What Are the Best Jobs for 2013?
Filed under: College Grads, Hiring, IT Staffing, Job Application, Job Candidates, Job Searching, Jobs, Recruiting, Staffing, Unemployment
Looking for a job? The U.S. News list of Best Jobs for 2013 comprises the top 100 careers in the fields of Business, Healthcare, Social Service, Technology, Construction, and Creative. The list provides an excellent starting point for college grads and others looking to enter a new career.
How the Lists Were Developed
Finding a good job depends on more than just making a good salary. The top jobs in each field were chosen based on a number of criteria including:
- Demand—Which jobs are most in demand in the current market? Which fields offer the greatest opportunity for new talent to find and hold a satisfactory position? How quickly are positions typically filled and how difficult is it to obtain a position?
- Salary—Which fields offer the greatest potential for good entry-level salaries as well as opportunities for growth?
- Personal Satisfaction—Which jobs provide a sense of personal fulfillment, investment, and personal growth? Which positions offer opportunities for personal development and statistically show high levels of employee satisfaction?
Which Jobs are the Winners for 2013?
Six of the top ten best jobs on the U.S. News list are in the medical field. The remaining four are IT positions. As medical practices seek to add patients, the demand for doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical professionals will remain high. And as society becomes increasingly digital, IT administrators, developers, and analysts will be needed to keep businesses competitive.
Although we can’t cover every job on the list here, let’s take a quick look at the top positions in each field.
- Business—Market Research Analyst, Financial Advisor, Accountant, Compliance Officer, Audit Clerk
- Healthcare—Dentist, Registered Nurse, Pharmacist, Physician, Physical Therapist
- Social Service—School Psychologist, Interpreter and Translator, Substance Abuse Counselor, Speech-Language Pathologist, Landscaper and Groundskeeper
- Technology—Computer Systems Analyst, Database Administrator, Software Developer, Web Developer, Computer Programmer
- Construction—Cost Estimator, Construction Manager, Plumber, Glazier, Cement Mason
- Creative—Public Relations Specialist, Architect, Art Director
In today’s highly competitive job market, choosing a satisfying, lucrative career that’s also in high demand can seem like a difficult prospect for new workers entering the job market. Knowing what companies need, what they’re willing to pay, and what jobs tend to offer a satisfying experience can help make the process a little less intimidating. As companies compete to attract the best talent in the field, workers can make themselves more desirable by pursuing the right training and marketing themselves effectively.
Making the Most of Seasonal Hires
Filed under: Hiring, Job Application, Job Interview Tips, Job Searching, Jobs, Seasonal Hiring, Staffing, Temp Staff
With Black Friday and Christmas just around the corner, many businesses need to add extra workers to the payroll in order to meet the demands of the season. Hundreds of thousands of seasonal workers will be joining the ranks of employees nationwide, and with so many new workers punching in each week, companies need to make sure they’re getting quality and not just quantity. Here’s how to make sure the workers you hire will be a good fit for your business.
- Look for Qualities and Skills That Will Benefit Your Business
Scan each resume and application for skills that will help the applicant perform better on the job. Prior experience, IT skills, telemarketing skills, and other industry-specific knowledge can reduce needed training time and can also make the difference between someone who is just clocking time and someone who is actually bringing value to your company. Determine your non-negotiables and stick with them.
- Treat Each New Hire as a Potential Full-Time Worker
Look for the same qualities in your seasonal workers that you would look for in a full-timer. Seasonal employees can be the best pool from which to select full-time workers since you get to see them in action before making the call.
- Check References
Even if you’re hiring college students or others who will only be around for a month or two, it’s still important to check references closely. Former employers can give you good insight into the professionalism and character of the applicant. If a potential hire can’t or won’t provide references, wave goodbye.
- Evaluate People Skills
The holidays bring out the worst in some people, especially on busy shopping days like Black Friday and the weeks before and after Christmas. Your employees should be able to deal with tired, cranky customers while still maintaining a positive attitude and a smile. That doesn’t mean they all have to be bubbly extroverts, but it does mean they should treat each customer with respect and a friendly demeanor.
- Keep an Eye on Attitude
Once you’ve hired your seasonal workers, watch how they approach the job they’ve been asked to do. Are they giving 100% or more? Do they have the company’s best interests in mind? Or are they just filling time? Seasonal employees that go above and beyond the call of duty may make good candidates for any open full-time positions you have available.
Whether you’re hiring five extra workers or five hundred, treat each interview as a chance to build your business. By choosing only the best seasonal workers, you’ll not only maintain a better working environment for everyone, but you’ll also have the opportunity to invest in new talent to join your team full-time.
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Five Ways to Land a Job After College
Filed under: College Grads, Hiring, Job Application, Job Candidates, Job Interview Tips, Job Searching, Jobs, Staffing
Finding a job after college is no longer a given. College grads struggle to find work in any field, much less the one they’ve chosen for their degree, with a lack of any actual work experience putting them at a disadvantage. The good news is that purposeful preparation can increase the chances of getting hired. Here are five ways to beat the odds.
1. Get a Four-Year Degree
Young workers with a four-year degree still have better chances of finding a job than those who forego a college education. However, getting a master’s degree doesn’t increase those odds much. Be ready to enter the workforce after graduation and don’t rely on grad school to catapult you into a full-time position.
2. Develop Desirable Skills
One of the greatest hindrances to landing a job is lack of experience. You can tackle this problem by seeking out opportunities to get hands-on experience during your undergrad years.
- Find an internship—Internships in your field of interest help you discover what the job requires, learn how to work in an office environment, and develop the skills you need to be successful.
- Get a part-time job in your field—Waiting tables at a restaurant may help you pay your school bill, but it’s not going to help you land your dream job. Find a part-time job with ties to the industry you hope to enter in order to gain valuable experience.
- Participate in practicum opportunities—Practicum, cooperative education, and industry mentoring opportunities all give students the chance to learn from someone who knows the field and to develop needed skills.
3. Manage Your Online Image
You can bet on it. Potential employers will Google you, and you want them to see a polished, professional image. Not that embarrassing picture you took at your cousin’s birthday bash. Keep personal information private and make sure that employers see a person they would be comfortable adding to their team.
4. Cast a Wide Net
Graduates may need to adjust their expectations by being willing to accept a job outside their initial field of study. Great opportunities often come from unexpected sources, and students can prepare for a broader range of job possibilities by taking classes outside their majors and applying for many different positions.
5. Network
Meeting people within the field gives students a foot in the door that could help them land a job after graduation. Join the University Business Association, create a polished LinkedIn profile, and make sure you present yourself professionally online.
College offers young workers an essential way to prepare for their future careers, but these days, students must do more than just get good grades. They must also begin creating a professional image, gathering work experience, and creating a total package that will make them attractive to employers.
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Why SEO Matters For Hiring
Filed under: Branding, Hiring, Marketing, Recruiting Tools, SEO, Social Media
If you run a successful website, then you’re already somewhat of a search engine optimization expert. If you’re not, you’ve hired someone who is. SEO seeks to please the Google gurus by developing content and structure designed to attract the attention of the search engine. Without it, your site will never be seen. But what about your job postings? Have you submitted your career page to the rigors of SEO? If not, perhaps you should.
Why SEO for Hiring?
If you could guarantee that 3 million or more potential job candidates would see your job listings, what would that mean for your hiring process? That’s what a high SEO ranking can do for you. Organic search represents a largely untapped resource for the hiring process, and with millions of searches performed for keywords like “jobs” and “careers,” it’s one you can’t afford to ignore.
What Google Looks For
Google’s algorithms remain a well-kept secret, but below we’ve listed four elements you must optimize if you want to boost your organic search rankings.
- Quality Content
Google’s primary concern is for customers, not businesses. They’re looking to provide the most relevant information possible on any given search. That means your page should be chock full of quality, helpful information. To determine quality, Google looks not just at the primary search keyword, but also at closely related keywords and user behavior on the page.
- Keywords
Keywords should be as specific as possible to describe the content of your page. A keyword like “jobs” may receive a lot of hits, but it will also result in a high bounce rate as most of the traffic probably won’t be looking for the specific jobs you’re offering (unless you’re a job search website). You can use your keywords to target traffic based on location, industry, and whatever niche your company is seeking to fill.
- Links
So much has been written about link-building that I won’t go into detail here. Back-links are essential to your SEO efforts, so take the time to develop and implement a strong link-building strategy.
- Social Media
Google recently updated their algorithms to include social media references as part of their ranking process. That means all those “likes” and “shares” can impact where your site shows up in a Google search, especially when quality raters promote your site. Real-time social sharing and the addition of the +1 button to the search results also mean that social media just got a lot more important for your business.
It’s true that your best contacts for potential employees may not come from a Google search. But just about everyone uses Google (or another search engine) to find information, including information about potential employers. That means that up-and-coming talent in the field as well as contacts from your networking efforts will be Googling you to find out just who you are as a company. Implementing a sound SEO strategy can help solidify you as a leader in the field, simply by making sure your website is one of the first people see when they want to find out more.
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Is Temporary Staffing Right for You?
Filed under: Consulting, Hiring, IT Staffing, Job Candidates, Job Searching, Recruiting, Recruiting Update, Staffing, Temp Staff
Thirty-six percent of businesses will add a temporary worker to their team this year. It’s a trend that has been steadily growing as companies feel the squeeze of rising costs and a struggling economy. Although some companies remain squeamish about hiring potentially unreliable temps, many temporary workers actually prove to be better workers than their permanent counterparts. Not convinced? Consider these reasons a temp may be good for your business.
Benefits of Temporary Staffing
As jobs become more scarce, increasingly qualified workers are packaging themselves as “free agents,” using temporary work as a springboard to permanent positions. For businesses, the new temporary worker dynamic offers some significant pluses:
- Accommodates flexible working hours and seasonal fluctuations. Temporary workers can help fill in the gaps in productivity as more employees take advantage of flex hours. They can also help handle increased workload during the holidays, tax season, and other times when business picks up temporarily.
- Gives employers an opportunity to evaluate workers before hiring. With no long term commitment, temporary positions allow employers to closely evaluate a worker’s abilities and performance on the job with the option to bring them on board permanently if they like what they see.
- Lower hiring costs. For short term, specialized work assignments, it can be cheaper to hire a temporary worker rather than a permanent employee with benefits. If you use a staffing agency, you’ll be saved the cost of recruiting, screening, payroll expenses, and in some cases, training.
Bringing Temporary Workers On Board
Creating a positive relationship with temporary workers can help establish brand loyalty, build rapport with workers you may want to hire permanently later on, and create brand ambassadors among those who don’t remain as a permanent part of the team. Include these elements in your onboarding strategy for new workers:
- Realistic expectations—Don’t hold out promise for permanent job potential if you can’t or don’t intend to follow through.
- Adequate training—Make sure temps know exactly what you want and that they’ve been adequately trained to perform as expected.
- Positive HR experiences—Accurate time records, paperwork, payroll expectations and legal processes all contribute to an overall positive experience with your company that will pay off down the road.
- Integration into the team—Whether you plan to hire permanently later on or not, every temp work should feel like a valuable team member in order to perform at his full potential.
- Exit surveys—You can gain valuable insight about your work environment by interviewing or surveying temporary workers as they leave your company.
Don’t be shy about hiring temporary workers. As increasingly qualified workers are joining the ranks of the unemployed, you may find some star performers among the seasonal employees you bring on board.
What Do Your Employees Think About You?
Filed under: Branding, Employee Retention, Job Searching, Recruiting
You’ve focused plenty of attention on building a strong brand that resonates with consumers. But how about that new talent you’re trying to attract? If you want employees that are passionate about working for your company, then you’ll need to focus on developing an employer branding strategy that links to your corporate or product brand image.
- Get your HR and Marketing teams on the same page.
Your HR and marketing departments need to put their heads together in order to develop a unified branding strategy. The goal of an employer branding strategy is to close the gap between what your current and potential employees think of you as a corporate entity and how they view you as an employer.
- Make sure the transition between consumer and employer branding is seamless.
Companies like Apple and Google work hard to make sure employees see the same company image that customers do. For instance, Apple incorporates product images in their candidate recruitment process while at the same time encouraging the prospect to imagine himself as part of the team. And Google, of course, is notorious for its playful and non-traditional work atmosphere, just as they are for the Easter Eggs they include in their website (try typing “do a barrel roll” into the search box).
- Include messaging to current employees.
When you begin hitting employer branding hard, it can be easy to focus all your efforts on potential employees while neglecting your current ones. Make sure current employees are on board in order to create a unified atmosphere in the office.
- Recruit “brand ambassadors” among current staff.
One way you can keep the message fresh is to recruit current employees to help communicate the brand message. The goal is to promote brand engagement first, followed by brand advocacy as employees become more loyal to your company.
- Assess candidate touch points.
Define each of the places a potential employee might encounter your brand: social media, job postings, career portals, recruitment videos, etc. Each of these touch points should include a strong employer branding message, helping prospective talent engage with your company’s value proposition.
- Help the candidate visualize himself as part of your team.
This is another step in the employer branding process that Apple has mastered. As you navigate through the Apple career portal, you’ll be encouraged to “Imagine what you could do here” and to “Amaze yourself. Amaze the world.”
The most effective employer branding strategies appear effortless and seamless—which of course requires detailed planning and flawless execution. But it’s worth the investment as your employees become brand advocates, helping you spread your message to the world.
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