In an edition of my syndicated column, I ran a poll in The Seattle Times. I asked readers to pick from four methods they’d use to get in the door at a company. In other words, how would you apply for a job? 77% responded that they would pursue the channel that is most closed [...]
My office is nice and cozy. I have a big cherry-wood desk and a great chair. Views of woods and grass through lots of big windows. It’s a peaceful habitat. No one bothers me. I know I’m safe, and in a few hours I’m gonna see my wife and kids. So now I’m going to try and show [...]
If my views on job hunting and hiring (and career development) seem different from most “experts” in the field, it’s mainly because I see the most fruitful ideas on these topics coming out of the netherworld. That is, from non-career-related areas. Unfortunately, the career industry spends so much time chewing and re-digesting its decades-old cud that [...]
We talk a lot around here about how to interview well, how to win the job, how to be successful. Sometimes it helps to take a good look at all the dopey stuff we do that doesn’t work. Hey, you can’t perform well if you keep doing the same-old, same-old that relegates you to the [...]
Is it okay if you write your own recommendation or reference letter and let your boss sign it? What does that say about you? About your boss? Since it’s appeared in two recent editions of the Ask The Headhunter Newsletter, the volume of reader mail has pushed this topic to the blog. I want to make [...]
I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried. Three years ago I reported on Deceptive Recruiting: HR’s last stand? The column was about John Sullivan and his sidekick Michael Homula, and their anything-goes, slimeball recruiting methods, all done up nice and pretty with a case study and many self-congratulatory pats on the back. This week, The [...]
A popular article on the web site is Too Old to Rock & Roll? People naturally worry that as they get older, employers will discount them or flat-out discriminate against them. Yah, poor judgment knows no bounds. I have another point of view on age and job interviews. A reader recently asked: I have an interview with a [...]
Recently we talked about how companies mouth the words, People are our most important asset!, while feeding assets into the hamburger grinder. Your comments have made me more aware of articles on related topics, and I’d like to share a couple of good ones. One will make you grind a fist even harder into your palm, and the [...]
