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In a recent blog posting, a respected recruiter stated the hidden job market is a myth—it only exists for a few thousand jobs out of 20 million, mostly for very senior executives. With all due respect, we disagree. Since this issue has important implications for your job search, let’s discuss it.

What is the “Hidden Job Market?”
First, what is the “hidden job market?” It refers to jobs that are not advertised, and sometimes, are created specifically because the right person shows up.

Do Companies Really Hide Jobs?
Why would companies “hide” jobs? Usually they don’t. But things happen. An analyst goes on permanent maternity leave, the new secretary’s angry outburst gets her fired, and an unhappy case manager suddenly springs a resignation letter—effective today. Voila! There is a job.

The Job Incubator
Usually, however, these jobs don’t instantly appear as published “openings.” Often, there is an “incubation phase,” just as when an egg is hatching. The slow-moving wheels of bureaucracy is one factor. But often, it takes a while for the boss to come to the conclusion that she needs to hire—and to actually take action.

Some examples
For months, the boss has given the new manager umpteen chances to shape up, but is at the end of his rope. He knows he has to fire her, but first, he’s got to first develop a paper trail to justify the firing. Further, he needs to have someone lined up to pick up the slack when he lets her go.

Likewise, the superstar employee has become a problem over time. She’s too good for the job, and he dreads the thought of losing her to the competition.

The company just landed a big contract. The boss is thinking through how many and what kinds of people to hire.

Sometimes, the boss hasn’t even thought of hiring someone. A client recently was introduced to a senior level manager, and their conversation got him thinking of new possibilities. This client had zero competition for the job that was created.

Employers do hide openings
Sometimes, employers DO want to hide their openings. They ask employees to recommend people, since they don’t want to risk hiring an unknown.

Then, there are factors like discrimination to consider. In federal government hiring, veterans get a leg up in the hiring process. Consequently, some hiring decision makers had been badly burned. Either they were forced to hire veterans who were drug addicts or otherwise undesirable employees, or were sued for not hiring them. To avoid this situation, hiring decision makers developed a backdoor method. They hired their desired person on a temporary basis, without posting the job, thus allowing their person to get superior relevant experience to beat competition when the position was posted months later.

Lesson Learned
The lesson is this. The hidden job market is everywhere. Be alert to the needs of hiring decision makers. In good times and bad, bosses are often desperate for help. They may not always have the budget to hire, but the needs are there. Networking that raises your visibility and credibility positions you to hear about and be considered for jobs other job hunters never find out about—and created jobs are not nearly as unusual as this recruiter believes.

Steve Frederick
Frederick Career Services
847-673-0339
www.Fcscareerservices.com

Dan told us about a job posting for a position he really wanted. “It’s a perfect fit!” he exclaimed. We advised him not to send a resume, but to apply with a different tool.

The employer responded quickly and set up an interview. To Dan’s amazement, the boss said he didn’t need to see a resume at all. He already had all he needed.

Dan learned that, while the resume is certainly still an important weapon in the job-hunters arsenal, today’s savvy job hunters are finding other ways to impress the boss.

What did Dan send? It was a T-Letter. This is a great presentation tool, but it doesn’t work for everybody in every situation. It’s best used when going after a position for which your background fits like a hand in a glove—or nearly so. You have most everything they want. Possibly, you may lack one or two of the qualifications for the position, but it’s got to be a really strong fit, or the presentation loses its power.

What is a T-Letter?
The T-Letter gets its name from the shape. It begins with a regular paragraph, like any other letter. In this paragraph, you begin by expressing your excitement about the position, then state that the position looks like such a great fit that you have prepared a comparison of their requirements and your experience.

After that, the letter contains a two-column presentation in which you compare the employer’s requirements, with your experience. It is both a powerful presentation for the boss, and a strong and clear presentation to help you get through the initial screening in the Human Resources office.

The left column lists their requirements, while the right one lists your experience,. The key to making this work is not to simply to parrot back their language, but rather to show that you are not only experienced, but also accomplished.

WRONG WAY
(NOTE: The formatting isn’t preserved in the blog, so the left column appears above the right column below).

Your Requirements
Three or more years experience in conducting educational training or teaching and/or making sales presentations on educational products.

My Experience
I have five years of conducting educational training and make sales presentations on educational products and two years teaching.

RIGHT WAY

Your Requirements
Five or more years experience in conducting educational training or teaching and/or making sales presentations on educational products.

My Experience
Four years experience selling and training on educational products, including standardized tests and the Blue Horizons product. Chosen to travel to Europe to present to faculty at American schools overseas. Three years experience teaching 5th grade students; received peer recognition as Outstanding Teacher in my third year.

Picture an entry-level Human Resources employee going through a big stack of resumes, with a list of qualifications at his side, trying to separate the wheat from the chaff. This presentation knocks him over the head and proclaims, “I’ve got everything you’re looking for! No guess work. It’s right here in black-and-white. You don’t even have to think about it!”

Oftentimes, the job description will specifically state what the employer is looking for, but other times you may have to read between the lines if the job description isn’t specific. If there is no written job description, you to surmise as best you can what they really want, and focus the letter on those things.

Then, conclude the letter with an action statement, saying that you will follow up (assuming this is possible and the employer has not instructed applicants to not call). The T-Letter powerfully conveys that you are a fit and a contributor.

“I just hate reaching out to people, begging for a job.”

Sound familiar? Have you said that yourself a few times? Well, you absolutely should hate begging for a job. Begging is degrading. So, let’s try something else.

Think about the hiring decision makers out there. What’s going on in their worlds? They’re often worried, overworked, and stressed out. They are frantically trying to keep the ship afloat. They need help.

Their jobs and careers depend on finding good people—like you. Of course, many of them don’t have the resources to hire you. Even so, they have their feelers out looking for talent. Granted, their time is limited. Many of them have the gatekeepers working overtime to keep the unemployed masses away from them. Still, some will want to have a conversation with you—even if they don’t have a job for you right now.

How can you get the boss (or anyone else) to want to talk to you?

Think of yourself as a contributor
First, change your mindset. You are a contributor who can make a real difference for a stressed-out boss and his organization.

Have a polished presentation in plain English
Be able to clearly articulate what you want, what you do well, and the contributions you make. Don’t use worn-out job hunting jargon like, “I’m a results-oriented, team playing, self starter who makes a big impact on the bottom line.” Without this presentation, most people won’t want to talk to you. Remember, we all are tuned into WIFM (what’s in it for me?) Be able to tell the boss why it’s in his best interest to talk to you.

Approach people intelligently
Send a professional letter and/or email, then follow up with a phone call requesting a brief meeting. Come prepared with intelligent questions.

Remember ways you can benefit others:
a) You can make them feel important.
Who doesn’t like to be sought out and asked for advice? It inflates our egos. Plus, deep down, most of us really enjoy helping others. If you helped someone get a great job, wouldn’t you feel great?

b) You can help them to be more important.
Watch “The Godfather” movie, and notice how much time he spends doing favors for others. Sure, the favors are often violent, illegal, and reprehensible. Still, he knows that his power derives from his ability to be of service to others. Helping others builds stature and inspires loyalty.

c) You can help people to advance their careers and make more money.
For months, the company has been trying to find someone for that key position, but has only found incompetence. If you (the boss) find the right person, you look good—and this can help you get a promotion and better pay. If you’re not the boss, and you help the boss find the right person, you also look good.

d) What goes around comes around.
These days, few of us feel really secure in our positions. If someone helps you today, you might be able to help them tomorrow.

Sear it into your mind that you are a valuable contributor and people will benefit from speaking to you. It will make a big difference.

If you’re still employed
Don’t wait until you’re out of work to build your network. Take action now. People skilled in networking know there’s more to it than passing around resumes. It is building relationships over time. Start building them now.

In tough times, the bonus or the raise you got last year–and were hoping to get this year–may not show up. Is all lost? Nope.

1. Don’t Take it Personally

Here’s what to do. First, don’t take it personally. Maybe it sounds silly in the era of Trillion Dollar Meltdown that some people would think this is directed at them. But we’re not always rational when it comes to money, and some people grumble, “How could they do this to me – after all my hard work?!”

2. Make Your Employer’s Wish Come True

It may seem counter intuitive, but in the era when there are 100 job hunters for every 5 jobs, your employer wants to keep you. If you’re good at your work and deserving of a bonus, the boss doesn’t care how many other qualified people there are. S/he doesn’t want to lose you. Second, know that s/he wishes s/he could give you a bonus — it’s up to you to take his/her wish and make it real.

3. Ask – but not Right Away

Third: ask. How? Don’t ask right away. As long as people are still griping or telling company broke jokes at the water cooler, it’s too soon. Parity in the case of corporate-wide bonuses is sacrosanct. They can’t give you a bonus and deny it to your buddy in the next cubicle. So you want some distance from the bad news that came with the company’s “There’ll be no bonus” e-mail.

Wait for Things to Cool Off – Then Think Contribution

Things cooled off? Then, now’s the time. Think carefully about your contribution last year. Set an appointment with your boss. Explain LOYALTY first. “Boss, I’ve really been working hard, and I understand that the bonus (Or company-profitability portion of the bonus) is gone this year. I have an alternate idea I hope you’ll entertain.”

Share the Accomplishment and be Specific

Then share the accomplishment list (above) and monetize it as well as possible. [i.e. don't just say, "worked hard at keeping customers"; instead, say, "Kept three big accounts who were thinking of switching to our competitor -- which adds up to saving about $135,000 in annual sales."]

4. Think Non-cash Bonus

Fourth: wrap up with, “So, since there isn’t cash for a general bonus, I wonder if given my individual performance, there might be a non-cash bonus.”

Non cash? Yes. Leaving Fridays at noon? More vacation? Health club membership? Early bonus in 2010 for some specified level of performance? An assistant (so you can cut down your overtime)? etc. Be creative.

Think Win-Win
When two people are motivated towards the same goal: compensation that will keep you happy [enough to stay], that goal is likely to be achieved.

A lot of job candidates complain about phone interviews, but they’re not much better from the boss’s perspective. I’m sure many hiring decision makers feel the same intense frustration of the boss quoted below after he had conducted a number of phone interviews for a key position on his staff. Every single candidate failed miserably. The boss’s comments are in italics below.

The basics: be prepared
Boss: One candidate was driving when I called for our scheduled appointment. Three times he interrupted me, saying he would have to call me back. “What is he doing?” I wondered, and cut the interview short.

Don’t let this happen to you! Be ready for your appointment. Make sure you are in a quiet interruption-free room. Use a quality phone so you don’t annoy the employer with a phone that’s hard to hear or keeps cutting out.

Have ready access to your resume, important points of your company research, talking points, and questions you want to ask. Take advantage of the positive side of phone interviews-they can’t see you. If possible, log onto the internet so you can quickly Google information.

More basics: Be knowledgeable
Boss: Most of the candidates I interviewed had no idea of what our company does. I can’t even tell you how off-putting that was.

Make sure you know about the company, its products and services, and how you could help them (Note: in an upcoming newsletter, we’ll discuss how to research a company).

Talk the boss’s language
Boss: Every candidate spoke in very vague terms about their experience. No one said anything interesting. I remember venting to another manager, “I wish somebody would tell me something—anything—that would make me think they could do this job.”

The boss cares about results. Have a repertoire of stories prepared so that you can quickly convey to the boss how good you are. The stories should be carefully crafted to be concise and to powerfully convey the impact you have. Aim for one minute stories.

Convey enthusiasm
Boss: One candidate sounded so flat on the phone, I thought he was going to go to sleep while we were talking.

In person, you communicate with the way you’re dressed, your handshake, smile, gestures, and other body language. Over the phone, all you’ve got is your voice. Make sure you sound upbeat. Practice interviewing over the phone with a friend or spouse or a tape recorders to get comfortable with it.

Keep Your Answers Short–and probe
Boss: Another candidate, obviously nervous, droned on and on and on. I cut that interview short too.

If you’re prone to talking too much, pay special attention to the adage, “You’ve got two ears and only one mouth for a reason.” Keep your answers crisp and concise. Answer the question, then probe with questions of your own. Find out what the boss wants, why he/she is hiring and what problems the boss hopes you’ll be able to solve.

Smile and relax
Take a tip from successful telemarketers who put a mirror in front of them to remind themselves to smile. Although they can’t see you, the smile is conveyed in your voice. Take deep breaths and speak distinctly.

Find out follow up procedures
Find out how to follow up with the interviewers, what the next step in the process will be, and ask if they would like you to provide any additional information.

Keep track of what you have discussed
Go into the interview with an agenda: these are the points I want to convey during the interview. As you make each point, cross it off so that you won’t repeat it, and you can see clearly what else is on your list.

Postpone if they catch you off guard
If the employer calls you for an unscheduled interview and catches you when you’re clutching a towel around your dripping-wet body, just say, “I’m so glad you called, but it’s not a good time to talk. How about in half an hour (or this afternoon)?”

Be prepared to fend off premature salary discussions
Don’t let yourself be eliminated by probes about past salary or salary expectations. This is a topic we’ve discussed in past newsletters. If you missed it, we can send you a copy–send an email to Careersinc@aol.com with the words “Salary article” in the subject line.

Send a thank you
Boss: When interviewing for another position, I was impressed with one woman, but was disappointed that she didn’t have the courtesy to send a thank you note. She didn’t get the job.
Promptly send a thank you letter to all the interviewers. This often-overlooked courtesy can make a big difference.

As with any interview, preparation and follow through are the key to success.