If your contract is drawing to a close, what next?

Are you near the completion of your current contract, looking for your next opportunity or concerned that the next phase of contract terminations may affect you?  If so, what – if anything – are you doing about it?

Recent investment announcements have demonstrated that there are fantastic opportunities for IPros, even in these tough times.  Some industries are booming, and the new world order demands that a greater proportion of ‘new jobs’ will be offered as contracts.

Global gas giant Exxon recently signed a US$10 billion deal with India to provide gas from their Gorgon project in West Australia.  Less than 2 weeks later Exxon signed an additional 41 billion USD deal to provide gas to China.  Up to 4000 contract roles (6000 jobs in total) will be created in mining, construction, IT and A&F to implement and maintain this expansion.

In Victoria Woolworths has announced the creation of 15,000 new jobs as they expand into retail hardware.  11,000 of these jobs will be created during set up in construction, IT and engineering fields (more than half will be contract roles), and a further 4,000 direct retail jobs as the project goes live.

Is your job search plan ready?  Do you know how to position yourself to take advantage of these opportunities?  When was the last time your resume was professionally assessed to ensure you are conforming to industry expectations?

The biggest obstacle to success in your job search is a failure to plan, or adhering to out-of-date job search tools and techniques.  Even though the opportunities are there, the competition for jobs has never been more fierce.
Let’s run through a quick job search health check:

•    Did you know you should amend your resume for every new job application?
•    Were you aware that an achievements based resume has a 64% better success rate than a duties based resume?
•    Do you include a value proposition in your application?
•    When and how do you follow up your application?
•    How deep is your professional network?
•    Do you know what a competency based behavioural interview question is, and how to answer them?
•    Have you ever included a personality profile with your job application?

If you struggled with any of the questions above, you may need help with your job search plan.
HeadStart Group is a specialist career training company focused on providing job seekers the skills and confidence they need to succeed in the Australian job market.  HeadStart has developed IPro Career Services, a course specifically for IPros engaged through Entity Solutions.  Courses are being held during October and November, so contact your Customer Executive at Entity Solutions today, and take the first step towards obtaining your winning job search strategy…

Managing Debt

The Independent Contractors of Australia (ICA) regulartly publishes useful information for independent contractors.

If you are interested in some valubale insights offered by experienced independent contractors on managing debt then you may wish to check out this video.

You can see more guides and videos on the ICA website…

First impressions count. Now more than ever.

• You have experience…. GREAT!
• You have the necessary skills and qualifications… FANTASTIC!
• Your resume doesn’t confuse me and is easy to follow…..

But wait……consider this before you present to the interview…

What’s going through a Recruiter’s mind when they meet you for the first time?

Well, we all know the old adage ‘first impressions count’. And in a competitive job market, first impressions count more than ever. Your visual image is the first thing an interviewer has to go on when ‘sizing’ you up and this step can make or break you.

But presenting yourself well doesn’t need to be a scary or even expensive proposition…
Here are 5 interesting facts about ‘first impressions’

1.    You only have 60 seconds to make a positive first impression.
2.    55% of a first impression is based on appearance (wardrobe, hair/makeup, body language, and our facial expressions).
3.    38% of our first impressions are based on voice and speech quality.
4.    About 7% is based on what we say.
5.    A major salary research study recently found that companies projected salaries up to 20% higher based on a job applicant’s appearance

Is your image working for you? In a tough job market, people are going the extra mile to ensure success. Are you competing on the same level?

I would be happy to accept comments and questions here to help you with any doubts you may have in this area…

Aradhna Sharma

HeadStart

Time for some Interview R&R

In the last blog we looked at resumes and the top 5 no no’s….

OK. Let’s assume your resume is up to scratch and you secure an interview.  What do you do next?
It may interest you to know that preparation for an interview for a Contracting role is as important – if not more important – than an interview for a permanent role.

How so? I hear you ask ……  Consider this, employers for a mid to long term contract will still interview 3-5 candidates (the same number employers generally interview for a permanent role).  Most applicants for contract roles will do little, or no preparation for the interview, whereas for a permanent interview most applicants will prepare.
So, there you go….. To differentiate yourself from your competitors at an interview for a contracting role, PREPARE…

How do you prepare?  I like to call it Interview R&R – research and rehearse…

It’s really self-explanatory, but let’s delve a little deeper…

Research – There is a plethora of options available for any applicant to research the company they are interviewing with, the role they are applying for and the person they are interviewing with…

•    Company Website – This should provide you with a wealth of information.  Particularly if the website has a ‘News’ or ‘Media’ section.  From here you will be able to find products and services, company history, mission statements, company values and news about individuals.  The type of website usually gives you hints as to the demographic of clients of the company.  If the company is ASX listed you will also find a ‘company announcements’ section.  From here you can get information about changes in shareholding and directors, as well as access to financials via Annual Reports.

•    Search Engines – Google, Yahoo, Nine MSN – whatever your favourite use it!  Type in the company name, try the name of the person you are being interviewed by.  People love to talk about themselves, so if you can find out a piece of information about someone, drop it into the interview.  Eg.  ‘I hear you are a huge St. Kilda fan.  Their defense is out of sight this year…’  A word of caution…… If you find out something not so appealing, say your interviewer was let go from his last role for gross incompetence, keep it to yourself.  Better still cancel the interview – you might take the fall for him this time…

•    Social Networking Sites – Facebook, MySpace etc.  These sites are a wealth of knowledge.  Believe me recruiters use these sites to check up on applicants, so why not check out your interviewer?  I know you are probably saying you can’t get into their profile unless you are their friend (Facebook).  This is not always the case, and even if it is you can see all of  their friends, and eventually you will find a friend with an open profile.  And that friend may just have a photo or two of your interviewer…. Keep searching, keep snooping.  It will probably pay dividends.

•    Professional Networking Sites – In particular Linked In.  Most senior executives these days have a Linked In profile.  These are almost always open profiles and will give you all of the information you need about your Interviewer – when and where they have worked, education, current responsibilities etc. You are MAD if you don’t make the most of this valuable tool

Rehearse – Yes all the world really is a stage, and all stage shows require you to rehearse.  Find a friend, give them some background and a long list of frequently asked questions and practice!  Very few people do it, but those who do give themselves a wonderful advantage…

How do I find out what are the most common questions at interview? Do I even know what a competency based behavioural question is?  Drop into our website, or better still sign up for one of our courses – you might just learn something…….

Oh, and as always, please leave a comment or question, and I will come straight back to you .

Craig

Contractor management company and recruitment agency, can they really work together?

Of course you would expect that as the CEO of Entity Solutions, my primary concern is with the company’s success. One of the keys to success in business is an effective marketing strategy. We know we add value to our customers, the evidence is in our growth and formal feedback channels we maintain with our corporate and individual customers; but marketing in an environment which is complex and often misunderstood can be a challenge.

Every now and again though, something comes along and makes our task just that little bit easier…

I refer to this article we’ve been given permission to republish here by Shortlist:

Recruitment companies should bow out of contractor management, says former Candle boss

Employers should be wary of recruitment companies that claim they are “specialists in all areas” of managing contingent workers because virtually none of them can provide best-practice service across the entire process, says long-term recruiter and former Candle boss Rob Collins.

Collins, who is one of Australia’s most successful recruitment executives, told the Australasian Talent Conference yesterday that there were three key facets to managing a contingent workforce – sourcing the workers, engaging them on mutually beneficial terms, and then managing them on an ongoing basis.

He said most Australian employers had a “multitiude” of different employment arrangements for their contingent workforce. In most cases, if they were sourced through a recruitment company, that recruitment company then engaged them and managed their ongoing employment.

This left an employer with little control over pricing, increased risk of compliance failure and virtually no visibility or reporting.

Collins told the conference that a number of new research projects on managing contingent workforce showed that best practice in terms of cost, productivity and ROI was achieved when the three components (sourcing, engagement and management) were separated.

“Beware the often advertised mantra of many recruitment suppliers in the sector when they say we specialise in all areas. Not only is this an oxymoron, it’s potentially financially disastrous,” said Collins.

“If I refer to an industry I know well, the recruitment industry, often the agency that sources the contractor goes on to manage that contractor. This requires them to have a large back office to manage payroll, superannuation, legal issues and debtors, but very few agencies find their back office processes truly add value.

“Indeed many recruitment companies have lost millions trying to get their back office processes more effective and efficient,” Collins said.

“And who ultimately pays for this folly, you do, in your agency fees” Collins told the conference.

He suggested a far more efficient system was where recruitment companies focused on sourcing workers and then a specialised contract management company took over.

“Recruitment agencies, in my opinion should focus solely on locating and attracting talent and passing the contingent worker on to a preferred contractor management organisation for payrolling and other backend services.

“By doing this they should be able to supply contingent workers at a lower cost and pass the savings on to clients. Their margin, which ordinarily includes the cost of providing that unnecessary and expensive and non-value adding back office should be discounted by taking that cost out of the equation.”

He said passing the ongoing management of the contractors on to a specialist management company reduced costs and risk for the employer and improved their reporting and productivity. It also allowed them to source seamlessly from numerous recruitment companies, but with standardised employment arrangements and pricing.

He argued it would also reduce costs and improve profits for recruitment companies by “allowing them to do what they do best – sourcing talent”.

Robert Collins was a director and shareholder of major IT recruitment Icon, which was sold to Adecco in 1999. He then went on to run Candle for six years, and was a founder of ITCRA.

For the career you deserve… introducing HeadStart

Job seekers have a new ally in their quest to enhance or perfect their careers.

HeadStart is a specialist career training company committed to providing the skills and confidence necessary to crack today’s tightening job market. HeadStart’s career training course is taught by industry experts who know the ‘little things’ that are often big enough to be the difference between receiving a job offer and getting knocked back.

HeadStart is partnering with Entity Solutions to deliver a unique offering for Independent Professionals – IPro Career Services. We will be launching this service officially in June; look out for announcements here on the blog and also by email.

As part of the service, Craig Watson and Ardhna Sharma of HeadStart will contribute weekly blogs.  We invite you to comment, and look forward to some lively debate as we tackle, uncover and debunk some of the myths about improving your career prospects.

Today, we are going to take a look at the 5 biggest resume no – no’s.  These are all common mistakes and will impact on your ability to progress to interview…  Don’t forget, the purpose of a resume is to get you an interview!

A generic resume – No matter how lazy you may be – or how little time you have, you must tailor your resume to each specific role you apply for. Sorry to prick your self-confidence balloon, but we are staring at another 200,000 plus people losing their jobs in Australia before the end of 2009 – if you don’t want to work for your next opportunity, you won’t get one! So, the answer is read the ad thoroughly, get a job spec before you submit your resume and focus your skills and experience within your resume towards the specific requirements of the role.

The cover letter – News flash – most recruiters don’t read cover letters, well if they do it’s after they have looked at your resume, and then only if your resume ‘cuts it’.  The point is – address the key selection criteria as part of your resume, or better still condense the information you would put in your cover letter to a couple of crisp paragraphs and include it in the introduction of your resume…. Not brain surgery, just common sense.

Unexplained gaps in employment. This sets off alarm bells with recruiters like nothing else.  If you have a gap in employment due to study, travel, having a child etc. put it in your resume!  If you think you can explain these gaps at an interview, I have some bad news for you – if it’s not in your resume you won’t get as far as an interview!

Not putting your best attributes on display. You know what? I know a recruitment consultant who was advertising a contract 1st level helpdesk role in October and received 37 applications in a week.  In March there was the same requirement for the same role with the same company and he received 368 applications in a week.  The number of applications increased tenfold!! Don’t kid yourselves; the competition for roles is out of control.  Resumes now are briefly scanned at best – you must put all of your best attributes on prominent display.  You must, or you simply won’t get an interview.

Unprofessional Presentation. Believe it or not there are expected presentation formats for all resumes.  How they are presented depends heavily on industry, role and seniority, but presentation is key!  A visually appealing and well presented resume (and I don’t mean psychedelic, flouro coloured fonts) will help you get past the recruiter’s cull and through to the phone screen phase of the recruitment process.

So, how did you go? Do you have ticks in all of the above boxes?  And don’t forget the resume is only one element in the job search game.  You need to consider how and where you search for jobs, interview preparation, your image and brand, understanding your culture fit and having a goal driven, career plan in place.
The employment landscape is not the same as it was even six months ago, but there are valuable tips and strategies to get ahead of your competition.  Consider a HeadStart course… for the career you deserve.

Craig Watson and Aradhna Sharma

Headstart