Web 2.0 reviews take a lot of space on the Jobacle roster. This week, we’re covering KODA. KODA is a small tech startup that is making a name for itself in various unique ways. From the press release: KODA launched its beta site on May 27, 2009. More professional than Facebook but more personal than Linked In, KODA allows both sides of the hiring equation to get to know each other by establishing profiles on the KODA platform. The result is that both the talent and the employer make more informed career and hiring decisions. While many of us are looking for a job, we also want a company that is going to appreciate us for the unique skills and talents that we bring to the table. KODA allows users to set up a profile that goes beyond the normal “experience and education” on a traditional resume. In fact, in recent years, the trend has been to make the resume completely professional and remove all traces of a personal life. KODA differentiates itself by … [Read more...] about KODA – The Opportunity Community
Career 2.0 Review
Bing & CareerBuilder Are Watching You
Launched with little fanfare and a miniscule budget (see video below), Microsoft's new search engine Bing and CareerBuilder have teamed up (using the Bing API) to bring you Applicant Explorer. Designed to give an employer more information about a job candidate, the app mines data that is available across the Web. That means that all of your forum postings, personal Websites, Press releases, blogs, and newspaper articles can come back to haunt you. (I realize they can help you too!)From a recruiting/employer perspective, Applicant Explorer is a great tool, culling from hundreds of data sources to paint a complete picture of an applicant.From an employee perspective, it could be a nightmare.We've warned you before and we will warn you again. Watch those tweets, control those pictures and think about making yourself scarce online. From political views to the music you like; favorite foods to sexual orientation - the more data HR has about you, the more likely you will NOT get hired. … [Read more...] about Bing & CareerBuilder Are Watching You
The Smartest Career Move Ever; Find an Internship With Enternships
As I look back on my career (all 15 years or so of it), it is crystal clear to me that the smartest move I made was at the start: I was an intern.It wasn't always pretty (like the time I had to drive a van into midtown) or glamorous (I once scalded my hand when I jammed it into a turkey carcass. long story for another post). But it was always an education. I am a huge proponent of the internship process and always go out of my way to give ambitious folks entering the workforce the tools they need to succeed. On that note, I recently received an e-mail from an intern that I worked with several years back. He has gone on to do some wonderful things with his life, and he was kind enough to make my week by sending the following:"I learned a lot from you especially. You taught me the importance of being a self-LESS individual at the workplace by transferring skills over to people with a willingness to learn. Your willingness to help me during that summer has been a driving force behind my … [Read more...] about The Smartest Career Move Ever; Find an Internship With Enternships
WorkBlast: Expand Your Network
Have you ever heard the phrase “It’s not what you know, but who you know” before? When I was going through the job search routine, I certainly saw that played out in my own experience. My current boss is a friend of a woman I had an informational interview with last year. Now, I’m not sure how much of a difference it made in the long run, but it certainly didn’t hurt my case any to have a sort of common ground from the moment I walked into the interview. However, I know that the chance of that exact situation happening for someone else is very slim, but WorkBlast is a potential solution. According to their “About” page: WorkBlast helps you market your talents to the world and connects you with valuable resources and professionals. Whether you're looking to increase sales, market your skills, find a new Opportunities, grow your business, promote your product or service, fill vacant Opportunities, or simply get connected to people who can help … [Read more...] about WorkBlast: Expand Your Network
JobSerf: Automate Your Job Search
Back when I was trudging the digital superhighway applying for jobs, I really got tired of having to put in my information at every single site. I have no idea how many hours I spent looking for a suitable job, but I’m willing to bet that it was more than 20 hours. Now I find out I could have saved myself a lot of trouble with JobSerf. JobSerf is an online service that, for a relatively low sum of money, applies to jobs on your behalf. The pricing schedule is below. There are two tiers of service, and according to the site, mid-level executives and those looking in multiple cities would probably fare better with the "Optimal" level, because of the number of variables involved in the search process. Us little guys could settle for the "Targeted" option. Personally, I would have been more than happy to drop the $49 if it meant that I wouldn’t have had to waste hours combing job boards and putting my information into an endless number of company career sites. And … [Read more...] about JobSerf: Automate Your Job Search
Realmatch: Meet Your Job Match
If you’ve ever used a job search engine like one of those HotMonsterBuilder sites, you’ve probably seen the hundreds of “matches” that have nothing at all to do with what you searched for. When I was searching for my own job, I completely gave up on using those search engines to find a meaningful job match. If I had only known about Realmatch, then maybe I could have saved myself a lot of grief. With more than a dozen endorsements from major publications and career sites like Business Week, Mashable, and Fast Company, Realmatch has made quite a splash in the crowded job search engine market. It looks to be popular with recruiters and employers, because it’s free to post jobs, and the only costs are incurred when a matching candidate is chosen. This leads to two benefits for job seekers. First, there are more jobs to choose from, and second, the matches will be a better fit for the candidate’s skills and abilities. It’s obviously working, … [Read more...] about Realmatch: Meet Your Job Match
CAREEREALISM: Because Every Job is Temporary
This week, I had the opportunity to review the CAREEREALISM site, and I have to say that the place is pretty amazing. First off, I want to say that J.T. O'Donnell is a career coach ninja. When I asked her for an email interview, she latched onto my mention of a personal job search, and she was quick to provide me with some tips and advice that I can't wait to use. Her personal feedback and quick response lead me to believe that customer service is going to be a strong point over at CAREEREALISM. There is plenty of advice and help over there, but there were three things that I liked as a job hunter. Getting SHOTs That acronym stands for Short, Helpful, On-Target video posts. And you better believe that CAREEREALISM has some good advice. The YouTube videos from the creator (J.T. O'Donnell) are helpful and interesting, because she puts her whole heart into the presentation. You can tell that she really wants to help others with their careers. It's difficult to find that kind of … [Read more...] about CAREEREALISM: Because Every Job is Temporary
Zumeo: Live Resumes, Networking & Assessment Tool
Every day it seems like there is a new job site to check out. With an ever-increasing number of people out of work, networking and job searching are definitely very popular Web searches. One relatively new site that may show up in a search is Zumeo. It has been talked about on sites like Cheezhead and TechCrunch, and it will likely continue to get press due to an increased focus on the social networking aspect of the job search.Zumeo is a combination job search and social networking site, and a great line on the site reads, "Zumeo: Come for the jobs, stay for the networking." To get a better feel for the site, I decided to create an account and see if it was anything like the dozens of other sites I've tried in the past. Well, it certainly was different! After providing the requisite education/work experience (used to create a "Live Resume"), I was invited to discover my strengths through a career assessment test. The test consisted of several questions regarding jobs I enjoy, … [Read more...] about Zumeo: Live Resumes, Networking & Assessment Tool
The Man With Two Offices
The office. No, not the terribly overrated NBC version of the BBC TV show. The actual walled cube where many of us spend 1,700 hours a year. Designed to give you privacy and quiet as you do your job, the office is also the ultimate work status symbol. I've talked before about how offices are harder to come by than ever before. Years ago, the prospect of a young professional earning a larger workspace was an incentive to put his/her nose to the grindstone. Work hard. Get promoted. Get an office. But somewhere along the way, this carrot was replaced with a big corporate stick. All companies operate differently, but as the workforce has grown, and employers continue to cut corners, offices have become a premium. Has sheer supply and demand raised the esteem of having an office in society? Perhaps. The nicer the office, the greater the symbolism. Many Jobacle readers and Working Podcast listeners have often told us that they don't work in offices. Even the upper managers these days … [Read more...] about The Man With Two Offices
Interviewing 101: Intro to Landing a Job
No, this isn’t a class offered at your local community college. Interviewing-101 is a Website dedicated to helping you land a position. They provide a section with tips from a headhunter, provide an option to contact a headhunter to help you with your job search, and links to job boards categorized by specific job functions. While some of the resources are free to check out, most require a one-time annual payment of $20. At first I felt that was a bit overpriced. Where is the return on investment? Then I read the introduction to one of the articles- “The ‘REAL’ Way to Write a Resume- and I was actually disappointed to learn that I couldn’t continue to read on without logging in (which obviously requires that payment). Not to mention that there is a daily lampoon section that brightens up the bleak employment search with a few interviewing jokes. All in all, if you are truly dedicated to finding a position, this Website may just be … [Read more...] about Interviewing 101: Intro to Landing a Job