From: udcrusd@meaddata.com (Sylvia D'Cruz)
Subject: News Report: Job Hunting - Some tips ?
Organization: Mead Data Central, Dayton OH
Date: Wed, 8 Apr 1992 15:22:51 GMT
Distribution: soc.culture.indian

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                         Copyright 1992 Southam Inc.
                               The Ottawa Citizen

                    March 14, 1992, Saturday, FINAL EDITION

You can do a lot to help yourself 'luck' into a job

JANIS FORD

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    up to 80 per cent some experts suggest -- are never advertised. They get
filled by people who know someone or, by people who are in the right place at
the right time.

   A matter of luck, some maintain. Yet, the saying, "the harder I work, the
luckier I get," applies. If you work diligently to let your friends,
acquaintances and associates know that you're looking for work, if you
consistently approach managers in companies of interest to you, you're tapping
into this reservoir of jobs.

   Short of sky-writing or placing your own ad in the newspaper, you can advise
people that you're looking for work in three different ways. You can either
write them, or telephone, or drop in.

   To contact people you know, you'll probably use the telephone first. That way
you can explain what happened to your last job and outline what you're looking
for now. Don't assume, by the way, that these people will fully know your
background, abilities and skills. Follow up each telephone call with a thank-you
note with a resume attached.

   Approaching managers of companies that you'd like to work for by telephone is
a little more difficult. This is your classic cold call. Before picking up the
phone, do some planning.

   "Prepare a script," advises career planning specialist Elaine Cooper. You'll
never read it verbatim, but keep it in front of you to prompt you.

   In your script, introduce yourself by name and, if appropriate, by
occupation. If you've been referred, mention that early as well.

   "You can even say, 'this is a little awkward for me'," Cooper says. "But be
sure to state clearly what you want -- a job, a referral, information."

   Throughout the call, adopt professional telephone  ettiquette.  "Take nothing
for granted," Cooper advises. "Make sure the person you're calling has time
talk."

   If that person is curt, try not to take it personally, she adds. "Often that
has more to do with them, than with you."

   The object of cold calls like these is to get a face-to-face meeting, either
about a job or to gather information. If, for one reason or another, such a
meeting can't be arranged, suggest that you'll send a resume. In closing, ask
for a referral.

   If you're not comfortable using the telephone as your first line of attack,
introduce yourself by letter and then call.

   The targeted marketing letter, tailored to specific people in specific
organizations, is one approach. The first paragraph of letters like these vary
slightly, depending on things like whether or not you know the person you're
writing to and what information you have about this specific organization or
industry. The last paragraph will vary again, depending on the follow-up step
you promise.

   In between, introduce yourself by occupation and experience. Outline your
background and skills as they relate to the organization you're approaching.
Discuss some of your accomplishments, again as they relate to the position
you're seeking or the needs of the company you're writing to.

   Another written approach, sometimes called a broadcast letter, is used to do
mass mailings. Though it differs from a targeted marketing letter, there are
some similarities.

   In both cases, every letter is addressed personally. Research is necessary to
get the name of "the person who might have the problem to which your skills
might be the solution," is the way one career specialist put it recently. This
is generally a department or division manager, a vice-president in charge of...
, or the president or CEO.

   Also, both types of marketing letter are generally one page long and follow a
traditional business letter format.

   A broadcast letter is almost a form letter, although with the help of word
processing technology, it needn't look like one. It's hard-hitting and positive
and says "this is what I am. This is what I can do for you. These are my skills
and background. You may need someone like me."

   If you decide to use a direct- mail  approach like this, play the numbers. It
can take 50 to 100 such letters to generate a just a couple of replies. With
consistent follow up, you can increase your return.

   "It's just like sending out a brochure in a mass marketing," observes
industrial sociologist, Sy Eber. "Generally, that brochure will not bring in
business. A mass marketing broadcast letter will not being a job. You have to
follow up with a phone call and make the pitch."

   Though seldom used as a job-search technique, the drop-in approach sometimes
works. You develop a list of companies, get the name of the decision maker in
your field, and you drop in hoping to find that person has time to see you.

   It's a time-consuming way to look for work. Still, if your telephone skills
and writing skills aren't strong, it can be the most effective way to put the
word out about your job search.

   The drop-in method of job search works best in smaller centres where
businesses operate in a more informal way. It might also be the way to approach
people in industrial settings or on work sites.

   If you feel it would work in your particular situation, arm yourself with a
stack of resumes, plan in advance the basics of what it is you'd like to say
about yourself, and hit the road.

   Whatever job search method you decide to choose, in today's economic climate,
persistence is key. You have to keep digging, keep asking for referrals. The
jobs come up, we're told, at the third level of referral. This means, finding
the time and the patience to contact the manager whose name was given to you by
manager you were directed to by the first manager you saw.

   "It's not easy to do this," one creative job seeker said recently. "But, it's
interesting. Every contact I make leads to at least two more."

   TIP OF THE WEEK

   "You can sharpen your interview skills with practise," says psychologist and
career expert, Doug Smith says. "Go on as many different interviews as you can.

   Janis Foord is a career consultant and a freelance columnist who writes about
career and job search issues for several Canadian newspapers. She is the author
of, Get To Work, (McClelland and Stewart) and Surviving the Upheaval in Your
Workplace, (Kirkfoord Communications).

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Sylvia D. D'Cruz                                
Mead Data Central                               Systems & Product Technology
Bldg. VI, 9595 Springboro Pike                          udcrusd@meaddata.com
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