Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter's No BS Job Search Advice

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Your Search Can End With Your Last Exit Interview

Someone I commute with received a "heads up" from her boss that her position might be eliminated as part of a consolidation caused her company being bought. A person with almost 30 years of experience, she was a classic target of downsizing and at risk of a long job search.

Except for one thing.

She remembered that at the exit interview from her previous job of almost 25 years, the Chairman of the bank she worked for before taking this job told her that if she wanted to return to contact his office.

So, that became her first call--to the Chairman's office.

Within a week, she had four interviews with the bank, 2 very good ones that offered her terrific visibility and a new job. One of the perks in the new job was the ability to add to her pension.

At the HR interview, she was told by the recruiter representing the bank that in his years with them, he had never seen an exit interview report with such glowing comments in it including the word "YES!" written twice next to the checkoff box indicating whether the person should be eligible for re-hire.

Her search began at her former employer. Yours can too if you treat the exit interview as something more than a waste of time. You don't have to accept their attempt to extend a counteroffer (nor should you in my opinion).

However, if you have built strong relationships and do NOTHING to burn bridges, you might wind up with a terrific package like my friend did.

To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search job openings, use his free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe. to subscribe Jeff’s free job search ezines, Head Hunt Your Next Job and/or Natural Selection (his free recruiting ezine), or to find out about his VIP Personal Search Agent service, go to http://www.jeffaltman.com.

If you would like Jeff and his firm to assist you with hiring staff or locating consultants, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to him at thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).

Visit DiversityJobs.com for information on Diversity in the workplace

Sunday, September 30, 2007

Your Hardest Task in Looking for a Job is Dealing With "The Question"

Imagine this scene.

You're at a gathering with family at some holiday or at a get-together with friends when someone tries to make conversation with you by asking "The Question."

Or maybe "The Question" is asked by someone out of the blue who calls you.

What's "The Question?"

"The Question" is, "how is your job search going?"

Or maybe it's "How did that interview turn out?"

We all have questions like that in life. Mine is, "How is your book coming along? It used to turn my stomach because it is asked by people who want to see me fail and have no real interest in me succeeding. Maybe your circumstances are different but those are mine.

So the hardest task you have in looking for is managing your own emotions throughout the process. Even when an interview is internal to your organization, the impact of an interview failure can be emotionally disastrous.

A friend (who i hope remains a friend after reading this) had a disastrous internal interview that would have involved a transfer. His failure was humiliating and took several months to recover from.

You cannot afford several months of recovery time after coming in second.

More than a decade ago, I ran and finished the New York Marathon and from that experience, I learned that much of life is more like a running a marathon, instead of a sprint. You need to be prepared to go longer and further than you ever have, instead of just running for 9 or 10 seconds.

This is another of those cases where patience is a virtue.

Explore some of The Big Game Hunter's products in "The Universe" series

Job Search Universe: Search thousand of Job Boards and Corporate Job Sites for job leads at the same time
Self-Employment Universe: Business Opportunities and Work-At-Home
The Consulting Universe: Search and Post Consulting Assignments and Consulting Jobs
The Diet Universe: Health & Wellness Information
The Resume Universe: Information about Resumes and Cover Letters
Personal Finance Universe: Taking Care of Your Money better
The Shopping Universe: More than a thousand stores in this mall AND help a child at the same time.

Plus

Search4Candidates.com: Refined Searching for Resumes and Candidate Leads
Indian Job Network: Network for Work in India
VIP Personal Search: Hire Your Own VIP Personal Search Agent
The Job Market Blog: Blogging and news about the job market since August 2001

Visit DiversityJobs.com for information on Diversity in the workplace

Sunday, September 16, 2007

6 Ways to Know It's Time to Go

For years, I have said that the person who gets ahead, isn't always the smartest or work the hardest . . . although those are great qualities to have. The person who gets ahead is the one who remains alert to opportunity. Sometimes those are internal to your organization. Sometimes, those are external.

On the other hand, the person who avoids professioanal disaster is the one who remains alert to signals and can "read the tea leaves." Here's what to look out for:

1. You suddenly report to someone different. If you are a senior professional, the reporting structue has changed and you now are reporting a ruing or two down from where you were reporting. If you are on staff, you are suddenly re-assigned without even the pep talk about this being the great opportunity.

2. You've gone as high as you can. Look up from your desk and see a manager or director who is around your age and content with his job. Hmm. When you ask yourself the question of "Where can I Really go from here," your answer suggests improving your skills , rather than job function because no one of value will ever leave.

3. Your firm is up for sale or was recently sold. These are pretty similar problems but slightly different. In the first case, there is a warning that business is sour or that management would like to cash out. In the second, the deal is done.

In both cases, the result will be the same--you will help the new management integrtae the operation of the two firms, transferring knowledge that will help make for a smooth operation. Then you will be invited to accept a package to leave or pushed into a dead end job. Sounds exciting!

4. Everything is just being maintained or that's the only kind of work you're assigned. The people who tend to advance are the ones who deliver new "bright shiny objects" to management--the new projects, the sexy work that makes everyone go, "Ooooooooooh." If you are being asked to maintain stuff, you are on the
Dilbert career path."

5. Your new boss is a jerk. No amount of charm on your part will ever take away the loathing you feel when you go to work because you dislike the person you work for. it is compounded if you get the idea that the feeling is mutual.

6. Your industry is on its death bed. Part of what makes a person successful is business knowledge. There was a time where the "buggy whip industry" in the US was huge. Now, you are probably wondering what I'm talking about. In 2001, every telecom firm in the world was doing extremely well. Since, some of them couldn't get themselves arrested.

If your industry is dying, it's time to go before people start attending your career funeral, too.

Giving yourself time to execute an effective job search before things reach crisis proportion is critical. If you stopped and started thinking about any of these signals, it's time to act.

NOW!

Jeff Altman

Explore some of The Big Game Hunter's products in "The Universe" series

Job Search Universe: Search thousand of Job Boards and Corporate Job Sites for job leads at the same time
Self-Employment Universe: Business Opportunities and Work-At-Home
The Consulting Universe: Search and Post Consulting Assignments and Consulting Jobs
The Diet Universe: Health & Wellness Information
The Resume Universe: Information about Resumes and Cover Letters
Personal Finance Universe: Taking Care of Your Money better

Plus

Search4Candidates.com: Refined Searching for Resumes and Candidate Leads
Indian Job Network: Network for Work in India
VIP Personal Search: Hire Your Own VIP Personal Search Agent
The Job Market Blog: Blogging and news about the job market since August 2001

Find thousands of Bilingual jobs at LatPro.com.

Saturday, September 15, 2007

The Top 25 Places for a Person to Begin a Career

The September 2007 issue of Businessweek lists these companies as the top firms to begin a career:

1. Deloitte & Touche

2. Pricewaterhouse Coopers

3. Ernst & Young

4. IBM

5. Google

6. Microsoft

7. Walt Disney

8. Acecnture

9, Lockheed Martin

10. Teach for America

11. KPMG

12. General Electric

13. Goldman Sachs

14. Boeing

15. Abbott Labs

16. Merrill Lynch

17. JPMorganChase

18. BP America

19. US State Department

20. General Mills

21. Hyatt

22. Capital One

23. Peace Corps

24. Johnson & Johnson

25. Macy's

What was noticeable to me were the number of accounting firms on the list and how well rated they were.

Jeff Altman

Explore some of The Big Game Hunter's products in "The Universe" series

Job Search Universe: Search thousand of Job Boards and Corporate Job Sites for job leads at the same time
Self-Employment Universe: Business Opportunities and Work-At-Home
The Consulting Universe: Search and Post Consulting Assignments and Consulting Jobs
The Diet Universe: Health & Wellness Information
The Resume Universe: Information about Resumes and Cover Letters
Personal Finance Universe: Taking Care of Your Money better

Plus

Search4Candidates.com: Refined Searching for Resumes and Candidate Leads
Indian Job Network: Network for Work in India
VIP Personal Search: Hire Your Own VIP Personal Search Agent
The Job Market Blog: Blogging and news about the job market since August 2001

Have You Ever Be Wrong?

People have opinions.

Most are wrong but people believe they are right about anything they say. I know that's true because, like you, I do it all the time.

I see something or someone and, when I listen to the voice that pops into my head, I notice how stupid or ridiculous those opinions are. My mind makes up stories about what that person is like-- How smart or stupid they are. How successful or what a loser they are.

As smart as I am, I have learned how ridiculous my mind can be.

When I interview people, I always ask, "Are there any firms, that for any reason, you would not consider working because of things you've heard, opinions you have? Any reason whatsoever?"

I do this, not to get into an argument but to learn the biases someone has.

So imagine my surprise when I called someone to schedule an interview and discover that my client was one of the firms that they wouldn't work for (even though I had asked them).

I listened for a while and then said, "Please go. I think your judgment of this firm smacks of the sort of criticism of people who left there some years ago. Maybe they failed. Maybe they were passed over for a promotion. I don't know. Just check it out for yourself.

"If, at the end of the day, you have the same opinion you do now, I promise I will not argue with you. I'll ask you what you saw and what gave you that idea so that I can learn from it. But I promise not to argue."

I would have kept that promise but it became unnecessary when I received a call after the person spent three hours with them and called me and said, "Jeff, I have never been so wrong about something professionally as this."

I won't go into all the details (I wouldn't be able to quote them like this anyway). They had spent three hours with them, met five people, gotten a feel for the firm and fallen in love.

So, I want to suggest to you that, when confronted by a situation like this, don't cancel the interview. Go, prepared to ask questions about the things you've heard. As my friend David did before an interview, he used Google to find former employees in the department he was interviewing for to learn about the good, the bad and the ugly about the firm so that he could ask great questions.

At the end of the day, if you don't feel differently or hear answers that make sense, if you don't trust the people or find the work boring, DON'T TAKE THE JOB.

But you may also have gotten a jaded former employees opinions that have nothing to do with you. You may, like this person, discover that the job is one you want and crave.

Jeff Altman

Explore some of The Big Game Hunter's products in "The Universe" series

Job Search Universe: Search thousand of Job Boards and Corporate Job Sites for job leads at the same time
Self-Employment Universe: Business Opportunities and Work-At-Home
The Consulting Universe: Search and Post Consulting Assignments and Consulting Jobs
The Diet Universe: Health & Wellness Information
The Resume Universe: Information about Resumes and Cover Letters
Personal Finance Universe: Taking Care of Your Money better

Plus

Search4Candidates.com: Refined Searching for Resumes and Candidate Leads
Indian Job Network: Network for Work in India
VIP Personal Search: Hire Your Own VIP Personal Search Agent

The Job Market Blog: Blogging and news about the job market since August 2001

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Have You Looked at the Stock Chart

Sometimes, people have silly ideas of a firm and its success through no more information than what seems like tea leaves or gossip.

Have you ever looked at a firm's stock chart for advice? Have you read Marketwatch, Google Finance or Yahoo Finance to geta sense of the stock and how it is doing?

I don't mean is the stock up or down for the day.

I men is the trend of the stock for the past year or two up or down? Have you read any of the business news about the stock or gotten research from your online broker?

This will help you with larger public firms and not with small firms where 85% of all new jobs are created in the US. Yes, 85% of new jobs are created by small business, rather than by the Fortune 500 behemouths you tend to think about.

For them, do Google searches (or use the search engine you prefer) to see if you can find any news about them.

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 many disciplines since 1971. He is a retired certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and a practicing psychotherapist.

To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search for openings that The Big Game Hunter is working on, to use Jeff’s free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe, to subscribe to Jeff’s free job hunting ezine, “Head Hunt Your Next Job, or his staffing ezine, “Natural Selection”, or to learn about his VIP program, go to www.jeffaltman.com. Job Search Universe is also available at www.jobsearchuniverse.com To add your firm’s career page to “The Universe” email the url to jobsearchuniverse@gmail.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 thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at: thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Blogging: It's Not For Kids Any More

When I started using blogs in August, 2001 (see www.thejobmarketblog.com), blogging was a pretty new idea, Blogger had just been bought by Google and was about to go mainstream.

Blogging as a recruiting tool has arrived with a bang as search professionals and corporate clients use Google and other search tools to locate blogs where the author might represent a possible fit for a job, as they try to get a sense of the person beyond the resume or find a reason to disqualify someone.

So what do you need to know about blogging that will help you with your search?

1. Firms look for confirmation that someone has good writing skills and good oral communications capabilities. Your blog needs to model those qualities, too. If you hastily write about something and show sloppiness, it may come back to haunt you . . . and you may never know it because you may never receive the phone call to interview you.

You see, the web, as we all know, has changed how available information is about someone.

2. Where possible, demonstrate that you are a "go to" person, a subject matter expert or just plain knowledgeable on a subject.

You may have started the blog to talk about life, the universe and everything but, heck, your work is part of the equation, too. If you have just had a technical or professional triumph, reveal it and go into details (without revealing anything that would violate confidentiality). The read what you've written as an outsider would. Would they find this interesting? Ordinary? A triumph?

3. Please don't talk politics.

Blogs are no longer private things and you're blogging to share a part of yourself with the universe. All that can happen as a result of your political rant is that you may offend someone who may not call you.

Recently, while doing a search for a client, I found a blog written by a contender for a role that was homophobic, to say the least (it was him--pictures don't lie). Suffice it to say, I withdrew the person, politely telling the client that I had no question about their professional capability but that I found something of a "personal nature" that caused me to recommend withdrawing the candidate.

After a few seconds that seemed like 10 minutes, they accepted the recommendation.

You may disagree with what I did and that is your prerogative. From my vantage point, that person could have acted in damaging ways that could have create risk to his new firm, a colleague or subordinate where the bias could have exploded.

No, thank you.

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 many 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 receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search for openings that The Big Game Hunter is working on, to use Jeff’s free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe, to subscribe to Jeff’s free job hunting ezine, “Head Hunt Your Next Job, or his staffing ezine, “Natural Selection”, or to learn about his VIP program, go to www.jeffaltman.com. Job Search Universe is also available at www.jobsearchuniverse.com To add your firm’s career page to “The Universe” email the url to jobsearchuniverse@gmail.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 thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at:
thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

What's That Old Saying about Lemons and Lemonade?

You made a serious mistake in your life and now you've returned from paying the ultimate price for it. Whether you call it jail or incarceration, you've been to hell and now you want to become an ordinary person with a job again.

What do you do?

One Canadian came up with an idea. In the "Jobs Wanted" area of his paper, he ran an ad:

Former Marijuana Smuggler

Having successfully completed a ten year sentence, incident-free, for importing 75 tons of marijuana into the United States, I am now seeking a legal and legitimate means to support myself and my family.

Business Experience: Owned and operated a successful fishing business -- multi-vessel, one airplane, one island and processing facility. Simultaneously owned and operated a fleet of tractor-trailer trucks conducting business in the western United States. During this time I also co-owned and participated in the executive level management of 120 people worldwide in a successful pot smuggling venture with revenues in excess of US$100 million annually. I took responsibility for my own actions, and received a ten year sentence in the United States while others walked free for their cooperation.

Attributes: I am an expert in all levels of security; I have extensive computer skills, am personable, outgoing, well-educated, reliable, clean and sober. I have spoken in schools to thousands of kids and parent groups over the past ten years on "the consequences of choice," and received public recognition from the RCMP for community service. I am well-traveled and speak English, French and Spanish. References available from friends, family, the U.S. District Attorney, etc.

Can you see where I'm going?

Whether it is from criminal action or professional mistake, there are ways to translate your skills into ways that are useful to someone.

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at:
thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

The Most important Lesson From the Last Recession PLUS 5 More

Last time, the job market started to slow down in March, 2001 and was about to exit recession in August, 2001 when millions of people lost their jobs and struggled for years to find work.

Because the job market collapse was so sudden and so deep, few were prepared for what happened.

That won't be the case with you.

It is pretty apparent that the financial markets in the US are suffering now and that CFO's at corporations will be hard-pressed to authorize much, if any, new hiring in 2008.

Layoffs have been plentiful in manufacturing for several years and, I expect, will broaden to other sectors.

The most important lesson I can give you from the last recession is this:

1. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A FUNCTIONING NETWORK OF RESOURCES IN PLACE IN CASE YOU NEED IT.

Connect with as many people as you can on LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook, Xing and any other social network site that you can.

2. Exchange personal email addresses and phone numbers with co-workers and former co-workers.

3. Stay in the "good graces" with as many leaders in your organization, former organizations, as you can.

4. Have lunch with someone new and/or different every day.

5. Write your resume.

6. Get involved with a networking group pro actively.

If I am right, the US job market will slow down a lot beginning in the late 3rd quarter with more and more firms suspending new hires.

Don't wait for a crisis to take action.

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 Leader Emeritus 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, or receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, go to http://www.jeffaltman.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).

Monday, August 13, 2007

Working with a Recruiter: Who to Choose?

I've been a recruiter for more than 35 years and, frankly, few people have more or better experience than I do.

Yet, I am not for everyone, nor am I interested in representing you. My focus is on serving my corporate clients--they pay me, of course, and you don't . . . unless you are in my VIP Program, a service I created to help me help more people and justify taking the time to do so.

Does this mean that I ignore individuals? Of course not. But the fact remains that my interests start off with the fact that I am paid to fill jobs for a living in service to my corporate customers. I don't "place people".

When you evaluate who to work with, I would try to see who has a job that fits what I do? Are they with a firm that seems to have positions for what I do? What is the experience level of the search professional (I am sorry to say that many have been schooled to lie when they answer that question so listen to what they say in order to figure out whether to take their advice with a grain of salt).

Unless you live in country where the norm is to pay the fee, do not pay for service.

A specialist or specialist firm does not guarantee success. Frankly, after spending most of my career as a technology recruiter, several of my clients pushed me into a few other areas, making me more of a generalist with strong technology capabilities. Does that make me "less competent" than a specialist with three years or thirteen years experience? Obviously, not.

If they ask to meet you, ask them what they will be screening for and what they hope to find out about you? Although many years ago, meeting you was designed to give you the "once over" to see how you presented yourself, most experienced recruiters are now capable of discerning what they need in a ten minute phone call. Why be dragged in for a meeting that does little more than seek confirmation that you know how to dress and can string three sentences together?

To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search job openings, use his free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe. to subscribe Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, or to learn more and sign up for his VIP Personal Search Agent service, go to, http://www.jeffaltman.com. To subscribe to Jeff’s free recruiting ezine, Natural Selection Ezine, subscribe at www.naturalselectionezine.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).

References: At Least Do The Minimum

We recently had someone go on three rounds of interviews with a client and he won the battle for the job with a close contender. Our client asked us to check his references.

Here's what happened next.

Of the first four references provided, we received no phone numbers or email addresses. Two no longer worked there; one worked for a firm that did not allow him to provide a reference (he suggested we speak with the consulting agency that provided him to them); one was a divisional executive whose administrative assistant who, after several calls, politely said, "She doesn't remember him).

On to the second set of references and day 3 of the request that they be checked. Four more names provided. Two no longer worked at his firm, one was bank president who did not return calls; I was able to speak with and was very flattering.

On to the third set of references and 5+ days has gone by.

I reached three more people; they were all fairly junior and offered the best of what I had.

Folks, there are two basic points I want to make.

One is obvious--if you plan on using someone as a reference, get personal email addresses and phone numbers for them so you stand a chance of reaching them when you need them and then STAY IN TOUCH WITH THEM.

The other is that the delays in reaching people and being pushed away offers another possible interpretation--theis person was not particularly good and no one wanted to put that on record.

Great references, especially for positions in leadership can put someone over the top in someone's mind or create doubt which may cause an opportunity to fall apart.

Stay in contact with your references. In make all the difference in the world.

Jeff Altman

The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com

© 2007 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 practicing psychotherapist and was a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues.

To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search job openings, use his free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe. to subscribe Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, or to learn more and sign up for his VIP Personal Search Agent service, go to, http://www.jeffaltman.com. To subscribe to Jeff’s free recruiting ezine, Natural Selection Ezine, subscribe at www.naturalselectionezine.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).

Friday, August 03, 2007

The Pre-Employment Credit Check

Given the stories of foreclosures we are reading about in the financial markets these days, I believe that it is important to be aware of whether the firm you are interviewing with does a pre-employment credit check.

From a process standpoint, what will happen is that you will do several interviews, receive an offer of employment, be ready to say yes and discover that the firm administers a background check.

Although part of that check will cover dates of employment, confirming your wages and checking your references, many firms do a credit check, particularly financial institutions.

Trust me that there are few things worse than deciding to take a job after multiple interviews, telling every one of your friends that you've gotten a great offer and then losing the offer because you failed a drug test, background check or credit check.

If your credit is atrocious or if you have had a bankruptcy, find out at the beginning of the interview process whether the adverse credit information will make this job a non-starter.

Otherwise, why bother interviewing with this company if you know that you will be rejected.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

Managing Two Agencies When The Offer is Extended

Managing two agencies when the offer comes in?

Recently, an hr manager from a not for profit called me looking for advice.

He had interviewed at one firm through a recruiter and almost gone through their entire process when a firm he interviewed with at the beginning of his search re-contacted him and asked and asked him to interview for a different position that opened up that fit him like a glove.

Within a week, he was about to receive a job offer and called me in a panic.

“What do I do now? The (second) company wants to know what the first firm is offering.”

“Well, tell them.”

“But the first company will be mad at me.”

“Here’s what you do. Call up the recruiter for the first company and tell them that a company contacted you out of the blue, you met them and you expect that tghey will be extending an offer and that you are leaning toward them.”

“Oh, my! Oh, my!” He spoke in a very pained way.

“It won’t get any easier if you don’t tell them because, eventually, if you accept the second offer, you’ll have to turn down the first and tell them then.”

“But the client may raise their offer.”

“This is what I call a pleasant problem--two good offers. How can you go wrong? But the mistake is not telling the first recruiter about he second offer. It won’t get any easier if you don’t tell them and just surprise them when it is time to turn down the job.”

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com

© 2007 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 was a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and is a practicing psychotherapist.

To receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search job openings, use his free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe. to subscribe Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, or to learn more and sign up for his VIP Personal Search Agent service, go to, http://www.jeffaltman.com. To subscribe to Jeff’s free recruiting ezine, Natural Selection Ezine, subscribe at www.naturalselectionezine.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).

Friday, July 20, 2007

What Kind of Contact Do You Expect from a Recruiter?

I received an email from someone who emailed their resume for a job a client was trying to fill, asking me about the status of their resume. Two weeks had already gone by and, I'm sure most of you know that two weeks normally means no interest on their part.

I responded to his email letting him know that they weren't interested and received a response back that I interpreted as being sarcastic. I then thought that if he thinks this way, certainly others do, too. That is the germination of this article.

A typical day has me arrive at my office between 8 and 8:30 AM to somewhere in the area of 100 emails (spam is filtered out via Postini; it does a very good job of it). As I start to read them, more keep arriving and calls start to come in. I try to respond to every email I receive with a call, an email acknowledging that I received their email and offering some services through my website that they might find helpful or with an email asking a few questions.

Often, these calls require additional action--interviewing someone, calling someone, inputting their resume into our system for later retrieval, submitting a resume to a client.

I leave messages; I read more resumes, receive more calls, schedule some interviews,

Opportunities start to present themselves that require that I check back to see if someone is still available. Sometimes I need to re-schedule an interview because one party or another needs to make a change.

Oh, yes, I eat lunch, do some networking, write an article or two for my blogs, ezine or book and answer a call or two from my wife or a friend.

So, what gives if I respond to everyone who wants to check and find out "what's going on"?

Unless someone is in my VIP program, you don't pay me for anything I do; I am paid by the institution to evaluate and assess people for their suitability for a job and I am paid quite well, thank you.

Obviously, I need to understand a person and their needs, wants, skills and such in order to bring the two sides together. But until someone starts paying me, I'll decide how I manage my time to help the most people.

Oh, yes, if you work with a recruiter who has the time to take all your calls and tell you ever piece of minutiae that they are doing to help you, there will come a time where they will not be there to help you in the future.

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 many 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 receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search for openings that The Big Game Hunter is working on, to use Jeff’s free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe, to subscribe to Jeff’s free job hunting ezine, “Head Hunt Your Next Job, or his staffing ezine, “Natural Selection”, or to learn about his VIP program, go to www.jeffaltman.com. Job Search Universe is also available at www.jobsearchuniverse.com To add your firm’s career page to “The Universe” email the url to jobsearchuniverse@gmail.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 thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at:
thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Friday, July 06, 2007

Phone Interviews: 5 Things NOT to Do to Avoid Shooting Yourself in the Foot?

More than two years ago, I wrote an article called "Phone Interviews: Prepare to Ace Them!".

It was an article that provided a number of things you should do when you prepare for a phone interview. After all, more and more firms are doing phone interviews as an initial screening step before meeting you.

So, this time, I want to remind you of some things NOT to do.

1. DON'T sound boring, dull, somber, flat. Energetic is the way to go.

2. DON'T use lots of negative sounding words in your conversation. Avoid frequently using no, don't know, can't, won't, don't know, not or similar words.

3. DON'T talk too much. People can't listen to answers longer than 30-45 seconds in person. Most people can't hold an attention span for that long over the phone.

4. If you are out of work, DON'T wait for them to ask you why or what happened. Volunteer it so that it doesn;t hang over the interview like a gallows blade.

5. DON'T avoid rehearsing. Practice makes perfect for interviews and athletes.

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at:
thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

What Did He Say???

I don't know about you, but I am married. In addition to my wife at home, I have an "office wife" and, in the past, I had a "train wife." These wives are good friends and we look out for one another, covering for one another when one of us is on vacation and bouncing ideas off of one another when we are unsure.

Yesterday, my office wife, Terry, was speaking with someone who had replied to an ad she had run on the web for a client, an airline targeting an upscale market. The ad was clear that airline industry experience was required.

So she calls up the person, whose resume does not mention airline experience and asks, "So what's your experience with airlines."

And then he answered those words that instntly became legendary in my office:

" My wife works for an airline."

HUH?

I understand. A wife replies for a surgeon position at a hospital with the explanation, "My husband is a surgeon and we sometimes talk about his day and operations over dinner."

How about this response to a teaching position:

"My daughter is in 4th grade!"

Please only reply for positions for which you meet minimum qualifications or are extremely close to meeting minimum qualifications.

If you do this you will have a chance of being interviewed and eventually hired . . . depending upon your interview and competition, of course.

If you don't do this, you are stealing time that the potential employer or recruiter can never regain with no purpose other than to hope against hope and reason that they interview you.

Outplacement firms often encourage people to blanket every ad with resumes . . . but they don't have to open and read all the emails or mailed resumes. They just have to talk and offer advice that may or may not be good.

Trust me, you don't like to get spam and neither do recruiters, managers and business owners. Make sure your resume demonstrates a fit before you send it and only send it if it meets or is extremely close to meeting minimum job requirements.

Friday, June 22, 2007

Manners Aren't Just for 6 Year Old Boys and Girls

My son, Jack, is six years old as are his friends. I get to watch he and his friends eat with some regularity and I'll just say Hannibal and the Roman armies as they are depicted in old movies eat with better manners than they do.

Food lands on their clothes and flies everywhere. It is eaten with hands despite frequent demands not to do so.

And then I started to notice how job applicant manners can sometimes be infantile, too, and decided to write this column. Here are a few reminders about do's and don'ts.

1. Arrive at the interview early, particularly with human resources. It should go without saying but, unfortunately needs to be said because people keep arriving at their interviews late. Five minutes. 20 minutes. 45 minutes late. It's all rude.

2. If you are late, apologize and explain. Don't pretend that nothing happened. Acknowledge it. Two of my clients will reject someone for not explaining a lateness, thinking that if they are rude when they are supposed to be polite, what will they do when they are comfortable.

3. Remember to spell check before you hit send. I confess to making this mistake, particularly with my blog and ezine, and, fortunately, I have gotten better with this mistake. Readers have told me how a spelling mistake (they are generally caused by typos) irks them. Now imagine what it is like when someone reads your resume and it is replete with spelling errors.

4. Turn your cell off and make sure your PDA/Blackberry doesn't chime, chirp or beep during the interview. I recently wrote about the job hunter who took a call for 5 minutes while in an interview, keeping the hiring manager waiting throughout. UGH!

5. For lunch or dinner meetings, don't focus on the food and forget the person. Your interview is more important than fixating on the appetizer, no matter how good it is. Oh, yes, don't eat like Jack.

6. Don't rush through or brush off the application. An application is a legal document. At most companies, completing it inaccurately or falsely is grounds for dismissal. Rushing through it, unless asked to do so, sends a message to the employer of disrespect (they will have trouble reading your handwriting when you rush). Do everything well.

7. Make sure your voice mail at home, at the office and on your cell sound professional. A child's voice is adorable. Really. But put yourself into the caller's shoes and imagine what it is like to listen to the voices of so many children's and family's messages. Something like, "This is Adam (the child), Lois (the mother) and Roger (the father). (TOGETHER) Please leave a message when you hear the beep."

8. Send a "Thank you email" after the interview. Look them right in the eye, shake their hand and thank them for interviewing you and tell them of your interest in the job. Speak sincerely. Then send a thank you email afterwards.

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 many 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 receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search for openings that The Big Game Hunter is working on, to use Jeff’s free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe, to subscribe to Jeff’s free job hunting ezine, “Head Hunt Your Next Job, or his staffing ezine, “Natural Selection”, or to learn about his VIP program, go to www.jeffaltman.com. Job Search Universe is also available at www.jobsearchuniverse.com To add your firm’s career page to “The Universe” email the url to jobsearchuniverse@gmail.com.

If you would like me to assist you with hiring staff, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to me at thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to me at: thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

LinkedIn and Xing: Get Found!

The person who gets ahead isn't always the smartest or work the hardest . . . although those are great qualities to have. The person who gets ahead is one who remains alert to opportunity. Sometimes those are internal to an organization; more often than not, it is external.

Most people have heard or understand the importance of networking and LinkedIn and Xing are the two premier business networking sites to help you be found or find others.

Both have international penetration but LinkedIn is stronger US and Xing in Europe.

Often, people make the mistake of presenting a bland commercial about themselves into their listings instead of using an aggressive commercial about their experience and interests into the posting.

Why not have a focused version of your resume on your page?

Why not put your email address next to your name in order to invite contact?

Why not update your listing on a quarterly basis with new accomplishments?

Making it easy for others to find you will help you be perceived as an expert in an employer's mind so that they are favorably disposed to hiring you before meeting you?

LinkedIn and Xing can not only help you find a job, but help you shape your career.

Wouldn't job hunting be easier if they wanted to hire you at the time they contact you?

Jeff Altman
The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com

© 2007 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 receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search job openings, use his free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe. to subscribe Jeff’s free job search ezine, Head Hunt Your Next Job, or to learn more and sign up for his VIP Personal Search Agent service, go to, http://www.jeffaltman.com. To subscribe to Jeff’s free recruiting ezine, Natural Selection Ezine, subscribe at www.naturalselectionezine.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).

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Making A Decision: How Do Do I Choose

For those of you who have received coaching from me, I have a pretty simple way of helping people decide between offers. I ask them to have thought long and hard about their goals at the beginning of their search, prioritized them and then asked to evaluate how each offer meets the criteria they set out.

Sounds pretty simple but there is skill to it.

In a recent issue of Businessweek, Jack and Suzy Welsh (he of GE success and fame) offer five other criteria that I think can help those of you who haven't engaged in the process I coach. They are offered in response to a question from a reader who has to choose between two offers where the writer has an offer from a respected company for a job with work they are passionate about but unpleasant co-workers without team spirit and from a so-so company with work they are OK with and people they really enjoy. The money is the same.

Jack and Suzy offer these criteria:

1.Will the new job be filled with workers who share my sensibilities, or will I have to zone out or fake it to get along?

2. Will the new job stretch my mind and build my skills, and otherwise take me out of my comfort zone, or am I entering at the top of my game?

3.Will the new job open or close doors for me should I ever leave?

4. Will the new job turn my crank, touch my soul and give me meaning?

5. Who am I making happy by taking this job, and am I OK with that bargain?

Jeff Altman

The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
thebiggamehunter@cisny.com

© 2007 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 many 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 receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, search for openings that The Big Game Hunter is working on, to use Jeff’s free job lead search engine, Job Search Universe, to subscribe to Jeff’s free job hunting ezine, “Head Hunt Your Next Job, or his staffing ezine, “Natural Selection”, or to learn about his VIP program, go to www.jeffaltman.com. Job Search Universe is also available at www.jobsearchuniverse.com To add your firm’s career page to “The Universe” email the url to jobsearchuniverse@gmail.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 thebiggamehunter@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).

If you have a question that you would like me to answer pertaining to job hunting or hiring, email it to him at:
thebiggamehunter@gmail.com

Friday, May 04, 2007

Your Cell Phone and You

Let me paint the picture.

You're about 25 minutes into your interview. You and your potential manager are having a very good conversation. Everything feels good about what is going on.

Suddenly, a tinny version of La Cuccharacha starts to pervade the room. You reach into your pocket or bag and take out your cell phone. A recruiter is calling. You answer the telephone and have a one minute conversation and then end it and return to the interview.

Was it really necessary?

Couldn't you have turned your phone off so as not to interrupt the interview?

What's the message you send to the interviewer through your actions?

This week, events like this happened twice. In both cases, the interview seemed as though it was still going along well when resumed but the feedback said something else. "I started to time how long the candidate was on the phone." REJECTED!

There was one set of circumstances where I found it OK to keep the phone on and it was handled well.

A person had to postpone an interview for three days because his son was hospitalized. When he arrived at the interview, he set his cell to vibrate and before the interview started as he and the interviewer sat down to speak, he said somethingt o the effect of, "Thank you for your flexibility with my need to re-schedule our meeting. On Monday, my son was hospitalized suddenly with _____. He is out of the hospital now and my wife is with him. However, I would like to keep my phone on in case of emergency; I don't expect one but, just in case, it is set to vibrate and I will not answer it unless there is my wife calling."

Good manners are so important on interviews.

And bad manners are the kiss of death.

Jeff Altman

The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com

© 2007 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, or receive a daily digest of positions emailed to you, go to http://www.jeffaltman.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).