http://career-advice.monster.com/job-interview/Interview-Questions/Six-Answers-Interviewers-Need/article.aspx?WT.mc_n=CRMUS000096
Six Answers Interviewers Need to Hire You
By Peter Vogt, MonsterTRAK Career Coach
During the typical job interview, you'll be asked a lot of questions. But do you really understand what the interviewer needs to know?
"Most students have no idea why a recruiter asks a particular question," says Brad Karsh, a former recruiting professional for advertising giant Leo Burnett and current president of career consulting firm Job Bound. "They tend to think it's a competition to outwit the interviewer."
The reality is that employers have neither the time nor inclination to play games with you, especially when hiring. Your interviewer is not trying to outguess you -- he's trying to assess your answers to six key questions:
Do You Have the Skills to Do the Job?
According to Karsh, the employer must first determine whether you have the necessary hard skills for the position, e.g., the programming knowledge for a database administration job or the writing chops to be a newspaper reporter. "By really probing into what the candidate has done in the past, an interviewer can tap into hard skills."
But the interviewer is also looking for key soft skills you'll need to succeed in the job and organization, such as the ability to work well on teams or "the requisite common sense to figure things out with some basic training," says Terese Corey Blanck, director of student development at internship company Student Experience and a partner in College to Career, a consulting firm.
Do You Fit?
"Every organization's first thought is about fit and potentially fit in a certain department," Corey Blanck says. That means the interviewer is trying to pinpoint not only whether you match up well with both the company's and department's activities but also whether you'll complement the talents of your potential coworkers.
Do You Understand the Company and Its Purpose?
If the organization fits well with your career aspirations, you'll naturally be motivated to do good work there -- and stay more than a month or two, Corey Blanck reasons. "I don't want someone to take the position because it's a job and it fits their skills. I want them to be excited about our mission and what we do."
How Do You Stack Up Against the Competition?
You're being evaluated in relation to other candidates for the job. In other words, this test is graded on a curve. So the interviewer will constantly be comparing your performance with that of the other candidates'.
Do You Have the Right Mind-Set for the Job and Company?
"I'm always looking for someone who has a can-do type of attitude," Corey Blanck explains. "I want someone who wants to be challenged and is internally motivated to do well.
Corey Blanck points out that an employer can't train for this essential trait. "But you can hire for it. And if you don't, you'll end up with a lower-performing employee."
Do You Want the Job?
Most employers know better than to believe everyone they interview actually wants the position being offered. They understand some candidates are exploring their options, while others are using an interview with a company they don't care about to hone their interview skills.
So you have to prove you really want the job, says Al Pollard, senior college recruiter for Countrywide Financial. "I use the ditch-digger analogy: Many of us can dig ditches, but few are willing to -- and even fewer want to."
Additional Articles in This Feature
Make a Great First Impression home
What If Your Interview Is Tomorrow?
100 Potential Interview Questions
Nonverbal Communications: Escape the Pitfalls
Job Interview Pointers
Do Your Homework Before the Big Interview
Assessing Your Skills
Friday, May 22, 2009
Stimulus Allocates Billions for Job-Training Opportunities
http://career-advice.monster.com/career-development/Education-Training/economic-stimulus-job-training/article.aspx?WT.mc_n=CRMUS000096
Stimulus Allocates Billions for Job-Training Opportunities
By John Rossheim, Monster Senior Contributing Writer
With tens of millions of people unemployed or underemployed, and with blue-chip industries from automotive to banking in distress, the US workforce sorely needs help. So the new funding for job training provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is a well-timed boon to American workers.
“The [federal] workforce system will play a vital role in America’s economic recovery by assisting workers who are facing unprecedented challenges to retool their skills and reestablish themselves in viable career paths,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in a statement.
While ARRA money for training won’t by itself put millions back to work, it is a substantial boost to local and state programs that receive federal backing.
“New funding for workforce training and development is about $4 billion -- a huge amount,” says Julian Alssid, executive director of the Workforce Strategy Center, a workforce development think tank in New York City. “The stimulus money is being pushed out very rapidly.”
The major ARRA provisions that will beef up training include:
$1.25 billion for dislocated adult workers, such as those laid off or who have received advanced notice of a factory closing.
$1.2 billion for dislocated youth workers.
$500 million in state grants for employment services, mainly for low-income adults.
$500 million to fund training for sustainable energy jobs.
Funding for workforce training is seen as more than a stopgap. “The public is investing in the worker,” says Chris Stiehl, a consultant who has researched the Workforce Investment Act since it was enacted in 1998. “We’re now going to be able to reach out and train more people and make them more competitive in the workforce.”
Dislocated Workers
The key to connecting with the new training money is local One-Stop Career Centers, the federal government’s network of more than 3,000 employment-help offices. “If job seekers want to take full advantage of ARRA, they need to be prepared when they arrive at a One-Stop,” Alssid says. “They should get a handle on what good jobs are available in the region, look at what economic development agencies are doing, and think about their own job skills and how they are transferable.”
Alssid gives an example of how workers can use stimulus funding to make the transition from a career in a depressed industry. “Suppose a woman in suburban Cleveland loses her job as a manufacturing technician,” he says. “She might go to the Lake County One-Stop Career Center and be referred to a technical training program in allied health at Lakeland Community College, say, to become a radiologic technologist. She could earn the college’s computed tomography certificate with both coursework and clinical experience.”
Alssid says a One-Stop can give you a voucher to pay for college education. “Think of them as a resource to provide dollars for your retraining,” he says. With the extra stimulus dollars available, “this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Help for Workers Young and Older
ARRA money for job training singles out two demographic groups: young people just entering the workforce and older workers having difficulty finding or keeping a job.
The youth-oriented funding concentrates on preparing future workers and helping them enter the workforce.
“Our department is getting $17 million in stimulus money for the Youth Ready summer program,” says Mary Ellen Messner, director of Youth Ready Chicago, an internship and job-training program of the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services. “About 24,000 young people have already applied. We’ll be able to fund 7,300 additional people with the ARRA money. They’ll learn about career opportunities by participating in activities like job shadowing.” Interested people ages 14 to 24 can call the program or apply online.
ARRA is also making available additional funding for low-income workers age 55 and up. The Senior Community Service Employment Program offers training and placement in part-time service jobs at public agencies and nonprofits. Older workers should also check with their local One-Stop Career Centers about training opportunities.
To learn more about federally funded training opportunities in your area or to contact a specific program, consult your state’s Workforce Investment Act plans or department of labor.
Talk about this article and other employment news related to the stimulus on our Stimulus Jobs Discussion board.
Stimulus Allocates Billions for Job-Training Opportunities
By John Rossheim, Monster Senior Contributing Writer
With tens of millions of people unemployed or underemployed, and with blue-chip industries from automotive to banking in distress, the US workforce sorely needs help. So the new funding for job training provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is a well-timed boon to American workers.
“The [federal] workforce system will play a vital role in America’s economic recovery by assisting workers who are facing unprecedented challenges to retool their skills and reestablish themselves in viable career paths,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in a statement.
While ARRA money for training won’t by itself put millions back to work, it is a substantial boost to local and state programs that receive federal backing.
“New funding for workforce training and development is about $4 billion -- a huge amount,” says Julian Alssid, executive director of the Workforce Strategy Center, a workforce development think tank in New York City. “The stimulus money is being pushed out very rapidly.”
The major ARRA provisions that will beef up training include:
$1.25 billion for dislocated adult workers, such as those laid off or who have received advanced notice of a factory closing.
$1.2 billion for dislocated youth workers.
$500 million in state grants for employment services, mainly for low-income adults.
$500 million to fund training for sustainable energy jobs.
Funding for workforce training is seen as more than a stopgap. “The public is investing in the worker,” says Chris Stiehl, a consultant who has researched the Workforce Investment Act since it was enacted in 1998. “We’re now going to be able to reach out and train more people and make them more competitive in the workforce.”
Dislocated Workers
The key to connecting with the new training money is local One-Stop Career Centers, the federal government’s network of more than 3,000 employment-help offices. “If job seekers want to take full advantage of ARRA, they need to be prepared when they arrive at a One-Stop,” Alssid says. “They should get a handle on what good jobs are available in the region, look at what economic development agencies are doing, and think about their own job skills and how they are transferable.”
Alssid gives an example of how workers can use stimulus funding to make the transition from a career in a depressed industry. “Suppose a woman in suburban Cleveland loses her job as a manufacturing technician,” he says. “She might go to the Lake County One-Stop Career Center and be referred to a technical training program in allied health at Lakeland Community College, say, to become a radiologic technologist. She could earn the college’s computed tomography certificate with both coursework and clinical experience.”
Alssid says a One-Stop can give you a voucher to pay for college education. “Think of them as a resource to provide dollars for your retraining,” he says. With the extra stimulus dollars available, “this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Help for Workers Young and Older
ARRA money for job training singles out two demographic groups: young people just entering the workforce and older workers having difficulty finding or keeping a job.
The youth-oriented funding concentrates on preparing future workers and helping them enter the workforce.
“Our department is getting $17 million in stimulus money for the Youth Ready summer program,” says Mary Ellen Messner, director of Youth Ready Chicago, an internship and job-training program of the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services. “About 24,000 young people have already applied. We’ll be able to fund 7,300 additional people with the ARRA money. They’ll learn about career opportunities by participating in activities like job shadowing.” Interested people ages 14 to 24 can call the program or apply online.
ARRA is also making available additional funding for low-income workers age 55 and up. The Senior Community Service Employment Program offers training and placement in part-time service jobs at public agencies and nonprofits. Older workers should also check with their local One-Stop Career Centers about training opportunities.
To learn more about federally funded training opportunities in your area or to contact a specific program, consult your state’s Workforce Investment Act plans or department of labor.
Talk about this article and other employment news related to the stimulus on our Stimulus Jobs Discussion board.
Bill would give renters foreclosure rights
http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/05/07/copy/leg07.ART_ART_05-07-09_B5_PIDPKTM.html?sid=101
Bill would give renters foreclosure rights
House OKs plan to let them stay 30 days; now Senate gets it
Thursday, May 7, 2009 3:24 AM
By Jim Siegel
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Bill Faith said he hears the stories all the time -- a renter who has paid on time and done nothing wrong is without warning tossed out of his home or apartment because it has fallen into foreclosure.
"With tenants, it's just so egregious because they are evicted sometimes with only three days notice, even through they've paid their rent on time for years," said Faith, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio.
The Ohio House passed a bill yesterday that would allow tenants to remain in their residences for at least 30 days following a foreclosure, giving them more time to find a new home. The bill passed 53-42, with most Republicans voting against it.
House Bill 9 also would:
• Require landlords to notify potential tenants if the property is currently in foreclosure.
• Require landlords to notify all current tenants residing in any building if that property goes into foreclosure, within 60 days of the filing.
• Require landlords to notify tenants 21 days in advance if a foreclosure is not remedied and a sheriff's sale date is set. This is to give the tenant a fair shot at bidding on the property.
"No tenant who pays rent on time and lives up to their end of the contract should have to face immediate eviction because their landlord faced a foreclosure and sheriff sale," said the bill's main sponsor, Rep. Ted Celeste, D-Grandview Heights. "Unfortunately tenants have largely been forgotten in this mortgage situation."
Republicans expressed concern that upon sale of a foreclosed property, a renter's contract would convert to a month-to-month agreement. Rep. Shannon Jones, R-Springboro, wondered who a tenant contacts about repairs if a bank or out-of-state investor purchases a property.
"People won't want to purchase property if they have no interest in being in a landlord-tenant relationship, but they are forced to do so," she said, adding that it could further devalue the properties.
The bill now heads to the Republican-controlled Senate.
jsiegel@dispatch.com
Bill would give renters foreclosure rights
House OKs plan to let them stay 30 days; now Senate gets it
Thursday, May 7, 2009 3:24 AM
By Jim Siegel
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Bill Faith said he hears the stories all the time -- a renter who has paid on time and done nothing wrong is without warning tossed out of his home or apartment because it has fallen into foreclosure.
"With tenants, it's just so egregious because they are evicted sometimes with only three days notice, even through they've paid their rent on time for years," said Faith, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio.
The Ohio House passed a bill yesterday that would allow tenants to remain in their residences for at least 30 days following a foreclosure, giving them more time to find a new home. The bill passed 53-42, with most Republicans voting against it.
House Bill 9 also would:
• Require landlords to notify potential tenants if the property is currently in foreclosure.
• Require landlords to notify all current tenants residing in any building if that property goes into foreclosure, within 60 days of the filing.
• Require landlords to notify tenants 21 days in advance if a foreclosure is not remedied and a sheriff's sale date is set. This is to give the tenant a fair shot at bidding on the property.
"No tenant who pays rent on time and lives up to their end of the contract should have to face immediate eviction because their landlord faced a foreclosure and sheriff sale," said the bill's main sponsor, Rep. Ted Celeste, D-Grandview Heights. "Unfortunately tenants have largely been forgotten in this mortgage situation."
Republicans expressed concern that upon sale of a foreclosed property, a renter's contract would convert to a month-to-month agreement. Rep. Shannon Jones, R-Springboro, wondered who a tenant contacts about repairs if a bank or out-of-state investor purchases a property.
"People won't want to purchase property if they have no interest in being in a landlord-tenant relationship, but they are forced to do so," she said, adding that it could further devalue the properties.
The bill now heads to the Republican-controlled Senate.
jsiegel@dispatch.com
Senate OKs credit card curbs
http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/19/news/economy/credit_cards/index.htm
Senate OKs credit card curbs
90-5 vote sends to House a bill that curtails fees and rate hikes. Unrelated provision boosts gun rights. Measure could go to Obama this week.
By Jennifer Liberto, CNNMoney.com senior writer
Last Updated: May 19, 2009: 2:03 PM ET
WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) -- The Senate on Tuesday voted 90-5 to approve a bill that will make it tougher for credit card issuers to raise fees and interest rates starting early next year.
The bill includes an unrelated measure that would allow people to carry concealed weapons into national parks.
The bill now goes to the House, which is expected to take it up on Wednesday and pass it before the weekend. The bill would get to President Obama's desk before Memorial Day, as he called for.
"To have the industry reaching and be as abusive to consumers, it needed to stop and it needed to change," said Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., a bill sponsor.
The legislation is moderately tougher on card issuers than are new Federal Reserve rules that take effect in July 2010.
The Senate's bill would take effect in nine months and make it harder for people under age 21 to get credit cards. It would also ban rate hikes unless a consumer is more than 60 days late - and then restore the previous rate after six months if minimum payments are made.
The banking industry decried the bill, saying it would exacerbate the credit crisis and force banks to drop some risky credit card holders.
"We are concerned that the Senate bill will have a dramatic impact on the ability of consumers, students, and small businesses to obtain and use credit cards," said American Bankers Association president Edward Yingling
The credit card legislation has been a long work in progress. The House passed a bill in 2008 and again earlier this year. The legislation, which stalled in past years, was propelled by public outrage and pressure by President Obama.
"I'm very glad to have these reforms within reach at long last," said the bill's House sponsor, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. "To Sen. Dodd's credit, he has enhanced my bill in a few areas - especially in extending from 30 to 60 days before penalty rate hikes can kick in on existing balances."
Maloney added she thought it "unfortunate," that the measure to allow concealed weapons in national parks remained on the credit card bill, especially since Memorial Day kicks off the summer season at national parks. She planned to vote against the gun provision but said it shouldn't block the bill's final passage.
In recent few months, credit card companies have been raising fees and interest rates. From November 2008 to February 2009, rates increased from an average to 13.08% from 12.02%, according to a Federal Reserve Board report.
At the same time, more people are not able to make their credit cards payments and are walking away from the debt, according to a Federal Reserve report.
However, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said Monday he was not concerned about a consumer debt "bubble."
"Americans are going to be reducing how much they borrow, improving their balance sheets, saving more," he said. "Banks are still going to have losses they're going to have to adjust to. And that's what's going to make the process of repair here longer. . .But that's a necessary, healthy process of adjustment for us to go through."
Senate OKs credit card curbs
90-5 vote sends to House a bill that curtails fees and rate hikes. Unrelated provision boosts gun rights. Measure could go to Obama this week.
By Jennifer Liberto, CNNMoney.com senior writer
Last Updated: May 19, 2009: 2:03 PM ET
WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) -- The Senate on Tuesday voted 90-5 to approve a bill that will make it tougher for credit card issuers to raise fees and interest rates starting early next year.
The bill includes an unrelated measure that would allow people to carry concealed weapons into national parks.
The bill now goes to the House, which is expected to take it up on Wednesday and pass it before the weekend. The bill would get to President Obama's desk before Memorial Day, as he called for.
"To have the industry reaching and be as abusive to consumers, it needed to stop and it needed to change," said Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., a bill sponsor.
The legislation is moderately tougher on card issuers than are new Federal Reserve rules that take effect in July 2010.
The Senate's bill would take effect in nine months and make it harder for people under age 21 to get credit cards. It would also ban rate hikes unless a consumer is more than 60 days late - and then restore the previous rate after six months if minimum payments are made.
The banking industry decried the bill, saying it would exacerbate the credit crisis and force banks to drop some risky credit card holders.
"We are concerned that the Senate bill will have a dramatic impact on the ability of consumers, students, and small businesses to obtain and use credit cards," said American Bankers Association president Edward Yingling
The credit card legislation has been a long work in progress. The House passed a bill in 2008 and again earlier this year. The legislation, which stalled in past years, was propelled by public outrage and pressure by President Obama.
"I'm very glad to have these reforms within reach at long last," said the bill's House sponsor, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. "To Sen. Dodd's credit, he has enhanced my bill in a few areas - especially in extending from 30 to 60 days before penalty rate hikes can kick in on existing balances."
Maloney added she thought it "unfortunate," that the measure to allow concealed weapons in national parks remained on the credit card bill, especially since Memorial Day kicks off the summer season at national parks. She planned to vote against the gun provision but said it shouldn't block the bill's final passage.
In recent few months, credit card companies have been raising fees and interest rates. From November 2008 to February 2009, rates increased from an average to 13.08% from 12.02%, according to a Federal Reserve Board report.
At the same time, more people are not able to make their credit cards payments and are walking away from the debt, according to a Federal Reserve report.
However, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said Monday he was not concerned about a consumer debt "bubble."
"Americans are going to be reducing how much they borrow, improving their balance sheets, saving more," he said. "Banks are still going to have losses they're going to have to adjust to. And that's what's going to make the process of repair here longer. . .But that's a necessary, healthy process of adjustment for us to go through."
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