Update on Site Visits

Carla and Caroline enjoyed spending today in Harlan, Kentucky with Celia, Chris and Flora as part of their first GCDF fall site visits. Harlan GCDF colleagues administered and interpreted JobFit to Carla and Caroline in an excellent way. It was great to visit the Harlan office and see where they work.

LinkedIn Group for CDFs

Career Development Facilitators have recently started a group on LinkedIn.com. To join, simply go to your LinkedIn account and search for "Career Development Facilitators" under Groups. Start a discussion or share comments.

How Twitter Will Change Our Lives

Do you find yourself asking "What's the big deal about Twitter"? A recent Time CNN article gave some examples of how the Twitter phenomenon is changing our lives through news and opinions, searching, and advertising. First,Twitter offers real time chatter on any topic imaginable by offering live searches. Since we tend to follow people that we know, trust, or respect, many Twitter users are finding this source of information more reputable than Google searches. Could this be the future way we get our daily news? Second, Twitter is being used as a pointing or link sharing device by pointing to longer articles, posts, videos, websites etc. Twitter is a quick, inexpensive, easy way to market and spread the word. In the next few months, notice how more and more businesses are using Twitter.

Job Search Strategies

-Trying to find your supervisor from a job ten years ago where you made an outstanding contribution?
-Wish you could find a contact at XYZ company before you submit a resume and cover letter?
-Wanting to learn more about the career background of the person who will be interviewing you next week?

These are some of the reasons job seekers are choosing to utilize social networking job search tools like LinkedIn.com. Although our clients can’t count on simply filling out a profile and waiting for employers to find them, tools such as LinkedIn can help aid their job search in the above ways.

Demographics of Social Networking Tools

Congratulations to our latest GCDF class that graduated last weekend. Way to go! Your colleagues are great sources of information and wonderful contacts with whom you can network.

The past few months in training we have been talking about the rise of Twitter in the job search and wouldn't it be interesting to know more about the user demographics. See the link below for such a study.

http://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/2008-social-network-analysis-report/

Free O*NET Training

O*NET Webinars are live, one-hour training sessions that you can attend from any computer with an Internet connection! These Webinars offer you a fast, easy, and efficient way to learn more about O*NET, WIA, Human Resources, Education, and other workforce-related topics.

April 24 Training
Using O*NET to Connect the Unemployed to High Growth and In-Demand Occupations

http://www.onetacademy.com/

Interview Closing Statements

Clinching the Interview By Using A Closing Statement

Clients have recently experienced interview success by using the following strategy. When the interview is coming to a close, ask the interviewer the following “May I have permission to make a closing statement?” Rarely will you be denied. Next thank them for their time and consideration. Then, share three of your most relevant strengths for the position. Another strategy is when asked if you have any questions or as the interview is nearing the end, pose this question to the recruiter, “Based on our initial interview, do you perceive anything that would prevent me from performing well in your organization?” or “Now that you know a little more about my background, education and experience, is there anything that would prevent you from extending an offer or hiring me?” The beauty of this strategy is that it allows you to address any concerns the interviewer may have before you walk out the door.