On The Hunt? Jobs That Might Leave You Gobsmacked
Note: if you don’t read all the way through this post before jumping to put in your application, you may indeed be in danger of being gobsmacked (image: Clint Bohn, Creative Commons).
Job hunters with a yen for clean speak might find this interesting:
Director of Communications, the Ronald Wilson Reagan Hand Sanitizer Project, Washington, DC
Foundation seeks Director of Communications to develop and implement strategic goal of having every hand sanitizer in the United States named after Our Greatest President while promoting healthy habits. Duties include strategic planning across all 50 states and US territories; lobbying on Capitol Hill; op-eds; news releases; event planning; social media; and coordination with industry manufacturers and distributors. With your support, every hand sanitizer in every office, restaurant, medical facility and sports complex will bear the name of The Great Communicator. Resume and Party Affiliation to: RWRSP, The Ronald Reagan Building, 1776 Ronald Reagan Avenue, Washington (Reagantown name change pending), DC 20086.
On the other hand, if you’re going through social media rehab, this might appeal to you:
Communications Specialist, Campaign Against Butt-Dialing, Foggy Bottom, DC
Trade association seeking to eradicate America’s fastest-growing social disease seeks energetic person to serve on the front lines as we launch our latest public awareness campaign, “The Butt Stops Here.” Help us as we appeal to our primary target audience (men) and our secondary target audience (men), as well as tertiary audiences (men) on the importance of proper cell phone storage, butt-dialing etiquette and What To Do When You Accidentally Use All Your Minutes on a Call to Egypt. Resume to buttout (a) cabd (d0t) org. No phone calls please.
And I know buzzword bingo buffs will make a beeline for this one:
Vice President of Jargon, Washington, D.C.
Defense contractor seeks Vice President of Jargon to craft mechanisms that ensure inter-operational optimization and meet mission-critical objectives. Ideal candidate will triage time-sensitive priorities, coordinate infrastructure, enhance operational efficiency and service delivery through service management best practices, drive business innovation, ensure single point-of-accountability across infrastructure and promote time-to-resolution commitments. Background in assured computing preferred. Resume to WTF Corp., Near the Pentagon, Arlington, Va. 22023.
(One, two, three…)
People. Do you remember what today is?
Gotcha!
These are just a few gems (image: Eelco, Creative Commons) from my friend Ned Lundquist’s free, weekly jobs e-newsletter, “Job of the Week” or JOTW (of which I’m sometimes guest editor), and the “infamous March 32nd edition,” as Ned calls it.
Because what could be better than relieving the stress of the job hunt than a good laugh?
So if you’re on the hunt, give yourself a break and have some fun today. And do yourself a huge favor by subscribing to Ned’s newsletter – you’ll find it’ll brighten up your inbox every Monday (and heaven knows Mondays desperately need a makeover).
Did I mention it’s free? And that’s no joke.
Bonus and totally-not-fake tip: if you’re job hunting in the DC area, I strongly recommend you come to the IABC/DC Metro chapter meeting next week. Ned will be joined by Kate Perrin of PRofessional Solutions, the area’s first PR temp agency, and the inimitable Heather Huhman of Come Recommended, to discuss job hunting in a down economy.
With three powerhouses like that present, not to mention the connections you might make, can you afford to miss it? The early bird registration deadline is Tuesday, April 9, and you’re welcome to sign up as my guest for $5 off. I hope to see you there!
Filed under Career, Networking, Personal | Tags: heather huhman, iabc dc metro, job hunting, jobs, jotw, kate perrin, ned lundquist | Comment (1)
Getting a Foot in the Door with GoodieRecruit
If you’re in the PR field, a Gen Y-er, a recruiter, based in the Washington, D.C., area, or “all of the above,” you’re well aware of Heather Huhman. Heather’s one of the most prolific tweeters and writers I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know, and she focuses on helping entry-level job seekers navigate the often- (and now, it seems, always) turbulent waters of getting their feet in the proverbial door.
In addition to her “day job,” keeping up her column and religiously sharing job leads, Heather recently launched Come Recommended, an “exclusive online community connecting the best internship and entry-level job candidates with the best employers.”
And if that weren’t enough to keep her busy, she’s now getting ready to add GoodieRecruit to the CR family of services, again focusing on entry-level recruiting. She calls it “next-generation recruiting for the next generation.”
I thought this was really interesting; one doesn’t typically think of hiring a recruitment firm for entry-level employees, so I asked her to tell me more about it.
What interested you about focusing on recruitment services for Gen Y-ers – what got you started?
I am passionate about helping students and recent college graduates pursue their dream careers – have been since I was in their shoes. Because of my experience as a hiring manager of interns and entry-level employees, I understand the needs of today’s employers and job seekers. I realize there is a need for change in the recruiting process as more and more baby boomers turn 60 every day and organizations seek more cost-effective hiring processes.
Have you ever been a recruiter yourself? What interests you about that field?
I have not been a “recruiter” by trade, but I’ve been in the position of hiring interns and entry-level professionals and very much consider myself a skilled college/campus recruiter.
Tell me a little about “experiential hiring.”
Employers always tell me they wish there was a way to “test out” entry-level candidates before hiring them – short of a three-month internship program, of course. Well, now there is – experiential hiring. This concept capitalizes on the notion that Gen Y learns best by jumping in with both feet and participating and serves as an extended interview of sorts. Think NBC’s The Apprentice.
How did the idea for GoodieRecruit come about?
The national unemployment rate has reached more than 10 percent, and the number is even higher among entry-level professionals. Because of this, there is a huge shift taking place in how organizations are going about attracting new candidates. Organizations are forced to work harder and smarter and not spend nearly as much money as they are used to. Many employers are reluctant to hire simply because they are not sure if the candidate is perfect for the job after only meeting with them for a very short period of time.
I saw a need to offer a cost-effective service for even the smallest organizations where employers and candidates could build a relationship. GoodieRecruit looks to create a recruiting service that is personalized so employers are sure they are hiring the right person.
You can read more about why I’m launching GoodieRecruit on our blog.
What’s the GoodieRecruit process?
For employers, the process looks like this:
1. If you are not already a Come Recommended member, we will work with you to complete your account.
2. A GoodieRecruit representative either comes to your office to observe the culture or surveys current employees electronically.
3. The GoodieRecruit representative meets, either in-person or over the phone, with whomever in your organization typically writes job descriptions to help them craft a description that will both appeal to Gen Y and clearly demonstrate what you are seeking in a candidate.
4. GoodieRecruit will work with you to identify a local nonprofit at which the “experience” can take place, based on both the specific position(s) you have open and preference for a particular nonprofit.
5. GoodieRecruit takes over the entire process from there—coordinating with the nonprofit, attracting candidates, evaluating candidates during the “experience” based on conversations with you and your team, narrowing down the selection for you to 2 to 3 top candidates, and providing you with a complete portfolio on each as to why you should hire them.
Will GoodieRecruit focus on specific industries?
Yes, GoodieRecruit currently focuses on identifying top entry-level talent in the following fields:
- Public relations/communications
- Public affairs/public policy/government relations
- Marketing
- Graphic design
- Development/fundraising
- Sales/customer service
Can you share five tips for new professionals to put their best foot forward when entering the job market?
1. Personalize your job search materials: Employers like to see that you have taken time to research their organization and have found ways to contribute if hired. This means describing how your past experience has prepared you for work with their organization in your cover letter and including accomplishments relevant to the job description in your résumé.
2. Dress professionally: Even if an interviewer says the interview will be casual, it is always a good practice to dress to impress. If the interview is business casual, you do not need to wear a suit, but slacks (or a skirt) and a nice shirt or blouse is appropriate and dress shoes are a must!
3. Come to interviews prepared: Show you have done your research. This is more than simply glancing at the organization’s Web site 10 minutes before walking into the interview. Research ways you can help the organization by thinking about how your past experiences fit into the job description and organization as a whole. Also, always come with thought-provoking questions.
4. Network online and off: It is crucial that Gen Y knows how to professionally use social networking sites and how to conduct themselves at networking events. These days, networking is one of the best ways to land interviews and be the first to know about upcoming opportunities.
5. Keep an online portfolio: This is less cumbersome to take to interviews and employers can peruse your work at their leisure. Also, online portfolios illustrate your technical abilities.
It’ll be fascinating to see how GoodieRecruit takes off as it integrates social media into the recruitment process; not to mention the obvious benefits to hiring organizations as well as non-profits who sign up to be the “lab” – what a great way to identify potential candidates for non-profit organizations as well. And candidates – remember those dress shoes!
Heather, thanks for taking the time to fill us in and please do keep us posted. By the way, Heather is also generously donating a GR package to the IABC/Washington holiday party raffle, where we’ll be supporting Bread for the City, so if you’re at an organization with entry-level hiring needs, you might want to come check us out, or contact Heather, or both!
What do you think of the GoodieRecruit premise and process? Do you have more questions for Heather? Do let us know by leaving a comment below.
Creating a Virtual Internship
It’s been one of those days that has passed me by without my realizing it, but I had to share this excellent presentation on creating a virtual internship from Heather Huhman. It’s full of useful tips that independent practitioners as well as businesses will value. Check it out.
Want to Freelance? TwitterSource
I had a lot of fun co-hosting the first #soloPR chat on Twitter today. It was a shame that my co-host, Heather Huhman, was locked out of Twitter for the duration, but pros like Kellye Crane, Jen Wilbur, and many more shared great tips on a career as a freelance PR professional, especially for new/recent grads. That’s right, I put “career” and “freelance” in the same sentence; because it can be a great one.
You can see the entire transcript of today’s chat at the #soloPR What the Hashtag?! page, but here are some gems from today’s chat:
It was great to meet new folks and reconnect with friends like Jennifer Mitchell, a feisty San Diego-based pro. Jen and I agreed to use the term “an agency of one” (which I first heard from her and promptly appropriated – with her permission – for my website earlier this year) on separate coasts. And Shane Kinkennon put me squarely in my place with a beautiful definition of “higher marketing”:
Many thanks to everyone who signed on today. I hope you’ll join the erstwhile Kellye Crane as she moves the #soloPR chat forward every Wednesday, from 1 – 2 pm ET. If today was anything to go by, we just tapped into an amazing resource.
You.
Do you have more tips you’d like to share on a career in freelance PR? Do leave a note in the comments, I’d love to know.
Filed under Career, Communication, Public Relations, Twitter | Tags: alison kenney, consulting, freelancing, heather huhman, jennifer mitchell, jennifer wilbur, kami huyse, kellye crane, pr, Public Relations, shane kinkannon, solopr, stephanie mrus, Twitter, twitterchat, wthashtag | Comments (3)Social Media, Social Karma
There’s an awful lot of social karma going around lately. 
JOTW: My First Experience With Social Karma
For the last few years, I’ve occasionally guest-edited the free “Ned’s Job of the Week” e-newsletter. If you don’t know about it, it’s a free weekly newsletter that lists job postings sent to Ned Lundquist, ABC, by subscribers (as well as many he finds himself) in the spirit of sharing.
For a couple of weeks every year, I experience what Ned goes through on a daily basis: sifting through job postings sent by readers, looking for them myself, telling people how to subscribe and unsubscribe (even though the instructions are clearly listed in the newsletter) and then compiling all the information, along with other announcements that would be relevant (such as communication/PR events) into a newsletter that’s sent out every Monday.
It’s a lot of work, and I’m exhausted and relieved when Ned returns; but I’m always grateful for the additional connections I make by filling in for him, as well as honored by his trust that I’ll keep JOTW rolling along.
And I always ask myself: how on earth does he keep doing it?
The answer is very simple: Ned believes in social karma. Or rather, as he puts it, JOTW is dedicated to the “positive, unanticipated consequences of nedworking.” And no, that’s not a typo.
Ned didn’t start publishing JOTW to get something out of it. He did it to help a few folk he knew, and figured he might – just might – help himself along the way. Since its inception with a handful of subscribers, JOTW has grown tremendously; at last count, there are more than 11,111 members of the JOTW network. It now has a home on the Web as well as advertisers and sponsors.
The WIIFM Factor
Is Ned getting something out of JOTW now? You bet. But that’s not why he started it, and not why he keeps it going, or why he keeps it free to subscribers. And that, in my opinion, is why he’s successful.
Mind you, all this started several years ago, way before “social media” became the “buzzphrase” it is today. But to me, Ned epitomizes the inherent karmic element of social media. If you send something good out to your world – with no expectation whatsoever – something good will come back to you.
Twitter and Social Karma
One of the reasons I love Twitter is that it’s a perfect platform for social karma. Want to know who can enrich your network? Head to #followfriday. Want to show someone some Twitter-love? Re-tweet something interesting they’ve shared.
And through Twitter, I’ve come across even more instances of social karma.
Mark Story, for example, has started #blogmonday, where he highlights bloggers who might not be very well known. Arik Hanson posts interviews with professionals he thinks are “PR Rockstars” on his blog. Heather Huhman provides a wealth of PR resources by tagging relevant posts with #PRadvice. And there are countless others.
As far as I know, Mark, Arik and Heather aren’t necessarily “getting” anything out of their efforts. But I’m pretty sure they are enhancing their reputations (don’t worry, I’m not going to get into the whole personal branding thing here), building their networks and sowing the seeds for “positive, unanticipated consequences” which will have a beneficial effect on their work.
What’s the Communications Angle?
The first thing that anyone – including the many “gurus” out there – will tell you about social media is that it’s about listening, connecting and sharing. Everything else comes later.
If you’re a professional communicator grappling with the amoebic nature of social media, try thinking of it as your path to social karma.
After all, our business is communication, right? Sharing information, educating and informing audiences and hopefully, at the end of the day, doing some good by using smart communications to help organizations (or clients) achieve their goals.
Listening, sharing, connecting – this is what we DO. Don’t get intimidated by the technology behind it, or the buzzwords that tend to change quicker than David and Dania.
Call me naïve, but I believe social karma is a large part of what we do for a living. Social media is just another way to get there.
What about you? Is social karma part of your approach to communications? Have you found social media has increased your social karma? If you want to give props to someone who does, a comment would be a lovely way to do so.
Filed under Communication, Networking, Public Relations, Social Media, Twitter
| Tags: arik hanson, communications, community, heather huhman, jotw, mark story, ned lundquist, Networking, social karma, Social Media, Twitter |
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