Recently during an online conversation about negotiating total compensation rather than just base salary, I was asked "What are the best resources to use to figure out how to quantify your 'total compensation' and make sure you are not forgetting anything?"Total compensation can include base, benefi...
Writing Powerful Introductory Letters
A visitor to my site recently asked me to critique a letter he was sending to someone he saw speak at a professional conference. The purpose of the letter was to introduce himself and request an informational interview. Like many of the introductory letters I see, the letter was very general and lac...
Salary Negotiation Tips
A colleague and I recently had a conversation about one of the classic salary negotiation traps that many people fall into when a hiring manager asks about their past salary. In this situation, the hiring manager asked how much the job seeker was currently making and assumed that this was the approx...
Accepting a Job and a Severance Package at the Same Time
Over on the Jibber Jobber blog there's a great post about the sKewed and often unfair agreements that some companies ask terminating employees to sign in order to collect their severance after a downsizing has occurred. Rather than doing damage control on the way out, I recommend that candidates neg...
Deductions Related to Job Search
As tax season approaches, now is a good time to start thinking about deductions you may be eligible for if you are currently in a job search. Resume writing services, stationery, and travel to and from interviews are just a few of the possible deductions. Read the post here....
Video Resumes…Wave of the Future or Passing Fad?
There's an interesting post about video resumes on the Your HR Guy Blog. As a former HR Gal and current resume writer and coach, I try to wear both hats when determining what self-marketing tactics will best market my candidates. The video resume may make sense for an actor, news anchor, or motivati...
Job Seeker Advice…Coming Soon to an iPod Near You!
According to a recent article in HR Magazine, podcasts will be an effective job search tool in the near future, especially for tech-centric first-time job seekers. Podcasts are online audio presentations that can be downloaded from the Internet and played from an iPod or other MP3 player. They offe...
2007 Hiring Trends Surveys
According to two recently released hiring trends surveys conducted by CareerBuilder and Manpower, 40% of hiring managers surveyed say their companies will increse their number of full time employees and 40% say they currently have openings which they can't find qualified candidates for. Most job op...
Free E-Book, Insider’s Guide to Resume Writing
Through my partnership with Career Hub, a career advice blog, I have contributed to a book on resume writing that is available for free. It's full of great writing tips and strategies from experts in the careers field....
Google is Number One
Fortune magazine just released their 100 Best Companies to Work For list for 2007 and Google is number one. Read why here or check out the list to see who else is in the top 100....