Creating a Job Search Plan

Transcription

1 Creating a Job Search Plan UWM Alumni Career Services UWM Alumni Association: Career Development Center:

2 Agenda Reasons for a job search plan Job search essentials Factors to consider in your job search Prioritizing and organizing the search

3 Reasons for a Job Search Plan A job search plan can help you... Set and keep goals Feel sense of progress, accomplishment Follow up on leads and contacts more easily Organize your network for now & later Find a job now... and maybe later, too Avoid the alternative... chaos!

4 Job Search Essentials The 3 main activities of a comprehensive search Postings search for posted jobs Targeting make a list of companies or organizations that you might be interested in working for Networking connect with people in jobs or companies you are interested in finding out more about BUT REMEMBER, THE MAGIC HAPPENS IN THE OVERLAP

5 Job Search Essentials Postings Networking Targeting

6 Postings Search for posted jobs but do your due diligence before you hit submit! POSTINGS TOOLS AND STRATEGIES Places to Search --Job boards: advertised_jobs.cfm --PantherJobs: panther_jobs.cfm Research the company or organization; identify WHY you want to work for THIS company Talk to people who work there glean useful insider advice Tailor your application materials to the job and company Follow up

7 Targeting Create a list of companies or organizations that you might be interested in working for use the list to take action! TARGETING TOOLS AND STRATEGIES How to Create the List --Career specific job posting sites: hired/career_specific_jobs.cfm --Professional organizations --LinkedIn --Google Keep the list manageable and track your progress Research the company (website, social media, in the news and community) Look for postings and networking opportunities at the company Identify ways to do active outreach to the organization

8 Networking A study by career services firm DBM reports that 61% cited networking as the source of their new jobs, while only 6% found jobs through Internet job sites and print ads. Therefore... spend time NETWORKING! *source: PR Newswire, 4/22/09 NETWORKING TOOLS AND STRATEGIES UWM Connections: Networking events, alumni chapters Professional associations In person networking groups and events (Fuel, Network After Work Milwaukee, etc.; event list at Volunteering Religious and spiritual organizations Hobbies Friends, family, and acquaintances Social Media --LinkedIn -UWM Alumni group -UWM Panther Career Connections -School-specific UWM alumni groups -Other groups (based on industry, interests, etc.) --Facebook: Become a fan of the UWM Alumni Association --Twitter:

9 Job Search Essential Additions Career exploration & job/field-related research Interviewing practice Resume/cover letter writing and tailoring Goals reassessment or recalibration Organization & maintenance of process Celebration of successes/milestones Staying healthy and having fun

10 Spending Your Job Search Time Networking (includes apps) 50% Online Job Search (includes apps) 20% Job-related Research 15% Fun/Discovery 10% System Maintenance 5% 0 Percentage of Time Spent in Each Activity

11 Factors To Consider How much time do you have on a weekly basis to work on your search? When do you need a job? What kind of support do you have? People support Financial support What makes you feel successful? When do you work most effectively on what kinds of tasks? People-oriented tasks Information processing Detail work What are your strengths and weaknesses? Job-related Job search-related

12 Factors You May Have to Consider Family obligations School Part- or full-time job Other obligations Relocation The state of the economy The state of your industry

13 Each week, include... Online job searching and applications advertised and not Research into target organizations and industries Networking Something fun, discovery Maintenance of system and materials

14 Each month, include... Connection time Celebration of successes/milestones Reassessment of plan/restrategizing if necessary Brainstorming/exploration Staying current

15 Prioritize & Organize Develop an organizational system that you like (paper, computer, other) Record applications (save job descriptions and materials sent); include follow up steps and due dates Make a list of your outreach and contacts made; include follow up steps and due dates Stay on top of your target list add new organizations and revisit/take new action on existing targets Create a job search calendar to track events to attend, goals, deadlines, and follow up steps Save key documents in an easy to find and safe spot (resume bank, sample outreach , thank you letter, etc.) Save self-assessment information and career research in a place where you can pick up where you left off Stay healthy and include to-do s that will keep your job search positive Let technology help! Utilize online job search management tools:

16 Principles to Remember Restrategize if your current strategy isn t working If you re sending applications in to no one you can identify, you re at a disadvantage Don t confuse hopes with demands on yourself Finding a job that s a good fit can take time Strive for job search/life balance You bring value

17 Additional Resources UWM Alumni Association: UWM Career Development Center: Quintessential Careers:

18 Additional Resource: Using LinkedIn as a People Finder (PDF available at Create or update your profile using your resume. Don t sweat the small stuff or worry about getting to 100% profile completeness right away; only you can see your level of profile completeness. You can continue to work on your profile as you become more accustomed to using different aspects of the tool. Search for people you know already (friends, family, classmates, professors, co-workers, people from a professional organization you belong to or organization you volunteer with, etc.) and request to connect with them. To do so, use the search box with a drop down button that is located in the top right hand corner of the page. Select "People" and type in the name of the person you are looking for. Click Connect and personalize the message in the textbox to explain how you know the person and/or why you d like to connect. You will build your list of connections (like friends on Facebook) slowly, so don t worry if you only have a handful to start. Again, in the search box top at the right hand corner of the page, select "Group" from the dropdown and type in the name of the group you are interested in, for example UWM Panther Career Connections and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Alumni Association. Once you have been approved to join a group in LinkedIn, go to the group page. On the group s page click on the 2 nd tab running along the top of the page entitled Members. On the members page you will see a search box on the top left-hand side of the page, click Advanced Search and you will be able to search the members by keyword, company, location, etc. From the results page of your search, you can review individual s profiles that seem interesting to you (possibly because of their job title, previous experience, where they work, etc.). Also from the search results page, you can request to connect with an individual by clicking the square blue Connect button listed to the left of their name. (Sometimes you can request to connect from the person s profile page, but on some occasions you have to go back to the search results page in order to make the request). On the connection request page, select that you know the person from your shared group connection and include a personal note in the textbox explaining how you found him or her and why you would like to connect. For example: Hi XX, I found your profile on the UWM Alumni Association LinkedIn group. I m a UWM (grad or student) and would love the chance to learn more about your experience working at XYZ Company (or as an ABC). Would you be willing to connect with me? Thank you! Continued on next slide

19 Additional Resource: Using LinkedIn as a People Finder (cont.) When the person connects with you, you will get notification on your LinkedIn account and ed to you. Follow up with the person by sending an inbox message (6 th Tab from the left on the top toolbar; select compose a new message ). Send a message to thank the person for connecting with you on LinkedIn and explain why you are reaching out to him or her (ie. To learn about his or her experience working at XYZ; as a follow up from submitting an application; as a way to learn about a specific industry and get advice about working in that field, etc.). Inquire if he or she would be willing to chat with you over the phone or and/or meet with you in person for an informational interview. Don t forget to provide your contact information so you can be easily reached. See sample informational interview request below. REMEMBER, copy/paste is your friend. Save a template for the messages in a word document and cater as needed. Even if you don t hear back from each of your requests, you are certain to find a few good leads from your outreach. As you begin to network with people, always remember to ask open-ended questions, such as: What advice would you be willing to share with me as a --fill in the blank-- (job seeker, applicant, person looking to enter the field/industry, etc.)? Open-ended questions give people the chance to help you in a way they feel most comfortable. Check out more info about informational interviews at or at Dear, Example LinkedIn Informational Interview Request Thank you so much for accepting my invitation to connect on LinkedIn. My name is, and I found your profile through the UWM Alumni Association Group. I also graduated from UWM, with a degree in. I m reaching out to you based on your experience working as a (OR, working at Company). My educational background and experience is in, and I would love the opportunity to chat with you more about your career path. I am specifically interested in learning more about (optional if you want to include a specific topic). If there is a time that works for you in the upcoming weeks, I would greatly appreciate the opportunity to call you or meet you in person to discuss your experiences, career path, and any advice you would be willing to share with me about working as a (OR working at ). I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for your time and hope to talk to you soon. Sincerely, Name Phone

20 Thank you!