Career Acceleration Notes (CAN)

Executives: Where to find your next position in 2009?

Thanks to ExecuNet for sharing their quarterly projections.  Our economy requires that talented people walk into the some of the same doors that others have walked out of...  

To stimulate growth, companies are looking for people who can prove their value to an organization.  Do your homework - SWOT your target organizations - and present your unique value proposition.

B. Executive Job Functions Most in Demand for 2009

Employers are emphasizing business development and sales roles that can push organizational performance in a challenging economy, according to ExecuNet's exclusive Recruiter Confidence Poll. Executive recruiters believe leaders with proven business development and sales experience and a track record of consistently high results will be most in demand in the executive employment market over the next six months. Leaders in a host of engineering functions, executive recruiters say, are also among those with the most promising career options in this tough economic environment.

Where Recruiters See the Greatest Growth in Exec Hiring in Next Six Months   Business development 17.3%    Sales 15.0%    Engineering 10.4%    Operations management   (incl. supply chain, logistics, quality)   8.7%    Marketing   8.7%    Consulting   8.2%    Finance   7.9%    Research and development   7.7%    General management   7.1%    MIS/Information technology   6.2%    Human resources   1.5%    Other   1.2%  Source: ExecuNet

Posted by Karen P. Katz

Social Networking is buzzing in mainstream media outlets

Social Networking tools, including Twitter, have attracted a lot of attention among traditional media outlets.  The latest edition of BusinessWeek magazine (March 16, 2009) includes a nice piece on how Twitter is used and how its founders are handling acquisition efforts by Facebook, Google, and Yahoo.  The article I'm referring to has yet to appear online:  look for "Six Million Users: Nothing to Twitter At."

NBC's TODAY show conducted interview with Kirsten Dixson, one of the authors of Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building your Brand.  Personal branding is one of the aspects of online identity management that Kirsten discussed with Jenna Wolfe and Al Roker this morning.

If you don't think that carving out a place for yourself online is important, think again! 

Posted by Karen P. Katz

Close the Deal with Features & Benefits

I love it when people can tell stories that make a point - like Aesop's Fables...  My father was great at this - unfortunately, I'm not.  For this homily, let's borrow from Seth Godin and his "The Panhandler's Secret."

Seth's post is a simple story that reinforces a truism of sales training - talk features and benefits.  Career changers and job seekers are selling themselves - selling their unique value proposition - their brand. 

So be sure you know the features and benefits needed by your target organization - be sure what they need is in your "tool bag." 

Karen P. Katz

Leverage your network: a strategy to make the Stimulus Plan work for you...

It is possible to make lemonade...A familiar ingredient in the refreshing alternative to economic woe:  the Business section of your local newspaper...

• Today it is the Philadelphia Inquirer that offers a glimpse into what's happening in the regional job market.  The article that attracted my attention refers to the Information Technology (IT) efficiencies that are funded in the 2009 Economic Stimulus Package.  Read the full article in the Philadelphia Inquirer to learn more about the $2 billion in loans and grants, plus $17 billion in Medicare reimbursement for health-related IT spending. 

• So what, you may ask...WIIFY (What's in it for you?) -  Good question... These funds are targeted to go to doctors, medical practices, and hospitals - those who need to adopt the IT efficiencies called for to improve our health care system. These are small businesses who are likely to hire outside consultants to implement these changes to their business models.

•  A local employer poised to benefit from this legislation is NextGen Healthcare Information Systems Inc., a medical-records-system provider owned by California-based Quality Systems Inc. that employs 500 at its Horsham headquarters.

•  Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D., Phila) wrote the new legislation that steered the funds toward practitioners rather than insurance companies. Financial incentives to doctors and hospitals will be available as early as October 2010, so these small businesses will be looking for guidance ASAP.

Another ingredient in the lemonade is networking:  conduct online and off-line networking to find partners, perform competitive analysis, and identify links to decision-makers...

• Lots of information available is available on this topic - see the archives of Career Acceleration Notes, as well as recommended websites and blogs
  
• If you missed-it, read or listen to the NPR Marketplace report on Social Networks and Layoffs
  
• A few key points from the NPR program:  * Hyper-networking combines online and off line networking  *Jobs are not being posted  *Decision-makers are using Google in-place of gossip to vet prospects

Posted by Karen P. Katz

Are you "launch-ready" - see Mark Cuban's Open Source Funding Challenge

This is an amazing opportunity for those whose entrepreneurial ideas are ready to launch, similar to the government's criteria for "shovel-ready" infrastructure projects. 

Cuban offers venture capital to those who can meet his 13 criteria.  The competition itself will spark innovative thinking; the process will be public, and therefore inspiring; the winning business plan may spark a stimulus of innovation. The time frame is NOW - its all about responsiveness and accountability.

Need help writing your business plan?  If I can't help you, I'll find someone who can. Check-it-out...<http://tinyurl.com/djwbbu>

A bit off-message, but I'm outraged...

...at a column written by Stefan Stern, a columnist for the Financial Times.  While readers of this blog expect career and job search wisdom, I feel compelled to "out" this columnist.  I hope to feed his "hot air" to my readers who are proponents of sustainable enterprise* and corporate social responsibility*.

Stern's flippant muse was caught by a LinkedIn Net Impact Group member, Joseph Hollak.  Joseph quoted Stern's opening comment, "Thank goodness, now the recession’s here we can forget all that nonsense about corporate social responsibility (CSR) and get back to trying to make some money."  When last I checked, the question had not taken on much of a life, so I raise it here to raise a ruckus...

My two-cents is simple: CSR is not a conspiracy to pick the pocket of shareholders in the name of "good deeds."  CSR is an approach to profitability that promotes free enterprise while at the same time, promoting respect for the planet and dignity for consumers.  Profitability and higher principles can certainly work hand in glove.  Surely Mr. Stern has witnessed what happens to those who blindly seek profits at the expense of their community.  When he emerges from his rock, I hope he'll settle in a pleasant green pasture.

*A note to students of sustainability and CSR - the Wikipedia definitions need your input.

Marketing guru, Seth Godin: a new platform for "I am" and "I know" skills

Godin, blogger and thought leader among personal and permission marketers, has re-framed the thinking of Richard Bolles, author and esteemed guru of career and life coaches. 

I'm always looking for a topic that might add real value to the career space, so I was grateful to a friend who sent me Seth Godin's recent post, What are you good at?    Taking a marketing perspective, Seth appropriately suggests that those looking for their next big gig" should consider the distinction between skills that can be categorized as "content" and "process."

Godin uses 21st Century terminology to make his point:  "Content is domain knowledge. People you know or skills you've developed... Domain knowledge is important, but it's (often) easily learnable."  While Bolles' terms may not resonate with Millennials, his discussion of this topic is as relevant today as it was in 1980, when the Quick Job Hunting Map was first published.  Bolles describes skills residing in the content domain as "I know skills" ,e.g."I know how to use SAP, "I know financial accounting," "I know movers and shakers in the logistics field."

Godin  uses the term "process" to describe "emotional intelligence" - what Bolles would call "I am skills."  When explaining process skills, a speaker is likely to start a sentence with "I am able to manage multiple projects," "I am persuasive," "I am adaptable," etc.  These are the skills, abilities, and personal qualities that can differentiate a candidate from the many others who share their credentials and knowledge skills.  As Godin says, the process "...stuff is insanely valuable and hard to learn." And I agree that these personal qualities are likely to be overlooked by screeners and scanners. All the more reason to dig-deep and seize control of your personal marketing campaign - to manage your career.

An infinite number of people share the same content domain, but precious few offer the same mix of process skills and personal qualities. Long-term career health, preceded by successful assessment, preparation of marketing documents, interview preparation, and offer negotiation, is dependent upon your understanding of these ideas.

Chronicle of Philanthropy Live Discussion - Career Preservation: Become an Indispensable Asset

"The Recession and Your Career: How to Become an Indispensable Asset" - a live text-based discussion held January 13, Noon - 1pm

Review the complete transcript of this Question/Answer session at <http://philanthropy.com/live/2009/01/asset/>

Join the next Live Discussions on January 20 @1pm, a special time.  The topic will be:  "Making Your Marketing Message Matter"

Discussion points for January 13 program:

As the recession deepens, an increasing number of nonprofit organizations must look more closely at cutting costs — and at the grim possibility of laying off employees.

In turn, many employees who have felt safe in their positions are now worried about the stability of their jobs.

What can employees do to prove that they are indispensable? What steps should they take to bring more value to their organizations?

What can employers do to ease the fears of staff members and inspire them to improve their performance at this critical time?

Guest Panelists who contributed to this discussion:

Nick Fellers is president of For Impact-The Suddes Group, a training and consulting company in Ostrander, Ohio, that helps nonprofit groups and their executives with organizational development, career development, and fund raising.

Karen Katz is founder of the Career Acceleration Network, (CAN), LLC, a career strategies company in Philadelphia. She is an active supporter of Net Impact, an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to make a positive impact on society by growing and strengthening a community of leaders who use business to improve the world.

Lynne Sarikas is director of the M.B.A. career center at Northeastern University's College of Business Administration, in Boston. She previously worked as vice president for development at the United Way of Massachusetts Bay.

A New Strengths Assessment Tool from Gallup Press

Passing on news that that Gallup Press has released another title in its series of self-assessment books in collaboration with Tom Rath: Strengths Based Leadership.  The new title promises to build on the results of the Strengths Finder 2.0, which is itself an extension of the popular title, Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham.

Buckingham is a business guru whose perspective has always appealed to me, on several levels.  Like me, he was once a stutterer who found that his strength is actually his ability to communicate clearly and convincingly.  Secondly, he has been a proponent for an intuitive and healthy attitude about personal and professional development. I think he would endorse my self-description as a career strategist, not a counselor (illness) nor a coach (no fruits and nuts).  Marcus started a "Strengths Revolution," by asking what is most likely lead to the achievement of goals: building on your strengths or fixing your weaknesses?  

As a career professional, I totally embrace the emphasis on strengths assessment.  Many traditional psychological assessments leave the client and coach communicating through language that I call "psycho-babble." The Strengths Revolution encourages a coaching dialog that uses easy to understand terms; the terms relate to the business world, not to the theories of a psychologist.  (An earlier strengths-based tool was developed by Timothy Butler, & James Waldroop; it is still available through the Harvard Business School).

The new book seeks to build on research conducted over 10 years, focusing on what it takes to be a leader. Tom Rath has collaborated with Barry Conchie to identify  themes and provide  specific strategies that should help you to build a stronger team.  This post is not a book review, as I have only learned about the new release today. (Note that few reviewers have recommended the new book to those who have already taken the Strengths Finder 2.0; it is suggested as a substitute rather than an addition to the original assessment.)

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A Physicist's advice RE: stalled career

I've been waiting to use this quote for months... The New Year and our stalled economy seem to offer the right context for some words of wisdom from Albert Einstein:

"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving."

What appeals to me is the goal of "balance," and the basic law of physics that is recommended: "keep moving."  These are great words to keep in-mind, especially if you feel unsteady at this point in your career or your life. 

Your personal anecdotes about maintaining balance and momentum would add greatly to this post...

Karen P. Katz
Career Acceleration Network (CAN), LLC
<http://www.CareerAcceleration.net>