Employment Digest

We know many people struggle with interviews though they are the most experienced and best qualified for the job.

When you are invited to an interview it means that the hiring manager believes you may be a good match for the job opening, and he or she wants to know for sure. The interview is used to determine whether you are qualified for the position.

Sharing too much information with your co-workers is an office no-no, and sharing too much personal information during the interview is an entirely different blunder.

Linda Lopeke, a career advancement expert and creator of SmartStart Virtual Mentoring Programs says, “The No. 1 risk of offering up too much information is losing out on the second interview,” If you say something that inadvertently touched the interviewer ’s hot buttons, you’ve automatically characterized yourself as a bad fit for the job.

A candidate who can answer questions in a way which is acceptable, but not necessarily right, to the interviewer, someone who knows something about their potential employers business and the post they hope to fill. These are really the basic components of any candidate who ‘interviews well’.

“You always want to leave them wanting just a little bit more of you,” says Lopeke. “Employers are looking to hire people who generate goodwill for the company and who make a good first impression on those they meet.”

Things that you can safely talk about at the interview are things like, your goals. About what you want in your next assignment and what inspired you to apply for the position. “This is the ‘what you want, why now, why them’ conversation,” Lopeke says.

Furthermore, talk about what motivates you, excites you, what brought you to that particular industry and what attracted you to that specific employment opportunity.

Also, “Relate the highlights of your greatest professional achievements to date without exaggerating or pontificating,” Lopeke says. Additionally, You can and should talk about the things you’ve done up to this point to invest in yourself and your professional development.

Secondly, things that you should talk about at the interview with little bit caution are thins such as, vacations, allergies, pets, all skills. If you can chat about a past vacation in relation to the company, it might be OK for your interview.

“For example, if you know the prospective employer is a big supporter of Habitat for Humanity and you vacationed in the same spot where a new housing initiative was just built, it could work for you,” Lopeke says.

But, if you’re bragging about the six month trip around the world you took during your unemployment, you should probably refrain.

Talking about allergies can also go in both good, and bad direction. “If the interviewer is suffering from allergies and you do too, it could be a bonding moment,” Lopeke says. But, “if you use the moment to declare you’re allergic to stupid people, you’ll get tagged as arrogant.”

Similarly, Talking about your pet friends at home can work for or against you. Dogs and cats shouldn’t get you into too much trouble, but exotic or high-maintenance companions can be perceived as an issue.

As well, It ’s not necessary to possess every quality the employer has put on its wish list. If you mention only a couple of skills, it shows you have both initiative and growth potential.

“It also lets the interviewer feel there is something the company can offer you as well. Reciprocal relationships are the most satisfying,” Lopeke says.

Finally, things which you should never talk about at your interview is about Lifestyle choices, politics, religion, family plans, endless name dropping, your health history, house problems, nanny drama, rehab trips, and your past bosses from hell.

“Controversial topics may make for stimulating conversation but an attractive employee does not stimulate water-cooler frenzy among the masses,” Lopeke advises.

You can establish that you know some of the same people as the interviewer to build rapport, but don’t think you’re upping the ante by upping the volume.

“While you may know certain people who work for the company already, you don’t always know how they are perceived by their employer,” Lopeke says. “If they’re on the hit list for any reason, you could be painted with that ‘birds of a feather’ brush instead of being evaluated on your own merit.”

Stay away from your health history mental and otherwise. “You’re supposed to be positioning yourself as dependable and reliable; not as a candidate likely to spike the bell curve on benefit-related expenses,” Lopeke says.

Employers don’t want to know much about your life except as it relates to what you’ve done professionally and what you’re likely able to do for them.

Lastly, no prospective boss wants to hear a litany of “boss from hell” stories. They’ll hate you for it. About the Author

Jigfo.com is a global platform for sharing and learning knowledge. For more information on this article topics visit: http://www.jigfo.com

Stop wasting your time… and your energy… Looking for a job in a way that’s not going to get you the results you want…

As a job hunter, you can spend a lot of time looking for decent work. And for most of us, that time is something we’d like to minimize. So it’s pretty horrible to discover you’ve been sabatoging yourself.

And if you’re feeling frustrated, stuck or in despair in your search, then you’re almost certainly making these mistakes.

Read on if you want to know… What’s THE Worst Thing You Can Do For Your Job Search?

(All right, I’ll admit that there’s not one but two things … but they are closely tied together.)

Mistake #1 NOT KNOWING WHAT YOU WANT

If you’re out there looking for a job, any job, and you don’t care what as long as it pays really well and you get along with your coworkers… well, you’re probably not going to find it.

Wait… before you think you’re not making that mistake… if you’re saying, “I’d like something in banking” or “I want to do graphic design”… then you’re probably not that clear.

Here’s the problem with not being clear. It’s hard to find something if you don’t know what you want to find. And, most jobs come through people you know. People want to help you, really. But it’s really hard for them to do that if you’re not specific.

(Think about it… if someone said to you “I’m looking for a retail management position”, what do you think? … Oh, that’s nice. Best of luck. There are probably some stores in the mall that are hiring.

Now, what if that same person said “I want to be a manager at the new REI store opening in Orlando next month.” All of a sudden you’re probably thinking… Oh, really? Hey, my cousin knows someone who works at REI. My college friend lives in Orlando. …

And it’s much easier to give that person information, even though you’re less likely to know the owner of the Florida REI store than someone hiring for any retail management position.)

All right… once you’re clear… the actions you need to take next are clearer–and easier too. Don’t worry, you don’t need to know exactly what you want. Often, while you’re focused and in action looking for Job A, you discover Job B.

Sounds good, right? Well, there may be just one more problem.

Mistake #2 NOT WANTING WHAT YOU SAY YOU WANT

Ok, back to our friend who’s looking for the REI job. Picture someone saying, in a very unexcited, bored voice, “I want to be a manager at the new REI store opening in Orlando next month.” How much do you want to help that person now?

Not wanting the job you’re searching for is an impediment in all phases of the job search process–as you’re looking for openings, writing your resume and interviewing. It’s so much harder when YOU MAKE IT HARDER FOR YOURSELF by going after something you don’t even want.

And that doesn’t mean you have to be looking for your dream job. It just means that you’re happy with it, that it’s where you need to be now or even that it’s a step towards your dream job.

The moral of the story: STEP 1-figure out what you want and… STEP 2-go get it!

If you’re having trouble with Step 1, check out http://www.freshvisioncoaching.com/

If you’re having trouble with Step 2, find a friend who’ll brainstorm with you and keep you accountable, try a book (like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Could-Anything-Only-Knew-What/dp/0440505003) and/or get a coach.

Elizabeth Nofziger, Career Change Maven FRESH VISION COACHING http://www.freshvisioncoaching.com

Getting people out of jobs they hate, and into work they love!

Searching for a new job is stressful in the current tough job market. You need to be very clear about what you are looking for in your new job and how you will identify it during the job interview.

Current thinking is that the most important factor people seek is engagement with their work. What does this mean?

Engagement is the degree to which employees identify with their job, how much they feel they belong and how much they feel they are valued. This is largely determined by the relationships they have with their colleagues and managers, the support they receive within the position to perform their jobs properly, the trust level they enjoy, the compensation and rewards they receive, the growth and development opportunities and the nature of the job itself.

When considering a position focus on the following six C’s to decide if this job is going to truly engage you.

Content of the job - Ask yourself: Will the work itself be meaningful? Is there opportunity for growth and development? Will I have what is needed to properly perform in the position? How fulfilling is this type of work?

Coping resources - You need to be given sufficient resources to cope with the demands and stresses of the job. Any employee will become demotivated and eventually burn out if they have to deal with unreasonable job demands, unrealistic targets, poor managers and unsupportive colleagues. Studies show that stress costs US business in excess of $300 billion annually. Access to enough resources to cope with the work is essential. Ask yourself the following: Do I have or have access to the tools, knowledge, technology and training I need to do this job? Is the work environment supportive? Do the demands of the job match my own work-life expectations?

Compensation - An employee needs to feel fairly valued to remain motivated in a job. Pay and benefits are the first factors looked at when deciding on fair compensation. However consider other sources of compensation as well. Is this job respected within the company? Is the work in this position recognized? Will my efforts be appreciated and make a difference?

Colleagues and community - Work should also fulfil a certain amount of your social needs. Ask yourself: Am I going to enjoy myself at this organization? Will I get on with my prospective colleagues? Is this a pleasant working environment? Do the employees seem happy and friendly?

Congruence - Are my values and goals in line with the job and organization? Will my expectations be met? Is my prospective manager someone I can relate to and respect?

Career opportunities - Are their sufficient career opportunities in this position and organization? Will the work challenge me and allow for personal growth and development?

When deciding on the right position for you, consider all the above. To what degree is each of the factors met by the job and by the organization? You deserve a job that truly enhances your life. Finding out whether the job you are interviewing for will engage you, in all senses of the word, is essential to career happiness and success.

To determine if this is the right job for you read through the examples of good, insightful questions to ask in your job interview.

Julia Penny is an organizational psychologist with many years experience interviewing and placing job candidates. She offers her expertise to jobs seekers at her free website which provides a complete guide to preparing for and succeeding in job interviews.

Why do employers always ask the “greatest weakness” interview question? It seems like they are trying to throw you off. I mean, you rehearse the answer to every possible question that you can think of, and then they ask, “What do you think your greatest weakness is?”

Job interviews are stressful even if you don’t have to answer this question. Regardless, interviews and tough questions are an integral part of career advancement, and you NEED to be able to ace them or you will find yourself stuck in a dead end job. Before you answer this question, you should know that there is no easy answer for it. The intent of this question is to throw you off course. The key is to not let them get away with it.

Be Prepared

A successful interview is dependent on good preparation. Learn as much as you can about the employer you are interviewing with. Study up on their people and their services. If you know who you’re dealing with, you will be less likely to become uneasy during the interview process.

Be prepared for difficult questions including the “greatest weakness” interview question.

Questions are meant to poke deep and reveal your weaknesses. Do not fake your way through tough questions. This will give employers the feeling that you will cheat and fake on the job when you are over stressed.

Short and Simple

The best way to answer any interview question is to answer it honestly and with as little fluff as possible. If an employer asks you what your greatest weakness is, you can state a weakness that you were able to overcome with your last job. You could even bring up a personal weakness not related to your ability to perform as an employee.

The worst thing that you could possibly say is that you are fault free. We are all human. Instead of claiming to be superhuman, use an example that shows how you were able to take a weakness and turn it into strength. This will make you sound resourceful and sure of yourself. It will also show employers that you are not afraid to admit your own weaknesses and work to improve them.

Being prepared to answer the “greatest weakness” interview question and other tough questions is the key to interview success. Always try to turn negative answers into positive solutions. This will impress your potential boss and may even land you the job.

CK Tan is the owner of JobAsiaSearch.com, a web site dedicated to assisting job seekers secure a job in Asia. If you need help in your Asia job search or looking for a job opening in Asia, visit http://www.jobasiasearch.com

Having worked in travel recruitment and headhunting for some time, I’ve learned a great deal about the way executive search agencies work. Even if you’re not actively looking for work, an enquiring headhunter call can boost morale or prompt a wage boost by your current employer eager to keep you at the firm, and of course if you are looking for work, then letting headhunters do the legwork will save you an awful lot of time and effort. But just how do you go about getting noticed by recruitment companies without speaking to them directly?

Be the Best you can Be

This one may sound like a complete cop-out, but the truth is that headhunters go for the exceptional. Don’t ever feel like you have no room to improve, and try to develop your skills as best you can. It’s tempting to think that if you’re not at one of the top companies in your industry, then you won’t fall onto the recruiter’s radar, but this is actually far from the truth - we know that there are skilful, talented workers at smaller companies just as there are overpaid, under skilled people working at the top firms. In short, headhunters look everywhere, so do your best to stand out no matter what level you’re at.

It’s all About Exposure

But of course, you can be super-talented and great at your job, but if you’re unknown outside of your office cubicle then you’re not going to get that call. The best way to do this is to give talks at conferences, write articles for industry publications and to be an expert in your field, but you may not be at a level where this exposure is possible. Start small - make your presence felt online. Increasingly, headhunters and recruiters are using the internet to find talented people whose names, for whatever reason, aren’t on the tip of everyone’s tongue. There are a number of places where you can upload your CV to be searchable, and equally being prominent on business social networks like LinkedIn can pay dividends. The only downside to this is that the less formal social networks like Facebook and MySpace are equally searchable - so make sure you maintain a degree of professionalism throughout your online dealings!Having worked in travel recruitment and headhunting for some time, I’ve learned a great deal about the way executive search agencies work. Even if you’re not actively looking for work, an enquiring headhunter call can boost morale or prompt a wage boost by your current employer eager to keep you at the firm, and of course if you are looking for work, then letting headhunters do the legwork will save you an awful lot of time and effort. But just how do you go about getting noticed by recruitment companies without speaking to them directly?

Be the Best you can Be

This one may sound like a complete cop-out, but the truth is that headhunters go for the exceptional. Don’t ever feel like you have no room to improve, and try to develop your skills as best you can. It’s tempting to think that if you’re not at one of the top companies in your industry, then you won’t fall onto the recruiter’s radar, but this is actually far from the truth - we know that there are skilful, talented workers at smaller companies just as there are overpaid, under skilled people working at the top firms. In short, headhunters look everywhere, so do your best to stand out no matter what level you’re at.

It’s all About Exposure

But of course, you can be super-talented and great at your job, but if you’re unknown outside of your office cubicle then you’re not going to get that call. The best way to do this is to give talks at conferences, write articles for industry publications and to be an expert in your field, but you may not be at a level where this exposure is possible. Start small - make your presence felt online. Increasingly, headhunters and recruiters are using the internet to find talented people whose names, for whatever reason, aren’t on the tip of everyone’s tongue. There are a number of places where you can upload your CV to be searchable, and equally being prominent on business social networks like LinkedIn can pay dividends. The only downside to this is that the less formal social networks like Facebook and MySpace are equally searchable - so make sure you maintain a degree of professionalism throughout your online dealings!

Let Your Clients Market You

It stands to reason that to have any hope of getting headhunted, you have to have an excellent reputation amongst your clients. Happy clients are likely to be vocal about recommending you to others. The effects of this are two-fold - firstly, more recommendations means word of mouth business for your company, raising your profile, and secondly direct word of mouth to headhunters and recruiters. Believe it or not, actually asking for suggestions of people to target is a big part of the headhunter’s day, and if you can be the first name on the lips of your clients, you’re that bit more likely to get the call from an executive search agency.

Network as if Your Life Depended On It

Don’t miss an opportunity to get your name known in your industry. Attend formal and informal events, network and make contacts. I can’t speak for all areas, but in my experience of travel recruitment, the community quite tight with everyone knowing everyone. Get into that inner circle, and you should instantly feel the benefit from good old fashioned ‘word of mouth’…

Follow these tricks and you should find yourself getting a few headhunting calls in no time. Remember that you’re under no pressure to accept a new job, but it never hurts to keep your options open!

Let Your Clients Market You

It stands to reason that to have any hope of getting headhunted, you have to have an excellent reputation amongst your clients. Happy clients are likely to be vocal about recommending you to others. The effects of this are two-fold - firstly, more recommendations means word of mouth business for your company, raising your profile, and secondly direct word of mouth to headhunters and recruiters. Believe it or not, actually asking for suggestions of people to target is a big part of the headhunter’s day, and if you can be the first name on the lips of your clients, you’re that bit more likely to get the call from an executive search agency.

Network as if Your Life Depended On It

Don’t miss an opportunity to get your name known in your industry. Attend formal and informal events, network and make contacts. I can’t speak for all areas, but in my experience of travel recruitment, the community quite tight with everyone knowing everyone. Get into that inner circle, and you should instantly feel the benefit from good old fashioned ‘word of mouth’…

Follow these tricks and you should find yourself getting a few headhunting calls in no time. Remember that you’re under no pressure to accept a new job, but it never hurts to keep your options open!

Gail Kenny is the managing director of Gail Kenny Executive Search, a headhunting recruitment agency specialising in travel recruitment The site caters exclusively to talented individuals with skills and experience to succeed in the travel management, and businesses looking for such candidates.

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Many people feel that once you have reached middle age that it is far too late for a career change, but nothing could be further from the truth! Sometimes it can take years to figure out what it is that you really want to do, and with more and more people changing careers at later points in their life than ever before, you can see that you are in good company.

Think about the job that you are in right now. Whether it is the job that you took years ago, assuming it would be temporary, or it was the one that you thought you wanted but now can’t muster up any passion for, you’ll find that there are ways out, and that midlife career change does not have to be terrifying

When you think of changing careers, be aware that this does not necessarily involve burning bridges. You can part ways very amicably with your company, and ideally, they would be happy to have you back should you ever be in a position where you want to think about working for them again.

To further encourage good relations, make sure that you never spread bad or slanderous material about your past employer, and make sure that your leave-taking is done with plenty of notice. Leave on good terms, and you will find yourself in an easier position than ever before.

Many people are a little concerned that the thing that is keeping them from making a dramatic job change is the benefits that they receive. For instance, if you go from working for a company with insurance to being self-employed, you will find that this can be a bit of a burden on you and your family.

Take some time to really think about what you need, and to see what independent medical insurance has to offer. Before you leave, visit the doctor for a full checkup, get any dental work done that you need, and fill up on any prescriptions that need to have.

When you are getting ready to make a midlife career change, there are usually two schools of thought on how you should conduct it. Some people say that you should only bother to give your two weeks and then get out as soon as you can. Other people feel that you owe it to the company to give it as much notice as you can, so that it will be easier to replace you.

This really depends on the company that you are working for. If you feel that they will make your last few months miserable, or will fire you, there is no reason to give them the extra time.

Making a midlife career change can make a huge difference in our emotional and physical outlook, so take some time to really consider. A job change can be subtle or dramatic, think it out and realize that it is possible, no matter what age you are at!

Paul Sarwanawadya offers career change advice to help career changers pursue their ideal careers. He runs an informational website that provides tips on making a midlife career change. Get more career change tips and advice at http://www.career-tests-guide.com/.

Honesty always best policy when writing up your resume

Fibbing on your resume is a really bad idea.

First, you probably will be found out by the army of commercial background screeners that employers deploy to scour resumes, check criminal records and pull credit histories.

Plus, you don’t need to. Many bosses are pretty forgiving if you come clean about a minor brush with the law or a supervisor so nutty he sent you running for the door.

Yet, resume tinkering is practically an epidemic. Superheated competition for jobs, especially those with big paychecks, tempts many applicants to pump air into their resumes. A gig as an administrative assistant expands into a management title. A mail-order MBA is passed off as the real deal.

“We tend to disproportionately reward individuals with extraordinary records,” said Kirk Hanson, a business professor and executive director of the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University in California.

“There’s a huge incentive that’s increased over the years in claiming that you’re a star, so individuals tend to knock pieces from their resume that are inconsistent with being a star and add things that are consistent with that image.”

But the precipitous tumble of high-profile managers in recent years should send up red flags for job seekers.

Marilee Jones had to quit her job as the longtime admissions dean at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after acknowledging that she didn’t have an undergraduate degree as she had claimed. Jones had won national attention crusading against the pressure on students to build their resumes for elite colleges.

David Edmondson’s 11-year career with RadioShack Corp. tanked in 2006, when misrepresentations he had made about his education came to light. He had been the company’s president and chief executive.

They are hardly alone.

An annual employer survey turned up “inconsistencies” in the work histories of nearly half of job seekers last year, with 20 percent of applicants providing false or misleading information about their educational credentials. Discrepancies in verifying past employment were up 12 percent over 2005 and up 7 percent involving education, the poll by Kroll Background Screening and Fraud Solutions showed.

“It’s astonishing to me the kind of things that people try to fabricate,” said Scott Viebranz, Kroll’s chief sales officer. “They don’t believe it will be found.”

Job hunters should be forgiven for feeling like they are criminals before they even get to the interview. But increasingly, employers are looking to protect their reputations and deflect any liability if they unwittingly hire a crook or a fraudster. So job offers routinely come with a big string attachedpassing a background screen.

PricewaterhouseCoopers recruiters thought they had bagged a terrific job candidate until a check found he hadn’t attended the college where he said he had earned his undergraduate degree.

“We gave him a chance to provide documentation,” said Jennifer Allyn, a human resources manager for the accounting giant. “He said he was in some dispute with the school and concocted a whole story that made no sense.”

The company rescinded the offer. Often, what job seekers leave off their application causes them more problems than what they put on it.

“It’s what they didn’t tell you, that they filed for bankruptcy or sued a former employer or had been sued,” said Kenneth Springer, president of New York-based Corporate Resolutions Inc., another commercial screening firm.

Fessing up always is better than staying silent.

Rick Hammond remembers a promising candidate who failed to disclose a long-ago drunken-driving conviction.

“It wouldn’t have been a deal-breaker if he’d disclosed it,” said Hammond, the president of Rhumbline Cos., a Los Angeles placement agency for accounting and legal professionals. But the applicant was out of the running once a background check turned up the old offense.

You might be leaving your job for lots of reasons - you have a new role, starting study, going on your OE, have had enough of your job or it may just not have worked out as you hoped.

Whatever the reason, how you exit your old job, is just as important as how you start a new job.

It is tempting to slack off and relax during you last few weeks at work, particularly if you dislike your job. But doing so can impact on your future prospects in ways you can’t predict.

Regardless of how you feel about the company, boss or colleagues you are leaving, it is in your best interest to manage your exit positively. This applies whether you are resigning or you have to leave. You can control how you behave as you exit that business. Your notice period is your time to really show your ability to be professional, impress with your work ethic and leave with the best reputation possible.

What impression do you want your manager or your colleagues to be left with of you?

Many people feel that if they have done a great job in the past, that they can ‘coast’ in the last few weeks they are working. Doing this can destroy your reputation very quickly, and because it is recent, your behavior during your notice period will stick in people’s minds.

A good idea is to pretend that you will be returning to that job and those people in a few months. Make sure they would welcome you back if this was true!

Plan your handover and complete tasks

What do you want to finish before you go? What do you need to handover to others? Make a list of your regular tasks and talk over with your manager how these should be handled. Figure out what you can do to make the transition of your job tasks easier and make it happen.

The easier you can make it for your boss and the person who fills your shoes, the better you will be viewed. You will also be able to leave knowing you have done what you needed to do, and can feel proud of your efforts.

Manage your networks

Decide who you want to keep in touch with and set up coffee or lunch to thank them for their support and help. Update your address book or contacts list so you can have all the numbers you need. Send emails once you start your new job, letting people know where you have gone to and organise a catch up within about 6 months to keep the relationship alive.

Make sure you keep professional at work, avoiding gossip or badmouthing people - just because you are leaving doesn’t mean you can tell people what you really think of them! You never know whether that person might be a new prospective client, a future boss or relative of your new manager. Rumours of bad behavior can also follow you to your new role and impact on the opportunities you are given there.

Leave with the best exit possible

It is up to you how you want to leave your job, but remember that this is the last impression this employer will have of you. You may need them to provide you with a reference in the future, or who knows, you may want to work for them again.

Pull out all the stops, work hard and complete what you can so you can leave with your head held high. After all, it is only for a few weeks! People will remember how you left and your reputation will be intact.

If you would like assistance in making a career change, check out the Career Analysts website http://www.careeranalysts.co.nz or call Career Analysts on 356 9758 for an information pack on career coaching. Or do you want to be a career coach? Join our free newsletter at http://www.careeranalysts.co.nz for more information.

Persons in highly technical professions possess much-need skills and belong to exclusive circles. Today’s business cannot function without these talented individuals, despite that many of us may not be able to hold our own in a professional conversation with them. But don’t just think of these positions in terms of rocket scientists or chemical engineers; there are many specialized jobs that pervade the everyday workforce that we take for granted. We know these as database designers, statisticians, or derivatives traders, to name a few. Employees in these functions change jobs just like everyone else, but when they job hunt they sometimes submit resumes that are incomprehensible to anyone outside their niche and in the process end up thwarting their search.

These individuals face a unique challenge when writing a resume — they must obviously convey their specialized knowledge, but do so in a way that is understandable to others. Most times, resumes filter through search firms and Human Resource recruiters who are charged with short-listing hundreds of candidates to a mere handful for the hiring manager. These gatekeepers will be generally familiar with the technical lingo, but the resume must not give them an excuse for being filtered out. It must communicate the candidate’s skills and experiences in a way that the recruiter could recognize a potential match for the position without difficulty. Make the reader work too hard and your application is headed for the shredder.

Take for example the popular Six Sigma methodology (1) used to improve processes at many Fortune 500 companies. Already this sentence may have lost some readers. For the non-project management audience, the term “Six Sigma” refers to the ability of processes to produce output within a targeted measurement. Processes operating with six sigma level quality yield fault levels below 3.4 defects per million opportunities, otherwise known as DPMO. Six Sigma encompasses two key methodologies — DMAIC and DMADV — but also has spawned an alphabet of others, including tongue-twisters like CDOC, DMADOV, VCPCIA, DCCDI, IDOV, D-IDOV-M, and lots more, plus it uses a separate toolbox of techniques like Chi-Square Tests, FMEA, histograms, pick charts, stratification, and others.

So let’s presume you’re a Black Belt looking to change jobs (yes, Six Sigma takes its certified hierarchy from martial arts). Before drafting your resume consider exactly how much alphabet soup is necessary to convey your level of skill and accomplishment. For some targeted searches the answer may be to include the whole lot, so tailor your resume accordingly, but writing too detailed of a resume could eliminate you from project management opportunities on a broader scale. For one, it pigeonholes you into a fixed specialty and second, it could leave the reader with the impression that you cannot convey complex topics in clear and understandable terms. You will have ample opportunity to discuss the intricacies of your profession with the right people, but you have to get past the screener.

So unless you are purposely targeting jobs that require a precise skill set, consider how to convey your technical expertise in broader language. Start by writing all the idiosyncrasies of your job in terms with which you are most comfortable. Put it aside for a few days, and then start scrubbing. Try to replace some (not all) technical lingo with translations that would be clear to a reader on the perimeter of your line of work. Ask acquaintances from different lines of work to critique your resume, and if all else fails, consider a professional resume-writing service.

Remember, the objective of your resume is to get it past the gatekeeper.

(1) Six Sigma is a registered trademark of Motorola, Inc.

For more information on Dennis Abenanty, see his profile on Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/dennisabenanty

If you intend to start with your next career, why not sit down and work out a career blueprint first? A career blueprint is a plan where you plan to be in the future. It should also be a guide to assist you to make career search decisions at different stage of your life.

Our aspirations and view towards life change at different stage of our career lives. When we first graduated from college, we may look for a job that allows us to learn new things. As we proceed in our career and in life, the remuneration and the exposure would probably be the main search priority. This priority may change when we reach mid-life and it will also be different as we enter into our retirement stage. We also look for different goals out of our career when we face crisis in our lives.

A career blueprint is especially useful when we start with our career search. It is also extremely useful to help us make career change decisions later on in our lives as we develop our career. In a nutshell, a career blueprint should be the guide to help us to proceed with our career lives.

Identifying your career goals

The first step in creating a career blueprint is to understand what are your likes, dislikes and what would be fun for you. Think of your previous job. What do you like and what do you dislike about your previous job? Make a list for several segments. These segments can include:

Employer; Industry; Nature of Work; Office political environment; Size of company; Salary

Think about each of the category carefully. We suggest that you work on what you dislike first. This way, you are able to identify better what you really like.

What you dislike about your job

This list may look something like this

Disliked about boss: - Always micro-manage details; Over-critical; Do not motivate staff; Treat staff as slaves instead of colleagues

Disliked about the industry: - Too contractual; Over-focus on production rather than on quality; Low level of ethics; Hazardous

What You Like About Your Job

Based on the list of what you don’t like, develop your clarity list - what you would like to have about your job. Note that your clarity list is “must-have” list. Your clarity list may look like this:

What I like to have about my future boss: - Allow me to manage my own work; Encouraging; Always motivate staff; Treat staff as colleagues

What I like to have about my work industry: - Not contractual; Focus on quality of works; Ethical; Not hazardous

There is another list which you need to generate. It is called the “Career Fun List”. While this list is not a definite must-have, it will be fantastic to have it. Your career fun list may look something like this:

Boss - Like to hang out with us; Occasionally treat us to sumptuous dinner; Like to be called by his first name

Industry - Provide on the job training to visit other factories; Respected by the public

Job Nature - Flexible working hours; Opportunities to travel overseas

After you have created the above three lists, study each segments carefully. Study the patterns of your previous jobs that make you happy or unhappy. This is a soul-searching exercise and adequate time should be given to ponder over each item on list in details.

Next, you should write your job statement based on the clarity and fun list that you have created. For example, the statement related to your employer may look something like this: I like to have a boss who is understanding, encouraging and allows me to manage my own work. It is great to have a employer who always encourage the staff to work for the benefit of the company and for the staff themselves. I like to have a employer who treats us like his colleagues instead of as a subordinate. It will be fun if he always likes to join us and treat us to sumptuous dinner occasionally.

You should build this statement for each of the category mentioned above. Remember that the results for this exercise are different at different stage of your career life. Hence you should do these exercises each time you intend to pursue a career change.

There is one more final exercise that you should do. Write an article about your ideal first day at the job. You do not need to be realistic in this essay. Write whatever that you think would make you feel happy. You can write that on arrival at your office, you are shown into a 500 square feet room which shall be your work space. You are then introduced to your personal assistant who is pretty. Put in a lot of fun elements into your essay.

As what we have said during the first part of this article, all of us look for different things during different part of our career lives.

If you are able to develop a wonderful job statement and the ideal first day at work for every different stage of your career, then you would have develop the perfect career blueprint for your life.

We suggest that you review and make adjustment to this career blueprint every 5 years of your working life. Things may change and the work industry may change. The work industry that you would like to get involved in may not even exist anymore!

All the best in your career search exercise!