Number of “Job Haters” on the Rise

A recent survey conducted by Conference Board’s Consumer Research Center revealed that more Americans are fed up with their jobs than perhaps ever before, as less than 39% of those surveyed were satisfied with their current employment. Determining factors for “job-hate” include everything from age (workers under 25 are the least satisfied right now), location (sorry New Yorkers and New Jerseyites or Jerseyians), and income (it seems that large salaries can keep the hate away at least for a while.) However, the trend that stands out most from the research is the fact that dissatisfaction in the workplace is growing among all age groups, locations, and industries:

”Overall, dissatisfaction has spread among all workers, regardless of age, income or residence. Twenty years ago, the first time the survey was conducted, 61 percent of all Americans said they were satisfied with their jobs, according to the representative survey of 5,000 U.S. households, said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board’s Consumer Research Center.

”’Although a certain amount of dissatisfaction with one’s job is to be expected, the breadth of dissatisfaction is somewhat unsettling, since it carries over from what attracts employees to a job to what keeps them motivated and productive on the job,’ Franco said.” (From Live Science)

So, what’s to be done? The research has led to advice that runs the gamut from the practical to the slightly crazed:

”Of workers under age 25, less than 40% percent of are satisfied with their jobs. My advice: quit, move in with your parents, and mooch off them ‘til you get your dreamjob. Otherwise find someone filthy rich and marry them.” (From NewsToob)

While that does seem like pretty sound advice, it might not be the best plan. Your parents deserve a break. However, the dream of quitting the job you loathe as quickly as possible is one shared by countless people. There are better ways to go about finding the right job, though:

”Although it may seem romantic or adventurous in a ‘Hollywood’ kind of way to walk into your current place of employment and tell your boss what you really think of him and walk out with no other job to go to or a concrete plan, in real life however this is just plain dumb. If you want to quit that’s fine but get organized before you do it…” (From Universe of Success)

This brings us back to the Plan B Search. When you know it’s time to move on, you can develop an effective, thorough job search while hanging on at your current position. With the proper tools, you can search quickly and hone in on the types of positions you want. We don’t encourage people to stay in jobs that make them miserable, but if you can stick it out for a little while longer while engaging in a serious, comprehensive Plan B job search, there’s a good chance that the next time the survey comes around you’ll be in the small percentage of people who actually like their jobs.
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Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

Daily itzbig Links 2007-02-28

News You Can Use: A Daily Round Up of Links for Recruiters, Job Seekers and Quiet Working Professionals

[Daily Post from itzbig] The itzbig Blog: Breaking Down the Recruiter Bill of Rights

“There’s no question that much of that tirade is justified. There are recruiters that simply don’t do their jobs well, just as in any industry. However, a skilled recruiter can make a candidate’s search faster, easier, and more effective. Candidates have the right to demand respect when respect is warranted, and talented recruiters should have the same right.”

Yahoo News: Americans Hate Their Jobs More Than Ever

“Americans hate their jobs more than ever before in the past 20 years, with fewer than half saying theyguyonphoneandpda1.jpg are satisfied.

“The trend is strongest among workers under the age of 25, less than 39 percent of whom are satisfied with their jobs.”

Recruiting Animal: Bad Networking

“Too many people think that networking is sticking out your hand to shake another person’s hand and simultaneously giving her your business card.

“Immediately, she says who she is and what she wants. Real relationships are built over a long period of time.

“You need to build trust and that takes time and effort. Don’t try to trade on relationships too soon.”

Talentism: Coach Luke or Embrace Darth?

”’Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker: who would qualify for a career coach?’ That was the interesting question posed at a meeting I attended the other day. After some quick conversation, most of the participants agreed that Luke was the better candidate for a career / personal development coach. The reasoning was straight forward: Luke has trouble controlling his emotions and is a bit of a loner.”

…from the trenches: Confession of a Corporate Recruiting Blogger – I’m In A Rut

“I’m not sure what to write about anymore. I’ve had this blog up-and-running for several months now, and have enjoyed expressing myself, and hopefully enlightening and/or educating some people here. I’ve written alot about current trends, my job change, recruiting technology, job reqs, job boards, and of course, my beloved Terps. But now, I’m in a rut.”

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Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

Breaking Down the Recruiter Bill of Rights (Part 10)

Over the past ten weeks, we’ve delved into the issues that many recruiters have with job candidates and hiring managers. While the friction between the various parties will most likely never disappear, we think candidates should at least be aware of the fact that everybody involved could probably be doing a better job of working with the others. This brings us to the final right in our Recruiter Bill of Rights. It’s a topic that gets to the core of the problem that many candidates have with recruiters and vise versa. It’s respect:

Respect: It’s the lifeblood of the job search, but nobody feels the other parties involved are giving them any. Candidates need to respect the time, efforts, and basic humanity of recruiters, and they should expect the same.

The issue of respect is one that comes up constantly on both sides of the desk. Candidates feel as though recruiters do not even show them the most common courtesy when it comes to follow-ups, doing leg work, and countless other issues. The lack of respect that candidates feel towards recruiters has, in turn, led to a lack of respect on the candidates’ part:

“I don’t want to say this is true for everyone, but over the years, I have noticed a distinct difference between the level of courtesy and respect offered up by job candidates toward management recruiters like me, and the level of courtesy and respect afforded to individuals within the actual hiring organization.” (From Career Forum)

A lot of this has to do with the fact that candidates know the hiring manager is the one making the decisions in the end, but much of it seems to have become personal, as if a line has been drawn in the sand and candidates and recruiters simply can’t stand together on the same side. Candidates can deny it, but the truth usually comes out:

“It doesn’t take long to get really jaded to the process, and I have a real hard time hiding my contempt for recruiters once they start in on that stuff. Go ahead, call me up and tell me you were just going through my resume and you wanted to know if I have ever worked with SQL Server. Then ask me if I’m certified. Really, I don’t mind at all, especially since it’s in size 48 font at the very top of my resume right by my name.” (From Database Underground)

There’s no question that much of that tirade is justified. There are recruiters that simply don’t do their jobs well, just as in any industry. However, a skilled recruiter can make a candidate’s search faster, easier, and more effective. Candidates have the right to demand respect when respect is warranted, and talented recruiters should have the same right.

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Tuesday, February 27th, 2007

Daily itzbig Links 2007-02-27

News You Can Use: A Daily Round Up of Links for Recruiters, Job Seekers and Quiet Working Professionals[Daily Post from itzbig] The itzbig Blog: Assessing Your Skills to Stay Ahead

“So, how do you remain competitive when the field continues to grow? The same Marketwatch article highlights several steps that American workers can take to better secure their current positions or to land in a job they want. One of the most interesting points they make is that you must constantly ask questions.”

Gautam Ghosh: Why HR professionals don’t get employer branding

“Their human resource professionals still simply meet with job applicants and fail to provide good reasons to come on board. HRlaptoppurpletie.jpg departments need to field marketing and salespeople.

“Organisations need a very focused brand vision with a supporting brand message. This then drives how the organisation deals with each employee in all aspects of the relationship and how it communicates, both internally and externally.”

Magic Pot of Jobs: more on video resumes

Why resumes don’t work (on or off camera):

“Video resumes will exacerbate, not relieve, the problems inherent to resumes in general. The reason text resumes are so universally awful is that people have no idea what to put in them. They get hung up on whether to center or left/right justify their contact information instead of worrying about how to succintly describe their accomplishments and skills. Sitting in front of a video camera is not going to magically make anyone better at presenting themselves- it just makes them take up more of my time to say nothing at all.”

The Occupational Adventure

Why you need to recruit wisely:

“Yesterday I posted about the value of helping employees tap into what lights them up. How’s this for another argument in favor of that. Employee turnover is expensive!”

Recruiting Animal: Pick Your Clients

“I’m a big believer in only working with clients who I think are a good fit. And no, a decent budget doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a good fit.

“I see business relationships in a similar way as other relationships – of mutual benefit. It’s a two way street and if the connection isn’t there I’d prefer to pass on the job.”

Secrets of the Job Hunt: Monster & CareerBuilder Need to Wise Up

“When are the big boys of online job boards going to wake up and realize their sites are nothing but a magnet for scam artists?

“If I see any more work at home jobs on their sites I’m going to puke. And its not just me. Job seekers are wising up to it to. Check out what this person has to say. She’s actually laying out her resume as bait and waiting for the scam artists to phish for her.”

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Tuesday, February 27th, 2007

Assessing Your Skills to Stay Ahead

As the job market expands on a global level, it’s becoming more difficult for American workers to find their place. While in the past, you could determine fairly well who you were competing with, that’s no longer the case. It’s not just the men and women working in your field in your city or your state. It’s not necessarily even the men and women working in your country:

”’Now you’re competing with workers on a global scale,’ said Tom Kochan, a professor of management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management and co-director of MIT’s Institute for Work and Employment Research.” (From Marketwatch)

So, how do you remain competitive when the field continues to grow? The same Marketwatch article highlights several steps that American workers can take to better secure their current positions or to land in a job they want. One of the most interesting points they make is that you must constantly ask questions:

”’You’re going to have to start taking risks,’ he said. That means asking questions and assessing your current actions, he said. ‘What did I do today? Did I analyze any data, did I research anything? Did I create a project?’ Ronn suggested as questions to ask. ‘Did I teach it to anybody else? Did I go into a situation that I wasn’t comfortable with and ask good questions?’”

While assessing your skills and your comfort levels within a certain environment will help you realize exactly what you have to offer your employer, it will also help you determine what you bring to the table when applying for new positions whether in your current field or in an altogether different career. It goes back to one of our favorite terms here, “know yourself,” and it’s essential for anyone who wants to market themselves in a crowded global job market:

”People usually go about making a career change the wrong way, says Andrea Kay, a Cincinnati-based career counselor and author of ‘Life’s a Bitch and Then You Change Careers.’

”’They say, ‘what’s out there?’ Kay said. ‘Wrong question. The question is, ‘What’s in me? What are my most joyful skills? What do I know about? What do I want to know about it?’ she said.” (From Career Training)

While asking questions will get you started, you also need the tools to determine where your skills put you in the market. If you can measure yourself against other job candidates, you’ll have a much easier time determining what areas you need to work on and what you can do to increase your proficiency in those areas.

The job market will continue to circle the globe in the years to come. In order to compete with those close to home and those thousands of miles away, you need the tools that will help you recognize, highlight, and improve your skill set.

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Monday, February 26th, 2007

Daily itzbig Links 2007-02-26

News You Can Use: A Daily Round Up of Links for Recruiters, Job Seekers and Quiet Working Professionals

[Daily Post from itzbig] The itzbig Blog: The Adventures of Job Boy

“His personal belongings in a small cardboard box, Job Boy walked out of the office for the last time. He was worried, but optimistic. He’d landed an interview with a company that just might be the right match. At least he thought it sounded that way. After all, his Plan B search on the Big Boards had led to a variety of posts that weren’t quite clear on the companies or positions involved.”

Instigator Blog: 9 Signs the Online Job Market is Broken

itzbig gets a mention here:

”#9 Lots of money and time is going into the online job market space. The job market is hot. SimplyHired. Jobster. itzbig. Indeed.laptopmature.jpg‘And let’s not forget – people are talking about the problems in the online job market. Steve Poland wrote: Online Job Hunt 10 Years Later – Still Sucks.’

[…]Lots of money, lots of energy.

Guerrilla Job Hunting: Q: How can you tell a sincere job posting from a fluffed up job posting?

“A: It’s more than 25 words long. A sincere ad will as much try to screen people out as in. For example minimum requirements often means exactly that. If you don’t know the difference between thermal underwear and a thermal coupler – you shouldn’t apply – chances are your transferable skills won’t be enough. Sometimes it really is rocket science.”

Recruiter Magazine: What’s in a name?

“Some people regard job titles as crucial, and this applies in the status-driven industry of recruitment more than most.

”’If you think about job titles, it is the second thing you are asked after somebody meets you,’ points out Robert Myatt, business psychologist with Kaisen Consulting.”

About: Human Resources: Big Shift Is Occurring in the HR Role

“In keeping with yesterday’s blog, I’ve been thinking about the future role of Human Resources staff today. With much more focus on outsourcing the administration end of the business, HR staff members are challenged to remain relevant. Most HR people that I know understand that a huge shift in how they think about their role needs to occur.”

MBS Progress: Top 10 Reasons for failing interviews.

“How well do you think you do in an interview?

“You can read book after book on how to interview well but the truth is in the telling, and on the day it’s about how the interviewer sees YOU. Not your skills, not your knowledge, not your education or qualification, not even your experience – YOU. All these others might get you an interview in the first place, but they don’t win you the job.”

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Monday, February 26th, 2007

The Adventures of Job Boy (Part V: Information Underload)

When we last left Job Boy, things had gone from bad to worse. His job search had been discovered by The Boss, and it was clear that his days at the office were numbered. Job Boy packed up the picture of his family and the catalog that featured the HD flat screen TV he’d once dreamed of owning. It had all happened so fast. They brought in a replacement, a plucky young go-getter straight out of school, and sent Job Boy on his way. Well, they did ask him to stay on to train his replacement, but that didn’t sound too appealing.

Job_Boy.jpg “You’d really be doing us a solid, Big P,” The Boss had said, but Job Boy declined.His personal belongings in a small cardboard box, Job Boy walked out of the office for the last time. He was worried, but optimistic. He’d landed an interview with a company that just might be the right match. At least he thought it sounded that way. After all, his Plan B search on the Big Boards had led to a variety of posts that weren’t quite clear on the companies or positions involved.

At first, Job Boy thought the Big Boards may have unleashed a ray of some kind that left him unable to fully comprehend the things he read, but when he checked with his intrepid reporter friend, she told him this was a common feeling among job candidates. She said that like the classifieds of old, many Big Board postings were pretty vague:

”They may offer little or no description of the job, working conditions, or pay. Some ads do not identify the employer.” (From Careers Near Me)

Despite this, Job Boy felt good about his interview. He put on his best tie and the glasses he used to cover up his secret identity and made his way downtown. Once inside the office, things quickly turned ugly. Job Boy was ushered into a room where a panel of HR people waited. They stared at him as though he were wearing a clown wig or had something on his face. Finally, one forced a smile and started talking. Job Boy used his keen listening abilities to discern that the HR person was talking about the position. Only, something was wrong.

“Is something wrong?” The HR person asked, sensing Job Boy’s dismay.

“The posting. It said salaried position. And benefits.”

“Oh, yes,” The HR person said, “That can be a bit confusing. It’s a salaried position…but the salary is based on the number of hours you work, which could vary from week to week.”

Job Boy was stunned. He felt the room start to spin. Again, he’d found himself unprepared on the job search. He thought he heard the panel laughing at him. He was struggling to breathe. Without thinking, Job Boy leapt from his chair and flew out of the room.

When he returned home, his wife and child could see the pain on his face. They comforted him.

“What happened?” They asked.

He didn’t really know. It was like some interview horror story he’d read 1,000 times:

”Despite the fact that it is mentioned nowhere in the advert or the job description, through the interview discourse it became apparent that a “key requirement” (their words) of the role is the ability to be able to sometimes work 10 hours a week, and sometimes work 37 hours a week, in accordance with how much work there is. How much work is there? They don’t know, because this is a new role. I’m something of an expert in the field, and based on the job description I’d say it’s a full-time role. I’d also suggest (ho!) that they don’t want to pay for a full-timer because they’d rather fudge the issue and save money by using time off in lieu.” (From Another Day, Another Job Interview)

Job Boy collapsed on the chair in his office. He was in trouble. The Big Boards, The Boss, and the HR People had outmaneuvered him. As desperation swept over our fallen hero, the phone rang.

“Hello,” Job Boy said absently. The voice on the other line was quiet and unfamiliar.

“Corner of Hazel and Buena. There’s something you need to see…”

Join us next Friday for the final installment of The Adventures of Job Boy.

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Friday, February 23rd, 2007

Daily itzbig Links 2007-02-23

News You Can Use: A Daily Round Up of Links for Recruiters, Job Seekers and Quiet Working Professionals

[Daily Post from itzbig] The itzbig Blog: Job Hoppers Unite!

“While it might be nice to walk into a potential employer and demonstrate your undying loyalty and your ability to work at one place for decades, it’s simply not an option for many of us anymore. While some (we said some) recruiters deride the job hopping candidates of the world, it’s important to realize that the corporate landscape and the corporation itself isn’t what it used to be.”

Career Advice in the Wine Industry: Coaches, Conselors, Recruiters

“Career counselors and coaches are working directly with you, and are typically paid by the person they are coaching. A recruiter, whichcareerboat.jpg is what I am, works to match candidates with companies. Recruiters traditionally are paid by the company that hires the individual. With this difference, the incentive of a recruiter is quite different. A recruiter wins when their candidate gets the job. Recruiters are not as incentivized to help job hunters identify their career path, but instead are always looking for the ideal candidate.”

Wireless Jobs: What is Your Body Saying?

“So, the problem is, our body may not be saying what we really feel.

“For instance, if you keep your hands down at your side or in your pockets it could mean to some people you are insecure. Not making eye contact to some means you are being less than honest, when it could just mean you are nervous. Slouching in your chair, whether intentional or not, may be an indication that you are not really interested. Could be that you are just tired.”

Susan Strayer: An Aged Frustration

“Many job candidates have the same skills and behaviors and employers are wondering if you’ll fit in. So if you look in the mirror and your suit, hair color or accesories say 1970, an employer might agree. I recently told one job seeker to get rid of his 80’s aviator, thick-lensed glasses. They screamed ‘exhausted, stuck-in-the-basement’ defense contractor forever.’ Don’t underestimate how changing your look will also change your energy, confidence and demeanor.”

BloggingSeattle: Moving to Seattle? What the recruiter’s won’t tell you…but you NEED to know!

“I’m not blaming the recruiters; their job is to sell the recruit on the company and on our area. Quite frankly, they may not have the expertise to even guide the recruit with correct real estate information anyway. That’s not their job. Our job though, is and will be to find either a way to educate these folks ahead of time, or, give a crash course education as soon as possible, fine tune the priorities, and find the best possible home to meet their needs.”

Perth Dream Jobs: How good is your speling?

“Certainly our experience backs up the research quoted in their article that the majority of CV’s presented to recruiters have basic spelling mistakes in them. This then poses the question as to whether recruiters should take it upon themselves to correct these mistakes, point out the errors to the candidate for them to correct or, perhaps more importantly, should recruiters make a judgement-call on the candidate because of the errors and not present them to clients?”

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Friday, February 23rd, 2007

Job Hoppers Unite!

Many of us know people who have spent a large portion of their professional lives moving from job to job. Let’s be honest, many of us are those people. While “job hopping” isn’t inherently bad or wrong, it has developed that reputation among many recruiters. While it might be nice to walk into a potential employer and demonstrate your undying loyalty and your ability to work at one place for decades, it’s simply not an option for many of us anymore. While some (we said some) recruiters deride the job hopping candidates of the world, it’s important to realize that the corporate landscape and the corporation itself isn’t what it used to be:

”I was recently called down by a reader who happens to be recruiter for having changed jobs a lot in the past. He was commenting on that big recruiter series I did a while back. Personally, I think that’s a pretty high horse that only a select few can afford to be on. The American corporate environment just doesn’t support keeping staff for very long. They say they want loyal employees, but they routinely refuse to reward us for excellent work, give sufficient raises, give us good training, etc.” (From Database Underground)

This call for loyalty by companies that don’t show loyalty themselves has caused countless people to move on before they’d ever planned. It leaves many employees getting the old “do as I say not as I do” vibe from their employers and it causes a number of angered individuals to walk out the door in a less than gracious manner. Even if you’re ready to get out of there and hop to the next job, it’s important to handle things as professionally as possible:

”It is a fantasy every employee has had at least once in their working life. Walking into the boss’s office and telling him what to do with your job. But there is a right way and a wrong way to resign.” (From Career One)

Assuming you’ve resigned due to a lack of loyalty on the part of your employer or for any other reason, it’s important to engage in a job search that will allow you to highlight your skills and your training. The changing corporate structure has also affected the way many companies hire, and there are hiring managers looking for a person who can give them exactly what they need right now, whether that person has worked at 2 or 20 places over the years. Using tools that enable you to demonstrate what you can offer the company immediately will help you find the right match even if you have moved around a lot in your career.

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Thursday, February 22nd, 2007

Daily itzbig Links 2007-02-22

News You Can Use: A Daily Round Up of Links for Recruiters, Job Seekers and Quiet Working Professionals

[Daily Post from itzbig] The itzbig Blog: Hook, Line, and Sinker: Job Candidates Targeted for Phishing Scams

“Phishing is no longer relegated to fake credit card offers and emails from phony bankers. We’re now forced to deal with scam postings that look pretty much like the other listings on the big boards. While these opportunities may appear legitimate, it’s important to remember that there’s certain information you should never give to a ‘potential employer’.”

Consumer Affairs: Networking, Personal Contacts Best Way to Find a Job

“A new Hudson survey finds that networking was the most common way workers (28 percent) andgirllaptop.jpg managers (33 percent) alike secured their current job. Plus, managers overwhelmingly consider familiar resources, such as employees and personal contacts, to be the optimal source of job candidates.”

Guerrilla Job Hunting: Job hunting phrases and what they really mean.

“Phrase: Self-starter

“You probably think
This job requires a great deal of initiative

“What it really means
You’re on your own. Remember that old saying ‘sink or swim’. Here’s where the rubber really meets the road cause your on your own baby!”

Magic Pot of Jobs: A Tale of Two Walk-ins

“He answered all my questions in one to two words, at times dismissively waving at the creased resume in front of me when I asked him about his experience, as if the answers to all my questions could be found on it. When I did finally succeed in getting a semi-complete sentence from him, I started coughing and gagging, because he had breath so foul it literally turned my stomach. I had to lean back and roll my chair away to get away from it. Even as I did it, I was mentally berating myself for not being a professional, but I was seriously fearing that I would be ill right there.”

Talentism: Recruiting B.S. – And How to Get Rid of It

“It was no secret that I was starting to grow disenchanted with the world of recruiting. I started exploring the nature of my discontent here, and by the time December rolled around I was in a bit of a lather. Under Cindy Nicola’s leadership EA had fixed so many of these fundamental issues that I couldn’t quite understand why more recruiting / staffing / talent acquisition departments weren’t seeing the light and making the necessary changes to become a true value-add, competitive-advantage-driving, business partner.”

College Recruiter: Facebook and MySpace Expert Witnesses

“The day is rapidly approaching when the first Facebook and MySpace employment-related lawsuits will reach the trial courts. The plaintiff lawyers will have various legal arguments in favor of their clients, the fired employees or candidates who were rejected as a result of what they wrote, photos they posted, or other information they shared on social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace. These arguments may include Invasion of Privacy, Terms of Service violations, Fair Credit Reporting Act violations, and others.”

Thursday, February 22nd, 2007
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