In today’s difficult economy, people are finding it harder and harder to find a job, especially one that they like. One Filipino supervisor who has worked for the Federal government for more than ten years was laid off more than a year ago and is still on the quest for his next job. “I got interviewed for a position last week,” he confided to close friends. “We were more than one hundred applicants and the agency said they will only get one person. Ang hirap talaga (It’s really hard),” he admitted.
In an exclusive interview with Asian Journal, David Claeys, author of the e-book, A Job Seeker’s Guide, shared, “In this volatile job market you will need a competitive edge. With competition for jobs rising, job seekers need a guide to assist them to become successful in this tight job market,” said David, the CEO of Technology Recruitment (LLC), a staffing and consulting agency, who has over 26 years of staffing industry experience in the US market.
Claeys has placed hundreds of individuals in most all job classifications from President and CEO’s, IT professionals to clerks and most all job classifications in-between. He attended the University of Arizona, majoring in Industrieal Engineering and Management. He has lectured and given seminars in the US and Europe on TQM (Total Quality Management and Staffing) and is the author of several published articles aside from his e-book A Job Seeker’s Guide.David has written many articles for LA Times on staffing, and gives advice, such as, how to conduct an effective job search campaign, self-assessment, resume writing, interview counseling, job evaluation, job search action planning, and how to develop a competitive edge.
Married to a beautiful Filipina, Sylvia Gochuico, for more than two decades now, Claeys naturally has a soft spot for Pinoys.
“Landing a job includes a lot of preparation. You prepare yourself by making a good resume, doing a lot of research, going to career and job fairs, and being active in social networking. You must give a powerful and professional first impression so prepare for an interview well. You must invest in yourself and your future by giving yourself an edge. Stand out among the other candidates by presenting your best image,” said David Claeys.
“The job search process is a series of actions that has one goal, which is to find employment. Through each step, of your search you must keep in mind how am I being perceived, and am I being positive? The first crucial step begins with your resume format and content. The purpose of the resume is to showcases your skills, experience and achievements. View your resume as a door opener, a document designed to get you a in person interview. Don’t think the resume is not important, because if you can’t get past this step the hiring process will stop here for you! You will have only 30 to 40 seconds to capture their interest and want to read more,” shared Claeys.
Help your resume win the attention it deserves by following these up-to-date tips.
- Keep it short, tightly written, and focused, as hiring managers quickly lose interest in wordy resumes that don’t get right to the point.- Make sure you showcase your past achievements by listing them at the beginning of your resume and utilize action verbs to begin each achievement listed.
- Be results-oriented and quantify your accomplishments.
- Show what sets you apart from others.
- Specify what ou can do to help an employer.
- Make sure it conveys a desire to do quality work.
- Does it give the reader a desire to know more about me?
“Remember resumes should be promotional, as the goal is to get an interview where you can really sell yourself,” added David.
Sandra Cordero, a former Recruiting Coordinator of WebVisible, Inc. has this advice for young job-seekers:
- Build your network. You never know where your next big break will come from.- Use social networking to your advantage. Follow job sites on Twitter, create a LinkedIn, and update your work information on Facebook. Clean up your Facebook so that employers won’t get a bad impression of you.
- Figure out what you actually want to do. When you’ve identified your goals, it’s easier to reach them.
- Look at these hard times as an opportunity to be creative. Utilize the resources around you and build your own doors for you to walk through.
- Be smart with your time. While you are unemployed, read books on your field, enroll in classes, or volunteer. Never stop learning.
- Don’t be afraid of unpaid internships. The experience is priceless and the company will remember you when a full-time job you are suited for becomes available.
- Don’t get discouraged. Your attitude may be affecting your interview or even your application process.
As if finding a job isn’t hard enough, Pinoy job seekers sometimes also find the issue of race challenging, just like others belonging to the ethnic minority community. The law is clear that racial discrimination should have no place in employment. Many companies have adopted policies and procedures to support this aspiration. But cause for concern persists.
In Perceived Racism in the Workplace: A Survey, an online research conducted by Marty Nemko, among the respondents, 27 percent believed their race hurt them in getting a job, being promoted, salary, and/or training opportunities.And this is not limited to America. In England, for example, government researchers sent out 3,000 similar job applications using names recognizably either Asian, African or traditionally British. On average an applicant who appeared to be white gained a positive reply after nine attempts while the other candidates needed 16 applications.
However, there are companies that are very conscious about equality and ethnic diversity and which make it a point to hire minorities. It would be helpful if jobseekers look for jobs in such companies.
Look at the images as well as the words on recruiters’ websites. At careers fairs and recruitment events you can question company representatives on their attitude to diversity.
Employers committed to diversity can also be found through a few employment agencies that specialize in this field, such as Asian Jobsite and Path National.
Whatever background you come from it is essential to invest time and effort into your future career. Make sure all your applications and resumes are of high quality.
For young people, it is important that they invest in their career from early on at university. Get involved in a range of activities; this will help potential employers to see you as someone who can fit in with their staff from a range of backgrounds. To demonstrate that you match the full requirements of employers you will need to refer to extra-curricular activities as well as your studies. If you have taken part in community, religious and voluntary activities, these may provide the necessary examples of what you are able to achieve while collaborating with other people. You may be tempted to play down such involvement, but this could weaken your application.
It is always worth visiting your university careers service to discuss what to include in your job applications, or any other issues concerning your search for employment. Many students and graduates struggle to obtain their first career role after studying in a university.
It is noteworthy to know that for each position with a top graduate recruiter attracted an average of almost 50 applications in 2009. Today, that number has gone up exponentially.
For more tips on landing a good job, David Claey’s book and other free information is available at http://www.thejobsearchstore.com or http://www.thejobseekersguide.com.
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Midweek April 6-8, 2011 MDWK pg.2)
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