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New Solutions for Job Seekers Competing in Today’s “Social Search”

There’s a new breed of Career Coach and Professional Resume Writer helping job seekers navigate the toughest and most confusing job market in decades. For job seekers, the stakes have never been higher, and the job search landscape has never been more volatile as Google, social media, employers, and recruiters drive the switch to “Social Search.” These are 2011′s job search realities:

  • Employers are abandoning costly and ineffective job board giants and databases. Traditional job search is dying. It won’t be revived; nor will job seekers clinging to traditional resumes.
  • Google is career GPS. Google results are replacing the resume as a screening device.
  • Hiring managers are sourcing candidates via cost- and quality-effective “social solutions” including Google, LinkedIn profiles, social media venues, video presentations, and more.
  • Social job search requires more than a resume. Candidates need a multi-channel online presence within a branded, value-infused career communications (CareerComm) network.
  • “Bottom-line-it-for-me!” managers and recruiters increasingly prefer bold, brief, brand- and value-rich career documents—as easily readable on a smart phone as on a computer.

Two nationally recognized authors, coaches, and innovators in branded career management—Deb Dib and Susan Whitcomb—created the G3 Coach Program (offered through theacademies.com) to train career professionals in the new techniques their job seeking clients need for success in an employment market driven by speed and social-media recruiting.

The pioneering Certified G3 Coach program (which stands for Get Clear, Get Found, Get Hired!), equips career coaches, job search strategists, resume writers, and personal branding strategists to help job seekers flourish in today’s Social Search employment market. Anne-Marie Ditta, a resident of  Westchester County, graduated from the inaugural class, becoming one of the first in the world to earn the elite Certified G3 Coach designation.

Dib sums up the need for this training: “Today’s hiring managers are inundated multi-taskers with little time and patience. As a Certified G3 Coach, Ditta has the skills to help job seekers meet today’s employers’ mantra, ‘So what? Make me care! Do it fast!’”

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How finding Mr. Right can be like finding the right career

Last night, my best friend Susan and I met for dinner. Given that she still lives in Brooklyn and I am in Westchester, we don’t see each other as much as we’d like to. The last time we got together was around the holidays. Yikes!  Had it been that long? None the less, she looked radiant.

Susan was divorced several years ago. Up until about a year agao she had been looking for Mr. Right. However, the men she dated were more like Mr. “More of the Same”; needy, immature and self-centered. Did I mention that Susan was a social worker?

The problem was Susan had been attracted to the wrong men.  Over the years, I encouraged her to be open to men who did not immediately appear to be her type. It took awhile but eventually she started to do things differently.

About 14 months ago, Susan met Mike, who was also divorced. Initially Susan thought Mike was a nice man even if she didn’t feel that spark of excitement. It wasn’t until the fifth date that she realized how special Mike really was. Over the past year, they have laughed together, overcame a crisis’ together, and more recently set up home together.

Career paths can sometimes be like dating. Over the years, I have known really smart talented people who keep going back to “More of the Same” industries and companies that keep giving them headaches and disappointments.  Let’s face it, if nothing changes then nothing changes.

If you frequently find yourself in this position it might be time for a change.

For learn more about making a  career transition or to to receive information about our new Change Your Career, Change Your Life Coaching group, email us at amditta@mycareercoach.net.

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6 Good Reasons to Update Your Resume

Repeat after me, today is the day that I will update my resume. Today is the day that I will update my resume. Rarely has a person contacted me because they were happily employed and wanted to update their resume as part of their healthy career management program. By keeping your resume current you will:

  1. be ready when an unforeseen opportunity presents itself
  2. be ready to launch your job search if you are suddenly laid off
  3. have a healthy awareness of your unique strengths, skills, and accomplishments
  4. be less stressed should you find yourself in an unexpected job search
  5. be ahead of the competition because you will also be active in your  professional and social network and have a strong online presence.
  6. be in a better position for promotions and salary increases

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Excellent Career Advice!!!

“It’s time for you to shut out all of the gloom and doom on the TV and just focus on one, simple, small job: your next one!”

Marc Cenedella
Founder & CEO
TheLadders.com, Inc.

Every week I receive tons of emails from friends and colleagues. While there are way too much for me to read, every now and then one will catch my eye as the aforementioned quote has.

Fear is running rampant and our nation is being called to to live with less while we huddle close and hope the monster of unemployment will pass by our doors. The crisis will eventually pass but the question remains how gracefully will get you get through it?

Just like Marc Cenedella, I urge you to focus on one thing; take control of your career and let go of what is beyond your power. What you can control is:

- Your attitude: Like any other project, every great job begins with an achievable vision.
- Your process: Finding a job that best matches your unique qualifications and skills requires you to create and stick to a strong project plan, schedule and specific milestones.
- Your resume: Always, always, always keep it current. You never know when your next great opportunity will appear.
- Your network -: Creating an active job search team means that you will keep in touch often, be both a generous giver and a gracious receiver. Coach your friends, family, colleagues and peers in the specifics, i.e. your goals and how they can help you achieve them.
- Where you look: When used properly, the internet is a great tool for finding employment. Make a list of employers you are interested in working for and look under the “Careers or Join Us” section of their websites.
- Your knowledge: Whether it is learning a new technology or completing your PMP, you must commit to being a lifelong learner to stay competitive in this market.
- Your image: From your head to your toes present a professional image. Always make sure your shoes are polished, your clothes are neat and crisp, you are well groomed and your smile is broad and welcoming.

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How to Improve Your IT Project Management Resume

About a year ago I read an article in e-Week entitled 10 Ways to Tweak Your Tech Résumé. A more appropriate title would have been How to Slow Down Your Job Search. Although the article make a few good points. I found some of the tips so contrary to what I know works for project managers and other professionals seeking new opportunities that I posted a response on e-Week. With the current unemployment rate holding at 5.5%, I thought it would be worth updating and reprinting my response to e-Week:

The quality of your résumé can have a direct impact the length of your job search. Therefore, the following is a list of effective strategies, used by certified professional writers, worldwide:

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