Personal Branding and The Likable Engineer

May 11, 2009November 30, 2015Wendy Terwelp 6 Comments

Hired Engineer

Guest Blogger: Robert Bachman, The Likable Engineer

(with editorial notes by Wendy Terwelp)

Just wanted to drop you a note and let you know I successfully landed a position as a Project Manager. It is a great fit and I am looking forward to starting my new position. I wish to thank you again for the chat we had after your branding workshop and the advice you provided me.

(Note: Bob landed his new gig less than 4 weeks after attending my workshop.)

I have received many positive comments on my tag line “The Likable Engineer”. I have only received one negative from another engineer, who thought it trite and self-serving, but at least he remembered. OBTW: He’s typical engineer that can’t get out of his comfort zone and network.

(Note: Bob gets it. Strong personal brands attract and repel. It’s OK the other engineer didn’t get it, because Bob did – and is hired with a company that fits his brand.)

Here is a synopsis of my search, since as an engineer I like to focus on numbers, and also what I learned this time around.

To share my numbers in 141 days of searching it was a 6-to-7 hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week job. I sent out 28 resumes, 32 marketing letters, had 41 one-on-one networking meetings, went to 31 networking events, had 15 interviews, did 7 mentoring/coaching sessions with people [some their first search in 20+ years], volunteered for 5 events, spoke to 4 groups on the techniques of networking in the job search from the perspective of someone doing it daily, and did a great deal of sharing my job seeking knowledge.

(Note: Check out how Bob totally embraced the “givers gain” philosophy – even though he was out of work – he still helped others! Bob’s rock star attitude is important to grasp as well as his givers gain actions. Hence my bold phrases in the above paragraph.)

I often get asked what did I learn in the process:

1) I learned I am in sales and marketing selling MY value proposition,

2) I learned language is so important. It’s not I think I can do the job, it’s I know I can do the job. Think, can, and maybe where appropriate are replaced with know, will, and absolutely.

3) I discovered in myself a real desire to help others through this process. I will continue to provide support where I can through 40Plus and other venues to coach and mentor. I have learned too much to bury it in the sand. It continues to make me wonder what else God has planned for me.

We learn more from giving then we do from getting.

(Note: What more can I say? Bob, you have said it all. I hope readers find this inspiring. Feel free to share your story!)

Job Seekers: Rock Your Career® Get hired faster!

April 9, 2009April 10, 2009Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

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Networking Rocks: Source of Hire study

March 19, 2009March 19, 2009Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

Courtesy of Gerry Crispin & Mark Mehler, CareerXroads:

Internal Transfers and Promotions were 38.8% of ALL the full-time positions a company fills. Nine firms are at or above 50%. We think it worth noting that the significant increase in the proportion of internal to external fills in 2008 versus 2007 (28%) is at least partially due to the deteriorating economic climate during 2008. We think this conclusion is further supported by the survey respondents’ estimate that the number of contingent workers employed by their respective firms decreased from 18% in 2007 to 10% in 2008. Cleary the data reflects a shift in emphasis to filling internally and squeezing external hires. We still don’t understand why more firms don’t tout their internal movement numbers as a means to prove their commitment to development. This continues to be a missed opportunity.
Referrals (employee, alumni, vendor, etc.) make up 27.3% of all external hires and is arguably the number one external source. (Employee referrals make up most of this category but Alumni referrals are growing.)The efficiency of referrals is one of the single most important characteristics of US hiring practices. 26 firms tracked the number of referrals as well as hires from referrals. More than 17,000 positions were filled from just fewer than 200,000 referrals or 1 hire for every 11.2 referrals!
Job Boards (not including the company site) represent 12.3% of external hires. We believe this SOH (source of hire) has indeed peaked and predict it will diminish in the future. Within the category, Monster has lost ground to CareerBuilder. The two of them account for half the job board hires but both are losing ground to the “long-tail” of niche sites, social networks and other online search engine marketing capabilities that are expanding their reach. The gray area where boards are morphing into much broader suites of services makes it difficult to draw hard and fast conclusions.
Company Website hires are a problem for us (we maintain that the company web site is a destination not a source) and essentially represents one of every five external hires. There is no question about the importance of the company site’s staffing pages as a critical “channel” but its acceptance by corporations as a source likely occludes other, more relevant starting points driving prospects and candidates.

When reviewing the CareerXroads findings, think about how you are currently spending your job search time. What percentage are you putting into networking versus responding to online ads? Time to rethink your strategy? Use the above stats to determine how you spend your time. Set up some networking meetings.

Want more tips to get the most from your networking efforts? Check out our newsroom: www.knocks.com/news.aps.

Now go get ’em!