RFL: Not just another day in the office.

A few weeks back, my company agreed to a proposal I put forth to offer free job hunting workshops on-site at companies that are forced to lay people off this year. We've been offering this content at state agencies and college career centers across New England for almost 5 years now.

With the economy affecting so many businesses, we thought it would be a good opportunity to do good, and offer assistance to those in need. Additionally, we've seen a real lack of quality, informed, and up-to-date information being provided by other programs. Of course, there's no doubt it provides our business with good PR and an opportunity to stay visible despite a sluggish job market.

Within the first couple days of sending out the offer to businesses, I received nearly two dozen requests for more information. To date, we now have 4 on-site workshops scheduled in the next couple weeks. Today, I presented the first at a local insurance company. This company had decided to close it's Maine site, to consolidate operations on the west coast. As a result, around 100 experienced insurance employees are now looking for new work... and there just aren't so many insurance jobs to be had. So what now?

I am very grateful for the opportunity to utilize my skills in an effort to help people find success during such a difficult transition. There seemed to be good enthusiasm, considering the circumstances, and a general attitude of moving forward. I spoke to three groups, totaling around 75 employees, and most were considering seeking out completely new opportunities in new areas. One of the keys to my presentation is to establish a good rapport with the group, and do my best to steer them toward being open to new opportunities. When faced with such a disruptive force as a layoff, it can be terribly difficult to remain positive and open to opportunities. But, of course, without a good frame of mind, it's difficult to move forward.

I go out of my way to reinforce that the first step to finding a great new job is self analysis. From my experience and perspective, I believe that success in the job hunt is related to the amount of time and effort put in to identifying exactly what you want and focusing your search on the best potential career matches, based on core values, mission, vision, and skills required. While some people advise that it's best to send out 50 resumes a week every week, I try to steer people toward narrowing down their search, and customizing their effort for each company they apply to. In fact, I advised that no one should ever send out the exact same version of their resume twice!

The idea that hr professionals and recruiters are focused more than ever on fit and culture can be news to job seekers. I spend a great deal of time during the workshop to beat folks over the head with this idea. As a hiring manager, I want to know that you want to be part of my company, and that you'll be a good fit. Fit leads to retention, reducing turnover costs, and increasing productivity and profitability over the long term. With that understanding, it's vital that you seek out opportunities that you believe will be a good fit between the core values, mission, and vision of you and the company you're seeking employment with.

Overall, I believe it was a very good day, and hope that some piece of information I shared today will help these good people as they head out on their next exciting adventure.