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Rachel Rudisill

4 Tips for a Successful Interview Follow-Up Call

By Rachel Rudisill on Thursday, July 11, 2013

Phew! You made it through the interview. But, if you thought the pressure would let up, think again. Now the waiting game begins, and you’re tasked with finding the perfect balance between disinterested, not following up at all, and pushy, calling twice a day to see if a decision has been made. Once the critical thank-you note is in the mail, the next big milestone is the follow-up call.

Because it’s sometimes difficult to gauge where a decision maker is in the interview process, you never know how much is riding on the short follow-up telephone conversation. Approach that important call with care by keeping these four tips in mind.

Ask the Right Questions
It’s critical that your last two questions during an interview are, “What are the next steps in the hiring process?” and “When can I expect to hear from you?” And, it is even more critical that you listen and take note of the answers. The interviewer’s response will provide the basis for crafting your follow-up call.

Do What They Said
While it might seem obvious, following the employer’s instructions is key at this stage of the game. If the interviewer tells you to call the HR manager in three days, then do it. This is another opportunity for you to prove that you are paying attention and can follow instructions.

Give It Time
Calling too soon can be just as bad as calling too late, so be strategic and purposeful about your timing. If you were told a decision would be made by a specific date, give it a few extra days before you make the call. Remember, the person who interviewed you probably has many other responsibilities, and filling the open position may not always take top priority.

Keep It Fresh
Before you make the phone call, consider a new nugget of information you can include in the conversation. Perhaps you can mention that you hope to see the interviewer at the next meeting for an association you both belong to. Or weave in an additional reason you think you’d be a good fit for the job. You want to continue to pique the employer’s curiosity so you remain top of mind.

Do you have additional tips on how to handle the follow-up call after an interview? Share them below in the comments section.

Resumes and Cover Letters

Are Cover Letters Extinct?

By Rachel Rudisill on Friday, July 5, 2013

Finding the job of your dreams isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s a continual cycle of searching for openings, tweaking your resume, customizing your cover letter, and following up. It’s natural to get worn down and look for short-cuts in this process, and the most common step to get cut is the cover letter. After all, it takes some serious thought to express in a few short paragraphs why you’re a good fit for the job and how you can benefit the employer, all while weaving in your personality and credentials. The rise in technology has made cutting cover letters short even more widespread over the past few years, leaving many job seekers to wonder – “are cover letters extinct?”

An Ongoing Argument
Unfortunately, employers have not reached a unified answer. Some, like Phil Rosenberg, president of reCareered, an online hub for job search advice, think cover letters have gone the way of the dinosaur. In a 2009 study his company conducted a survey of hiring managers, Rosenburg found “90% ignored them and 97% made a decision whether to interview or not based only on the resume.” While others, such as Don Charlton, founder and CEO of The Resumator, an online hiring software firm, strongly disagrees. Charlton explained in a CNN article, “The cover letter is the only thing you have that separates the person from being a candidate and being a human being.”

Technological Oversight
One of the primary reasons that cover letters get a bad rap is due to an oversight in applicant tracking systems. With the influx of workers looking for jobs over the past five years, companies and recruiting firms have been overwhelmed with candidates. As they’ve turned to automated systems to manage and sift through job seekers, many have left off the option to attach a cover letter or failed to set up a keyword search for cover letters. Often times, recruiters and hiring managers only select candidates by the results of keyword searches of resumes.

A Dilemma
So, what’s a job seeker to do? Unless an employer has specifically said not to include a cover letter, it’s better to be safe than sorry and go the extra mile of providing one. If you’re dealing with an online system, just attach both your resume and cover letter when you’re prompted to upload documents. When sending an email with your resume attached, use your cover letter as the email message. Your message might help the employer decide to go the next step and view your attachment. If you’re worried that not attaching your cover letter could mean it will be overlooked, or if you’re worried about printability, Beyond, a professional networking and job search site, suggests attaching it as a text file as well.

You never know which side of the debate an employer might stand on, so don’t take a chance. Extra work up front is worth it if it helps you land an interview and find the job you’ve been looking for.

In your job search, what’s been your experience – cover letter or no cover letter? Join in the conversation by sharing your thoughts below.

At Work Leadership Salary and Promotions Workplace Relationships

3 Ways to Build Influence

By Rachel Rudisill on Wednesday, July 3, 2013

When considering change and development in your career, it’s important to factor in your sphere of influence. Before you can impact a decision or bring forth an idea, you’ll need to establish a respected and involved in the process. To help define your place, it’s important to take proactive steps to develop your relationships, skills, and knowledge. Your sphere of influence is your ability to impact decisions and actions. It’s about being trusted, respected, and having a say in the decision making process. So, here are three ways you can build influence.

Be Reliable
Your ability to influence a conversation or decision begins with trust. One of the best ways to build trust is to be reliable. This includes being on time, avoiding gossip, being honest, and being consistent. Respect is earned over time and you can gain that by consistently taking care of your workplace tasks well.

Be Knowledgeable
This can be the most fun and interesting part of building your influence. Staying on top of industry trends, changes in market conditions, and technology developments in your field can lead to some great opportunities to build your influence. Make sure you’re aware of current events, legal changes that may impact your business, and your company’s current progress on its goals. By sharing what you’ve learned with your manager or applying your knowledge to your projects, you’ll demonstrate your desire to add value to the business and develop your skills.

Be Connected
Your relationships at work with your vendors, and in your professional community not only create opportunities for you, but are an asset in your sphere of influence. Make sure you’re building a network within your company. If your manager can rely on you to complete a requisition form in a short deadline or process a large shipping order because you’ve built relationships outside of your department, your ability to connect and collaborate will no doubt be an asset to the company. Additionally, by having relationships in your community, you may be able to contribute to sales development for your company. The value of connections with others is not to be underestimated.

In regards to the ideas here, how do you work to demonstrate reliability, and stay knowledgeable and connected? Share in the comments section below your personal tips for developing influence.

Career Options The Job Search Uncategorized

What is your biggest frustration as a job seeker?

By Rachel Rudisill on Monday, July 1, 2013

From pay to location to skill set, finding a job involves many factors. As a job seeker, what has been your biggest obstacle in finding the right match?

Poll closed July 18, 2013.

At Work Workplace Safety

Play It Safe to Reduce Bloodborne Pathogen Risks at Work

By Rachel Rudisill on Monday, June 24, 2013

If your job includes exposure to blood or other potential infectious materials, awareness of preventive measures and universal precautions are the first step toward safety. Here’s a brief FAQ on bloodborne pathogens (BBP), infectious microorganisms present in blood that cause disease in humans, to help get you up to speed on some of the best precautions.

What are universal precautions?
It’s best to treat all blood and body fluids as if they are infectious. Having the same procedure at all times makes it easier to follow and creates safe habits, so as an employee it’s important to know where these guidelines are in your company and follow them.

Guidelines for universal precautions include:

Wearing impervious gloves
Wearing gowns, eye protection, and masks as necessary
Cleaning areas in contact with body fluids with appropriate cleaning solution, like a 10 to 1 ratio of water and bleach.

What are engineering controls?
Engineering controls are items that isolate or remove BBP from the workplace, such as sharps disposal containers or needleless systems. Prevention is key in limiting exposure to BBP, and using the right equipment can make that easier. Make sure you understand where disposal containers for exposed items are located and what the process is for handling contaminated materials. Use gloves, gowns, eye protection, and masks accordingly and make sure they are of good quality, free of tears, and not expired or worn out.

What are work practice controls?
Having the right equipment or engineering control is great, but the next step is work practices. Work practices are the way you do things to prevent that exposure. This means being aware of and understanding your job duties and procedures in order to conduct yourself in the safest way possible. Consider things like how specimens are handled, how laundry is done, and how cleaning is completed.

For more information on bloodborne pathogens, check out this fact sheet from OSHA.

Have you experienced any innovative practices to prevent the dangers of bloodborne pathogens? Share your experiences in the comments section below.

At Work Career Advancement Leadership

Going Above and Beyond at Work

By Rachel Rudisill on Tuesday, June 18, 2013

CareerBuilder recently shared a survey by Harris Interactive that asked “What is the strangest thing your boss has asked you to do?” The responses ranged from asking for money to seeking a surrogate mother to helping with pets. Requests like these can be awkward. But how should you handle a more typical assignment at work that is still beyond your job description? Here are few things to consider when evaluating a new request.

Can You Learn New Skills?
If you’re asked to take on a new task, like pitching in on a project or managing a contract with a new vendor, consider the opportunity to learn a new skill. If you’re not sure it aligns with your role, ask your manager to clarify your relationship to this project. Sometimes, a particular project won’t be in your current job description because it’s a new advancement for the company and it’s not yet on anyone’s responsibility list. However, if you’re worried the project would pull you further away from your critical role, don’t be afraid to share that concern.

Is it Safe?
While companies often have standards and rules in place to keep employees safe, you shouldn’t hesitate to ask what policies and procedures would directly apply to a new project. If you’re asked to do something new, find out what the training process will be and how your work will be reviewed. Showing your concern for getting the job done right should be appreciated. If necessary, check in with your supervisor or HR team to clarify whether the task and the work environment are in line with company standards and procedures.

Are You Qualified?
Ask your manager why he or she believes you are qualified to take on a new project. If it’s a task someone else has handled, ask what their experience and education was before they began the work. If the requested task isn’t part of your job description, you shouldn’t be embarrassed to say you don’t know how to do something or that you don’t understand the task.

To make things easier, now’s a good time to clarify your role prior to additional requests coming up. Get a copy of your job description and review it with your manager. An easy way to approach this is by telling your boss you want to make sure you’re clear on your responsibilities and essential job functions.

While it’s important to stay open to new opportunities at work, make sure they align with your professional goals and expertise to ensure the highest level of success. Do you have a story of when an extra task turned into a great skill building opportunity? Share it in the comments sections below.

At Work Career Advancement

Common Workplace Mistakes that Could Stunt Your Career

By Rachel Rudisill on Friday, June 14, 2013

If you’re looking to advance your career, make sure you aren’t letting simple things stop you from making a good impression.

Dressing Unprofessionally
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.” For men and women, professional dress can be an easy thing to let slip. What you may not realize is that for managers and HR professionals, addressing your personal style is often a sticky situation. They’ve probably put off the awkward conversation about it as long as possible. Because leaders don’t want to offend their employees, they may only address the issue when it becomes absolutely necessary, which means the damage to your professional reputation may have already been done.

Your image is often the only impression co-workers and senior leaders outside your department have of you. You don’t want your wrinkly, stained clothing or unkempt hair to be how they think of you instead of your hard work and expertise. Take time to consider what your personal style is saying about you before you have to do damage control.

Being Late
There is something to be said for being on time. It can make you the “go to” person for certain tasks or opportunities simply because you are known for being punctual. For example, you may get to greet customers arriving for a sales presentation or be a critical asset in covering phone calls. However, if you are the person that thinks it’s okay to show up five minutes after the meeting has started, you could be breaking down trust with your co-workers and managers. If you can’t show up on time regularly, your ability to manage additional projects or take on new responsibilities could be questioned.

Being Unprepared
If you’re asked to attend a meeting or complete a task, realize that you’ve just been given the opportunity to shine. Make sure you ask the right questions to understand the project at hand so you can contribute appropriately and efficiently. If a particular topic requires you to run reports or check inventory supplies, do that prior to the meeting so you can come ready to share and get to work. If you need to get bids or survey customers to complete a project, factor that into your timeline so you’ll be able to meet your deadlines. Your co-workers and leaders are counting on you, so make sure to take time to prepare.

Have you ever been surprised about an observation regarding your work style? Share your experience in the comments section below.