JJC Recruitment Nov. 2022

RECRUITMENT GUIDE November 2022

Getting Hired After You Serve

Chart your next career

stop once your time in the military is over.

Veterans leave the service with a number of critical experiences and skill sets that should make getting hired a breeze.

Impressive careers in the military can provide a great leg up in your job search, but often times veterans don’t know where to start.

Searches of online job forums may reveal companies that are specifically looking for people with a military background. Consider discussing how your personal service experience can be better showcased in meetings with a career counselor or resume writer. In some cases, applicanttracking systems might work in your favor if you can incorporate key search term items that they’ll be familiar with.

There are also helpful programs to smooth the way. Take advantage of the Credentialing Opportunity On-Line Program, and government assistance from the Department of Veterans Affairs, among others.

PLAY IT COOL

The Credentialing Opportunities On-Line program, otherwise known as COOL, is designed to assist veterans with translating military skills into a

civilian job. Every branch of the military gives veterans a distinct skill set, and this program connects them with career opportunities through needed certifications and licenses. In some

cases, the program pays for needed courses and exams.

Affairs and other government entities have created specific programs aimed at curbing veteran unemployment, which has hovered between 3% to 4% in recent years. The VA’s Veteran Readiness and Employment program assists with training to qualify for certain job opportunities. Apply online through eBenefits.va.gov. America’s Service Locator can also connect U.S. military veterans to other services offered.

The Veteran Rapid Retraining Assistance Program assists with education and training for highdemand jobs, including associate degrees, certificate programs and noncollege degrees. (The Department of Labor determines what’s considered a high-demand job.) Disabled veterans can also receive help through state vocational rehabilitation agencies, which provide critical job-search assistance, along with information on telecommuting and selfemployment opportunities.

OTHER RESOURCES

GOVERNMENT HELP

The Department of Veterans

Reach out to area recruiters, professional networks and social media to learn more about highpaying jobs that are uniquely suited to those with — and in some cases require — military experience. Classified advertising may also specifically mention your specific qualifications as a veteran.

What They’re Looking For

the right mix of references in order to define yourself as a top candidate. The best referrals come from inside the company, if possible. These are trusted figures who are already known to hire managers, and they’re familiar with both expectations and culture. If you don’t have a connection within the company, ask for referrals from inside the same industry or a related field. They’ll be able to discuss your candidacy with more authority.

BETTER NETWORKS

Understanding an employer’s needs will help tailor your approach.

Shape your resume toward a new position, even if that requires researching job descriptions and recruiting strategies. Then widen your circle and seek out related referrals before applying.

Resumes, social media profiles and other professional networks are critical tools in advancing your career, but no one size fits all. You may want to highlight certain achievements and projects in order to attract a hiring manager’s attention. You also may need to reach out to a different group of contacts in order to get the bestqualified referral.

The more you shape your candidacy around the specifics of what they’re looking for, the more

potentially successful you may be.

STANDING OUT

Most of the global workforce are passive workers who aren’t actively looking for a new job. But that still leaves a whopping 30% who say they are in the market for a different position. Standing out in a crowd could come down to how you present your professional skill set. Online job boards and professional social networks are the main places where people turn when looking for openings, and they’ve never been more competitive. Sending the exact same cover letter and resume to a broad range of companies could diminish your chances.

If you’re considering new

opportunities or have found an unfortunate lack of interest in your applications, it’s time to expand your networking base. This should be part of a planned routine in which you’re strengthening important relationships on a daily basis. Attend conventions, community meet ups and other industry events – and actively interact with people in your field. Join related online groups and consistently interact. Expanding your peer group can expand your prospects. New contacts can also help you continue to shape your approach.

KEY REFERENCES

Even with a better-positioned resume, you will still likely need

Using your Phone in Job Search

The days of compulsively reading the small print in newspaper classified ad pages are long gone. Today’s job hunters know that career openings are available online and at least some degree of computer literacy is necessary to get hired.

One of the more useful tools in a job hunting tool box is a smart phone — not just for setting up interviews and contacting potential employers, but also because of the wealth of apps that can help with a job hunt.

There are several types of apps that can make your job hunt more efficient and effective — networking apps, organizing and scheduling apps and job search apps.

NETWORKING APPS

Networking is considered a crucial job hunting skill. According to LinkedIn — one of the best-known networking apps out there with more than 500

million members — 85% of all jobs are filled via networking.

Networking apps can help put you in touch with professionals in your field, get references, manage your image and connect with others both online and off. Some apps will help you meet up with other professionals at conferences or might even act like dating apps.

Some networking apps that can help you expand your professional circle and get ahead in your career include LinkedIn, Bizzabo, Mixer, Let’s Lunch, Shapr, Meetup, Fishbowl, Blind and Facebook Groups.

In 2022, LinkedIn hit an alltime high for daily active users according to Appotopia with a 157% increase over the past year.

ORGANIZING AND SCHEDULING APPS

According to research done by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job hunters on average land one interview for every six applications submitted. Some of the most successful job seekers who landed interviews submitted between 21 and 80 applications. That’s a lot of information to keep track of, especially if you are customizing your resume and doing your research so you can write unique and engaging cover letters.

This is where organizing and scheduling apps can come into play.

Common apps include Google Calendar, Any.do, Evernote, Google Tasks, MyLifeOrganized, Time Planner, Clickup, Sunsama, Trello, Basecamp, Todoist, Get Plan and 24me.

These are productivity apps and each comes with different services.

Some help with scheduling, todo lists, goal-setting, and project management. Some will interface with other programs such as your calendars and email.

JOB SEARCH APPS

These are some of the most basic apps needed if you are trying to land a new job. Employers who have job openings will often list them with a job search engine, most of which are available via phone apps.

The top seven most-used job apps as of June 2022, according to Apptopia, are (in order) Indeed, LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, Glassdoor, JobGet, Snagajob and Monster. Indeed accounts for 46.7% of the daily active users, LinkedIn for 36.9%, while ZipRecruiter is the fastest growing.

What do you need in a job search app? Some features to look for are being able to customize a profile, a way to filter jobs that are relevant to you, the ability to instantly apply for a job, in-app messaging with employers and a way to save and forward jobs.

Get SMART About your Job Hunt

WHAT ARE SMART GOALS?

The acronym sets forth the characteristics that make goals successful. The “A” and the “R” has varied a bit, but a generally accepted definition is: S-Specific M-Measurable A-Achievable R-Realistic/Relevant T-Time-bound

SETTING SMART JOB-HUNTING GOALS

If your objective is to find a new job, goal-setting is a great way to get there. However, not just any old goals will do the trick.

The well-known management consultant Peter Drucker taught that without planning, any action will fail. To help managers plan, he created what has become known as SMART goals. While he was developing management theory, it applies just as well to job hunting.

Creating SMART goals takes a little more thinking about what you want to achieve. Start by making a list of what you want to accomplish. Maybe you want to learn better cover-writing skills, update your professional skills, contact potential references or send out job applications.

Those can all form the foundation for your SMART goals, but they are only the first step.

Let’s take “update professional skills” as an example. That’s a great general goal, but not a SMART

goal.

Getting specific. Think about how to make your goal quantifiable. Narrow the goal to be more specific, to deal with only one thing at a time. For example: “Learn how to use the payroll functions of the QuickBooks accounting program.”

Measuring your goal. How will you know if you’ve accomplished your goal? What will success look like? Build the answers to those questions into your goals. For example: “Pass an online course in QuickBooks payroll functions by at least 85%.”

Making the goal achievable. This is the opportunity to take time to figure out the barriers to achieving your goals and how you can overcome them. The more realistic your goals are, the more likely you are to continue working toward them. For example: “Pass an online course in QuickBooks payroll functions by at least 85% by spending at 30 minutes twice a week taking the course.”

Making the goal relevant or realistic. One of the key questions you want to ask yourself is whether

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the goal will help you achieve your over-arching objective. In our example, the goal is a relevant one if you are pursuing a job that requires accounting skills. However, if you are going after careers that don’t typically involve accounting, this isn’t a skill that is going to be relevant or realistic, even if you might enjoy learning it. Likewise, if you want to be an auditor or accounts receivable clerk, for example, learning payroll might not be as relevant as learning a different module.

Setting a time schedule. Goals can be short- or long-term. Determine the time frame you need to accomplish the goal and build that into the goal itself. For example: “Pass an online course in QuickBooks payroll functions in the next two months by at least 85% by spending at least 30 minutes twice a week taking the course.”

Once you have done this with all your job-hunting goals, you have built a road map to successfully landing a new job.

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A Family Connection at Quincy Medical Group

Among the Quincy Medical Group (QMG) family, we have several employees who are also family outside of work. QMG Nurses Leah Ley and Maty Waterkotte are just one sibling pair at QMG. They work side-by-side at the new QMG Surgery Center, which opened in 2021. Below is a conversation with the siblings on their jour ney to becoming nurses and how they both wound up together at QMG.

Tell us about your roles at QMG and how long you’ve been here.

Leah: I’ve been a nurse at QMG for six years. I worked in medical oncology for five years and then moved to the Surgery Center as a pre/post nurse last April.

Maty: As a Quincy native, I’ve always received my healthcare at QMG. I moved back to Quincy from Arizona in 2019 and started in the nurse specialty float pool. I transitioned to the Ambulatory Care Center and now am working as a pre/post nurse at the QMG Surgery Center

What do you each love most about being a nurse?

Leah: The people are what I love most about nursing. Caring for them and interacting with them on a daily basis is what brings me so much joy and fulfillment in my career.

Maty: My favorite part about nursing is getting to love on people during their most personal and vulnerable times. I love getting to know each patient and making them feel as comfortable as they can while I take care of them.

What is it like working alongside your sister?

Leah: Patients always find great joy in seeing sisters when Maty is working pre-op and she tells them that her sister will be recovering them in PACU. It’s always a nice conversation piece with patients and ¬they always find it pretty cool that we work together

Maty: Working with my sister is such a joy. Leah is a wonderful and intelligent nurse with such a servant heart. My favorite part about working with her is getting a little piece of home at work every day.

What advice do you have for others considering a career in nursing?

Leah: Nursing is such a rewarding profession so you will almost always be able to end your work day with a sense of fulfillment, knowing that you may have changed someone’s life for the better in some way, shape, or for m.

Maty: Nursing is such a selfless job. I have to remind myself several times a day that I have no idea what people are dealing with when they leave my care; the only thing I can do for them is kind and treat them like I’d treat my momma. A career in nursing is a beautiful thing because there are so many different avenues. You will never stop lear ning.

The QMG Surgery Center opened in 2021, following the open ing of the QMG Cancer Institute. The Surgery Center occupies the second floor of the building, which is attached to the Quincy Town Center (formerly the Quincy Mall).

QMG Nurses and Sisters, Maty Water kotte (left) and Leah Ley (right).

Nailing a Remote Job Interview

Remote interviews are increasingly popular and require new skills to be successful.

Four authors at the Harvard Business Review did some serious research, watching and analyzing 513 recordings of interviews.

BEST PRACTICES FOR

REMOTE INTERVIEWING

Practice one : The first practice they suggest is setting up the interview space. Take the time to control what people are going to see. Start by having a

clear, uncluttered background. Don’t have a background that the interviewer will be more interested in than you. Even a simple virtual background, preferably of an office setting, is acceptable.

Set up your lighting. Light yourself from the front so that you don’t turn into a silhouette. If you have a desk lamp, use it to spotlight your face. Use a cool, rather than warm light.

Check your internet speed. Ask anyone else using WiFi to log out while you are interviewing. Plug in to a local area network cable if you can or if you don’t trust your

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GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

WiFi. Lag is a major pet peeve of interviewers. When you test your internet speed, make sure you have a good upload speed.

example, it’s important to have the right speaking pace — somewhere around 115 words per minute. There are plenty of applications that can help you record yourself speaking, transcribe it and then figure out the word count and pace. You want to project confidence and speaking too fast communicates nervousness instead.

Be aware of your body language. Keep your body open (don’t cross your arms) and use gestures while you speak.

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Practice two: Expect the unexpected. Once you know the platform that the interview will be conducted on, learn as much about it as you can. Download it and practice using it by asking others to do calls with you. Explore the features and know how to troubleshoot problems.

Prepare notes for the interview so you can answer those tough questions, but keep them simple and don’t refer to them too obviously — certainly don’t read from them. Let your notes be reminders of what you’ve already worked through.

Stay calm. If you start to get flustered, ask for a few moments to think about your answer and give yourself a moment to breathe and relax.

Practice three: Rehearse. There are all sorts of tools that can help you evaluate yourself. For

Eye contact is important, so look at the webcam and not at yourself. Be within two feet of the camera with your head and the top of your shoulders dominating the screen. The researchers recommend turning off video mirroring so you aren’t tempted to look at yourself.

Practice four: Engage and connect. While it can be difficult remotely, you want to converse naturally and form a connection with the interviewer. Don’t monologue. Ask questions. Talk about common interests. Share your personality.

THINGS TO AVOID

The researchers said those who did not get the jobs they were interviewing for overwhelmingly appeared distracted, did not engage their interviewer or seemed to be reading from a script.

Answering Tough Questions

Nobody really knows where they’ll be in five years. You’ll be asked anyway.

Interviews allow hiring managers to get a broader idea of who you are than any resume could ever provide. This question in particular allows them to understand your goals.

WHAT THEY’RE LOOKING FOR

The question of where you see yourself in five years is meant to measure both motivation and planning skills, and to gauge how you match with the prospective role. Companies want to know what value you’ll bring as a person, beyond your experience, and how determined you are to keep learning and achieving. Your answer also frames your place in the company, as a valuable team member or perhaps an emerging leader.

People who think too little — or too much — about moving into

management can find themselves on the outside looking in when a hiring decision is made. The five-year query goes directly to the heart of that decision. If you’re under-qualified or underexperienced and argue you should be the CEO in a handful of years, your answer has illustrated a certain professional immaturity. Veteran employees with a lengthy job history but no ambition to move up may be signaling a lack of engagement or work ethic.

HOW TO ANSWER

Start with a key goal or two, connecting these benchmarks with qualities you’re trying to convey to the hiring manager. Then transition to how you plan to get there and why it’s important to you. Conclude by stating how this all fits into your large career arc. Don’t make a joke, imply that you don’t intend to be with the company that long or make it clear that you’ve never really considered the question before. Maybe you’ve realized that this isn’t your dream job. Or maybe you just don’t know where you’d like to be in five years. It’s OK to say that, but it won’t create the clearest pathway to being hired.

Instead, try to tailor your job search so that it fits into the real answer. If that’s not immediately possible, consider how this position can help you build

needed and desired experience for later. Deeper understanding of this job, or this company, could eventually open doors to other employment opportunities that better fit your goals. Maybe it’s just a chance to grow personally, as a professional or as a manager. That can become a cornerstone of your long-term plan in the meantime.

BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF

Too often the question of where you’d like to be five years is considered from an external point of view. But the answer is about

more than looking good during a job interview with a prospective employer. Set realistic career expectations, and you’ll sell them on your candidacy — while also laying out an achievable set of benchmarks for yourself.

Where you see yourself in five years could, if approached the right way, become your professional destiny. For instance, if you’re a naturally ambitious person, some jobs may simply be too unfulfilling to pursue. If the position doesn’t align with or advance your larger professional goals, then you may need to keep looking.

Moving Up Into Management

If you’d like to climb the ladder into management, you’ll have to properly position yourself for the move.

Supervisors are expected, first and foremost, to lead — so you’ll have to define yourself as someone who’s ready to help others succeed.

START OFFERING SOLUTIONS

Let’s face it, every workplace environment comes with its own unique set of challenges. What sets good managers apart from others is the ability to problem solve rather than sitting back and complain. Those who get promoted are the ones who go further than simply identifying issues, instead offering solutions when a setback occurs. Whether it’s quality control, outside competition or communication breakdowns, the most effective managers are first and foremost looking for answers. The faster these problems can be overcome, the closer everyone will be to the

success everyone is striving for. Identify issues, preferably before they become chronic, develop solutions and discuss it with company leaders. You’ll soon join them.

BUILD WORK RELATIONSHIPS

Candidacies for management are also strengthened by the ability to communicate and work with others. If your proposed solution won’t work, consider brainstorming with others to improve the idea. Help out with projects, even if they are outside of your immediate job description. Be a sounding board and offer advice when appropriate on workplace topics. Building positive

professional relationships shows that you are collaborative and that you understand the broader spectrum of how the operation functions. They also show that you can be trusted. You’ll become a better leader, even if these relationships don’t immediately create a springboard with your current employer. They might open doors down the road.

DEVELOP SKILLS

Moving into a management role is more than supervising. You’ll also be expected to inhabit a larger leadership role, inspiring others and sharing a vision for future success. If you feel underprepared for this shift, or simply want to better position yourself for a promotion, consider pursuing professional development training in motivating others, problem solving or performance evaluation.

Understandably, these skills may not have been an element of your previous jobs with the company — but they’ll be key to succeeding on the next level. Your company may already have training programs. Otherwise, seek them out

online, in textbooks or through area universities or community colleges. And remember that this learning process is ongoing. Effective managers continue incorporating new ideas, strategies and leadership skills into their personal management style.

TALK ABOUT YOUR GOALS

Develop a timeline for your promotion. Sketching this out will help focus your work. At the same time, management may be looking for the next great leader on their staff, but they won’t necessarily understand your ambitions if you don’t voice them. Once you have a clear idea of what job you’re interested in and when, communicate those aspirations honestly and openly with the management team. That can happen through the course of a performance review, when asked about your career goals, or in conversations held in a more informal manner. But be forthright with your goals. If you’re a good candidate for future opening, they’ll remember these important discussions.

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