The start of a new year is always a good time to make plans. Here are a few suggestions for New Year's Resolutions for the career minded. We would also love to hear about any resolutions that you have personally set. Submit your comments through our blog. 

Planning for your own professional performance development.
A big change for everyone is that companies don't spend as much money on training as they once did. Even if they offer training, it is based on their needs for today. Each person needs to take responsibility for their own personal performance development plan. Set your goals for 2018.

Understanding functional and industry skills
If you already understand the changing nature of your field, map out the skills and knowledge you need to build. If you are unsure of what the future holds ...

As a candidate, you still have work to do, but several trends in the recruiting world will work in your favor. CareerXRoads recently listed two of the the three trends impacting Talent Acquisition as a heightened focus on relationships and candidate experience.

Throughout my career, I've point to referrals and networking as key sources of candidates for employers. CareerXRoads shows that these are increasingly being used by companies. It is therefore important for a candidate to build a network that overlaps with his or her targeted companies.

Tips for keeping your job search confidential: with the 

• Be ready to respond to questions if your employer learns that you are looking. If your employers questions relate to your LinkedIn activity, you can defer and say that you are just trying to connect with other professionals in the field to stay on top of trends and best practices.
• Don’t conduct job search tasks on your work computer or the work phone.
• Move to private areas to have job search conversations on your cell phone and/or return messages during breaks and lunch.
• Don’t post your resume to a job board
• If you do post your resume to a job board, select one your current employer isn’t using
• If you do post your resume to a job board, make your current employer anonymous. Use a general enough description so someone can’t say definitively that it is ABC company but specific enough so they know the type of company. (For example: a fortune 500 consumer products company in Chicago)
• Utilize the job board privacy settings, if available, to make your profile private.
• If a prospective employer asks for references, don’t list someone from the current company.
• If a prospective employer asks for contact names at your current company, indicated that you are conducting a confidential search, but would supply the contact when it is needed to finalize an offer. Use the same language when a prospective employer asks to check your references.
• Since networking is such an important part of your search, I would still recommend establishing a profile on LinkedIn. Just make sure that the publically viewable part of your profile, online discussions, and personal updates don’t indicate that you are in an active search. You will need to utilize private communications and offline conversation more than online or group interactions.

#jobsearch

Back in 2010, I wrote a magazine article that talked about using Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter in people’s personal and professional lives. While the social media tools have expanded enormously, the strategy for incorporating these tools have stayed the same.

1. Establish a plan and outline your goals.  This will be your guide on which sites to use and what you post.

2. Start somewhere.  You do not have to use all the sites.  If you are already using Facebook, see how you can expand your presence.  If you aren’t using anything, set up a professional profile on LinkedIn and connect with colleagues. LinkedIn is still one of professional networking communities.

3. Monitor and manage your internet presence.  You need to be aware of what is online by you and about you.  Google yourself to see what appears.  

4. Revise online profiles to fit your outlined goals and use social networking sites to create positive content.  Twitter is an easy way to share your expertise.  Searches will consider the content you create and who links back to it.

​#Career #JobSearch

If you don't know your skills and can't talk about them with others, how is your boss or a prospective employer supposed to see and understand your skills?

The advice and exercises in the Self Assessment page will help you identify your strengths, identify those skills you enjoy using, and describe examples of your work. These steps will ensure that you can offer proof of a competency. 

If you are contemplating a larger transition, these steps can break what you accomplished out of the box within which you worked and reframe them for the new field.

What are your first thoughts about what you do best? Make a list that is a working document, a list you can continue to add to. You can use the Transferable Skills List PDF, linked from the page, as a prompt for skills you may have forgotten from your earlier list.

List your accomplishments (from your work history to volunteer activities; for new graduates, write down your leadership positions in college organizations). The Transferable Skills in Context PDF, linked from the page, can help you remember your accomplishments and write your stories

List examples of work and note the value of each example to current and past organizations, within and beyond the scope of your position. Think of as many examples as possible that you would like prospective employers to know about. 

These skills and stories are then used in your verbal and written communication to exercise your strengths, competencies, and their potential benefits to an employer.

#CareerAdvice #Skills

​Throughout the job search process, demonstrate the strengths that you've told the employer you possess

Attention to detail is demonstrated by using a clean resume and cover letter format that have been checked for spelling, grammar and style.

Accuntability and punctuality are demonstrated by meeting an employer's deadlines and by responding to emails and phone calls in a timely manner.

Professionalism is shown by the content and manner of your online and offline communications.

Communications and marketing is conveyed by how well you target your message in the resume, cover letter, or interview. Are you able to quickly, clearly, and concisely deliver the most relevent message? This is an example of how well you will summarize a project's progress or recommendations.

Preparedness is conveyed when you show that you did your homework before the interview. Doing research on the company, understanding the position, and preparing your stories will show an employer how you would prepare for internal or client-facing meetings.