TRANSITION AMERICA: Has your job search made you crazy?

According to Transition America, the Nation’s Premier Career Search Specialist, it may have, if you agree with this definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over, but expecting a different result.

Many otherwise-intelligent people find themselves without work for 6, 12, 18 months or longer. Yet they continue to do the same things — network the same way, send out the same resume, search the same Web sites for openings — long after they should have changed their approach.

It’s time to stop the job search insanity.

Here’s how you can do it, by asking yourself three “magic” questions once a week…

Transition America: Question #1: What’s working?
Ask yourself this every Sunday evening or Monday morning, before you plan your job search activities for the week.

If you’re like most folks, you spend most of your time networking, applying for advertised jobs, posting your resume on Web sites, doing volunteer projects and/or going to informational interviews.

Now, what’s working? Which of your job-search methods produced the most interviews or callbacks from employers last week? Do more of that this week!

Believe it or not, this is a radical concept for some job seekers. They often react to each day’s events without having a written plan of attack. But not you. Find out what’s working — and do more of it.

TRANSITION AMERICA: Question #2: What’s not working?
If you honestly ask this question, the answer may upset you. But the outcome will ultimately help you get hired faster.

Example: if you’ve sent out the same resume to apply for 77 jobs you were perfect for, and didn’t get called for interviews, guess what? That resume is not working. Or the way you sent it out — email, fax and/or mail — is not working.

It’s time to change your approach.

Don’t be like the laid-off manager profiled in a March 2003 issue of The Wall Street Journal. He sent out 700 resumes and got only two
interviews. But instead of changing his resume or the way he distributed it, he resorted to holding up a sign along a Boston road that said, “I NEED A JOB.”
What’s not working in your job search? Change it. Or stop doing it! (That man with the sign did get hired, by the way, but only after his plight became national news. Don’t depend on that happening to you.)

TRANSITION AMERICA: Question #3: What’s next?
It’s not enough to know what’s working and what’s not in your job
hunt. You have to plan effectively for the week ahead, according to Transition America. To do that, ask yourself, “What’s next in my search?”

Because … you get just 24 hours each day. After eating, sleeping, etc., you have about 14 hours to spend looking for work. You’ll never get those hours back. Make the most of them!

It’s been said that every hour of planning saves five hours of doing. So start spending an hour every week scheduling what’s next in your job search.

When you do, you’ll work smarter, not harder. You’ll find yourself doing more of what works, less of what doesn’t and what’s next? How about a new job?! For more information about Transition America, visit us at http://www.americatransition.com/.

Transition America

Landing a great job is not just about getting an offer and earning a paycheck. Loving your job is about finding the right company culture for you, according to Transition America, the Nation’s Premier Career Search Specialist. It’s about working in an environment aligned with your values and beliefs. Working at a company with values inconsistent with yours is stressful and unrewarding. The quality of your work life is also directly correlated to your supervisor’s attitudes, values, and beliefs. A person’s values significantly affect their behavior and hence how you are treated. No matter how great the position, if you’re working in a caustic, understaffed, and unethical culture, you’ll feel unfulfilled.

The job interview is your opportunity to assess the work environment and organizational norms. But how can you assess the culture while you’re being interviewed?

Organizational culture is composed of the values, behaviors, beliefs, and norms that permeate the group. Culture is expressed through words and behaviors of each employee. Culture is like a recipe where each person is an ingredient. Company or department leadership set the overall tone.

According to Transition America, interviewers say “the candidate fits” or “doesn’t fit” to describe a candidate’s qualifications. What interviewers are really saying is the candidate fits or doesn’t fit the company culture.

To perpetuate corporate culture, companies hire people they feel “fit” and reject qualified candidates whom they believe “don’t fit” their culture. During each interview, you have an opportunity to assess how the culture aligns with your values. Rarely will you find an environment totally aligned with your values. You can however, find organizations where the culture and your values can coexist.

Clues to company culture are found in interviewer behavior and their words. Below is a list of organizational cultural indicators according to Transition America.
• How you are treated?
• What phrases are frequently used by the interviewers?
• Is there an unspoken tone to the questions you’re asked?
• How does the environment feel to you?
• How prepared are the interviewers? Are they on time?
• Were you given an interview schedule?
• Were you treated like a prisoner or a guest?
• Are your responses to their questions treated with suspicion or professional curiosity?
• How considerate is the company recruiter?

Questions you can ask about organizational culture are listed below.
• Please describe the company or department culture in three words or three phrases.
• How does the company (team) handle conflict or differing opinions?
• How does the company recognize employee accomplishments?
• Does the company have a “Code of Ethics?¨
• Please describe the leadership or managerial style at your company?
• What qualities do the most successful employees in your company possess?
• What is the company’s attitude towards professional and educational advancement?
Job interviews are business events where your talents are evaluated. Interviews are also your opportunity to evaluate how the company’s culture compliments your values.

The task of finding high qualified employees is not an easy one and since the best organization is only as good as it’s weakest employee. Hiring top talent is critical to the success of every company. Most hiring managers and human resource managers are faced with trying to find creative ways to locate their next great hire. With literally hundreds of job boards you can subscribe to, newspaper ads you can buy, and employee referral fees you can pay, you still may be faced with the timely task of sorting through resumes that aren’t a “good fit”.
Nationally recognized Transition America can offer you a diverse pool of candidates ranging from senior executives to professional level staff. Transition America’s focus is on helping individuals find career positions. Part of Transition America selection process of candidates is establishing where each candidate’s skills, passion, and interest lie and in conjunction with their work history Transition America is able to help them identify what the industry and type of position they want to pursue. What this means to you as an employer, is that when you meet with one of Transition America’s candidates you won’t be faced with someone who is all over the board and has no idea of what they want to do.
Transition America respects your time and they will only refer qualified candidates matching your requirements.
Transition America looks forward to filling your needs.

Transition America is a world wide leader made up of dedicated professionals whose passion is helping individuals achieve their career goals. Transition America’s job is to guide you and successfully lead you through each and every step that is necessary for you to land the career that is not only suited for your financial objectives, but also aligned with your personal goals. Whether you are transitioning from military into the civilian job market, or if you are seeking to advance your career to the next level. Transition America’s cutting edge technology and experience around the globe will make your transition smooth.Eighty-one percent of Hiring Managers surveyed recently said recruiting is equally or more challenging today than 12 months ago. Eighty-two percent anticipate it will be just as difficult or even more so one year from now. It is not always the most qualified person who gets the job, but rather how well you interview and who you sit down with that gets your career to the next level. Transition America is turning transition into career advancement. So if you are senior level, mid level manager or a professional from any career field, contact Transition America for immediate results. Any professionals are at a crossroads, you need to make a career change because you are not satisfied or corporate downsizing or outsourcing is forcing a move. It is important that you make the “right move.” However, you don’t know the next steps to take, and are concerned that such issues as age, education, job-hopping, career stagnation, glass ceiling or other circumstances may hurt your chances in today’s job market.

At Transition America the fastest growing divisions, since Transition America are an approved contractor of the government/military, is to equip our men and woman that are leaving the military with the proper tools and support to make their transition into civilian life as smooth as possible. Without Transition America’s help, you will end up leaving money on the table during negotiations, and will spend more time unemployed wondering why you can’t get hired with all the skill sets you took from the military.
Transition America: “Each of the military services now operates transition seminars known to many as TAP classes, or outplacement seminars, which is a great start in the right direction, but may not offer “insider information” on how to negotiate a better salary, or where to find the hidden job market.”
Transition America: “Plus if you’ve already transitioned, you may not be eligible to attend these classes as a refresher as you are about to hit the job market again: so where do you turn?”“Of course there are a myriad of books and articles that attempt to give you some insight on different aspects of the job hunt, but there is so much to cover and there are many different viewpoints, it can be confusing to some,” – added Transition America.

TRANSITION AMERICA:

Also Transition America notices that landing a great job is not just about getting an offer and earning a paycheck. Loving your job is about finding the right company culture for you, according to Transition America, the Nation’s Premier Career Search Specialist. It’s about working in an environment aligned with your values and beliefs. Working at a company with values inconsistent with yours is stressful and unrewarding. As Transition America said: ‘The quality of your work life is also directly correlated to your supervisor’s attitudes, values, and beliefs. A person’s values significantly affect their behavior and hence how you are treated. No matter how great the position, if you’re working in a caustic, understaffed, and unethical culture, you’ll feel unfulfilled.”

According to Transition America you have to plan effectively for the week ahead. To do that you should answer the Transition America’s question: “What’s next in my search?”. Transition America explained: “Because … you get just 24 hours each day. After eating, sleeping, etc., you have about 14 hours to spend looking for work. You’ll never get those hours back. Make the most of them!It’s been said that every hour of planning saves five hours of doing. So start spending an hour every week scheduling what’s next in your job search.“

And back to Transition America’s discussion : ‘ Each military installation offers or participates in an outplacement program that is usually offered near the end of your military career. Perhaps, a little too near the end, as most of us would like to know where our next paycheck will be coming from well before we hang up the uniform. “

For more information on Transition America’s military programs, please fill out Transition America’s free evaluation and someone from our military division will contact you. Visit us at http://www.americatransition.com/.

Job Search Secrets for Tough Times According to Transition America
According to Transition America, it’s not just what you know that will get you hired- It’s who you know- And — more importantly — who knows you.

Here are 3 job search secrets that can get you hired, even in tough times…
1. Employee Referral Programs — Get an Advocate

“In this economy, a number of companies refuse to interview candidates who aren’t referred by employees,”.

Large corporations use referral programs to encourage employees to submit names of people they know for open positions- This screening process makes sense, since like attracts like — talented employees often have talented friends- And companies are willing to pay $500, $1,000 — and more — to employees who refer new hires.

So it pays to start making friends at big companies you want to work for.

Your Lesson: The best way to learn about employee referral programs is to strike up a relationship with someone at your target company — and ask- A simple email will do- Then, keep in touch- Your contact may end up walking your resume into a hiring manager’s office- You get hired and your “advocate” gets a cash award — win-win!
2. Network from the Inside — Create Your Own Job with Transition America

From my client files this week comes the story of “Josh” from Toronto, a marketing manager for a multi-national high-tech firm.

At first, Josh did what most job seekers do- He posted his resume online, sent it to recruiters and answered help-wanted ads-

But it was networking — within his own company — that really paid off.

“I used an internal contact in New York City, one thing led to another, and I was over in the US doing 6 job interviews in the last 2 weeks,” says Josh.

His Fortune 500 firm is now creating a new position for him with a generous salary and relocation package- This came after I encouraged him to leave no stone unturned with his current employer.

“I emailed a co-worker and asked if I could use him as a resource for an internal job search- He agreed to help, which led to my interviews- And I already had a good reputation internally, with several VPs to serve as references- That gave me an advantage I would not have had at another company,” says Josh.

3. Become a Power Broker in Your Field

It’s an old maxim: Givers get- And it’s especially true when job hunting.

Now, go out and make your own luck! For information about Transition America, visit us at www.americatransition.com.