One of the biggest mistakes federal job candidates make is failing to sell themselves through accomplishments. Some candidates believe that listing accomplishments is only done on résumés in the corporate world. Not true! Actually, a résumé for a position in the...
A new advertising campaign from IBM asserts that a successful CFO should be viewed as a Chief Future Officer. I smiled when I saw the ad because I thought businesses had exhausted all possible Chief Officer titles. Then I realized confusion already exists—from CAO...
Warning: Read with care. The thoughts shared below are not intended for everyone. The ideas that follow are meant for local government public officials and career professionals who really want to make a difference. People often comment on the significant...
For generations the hallmark of government employment has been rock-steady job security. Career public sector employees often cite job security, together with generous retirement and fringe benefit packages, as factors which initially attracted them to their jobs and...
Of the many facets involved in searching for and securing a new job, one activity that too often is given only cursory thought is soliciting and preparing references. If this is your first job, you may turn to a teacher who will tout your academic preparation and...
Aging baby boomers, coupled with early retirement incentives designed to reduce salary loads, are swelling the ranks of retired public service professionals. Despite this crop of 60’s era retirees’ declaration that they would not toil into their advanced years like...
Government outsourcing, or privatization, is a central strategy to the notion of reengineering government which has been widely discussed and written about since the 1970s. However, while recession-choked cities and counties are now looking closer at outsourcing,...
For many the job interview may be the most unnerving aspect of acquiring a job. It represents a more intimate exchange than a resume review and is far more subjective than the average civil service exam. Whether little more than a “meet and greet” or a rigorous...
Informational interviews are your way of gaining a more in-depth look at a potential employer by gathering first-hand knowledge from past or current employees; a casual, coffee-shop conversation can yield a lot of insights. Social media gives you the opportunity to...