Abstract
In the current professional job markets it is no longer sufficient to post resume and expect a call back from the employer. Most professional are aware of this reality. But what is the alternative way to seek jobs? How do you organize the job search? What should you do to avoid “me too” resume submission? What is the timeframe for expecting a new employment?
This paper describes a unique “Job Search to Job Creation Program” launched in January 2009 by PMI Silicon Valley Chapter to addresses the needs of members in job transition.
A unique job search framework with supporting tools was created. A roadmap of activities was created and implemented utilizing volunteers and professionals. This program has resulted in many new opportunities and more than 25 members getting jobs. The program and results are shared below.
Introduction
The Current Economic Situation
As of July 2009, national unemployment reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reached 11.4%, the highest it has been for many decades. The rate of job losses has reduced from 645,000 to 331,000 from the previous bimonthly reported period. The total unemployed is now 14.5 million persons. Employment in the professional and business services group was also reported to be down by 38,000 thousand in July, with total job losses reported to be 1.5 million. The number of long-term unemployed (more than 27 weeks) rose by 584,000 to an estimate of 5 million. Many unemployed have exhausted their unemployment benefits and have simply stopped looking and therefore are not counted. As a result, many believe the true unemployment rate is closer to 19% or 20% unemployment.
During mid-2008 and early 2009, monthly Silicon Valley Chapter breakfast meetings revealed (by a show of hands) unemployed to be approximately one third of the attendees. Another one fourth of attending members indicated that they feared a change in their employment within a quarter. This revelation led to the formation of the “PMI Silicon Valley Job Search Group” (Job Search Group) in January, 2009.
Over the last 8 months, based on breakfast registrations, the group has grown to more than 365 professionals. The associated communication groups at Yahoo and LinkedIn have 265+ and 110+ members, respectively. With PMI Silicon Valley Chapter (PMISV) membership exceeding 2,000, the Job Search Group represents approximately 18.25% of the total membership. Although not an official percentage, it is a strong indicator of the impact on our community.
Unemployed Members’ Observations
Job seekers are finding it harder and harder to find jobs. Many have been out of work for 5 months or longer. Some even have not worked for a year or more in their profession, and have had to work at odd jobs outside of their profession to marginally sustain them. Most unemployed members have PMP certification and 15+ years of experience in their fields. The Job Search Group collected member skills data. As expected, because of our Silicon Valley “High Tech” business emphasis, the skills database revealed majority of members to be from the IT industry.
However, many professionals have skills in almost every major industry (e.g., medical, manufacturing, construction, pharmaceutical, aerospace, defense, etc.).
Issues Facing the Members in Transition
Many of our members, particularly those who have worked within one tightly defined industry or with one company for two or more decades, have not needed job-searching skills during their career span. Employers are looking for “what can you do for me now” rather than “you have potential and it can be nurtured over time” for long-term growth. There are new ways to write resumes, cover letters, and value proposition that address the employer's immediate needs. Most job seekers lack the skills to craft an effective resume with content reflecting their values to the employers and their personal suite of personality and skills or brand. Some job seekers have written six or seven pages of professional experience. Most job seekers do not know how to write a cover letter that will highlight key interest items to the recruiters and hiring managers.
In the past, job seekers did not need these refinements due to abundance of employment opportunities; most job seekers were “discovered” or known to the prospective employers. In the professional circles, their skills were known and a new job was available within a week or so. Many job seekers could simply post their resumes on employment boards and expect employer response within days. In today's market, the data shows that more than 85% of new jobs are not even posted.
Most Job Search Group members have posted their resumes and cover letters at companies of interest and popular job boards, with very few responses. Job seekers are frustrated and confused. This situation will get worse with more layoffs and fewer job postings. In addition, many desperate job searchers have fallen victim to arcane or poorly informed, false advice, raised hopes, and coaching. Many so-called career coaching and professional advisers have taken advantage of the unemployed by charging hundreds and in some cases thousands of dollars for career advice and resume writing services that amount to very little real value in the current job market.
What is Required?
During the past 8 months of working with the PMISV Job Search Group members in this economic environment of fewer jobs and increasing numbers of job seekers, the following have become very clear:
- There is a need for a focused effort on knowledge creation, education, and skills trainings essential for job seekers. This training must include the self discovery of one's value to employers, resume collateral, skills to discover jobs, preparation for interviews, networking for jobs, managing their job search campaign, negotiations, and transition. Another essential task is to continue to take short courses on tools and techniques, and to participate in awareness sessions to cover any perceived gaps. All this in addition to keeping self-motivated and on track for finding the next job.
- There is high competition, and it is essential for members to have a carefully planned career development roadmap which is proactively managed throughout their career. This skill is not taught at schools, and often people are not even aware of the need to have a well-planned career path to reach their full potential. Mentoring and coaching are not sufficient. A well-organized framework with a milestone-based development plan is required.
- The job seeker is vulnerable. Without awareness training, many have fallen victim to signing exclusive job search contracts, paid upfront fees to “professionals” for coaching, and have wasted valuable time and resources. Awareness of vulnerability to exclusive recruiter contracts, coaching, resume and cover letter writing, being “promised” a job for an upfront fee, unnecessary certifications, skills and education services, and many such items are essential. Most don't need professional help. Some counseling is helpful to people that have been out of work for a while and are subdued or even depressed. It is essential that all job seekers be aware of such vulnerabilities and are able to deal with these situations.
- The new job-seeking paradigm demands that creative ways be found to obtaining and creating jobs. Job search has to include the use of networking and various social media. This shift requires job seekers and those currently employed to be vigilant and keep up-to-date with current internet and social media technologies such as LinkedIn, Plaxo, Facebook, Google, and Yahoo groups and applications, including Twitter and many others.
The Solution
The PMI Silicon Valley Chapter (PMISV) has addressed these needs by creating the PMISV Job Search Group and the Job Search To Job Creation Program (Job Search Program). This program offers low-to-no-cost lectures, professional workshops, and skills training professional coaching, and has formed eight special interest groups to support the needs of the members in transition. The Job Search Program and the results thus far (since January 2009 through September 2009) are described in the following sections.
Job Search to Job Creation: PMI Silicon Valley Job Search Program
To address the needs of members in transition the PMI Silicon Valley Job Search Group (Job Search Group) was formed. A unique framework was created to outline the job search process and required results. A roadmap of activities was created and implemented using volunteers and professionals to ensure the right training and skills transfer occurs. The following items were completed before launching the program:
- Overview and Concept
- The Charter
- Steering Committee
- Job Search Group Vision, Mission, and Goals
- Board Approval
- The Job Search Plan and Execution with Group Activities
- The Job Search Framework and Career Framework
- The Job Search Program Results
- Job Search to Job Creation
Overview and Concept
The “Job Search: Solutions for Silicon Valley Workers” was conceived during Q3 2008, initiated in January 2009. Over the past 8 months, it has evolved to “Job Search to Job Creation: PMI Silicon Valley Job Search Program” (Job Search Group). This is an ambitious program with a roadmap of focused activities and workshops to addresses the needs of unemployed and underemployed members.
The Charter
The Job Search Group focused on matching prospective employer and members by:
a) Providing skills and tools necessary for the project managers to effectively present their skills and experiences
b) Provide project managers with the opportunities to learn more about prospective employers’ needs and challenges
c) Provide a forum for sharing job search experiences to enable continued learning
d) Target audience: the unemployed and/or underemployed project managers seeking employment and job search assistance
e) Scope: itemize in scope and out of scope program items
f) Focus on unique values
• Personalized focused attention
• Motivational format for job seekers
• Mentoring by Project Management Professionals (PMPs)®
• Assisting the job seeker in creating a career development plan
• Ability to leverage current PMI and partner's programs
• Current employer partnerships
g) The budget and financials
• The plan was to self-sustain the group with no initial budget
• Plan the budget on a program-by-program basis
Steering Committee
The Steering Committee was formed with members to create the charter, vision, goals, and objectives and to get program approval from PMISV BOD.
The Committee members:
- Mahmood Khan (Dir. Professional Development) – Led the effort and represented the overall program planning, governance, and execution of the program
- Renee Reemy (PMISV Member) – An advisor with mentoring and professional coaching experience
- Harish Chinai (BOD) - Past president and previous lead for the job search group
- Srinivas Ramakuri (BOD) – Previous president and the sponsor of the Job Search Group proposed in 2008
- Irma Parez (BOD) – HR credentials
- Mark Pool (PMISV Member) - joined the committee to support the Job Fair effort.
Job Search Group Vision
To empower members to TAKE CHARGE of their own job search and provide knowledge tools and certifiable skills to manage their career for a lifetime.
Job Search Group Mission and Goals
The following goals were originally conceived and have remained largely unchanged:
- Provide job search framework—preparation, creating and executing campaign, 1st 100 days, post–job career management
- Provide professional coaching
- Facilitate employer and members matching
- Provide a forum for learning and networking
- Provide professional, skills, and knowledge
- Share and leverage collective experiences, knowledge, and skills to fill gaps
Board Approval
The board unanimously approved the proposal.
The Job Search Plan and Execution
Based on the Vision, Mission, and Goals, a roadmap of events and activities was created with major milestones with key dates. Exhibit 1 illustrates these activities and milestones.
Exhibit 1: Job search and transition roadmap.
Workshops and Weekly Activities
The activities consisted of weekly breakfast meetings, skills workshops, and professional coaching classes every 4 to 6 weeks. These were designed to ensure the best possible low-cost opportunities for all members to attend and in which to participate. Almost all of the weekly events and presentation were run by volunteers or professionals who donated their time to this group. The meeting rooms were donated by Hewlett Packard and The San Jose Water Company. Special arrangements were made with professional coaches. The professional classes were heavily discounted, with the vast majority of presentations and workshops at incidentals-cost only.
Job Fairs
Two job fairs were organized. The job fair included integrated workshops carefully planned to support the Candidates seeking jobs as well as hiring managers. Desks with volunteers and subject matter experts were available for one-on-one interviews, coaching, resume review and printing, interviewing techniques review, negotiations, and other needed counselling during the job fair. A conference section was added in Job Fair #2 that included panel discussions and presentations.
The Job Search Skills Boot Camp Prior to Job Fair #2
A series of project manager toolkit workshops were conducted. These included presentations and skills workshops to prepare members to polish their project management skills.
| Workshops/Seminars Planned for Delivery Before the Job Fair #2 | # |
| Professional Coaching workshops | 6 |
| Job Search in 30 Days workshops | 5 |
| ERP/CRM: Order to Cash | 2 |
| Cloud Computing | 2 |
| Teamwork and Collaboration | 2 |
| Discover Hidden Jobs | 2 |
| Alternative Energy – Wind, Solar, Geo, Grid Technologies | 6 |
| Microsoft 2003/2007 tools: Project, Excel (Intermediate and Advance), Powerpoint (Intermediate and Advance), Word (Intermediate and Advance), Outlook, Visio | 7 |
| Brainstorming with Mindmap and Visio | 2 |
| Job Fair Panel Discussion | 2 |
Scholarships Committee
A committee was formed to distribute residuals from the job fair sponsorships and fee-based workshops as scholarships. A list of criteria was outlined to score and qualify applicants for scholarship funds. All information has been kept in strict confidence. Approximately US$2,000 has been distributed to nine scholarship recipients thus far. In addition, all volunteers receive free access to weekly events, and, in some cases, workshops offered by partners.
The Networking Groups
Professional networking groups were formed to support the Job Search Group activities. These groups include LinkedIn and the Job Search Group, as well as all of the subgroups. Networking tools such as Sococo Team Space was added to facilitate small group discussion and presentations.
The Job Search Subgroups
Special interest Job Search subgroups were formed to create tools, techniques, and the collateral to educate and create awareness of the subject matter. These groups are illustrated in Exhibit 2.
Exhibit 2: Job Search and Career Management Framework.
The Job Search Program Results
The Job Search Program kickoff took place on January 9, 2009. Since then, there have been weekly breakfast meetings, special presentations, virtual sessions, and coaching workshops, as well as member lead skills and awareness presentations. A summary of all of the events is included below (Exhibit 4).
Job Search Activities since January 9th 2009 through September 2009 are summarized below:
Exhibit 4: Job Search program statistics summary.
In addition, during September and October 2009, approximately 8 to 10 “Boot Camps” and special workshops were being planned.
Exhibit 5: Total successful job transitions.
Job Search to Job Creation
The Job Search Group has come up with a few innovative ideas. These ideas and methods result in creating jobs. The group motto is “if you can't find a job, create one.” Several initiatives have been launched to enable “Job Search to Job Creation.” These are brilliant ideas with the potential of creating new alliances between members and the local entrepreneurial companies to create new wealth and rapid job growth. The following are two such examples:
- Partnerships with local companies with limited resources
- Volunteer to research in key emerging field of interest and present the findings
Partnership with Local Companies with Limited Resources
The members with specific interest in a domain or industry offer their services as program/project manager, business analyst, or product manager, or offer a core skill to companies with limited resources. In return, the partner company allows the job seeker to become an unpaid intern. The benefit to the company is much-needed services they cannot afford. The intern gains the knowledge, skills, and expertise of interest. This also helps in filling the employment gap and allowing the job seeker to update his or her resume with the experience gained. Also, if a job opens up at the partner company, the volunteer has an excellent chance of applying and getting employment.
Several such examples exist. Sococo is such an example. It is a start-up company with a new innovative “virtual office” or “Team Space” on the internet. The product is in Beta and the volunteers are helping in the trials, in product management, and in designing their marketing strategy. Others are not mentioned due to proprietary nature of their work. They are in Order to Cash, ERP, Cloud Computing, SaaS, and Alternative Energy.
Volunteering to Research in a Key Emerging Field of Interest and Present Findings
The members with specific interest in an emerging market team-up to undertake a feasibility study or market research with potential job opportunities. Unlike a Special Interest Group, these focus on discovering jobs, and the outcome is quick employability. The goal is to become a subject matter expert in the target domain or technology applying their overlapping core competencies. The results are presentations to members at large to hone their presentation skills. Ultimately, the newfound skills can position the job seekers in a favorable way to the target job market and employers—thereby literally creating a job market that was previously not open to them.
Several key areas have been explored and have resulted in several individuals gaining employment:
- ERP/CRM Order to Cash: A small team led by a strong leader created a powerful presentation based on his knowledge of SAP technologies and process flows. Two presentations were shared with more than 100 members. The presentation was taken nationally and delivered as a webinar. The leader is still a national presenter and has been offered a job in the related implementation.
- SaaS and Cloud Computing: Another leader created an awareness of Software as a Service (SaaS) within the Job Search Group. The Cloud Computing and SaaS presentation was finalized with more than 100 members attending two sessions. Eventually the lead found himself a job in the relevant field.
- Alternative Energy: A small group has formed the research group and created a first-class market research in five key areas of alternative energy: wind, solar, bio, geo power, and smart grid. The presentations are scheduled to be delivered in mid-September. Alternative energy is a prime area for growth. Alliances are expected with PG&E, Stellar, Echelon, new start-ups, and government initiatives. Volunteers with newly gained insights expect to gain employment soon.
What's Next?
During the past few months, the job statistics published for the Bay Area counties continue to show unemployment in the range of 11.7% to 12.7%. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara unemployment was 11.8% in July, down in part to an unknown number of people who fell from the unemployment EDD financial support, and therefore were not counted. This is only slightly better than 11.9 % in June 2009. A year ago, the unemployment was only 6.3 %.
Experienced professionals and business services have not escaped this increase in job losses. There were 9,100 professional job losses in Silicon Valley. These were highly experienced professionals, scientists and technical services personnel.
What does this mean? This means we must continue our efforts and be more productive and innovative until we resolve this crisis.
Conclusion
Job Search Program has turned out to be one of the most significant programs in the PMI Silicon Valley chapter's history. We undertook this program because we saw members in need. We mobilized a large percentage of Silicon Valley PMI members seeking jobs to actively participate in this program. Many had little experience in seeking jobs, let alone sufficient capability to be effective during the largest recession of our times. All those who attended our programs benefited enormously, from discovering their passions to getting their certifications and receiving PDUs to maintain their credentials. Twenty-five members have found employment. Some have even launched new careers and have found newly found strengths. Participants and volunteers have achieved something valuable while innovating their way forward.
It has become clear that there is hope and opportunities. In a true Silicon Valley spirit with “can-do” attitude and innovative nature, we shall overcome this economic downturn, without a doubt.