Why aren't they hiring (or rejecting) you yet?

So you've crafted your cover letter, tweaked your resume, aced the interviews, sent great follow-up letters. Weeks have passed. Not a word.

As frustrating as the wait is, don't give up on those long forgotten interviews and applications. As an example, today I received an email regarding a job I applied to in mid-November 2016! I read that I've been in the running for the position for the last 4 and a half months. I didn't get the job, but my application has been moving around in the system.

Just because time has lapsed, don't think you are out of the race. Remember that it's not uncommon for companies to have a process where applications get backed up for weeks before the hiring manager gets a list of candidates, and there's another delay after the interviews

If you must send a second follow-up letter, don't make it about you, be topical and mentioned something you've read in the news about the company's latest movements or success story. Most of all, hang in there.

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Online Applications and the Required Salary Field

Don't sell yourself short, but don't price yourself out of a great job either.  Have you heard you are "over qualified" for jobs? This is a euphemism for they can't afford the salary requirements entered on your application.

More and more, software screening tools are kicking out applications before it reaches a human being. Between computerized resume scanners and online applications requiring a valid salary to be processed, many qualified applicants never stand a chance.  The salary field is a tough one, we can't leave it blank and it must be numeric. Putting $1 in the field puts your application at risk of being filtered before a human even sees it.

Career coaches suggest to do a bit of research and use the average salary for the position in the geographic area you are searching. This won't trigger any flags by the screening software. If you get the interview, mention the number and you are seeking a competitive salary and it is negotiable with company perks and great benefits.

You can find salary information on glassdoor.com/Salaries

Steve is a Digital Product Manager based in New York City. Most recently implementing Content Management Systems with customized features for entertainment publishing. He known for solving problems, optimizing product features and creating happy users. Steve is actively interviewing and would like to join an Agile team as a Business Analyst / Product Manager. You can learn more about Steve's skill set and background at http://linkedin.com/in/steveapple​

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Yoga and the brain #BrainAwarenessWeek

It is Brain Awareness Week and I'm posting about the brain-yoga connection related to neurological disorders.  And I'm sharing info on a yoga group a friend is starting up just for people with movement disorders. Please check out Nimbah Yoga's Facebook page for the details.

Movement disorders can be defined as neurologic syndromes in which either an excess of movement or a paucity of voluntary and automatic movements, unrelated to weakness or spasticity. The term movement disorders is used synonymously with basal ganglia or extrapyramidal diseases.

Yoga is a favorite non-medical therapy of many people living with a movement disorder for its functional and psychosocial benefits. Studies suggest modest benefits from yoga for:
Mobility. Yoga can improve functional mobility and how a person with walks.
Balance. Research shows yoga-related improvements in balance (tandem, one-leg) and an associated reduction in fear of falling.
Strength. Gains in lower-body strength occur following yoga practice and are associated with improved postural stability.
Flexibility. Improvements in flexibility and range of motion (ROM) are important since rigidity is a common clinical manifestation. Research shows improvements in flexibility/ROM of the shoulder, hip and spine.
Mood & Sleep. The calming effect of yoga (by enhancing parasympathetic output) may lessen perceived stress, enhance relaxation, and benefit sleep.

Read more:

• This Is Your Brain and Body on Yoga and Meditation: 4 Powerful Scientific Findings
• Sergey Brin’s Search for a Parkinson’s Cure
• Your Brain on Yoga (Harvard Medical School Guides)
• Exercise, nutrition, sleep aid brain

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Facebook Like Overload

I just noticed a jobs section on Facebook. Not sure how long it's been there but it seems to be something new. I'm not too excited about the thought of a social media site where the norm is rant, whine, repost silly photos and say happy birthday to strangers suddenly being mashed up with career data. Just as I say not to turn LinkedIn into Facebook, on the flip-side don't turn Facebook into LinkedIn.  I'm not sure my future employer is interested in what I ate for dinner last night or that I took a walk in Central Park on Saturday.

How effective would a job posting be on Facebook? The site has been saturated with quizzes, politics, photos and chain letter type postings asking for 'likes' and 'shares'.  Due to the magnitude of trivial content being shared, I usually ignore whatever is in my newsfeed which would include missing out on job potential.

That brings me over to LinkedIn where I tend to scroll through what my business associates are reading.  I reliably find great industry articles this way.

So a few weeks back, just as a social experiment, I posted on LinkedIn that my new blog is up.  Well I've posted, shared and liked on social media outlets over the years but have never experienced a response like I have received on LinkedIn.

On Facebook, with their very active membership, the window of opportunity for interaction is so narrow that friends don't get notified. I'm happy if anyone likes or shares my Facebook content.

I was surprised that the article I posted on LinkedIn had immediate response and by the end of the day over 100 views, and people are still reading it weeks later. And recruiters are contacting me about job opportunities.

It's great that a social media site is mastering their niche instead of trying to be all things to all people.

I just hope the content on LinkedIn continues to be about careers and industry news and everyone saves their silly surveys, food  and cute pet photos for Facebook.

Post an article about your industry, a career tip or job opening on LinkedIn because there are business associates ready to view your story.

Steve is a Digital Product Manager based in New York City. Most recently implementing Content Management Systems with customized features for entertainment publishing. He known for solving problems, optimizing product features and creating happy users. Steve is actively interviewing and would like to join an Agile team as a Business Analyst / Product Manager. You can learn more about Steve's skill set and background at http://linkedin.com/in/steveapple​

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Product Management headlines blog

You may have heard me talk about the group of professionals I meet with once or twice a month to discuss business opportunity and strategy. We exchange trending industry ideas from start-ups to corporate moves, how to improve web presence and resume tips. Our diverse group of leadership spans industries from media, design, marketing, human resources and tech. With this cross-section of corporate America we come up with some good ideas

A recent conversation was about "online presence" and how an individual can get more visibility. One suggestion was to write a blog. I've started blogs about various topics before but then I get swamped with a work project and the blog goes stale. So I did a variation on the idea of writing fresh content and created this new blog with aggregated 'product' related articles from around the web. My goal was to have one place for me to scan the latest headlines and provide a resource that others would return to for updates. I've also included product links and product manager job listings. Oh, yes there's a link to my professional bio on LinkedIn. Who knows, the right people may see my bio and want to talk about a great job opportunity.

Take a look at a-product-manager.blogspot.com Remember it's a new blog and will probably need some tweaks in the upcoming weeks.

Send feedback! If there is something product related you feel would fit well on the page, let me know. I'm open to your ideas. Mostly I want this new blog to be product focused and self maintaining. Consider it a convenient place to check out product headlines without a lot of clicking to find product news.

Steve is a Digital Product Manager based in New York City. Most recently implementing Content Management Systems with customized features for entertainment publishing. He known for solving problems, optimizing product features and creating happy users. Steve is actively interviewing and would like to join an Agile team as a Business Analyst / Product Manager. You can learn more about Steve's skill set and background at http://linkedin.com/in/steveapple​

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