Dr. Caitlin Williams, Ph.D. is a career development consultant and coach in San Jose, California. Caitlin works with individuals and organizations to create and implement professional development initiatives; and she focuses on helping professionals leverage their talents in ways that truly make a difference. Dr. Williams teaches in the master’s program in Counselor Education at San Jose State University and she also is Associate Editor of National Career Development Association’s Career Convergence Organizations department. She can be reached at caitlin@DrCaitlinWilliams.com.

Dr. Caitlin will be presenting a series of podcasts focusing on finding a job and handling transitions in tough economic times.

Podcast #1: Getting Through Your Career or Job Transition: 10 Ways to Handle Being Laid Off or Deal with Difficulty in Finding Work

Elisa Topper’s Podcast

Topper’s_Top_10

Elisa Topper has over 30 years of professional librarianship with experience in special, public and university libraries as well as a national position at the American Library Association and serving as Assistant Dean at the Graduate Library School at Dominican University, and the Director of the Dundee Public Library. Ms. Topper is currently the Director of Staffing Services for Library Associates Companies and heads their new Chicago-area office.

In 2003, she created and was the sole contributor for “Working Knowledge” a monthly workplace column in the American Library Association’s magazine, American Libraries. That year, Library Journal named her as one of 50 “Movers and Shakers” for her recruitment efforts in the library field. In 2006, she left this column to take over “What’s New in Libraries” in the UK’s journal called, New World Libraries. In January 2009, she will be a columnist for LibGig with the column-“Need to Know.”

Ms. Topper received her BA in American Studies from the University of South Florida, her MLS from Florida State University and a Master’s degree from Loyola University of Chicago in Industrial Relations/Personnel.

Attending conferences and networking go hand-in-hand when looking for a job.  I have always looked at attending conferences as in investment in my career, both from the standpoint of making contacts (networking) and professional development.

Attending the ALA Annual Conference, Midwinter Meeting, or division conferences (and other conferences) can be a great opportunity for the job seeker to network while pursuing professional development – workshops, seminars, pre-conference programs.  Making contacts with vendors in the exhibit hall and attending the myriad of social events can also be helpful.  Approaching them with job seeking in mind, however, will make for a different experience.  Rather than an opportunity for personal development, or for achieving some objective on behalf of your employer, your job seeking goal is to view the conference through the filter of “how will my time here advance my job search?”

I have included Ten Tips to help you use conference attendance as a job search strategy:

• Use the preliminary program information to plan your time so that you use it as wisely as possible. As soon as you have access to the preliminary program, review it carefully.  Are there opportunities to participate in a small group activity so that you can meet new people who might be useful in your job search?  What might be available in the host city?  Can you visit a library to learn more about how they operate?
• Mine the preliminary program for possible contacts.  Look at the speakers and their organizations.  Check them out on social networking sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn.  If they are speaking in an area of your expertise, consider making contact with them in advance so that you can expand your network when you meet them at the conference.

I have always been impressed when job seekers approach me to introduce themselves and to let me know they are looking for a job.  Right then, I ask for their business cards and on the card I make a notation, “job seeker” and the type of library(ies) they are interested in.

• Look at the array of social events being offered as part of the conference, or vendor events if you’re working for an organization that has a business relationship with one or more library suppliers.  Work the room, introducing yourself to as many people as possible.  Ask them questions to get the conversation started or learn about colleagues in common; build your network.

Use your meal times carefully—and include coffee breaks or a pre-dinner drink in your options—so that you are able to have meaningful time with as many people as possible.

• Register for the placement service and block time early in the conference to review available job openings.  For the ALA Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting, the ALA Placement Center serves an important role in connecting job seekers to employers. Registration takes place on-line prior to the conference and there is an on-site center at each conference where employers and job candidates can meet and conduct interviews. The ALA Placement Service is free for job seekers. Be sure to have some flexibility so that you can meet with the hiring representatives when there is a position with a good fit.

• Use your programming choices strategically.  While you might normally choose programs that advance your skills, when you’re job hunting, you might want to consider focusing on the programs that will add to your network.  Introduce yourself to those seated around you; find out what they do and how they might use what you’ve all just learned.  Ask about their home institution.

Look for career advice sessions among the programming options.  In the mentoring section of this toolkit, there are references to several ALA groups that offer resume review and other career advancement advice.

• Spend time in the exhibits talking with exhibitors.  Be honest about your aims (and be sure to end the conversation quickly if a “paying customer” needs to engage the exhibitor).  Because exhibitors talk with lots of librarians, they often know which libraries might be hiring or where someone might be leaving.
• Consider talking with placement firms or library consultant groups in the exhibit hall.  They may have need of your services to fill a small niche or even have longer term assignments available that could turn into a bridge to a new, permanent position.
• Be sure to pack plenty of business cards and print them yourself if you do not have employer-provided cards.  Have updated resumes with you as well, so that you can give one to everyone (within reason) who might be able to help you find a job. 

Make sure you get everyone’s business cards.  Make notations on them as reminders when you do your follow-up.

• Look the part.  You will see a wide range of dress at any conference.  You will want to dress professionally, closer to interview dress than casual—yet still comfortable, as you won’t make a good impression if your feet hurt!

Organize your papers, resumes, and business cards in a trim briefcase so you can access the cards quickly—and always have a free hand to extend as you introduce yourself!

• Once you are home, follow up! Look at the business cards you collected and do a quick follow-up e-mail referencing your conversation.  Be sure to thank anyone who provided specific assistance, or who bought you a cup of coffee.  Keep the lines of communication open, without being a pest, so that everyone in your expanded network will remember you when they hear of a good possibility.

I wish you the best in your job search.  Remember that attending conferences to network and expand that network is worth the expense.  It is part of an effective job search strategy.  Where else would you have more exposure to more people in one place at one time?

Tailoring the letter to the skills and credentials they are looking for is key.  And it doesn’t hurt to add something personal if it’s meaningful.  For instance, when I applied for the Haverford Township Public Library Director opening in Havertown, PA, I mentioned that one of the key reasons I wanted to move to Pennsylvania was to be closer to family.  I went on to say that my sister lived just a few miles from the Haverford Library and that she was hopeful that I would move back to Pennsylvania.  This kind of allays fears of the unnknown about moving to a strange area.

I really had another reason for mentioning her name–she was named the “Delaware County Coach of the Year” for women’s lacrosse last year.  Her high school team won the state championships last year.  I thought someone on the search committee might have a daughter who played lacrosse and would maybe know her!  Well, lo and behold, one of the search people did have a daughter who played lacrosse and they certainly did know my sister.  Well, that woman was very enthusiastic about my resume.  The job never worked out, but I did strike a chord with several of the search people.  So, personalizing the cover letter is always key.

I often mention my banking background as well–again in case someone on the search committee is a banker.  That doesn’t hurt.  It also makes me sound more well-rounded.  I’m not just a librarian.  I understand finance and business.

Patty Anderson

When I evaluate applications, I first weed out those that don’t meet the minimum required qualifications as advertised.  For example, the career military officers who have no library background but thought they’d give it a shot.

Upon closer examination of highly qualified candidates, I’m looking for a well-managed online presence.  Regardless of the area of library work they’ve been in, I expect most tuned-in and motivated librarians to at least have either a webpage, a Facebook account, a blog, etc., or to have made thoughtful comments on others’ blogs.  If they’ve even made presentations at conferences, the top candidates should be Google-able.  If they have relatively unique names (or even if I search for their name and the word “library” or “librarian”), it looks rather unimpressive if I can’t find anything about them other than maybe a library staff listing.

Finally, I’ll always remember the candidate who, while walking with members of the search committee across campus, proceeded to light up a cigarette and let smoke blow in our faces, having never asked us about or even acknowledged the idea.  Not a hire.

As an MLIS student (I graduated December ‘08) I was often urged (by teachers, school administrators, etc.) to network, join professional organizations, and attend meetings and conferences. It’s hard to squeeze these activities in when you are going to school, probably working, and often have family responsibilities as well. But I can attest that there are certainly benefits to making connections.

I attended a conference, which offered a service often provided – career counseling, resume review, job networking, etc. I bravely submitted my resume for review. The reviewer happened to be the director of a public library in a town about 45 minutes away. In the process of our discussion, when she heard I was looking for weekend work (for various reasons I was unable to leave my non-library “day job”), she said her library used weekend subs, and that she would give one of her employees my resume.

I was soon offered the opportunity to join the substitute pool, without going through any interview or testing process – phew! I felt very fortunate to have made this contact, which paid out in landing just the type of job I wanted, part-time on the weekends. I have been working at the library for a number of months now, and it has been enjoyable and educational, as well as providing great experience to list on future resumes. So my advice to current library school students, is to pay attention to that sometimes-too-familiar reminder about the importance of looking beyond the next assignment due, and taking time to network – I can vouch for the fact that it can open a door that otherwise might not have let you in!

Sharon Marcacci

I think I sent out my first application sometime the first or second week of December and started banging them out regularly over the holidays.  Despite being a near “digital native” and fairly paper-adverse, I printed out every job announcement that caught my eye and filed them by due date (or date posted if “open until filled”) right by my home computer.

I also kept a Word document that listed title, institution, and due date.  In retrospect, I would have also included something about references required, because I know I missed some if I didn’t realize they wanted a three hard-copy reference letters until the last minute (and that would’ve just been rude to ask my already busy references to do one for me on short notice!).  Checking job postings became part of the e-mail-Facebook-NY Times routine.  I had 2-3 sites I would check at least once per day and other sites that I would check once per week and a few once per month.

If I had the occasional free moment in a day, I would start putting together an application, but mostly I set aside Sundays for doing applications.  That spring semester, I was taking a full load of courses, working 25 hours per week at two student library jobs, and volunteering regularly with a local organization.

Sundays, which had previously been my “day off” (as much as a grad student has a day off), became my job application days.  I clearly remember one argument with my partner, who was otherwise incredibly supportive.  He was annoyed that I wasn’t pulling my weight on chores but more that we didn’t have any time together that semester.  I snapped back “Which would you like me to do?  Quit a job?  Drop a class?  Not apply for jobs?”  He understood and after that started nagging me if I got a late start on my applications on Sundays, considering that to be my weight in chores.

My Sunday routine would be to look over my list to see what jobs were coming due in the next 2-3 weeks, choose the ones that most interested me, and start tailoring my cover letter for the duties and requirements of each one.  Most Sundays I would have 3-4 ready to send out the following week, some I would manage to get as many as 6-7 done.

All told, I probably submitted about 50-60 job applications from December through April.  I stopped counting around 40.  I don’t even want to think about how many hours were devoted to the job search.  I remember hitting a “dark” week in late February, where I hadn’t yet heard back from anyone and was starting to count submitted applications in the dozens.

I think it was the last week of February I got my first phone interview.  Though it was very clear by the end of the phone interview that I wasn’t a fit for their job, it turned on the light at the end of the tunnel and I was so grateful to them just for that.  By the end of it all, I had 3 phone interviews, 6 on-site interviews, and 3 job offers.  The first job offer came in three days before graduation, so I did achieve my goal.

Don’t stop putting out applications until you have so many interviews that you’re too busy prepping for them to do applications and then start the applications back up until you have a firm job offer.   Don’t lose hope.

Lisa Gardinier

As I quickly approached graduation from Emporia State University with my MLS I began the job hunt to start my career in the world of public libraries. It didn’t take long to discover that the public library job market took a nosedive and every single library system in the Kansas City Metro area went on a hiring freeze. The only thing I could think to do was to send out my resume to any open library position that I found in the entire state of Kansas. After a couple job offers many miles from home, and nearly accepting two of them, it became all too obvious that not only was the job market in trouble, but I would never be able to sell my house and make the move across the state. I had to find work within driving distance of my home.

The Kansas Library System serves as a repository listing many of the open positions across the state, but it is not a one-stop-shop. Additionally, ESU sends out emails of open positions across Kansas and the nation, but it too is not fully comprehensive. When it comes to library job hunting, the best bet is to scope out individual library sites as well as the regional library system sites. In my case, I found the open technology coordinator position at Leavenworth Public Library through the Northeast Kansas Library System website.

Being a technical job, an MLS wasn’t required, but having a library background was desired. I had the tech skills they required, and just so happened to be finishing up the desired library background with my MLS. When it came time for my interview, I knew I had a leg up on the competition: my MLS. Most people applying for this job only had the technical experience, but as we all know, libraries’ technology needs are a tad bit different; understanding these differences and being able to apply them appropriately is key. During the first interview, I made sure to relate my previous experiences with technology to how this gained knowledge can be applied in a library. When the question came up, “What do you think of our website?” I was prepared with areas of improvement as well as praise. I did my research on the library by reading their strategic improvement plan and asked which goals had been met, and if they had been met satisfactorily. I wanted my interviewers to understand that I was serious about the job, excited at the prospect, and had well-developed ideas for technology in the library.

This is the best advice I can give to anyone seeking employment, whether it be in a library or not: do a thorough investigation of the library/company with whom you hope to land an interview. Remember: not only are they interviewing you, but you are interviewing them as well. I found my perfect match with Leavenworth Public Library and began my dream job in April 2009 – just one month prior to graduation.

Kelly Fann

Finding a job is hard. Finding the right job is even harder. Whether you are a recent graduate, or are seeking a new job, networking can help make the process easier.