What A Group Interview Is Like In Israel

What A Group Interview Is Like In Israel 8 Who says you can't prepare for a group interview? One woman's account of her group interview adventure in Israel. A JobMob reader had a sneak peek at this article before his own Israeli group interview and said that the story below really was helpful. Enjoy! This is a guest post by Ronni Kives. If you’d also like to guest post here on JobMob, follow these guest post guidelines. Disclaimer: all names in this article are fictitious. Resemblance to any Marketing Communication Manager or Human Resources employee is coincidental. Background Unemployed for a few months now, I've been to Human Resources interviews, professional interviews, undergone take-at-home tests, on-site tests, and telephone screening (and not necessarily in that order). One day I got called from a recruitment and placement agency regarding a Marketing Communication job at an established company in Israel. The job was to be a Marketing Communication Manager at a local hitech company, be responsible for events and content management of the Web and other marketing collateral. To protect the identity, lets call the company “ABC” and say its location is Tel Aviv.eval Call for Action “Show up at 8:30 am on Sunday morning” at ABC company for a half-day at an evaluation center, said Liat (not her real name, but isn't there always a Liat in recruiting agencies?) “I don't know what's going to happen there, but you can't prepare for this. Just try to cooperate as much as possible, be noticed, but not to stick out too much”. Wonderful, how am I supposed to be conspicuous and inconspicuous simultaneously? And Sunday morning at 8:30 am, the peak traffic hour at the peak day of the week? I started to ask around as to potential questions I could anticipate.eval “Don't ask me”, said one (happily married!) friend. “I got kicked out once because during the exercise about who was to be saved in a lifeboat, I told everyone to have the men drown except one and leave all the women, because you don't really need them.” Arrive on Time….Because? So I showed up, dutifully, at 8:30 am, to find nine other women in the same predicament. It was a cold winter morning and we were told to fill out forms. Other than that, we were not offered coffee or the trip to the restroom. We also were told that the job opening was discreet and that they were looking to fill it right away. The successful applicants would be called for a personal interview. Now this seemed already very strange. What would the poor Marcom person think when she showed up to work, entered through the front door, and saw ten strange women waiting outside (sorry men â€" there aren't that many men in this profession, so I can only assume, in this case, that the Marcom Manager was female). Believe me, we did not look like a window-washing or office-cleaning team. I was relieved to find another native English speaker among the woman, and started my own little clique to ease the tension caused by the unknown, the lack of coffee, and lack of toilet. At least a half hour later we were greeted, without a smile, by two Human Resource women and a cookie-carrying assistant, and led to a side building. A dozen high heels clanked down the hall towards the conference room. We finally were offered a brief salvation in terms of a kettle and a toilet and then were instructed to wear a name tag and sit down in a semicircle within a large conference room. The cookie lady vanished quickly, whereas the HR women, who did not introduce themselves, but I will refer to as Yael and Limor, respectively, did not wear name tags set the stage for an unfriendly opening. Luckily, all ten women seemed to be very professional and well-spoken. I was rather amused by the dress code â€" most women wore solid colors, with or without a jacket or blazer, but one wore a miniskirt, panty-hose exposing very long legs, while another one wore a shanti-style, multi-colored tunic. Exercise 1: Marcom Metaphors? The first exercise was to compare ourselves to a means of transportation and explain why we chose that particular one. (You're probably familiar with variations to this exercise regarding animals. I once was asked to choose an animal that I resembled. I answered “an antelope â€" so that I can leap over the traffic jams on the way to work”. I got the job â€" but this was only after a personal interview, writing test, and HR interview.) One woman chose a taxi, explaining that she gets things done as quickly as possible, so as not to waste any time. Another chose a jet. A third chose a subway. A fourth wanted to be original and chose a Segwayâ„¢. The others in turn were getting upset that their vehicle had already been chosen. I was the last in the semi-circle and read from my notes, intentionally speaking slowly and clearly in Hebrew, to compensate my tendency to speak quickly and forget to breathe, especially when nervous. “I chose a ship because it can be used for many purposes, for example both for cargo and for tourism. The staff of a ship need to deal with many different countries, cultures, languages and regulations. This is similar to the work in marketing communications. You have some days where the sea is calm and you can deal with your day to day business. On other days, you have your storms where you need to handle crises. As I made aliyah many years ago, I have been able to adapt successfully to Israeli culture while still being able to handle cross-cultural communication”. I thought this was a carefully crafted answer and metaphor and was proud of myself. Yael, pretending to show off her expertise in character analysis, sternly turned to me and said “a ship is a very slow-moving vehicle. Does this characterize yourself â€" slow?” (I didn't dare tell her that my bosses think that I do things very quickly. Instead, I looked her straight into her eyes and said “No, I do not, I just chose a ship instinctively. I carry out my tasks efficiently and deliver them on time.” Yael made a face and wrote a note on my application. Exercise 1. Strike 1. Exercise 2: Investing a Million Dollars in Israel The next exercise was a group one. We were told that a bunch of investors from abroad had decided to invest one million dollars in a business that would be established in Israel. The investors held a tender with importance given to the following criteria: profitability uniqueness located within the borders of the State of Israel We were given five minutes to come up with a business idea that meets the criteria of the investors, and we had to include the initial steps needed to set up this business. Now we had to work together. Each woman suggested an idea, one woman offered to document the ideas, and another one moderated the voting. Of the ideas presented, the majority voted for a computer at the supermarket that would be multilingual, that would show the location of items in the supermarket without having to ask a staff member. The benefits of this idea were to reduce the staff having to instruct the consumers as to where their items are located, attract more computer-literate people into the supermarket (ones who would normally buy online or buy somewhere else), reduce the knowledge of many languages required by staff, and overall make the shopping experience more enjoyable, and take less time. We had a problem proving profitability, but overall, we worked well together and did not argue much. As it took us a while to present our ideas and vote on them, Yael and Limor gave us more time to think out our idea once chosen. Exercise 3: Promote Yourself Our next task was to choose the staff needed for launching this project and then appointing the appropriate staff. We decided that the roles required for this startup company were a CEO who would double as a CFO, a Marketing Manager and an RD Manager, who would double as Product Manager. We agreed that additional staff would be hired at a later date. Since the idea was pitched by a woman named Merav, we thought it was fair that she be appointed CEO. Keren volunteered to be RD head, whereas both Sivan and Shiri wanted the Marketing Manager job. So they both presented their candidacy and voted. Once again, we proved our ability to work together as a team without conflict. Yael and Limor weren't happy with our cooperative spirit and wanted to stir up some trouble. “Inbal, why didn't you nominate yourself as marketing manager?” Yael and Limor were pleased that they got Inbal on the defensive. They also picked on Tali. COFFEE BREAK Now, head on over to read: True Story: What A Group Interview Is Like In Israel â€" Part 2 About the author Ronni Kives has been a marketing communications writer for the high tech industry in Israel for the last ten years. After receiving this guest post, I (Jacob) just received the good news that Ronni was hired for a full-time position as a marketing writer, after several months of unemployment. The content of this post has no connection whatsoever to her present position or employer and was written and submitted before the publication date here. She was not recruited through an Evaluation Center. Originally from Winnipeg, Canada, Ronni currently lives in Kfar Saba, Israel. If you found this article useful, you'll also enjoy Psychometric Testing in Israel: A Day at Machon Pilat.

Professional Resume Writing Services

Professional Resume Writing ServicesWhen it comes to professional resume writing services, Charlotte is one of the best places to have your document edited. When you think about it, there are a lot of pros and cons when it comes to hiring a resume editing service. There are plenty of advantages to hiring them, but there are also a few things that can go wrong with them. If you're serious about getting the best results, then you should consider making use of these services and avoid hiring them in the first place.One important part of making sure your resume is perfect is not to cut any corners. When you're using professional services, they will be able to give you suggestions on how to improve your document. Some of the tips that they give can even make your document better than you thought it was.The next important part of the process is to find a company that has a great reputation. You don't want to hire a company that's going to make your document worse than it was when you initi ally created it. When you're searching for professional resume writing services, Charlotte is one of the best places to check because the company's history is far-reaching.The next thing that you need to do is find a company that provides editing services for your professional resume. This means that the company you hire will be able to edit all of your documents, especially your cover letter. While you're waiting for the agency to create your resume, you can use them to proofread and edit your other documents as well.When you're finished with the editing, you should ensure that everything works well and that it doesn't leave anything out. Your agency will be able to edit your entire document so you don't have to worry about that part. They're professionals and they know how to go about things. It's important that you work with professionals to avoid wasting your time.The next thing you need to do is to ensure that your document is keyword rich. If you're going to use any editing se rvices for your document, then you'll need to make sure that they are good at this as well. The key word can really determine how many different companies are willing to look at your document.Another important thing that you need to do is to make sure that the company can create documents for you at a low cost. If you're going to hire any agency, then you need to make sure that they can provide you with a price quote that fits your budget. Make sure that they won't charge you any more than the other options are going to charge.Resume writing services are great for those who need help when it comes to creating a professional document. When you need help creating a great document for your future, then you should take advantage of the services that these agencies can provide. These services can provide you with a great document that can get you the job you need.

How to Deal With Bad Job References

How to Deal With Bad Job References Maybe you’ve had this happen to you: you go on an interview for a job, and feel like the interview went great! Your interviewer asks for some job references and says they’ll be in touch. …And then you never hear anything. What happened? Unfortunately, you may have been a recipient of a bad job reference. So how can you deal with a bad job reference? And what can you do in the future to prevent them? Here are the best tips for dealing with bad job references. Follow up with your interviewer  After your interview, if you still haven’t heard anything from your interviewer after over a week, or if you’ve received the “we’ve decided to move forward with other candidates” email, you should always take the extra step to ask your interviewer why. If they’ve decided to pursue other options, it’s fair game to respectfully ask them for feedback so that you can improve and grow moving forward. Was it lack of experience? Culture fit? Something they heard? If you can zero-in on the factor that prevented you from getting the job, you’ll be able to correct it moving forward. Prevent bad job references by listing them in order of favorability The same as you would have your resume and cover letter, it’s also important to have a printed out listing of your job references. The key with this printed out sheet is to make sure that your references are listed in the preferred order that you’d like for them to be contacted in. More often than note, potential employers will only call one or two of your references, and they usually start at the top (or your most recent employer), so make sure you set yourself up for success in how your references are delivered to your interviewer. Another important tip is to make sure you’re not including any references who could potentially give you a bad job reference. Especially early on in your career, it can be tough to find enough references to list, but don’t feel like you need to include someone who may not be your best advocate just for the sake of having more references on paper. With references, quality is better than quantity. Check in with your references before listing them Before listing someone on your reference list, it’s so important to ask if they wouldn’t mind serving as a reference for you in the future. This is a simple step that can potentially save you the headache of receiving a bad job reference and wondering where it came from. If one of your colleagues or former bosses doesn’t feel comfortable serving as a reference for you, when you ask them about it, it’s likely that they will respectfully decline. This is a good thing. By confirming willing references before listing them on your reference sheet, you’ll decrease the likelihood of receiving bad job references at all. Take charge of your reputation The most important thing you can do to prevent bad job references is to not give previous employers any reason to give you a poor reference. Hold yourself to a high standard at your place of employment: do your best work, maintain a positive attitude, and develop a habit of relaying wins back to your boss. This will help set you up for success down the road when you come to them asking for a reference.

4 Things I Did Working for a Micromanaging Boss

4 Things I Did Working for a Micromanaging Boss Working in a micromanaging or “hands-on” environment could be rather daunting. Some may find this style of leadership so challenging that they decide to jump ship. According to a Forbes article, there is a strong connection between job satisfaction and “freedom to make decisions about how to do their jobs”. Employees who work in this type of environment are 28% more likely to explore new opportunities.Now, before casting judgment on the big-bad-bosses, I would recommend trying to understand them a little better to put your scenario in better perspective. Perhaps there are some underlying issues that are causing a leader to be overbearing. Maybe there are insecurities, inexperience, or trust issueshovering over this individual. Maybe they’ve never had proper leadership training.There are a host of reasons to explain the why. Maybe understanding the “Why?” will alleviate some of the frustrations. However, no matter the reason, if you’re on the receiving end of this styl e then it could definitely push you away.Keep in mind, there may be work situations where micromanagement is a necessity. Perhaps the employee is on a performance plan and this management style is needed to get the employee back on track. Maybe the employee is new and needs extra support to get them up to speed.4 Things I Did While Working for a Micromanaging BossI realized I was in a controlling environment when the new boss came to town and quickly had to decipher if I was going to jump ship or stay and continue to grow in my role. I chose the latter and decided to do four things in the process.1. Stopped ComplainingAfter realizing what type of leader was overseeing my office, I realized I had a choice to make, stay in the role and seek to succeed or find a new job. I knew there was more I needed to learn, so I didn’t want to leave prematurely.I decided I needed to figure out how to be content in my situation. In making that decision, that meant to stop complaining about the bos s! There was so much negative water cooler talk about the manager that it became unfruitful and quite frankly, very negative.The employees knew that things were not going to change, even after several employee complaints, so I decided to accept where I was and learn to work with him. I even had my husband keep me accountable.2. Realized I Wasn’t the ProblemInitially, when I was asked to include my boss on all of my internal system notes and bcc him on all client emails, I thought he was singling me out. I became insecure about my performance. I quickly realized after several similar comments from co-workers that he was doing this across the board.In my scenario, I realized quickly that this style was not targeted at me but it was the boss’ style throughout the office. When I understood the boss clearly had some issues that affected his management style it alleviated some of my internal frustrations.I even tried to give him more information whenever I could because I knew he need ed that. Maybe I was enabling a weakness but it made the scenario more bearable.3. Learned as Much as I CouldHaving been in sales most of my career, I was used to freedom, flexibility, and trust from my employers. Of course, this trust had to be earned but I found myself in a situation that I was just not used to.I was measured on everything under the sun:How many phone calls I made in a week and even a day How many people I spoke toTrust me, the list goes on. I decided that while I was there, I’d be a sponge and soak up all the information I could get. Although my boss was very “hands-on” he had a lot of good insight and vision into the company and the role I was tasked to do, so I tried to take advantage of his knowledge.4. Reestablished My PrioritiesAfter I felt that professionally and personally I was ready to transition into a new job I had no regrets. I had gained invaluable experience that I was able to take to another company. The turning point for realizing my transit ion was needed.My manager denied my request to work from home ONE day per week.Many progressive companies realize that statistically there are so many benefits to allowing an employee to work remotely, occasionally. It’s a growing trend in workplaces, so, given my job duties (that could be performed anywhere) I was astonished when this request was denied. Statistics even say that remote workers are 50 percent less likely to quit and are typically more satisfied with their jobs.Not having to sit in traffic, reduced stress, more sleep, more productivity are just a few benefits. There are so many more but I’ll save that for another post. The micromanagement and regressive atmosphere were reasons for me to transition into a more broad-minded, flexible environment.Finally Leaving The decision to leave didn’t happen overnight as I felt I still needed to grow in certain areas. When I was ready to leave my job, I had no reservations whatsoever and I was happy with the time that I put in.Because of my decision to stick it out, I was able to take an even better opportunity and more appealing than I ever imagined.

How to Write a Professional Resume in Portland, Oregon

How to Write a Professional Resume in Portland, OregonWhen it comes to resume writing in Portland, Oregon, the most effective way to create a convincing and appealing job application is by using bullet points, which will help your reader follow the process of describing your skills. You have to also emphasize on the contribution you made to the organization; this will help in making your prospective employer think that you are knowledgeable of the company.The most prominent characteristics of a resume is that it has a professional appearance and it should be written in the most attractive manner. Make use of bold or italic fonts, make it look clean and white space as these will help in creating a good impression. You can also include details about your educational achievements, community service work or personal experiences while giving importance to the most important elements.There are many tools that will be useful in the job search in Portland. You can use free resume writing ser vices online, which will be more affordable than hiring a local writing service. These online writing services will help you in writing the resumes of prospective employees. They will also help you in writing the cover letters for the job applications.You can also use free resume writing services that are offered by local libraries. It is possible to find those that focus on various career fields like nursing, accounting, real estate and many others. While looking for a local library, you need to make sure that they offer certified online services as some may not be reliable enough to let you type up your resume online.Keep all your details and expectations updated and provide the employer with a convincing reason when requesting for the resume when going for a job search in Portland. Include your name, address, telephone number, email address and fax number. When filling out an online form, it is important to attach your previous work experience, education details and your personal statement.It is also very important to mention your company affiliation, if you belong to an employment agency. These details can be used as reference and will also add to the professionalism of your resume.Your resume should contain all the essential details of the job you are applying for. State clearly whether you are applying for full time or part time position and state your salary requirements. Always remember that you need to give your best effort during the writing process and that too while keeping all the specific specifications of the job description in mind.The most important part of the job application is the cover letter. You can write this carefully and professionally so that it will be able to attract the attention of the hiring manager who will surely be interested in reading it.

Being a Mom is a Six-Figure Job

Being a Mom is a Six-Figure Job In honor of Mothers Day I just checked out Salary.coms salary calculator for moms. Salary.com valuated the mom job of both the working and stay-at-home moms and based on a survey of more than 12,000 mothers, Salary.com determined that the time mothers spend performing 10 typical job functions would equate to an annual salary of $122,732 for a stay-at-home mom. Working moms at-home salary is $76,184 in 2009; this is in addition to the salary they earn in the workplace.The job titles that best matched a moms definition of her work are (in order of hours spent per week): housekeeper, day care center teacher, cook, computer operator, facilities manager, van driver, psychologist, laundry machine operator, janitor, and chief executive officer.Thats a good start for the list of responsibilities but I have a few morereferee (for all that sibling rivalry), child advocate (to deal with the abundance of injustices in most school systems), booking agent (think about all of those playdates), coac h (yes, moms coach softball and basketball too), triage specialist (what mom doesnt carry around a first-aid kit and know the latest splinter removal techniques?), nurse (how many times have you administered meds to your kids?), party planner (Ive planned dozens of birthday and holiday parties so I think that qualifies me as an expert), costume designer (think of all those school plays), editor (how many of your kids research papers have you had to read?), fundraiser (schools always need money), tour guide (what mom among us hasnt chaperoned a class trip?), and of course, entertainer (moms know that one needs no explanation). Now thats a long listI think I am ready for a raise! Happy Mothers Day!

5 TraitsTo Embrace To Live Without Regret - Kathy Caprino

5 TraitsTo Embrace To Live Without Regret Today I had a shock. I heard from a mother of a lovely young woman I had spoken with on the phone nearly three years ago about career coaching. I learned from her mother that this beautiful, vibrant young woman was gone. She had passed away in her home in June 2011, just one month after I spoke with her. And amazingly, the young woman was from my home town. I was truly rocked by this news. I was so touched by the mother’s beautiful note to me (she hadn’t wanted to just “unsubscribe” her daughter from my newsletter, but wanted to explain, and share the sad news personally). I was rocked because I have beloved children myself who are so precious to me, and I can only glimpse of the pain a parent feels at losing her dearest child so young. And finally, I was rocked at the idea that this young woman’s life and my own had intersected only for a brief moment in time, and I wondered how she would have experienced and remembered our interaction. I prayed she would have thought of it as helpful and caring. If not, I would deeply regret it. That got me thinking. We strive so hard to live good lives, to be “happy,” to find our way, and to create success and joy, and share it with others. But Ive realized lately that it’s just not that complicated. It’s very simple, in fact. Maybe living well, with happiness and without regret, is simply about demonstrating in physical reality five essential traits that help us leave this world a better place than we found it. If it were truly this simple â€" just five essential behaviors would we all do a better job of living without regret, of embracing and sharing joy and love with others, and feeling much better every moment of our existence? I think so. What are these 5 traits that are essential to regret-free, joyful living? I believe they are: Kindness Kindness is the sweetness of life. It’s a gentle hand when we’re down, a non-judging, listening ear when we have a problem, and it’s an unselfish act that puts the best interests of others first. It’s giving without looking for “what’s in it for me.” I, like you perhaps, interact with hundreds of people each month, and I endeavor to be kind to each one, but sometimes I fail. When I’m tired, over-worked, stressed, frustrated â€" you name it â€" my kindness wanes. Truthfully speaking, I can often get grumpy and agitated when strangers desperately want and demand something from me. But I have found that I can overcome that agitation, and I am more successful at that when I’m more “present” in my life. When I can step back from what’s at hand, take three deep breaths and remember what I’m doing here on this planet, and when I connect to a higher dimension of myself that isn’t so worn down from the obligations in front of me, my access to kindness opens. Then, I’m able recalibrate and re-energize, and find my heart again. It’s not hard â€" it just takes commitment and practice. Kindness heals sorrow, binds broken relationships, and mends souls (our own and others’). So why then are we so unkind? What takes you away for your kindness and what helps you restore it? Can you make a habit of rekindling your kindness each day? Caring To me, caring is about taking the time to give a hand to someone, to show that their issues and problems are important, and their worldview matters. Caring means that you validate the individual before you, and show that you understand who they are at their core, and love and respect that essence. The opposite of caring is the snarky back-stabbing, gossiping, hateful behavior we see around us every day â€" online and in person. Making someone wrong and judging them mercilessly is a hallmark of it. This lack of caring reveals that you’ve forgotten one core truth â€" that everyone is inextricably connected, and each person is a facet of you. So if you’re hateful to another person, you’re hateful to yourself. Are you as caring for those around you as you’d like to be? Are you caring to yourself in equal measure (that’s where most women fall down.) What holds you back from exhibiting more care and concern for yourself and for others? Compassion Of all of these traits, I believe compassion is the most powerful to heal the world. Compassion represents the feeling of empathy for others, the emotion we feel in response to the suffering or experiences of others that inspires in us a desire to help. In my work as a therapist and coach, I’ve observed that those who were raised without compassion, without empathy â€" by parents who were narcissistic, cruel, distorted, and unable to feel compassion â€" are those who suffer the severest forms of pain, isolation, and suffering. Is your compassion for others and the world somehow being strangled by your current struggles and your mindset? Can you find a new way to grow your compassion for yourself, and for others? Helpfulness In working with women to move away from careers they dislike, there is inevitably a sense of meaning, purpose and helpfulness that is missing and that they long for. As Maria Nemeth shared in her powerful book The Energy of Money, we are all happiest when we’re demonstrating in physical reality what we know to be true about ourselves, when we’re giving form to our Life Intentions in ways that help others. I know too many people who focus only of what they have in front of them â€" either their struggles and strife or, on the flip side, their wealth, achievements and outer “things” (toys, cars, houses, bank accounts) they are amassing with no regard of how they can be of help in the world. In the end, if you focus only on yourself and your tiny sphere of influence, you’ll be wasting your talents and your abilities, and losing a precious opportunity to make a real difference in the world. The result will be that, at the end of your life, you will experience deep sadness, regret and remorse that you wasted your precious time, energy and your life looking out for only yourself. Who can you help today? Truthfulness Finally, I’ve seen that people experience deep pain and suffering from the lies they’ve told â€" to themselves and to others. Lying reflects a deep-seated fear that we are not “enough” â€" not strong, smart, courageous, good or powerful enough â€" to deal with the real consequences of our true actions and beliefs, so we lie. But lying hurts. When you lie to yourself, you rob yourself of the chance to evaluate accurately and fully how best to move forward. And lying to others limits their ability to make the right choices and decisions for themselves. The bottom line: lying stops you and others from growing, living and loving life to the fullest. The flip side â€" truthfulness â€" does indeed set you free. Truthfulness allows you to be free with and accepting of yourself, and lets others be themselves, and act with honesty, authenticity and transparency as well. Where are you being false, and what truth can you share today that will change everything for you? * * * * These five traits can be viewed as agreements you make with yourself. If you commit to being to being more kind, caring, compassionate, helpful and truthful each day, I guarantee, without reservation, that your life experience will improve dramatically, and regrets will fade. (For more on the power of giving, check out Adam Grants great new book Give and Take. For information on helping others and the world through your career and professional life, check out Breakdown, Breakthrough   and the Amazing Career Project.)