I recently had the pleasure of working with a very talented marketing professional who wanted to explore opportunities outside of her company. She was on the executive track within her company, but wanted to make sure that she was making the best decisions for her career.
After working with her on her resume and other career marketing tools, I was happy to learn that she received an "on-the-spot" job offer at a networking event with the first unveiling of her resume. (Wow!)
Now, you have to recognize that it was about being in the right place and being prepared with a strong marketing document (targeted, branded resume) that landed her the job offer. She is still in conversations with her present company for internal executive opportunities, but what a great position to be in - it's always wonderful to have options.
Her situation reminded me of another client who was able to successfully negotiate a 30% increase in her salary based on her revised resume that effectively documented her career achievements.
What do these stories have in common? Preparation + hard work + persistence + branded career tools = job offers, salary increases and/or access to new opportunities.
In both scenarios that I described, the women acknowledged that they were more motivated and confident about their skills, experience and qualifications after working with me to enhance their career documents. I have met too many professional women and men who want more for their careers, but are literally "sitting" on top-notch talents and unique capabilities that are undervalued and underestimated.
Have you been in your current position for a long time?
Are you allowing the recession to distort your true career value?
When was the last time that you advocated for a promotion, raise or new job opportunity?
You might be very surprised at your own results. Even if you are going to be conservative and hold off on any new career moves until the economy improves, here are a few things to keep in mind:
-- Don't wait for annual performance reviews to determine what your skills are worth. Make it a practice to peruse new job opportunities outside your company and compare your career background and experience against what other employers in your industry are actively seeking.
-- Take the time and extra step to quantify your efforts, impact and contributions. If you cut down the turnaround time for developing a report from seven days to two days, calculate the time savings. There is a big difference between saying "improved monthly report turnaround time" and "increased report turnaround processing time by 70%"
-- Get objective opinions and hire a career professional if necessary. When you are the primary person staring at your resume, so much tends to get overlooked and forgotten. Remove yourself temporarily from the resume development and career evaluation process and pay close attention to what others are saying about your career background.
-- Evaluate and compare your technology expertise. Are you only an expert at internal, customized company tools and software programs? Don't become so specialized at what your company needs that you are no value to other employers. Stay current on technology trends and take evening or online course to improve your proficiency.
-- Address any expertise gaps. You may discover that your skills are outdated and that you are in jeopardy of being inefficient in your industry or marketplace. Take advantage of every learning opportunity so that even if the dynamics of your existing position changes, you are still a valuable employee to your company and other employers.
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