Wisconsin Jobing Community Blogs

Employers, do you know about FUEL Milwaukee? Not only is it a great networking resource to pass along to your employees, FUEL is an "economic development initiative of the MMAC ... working to strengthen the region's business base to attract and retain jobs and the talent to fill them."

Next up, is their August 6th employer-strengthening event, "Google It!"  Read below for a full description of this must-see event, and get the full event agenda here.

FUEL Event: Google It!
"Landing the top spot on Fortune Magazine’s “Best Places to Work” list is no simple feat – even for an internet giant like Google, Inc. Named America’s # 1 employer for two consecutive years, Google offers “unconventional” workplace perks like telecommuting, at-work daycare, onsite fitness centers, dog playgrounds and pajama day!"

"It seems convention is a thing of the past when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent, evidenced by Google’s minimal turnover and the more than 1,500 resumes received daily from hopeful job-seekers. So, it didn’t seem a stretch when FUEL Milwaukee decided to Google It in “search” of a company that could help us celebrate the regional winners of the 2008 Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility."

"Earning the distinction as top practitioners of workplace flexibility, ten employers from the Milwaukee Region will accept the prestigious Sloan Award, which is given in conjunction with the Families and Work Institute’s ongoing, national initiative to promote workplace flexibility and effectiveness as competitive business strategies. Randy Knaflic, a Milwaukee native and Staffing and Recruiting Manager for Google will offer a view into the way Google works, while substantiating the value of flexible workplace policies as demonstrated by these winning companies:

Clifton Gunderson * Deloitte * Ernst & Young * KPMG LLP 
* Kahler Slater, Inc. * Laughlin/Constable
* Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce
* Robert W. Baird & Co * Tushaus Computer Services Inc.
* West Bend Mutual Insurance Company * Milwaukee Magazine (honorable mention)

Register today to learn more about America's top gig and congratulate Milwaukee's Sloan Award winners. "

Join the Fox Valley Chapter SHRM (FVSHRM) at the 4th Annual "Diversity Day" at Bridgewood Conference Center in Neenah!  Amy Oberg, Futurist/Strategist, will provide some insight into how your organization can better understand the emerging competitive environment and how women and minorities have a critical impact on ensuring the future success of an organization.  Ms. Oberg has over 25 years of cumulative experience and her advice has been sought out by organizations in a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, energy, telecommunications, transportation, consumer goods, real estate and finance.

The morning also includes a small group discussion on ethnic and cultural backgrounds in business and a panel discussion on what employer's can do to help transition these employees into the workforce.  The panel will also talk about New North and how this can be a resource for HR Professionals.         

If you are interested in attending, please register online today!

By now, you may have heard of-and even utilized-online social networking through the various sites available to the technically savvy, including Plaxo, LinkedIn, Naymz, Twitter, FaceBook, Ryze, and a host of others. However, you may not have realized the intensity that using these powerhouses can have on your job search.

To spell it out most succinctly, preserving job mobility, whether you're merely maintaining your professional value or actively seeking your next leadership role, is core to stayed employed in one form or another. And, as you'll find, the robust qualities and rapidly growing population of leading online networking sites make them a gold mine of opportunities for doing precisely that.

Most executives who have accessed these sites simply log in, create a profile, wander around a bit, and place a few connections. This, according to many social networking experts, means you may be missing out on the true value.

In my special report "When Employers Google You, What Will They Find? 5 Effective Techniques for Managing Your Digital Dirt," I've pointed out that maintaining an online social networking profile is crucial to a job search at the upper echelon.

After all, executive recruiters WILL be looking for information about you on the Web. Maintaining a fresh, well-connected profile ensures that YOU will be in charge of what the world reads about your background.

Here are 5 tips that will bring your online networking knowledge up to speed and allow you to maximize your efforts during a career transition:

1 - Build your profile information carefully.
After creating a profile, typically a simple process that allows you to edit key pieces of information, you'll notice that most sites allow you to add a professional summary. This is where I'd advise against simply using the classic summary information on your executive resume.

Instead, create a bullet-point list of career highlights that includes some of your skills, your leadership expertise in particular areas, and your top achievements.

Remember that what you add is searchable by others who might be looking for you. This means that executive recruiters can search for you by occupation and location, so be sure to add a title such as "Chief Technology Officer" or "Operations Director" to generate hits on your profile.

My recommendation? Log in, and take a look around at others' profiles to gain some ideas.

2 - Maintain visibility.
When you first sign up, most networking sites will remind you to add connections through email addresses. Don't limit this activity to your first sign-in! Keep on adding connections, rather than merely dumping the contents of your email address book in once and then forgetting about it.

Frequently finding others with which to connect serves two purposes:  it keeps your profile on top of Web searches for your name (since search engines love fresh content), and it maintains a business presence for those who read your profile.

3 - Use the site search functions to aid your job hunt.
One of the best-kept strategies for approaching contacts is this:  after identifying a target company where you want to work, analyze a networking site to find company insiders, especially HR resources or, better yet, C-suite executives interested in your leadership skills.

Send your resume by the method requested on the company's website, and then send an additional note to the contacts you find. Be sure to indicate that you have already sent a resume, and wanted to use the networking site to forward another letter of interest to them.

4 - Avail yourself of the extra functions.
Some sites, such as LinkedIn, contain engines that allow you to have additional job search capability at your fingertips through access to major job boards.

In addition, LinkedIn and other sites contain forums where you can view and participate in question-and-answer activity with other members-further establishing your reputation as an expert and thought leader in your field.

5 - Regularly educate yourself on the optimum usage of each site.
There are numerous ways to promote yourself as a leadership candidate using social networking sites-and someone is constantly coming up with more methods.

You can easily access training curriculums, blogs, and other resources that will bring you up to speed. In fact, enhancing your online presence has never been easier!

For example, Jason Alba's book, "I'm On LinkedIn, Now What???", offers an in-depth look at the power of this popular site for professionals and executives in career transition.

In short, it pays to be aware of the impact your online presence can have on your job search. Accelerate your efforts by maintaining a profile that may prove to be instrumental to your success.

Laura Smith-Proulx, Certified Career Management Coach, Certified Professional Resume Writer, and Certified Interview Coach, is the Executive Director of An Expert Resume, a career services firm that caters to organizational leaders. Published in six career bestsellers, she is a former corporate recruiter who works with executives and IT leaders to present a powerful and compelling leadership brand.

The most important key to remember when writing a resume is to grab the reader's attention early. The best way to do this is to tell the reader what's in it for them. In other words, tell the reader exactly what you will do for their company – give the him or her a reason to keep reading. These reasons should be stated at the very top of your resume in an area called the career summary.

I firmly believe that the career summary should take the place of the more commonly used "career objective," because an objective only tells a would-be employer what you WANT to do as opposed to what you CAN do. So, right under your name and contact information, bullet point a list of quantifiable results that you've achieved. Don't just list previous job responsibilities, give specific examples of your greatest achievements by using the Challenge-Action-Results (CAR) formula as detailed by in this article by professional resume writer and personal brand coach, Abby Locke.

Here's an example of a quantifiable result: Through the strategic development of new marketing materials and innovative direct mail campaigns, I consistently increased sales by an average of 15 percent per quarter over a two year period despite a slumping market.

Here is the CAR formula for the above example:
Challenge: A slumping sales market

Action: The implementation of strategic marketing materials and techniques

Result: increased sales by 15% per quarter

With three to five opening statements like this, you're sure to grab your reader's attention right off the bat. Then, you can be sure that the meat of your resume - your work and educuation history - will actually be read.

When the average job seeker finds a position of interest, typically an application/resume is submitted and the waiting game begins.  The job seeker waits to be called for interview scheduling and waits again to be called with a job offer.  Alter this approach by taking ownership of the job search.  The trick to owning your job search is follow-up.  Don’t just submit an application/resume, interview for a position and keep your fingers crossed for a job offer.  Launch your job search campaign with focus on follow-up.    

As with any other job search, begin by submitting an application for a position of interest.  If you fill out an online application, consider following up by mailing a hard copy resume and cover letter to reiterate your interest.  One week after applying, place a follow-up call to the company.  Inquire about the hiring process and when interview scheduling is expected to commence.  An interview might not be scheduled at that moment, but your resume was just moved to the top of the stack – this will work in your favor. 

The next step in any successful job search is meeting with potential employers in a formal interview setting.  During your meeting, the follow-up should already be started.  When the opportunity arises, ask questions like:  How long are interviews being conducted? Or, when should I anticipate hearing from you with your decision?  Before leaving your interview, ask for a business card.  Not only does this show your business and networking savvy, it also ensures that you have the proper name spelling, title, address and direct phone line of your interviewers to follow up. 

Following the meeting, a thank note should be written immediately.  Not only will the interview details be fresh, but the risk of a late arriving thank you letter will be eliminated.  Waiting a few days to write and send the letter means it will take a week or more to be delivered.  If the hiring decision is made before the follow-up letter arrives, the effectiveness is lost. 

Make the follow-up letter personal.  Add specifics about the meeting including interesting conversation topics, new initiatives the company has in place and special projects of interest revealed while researching the organization.  Reminding the interviewer about your qualifications will also boost the chances of being selected for the position.  Give a few highlights about your education and professional experience.  If multiple candidates were interviewed, this is your chance to be remembered.  A follow-up letter is also a great place to point out a few details about your experience not discussed in the interview. 

If you have not heard back from the hiring party by the time the decision was scheduled to be made, place a follow-up call to demonstrate continued interest in the employment opportunity.  Sometimes candidate searches run longer than expected, so placing a follow-up call will give you an edge over the competition.    

Finally, don’t stop job searching!  Sometimes it takes a month or more for a company to officially decide on a candidate, so in the mean time, continue your quest to find a new job.  If something falls through on a job you were 110% sure was yours, time was wasted that could have been spent job searching. 

Remember to take ownership in your job search by following-up through the entire process.  By following these tips, the job search will be in your hands and you are one step closer to landing a new job.  

Mature Workers Committee Now Accepting Nominations
for "The Sterling Milwaukee" Awards 

Sterling Milwaukee is accepting nominations for mature workers age 60 and over. Nominations are take for mature workers for the following categories; Oldest Worker, Myth Buster, Loyalty Award, Spirit of Work, and Successful Career Changer.

In addition, Sterling Milwaukee is seeking nominations for outstanding employers that are mature worker friendly.

Nominations can be submitted at www.sterlingmilwaukee.com

A special ceremony will be held on Wednesday, September 24th at the Alverno College Conference Center , 3400 S. 43rd St. , from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to announce the winners.

This year’s Platinum Award will be presented to Michael Cudahy. 


About The Milwaukee Mature Worker Committee

Mission & Vision:

 

Promote older workers as an integral part of the workforce.

Foster Cooperation between older worker programs and the private sector.

Increase awareness in the community and with employers of older workers on issues such as workforce redesign, and Wisconsin workforce demographics.

Become an active network of non-profit and for-profit organizations creating supportive work environments and opportunities for older workers in the greater metropolitan Milwaukee area.

 

Announcing…

The 2008 BuySeasons, Inc.

Community Outreach Program

 

 

 

BuyCostumes.com, the world's largest online

retailer of costumes and party supplies needs YOUR help.

 

Earn up to $2600 for YOUR ORGANIZATION this Halloween Season!

 

16 Weekend hours

8 hours per Saturday or Sunday

20-25 people* per Organization

$6.50 per hour

2 days = up to $2600 (or more!) CA$H

 

Saturday/Sunday combos beginning

September 20 th through October 26 th , 2008

 

Reserve your spot today and earn money by picking, packing and supporting our warehouse staff in our brand new, state of the art facility!  All during the busiest time of year…Halloween!

 

*Perfect for athletes, recreation sports teams, high schools and community groups! Helpers must be sophomores in high school or older please. Adult supervision encouraged – 1 adult per 6 helpers.

 

Contact: David Karst, dkarst@buyseasons.com

BuyCostumes.com, a BuySeasons Inc. Company

5915 S. Moorland Rd

New Berlin, WI 53151

262-825-2537

www.BuyCostumes.com