Best-selling author and career expert Barbara Moses answers your questions.
The Dress Code
I haven't been on a job interview for over three years. In that time, my company and many others have gone to a business casual dress code. Should you still wear a suit to the first interview, even if you know the company and your interviewers are now business casual?
Effective presentation as a job candidate means showing that you understand the culture in which you would be operating and that you would readily fit in. This starts with being able to read the audience that will be interviewing you. Think of your interviewer as being like your future clients in the organization. If everyone in the organization dresses in business casual, and you show up for your interview in a suit, the interviewer may assume that you will not be able to fit in with clients.
Work environments today are extremely varied, ranging from hip-hop and youth-oriented spaces to more conservative and traditional ones. Find an environment that best reflects who you are and where you will feel most comfortable. About 80 percent of today's businesses have some sort of business casual policy as a result of the influence of Silicon Valley. But if you feel uncomfortable in the business casual arena, seek out a more traditional environment, such as a bank or life insurance company. It is more important today to find environments that reflect who you are--rather than twisting yourself into a pretzel to accommodate someone else's culture.
You may be overestimating the value of your MBA as an automatic ticket to success.
Best Face Forward
I did not go to college, but I really do have four years of experience in many related jobs. I have been successful in landing contracts and full-time work by local referral, but may relocate to a new area without that luxury. So, as a twenty-year-old IT specialist, how do I present myself to prospective employers as a viable, valuable candidate for serious work?
Although non-college graduates are generally at a disadvantage compared to their college-educated counterparts, you happen to work in a hot field where formal education is less important than technical skill. Before you write your resume or go in for an interview, imagine you are the employer. Identify the skills, both technical and non-technical, that you look for. On your resume, and in interviews, demonstrate through experience that you have these sought-after skills. As a general rule, university completion is treated by recruiters as a measure of persistence, self-management, and higher-level conceptual and problem-solving skills. You might want to identify individual accomplishments that satisfy such measurements.
Don't forget to emphasize the kind of non-technical skills that organizations are looking for today. This may include: being a change agent; being able to sell ideas; demonstrating initiative; being able to work as an effective team member; demonstrating leadership; and so on. In the longer term, your lack of post-secondary education may compromise your ability to move into more senior management roles. If this is something that you want to pursue, consider going back to school on a part-time basis and upgrade your education.
Passing the Test
Twice in my career, when applying for another job, I've been asked to take a standardized personality test. These were made up of multiple choice and true-false questions about my attitude and opinions. But I didn't get the job in either case, and I'm convinced it was because of the test. I'm a fairly normal person with a good job history, I get along with others and I'm very competent at what I do. If I decline to take this kind of test, I'll probably be eliminated as a candidate. Can you tell me how to handle this situation, or how to handle these tests?
You should not make generalizations based on two bad experiences. Sometimes, people will endure 50 interviews or more before successfully landing a job. You may have be out of the running for other reasons--a lack of appropriate experience, sub-par skills, or shoddy presentation in the interview. Or maybe you do have what it takes, but an even better candidate came along.
It's probably not a good idea to refuse to complete standardized selection instruments--unless you have legal grounds to believe the tests will unfairly discriminate against you. Also, you shouldn't try to second-guess what these kinds of tests are really looking for. Most tests have built-in means for identifying people who are deceptive. And when people try to second guess these tests, they usually end up presenting themselves in a worse light.
Although you really feel uncomfortable with these tests, remember that not all jobs use this kind of screening mechanism. Find those jobs where this is not an application requirement. If you are concerned that the tests are identifying personality characteristics that you are unaware of, seek out the support of a psychologist or a psychiatrist.
State School Blues
I recently graduated with an MBA degree from a state school. Had I gone to a big-name college, like Harvard or Stanford, I would have found work by now. I am very discouraged by this, and wonder if you agree with me. Are recruiters biased toward the top schools, or toward their alma mater?
First of all, you may be overestimating the value of your MBA as an automatic ticket to success. Certainly, MBAs from top-tier schools are in high demand and will find great jobs faster. But, for other MBAs, the degree itself is just icing on the cake--part of a complete package that you must sell to prospective employers. It alone will not land the job you want.
Employers are looking for people who understand business and management issues. It is important that you market your skills and experiences independent of the MBA. Are you presenting yourself effectively in interviews? Do you describe your accomplishments well? Do you have what it takes to be an effective team leader and manager in today's competitive, flexible, and nimble environments? If you can't answer these questions in the affirmative, then your MBA has nothing to do with it.
Barbara Moses, Ph.D. is the best-selling author of The Good News About Careers and Career Intelligence. She is also a prolific keynote speaker and frequent guest on radio and television programs. Her company, BBM Human Resource Consultants (www.bbmcareerdev.com), has conducted thousands of workshops worldwide.
