Job Tips: Technology
In the not-too-distant past, the job search was fairly simple. The candidate printed out a copy of the resume, wrote a brief introductory cover letter highlighting skills and accomplishments, and sent the application package to the employer. Today is a completely different story. The advent of computers and databases allows for more people to apply to each position. How does one get a leg up on the competition? Here are some important tips.
Register With Job Search Engines
Everyone knows about the big career boards including Yahoo! Jobs, CareerBuilder, and Monster. While every candidate should post a resume on at least one of these sites, an even more effective way to find employment is through metasearch sites that provide results from newspapers, company websites, and other sources. These include SimplyHired, Indeed, and Jobster. Also look for niche employment websites such as Dice (technology) and Greenjobs.com (renewable energy).
WorkDigital, Ltd. features a career website powered by Twitter called TwitterJobSearch. The site searches all open positions listed on Twitter. Simply type in the desired position and click Search to display listings. Narrow search by title, country, salary, and more. Apply for new opportunities on an iPhone with the website’s free app.
Use Online Social Networking.
According to a recent survey that studied the best practices for prospective employees obtaining employment with a company, these were the best practices in order of effectiveness:
• Social Networking With Company Employees Is Most Effective
• Submitting Your Resume Directly To The Company Web Site
• Submitting Your Resume With Staffing And Service Companies
The following strategies employ all those practices of social networking, submitting your resume directly to the company web site and leveraging the contacts and relationships recruiters have with company employees. The networking tools such as Linkedin and other such tools are key in your establishing contacts with employees of prospective companies.
Social Networking Sites
LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are becoming key with any job search strategy. LinkedIn is a social networking site with 35 million members that focus on promoting contacts among business people, job seekers and those with common interests.
IT Staffing Companies
Staffing and service firms business model includes both contract, contract – permanent, and direct opportunities. The clients include fortune 1000 companies in North America across all industries. It is an excellent opportunity for the candidate to work with the company for a defined contract period while gaining industry standard experience and leverage that with new opportunities. A lot of the companies have some health insurance plan that is partial or fully funded. In addition there are training resources, 401K plans, and a multitude of other employee benefits. Submit your resume online with there companies and search current opportunities. Keywords are very important with resumes and any search process keeping that in mind.
Microsoft Partner Search
It takes some effort to do a search on Microsoft partners however do a search from the microsoft solution finder web page and go to the career sites.
Cisco 10,000 Partner Network
This is a new venture Cisco has started linking skilled engineers with their 10,000 partner companies. These companies employ Cisco, Microsoft Engineers, Developers, Sales and Project Managers. The official name is cisco partner talent network.
Top 500 VAR Companies
This list of fastest growing technology companies is published each year based on revenues from sales and professional services. They hire network engineers, sales, project managers, administrative personnel, and developers.
These days, virtually everyone has a Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter page to keep in contact with friends, family, and colleagues. However, the importance of social networking in finding a new opportunity should not be overlooked. Candidates should strongly consider creating a professional profile on Twitter highlighting skills, objectives, and accomplishments in the bio section. The picture should be a professional headshot, and the person should tweet daily about the search for a new position.
Facebook can be used as well. The candidate should either create a new (public) profile or otherwise clean up the original account and closely monitor wall comments. Like Twitter, the bio should reflect professional skills and accomplishments, and the picture should be a professional headshot. Be sure to download job search applications (e.g., Indeed). For both Twitter and Facebook, sign on career-related friends that send text alerts and post new opportunities.
Last but not least, register with the professional networking website Linkedin. This site has become so popular that recent reports have indicated more companies are using it to screen candidates. Using Linkedin the candidate can post a resume, network with other professionals, perform a career search, get recommended, and obtain leads. The person can also perform a search to find long-lost coworkers that may provide even more positive recommendations.
Create an Online Multimedia Resume
Some experts predict the eventual death of paper resumes and cover letters in favor of electronic media. One website that may prove the naysayers right is VisualCV which allows candidates to create an amazing online multimedia profile with portfolios, audio, video, pictures, and much more. The new e-resume can be linked to social networking profiles including Linkedin and Twitter.
Track the Job Search
Keep a log of all employment listings to which a resume was sent for future follow-up. Most often, online search boards provide this feature; but then again, most people search across a variety of career websites. If keeping records via Word or Excel becomes too cumbersome, try using JibberJobber to organize, manage, and track submitted applications.
Finding a new career in today’s labor market is challenging, but not impossible. Making use of career search engines, social networking, creating an online multimedia resume, and tracking the search for future follow-up is essential for a successful job search.
Thinking twice about a career in technology? Here are the top 10 jobs in IT, based on increases in salary offers, according to the salary guide.
1. Lead applications developer
What they do: Manage software development teams in the design, development, coding, testing and debugging of applications. **
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field and three to five years experience in specific technologies.
Salary range: $80,250 – $108,000
Salary change*: 7.6 percent
2. Applications architect
What they do: Design components of applications, including interface, middleware and infrastructure; comply with employer’s design standards.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science or information systems; a master’s degree is desirable. Employers request a minimum of eight years related work experience and specific software skills.
Salary range: $87,250 – $120,000
Salary change: 7.5 percent
3. Messaging administrator
What they do: Control e-mail and groupware systems, including associated servers, operating systems, and backup and recovery programs; fix system problems and attend to service requests.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer information systems or a related field, plus two to three years or more of experience working with the messaging systems used by the employer.
Salary range: $87,250 – $120,000
Salary change: 7.5 percent
4. Data modeler
What they do: Analyze organizational data requirements and create models of data flow.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, IT or mathematics, and several years of data management experience.
Salary range: $74,250 – $102,000
Salary change: 7 percent
5. Network manager
What they do: Direct day-to-day operations and maintenance of the firm’s networking technology; collaborate with network engineers, architects and other team members on the implementation, testing, deployment and integration of network systems.
What you need: Ten years (or more) experience in a networking environment combined with several years of experience managing technical personnel. Professional certifications are also valuable.
Salary range: $74,500 – $98,500
Salary change: 7 percent
6. Senior IT auditor
What they do: Establish procedures for audit review of computer systems; develop and apply testing and evaluation plans for IT systems and ensure compliance with industry standards of efficiency, accuracy and security.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, information systems, business or a related field, and an average of five years’ experience in IT auditing.
Salary range: $86,750 – $114,750
Salary change: 6.9 percent
7. Senior Web developer
What they do: Plan and implement Web-based applications; coordinate with product development, marketing, product management and other teams in bringing new applications online.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, electrical engineering or a related field, plus a minimum of five years of experience working with a mix of Web technologies.
Salary range: $76,250 – $108,250
Salary change: 6.6 percent
8. Business intelligence analyst
What they do: Design and develop company data analysis and report solutions; review and analyze data from internal and external resources; communicate analysis results and make recommendations to senior management.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, information systems or engineering, and several years of experience.
Salary range: $78,250 – $108,250
Salary change: 6.6 percent
9. Help desk (Tier 2)
What they do: Resolve difficult issues that derive from Tier 1 support and require five to 15 minutes to settle; decide when to create work tickets for issues that can’t be solved by phone or e-mail and require a visit to the user’s workspace.
What you need: Besides patience and a positive attitude, requirements depend on your position level. Tier 2 positions call for two to four years work experience, and a bachelor’s degree or a two-year degree and additional work experience in a help desk setting.
Salary range: $35,750 – $46,250
Salary change: 6.5 percent
10. Staff consultant
What they do: Assist with project planning and requirement specifications; create prototypes and alternatives with colleagues.
What you need: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, business or a consulting-related field. Industry-specific proficiency, plus business experience and two or more years of consulting experience are also typical requirements.
Salary range: $59,250 – $82,250
Salary change: 6.4 percent
*Percent changes are from 2007 to 2008.
** Job descriptions are from “Glossary of Job Descriptions for Information Technology,” by Robert Half Technology (www.rht.com). Descriptions include but are not limited to all job duties.
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