Center for Career Management

It seems that there is a new trend in recruitment coming on the horizon all of the time. It’s no longer just about an attractive resume and an impressive face to face interaction. Now, there are more hoops to jump through than ever before. Today, technology is an advantage in so many facets of social media networking and interaction. However, as we’ve talked before, it can also be a challenge. A candidate’s “friend” on facebook may post something unwarranted and unwanted without permission, and that may be the piece of information that the recruiter picks up on. Employers can Google a person and obtain an array of information including their accomplishments, family, personal status and participation in events.

Now, it goes beyond the search of the candidate online. Interviews are being conducted through web-based systems. Employers now use Skype, a web-based face to face interaction, as a means to interview. According to Time Magazine Business online Skype is a way for businesses to manage recruitment costs more effectively to avoid travel. Is this a great way to interview? Sure, if the recruiter is willing to potentially see the candidate’s true self through their screen name and personal space. Is it possible the candidate will be dressed and ready for the interview but forget to clean his or her room?

Below I’ve listed some potential benefits and disadvantages of using Skype.

Benefits of Skype for recruiters:
1. The ease and convenience of connecting with candidates
2. The convenience of interviewing in a personal environment
3. Once the proper equipment is purchased, it is extremely cost effective
4. An opportunity to conduct interviews with international candidates
5. May be more relaxing for the candidate and the interviewer to be in familiar and comfortable surroundings

Disadvantages of Skype:
1. First impressions may be tainted, a firm handshake cannot be demonstrated
2. The location can be tricky. While it sounds ideal to interview out of your home, not being against a blank wall may be distracting
3. Other distractions could be a messy room, barking dogs, meowing cats, a home phone ringing or a clock ticking or dinging
4. It’s possible to miss some non-verbal cues that can be extremely important. The fidgeting feet or thumb twiddling. Does the candidate have pajama pants with a dress shirt and suit jacket on?
5. Potential for technical difficulties, computer or software locking or forcing you to shut down

The times are changing and so must we. It is important for us to all jump on board because it seems to be the direction that recruitment is going with or without us. I say let’s go along with it.

Responsible/Responsibility

1 : the quality or state of being responsible: as a : moral, legal, or mental accountability b : reliability, trustworthiness
2 : a : able to answer for one’s conduct and obligations : b : able to choose for oneself between right and wrong

It’s no secret that today’s job market is not what it used to be.  While there have been some recent signs to resurgence, many companies are still downsizing and facing bankruptcy or layoffs.  And the economy means that new college graduates are entering a tough job market where they are competing with seasoned veterans who have years of experience. 

A recent college graduate is suing her alma mater for the cost of her tuition and stress because she cannot find a job.  It begs the question of who is responsible for her situation – the economy, the career center at her campus, the employers who apparently are unimpressed with her qualifications, or the student herself? 

The Center for Career Management offers University of Akron students and alumni a wide array of services, from resume critiques to mock interviews to a course that will teach them not to slurp their soup during a business luncheon!  We market ourselves extensively to the campus community.  But for every student who shows up, eager to get ready for the job market, there is a student who is disconnected and disinterested in using the resources available to them.  Technology should enable those students to have career guidance at their fingertips, but many of them don’t utilize career service until they are seniors, or graduating, and then they’re caught unprepared while other classmates are snagging awesome jobs.

Whose fault?  Their fault.  Our fault.  Your fault.  Because career services is a partnership, we all have an important role to play. 

It’s the students responsibility to fully prepare for their job search.  They need to gain skills and experience with cooperative education and internships, , they need to create a resume that sells their qualifications, and they need conduct their job search diligently until they find success. 

It’s the responsibility of the Career Center to find ways to reach students, from Twitter to email blasts to good old-fashioned flyers on the dorm room doors.  We’re looking for every avenue to reach them and get our message across. 

And it’s your responsibility, as a hiring employer, to market yourself effectively to students, by:

• Attending career fairs and participating in on-campus recruiting.  The Center for Career Management is always available to assist you with your recruiting program, so take advantage of this free resource. 
• Advertising your company on campus – name recognition is vital.  Sponsor events and visit classrooms.  The CCM can make it happen.  Contact Nancy Larker at 330-972-7827 to discuss sponsorship strategies.
• Keeping in touch with your campus career center.  Let us know about new products or other developments.  The more we know about you, the more we can inform students.

We all have to play our part.  It’s the responsible thing to do!

Students have moved in and classes have officially begun. It’s been a busy summer in the CCM preparing for upcoming fall events and recruitment. The summer has seemed to once again fly by. I think it’s interesting how in Northeast Ohio the summer months go so fast and the winter seems to never end.  The reminder that fall is just around the corner is the sound of the school band practicing outside and the football and soccer teams running the length of the field.  Which, brings me to the next piece of exciting news…the University of Akron will be opening the first home game on September 12^th in the brand new Infocision Stadium on campus! A year of dust and noise resulted in a beautiful new stadium.  For tickets to games for the Zips first season, visit http://www.gozips.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10800&ATCLID=204775716

According to the semester calendar, we have officially started “summer  break”. For those students attending summer classes, the first session begins next week. This week is quiet, but we here in the CCM are busy with the end of semester wrap up and preparing for summer projects and planning for the fall semester already! Remember, we are here all summer so let us know how we can assist you with your recruitment efforts! 

CCM Pondering:  What are your thoughts on social networking? I read an interesting article about a recent graduate finding a job through a social networking site. What about your company? Are you using LinkedIN, Twitter, Facebook…etc? any other sites? And, are  you using this as a tool to notify followers and friends of opportunities, or are you seeking candidates proving to be well versed in technology and social networking by actually using it as a recruitment tool? Let us know if you use social networking and how you use it, e-mail us at ccmjobs@uakron.edu

The CCM is excited about spring and summer just around the corner. Some of our staff is planning to get out of the office to visit with employers who recruit here on campus or may show an interest in recruiting.  We are expanding our efforts to continue to build and maintain our relationships with employers during this difficult economic time.  We also invite you to share with us your concerns regarding the economic state. What challenges are you facing? 

While the economy seems to be a hot topic around campus, we would like to share other buzz too… For the first time in the College of Business Administration’s(CBA) history, the college has been ranked by BusinessWeek Magazine as one of the best undergraduate business schools in the nation. In the magazine’s 2009 annual ranking of undergraduate business programs, the CBA was ranked 93rd and is the only business program at a public university in Northeast Ohio in the top 100. There are more than 1,600 undergraduate business programs in the U.S. To learn more about the CBA and what Business Week says, visit the following  link http://www.uakron.edu/colleges/cba/newsinformation/bestundergrad.php

According to the Groundhog forecast, it looks like we have at least 6 more weeks of winter to endure.  Here in Northeast Ohio we are feeling the chill outside, but on
Akron’s campus, it’s heating up in the CCM.  We had a successful senior week on campus offering seniors specialized “Fierce Job Search” workshops geared towards this year’s graduating class searching for jobs in a tough economy.   With the economic forecast in limbo, we continue to hear about some industries and companies suffering a severe decline, significant cuts and hiring freezes. We continue to encourage students and employers who work with our office to remain persistent in their networking during this time.  We are also interested in knowing your thoughts as employers, what are you doing to stay afloat?  In what ways are you still reaching out and maintaining important relationships with universities, students, alumni and potential future employees?  How can we help?  We would love to hear from you. If you have ideas, please send them our way by e-mailing us at neb5@uakron.edu.

Welcome back!! The weather has not been spring-like, but according to our academic calendar we have officially begun the spring semester.  The CCM is excited about the semester beginning and we are working hard to promote our upcoming programs to students, faculty and employers. We still have limited space available for our UA Career Fair on February 12^th so if you haven’t already signed up, please go to our website for registration details. www.uakron.edu/ccm

The CCM staff escaped the office last week for a retreat in the metro parks.  It was a great way for us to wrap up the summer and prepare for the start of the semester on August 25^th!  According to the school calendar, the final days of summer have quickly approached us! The buzz of the fall semester is here in full bloom.  The sound of the band practicing outside; students and parents walking throughout campus; the line at the bookstore is as long as their hours and by the end of this weekend all of the students will be back on campus to start their classes Monday.  It’s an exciting time of year for colleges and universities everywhere. The CCM is excited to launch the year off by participating in welcoming students back with events such as this weekend’s UA Sponsored “Roo Fest”,  our CCM career café next week, and we are partnering with other Simmons Hall 3^rd floor departments on the “party in the penthouse” event celebrating the first week of school!  

While the hubbub is upon us and our calendars fill up with student appointments, we are still accepting registrations for our upcoming UA Career Fair on October 16, 2008!  We are already at 60 employers and expect to fill up quickly, so if you haven’t already visited our registration page you can get there by going to www.uakron.edu/ccm for more details.  

The smell of barbeque still lingers in the evenings, the voices of kids playing outside and the neighbors gathering on the sidewalks to chit chat says summer is not nearly over! Somehow, here in our office, it feels like summer is almost over! However you look at it, the long days go by quickly and we are already welcoming August next week. This summer, staff has found time to rejuvenate relax and enjoy the summer days.  We are still here, but vacation schedules are busy and well deserved! 

 As part of our summer projects and initiatives, we are working to prepare for our upcoming recruiting season.  We are interested in trying some new ideas to get employers and students connected!  Currently I’m looking for help from you, our employers!   If you have ideas that you can share about success stories you have experienced with your recruitment efforts at other colleges and universities, we’d like to hear about them.  If you have some thoughts for us, please e-mail them to Nancy Larker at neb5@uakron.edu 

With the end of spring semester comes the much anticipated warm weather and often time off from work.  However, we at the Center will be working on updating our employer contact information and preparing for the upcoming fall semester events to name just a few summer projects.  This is also a good time to reorganize those files that got stacked and moved around.

Outside, it’s a time for rejuvenating the yard and getting the mower tuned up as well as my bicycle legs.  Well, as I turn to my tasks, I wish you a fun and healthy summer!