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How do you prepare for your first day at a new job?

Here are quick tips for recent graduates getting ready for their first day at a new job. 

1. Forget what the job description says.
Clinging to preconceived ideas about your job will only lead to disappointment. Economic situations change, mergers and acquisitions happen, and managers move on. Realize that your job is to do the best work you possibly can while maintaining a positive attitude and the ability to adapt with grace to those inevitable changes.   

 2. Adopt an “I want to learn” attitude.
No one expects you to know how to do everything on your first day. Managers and co-workers expect you to ask questions. Take advantage of their willingness to help you now, because in a few months you will be expected to do your job without as much friendly input.

3. Start a “before-work” ritual to get you revved up for the workday ahead.
To attain peak performance each day, your energy level must remain high. Get in the habit of eating a good breakfast, reading the online trades pertaining to your industry, and doing a bit of exercise before you start your commute to work. Do whatever enables you to clear your mind and start the day with a burst of energy. A good book about managing your energy at work is “The Corporate Athlete,” by Jack Groppel.

4. Stash a few snacks in a purse, briefcase, or shoulder bag.
Often you will be expected to meet with several people on your first day. Occasionally, your need to eat lunch will be overlooked. Be prepared for this by packing a few easy-to-eat and nutritious snacks. 

Should You Negotiate Your Starting Salary in This Economy?

Many college students are worried about finding a job after they graduate. And many are wondering if they should just accept any offer that comes along. The answer is no, you should not accept any offer. Here’s an example of when it’s ok to enter a starting salary negotiation.  

Q: I received a job offer, but the starting salary is much lower than I was hoping for. Much Lower! I really want to work for this company, but I simply can’t live off of what they’re offering. How can I negotiate a better starting salary?

A: Chances are your initial offer will be delivered verbally, or in the form of a letter. Here are some tips for what to do if you receive a less than satisfactory offer verbally (i.e. the employer calls you, or offers you the job on the spot):

Thank them for the offer. Tell them that you are excited about a potential future with the company, but that you need a little time to think about it. Ask politely if it would be alright if you called them tomorrow.

At this point they may ask you what you need to consider. You can tell them that the offer is lower than you had anticipated and that based on your skills and experience you were really hoping for a salary range of X to Y.

Be sure to state that your salary expectations were based on what you have to offer the company, not simply because you wanted to make more money.

They may ask you what range you had in mind. Do not say “I don’t know”. Give them a range. Usually a spread of $3000 is an indication that you know what you’re worth. A range of $10,000 makes it look like you’re just hoping they’ll offer you more money. They won’t.

The person interviewing you either has a range they can approve, or they have one number they were authorized to offer. They may offer you more money, or say they’ll have to get back to you.

If they say that you’ll be up for a review in a year, but they could move that up to six months… and that you should just take the current offer because your salary will increase in six months, ask them to put it in writing. This is a common tactic used in salary negotiations, and new college grads rarely actually see any increase in salary. The economy could change even more drastically in six months, the company could go through a restructuring, or something else could happen. Never take a promise for what could happen down the road in place of a higher starting salary.

Make sure you know before you even start negotiating what you are willing to accept, and under what circumstances you would rather walk away. In other words, what is your best alternative to a negotiated agreement (BATNA)?   

If you receive the offer via email or letter, simply call the person you are instructed to contact with your answer, and explain that you are excited about the offer, but are slightly disappointed by the starting salary. Use the reasoning given in the tips above as you proceed through negotiations, and good luck!

Top 20 Companies That Are Hiring

Amidst the hundreds of thousands of layoffs being announced every month, there are at least 20 companies still looking for employees (source: CNN Money). Consider these companies for internships as well. In our opinion, the best two companies to target in 2009 for business majors are PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young.

There will be a lot of competition for these jobs, so make sure your resumes, cover letters, and interviewing skills are polished.   

Check out the web sites of these 20 companies or go to GradtoGreat.com for more information about companies that hire college grads. 

-Accounting-

1. KPMG 
(Positions in a wide range of areas, from administrative assistants to IT associates to tax and audit managers)

 -Consulting/Business/Professional Services-

2. Accenture 
(Specific IT skills, such as Java, J2EE, industry expertise and government secured clearances. Also hiring for corporate roles that include finance and sales development.) 

3. Booz Allen Hamilton  
(Software and systems engineers, information assurance and security engineers, and intelligence analysts with access to classified information)

4. Ernst & Young
(Looking to hire 5,000 college graduates in 2009 from campus recruiting events) 

5. PricewaterhouseCoopers 
(Looking to hire 2,000 students on campus for winter and summer ‘09 internships in firm’s three core business units) 

-Education-

6. Bright Horizons
(Center and school staff, center and school leadership positions, benefits, client services (sales), payroll, property management, information technology, marketing.)

-Finance-

7. Edward Jones
(Financial advisors and branch office administrators)  

-Healthcare-

8. Baptist Health South Florida
(Talent in all areas, especially RNs, allied health professionals and clerical/administrative staff)

9. Mayo Clinic
(Nursing, laboratories (e.g., research and lab technicians), healthcare professionals (e.g., pharmacists and therapists)). 

10. Methodist Hospital System
(Management, nursing, clinical professionals, non-clinical professionals (such as IT and HR), entry level support services (such as housekeeping and dietary) and administrative/clerical jobs) 

11. Scripps Health
(Executives, managers, staff nurses (RN), imaging techs, pharmacists, IT, and service and support people)

-Retail-

12. Publix
(People for retail grocery stores, information systems, manufacturing, distribution and other support offices)

 13. T-Mobile
( Retail sales, customer service, sales, engineering & operations, EIT, finance, product development, legal affairs, business operations, human resources, marketing, integrated customer experience, corporate communications )

14. Whole Foods Markets
( Retail and non-retail. Positions range from administrative jobs like accounting and IT to store-specific jobs in all departments) 

15. Wegmans
(Grocery store in the northeast looking to hire for in-store positions)  

-Technology-

16. Cisco Systems

17. Genentech
(People in engineering disciplines and customer advocacy)

 18. Google  
(Engineering, marketing, product management, people operations, legal, sales)

19. Microsoft
(software design engineers, financial analysts, human resources, administrative and marketing and sales talent, particularly in online ad sales) 

Other

20. Burns & McDonnell
(Engineering, architecture, construction management) 

The Grad to Great blog for college students and recent grads has moved. Please join us at GradtoGreat.com/blog.   

 

Should College Students Be Allowed to Pay for Internships?

It appears that nowadays in order to get an internship, you don’t have to be more qualified than your competition, you just have to be wealthier. In her WSJ column today, Sue Shellenbarger explores the phenomenon of parents paying big bucks to secure internships for their children.

Don’t feel like fetching coffee or filing paperwork? No problem. Just ask your folks to buy you an internship where you’ll be guaranteed a few weeks of “quality assignments” at your dream job. The asking price: anywhere from $3000 to $12,000.  

Fundraisers for charities are even benefitting from this practice. According to the two fundraising Web sites mentioned in the article, internships are being auctioned off as a way to raise money for all sorts of non-profit organizations. A one-week internship at a music-production company went for $12,000 just last month.  

Some of the organizations that take part in selling internships include: Rolling Stone, Elle magazine and Atlantic Records. You’ll want to contact University of Dreams or Brill Street & Co. if you’re interested in those types of internships and more. But you can also pay your way to an internship on Capitol Hill, by signing up with the Washington Internship Program.

I personally find this practice appalling, but I understand wanting to get ahead in your career. Also, I don’t blame parents for wanting to make sure their kids get the best start in life, but I do blame companies for expecting college kids to not only work for free, but to make them pay thousands of dollars? Before I finally landed a job as a television news producer over ten years ago, I completed three unpaid internships that I didn’t even receive college credit for. But, there is no way I would have been able to pay thousands of dollars for those internships. 

I imagine we will be seeing more and more of this. So what do you think?

If you’re currently a college student searching for an internship, would you be willing to pay thousands of dollars to gain experience that you might not otherwise be able to get in this economy? Or, do you find this trend caters to the rich and creates an unfair advantage in the workplace? 

If you work for a company that offers these types of internships, what is your opinion?

Read the full WSJ article.

Free Online Job Fair Feb. 3, 2009

I recently came across a press release announcing an upcoming virtual career fair and thought I’d pass this along in case we have any techies out there looking for a job. VisualCV, Inc. and eJobFairs.net announced yesterday that they will host an online career fair on February 3rd of this year. They’re saying they already have more than 20 employers and recruiters who will offer a range of positions within the high tech sector. I would bet there will be more recruiting firms than anything else, but it may be worth checking out anyway. 

The event will take place from 10am to 3pm EST on Tuesday 3rd February. To register for the online job fair visit www.visualcvjobfairs.com. Participation is free for job seekers however candidates are required to have a VisualCV, which is also free and can be created at www.visualcv.com.

According to Jason Vrane, Vice President of Client Services for Complete Career Network Inc.,”These live and fully interactive job fairs are not virtual, they are real events where job seekers and employers meet and interview one-on-one with each other in real time.” 

IT and technology companies like Graham Staffing, Hoffman CFO, Mansonboro Partners, Motley Fool, Nextforce, Proxy Personnel, Rosetta, SportsPlex, The Heiden Group, and The Richmond Group are already signed up for the eJobFair, using their own company VisualCV as a way to communicate why they are a great place to work and list the vacant positions they are seeking to fill. 

If you participate in this career fair, please come back and give us your feedback. If you find this helpful we will include more articles about virtual career fairs on the GradtoGreat.com web site and updates about when these events take place in our newsletter. 

Excerpt from Chapter 4: Ace Any Job Interview

 

Grad to Great: Discover the Secrets to Success in Your First Career (Dalidaze Press, $18.50)

Beware of Questions Designed to Trip You Up

 

Christine, a senior executive at an investment bank, warns, “Some questions asked during the interview process are meant to kibosh you.” Consider number 21 from the list of sample questions on page 50 (Can you envision having your boss’s job?). What’s the real meaning behind this question? The interviewer asks you this question to determine if you are ambitious and expect to be at your boss’s level within a year. If this company wants ambitious entry-level workers, they want you to say yes. But what if their corporate culture does not encourage new hires to advance too quickly? Then the response more likely to get you hired would be,”“Maybe in several years after I have gained enough experience.” How can you know how to interpret the real meaning behind the interviewer’s question? These tips were designed to help you get at the real meaning behind the question:

• Determine whether it’s a question that could be meant to “kibosh” you.
• Listen to the tone of the person’s voice.
• Give a culturally appropriate answer for the company with which you are interviewing. (Do your homework ahead of time and during your informational interviews.)
• Consider your tone of voice as you answer and think about what someone is likely to read into your tone.

Sally is a senior executive in Chicago. She advises to pay attention to the questions people ask you at a job interview because they say a lot about the company’s corporate culture:

• “Several years ago I was interviewing with a major retail company and they asked me a series of questions that all related back to what my reaction would be if my coworkers were stealing. They asked me what I would do if my inventory logs got stolen, or even, I think, if my purse were to be stolen. At the time it didn’t register, but guess what started to happen as soon as I started working there? My coworkers stole my inventory logs, and another colleague had her purse stolen. I later went to a different retail company and their questions were a stark contrast to my previous company. They asked me if I liked to make customers happy and if I genuinely liked people. It’s funny, but both companies told me in one interview exactly what their values were.”

Trade Jobs Imitate Britney Spears

My New Year’s prediction is that trade jobs will make a comeback waayyyy bigger than Britney’s. A resurgence of trade focused careers is on the horizon; with an emphasis on the production of goods, as opposed to providing intangible services. Think goodbye celebrity dog psychologist and hello Joe the Plumber. (Of course, he’s actually Joe the Reporter now, but his real plumber friends who actually have the proper credentials will be getting work anyway). 

So if trade jobs are going to be somewhat recession proof in the next ten years, (yes, I said ten years), what does that mean for the average student enrolled in a traditional 4-year college? If you’ve done your homework, it means you’re gunning for a job in one of the following so-called “recession proof” fields:

1. Accounting
2. Computer Science (network administration, security, software developers)
3. Education
4. Engineering
5. Environmentally Friendly
6. Government
7. Healthcare (Especially Nursing & Pharmacy)
8. Homeland Security/National Defense/Law Enforcement
9. Physical and Occupational Therapy

No job is ever truly recession proof though. As discussed in Grad to Great, you need to have a good attitude and be flexible enough to roll with management and operation changes in the workplace when they occur.  You need to make yourself be invaluable to your company during an economic downturn. To do this, be sure to maintain an optimistic outlook, and help your managers find solutions to their challenges in instead of complaining to them about yours.

We’re interested to know what  jobs are most appealing to you right now, in addition to what jobs you’ll be applying to soon? Check out our new Grad to Great job board for some ideas, and let us know what types of jobs you’d like to see posted there. Be sure to sign up for our FREE job tips and leads also.

How to Land an Internship Right Now

Did you know that companies need more help during a recession than when the economy is actually thriving? It’s true and the reason is simple. When companies have layoffs, fewer employees are expected to do the work that several employees once did. While this period of being overworked is no fun for the employees, it’s your ticket to securing an internship that otherwise may not have existed if the economy was in better shape.   

So where do you find all of these newly created and available internships? First, realize that not all of these internships have even been identified yet. So, that means there are two types of internships available to you. 1.) Internships available through formal internship programs within companies and that may be advertised through your on campus career center; 2.) Internships that companies create after you approach them and ask for one.   

I can tell you from my experience, that all of my former bosses wanted to hire interns at every single company I have ever worked. Often I was tasked with hiring interns, and I ran into the same problem over and over again. If I called up the campus career center and asked to be connected with professors who taught the subject matter we were interested in, the person answering the phone would insist that I open some online account with them and post jobs through the web site. That way, any student, whether they had the type of experience we wanted or not, could then post their resume for us, or send us an email. This process is cumbersome, and frankly just plain annoying. Forget it! 

Now, when students  approached me through email and explained how much they wanted to do an internship with our company, that would get my attention right away. Especially if we had not listed an internship opportunity anywhere. When a student takes the initiative to create their own job description and propose what the internship could look like, I know that student will have the ability to move initiatives forward as an employee as well. 

By the way, professors are great referrals because if they are impressed by a student, chances are an employer will be too. Professors teach hundreds or thousands of students each year. If they think you’re a standout, I guarantee an employer will think you’re outstanding. While you’re still in school, and even after you graduate, make it a point to be on good terms with your professors. 

So where can you find internships? Here’s a few creative ways to land an internship right away:

1. Visit the web sites of companies that interest you. Write a letter to the person in charge of the division at the company you want to work for. Forget the HR department for now. And this is not a cover letter. It’s a letter explaining your deep interest in this company,  and more specifically in that division. Clearly state that you want to do an internship for them, that you’ll work for free, and that you’re available immediately for part-time. 

2. Pick up the phone and call the person you want to work for. Ask if you can send over your resume and again, explaining your deep interest in this company,  and more specifically in that division. Clearly state that you want to do an internship for them, that you’ll work for free, and that you’re available immediately for part-time. 

3. Visit or call your campus career center and ask to learn about any opportunities they know about that may not yet be online.

4. Ask your professors, family, and friends about any companies they know of that might be willing to hire an intern. 

5. Pay for highly sought after internships.

6. Find an internship (that you don’t have to pay for) at YouIntern. 

Most of these positions will be unpaid, but don’t let that deter you from pursuing the internship. Don’t be put off if you don’t get college credit for the internship either. Getting experience in your chosen field, even unpaid/no credit experience, is worth ten times more than showing up to a job interview with a 4.0 GPA from your undergraduate university and having zero job experience . Employers want to know you can put theory into practice. And even if you’re only getting coffee for the senior executives at the company during your internship, you’re benefiting from learning about the decisions they have to make on a daily basis. You’re getting exposure to the industry. You’re learning the lingo of your chosen profession, which is not taught in the classroom. In other words, your starting (just starting) to pay your dues. So don’t let an unpaid internship slip through your fingers just because you think you should get paid.

For more career tips and job search opportunities, visit GradtoGreat.com and sign up for our FREE quarterly newsletter.

Two Ways Gen Y Can Save Money in 2009

With recession hanging over our heads and a depressed job market, we thought everyone could use some helpful money saving tips. Here are two great web sites that we love that will help you save money in 2009. 

BradsDeals.com was created by an alumnus of University of North Carolina and features more than 3,000 active coupon codes a day from more than 1,000 stores.

Restaurant.com is a fantastic and little known about site that allows you to buy gift certificates for eateries in your neighborhood for much less than the actual value. For example, buy a $25 gift certificate for $10. My mother-in-law told me about this site and we’ve used it several times. Works great and is totally legit. 

Sign up for our newsletter at GradtoGreat.com to learn about other money saving tips and job search strategies in 2009.