Invest in Yourself!

While I have such a strong sense of light at the end of the tunnel, we don’t yet know if our path leads us through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (a modern engineering wonder, measuring 17.6 miles!) or the AeroDyn Wind Tunnel. This slump, though you may not be working and may be experiencing anxiety, frustration and a whole host of other emotions, could actually be a great opportunity for you to take time to retool.

Technology professionals are quick to make glib observations about how fast technology changes, yet are you really truly aware of the changes that are happening now, the changes that are coming, and how they can (and will!) affect the market demand for the skills you currently use? Reality check: in order to continue working in this industry until your (already postponed) retirement, you need take responsibility for constantly updating your skills, nimbly stepping ahead of the competition, and aggressively jockeying for the opportunity to use those newly acquired skills.

For my money, the ROI on funds used to extend your career until your (please please please) actual retirement is greater than a house on the oceanfront you were able to buy for a-dollar-two-ninety-eight. Maybe you feel the same.

I recently went to a technology symposium where the speakers discussed green energy, the technologies and roles of the future, and the need for today’s IT professionals to retool. And they gave tips on what you should concentrate on.

So, here goes:

• Data – anything associated with data is going to be needed as our electrical grid moves into the future – mining, analysis, reporting, storage
• Security – data security and securing the transfer of data will be very important to the smart grid.

In other reading I’ve also learned that Business Process Reengineering will be a big deal in the future – cynically speaking, because by improving the process additional layoffs will be made possible. (Hey, better them than you, right?) And I understand that there is a Business Process Engineering certification available where most of the courses are online.

Just some tips, from me to you, some things for you to think about. And be sure you invest in yourself first!

First Aid

Follow this link to see how the 2009 Stimulus package can help laid off workers with their health care insurance costs.

Navigating through the Evil Parallel Universe

In today’s tight job market, many project consultants are entering new territory – an Evil Parallel Universe where PMPs, .net Architects, and BI Specialists are not fawningly courted by employers and asked to ‘name your price’, a labyrinthine Netherworld where dark, narrow alleys leading to guaranteed assignments unexpectedly open to cul-de-sacs packed waaaay beyond the fire code limit with scores of consultants each holding more and more stellar resumes. It is indeed dark out there – and it’s time for extraordinary consultants to mount a full frontal assault in order to land even an ordinary assignment.

Warning: Those who follow their tried-and-true procedure for landing their next assignment will continue to return false-positives. It’s always worked before doesn’t work anymore.

Your job search is your job
Get up, change out of your PJs, OMG take a shower(!), and put in 8+ hours everyday – your job search is your new job. Perhaps you’re going to meetings – networking sessions, classes, interviews (fingers-crossed!), job fairs. Maybe you’re billing time creating or updating artifacts – resumes, LinkedIn profiles, Facebook profiles. It could be you’re doing analysis – searching for opportunities and applying online, reading articles on CareerBuilder. At this moment you work for yourself -- this is your new job and those who are successful will attack it as such.

Create a spreadsheet
Thank goodness for Excel, where you can track all the opportunities you’re working on. You’ll need columns such as job number, job title, job description, company, date applied, recruiter contact info, rate, any info you can gather about the hiring manager/department, and maybe some columns to note contacts, interviews, and notification that you were rejected. Make sure if you’re working with a recruiter that you get the internal hiring manager’s job number – yes, they really can give it to you – so that you can ensure that you are not granting permission for submittal to multiple recruiters. If you leave the house print this document and take it with you, in case you get a call while you’re out. Those who prefer more elaborate tracking can use MS Project. This job search is your Six Sigma Black Belt project, and you need to ensure your artifacts are up-to-date.

Be available, ready, and open
Give your cell phone number as your main number on your resume, in your applications, and to recruiters you’re working with – so that you’re always available when a hot iron strikes. Return voicemails promptly. Do your mental work upfront and be ready to agree to submittal when one is offered – know what type of opportunity you’re seeking, what type of rate you need. The recruiter doesn’t have time to negotiate and cajole – she wants to get your answer and either submit you or move on to the next equally qualified candidate. (Don’t expect to be able to call her back 24 hours later to accept – that open job has been closed to submittals and the hiring manager is working through 40 excellent resumes by then!) Be open to new ideas – when a recruiter asks you to reevaluate your rate or tweak your resume – do it.

Maximize your networking
It has never been more true – it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. You can open an enormous can of network partners right from your desktop. Join and mine LinkedIn and Facebook. Flesh out your LinkedIn so that it is as full as your resume. Join groups on LinkedIn – former employer alumni groups are very good places to find former co-workers, or business or technical networking groups can lead you to new contacts. Update your ‘What are you working on?’ everyday, so that your name is constantly on connections’ minds. And connect, connect, connect – add connections and stay in touch! Join networking groups at churches, go to professional affiliation meetings and network there. Go to job fairs, if only to meet other people. Have lunch with former co-workers and share tips.


I feel like my postings are becoming more shrill and preachy as the weeks pass and the ticker tapes go lower. And I think I get this way because so many folks I’m working with are still in denial about our situation, or in some sort of that’s-not-for-me La-la Land.

Just to shed some light, if you find yourself wondering why your recruiters haven’t called you in a while, after you turned down the last two opportunities because the rates weren’t good enough, if you find that your two-hours per day job search tactics are not hitting pay dirt, you need to read this posting again from the top.