Worst interview preparation ever?

Here's an exciting combination of circumstances leading up to an interview I have tomorrow:

• My kids have come home covered in nits
• I am recovering from gastroenteritis 
• Cat has just shat copiously on my interview suit

Can anyone beat that?

I'm trying to be positive

My sister said to me the other day that I should be careful about posting negative sounding messages on here in the jobsearch chain: and she's probably right.  I doubt that many potential employers delve round these pages: but if even 1 is put off then that's 1 too many!

So,  OK,  I failed to get through a few interviews: so what am I up to that's not directly applying for jobs but is trying to keep my skills up?

Another interview coming...hopefully

I've been applying for around 6 - 10 positions a day and have had some interest since my last posting.

Had a call yesterday about a position at a shipping company: hopefully they will interview me next week.  The agent was supposed to be calling this morning but nothing as yet.  I do hope they haven't got cold feet.

I've had 2 rejections today on the basis that I'm too far from London and the journey in would be too stressful: bit of a choker given that I've been doing just that for the past 5 years.  The journey in has been my favourite part of the day for some time now: I can relax and read,  what's not to like?  There is a bit of a community going on the train down to London: it was nice to have a catch up every morning. 

Feels like people are inventing new reasons not to hire me all the time: bah humbug!

No luck with the second job either

After a period of radio silence I got in touch with the agent who was talking about the job in London at the financial firm.  It turns out that the firm has persuaded the incumbent chap to stay on.  It would have been nice if someone had bothered to let me know!

If I get sold any more pups I could open my own kennels

Yesterday I signed on for jobseekers allowance.  In the past there has always been some reason why in fact I could not receive this but this time it all seemed to go through very smoothly.  Kudos to the staff at JobCentre Plus here in Ely who were very friendly and helpful.  Its only £74 per week: but better than the nothing I had been getting.

So: onwards and upwards (again).  I spoke to an agent today who is looking for someone for a £60K role which I seem well suited for,  perhaps something will come of that one.

No luck in Norwich

I went over to Norwich yesterday for an interview with a small IT firm there. 

The interview itself went OK in as much as I got on well with the interviewer and liked the firm.

However.....the description of the role had been changed a little from what my agent had been told.  They really wanted to focus only on the sharepoint part of what I had thought would have been a more general role.  I have a feeling that this alone would not really make up a "proper" job and that they will struggle to fill the role as advertised.

They won't be filling it with me as they spoke to my agent this morning to reject me....ho hum.

I'm still waiting to see if an interview is confirmed for next week with a London investment company who sound very good.  The nice thing about this one is that the current IT manager is making big efforts to do a proper managed handover,  which is a very good sign of a well organised company. 

This morning I started my roundup of new jobs coming onto the market and at last I am seeing a few positions which actually pay decent money.  I have applied for a batch of roles today that are offering more money than I was on in my last job.  This is the first time since I was laid off that I have seen roles which could actually make me better off financially.  One of them is with a legal firm so I should have a decent chance there given my 7 years experience at a law firm.

I'm not giving up.

One more straw in the wind: I applied for jobseekers allowance yesterday online: in the past when I have done this I generally find that I get work quite quickly: and then have to go through the hassle of backtracking again: would that I have that problem again!

Hopefully I have another interview coming

I'm just off the phone to a more than helpful agent who is representing an equity firm who require an IT manager/SysAdmin.

I really like the sound of the company and it was great to hear that the current incumbent is really making an effort towards an orderly transfer.  The chance of a good outcome is always greatly improved under these conditions.  Its just round the corner from where I was working recently.

My details are going over now but with a bit of luck that will be another interview in the offing.

My interview at the Norwich firm has been confirmed for next week: so its full speed ahead on that one (which also sounds very interesting as they deal in near field communications).  Working in Norwich sounds nice also: and its only a short walk from Norwich station so that would help a lot.

Thanks for all the messages of support.

Some light at the end of the tunnel?

After the misery of my last posting (apologies) some good news to report at last.

I have an interview in Norwich next Wednesday: so fingers crossed for that.

It looks a good role,  actually,  systems admin for a company working with near field communications: not exactly a market which is likely to decline in the future.

Hitting a new low....

I had hoped that the end of August would bring about a change in fortunes,  but no.

Either there's nothing out there or I just can't find it.  When you hang around all day for a call from an agent about a job that pays £15K less than you were on,  in somewhere miles away that you don't want to go and you get depressed because there is (inevitably) no call back....something is very wrong.

Been going a bit bonkers lately: not eating much.  In fact I managed not to eat anything at all for 4 days!

The effort of "keeping my chin up" is getting too much: I feel like giving up.

Things may be coming to life again after a typically quite August

Now the bank holiday weekend is over again it does seem that the jobs market is waking up again a bit.

For the last few weeks I have been struggling to find things to apply to but I did get a couple of calls from agents today so perhaps that's a good harbinger of things to come. 

I'm still trying to make up my mind what I should be asking for salary-wise.  I'm not over centred on cash (I hope) and would be willing to go down from my last salary a bit if that is what the market demands.  But how much?  If any?  I don't want to sound desperate and make it seem as though I would accept any wage offered. 

Given these straightened times,  or despite of them,  what do people think about salary downsizing?

Nearly, but no cigar

I've done well considering its August,  probably the worst month to try and get a new job.

I've had a couple of interviews.

The first went very well and I was well suited to what would have been a great role.  I got through to the last few (probably last 3) but not quite....

Second one was a role that I was perhaps less well suited for,  and I did not think the interview went as well as the first: I was never certain that I had all the skills that they were asking for: and probably over emphasised that in interview.  Its not down to me to tell people what I cannot do.  I still got down to the last 2 but....

Since then I've done an online technical test for another role : which I have never heard back from: so I'm guessing wasn't great.

There was another role that I was called about: and out went the trusty CV: but again I've heard nothing back.

Indeed I heard nothing back from the company for role 2: which is a bit poor considering I travelled to London twice to see them.

So we live and learn.  I need to improve my interview technique: but its not that bad and for things that I feel I really want I think/hope that I come across well.  I just need to learn to project myself as the person that someone really needs to take their company forwards: the one to make them forget the rest of the candidates.

I also know that I will need to keep working on making sure my technical abilities are up to date.  Most specifically on exchange server.  There has been recent learning with setting up Office 365 just before I left my last job.  That turned out to be a more challenging technical ask than I had realized: with the active directory preparation and DNS work perhaps the most challenging.  But it was all working when I left,  its just a pity that the new people wanted to go back to Lotus Notes.

So I'm working on updating my Exchange 2010 expertise at present: lots of exiting hours ahead studying the subject beckon.  I also plan to do some more learning around virtualization in the enterprise as well.

Wish me luck everyone.

I've had my first interview, and I have another today

First one went very well yesterday,  at Surrey CCC.  Its always hard to tell what the "other side" thought of you but it was all very friendly and I seemed to have answers to their questions.

I have another today: put over from yesterday so we'll see about that one.

My first interview

Great news: looks like the new CV is paying off as I have my first interview now booked.

Next week I'm up for what looks like a great position.

People have been quick to remind me that the first "should be seen as practice" and that's all well and good: but I may as well go for it anyway.

Seeing the E Mail coming back was a great surprise: it was the first time I had turned on the computer today.  Have spent all day decorating the kitchen and its going OK although there is a lot of work to do.  I am not looking forward to all the cabinet doors which look like they will need 2 coats.

Now the hair has gone as well

I look more like the chap in my signature photo now  (OK: still quite a lot older but not that different),  the wookie look has gone.

Who knows if this will make me more employable or not,  but it does feel like I have taken another variable out of the way.

Also managed to pick up a suit jacket at a charity shop for £20 that was in perfect condition and fitted as well.  That plus the Marks and Spencers shoes (hardly worn,  my size) for £10 and I'm feeling up on the deal.

I just need to sort out my PlanetRecruit login sorted and I'll be satisfied that I'm still getting somewhere.  I changed from one mail address to another and that has confused their system somehow,  its now the last one that still has not had my "improved" CV and they do seem to bring up the most relevant jobs for myself: out of all the sites that I'm using.

The beard just had to go....

Sad to say I no longer look anything like "The Master" from Dr Who (for those of you with long memories).  The beard just did not feel interview friendly: so off it came.  Kinda freaked out the kids for a while.

Next on my list is to get rid of the hair: most of that will have to go as well.  It would have gone this afternoon but for some reason the barber's closed early today: so I'm still typing through a haze of hair: but perhaps tomorrow morning....

Its all about the CV

It was the last day of my monthly railcard today so I decided to make use of it and go down "to the smoke" to see an agent.

Here's my approach so far:

• Don't just apply for all relevant jobs you see on the web: the world and his wife have already done that!
• Develop a close relationship with selected recruitment agents and hopefully they can put you in the path of a few decent jobs before they are posted and everyone starts applying
• Start going through each job I am applying for and look at the bullet points of what if required for the post: and then re edit my CV to address these points directly in the CV

With the above in mind I trotted into town to see an agent at Badenoch and Clark which is just on the north side of the river.

I only got to chat with the agent for 20 mins: however these were the most useful 20 mins of my job search so far.

When I chat to an agent I'm grateful for any time he/she has.  Time taken speaking to me is time that the agent is not using to place people at a profit: and its a high pressure business.

I've worked for a couple of recruitment agencies in the past (IT manager for one,  helpdesk manager for the other) and I've always had a health respect for agents.  Many people have a bad image of agents,  often because they don't let you know if you have failed to get an interview or that they bombard you with unsuitable roles,  but I've always held a positive view.  The thing I like about agents is that "what you see is what you get" : there seems to be little politics playing: and if you do have an issue with an agent: just move on: there are plenty more!

Anyway the agent was pretty brutal about my CV which was just what I was after.  He said that it would be one of the first in the bin and gave some pretty convincing reasons to back that up.

Basically I need to go into much greater detail (and probably bullet points) about my previous role: as its the last 5 years its what people will be most interested in and it should take up most of the front page of the CV.

With that in mind I will be contacting my colleague who is still working part time for my former employers and will draw up a list of all our projects before some of them begin to disappear into the mists of time.

I have been using LinkedIn to create my CVs and will do so again once I have all my projects and achievements listed properly.

I'm now officially out of work!

I came to an agreement with my former employers today: so financially all the details are now sorted.

Yikes: that means that at 5 today I officially stopped working for them.

Its nice that things were finished on an amicable basis: now I can look forward more clearly.

Onwards and upwards next week,  actually my diary is looking pretty full already.

FreeMind

Freemind

My wife suggested to me that I organise my thoughts using a diagram.

This got me thinking about geeky ways to achieve the above.

I came up with FreeMind.  I suggested it at work for a few people as the commercial software available,  although excellent was a little pricey when too many people were using it and requiring licenses. 

Installation is a breeze: I just installed via the Ubuntu Software Centre: but its worth looking into the advanced details and selecting the additional components that you may require.  For example,  you can enable export or your mind maps to various formats.

LinkedIn

A whole bunch of people have suggested I use LinkedIn as a job-seeking resource.

Several have done LinkedIn job searches for me and posted me links.

I have quite a few recruitment consultants who have added themselves to my LinkedIn connections.

So,  why am I underwhelmed so far?

A few days ago an ex colleague from many years ago was kind enough to send me a link to a job posted on LinkedIn.  I followed the link,  and indeed the job seemed ideal.  However,  on one corner of the posting was a link declaring that it was a "hot position" or "on fire" or some such.  I was not reassured by finding out that over 70 people had already applied via LinkedIn. 

Is everyone using this method?  Is there a way I can get ahead of those other 70 people?  I don't know but it certainly burst the bubble of self confidence for a moment. 

The fact that I had been mailed by my ex colleague was an example of the success of the method,  to be fair.  People certainly read the general feeds from their contacts on the site.

Are you someone who is reading this and has found something through LinkedIn?

Perhaps you feel that the 70:1 ratio compares well with the number of applications per vacancy that you would likely get from a job on one of the specialist job sites?

I'm an ex-IT Manager, but hopefully not for long

Well,  a pretty awful thing happened to me a couple of weeks ago. My company (I'm still officially working for them as I type, but I am on "gardening leave") was bought out and sadly, I'm surplus to requirements.

I'm trying very hard to put aside any feelings of being hard done by: true or not it won't be helping me: so that stuff is all officially in the past.  I just need to keep repeating that to myself for a while....

I'm about to find out the real state of the IT job market in the London and Cambridge areas.

My initial feelings are that there are still posts to be had: but that its pretty tough competition out there to get an interview.  I've seen plenty of things I can apply to: but am I applying for the correct posts?  Do I need to do some extra study,  do I need more professional qualifications?

Over the next few weeks or months I will be blogging about the job hunting experience, and if anyone would like to make suggestions or comments please feel welcome.

Hopefully this may be of help to others who may find themselves in the same predicament.

Here are some of the topics I hope to be covering soon:

• LinkedIn
• CV preparation
• Interviews
• Freemind: "mind mapping software"
• Agencies
• JobSearch Websites
• ITIL