What are the signs of a pending layoff?

Many people have experienced at least one layoff in their careers.  And in this struggling economy the experience is becoming more common.  Losing a job can be financially and emotionally devastating.  Is there a way to tell when a layoff is coming?  Industry experts say yes.   You just have to know the signs. 


So, what are the signs of an impending layoff?

• A Google search of your company or organization turns up negative news.  You will see reports such as the company is in financial trouble or that the company has lost profits.
• You read that the value of the company stocks has declined steeply.  Also along these lines, the executives in your organization are dumping most or all of their shares.
• Speaking of executives, if they are in a lot of secret meetings it could mean that a layoff is coming.
• Your organizations has been acquired by another one or is being merged.  These events usually result in duplication of positions.  This is not cost effective so......
• Your organization begins instituting cost cutting measures.  Routine expenses are cut.  Projects that were planned are put on hold due to budgetary constraints.
• The organization institutes salary freezes or salary cuts.
• Your friends in the industry are experiencing layoffs.

Any one of these signs doesn't necessarily mean a layoff is coming.  But if you see several signs that should be a warning.


SIGNS IN NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
 Now the previous signs primarily apply to for profit organizations.  However, several of them are indicators of a pending layoff in a non-profit organization.


For example:

• Your non-profit is instituting salary freezes or cuts.
• Routine expenses are cut.
• You hear news that your organization is having financial difficulties.
• Projects, programs, or initiatives are put on hold.
• There is news of impropriety by the chief executive officer.

As was stated before, the presence of one of these events isn't necessarily an indicator of a coming layoff.  But if most or all of these signs are present, beware.


SIGNS IN RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS


If you work in a religious institution, particularly a church, there are three times when you should be alert.

• The church is having financial challenges.  In this case signs of an impending layoff would be similar to the signs in for profit and non-profit organizations. 
• The church is having strategic challenges.  The church may be changing its direction or missional focus.  Oftentimes when this happens some positions are eliminated
• The church is in the midst of a pastoral transition.  The incoming pastor may have different priorities or a different vision for the church.  Current staffing may not fit in with the pastor's vision.  Positions may change or be eliminated to align with the change in direction.

Like it or not, layoffs are a part of our working lives.  Situations, that we have no control over set the stage for a layoff.  All we can do is be alert so that we can be prepared.  So keep those resumes polished.


What other signs of an impending layoff do you know of?






Information for this post was taken from the following articles:

Signs of a pending layoff   Susan P. Joyce


Heads will roll: 17 signs of impending layoffs  Brian Satterfield


Is your job in jeopardy? Impending layoff warning signs 
Randall S. Hansen, Ph. D.

When layoffs loom  John R. Throop

Considering the American Jobs Act

I've been thinking about the American Jobs Act. I've been trying to decide whether it’s a good plan or not. President Obama was impassioned when he presented it. There are some good ideas in the act. But I wonder about their implementation.


One idea that I thought was good was wage insurance for the long term unemployed working volunteer or temporary jobs, and for people getting job training. These are all good ways to transition into a new career or to update skills. I think what stops a lot of people from doing these things is financial pressure. Having some money coming in would ease the pressure. My concern though is whether or not this assistance will be available to anyone who desires it. What if someone's unemployment benefits have already run out? What if someone was ineligible for unemployment? Can they take advantage of this wage insurance?


Another good idea was to help long term unemployed persons start their own businesses. Some of them may have wanted to start a business but financial concerns stopped them. Knowing that they can get help may encourage them to pursue their goal. Again, I have the same questions about implementation. Will all long term unemployed persons be eligible for this assistance?


If you read the act, you will find a section which talks about how it would help women. There are statistics for the women who support their families. I'm all for anything that helps women. But let's not forget women without minor children or single women who are childless. There are enough government programs which ignore the needs of this segment of society. There's no need for another one.


These are only a few of the concerns I have for the American Jobs Act. I'm not sure how good a plan it is but it is the best one available. And something needs to be done to address the stubbornly high unemployment rate. So it is my hope that Congress passes it.




What do you think of the American Jobs Act? Will it create more jobs? Is there a better alternative?

Review of Facebook's BranchOut app

Image by Royalty Free/Corbis

The June jobs report came out last week and the news was not good.  Only 18,000 new jobs were added.  Unemployment is at 9.2%.  What that means is that job seekers must use every tool they can in their search.  Facebook's BranchOut app is one of those tools



BranchOut Tree

EASE OF USE

I found BranchOut fairly easy to use.  It took the basic data (picture, company, education, contact info) from my personal profile.  I was able to fill in the rest of the profile from my resume.  I just cut and pasted the data in the appropriate sections.  If you want to use a different picture you can just upload a new one.  It would be good if you could take data from a Linkedin profile but it seems access has been blocked.

What I didn't like were the requirements to complete the profile.  After I entered all the pertinent data I had to "like" the fanpage, answer a survey, then give an endorsement (this one isn't so bad).  I think these are shameless promotional tactics.  I felt like I was being shilled.

POSSIBLE BENEFITS

Some of the benefits I see are:

1. More online exposure thus making it easier for recruiters to find you.
2. Job listings are from Indeed.com.  I think the listings are better quality.  They're more likely to be legitimate and current.

3. BranchOut lists the companies from your friends profiles so you may discover that you have an inside connection.

BRANCHOUT OR LINKEDIN: THAT IS THE QUESTION

Well...If you're already on Facebook then I don't think it's much of a problem to maintain a BranchOut profile.  If you're not then I'm not sure how much benefit it would be to have a BranchOut profile.  Seems there are new networking sites popping up every day.  If you're not careful you could spend more time updating profiles than looking for jobs.  That's not helpful.


What has been your experience with BranchOut?


Do you have a BranchOut and a Linkedin profile?

A review of the Beknown app

Well...as promised I did try out Beknown, Monster's professional networking Facebook app.  I'm sorry to say I was underwhelmed. 


I started building my profile by giving permission for Beknown to access my personal Facebook profile.  The app used data from the employment, name, location, education, and contact fields to begin building the professional profile.  The result was sketchy but I wasn't concerned yet.

COMPLETING THE PROFILE
Beknown supposedly allows you to import data from your Linkedin and Monster profiles.  I was unable to import any data from Linkedin.  The error message I received was that Linkedin had blocked access.  It seems to me this would have been worked out before launch.  I signed on to Monster,com.  I was able to access that profile but not all of the data came over.  The Beknown profile was still incomplete.


I then tried to update the profile manually.  I like using bullet points in my resume.  I think they help with readability.  For many online applications I use asterisks as bullets.  I usually don't have a lot of trouble getting bulleted lists lined up.  I did with the Beknown application.

JOB SEARCHING
Once your profile is complete the Beknown app suggests jobs that you may be interested in.  Most of the jobs are ones that are listed on Monster.com.  I have had little success with this job site.  When I have applied to jobs I never heard from the potential employers.  I did hear from scammers and insurance companies.

FINAL THOUGHTS
When job hunting it is important to have an online presence.  Some time has to be put in maintaining a professional social profile.  But it shouldn't be the main online activity.  Linkedin is a good site for professional networking.  Use that site and forget about Beknown.

Monster has networking app on Facebook

Hello and Happy Independence Day weekend!  I learned on Twitter that Monster has a professional networking app.  Its called Beknown.  I did a preliminary check of the app and it looks interesting.  I'm going to sign-up and check it out.  I'll write a review of it next week.  In the meantime, here is a link to the article which appeared on Mashable.com.  "Employment Site Monster Starting a Network on Facebook"

My writing project is nearly complete so on Tuesday July 5 I'll be back to writing original posts.  Until then enjoy your holiday.

Identifying good recruiters from not so good ones

Please click on picture for attribution information

Friday's post was about two types of recruiters and how they work.  Today's post is how to distinguish good recruiters from bad ones.  This is another article from Brad Remillard of Impact Hiring Solutions.  I hope its helpful. 

"What's the difference between "good to great" recruiters and bad recruiters?"

Which type is your recruiter?

So... you've found a recruiter and sent in your resume.  You're sure you'll get an interview.  You're qualified for the job.  Anyday now the phone will ring.  Anyday now.  Anyday....


So what's going on?  Why does it seem like the recruiter has dropped of the face of the earth?  Perhaps it has something to do with type of recruiter you're working with.  Didn't know there were different types?  Well there are.  Two types in fact.


Brad Remillard of Impact Hiring Solutions explains that there are contingent and retained recruiters.  What's the difference?  How does that affect you as a jobseeker?  Click on the link and be informed.  I sure was.  "Two Types Of Recruiters - Retained and Contingent"

Enjoy the weekend.  See you Monday.


Note:  click on photo for attribution information.

Resume part of blog site updated

Per the recommendations of the recruiter I talked with last week, I have updated the resume portions.  Your feedback is appreciated.  Thanks.

Do job searchers need a vision?

And the LORD answered me:

“Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.

Hababkkuk 2:2

Well...yes.  Job searchers need to have a goal, a plan, something that inspires them.  A vision is what will enable you to keep going during difficult times.  It will also give some direction to your job searching.

A vision should be something that you can articulate when asked.  A few weeks ago I was at a networking event.  Someone asked me where I wanted to be in five years.  I thought I had the answer to that question until I was pressed for more details.  To my dismay I couldn't give any.  So I've been working on my vision since then.  I've been so caught up in short term survival that I've forgotten about long term goals.

My next Examiner article is going to be about job searching and career vision.  I plan to publish it tomorrow.  Until then, here's something to think about:  What is your career vision?  Where do you want to be in five years?

Lessons in job hunting

Photo from depositphotos.com

Like many people my job search has not been going as well as I liked.  But yesterday I was blessed to meet with a recruiter at an employment agency.  She gave me some honest feedback about the state of the job market and what I needed to do to be competitive.  Here's what I learned.


1.  The job market in the Washington, DC metropolitan area is good  compared to the rest of the country but very competitive.


2.  There's a sense of uncertainty among employers.  They're concerned about national and local leadership and how that will affect the economy.  So they're taking "baby steps" when it comes to increasing staff.


3.  Potential employers Do Not like functional resumes or hybrid resumes.  I've been using a chrono-functional resume.  Maybe that's why I've had such a poor response.


4.  Potential employers are being very picky when it comes to appearance.  They want a polished, conservative look.  I recently dyed my hair burgundy.  I liked the way it looked  I didn't think it was too far out but apparently it is in this market.  I now have to dye my hair again to a more natural color.

I'm curious.  What are other recruiters seeing?  Your comments are welcome.