This week, I catch up with my new friend Mike Dwyer with Paladin Recruiting. Not only does he work in the recruiting industry, but also is a leader in the social media space. He's got some great responses to my questions! Have a happy holidays!
What areas of recruiting do you focus on?
· I focus on marketing, social media and creative staffing for fortune 500 companies across the country but primarily in Chicago.
What is the one piece of advice you'd give to someone coming out of college in terms of looking for a job?
· Get an internship, get relevant work experience. Meet with professionals in your network or your parents network. Keep mindful of social media you use ie. Facebook as everything you do online is trackable and it’s a guarantee that recruiters are searching for you online after they receive your resume or name.
What has changed in terms of the job market from a year ago?
· Social Media has become more important in networking for positions outside of sending your resume into a Monster or Careerbuilder website.
· Not even close to as many jobs and so there are more people out of college who aren’t finding positions.
· Due to overflow in candidate pool employers have the luxury of finding students who have at least been involved in a internship with a comparable company or industry. See above comment.
In this economy, what advice would you give people to find a new job or keep their current jobs?
Concerning “keeping your current job” update your resume on a monthly basis. The updating is not just for potential job opportunities but to remind you of your accomplishments and where you have come from. To know where you are going you need to know where you have been. This is very important as it will give you confidence in your current role.
· Be confident in your work experience and the value you add to a organization. If you aren’t feeling like your doing a good job rewriting your resume will help you to do a self audit concerning where you are at professionally. Maybe it’s not the right job for you. A self audit can help in the personal discovery phase.
· To keep your current job be proactive, engaged and participatory.
· Be aware of your companies place within its industry.
“To find a new job” get focused on what companies or industries you are interested in, do research and reach out to hiring managers within your target department. The best tools for targeted networking are LinkedIn and maybe Jigsaw.com. LinkedIn is a fantastic tool that can make a cold networking call warm.
The days of sending your resume into a website or monster are over. Especially in a flooded talent pool where corporate recruiters are seeing thousands of resumes.
What are the hottest new opportunities out there?
· Social media is huge within the marketing disciplines.
· Green businesses will continue to grow (no pun intended) as the new president will inevitably inject money and funding to new green startups and current companies changing the way the do business.
· Healthcare is always a safe bet and will continue to need people across the board.
You really get excited when you see a candidate that has what?
· I always thought it would be good to start up a band called “7to10”. Traditionally my clients ask for candidates with 7-10 years experience regardless of the search. I am looking for relevant experience within my clients industry and ideally an Masters degree level education.
What is the one thing someone should not do when interviewing for a job?
· Don’t drone on with your conversation.
· Don’t speak poorly about your current or past employer.
· Don’t initiate non relevant conversation concerning someone’s personal life.
· Don’t chew gum.
· Don’t wear jeans.
· Don’t curse.
· Don’t close your eyes while speaking. (seen it)
· Don’t answer your cell phone during the interview (seen it)
If you had $100 bucks, what would you spend it on?
· A larger LinkedIn account.
Any other pieces of wisdom to give people?
· Remember your value
· Network Network Network
Can people contact you? If so, what's the best way to do it?
Feel free to contact me at any time:
Mike Dwyer | Business Development Manager
Paladin RECRUITING AND STAFFING
Marketing Creative Communications
mike.dwyer@paladinstaff.com | www.paladinstaff.com <http://www.paladinstaff.com/>
Office: 312.416-1869| Fax: 312.654.2608 200 West Madison, Suite 1805 | Chicago, IL 60606
My LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mdwyerpaladinstaffing <http://www.linkedin.com/in/mdwyerpaladinstaffing>
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