Since December 2007, approximately 6.9 million jobs have been lost in the United States. After months of stomach-turning fiscal activity, economists are being cautiously optimistic and employers, faced with a slowing decline in job losses, are tip-toeing carefully through the rest of the year.
September 2009
Monthly Archive
Hiring and Pay Levels Projected to Remain Tepid
Ask The Work Buzz! More on age
Here’s a question from Peter: I am starting a job search and resume preparation. I am close to 60 and would like to know if age should be avoided in the resume and ultimately lie about it?
Peter, if we’re cutting to the chase, the answer to your questions are yes (kind of) and no, respectively. Here’s why…
I know we’ve discussed age at length here and here. But this question touches on something we’ve yet to discuss: How specific should you be on your application when it comes to giving away your age? Well, you don’t need to put your birthdate on your resume or cover letter, whether you’re 16 or 60. So don’t worry about that. And if you’re afraid employers will automatically dismiss you (even though they shouldn’t) because of the dates of your graduation, then leave those dates off. What matters is that you graduated with a degree, not when. There’s absolutely nothing dishonest or deceitful about that.
Still, we don’t advocate lying, and we’re not for burying information either. See, you still should put dates by your employment history, especially the most recent ones (aka ones that you had over the last 10 years, possibly longer depending on your field). Leaving those dates off will seem very suspicious. Employers will assume you’re hiding something. So an employer can always do some quick math if they really want to figure out your age. Plus, if you get an interview, they’re going to see you face-to-face and, well, unless you’re really good with makeup, they’re going to know you’re not 19. So there’s no point in lying or going through extensive means to hide your age. And do you really want to work for a place that fears mature workers and experience?
Perhaps most importantly, you shouldn’t be ashamed of your age. If an employer is going to assume you can’t perform the tasks or doesn’t want someone with a little grey hair in the office, that’s not going to be a good place for you to work. (Forget how illegal it would be for them to openly dismiss you on those grounds.) Avoiding a few specific dates where possible might not be a bad idea if you’re afraid a college graduation date of 1973 will intimidate someone before they even look at your qualifications. But don’t lie and don’t forget that you probably have gained experience that a newcomer hasn’t. Be yourself and be proud of what you’ve done with your career.
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Video: Matching your skills to available jobs
One of the things more job seekers are having to do these days is look to new industries and careers to find employment. Once thriving sectors like finance and construction are ailing and displaced workers find their once sought-after skills are not as valuable.
The key is identifying which skills you have and to which jobs they can be applied. Try using online tools, like CareerPath.com. You may learn that you can easily transfer into a new occupation with the expertise you have or short-term training and/or certification.
This morning, CareerBuilder’s V.P. of Human Resources Rosemary Haefner discussed this very topic on the Today Show. Watch this segment to learn about one woman who is making the move to nursing and how you can make a change, too.
Related posts:
- 4 Ways to Recession-Proof Your Job It’s no secret that the unstable economy is making most…
- Ask The Work Buzz! I’ve got a degree in education, but no job Courtney writes to us with a concern I’m sure many…
- Great Jobs in the President’s Stimulus Plan On Friday, we told you about President Barack Obama’s economic…
Ask The Work Buzz! The Age Debate
One reader of The Work Buzz brought up a good topic for debate. Sylvia Paramo asked: “If a job applicant is 55 years old, do they really have less of a chance of getting hired?”
20 Jobs that Pay America’s Average Salary
By Rachel Zupek, PrimeCB.com writer
Salaries are always a hot topic in the office — most often, as an area of complaint. In today’s economy, most are simply grateful to earn a salary of any size, but you still hear things like, “I don’t earn enough to survive or pay the bills” or “So-and-so is making X amount; I should be, too.” Or — my personal favorite: “I deserve more.”
Well, we all deserve more, but the reality is that right now, not many of us will get it. And, in looking at the national average salary, some of you may be surprised how you compare.
By Rachel Zupek, PrimeCB.com writer
OK, OK — I apologize for calling you a geek.
But what better term is there to describe one who is obsessed with his or her iPhone/BlackBerry/iPod/Twitter/Gmail/everything else that’s technology related?
Let’s go with … gadget addicts. Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s get back to business.
We all know someone who fits the description of a “gadget addict.” Whether he’s addicted to his iPhone, iPod, video games or hybrid cars, there’s no doubt that this little infatuation is probably stealing time and productivity from his 9-to-5. Why not make everyone happy and get started in a career that aids the obsession?
Here are five careers that can keep gadget geeks — er, addicts — on the pulse of latest technology and help to feed their addictions.
Applications architects build essential parts of computer applications, from Web 2.0 apps like blogs and wikis, to user interface or infrastructure. They also design code and make sure that all software projects adhere to a company’s technology and business standards.
Qualifications: A bachelor’s degree in computer science or information systems; several years of work experience.
Salary*: $57,798
Marketing managers are in the know about — guess what — the marketplace. If you’re a technology marketing manager, you are up to speed on what consumers want and how to get it to them. It’s your job to make sure you know what the industry demands and what your competitors are doing, so that you can get your company and products to do it better.
Qualifications: Employers prefer a bachelor’s or master’s degree in business administration with an emphasis on marketing.
Salary: $85,747
Project managers oversee a company’s technology projects. Got a new software application coming down the pipeline? As a PM, you’ll develop these projects from start to finish; planning, designing, budgeting, setting deadlines and priorities, and implementing the finished product.
Qualifications: A bachelor’s degree in IT or a business-related field; experience in managing complex projects. Certifications in project management are also valued.
Salary: $51,109
Did you research hundreds of digital cameras or cell phones before you bought one? If you’re a techie and have decent writing ability, a product reviewer might be the job for you. In this role, you’ll research and test several technology products, from HDTVs to MP3 players. Then, you’ll write columns describing which goods are the best — and worst — and why.
Qualifications: A degree in communications or business communication, in addition to great writing skills, will be beneficial.
Salary: N/A
Social media is the new black for successful companies. In fact, a recent study from Wetpaint and the Altimeter Group shows that companies who are actively engaged in social media, like Facebook, Twitter, wikis and discussion forums, grew company revenues by an average of 18 percent over the past 12 months, while the least-engaged companies saw revenues drop 6 percent over the same period.
Qualifications: A bachelor’s degree in communications, advertising or marketing is preferred; awareness of social media platforms.
Salary: $67,537**
*U.S. national average salary according to CBSalary.com, powered by SalaryExpert
**Media manager salary
Rachel Zupek is a writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, The Work Buzz. She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues. Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CBwriterRZ.
4 Common Job Hunt Dilemmas Solved
By Selena Dehne, JIST Publishing
Overcoming unemployment during a job market drought can present quite the dilemma, all on its own. It can be particularly problematic, however, for job seekers without a college degree or with a questionable work history, for instance. Barriers such as these are all it takes in today’s highly competitive job market to screen job seekers out of consideration for a job before they’ve ever scored an interview.
That’s why it’s imperative that job seekers be aware of their job-hunt barriers and know how to downplay them on their résumé.
While the unemployment rate edged up in August to 9.7 — the country’s highest in 27 years — the Labor Department has reported that fewer jobs were lost. While employment continued to drop, that decline appears to be slowing: -216,000 jobs in August compared to -463,000 in June and -276,000 in July.
This latest report also shed some light on discouraged workers: (more…)
Coming Soon to Your Career
By Kelly Services
Times are tough, no doubt. But innovation thrives on challenge, and every downturn leaves a fresh new wave of opportunity. Often the solutions demanded by society involve changes that will recycle our existing skill sets for a whole new purpose.
Don’t miss the next trend in your chosen discipline. A number of emerging industries will produce new jobs in the near future, and some cross-functional projects mean opportunity across more than one skill set. Here are just a few that you should know about:
1. Health Informatics
Health informatics will put technology in place that provides hospitals and other health-care providers with access to an electronic network of vital patient information such as like medical histories and prescriptions. The information age finally meets healthcare administration.
The facts
The health informatics initiative won’t succeed unless employees — that’s you! — bring the specialized skills needed to build and expand the network. All other pieces are in place:
· The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes $20.6 billion to help providers drive adoption and development of the IT infrastructure needed.
· The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects health information management employment to grow nearly 18 percent by 2016.
· The BLS projects a need for more than 6,000 new professionals each year through 2014 — but only 2,600 graduates have entered the field this past year.
Your opportunity
To succeed, health informatics (HIM) will demand a wide variety of specialized positions across IT and health care. It will engage conventional experience from both areas — such as registered nurses and LPNs/LVNs, or IT implementation specialists and IT project managers — if you’re looking for a new twist on your current career.
But new positions will also thrive in this hybrid field. Look for new HIM job titles in your next job search, like health IT professionals, HIM coders, HIM medical records professionals and various health informatics specialists, including trainers, researchers and analysts.
Get online to check out the job titles mentioned above and listed below for related descriptions, and see if you might need any additional training to meet requirements:
Nursing
- Telemedicine clinical professionals
- Chief nursing information officers
Health-care administration
- Medical and health services managers
IT specialists
- Senior programmers
- Data integration specialists
2. International Financial Reporting Standards
International Financial Reporting Standards is a single set of high-quality, global accounting standards. It will allow U.S. public companies to present financial statements under the same rules as foreign companies and standardize accounting across international subsidiaries. Ultimately IFRS should also help capital formation in the U.S. and stimulate growth in today’s global economy.
The facts
Much like the introduction of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002, companies realize that compliance is no small endeavor. Auditors estimate that it will take 18 to 24 months to install an IFRS-based accounting system.
· IFRS was accepted unanimously by the Securities and Exchange Commission in August 2008.
· More than 100 countries require or accept IFRS reporting today.
· If the SEC mandates IFRS in 2013 — large public companies will be required to use IFRS in 2014, with all public companies following suit by 2016.
Your opportunity
IFRS will offer opportunity for more than just accounting and finance personnel. “To prepare for IFRS, U.S. companies must first understand that the shift will not only affect the accounting and financial departments, but will have resulting impacts on all aspects of the company’s operations,” says Mike Gillan, Regional Manager of Kelly Financial Resources.
Based on European conversions, the IT department could incur as much as 50 percent of the total convergence cost. The shift will also greatly affect the HR department. For example, Daimler AG trained more than 3,000 employees in departments from accounting and treasury to controlling, investor relations and tax while launching its conversion process.
3. Green-collar jobs
As the United States looks to alternative sources of fuel, and innovative ways to make our energy stretch further, green-collar jobs are coming more in demand. Positive employment impacts are expected in fields ranging from mass transit and energy-efficient automobiles, to retrofitting buildings, to wind power, solar power or biomass fuels.
The facts
Millions of U.S. workers expect to benefit from our transformation to a green economy — across a wide range of familiar occupations, income and skill levels.
· The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provides hundreds of billions in funding for smarter systems, advanced energy efficiency and loans for renewable energy power generation.
· By 2012, green job statistics project 29,000 new jobs in advanced biofuels, 140,000 in energy efficiency, 110,000 in solar energy and 185,000 in wind energy.
· Statistics project 37 million renewable-energy jobs overall by the year 2030, as much as 17 percent of all U.S. employment.
Your opportunity
Look for the Green movement to potentially impact a wide array of job titles, including:
Scientific
- Chemists (analytical, organic, inorganic)
Industrial trades
- HVAC technicians
Engineering
- Civil engineers
Kelly Services is a world leader in workforce management services and human resources solutions, providing employment to nearly 650,000 employees annually – with skills including office services, accounting, engineering, information technology, law, science, marketing, creative services, light industrial, education and health care. For more information, please visit www.kellyservices.com.
Do You Want to Be Your Own Boss?
By Rachel Zupek, PrimeCB.com writer
When Nicholas Richardson was laid off in February, he was blindsided. He quickly realized there weren’t many firms looking to increase their payrolls, so he took matters into his own hands: He hired himself.
With a lot of help and support from his friends, family and his professional network, Richardson is slowly but surely making his dreams a reality. The best part of his new situation? He is his own boss.
“Opening my own [law-firm] practice was always a long-term goal, but I hadn’t done any of the groundwork to make my startup feasible because it wasn’t a plan for 2009 or in this economy,” Richardson says. “I spent a lot of time researching what I needed to do, and then made a list that’s slowly getting checked off.”