Evaluating Job Offers

On February 7, 2010, In Resume Writing by Melanie Szlucha, By Melanie Szlucha
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At some point, each one of you will have the opportunity to evaluate a job offer.

It will be a blissful, exciting and nerve racking day. You’ll get the call and be very excited and thrilled that your search is over. You’ll agree to just about anything because the thought of going on one more informational interview or combing the job interview sites makes you want to cry.

Get a grip.

After you go on your second interview at a company, chances are they’re pretty serious about you. Doesn’t mean that you’re guaranteed to get the job, but it does mean that the next phone call could be to ask for your list of references and hopefully later make you the offer.

So when you’re thinking rationally—make a list of what you expect and hope for from this job.  Here’s a checklist of the basics to ask about before you say yes or no.

Vacation:  Most jobs start out with 2 weeks as a standard, but if you’ve been in the job market a while and are used to a few more weeks, you can ask if they are negotiable on this point considering that you had x number of weeks at your last job.  You can also ask if they have a list of company holidays, or do they take half days on Fridays during the summer.  Maybe between what they’re offering and some of these other perks it could make up for what you might have had to give up.

Health Benefits:  Find out how much you’re currently paying per pay period for your benefits.  Most people don’t know this off the top of their heads, and without this information you would have no real basis for comparison with the new company.  You can also ask the new company for the name of their HMO and check to see if your favorite doctors are part of the plan.  You should also ask about their family plans (if applicable), and the extent of their vision or dental coverage.

401K: The important question here is if the company matches your contribution.  You can also ask if there’s any sort of cap on the amount that you can contribute.  If you’re financially astute, you can ask who manages the company plan.

Gym or health club benefits:  Some companies have a gym on site that you can take advantage of, or reduced rates at a health club.  If that’s important to you, you’ll want to ask.  Personally I wouldn’t walk away from a job if that wasn’t a benefit, but you want to know what you are accepting.

Those are the biggies, but you want to write down every benefit you have available to you at your current job and rank them in order of importance.

When you’re on the phone with the interviewer, take notes on the details of the offer, and ask for them to send you this information in writing.  Via email is perfectly fine.  Then devise a strategy if would like to improve the offer somehow.

If the salary isn’t what you hoped it would be, you can ask the company if it’s possible for them to increase it.  Your fallback position is to let them know that you would like a performance review after 6 months to discuss a pay increase at that time.

With regard to health benefits, gym perks and 401K match, you’re pretty much stuck with what plans they currently have in place.  Most companies do a yearly review of their benefits packages, so you can hope that it will change in subsequent years.

It’s OK to negotiate the offer, but always be respectful and appreciative.  Don’t take the position that you deserve more than what they are offering.  You’re asking if it’s possible for them to meet you halfway, not demanding or expecting that they will up the ante during your high power negotiation.

Melanie can be reached at -
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How to Introduce Yourself at Parties

On February 7, 2010, In Resume Writing by Melanie Szlucha, By Melanie Szlucha
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I momentarily thought about titling this article “Constructing Your Elevator Speech”, but I’ve heard that term so many times I could just scream.  What everyone really wants to know is what to say to people at parties when they’re asked what kinds of positions they’re looking for.

First and foremost, you want it to always be casual. It should never feel too rehearsed, and the person you’re talking to should never get that frightened look in their eye that you’re trying to sell them a used car.  You want to have an idea of how to talk about your experience in an interesting, and honestly, an entertaining way that will make you memorable to the listener and make them more open to helping you.  This should NEVER feel like a hard-sell-begging-for-a-lead situation.

Second, you want to take a look at the types of things that you enjoy doing in your current—or even some prior jobs.  What skills were you happiest doing?  Management?  Organization?  Working with People?  Working with Numbers?  Solving Complex Problems?  Think of it in some broad strokes rather than getting too narrow by mentioning specific positions.  Paint a picture for someone of what you’re like to work with so they can envision you at work.   All of us remember images better than words, so try to create an image in their mind of the things you do—even specifically. You can talk about some past accomplishments—maybe it’s a large project that you worked on, an account that you won, a difficult computer programming challenge that you figured out.  Tell people what you do, and what fields you’re shooting for.

Another way to think about this is to approach it from the “what kinds of problems do you solve?” angle to help you think about some good examples to talk about.

Third, think about the industries you’re interested in.  This should further paint a picture in the mind of your listener.  It’s appropriate to even do some namedropping of companies that you’re trying to get into with the thought that they may know someone there like a relative or close friend who could help you.

What you don’t want to do is mention everything that you can possibly do in a job.  You’re not reading your resume, you’re simply giving a brief—and I mean 30 seconds-brief—snapshot of the position you aspire to.  Just the highlights.

Here’s an example:

“I’ve decided it’s time for me to look for a new job.  I’ve gotten about as far as I can with this company and it’s time for me to move on.  I’m looking for the opportunity to do less direct customer contact, and the ability to use all of the customer information I’ve learned over the years to help companies design new products, or even go into market research.  My background is in Marketing, and I’ve got a head full of ideas about how people think and what kinds of questions they ask themselves before making a decision and why they decide on the product they do.  I’ve thought about working for Diagio—that liquor manufacturer, or even Neilsen media research in their market research field.  I’m known around the office as the “go to” person who can handle a variety of problems without getting ruffled—my current company will really miss me when I leave.”

Notice how I told a little story about why I was looking for the position I was looking for, what my background was in, and what companies I had thought about working for.  Also dropped the subtle hint that I’m known as a Jack-of-all-trades around the office to give them a bit of a unique picture that everyone could relate to.

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Avoid Being a Networking Jerk

On February 7, 2010, In Resume Writing by Melanie Szlucha, By Melanie Szlucha
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A few months ago I was scheduled to speak at an event in Stamford, CT.   The organizer sent an email to the group discussing my credentials and that I would be discussing how they as business people can interview more effectively.  I received an email from someone in the group saying that they cannot attend my presentation, but think that we would be good networking leads for each other.  They then described what they do and said that they do have clients from time to time who could use my services.  Great!  It looked like it would be a good fit.  I emailed them back, and said that I knew people who could definitely use their services, and here’s where I always meet them.  I also said that I’d love to get together with them for coffee sometime.

This person responded that they only work with corporate decision makers, not individuals, and if I knew where to find those people, that’s what they needed.   They did not take me up on my offer for coffee.

I was stunned!

First, I was trying to be nice, and sincerely thought I had a great lead for them.  I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that these people needed the services of this company because they had asked me if I knew anyone who did that kind of work.  I wasn’t giving her a cold lead.

Second, I’m not going to refer a client of mine to anyone without meeting him or her  first, and I would assume that other coaches would work the same way.

Third, I don’t presume to know anyone’s business, and maybe this person has found that it isn’t worth   her time to work with individuals vs. a corporation. That’s fine.  But, do you think that I kept her information in my email address book?

As you walk down the road of networking, keep in mind that people are just trying to be helpful.  They mean no harm.  Even though the first thing out of their mouth could be the silliest idea you ever heard, be polite.  Because the second thing out of their mouth could be the BEST idea you’ve ever heard.

In the example above, my brush-off is very apparent, but keep in mind the same principal when you’re in front of someone.  Your body language, eye movement, slight snicker after they give you an idea will either tell them you’re receptive to more, or that you’re just going to make fun of them

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Don’t Give in to the Desire to Confide

On January 31, 2010, In Resume Writing by Melanie Szlucha, By Melanie Szlucha
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If you’ve ever been in a bad job situation, you have no desire to repeat it.  And that’s understandable. However, you don’t want to ever, ever—and I mean NEVER—discuss it in an interview.

Think of it this way—when you’re on a first date with someone, do you want to hear about their past failed relationships?  It’s irrelevant whether they were at fault or not.  You don’t know enough about someone on a first date to assess who they are as a person and trust them.

It’s the same in an interview.  Recently I heard an example of someone who had had several interviews with a major department store.  Things seemed to be going very well.  They liked him, he liked them.  But he let his guard down and felt compelled to discuss a bad experience he had had at another employer.  It probably didn’t help that the other employer was part of the same parent company of department stores.

I don’t know why he let the conversation go there, but in some cases it could be his own bravado, or desire to confide in who he thinks are future friends.  Either way, it’s a bad move.  It’s assuming a level of trust that isn’t there.

Everyone can relate to the feeling though, and that’s why it’s such a dangerous trap.  It’s the gossip feeling.  The rush when we divulge information that we know we probably shouldn’t and that the information we’re imparting will increase our standing in the interviewer’s eyes.  It won’t.

Many of you will read this and think—well DUH! I’d NEVER do that—but it’s easier than you think. No matter how well you’re getting along with the interviewers, no matter how much you want to establish rapport and have them see you as a fit with the company. No matter how much you want them to like you—don’t talk about past jobs in an unfavorable light.

If you must talk about where you used to work, admit responsibility for whatever happened, and what you learned from the situation and move on.  Never pin all of the blame on a former employer.

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Don’t be SHY in a Job Interview!

On January 31, 2010, In Resume Writing by Melanie Szlucha, By Melanie Szlucha
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Many people get very self-conscious when asked in an interview about their greatest strengths.  But if you were an interviewer, and were trying to decide between a host of qualified, good people, wouldn’t you love it if just one of those people could clearly and succinctly tell you what they were good at?  What would they bring to your company if you hired them?

So YOU want to be that person.

Before you walk into that interview, when you’re psychin’ yourself up, think about why you are the perfect person for this job.

And that does NOT mean you’re the perfect person because you’ve always wanted to work there!

Your strengths are the benefits that you bring to the company.  What do you specifically do, what experiences have you had, that prove to an employer that you’re the right person.

Don’t be shy.  They need to know this stuff.

If you were an interviewer, you would need to hire someone whom you knew would do a good job.  They would make good decisions; they would see problems coming down the road and help to prevent a catastrophe.   They were always on time and trustworthy.  They would make an effort to learn the job.

These are qualities that every interviewer wants to see in a candidate.  And while you can just sit there and tell them that you have all of those qualities, isn’t it more believable when you confidently and boldly describe times when you demonstrated those qualities.  In a strong voice with direct eye contact with the interviewer, you describe these times when you were a great employee or volunteer.  Wouldn’t you as an interviewer give serious consideration to hiring that person?  How about if another person had similar experience, but wasn’t as confident in describing their strengths—would you BELIEVE that those were their strengths, or something they read out of a book.

You need to sell yourself, and as much as some people get uncomfortable with the fact that that is what happens in an interview, that’s what you need to do.  Being confident about your strengths demonstrates that they are true strengths, and you’re not just repeating something you read in a book.

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