Yes, it has significantly changed.

Technology has been one major catalyst of the change.  The economy has been the other major catalyst.

What has it changed TO?

Check out this post by Meg Guiseppi titled Today’s Executive Job Search Toolkit. Meg says you need these things for a successful job search (especially as an executive):

• A specific career target and list of target companies (read more)
• Research on each target company and the industry (read more)
• Target Contact List for networking (read more)
• Personal branding designed to renonate with your target companies (read more)
• Branded Career Documents (read more)
• LinkedIn (read more)
• Google Profile (read more)
• Recruiter Relationships (read more)
• List of References (read more)
• Online brand-building communications plan (read more)
• In-person and online networking strategy (read more)
• Interview Preparation (read more)
• Thank you notes (read more)
• Job search managmeent and tracking system (JibberJobber, of course!) (read more)

Check out her post for more info and links.

The job search is not as simple as it was.  Be proactive, take ownership of it, and excel!

A couple of weeks ago I was on a webinar where I once again promoted Michael Webb’s job search program as the most solid program I’ve seen.

It’s simple.

But it’s really hard to implement (until you just DO IT).

After the webinar, I was thinking about his system, and why people won’t do it.

They spend tons of time and effort and money and thinking on other systems that seem more simple, and promise at least the same results.

I started to think about health, and comparing it to this issue.  Michael Webb’s system is like eating right and exercising, which is a pretty solid plan to get healthy (lose weight, etc.).

But we (collectively) don’t want to do that.  It’s too hard.  We want the ab machine from the commercial.  Or we want the pill, or the spoonful of whatever.  We want the shortcut.

How does that shortcut work out?

That’s right.

So go for the solid program, not the fad diet.

I’m not saying Michael’s is the only solid program – I have partners and colleagues that have solid programs.  They are out there.

But I’m telling you, if you are looking for the short cut, you might see quick results that tend to fade quickly.

Mark LeBlanc, who had has a significant impact on my business, will be in Utah for two events that you should try and make.

First, he’s speaking at the National Speakers Association chapter meeting downtown (Zions Bank building, 18th floor) on Wed, Oct 19.  You can learn more here.  I think it costs $40 to come.  Parking is validated.  Totally worth it, imo.

The next two days, Thursday the 20th and Friday the 21st, he is doing his 24 Hours to Success seminar.  It is from 3-6pm on Thursday and 9am – 3pm on Friday.  It costs $395.  I’ll be there, and I’ll tell you, this is a great investment.  Mark LeBlanc is the real deal. I know people who travel to his seminars from out of town because he is WORTH IT.

I’m I getting paid to write this?  Nope.   He doesn’t even know I’m writing it.  But I believe in him, his message, and know it’s a great fit for business owners, entrepreneurs, etc.  Learn more here, or call Kylie at 612.339.4890.

I haven’t posted twice in one day in  years, but I need to today, or else you’ll read about this when it’s too late.

Tomorrow morning at 9am EST Rita Carey is doing a webinar called The 40+ Career Search: Debunking the Myths.  There is NO COST. It is FREE.

If you can move your schedule around, join the webinar… the description is as follows:

Do employers make hiring decisions based upon age?

The bad news is that whether it’s age, gender, or ethnicity, the hiring manager may make assumptions about the ability of a person to do the job.

The good news is that beliefs about the “older” worker are changeable. We cannot change our age, but we can change assumptions about our qualifications.

This webinar will cover the following topics:

• The 5 major myths about age that create barriers and how to break through them.
• Why beliefs about younger workers can prevent offers
• Tips for handling the age factor on resumes and in interviews

Here’s the link to register.

When I got laid off I created a simple plan to land a better job quickly.

My plan failed.

What I didn’t realize is that the job search is broken, on every single level.

Job Seekers are broken because they don’t understand, and many times don’t want to understand, the process.  They just want the freaking job!  The problem with not understanding the process is that they then do things that seem to make sense, but really don’t.

The Recruiting world is broken.  Just head over to recruiting blogs to learn about all of their issues and topics they talk about.  I’d call it a mature industry, but they struggle with so many things it is clear there are still many wrinkles to iron out.  And, ask any job seeker what they think of recruiters – it usually isn’t good for two reasons:

1. The job seeker doesn’t understand the role of a recruiter in their job search, and
2. The recruiter has no time to follow-up with unpromising candidates, leaving them hanging, not providing even a sentence of counseling/coaching/encouragement/feedback.

HR is broken.  Why do you think every job counselor in the country says “AVOID HR!”  They are a mess. I’ve worked with them, and I know they have many issues.  Many times they don’t have a seat on the executive committee, and aren’t involved with strategy.  They are disregarded by the strategic thinkers, and are left to do a very, very important role without being properly funded, or empowered.  Also, just how much influence do they have in a hiring process?  Either way too much, without the right tools, or way too little, when hiring managers go around them.

The process hiring managers follow is broken, especially evidenced when they hire based on emotional input rather than seeking out the best candidate.  Their A-player employee strongly recommends someone?  Go with that, instead of equally weighing out all of the strongest candidates!  Yeah, that will last.

Job boards are broken. Typically, they don’t care about the job seeker, or the job search process.  Job seekers are transient users who pay nothing (leeches, maybe?).  They care about whoever at the hiring company is going to pay to have a job posting put up.  That’s why on some job boards you get contacted by “opportunities” that have NOTHING to do with what you have on your resume.

What else… there are other aspects of the whole process of what is broken.

What does this mean?

There is PAIN for job seekers (and for everyone else involved in the hiring process).  Some of it is very deep, personal pain.  Other pain is just work frustration.

There are OPPORTUNITIES to fix various parts of the puzzle.  I’ve seen people/companies come along that will fix a very specific issue, without really affecting the big picture, and I’ve seen people/companies try to fix the entire puzzle (which is really too big a problem to fix, imo).

Are you going to focus on the  PAIN or the OPPORTUNITIES?

This post is going to sound snarky, or like I’ve got a chip on my shoulder.  In fact, I do have a chip on my shoulder. I’ve seen for-profit organizations not give the best to their clients for various reasons, and I’ve seen non-profit organizations (like church job groups) not give the clients the best.  Below are some theories why. Of course there are very, very few exceptions to what I write below… but yes, there are some outplacement firms that do recommend JibberJobber heavily.

I recently got an email from a client of a really big (one of the top 3) outplacement firms in the world.  This is a multi-billion dollar business, folks.  Here’s part of the email:

I wanted to mention that I am working with the Lee Hecht Harrison (LHH) outplacement service and this is where someone recently mentioned Jibber Jobber.

LHH has always emphasized the importance of having a tool to manage all the data that a job search will generate, but they do not recommend any specific solution.  That is why many people default to using excel and then “out-grow” its effectiveness as you get a lot of data and try to associate information.

As a recommendation, if you could have companies like LHH put Jibber Jobber forward as a potential solution to manage data you may be able to drive increased sales.

I have been in the job search for over 4 months now and I would have liked to have known about this tool earlier in my search.

Ah, what a question!

Over the last 5+ years I have been trying to work with outplacement companies so they would heartily recommend JibberJobber, which I’m biased about, but I think is the best thing to organize and manage a job search.

In fact, in my mind, one of the companies that might acquire JibberJobber would be one of the top 3 outplacement firms (Right Management, LHH or DBM).  None of them have anything that touches JibberJobber… that’s what I’ve been told from their consultants (job coaches and counselors) and from their clients.

I know there are some consultants at various locations that recommend JibberJobber.  They teach classes about it, tell their clients to get on it, put it in their newsletter, etc.

But not one outplacement firm, that I know of, solely and strongly recommends the tool.

Why not?

Here again is the last line from above:

I have been in the job search for over 4 months now and I would have liked to have known about this tool earlier in my search.

It’s frustrating that JibberJobber, which is five years old now, isn’t THE recommended tool.

Have I tried to get in.

Big time.  But I hit brick wall after brick wall.  I haven’t been able to network in.  Most consultants haven’t been able to introduce me to anyone at the corporate level.

I did have an interesting conversation at the corporate level at Right Management, but the person there didn’t “get” JibberJobber.  Why would anyone want to use it, he wondered.

No matter what I said, did or showed him, he didn’t get it.  He said it would fail, like all CRM systems fail (when implemented).  He never understood that I wasn’t trying to get Right to use it as their CRM, rather to offer it to their clients, WHO NEED IT!

A corporate person didn’t get it, and killed it.

I had another conversation with someone high up at LHH.  Apparently he was responsible for developing a lot of the curriculum that LHH used world-wide (or, at least in the U.S.).  The most I could gather from that conversation is that since he didn’t develop or design JibberJobber, and it didn’t fit in totally with the nomenclature of his systems, they wouldn’t even consider it.

So, we have pride, ignorance and kingdom issues.

Why isn’t outplacement recommending JibberJobber?

I think it comes down to them (a) not spending time understanding how vital this tool is in a job search, and (b) not taking time to learn what their candidates (the job seekers) needs are.

It’s unfortunate.

But for five years I’ve tried and tried, and now, five years later, I get an email like the one above.

It makes me wonder what other tools, techniques and strategies these groups are withholding from their candidates.

All I can say is this: if you are an outplacement client, please go back to your coach and counselor and consultant and let them know how valuable it has been for you.

Linsey Levine has been a JibberJobber partner for  years.  Last year I had a choice meeting with her where we talked about Personality Tests… er, Personality ASSESSMENTS.  They aren’t tests, as Linsey went on to explain.  She clearly has a lot of training and experience using assessments to help people understand what direction they should be pointed in in the job search.

Linsey works with a lot of executives, although she has a breadth of experience in the career space.  I asked he if she would write something to introduce herself… here’s what she sent me:

After an early career that included attorney search, teaching, and editing, I found myself stuck – with really no idea what to do next. An epiphany helped me make a mid-life career change myself, and now I partner with other people in career pain, career depression, and career limbo – to help them get unstuck. It was the best choice and decision that I ever made! I love my work, my clients, and making a difference.

My passion for helping people uncover, discover, or turn on their light, enables them to consciously create successful career paths that are aligned with their values, gifts, interests, and unique strengths .

I have a private Career Coaching /Counseling / Resume Writing practice in White Plains, Westchester NY, and also facilitate ExecuNet Networking meetings in the tri-state area. As Adjunct Faculty of the Graduate School of the College of New Rochelle, I taught the Career Development Masters curriculum and supervised interns. I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) and Master Career Development Professional(MCDP).

As a client so aptly observed, “ You are a CAREer, you put the CARE into Care(er),” so I love to provide inspirational and practical advice, as well as resources and valuable connections. I am an active member of the Career Counselors Consortium, Career Management Alliance, Association for Psychological Type, Career Development Specialists Network, National Career Development Association, Association of Career Professionals International, and National Resume Writers Association.

There is a major difference between a career coach and a career counselor. I’m proud to have Linsey as a JibberJobber Partner, and offer both skillsets to her clients, and helps them with counseling, coaching and resumes.

Learn more about Linsey Levine on LinkedIn or from her website.

Here are some links of interest:

Career Counseling and Coaching

Resume Writing Services

Career Workshops

ExecuNet Facilitated Networking Meetings

Here are three ways to learn how to use LinkedIn:

1. Join me on Thursday at 4pm EST for a live webinar called LinkedIn for Executives – BEYOND the Basics.  This is through Netshare’s Experts Connection.  I’ve done this a few times for them and it’s always fun, and packed full of content. Cost is $50 or $60. Register now to get on the webinar.
2. Get my DVD called LinkedIn for Job Seekers. Cost is $50 + S&H.  This has about three hours of content to help you get value out of your LinkedIn strategy. Click here to buy.
3. If you are a career coach or in the career space, you should become an Online Professional Networking Strategist (this was the LinkedIn certification, but LinkedIn’s lawyers said we can’t use the word LinkedIn in the title of the certification).  We’ll spend six 70 minute sessions going into a number of things on LinkedIn so you can become an expert for yourself and your clients with this online professional network (aka: _________).  Cost is $897, and I work hard so you feel like it was worth it (this is the second time I’m doing this)! More info here.  TIME SENSITIVE: The first session is TODAY!

I continue to see a ton of potential with LinkedIn “users,” whether they are newbies, veterans, so-called LIONs, and even recruiters, with how they can make some marginal changes to get much better results!

Oh yeah, if LinkedIn is interesting to you, check out the LinkedIn blog behind my LinkedIn book: I’m on LinkedIn – Now What???

Megan Fitzgerald, career coach for expats, is writing a series on how to stand out titled Expat Careers & Businesses: How To Stand Out in the Global Marketplace.  This is a multi-part series… in her second series (read the first one here) she talks about… me!  How flattering.

I’m going to share what she says about me… and then tell you how this applies to YOU.

Megan writes (read her entire post for a context and more depth):

BECOME THE MEDIA OR AN INDUSTRY AUTHORITY

For example, my colleague Jason Alba (and former expat) became a thought leader and an online “hub” in the career space by blogging everyday for a year. He shared about his own challenges as a job seeker and the tools that he developed to try and help him manage that process. The wealth of knowledge he shared, his authentic and engaging style and his regular engagement with his readers made him a credible, real, and respected voice amongst thousands of blogs in the career space. He then leveraged his technology experience and his own learning from the job search and blogging to build an incredibly powerful service called Jibberjobber. To say it helps jobs seekers manage their career and network effectively would not do it justice. There is nothing elsecomparable in the marketplace and I invite every career professional to visitJibberjobber see what it can do for you.

Jason’s thought leadership in job search and networking naturally led him to becoming an expert on how other online tools can be of help to job seekers – namely Linkedin and Facebook. He has written two excellent books to help guide job seekers and careerists - I’m on Linkedin – Now What? and I’m on Facebook – Now What? (co-authored with Facebook expert Jesse Stay). Both of these publications further enhanced his status as an expert. Now he is in high demand as a speaker for events around the world as well as a media source for leveraging Linkedin in the job search.

How cool is that?

There are a couple of things here that she isn’t 100% accurate on, but it doesn’t matter.  It’s a very positive writeup.  When she thinks of someone who is doing it right, I came to mind as a success, and she is sharing that success, and my products/services, with her clients and blog readers.

If she ever gives a presentation on this, she might use my story as an example.

MY BRAND IS SOLIDIFIED IN HER MIND.

You can’t pay for that type of branding…. can you?  Perhaps you can, but that strategy is reserved for companies with gobs of marketing dollars.

The average person, with no marketing money, CAN get this type of branding.

YOU CAN GET THIS TYPE OF BRANDING!

You want someone in your profession or industry to write something like that about YOU, right?  Or when their boss comes to them and asks if they know anyone with an expertise in ______, you want them to think of YOU, right?

You can make that happen, if you have a strategic approach to your own branding.

Here’s another snippet from her post:

Granted the time and work to become an trusted authority is not for everyone, but it is another option for those keen to stand out and get noticed in the global marketplace.

So true.

So who are you?  Are you the still kicking against the pricks (biblical term… guess what pricks are?) applying to openings on job boards, or are you “keen to stand out and get noticed in the (global) marketplace”?

Work for your career.  No one else is going to do it for you!

Today I’m introducing you to another JibberJobber Partner: Beverly Harvey of Harvey Careers.

I met Beverly at one of the conference I go to with career coaches and was intrigued by the respect she got from others at the conference.  She has been in this business for 20 years and has developed a successful business helping many, many professionals navigate their job search.

Beverly is anxious to stay up-to-date on technologies and trends and regularly attends my webinars.  I recently finished a social media for coaches training that focuses on LinkedIn, and she went through more than six hours of indepth instruction on how to help her clients get the most value out of a LinkedIn strategy.

Beverly Harvey is cleary committed to learning, as can be seen in her certifications in branding, career transitions, resume writing, job search, online identity management and career management.  Want to see the alphabet soup on her email signature?  Check this out:

Combine those trainings and certifications with what she learns every day from her clients as they are faced with new challenges and you’ll find a career coach who is absolutely passionate about being empowered with knowledge of today’s tactics and strategies for job seekers.

Beverly says:

“I love to work with senior-level operating and management executives who have trouble singing their own praises or bragging about themselves.  I have a unique way of turning those seemingly chest-pounding assertions into factual, quantifiable accomplishments that drive home their branded value proposition and get them hired.

If you’re a senior-level executive who is ready for advancement and would like an expert to guide you through the complexities of career management, call me at 888-775-0916 or send an email to beverly@harveycareers.com.”

Go ahead, give her a call… or check out one of her group training programs (at Harvey Careers).

Harvey Careers website

Beverly’s Harvey Careers blog

Beverly Harvey on LinkedIn

Beverly Harvey on Twitter

Beverly Harvey on Facebook

Does she have a book?  Yup.  Check out Insider Job Search Tips & Resources for 17 Top Industries.