It’s difficult to be optimistic about the bleak job market when , unemployment is stuck at around 9.1 percent but a survey just released by employment services firm ManpowerGroup offers hope for job seekers in many places around the country.

The survey reveals that the metropolitan area with the most optimistic forecast of all for hiring this fall is San Antonio, Texas, and there’s also the good news that employers in 45 states expect the bleak employment picture to perk up. In fact, hiring managers in dozens of metropolitan areas anticipate considerable increases in hiring, while others present a darker forecast.

ManpowerGroup surveyed more than 18,000 employers in 100 metropolitan areas to find out who’s hiring, who’s firing and who plans to maintain their current staff levels in the fourth quarter of 2011, October through December. Of the surveyed employers, 16 percent anticipate an increase in staffing levels in their hiring plans, while 11 percent expect a decrease in payrolls. The difference between those numbers provides what ManpowerGroup calls a net employment outlook of 5 percent–or 7 percent when seasonally adjusted, which is still up from 6 percent for the same period last year, but down slightly from last quarter. Seventy percent of employers expect no change in their staffing, and the final 3 percent of employers are uncertain.

Forbes.com slideshow: The best and worst cities for jobs right now While the outlook is positive overall, the one-point drop from the third quarter is the first decrease in nine quarters. “The numbers are not going in the right direction this quarter, and they are not as robust as we would have liked them to be,” says Melanie Holmes, a vice president at ManpowerGroup. “Employers are hesitant about hiring in this economic climate. They are remaining guarded, and that is reflected in these results.”

Still, “We do see some bright spots in hiring, especially in San Antonio, which has the most promising hiring outlook for the fourth quarter,” says Jonas Prising, president of the Americas at ManpowerGroup. “Employers in other markets in Texas, including El Paso and Austin, are also anticipating strong hiring increases.”

The San Antonio metro area enjoys a 17 percent net employment outlook, the percentage of employers that expect to add employees (25 percent) minus the percentage that expect to reduce their workforce (8 percent). Another 64 percent said they anticipate no change, and 3 percent didn’t know.
Forbes.com: 20 businesses you can start now “San Antonio has continued to see new jobs created, and new jobs brought to the region,” says Richard Perez, president and chief executive of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. “I would say that San Antonio is well positioned to come out ahead in the future as well because our cost of living remains low, making it a good environment for companies to increase their investment in jobs here, plus we have a very talented labor pool because we graduate more than 30,000 from our colleges and universities each year.”
The industry with the largest economic impact and largest number of employees in San Antonio is health care and biosciences, with more than 142,000 employees, Perez says. “This surprises a lot of people who think we are only a tourism town. One of every five workers is in the health care sector, and it has an estimated $24 billion economic impact here. We also have large manufacturing and financial services sectors. And yes, we have a significant tourism industry in San Antonio, with approximately 106,000 employees.”

The largest employers in the San Antonio area include the Department of Defense, whose workplaces include Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base and Randolph Air Force Base. Combined they employ over 70,000 individuals. The largest corporate employer is San Antonio-based financial services firm United Services Automobile Association, with 14,800 employees. H-E-B Grocery Company follows close behind with 14,600 workers. AT&T, Toyota, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Valero Energy, Harland Clarke and Citibank are some of the area’s other major corporate employers.
Forbes.com: Best business quotes from the silver screen“San Antonio’s list of large employers is long and diverse,” Perez says. “We do not rely heavily on one area and that is by design. San Antonio has many industries that together keep us a resilient economy. We are fortunate to have many strong industries, and many strong companies with large employee bases.”

Employers in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers and Baltimore-Towson metro areas also anticipate a significant upswing in hiring for the next quarter.
Nearly a quarter of Cape Coral-Fort Myers employers reported positive forecasts, while 6 percent drew a bleaker picture. Sixty-nine percent said they won’t be changing their employment levels, and the remaining 3 percent are unsure of their hiring plans. With a net employment outlook of 16 percent, the southwest Florida metro area is the second best place for finding a job this fall.
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Baltimore-Towson employers are expressing similar sentiments. Twenty percent of that metro area’s hiring managers anticipate a bright fourth quarter. Meanwhile, 7 percent expect to decrease their payrolls, 71 percent anticipate no change and 2 percent are uncertain. This yields a net employment outlook of 13 percent and positions the Maryland metropolis as the third best place for finding a job this fall. Greensboro-High Point, N.C., St. Louis and Tulsa enjoy the same rank.

Forbes.com: 39 big achievers share the greatest risks they every took
Unfortunately not all cities are as confident about hiring. The net employment outlook in Spokane and Las Vegas is a far weaker -4 percent–and those metropolitan areas aren’t even the worst. The Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Fla., metro area yields a net employment outlook of -5 percent for the quarter.

The worst area of all for finding a job this fall is Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn.
Only 12 percent of surveyed Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk metro area employers plan to hire between October and December, while 19 percent expect to reduce their staff levels. Sixty-nine percent expect to maintain their current workforce. This yields a net employment outlook of -7 percent for the Connecticut metropolis.

“Although this quarter we are seeing relatively stable hiring compared with last quarter and even the year before, we are way below the double-digit employment outlook numbers we saw prior to the end of 2008,” Prising says. “With daily fluctuations in the market and mixed news reports about housing and consumer sentiment, employers are just plain uncertain about the future. Until they see a sustainable demand for their products and services, employers will not commit to hiring in big numbers.”

Sit in front of laptop. Lie on couch. Eat pickles for lunch. Back to laptop.

Feel sorry for self. Feel sick of self. Tear hair out in frustration. And … back to couch.

If this is your 9-to-5 routine, you’re probably like 14 million other Americans: unemployed. And in addition to the frustration of looking for work, you might find yourself feeling a little lonely.

Sure, you chat with friends online all day. And you may have a family or significant other who comes home in the evening. But good old fashioned, face-to-face contact with another human being before dinner? Kind of rare these days.

In running my unemployment blog, I’ve received plenty of emails from readers. And although many of them were lighthearted in nature, a number of them were quite the opposite. One of the saddest read: “You’re the first person I’ve spoken to in days.”

Unemployment can make a recluse out of even the most social of butterflies. After all, you want to spend as much time as possible looking for work. And where do you look for work? Online. And where do you go online? At home.

But spending too much time alone can be detrimental, not just to your emotional well-being, but to your job search too! Staying connected with the rest of the world is not a luxury. It’s a necessity!

Work from a coffee shop.
Find a coffee shop with WiFi in your neighborhood (even better if it’s free WiFi!). Grab your laptop and go. You may not be striking up conversations with fellow coffee shop patrons, but it’s nice to be in the presence of other human beings. It’s also nice to have a change of scenery; one that doesn’t include Oprah on mute and swag from your previous employer.

Team up with other jobseekers.
Chances are, you know others who are unemployed. Instead of each working alone in your respective homes, why not team up? Agree to meet at someone’s house, and look for jobs together. After all, misery loves company. Not only will you have others to talk to who are in the same situation, you might just find that your jobless friends make good leads. You never know who might know of a job that isn’t quite right for them, but fits you perfectly.

Go to networking events.
Whatever your industry, there are probably relevant networking or trade association events taking place locally. Not only will you keep abreast of changes in your field, you’ll get to rub elbows with living, breathing, hiring members of the work force. We all know that spending hours and hours online every day is not the most efficient way to get hired. The majority of job seekers find work through a contact. You need to get out there and network!

Get a (night) life!
Spending eight dollars on an Apple Martini may be the furthest thing from your mind right now. And rightly so. But maintaining and growing your social network (and we don’t mean Facebook) can be a valuable part of your job search. And you don’t have to spend exorbitant amounts of money (or borrow cash from friends) to go out. Especially right now, there are plenty of extended happy hours and recession specials.

Volunteer
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: You can’t spend all day, every day, looking for work. Volunteering a couple of days a week will give you something else to do, a fresh perspective and a chance to spend time with others who share your passion for a cause. And depending on the type of volunteer work you choose, it may even help keep your career on track (and your resumé strong). I know a laid-off writer who started volunteering in the communications department of a non-profit agency. She says it’s keeping her busy, helping her develop her writing skills, and preventing her from sticking her head in an oven. Not bad for a dozen or so hours a week, which would have otherwise been spent obsessively surfing the web.

August 9, 2011 | By Ron Ruggless

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U.S. commercial restaurants closed at a faster rate than new openings, creating a two-year pattern of decline, according to the latest restaurant census released Tuesday by The NPD Group.

The Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm found U.S. restaurant unit counts declined by 2 percent, or 9,450 restaurants, between April 1, 2010, and March 31, 2011, compared with the same time frame a year earlier.
Independent restaurants comprised most of the decline, with 8,650 closures, NPD said. Chain restaurant unit counts remained relatively stable.
“The decline in independent units is the steepest we’ve seen since NPD began conducting the ‘Spring ReCount’ census in 2001,” said Greg Starzynski, NPD’s director of product development-foodservice. The census is conducted each spring and fall.
“A volatile economy, frugal consumers and a lack of financial backing have made it a difficult business environment for independent restaurants,” Starzynski added.

In the most recent ReCount census, NPD found the total number of restaurants fell to 574,050 from 583,500 in the previous-year period.

However, the NPD CREST study, which tracks consumer usage of commercial and non-commercial foodservice outlets, found that for the year ended May 2011, visits to U.S. restaurants held stable compared with the previous year, when visits were down 3 percent.
The CREST study also found consumer spending at restaurants improved by 2 percent for the year ended May 2011, compared with the same period a year ago, when dollars were down by 1 percent.
According to NPD’s ReCount census, the number of quick-service restaurants declined by 1 percent, or 3,495 units. Full-service restaurant units, which include casual-dining, mid-scale and fine-dining restaurants, fell by 2 percent, or 5,965 units, from the Spring 2010 ReCount census.
By comparison, the total number of domestic restaurants fell about 1 percent, or by 5,551 outlets, to 579,102 locations in NPD’s Fall 2010 ReCount.
And in the Spring 2010 ReCount, the number of restaurants fell by 5,204 units, a 1-percent decline from the total number of eateries recorded a year prior, NPD said.

While unit counts were down through March of this year, NPD said restaurant traffic trends were improving.

By Ruchira Agrawal

The times we live in today are very different from just 10 years ago. Job security and staying in the same career for your entire life are almost a thing of the past. Most people will change careers between 5-7 times in their lifetime according to recent studies.

Why would someone want to change or reinvent their career?
1.Losing enthusiasm for the work – After you spend a number of years working in one field, you begin to feel a loss of connection with your work. This sometimes happens with high-achievers
2.Need for personal fulfillment – Your work just doesn’t feed your soul; it doesn’t bring any fulfillment or satisfaction. You may be good at it but it doesn’t align with who you are. This mostly happens around mid-life for people.
3.Personal aspirations aren’t aligned with work anymore – People grow and change and so do their desires, goals and aspirations. Ten years ago, perhaps something else was important and now your needs have changed. Work can then starts to become a barrier rather than providing fulfillment.
4.Circumstances – Perhaps the industry you were involved is stagnating or even dying. Or you have crossed a certain age and jobs are tough to come by. Circumstances such as these may also put somebody in a position where they think about reinventing their career.

Reinventing your career is really about your personal journey of self-discovery. Whatever your reason for wanting to make a change, the desire to do it must come from within. The desire to take charge of your career and life should be there as well.

Here are 6 important steps to bear in mind that will give you a head start:

An open mind – An open mind–like a blank slate with no pre-conceived notion of what you can or cannot do–serves very well as you look for a career that’s new and different. Explore your options by reading about them and talking to people, try to just absorb everything instead of judging things right away. Don’t be afraid of the “New”. This will help you expand your mindset.

What will I be when I grow up – If you had a childhood dream, something that you always wanted to do and couldn’t, this is a time to connect with it.

Passion, abilities, needs and values – Often running our lives on auto-pilot, we forget what our interests are, and this is a great time to remember them. What really grabs your interest? The best way to reinvent your career is to first discover what you really want to do and then excel in it by becoming good at it. Pay attention to everyday things and events however miniscule they may seem–your answer may be hidden there. Do people come to you for advice automatically? Are you good at organizing things neatly and effectively and love working with people? There could be things you are already doing and enjoying, but you may not have paid attention.

Don’t forget to use your intuition – Your intuition is such a versatile tool and it can be easily used in both personal and professional situations. As you are trying to look for answers, let your instincts guide you.

Applying the same discipline as your corporate job – Once you’ve identified what you would like to do, start learning so you can move into it. Don’t be afraid to take courses or get help from experts in the industry. Speak to those who have already blazed the trail before you.

Fear is not your friend – Once you’ve identified your likely choices, then it’s time to take action. This can be frightening and often makes people freeze and stay in one place. You have to identify your fears – failure, the unknown, and so forth, and realize that they are not realistic. It’s true that there is no guarantee for the future but that shouldn’t stop you from taking forward steps.

Change and reinvention should be an exciting prospect as you are looking towards your bright future.

By Dee Adams

If you’ve ever dreamed about starting your own business, you are not alone. There were almost 9 million self-employed workers in 2010, according to statistics compiled by Challenger, Gray, & Christmas. Each year, a percentage of the workforce trades in their 9-5 jobs for the entrepreneurial life, but some workers start a sideline business to supplement their salaries.

Business startup cuts across all socio-economic groups; from managers, executives, and professionals to blue collar workers. Success stories include:
•A Harvard graduate with a degree in mathematics and economics who left management consulting to pursue her passion for desserts. She started a bakery and Café, and began writing cookbooks.
•A Ph.D. in political science from University of Chicago who opened a motorcycle repair shop. He wrote a book about the value of working with one’s hands.
• A web designer and consultant fired from her job because of her personal blogging. She built a lucrative home-based empire with her mommy blog.
•A firefighter who invented better fire safety equipment for the consumer and industrial marketplace, and created a multimillion-dollar venture.

But, for many other would-be entrepreneurs finding the right startup is challenging.

Many issues may cloud the process, and certain questions asked and answered in the pre-planning stage can pinpoint conflicts and problems, and their solutions.

Here are several important questions:

Do you know how many aptitudes you possess?
Aptitudes are inborn natural talents and should not be confused with acquired skills. Each person has an average of six innate skills, some unused and some hidden.

While a percentage of the population may be able to determine their own aptitudes by self-assessment, most people are not aware of their full potential, according to writer Margaret Broadley. Over a 40 year period, Broadley documented the work of the Johnson O’Connor Research Foundation, a nonprofit organization specializing in the scientific research of human abilities.

What are your least favorite skills?
Create a checklist of work tasks that you dislike and have trouble executing.

What feels more comfortable, introverted or extroverted personality traits?
Make a checklist of your actual patterns of behavior in work and social interactions, not what you believe your traits are.

Note: Some people adapt their personalities in order to fit into social or working situations and may have an opposite personality from the traits that they often exhibit.

What is your motivation for choosing self-employment?
Using a single sentence, describe why you want to be your own boss.

What is your history with money?
Your money history includes your family’s relationship with financial issues, the messages you learned as a child, and your pattern of behavior and attitude toward money as an adult, which may be reflected in your current credit history.

Summarize your answer in two or three short sentences.

Socio-economic factors, like the state of the economy, the ability to borrow money, or to easily relocate have an impact on the number of people who pursue entrepreneurship each year, but many aspiring entrepreneurs ignore national economic trends in pursuit of their dreams. Those who succeed keep their risks low, and instinctively review their personal development homework beforehand.

What other issues are standing in your way?

How many of us have heard these famous last words at the end of a not-so-successful date? They remind me of Charlie Sheen’s character on Two And A Half Men. “I’ll Call You” was Charlie’s escape hatch which allowed him to quickly part company with his lady friends without a big confrontation. It was never genuine. Rather flip and dismissive. Which is why Job Seekers recoil when they hear the same words from a Professional Recruiter: “I’ll Call You.”

I understand the temptation to lump Recruiters in with the Charlie Sheens’ of the world. After all, today’s society has been conditioned to understand “I’ll Call You” to be the ultimate blow off. However, I can assure you, and the rest of today’s Job Seekers, that when we Recruiters say “I’ll Call You” we actually mean it! It may not be the next day or next week. But if your work history is strong, and your skill set relevant to our niche, we will eventually call you.

Most Agency Recruiters, like me, are driven by our clients’ immediate needs…critical positions which need to be filled ASAP by candidates who meet a very specific set of criteria. This explains why a highly-qualified Accountant will hear “I’ll Call You” when the Recruiter is working on filling Sales positions. Or why an accomplished Engineer will hear “I’ll Call You” when the Recruiter is handling several Chef openings. Or why the recent college grad will hear “I’ll Call You” when the Recruiter is seeking out CEO candidates. It doesn’t mean the Accountant’s or Engineer’s or College Graduate’s resumes were awful and that they “never find a job in this town again.” It simply boils down to timing.

I’ll admit we Recruiters see thousands of resumes a month. Even if we say “I’ll call you,” how do you, the Job Seeker, know that we won’t forget you three months from now? I’ve been asked by Job Seekers before:”Can I call you every week to stay in touch?” It’s a nice idea, really. But if I honored this request by the several hundred prospective candidates I’ve been in contact just in the last month, then you will legitimately be able to compare me to Charlie… *after* he lost his mind!
If you, the Job Seeker, wish to stay on a Recruiter’s radar for future opportunities, then you will benefit the most by supplying the following:

• an updated copy of your resume
• accurate salary history
• reasonable salary expectations
• markets for relocation
• list of tangible, measurable accomplishments
• aspirations for your next position
• three professional references
• an active cell number
• and a viable email address

A good Recruiter will enter every tidbit of this information into a profile he/she has created for you in their keyword-optimized database or tracking system. Between your resume and the above bullets, you have armed the Recruiter with the information needed to match you to upcoming positions. And when the right position matches up…then the magic happens. And unlike Charlie Sheen…the Recruiter actually calls! It may be in two weeks…two months…or two years. But the Recruiter calls.
Please don’t misunderstand. I do not mean that you, the Job Seeker, should completely drop out of sight after the initial phone screen with your Recruiter. I’ll confess that occasionally well-timed calls from active Job Seekers who want to update me on a new accomplishment or a changed email address, have been followed up with my query “By the way, may I run a new opportunity past you?” So in the end, the best way to treat “I’ll Call You” from a Recruiter is to view it as the beginning of a beautiful friendship. (Giving props to Bogey.) Not the dismissive end of a brief encounter. (Ala Charlie Sheen.) Your Recruiter likely wants to help. It’s just he/she may not be able to do so right now. But when that perfect project does come along with criteria that matches your background & skill set, then both you and the Recruiter will be…Winning!

Wendy Gawlik CPC

Another reason to ignore social media in the hiring process

Most of us have social networking profiles these days, and though survey results differ on the exact percentage, a whole lot of hiring managers and recruiters can’t resist taking a peek at them. And of course, the temptation to check out a candidate’s Facebook page is even stronger with a remote team, where you may have limited or no face-to-face contact with the person you’re considering hiring.

But do people get an accurate picture of others’ personalities from their social networking profiles? Is the practice of trawling through online profiles particularly subject to our biases and prejudices? Two psychologists from Auburn University have published a paper looking into the issue.

The study by Victoria Brown and E. Daly Vaughn in Journal of Business and Psychologywas written up recently on the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest blog and suggests that while a quick look at a candidate’s profile may feel harmless, there are actually pitfalls to the practice.

Previous research has found, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, that when it comes to our level of extroversion and openness, social networking profiles actually give visitors a fairly accurate portrait of our personalities (though we hide our neuroticism). But that accuracy depends on seeing a fairly long slice of our activity history, and Vaughn and Brown warn that with quick looks “we can also fall prey to drawing conclusions on the bases of a small sample of ‘recent activity’.”

Even more troubling is the likelihood that getting a look at the person you’re considering hiring may bring out your unconscious biases, according to the BPS blog.The authors also worry that SNS [social networking site] screening may be very prone to biases, given that SNS data gives ready indication of race, age, disability and other factors that shouldn’t be considerations in screening decisions.

The final conclusion? Though it might be tempting to take a look at a potential hire online, the authors argue that you should probably resist, recommending companies forbid “opportunistic online reviewing of some candidates but not others, and listing appropriate criteria,” such as viewing work samples on a graphic designer’s profile. They conclude “it may be better for organizations to ban the practice entirely.”

Is sneaking a peek at a candidate’s social networking profile helpful, or invasive and prone to bias?

By Jessica Stillman

“Don’t burn a bridge” and “Finish strong”

We have all heard the term “Don’t burn a bride”. Now more than ever, this term is vitally important as you are considering a job change.

With potentially hundreds of candidates vying for the same job opening, the job will most likely get offered to someone who has not “burned a bridge”.

Over the past few months I have heard different ways that people have “burned bridges”. These are real-life and current examples.

• A manager sent his boss a text message he was quitting without notice.
• A manager left a note that he was quitting on the desk in the mangers office with his keys, and quit.
• A manager took a hard-line stand and made comments about Senior Managers after several hourly team members were let go by those Senior Managers.
• And of course, the no call, no show. This is where someone just abandons their job, but never showing up to work for their shift.

Now each of these people have told me reasons for why they left their companies the way they did, but is anything that bad that you need to leave your employer this way? [Note: Of course there are ethical, and legal matters that may lead you to leave abruptly, even then, you can involve your HR department or senior level leaders in your company to get protected if the matter is that serious or harmful.]

Do you really want to be tainted with the reputation of leaving an employer this way? Do you really understand what you are about to do, and set into motion by leaving like this?

So, how do you avoid “burning a bride”? How do you protect your priceless reputation and career during a job change?

Here are a few things that should help, and help you “finish strong”.

1.       Before you even consider leaving, understand your options and count the cost of leaving.

2.       If you do decide to get a new job, start by getting a great recruiter [Like Gecko Hospitality] working for you, and representing you. We have the best job orders, and we have the direct connections to the decision-makers to your new potential employer[s].

3.       Once you get a recruiter retained, let us do the work for you. Concentrate on your job. We know how busy you are, and you need to ensure you are focused to your current job and your current employer.

4.       When we get an offer for you, and a new job lined up, you need to give you employer a written letter of resignation. You should give this to your direct report [boss] in person, and talk about it. Be prepared for potential high emotions, and being talked out of leaving. What is important is that you have taken the time to write you resignation; you are prepared to intelligently talk about it, and believe in it.

5.       Once your notice has been given, and accepted, agree upon a last date of your employment. Be flexible and helpful if your current employer needs a few more days than you gave. We will work with your new employer to coordinate your start date. Do not be worried that your new employer will be mad or upset if you need a few more days to finish strong with your current employer. Most likely your actions and desire to take care of your current company will speak volumes about your character, and who you are.

6.       As you wind down your final days, stay focused to caring for your guests, your team, and your owner’s interests.

How can this all be summed up?

Two words, “Finish Strong”!

Very few employers will remember your first day, but they always remember your last day.

I will say it again, “Finish Strong”!

Kevin Kalstad — Gecko Hopitality

It never ceases to amaze me how many times when speaking with potential candidates and discussing the different job openings I have available, someone says “go ahead and send me into XYZ Company”. I then ask them what they know about the company and they say “I really don’t know anything about them”. My response is usually at that point, “how can you know if you want to work for a company that you know nothing about?” I will usually give them some basic background knowledge and information, but I always make sure to tell them to go online and do some research about the company to see of it is going to be a fit for your style and culturally. Once you know about the concept and if you are still interested, then we will move forward in the process. But DO YOUR HOMEWORK FIRST! This is the only way you can make an intelligent decision when the time comes and an offer is made.
Also, it is very important just prior to any interview that you take the time to go over the company website of who you are interviewing with so that their information is fresh in your mind. You should know as much about the company as is possible to find out online. Things such as important people within the organization, if it is a publicly traded company the financial track record, the menu, current marketing and advertising campaigns, the company history, unit locations, new store openings, etc.
Most interviewers will ask at some point during the interview “what do you know about our company?” or “why do you want to work for XYZ?” If you have not done your homework and you go into the interview with little to no knowledge, it will show glaringly during this question and answer stage. This is the one point in the interview where you can really make a great impression and shine and show how much you really want the position by impressing the interviewer with your knowledge about the company. If you have a great answer to this question and can answer it with confidence, intelligently and with enthusiasm, this can be the answer that puts you over the top in the mind of the interviewer. Conversely, if you do poorly in conveying any standard knowledge about the company, it most likely will cause the interviewer to cut the interview short as they will think you do not have a genuine interest in them as a career choice, but rather just in need of a job. So make sure that you take the time before considering any company, that you do your homework, before deciding whether to pursue them. And more importantly, DO YOUR HOMEWORK prior to any interview to insure that you are set up for success. Remember, the more preparation you put into an interview, the more your chances of success. And make sure you have some questions prepared ahead of time that asks about the company and its culture and its people.
If you follow these guidelines, you should expect to have good results.

Good Luck!

“Lightening in a bottle!”

What a description! I was talking with one of my HR manager clients and asking for the job criteria of what skill set he wanted in the Restaurant management candidate. He went on to describe the length of tenure, salary and each piece of criteria. Then he ended with “ I want a hitter. A person who is like lightening in a bottle!”

That sums up a personality! A person who takes charge and gets the job done! A person who makes things happen!

More HR managers are looking not only for the skill set but the winning attitude also! If you have a great attitude they can train a skill!

Joan Koelbel, CPC
Gecko Hospitality
NC / VA / DC markets