I’ll be the first to admit, one of the perks of being a slave to the salon is getting to read all those fun, trashy magazines, getting caught up on the latest in pop culture.   I prefer to dowel out that education selectively.

But when I saw recently, several of my high-ranking friends reading about lipo, models without makeup and, my personal favorite, whether drinking causes you to be less smart, well, I’m thinking less of them despite my own little habit.  Sorry, can’t be helped.  There’s something so impactful as seeing Lipo next to a CTO’s name, it’s hard to erase the image.

Like all things in and around your personal brand, what you read is pretty important stuff.  Just ask Sarah Palin.

There’s been an interesting shift, most noticeably in the last year or so, where companies that have moved to the Agile development process require ‘all hands on deck.’  Product decisions are made in the moment on a daily basis in a less documented, more interactive fashion.  Being on the phone is tough and doesn’t cut it over the long term.

Companies competing in the consumer electronics space, in e-commerce, mobile, and healthcare are all in fast changing industries.  Being present often means being able to be part of the change, providing opportunities to talk to people, to help shape the new programs.

To an employer, the business comes first.  If someone can do the work remotely from time to time, that’s usually fine.  But few will sign up to a fixed schedule or go too far in accommodating personal needs.  No one can guarantee that Fridays (or Thursdays or Mondays) are days that nothing critical will happen.  Like it or not, the best companies generally need everyone on deck together at least 70% of the time.

News flash: There are no second chances. OK, that’s not totally true, there are a number of great Hollywood romance movies that are built on the premise that you get a second chance. You know the storyline, guy gets girl, guy screws up, guy makes up and world peace prevails.

Seriously though, there’s no second chance in an interview. It is not a casual event, it’s a command performance even if we call it a ‘coffee’ or ‘informational.’ From the moment you walk in (are you on time, what are you wearing, are you smiling, how’s your handshake) to the wrap up, it’s one big assessment.

So give yourself every chance to ‘nail it.’ If it’s a phone call, take the call from a land line, no dogs, kids or leaf blowers within a 2 block radius. If you have to take it on a cell, apologize, ask if the fidelity is acceptable and by all means pull over and never have anyone else in the car, including Fido.

If you can’t answer a question, that’s a problem. It’s better to admit it than to BS. And even better to ask for clarification than to make assumptions.

Unfortunately there’s never an email that you can send that fixes a botched interview. There’s no ‘do overs’ in the game of interviews.

But as the war for talent continues to heat up, it is important to have a clear message that cuts through the noise.  We felt we needed a new ‘storefront.’

Our revised web presence gives everyone a better sense of who we are.  After all, this is a relationship-oriented business.  Our clients need to have trust and faith that we’ll deliver and that often translates into a 1:1 relationship.  We often introduce ourselves and an opportunity to our prospective candidates with an email.  Associating a name with a face, and, even better, getting a glimpse into someone’s interests cuts the ice.

We’ve also tightened up our communication, our value proposition and why we are different.  We lost the ‘thought leadership’ and academic pontificating tone that frankly we copied from our competitors.   Our new look is crisp, direct and a little more fun.

www.thepacheragroup.com

What do you think, have we hit the mark?

2. If you go all ‘fancy pants’ on your resume and put it into a horizontal or highly-formatted look, be sure the contact info like your phone number is easy to read. Not horizontal or on page 3, for example.

3. For that matter, be sure you have contact info — email and phone (your mobile) – on the resume!

4. Add your town but not your address. We can no longer depend on area codes to accurately reflect where a person resides. Relo may not be part of the deal, that’s one of many reasons we need to know where you live.

5. You do not have to add every single thing you ever did, every job you ever had. Don’t hide things but for example, nothing 15 years ago can be that relevant.

6. Never fib on titles, tenure, degrees, etc. We check. And you get DQ’d if there’s a big enough discrepancy. Big enough can’t be defined accurately so play it safe.

7. Format professionally. If English is a second language or if grammar isn’t your thing, ask someone or pay someone to help you.

8. You can keep some personality on the resume by adding your passion for sports or the arts but be careful– with all that triathlete training and volunteering, we might wonder where a career fits in the hierarchy.

That policy is now under review. While I still think the serial 18 month stints does, more often than not, represent a problem (six months to come up to speed on a job, six months to do it—by the one year mark managers are generally ‘on to’ people who aren’t cutting it, six months of performance management and bingo, we’re at the 18 month point), things today not as cut and dry.

A lot of people have a very high tolerance to risk – perhaps they aren’t driven by a steady paycheck, maybe they are in search of the next Facebook, Box or Yelp. Those folks roll the dice on riskier companies that don’t always make it.

More people are consulting — test driving opportunities or just raking in higher compensation, particularly in some disciplines more than others. Their resume can look very choppy.

So as I evaluate the resume, the conversation becomes more direct—when did you leave and why? Was it performance related?  How long do you like to be at one company?

As a candidate, anticipating those questions and being honest about the situation is the only way to go.   The questions will come up, and the right answers will move you forward.

Whether you are a senior engineer, designer, in marketing or sales, or a CXO, it’s now commonplace to be asked to do a presentation during interviews for a new job. Often, just after you’ve been escorted in and offered the standard coffee or water, you’re on deck to present *something* to the hiring team.

The team gathered before you is assessing your presence.  Determining if you are compelling. They are looking for style—are you an analytic, creative, funny or serious? Are you appropriate for their culture? And, of course, whether it’s a summary of your career or an overview of a project, are they interested in your content?

But most of all, they are assessing whether you can take the ball and run with it. Clearly, in our accelerated pace, that’s a key component of success. Hiring someone who needs too much time to assess or needs too much direction may not be the best hire.

Presentations are a useful tool in the hiring process, far more so than a random series of 1/1 sessions. Companies get more texture and insight into a candidate. As for candidates, the more vetted you are, the better your odds of success should you land the role.

While he has pointed out potential (and I’d agree highly likely) flaws in his previous employer’s business practices, it’s seems to me that he may have damaged his own brand reputation more than that of Goldman’s. By attaching his criticisms to his resignation, his credibility instantly becomes a target.

We’ve all likely thought about how to leave a firm – and perhaps are tempted to offer our own two cents. Publicly or otherwise. I’ve been asked this question constantly as a recruiter: “How do I leave?” The answer: “Quietly. And with respect.”

A resignation is not the time to be a martyr. It may provide an immediate sense of satisfaction to your emotional side, but that upside is about as effective for your long-term career health as a sugar high.

Don’t damage your own brand in a heroic attempt to salvage another.

http://on.wsj.com/yWjCPN

Well said! I just sent an outstanding candidate to a start-up for a first round interview.

His feedback? The place “had no vibe”  and he could practically hear crickets because it was so quiet.  Not exactly a great impression.

Fortunately, the candidate is intrigued enough by the opportunity that he will be heading back for next rounds.   I will be sure to mention the importance of creating a great corporate culture to my client.   Don’t want anyone walking away for the wrong (and fixable) reason!

While great for the employee, employers simply can’t ignore the high cost of turnover.  One way to combat that and entice top talent to stay after the project is finished – create bridges to other challenging roles, rather than hierarchical career ladders.  Understand what they want to conquer next and find, or create, that role in your organization.

From Jobs to Roles: Who We are at Work is Changing