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Career choices in India lack an authenticity in focus

Lima Sehgal

Jobs continue to remain a very serious issue, bordering on the parochial. And we pass on our parochialism as an inheritance.

With the result there is a very curious phenomenon prevalent amongst freshers today – the inability to dream. We have created straightjackets – the right marks, the right course, the right jobs, the right moves …

The journey from lecture rooms leaves one only at exit points. What about the journeys ahead?

Most of us have to make career choices without any exposure to internships, temp jobs or even obscure work exposure. There is no element of even fun in trying out some little experimentation without a label that directs it. We do not have a plan that exposes youngsters to the concept of work during schooling years. What we are churning out as the future Indian work force are well educated people, who are excellent in following directions rather than creating them. The mood is to be manager, not manic.

But rather than just having a focus on the sunrise and sunset definitions of companies, a little stargazing would not hurt.

I have often been reminded that the Indian professional does not have the luxury of experimentation. Waggling fingers point out issues about economies, population pressures, competition, shortages and rations. But let us shake this lethargy — we are not talking jobs here but exposure. We are used to paying companies for what should be free internships and paying educational institutions for giving us work certificates, so why not create an environment of free exposure available to youngsters?

We must not forget that blueprints are not maps for the future.

ISSUE 164

Copyright © 2011, Jobnet magazine
Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the publishers of Jobnet magazine

Posted under Articles by Lima Sehgal

Job hunting needs to be viewed in a perspective of totality.

Lima Sehgal

Job hunting leaves a trail of rejections over time, but we seldom go beyond defining the process beyond, win or lose.

Instead of asking if we are on the right track, we are too busy with the search. For example, if we stay in Delhi, all we think of is that we want a Placement Consultant in Delhi, or just a job in Delhi.

Job hunting needs to be viewed in a perspective of totality. It is definitely about beating a track through the jungle, but where survival is more than having a machine gun as a survival kit.

For starters, the research is more important than the search. Most of us can quote a vacancy with admirable accuracy, but there is very little knowledge about the company’s definition about suitability. We worry more about the polish of the resume, the dress, shoes, the style, the confidence, but much less about listening to the rhythms of a company’s being. Winning or losing is unimportant, but not developing a sixth sense to comprehend a company’s individuality or emotionality is like inviting murder to interview rationale.

We worry so much about the competition but beyond the superficial or the statistics we do little to understand it. But it is worth considering the fact that it is not always the best guy, the more experienced or the slickest interview savvy dude, who gets the job. The heaven favored, come in various bottles and packages.

How many of us bother to find out about who won what you lost?

The definition of successful survivors in the job market jungle is definitely not about those who never get bitten .But about those who, irrespective of either winning or losing or being wounded give equal importance to knowing both facts – Why Me? and Why not Me?

Copyright © 2011, Jobnet magazine, issue 179

Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the publishers of Jobnet magazine

Posted under Articles by Lima Sehgal

Jobhunting is a learned art, it is time the Indian jobseeker realized that.

Lima Sehgal

It is taking too long for the Indian jobseeker to realize that jobhunting is about sitting in a 5 star gourmet restaurant and realising that it is a self service fast food joint with matched pricing.

No wonder one feels let down.

Perhaps the fact that we have got so used to the elimination process which has chased us – from playschool thru High school and beyond to A/B till Z school, that we are quite reconciled to the fact that it must also continue thru the job hunt and one only needs to find the schooling that must follow.

In this melee of competition the odds can be played if one knows how.

The methodology of creating job options and choices exist. But it is an acquired skill that must be learnt. Most of us have no method, or even an idea on what to do. With the result we are professionals who are amateurs.

Take for example the way most of us are using placement firms. The strategy of using boils down to 1) Give me a big list all of them – email technology zindabad! 2) Tell me about a few good ones you know – Lucky dip can get lucky ! Net conclusion is that they are all bekar.

So lets add on. Let’s try the savvy technology of the internet. Its simple — fill a few forms, enrol for resume blasters, surf for jobs on the big portals and then relax. I must admit that it gives the ego quite a kick to get so many mails in our mailbox. (Better than using the govt. Postal department with unkind postmen).

It time to stop blaming the system and realise that jobhunting is a different learning. Something we have never been exposed to – and we require to go back to kindergarden, with moustache and muscle if need be.

Knowing how to swim in your bathtub will not work in the sea!!

Copyright © 2011, Jobnet magazine

Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the publishers of Jobnet magazine

Posted under Articles by Lima Sehgal

The net savvy Jobseekers in India need to reevaluate the platforms on the internet available for job hunting.

Lima Sehgal

Ever since the PC became an integral part of the job hunting process, a certain element of sloppiness has crept in.

Look at the care we take to camouflage our resume in the brief-case. In contrast, it is with such a devil may care attitude that we flaunt it on the www worldwide. How indignantly we demand the headhunter’s client list before giving him our resume, but not care two hoots about hosting it on every available job website. And oops! The trail blaze of cc’s (carbon copies for the uninitiated) that some of us do…

There is an urgent need to define the actual utility value of the internet in the job hunting process to make it truly useful.

Perhaps addressing needs is a better beginning than trial and error. The job websites are waiting for a cue. Are they supposed to be an information base for jobs available, or an advertising platform for resumes, or an electronic placement service? Today, it is a rudimentary service trying to survive by the strength of its hit counter, knowing, that the day the hit counter becomes an obsolete measurement of utility, it would be a beginning to leading somewhere.

The net savvy job seeker must use the same spit and polish that goes to shining shoes. Just because the PC offers the option of job hunting (only) in your underwear, that is no reason to discard the outerwear. The only dilemma being whether to keep (the) Windows open or shut (pun intended).

But watch out – the virtual world is getting real.

Copyright © 2011, Jobnet magazine, issue 84

Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the publishers of Jobnet magazine

Posted under Articles by Lima Sehgal

It’s time to realize that it is no longer the same old game that has gone electronic. Certainly not!

Lima Sehgal

The passivity with which a large majority of job seekers devour information amazes me.

Basking in the epi-centre of a tornado is quite an unprofessional attitude towards one’s survival.

Because of the tremendous volume of information, the job hunting game for many has boiled down to just a process of finding and searching information.

A few grey hairs is no longer a qualification for a seasoned job hunting professional. It’s time to realize that it is no longer the same old game that has gone electronic. Certainly not!

Somehow, one must shift the concentration to the search techniques themselves, rather than focus on the catch and match as an end-all.

Application of information is becoming crucial, especially if you are competing in the international job market, where finding job openings does not translate as a complete operation. One also has to have an idea as to what makes it tick.

This is one market that breaks the hypothesis that the world is round — or even around!

Copyright © 2011, Jobnet magazine, issue 109

Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the publishers of Jobnet magazine

Courtesy Jobnet’s Directory of Placement Consultants

Posted under Articles by Lima Sehgal, Articles from Jobnet Magazine, Job Hunting Tips

Feel Good Factor- – Is your Resume Shining?

Anil Mahajan

The country is inundated with “Feel Good Factor”, coupled with “India Shining” — (Don’t dare ignorance lest you be labeled eccentric). India is shining baby!

But why you are whining like opposition party spokesmen?

The marketing of a political party is coming of age in India. The noise is so loud that all of us who do not agree with the punch-line prefer to keep silent. To top it all, even some of the opposition members have been floored by the hype and are actually looking for ways to cross over.

This is sheer inundation of the target audience with a focused information campaign.

This is a calculated & well conceived branding strategy, with the achievements carefully worded & showcased in brocade in all the leading newspapers.

You are left with no option but to believe. The branding is all pervasive. The opposition think-tank has gone bust & has given up all hopes of winning.

And, though I have been a headhunter for so many years, I am suddenly getting calls  from journalists & correspondents all over the world to re-confirm (?) that India is shining so much that even UK & US techies have a bright future in India (in contrast to the days of ’91, when India was thought to be teeming with millions of hungry men & beggars, snakes and cows).

And they wish to be reassured in the positive. If I say the statement is false, they would write me off as an eccentric or an illiterate headhunter. I have no option but to agree.

This media hype has given me food for thought for briefing job seekers in the field of Resume writing & resume logistics.

We will start with learning from this marketing campaign in the sectors of resume writing, cover letter writing, resume logistics & move on in the next issue to Shining in the Interviews & Shining in the workplace to get very Positive performance appraisals & Faster promotions.

Is your Resume Shining?

Have you ever tried to analyse whether or not your resume is shining? Mind you, you will not get an interview call or an offer letter if your resume is not shining.

You look at your resume many times, & unfortunately every time you convince yourself that it shines well or rather very well. The stark reality could be otherwise. Maybe it is not shining. Maybe it is a damp squib. Maybe you are seeing it shine in the light emanating from your own or your close friend’s subjectivity, bias, sheer ignorance of the competition or even narcissism.

Have you ever asked yourself any pertinent question brand positioning questions? For instance, If you are a GM-Marketing in Onida. have you ever seen the resume of GM- Marketing in LG / Samsung / Sony / Philips? Frankly, you have not.  Maybe your resume looks trivial before the resume of your competitors? Ignorance is unfortunately not bliss in this case. As a GM-Marketing, you have tried successfully to know your competitors’ marketing plans but, in your private battle for a better job, you are a complete novice. No doubt, you are a professional marketing head, but you are not a professional in resume making.

Lesson no. 1: Your Resume is a Marketing Document, whether you agree or not. So, better start believing it & seeing it as a marketing document to promote your brand.

Lesson no. 2: Accomplished professionals certainly do jobs differently. Haldiram makes better gol gappas & better jalebis. Compaq makes better computers. Swami Chidananda is a better guru. So, use the skills of a professional resume writer having an expertise in preparing a mind blowing resume.

Your resume must shine & create Feel Good Factor among the GateKeepers (Placement consultants as well as HRD heads) & hiring managers. Consequently  you  will win with thumping majority.

Your Shining Resume needs wide Supply Chain

Now you have a Shining Resume. You keep it in a box & it will gather dust. No ad campaign becomes a winning campaign unless accompanied with a solid media plan. The political parties go for print media, they go for digital media & even internet & so does your company. You also need to draw a detailed plan as to which all headhunters your Shining Resume should go to, whether in print or by e-mail, you also must decide which companies need be attacked & made to get a Feel good factor by sending your Shining Resume. You also need to make a list of their websites & start posting your Shining Resume into the careers pages of these websites.

Alternatively, you must go for a resume blast to consultants & companies. Let the world know that you have a shining resume showcasing your unique achievements differently (you alone know that it is penned by a copywriter). This alone will generate marketing enquiries. Maybe every company which matters would love or even compete with all others to hire you. You have a choice. You are now being chased by headhunters & companies alike & you decide which company to join. That is the Magic Mantra for the day. See you later in the next issue.

By Anil Mahajan, MBA PGDIT (IIFT)

He has made pioneering contributions in the field of Resume Writing and Resume Management.

Courtesy Jobnet Magazine issue 107

Republication or dissemination of the contents of this article are expressly prohibited without the written consent of the Author

Posted under Articles from Jobnet Magazine, Job Hunting Tips, Resume Writing tips