Archive for the 'Readers’ Forum' Category


How Employers Can Help You Get Hired

Monday, December 5th, 2011

In the December 6, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a reader who helps seniors find jobs shares an “interview invitation” one of his clients received. It’s a landmark! Why don’t more employers do this? Join me below to discuss other ways employers can help you get hired. I’m a training and placement specialist and a [...]


You’ll never get hired if you’re self-employed

Monday, November 28th, 2011

In the November 29, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a reader who’s run a business for years wants to know whether it’s true that the self-employed are unemployable. I was on a discussion forum today where the consensus is that you’ll never get hired if you’ve been self-employed. Is that true? I have had my [...]


Jumping Employment Gaps

Monday, November 21st, 2011

In the November 22, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a successful executive who took time off then worked as a consultant says headhunters won’t touch him. What’s up? I was an executive with a financial services software company for 20 years. I joined when it was a start-up. After the company was sold, I took a [...]


The employer that rejected me made a mistake!

Monday, October 24th, 2011

In the October 25, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a job candidate explains that an employer made a mistake when it hired another applicant. He wants advice about how to help the employer rectify the mistake. Don’t laugh — it’s easy to get caught in this trap of frustration. I recently made a lateral move [...]


How to manage gang-up interviews

Monday, October 17th, 2011

In the October 18, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a manager indicts “panel” interviews and says he’d never consent to one — or conduct one. Are panel interviews a bad idea? I was taken aback recently when my HR department scheduled me as a part of a panel interview. When I queried our hiring team, they [...]


The truth about headhunters

Tuesday, October 11th, 2011

In the October 11, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a job hunter who’s tired of high-pressure headhunters asks how to recognize the good ones: The sales pitches I get from cold-calling headhunters are intense. They’re in a hurry, they avoid sharing details I need and they are high-pressure. How do I know when I’m talking [...]


Hey, Babe, don’t I know you from somewhere?

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

In the October 4, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a job hunter asks whether social networks like LinkedIn are a great way to get a foot in the door when looking for a new employer. I am currently looking at new job opportunities. Your suggestions are to network in order to find out more information [...]


Don’t be afraid of a C-level contact

Monday, September 26th, 2011

In the September 27, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a job hunter says he’s got personal introductions to two C-level execs at a company where he wants to work. He worries, is it even a good idea to use them? The CEO of my former company just gave me two of the best contacts that [...]


3 Ways to Be a Smarter Job Candidate

Monday, September 19th, 2011

In the September 20, 2011 Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, a job hunter wonders how to get smarter, negotiate better, and avoid getting taken advantage of: I had what may be a “Eureka moment.” I’ve been accused of lacking the “cojones” to handle interviewing and the job market, and I think it’s true. I started my [...]


Bankrupt & Unemployed: How to Say It

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

In the last post, Bankrupt & Unemployed: Will a background check doom me?, we discussed how a reader who is applying for a job (and who is qualified) might overcome obstacles that come up when the employer does a background check. Problems like bankruptcy triggered by long-term unemployment — and a year-old DUI (driving while [...]