The Career Management

All things considered, this is not the best of times for switching jobs in India. This country has seen a fair bit of negative fallout of the economic problems in Europe and the US, and most MNCs in India are tightening their belts on recruitment. If you are looking to get a senior-level job in one of the bigger corporates, you will need to rethink the traditional job switching strategies.

Move Beyond Job Portals

To begin with, move beyond job portals like Naukri.com and Monster.com. In the current scenario, these platforms may not offer you what you are looking for. While they do serve their purpose at certain job levels, they may not be of great help to those seeking high-level placements. In times when good jobs are hard to come by, all you will find on these portals is the jobs that are not being filled because they are less than lucrative.

Remember that the HR departments of most MNCs have their own trusted recruitment routes and networks, and turning to job portals is usually their last option. Even when the occasional senior management job pops up there, your chances of your application getting short-listed are pretty slim. The queue is simply too long.

How To Get Through To Real Decision Makers

If you are looking for a senior management job today, your only real hope is to get face-time with senior decision makers within such companies. If you attempt to do this via the company’s HR department, the odds are heavily stacked against you. As already mentioned, the HR department of this company would already be in contact with the most suitable candidates in their database. You, as a stranger to this database, are therefore a wild card at best.

How do you manage to meet the senior decision makers and bypass the HR route? Tap into your own industry contacts and start working upwards till you get an email ID, a mobile number or a direct line. Remember not to shoot straight for the top. There is no point in talking to the CEO, since he or she will probably not be aware of the company’s managerial needs. Also, CEOs are unlikely to entertain unsolicited calls or emails, which would usually be fielded by their PAs. What you need is a direct line to the head of the department you are aiming to join.

Upgrade Your Resume to Reflect Your Achievements

Sit down with your existing resume and mercilessly edit out everything that looks like window dressing. Forget about your hobbies and club memberships. Never mind your personal objectives or ‘mission statement’. In a job recession, the only things that matter are your abilities to beef up a company’s bottom line.

Succinctly state how your skills can help make a difference to the department in terms of increased sales and greater visibility. Mention your past successes in some detail. Do not forget to include credible references. If you find yourself stumped, using a good resume writing service may be a good option.

Make A Strong Case In Your Covering Letter

Once your resume has been amended, compose a brief, winning covering email, attach your updated CV and send it to your designated ‘mark.’ If you have a phone number, follow up with a call later in the day. Explain that you are eager for a personal meeting to discuss your potential worth to the company. This direct and forthright approach is very likely to get you noticed. It emphasizes the fact that you have courage and conviction, and that you know what it takes to get something done.

Follow Up Strategically

Sending your resume is the start of the game, not the end – the action starts now. Make sure you follow up periodically. Find out if someone else knows the decision maker and get a reference call to him or her. It is all about making your case stronger than that of other possible applicants. However, temper your follow-ups with prudence – you do not want to seem desperate, either.

Networking In Conferences Works

The other way is to increase networking opportunities so that you can bump into senior executives at conferences, seminars and panel discussions. It would work best if your are actively participating in the event, since you could strike strategic conversations. In the course of such conversations, it becomes easy to infer that you would be interested in working for the organization. Often, companies sponsor executives for such events. However, my advice would be to not shy away from investing in an entry ticket. It pays off in the long run.

Visit the Human Resources Blog for more insights and articles on human resources development.

Jappreet Sethi has over a decade of experience across various facets of HR and holds a masters degree in Sociology. He is a certified black belt in Six sigma and has certifications in various psychometric instruments like MBTI, FIRO and CPI.

Jappreet has restructured a number of business processes to increase efficiency and reduce turnaround time. He brings strong project management and business partnering skills to the table. He is also extensively trained in group dynamics and leadership development using behavioral labs.

First impressions count more than ever during the interview process. The majority of the time employers make up their minds about a candidate soon after meeting them and sometimes before the interview has even started. So it is important to know what not to do so you can prevent making any mistakes that could ruin your chances before you even answer any questions. So here are some common mistakes you need to definitely avoid:

Arriving late – You must ensure you arrive at least 10 minutes early. Plan your journey the day before and leave plenty of time to get to your interview and allow time for any delays. If you do find yourself stuck in an unavoidable situation such as train delays, always make sure you have the employers contact details so you can inform them immediately.

Seeming disinterested – Do not turn up unprepared as they will assume you don’t want the job. Make sure you do your homework and learn as much as you can about the company and the job you are applying for. Read through your CV to refresh your memory as you will be asked questions about it and have some examples of past experiences and skills relevant to the job.

Bad mouthing past employers – The worst thing you can do is to say negative things about your previous employers or employees. Even if you have nothing nice to say, always put a positive spin on it. The interviewer will not want to hire someone that holds any bitterness towards previous employers.

Answering your phone – Turn your phone off or leave it at home. Answering a phone call in the middle of an interview is rude and unacceptable.

Making Jokes – Humour can be a good way to lighten up the mood however if you make the wrong jokes you can run the risk of offending the employer. At an interview you want to show that you are professional and are serious about the job so it’s best to stay clear of making any jokes.

Dressing Inappropriately – Phone the company beforehand and ask about the dress code and dress accordingly. For example retail jobs such as a clothing outlet will require you to look stylish and trendy. Even if they dress casually in the workplace, always dress smart/casual as it is better to overdress than under dress. Ladies you will need to dress conservatively so nothing too short, tight or anything that shows too much cleavage.

Over the past couple of decades, I have started several businesses; some have worked, and some have not. Even those ventures falling short of expectations provided an excellent learning experience. In other words, I didn’t see much revenue, but I learned what not to do in the future.

Business ownership is not for everyone, to be sure. Starting a business means that you are fully accountable for all work, including marketing, IT, operations, finance, accounting, and janitorial services. You are first, second, and third on the depth chart.

For some of us, owning a business is in our blood. My grandmother had a talent to find new work opportunities, and my mother has owned several successful businesses. For others, launching a business is spurred by a strong area of expertise, such as development of apps for mobile technologies. Finally, some are considering entrepreneurship because of the difficulty in finding full-time work during the recent downturn in the economy.

Here are three signs indicating that business ownership might be right for you:

#1: You want to control the level of income.

There are many who believe that self-employment is too risky. However, the counterargument is that working for others carries even more risk. Employers must only give someone two-weeks notice regarding termination, and losing one’s job is not always related to poor performance. Thus, even if you are doing well, you can be shown the door.

When you operate a business, whether as a global project management consultant or seller of luxury watches, you are largely in control of your income. By finding the right niche, and providing unparalleled customer service, you can create excellent wealth.

#2: You are not allowed to use your creative mind.

Bureaucracy is part of corporate America, and it’s getting worse. New regulations, such as SOX and HIPAA, are requiring even more controls, which leads to more layers of management, creating bottlenecks throughout the system. The more controls that are place, the more red tape we encounter, which invariably stifles creativity.

Entrepreneurs are creative people. We have a unique way of visualizing how our product or service can improve the lives of our customers. When we cannot use our creative minds in the workplace, we start looking for business opportunities where we are the decision-makers.

#3: You understand the magic word known by all business owners: Freedom!

Any true entrepreneur knows the importance of creating one’s schedule, and doing the work that is driven by passion and desire. This is freedom! When we are doing what we love, it’s no longer work. We enjoy getting to work early in the morning, staying late into the night, and even spending weekend time to complete our activities.

Rest assured that business owners spend the hours necessary to get the work done. The difference, though, is that they do the planning. They determine what work will get done, and when it’s scheduled. Having this control is important to entrepreneurs.

The timing to start a business is different for every person. You can begin the process part-time. Get to know the business and industry. Build the skills you need, and put away the necessary capital to support the start-up process. Even if you are not ready to make the decision today, it’s critical that you begin researching the possibilities.

Finally, and perhaps most important, avoid heeding advice from those with little knowledge about business ownership. If you have the passion, and the timing is right, go for it. If the product or service is right, and you provide excellent customer service, the chances of success skyrocket.

Dr. Jimmie Flores,PhD,PMP,ITIL,SSBB,SPHR,GPHR is a seasoned organizational development and continuous improvement professional with 20 years of experience. In 2006, he founded the Flores Consulting Group, a company based in San Antonio, TX. Dr. Flores is also an expert in project management, ITIL, Six Sigma, Entrepreneurship, and Sports Officiating.

You know what you came here to do. It’s the big dream that you haven’t shared with anyone yet – but you’ve dreamt it over and over again for many years.

You know you’re here to help people and to make money. You have all the skills and experience you need to manifest this work successfully. First you have to get past the bogeyman (or what I call the “pitiful self”).

There is a self-doubt deep inside of you that makes you pull back just before you take the brave step into the light of your new direction, the work you came here to do.

It’s time to override that voice of the pitiful self and take your leap of faith into unknown territory. This is your moment, and it’s what you came here to do.

You’re here to be an explorer, a settler of unknown territory, a prospector into the divine. It’s why you came to planet earth, not to hide out in your self-doubt confinement.

There’s new territory waiting to be discovered by only you with the unique gifts you brought with you. This is sacred ground waiting to be blessed by your unsteady feet, and your children are watching to see how far you will go down the unknown path. They will, of course, go farther than you in their time. But you can make important progress for them, progress that gives them a better chance at success.

Who will your children be after they watch you cringe at the mention of change? Where will your children go after they listen to your misery about a world where no one gets to be successful doing what they love? Who will they be after watching you suffer every day because of a career that doesn’t fit your true gifts?

That voice of self doubt, the pitiful self, is an essential part of being human. It’s inside all of us. It pulls us back to the limited mind, to the limited consciousness that lives within the body. This heavy burden of limited flesh and a scattered mind is what we signed up for when we came here to evolve.

Yet the pain and self-doubt is designed to become our fuel for doing our great work – for offering to the world what we wish had been offered to us. Will you let your pain and doubt stop you now from living up to the mission you came here to accomplish? Or will you use it as your fuel for moving forward? It’s your choice. Everything depends on your decision.

You intended to use your energy (fueled by pain and doubt) to manifest greatness through your work, to push consciousness to a new level, to help make life on planet earth magnificent for everyone. Your children still carry that dream in their DNA. Will you diminish their dreams with your own fear?

Wake up! Take a deep breath. Fill your body with the light of new ideas! Open your eyes and ask gratefully, “Who did I come here to be?” You are not here to be afraid! Take a bold step in your true direction, the one you’ve always been afraid to take, the one that’s bigger than the rest – the unspeakably great one. That’s your true mission and your next step. Everyone is waiting.

Here are six steps to get you going:

1. Meditate, pray, or at least unplug for 20 minutes every morning to get your own powerful intuitive guidance – which is very different from your fear voice.

2. Understand your path and mission by studying the numbers in your date of birth to learn what they mean about your career.

3. Make a list of three baby steps you could take this week to investigate your next career step – the one that’s in alignment with both your path and dreams.

4. Use humor, gratitude, dreaming, and meditation or prayer to raise your energy and override the pitiful self.

5. Dream a little dream every night and write it down in the morning. Before you lay down to sleep, ask for intuitive guidance through your dreams. When you awake, write down everything you can remember.

6. This week take three baby steps into unknown territory and don’t look back.