Kaye Monty

The thank you note is a dying art.  I received a thank you note in the mail today from a candidate who we interviewed last week.  It is refreshing to get a thank you note from a candidate whether it is via email or snail mail.  Soaring unemployment rates have increased competition for the scarce job openings available.  A recent report cites that there are 10 applicants chasing every job vacancy in the UK.  (I believe that figure is 4-5 applicants per job in the US.)  Here are reasons to send a thank you note after a phone interview or office interview:

• Stand out from the crowd - I personally receive approximately .08% thank you note via snail mail or email.  It takes only a few minutes to send a thank you note.    
• Showcase your writing abilities – Writing a customized thank you note when you meet multiple interviewers is a difficult task but not impossible.  This is a great way to show off your writing skills.  Take note not to send the exact same note and personalize slightly with insights that you learned from the interview.
• Emphasize a point - Sometimes you will remember a story or an accomplishment after you leave the interview.  This is a great time to bring it up to emphasize your fit for the job opportunity.  
• Attention to detail – If you take the time to write a thank you note, then it shows the employer that you probably will give the same effort at work.  This just gives them additional insights to the attention that you will lavish your clients or colleagues.  

It should come as no surprise that every employer will have disengaged employees at any given time.  What was surprising for me to learn is that this figure is up 45% this year according to the Corporate Executive Board.  24% of disengaged employees are staying with their current employer and are putting less effort in their job by 53%.  This means that some of your employees are not being as productive as they could be which is ironic considering that there are 12.5 million who find themselves unemployed in the United States.

Companies need to listen to their employees and find out what you can do to get them engaged.  Over 70% of human resources professionals plan to conduct employee surveys.  My question is how many of these companies actually implement what they have gleamed from their employees?  Some programs you can implement quickly while others need more time to plan.  

What are you doing to ensure that you employees stay engaged?

Time and BusinessWeek just published articles today stating the obvious.  This is one of the most difficult job markets for job seekers especially recent graduates.  It is not all doom and gloom.  Forbes wrote that the layoffs appear to be simmering down a bit for the time being.  

As a job seeker, you should utilize all your resources available to you.  While online resources such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter are invaluable, nothing replaces good old fashioned networking.  Get off the computer and meet former colleagues, classmates and/or acquaintances for coffee, lunch, dinner or drinks. 

If you are unemployed or a recent graduate, you may event want to have personal business cards.  It sends a more professional image to present a personal business card rather than scribbling your contact information on piece of napkin.  

If you are on a budget, then can order free business cards from Vista Print.  I have noticed more students/recent graduates with personal business cards.  Your personal business cards should contain the following:

• Name
• Phone number
• Email address

• URL – online blog and/or online portflio
• Twitter address
• Job title   

“I don’t get Twitter,” is what some people tell me when I mention that I have been twittering.  On its face, Twitter allows you to answer the question “What are you doing?” in 140 characters or less.  You follow people and people follow your Tweets (aka messages).  Each tweep (aka user) will have the “@” character in front of their username.  (eg. @montythree.)  

Twitter is much than just status updates.  I have found that Twitter is a great way to connect with people who share the same interest.  I use it to get real time information about my world which is technology public relations.  It is a community where people public relations, technology, human resources and media folks hang out.  It was also another way for me to understand another medium that is used in public relations to promote their message.   

Here are a few reasons why you might want to be on Twitter:

PR professional

Job hunters  

Tara Weiss wrote an article in Forbes Magazine extolling the virtues of volunteer work if you have been recently laid off. This advice is also helpful to recent graduates or professionals seeking a career change.  If you are trying to break into the public relations field, then you may want to consider volunteering to do public relations for a non-profit or friend’s business.  Not only will you gain valuable work experience but the organizations gains your expertise.  

According to Weiss, here are 6 steps that you should consider:

1. Set your goals – What do you hope to accomplish by volunteering?  Are you looking to make a difference, network, sharpen your skills or learn new skills? Once you figure out a goal, then find an organization that can help you achieve that goal. 
2. Make a time commitment – Figure out how much time you have available to volunteer.  Make sure to leave time for your job search including time to attend interviews. 
3. Face to face or virtual – Some volunteer work can be performed remotely.  What environment will best suit your temperament?
4. Understand the cause – Research the organizations mission and goals.   It will make it a lot easier to get up in the morning if you have passion for their cause.
5. Make sure that there’s structure – An organization who is able to provide support and training to volunteers will most likely place you in work that utilizes your skills.  
6. Be open minded – Consider organizations even if you have never heard of it.  You might be surprised to find that you like the people.  

If you ask any average American if the cost of healthcare is going up or going down, they will all most likely say that it is going up.  In fact, healthcare spending is expected to hit 2.5 trillion in 2008 which  $1 billion more than last year according to BusinessWeek.  I still have a bruised jaw when it fell to the ground after reading an estimate from my dentist.  

In today’s challenging economic times, people are looking for ways to save money.  Sam McManis from the Sacramento Bee wrote about 15 ways to save on health and fitness.  

1. Go Generic - Compare active ingredients on brand name and generic brands and you will find that they are identical.  
2. Exercise outside – Usually a challenge when the weather is bad but not impossible.  
3. Sock it to ‘em – I can not imagine driving with socks instead of gloves.  Not so sure about this one Sam.
4. Limit ER visits – ER visits will cost you thousands.  Use it only for emergencies.  
5. Flex your options – Use milk jugs to do biceps curls instead of buying expensive weights.  
6. Flex your spending too – Take advantage of pre-tax savings for healthcare (or dependent care).  You can use it to pay for co-pays, office visits, dental, vision, psych/therapy, chiropractic care, orthodontia, lab, hosptial fees, prescriptions, over the counter medicine etc. The list of eligible expenses is quite extensive.  It is a use it or lose it plan so be conservative.  
7. Brace yourself - It is more inexpensive to purchase your own crutches or braces than purchase the hospital provided gear.  Contact your medical insurance as they may provide discounts on crutches and braces.
8. Press play – Buy yoga videos instead of paying $15 per class.  Contact your medical insurance as they often provide discounts on exercise videos.  
9. Sample before buying - Ask your doctor for samples when you are prescribed new medication. 
10. Cash if you can – Whether or not you have insurance, medical providers and hospitals often provide discounts if you pay cash.  I got a discount after paying the balance of our hospital bill in full after the birth of my child.  You may have to contact the billing department to get the discount.  
11. Let students fill in - Get dental work done at dental school.  The appointments are usually longer as it is a teaching class.  
12. Mind your peas and carrots – Use frozen bag of peas instead of the fancy freezable ice bags that the pros use.  
13. Order bulk by mail – Most insurance providers allow you to purchase prescriptions 4 months prescription but you pay only for 3 months worth of medication.  
14. Factor in the tax facts – You are allowed to itemize and subtract deductions from your adjusted gross income on your Schedule A.  This amount usually can not exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income.  
15. Stay home – Eat out less and eat smaller portions to save money. 

The stimulus package signed by President Barack Obama included subsidy for COBRA among other human resources provisions.   It appears that the COBRA subsidy contains restrictions which must be met:

• Is eligible for COBRA continuation coverage at any time during the period beginning September 1, 2008 and ending December 31, 2009;
• Elects COBRA coverage (when first offered or during the additional election period),and
• Has a qualifying event for COBRA coverage that is the employee’s involuntary termination during the period beginning September 1, 2008 and ending December 31, 2009.

President Barack Obama signed the stimulus package yesterday which contains a couple of interesting provisions from a human resources point of view.  

TRANSIT BENEFIT

• Employers can exclude up to $230 per month from an employee’s gross income for commuter vehicle/transit pass and parking benefits.  This is effective until the end of 2010 tax year.

COBRA

• Employees wil receive a 65% subsidy to help pay for COBRA premiums up to 9 months.  This will cover employees who were laid off from September 1, 2008 through January 1, 2010.  
• An income threshold needs to be met in order to qualify for the subsidy.  (An article published 7 days earlier by Business Week indicated a 60% subsidy.)
• Employers will receive a payroll tax credit for subsidizing an employee’s COBRA premiums.
• Information about the COBRA subsidy will need to be included in the COBRA notices that are sent to employees.  The Department of Labor will be providing sample templates within 30 days.  

UNEMPLOYMENT

• Weekly unemployment benefit increases an additional $25.
• Weekly benefits which is usually up to 26 weeks has been extended to 33 weeks until December 2009. (aka Temporary Emergency Unemployment Program)
• Benefits will be extended to workers who have to leave an employer due to “compelling family reasons,” such as domestic violence, illness or disability of an immediate family member.  

I will update this as we learn more information about these issues.

This is my second year participating in mock interviews at one of the local universities.  I get flashbacks to when I was a senior in college applying for my first “real” job.  I cringe everytime I think of some of the mistakes that I made.  If I could go back in a time machine to change a few things, then I would do the following:

• Find your passion. Imagine that you are a recruiter.  You meet one candidate who says that they are not sure what they want to do for a living.  They are thinking about going to grad school but maybe they want to work in marketing.  Although they heard that advertising or sales might be fun too.  Then you meet another candidate with internships from a couple of your competitors.  Who would you hire?  (Hint: It would be the candidate with the laser focus.)  Find something that you love to do.  If you are still in college, then try to get an internship or volunteer work in that industry.  If you are already in the market place, then take classes or volunteer for a position in that industry to gain experience.  
  
• Dress appropriately.  Advice on this topic is mixed whether or not you should wear a suit.  That really all depends on your location and the company.  I have noticed that New York and London tend to be more business professional than San Francisco.  Some companies are so laid back that it would be odd if you showed up in a suit.  If you are interviewing for a client facing role, then you may want to wear something as close to business professional as possible.  A suit is not necessary for HIll & Knowlton San Francisco although that may be different in other offices.  If you are not sure what to wear, then ask the recruiter.  Most employers understand that if your current employer’s office attire is jeans, t-shirt and flip flops, then it would be very obvious that you are going on an interview if you suddenly show up in a suit.  I have had candidates change in the gym on the way to the interview.  If you are a recent graduate, then you may want to invest in a nice fitting suit.  My mistake?  I wore a borrowed lime green jacket to an interview with one of the Big Four. It was about a size too big.  A conservative suit would have been more appropriate.  
• Double check and triple check your resume.  While a typo or a grammatical error on your resume is not necessarily a deal breaker, it sends the wrong message.  It says that you have poor or mediocre attention to detail.  Your resume is your personal brand.  What type of effort would you put in your professional work if your resume is sub par?  If the decision to make the hire came down to two equally qualified candidates, one who had a typo on their resume and the other did not, then I would most likely recommend that we hire the candidate with no typo on their resume.  (Actually, the candidate with the typo probably will not even make it to the phone screen stage.)  I was not pleased when the career counselor at my college insisted that I re-do my resume because of a typo.  I’m so glad that she did. 
• Ask questions.  Keep in mind that the interview is a two way street.  You are both interviewing each other to see if it is a good fit.  Even if you have already asked questions to the prior interviewers, ask them again.  Everyone will have different perspectives and may give you new insights about the company.  Interviewers relish sharing information about their experience working for the company.  Ask questions about the position that might not be posted on the website.  Find out about the company’s culture.  When I was in college, a recruiter asked me if I had any questions. This was the first informational interview that I’ve ever had and I was unprepared.  I asked if they provided benefits.  Lesson learned: save benefits and pay questions until you get to the final interview stage.
• Make sure to do research on the company.  There is no excuse not to know more about the company.  It is a reflection on the amount effort that you would put into your work should the company hire you.  Nothing screams more about wrong fit than a person who comes to the interview saying that you want to work for a software company when you are interviewing for an advertising agency.  I interviewed for a data warehousing company about two years after college and did not do my research.  I clearly did not know anything about their industry.  Needless to say that I was not hired for the role.
• Role play with a friend.  Conduct a search on the internet for top interview questions or pick up a book that provides tips on interview questions.  (Monster.com has a site dedicated for career advice that is helpful.)  Go through your resume and come up with 2-3 about anecdotes from your previous positions that demonstrates your abilities.  My first manager out of college was really big into role playing.  I applied this technique when I was interviewing for my second job out of college.  It works. 
• Know your rights.  There are certain questions that interviewers can not ask you.  An interviewer can not ask you if you plan on getting married, having kids or what your child care arrangements will be.  However, employers can say that the job requires a lot of travel or occasional overtime and if you are willing to travel or occassionally work overtime.  I interviewed for a company who stated that the past 3 employees in the role got married and had babies.  They asked me, “Do you plan on having babies or getting married any time soon?”  I did not realize until much later that this was illegal.  
• Practice your handshake.  First impressions really do matter.  Nothing kills a first impression than a limp handshake.  Squeeze the hand firmly.  Remember that the object is not to crush bones.  This does not mean that you will not get hired if you have a weak handshake.  However, you will have to be spectacular in everything else.  I did work for a company where we hired an employee with a very weak handshake.  I gave a handshake primer on her first day at work.   
• Arrive on time or at least 15 minutes early.  If you show up too early, you will probably end up waiting anyway.  Go to a coffee shop or somewhere to relax.  Most employers will ask you to fill out an application which usually takes about 15 minutes. If you finish early, read any materials about the company.  
• Be friendly and courteous to everyone.  You never know who you will meet.  The person that you flip off in the parking lot for taking the parking spot that you eyed may be the interviewer.  The person sitting behind the front desk could be one of the senior executives who just happened to be looking for a paperclip while receptionist stepped away for a second.  
• Bring extra copies of your resume.  If possible, make sure that it is printed on high quality paper.  The recruiter may not have the most updated version of your resume.  Interviewers sometimes forget to print a copy of your resume.  If you are prepared for an interview, then it stands to reason that you will probably be prepared for client meetings if you get hired.  
• Send a thank you note.  If you know that the company will be making a decision within the next day or two, then sending a thank you via email is ok.  If you have a bit more time, then send a well written thank you note in the mail.  I would bring several blank thank you note cards with me to the interview and drop them in the mail immediately afterwards. I have seen candidates stop by the next day and drop off the interview notes to the front desk.  Make sure that the notes that you write are unique and mention something from the interview.  Out of the hundreds of office interviews that I have conducted in the past year and a half, I have received only 19 thank you cards.  Those are pretty good odds if you want to stand out.  

As with anything in life, moderation is the key.  Some job hunters or recruiters use social networking predominantly for their search.  For job hunters there should be a balance between using online tools, picking up the phone and good old fashioned networking.  Who can resist looking for a job while wearing in the comfort of their living room while wearing pajamas?  (I worked at home for several years as a freelance technical recruiter.  I was the master pajama professional.)

There are so many tools at a recruiter’s disposal ranging from your company’s career site, traditional job boards, social networking tools, employee referrals, community/university outreach, job fairs, networking and 3rd party agency.  While there is not a one size fit all recruitment strategy, a company’s recruitment strategy should be varied.  Casting as wide a net as possible leads for a more diverse candidate pool.  For example, if you rely solely on employee referrals, then you run the risk of hiring the same type of people who went to the same college, same fraternity/sorority, same major etc.  In short, you may not have a diverse employee population.  If you work for an advertising agency, then diversity recruitment should be on the top of your mind in light of Bendick and Egan’s study.  

Regardless if you are a one person human resources/recruiter for a company or one of many recruiters, time is a precious commodity.  You can have a full-time recruiting assistant work on building your firm’s social networking site with all the myriad sites out there.  This approach might not be the most logical strategy for all firms especially in today’s economy.  

How do you figure out what is the best approach for your firm?  

• Determine where your company’s placements have come from in the past.  
• Evaluate which source is producing the best quality hires and return on investment.  
• Assess what can be done to improve the quality of hires from a low performing recruitment source. 
• Create a flexible recruitment strategy.
• Re-evaluate periodically to adjust to changing market conditions.