Notes from 2/19/2010 OCA Meeting

Unfortunately, we had our first glitch in scheduling, so our guest speaker wasn't able to make it to the 2/19 meeting. (We're looking to reschedule Paul Anderson from ProLango on March 12th.)

Nevertheless, we had a great meeting and a 2-hour discussion on networking, resumes, and today's job search techniques. To sum up: Regardless of how powerful the resume is or how cleverly written the cover letter, 4 out of 5 times it comes down to networking. Or as one member put it: Networking, Networking, Networking, [Networking].

From a call I sat in on a few weeks ago about the "Hidden Job Market," where Kelly Harrington of the Career Max Group provided her insight, 75-80% of open job positions are NOT advertised. According to the US Dept of Labor, 48% of jobs are found through friends, business contacts and relatives; 24% by direct company contact; and 13% by a combination of both. If you do the math, it shows hours spent scouring the job boards could be more wisely spent working on making the right connections.

What is "the hidden job market" exactly? They are jobs that are not posted publicly. How are they filled then? Quite often through referrals, where a position is filled before ever needing to be posted. To listen to Ms. Harrington's teleseminar, click here: Hidden Secrets of the Hidden Job Market.

Why post a position on Craigslist? and have to wade through hundreds of resumes, when it's much more efficient to ask a few well-regarded colleagues if they know of qualified candidates they'd recommend. Case in point, a friend of mine just sent me a job description for a Communications Coordinator - to see if someone within OCA was interested. The hiring company, a client of his, "is opting for the lower-profile approach of personal referrals before moving to a larger audience with their search."
By the way, if you're interested in the Coordinator position, check out the OCA group on LinkedIn.

Upcoming guest speakers.
3/5 - Rick Peterson, president of Hydrogen Advertising
3/12 - Paul Anderson, president of ProLango (career consulting)
3/19 - Kelsey Foster, recruiter at Aquent (staffing agency)
3/26 - Kristina Muller-Eberhard, founder of Plume21 (advertising)
4/2 - Kirsten Thompson and Sara Westerlund, reps from Creative Circle