I started in the search business in 1972 (GASP!) and it didn’t take long for me to notice a few simple, yet understandable behaviors among employers.
They include:
The longer someone is looking for work, the few choices they have. Companies start to look at your resume and believe that others have interviewed you and found your skills lacking so why should they waste their time meeting you?
The longer that someone is out of work, the less negotiating leverage someone has come salary negotiations. Firms often adopt the attitude of giving you two choices when they make an offer—Take it. Leave it. They act from the belief that you don’t have many choices (and they are probably right) so they don’t feel a great need to extend themselves.
If you’ve been out of work in your field for a year, it is hard (or impossible) to re-enter at the same level . . . if at all.
For those of you whose resumes indicate that you worked for your last employer until 2005, I encourage you to hustle during the next few months to find something . . .anything . . . even if it means profound compromise (to you) because, with 2007 just around the corner, your choices will become microscopic and the likelihood of you returning to your career as you’ve known it unlikely.
Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com
© 2006 all rights reserved.
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter, is Managing Director with Concepts in Staffing, a New York search firm, He has successfully assisted many corporations identify management leaders and staff in technology, accounting, finance, sales, marketing and other disciplines since 1971. He is a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and a practicing psychotherapist.
To subscribe to Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, go to www.headhuntyournextjob.com. To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you or search for openings, go to http://www.jeffaltman.com. For information about personal search services, go to www.vippersonalsearch.com.
If you would like Jeff and his firm to assist you with hiring staff, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to him at jeffaltman@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).
