As unemployment mounts, it seems a lot of people are looking for  ways to capitalize. Today’s Wall Street Journal reviews three  resume  web design sites. Turns out the one that’s  free gets a thumbs up (visualcv.com).  However, an issue that’s explored is the importance of design vs. content.  My vote goes to content.

Illustration by Jason Schneider via WSJ.com

By Beverly Weinstein

In a market with more candidates than jobs, a willingness to be flexible on title and salary is more and more commonplace. So how do you position yourself as a genuinely interested and qualified candidate versus someone that’s overqualified, needs a job and will jump ship when a better opportunity comes along? For some expert advice I turned to the Cable and Telecommunications Resources Association (CTHRA), a nonprofit organization with 1500 members representing over 100 companies. Following is some great advice from a sampling of their members:

How can candidates express through their resumes that, although they may seem overqualified for a position, they are indeed invested in the opportunity and not just looking for a pay check?

CTHRA: We have two pieces of advice. First, abandon a traditional resume format focused on titles and promotions, and instead create a resume that highlights significant accomplishments and experiences. Emphasize your span of control, impact on the bottom-line and contributions to the overall health and growth of the organization. We believe a bio format helps focus the recruiter/hiring manager on the relevant skills and qualifications and frees them from focusing merely on level or title.

Next, leverage your cover letter to:

1) Call attention to the credentials you have that match the description of the position;
2) Specify that your prior experience will allow you to have a greater impact on the organizational goals sooner than less experienced candidates;
3) And explain that you are seeking more than a job title and detail the characteristics that you admire in their company: financial security, potential for upward mobility, reputation, health and welfare benefits, etc.

Should an applicant downgrade his or her former job title(s) on a resume, say from an SVP to a VP?

CTHRA: Never put anything on your resume that isn’t true. You’re working to prove to a potential employer that you are honest and trustworthy. The last thing you want is to lose credibility by being caught in a lie.

Keep in mind that most hiring managers recognize that titles are indicative of an organization’s culture and they tend to vary from company to company. So a VP title in a smaller company may be equivalent to a director title in a larger organization.

If you’re applying for a VP level position in a similar profession and recently held a SVP or higher position, focus attention on your skills, qualifications and contributions instead of the title.

Is there a good answer to questions about recent earnings, especially if you believe you were earning significantly more than the job you are interviewing for has to offer?

CTHRA: The state of the economy has caused many companies to scale back compensation components (base, bonus, etc.). As a result, employers and candidates have had to reset their expectations when it comes to salary. This reality can be woven into you’re your reply.

Start by asking what the salary range or budget for the position is so you can appropriately couch your reply. Then, be transparent and honest about your recent earnings. Given the current marketplace, if you’re willing to accept less than in the past, say so, and provide the range you’ll consider. You can couch that reply by adding that rather than focusing solely on starting base salary, you’ll consider all the company has to offer such as benefits, work/life balance emphasis, growth opportunities, etc.

“I was fortunate to have a good career w/ company X where I was able to advance my earnings by proving my value to the organization through my contributions. I learn fast and work hard, so I am certain I can do the same within your company.”

How does an HR professional present an overqualified candidate to a hiring manager in a way that’s not threatening?

CTHRA: A good recruiter/HR professional always knows how to position candidates in a manner that the hiring manager feels like he is in control of the process and is getting the best results from the HR team.

“I have a candidate for you to interview who I believe will bring energy and new ideas, with the ability to step right into the open position-making your job easier.”

When interviewing with the hiring manager, should the candidate bring up the issue of being overqualified?

CTHRA: No. We advise candidates against using the word overqualified in an interview to avoid appearing arrogant and a poor fit for the job. Also, imagine if the hiring manager has doubts about the person’s qualifications, but the candidate starts talking about being overqualified. Then the candidate comes off as presumptuous. It’s best to simply avoid using the word at all.

How should the candidate reply to an interviewer who asks whether or not he or she will quit once a job with his or her old title and salary becomes available?

CTHRA: Answer with an emphatic, “No. After researching this company and meeting [insert various individuals working within the company], I am excited about the possibility of being part of the team. I am willing to make a personal commitment to you and this opportunity, and I expect that if I deliver results, I’ll be given the opportunity to advance my earnings and position within the organization.”

For more information on CTHRA go to cthra.com

Read the column on Media Post here.

I stumbled upon this new desktop application from Minneapolis-based ad agency Fallon today. It’s called Skimmer and its tag-line is “A lifestreaming thing that let’s you do it all in one place.” I particularly liked the use of the word “thing” here.  As we delve deeper and deeper into the world of tech gadgets, widgets, social networks, micro-blogs, etc., etc., it’s nice to see someone recognize just what all of these tools are—things.  Anyway, Kudos to the group for creating what seems to be a very streamlined “thing” allowing users access to  several of their networks in a sleek and simple format.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog post– branding yourself is made possible through the web using social networks strategically and relentlessly. Skimmer might be a way for you to do that in a quicker and easier fashion. For now, though, it includes Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, and Blogger. Hopefully we’ll see LinkedIn on there in the future.

Here’s a blurb from their site describing the app:

“Skimmer is an Adobe® AIR™ desktop application designed to streamline, beautify, and enhance the experience of participating in your most frequently used social networking activities. It improves upon your day-to-day interaction with multiple social networks, removing distractions and providing a rich experience that is particularly suited to multimedia content.”

As always, more to come on social networks and branding in the future. Keep your eyes peeled for new services from DearBev soon! For now, Happy Skimming!

-Bev

A funny, apocryphal tale  from The Recession Kitchen about what  happens when your work force is cut too lean:

Over the past few months I’ve mentioned in several of my columns the importance of branding and selling yourself, whether through your resume, by using superior networking and interviewing skills, or with tactics that go above and beyond. As the job market continues to be a daunting battleground for the unemployed it has never been more important or more challenging to stand out in the crowd, a crowd whose numbers continue to grow. Losing hope can lead to losing sight of the potential you have and the many ways in which you would be an asset to the company you’re applying to.

Yesterday, in the WSJ Online’s Reinvent section, an interesting section I’ve mentioned before with tips and stories of career men and women who are looking to turn over a new leaf, a piece on Building Your Brand offered some wisdom on the topic. Here is a quick excerpt from the piece:

“Personal branding serves as career protection in uncertain times. It’s also a critical tool for reinventing yourself because you can leverage the reputation and skill set you already have to prove you have the ability to do the job you want.”

Some suggested methods for creating a memorable brand for yourself were through utilizing social media and the internet. Creating a presence for yourself using online social tools, blogs, and podcasts helps the message you’re hoping to send to reach a broader spectrum of people. Using the web also allows you to have a visually cohesive and memorable theme.

More on using social networking for branding yourself and/or your business will be coming soon on DearBev, including start-up services for the less tech-savvy crowd.

In my latest column, which was published on MediaDailyNews.com this morning, I answered the question:  Are there any particular skills ad agencies look for when hiring for digital media jobs? The skills I pointed to and those recommended  from some digital folks I consulted with added up to the arsenal possessed by the  young, tech-savvy “Millenial” set. What I didn’t expect to hear from my sources were some of the issues that arise with this influx of less-experienced though digitally advanced youth. (Check out the column to see what they said.)

Since running the column this morning, I’ve received a few funny comments on the Millenial take-over.

One anonymous reader wrote to Dear Bev with a mock job description for one of these coveted youth-dominated roles. Check it out below for a laugh and feel free to add to the conversation!!

-Bev

A top NYC based advertising agency specializing in digital marketing is looking for candidates to fill media planning and buying jobs.

Job Description
-Candidate must have zero creative skills since you will be repeating exactly what has been planned and bought from the prior year
-No phone skills necessary because you won’t be answering your phone, or dialing out
-Must know how to use outlook since you will only be emailing (knowing where the reply button is located isn’t essential)
-Must be able to excessively drink 5 nights a week with vendors who you’ve never met and have no intention of ever talking to again
-Zero interpersonal professional skills necessary since you won’t be building a relationship with vendors
-must be able to fool people into thinking you are “swamped” so you can come in at 10 and leave at 6
-Must be ready to manage a multimillion dollar account for a client within two years of entering the business without developing any business acumen whatsoever
-Must be able to work in a casual business environment where IM’ing and Facebook are constants

So if you think this is a job that’s fits your personality, please submit your resume and references to blackhole@insertanyagencynamehere.com

By Beverly Weinstein

At a recent industry conference, one panelist claimed that if someone was a whiz at Sudoku, it was a pretty good bet they’d do well in digital media. While that may be a good start, my guess is you need a few more qualifications to get a digital planning or buying job. I asked some well-regarded senior level digital media executives for their opinions. The answers I got all pointed to the brainy tech savvy, digitally evolved candidate – in other words, a millennial. And then I got an unexpected earful on challenges that come with a millennial-centric staff.

The Basics
There was general consensus that strong math skills are key for a digital candidate. “It’s not simply someone that’s comfortable with numbers, I’m interested in someone that has great math skills, a passion for the medium, and can also mine data and build stories,” said one agency managing partner. Another wanted someone that could get excited by a 1,500 line spread sheet.

But beyond that, there’s a level of creativity and flexibility that’s called for. “People that don’t need four corners,” said one digital pro. “This isn’t a business where you follow steps one through ten. We’re constantly changing and defining the way we do things.”

Talk the Talk and Walk the Walk
Are they on Facebook? Is it part of their daily routine? Everyone nowadays can use the internet, but having it be a veritable part of your life is different and it’s the younger tech savvy crowd that brings this to the table. “I want a person that lives and breaths digital and understands it from their personal experiences,” said the managing partner.

Another executive asks applicants what their favorite web sites are. “I’m not very excited if all they tell me is Yahoo and AOL. The more niche it is, the more likely this person is really involved in the web and that’s a plus for me and my clients.”

Barrier to Entry: It May Be Your Age
These skills are an easy fit for a Millennial but how about if you’ve been on the traditional media side and want to switch? There’s a perception that after you’ve worked in traditional anywhere from seven to 10 years, the digital media side may not be welcoming you with open arms. Some of the executives I questioned thought the switch would prove difficult and others thought it was less about age and more about attitude. Said one executive, “It’s less about age and more about mindset. It doesn’t matter if your 20 or 40 – it’s a complex medium but if you can embrace it, you can do it. It might be easier for the younger generation but at end of day it’s whether you want to learn it or not.”

Millennials Rule
Everyone acknowledged that the opportunity to climb further faster is on the digital side. “We have a digital media supervisor who is 23 and their counterpart on the traditional side is 30,” admitted one interviewee. Another commented somewhat tongue in cheek, ” I have friends that have crazy titles and they’ve been in this business for 20 minutes.”

“We’re promoting people too quickly, but one agency does it and the others follow. The digital business is scaling more quickly than the talent.”

All of the executives found their younger counterparts to give off a premature sense of entitlement. “I’ve got a department of high maintenance kids,” said one. “On the traditional side there are more adults, more rules of business. That’s not the case in digital yet. They grew up in this media and have been able to move through very quickly. In the past you had to win your stripes.”

Read the article on MediaPost: http://tinyurl.com/dl2vrv

The topic of good leadership seems to be popping up all over!

Yesterday both my DearBev column and an article on the Wall Street Journal Online discussed how to keep your staff engaged and the office morale high after devastating lay-offs. It seems that since the recession hit and lay-offs began, the focus has been on the unemployed and how to get yourself back into the job market. But little attention has been given to the “survivors” of the crash who are often facing their most trying times. Managers in particular are charged with the task of keeping  up morale  amongst a group of shell shocked employees who just saw their friends and colleagues get the axe and are either in fear that they are next or are experiencing some serious survivor’s guilt. But guilt and fear aside, the reality is that during this major slump, managers need their remaining employees to perform their best to keep business running and probably to make up for the slack created by job elimination. And the only way for higher-ups to get their staff in order is to be a great leader.

In my column, I consulted with Dr. Gary Schuman, President of CDL Consulting who offered up some great advice on being the leader that your employees need. He will chime in on several more columns to dispense some tips for the managers that, until now, seem to have been forgotten.

My Director of Talent Research at Markham Media recently published a Career Haiku on MediaDailyNews with the idea that tackling your career doesn’t need to be so stressful and could even be fun. So, give yourself that well needed moment of zen and stop back here (and on MediaPost) each week for a simple token of advice in the ancient Japanese poetic form. Below is her Haiku as it appears on MediaDailyNews:

By Alyse Walsh

Let’s try something new

Career advice on the run

Why not a haiku

Alyse Walsh, a Markham Media colleague of “Dear Bev” career advice columnist Beverly Weinstein, has offered a “career haiku” as a way to stimulate some thinking, dialogue and maybe a little bit of poetry exchanging among the readers of MediaDailyNews.

A haiku, of course, is a form of Japanese poetry, consisting of three metrical phrases of five, seven, and five syllables, respectively.

If you’d like to try your hand at one, please post it here, and use it to connote or evoke anything you’d like to about your career in media.

Here’s another example:

Do you golf or ski?

Build a stronger resume

Add activities

Take a look on MediaPost: http://tinyurl.com/cn8ykl

One reader, already added to the dialogue by posting her own Career Haiku as a comment to the publication. Frances Page, founder of Frances Page Project Room LLC, a brand creation and media company wrote:

Auto, financial,

Pharma, Retail, QSR.

Upfront weak again?

I’d love it if you submitted your own to us as well!

Illustration by Doug Savage via KimandJason.com

By Beverly Weinstein

I’ve dealt out a lot of advice for the victims of lay-offs but times can be tough for senior managers left with the task of keeping morale high in the aftermath of a wave of lay-offs too. Many find themselves with anxious or even traumatized staffs and, in this environment, leadership skills have never been more important. For some insights into how to answer leadership challenges, I turned to Dr. Gary Schuman, President of New York based CDL Consulting, who works with senior executives at several of the major media companies.

Survivors Guilt

Schuman pointed out that even though someone has been fortunate enough to keep his or her job when coworkers and friends have been caught in lay-offs, survivor’s guilt is not un-common. It’s critical for managers to consciously take actions that lower the anxiety level. “These are time when leaders have to lead,” said Schuman. “It’s very tempting right now to keep your head down, but if most people in your company have their head in the sand, picking your head up is a smart move and it’s the right thing to do.”

Be Visible: Managing by Walking Around

“This may sound trite, but management by walking around is important. This is a time when leaders need to be very visible.” Schuman added, “A leader should make it a point to connect personally with each of his or her staff members. Try randomly dropping by someone’s office for a cup of coffee or just to talk. Ask them what they’re working on. See if there’s anything you can do to help them. Let them know you’re there for them and do something that let’s them know their contribution matters.”

Schuman went a step further by suggesting that if you’re at a very senior level, you might initiate a skip level listening tour. “Consider reaching down one or two levels. Try to find out what people are feeling and what may be getting in their way of doing their best work. This can be very powerful. I’ve seen organizations do this and if done sincerely, it works brilliantly”

Have Regular Staff Meeting, Find Time To Have Fun

Mangers should set up full staff meetings on a regular basis, advised Schuman. “Make sure your meetings are substantive and strategic. Talk about issues and not just report outs. Invite staff to brainstorm ideas that help them relieve some of the job stress. I would also try to doing something special or fun with the group and if there’s a reason to have a celebration and it feels authentic, do it.”

It’s important to do things to make people feel they belong again. It helps create a sense of stability in the group.

Talk About the Recent Downsizing

Consider putting the issue of your recent downsizing on the table at one of your staff meetings. It’s probably there anyway as the elephant in the room. “It’s a sign of courage to open that conversation,” Schuman said. “If you’re worried it will be clumsy, consider getting some coaching for HR or better still, invite them into the meeting to help facilitate.

Watch for more questions and answers on effective leadership from Gary Schuman in coming weeks.

Read the article on MediaPost: http://tinyurl.com/dkk484