Hi Bill,
As a Certified Career Management Professional who's worked extensively with individuals in career transition, I would like to comment on your story and your situation.
I viewed your video and did additional research to learn more about your predicament. I can certainly understand your frustration - if in fact the motivation to blacklist you was the design flaw you revealed in one of Chrysler's automotive products that represented a potential safety issue. The fact that they offered to settle the case leads me to believe that your case is legitimate, and I applaud you for your efforts in trying to resolve your situation and move forward with your career.
My suggestion to you would be the following:
1) Do what you can to project a more appropriate image to those with who you are networking as well as others who may be potential employers. You are a professional with expertise in Mechanical Design Engineering and you need to "look the part."
2) Define your value with respect to what you offer the business community moving forward, and don't rely on your resume to convey that value. Resumes are old news...stuff you've done for other people in the past, and remember, resumes end up in HR - what I call "Hiring Resistance" where the whole process starts with rejection. With your resume buried in a stack a foot high, some personnel jockey will be looking for certain key words and phrases. If you don't have them, you're dead.
Like any job seeker, your biggest challenge is differentiation. In other words, how do you stand out from the crowd in a highly competitive job market? If you're relying on your resume to get noticed, get you in the door and in front of the hiring manager... good luck! I don't care how professional your resume is, how amazing your experience is, how stunning your accomplishments are and how incredible your education may be. At the end of the day your resume is a resume... is a resume... is a resume and will end up in Human Resources along with everyone else's . Therefore you look like everyone else. Avoid HR like the plague.
3) Start targeting companies, not jobs, and use a biography to broadcast your value, NOT your resume. Let 99.99% of all other job seekers beg for a job by running around the countryside waving their "sparkling resumes" and "knock 'em dead cover letters" in the air and chasing every posted job they can find on the Internet.
Begin by making a list of companies that you would like to go to work for, based on industry, products, size, location, etc. The criteria is up to you. As you go through this exercise, don't be concerned if they're hiring, firing, upsizing, sidewinding, downsizing, etc. Just make sure your selected group of companies can use your skills, experience and expertise as a Mechanical Design Engineer. Then identify the individual in each of those companies who would represent your potential boss. Use the strategy of a biography to then introduce yourself to these hiring managers. Unlike a resume, your biography is completely free form, so you can include, or exclude, whatever you want.
The objective of using your biography, with appropriate cover letter, is to simply introduce yourself to hiring managers in companies that are of interest to you, providing a short summary of your background as a teaser. You'll want to initiate a dialog with these managers, asking them if you can stay in touch so that should something open up in the future where you could bring added value to the table, you would welcome the opportunity to chat about it. Again, use your resume as backup or reinforcement, and only when requested. Remember that your biography, which is a blend of your skills, experience, expertise and style, is NOT your resume.
4) In the telephone screen, or in the face-to-face interview, don't be defensive about your past. Be honest and forthright and get comfortable with how you explain your previous experience, but only when asked. Try to focus on the added value you can bring to the organization. Instead of clutching your resume with beads of sweat on your forehead, have a pad of paper and pencil in your hand and start asking questions that help reveal the specific problems and challenges the hiring manager is facing in the engineering area and discuss how your expertise can help solve those problems and meet those challenges. Stay positive and engaged in the conversation. Be outgoing, smile, and focus on what you bring to the table. Remember that companies don't hire people, people hire people. By conducting a strategic vs. traditional interview, you'll create the chemistry - that mutual attraction - that will greatly enhance your chances of getting the offer.
I wish you all the best as you continue to move through your transition.
Greg Wood
President and Founder
TheHireRoad - Providing Direction for Success Through a Strategic vs. Traditional Approach to Job Search
www.thehireroad.com
gregw@thehireroad.com
Edited: December 28, 2009 12:26PM
Reply to Topic
Permalink
