by O'Farrell | Apr 8, 2014 | Featured, O'Farrell's Blog
Do Companies Hold Jobs for the Right Candidate?
Dan Hix, 59, with 18 years’ medical device sales experience, had been out of work for a year, from 2013 to 2014. He plowed on coping financially and emotionally, until, he met Dave O’Farrell, a career coach and founder of O’Farrell Career Management.
Dave and his marketing director, Stephannie O’Donnell, helped Dan to restructure his resume and highlighted his major accomplishments. They leveraged LinkedIn with the aim to attract any potential employers to his profile.
Dan provided the names of 15 medical companies that he would love to work with. Dave and Stephannie reached out via LinkedIn to these companies. With this new resume, his connections jumped from 250 to 500+. Dave and Stephannie conducted mock interviews and role play to get Dan ready for the interviews.
In mid-Oct 2013, he had two job offers. But a sudden heart-attack took him to the hospital and during his recuperation; he called the two companies to explain the situation. One company had to restructure, so the opening was closed but the other company, his current employer, offered him the job in January 2014.
By Umah Papachan Hewitt — Guest Blogger
by O'Farrell | Apr 3, 2014 | O'Farrell's Blog
40+ job openings at Turner Global Technology & Operations.
50 job openings at Panasonic Automotive.
Six job openings at Coveris — two in Georgia.
Seven job openings at Orange Business Services — various locations.
Are you an IT specialist? Sales Champion? Webmaster? Developer? Engineer? Operations Specialist?
Your opportunity to gain job interview tips and more from seasoned HR professionals from all of these companies happens tomorrow morning, 7:45 am, 208 Willow Bend Road, Peachtree City.
Are you planning to be there?
by O'Farrell | Mar 25, 2014 | Featured, O'Farrell's Blog
Join us at JobSeekers of PTC this week for “HR Panel Shares Tips for Acing Job Interview: What hiring managers really think and what they want to know about you.”
We will have a special panel discussion and Q&A with HR managers from Coveris Packaging, CNN/TBS, Orange Business Services, and Panasonic Automotive. These experts each have 15+ years’ experience in human resources including recruiting, interviewing, hiring, on-boarding, learning and development, succession planning, and all other aspects of the employment life cycle.
Get interview tips from these experts scheduled to appear:
Fred Fratto » Chief HR Officer and Chief Culture Officer » Coveris
Coveris has 9,000 employees and 65 production facilities in 21 countries. Fred’s primary focus includes developing human capital solutions, providing company-wide HR governance, improving employee engagement, energizing the culture and enabling growth. Prior to Coveris, Fred was SVP-HR at Beazer Homes as the company experienced over 250% growth. Prior to that, Fred was at Gulfsteam Aerospace, Newell Rubbermaid, and Westinghouse. He has 20+ years of HR and management experience.
Sara Clarke » HR Consultant, SPHR » Orange Business Services
Orange is a $60B multinational telecommunications company serving 221 countries with 180K employees worldwide. Sara has 15+ years’ experience as an Human Resources generalist, consultant, and business partner. She has been in the international environment for the last 11 years, focused on organizational change, restructuring, recruitment and staffing, career development, learning and development and management training.
Tanya Turner » Human Resources Generalist, PHR » CNN / TBS
Tanya provides HR business support to the Global Technology and Operations (GTO) organization comprised of CNN BEST, truTV, and Business Excellence client groups. Tanya has 15+ years’ experience in Human Resources. She has diverse experience in staffing, retention, career development, employee relations, coaching, and “employee advocacy.” Prior to joining CNN/TBS, Tanya was a recruitment specialist for PeopleSoft.
Stephen Childs » Director Global HR » Panasonic Automotive Systems
Stephen began his career at Panasonic in talent acquisition and has held several management positions during his 15 years with the company. Prior to joining Panasonic, Stephen worked in technical recruiting specializing in automotive electronics, and prior to that, he owned and operated a contingent labor staffing company. He has 20+ years of talent acquisition, human resources and management experience. Stephen recently won the 2013 Society for Human Resources Management Atlanta Pegasus Award for excellence in human resources.
– – – – –
Have you checked out these companies? Do you know if they are hiring? What questions do you have about the talent acquisition process? What happens after you leave the interview room? Come ready to learn, engage, and leave with added information and motivation for your job search.
Submit your question in advance in the “Career Branding Job Networking” group on LinkedIn. Not a member? Join today and submit a question. We will choose from the posted questions and address them to the panel. If your question isn’t chosen you may have an opportunity to ask it in person. Arrive early, bring a friend, you don’t want to miss it.
Meeting details:
Friday 4 April 2014
7:30 – 10:00a
First Baptist Church of PTC
208 Willowbend Road
Peachtree City, Georgia 30269
# # #
by admin | Mar 17, 2014 | Featured, O'Farrell's Blog
O’Farrell Career Management is on Pinterest
Most of us know that LinkedIn with it’s 250 million+ users is undeniably the most important social media platform for business. But have you ever considered Pinterest as a job search tool?
Pinterest has a huge following, nearly 50 million users, according to a recent Forbes article by Nancy Collamer. Long known as a great place for women to find inspiration for their next social gathering; from the recipes to the decor, or an on-line resource to catalog everything from wardrobe ideas to home decorating, Pinterest is also becoming a great place for especially those in creative fields to visually showcase their work.
So what is pinning?
The definition straight from Pinterest …”Pins are like handsome little bookmarks. Whenever you find something on the web that you want to keep, add it to Pinterest. Your newly minted Pin will be here whenever you need it, and will always link back to the site it came from.”
According to a study by Piquora, a Pinterest pin can last thousands of times longer than a Facebook post. Why not leverage the staying power of Pinterest to enhance your personal branding and show your stuff.
Try…
Visual resumes, design portfolios, art work, or other visual mediums if you are a graphic artist, designer, interior designer, or artist.
Pinning photographs of projects at varying phases from inception to completion if you are an engineer or manufacturing expert who designs automation systems or assembly lines.
Showcasing any tangible product.
Researching potential hiring companies — many have pinboards
Happy pinning and re-pinning. Share your pins with us and re-pin our boards on career planning, job search, social media, and more.
Do you have other ideas on how to use Pinterest for your job search? We would love to hear your comments.
A picture paints a thousand words…paint your picture of success one pin at a time on your way to your future job.
by O'Farrell | Dec 3, 2013 | Featured
Tommy Webb
I had the pleasure of working with Tommy Webb two years ago. We helped him get back into an industry he’d been out of for 15 years. Cool! Now he’s a new job found him.
I’m reminded of Proverbs 22:1, which says, “A good name is better than great riches. To be esteemed is better than silver or gold.” Tommy has a good name, and he is highly esteemed by those who know him. I was telling some clients today about how Tommy and I and one other gentleman delivered Christmas presents to a mother and her three young children about 23 years ago. They lived in a housing project near the Atlanta Federal Prison.
In the past 13 years or so, Tommy has been paying it forward by serving at Fayetteville First United Methodist Church and Square Foot Ministry. All of this great service speaks of his character and heart. He’s a good man.
Tommy, I am very proud of you and glad to call you my friend.
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
Hello Dave,
I just wanted you to know that I found another job, or I should say it found me.
Long story short, an old supplier of mine from my last job called and wanted me to run their Atlanta branch. I will start training on the 16th. My last day at my current job will be on the 11th. I hope to drop my JobSeekers on Friday.
I will send you an email later with the HR contact info. They might hire a supervisor or two after the first of the year.
Sincerely,
– Tommy Webb
by O'Farrell | Nov 27, 2013 | I Got a Job!
Greg Zanebis
When Greg Zanebis was laid off earlier this year, he wasn’t interested in repeating the mistakes he’d made in 2009. No sir. Even though he received outplacement services from a large career management firm, he decided to invest in a personal service to shorten his search, earn more money, and get better results.
Greg, so very proud of you. Thank you for allowing me to help you land your dream job!
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
Dear Dave,
I wanted to let you know that after five intense months of networking and following your recipe for a successful career search, I’ve been blessed with a dream job offer which I accepted on Monday.
I’ve accepted the role of VP Sales for Morris Business Solutions (MBS). MBS is the largest Xerox dealership in the U.S. They’ve recently been awarded a brand new territory in Charlotte. I will oversee sales and operations beginning Monday, December 2nd.
As you know, I suffered a similar job loss at the beginning of 2009. I wasted several months twiddling my thumbs. It wasn’t until I attended two JobSeekers of PTC meetings did I feel blessed and not lost.
Fast forward four years and I’m part of a massive company layoff again. I wasted no time in reaching out to you. I was determined to keep a positive outlook with lots of prayer and perseverance!
I am so thankful I ‘invested’ in your 1:1 program to get back into the workforce in minimum time! Your marketing campaign letters, personal branding ideas, and networking guidance were priceless. And, quite frankly, the one-day mock job interview we did in your office was the most intense of the 10-15 face-to-face interviews I had with some pretty big corporations including Michelin, Ricoh USA, and Canon.
This time around I felt so confident that I actually passed on four offers before accepting this latest one. My compensation package is more than what you and I discussed and includes excellent commissions and quarterly bonus opportunities. They are also providing me with an apartment for the first six months. Too soon to know when family may move or if I commute back and forth for a year.
I promised I would follow your recipe and it worked!
Feeling truly blessed today!
Thank you Dave!!!
Best regards,
– Greg Zanebis
PS: Passed a church the other day. Sign read, “Worrying only puts question marks where GOD has already placed a period.”
by O'Farrell | Oct 23, 2013 | I Got a Job!
Rick Becker
I was delighted to arrive at work last Friday afternoon and see this message in my inbox. Rick mentions his long job search, and, pardon this shameless plug – he also mentions what he believes got him unstuck. We overhauled his résumé in mid-August, we worked on interviewing skills in mid-September, and he landed a job in mid-October. That sounds like some kind of 30/60/90 day plan.
Rick, I am very proud of you; congratulations and God bless you on your new job!
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
Hey Dave,
This is one of the “Hey Dave, I got a job” emails you like to receive. I start Monday morning as Strategic Accounts Sales Manager for Darby Printing here in Atlanta. I am extremely excited about this new position and the challenges it presents.
I cannot begin to thank you and the Ship’s Crew for all the support and guidance given to me over the last… well, let’s not say how long. I know it was not a coincidence that the job offer came after, finally, seeking individual help from you with my interviewing techniques. In the interview, when my new boss mentioned that the first thing he would want from the person filling this position was a 30/60/90 plan, he was naturally impressed when I gave him a rough draft of one on the spot. This, of course, came from your suggestion.
Thank you again and thanks to all the people I met along the way. I know that the group made a tough time a great deal more tolerable and helped keep my emotions on an even keel.
Sincerely,
Rick Becker
by O'Farrell | Sep 2, 2013 | I Got a Job!
Dale LaDouceur
Dale LaDouceur and Tom Jackson were at JobSeekers a few weeks ago. Tom, a member of the JobSeekers leadership team, told me about a great GM position in Newnan. When he asked if I knew anyone who’d be a good fit I said, “That guy right there” and pointed to Dale LaDouceur.
Dale was delighted with this opportunity, he’d written to me several days earlier and said, “Most of the positions [I’m interviewing for] would require a relocation.” He was red hot on LinkedIn and he was generating attention from all over the county.
Notice that face-to-face networking led to a local position. Come to think of it, that makes a lot of sense. If you want a local position, get out and about in the community. Now there’s a novel idea.
Congratulations Dale; super proud of you!
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
Hello Dave,
Thank you again for the introduction to Tom Jackson; I greatly appreciate it.
I have accepted and started my new job as General Manager for US Beverage in Newnan. We make blends of choice teas for the food industry including premium liquid concentrates, private label, bottling, gallon, bag-in-box, and 55-gallon drums.
Have a great Labor Day weekend.
Yours truly,
Dale LaDouceur
General Manager
US Beverage
by O'Farrell | Aug 23, 2013 | I Got a Job!
Sherry Brooks
Wonderful story this week from Sherry Brooks. A great example of “when one door closes, another one opens.” In February 2012, she had a 28-year career in aviation safety, two degrees, five credentials, and a pending FAA dispatch certificate. At that time she was Director Corporate Safety and Compliance at World Airways. Prior to that, she’d held safety leadership positions at Northwest Airlines.
The first “job” she got was a good consulting contract up in DC. Later she landed a position as a Dispatcher with ExpressJet. She said it was the “hardest, most stressful job that I have ever had in my life.” She worked four days on, three days off, all shifts. In March 2013 she began working a straight shift – overnights from 6p to 4a.
Once onboard with ExpressJet, she was promoted to Manager Internal Evaluation Program (IEP) in Corporate Safety, Security & Compliance. ExpressJet, by the way, is a regional carrier for Delta, United, and American, and they are known as the largest regional carrier in the world. Their headquarters are here in Atlanta.
Here’s the backstory of how she obtained this great job. Sherry, I am so-o-o-o-o proud of you for hanging in there – for doing the difficult things you had to do on your journey, for taking a job that was way below your experience and skillset, and for maintaining a positive, prayerful outlook throughout.
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
On March 17, I sent an email to the Director of Safety at ExpressJet, Brad Sheehan. Although I had not met Brad, we were connected on LinkedIn, and I had contacted him a couple of months after I lost my job. He even replied to me on LinkedIn, but nothing further.
In my email, I told Brad that I was working as a dispatcher and would like to get back into safety if an opportunity presented itself, and asked if I could forward my résumé to him. He wrote me right back, and said he remembered me on LinkedIn. He said because I already worked for the company, it would be easier to fit me into the safety department now and that he wanted to meet me, but that he was going to be out of town for a couple of weeks. My schedule was crazy, and between Brad’s schedule and mine, we were not able to meet … until …
Mid April: I am driving to work, and I am having a terrible pity party which was very unusual because, I normally prayed all the way to work, for God to help me with my job and thanking Him for having one at the same time, but this day I was feeling sorry for myself. I was early for my shift, so I took my time walking in, and took my time in the ladies room, and then headed up to the 3rd floor where I worked.
When the elevator arrived at the 2nd floor, the door came open, and the custodian was pushing his big garbage bin into the elevator, and I was trying to get out of his way, and greet him at the same time. I looked up and saw two men talking outside of the elevator, one of the men caught my eye, stopped talking, and said “Sherry, and I said “Brad.” I stepped out of the elevator, Brad came toward me, and we started chatting like we were long lost friends. We only knew each other from the LinkedIn pictures. The custodian was still holding the door for me, and Brad told him it was ok to go.
Brad talked so fast. He was so impressed with my résumé and experience. He said “I need you in the department, and we will work something out soon.” I went up a floor to my dispatch job grinning!
Brad and I met the next week, and talked safety philosophy, etc. He said he was working on a position. On April 30th, I met with Brad again, and he told me that he had the Manager of IEP open, and if I was interested he wanted me in the position. He kept saying, “the stars have lined up”! He was so excited to get my expertise, and I was so excited about getting back into my field. The job was posted on May 10, and it closed May 17. Brad called me the same day to officially offer me the job. I dispatched my last day on May 22nd, and began May 28th as Manager IEP with a 62% pay increase! Keep in mind I was making extremely low wages, so I am not even close to my previous salary, however, this is what I also have:
1) A job in my field that I love, 2) a good director, and 3) a good team and company.
The saying, “when one door closes, another one opens” is so true except in my case it was an ELEVATOR DOOR! The fact that the custodian was pushing the garbage bin into the elevator as I got off adds even more serendipity to my story.
Each of my friends and family has gasped when I have told them this story. There is so much detail I could write, but I will spare you.
Dave, I am so blessed. I kept praying and thanking God for every little blessing that came my way. ExpressJet took a chance on me, a newbie dispatcher at age 58, and I will always be thankful for the Director that hired me, and I told him so when he congratulated me. He said “Sherry, I knew when I hired you that you would not be in dispatch long.”
Here’s what you can tell other JobSeekers:
1) Be persistent and never give up; keep praying for God to lead you and thanking God for your blessings. Be prepared and ready! You never know when God is going to put you in the right place at the right time!
2) LinkedIn is an awesome tool! Use it to make connections. I am currently at almost 550, and when I came to JobSeekers I had about 30! LinkedIn helped me get a contract when I started my own business before I got another job, too.
3) A 58 year-old CAN start over and CAN learn new things, even HARD things, and hang in there with the young ones! And sometimes when you start over, it’s at the bottom, but you will not be there long!
4) Losing your lifelong career changes you. You look at the world differently, you see people differently, and you see jobs differently. Everything is not bad; however, it is a very difficult and humbling experience that does leave scars. Some of the friends that you thought were friends do not stand by you and turn their backs on you. However, new friends and acquaintances are made.
5) Pinching pennies becomes a life style, if it wasn’t prior to your “RIF” (reduction in force).
6) God and prayer becomes your “best friend.” And that is where I gained the most, in my faith. I would not wish this experience on anyone, however, if it happens, trust in your faith. God will bless you.
Take care, thank you for all of your help, and God Bless!
– Sherry Gentle Brooks
by O'Farrell | Jul 24, 2013 | Featured
Jamie Boulet
Super story of how to negotiate a job offer. Had the privilege of helping Jamie write his résumé, ace the interview, and negotiate a job offer for a win-win scenario.When the prospective boss received an email that Jamie and I crafted, he wrote, “Let me talk to Jim and my boss, the CFO, about reconsidering the salary offer. I appreciate the way you approached the topic. It shows great diplomatic abilities which a Manager of Business Development needs.”
Both parties were delighted with the outcome.
Jamie, I’m so-o-o-o-o proud of you!
– Dave O’Farrell
– – – – –
Dave,
Just wanted you to know that I accepted the offer from APC today. Yeah!
I could not have done this as easily without your teaching, mentoring and guidance. It was so very worth the time and cost to receive your instruction at O’Farrell Career Management.
I’m also appreciative of the JobSeekers’ ministry that you and the Crew lead. It has and will continue to have a profound impact on many people (and their families) in the community.
See you soon.
Best,
– Jamie Boulet
