The combination of retiring boomers and a warming economy will probably mean a shift from a long-term tight job market into a tighter labor market that offers more and better jobs and Jobs For Seniors will become more accepted. All fields that serve people over 40, especially health care, face serious and growing shortages of qualified employees, from professionals to clerical workers. Who is better equipped to serve people over 40 than their peers?

if you’re planning to work well past the traditional retirement age of 65, or you’re a baby-boomer you’re now in the majority. No longer can you depend on a combination of Social Security, pensions and savings to fund a good life. Income from work is necessary to fill the gap between what you have and what you need, especially as health costs increase, pensions become rarer and smaller; and pension defaults are increasing.

For more articles like this please visit the Employment Digest at http://www.employmentdigest.net

You have to pursue job advancement in your career and this starts by making your employer aware of your interest in furthering your career or position. Many career advancement experts believe that the most suitable time for pursuing a new job or career advancement is while you are gainfully employed but find your present position unchallenging.

You can start by seeking a higher-level promotion within the company, or if there are no career advancement opportunities available where you work, you need to look elsewhere for them. Here are some ideas and tips for helping people looking for career advancement opportunities.

There are several ways to increase your value within the company or organization such as seeking more responsibilities or additional work and offering to help other teams, departments or advisory boards. This is a great way to show how dedicated and passionate you are to the company or industry.

Have a pointed, direct conversation about your career advancement future with your boss, stressing your desire to meet the company’s job performance goals and your own personal career goals. Find a trusted advisor and mentor for career guidance and information, either within or outside the business, as studies prove that they directly influence many company promotions.

Developing strong people and social skills such as being personable, outgoing, friendly, and an effective and clear communicator with exceptional listening skills, plays an important role in gaining your coworkers, boss’s and outside influences respect. These skills also help you in self-promotion or selling yourself by letting people know about your job skills and successful accomplishments, which could help you in your career advancement plans.

Use your effective communication skills to let people in influential positions know about your career advancement or promotion seeking plans. Always look professional by being well groomed and dressing appropriately. Your work reputation is extremely important so act in a professional manner by being professional, cooperative and professional regardless of the situation.

People interested in career advancement should always continue learning, gaining new knowledge, keep up with the current developments and trends in their line of business, and be innovative. Always have a current, up to date resume available, as you never know when you might need it.
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Q: How can I find executive recruiters who will help me to advance in my career? And if a recruiter contacts me, is it customary to work with just that one or keep trying to find others?

A: It is rare for an executive candidate who contacts a search professional out of the blue to actually find a job through that recruiter. In fact, of the many headhunters I have asked, none have said they have filled a job with a candidate who made an unsolicited overture.

“I am looking for the elusive gem, the exact match for a job, and the chances of that person approaching me are remote,” says Tim McIntyre, managing partner of Infonet Resources LLC, a retained search firm based in Glastonbury, Conn.

Companies hire search firms to find candidates for hard-to-fill positions. Retained headhunters typically work only on top-level and high-paying openings and are paid regardless of whether the job gets filled. Contingency firms generally find candidates for less-senior roles and are paid only when someone they locate is hired.

Often, candidates who want to get on a search professional’s radar screen are looking for shortcuts to their hunts, says Tony Cinello, president of Anthony Andrew LLC, an Addison, Texas-based retained recruiting firm. Among unsolicited candidates who call or email Mr. Cinello, more than three-fourths don’t know how to hunt effectively and are hoping his clients will have openings that might fit, he says.

The best way to get a search executive to notice you is to be visible and successful in your current role, says Mr. McIntyre. Recruiters will find you if you speak at industry conferences or professional meetings, write articles for journals and network with colleagues, he says.

“Asking how to approach a headhunter is the wrong question,” he says. “The right one is ‘How do I make myself accessible, visible and valuable?’ and that means talking to people and doing good work.”

Typically, the best way to advance in your career is by networking to learn about new opportunities. Adding search professionals to your network by offering to help with referrals may be a smart move. The best way to become a resource to a recruiter is to attach your résumé to a short note, saying you don’t expect to fit current openings but would like to help with referrals, says Mr. McIntyre.

Before contacting a search firm, do some research to ensure that it specializes in your industry and profession. “The Directory of Executive Recruiters” ($60) published annually by Kennedy Information Inc. lists recruiting firms by industry, specialty and geographic location. An online version is available at www.recruiterredbook.com. “Do the homework to target the right type of firm,” says Mr. Cinello. “Far too many candidates have no rhyme or reason about who they call.”

As a contingency recruiter, Terry Hunter of Talent Scouts Inc., a Lenexa, Kan., firm specializing in information technology, says he likes hearing from job seekers whose skills match his niche area, which includes business intelligence.

“If someone has the skills and background in this area, we would like them to call us because there are never enough candidates to fill the opportunities we are working on,” says Mr. Hunter.

If you’re contacted by a search firm, ask about the background and experience of the recruiter and the company to evaluate it. Nothing would prevent you from working with more than one firm, says Mr. McIntyre. However Mr. McIntyre says he’d likely lose interest in a candidate who wasn’t committed to working only with him.

During the past 10 years, Tom Wall of Loudonville, N.Y., watched as his position as commercial photographer for WNYT Channel 13 changed.

He had been at WNYT for 25 years and had built a career he enjoyed.

However, the business of television changed, and Wall noticed that he wasn’t having as much fun as he once did.

Many of the special projects he worked on were scrapped to cut costs. His workload was decreasing and he kept asking himself, “How long can this last?”

He and his wife Noelle talked about the fact that the job wouldn’t last forever. Wall knew it was coming. Still, when he was told Jan. 10 that his position was being eliminated, the reality came as a shock.

“It’s difficult to know how to react — there is uncertainty. How do I tell my wife, my kids? Nobody wants to find themselves in that position,” he said.

In today’s volatile job market, many employees will find themselves in that position at one time or another. Losing one’s job, whether expected or not, can throw any employee for a loop. The loss of a job can crush one’s self-esteem and rob him or her of a sense of identity.

Here are some tips on what to do and what to avoid when suddenly faced with an unanticipated job search.

MAKE A GRACEFUL EXIT. Relationship expert April Masini of www.AskApril.com, suggests you suppress the urge to say something you might later regret. “Thank everyone (at your former place of employment) for their time with you. Don’t boast false bravado. Be sad if you feel sad. But continue to be professional even after the job ends.”

DON’T PANIC. Luke Schmonsky, associate director of the Career Center at The College of Saint Rose, agrees that this is easy to say when you’re not the one who just got a pink slip. However, Schmonsky advises job seekers to avoid making a knee-jerk reaction (like accepting the first job that comes along) that could potentially send a job seeker down the same career path as before, even if it’s not the right path. “One of the main things that people should do is reflect on why the position didn’t work out. Some people become misplaced in the job market and end up with positions that don’t necessarily fit their career goals.”

ASSESS THE POSITIVE. When you’re feeling down, listing all of your transferable skills can be a positive experience, explains Schmonsky. “Transferable skills are skills that people obtain in various positions that can pertain to another position. Skills make you marketable and often people don’t realize how many they have.”

STEP OUTSIDE YOUR COMFORT ZONE. Seven years ago, when the technical firm she was working for went under, “literally overnight,” Elizabeth Freedman of Elizabeth Freedman and Co., a Boston-based career-development firm, suddenly found herself out of a job.

After months of networking and job searching, she signed up for an acting class — a move that dramatically changed the path of her career. She wrote and starred in the one-woman show “Made Redundant” about her trials and tribulations in the workplace. From there, Freedman developed contacts and soon started her own business.

MAKE IT PERSONAL. Sure, you know it’s important to network, but these days it seems so much easier (and safer) to just send e-mails while hiding behind your computer screen.

Freedman believes there is “no replacement for picking up the phone — be gently persistent, but breakthrough the tech tools.” Along with making phone calls, Freedman urges job seekers to stay active within their fields by attending conferences or maintaining memberships in professional organizations.

REMEMBER, IT IS ONLY TEMPORARY. Yes, you lost your job and are devastated. Freedman recommends you keep it in perspective, though.

“I have an MBA and worked at a gym for months,” she says. “You have to be OK with taking something less than perfect” while you search for something better.

PUT ON YOUR GAME FACE. You can complain and stress to your friends and family all you want, but when it comes time to interview, a prospective employer doesn’t want to hear your sob story. In today’s job market, Freedman believes that most recruiters will understand a job loss. When discussing your previous position with prospective employers she says it’s important to “be positive, but make it clear you’re moving on.”

PLAN AHEAD. No, you can’t peer into a crystal ball and predict the future. You can, however, develop interests and relationships outside of your immediate job that you could call on should your position change. While Wall was noticing changes in his position at WNYT, he was also working hard to build and grow his wedding photography business, Tom Wall Photography. “I’m thankful that I worked at my business; now it is supporting us,” he explains.

Along with maintaining his own business, he is also working part-time for Lab Prints Inc., a Troy, N.Y.-based company that specializes in software for photographers. Years ago, the company had contacted Wall to test their products and offer feedback.

VISIT YOUR ALMA MATER. Whether you’re across town or across the country from your alma mater, chances are its career center can help you.

Schmonsky notes that The Career Center at The College of Saint Rose offers everything from tips on resume writing, mock interviews, and assessment skill tests to a career-advising network comprised of alumni and community members. Many of their services and assessment tests can be accessed online.

Schmonsky also suggests taking advantage of the books about employment that are available. A book he recommends is “Suddenly Unemployed” by Helen Kooiman Hoosier, which offers a practical, step-by-step approach for people coping with job loss.

LIVE YOUR LIFE. Freedman reminds clients that their job search should not be the only thing going on in their lives. Along with staying in touch with friends and family, Freedman suggests staying active by working on projects and activities that showcase your skills. This could mean volunteering or doing pro bono work. This can give your something to show for how you spent your time while unemployed and can boost your confidence.

A reader recently asked a great question in response to our post about telling the truth on your résumé . She asked what to do when you have a spotty work history with many employment gaps but for good reason. We think this is a great question.

Employment gaps happen to a lot of people for a lot of reasons. Those who’ve been stay-at-home parents, had the opportunity to travel, attend school, serve as a volunteer, or be a care-giver for a loved one, often choose to return to the workforce after a period of time. Unfortunately, because employment gaps are typically associated with poor performing workers, employers tend to look negatively on all applicants whose résumés reflect a large period of time without work. This can make it tricky to get in the door for an interview and show that you’re a qualified candidate.

But, there are some résumé techniques you can use to highlight your capabilities and not the gaps.

1. Focus on skills. Using a skills-focused résumé can help you emphasize your qualifications over your work history. Try opening your résumé with your objective and then give bullet points with key skills or qualifications you possess and those you’ve attained while on hiatus instead of launching into your employment history.

2. Use a functional format. Instead of relating your work experience in a chronological format like a traditional résumé, use the functional style. This type of résumé groups experience not by chronological order but by relevance to the position at hand.

3. Highlight unpaid experience. If you served as a volunteer for a religious or civic organization during your employment gap, list the position you held along with the title “volunteer” and describe the transferable skills you used in that position to show that you have unpaid experience in the field you’re applying for.

4. Don’t fudge on the dates. It’s critical not to exaggerate or lie about the dates of employment you’ve held. It’s easy for employers to verify employment dates, and fudging the facts will only make matters worse.

5. Send a cover letter. It’s typically not appropriate to write “Stay-at-home-parent, June 2004-August 2007” on your résumé, but you can talk about your situation in a cover letter, if you feel comfortable doing so. Don’t get into the nitty gritty, and whatever you do, don’t complain about your situation. But you can explain your situation, highlighting how it pertains to the position at hand. For example, you could say that for three years you used time management, care-giving and financial skills by maintaining the family budget and caring for your child at home.

Be honest with prospective employers about the reasons you have a work gap, and keep in mind that if you’ve been busy with other pursuits while away from work, you’ve probably gained a variety of transferable skills that may make you a prime candidate. Your break from the work world may just make you the perfect candidate for the right employer. In fact, recruiters are beginning to look for returning workers with past experience to fill the void of Baby Boomers who are beginning to retire. Using these tips to highlight everything about you that makes you the right candidate can help you make sure recruiters look past the gaps and see what you have to offer as an employee instead.

There’s an evolving career marketplace that’s local and global. – There are places for good talent to land. Don’t be imprisoned by work.

The environment is right for energetic job seekers. Unemployment is low. Fewer people will enter the work force. From now until 2012, the number of workers 35-44 is expected to shrink 7 percent. Boomers are at retirement age, too, though some may keep a toe in the work force.

Business has the need to expand even with a potentially shrinking work force. Result: Strategic skills may be tough to find for companies. I already see pressure on health care, auditing, IT security and construction.

A successful job change is not a piece of cake, however. Successful career movers anticipate the market and sell themselves into it. Here are the trends I see.

• Turnover is high; 45 percent of companies expect higher turnover, says one report.

• Career change is common. The Labor Department says a wage earner may have eight job changes in a lifetime.

• Job changers flee corporate employment. One report says 6 million “corporate” Americans plan to start their own business in 2007.

Even in this good employment market, I don’t see many employees with so-called “solid jobs” who manage their careers well. Here’s the foundation of a “sales” attitude that could benefit you as you manage your most important product in a volatile environment.

Research: Read trade magazines in the fields you target. Talk to subject experts about trends. Investigate job markets and companies. Know the market; don’t be surprised by it.

Network “big”: Remember power lunches, receptions and dinners for networking? They’re OK, but aren’t as effective when you are trying to connect across the country or globally. Pressing the flesh is even becoming passé locally as technology morphs the way we build relationships and establish credibility. Keep your name visible via technology. Try www.Indeed.com to find the right job, and then www.LinkedIn.com to find a connection in the companies.

Cultivate job experts: If headhunters call, take the call and give them as much information on you as possible. Refer them to colleagues as appropriate. Recruiters remember people who help them. Keep their names in your Rolodex.

Keep your material fresh: Keep various updated resumes for various kinds of possibilities — maybe one is your “bench research” resume and another is your “manage a lab staff” resume.

Be like an athlete: Every pro athlete has a coach. A business coach can improve your professional abilities, too, even with a career search. Check the International Coach Federation Charlotte Chapter for certified coaches.

It takes a sales mentality to manage a career, and each employee is his or her most important product to sell.

Wait a minute! What’s the flip side? Employers, you may be hard pressed to keep your best people. In this “New Career Economy,” attracting and retaining employees is tough. That is the subject of my next column in five weeks, but I want to hear from employers now to tell me how they handle this issue.

Step 1: Before You Write Your Cover Letter
Research the company you want to work for before writing your letter (Photo by Wynand van Niekerk)
Research the company you want to work for before writing your letter (Photo by Wynand van Niekerk)

1. Always write a cover letter when you submit a resume, even if the job posting did not explicitly request one.
2. A good cover letter can encourage your prospective employer to consider your resume.
3. Research the company you’re sending your cover letter to before writing your letter. Knowing about current needs and future plans will help you write a letter that shows what an asset you will be.
4. Look at sample cover letters. Virginia Tech and California State University, Chico have some good sample cover letters online.
* Note that this should only be a way to get started; you should write your own letter!

Step 2: Choose a Cover Letter Style

* There are slight variations in the kind of cover letter you should send.

Cover Letters in Response to a Job Posting
Send your letter to a specific person (Photo by Gokhan Okur)
Send your letter to a specific person (Photo by Gokhan Okur)

1. Reference the job posting, either on a separate line in your cover letter or in the letter body.
2. Include a mention of where you saw the job listing.
3. You understandably want to reply quickly to a job posting, but taking a few minutes to research the company will make your letter stand out.
* Try keeping a bulleted list of your accomplishments ready, so you can quickly fill in the ones that relate to the listed position.

Cover Letters Via Email

1. Many cover letters are sent via email, which means they influence whether your prospective employer will take the time to open your attached resume.
2. Email letters are usually shorter than traditional letters, so take advantage of the subject line to make your email stand out. Do not include a generic “Resume Submission” subject line, unless specifically requested to do so.
3. Formatting like fancy fonts or italics may not translate to the recipient’s email, so do not bother with them.
4. Make sure to include your full name and contact information in the email.
5. Spelling and grammar still count, even in email!

Cold Call Cover Letters

1. A cold call letter is sent to the general hiring manager for a company, not in response to a job posting.
2. A cold call letter should still explain what type of position you desire.
3. Even if you are not applying to a particular job posting, you still want to show you’ve researched the company and explain how your skills meet the company’s needs. Show how you would be an asset to them.
4. Write that you will follow up to talk about possible openings, then do so!

Step 3: Begin Your Cover Letter
Always include your contact information (Photo by Rajesh Sundaram)
Always include your contact information (Photo by Rajesh Sundaram)

1. Make sure your name, address, phone number, and email address are in the header of your letter.
* Rules for email are more relaxed, but you still want this information to be in your message.
2. Never send a letter to a generic HR department or addressed as Dear Sir/Madam. Instead, find out who is in charge of hiring for your position and address the letter to that person.
3. Make sure you spell the name correctly, and use the proper title.
* Call the company to get this information, if necessary, unless the ad specifies no calls.
4. Use a professional salutation:
* Dear Sara: – Too informal
* Dear Ms. Harris: – Good opening
* Use the addressee’s full name if you cannot determine which title to use.

Step 4: Write Your Cover Letter

1. If applying for a specific job, make sure to reference the position in your letter.
* Mention where you heard about the position.
* If there’s a job ID number, list that.
* You do not want to be thrown in the wrong pile by a harried recruiter.
2. Show that you’ve researched the position and the company.
3. Talk about how the skills you have match the position’s requirements, in a way that draws in the reader and highlights your interest.
4. Try to include new information when describing how you meet the job requirements, instead of repeating what’s in your resume.
* This can mean a more in-depth exploration of something on your resume or a related topic that did not fit on your resume.
5. Do not overuse “I” or “me” and talk about your needs and desires; explain how you will be an asset to the company and help them.
*
Typos hurt your chances (Photo by Adam Ciesielski)
Typos hurt your chances (Photo by Adam Ciesielski)
6. Be positive in your letter. No one wants to hire an unpleasant co-worker.
7. Personalize your letter with humor or another aspect of your personality.
* Personalization does not mean sharing intimate details or using cute gimmicks in your letter. This is still a professional presentation!
8. If you know someone at the company you’re approaching, ask him about the job opening.
* You can mention this discusion in your letter, as it reinforces your interest in the job.
* The conversation may give you insight on how to make your letter stand out from the applicant pool.
9. And if you know someone at the company, check if this person can give you a recommendation.
* If you can reference an employee and his recommendation in your letter, this may help you get to the next step- an interview!
10. Remember, a cover letter should be brief; being verbose and writing more than three paragraphs will not help your chances.

Using a Cover Letter Template

1. Microsoft Word and online services like Interactive-Resume.com offer templates for writing cover letters.
2. If you use a template, make it a starting point only. Practically everyone has access to these templates. If you do not personalize the letter, you are missing a great chance to stand out from the crowd.

Step 5: End Your Cover Letter

1. State the best phone number and email address where you can be contacted, and invite the reader to get in touch.
2. You can write that you will follow up on your letter. Just make sure to do so if you write this!
* You do not need to take up a lot of time in your follow-up; confirming receipt of your resume and cover letter is enough.
* If the job posting requests no calls, respect this.

Step 6: Proofread Before You Send Your Cover Letter
Read your letter carefully before sending it (Photo by Jay Simons)
Read your letter carefully before sending it (Photo by Jay Simons)

1. Make sure your cover letter is free of typos and grammatical errors. A cover letter is a chance to show you can write clearly and competently.
2. Ask friends and family to proofread the letter for you.
3. If there is no one you can ask, hire someone to check the letter for mistakes. It is important to be error-free!
4. Getting feedback on your letter, whether it is from people in your circle or an outside source, is another way to discover what impression your cover letter makes on people.
5. Did your enthusiasm and interest shine through? If not, rewrite the letter.
6. Your cover letter is as important as your resume, so take time to make it perfect.

What Not to Do in Your Cover Letter

1. Do not say why you need a job. Explain how hiring you helps the company, not how it could help you!
2. In an initial cover letter, there is no need to include your salary requirements.
3. Your cover letter should not be longer than one page.
4. Do not use the same form cover letter with every resume you submit.

Job seeker Jan asks, “What do I need to do to find a new position? I can’t begin to tell you how much I want to be in a better situation.”

Once a job search is launched, landing the right position can seem to take forever. Like buying a car or house, changing jobs is a high impact activity involving sifting through a wide array of options, negotiating cautiously and possibly compromising in order to get most of what you want. Having a search strategy in place and revisiting that strategy occasionally will keep you focused when the right opportunities seem just out of reach. The trick is in knowing what questions to ask yourself about your own situation, using the information you uncover to move forward in your career.

Is your search limited to one industry sector or a specific company size? Your small company background might translate well into a division of a larger entity, possibly affording opportunity for career development in the future. In addition, if you wear many hats in your current position, you might be able to combine these experiences into a management role at a different company.

Consider your salary range. Is it competitive? According to Dave Piltz, Graduate Business College Chair at the University of Phoenix, people often advance within an organization on the basis of demonstrated abilities and successes, only to find that another company would require an advanced degree or more training for the same position. Do you need to continue your education in order to move up the salary ladder?

What’s missing? While waiting for that next big break, consider volunteering for a project that will add experience to your profile. Participating in a Sarbanes Oxley audit in your department or working with the IT group on a system implementation will add depth to your resume and could make your current situation more appealing.

Think leverage: Do you have supervisory experience? Have you been involved in business development or leadership outside of your job description? Are you an acknowledged expert in a certain product line or computer program? Take a bird’s eye photo of your resume, looking for the unique mix that employers will see as valuable to their bottom line. What can you offer to benefit this organization? Remember, the right job fit is only partly about you; it’s also about what you can do for somebody else.

Does anyone know you’re looking? Former co-workers, family and close friends are excellent sources of job leads. These people already know you, probably like you, and may be willing to pass on a lead if they know you’re on the market. Lean on recruiters, too, for introductions, job leads and strategizing; their services are free and their networks are endless.

If you’ve been looking all summer for something new, you’ll be glad to know that hiring picks up after Labor Day. But why wait? Your best publicity agent is yourself – get busy!

Julie Desmond is an Executive Recruiter with Hunter Hamilton Professional Resources. Send Career Planning questions to Julie@insightnews.com.

If you are one of those executive types unhappy at your present post and embarking on a New Year’s resolution to find a new one, here’s a helping hand. The job interview is considered to be the most critical aspect of every expedition that brings you face-to- face with the future boss. One must prepare for it with the same tenacity and quickness as one does for a fencing tournament or a chess match.

This article has been excerpted from “PARTING COMPANY: How to Survive the Loss of a Job and Find Another Successfully” by William J. Morin and James C. Cabrera. Copyright by Drake Beam Morin, inc. Publised by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Morin is chairman and Cabrera is president of New York-based Drake Beam Morin, nation’s major outplacement firm, which has opened offices in Philadelphia.

1. Tell me about yourself.

Since this is often the opening question in an interview, be extracareful that you don’t run off at the mouth. Keep your answer to a minute or two at most. Cover four topics: early years, education, work history, and recent career experience. Emphasize this last subject. Remember that this is likely to be a warm-up question. Don’t waste your best points on it.

2. What do you know about our organization?

You should be able to discuss products or services, revenues, reputation, image, goals, problems, management style, people, history and philosophy. But don’t act as if you know everything about the place. Let your answer show that you have taken the time to do some research, but don’t overwhelm the interviewer, and make it clear that you wish to learn more.

You might start your answer in this manner: “In my job search, I’ve investigated a number of companies.

Yours is one of the few that interests me, for these reasons…”

Give your answer a positive tone. Don’t say, “Well, everyone tells me that you’re in all sorts of trouble, and that’s why I’m here”, even if that is why you’re there.

3. Why do you want to work for us?

The deadliest answer you can give is “Because I like people.” What else would you like-animals?

Here, and throughout the interview, a good answer comes from having done your homework so that you can speak in terms of the company’s needs. You might say that your research has shown that the company is doing things you would like to be involved with, and that it’s doing them in ways that greatly interest you. For example, if the organization is known for strong management, your answer should mention that fact and show that you would like to be a part of that team. If the company places a great deal of emphasis on research and development, emphasize the fact that you want to create new things and that you know this is a place in which such activity is encouraged. If the organization stresses financial controls, your answer should mention a reverence for numbers.

If you feel that you have to concoct an answer to this question – if, for example, the company stresses research, and you feel that you should mention it even though it really doesn’t interest you- then you probably should not be taking that interview, because you probably shouldn’t be considering a job with that organization.

Your homework should include learning enough about the company to avoid approaching places where you wouldn’t be able -or wouldn’t want- to function. Since most of us are poor liars, it’s difficult to con anyone in an interview. But even if you should succeed at it, your prize is a job you don’t really want.

4. What can you do for us that someone else can’t?

Here you have every right, and perhaps an obligation, to toot your own horn and be a bit egotistical. Talk about your record of getting things done, and mention specifics from your resume or list of career accomplishments. Say that your skills and interests, combined with this history of getting results, make you valuable. Mention your ability to set priorities, identify problems, and use your experience and energy to solve them.

5. What do you find most attractive about this position? What seems least attractive about it?

List three or four attractive factors of the job, and mention a single, minor, unattractive item.

6. Why should we hire you?

Create your answer by thinking in terms of your ability, your experience, and your energy. (See question 4.)

7. What do you look for in a job?

Keep your answer oriented to opportunities at this organization. Talk about your desire to perform and be recognized for your contributions. Make your answer oriented toward opportunity rather than personal security.

8. Please give me your defintion of [the position for which you are being interviewed].

Keep your answer brief and taskoriented. Think in in terms of responsibilities and accountability. Make sure that you really do understand what the position involves before you attempt an answer. If you are not certain. ask the interviewer; he or she may answer the question for you.

9. How long would it take you to make a meaningful contribution to our firm?

Be realistic. Say that, while you would expect to meet pressing demands and pull your own weight from the first day, it might take six months to a year before you could expect to know the organization and its needs well enough to make a major contribution.

10. How long would you stay with us?

Say that you are interested in a career with the organization, but admit that you would have to continue to feel challenged to remain with any organization. Think in terms of, “As long as we both feel achievement-oriented.”

11. Your resume suggests that you may be over-qualified or too experienced for this position. What’s Your opinion?

Emphasize your interest in establishing a long-term association with the organization, and say that you assume that if you perform well in his job, new opportunities will open up for you. Mention that a strong company needs a strong staff. Observe that experienced executives are always at a premium. Suggest that since you are so wellqualified, the employer will get a fast return on his investment. Say that a growing, energetic company can never have too much talent.

12. What is your management style?

You should know enough about the company’s style to know that your management style will complement it. Possible styles include: task oriented (I’ll enjoy problem-solving identifying what’s wrong, choosing a solution and implementing it”), results-oriented (“Every management decision I make is determined by how it will affect the bottom line”), or even paternalistic (“I’m committed to taking care of my subordinates and pointing them in the right direction”).

A participative style is currently quite popular: an open-door method of managing in which you get things done by motivating people and delegating responsibility.

As you consider this question, think about whether your style will let you work hatppily and effectively within the organization.

13. Are you a good manager? Can you give me some examples? Do you feel that you have top managerial potential?

Keep your answer achievementand ask-oriented. Rely on examples from your career to buttress your argument. Stress your experience and your energy.

14. What do you look for when You hire people?

Think in terms of skills. initiative, and the adaptability to be able to work comfortably and effectively with others. Mention that you like to hire people who appear capable of moving up in the organization.

15. Have you ever had to fire people? What were the reasons, and how did you handle the situation?

Admit that the situation was not easy, but say that it worked out well, both for the company and, you think, for the individual. Show that, like anyone else, you don’t enjoy unpleasant tasks but that you can resolve them efficiently and -in the case of firing someone- humanely.

16. What do you think is the most difficult thing about being a manager or executive?

Mention planning, execution, and cost-control. The most difficult task is to motivate and manage employess to get something planned and completed on time and within the budget.

17. What important trends do you see in our industry?

Be prepared with two or three trends that illustrate how well you understand your industry. You might consider technological challenges or opportunities, economic conditions, or even regulatory demands as you collect your thoughts about the direction in which your business is heading.

18. Why are you leaving (did you leave) your present (last) job?

Be brief, to the point, and as honest as you can without hurting yourself. Refer back to the planning phase of your job search. where you considered this topic as you set your reference statements. If you were laid off in an across-the-board cutback, say so; otherwise, indicate that the move was your decision, the result of your action. Do not mention personality conflicts.

The interviewer may spend some time probing you on this issue, particularly if it is clear that you were terminated. The “We agreed to disagree” approach may be useful. Remember hat your references are likely to be checked, so don’t concoct a story for an interview.

19. How do you feel about leaving all your benefits to find a new job?

Mention that you are concerned, naturally, but not panicked. You are willing to accept some risk to find the right job for yourself. Don’t suggest that security might interest you more than getting the job done successfully.

20. In your current (last) position, what features do (did) you like the most? The least?

Be careful and be positive. Describe more features that you liked than disliked. Don’t cite personality problems. If you make your last job sound terrible, an interviewer may wonder why you remained there until now.

21. What do you think of your boss?

Be as positive as you can. A potential boss is likely to wonder if you might talk about him in similar terms at some point in the future.

22. Why aren’t you earning more at your age?

Say that this is one reason that you are conducting this job search. Don’t be defensive.

23. What do you feel this position should pay?

Salary is a delicate topic. We suggest that you defer tying yourself to a precise figure for as long as you can do so politely. You might say, “I understand that the range for this job is between $______ and $______. That seems appropriate for the job as I understand it.” You might answer the question with a question: “Perhaps you can help me on this one. Can you tell me if there is a range for similar jobs in the organization?”

If you are asked the question during an initial screening interview, you might say that you feel you need to know more about the position’s responsibilities before you could give a meaningful answer to that question. Here, too, either by asking the interviewer or search executive (if one is involved), or in research done as part of your homework, you can try to find out whether there is a salary grade attached to the job. If there is, and if you can live with it, say that the range seems right to you.

If the interviewer continues to probe, you might say, “You know that I’m making $______ now. Like everyone else, I’d like to improve on that figure, but my major interest is with the job itself.” Remember that the act of taking a new job does not, in and of itself, make you worth more money.

If a search firm is involved, your contact there may be able to help with the salary question. He or she may even be able to run interference for you. If, for instance, he tells you what the position pays, and you tell him that you are earning that amount now and would Like to do a bit better, he might go back to the employer and propose that you be offered an additional 10%.

If no price range is attached to the job, and the interviewer continues to press the subject, then you will have to restpond with a number. You cannot leave the impression that it does not really matter, that you’ll accept whatever is offered. If you’ve been making $80,000 a year, you can’t say that a $35,000 figure would be fine without sounding as if you’ve given up on yourself. (If you are making a radical career change, however, this kind of disparity may be more reasonable and understandable.)

Don’t sell yourself short, but continue to stress the fact that the job itself is the most important thing in your mind. The interviewer may be trying to determine just how much you want the job. Don’t leave the impression that money is the only thing that is important to you. Link questions of salary to the work itself.

But whenever possible, say as little as you can about salary until you reach the “final” stage of the interview process. At that point, you know that the company is genuinely interested in you and that it is likely to be flexible in salary negotiations.

24. What are your long-range goals?

Refer back to the planning phase of your job search. Don’t answer, “I want the job you’ve advertised.” Relate your goals to the company you are interviewing: ‘in a firm like yours, I would like to…”

25. How successful do you you’ve been so far?

Say that, all-in-all, you’re happy with the way your career has progressed so far. Given the normal ups and downs of life, you feel that you’ve done quite well and have no complaints.

Present a positive and confident picture of yourself, but don’t overstate your case. An answer like, “Everything’s wonderful! I can’t think of a time when things were going better! I’m overjoyed!” is likely to make an interviewer wonder whether you’re trying to fool him . . . or yourself. The most convincing confidence is usually quiet confidence.

The interviewer kept the job candidate waiting for 45 minutes past the scheduled appointment time, then seemed evasive about the job’s duties.

The candidate lied on her resume about her education and experience, then lied about lying. The only questions she asked were about salary and benefits and when she would get promoted.

Welcome to the ugly, often brutal world of job interviews, where the interviewers and the interviewees often engage in a battle to see who can behave the worst.

“I think it is a reflection of what is going on in the workplace overall,” says Scott Erker. “(Job candidates) don’t trust employers, and some job candidates have a real sense of entitlement.”

Erker, a senior vice president at Development Dimensions International, a human resources consulting firm, says that while not all hiring managers and job candidates behave badly, there are enough horror stories on both sides to make it clear there are some real problems.

These problems can translate into bottom-line issues for companies, since a recent survey by Development Dimensions International and the online career and job site, Monster, found that two thirds of job seekers report that the interviewer influences their decision to accept a position.

With the ongoing war for talent in this global economy, Erker points out that many top candidates decline an offer because they are unmotivated by hiring managers to want to join a company.

“There are actually several problems going on right now,” Erker says. “One is that trust is down because of the scandals in corporate America with exorbitant senior executive salaries. Two, hiring managers are ‘overselling’ jobs and sounding like used car salesman because they under pressure to get the great job candidates. And three, the pressure is on business to try and fill positions quickly and so they’re doing whatever they can to get the candidate to say yes.”

At the same time, job candidates are not without some issues. In the survey, 58 percent of hiring managers reported that job seekers misrepresent their experience on a resume or during the interview, while only 5 percent of candidates admit to it. That trend of misrepresentation – and the candidates failing to own up to it – is in the areas of education, experience and references.

“Also, there are some generational issues because we’ve got some coddled kids just coming out of school and they just expect to get a job and take over,” Erker says. “In fact, we had one hiring manager say that one job candidate’s goal ‘was to get your (hiring manager’s) job. Do you really think this hiring manager would now hire someone who would try and take his job away?”

Further complicating the relationship between job candidates and companies is the knowledge that many workers are job-hopping as never before. In the survey, 52 percent have had between two and three jobs over the last five years. Nearly one-third of job seekers said they had been in the current job for six months or less, but were already in the market for a new one. In other words, they were using their current job as a “placeholder job” until something better came along, Erker says. (For more survey results and interview tips, join the blog discussion at: www.anitabruzzese.com).

Still, the bottom line is that both interviewees and interviewers need to display more respect for one another and behave more professionally, he says. That means that companies need to spend more time training hiring managers so that they make better hires based on realistic expectations, and job candidates need to be honest and do a better job of preparing for interviews.

“An interview can quickly escalate from being a ‘meeting of the minds’ to a ‘clash of personalities’ if both parties are not prepared and respectful of one another,” Erker says.