Job Descriptions

What is it with Job Descriptions ? Why are they not straight forward ? I mean, some times it feels like when you are going for a job that they think you know everything. They try to be that little bit too technical about describing the role.

I feel a little lost when I open the jobs section and I see all this fancy explanations about what they require from the applicants. I mean how hard is it to write these descriptions ?

Here is one I came across today

Person specification:-

* Degree level in Business, Arts, or Marketing
* Six months sales experience is ideal
* Experience in recruitment is an advantage
* Dynamic
* Motivated
* Ambitious
* Self-stater

After a period of training the successful person will:-

* Develop business through cold calling and lead generation
* Demonstrate sales ability and hit targets
* Promote and present our suite of products to HR professionals
* Build new relationships and strengthen existing ones
* Provide client support

The Opportunity

Work with one of Ireland’s most dynamic and best known brands, as part of one of the most successful sales teams in the country. Develop your presentation/client facing skills through sales meetings with HR Managers/Directors throughout Dublin and beyond.

Executives who achieve are given the opportunity to travel abroad and work for our sister companies, as well as promotions within Ireland for star performers.

Time to hit the jobs sites

Many weeks ago I I tried the newspaper listing approach and sent off some CVs to companies, and results are still out on this one. But now I think I need to start to look to agencies and recruitment websites. These types of sites have 2 approaches:

1. you upload your CV and someone matches jobs for you.
2. you upload your CV and forward it to job offers you like.

I also had another idea that I would generate a number of profiles targetting different types of jobs that I can do. I will make a unique email address for these and give a very defined job description/motivation of what I am looking for.

Jobs Sites to target

• Jobs in Ireland
• EmployIreland.com
• Monster.ie
• Recruitireland.com
• jobs.ie
• Nicemove.ie
• Salesjobs.ie
• irishjobs.ie

Job Searching Tips

I've been thinking really hard recently about some tips to give people when they are apply for a job. And all I can ever come up with is a list of don't rather than a list of do. There are some of the things that I know I have done in the past, maybe they can help you a little. So here is 20 things you should not do in an interview :

1. Eat your lunch during the interview.
   
2. State that, if you are hired, you would demonstrate your loyalty by having the corporate logo tattooed on your arm.
3. Pick your nose.
4. As who the lovely looking chick in the picture on their desk.
   
5. Flirt with the receptionist.
   
6. Ask them what their favourite shots are.
7. Tell them that you want their position within the year.
8. Question their sense of dress.
9. Ask to talk to their boss.
10. Bring a copy of Penthouse with you to read in the reception.
    
11. When asked about your hobbies, jump up and show them some cool dance moves.
12. Tell them that you are only at the interview to get the unemployment office off your back.
    
13. Ask the interviewer can you use their phone.
14. Fart.
15. Bring a Polaroid camera and ask for a picture of the interviewer. Say you have a collection of over 100 of these.
    
16. Pick your teeth.
17. Discuss what you last saw at the cinema.
18. Ask if the interviewer is married.
19. Pretend to cry, in order to get sympathy.
    
20. Lie.
    

That last one was a little hard for me in my latest round of interviews.

The first PFO

I just got my first PFO today for XX company. Seeing as I had applied for their graduate program, way back in January, I wasn't expecting to hear anything. The PFO it's self was rather lame, saying thanks for my application and showing an interest in the company, etc.

It's funny, when I was opening the letter this morning I was sitting and thinking, and I was rather excited about finally getting a job, but then the dread of having to clean myself up and go for an interview came over me too. Thankfully I found out I didn't have to do an interview once I read on. But for those 3 seconds there was a little chill down my spine.

I think I need to mentally prepare myself for the prospect of an interview and take it from there.

Reading some books on Careers

I've a bit of free time while I wait for An Post to deliver my letters to their recipients. So today I took myself off to Waterstones to get some books. One that I couldn't resit buying is "Your Dream Career for Dummies". Right now I must say the tips are quite bland, but seeing as I have time on my paws I will continue with it.

If anyone has any reading material recommendations, please pass them on.

finger licking stamps

39 stamps cost me €21.45. And the newspaper was about a €1. So with my investment in my career of under €30 (pens,envelopes, printer paper) I'm ready to see what kind of a return of investment I am going to get. I picked up the Irish Examiner this morning and I've found 14 jobs that would interest me, but only 2 that I am qualified for. So I think I will take the gamble and send the CVs to everyone and see where I get with them. Am I pissing in the wind with this method ?

Sending off CVs

Here are the 40 or so envelopes I've prepared today. They are all stamped and ready to go. They have 1 CV and 1 cover letter explaining my reasons for applying. It's all pretty general in the cover letter. I thought that I would spend some time writing a good cover letter , so that I would grab the agencies attention , all of this I did yesterday.
And then I finished off the CV. So now I just need to trawl through a few newspapers tomorrow. I think the Irish Examiner has a pretty big jobs section, so that will be the first port of call at the news agents tomorrow. Then I am going to start with the online applications.

I have some ideas as how to track these applications and hopefully I will be sharing these with you in the next few days and weeks. I realise that for getting a job in ireland I will need some sort of system, to track things. But you are going to have to stay tuned for that. ;)