Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 1 Bob Gerberg The New Science of Job Hunting Course Part 1 How To Get The Right Interviews

subjects each person can customize to their own situation).

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 3 How to Get The Right Interviews 1 The new science of job hunting.............................. 6 2 The 10 major mistakes millions make .................. 12 3 How the two job markets work ............................... 15 4 Raising your marketability...................................... 20 5 The best ways to answer ads.................................... 25 6 Using leads to find private openings........................ 30 7 Making the most of recruiters...................................32 8 Easier networking ....................................................35 9 How to change industries.........................................37 10 How to use direct mail..............................................40 11 Phone power can get interviews...............................52 12 How to get a job created...........................................61 13 Some top Internet job sites...................................... 70 14 Use a good game plan..............................................73 15 Searching long distance........................................... 84 16 Exploring international jobs.....................................88 17 Don’t be misled by job hunting myths.......................96 18 How to surpass superstars......................................102 19 Your situation, privacy & destiny............................106

4 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 Preface Our first goal is to bring you up to date on our latest concepts for getting interviews. Part 1 of our course is designed to make it very easy to go through our 60 audios averaging 4 minutes each. They cover our most popular subjects, but you can skip any that don’t fit your situation. Next, you will be supplied with our 112 page books on Sample New Style Resumes and Letters. Both of these are fast-moving and easy to review. This latter book covers samples for the 10 situations where letters may be needed in your search. Our 112 page book on Getting The Right Interviews, which comes with our Executive Course, provides highlights from all of our audios along with added content for expanding your knowledge on this subject. Three other broad subject areas are made available for users of our Executive Course, A 112 page page book on interviewing covers our Ideas on Competing In Interviews. Our separate short book details with Solutions for Common Issues is also available for users of,our Executive Course. Along with this, thirty two ... 7 to 10 Page Reports cover special interest subjects that are intended to help managers and executives in unique situations. They too, are available with our Executive Course. With Best Wishes— Bob Gerberg

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 5 The New Science of Job Hunting, Copyright © 2022 by JHSS Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this may be used or reproduced. Library of Congress Control Number: 2021953210 ISBN 978-1-7923-8380-2 Published by Career Pace Inc. 4950 So. Yosemite, F2-358, CO 80111. Email publisher@careerpace.com or visit www.careerpace.com.

. Easy to use, it is simple, straightforward —and it works. Our new science is fast-moving and easy to use The content of our New Science is all about new ideas, new ways to get interviews, new style resumes, new power letters, new concepts for interviewing and new solutions for issues. From an overall perspective, you’ll have a brand new way to look for a job. Now, if you are about to look for a job, you’ll quickly discover that traditional job hunting no longer works very well. This system works because you have a game plan, all the latest and proven ideas, and can avoid trial and error, and never wonder about what to do next. With our approach, people have moved up in their field or out to another field, and often for a lot more in-

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 7 come. It is designed to be easy at all incomes. Older methods fail at too high a rate, and that’s why you must adapt to searching in a new way. If you don’t, you can be at risk of a lot of stress and worry. Of course, today, the Internet is where most people look for jobs. However, it will still only introduce you to a minor share of all openings. What’s more, database driven recruiting is growing daily. And,while networking is vital, it takes a long time. Many other changes complicate job hunting, including the use of video interviews, new personality tests and social media background checks. As a result, the market for professionals and executives has lagged, creating pressure, and causing many people to drop out of the market. Old style job hunting takes too long, is not efficient—and is too expensive. Most people just use historical resumes, answer ads, and network a little. And, that’s their campaign. When things don’t work out, they blame the market. And, without new methods, they are hard pressed to succeed. 30 million resumes are now always in circulation in the U.S. And, one site claims over 220 million resumes on file, which they sell to recruiters and employers. But, only a small percent of job seekers are aware of the immense level of competition.

need biographies. They supply the strongest story of benefits you can bring. Our

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 9 staff has done biographies for CEOs, university leaders, senior HR staff and many others. We suggest looking at some of the biographies we’ve done for others in our book on new stye resumes. You will instantly see how easy they can make it to create you own biography. 5—You can adapt our sample letters for 10 situations you may encounter. Our many samples give you powerful letters for using in 10 situations. Great letters can excite employers about you, and often work better than resumes. With our samples, it’s easy to adapt words, phrases and formats and save you a lot of time. Dozens of letter samples are included to assist you. 6—If you are unemployed, you’ll know what to do. Losing a job is an emotionally upsetting experience. And, over 90% of those who approach the experience rely on old methods and struggle with them. So, review our separate comments on this subject and follow our advice. 7—You can overcome age concerns. Age discrimination is real. But, doing a smart and aggressive campaign can often be a quick cure. If you had something of value to auction, would you prefer 10 bidders or just 1 or 2? Part of job hunting success rests with job hunting being a numbers game. The idea here is to adapt our concepts that fit your situation the best.

10 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 8— You can change industries easier. Selling your skills is critical to making it easier to change industries—and to join an industry where pay increases and promotions are more possible. You’ll also want to review our discussion of 200 fast growing industries for the future. 9—You can do direct mail to employers to generate activity. Here are some things we’ll review. l The role of stand alone letters. l Getting mailings past gatekeepers. l The best timing for sending materials. l The sizes of mailings, and follow=ups. l Contacting multiple people in the same firm. l Doing direct mail to board members. 10—You can use new ways for answering ads. We give you 10 easy ways to potentially increase your response when answering ads. 11—You can do faster networking. Traditional networking is slow, but with our system you can get interviews—even with few connections.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 11 12—You can get leads easier. Every day, events cause employers to look for new people. So, finding leads should bea major factor in your search. 13—You can learn to be skilled on the phone. Many people using cell phones, have become powerful at using the phone for business. 14—You can learn how to create your own job. More people than ever now do this. 15—You can be better in interviews... and know how to build greater appeal. l Build maximum personal chemistry. l Expand your charisma and likability. l Know how to adjust your personality to fit the job. l Master video interviews and body language. l Be able to read the interviewer’s personality. .

12 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 2 The 10 Major Mistakes Millions of People Make. We feel it is wise to look at the major mistakes others make, and which can make job hunting a long journey. Here are the mistakes you must be sure to avoid. 1—Not raising your marketability. You have to know your marketable assets, and then decide which ones to market. There are many ways to raise your marketability, and when you do—you also raise your income potential. 2—Failure to minimize liabilities. We mean things like not having a degree or being unemployed, having age concerns, or changing jobs too often. All liabilities can be partially neutralized with the right marketing strategies. 3—Not uncovering private openings. These openings never appear on the Internet. But, they are by far the largest part of the market, and finding them can open up a new world of possibilities for you. 4—Using old style traditional resumes. Today, using new style resumes is essential. They are more distinctive and impressive than traditional resumes and they get noticed. This last point is very criti-

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 13 cal as the employer’s interest must be captured in 30 seconds. To help do this, we’ve also learned that using several resumes for different situations can be vital. 5—Not using strong letters. Few people make use of persuasive letters. However, good letters create interest, and get people to talk to you. They are key when contacting officers or business owners, and can often create more interviews than resumes. 6—Job hunting by trial and error. Most people job hunt by trial and error. Would Apple introduce a new product without a game plan? 7—Not doing time-saving networking. While the entire concept of networking is now easier than it used to be—you still need to do it right. 8—Running a small job campaign. We’d all like to find good jobs with just a little effort. But, that rarely can be the case. Total market exposure does count, and one major way to get that done is by going directly to the right employers, and using the right combination of written materials. 9—Assuming interviewing will be easy. Job hunting is a unique competition where you never see your competitors. However, you will always be

14 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 competing with talented people, but only one comes out the winner. Interviewing today is about much more than simply answering questions We address many factors in our discussions on Interviewing. Knowing how to make impressive presentations is one of the keys. 10—Leaving money on the table. Less than 10% of all job seekers are ready for negotiations. But once an offer is made,with a little knowledge you can often negotiate a better financial package. Estimates are that at least 20,000 firms are now using signing bonuses in recruiting. This includes Merrill Lynch, the U.S. Government, Disney and many others. However, this may not be revealed unless you approach this in the right way. The majority of people who go through our course are able to successfully negotiate an increase in an intial offer they receive.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 15 3 How The Two Job Markets Work. In most cases an event occurs that creates a job opening. For example, when people are terminated, resign or retire...or when firms get more capital or start new businesses, Or, when contracts are awarded, or when record sales and profits occur, jobs are also created when new products are introduced or when firms relocate. 1—How jobs get filled. Chances are, you might think that most jobs get filled by people answering ads. However, the reality is the vast majority get filled privately by employers—who never advertise their openings. That’s mainly because that is a far less expensive way to recruit. Typically, employers find people internally—who are already with the company, or from their recruiting database. And some hire when someone sends them a resume or gets referrals from their existing staff, and some hire from a resume they receive. Other get hired because someone networks the company or a person in the firm.

. The private market is where you’ll find 95% of all available jobs. 6—Where to find public openings. l 600 papers exist, but carry few professional jobs. l 600 trade journals—some have ads for good jobs. l 300,000 employer websites have their own postings. l Job sites are where most people look for jobs. Staffing industry sources say thousands of sites fall into these areas: premier & management jobs, HR, finance & accounting, sales & marketing, engineering, diversity, military, government jobs— and miscellaneous. Among the more popular sites are Career Builder, Dice, Facebook Job Search. Glassdoor, Google for Jobs, Indeed, Jobs.com, LinkedIn, Monster, Robert Half, Simply Hired and Zip Recruiter.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 17 7—How to find private openings. 8—By networking l Friends, relatives and business acquaintances. l Customers, vendors, suppliers & distributors. l Influential alumni and fraternal contacts. l Religious acquaintances and university officers. l Newsletter editors and publishers. l Former neighbors and club members. l Former bosses, executives in your field l Key employer prospects. l University officers, investment bankers. l Directors / board members / trustees. l People met at university / college functions. l Contacts through civic & social activities. l Those providing services: Dr’s, CPAs and others. l Elected officials at local or state levels. 9—By sending direct mail to gain referrals. l To recruiters. l To premium national recruiters—the top 50 or 100. l To venture capitalists. l To private equity firms & board members. 10—By responding to events. New events can also be key indicators of emerging jobs. For example, news of promotions and executives doing articles,news of capital raised...new contracts and new products.

18 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 And, also news of company relocations, record sales, profits or growth and news of acquisitions and mergers. All of these news announcements can be signals that private openings are likely to exist now, or in the short term future. 11—Know the market by individual income. Our recent statistics are from two years ago, and incomes usually go up each year in normal economies. This following statistics excludes controlling shareholders and business owners. If they were included, percentages in the first three levels on the next page, would be considerably higher. l 1% earn $250,000 or more. l 2% earn between $200,000 and $250,000. l 5% earn from $100,000 to $150,000. l 9% earn $76,000 to $100,000. l 24% earn $51,000 to $75,000. l and 59% earn up to $50,000. 12—Reaching for jobs you are not qualified for Inevitably, when you search for jobs, this question needs to be addressed. And, we’ve found that shooting for jobs that are really above your grade— are worth pursuing in about 20% of the situations you’ll encounter. This is not to recommend that you need to exaggerate your credentials or not tell the truth about your experi-

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 19 ence. Decision makers sitting across the desk from you are going to be savvy professionals who will quickly recognize your experience as being on the light side. Rather, the strategy here is to immediately bring up the reality of this fact with the decision maker, but then be ready to discuss your analysis of the skills needed for the job, your ability to learn quickly and why your skills are a perfect fit. 13—Market data can be misleading. l Data on the number of new jobs created each month are widely publicized. These figures are gathered by a survey of businesses and projected for the entire U.S. They are often largely revised in future months. l The closely watched unemployment rate for the U.S. is gathered from a large survey of 60,000 homes (or about 100,000 individuals) but fails to count people who have dropped out of job hunting, because they could not get meaningful interviews. This causes the unemployment rate to appear lower than it really is. l In a recession, it is normal for some industries to be affected, but others still produce record sales and profits. This happened during COVID, as food retailers, large technology firms and many others had record sales. And profit levels also varied quite widely on a regional basis.

20 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 4 Raising Your Marketability. Many people don’t know how to increase their marketability. However, there is a lot you can do. 1—Know your marketable assets. Each year millions of job seekers fail to sell their key assets. The idea is to uncover things you might use in your written materials and interviews. Essentially, you need to capture experiences, achievements, skills, and strengths, and factors involving travel, languages, awards, education, part-time jobs, volunteer work, memberships, hobbies, outside interests and other factors than can increase your appeal. 2—Use phrases to recall skills. Knowing your skills is a basic part of job hunting. And using the right phrases to put them across is overlooked by millions of people. The tendency is to only sell career history. But, when you sell skills—you can build appeal far beyond what your formal credentials imply. To do this right, we feel you should have a communication plan. You can best appreciate this by comparing yourself to a political candidate seeking office. Politicians anticipate questions on issues and create position statements to guide their answers.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 21 Just like a politician, this can help you be perceived as more informed. To do this, think through your assets, your liabilities and your goals. Then, decide what positive factors to communicate about yourself. You can do this by choosing core phrases that sell your skills and other qualities that make you special. During your search, you’ll repeat these over and over. They’ll be part of ‘your story,’ that you tell employers, recruiters, references, and those you network. Your formal tickets alone (degrees, titles you’ve held, etc.), will not always motivate an employer to hire you.This is why you must sell skills, personal qualities and experience factors. 3—Skills, personal qualities and experience factors are all key assets to sell. In another part of our course are some phrases in demand. You should pinpoint 10 to 15 that will be important. Check what might apply to you, and the job you seek. 4—Managing concerns can raise marketability. Make a list of problems that may restrict you. Age is a common liability, and age discrimination is a reality. The Age Discrimination Act does prohibit discrimination against those 40 or older. But, this is often meaningless, since 25% of those in full-time jobs are now 55 or older. Doing an aggressive campaign is the single best way to deal with this concern.

22 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 5—Your knowledge may be marketable. Not all hiring decisions are based on experience. Often, your knowledge can be the deciding factor. That knowledge can come from part time activities, hobbies, interests, travel, reading and almost any other area you can think of. It could be knowledge of a product, a process, a machine, a market or even an industry. 6—Your personality may be marketable. Millions of employment decisions have been based on personality. Naturally, the personality you project will be heavily influenced by the passion and the enthusiasm you put across. 7—Selling yourself as a solution to a problem may raise your marketability. This is another reason employers might hire you. If you can make an employer aware of a problem you can help solve, or an opportunity that you can help exploit, you can actually create a job for yourself. Now, if the employer is already aware of the need or opportunity, all you have to do is let him know that you’re the person to help with it. 8—Your materials can increase marketability. The quality of your resumes, letters and your

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 23 presentation can play a role in expanding your marketability. The dozens of samples we put at your fingertips in our course, can make a big difference. 9—Having options can expand marketability. Can you create an exciting new view of you? People get hired for many reasons. We all have valued skills, and any one might appeal to a new employer. There are at least three questions that employers will always have on their mind. What can you do for me? Do you have the skills to contribute right away? And, do you fit in here? Be ready to answer them. 10—Investing in yourself can lift marketability. Doing a professional search requires a modest investment, even when things may be difficult financially. Years ago, Austin Kiplinger, publisher of The Kiplinger Magazine, once wrote some thoughts about investing in your career. They still hold true today. “Owning antiques, coins, gold, silver or jewelry can be protection against inflation, but these tangible assets

24 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 may not be saleable if you need cash. Ownership of land can be lucrative. A home used to be a good investment but can be questionable. In the long run, your best investment is yourself— your own talent and training. Look on your career as your main investment. Your value is your best hedge against inflation. Invest in yourself. Keep up to date. Retrain yourself if necessary, and keep your earning capacity high. You are your own best investment.”

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 25 5 The Best Ways to Answer Ads. If you have never placed advertisements for candidates, I’d like to relate some experiences. I recall an attractive ad that a recruiter friend ran. The response was astounding. Over 2,600 people had applied. And the ad itself was fairly specific. More recently, I have seen ads for attractive senior positions, and they’ve drawn from 300 to 600 candidates from Indeed, Simply Hired, LinkedIn and Zip Recruiter. Some applicants were in line with the stated requirements, while many could not be considered as even being “in the ballpark.” So, what were the chances of people getting an invitation for a telephone interview? The answer is slim to none. The other thing I noticed was the quality of cover letters attached to their resumes. They seemed to reflect a machine gun approach. Perhaps a dozen showed some intelligent thought. We have also always been surprised that even when an employer is identified in an advertisement, only a small percentage call up the employer directly—expressing enthusiasm and interest. Even when I’ve run advertisements for jobs and included a phone number, virtually no one ever called.

26 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 One of the most interesting clients I have had started out by telling me he had responded to 742 advertisements and not gotten a single positive response. Extremely bright, like many others, he never thought about the situation from a problem-solving perspective. What we helped him do was to refresh everything he had been doing, different resumes, different letters, new formats and sizes and more. We also re-directed his search for advertisements, to some other sites he had not been using. And we did a one-page outline of everything else he needed to do. It included generating three phone call interviews from each of eight channels into the market. Needless to say, he turned around his situation, from desperate to reasonable results. In the rest of our discussion, we’ll talk about some pointers that can have potential for increasing your response. We have a simple philosophy for answering ads. While advertised openings attract the most competition, the employer is usually committed to taking action, and someone will be hired for most positions. So, I recommend you gain exposure to as many suitable advertised openings as you can—and, if possible,

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 27 that you tailor your message in response to the requirements of each ad. On a national basis, the sheer number of professional openings is impressive. However, on a local basis, you would likely overestimate the importance of ads. For example, as discussed, the advertised portion of the job market for people seeking $100,000 and above is quite low. The reason is the positions filled privately. Where to find advertised openings— and some actions you may wish to take. They appear on all the major job sites and many specialty sites. As previously stated, there are hundreds with some relevance. Leaders are reviewed later. You can also find some lower level advertised jobs in newspapers and some mid-level positions in 600 trade magazines. The largest source for advertised jobs appears on 300,000 employer websites. 1—Consider delaying your initial response...and avoiding the initial crush of applicants. When answering ads, the early bird rarely gets the worm. Filling a job can take 30 to 60 days, and often more at higher income.

28 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 2—Consider sending letters without a resume. Employers who sort resumes often start by screening out non-qualifiers. So, consider using stand-alone letters. They get read more than most resumes. 3—Have you ever sent a handwritten note over your resume, in answer to an ad? Employers favor those who really want to be with them... and who make an extra effort. 4—Are you aware of what the downgrading process is? A firm advertising a VP position may be willing to consider a lower level person who could later move up. That’s downgrading. 5—The upgrading process can also work. For example, a firm advertising for a Plant Manager... might hire a VP of Operations. That’s upgrading. 6—Consider using openings in one field to find them in others. In addition to downgrading and upgrading, certain openings can be used as signals of private jobs in other areas. 7—Do you ever follow up on ads that sound like they were written for you? If an ad really seems perfect for you... follow up. Others won’t. In fact, not one in a

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 29 hundred ever follows up. Instead, they think that making a single response is the way to go. Obviously, there are many situations where you can use a resume with a cover letter. But, if that has not been working, convert to using stand-alone letters. For added personalization, use a handwritten note. Employers give an edge to those who want to be with them. 8—Be less restrictive when selecting ads. Employers rarelyfind the perfect candidate. Let the employer know why you selected an ad, and why you can do the job, and sell your skills. 9—Use several different sites for selecting openings... and you may have less competition. 10—Get creative when results are poor. If you can identify an employer, get added information and use it in your response. 11—For example, you might try reviewing product literature, annual reports, or newspaper articles. Showing industry interest and knowledge works. 12—Or, try contacting a company executive before responding, if you can tell who it is. It can’t cause you to do worse, and if you can strike up a relationship, you can set yourself up with a competitive advantage.

30 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 6 Using Leads To Find Private Openings. Every day, events occur that lead executives to look for new people. These events are often reported in publications and online. Many are essentially signals of emerging jobs. For firms undergoing change, chances are they will need to attract good people to handle problems or capitalize on opportunities. 1—Thinking about all possible changes. When you read of a firm giving out signals that they may be hiring, don’t stop at the obvious implications. Think about changes that may occur in the firms across many functions. 2—An example of a lead. You read that a firm is starting a division to sell a new cell phone. The obvious implication is this company could need people in marketing and sales. If you’re a designer, you might see a need for new product staff. 3—Firms with problems can also be good leads. Usually managers are not doing well, or the firm needs new capabilities. Reorganizations spell opportunities: l For marketing staff who can find new markets. l For financial staff who can cut costs. l For GMs who can handle plant closings.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 31 4—Using short notes can work. Send short notes attached to your resume! l Congratulations on becoming VP Sales! I can help. l I saw the article in the Dallas News. I’ve handled turnarounds that are very similar to your own. l My experience in your field can help you. May we have a phone conversation? l Your challenges are ideally matched to my skills, and I have accomplishments in our industry. 5—Ways people got jobs through leads. l A product manager read that a European firm had bought a local firm. He soon was VP-Marketing. l An assistant hospital administrator, with 15 years in her field, read about a new medical firm. Soon she took a job at 20% higher income. l A former actor ran a campaign that produced a half dozen offers for positions with major PR firms.

searches and are retained at 33% of compensation. Executive search firms are “retained recruiters.” Other contingency firms, recruit from $60K to $150K, but work on commission. 2—Some still call them employment agencies, and many are owned by staffing firms. Another group are the “temporary or contract recruiters.” They earn fees when employers hire professionals on an interim basis, and earn more if they become permanent. 3—Regional recruiters play an increasing role in today’s market. Many specialize by industry or career fields. Recruiters are articulate professionals who often have a broad knowledge of business, and are excellent marketing executives. It will pay you to develop relationships with them throughout your career. 4—Independent firms that specialize regionally often know what’s going on in their local markets. Recruiters prefer employed achievers, who make strong first impressions. Being visible in your industry can be key, especially in a hot field. However, to get activity from recruiters, you’ll need superior materials.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 33 5—When you send them a resume, most of the time it will simply be scanned into their files. Most will not be working on an assignment that might require you, but over time, they may have new clients that will. 6—When contacting recruiters, send a one-page resume. You have 30 seconds to grab their attention, so a clear goal and a good summary are key. Many larger firms will want you to complete their tracking forms. 7—People with recognizable “tickets” do best (wellknown schools, blue chip affiliations, etc.). Mailings will be effective in popular fields (e.g., sales, accounting, finance, IT or IS and others where there is a demand). 8—Most people will want to be registered on LinkedIn, which recruiters use to find candidates. Contacting recruiters will be less effective in low-demand specialties or for those changing careers. As you go up the pyramid, there are far fewer jobs, so response will be low. 9—Those who are at high incomes, and those in limited demand occupations, should expect very little here. Compensating with greater numbers of recruiter contacts is a must. 10—Responses from recruiters can come in over a long period. A second mailing to the same list can

34 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 bring more response. When responses come in, be ready with your 30 or 60-second commercial on your best assets, and be upbeat about your career. 11—Recruiter listings depend on the economy. COVID has effected many firms. However, the process has been expedited by more reliance on virtual meetings and video interviews. Keep in mind that recruiters have daily conversations with many people, and their focus is strictly on filling active assignments. 12—Put a lot of resumes out and build your brand. Consider placing a good resume with as many recruiters who might be suitable for you. It may not produce right away, but it can over the long run.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 35 8 Easier Networking. Many career counselors see networking as the key to getting a job. However, networking as commonly practiced takes a long time, and while it is an important part of job hunting, view it as just one part of your game plan. Pick your spots selectively, and avoid efforts that take a lot of your personal time. Now, networking can involve those you know and those you don’t know, but who have potential for referring you to situations. 1—Use networking letters. One key to networking is to send people a good networking letter, and follow up with a phone call. 2—Like recruiters, the time to start building your network is before you need a new job. So, reach out to a few people a week. When the time comes for a search, you’ll be ready. Here are a few key points. l Only network when your materials are superior. l List key people you want to see and find a way to meet them. Always know what to say and to ask. l Exchange cards, and get new names all the time. l Always remember the names of front office staff. And, follow up after meetings.

36 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 l Remember, people know they’re “being networked” so don’t try to fool them. l There are many sources for networking you should look into including LinkedIn, Followerwonk—from Twitter and Instagram, Meetup and Upstream. 3—One easier way to network. First, make a list of your best employer prospects. You’ll want to do this for direct mail to employers anyway. Select at least 100 firms, and perhaps 200 or more. The key is your networking proposition. Why? Because all you’re going to ask of people is—do they know anything about these employers who might be able to be of help? Then, leave your list of prospects with them. You haven’t imposed, and your conversation has been short. And, it’s easy for people to help. Some people spend time on your list, and come up with ideas that can help. Even without existing contacts, you can network a lot of people. See our short list on page 17.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 37 9 This Career Pace discussion is about key things to do. if you wish to change industries. We have six key observations on how some people change industries more easily than others. 1—The vast majority of new jobs are created by fast growing small and mid-sized businesses. And those are the industries where people are likely to have their best chance of easily moving into a new industry. 2— If you have an industry of genuine interest, get up to date on them by reviewing some trade publications and websites, or information on personnel changes, new products, and comments by leaders. 3—Take some initiatives to learn something about new industries, and opportunities they face. It can work for you, because it will make a big impression when you speak with employers. 4—At the same time, don’t overlook opportunities in troubled industries. You’ll find far more opportunities in non-glamorous industries. Changing Industries?

38 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 5— Another approach to targeting industries of interest is to list characteristics of industries where you have experience, and then try to find industries with similar ones. Many people have found this helpful. 6—If you can come up with any thoughts to project some industry insights, it is the next best thing to having work experience in the industry. 7— Employers will also always look for “common ground” when hiring. 8—Do you have experience or knowledge of similar product lines, distribution channels, or manufacturing methods in their industry? 9—Or, you might consider the scope of operations, the role of advertising and promotion, the importance of the sales force, the influence of labor, and other matters. 10— if you know an industry you like, your number one key to success will be putting your focus on selling your skills that might adapt well to the industry you prefer.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 39 11—So, take some time and make an effort at finding you way into an industry you want to join. And, remember, having a career in an industry that can excite you, can make all the difference in your future achievement, enjoyment and financial possibilities.

40 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 How to Use Direct Mail 10 1—Why making direct employer contact can work. Each year millions of jobs are filled by direct employer contact. One manager recently contacted 1,000 insurance-related firms in a major metro area via direct mail. Seventeen, or almost 2%, responded with a request for some form of discussion. Why did it work? Timing. And, the right message sent to the right people in large quantity and with careful execution. Now, all of us get direct mail almost every day. Some of it looks bad, but the ones you see again and again are working. Otherwise, the senders wouldn’t continue. Let’s look at an attempt to sell by direct mail. Assume you and your neighbor are mowing the lawn on a hot day. His mower works fine but yours stops. A long mailing piece arrives at both houses from a store promoting a new mower. Your neighbor will throw the mailer out in seconds, but it reached you at the right time. So, chances are you will read it, review the benefits, and perhaps make a purchase!

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 41 Now that mailer reached thousands of people who threw it out, but it also reached a targeted number of people like you at the right time. The same is true with you and the employers you decide to contact. 2— Very few job seekers contact enough of their best prospects...or enough times. Why? Some think anything they mail will just be tossed. This has some truth, as the vast majority will be thrown away! But as any employer will tell you, when they need someone, they want the fastest way to find them. More specifically, they need someone to help them solve a problem, cut losses or capitalize on an opportunity. So, if a powerful letter or message reaches them at the right time, some will take action, and that can result in getting in touch with you! Direct mail works best with small to medium-sized firms, where it is easier to identify and reach key decision makers you want to target. 3—You need to focus on reaching those who can use someone like you. No one else counts. If you can identify the right decision maker in a larger company, your chances are still good if you get them an impressive message at the right time. Is there a nega-

42 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 tive here? Yes, the cost of mailings. But you need to weigh that against the cost of failing to uncover good opportunities, and often with little competition. Succeeding depends on the person on the receiving end. If they need you, they’re interested. If not, your letter may get tossed. But so what! In short, it may do some good, but it won’t do any harm. 4—Many forget that no one ever gets more interviews... by having fewer people know about them. When more of the right people learn about you—from a good message, the more interest you will generate, short and long term. There is another major aspect to direct mail. You need a positive message that puts across what you can contribute and not just your past history. Having seen the results of thousands of resume presentations and letters, we know this is true. The bottom line on your creative message is this. Whatever letter you write must grab someone’s attention quickly and get them motivated to contact you.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 43 5—Selling yourself by direct mail is just a matter of good materials and reaching the right person. There’s an extra benefit to contacting employers. Even if they don’t have a need, many now scan the letter or resumes of those who are good candidates into their database. Then, as they develop a need,their recruiting database is the first place they turn because they save on advertising and recruiting costs. 6—Direct marketing guidelines that work. For younger professionals and middle managers, your letter needs to be brief. So, highlight how you can contribute and benefits you bring. Now, email rarely works. Both direct first class mail and using the phone produce better results. Also, keep in mind, that exceptional resumes can work with a cover letter, but as stated, stand-alone letters usually work better. A letter allows you to put your most compelling message up front, avoid disclosing liabilities, and focus on future benefits for the employer. And many people will read a personal letter who would otherwise have discarded your resume. 7—Make your writing clearwith the following. Short sentences and paragraphs are preferred, And, follow our guidelines on our letter samples to adapt

44 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 words and phrases. Whatever you write has to work in the first 30 seconds to keep people reading. 8—Contact enough prospects. Your choice comes down to whether to do one of these three approaches. (1) a narrow, highly targeted custom effort, or (2) a semi-custom approach, or (3) a semi-mass market approach. For most people, the semi-custom approach is wise. However, larger campaigns have a place for certain people who have marketability potential across many industries. 9—Approaching middle to senior executives. Depending on your income level... as many 400 up to 800 letters can sometimes be advisable, with your best 5% being targeted for a follow up call. Why? Statistics show that many professional and executive jobs are available only once every four years on average. That’s every 208 weeks. So, from a 200-piece mailing, you’d probably reach just one employer who needs someone like you right now. 10—For young and mid level professionals. ...semi-custom mailings. For recent graduates, young and mid-level professionals seeking $60,000 to

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 45 $100,000...contacting 150 to 300 prospects has worked for many. Again, you’ll do best if you add phone followup with those you feel are better prospects. 11—Can you contact more than one executive in the same organization? Yes...it can often improve response. Can you also go back later to the same person or someone else in the same firm? Yes. Follow up works. Example #1 An executive had a specific interest in a leading hightech company. Over a period of 10 weeks, he contacted more than 15 different executives in his company of interest— before an interview was secured. Surprisingly, it never came to light that he had contacted others in the same corporation. Example #2 In another instance, a person in New Jersey, who had both marketing and technical skills, sent his materials to the HR Department plus five other decision makers in divisions of a pharmaceutical company. The HR Department responded that they had distributed his resume. Over 10 days, he learned in follow-up calls that two other recipients were interested, and one extended an interview. And, one said they might have an opening in two months. Without direct contact and follow up, this would not have happened.

46 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 Example #3 Let’s look at a $200,000 CFO who lost his job, but wanted to continue living in Pittsburgh. So, here you might start by looking at the number of employees— who might require a CFO and who would also be able to pay $150,000 to $200,000 or more. Listed in the next paragraph are the approximate number of employers in greater Pittsburgh. Less than 10 employees = 115,000 11-20 employees = 17,000 21-50 employees = 10,000 51-100 employees = 4,500 Greater than 100 = 2,800 Chances are you would need to restrict yourself to firms with more than 100 employees or 2,800 organizations. So let’s apply the math. Based on our one in four years turnover rate, how many employers might have the job you want, become available this week? If you divide 2,800 by four years’ worth of weeks or 208, you’ll get about 13 companies. However, keep in mind that I am referring to jobs becoming available (or needs evolving into jobs) this week. If our executive client is in the market for 12 weeks, there would be a total of 13 x 12—or about 156 positions available during this time period.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 47 Now, I have also learned that if you go back to the same executives within 90 days, that the response you get will range as high as 50% of whatever activity you got the first time. 12—Selecting your best prospects. Your starting point is to compile what we refer to as “your highest probability prospects” and take into consideration your industry and location preferences. We suggest dividing them into two classifications: (1) your best prospects and (2) secondary possibilities. The first smaller group should get a phone follow up, and you never let these targets get away from you. This is important, but only small percentage do it. For executives, start with the CEO or COO. In a large firm, you may be unsure about who to contact. People with varying titles, for example a Group VP, may be running several business units. As an alternative, sometimes contacting the CFO can work. He or she may be aware of opportunities company-wide and may have the ear of the CEO. 13—The special case of senior executives Here, the rules for making direct mail work are often different. I am referring to those seeking a position for which there is only “one-of” in a given organization. Our

48 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 earlier commentary on how many of these jobs might be open at one time, are critical in these situations. The net / net of this is that at this level to make direct mail work, you need to consider going out to 1,000, 2,000, or even 3,000 organizations, in order to reach the right ones at the right time. And furthermore, everything about your mailing needs to be impressive. And then there is one other major consideration for those in this situation. In the beginning of this discussion, I commented on some hypothetical direct mail marketing pieces, like the ones we all seem to receive daily. Now the people behind these mailings are what I call “direct marketing professionals” who are experts in “direct response advertising.’’ And these professionals are guided by special rules in their profession. And one of those rules is that “long copy works best” in situations where you need to provoke a response from your target audience. So, this is often a situation where a senior executive is seeking a position of which there is only “one-of” in a given organization.

Part 1—How To Get The Right Interviews 49 Now you may be wondering what this all means. First of all it will be expensive to do that large of a first class mailing. But considering your likely earnings at a senior level, it probably is worth the investment, which happens to be tax deductible in over 90% of all job hunting situations. Having advised people seeking senior positions in hundreds of situations, here are some general guidelines we can give you. 1. Consider having a 3rd party sponsor you by sending out correspondence on their letterhead, attached to your credentials. Or, do the following: 2. Use a one-page cover done on executive letterhead (7.25 x 10.5) attached to your biography. Both your cover letter and biography must sell skills and what you can do, and avoid over emphasis on prior industries. In this case, we’d also advise using a small photograph, typically a headshot. The immense growth in the use of social media, i.e., LinkedIn and personal websites, have made small photographs acceptable and employers want to know what people look like.

50 The New Science of Job Hunting Course—Part 1 13—What response can you expect... from a large mailing to executives? From a mailing of 1,000 pieces, the highest I can recall was a Sr. VP HR for CitiBank, who had over 60 responses, but some have not gotten any response at all. Many people get very low response rates, with only a few positive responses, but closing rates at getting offers is high when interviewing skills are high, and you can be viewed as attractive in many industries. 14—Reaching board members. This must be done in a dignified manner. For each contact, include a custom cover letter with a 1-page universal resume for an overview and also with a biography. This lets board members have a thumbnail sketch and a long recitation of your credentials. For anyone seeking a six figure income, even using a 3rd party sponsor to send a stand-alone letter, or just a letter with a universal resume can work well. Be sure to see our separate discussion on letters.