things that aren’t good ideas #78 by Alison Green on March 22, 2011 The reader who received the cover letter excerpted below described it as “things that make your heart break,” and I have to agree. Don’t do this. Read the full article →
my company does secret performance reviews that we’re not allowed to see by Alison Green on March 21, 2011 A reader writes: My current employer performs secret yearly reviews for the 85 employees at our main location. According to my boss, the owner and his wife simply go down a list of employees and decide how well they did, and if they deserve a raise. I’ve never seen my own review, nor have I […] Read the full article →
should you include a short-term job on your resume? by Alison Green on March 21, 2011 If you left a job after just a few months, should you include it on your resume? It depends on why it was short-term. Was it short-term by design, or did you leave under less than ideal circumstances? If the job wasn’t intended to be short-term but ended up that way because you were fired […] Read the full article →
short answer Saturday: 6 short answers to 6 short questions by Alison Green on March 19, 2011 It’s short answer Saturday once again — six short answers to six short questions. Here we go… Figuring out pay as a contractor I have never worked as a contractor but was contacted about a potential contract job and asked to provide my pay requirements plus gas cost. The contract job is simular to my […] Read the full article →
employer wants permission to call people outside my reference list by Alison Green on March 17, 2011 A reader writes: I recently was asked to sign a Consent to Reference Check form. Paragraph one was fairly standard: “I, XXX, authorize XXX Company to contact the persons and/or organizations listed below for the purposes of obtaining employment reference information including information contained in my personnel file and hereby authorize those persons and/or organizations […] Read the full article →
am I wrong to be insulted by this rejection letter? by Alison Green on March 16, 2011 A reader writes: I received the following rejection: Thank you for applying for our CRM position. We appreciate your interest in our work and enjoyed the chance to review your resume. Our committee has now reviewed all the applicants and you were not selected for the interview process. Their decision in no way reflects upon your […] Read the full article →
my staff has been held to a low bar; am I asking too much of them now? by Alison Green on March 15, 2011 A reader writes: When you are managing others, how do you know when you are expecting too much or setting expectations too high? I “inherited” a department of people who I don’t feel were adequately managed for several years. Basically, as long as they showed up and were physically present, then nothing more was expected […] Read the full article →
have you ever gotten a job from a job fair? by Alison Green on March 14, 2011 In response to the previous post on job fairs, a commenter asked: I have attended my alma mater’s industry-specific career fair the past few years. I’ve done most of the things you list in your article and gotten feedback that my resume is great. BUT all the company reps refer me (and everyone else) to […] Read the full article →
how to stand out at a job fair by Alison Green on March 14, 2011 Job fairs are nerve-wracking: huge crowds of people, harried employers, and the expectation that you’ll walk up to a stranger and start talking about yourself. But if you know how to navigate them, you can take a lot of the anxiety out of the experience, and impress prospective employers. Here are 12 tips for navigating […] Read the full article →
short answer Sunday: seven short answers to seven short questions by Alison Green on March 13, 2011 It’s time for short-answer Sunday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go… Showing sympathy to a colleague whose son died My previous supervisor, now colleague, will soon have a sad anniversary. A couple of years ago, her son passed away. I was not working for her (or the organization) at the […] Read the full article →