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Transferable
skills?**
A recent
Arras People applicant - Simon Roberts shares
his thoughts on transferable skills in project
management
After recently
applying for a Project Manager role and being
given the feedback that I didn't have the specific
skills the client was looking for (in this case
Billing, CRM and Utilities), I accept that some
clients will be more choosey than others and will
look for specific experience.
However, it is interesting
to note that Chelsea Football Club have just appointed
a new manager Jose Mourihno who (apparently) has
never been a professional footballer. He has led
Porto to the UEFA Cup & Champions League success
and is consequently in demand. I believe that
Project Management is about client satisfaction,
the ability to manage a team of people, and achieving
desired results. Specific technical input can
always be drawn upon via the deployment of specific
resources.
I believe that if you possess
strong Project Management experience your skills
are highly transferable. It's getting this message
across to the more "flexible" clients
that is the key as I believe that Project Managers
can make a difference in most environments.
I would venture to say
that sometimes it can be an advantage not to have
a background in that specific field because it
helps you as a PM to focus on the key things,
and to see the wood beyond the trees.
In essence : I like to
view a project in terms of; what do I have to
deliver & to whom; what's the budget to work
with; who are the available resources; and when
do I have to deliver it. I prefer to see projects
in those terms. Everything else is detail that
sorts itself out during execution by drawing upon
the right resources.
To contact
Simon or to add a reply to the topic please contact:
tipoffs@projectmanagementnewsletter.co.uk
When promotion
is not an option - when getting
a new job might be the best career development
step you've ever taken
By
Lindsay Scott, Senior Consultant Arras People
Different sources
for different roles seem to be the flavour of
the day when looking for a new role, which will
give you the next challenge and development you
need. In this article we discuss the key sources
for finding roles and the pros and cons of each.
Employee
Referral
Surveys carried out in
the past have shown that up to 80% of all new
jobs are found through referrals and direct contact
with employers. Organisations tend to set up Employee
Referral Schemes to entice their employees to
talk to friends and family about a possible role
within their organisation. Incentives for the
employee being a cash payment and the advantages
to the organisation being a personal recommendation.
People like to work with people they know and
this is a great way to try and achieve that.
What can you do? The next
time you're talking to friends, family and ex-colleagues
that work within an organisation you're interested
in, try to find out more about it and drop into
conversation specifics like "I'd like to
be a Project Manager at XXX" or "Do
they have an employee referral scheme? I'd really
like the opportunity to speak to someone about
a role...". Being specific and direct with
your friends will probably lead to them doing
a little legwork for you internally within their
organisation.
Pros - your best
friend might find you your next job, a more "friendly"
approach to an organisation
Cons - You might
end up on more money or in some way compromise
your relationship with friends or relations. Remember
you can choose and loose you friends but not your
relations, they are after all your relations.
Direct contact
with employers
So the referral scheme
might not be a door opener in this case, so ask
yourself the question - when was the last time
you tried to secure a role by contacting an organisation
directly? Writing letters and picking up the phone
can seem a little out of date especially when
it seems that all recruitment for large organisations
are carried out through newspaper or on-line media.
There is still a lot to
be achieved by crafting an excellent letter which
has just the right blend of marketing vs a good
representation of your skills and experience.
When approaching organisations in this way you
are in effect marketing yourself to an organisation
and showing what you have to offer, the achievement
at the end is to get a response, interview and
job offer.
Organisations are open
to this approach, after all if they have the right
people contacting them with a solution (your skills
and experience) to a problem they have (recruitment
issues like attracting the right people) it can
save them £££ on advertising,
recruitment agencies etc. Think direct marketing
campaign when you start this process - letters/emails,
following up with calls to each contact.
To get the contact details
in the first place you need to brush up on your
research skills. Start by thinking about where
you want to work (Sunday Times Top 100 might be
a good memory jogger) and start looking for information
on their corporate website. Also start purchasing
various newspapers for a period of time to gleam
HR contact details. You just need a name, address
and email address in the first instance. Think
about brushing up on your letter writing and marketing
skills by visiting a number of free resources
as well as available books and publications (see
the side bar). Networking is also another great
way to gaining contacts within other organisations
(plus valuable information on an organisation
and how they work) When was the last time you
attended a project management seminar for example?
Pros - improves
your marketing, letter writing, communication
and research skills. Good networking opportunities
Cons - time consuming,
can be a disheartening process (ask any direct
sales personnel)
Corporate
Websites
A recent article in the
Sunday Times Appointments Section (20th June 2004)
highlighted the problems a lot of people face
when using an organisations website to apply for
a new role; no vacancies posted, minimal job specifications,
poor systems and a continuous loop that never
seems to achieve much. So should you bother with
this approach? Yes, not all corporate websites
are in such bad shape and if you are looking for
a role which is not necessarily within a large
blue-chip organisation you'll be surprised just
how accessible their sites are.
Corporate websites can
of course be used in two different ways;
- Applying for roles that
are posted in the vacancies board
- Using the contact details
that may be posted alongside the vacancies
If you're just interested
in applying for a role which is posted on the
site it can be a pretty straight forward process
but often the aftercare for job seekers can feel
like a "black hole". If you're right
for the job they'll contact you and if you're
not, you'll be left wondering what next! Be careful
the jobs are often out of date. The corporates
buy the systems but then forget you have to have
someone managing the content….
The key to using corporate
websites is to be a little more web savvy - use
the details like HR contact details to send your
own crafted letter (see Direct Contact with Employers),
and send letters to organisations that don't necessarily
have vacancies in your field. One example, a corporation
advertising for a Software Tester will probably
have Project Managers working within the organisation,
there might not be a need today but there will
probably be a need in the future and probably
soon. Often an organisation is slow to place their
new vacancies and you could be getting in there
at just the right time
Pros - good research
material, contact details for key people like
HR Managers
Cons - applying
for roles on-line can be painful with minimal
returns
Assumption - Corporates
think people want to work for them and are just
spending their time surfing their boring sites
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Key
success factors in interviews
By
Lindsay Scott, Senior Consultant Arras People
There's no doubt
about the amount of competition that exists
now when good roles come onto the job market
but there is something you can do to increase
your chances of being the successful applicant.
Arras recommends
that as much thought goes into interview
preparation as possible and that means tailoring
your approach to the interview just as you
would with the cover letter and CV. Employers
not only want to see good interview technique
but they also rank perspective employees
higher who have taken the time to find out
as much as possible about them before the
interview. One of the key thoughts an employer
has is "will this applicant fit into
our organisation and do a good job".
Arras People's approach
with all our candidates is to give as much
information, guidance and materials as possible
to ensure they're on the right track, but
there's work be done on the interviewees
part.
- We have a generic
interview preparation document which includes
pre-interview tips, do's and don't's of
interviews etc
- We give as much
information as possible about the organisation,
who's interviewing and anything we need
about the person/people.
- Direct the interviewee
to the organisations website and ask that
they do a little research on the net (in
press releases, usergroups etc)
These are the basics,
and any recruitment agency you use should
be providing this service to you. Other
things to consider in the preparation process
include; ask around friends and family to
see if anyone knows someone who works for
the organisation you're going for the interview
with. Gaining insider knowledge is one of
the best ways to really start to understand
an organisation which will give you the
edge over other interviewees.
Talk to people in
your wider community and networks, someone
you know may have had contact with employees
in the organisation - and ask the question
what impression did they form of the organisation?
Gathering information about an organisations
culture and ethos will certainly help you
in the interview, especially if you can
get across to your interviewer that you've
done your homework.
A well prepared interviewee
will certainly send the message to the interviewer
that they understand the organisation and
that they're a natural fit, not just for
the role but for the organisation too.
Professional
mentors - a useful resource in career development
Lindsay
Scott talking to an Arras People contractor
"Faced
with a realization that poor interview technique
was probably the only reason I couldn’t
turn my numerous opportunities over the
last few months into job offers, I set about
seeking help.
Clearly, when out
of work for a while, you’re not going
to have the resources to use one of the
many excellent Career development companies
out there (4 to 5 Grand package!). So I
searched for those who could/would offer
a ‘menu’ based service that maybe
would better match my specific and very
limited requirement.
Imagine my surprise
and delight when, after an email enquiry
to a company not too far from home, I received
a call from the MD, who after listening
to my story arranged for and delivered personally
an hour or so tuition by telephone followed
up by considerable documentation on email
and all without asking for a fee.
OK so there was no
actual interview practice involved in this,
but the material was useful and it gave
me just the boost I needed. So I guess the
moral is to be open and honest and yes be
bold – what you don’t asked for
you won't get! You could probably apply
this to other components of the job hunt
process too."
Ed - obviously
our reader doesn't want to give out the
name of the organisation - they'd be inundated
with requests for free help! To find out
more and search for reputable organisations
- visit the Association
of Career Professionals to find
someone near you.
Employment
A-Z:
A=Agency
New
laws came into effect for Recruitment Agencies
and Businesses on the 6th April 2004 introducing
changes and updates which affect anyone
who uses agencies to find new contract roles.
The key areas you should be aware of include;
Opting
In - Opting Out
The
Conduct of Employment Agencies and Businesses
Regulations 2003 apply to all work-seekers
who provide services via their own personal
service limited companies ("limited
company contractors") or via umbrella
companies. However, following substantial
campaigning and lobbying by both the IT
recruitment industry and the IT contracting
community (including the Professional Contractors
Group), the Department of Trade and Industry
agreed a concession in the final form of
the Regulations. Regulation 32(9) states
that BOTH the personal service limited company
AND the individual supplied by the company
to carry out the work may agree, by giving
the Employment Business notice, that they
do not want the 2003 Regulations to apply
to them. This has become known as 'opting
out' of the 2003 Regulations
Why
would you opt-out?
The 2003 Regulations
contain a variety of provisions that are
intended to protect vulnerable work seekers
and temporary workers from being taken advantage
of by unscrupulous employment bureaux. It
has been successfully argued that the 2003
Regulations are not necessarily appropriate
for self-employed freelance contractors.
If limited liability freelance contractors
were to be bound by the legislation as originally
drafted, with all the various rules and
regulations to be adhered to, this could
potentially prove a disincentive to clients
who might otherwise consider engaging freelance
contractors.
Freelance contractors
are also extremely conscious of the need
to demonstrate that they are operating on
a true business-to-business (B2B) basis
with the employment bureau in question.
This is important in the context of the
IR35 legislation. Many contractors believe
the enforced imposition of regulations intended
to protect temporary workers in general
is damaging to their contention that they
are operating as a 'business on their own
account'; i.e. that they can take care of
their own business affairs without the need
for unwanted government intervention. Thus,
opting out provides a discernible method
for a limited company contractor to distance
his/her B2B supply of professional services,
from that of doing temporary work in general.
How
do you know you've opted out?
You'll
be asked to sign a form at the onset of
your contact with the agency confirming
your opt out status
Identity
Also
under the regulations there is a need for
the agency to confirm the identity of any
contractor. This can be done a number of
ways and may include asking for a copy of
your passport and a recent utility bill.
The regulation also covers evidence of a
contractors training and qualifications
- and copies of certificates etc may be
asked for. Opting out of the regulations
may also exempt you from having to supply
this information.
Payment
Employment
businesses will be unable to withhold pay
in circumstances where either the client
refuses to pay for work done, as a penalty
for not completing an assignment or in circumstances
where the worker does not produce a signed
timesheet, provided the business can satisfy
itself by other means that the work was
done.
See further information provided by the
Recruitment Employment Confederation -
leaflet (for temps) and
leaflet (for Limited Company Contractors)
and website
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Are
you an engineer or a leader?
By Chris Wood,
Diabolo
Managing any project, programme,
or business team requires a mix of skills that
covers the big picture and the detail. On the
one hand, an engineering mind set will accept
a piece of work with a defined scope and zoom
in to analyse the detail. This detailed level
is required to answer questions like "how
do we do it?". A common phrase that is often
heard is that the Devil is in the detail. Engineers
wrestle with the Devilish detail and logically
design solutions. Leaders on the other hand take
details, form views of this and operate at a level
of generalisation. They manage the bigger picture
and connect this work with others and drive the
direction of the work to ensure maximum value
is realised in relation to other activities. A
leader will ask the "why?" question
to chunk-up and explore the purpose and values
behind activities. Engineers will ask the "so
what?" question to zoom in and focus on building
a more defined and accurate space to work within.
All this supposes that some scope has been defined.
What happens before the scope exists, and who
is responsible for the extraction of value when
the work is completed?
So to what do you aspire,
leader or engineer, big picture or detail, both
roles are vital but it is not always a career
choice the career may choose you.
About
Diabolo
Diabolo
promotes an innovative dynamic approach enabling
change in organisations by connecting hard-headed
business skills with the human spirit and values.
Combining our collective knowledge and experience,
we have created some powerful frameworks for business
thinking. We call these Diabolo Journeys. We
use a highly visual technique to guide clients
through complex processes with clarity of thought.
By combining tried and tested coaching and consulting
practice with graphics, we have developed a suite
of Diabolo Journeys covering many business issues.”
Chris
Wood is a Director of Diabolo
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Readers Query:
Overexperienced?
"Each time I
apply for a role I keep getting told I'm either
over experienced for the role or underexperienced
- is there anything I can do to change this?
This query came from a
recent registered candidate and Tipoffs reader
with Arras People. Having worked within a Junior
Project Manager role for the last two years, this
candidate was suffering from a common problem;
too experienced for co-ordination roles and too
inexperienced for some of the project management
roles appearing on job boards etc. Our advice
in this situation is not to get too bogged down
with job titles, we find that our clients often
call roles certain names which don't often match
the roles and responsibilities that go with it.
So bear in mind when one advert is headed up with
a Project Manager title, look closely at the spec
it might be a Co-ordinator in disguise!
One way around this problem
is to tailor your CV for each role you apply for,
for example, an advertisement looking for a Project
Co-ordinator could match our readers skills and
experience therefore you send on the CV which
shows your last role as a "Junior Project
Manager / Senior Project Co-ordinator". In
the next role you apply for which may be a Project
Manager, use the CV which shows the last role
as "Junior Project Manager" and so on.
Changing the role title on your CV is not a problem
as long as the facts remain true in your skills
and experience within that role. You can even
change some of the language or jargon used in
your CV to match the flavour of a posted advertisement.
Each active job seeker could have anything up
to six different versions of their CV at any one
time. Remember to make notes about which role
you've applied for and which CV you've sent!
Our reader was also given
some advice about the whole look and feel of their
CV too because this might be the major cause of
the feedback they were receiving. Arras gave them
a few pointers and also recommended the "Brilliant
CV" book.
New Roles from
Arras People
For all our
current live vacancies see the website at www.arraspeople.co.uk/vacancies/jobs.php
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