March 15, 2010

Dear Friends:

Welcome back to the weekly edition of Andrew Hudson's Jobs List!

Job Seekers! Be Seen by Colorado's Leading Employers!

Attention job seekers!  Much like on LinkedIn, corporate recruiters are also looking to Andrew Hudson's Jobs List to identify new talent.  Every day I'm hearing from recruiters and job seekers alike who are being matched through this simple service.  By posting a jobseeker profile, a simple 300-word summary of your background/skills/expertise, you are letting employers throughout Denver and beyond know that you are ready to work!  To post a 4-week jobseeker profile, click here

TURBO CHARGE YOUR JOB SEARCH
Only one space left for this Saturday's Career Bootcamp
Four spaces left for Wednesday evening, March 24

Are you at the end of your rope?  Are you frustrated that you send in a resume and never hear back? Do you need some new ideas to get an employer's attention so you can get hired?  Are you confused as to what companies are looking for when they are recruiting for employees?  If so, AHJL Career Bootcamp may be for you.

We just completed two sold-out bootcamps last week and have a one spots left for the Saturday, March 20th and four spaces left for the Wednesday, March 24th Session.  These will be the last Career Bootcamps until summer.

Career Bootcamp is an intensive 3-hour interactive group session that will help get you out of your job-seeking rut, make your mind swim with fresh job-seeking ideas and give you a new perspective on how to market and brand your unique skills and experiences to differentiate yourself and get noticed by employers. 

You will learn the techniques that successful job seekers use to get noticed and also the types of common things to avoid that could sabotage your chances. 

Space is limited and Career Bootcamp sells out quickly.

Click here for more information and to register!


New Denver Ad Club CONNECT 2010
For Entry-Level Job Seekers


Job Focus:
The Power of Lists in Organizing and Prioritizing your Job Search

I'm a big fan of lists.

In my interviews with successful job seekers, there's a common thread that boils down to two things- organization and planning.

Lists are essential to keep organized and on track in almost any type of project.  In looking for a job, lists serve a very important purpose in helping to keep you organized and prioritized.

In this spirit, I've listed below several lists that every job seeker should start compiling.  Some of these lists are 'check-off' lists while others are lists that remain constant in your job search.

Networking Job Prospecting Lists
Recent studies show that 75% of new hires are the result of networking; more specifically, the result of someone who has referred another person based on their intimate knowledge of that job seeker's background, experience, work ethic and overall personality.

Think about it: If you are looking to find someone for a position, wouldn't it be easier to ask a colleague a friend, or someone else you trust for a referral to fill the job?  As a matter of fact, many companies today are handing out sizable bonuses to employees for referring new recruits, the theory being that current employees are good sources for talent in their fields; they have vast networks of professionals from other jobs they've held or in their day-to-day interactions with others in their specific industry and field.

So for a job seeker, your goal is to ask yourself: Who knows you best?  Who would refer you? 

In this exercise, you will create three separate lists; a tier one, a tier two and a tier three list.

Tier I: This is your top prospecting list: the list of people who know you best and who will be a top advocate and cheerleader for you.  This list will include former colleagues, bosses, vendors and clients. Think of people throughout your career who you've impressed with your hard work.  They are the ones who may have said, "If you ever are looking for a new job, call me!"  They are the type of people who are willing to pick up a phone and testify to your talents, your work ethic and your expertise. 

Tier II:  This is your list of people who, while maybe you haven't worked with them, they are aware of you and you are close enough of an acquaintance that you'd be comfortable reaching out to them.  Perhaps it is someone you worked on a volunteer committee with for a nonprofit.  Maybe it is someone you've met through your work at a professional association.  It could be someone who was a counterpart at a competing business who would respect your background and knowledge of the industry.

Tier III:  This is a list of family, friends, neighbors who may not know your background as well, but may have an 'in' at their company.  For example, a parent from your kid's little league team who works for a company that you are interested in and would be willing to sit down for 15 minutes and tell you about their company and perhaps share your resume with the company's human resources team.  Think of anyone within your day-to-day circle of interactions that can a source for employment.

Company Lists
Make a list of companies that are of interest to you and check to their websites regularly for employment opportunities.  In addition, research these companies through the Internet and specifically, through LinkedIn where you can search for connections you may have at these companies.

Again, think of the 'low hanging fruit' or in other words, the companies that you either have a connection or companies that seem most likely to fit the skills you have to offer.   These companies may be tied to industry-specific experience you have, but they might also be companies that simply have more opportunities in your chosen field.   If you are unsure of companies that might fall into your field, find a copy of the Denver Business Journal's Book of Lists.  This is an annual compilation of companies that are listed by industry and will act as sort of a road map to the various companies throughout the metro area.  Also visit websites like the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, the Denver World Trade Center, the Boulder County Business Report, and other sources of information that can help you in your research.

Job Title Lists
When searching job boards, it is important to have a list of 10-20 different job titles to enter into search boxes.  For example, if you are a marketing professional, you might search for Marketing Manager, but look at all these other titles you might search for: 

Agency Account Coordinator, Agency Account Executive, Agency Account Planner, Agency Account Supervisor/Director, Agency Assistant Account Executive Agency Client Services Manager, Brand Manager, Consumer Product Manager, Chief Marketing Officer,  Direct Marketing Manager, Event Marketing Specialist, Event Planner, Marketing Communications Manager, Marketing Database Manager, Marketing Director, Media Planner, Online Marketing Director, Search Engine Marketer, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist.

The point being that there are many different titles that might fit your specific skills and it's important to have a list of titles that will lead you to opportunities.

Job Board Lists
Job seekers find out very quickly that of the more than 80,000 online job boards, there might be less than 10 job boards that you refer to regularly.   So many of the job boards are simply overwhelming and are crammed with so many irrelevant or out-of-date positions.   In addition, employers are shying away from the larger job boards (Monster, CareerBuilder, Jobing, HotJobs); they have simply become too overwhelming for employers due to the thousands of job seekers from around the world that send in resumes when a job is posted.

Here are the simple criteria to determine whether a job board is useful:  Does it have jobs that are relevant to your job search?  Is it regularly updated with new jobs?  Are the jobs "real" or in other words, are the positions listed true 'professional' positions or are they scams?  How much information is required from you in order to apply?

In addition, it is always a good idea to search the job boards of specific companies.  Even if you find a job on a job board, try to apply through the company website.  Often, as a 'service,'  many of the larger job boards add an additional layer of screening through a secondary applicant tracking system and it's easy for your resume to get lost in an electronic maze.  In addition, many of the larger job boards require you to take your valuable time to fill out irrelevant surveys before you can apply for a job.  If you can apply through a company website, do so.

Bookmark these job boards, but don't waste time on job boards that are hard to navigate.

Here are a few of my favorite sites local sites for Colorado job seekers:

www.andrewhudsonsjobslist.com (Subscribe for the Monday email updates and make sure and follow AHJobsList on Twitter and or Facebook to get instant notification about new jobs posted throughout the week)

www.indeed.com (an aggregator that collects job URLs from around the Internet and allows you to search title and location.  Somewhat bulky, but the more specific you are on the title, the more efficient it is to use)

Regis Nonprofit Job Bank (Great list for nonprofits)

www.coloradononprofits.org (Nonprofit jobs)

www.talentzoo.com (marketing and creative)

www.dice.com (technical)

www.linkedin.com (Worth checking a couple times of week, though there are only a handful of new local positions posted each week)

www.simplyhired.com (Aggregator that is similar to Indeed, tied to LinkedIn)

www.twitter.com (Search for companies that are 'tweeting' new jobs regularly so you can get instant notification when a position opens up.)

Next week, I'll talk about additional lists that are helpful to your job search planning.

www.nationaljewish.org

Got asthma?
 
If you live in Denver or Colorado, you are fortunate to be able to call on the services of National Jewish.

Why?  Because they have been named the #1 respiratory hospital in the nation for the eleventh year in a row by U.S. News & World Report. 

NJH's number one priority continues to be their patients through clinical care and research done on their behalf.  NJH has transformed research and patient care from being reactive to being both proactive and personalized and as a result, it helps their doctors to predict, prevent and detect diseases and intervene early to keep people healthy before illness interrupts their lives.
 
The hospital was founded in 1899 and was named for the national Jewish organization that financed the services to the community.  Well known worldwide for innovative and comprehensive care.  Its original motto, “None may enter who can pay, none can pay who enter,” was followed until the first patient was billed in 1969. But even today, National Jewish Health continues to treat anyone without regard to race, religion or ability to pay.
 
Of particular interest to many families is the Kunsberg School for chronically ill children that is tuition free.
 

The National Jewish Hospital's 2010 Beaux Arts Ball, “Midnight in the Garden,” to be held on March 20 is one of Denver's most exciting and fun-filled galas!  The black-tie ball attracts more than a thousand movers-and-shakers and raises well over than a million dollars each year.
 
Diane and Charlie Gallagher will be awarded  the National Jewish Health President’s Award during the Beaux Arts Ball.  Their list of accomplishments in business and on behalf of the nonprofit sector is long and distinguished.

If you'd like to find out more about sponsorship opportunities for the upcoming Beaux Arts Ball, click here.  If you'd like to learn about other ways to assist NJH, click here.
 

Happy job hunting,


Andrew Hudson