unemployed

[flecom]

so I lost my job Wednesday... first time I have been unemployed and first time I have been fired... I feel really lost... don't know what to do etc...

I have been considering going back to school, not sure if thats really worth it... everyone I have talked to says that a degree does not really help you in the IT field...

/rant off

[dnar]

Hi Flecom,

Sorry to hear about that mate. I am sure something will come up. The important thing to do now is to work on your professional network. network network network. Oh, and brush up your CV.

Use the spare time to visit colleges, other companies your have worked with in past projects etc. Let people know your skills and that your available.

The only real down side of all this, is landing a job is easier when your employed, well that's what I find.

All the best.

Wayne.

[-=Jim=-]

everyone I have talked to says that a degree does not really help you in the IT field...

/rant off

I kind of have to agree with that. I have been in the IT field for ~30 years and when I was hiring I never cared about a degree or certifications. Experience is what gets you hired.

Getting the interview is the hard part today as every job posting gets hundreds of applicants. One approach I would have bet anything on that would get you excluded is to show up at the door of a company that just posted a position and plead for 5 minutes with the hiring manager. I have seen 2 people in the last year get hired with this approach.

Good luck
Jim

[Doc]

^^^ I agree with Jim ^^^

But I would add; rather than checking the vacancies pages, just go and visit some companies and ask to speak to the manager, ask if they have any vacancies, you might just be 'manna from heaven' to somebody.

It is quite often the case that smaller companies talk internally about hiring some much needed help for a long time before they get around to placing an ad, specially smaller firms without HR departments.

I have gotten three jobs in the past this way and indeed we are in that position at the moment. We currently have a hundred operatives, are really stretched and need more but who has time to spend two days interviewing when they have a diary full of meetings and work to do?

I wish you all the best pal.

[dnar]

^^^ And I agree with Doc ^^^

A few years back I was searching for a new job (while employed) and it was tiring. Nothing in the vacancies really jumped at me as step up.

In the end, I started to research my local industry and as a result I identified a number of companies that I would like to work with rather than look out for advertised vacancies. I created "tweaked" resumes for each and wrote a very clear one page cover letter for each. Both the resumes and cover letters took in to account what each company specialized in, and my skills/experience/strenghts were tailored to each accordingly. Tip: call the companies first, ask to speak to their recruitment officer or manager in the area your targeting, keep it very brief and ask their permission to submit your resume for future reference. This is the 1st foot in the door. If they come back to you then go hard!

While this method did not result in wining a new job, my cold canvassing did result in quite a few calls and several interviews! One company in particular had been undergoing a restructure and where about to hire a new R&D manager. unfortunately the $$$ did not meet my expectations.

Cold Canvassing works! Do your research and sell yourself!

[mixedgas]

Believe it or not, your state unemployment agency will probably have leads on IT slots. I'm staring at a list of IT stuff on the Ohio site, where there is nothing for me, otherwise. I may have installed networks and pulled cable, but I have zero qualifications on IT.

Right now, stop what you are doing, take a chunk of change and pay some one to do your resume up right.

Job fairs, social networking, temp to hire, monster.com etc. You HAVE to pound the pavement. Save money for pounding the pavement.

I've been out for almost six months. You have to start right now!.

Steve

[polishedball]

Ditto on the pay someone to do your resume right.

Also instead of just mailing them in if there are some you really like send them via fedex or overnight UPS. This usually gets you on there desk instead of just the mail pile.

Also some will play into if you can use them a reference, you mentioned fired, but if it was a let go, a good reference from last employer does help. Esp if you can have a supervisor give a personal reference to the next company since there isn't much the can share as an employer.

Hang in there,

John