How to undertake a secret “new job” search – much like an affair, take precautions and turn the heat up slowly

One of the advantages for the casual job seeker of the internet is to be contactable, but also to appear to your current employer that you are happy where you are. The number of business orientated social networking sites – including LinkedIn and VisualCV – means that you can say to your existing employer that you are “just” networking, while you know that your details are out there being found by recruiters and HR people.

However, suppose you need to escalate that job search to reach a quicker conclusion, to get you out of your existing hole: what tactics can you use?

The first problem and key tactic is that, much like having an illicit affair, you have to be discrete and appear to carry on in the same old routine or path. Appearing to look like a job seeker sends out all the wrong messages to both your existing employer (untrustworthy), and any potential employer (desperate), and is likely to end in an extended period of unemployment over gardening leave.

Hence, the first and only rule is to leave no evidence of your job searching in your work place. Hence while searching for work, do not use your employers infrastructure, including computers or phones. A majority of employers monitor systems usage through a clause in your contract called “bringing the company into disrepute,” they can hence keep details of websites visited by computers and calls made from phones. I have heard of people being sacked after expense accounts included the receipt for purchase of heavy weight paper, or cardboard-backed envelopes which showed up on the accompanying paperwork as “12 x CV/Resume no-bend envelopes!” All expenditure goes to a personal account, and choose to take a preference for paying cash for items and services – particularly including stationary. And don’t go using the company photocopier – a personal printer which includes a copy function can be bought for under £100/$100

Your first task is to separate your existing personal and current job contact details from your new job search self. You must keep your CV/Resume, eMail correspondence, and anything and everything related to your job search on your home computer. This may mean obtaining:

• a new free web-based eMail account specifically for job searching. For instance, if you have AOL and Hotmail accounts, get a gMail account
• a new PAYG cellphone. You could use your home phone answering machine, but it is often difficult to access and always comes with the “I have to tell the other people who I live with” secrecy consequence compromises of your job search. As it is initially for incoming calls, no need for more than the standard starter credit which can cost you from £30/$50 upwards. Please make sure that you record a voice mail message, that clearly states your availability and eMail address
• I would also recommend optionally a PO Box for mail. At around £15/$20/month, a relative bargain

Security of these details is sacrosanct – any leak and unemployment is almost inevitable, so don’t leak them to anyone outside those who need to know. For instance, if you have a Plaxo account, or similar MSOutlook back-up service, don’t put these in your own Plaxo details. They will replicate to all of your contacts, which probably includes your boss! Only once in the job search do you get the excuse in this entire exercise to create a new person identity, so call it something different to your normal choice, which could be for instance: a holiday destination; a name from your year of birth in the phone book; or a name from the newspaper. At NO point will you be using this “identity name,” it is just a point to store your new job search contact details.

Secondly, create a new CV/Resume, or polish up the old one. Make sure it reflects your new career goals and requirements – and include your new job search contact details. But you must be very careful where you post, so only post on job sites where you can keep your employer history and contact information confidential. Monster for instance provides such a facility, which means you can still be found by recruiters and HR people, but your details are confidential and they can only post to you – it is then your choice whether you respond. Store the final document at an easy-access secure document location, such as Google Docs, which allows you quickly to send it out to any CV/Resume requests – but clearly don’t publish it in public!

Thirdly, you can now polish up your existing online profiles. Make sure these are aligned with your new skills and new CV/Resume. On LinkedIn, you can tick a box from an options list which states whether or not you wish to be contacted, while an other option asks if you are interested in new job or contracting opportunities. Most professionals do tick these boxes, and they are just options – but it is not as blatant as posting your CV/Resume across an open jobs site.

During your search, you may find it difficult to make contact with potential employers during work hours – and hence although you may get some contact, following this up will prove difficult. Everyone should take a lunch hour, so use yours to find:

• a place or location where you can go which is away from the work place, and quiet enough in which to conduct a 15min conversation. Your car could be a good option, but make sure the location you park has great cellphone coverage
• a public library or alternately an internet café which gives access to computer terminals. Libraries are good as they provide “cover story” opportunities as to why you are going to the library. Alternately, find a public access Wifi location, such as Starbucks

You now have locations in which to take lunch, and follow up on job search eMails and detail requests.

When you get to the interview stage, try scheduling them at points of the day when it is easier and causes less suspicion. This could either be in the morning or late afternoon, and away from normal office “busy” periods such as monthly or quarterly target or finance period closes. On the day of the interview, if you don’t wear a suit in to work normally, then don’t on the interview day – use a suitcase, or leave your clothes in the car and allow time to change on the way. Men, at the start of your job search, start shaving in a presentable to interview fashion every day – if you want to keep your beard, then trim it. If you suddenly turn up on one day well shaven, then you either have a hot date or are going for an interview!

During your job search, keep a diary and plan of progress – monitoring will tell you what channels are working, to put more effort into them.

Most importantly, always be discrete and try to keep the number of people you tell below four. Only tell those you can trust, which I suggest is family only and no co-workers – it will some how inevitably always get back to your boss!

Job searching can be fun, but you always need to take some sensible cautions just to make sure your existing job is not lost before you have a signed contract for the new job: until that point, it is never secured and assured.

Good Luck!

Credit crunch to real economy – 1million migrant workers going home: job seekers need to look at their core competencies

The credit crunch is now leading to a severe downturn in the real economy, and creating severe problems for job seekers.

Firstly, we had the credit crunch. As a result of various bans not lending to each other, and a 40% drop in stock and equity values, Oxford Economics estimates that 194,000 jobs will go from the London markets in the next two years. The London borough of Tower Hamlets it estimates will be highly effected, with half of its 18,000 financial services employee residents made redundant out of a total workforce of 38,000

Secondly, we had the downturn in the housing market. Effectively recruitment in the construction industry is non-existent, while the estate agent sector is now suffering.

And now we have the result on the high street, resulting in spending on the service food and clothes sectors down turning, and UK plc heading for an inevitable recession.

Where will this end, where will this turn – and is there any hope of employment?

The answer for the job seeker is to follow the Boy Scout’s motto, and BE PREPARED, and hence be flexible.

The first up turn has been in HR services. With so many people being reviewed, there is a UK national shortage of HR specialists. This in turn has led to growth in the insolvency and financial restructuring sectors. And all this pressure, plus the rise of 50% alone in the Polish Zloty in the past 18months, has led to many Eastern Europeans going home – an estimate of 1,000,000 over the next two years, with 250,000 already gone. This leaves spaces in the service sector unfilled

What does this mean for the unemployed or the job seeker? If for instance you are a financial services professional, the conclusion of all the data is that financial services jobs will not becoming back soon in the same volumes. To find new employment quickly and at a higher ratio, you need to think about your transferable competencies which could be transferred to another sector. Sales, HR and finance skills are the same sales, HR and finance competencies in any sector, not just financial services.

Please, in this financial downturn, and if faced with unemployment, think about your transferable skills. Your chances of employment just by doing so will have risen by three fold.

Good Luck!

The Google CV/Resume – what an employer may find out about you

Having written your CV/Resume, and having sent it off, are you wondering what a future employer may be thinking about you? Well, why not find out first by typing your name into Google – the result is your Google CV or Google Resume

I have written another article here about the pros/cons of an online CV, and the need to tidy up your online profile before applying for any new positions. But a simple test any employer can undertake is to check your Google reputation.

To check your Google CV/Resume, simply tap your name into Google – it is that easy. What comes up – is there anything that might embarrass you, or deter a potential employer from picking up the phone and calling you?

You won’t reach this stage unless your CV/Resume engages them and you get beyond the “thank you for your application” rejection pile, but the same reasons for rejection thought process occurs here. The second stage this task may be undertaken is literally just before an interview – a last minute thing.

No hire/fire decisions will be made on what is found at your Google CV/Resume. But an interview/don’t interview decision could be made, and a few pointers to some great interview questions can be found.

Good Luck!

How do you retain focus in your CV/Resume with a broad experience level?

Barry asks: How do you retain focus in you CV/Resume with a broad experience level? Does demonstrating experience in other realms provide an accelerated path for promotion? How often should you tailor your CV/Resume - per position or per company? How important is it to take risks to stand out from the crowd, i.e., even stooping to what seem like obvious, gimmicky advertising ploys?

In answer:
Demonstrating that you do things well is always a positive on a CV/Resume. The final answer is in this case is always post specific, and would depend on the job position.

Most of the time varied experience would be beneficial, but having a lack of direction can backfire, even for the most qualified candidates. This problem is most often faced in career change candidates. I have hence counselled clients to downplay or exclude certain accomplishments from a CV/Resume, when their inclusion may cause an employer to doubt your focus or commitment.

In terms of tailoring a CV/Resume to a particular position, the answer is yes. If done correctly, reiterating key words from a job posting or perhaps rearranging your accomplishment-based bullets so they tie back to requirements listed for a position is just one more thing that you can do to try to get your resume into the 'call' pile.

And one last point: forget the gimmicks! Just apply the age of old lesson of matching the job specification with the words in your CV/Resume. Stand out for the right reasons, not ones which could easily backfire on you: would you employ a joker who didn't know when to be an adult?

Good Luck!

Making long term career choices

Saba asks: Which one, Business Analyst or a Product Manager is a better job role from long term career perspective ? I am about to change my current job but am a little confused. I have two different offers with me right now and I wanted to make a decision based on what field will take me more further up to reach top management roles. One position is of a Business Analyst and the other one is of a Product Manager. I am very much aware of the fact that many small companies have one person working as both. So that adds up more to my confusion. I want to work in a position that offers more learning and there are plenty offers out there in the market when I decide to switch and leave this job and off course also the one which will lead me to join my dream companies like Microsoft or Google. Also please guide me if I join the business analyst role, would this mean that I cant get a Product Manager job role in future? Thank you so much.

In answer:
I don't think this is a question of which is better, but more which is ideal for you and your career.

Generally, Business Analysts take customer problems and convert them into company focused and based product/solutions: they work from a customer view point. Product Managers are marketers with a fixed solution - the answer is the product, now what's the problem? They fund product development and market position from purchase revenues: they work from a product and hence company view point

As a general rule, its better to get closer to the customer and revenue stream early in your career to enhance career longevity: successful sales people can always move to marketing or management, where as its difficult for product people to move forward or across a company.

The questions always to answer to yourself when thinking about a career move are:

(a) What floats your boat? What gets you going in the morning, and would make you get out of bed with enthusiasm at least 4 days out of five to do that job?
(b) What will the choice of change look like on your CV/Resume? How will you explain it to the HR manager who interviews you for the job after this one?

A good career plan should make the choice for you, and if you think about your long term goals the fripperies of the enhancement of one post versus the long term skill and competencies gains of the other towards those ultimate aims should prove decisive.

One final thought: as a 22year veteran of the telecommunications world myself, I have seen many well paid and enthusiastic Business Analysts, but few happy Product Managers after their product is more than 18months old: your career opportunity as a product manager is defined by the life cycle of your product. This often means you go from being the cream of the crop to an also ran quickly, and then trying to find a new opportunity with an old and commodity product on your CV/Resume often becomes difficult

Good Luck!