New Year, New Job?

What You Need to do Now to Make a Career Change Later

[ Written By jennifer maciejewski ]

Hoping to toast the New Year with a new job? If so, you’re not alone. More than 75 percent of employees are actively looking for a new job, according to a 2006 poll by the Society for Human Resource Management and The Wall Street Journal’s CareerJournal.com. And individuals who have no immediate plans for a career change may soon find themselves thrown into the mix: nearly half of Americans know someone who has been laid off in the last six months, according to a recent Gallup Poll.

Whether or not you expect to make a change in 2008, here’s what you need to do now to get a jump on the competition.

Determine Your Needs

Create a wish list of what you want in your ideal position, taking into account everything from the commute time and benefits package to the opportunities for advancement and work environment. At the same time, identify the selling points that make you a hirable and desirable candidate, such as your expertise in the field or your leadership skills.

But before you move on from your current job, it’s important to figure out why you’re leaving. If you leap before you look, you may end up swapping the devil you know for the devil you don’t. Ask yourself: “Am I running away from something, or am I running to something?” suggested Michelle Tullier, vice president of consulting for right management and author of “The Unofficial Guide to Landing a Job.” “If you’re just running away from something, you have to first say, ‘Could I make it work here? Could I report to someone different? Could I change the nature of my role? Could I get a mentor here who could help me better navigate the organization? Could I speak candidly about concerns I have or changes I’d like to make with someone in HR who helps with employees’ career development?’”

When you make it to the interview phase of the job hunt, use the opportunity to ask questions that will give you a glimpse of what your potential boss or schedule may be like.

Once you’ve exhausted your options, it may be time to move on, though you may not always find yourself moving up. You may choose to make a lateral move to work in an environment that better meets your personal needs, move down a notch or two to take advantage of a wealth-building opportunity at a small-but-growing company or even jump to a new ladder to start a new career.

But don’t exchange one place of employment for another without first taking a close look at your job history. “If you look at your résumé and find that you’re making a move every three years and are not being promoted in your current position, then you have to reflect in a very honest way to figure out what’s really going on here,” explained Robert Baxter, senior client partner at Korn/Ferry International. “Changing jobs, many times, is not necessarily the solution.” Everything from your communication style to a lack of an advanced degree may keep you from progressing on your career path, and working with a career counselor can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses and determine the type of work environment that will bring you the most job satisfaction and success.

Research the Job Market

Once you know what you want to do, it’s important to determine where you want to do it. “Too many people jump right into the point of looking for actual job openings instead of identifying which organizations in the marketplace would be the best fit for what they have to offer and what they are looking for,” Tullier said. “The job search is really the same as targeting potential customers for a product. You don’t just put a product on the store shelf and hope it gets bought. You define who is likely to buy it.”

Begin by researching the trends in the industry: What types of jobs are in demand and which ones are being cut? Do you have the technical knowledge to compete, or do you need to take a few professional development classes to update your skill set?

Then, identify several companies that match your interest and expertise and learn everything possible about the position. Tap your network to track down one of the current employees and invite him or her to join you for a cup of coffee to get the inside scoop on the office environment. If you’re planning a career change, take advantage of job shadowing opportunities to see if your dream career would be satisfying on a day-to-day basis.

When you make it to the interview phase of the job hunt, use the opportunity to ask questions that will give you a glimpse of what your potential boss or schedule may be like, such as asking the interviewer to describe his or her management style or define the characteristics that make up a successful leader. “They’re usually going to tell you what’s important to them,” said Bonnie D. Monych, author of “Shift Happens! Straight Talk About Jobs, Work and Careers.”

Get up to Date

If you haven’t looked at your résumé in years, now’s the time to update it. Since most people should limit their résumé to no more than two pages, make room for recent accomplishments in your career and professional development by deleting any outdated and irrelevant information, such as college internships or scholarships. Then, add in the highlights of your career growth, such as earning advanced degrees or certifications, speaking at conferences, publishing papers, taking on challenging new job responsibilities, or contributing significantly to the company’s bottom line. Before you send it out, be sure to have several people review it for organization and mechanical accuracy — even one misspelling can cause some hiring professionals to eliminate an ­otherwise qualified applicant.

In addition, you need to create two elevator speeches that will give people a quick overview of your professional background and credentials and explain why you’re looking to make a move. Use a 30-second version when leaving a voicemail or making a quick introduction, and reserve the two-minute speech for face-to-face or telephone interviews. If you resist talking about yourself because it feels like bragging, ask a few friends and coworkers to help you identify your strengths and then try speaking about them in terms of how you use your skills to influence your coworkers or benefit your employer. “You have to believe what you say,” Monych said. “If you don’t, it will come through.”

When you do land the interview, make sure you dress for success, which may require updating your wardrobe if you’ve neglected it for years. Basic interview attire hasn’t changed much over time — subdued colors and a clean-cut pants suit remain a safe bet — and you should always keep an appropriate outfit on hand so that you don’t need to scramble to buy something when you get called in for an interview. “You want to look neat and professional, but you also want to look like you’re aware of what’s in style,” said Rachel Weingarten, author of “Career and Corporate Cool.” “If you drag out that jacket with the linebacker shoulder pads, someone is going to take one look at you and think, ‘You are so out of touch.’ Unconsciously or consciously, they might judge your skill set based on that.”

Network, Network, Network

While we’d all like to get by on our merits alone, the simple truth is that finding a new job often comes down to who you know. And although networking remains one of the most crucial components of the job-hunting process, it’s often the one area that job seekers fail to develop appropriately.

There are many wrong ways to network: First, there are the “friends” that you only hear from when they need a favor. Then there are the loud, obtrusive people who treat the monthly association breakfast like a speed dating session, attempting to collect as many business cards as possible. And of course, there are those who send an e-mail blast to their entire address book to announce that they want to find a new job and ask you to let them know if you hear of anything.

But while there’s nothing wrong with being direct when you need to tap the contacts in your network for a job lead, it’s important to put the relationship above the request. Instead of approaching 50 people at the luncheon and telling them that you’re looking for a job, focus on developing a rapport with two or three key contacts at the event. Or if you notice that a friend of a friend on a professional networking website, like LinkedIn.com, could introduce you to a key decision maker at one of your target companies, invest a little time in getting to know the person before you ask him or her to pass on your résumé.

“If you haven’t kept up, now is the time to ease back into the relationship,” Weingarten said. “Send a birthday card to somebody you haven’t been in touch with in a while, or if they just had their first baby, send them a Father’s Day card. Invite them to lunch, or give them an extra ticket to a play. Do little things that show them that you care about them as a person and not just what they can do for you.”

“Networking is very much give and take,” Weingarten continued. “The more that you put out there and do for others, the more people will want to do for you because you distinguish yourself as being the kind of person that people want on their team. It is a little bit like dating. You’re not waiting for somebody at the end of the night, but rather you are saying, ‘I am a person who can have a long-term business relationship with you, and I see you as a person as well.’ And that’s the best thing you can do.” PN

Photos Courtesy of photos.com