July 24, 2024 Leave a Comment

Ask the Employment Specialist: How Do I Handle the Pain of Rejection?

Worried guy covering mouth by hand while looking at laptop display and understanding that dangerous virus attacked his computer

Dear Joanna,

I have completed my fourth round of interviews with a panel of five interviewers for a $55,000 a year job as a financial analyst with a leading institution. The process included a 45 minute pre-screening interview on the phone followed by three face-to-face interviews with the team and managers.

I called the HR manager to follow-up this morning and I am devastated. I was turned down. I was shocked, and needless to say, I am feeling completely rejected and would like to give up the job search completely.

How do I handle the pain of rejection?

Signed: Painfully Rejected (PR)

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July 24, 2024 Leave a Comment

How To Use LinkedIn Company Pages to Enhance Your Job Search

In previous posts about the uses of LinkedIn for job seekers, I have focused its uses for building your professional network, as well growing that network through LinkedIn Groups. Another, often underutilized service, is Company Pages, which provide job seekers with access to detailed in-depth information about potential employers. Companies are listed under “Interests” on the LinkedIn menu.

What information is available on Company Pages?

Company Pages offer job seekers a unique source of valuable information, because it includes data from three sources:

Company description (provided by the company itself) which may include background information, as well as careers/job postings and lists of services.
Insights (drawn from data provided by employees on their personal profiles, as well as their activities), such as employee skills — collected and reported under “Top Skills & Expertise” — plus, lists of those employees who get the highest number of LinkedIn recommendations — reported as “Most Recommended”. Also included is information about how you are connected to staff members, including 1st and 2nd degree contacts (which can be very useful for the job seeker who’s looking to expand their network strategically).
User/customer reviews, provided by your contacts and others.

How to use Company Pages?

1. Start off by searching for companies in which you are interested. You can narrow the search, using these criteria:

Relationship — if you want to identify companies in which you know someone, or can expand your network, by finding those in which you have degrees of connections: 1st, 2nd or 3rd
Location — if you want to identify companies where you would like to work (you can narrow the location down by adding the name of the city, such as “Toronto”)
Job Opportunities — to identify those companies which post jobs on their LinkedIn page
Industry — to narrow down your target industry, e.g. Information Technology and Services, Computer Software, Staffing and Recruiting, Marketing and Advertising or Financial Services, or add other industries — remember that sometimes you can do the same job — such as accounting or administration — in multiple industries
Company Size — if you have a preference for larger or smaller companies
Number of Followers –to identify which companies are more popular or active on LinkedIn
Fortune — to identify companies as rated and listed by Fortune magazine

2. Follow the companies that interest you by clicking on the follow button. Every time the company updates its page, shares information or makes announcements (including posting new jobs), you will be notified on your news feed/home page.

3. Read up on each company — you can gather information, extend your networks and many other uses, as outlined below.

How can Company Pages help with job search?

Company pages can provide you useful information at all the stages of job search, from making career decisions, to finding jobs for which to apply, and preparing for interviews:

Employers expect you, as a candidate, to have researched the company and be able to talk about it intelligently in job interviews. The succinct and up-to-date information provided on LinkedIn Company Pages can be a unique source of this data.
Figure out whether you have any contacts in the company, both current employees, as well as former employees you may know (listed under “Insights”), from whom you can gather inside information, referrals and tips for applying for jobs. Perhaps they can also refer you to others, so you can expand your contacts in the company. Keep in mind that people can also be excellent sources of career information, as well. Learning about the top skills and expertise of staff in the company can help you figure out which of your skills are your greatest assets.
Jobs are sometimes posted on company pages with information about who posted the position and whether you have any connections to them. If the company does not post on LinkedIn, it might direct job seekers to where jobs are posted elsewhere on the Internet.

Finally, LinkedIn now offers companies an opportunity to post status updates which provide their followers with opportunities to learn about new developments, as well as interact and engage with the company by responding to the posts. Read more about this here, from the LinkedIn blog (which is always a good source of ‘know-how’ information about LinkedIn).

July 24, 2024 1 Comment

A Senior Executive Looking for Work

We are excited to welcome a guest blogger, Sharon Barney, to share with us her unique perspective on job search. Sharon is a senior executive with more than 20 years of experience leading organizations through transformation. She is contributing to the JVS blog from both the perspective of a job seeker as she is currently searching for a new career and from the perspective of a senior leader who has hired senior staff. Her dream job is a leadership position developing diversity in thought and action throughout an organization. She believes that human resources are strategic assets. She is particularly interested in how we create personal value through online networks.

This blog is about my experiences as a senior executive doing an online career search. I want job candidates to appreciate the many opportunities for personal growth through the process; and especially to maximize the opportunities of online communities and networking. I understand that most people view job search as a bad thing, and it certainly has its downside; however one of the key rules of job search is to stay positive!

JVS Toronto is an agency which runs five employment centres and welcomes job seekers from all backgrounds. The counsellors are excellent, sympathetic and totally honest about how to conduct a career search. I was asked to contribute because of my perspective from both sides of the career search process.

The first workshop that I attended at JVS was about Social Media Networking. I arrived at the Social Media Networking seminar hoping that the process would not be too difficult. The first thing that Karin Lewis told us is that we MUST develop our LinkedIn profile. She went on to tell us that 89% of companies use LinkedIn to recruit and so we don’t really have a choice. Whoa! It was overwhelming!

But, I’m happy to report that developing my LinkedIn presence has been a totally rewarding experience. I recommend that you get your basic information onto your LinkedIn page ASAP.

Once you sign in, LinkedIn will prompt you; so it’s a simple case of answering the questions. Once you get this done, then you can refine your profile, get your picture loaded up, and start networking. The most rewarding aspect is “seeing who you are.” I know this may sound strange, but you have a chance to see everything that you have done professionally and what motivates YOU.

You have to list your work history chronologically. However, if your most recent position is not relevant to your current job search, then highlight your successes in jobs and volunteer positions that are more relevant by developing those descriptions in more detail.

LinkedIn also gives you the opportunity to join groups of like-minded professionals that show the world what is important to you. Joining groups is easy to do. You want to demonstrate to future employers that you are a dedicated professional. Your groups will be shown on your profile as well as any other groups you have volunteered for.

But the most rewarding aspect really has to be the networking.

By having a LinkedIn profile, you create an online professional network that allows you to meet new colleagues and to reconnect with old ones. You will feel enriched when you see what your professional colleagues are doing; and the career possibilities that are out there.

You can start your network by connecting with your email contacts. But this quickly expands through 2nd level contacts. I found colleagues that I had lost contact with. And even more rewarding was that colleagues I had “forgotten” found me. It is so great to get a LinkedIn notice that a friend and colleague wants to connect. It has truly been amazing.

July 24, 2024 Leave a Comment

Ask the Employment Specialist: Prepare for the Second Job Interview

Dear Joanna,

I am so excited to report that I have been invited to a second interview for a position as a Human Resources Manager. After a year of looking for work and going on interviews, I really would like to succeed in this part of the process and finally get a job offer.

Please could you provide me with some suggestions as to what I need to know for the second interview. I was told that I would be meeting the person who would supervise me if I got hired for this position.

Signed: Almost at the finish line (AFL)

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July 24, 2024 Leave a Comment

Ask the Employment Specialist: Remote Job Search (relocating to another city)

Dear Joanna,

I am planning to relocating from outside Ontario to Toronto in a couple of months, and will need to find work as soon as possible in my profession and area of expertise, which is as a medical assistant. I do not have any savings that I can use. I have already submitted my resignation with my current employer and have some time to dedicate to looking for employment

How do I conduct a remote job search so that I secure a suitable position before I relocate?

Signed: Relocator

Dear Relocator,

Our JVS Toronto employment staff, who often receive requests from job seekers living out-of-town who are looking for work in the Greater Toronto Area and will relocate if they secure solid employment. Together with experts such in blogs such as careerealism, our employment staff recommend the following strategies to engage in a meaningful and successful remote job search:

1. If possible, establish yourself as a local resident.

Many companies prefer to hire locally, to avoid transportation and relocation expenses as well as the risks involved in hiring someone who may decide not to move after all. Try to line up as many job interviews as you can on the same day just like a sales rep does. Hiring managers and recruiters will be turned off if you tell them that you will move once you get the job. The process doesn’t work that way.

If you can get access a local address from a family or friend in Toronto, or at least a local cell phone line, that would be helpful. When you engage in your remote job search, you cannot show any hesitation with relocating in your interviews or with your networking activities. You need to be ready to move and show it.

2. Prepare a targeted Cover letter.

Some people are uncomfortable with #1. If this is the case, then in your cover letter, explain your desire and reasons for relocating. Address the potential concerns of the hiring manager or HR professional who is reading your application that you are committed to relocating and serious about moving.

3. Target your top 10 companies.

As with researching the job market in your field, do the same for your remote job search. You can conduct this research online. Find out what these companies are doing in your field, industry and their area of expertise. Do your homework.

4. Conduct Information Interviews.

Learn as much as you can about the targeted companies. Then identify and cold call potential decision-makers, hiring managers and/or relevant employees for an information interviews. This is a great networking opportunity as well. You will probably need to have to visit Toronto before you relocate for these meetings. Try to arrange these information sessions in one day and schedule them around a relevant networking event from your industry. You need to meet people at the companies to learn about the organization and what it might take to earn a position there.

In an information interview, you can let the targeted professionals know that you are relocating and just looking to prepare yourself professionally for a successful job search. Join virtual local groups, which you might find via LinkedIn Groups, Meetup.com and through local chapters of professional associations in your industry.

5. Use Social Media.

Social Media has become a basic tool of a successful job search. Use social media platforms to introduce yourself: research profiles of employees working in your targeted companies, review their resumes, find groups that they belong to, as well as associations and other unique features of their activities. Be careful with connecting with strangers; I suggest that you join LinkedIn groups or create a new one that doesn’t exist. Follow companies on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Engage in online tweets and conversations on topics of interest to the company and its professionals.

6. Set up face-to-face meetings.

If you can attend any of these association and networking activities and events, try to secure in-person meetings with people who work for the companies that you have targeted. Again, try to schedule as many of these as possible. As in all types of networking, the more people you meet face-to-face, the bigger and better your professional network that can lead to employment will be.

7. Plan a trip to Toronto for the job search.

Setting up a week, or at least a few business days before your move date, will give you a reason to say, “I’ll be in your area that week and was hoping to meet with you.” Plus, it will motivate you to get in gear and try to fill the visit with as many networking meetings as you can.

Best of luck with your job search and move!