CeeBee: CareerBuilder.com's Job Search SmartyPants

Happy Father's Day, Dads!

(well, in a few days...)

Dad's have always been expected to bring home the bacon, but in today's modern workplace, mom and dad are both doing their fair share. In fact, according to a new CareerBuilder.com survey, 37 percent of working dads would stay at home if their spouse or partner made enough money to support the family and 38 percent would take a pay-cut to spent more time with their kids.

Are you bitter because dad missed dance recitals, soccer games  and graduation because of work? Twenty-four percent of working dads feel work has negatively impacted their relationship with their kids. In the past year, almost HALF (48 percent) of dads have missed a significant event in their child's life due to work. One-in-five have missed four events or more.

Some other significant findings about working dads from the survey:

• 27 percent spend more than 50 hours a week on work and 8 percent spend more than 60 hours.
• 25 percent spend less than one hour with their kids each day. Forty-two percent spenc less than 2 hours each day.

Some dads say their companies haven't caught on to the new trend of flexible work environments. Thirty-six percent say their company doesn't offer flexible hours, telecommuting, job sharing and more.

Are you a working dad looking for a healthy balance between family time and work?  Richard Castellini, Vice President of Consumer Marketing at CareerBuilder.com and father of three, offers these five tips:

1. Keep in touch. While you're at work, make a quick call in between meetings & projects tell your kids you're thinking about them.
2. Plan a kid-friendly potluck. If co-workers in your department have kids, ask your boss if you can have a kid-friendly potluck for lunch on Friday. Not only does this allow the kids to spend extra time with you, but it also gives the employees in your department time to get to know each other better.
3. Give your undivided attention. When you are home spending time with your family, turn off your cell, walk away from your e-mails and give them your full attention. If you bring work home, do it after the kids have gone to bed.
4. Keep one calendar. Schedule baseball games and play recitals on the same calendar you use for meetings and travel to make sure you never double-book yourself. Save your vacation days for those special events in your children's lives, so you're there and in the front row.
5. Make time. At least once a week, schedule a family activity that involves interaction such as games, bike rides, trips to the playground, etc. Also make sure to schedule a date night for you and your significant other.

For Love or Money

The age old debate of doing what you love or doing what makes money always produces a variety of responses, but according to a recent survey by Men’s Journal, more workers would be willing to take a pay cut if it meant a better balance between their work lives and personal fulfillment.

The survey, set to be featured in the October issue of Men’s Journal, found 55 percent of surveyed readers would be willing to take a pay cut in exchange for job satisfaction.  If the annual income was upped to $100,000, 57 percent would reconsider, with sentiments that all of their hard work would be worth the trouble, but six percent felt no amount of money could make up for their amount job frustration.

While money is one of the major factors, it’s not the only element of a job that can make or break it.  Benefits, quality work conditions, relationships at work, opportunities for growth and advancement, acknowledgement and the job itself all play a part in whether a job will be satisfying or a cause for continual stress and frustration.

So the next time you are considering a job offer, remember that a little less can go a lot farther if you’re putting in your 39-and-under or 40-plus hours in at a job that promotes a positive work environment.  But even if you find the right place, don’t rely solely on the company to make or break your work scene.  The effort shouldn’t be a one-way street.  You’re still the only one that can really make yourself happy, but having a positive work environment to start with will certainly help.

By: Candace Corner CareerBuilder.com

Getting Down to Business

Undoubtedly, you’ve heard or read some advice on what limits “casual” has in your workplace, but did you know that for every company that allows it, there are a few more that favor the formality of traditional business garb?

A few recent surveys state that more employees are in favor of a more formal dress code, and that the workplace is seeing a decline in business casual dress codes. The argument is that a relaxed workplace equals a decrease in productivity.  Another concern is that business casual gives too much room for interpretation, or that people take advantage of relaxed dress codes by dressing inappropriately, which ruins their business image.

If you disagree, let us know. 

If you favor business casual and want some advice on what you should wear to work, go here. 

And if you don’t want to do either of those, but like reading about dress codes, check this out. 

By: Candace Corner

CareerBuilder.com

Find a Job This Fall

More Likely to Find a Job This Fall

If you’re in hot pursuit of your perfect job, but still having trouble finding something this summer, our studies show that you may have a better chance this coming fall.  We just released a new survey on job recruitment and job changing trends and here’s what we found:

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HIRING HIGHLIGHTS

"As economic growth shows signs of moderating, job creation levels in the US have dipped in recent months. While some employers are proceeding with caution in terms of

recruitment plans, others are expecting an uptick in hiring in the fall,” said

Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder.com. “One-third of hiring managers say they are

allocating more money to their recruitment budgets in the second half of the year,

compared to the first half. Forty-seven percent of hiring managers expect to add

headcount in the third quarter, while 13 percent plan to eliminate staff.”

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Amount of Employees Being Hired

While half of hiring managers plan to hire less than 10 new employees, three-in-ten

expect to add more than 20 and one-in-five expect to add more than 50.

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Hiring Cycle

Hiring managers continue to struggle with finding qualified candidates. Twenty-two

percent of hiring managers say it takes them one to two months to fill an open position,

while 11 percent spend two to three months. One-in-ten hiring managers surveyed say

their hiring cycles run three months or longer.

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Most Popular Positions for Recruitment

The leading areas for job requisitions in the upcoming quarter include healthcare, sales,

customer service, information technology, retail and accounting/finance. In terms of job

level, recruiting for professional and technical workers is poised to remain strong.

Thirty-four percent of hiring managers say they plan to add professional and technical

staff members during the third quarter. Fifteen percent expect to recruit employees for

manager, director and senior executive level positions, up from 12 percent last quarter.

Sixteen percent plan to recruit for administrative and clerical employees, down from 19

percent last quarter.

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Most Popular Resources Used to Recruit

Hiring managers are employing a variety of tools to find qualified candidates, with online

resources ranking most popular. Twenty-eight percent of hiring managers surveyed said

they use online resources most often to find qualified candidates, compared to 23 percent

who use newspaper classifieds, 19 percent who rely on employee referrals and 10 percent

who use professional recruiters.

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JOB CHANGES

Plans to Change Jobs in Q3 2006

Close to one-in-five workers plan to take advantage of the tightening labor market and

change jobs in the next six months. One-in-ten plan to do so in the third quarter.

The current labor conditions are driving up the number of workers who are passively

looking for a new job. Fifty-seven percent of workers report they are not actively

searching for a new position, but would be open to a new job if they came across the right

opportunity.

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Survey Methodology

The survey, "Q3 2006 Job Forecast," (download pdf) was conducted from June 6 to June 16, 2006. Methodology used to collect survey responses totaling more than 2,200 workers for this

study involved selecting a random sample of comScore Networks panel members. These

Web Panel members were approached via an e-mail invitation, which asked them to

participate in a short online survey. The results of this survey are statistically accurate to

within +/- 2.08 percentage points (19 times out of 20). Note: this sample included more

than 1000 hiring managers. The results for the hiring managers are statistically accurate

to within +/- 3.65 percentage points (19 times out of 20).

By: Candace Corner   CareerBuilder.com

Tips for job searching on company time

Tips for job searching on company time

When you’re already working a full-time job, when are you supposed to find the time to search for a new one?  The answer:  at work.

According to a survey by staffing company Hudson Highland Group, 11 million people on average look for jobs online every week, and one-quarter of workers who use a computer at work admit to searching on company time.  It’s no wonder, then, that job site traffic spikes on weekdays during lunchtime hours. 

Since you obviously want to keep your current job until you find a new one, here are some tips to avoid getting caught job hunting at work:

Know the policies

Find out whether your company has a policy on employee Internet use, and whether your actions, including e-mails and instant messages, will be monitored.  If they are, do your job searching from home.

Play it smart

Use a personal e-mail account when discussing job search-related items and applications.

Don't advertise your search.

Nothing sets off a red flag like coming in late wearing a suit to your dressed-down office.

Don’t start slacking.

If you devote yourself fully to what you're doing in the hours you're there (and job search with a vengeance in the hours when you're not), you'll continue to get the praise and recognition to keep you on track at your current job. In the end, the possibility always exists that you'll stay. Don't shoot yourself in the foot by making co-workers suspicious and then maybe not landing a new job.

Top jobs for working moms

Top jobs for working moms

I hope you had a happy mother’s day!  According to CareerBuilder.com’s annual Mother’s Day survey, one-in-four working moms say they are dissatisfied with their work/life balance, and 52 percent say they are willing to take a pay cut to spend more time with their children.

There are jobs, however, that afford working moms the flexibility they need to effectively balance their work and home responsibilities, consider these 10.

1. Writer – One of the most telecommute-friendly jobs out there.
2. Architect – One-in-five architects are self-employed – about three times the national average for all professional occupations.
3. Retail salesperson – Think flexible hours, part-time opportunities and store discounts.
4. Physician – Opening a private practice means setting your own hours.
5. Computer software engineer – This in-demand job offers good telecommuting opportunities.
6. Personal shopper – Get paid for running errands on a flexible schedule.
7. Photographer – About half of photographers are self-employed.
8. Teacher – You and your kids will have the same schedule.
9. Financial adviser – This job lends itself well to compressed work weeks or job sharing.
10. Hairstylist – Flexible and part-time schedules are plentiful.

Better Pay & Salary in 2006

Five Ways to Get a Bigger Paycheck in 2006

You wrote a flawless résumé, applied to what seemed like thousands of jobs, networked 'til you were blue in the face, dazzled them in the interviews and got an offer for the perfect job. All that hard work has paid off ... well, almost.

Don't sign the dotted line just yet -- if the salary figure on your offer letter seems too low, it probably is. Fifty-eight percent of hiring managers say they leave some negotiating room when extending initial offers, according to a recent survey by CareerBuilder.com.

Most hiring managers are accommodating when a candidate asks for a better offer, the survey found. Nearly six-in-10 say they will extend a new offer once, and one-in-10 will extend a new offer twice or more if they really want the candidate. Thirty percent of hiring managers say the first offer is final.

Attempting to negotiate a better offer is almost always in a candidate's best interest. In fact, nearly one-in-ten hiring managers say they think less of a candidate who accepts the first offer. Salary negotiations demonstrate a candidate's determination, persistence and recognition of the value he/she brings to an employer.

Here are some ways you can negotiate a better job offer:

Prove your worth.
Highlight specific accomplishments and results; 34 percent of hiring managers say this is the most convincing way for candidates to negotiate a better offer. Don't just say you managed major accounts, instead name specific clients and quantified results.

Have strong references.
A candidate's references are the first thing nearly one-in-three hiring managers say they consider in salary negotiations. Be sure the former employers and co-workers on your reference list are prepared to give glowing reports of your work. Provide them with a "cheat sheet" -- a brief rundown of your projects they're familiar with.

Know the market.
For one-in-10 employers, the best way to get a bump in your offer is knowing average salaries for your position and market. Online salary sites, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and industry Web sites are great places to start. Educate yourself on industry averages and those around your metro area.

Leverage your position with care.
Thirteen percent of hiring managers say showing an offer from another company and a willingness to walk away is an effective way to negotiate. But be careful with this tactic. It has serious potential to backfire and cost you the job completely.

When all else fails, ask for a six-month review.
If the job is everthing you've been looking for, but the hiring manager won't budge on salary, don't walk away. Ask if your new employer would be willing to conduct a review six months into your employment -- with a possible salary boost contingent on your performance.

Search for a better paying job at CareerBuilder.com today!

Richard Castellini is Vice President of Consumer Marketing at CareerBuilder.com. He is an expert in recruitment trends and tactics, job seeker behavior and workplace issues.  Copyright 2006 CareerBuilder.com

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Working Moms & More...

CareerBuilder.com's annual Mother's Day survey found one-in-four working mothers report they are dissatisfied with their work/life balance and are actively seeking jobs that will provide them with more flexibility. Fifty-two percent of working moms say they are willing to take a pay cut to spend more time with their children, a significant jump from 38 percent last year. 

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See the Working Mother's Press Release for more details and tips to help working moms find a better work/life balance.

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Today CareerBuilder also officially announced it's partnership with Comcast. We have teamed up to launch a Jobs Channel on Comcast.net.  The Jobs Channel offers a valuable resource for employers looking to reach a vast audience of potential employees.  Comcast's more than 9 million broadband customers can now enjoy immediate access to CareerBuilder.com's job postings and job search tools.  See press release for more details.

Workplace Stress and Burnout

CareerBuilder.com released the results of the office stress study today. More than half of workers say they work under a great deal of stress and 77 percent say they feel burnout on the job. Primary causes for stress at work include:

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• Difficult co-workers (16%)
• Unrealistic workload (15%)
• Tight deadlines (11%)
• Last-minute projects (10%)
• Overbearing or interfering boss (9%)

“High-pressure work environments are taking their toll on workers’ morale,” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources for CareerBuilder.com. “Twenty-three percent of workers say they frequently or constantly feel burnout at work. This can be detrimental to both workers, whose health and career progress may suffer, and employers, who pick up the tab in higher insurance costs and lost productivity.”

Tips to help limit workplace stress:

Organize and prioritize. Tackle the more difficult and important tasks first each day to ensure you have time to complete them. Before you leave work, take a few minutes to clean up your workspace and create the next day’s to-do list.

Manage expectations. Set reasonable short-term and long-term goals for yourself. When promising work to others, underpromise and overdeliver to prevent deadline crunches.

Put down the “Crackberry.” Set aside a certain period each day devoted to returning e-mails and voicemail messages. That way, you won’t be constantly interrupted.

Don’t neglect your health. Getting plenty of sleep, drinking water, eating nutritiously and getting exercise will help you feel in control and do wonders for your mood.

See the press release for more details and look for a less stressful job at CareerBuilder.com.

Best Excuses for Being Late to Work

CareerBuilder.com released the latest in the series of feature releases.  According to our latest survey, one-in-ten workers say they arrive late to work at least once a week and one-in-five admit to making up fake excuses to explain their tardiness.  The following are some of the most memorable excuses hiring managers say employees offered for arriving late:

1.  I dreamed that I was fired, so I didn't bother to get out of bed.

2.  I had to take my cat to the dentist.

3.  I went all the way to the office and realized I was still in my pajamas and had to go home to change.

4.  I saw that you weren't in the office, so I went out looking for you. 

5.  I ran over a goat.

See release for more humorous details.