McJobNews: Hark! Its Time to Brand Your Resume.

McJobNews: Hark! Its Time to Brand Your Resume.
http://mcjobnews.blogspot.com/

When you’re searching for a job the rules of the game have changed, say social media marketing experts.

Now, you must brand your resume to capture your career identity, passion and image. It is not good enough to produce a resume to help recruiters find you join social media sites such as Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter. The best situation is when a recruiter types in your job type and does a search on Google and comes up with your name.

Define your brand

Branding is defined as a promise of the value of a product that it is better than all others. There are 6.9 billion people on the planet and each one of us is different. Branding defines your unique image. You create it by defining who you are at the top of your resume and follow up with a personal/career statement. The top line should say “Marketing Executive” instead of your name on your resume. Underneath that title, write your name and address just like in an old fashion resume.

Develop a branding statement for your resume

A branding statement is similar to a sales presentation that tells an employer what makes you special as well as the qualities that make you unique and accomplished. It mentions what you can do for an employer such as the benefits you offer and the problems you have solved for other. The basic formula according to Brand Yourself by David Andrusia and Rick Haskins is Skills plus Personality/Passion plus Market Needs = Branding Statement.

Use words like poised, positioned, equipped, prepared or delivered to start off your description of what you can do for an employer and finish the statement by adding and skills and personal qualities.

For example:

Educational Non-Profit Executive

Deliver strong sales and leadership skills with a significant record of progressive success at non-profit organizations. Developed a keen ability to forge relationships and recognize multidimensional levels to turn business opportunities into vibrant centers of profit. Excel at strategy building, marketing, and fundraising while functioning as a highly articulate and effective communicator.



Certified Sterile Processing Technician

Poised to deliver excellence while performing decontamination, preparation, sterilization and distribution of surgical instruments, hospital trays and medical equipment used at medical facilities. Skilled at nuclear waste disposal as well as organizing and maintaining laboratory inventories. Productive, courteous, efficient and reliable with a strong commitment to providing superior service.

Brand business cards and cover letters

Your business cards, resume, and cover letter must show a unified format. Every word, bullet point and border must reflect a consistent branded look and should support the message you want to send. Today not developing your brand can be compared to attending a business meeting with a blindfold on and cotton stuffed in your ears.

Support your branding statement with effective sentences that build layers of skills and accomplishments and support the general premise.

Focus on your unique accomplishments

The content of your resume should focus on your unique accomplishments and tell how you increased profits or efficiencies at prior jobs. Focus on developing keyword density by repeating key words loaded in the job description in your branding statement and work history. Apply the same strategy in creating a cover letter.

Build an on-line branding plan to get your resume posted on the front page of Google and Facebook. Recruiters search for candidates on Google and through other social media to fill job openings. Getting found is extremely important. They have to be able to find you by typing in the job tile you entered on your resume. Join linked-in to develop a professional rich keyword profile. Join groups and participate in discussions and grow your contacts through networking on-line and by meeting others. Respond to discussions and blogs on-line by leaving comments and a link to your resume, blog or website called link backs.

Submit your resume to different search engines such as careerbuilder.com and Monster.com which will allow you to advertise your resume on their site.

Resources

The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott 15.49 Hardcover: 276 pages. Wiley. ISBN-978-0470-11345-5.

Career Distinction Stand Out by Building Your Brand $21.95 Hardcover: 244 pages. Wiley. ISBN-10: 0470128186.

Branding You: How to Create an Identity for a Brilliant Career. Paperback: 256 pages. Ballantine. ISBN: 0345423593

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Blogging for Dollars $$$

Make Money Blogging, an ebook by Daniel Scocco reveals trade secrets, tips and tricks that in combination with persistence, knowledge, and luck may result in generating cash from your blog. The book is a good basic read for newbies and experienced entrepreneurs who are trying to expand readership of their blog and produce an income stream.  The recipe for generating cash is a long one that contains lots of foreplay before the climax. Scocco takes his  flash light and illuminates a series of useful steps that must be completed before your blog hyperventilates and its tentacles cozy up to Technorati. Once this happens the big  blog bucks may start  pouring in.

Scocco builds on basic concepts presenting what you need to accomplish and how to do it. Some content and terms of the book could be developed more. Perhaps the author wrongly assumes we know more than he reveals.  He doesn’t discuss  the other side of monetization where the blog shakes you down. There are advertising vehicles that could bring you success, notoriety, traffic, articles, and affiliate business quickly but these are pricy solutions that require a larger budget than some novices are ready for.  In general found this book very useful and compact and I’d highly recommend it.

To get your copy of this ebook go to  http://www.dailyblogtips.com/make-money-blogging/









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