Boomers are born between 1946 and 1964 and they compose more than 33% of the workforce of today. Contrary to what many may believe, there are still a lot of opportunities out there for boomers. The key thing here is to check up on your skills and update them as necessary in order to complete in today’s market – and here’s how:

* Assess your skills – it is vital to keep your skills current with today’s requirements. Make a list of the skills you have and the skills that you need to brush-up on or need to learn.

* Be Tech “Savy” – don’t be left behind in your technology skills. You might have the best experience, but if you don’t know much about current computers and IT technologies then you won’t be ready for new opportunities.

* Look the part – age does not matter as the way you look and carry yourself will get you a good first impression. Plan your wardrobe well and maintain good personal grooming.

* Impress them on paper – don’t fall for the mistake of featuring your experiences in skills using the old chronologically formatted resume. Sell you skills, qualifications and experiences in your resume and there are a lot of articles in this blog where you can learn how to make one. Grab their attention in the first 5 to 15 seconds of reading.

* Network, network, network -- having a good set of quality networks and contact is always one of the best resource for success in any career. Network with other people, particularly professionals in your field, both online and offline. Be seen.

* Embrace change and work with other generations – learning how to work with other generations is one very important skill particularly with a boomer like you. Embrace change and accept the fact that you’re a boomer. Try to fit in and use this gap to your advantage – as employers would want someone experienced to mentor younger staff.

To really boost your chances of making that successful job search by improving your skills – even if you’re a boomer, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

A recent employment index survey of more than 150 local companies showed that more than 50% would consider replacing a current employee with another one from the job market in order to save money, get a more skilled individual and improve the company’s overall performance.

This high percentage would show that people who now have a job should work really hard to keep it, as you could be easily replaced by someone more capable and more willing to do your job. So, it is not only getting a job that matters, but keeping it is probably more important.

As a person who values their jobs, you should learn to give focus to these three very important elements:  

* Your Value – what matters to employers is the value that you can give them today, and not what you did weeks, months or years ago. Learn how to take the extra mile on challenges and be ready to take on new responsibilities.

* Your Attitude – even if you have the best set of skills or technical knowledge but if people do not want to work with you because of your bad attitude, you chances of getting axed would be much higher than people who can work well as a team.

* Your Expectations – People who get replaced in their jobs sometimes have no idea what was coming to them, all because they have no clues about expectations – on what their employers expect from them or what they expect from employers. It would be best to talk to your employers and have a measurable index of what they would expect from you – and work your way in meeting or exceeding these expectations.  

To really boost your chances of making that successful job search – and keeping it, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

The current economic situation makes job searches harder than it is now than it did a few years ago. Searching for a new job may take months although it may not be as dismal as it may seem. This would depend on the industry though, and what job level you are searching. Still, there are opportunities available out there and you should start preparing yourself before heading out with this job search process.

* Put your resume into good order. There are lots of tips and techniques provided in this website and it only takes proper application of these tools to come out with a good working resume that will boost your chances of landing a good job.

* Know what you really want in an ideal job. Learn how to distinguish the nice-to-haves from what you really need. The monetary compensation may not be the sole reason for having a job as other factors may be equally important.

* You cannot afford not to be flexible in your job search. Some of the things that you are looking for, such as growth opportunities or other perks, may not available in the current job opportunity you are faced with so it all boils down to what job search element or factor would be most important for you at that very moment.

* If you’re looking for a career change, it would be wise to talk to other people who are currently in the career you are most interested in. Talk to them, know their experiences, the disadvantages and advantages of such careers – everything you need to know to convince yourself, or not, that this career change is right for you.

* Use all available resources to help you with your job search – classifieds, job boards, career directories, and job search portals – but always bear in mind that personal networks are still the best keys for you to land a good job.

* The most important element in your job search is patience. Job searches may take time and you must be persistent and determined if you want to land a good job – never give up easily, particularly after only a few weeks since you start. Always keep a positive attitude – no matter how dim the horizon may seem to be.

To really boost your chances of making that successful job search, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

Taking charge of your life and your career means taking action. Action is the most important step to turn dreams into reality. This fact holds true if you are keen in making a successful career change. Here are some of the steps that you need to address and take when taking action with your career.

* Identify Your Goal

As with everything else, this should be the very first step that you need to take and to put at the very top of your mind. Every once in a while, assess yourself if you are still heading in that direction or if it is still the direction you want to take.

* Identify Your Next Steps

Don’t lay dormant. Identify what your next steps will be and take action. Direct your activities to what would help you in your planned career change. Reach out to people. Make connections. Learn new things. Identifying your next steps will help you stay productive.

* Identify What Prevents You from Taking the Next Step

There may be hurdles that prevent you from taking those next steps to your career change. Identify them if they are indeed hurdles and know the reasons why they have become hurdles. Reasons may include lack of knowledge on how to take that step, lack or resources, or that you are simply afraid. Clearly identifying the problems and hurdles will help you overcome them.

* Identify the Resources You Need

Making a career change may need some resources that you should have. Additional knowledge, learning special skills, getting the right tools – these are some of the resources that can help you be more successful in your shift in careers. What you need to do is identify these resources and why you need them.

* Identify Where You Can Get these Resources

Indentifying the resources that you need is an important step, but knowing how and where to get them is another important one. Start with the low hanging fruits or those you can easily and readily acquire, then move on to those that will need much more effort and additional resources.

* Are You Spending Your Time Towards Your Goals?

If you want to have a successful career change, it is important that you don’t waste valuable time on things that will not bring you closer to your goals. Identify which of these things can help you and which are just wasting your time. Prioritize things according to their significance in attaining your goals.

* Identify What Works

Some of your actions may be effective in bringing you closer to your goals of making a successful career change, while some may not. Identify which actions are working and stick with them. Stop doing things that are not working. If you’re not getting any results from what you do, then make changes. Doing the same things will get you the same results.

To really boost your chances of making that successful career change, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

HR staffs have their hands full with hundreds of resume sent to them on a daily basis whenever there’s a job opening in their company. To shortlist this load, most would initially focus on certain mistakes many jobseekers make when preparing their resumes – mistakes that would eventually end up with their file in the waste bin and their chances of landing a job up in smoke.

The following are some of the top resume mistakes that jobseekers should avoid to get better chances of landing a job at the company they are applying to:

* Lack of Focus

HR Staff spend only a few seconds browsing every resume that comes into their hands. Your resume should immediately tell them at first glance what you want to do for them and how good you are at what you do. Generic resumes usually end up in the trash bin while those customized for a specific job would get better chances of getting hired.

* Duties-Driven versus Accomplishments-Driven

Hiring companies wants something accomplished, that’s why they are looking for people who can get the job done. Keywords like “duties”, “responsibilities”, “responsible for” are often snubbed but accomplishments that have helped your previous employers make money, save money, solve a problem, make work easier, attract new customers and expand the business are surefire ways that would get the recruiter’s attention.

* Items Listed in Ways that are Not Important to the Recruiter

 Job openings usually specify or give emphasis to what companies are looking for such as job titles, education, or accomplishments. Your previous job listings should cater to what is deemed important by the recruiter and not what the resume template you are using has outlined. Common mistakes include listings that give importance to dates or locations first when the hiring company is more focused in the title or position and the education you had. Listings should also be done in reverse order meaning the most recent experience should be listed first as companies would be more interested in what you have done recently that what you did 10 years ago.

* Important Skills are Listed Towards the End of the Resume

You skill set is very important to hiring companies, and often times is the one they are always on the lookout for. If you list them at the bottom, chances are recruiters will never get to read them at all. List them as a Summary or Proficiency section at the first page that would immediately catch their eye. If the company is looking for a specific skill set such as computer proficiencies – then you should list them there.

* Resume is not Reader-friendly and Template-Based

As mentioned and emphasized earlier, HR staffs have limited time allotted in reading resumes so you should make it as reader-friendly as possible. The use of bullets and lists is a great way to achieve this and you should do this consistently throughout the resume except for the special summary or profile section at the start of the page. Aside from that, resumes that are obviously created on common word processor templates are easily recognizable by HR staff and would immediately discard your file away.

* Lack of Important Keywords

Employers are focused on certain keywords when browsing through tons of resumes at their hands, just like what a search engine would do. If your document lacks certain keywords that they are looking for at first glance, many would not even bother going through the rest of the document and would simply discard them away.

A well-written resume is a good start in keeping your chances high at landing a good job. To keep you at the top of the list you should avoid making these costly mistakes. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

Fresh out of college, most new graduates would be eager to land their first professional job and get that much coveted paycheck. While many do not have full work experiences aside from part time jobs while at school, most graduates should not expect of landing an executive position in a prime company during their first stint at applying for a job.

The recent global financial crisis has increased competition in the job market significantly during the past few years. Not only will new grads compete between other graduates in their field, but they will also have to compete against the thousands of experienced job seekers who are all looking for new employment.

Although new graduates don’t have much legroom to negotiate for higher salaries should they get shortlisted for a job, one should not sell himself short particularly if they are aware of their great potential. Salaries for new graduates would also depend on the type of course the applicant has finished from college and how related it is to the job requirements at hand. The graduate’s performance at school would also spell a big difference in trying to get a little edge over other applicants in terms of salaries.

The importance of job interviews all boils down to the salary negotiation should an offer for the job is made. It would do well for the new grad to do some research about industry standards for the salaries in the particular position the new graduate is applying to. However,negotiating is not all about salaries but on what the applicant can give back to the company regardless if he is just fresh from college. On top of that, the applicant should not only focus on salaries but on other benefits and perks offered by the company for the particular position he is applying to.

Getting a good job is a primary goal that new graduates fresh from college is aiming for. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group .

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious job seekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

Many people desire for advancement in their careers and many would pour in their hard work and determination at their jobs to finally receive that much coveted promotion they believe they deserve. Some would eventually be rewarded from all their efforts, while others would often wonder why that executive position seem so elusive despite the fact that they have poured their hearts and mind into it.

Many would simply give up, move on and try to get their coveted executive position elsewhere in a bid to get lucky with their executive job searches. However, luck has nothing to do with it and all they need to do is to make some considerations before they can be successful with their executive job search. Here are some pointers to point you towards the right direction.

* Make an Impression

First impressions do last and appearance is one vital factor many executive position applicants fail to consider in getting a good chance of landing their coveted jobs. If they want to have an executive position, they should first dress and appear the part – and it might probably become reality eventually.

* Be an Expert

Employers would only want to hire experts to fill in a critical executive position in their companies. Most would consider applicants that have proven track records in their fields of expertise and have mastered their careers. It would do no good for an applicant to claim to be knowledgeable in many fields but has mastery of none.  

Landing an executive job position means that the candidate must appropriately look the part, as well as exhibit mastery of their chosen field or industry. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

The current economic crisis has affected most industries, making it more difficult to get a job at almost anywhere in the country. However, there are still several opportunities available out there, some of which may be available in your own localities. The problem may lie in the fact that you may have no idea where to look or where to find these available local jobs.

The following are some of the options available where you can find local employment. Exploring these resources can help you be more successful in your search of finding and getting that coveted job.

* Agencies – There may be several employment agencies in your locality that handles available jobs in your district or area. Some of these agencies cater to specific industries while others list different jobs from various areas of specialties. You can get a list of these agencies from local directories, yellow pages or from your local Better Business Bureau.

* Employer facilities – Several local employers may post job vacancies right in their own premises such as internal bulletin boards. Many of these notices are not advertised in newspaper classifieds or coursed through agencies. You can ask friends and relatives working for these employers for potential job openings, or you can go directly to these employers and ask their reception or front desk officers for potential job vacancies.

* Career / Job Centers – Originally catering for young people below 21 years old looking for jobs, these job centers now also cater to adults looking for local employment. What they do is to arrange job interviews between the applicant and the employers based on skills and abilities matching as required by the employer.

* Journals / Magazines – Local employers focused on certain industries sometimes provide listings or career opportunity information on various industry-related periodicals, journals and magazines. You can check out these journals from magazine stands or you could subscribe to these magazines so you can get the latest updates from various employers. You can also subscribe to or visit the websites of these magazines for online career-related content.

* Newspapers -- Local newspapers carry various advertisements and classified listings of career opportunities from various employers in your locality. Local libraries usually have all existing local and national newspapers and you can use this resource to check for all the current employer job listings. The online versions of these newspapers are also good resources for checking job openings and other career opportunities.

* Internet – Harnessing the power of the Internet is probably the most cost-effective way to get information about job listings and career opportunities in your locality. You can check websites of newspapers, journals, magazines and even local employers. You can also check job forums, locality-based online classifieds and other sites that give information on the latest job openings right there in your locality.

You can make use of these available options that could make your job search much more effective and successful. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

Last time, we’ve discussed how resumes get easily deleted or thrown into the trash bin by recruiters or HR personnel when looking for primary candidates to a job opening. This time, we’ll discuss some key items or elements that these same recruiters look for first during the first 20 to 30 seconds of opening an online resume file or browsing through the pages of a printed document submitted by an applicant.

* Keywords – for online applicants, recruiters look for specific keywords among files sent to them that will cater to the job requirements they are looking for.  Your resume should be customized to the position or company your are applying for,particularly making use of the language they used when posting job openings in classified ads in print or online.

* Location – Even if you are willing to relocate across the country for that job opening, most recruiters would give priority to candidates who already live within the same geographical area where the job is being offered

* Industry – A manufacturing person would have a hard time applying for a financial-related job as most recruiters would usually look for candidates having experience in the same industry

* Function – Similar to industry, applying for a job function you have no previous experience at would definitely be primary reason why your resume gets thrown into the waste bin

* Level / Experience / Education – For managerial, supervisory, engineering or any other specific level, recruiters would look for people who have held the same position as before, or at least having the same capacity. The same is true for jobs that require years of experience or a particular degree. But if those titles, degrees or experience never brushed your resume then it could mean the delete button for you.

* Job Turnovers – If your resume signify that you’ve had several job turnovers within a short period of time without any specific or valid reason (like mass lay-offs, company going out of business,etc), it would give a red flag signal to recruiters that something must be wrong. They would not spend another minute on it any longer.

Constructing your resume properly and avoiding the mistakes listed above can increase your chances of getting the job you are applying for. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious job seekers.

American Career Group here once more to give valuable tips for job seekers:

Job seekers would often wonder who gets to check their resumes first when they apply for a job. Don’t think that the manager or vice president looking for additional staff would be the ones directly receiving those resumes that you spent hours and hours to “perfect” – to increase your chances of ever landing that job.

Contrary to this belief, resumes are initially read by a recruiter or a member of the HR staff, depending on how large the corporation is. In smaller companies applicant sorting is handled directly by HR management while in larger conglomerates recruitment may be handled by a 3^rd-party headhunter agency or recruiter.  This includes both online and direct applications.

The problem is, most of these resumes go to the wastebasket or are often deleted even during the first filtering process by recruiters. What a waste, considering the countless hours and mental torment most application put into creating these resumes. So, it would be wise to do right the first time and avoid the following pitfalls many applicants fall prey to during the application process.

* Lack of an Online Profile – most industries are shifting towards online channels for marketing and other of their operational functions. Knowing such, it would be an added advantage for an applicant to have a comprehensive profile online in a reputable networking website for professionals over another applicant who has not or has a poorly constructed profile.

* Stick to a Functional Chronological Resume – Listing the companies you’ve worked for in the past, complete with dates, description and places would be seen as something transparent by recruiters. Resumes with missing date or places would appear as if the applicant is hiding something – a red flag that would trigger recruiters to immediately delete your resume file.

* Avoid Typographical, Spelling and Grammatical Errors – a poorly written resume with lots of errors would give an impression that the one who prepared it would be similarly careless or unreliable when it comes to actual job performance. Such resumes would definitely find themselves inside the trash bin and would be easily deleted if sent online.

Constructing your resume properly and avoiding the mistakes listed above can increase your chances of getting the job you are applying for. However, to really boost your chances of landing that perfect job, you need to work with experts in nationwide employment solutions like American Career Group.

A.C.G. can help you with your employment needs through its vast network of employers, staffing companies and headhunters spread across the nation. So come back here for more tips and discussions from American Career Group and explore more about the available opportunities that await serious jobseekers.