By JOE LIGHT

A tight job market might have taken away some jobseekers’ leverage in a salary negotiation, but that doesn’t mean they should roll over and accept the first offer, says New York-based executive coach Rabia de Lande Long. To get the top compensation possible—without putting a sour taste in your potential employer’s mouth—take these steps.

1. Do your research.

It used to be hard to find out what your coworkers and other professionals in your industry get paid. But now, several resources have attempted to opened that black box, says Ms. de Lande Long. Salary.com and Payscale.com give salary ranges to expect based on a job seeker’s position, location, and experience. Employees at the actual company you’re applying to might have also posted their salaries at GlassDoor.com.

2. Don’t give out the first number.

You’ll be pressured to do this through the application process. “What’s your salary requirement?” “What salary range are you looking for?” “What do you get paid now?”

Whatever you do, never give out the first number, says Ms. de Lande Long. If your answer is too high, you might not make it to the next stage. Too low, and an employer will either think you’re not qualified or desperate. So, if possible, write “NA” on applications.

If you’re pressured to say how much you make during the interview process, try giving your “total compensation,” which many large employers will break out for you on the company’s internal human resources website. If your current employer doesn’t do that, just spell out your salary, benefits, bonuses, and anything else your current employer offers, says Decatur, Ga. career coach Walter Akana. If the new company doesn’t offer some of similar benefits, the HR manager will know that your new salary would have to be bumped up to reflect that, he says.

If the interviewer still presses for a required salary, try giving a range of $15,000 rather than a specific number, Mr. Akana says.The low amount should be the minimum you’d be happy with and the high amount should be what would make you happy.

3. Don’t lie.

“It’s so easy to get someone in HR to verify a salary, even if they’re not supposed to,” says Ms. de Lande Long. Even if you make it to a job offer, the false salary could come out during a background check, which could result in an outright retraction of the offer or at least upset an employee’s new boss. “And from that point onward, you might face trouble in negotiations not just with your new employer, but with everyone in your industry who has heard. Word gets around,” says Ms. de Lande Long.

4. Don’t take the first offer.

Most employers expect candidates to try to negotiate. So they leave room in the first offer for a raise, says Mr. Akana. If possible, try to arrange a face-to-face meeting with the hiring manager rather than someone in human resources. The hiring manager is more likely to be flexible, says Mr. Akana. ”

Say that you’re flattered to have an offer and really want to join the team, but that there are a couple specific items that you’re sure you could resolve if you put your heads together,” says Mr. Akana. Despite the pressure on salaries during the downturn, a good rule of thumb is to ask for a 10% higher salary, says Ms. de Lande Long.

If the hiring manager says budget restrictions keep him from going as high as you’d like, it might be that the position is “graded” to be within a certain salary band by HR, says Mr. Akana. It’s worth asking if the boss can ask the appropriate person for the job to be re-graded. The worst he can say is no.

5. Once that’s locked in, go for other benefits.

Despite what you might have heard, many benefit packages aren’t flexible, says Ms. de Lande Long. So, while it’s worth asking, it might be difficult to modify the health plan. Your success in getting more vacation days depends on the employer, says Ms. de Lande Long.

Your potential boss might be hesitant to give you more days if it will make other employees think they’re being treated unfairly. Instead, focus on things that are easy for the employer to provide, such as a work-from-home arrangement for one day a week, if the employer has made such arrangements in the past, says Mr. Akana.

If you still feel your package is too low, ask if it can be reviewed again in six months. “That way, you can show them that you’re worth the money,” he says.

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By ALEXANDRA LEVIT

Q: I am driven, hard working and smart, but I lack the self-discipline to look for a job. I have hired a career counselor, but I still can’t muster the motivation I need and am always procrastinating. Do you have any advice for being a more effective job seeker?

A: Acknowledging the fact that you have a problem with self-discipline is half the battle. Next, you need to employ some strategies to conquer your natural tendency toward procrastination. Create a calendar of job search-related tasks that you will do each day and concentrate on checking as many of them off the list as you can. When the urge comes to do something else instead, force yourself to think about whether a momentary reprieve is worth having to overhaul the whole calendar to reschedule a particular task. You should also think about the big picture. Sometimes the most effective job hunting activities require the most effort and, in turn, produce the greatest rewards — like a job that is satisfying and pays well. A final trick I use for procrastination is to start with the least complicated part of a particular task. Once I’ve finished one component, I gain momentum and it’s a lot easier to keep moving.

Q: I’ve worked at a series of small companies where I’ve mostly done in-house computer programming. The projects were designed by me, built by me and serviced by me. However, my methods have since been replaced and I have no intention of learning new ones. I’m not sure what to do next. I’m nervous about entrepreneurship or working for a large company.

A: Here’s the thing that stood out to me in your e-mail: “I have no intention of learning new methods.” In order to stay marketable in any field, you have to keep your skills current. This is especially true in information technology, where technologies change rapidly. I know that it can be frustrating to be at a certain level in your career and still need to pursue education or certification, but to refuse to do so simply isn’t practical. It seems to me that starting your own business or making the transition to a different type of organization won’t solve your problem and will probably result in more work than revisiting your programming methods and determining what you need to learn to develop these home-grown applications in a twenty-first century small to medium-sized business.

Q: For 20 years, I ran an enormously successful business in Massachusetts, raised and educated three children, and kept a nice home. I retired, moved to California, began teaching, and pursued graduate education. Along the way I noticed gaping holes in knowledge among the students, so I wrote a book comparing those who succeed to those who fail. Now, I’m running up against brick walls promoting the book. What can I do to get my work reviewed?

A: Many people believe that the hardest part about writing a book is coming up with 60,000 words worth of material, but this is not the case. Promotion, which these days is moreand more the responsibility of the author, is far more difficult. Now that more than 300,000 new titles are published every year, even with an established platform in a particular industry it’s hard to get noticed amidst all the noise. So don’t be too hard on yourself. That said, there is one major thing that you can do to increase the likelihood that your book will get real or virtual ink. First, get to know the editors at the education trades and the writers of related blogs; volunteer to write expert guest pieces for them (instead of asking them outright for reviews). You’ll be providing valuable content to their readers and your book will be promoted indirectly through the byline you’ll get at the end of each piece.

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By DIANA MIDDLETON

With so much competition for every job listing out there—there are more than 6.1 job seekers for every job opening, according to the latest job-opening and turnover data from the U.S. Department of Labor—wowing a recruiter during a job interview is even more crucial. According to a new survey of nearly 500 human-resources professionals released by the Society for Human Resource Management, there are plenty of ways to derail a job interview—and some of them may surprise you.

The basic don’ts: arriving late to an interview or trashing a previous employer. But some hiring managers say even experienced professionals have made other slip-ups.

Often, job candidates speak in a too-familiar way with hiring managers—a major problem, according to 20% of survey respondents. Mary Willoughby, director of human resources at the Center for Disability Rights in Rochester, N.Y., once interviewed someone who was so comfortable, he commented on a sty she had near her eye.

“My mind was made up at that point,” she says. The candidate was not hired.

For 67% of hiring managers who responded to the survey, dressing provocatively is a major deal breaker—even more significant than having a typo in your application materials (58% found this to be an interview killer). Chantal Verbeek, head of enterprise talent at ING U.S. Financial Services, says she’ll forgive a typo if the applicant’s skills are extraordinary, but revealing or sloppy apparel equals an instant rejection. “You’d think that’d be obvious,” she says

Job seekers have also been blasting HR managers with questions about benefits, vacation time and schedule flexibility much too soon in the interview process, according to the survey. (Thirty percent of hiring managers say it’s okay for applicants to inquire about salary in post-interview follow-up conversations.) Some 39% of hiring managers surveyed said applicants shouldn’t bring up salary at all—unless the interviewer brings it up first.

“I’ve had candidates ask if they can work part-time from home right off the bat,” Ms. Willoughby says. “Let’s figure out if you’re the right person for this job before we discuss how little you want to be in the office.”

Using clichés like “This is my dream job” are also major turnoffs for hiring managers. Instead of telling an interviewer you think outside the box, actually do it. Ms. Willoughby recalls a job candidate for an IT programmer position who gently pointed out that the Center for Disability Rights’ Web site had several programming errors. “He handled it in a way that didn’t make us feel ridiculed or demeaned,” she says. “It showed that he was really serious about the job.”

Shawn Desgrosellier, president of Vitality Group Executive Search, coaches job candidates to go into an interview with something—anything—in their hands. The step maintains focus. (He suggested a pen, a notepad or your résumé.) “It’s just awkward going into an interview with nothing,” he says.

There’s also some good news for people with numerous public profiles online: Although social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook are rife with clues about job candidates’ private lives, 75% of HR managers surveyed don’t bother to check them.

And the formal thank-you letter after the interview? More than 60% of HR managers who responded say skipping the step is not a big deal. A brief email will suffice—cards and balloons are all overboard.

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Is there anything you want done with regard to your job search before the end of the year?   

Are you hoping for a series of first interviews during the month of November?   

Do you want to go deeper into your current interview process before Thanksgiving?   

Is it a Christmas job offer you’re craving?   

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then keep pressing forward.  Do not let up for one second.  You are just inches away from November 1^st which means that you have about 6 weeks before hiring managers turn their thoughts from interviews to sugar plums and Christmas shopping.   If you’re reading this and have a first interview scheduled for November 1^st, there’s a chance that you can walk out of the month with a job offer by the time hiring managers go home for the holidays.  If you’re reading this and staring at a blank calendar canvas, you’ve got to do whatever it takes – network with medical and pharmaceutical professionals, ask for informational interviews, stand in front of hospitals and hand out your resume to sales reps – to kick-start your job search.  Get moving!

This crazy economy and marketplace are spreading into every facet of our daily lives-including our job searches-because we’re all looking for the same things: a great career, advancement, earning potential based on personal achievement.  And today more than ever, the job candidates who are achieving those things are the ones who are outsmarting and outhustling their competition.  Their hard work, determination, and output are translating into opportunities. 

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By Guest Blogger, Kevin Kermes 

Many of the same tools that are supposed to create efficiency (email, cell phones, Twitter, texting, IMs) are often the culprits accused of creating our inefficiency.  Or, is it that they are a symptom versus the disease?  Managing technology plus the myriad of tasks – finding new job leads, marketing yourself, networking, responding to emails/phone calls, etc. – often paralyzes job seekers and results in even higher stress levels (as if the job search isn’t stressful enough).  So, the real question here is: what can you do to alleviate these issues in a technology-laden environment?

Doing More Often Nets You Less - A study done at Microsoft last year looked at how long it takes people to return to a task when they are interrupted by an e-mail or instant message. The average was 15 minutes. More than a quarter of the people did not return to the task at hand for two hours! Moreover, when people did finally start working again, they did not reach their earlier level of concentration for an additional 10 minutes. When you take all of this into account, you realize multi-tasking can be a colossal time waste.

There is Focus and There is Focus – Being focused on the task at hand isn’t enough.  To be more efficient in what you need to get accomplished daily, break out your to-do-list into blocks.  Segment your day by activities: returning email, following up on leads, finding new target companies (preferably through the “hidden job market”), network, reinforce your SME (subject matter expert) status.  By getting in the zone on each of these tasks, your increased focus will net you better results.

Turn it Off – Email and IM are the biggest culprits here and are not the exception to working in blocks.  Shut your email down and set up 2-3 times a day when you open it and respond.  There are very, very few things that cannot wait an hour or two for a response.  And, if they are that critical, someone will typically pick up the phone and call you.

Always the Exception to the Rule – We always need one of these, right?  Waiting for a call back from a prospective employer?  Expecting to hear from someone you have been trying to network with for weeks?  Make a list of critical events that allow you to break out of working in blocks.  But, remember the stats we talked about earlier and weigh out if the event is really so important that you want to lose 15-25 minutes of prime productivity out of your day.  Some events are worth it, others not so much.  You be the judge.The job search is a full time job and an extremely draining one at that.  So, don’t add to that anxiety by being inefficient in your daily tasks.  Try implementing a few of these techniques and see your productivity increase and your stress level decrease.

Want to learn more about uncovering the “hidden job market?”   Listen to a recording of my – “5 Secrets to the Perfect Job Search” webinar.

Kevin Kermes publishes the ‘Build the Career Your Deserve’ e-zine with over 21,000+ subscribers. If you are ready to empower yourself with the vital tools and information necessary to find the job you want and build the successful career you deserve, visit him now www.kevinkermes.com

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Recessionitis 

Definition: 

An epidemic gripping the job search nation.  The word often refers to an excuse given by job seekers with poor job search strategies.  This malady can often result in low job search activity with symptoms that include low self-esteem, low motivation and very few 1st interviews with potential companies.   

Usage: 

John thought that he was heading in the right direction with his job search until he had coffee with his friend Rhonda.  A job-seeker as well, Rhonda said that she had been plagued by a case of recessionitis since the job market crash last fall.  She shared with John that she didn’t think that either one of them had a chance of landing the job or career of their dreams.  

Remedy: 

Stay motivated with a great job search strategy, stay plugged into your network and stay away from Rhonda.

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I love urban legends.  Remember the one about the couple who travels to the foreign country for their honeymoon?  They buy what they think is a pet dog only to find out that they’ve purchased a small rat.  I loved that one as a kid. 

Here’s an urban legend that I’ve enjoyed as an adult recruiter.  It goes like this…

“When writing a resume, more is more.  A resume must be two pages if it’s going to worthwhile.  After all, one has to include a much as possible about a person’s career in order to be considered for a job listing.”   

Most of the resumes that arrive at our company and are later re-developed by our coaching and resume writing division need to go on drastic diets.  We put them on the scales because of what medical and pharmaceutical managers demand from resumes. 

The 3 most important things I have learned about resumes in my 20 years of recruiting:

1.   Stop writing long sections at the top like “Summary of Qualifications” or “Personal History” or “Skill Sets”.  Start with a simple and clear objective targeting the specific industry you are trying to break in to.

2.   Stop writing long, detailed job descriptions.  Instead, bullet point out your top accomplishments.  Hiring managers want to know results more than they want to know what you’ve done.  Talk about - no flaunt - your sales numbers.

3.  Keep it to one page unless you’re the president of a major corporation or a large country.   

Does your resume need to go on a diet?   

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                            

NEW YORK CITY – July 22, 2009 – The Tom Ruff Company, one of the country’s top firms specializing in recruiting medical device and pharmaceutical sales and sales management personnel, has launched an Employment Coaching and Resume Writing division. 

The new division, headed by 15-year executive recruiting veteran Paul Cox, will allow the Tom Ruff Company to focus on delivering detail-oriented, highly personalized employment coaching to candidates throughout the country. While the Tom Ruff Company will continue to meet the needs of its healthcare clients, the new division will assist job-seekers in all industries. 

“Over the past several months our company has been deluged with calls and emails from people who are struggling to find a job.  The first thing we challenge them to do is to rethink almost everything they’ve ever learned about the traditional job search.  There is nothing traditional about today’s job market,” said President and CEO Tom Ruff.

A preferred recruiter for more than 100 of the largest medical device and pharmaceutical companies in the country, the Tom Ruff Company is broadening its practice to work with job-seekers regardless of their industry with its one-on-one coaching program, while still offering the same highly personalized service and attention to detail that the company is known within the healthcare sector. 

“Though we have always specialized in medical and pharmaceutical sales, we realize that job-seekers in all sectors need coaching, and that many of the same skills apply,” said Ruff.  “That’s why we’re excited about being able to help candidates across all industries by sharing the wisdom we’ve earned in 20 years of placing over 3,200 candidates in careers with companies like Johnson and Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Pfizer, Medtronic and Boston Scientific.” 

Paul Cox will lead the new division and can be contacted at 310-802-8165 or via e-mail at paul@tomruff.com. To learn more, visit www.tomruff.com. 

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persistence   [per-sis-tuhns, -zis-]

How many first interviews have you been on?

How many invitations have you had to return for a second interview? Metrics.

But the most important aspect of your job search is something that cannot be measured. It´s the intangible aspect of any job search, and it´s the third and final P of putting together your job search marketing plan - Persistence.

In these remarkable times, persistence is your most important weapon.Are you about to give up? Persist.

Don´t believe that the perfect job is out there for you? Persist. Not feeling really motivated about now? Persist.Want to chuck in all in and just take the first interview or job that comes along. Persist.

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There have been dramatic shifts in the hiring process since I began recruiting over 20 years ago. It used to be about the company and its products. Then there was the time when the hiring process was about people, a company´s most valuable resource.

All that has changed.

For hiring managers today, the recruiting process is about one critical question. “Can this candidate help improve the bottom-line for our company?” 2nd P of a successful job search marketing campaign - Positioning.

In other words, what makes you different from other job candidates? That question has been a favorite of mine and for many of my clients because it reveals so much about an individual.

Here´s a typical interview conversation for my clients: “Tim, you´re a great candidate, and I really like you. And because I like you, I have to be real honest. There are five individuals sitting in our lobby right now who want this same job, and two of them have more experience than you. Why should I hire you? What makes you different?”

If you´re like Tim and most job seekers today, you´ll respond with something pithy like, “I´m a people person.” And you´ll respond like that because you haven´t done a self-inventory of your skills and abilities. You did a little research, but hey, you´re just grateful to have an interview.

Listen, everyone says that they´re a people person. One time during an interview I´m positive that a candidate was unaware that I had actually heard of Barbara Streisand because she said, “I´m a people person, and people who need people are the luckiest people in the world.” Most candidates also respond with, “I´m a hard worker.” Listen, I´m not begrudging a strong work ethic. It´s just that everyone says that, too.

What can you do for the company that´s going to bring them results?

What are you going to do to improve their bottom line?

You´re going to work extremely hard to answer these questions. It´s going to take sweat equity to be able to answer them with all your heart and with passion and believability. I´m not talking about clever replies to tough interview questions. I´m talking about a core-of-your-being type of response.

Interviews come down to two questions:

1) How will I improve results at the company? 2) How will I increase their profits?

If you can´t answer these two questions, then your employer has no idea how hiring you will benefit them. You must position yourself, especially in this marketplace.

Stay encouraged,
Tom

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