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Friday, May 29, 2009

Point Park University Presents Free Series for Unemployed Adults In June

Here is a press release we received from Point Park College on a free series of workshops to help recently unemployed workers put their job search on track:

Point Park University Presents Free Series for Unemployed Adults
“Bridging the Career Gap – from Panic to Planning”

Workshops Offered Five Evenings in June

Pittsburgh - A job loss can feel overwhelming. How do you market yourself in the digital age? What is the most effective way to uncover job prospects in today’s market? How do you handle finances? Should you consider switching careers?
Point Park University is offering a free program for recently unemployed adults to help answer these questions and create a strategy to bridge the career gap.

“Whether a job loss is expected or not, people need a plan to move successfully through the change,” says
Mary Smith Peters, associate dean of students, business school adjunct faculty member and instructor for the series. “As part of its service to the community, Point Park is offering this series free to residents who now find themselves unemployed. Even those who have been without a job will find tools to help them move to the next step in employment.”

“Bridging the Career Gap – from Panic to Planning” will be held Tuesday evenings in June, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Point Park University’s Academic Hall, Room 309. Smith Peters suggests that participants plan to attend all sessions for maximum benefit. Registration is required.
Register online or by e-mail dbateman@pointpark.edu or by calling 412-392-3433.

June 2 “Where You Fit in Today’s Job Market”
6-8 p.m. Learn what job types are prevalent now in this region, what the market will be for the future, and how your skills can be applied.

June 9 “Managing Debt and Finances Without a Paycheck”
6-8 p.m. Hear from a panel of experts about available resources and effective ways to manage finances and debt.

June 16 “Is it Time for a New Career Path?”
6-8 p.m. Find out if the best next step is changing your career.

June 23 “Updating Your Self-Marketing for the New Economy”
6-8 p.m. Facebook? Twitter? Create a “digital age” resume that will work for you.

June 30 “Your Custom Career Plan”
6-8 p.m. Build a winning strategy tailored just for you.

“The last class will help individuals with their personalized plans,” says Mary Smith Peters. She will be joined in the final session by Debbie Bateman, director of transfer and articulation and enrollment management, and Sandy Cronin, Point Park University’s director of financial aid, both of whom will also answer questions about University programs for participants who want to pursue further education opportunities.

Smith Peters teaches career planning and decision making courses in the School of Business. In her role as associate dean of students, she also works to ensure an intellectually stimulating and supportive learning environment for non-traditional students.

Point Park University, founded in 1960, is an independent, four-year coeducational institution located in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh. Point Park enrolls approximately 3,800 full- and part-time students in 67 undergraduate programs and eight graduate programs offered through its School of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Communication and Conservatory of Performing Arts.
The University is transforming its campus and Downtown Pittsburgh with the
Academic Village at Point Park University, a $244 million campus and public enhancement space plan. For more information about Point Park, visit www.pointpark.edu.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Manpower's Annual 10 Hardest Jobs To Fill Survey Finds Four Years of Similar Data Points to Gaps in the U.S. Workforce

Even in the midst of the biggest "buyer's market" in decades, these are the posiitons found to be most difficult to fill nationwide, according to Manpower:

MILWAUKEE, May 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Engineers, Nurses and Skilled/Manual Trades are among the nation's most challenging positions to fill, according to survey findings released today by Manpower Inc.
"In the four years we have performed this research, the same positions appear on the list again and again," said Jonas Prising, President of the Americas. "Despite the current economic instability and high unemployment, there are still skills that the U.S. workforce seems to lack."

The 10 Hardest Jobs to Fill, as reported by U.S. employers for 2009, are:

Engineers
Nurses
Skilled/Manual Trades
Teachers
Sales Representatives
Technicians
Drivers
IT Staff
Laborers
Machinist/Machine Operators

Each of the 10 job categories on the 2009 list has appeared on the Hardest Jobs to Fill list in the past. Technicians, Machinist/Machine Operators and Sales Representatives have been present all four years. Engineers, Drivers and Laborers have appeared three out of four years; and Nurses, Teachers, Skilled/Manual Trades and IT Staff have been present in two of the four years Manpower has performed the survey.

Even with unemployment at or near record levels in many communities, Manpower's research highlights the problem many employers are having finding individuals with the right combination of job-specific skills, experience, training and soft skills.

"While talk has slowed in the U.S. about the pending talent shortage, it is becoming more clear that there is a talent disconnect," said Melanie Holmes, vice president, world of work solutions for Manpower North America. "Our workforce needs to be more open to retraining and upskilling for jobs that are in demand. And, our government, business leaders and educational facilities need to take action together to ensure students are being enticed to enter these fields."

The U.S. findings are part of a Manpower global study that surveyed more than 39,000 employers across 33 countries and territories in January 2009. Positions in the skilled trades, sales, technical work and engineering remain the most difficult for employers to fill globally. Manpower surveyed more than 2,000 U.S. employers in the fourth annual survey to determine which positions employers are having difficulty filling this year.

Duquesne University Student Featured in CBS News Story on Job Hunting for College Grads

We found an interesting blog post on Katey Couric's blog "Couric & Co." on the CBS News website. A local Duquesne University graduate is featured as well as other interesting aspects of the most difficult job market for graduates in 30 years. Follow the link here: http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/05/27/couricandco/entry5044062.shtml

Friday, May 22, 2009

Tourism Rally Announced For June 10th in Harrisburg

We just recieved this by email from the Pennsylvania Tourism and Lodging Association. The main intent of this rally is to protect JOBS right here in Pennsylvania. Use this link to go to their website:



Click on the picture to enlarge

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Have Pittsburgh Job Seekers and Recruiters Jumped on the Social Media Band Wagon?

Facebook. Twitter. LinkedIn. These and literally hundreds of other networking sites on the Internet, with new ones popping up everyday, have seen dramatic increases this year in both traffic and news headlines. Pittsburgh area jobseekers and recruiters are just now realizing the advantage of using these newer tools in their recruitment and search mix (along with the rest of the country).

LinkedIn, considered to be populated by a more professional networking audience, allows users to build out an online resume showing career history, awards, group memberships and education background. Users can communicate both publically and in private. Due to the popularity of employment networking on LinkedIn the site has been actively pursuing this as a revenue stream.

Facebook is more family and friends oriented. Once you create a profile on Facebook the site helps you locate people you might know by looking for similar school histories, hometowns and more. You can allow the site access to your email contact list and it will tell you if any of those emails are registered with the site. The biggest advantage Facebook offers jobseekers and recruiters are “Groups” established on the site specifically set up to help them find one another. These are usually uncovered by doing searches on the site or from “Friends” passing along information (called viral).

Then there is
Twitter. Everyone it seems is still trying to figure out what to do with Twitter. How to use it and NOT use it has become the topic of hundreds of news articles, blog posts and even “Tweets” (postings on Twitter). Twitter is a “micro blogging” site that lets you tell, in 140 characters or less, what you are doing. Pick any topic, hobby, political view, or quest and you will find “Tweeps” (people who use twitter) that specialize in what you are looking for. This allows you to “Follow” any and all whom you find interesting and eventually build a list of hundreds or even thousands of “Tweeples” (also people who use Twitter). If you are so inclined, you also have the ability to build your own following depending on how public you wish to be. As a job seeker or recruiter this gives you the ability to find one another, or those with similar interests, and communicate on regular, even daily, bases.

How the social networking phenomena will change the recruitisphere is so far unknown. Some consider most of it a fad that will fade over time. Many believe it is only in its infancy and will eventually transform how jobs are filled even more than the advent of the big job board. If any of you who are reading this are not at least putting your toe in the water, you are missing out on a very important tool for your toolbox. Pittsburgh, it seems, is embracing this new way of communicating as well as most areas of the country. Local communities of people who otherwise have never met are forming bonds and taking advantage of this new ability to “get their story out”.

If you have read this with familiarity because you use these resources then you can feel good that you are ahead of the curve. If you have resisted taking the social networking plunge we ask “what are you waiting for”? Since it can take a few months to get up and running on these sites, and build a network that can be of value, starting now can mean the difference between a three month job search and a six month job search! But remember, these are additional tools in your toolbox. No successful carpenter uses only one tool!

Truly a 'Burgh Thing!

Truly a 'Burgh Thing!
by Randy Bish, Pittsburgh Tribune Review

Job News and Information for Job Seekers and Recruiters

Job News and Information for Job Seekers and Recruiters