Does Job Hopping Damage Your Career?

Here are some thoughts on the impact of job hopping on your career from Lynne Sarikas, director of the MBA career center at the College of Business Administration at Northeastern University.

Gone are the days of expecting someone to stay at the same company their entire career
Average is 5 - 7 employers over the course of a career

No longer the stigma attached to being laid off since many were impacted by corporate downsizing or restructuring, the dot.com bomb, etc.

The red flag to employers is numerous quick changes, appears to be lack of focus, lack of commitment, etc.

Everyone can make a mistake - better to admit it and move on, have story to tell about it and what you learned how you do things differently now to ensure that you make the right choices, I only stayed a short time because..., should definitely not have more than one of these situations on a resume or it brings your decision making skills into question.

Must have a story to tell about the changes - should never bash previous company or bosses - the world is too small, it can come back to bite you, also be careful not to explain moves in terms of problems or changes at the company since employers value employees who can solve problems and adapt to change and possibly lead change, they will shy away from potential employees who run from change or challenges.

Don't fudge dates or falsify your resume in other ways trying to cover up a short stint, most employers will do employment and education verification and you could lose an opportunity by not being honest.

The advantages are quicker career progression in some cases and often increased pay.

The disadvantages are many - gets more difficult to sell yourself, those looking at your resume will question your loyalty and long-term commitment, sometimes the short term gain is offset quickly by lack of stability, if you don't stick around long enough to experience the true business cycle in an environment you are also short changing your learning and experience, you may miss the very skill you need to develop for the future, also lose the opportunity to be developed for future growth opportunities within the organization since most organizations prefer to promote from within.

While most employers we work with know that most employees don't stay for life, they value longer assignments since that gives them better return on their training investment, they benefit from people who develop a broader knowledge of the business and they can develop talent from within.

QuestKeys: A Workaround for the Long URL Tangle

FROM TECHNEWSWORLD

Startup QuestKeys has a unique take on Web searching and linking. Instead of dealing with long URLs, QuestKeys provides a downloadable toolbar that users can access to quickly find and share favorite pages without being floored by the many links a typical search engine brings up. Getting noticed in a sea of unique search tools may be among the challenges lying ahead for QuestKeys.

Despite the innovative concept behind QuestKeys, the Allens' startup endeavors face an uphill battle in getting noticed by potential users. The Internet is filled with numerous alternative search methods. Part of the quest for the QuestKeys technology will be to avoid getting lost in the crowd.

That could prove to be one of the Allens' greatest hurdles. They have to figure out how to work QuestKeys into users' minds. The big question is, can QuestKeys get to the point that it has even a fraction of the instinctive familiarity that established search engines have achieved?

"Most [search alternatives] don't provide the 'go-to-it-on-instinct' that Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) or Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) provides. They try to achieve this by similar design styles. The Web provides a platform for people to create new business ideas every day. The question is, are these people doing the market research to find users to support their new ways to search?" Billy Canu, CEO of search engine optimization firm SEOhaus, told TechNewsWorld.

If you would like to read this entire story, please visit: http://www.paradigmshiftpr.com/media/placements/questkeys.htm

Walking away could turn out best for Yahoo and Microsoft

Sure, things look rough for Yahoo Inc. and Microsoft Corp. after they couldn't agree on a deal. Yahoo's stock has cratered, and its would-be suitor has to figure out another way to catch up in the online ad market, a flaw so big Microsoft was willing to pay $47.5 billion to fix it.

But in the long run, Yahoo's rejection of Microsoft's acquisition offer could turn out to be brilliant for both companies. Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don't make, especially in technology, where big mergers and acquisitions are notoriously difficult.

At the very least, if Yahoo and Microsoft aren't better off apart, then they may be no worse off. Emery Trahan, a professor of finance at Northeastern University, pointed out that General Electric Co. and Honeywell International Inc. generally have done fine despite dropping their acquisition plans under regulatory pressure in 2001.

"It's not necessarily a failure to walk away," Trahan said. "It might be more of a failure to push for a deal under terms that don't make sense."

It remains to be seen, however, whether Microsoft and Yahoo will fall into this category. If Yahoo management fails to improve the company's fortunes, or no other suitor emerges, Microsoft and Yahoo still could end up mating after all.

If you would like to read this entire story, please visit: http://www.paradigmshiftpr.com/media/placements/walkingaway.htm

US job prospects for foreign MBA students

I thought you might be interested in the thoughts of Lynne Sarikas, director of the MBA career center at the College of Business Administration at Northeastern University, on the job prospects of foreign MBA students here in the US:

With more than 40% of our MBA population from outside the U.S. we deal with these challenges on a daily basis. We are honest with these students that they will probably have to work harder than their U.S. counterparts to find U.S. employment but we do a lot to help them succeed.

VISA Issues -

Clearly there is a major issue with the visa process if the quota for the year disappears in the first week

We are fortunate that our program requires students to work six months on corporate residency as part of their curriculum. Students do not require a special visa for this because it is part of the curriculum. (CPT) This gives employers exposure and experience with these very talented students. In several instances employers have hired these students for after graduation, in one instance the employer hired an immigration attorney to make it work they were so anxious to keep the student

Preparation for the job search and their employment is critical so students understand the differences in processes and culture. We do the following to prepare International students

Career Management class required of all first year students

Mock interviews

Panel discussions with employers

Employer guest speakers

Executive luncheons

Employer information sessions

Feedback on resumes and cover letters

Feedback on business attire

Business etiquette event

We also do an intensive workshop prior to the start of their corporate residency assignments to focus on how to be successful on the job in the U.S.