Everyone's Blog Posts - In Gear

teaching jobs at West Point

2011-08-21T23:42:46.000Z

Hi all! I have been a high school history teacher for 6 years in SC, and upon moving to DC, I have been unable to find a teaching job. We move to West Point, NY next year, and I'm sincerely hoping to get into the classroom again. I am certified in social studies and English (in SC and VA) and have a Master's in Shakespeare and am currently working on a Master's in Education. I hear that getting certified in NY is very difficult. I would greatly appreciate any advice on getting certified and also getting a teaching job in NY near West Point! :)

My Experience in Federal Employment

2011-08-19T15:35:51.000Z

I am a military spouse whose husband just retired from the United States Navy after 30 years of service. Until April of this year I was also a GS-12 Human Resources (Management) Analyst for a naval command in Naples, Italy. I know the “ins” and “outs” of government employment, held a wonderful job, and am now unemployed and struggling to find meaningful work. I broke into a system that is often hard to enter and was let go as soon as my husband had his retirement orders to return to the United States. Overseas spouses are usually “excepted service” which means our jobs are tied to our spouses'. When the military member’s job ends, so does the spouse’s.

I am not eligible for the Priority Placement Program (Program S) because my husband retired. I can qualify for non-competitive appointment under E.O. 12721, which is good for three years after our return stateside, but I might as well be starting from scratch. My status as a GS-12 with over three years of federal employment does not really get me any upper hand. My personal experience working in HR for the government is that there is a real problem in getting appointing officials to recognize spouses as professional, career-driven candidates for positions outside of the administrative field. In fact, that is how I entered the system in the first place, as a low-paid (the lowest salary I had received since the jobs I held while attending college) administrative assistant at the GS-05 level despite my education and work background. I worked my way up from the inside by networking like crazy.

The command for which I worked wanted to keep me on as a civilian employee under my own contract which would have allowed me to keep my job, and my family to stay in Italy. Because of my “excepted service” status there was no way to make this happen. I was an excellent employee there for over three years, and I lost my job because of my status. E.O. 12721 is only good for spouses returning to the United States after working overseas and cannot be used to apply for jobs outside of the U.S. and its territories. It was extremely discouraging that my work experience did not count for anything. Instead, the command ended up hiring a stateside candidate that would take six months to arrive in Naples and pay the extremely high moving expenses associated with getting that employee, when I was already there.

A military spouse is forced to pick up and move frequently which means that finding a professional job/career that pays you in accordance with your education and work experience, and that challenges you, is rare. It frustrates me to no end that even if you are lucky enough to find the job that meets your requirements there is no guarantee that you will hold it because you are a spouse. I would love to find federal employment again, but I know how hard it is to get your foot in that door. I am fortunate that the state of Washington allows spouses who lose their jobs based on their military spouses being transferred to collect unemployment. In the meantime, I continue to look for a job similar to the one I had, but I fear I am going to have to go backwards in my career (again), and work my way up (again). It is a frustrating and humbling experience.

Military Spouse and Mom -- A Career in the Making

2011-08-03T10:55:11.000Z

My Story -

When you’re young and newly married, you truly never know where your life will take you, or how it will all turn out….. you think that you may want “x” number of kids, a great job that sets your career on an incredible path, a perfect marriage. You yearn to discover the secret of finding the balance between kids, family, and career and that you will have enough money to travel to all the places you’ve only thus far dreamed about. After 29 years of marriage, 13 military moves, and three kids who have turned out beautifully and are now grown and gone, I look back and realize, I have lived and experienced all of those desires and my life has given me all of those things I’ve ever wanted – it just all happened in all different kinds of scenarios and absolutely not in the order I had them all planned! It happened one move at a time, one day at a time, without me even realizing that this is exactly what I had envisioned! How did this happen? I lot of positive thinking, a great attitude, flexibility, hard work, and the people we met along the way. I could write a book; however, the focus of this blog entry is about my career as a military spouse, and I hope that those reading will find comfort in knowing that it doesn’t all happen the way we have it planned – sometimes it’s better!

My college and career were put on “hold” due to the birth of our first daughter at the age of 20. I worked full time to put my husband through college (what was I thinking?) even though I had the better grades and maturity at that time. We were poor, lived in a trailer in Oklahoma where we are both from, and plugged along until graduation, when there were no jobs to be found (early 1980’s). A Navy Supply Corps recruiter offered my husband a position in the Navy, and off he went to OCS, leaving me behind with daughter (5), second daughter (3 mos.), and I had just found out I was pregnant with #3. NOT the way I had envisioned my life. I was working full time as a secretary through these first years of marriage to keep necessary health insurance and a steady pay check flowing. I was exhausted all the time with working and the kids – there was no balance – only survival.

Through the years, and as we moved each time to some magnificent places within the US, I learned life’s most important lessons from my children. As they grew, I grew. I evolved. I volunteered everywhere, the schools, the Officers Wives Clubs, and I worked when my husband was on shore duty, and reinvented myself with each move, remaining in a non-working status when he was at sea, as my children always came first. They needed the stability of at least one parent at home. I became a renaissance woman of sorts. I had finished my Associate Degree in Monterey, CA, and by the time my youngest two were in high school in Naples, Italy, I pushed myself to get that Bachelor’s Degree. I had attended 6 universities, had supplemented work experience for college credit, and I was the busiest I’d ever been, but I did it.
Preparing for the “empty nest” was where I was when we moved to Naples, Italy. What would I do once the children left home? Who was I? Of all the odd jobs I had taken, what did that amount to in the real world? Who would hire a military spouse with volunteer work on her resume? I had been the best mom I knew how to be, and I had “no regrets” which was my own secret motto for raising the kids. They had been my mission, my focus. Now what? I hunted for jobs for months. I substituted at the high school, I talked to everyone, I applied for GS jobs, I took classes to apply for federal employment…. Nothing.

Until…… someone took a huge chance on me, and to this day I am forever grateful to her. She saw something in me, that I did not even see in myself, and she hired me over others much more qualified with much more education and experience. I had no real computer skills, did not know how to "make a folder" (I came from the old school of filing actual papers in a manilla folder), and was not savvy with anything electronic. The job was a program manager for one of the overseas college offices on base. It paid $11.00 an hour, it wasn’t with the government, but it allowed me to develop the skills needed (and those I didn’t know I had) and to develop my resume. I worked hard, and I wanted to prove to myself that I would be successful, having been given this chance. I tripled enrollments within the first term, and set record enrollments for the college. I invested in great instructors, and was able to put two new career fields on the schedule for others to obtain their degrees overseas. I was assisting military personnel, and the job produced a great personal gain for me in being able to use counseling, and customer service skills (which I learned from being a mom!) When we returned to the states, I was able to quickly gain employment with a local government contracting company making more than I imagined. The first question they asked at the interview was "Do you have a degree?" and a beaming "Yes" was the response. After a year, I was able to land a government position (my resume had grown) and within another year, I was a GS12. And I’m still moving forward…..

I wanted to share these experiences with those of you who are wondering about your career and trying to balance your life. Make priorities and listen to your heart. If you are able to take a chance on someone, do it – you may just change their life. Talk to everyone – let them know many times you want the job. Learn from every experience (even the hard ones) you are given – it may turn out better than you ever imagined it would! You already know what your talents are – use them however you can! Attitude is everything – and a great attitude will take you farther than anything else. Believe in yourself. Put into practice what you teach your children – that they can be anything they want to be, and so can you!

Thank you for sharing in my life and career.

Is Telecommuting Right for You?

2011-07-15T21:30:00.000Z

Professional military spouses often face challenges when it comes to sustaining meaningful careers when they uproot their lives every three to five years in support of their spouses’ military careers. An option getting more attention lately is that of a “portable” career, which you can take with you wherever you go. I am not talking about the be-your-own-boss jobs normally associated with military spouses like Pampered Chef, Mary Kay, and Scentsy to name a few, which are all sales-related jobs. There are challenging, career-centered options out there that will allow you to utilize your education while maintaining consistent employment even as you PCS.

One portable career option to consider is telecommuting, or telework, which allows you to work from home while staying connected with the office via phone and computer. Over the next few weeks I am going to explore many aspects of telecommuting including: whether or not you are a good candidate for telecommuting, the pros and cons of telecommuting, the top telecommuting careers and employers, the best way to find a job/career that allows you to work from home, talking to your current employer about becoming a telecommuter, job sharing options, and resources available to telecommuters.

Is Telecommuting Right for You?

As attractive as working from home sounds, not everyone is cut out for it. Take the following into consideration:

§ Are you comfortable working on your own for long periods of time with little face-to-face time with others? Or, are you a person who is motivated by the daily interaction with others in order to thrive in a work environment? It is not unusual to prefer the office setting with its structure, consistency, people, and separation from the home environment. Many people need to be out of their houses to feel like they are “at work,” and need the social interaction with co-workers to break up the day.

§ How comfortable are you with using social media and communicating electronically? It today’s world it seems that everyone is “plugged in” and using popular networks like Facebook and Twitter. Companies have their own websites and social media pages that ensure they are able to reach the largest customer base possible. Today’s telecommuters are internet and computer savvy, and use a variety of electronic resources to do their jobs. They can effectively communicate their ideas in writing, and keep up-to-date on the latest trends to understand if/how they can help them in their jobs.

§ Do you have a workspace? It does not have to be a fancy office, but it should be your own space, preferably with a door you can close, that you can dedicate to work time. When you are there, you are at work. Sitting on the couch with your laptop just is not going to cut it. By having a workspace you are able to separate yourself from everyday home distractions and focus on what you are doing. There will always be a certain degree of distractions at home that are different from those in an office setting, but where you are going to work each day should not be one of them.

§ Are you easily distracted? Working from home takes extreme discipline and flexibility. You should be able to dedicate a certain number of hours each day for work, and then stick to them. Keep in mind that they may not be “normal” working hours, depending on where you live and where your company is headquartered. It can be tempting to take care of everyday chores that “will only take a few minutes” like laundry, dishes, or basic cleaning, but you will easily get off track and slow your productivity. You need to be able to schedule the everyday activities around your work and be vigilant in adhering to the schedule.

Can you think of any other considerations?

Where's My Handout?

2011-07-11T17:02:08.000Z

When I first started my company, I went to a few small business government contracting conferences to see if I could learn more about how to best go about doing business with the government. At one of the first conferences I attended, we sat down with Hill staffers—people working directly for the members of Congress sitting on the Small Business committees—to discuss the issues facing small business owners in government contracting firms.

One man stood up and asserted that the small business procurement programs weren’t working. He said that he owned a small office supply company with a contract to sell supplies to the government agencies, but that he was unable, despite his small business status, to win government customers away from Staples and Office Max. Someone asked whether his products cost the same as those at larger stores. In fact, he charged 2 to 3 times as much for the same Post-It notes, but he was still angry that the government was not buying his more expensive supplies because he was a small business.

Now, as a taxpayer, I’m glad that the government isn’t paying 3 times as much for their Post-It notes solely to support small business. Small businesses do bring a lot to the table. They are often more nimble, and can provide better customer service or new and unique offerings that large businesses can’t, but there is no added value to anyone in paying a small business 3 times as much for a fungible commodity. When I heard the Post-It man speak, I dismissed him as a one-off—someone who just didn’t understand the way business worked in the real world. But I heard the same basic assertion over and over again at all of these conferences. They all seemed to be some variation on, “I meet the basic qualifications, where’s my handout?”

In fact, the real role of small businesses programs should be to even the playing field by teaching small businesses how to compete, and providing them access to capital or other required services to decrease the barriers to entry. The objective is to help to tease out what makes small businesses more attractive, responsive and valuable and to overcome the logistical hurdles in their way.

So why am I talking about this on a blog for professionally-focused military spouses?

I’ve seen some military spouses make the same assertion that the Post-It note man made—that they should be given a job simply for being a military spouse, without regard to whether they bring value beyond their military spouse status. While employing military spouses is an important goal, this is not and should not be the objective of spouse preference.

Military spouses bring a whole lot to the table, especially in a government job. They are extremely committed to the government/military mission. They are stellar at multitasking. They often have had strong careers prior to joining the military community, and bring a new perspective to entrenched problems. All of that can, and should, be highlighted by a military spouse in an employment search.

Targeted programs to help military spouses gain a foothold in portable government career fields are a win/win for everyone. Training in high-demand fields (procurement, accounting/budgeting, etc) that are necessary on every base and in every government agency makes policy sense on a number of levels. Training HR professionals in the government to read a non-entry level resume with private-sector work experience to see how they might fit into a government function is a cost-effective way to tap into new talent pools. All of these things, and more, we hope to do through In Gear.

After hearing the Post-It note man and others just like him, I learned a valuable lesson. To distinguish my firm, I make it a point, when talking to potential government clients or other partner firms, to go through all of the other, more important reasons to hire us over our competitors. If I bring up our size and ownership at all, it is only to seal the deal (“…and by the way we are a small, women-owned firm”). I want to make clear that we were better for their needs than our larger competitors—because of our price, our offerings, our more committed workforce, etc—and that was the reason they should hire us. That they get to check a box in their small business goals is just a bonus in the end.

Likewise, in selling themselves to employers, military spouses need to focus on what they uniquely bring to the table, above and beyond the ability to check a preference box. They need to show that they’re the best qualified for the job. They shouldn’t be penalized for gaps in their resume, nor for the expectation that they’ll leave a job after only a year or two. But neither should they be handed a make-work job or one that they’re not qualified for solely because they’re a military spouse. Today, more than ever, the government has to be conscious of budget constraints. Investing in our military spouses to make them effective hires as they support their military member is smart policy, and really what I believe most military spouses desire.

Getting a Government Job

2011-07-06T01:42:56.000Z

A lot of military spouses would love to get a government job. It really can be the ultimate portable career, especially if you find a career path that is utilized on most military installations. But I hear over and over from spouses that breaking in to the government system can be daunting.

While obtaining government employment is very different than the hiring process for the private sector, if you know how the system works and can effectively navigate the hiring process, you stand a much greater chance of breaking in. In the coming weeks, we are planning to build our website section on government job seeking, but in the short-term, here are some basic things to keep in mind.

1. Understand the GS system

The GS system can be extremely confusing from the outside. (There are systems other than GS (or “General Schedule”) in the government, but they are generally set up fairly similarly to GS, and the vast majority of the positions in the government at this point are GS, so I’ll focus on those here). When you look at a job posting or position description, you’ll notice that it is set up as GS-(series)-(grade level). The numbers after the GS- tell you a lot about the job itself.

Series: This is reflected as a 4-digit code just after the GS-. For example, a contracting officer is an 1102. A management analyst is an 0301. You can find a list of the government series here: http://www.opm.gov/fedclass/html/gsseries.asp

Grade: The 2-digit code that appears after the series reflects the “grade level” of the position. GS positions are graded from a GS-1 to a GS-15. (There is also a set of positions above a GS-15, called “Senior Executive Service” or SES; these are very high-level career or political positions with an entirely different set of rules and selection criteria). Generally, a GS-1-8 is entry-level or administrative, GS-9-12 is “journey” level or a mid-level career position, and a GS-13-15 is senior-level, often with supervisory responsibilities. Sometimes, a position will be “graded” across multiple GS levels. For example, a position may be a GS-7-9-11. These positions allow for forward progress through the grades without competing for the next grade level and are called career ladder positions. If a position is graded at only one level (e.g. a GS-11), moving into the next grade level will require competition-- you will be required to submit a resume for an open posting for a new job at that next level. While salary should never be the sole determiner in your job search, especially for a government job, the following provides an estimate of the base salary you could expect to be offered for each GS grade level (1-15) in all domestic locations: http://www.opm.gov/oca/11tables/html/gs.asp

2. The GS hiring process

The GS system serves a number of public policy purposes beyond just getting the best-qualified person into the position. There are hiring preferences that allow certain groups of people priority or preference over the general public. These include veteran’s preference (associated with a “point system” that provides up to 10-point preference to service-disabled veterans), “priority placement” (also called PPP) for current civilian government employees displaced from their jobs due to base closure, Reductions in Force (RIFs), or other similar reasons, and military spouse preference.

Generally, resumes are screened—first by an automated computer program, then (possibly) by a HR professional—and qualified resumes are compiled. If there are no preferential groups (see below) that automatically “trump” the others in the group of qualified applicants, then all of the qualified applicants make the “cert” (certification), which is passed along to the hiring official for review. That hiring official can then choose to interview a specified subset of those candidates on the cert.

The interview process for government positions is extremely regimented, in order not to provide any particular person an unfair advantage. The candidates are then ranked, and a job offer is made by the HR professional to the person with the highest overall ranking. (Note: If the hiring official calls you to offer you the job, it is necessarily an informal job offer. Only the HR official can make you a formal job offer.)

If individuals in certain groups—such as priority placement—are deemed qualified, then no other individuals not in that priority group make the cert, even if they are much more qualified for the position. In other cases, like veterans preference, others without preference can make the cert, but usually cannot be ranked as highly in the hiring official’s review because of the preference points. Therefore, sometimes the most highly qualified candidates are not eligible to be selected for a position, based solely on the hiring rules.

3. Know your geographical area

In order to target your job search, you need to know what agencies, commands, and offices are within the geographic area of your duty station. Obviously, some duty stations (like D.C.) will have more non-military options than others. And, obviously, the command your spouse is attached to may be a good option for a targeted job search. But many agencies have field offices throughout the US, so you may not be as limited to only DoD jobs as you might think. Department of Education, Housing and Urban Development, the General Services Administration… all of these agencies (and many more) have regional and local offices that may offer good options for transfer as you PCS. Likewise, some overarching DoD commands like the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) are located throughout the US and Overseas (OCONUS) and may offer some solid career options for military spouses.

Once you target one, or a few, agencies to concentrate on, do your research. Which offices or commands are in your location? What do the specific offices do? Who heads them up? What HR office services them?

4. Tailor your resume

This is key! A successful Federal resume bears almost no resemblance to a standard resume in the private sector. Pretty much everything you ever learned about resume writing before coming to the government side should be thrown out when writing a Federal resume. One important similarity, however, is that you should always tailor your resume to each job you apply for, either in government or the private sector.

Two of the most important things to remember about Federal resumes:

Key Words: Federal resumes are generally screened by an automated system before a human being ever reviews them. The program works by doing a key word search of your resume. If you have the magic number of key words in your resume, you make it to the next level. If not, you’re out—even if you’re the perfect fit for the position. I’ve actually seen a resume make it through the process that said throughout “I have no experience with xxxx” because “xxxx” was a key word. While I’m not advocating for that approach—it should never have made it through the human being that screened the resume after the computer program—it highlights how important the key word inclusion is.

You can generally figure out at least some of the important key words from the job posting itself. Go through and highlight any words that pop out at you as descriptors of what the job entails, and make sure you use exactly those words in your resume. If synonymous words appear for the same general task, use all of those synonyms. (For example, “I analyzed, evaluated, and calculated the effect of…”).

You can also pull general position descriptions (PDs) from a library of PDs online (from the Army, but applicable generally across the government) at:

https://acpol2.army.mil/fasclass/inbox/default.asp

Include additional key words from these PDs in your resume as you build it, and simply add the additional key words from the individual job posting on top of the already-existing resume you build from the PD(s) in the online PD library. (The PD for the individual job may not be identical to the PDs on the online library, but they’ll likely be fairly similar if you’re looking at the same series and grade level).

Format: Formatting for a Federal resume is very different from a private sector one; most Federal resumes I’ve seen are in narrative format and are much longer than a traditional 1-2 page private sector resume. Again, in the coming weeks we’ll try to get some good examples of Federal resumes posted on this site to assist everyone in writing an effective resume. Because getting the key words in the resume is so important, I suggest you “kitchen sink” your resume—throw everything in there that you possibly can. Instead of taking information out of your current Federal resume when applying for a new job, continue to add to it.

Regardless of how long your resume is, however—please, please, please still proofread it for grammar, style, format, and typos! To the extent you can, think about the person who will end up reading your resume once you get through the screening process. While most people use a narrative paragraph format, I generally find it better to use a bulleted format on a Federal resume, similar to the format of a private sector resume, so that the HR professional or hiring official can easily pick out the salient points.

5. Think about alternate avenues to Federal employment

There’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem to Federal employment. You need the experience to get in to the system, but you can’t get the experience without getting in to the system! There are multiple avenues for getting around this, but two are worth mentioning here—Federal internships and employment with Federal contractors. (If anyone has other suggestions, please post them in the comment section below).

Federal Internships: There are a number of professional-level internships available in the Federal government. We will try to compile a list of them on the site (and please let us know if we’ve missed any). One that bears mentioning here is the Federal Acquisition Internship Coalition. It is a 3-year program in procurement that starts as a GS-7 procurement specialist, but provides forward progression to a GS-9 after one year, and to a GS-11 after an additional year. Procurement is a high-demand government career field, and one that is one of the most portable—all agencies and all offices need to buy things, and they need well-trained, certified specialists in government procurement to do so. Find out more about the program at: http://www.fai.gov/faic/

Students.gov also provides an exhaustive list of Federal Internship programs at:

http://www.students.gov/STUGOVWebApp/Public?topicID=79&operation=topic

Employment with Federal Contractors: Many of the functions currently performed in the government are “outsourced” to private companies or non-governmental organizations (NGOs). A great way to get experience in the Federal marketplace, and make connections with Federal hiring officials, is through positions with these firms. (And I’m not just saying that because I own one of the firms, I swear!) Often, you can translate your experience with a Federal agency as a contract employee into direct experience that can be used to land a Federal job—but you may be surprised and find you like working for a contractor better than you would as a direct government hire. Depending on the firm you work for, there may be strong options for movement throughout the country (or even OCONUS) as you PCS.

6. Network, network, network!!

As with private employment, networking is incredibly important in government positions. The hiring process is imperfect—and, no matter how many improvements are made, it probably always will be—and the hiring officials really want to get the best people into their offices quickly and efficiently. If you can talk to them before they start their hiring process, and show them what a stellar choice you are for their needs, you are much more likely to land a job. You’re also more likely, just by talking to them, to understand what positions may be upcoming and how to tailor your resume to get through the process.

How do you network? Talk to everyone you can. Go to social events for your spouse’s command and ask people—especially civilians—what they do. Go to community meetings. Volunteer. Get involved in a spouse group on base (and find out what the active duty spouses of each of the members do!). Join an In Gear community in your geographical area—or start one, we’ll help!—and see what other spouses are doing. Join the Military Spouse Professionals group on Linked In, or any other group in your field. Get out there and find as many government employees, or contractor employees, or active duty members, as you possibly can. And just keep talking!

White House launches major effort to support military families

2011-04-13T11:48:55.000Z

The White House on Tuesday launched a national initiative that focuses on the employment, education and wellness of military personnel and their families.

First lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden announced the Joining Forces initiative, which knits together a panoply of government agencies, businesses, nonprofit groups and media organizations in an effort to improve the lives of military families. The nonpartisan Center for a New American Security will coordinate the effort, led by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who was relieved of his command in Afghanistan last year over controversial comments about administration officials.

Here is a link for the full article: http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=47581&dcn=e_gvet

Top 10 On-the-Job Tricks for Success

2011-04-11T12:28:32.000Z

Having seen the good, the bad, and the ugly in employees from both sides of the fence—as a entry level employee and now as an executive—these are the things I either wish I had known when I was coming up through the ranks, or that I wish I could get across to my employees now that I’m the “big boss.” Again, like my last post about job seeking, these are in no particular order… but hopefully at least a few of them will be helpful for each of you.

1. When asking for something (a raise, a flexible work schedule, access to a new project, etc), always spin it to why it is good for the company, not just why it is good for you.

If you’re coming to me with a need for a shorter work schedule, for example, your “pitch” should include very specific details about how you’re going to handle the work load in shorter hours, how the schedule helps us as a firm (you’d have to quit if you couldn’t get the new schedule to handle new external demands, and then we’d be forced to recruit and train a new employee without the significant background you have, for example), and how you’ll mitigate any unintended consequences, especially if nobody has tried this before. (In this example, you might want to say that you’ll set the standard for professionalism in working a shorter work schedule but still getting work done, so that any other employee asking for a new schedule would be held to a very high standard).

2. There is a very fine line between highlighting your accomplishments and tooting your own horn.

One lesson I learned very early on in my career—almost every time, people know who really did the work without anyone having to tell them. Someone who claims credit for the work, especially if it was a team effort of any sort, can easily be seen as a blowhard. If you are humble and praise the others in your team, it will come back to serve you well later on, both with your team members and with your supervisors. That said, you do need to make sure that you’re recognized for your accomplishments, and there are appropriate ways to highlight those to the people who matter… but they are usually more subtle than telling people flat-out how wonderful a job you’ve done. Email cc’s or status updates can often convey your worth without any bragging necessary.

3. Don’t expect constant rewards for doing your job well.

Doing your job well is, well, your job. While continuous improvement should hopefully lead to rewards (raises, promotions, positive feedback, whatever) in the long run, it should not require constant reinforcement with those rewards all of the time. I find that people who are constantly asking me for short-term rewards for doing a good job end up negating, in my mind, the great work they’re doing, which is clearly counterproductive.

4. Be willing to take on whatever tasks are necessary to get the job done.

In our company, we tell people that the thing that will get them fired faster than almost any other phrase is, “that’s not my job.” As the president of a company, I still make my own copies (and am more than happy to run and get coffee for not only our clients, but any of my employees, as well). Doing a job—any job—means scut work as well as high-level work.

5. You don’t always have to be liked.

This is an important lesson for everyone to learn. To be effective at your job, you need to be well respected, but you don’t need for everyone to like you. You (hopefully) have plenty of friends outside of work. You need strong colleagues at work, not necessarily more friends.

6. Be careful how much of your personal life you bring into your job.

Of course, you’re with your work colleagues for a good portion of your daily waking life, and you will likely form great personal relationships with some of them (though see #5 above—you don’t need to be friends with all of them). But be careful of exactly how much of your personal life you share at work; remember, your goal is first and foremost to be respected, and too much personal information can get in the way of that goal.

7. Bring up ideas (preferably well thought-out, well-researched ones), but recognize that you may not have the whole story.

Some of the best ideas for how to improve our company have come from our front-line employees, and we always welcome ideas from everyone. However, we often get ideas that are incredibly well thought-out given the perspective of that employee, but that don’t take into account other important information that the employee isn’t privy to. If your idea is heard, but not implemented, it is helpful to realize that there may be more to the issue than you’re aware of.

8. Remember, your thoughts/concerns/feelings are not the only thing on your boss’ mind.

We are all somewhat ego-centric in our thinking—it is the way our brains are structured. But keep in mind that your boss (or even other colleagues) don’t have the same things on their mind that you do. When you’re discussing something with them, try to think of their perspective so that you can all end up on the same page. And, if you need them to understand where you’re coming from to set the stage for your conversation, make sure you tell them. Which leads us to…

9. Don’t wait for your boss to bring up raises and promotions.

Most likely, your raise or your promotion is forefront in your mind for months before it is scheduled. It is just as likely one thing on a growing to-do list for your boss, and it is likely to drop off of that list accidentally, even if you’re a stellar performer. If there is a regular schedule to reviews/raises/promotions, make sure you check in with your boss just before the scheduled time to make sure everything is on track. If there is no schedule, at an appropriate time, ask your boss if you can do a review of your performance with an eye toward future career advancement. One quick caveat—unless it was expressly discussed in your interview that you’d review compensation within the first 6 months, don’t bring this up until you’ve been somewhere at least 6 months, and probably more. And look at #1 before you talk to your boss about why you deserve the raise or promotion.

10. Step back and look at the 10,000 foot view.

If you can look at the point of view of your boss, or your boss’ boss, you will make yourself that much more valuable to them (and to the company). If you can see the big picture, and see where your work fits in with that, it will not only make you more effective, but also should make you (hopefully) more satisfied in your role if you can see how it relates to the larger “whole.”

Top 10 Tips for Job Seekers

2011-02-14T22:00:25.000Z

Top 10 Tips for Job Seekers

By: Lauren Weiner

My company has been in the midst of a huge recruiting push over the last 2 months, and my staff and I have seen it all—from some great resumes and cover letters that really stand out from the crowd to some terrible interviews (often with people we were really excited about based on their resumes). In no particular order, here are some of my own observations about what works—and what doesn’t—when doing your job search.

A cover letter can make or break you

A beautifully written cover letter can easily overcome a mediocre resume (especially if it explains why certain things—education at a less-than-noteworthy school, resume gaps, etc—exist). In contrast, a poorly written one can kill even the most impressive resume. Keep in mind, the email sending your resume and cover letter is just as important as your actual cover letter, as it is the first introduction you provide to the recruiter.

Tailor your cover letter (and preferably your resume) to the specific job/company

Nothing says “I’m just looking for a job, any job!” more than a cover letter that reads as entirely generic. (And, by the way, tailoring a cover letter doesn’t just mean inserting the company name in your generic letter…). I would actually say that no cover letter but a well-written and succinct email along with your resume is worlds better than a generic cover letter. In your letter, you should include how you heard about the company and/or job opening (especially if you were referred by someone in the company) and why the particular company and/or job interests you. (See #6, and do your research on the company before submitting your resume).

Your “objective” should never be “to obtain a job at XYZ company”

I’ll admit, I’m not a huge fan of the “objective” section of a resume overall, because I’ve rarely seen it done well. If you do use it, this is the one section, in my view, that shouldn’t be tailored to each position. It should be a strong statement about what your short and long term career objectives are, and what your goal in job seeking is. Saying that your objective is to get a job with XYZ Company is obvious—you wouldn’t have put in a resume if you didn’t want a job with that company. But it is a waste of space, and to me it shows a lack of critical thinking. If you waste space on your resume, you’re also likely to waste my time (or, worse yet, our client’s time).

For goodness sake, PROOFREAD!

And not just for typos, though you’d be shocked at how many otherwise strong resumes I see with really awful typos. (Please, please, please, get the difference between their/they’re/there right on everything you send to me!) Bring out your old college copy of Strunk & White and check grammar/style as well. Bullet points should all be in the same verb tense, punctuation should be correct and uniform, and format should be uniform throughout.

Dress appropriately for an interview

Unless you’re applying for a job at Google, you really can’t go wrong wearing what we’ve dubbed internally in our company as the “no comment” suit-- conservative colors, cut, and style, with no plunging necklines, subtle makeup, and all tattoos covered. Most companies no longer have suits as the standard dress code, but even if everyone else is in khakis and golf shirts, you’ll never make a bad impression showing up for the first round of interviews dressed up. Take your cues on further interviews from the first interviewer.

Do your research on the company

You’d be amazed at how many people come into an interview without having looked at the company website. Nothing says “I don’t really have an interest in working for this company” more than that—if you can’t take the 5 minutes to do a web search and read what we’ve written about ourselves, you aren’t serious about this job. You should know something about the company—and reference it— in your cover letter as well as the interview itself. Some of the best interviews we’ve had have been with people who pick something out of our website (usually something about our founding, or our corporate values) and talk about why it resonated with them.

Don’t be cocky

The best example I have of this mistake wasn’t an interview that I conducted, but one that a close friend conducted. She was recruiting at a business school job fair, and was talking to one of the students. She asked a standard interview question—“tell me about a time when you made a mistake, and what you did to fix it.” His response? “I don’t make mistakes.” Her response to that? “You just did. Interview over.” Yes, you need to sell yourself. And yes, you need to spin things to the positive, even when asked about mistakes or weaknesses. But you can be a great fit for the organization without being the best person ever to walk the earth. Don’t overdo the confidence to the point you become a blowhard. Subtle confidence is much more appealing, and much more believable.

Send a thank you email

Again, just like the cover letter, tailor it to the specific interview you just had, instead of making it a generic thank-you-and-reminder-of-my-strengths email. Reference something specific from the interview, especially if you think it specifically resonated with the interviewer. One of my employees, who conducts most of our preliminary interviews, told me that she absolutely notices if someone doesn’t send a thank you note. To be honest, I don’t—I’m usually on to the next thing right after the interview closes—but I absolutely do notice a great thank you email when it is sent, and it can help to reinforce a decision to put a candidate on the short list (and sometimes bump them up a notch on that list) for hiring.

Leave salary demands somewhat flexible and understand the full compensation package, if the rest of the job appeals to you

Be smart when looking at a compensation package, and understand the trade-offs between base salary, bonuses, and other benefits. If, for example, base salary is lower at one company but they have a robust profit-sharing plan (and they’re doing well), your overall compensation may be better in the second company over the course of the year. And some companies provide other non-monetary benefits that may be even more attractive to you than the salary package—strong professional development opportunities or work-life balance flexibilities, for example. Finally, look at the place this job will play in your professional development and career track. It certainly isn’t worth taking a job for an extra $1000 a year that won’t allow for fast career advancement as compared to a lower-starting-pay job that will launch your career.

That said, don’t sell yourself short

There are numerous studies that show that new employees (particularly women) do not negotiate effectively for the salary that the employer was willing to give you! Do your research and figure out what a typical salary for the position is. Be honest with yourself and determine if you really deserve more or less than that typical salary. And then, politely, listen to the salary offer they give and provide reasons why you deserve X% more. They may say no (at which point, see #9 above), but it certainly doesn’t hurt to—politely—ask!

National Military Family Association- Scholarship

2011-01-31T00:47:53.000Z

I know this is a bit late, but I thought some of you might be interested in the advertisement below.

Last Weekend To Apply for Military Spouse Scholarships
The application period is closing January 31 for the 2011 Military Spouse Scholarships!
The National Military Family Association’s Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship Program awards spouses of Uniformed Services members up to $1,000 for professional certification, college, or graduate school. The funds are for tuition, fees, and school room and board. Applications are due by midnight EST January 31, 2011. Visit www.militaryfamily.org/scholarship for more information or to submit an application.

The Broad Residency - Job opportunites for advanced degrees

2010-09-30T13:29:19.000Z

The Broad Residency is a great option for those interested in making an impact in public schools. The training and job are a two year commitment in various locations around the country. Starting salaries are $85-95K. You do not need to have experience in the education sector. Please read below and check out their website for more information.

As you may know, The Broad Residency in Urban Education is a prestigious program focused on improving public education by placing business professionals into high-impact full-time paid management positions in the education industry.

We recently broadened our placements beyond school districts and charter organizations to include Federal and State Departments of Education.

Can you help us by spreading the word to those in your network interested in management careers in the social sector? Anyone interested may visit our website to apply (www.broadresidency.org).

This is a unique opportunity to really make an impact on children’s lives that regularly attracts attention from the media. Below is a link to a recent segment on CNN about our founder Eli Broad:

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2010/03/17/cc_eli_broad_education.cnnmoney/

About the Program

The Broad Residency is a prestigious program that places professionals with graduate degrees into full-time management positions in school districts, charter management organizations, and federal/state departments of education nationwide. Experience in the education industry is not required and starting salaries begin at $85-$95K. The Broad Residency serves as a bridge for those who want to use their management skills as change agents in education.

Broad Residents lead major projects that require superb analytical skills and the ability to manage projects and teams. Working within the system, participants are well-positioned to lead the transformation required to ensure that every American child receives a world-class education. A sampling of Broad Residents’ accomplishments include:

Saved $3 million per classroom by decreasing materials costs on 23 classrooms
Reduced cycle time for textbook purchasing by three months, assuring that schools now receive 98 percent of textbooks before the start-of-school
Decreased new hire process time from two weeks to four days

Simultaneous to job placement, Broad Residents receive two years of intensive professional development and join a national network of education leaders. This provides the support needed to transition into a management career that truly makes an impact.

Do Your Homework

2010-09-23T17:27:48.000Z

Do Your Homework

By Liz Seasholtz (Wetfeet.com)

A common complaint among recruiters is that too many job candidates come to an interview without much knowledge about the employer and position. Recruiters typically dedicate a considerable amount of time sifting through stacks of resumes to handpick the most qualified applicants, so they expect those invited for an interview to be prepared, professional, and engaged.

Digging up information about an employer before the interview will allow you to carry on intelligent small talk, ask great questions, and decrease the odds of finding out at the interview that the employer isn’t such a good fit after all. (Imagine being a strong proponent of sustainable energy, for example, and learning that the company provides support for offshore oil drilling.)

So before heading out the door in your finest suit, spend some quality time combing the internet for valuable background information. Here’s where to start:

Basic Company History and Information
Most company websites include an “About Us” section, where you’ll find a story about the company. Read it. Basic facts, such as the company history, mission statement, slogan, and full company name are good to know. Steve Canale, manager of recruiting and staffing at General Electric, says he likes to throw in questions like, “What is GE’s current slogan?” It would be embarrassing to not be able to answer “Imagination at work.”

The Company’s Organizational Structure and Business Model
Two need-to-knows are the company’s structure and revenue model. Start your search for this information on the company website, and continue your research on sites such as Hoovers.com, Yahoo! Finance, and Forbes.com. It’s okay to ask for further clarification in your interview, but phrase the question in a way that shows you’ve done research on your own: “I understand that my position in mergers and acquisitions falls within the finance department, but can you explain how I’ll be interacting with the audit and advisory departments?” is better than “Can you explain how my position functions in the company?”

Recent Press
Read recent articles and blog posts, both good and bad, to get a pulse on the company. Press releases on the company’s website can also serve as valuable sources of information, but objective news sources like the Wall Street Journal will provide a more balanced view of a organization’s strengths and weaknesses. Another great way of aggregating all recent news is by searching the company on Google news. You’ll discover the company’s recent struggles and successes, which will give you great talking points and clue you in on the topics to avoid.

Main Competitors
Research the company’s main competitors and their strengths. “Researching competitors and analyzing how your company can get a leg up on them can prove how capable you are,” says Heather Huhman, founder of ComeRecommended, an online community for entry-level professionals. “Doing that extra research and analysis is always an interview winner.” If you’re interviewing for a communications position at a nonprofit, and find that competitors are using social media in an effective way, you could suggest some new social media outlets and marketing approaches.

Current Trends in the Industry
Don’t go crazy researching everything happening in the employer’s industry, but get a grasp on some basic trends that may come up in your interview. These can also spur questions for you to ask at the end of the interview: If you’re interviewing at a pharmaceuticals company, you could ask how they are being affected by their drugs going off patent. WetFeet’s industry profiles and the Bureau of Labor Statistics are great places to start your research.

Your Interviewer
If given the name of your interviewer, plug it into some search engines. Search LinkedIn and the company website. You can learn about their professional background and experiences or interests you might share: Maybe your interviewer also has a background in journalism before switching to public relations. Just be careful of mentioning your probing, because your interviewer might be uncomfortable with the fact that you’ve been Googling her.

IBM's Remote Job Opportunites

2010-09-03T19:51:08.000Z

Hello Everyone,

I am a student working on my MBA at Kenan-Flagler business school and am currently taking a class called Effective Virtual Teams. We had a guest speaker visit our class yesterday to give us a presentation on their Smart Planet offering. The new software they have developed promotes working in virtual teams and/or internet collaboration. She outlined their software, but also described how IBM implements these new tools.

IBM employs +400K around the world and 50% of them work remotely

IBM is just one of many companies realizing the benefits of virtual teaming- this is a growing trend across major companies. This trend opens up many opportunites for military spouses to work from home - or wherever suits you.

If you are feeling frustrated by the professional options available to military spouses, you should check out what types of remote jobs are available.

Haley