According to a great article by Info World’s Robert Strohmeyer, enterprise technology is getting more social, more business-focused, and more obsessed with the cloud. What does that mean to you? At Phoenix Partners, we know just how fast paced the IT world is — as Strohmeyer points out, no fewer than 10,000 jobs were added to payrolls in May alone, and more than 65% of managers polled expected to add more IT staff in the latter half of 2011 than the entire first half of the year. We also know that our most talented candidates keep their skills sharp. So we were highly interested in this innovative list of emerging roles in IT. Never before has the world of IT been so fully integrated into every aspect of an enterprise. Strohmeyer’s “Six Hottest Jobs in IT” reflect that full integration with core business functions. Here’s his short list, but please follow the link to read the full article and the compelling detail he offers for his assessments.

• Business Architect — integrating IT with business, creating roles such as a fashioning high-level company strategy with technology in mind
• Data Scientist — analysing and leveraging data about customer behavior, security risks, potential system failures, and more
• Social Media Architect — specialized knowledge to build secure communities within a business network and between businesses and customers
• Mobile Technology Expert — evaluate mobile platforms for enterprise use, research and draft device specifications, and support users and developers within the enterprise
• Enterprise Mobile Developer — Building mobile apps, architecting mobile strategies, and securing those devices
• Cloud Architect – establishing and managing a private cloud infrastructure

Read the full story HERE.

Assuming you’re qualified for the job, the outcome of your employment interview will be dependent on your ability to discover needs and empathize with the interviewer. You can do this by asking questions that verify your understanding of what the interviewer has just said, without editorializing or expressing an opinion. By establishing empathy in this manner, you’ll be in a better position to freely exchange ideas, and demonstrate your suitability for the job.

In addition to empathy, there are four other intangible fundamentals to a successful interview. These intangibles will influence the way your personality is perceived, and will affect the degree of rapport, or personal chemistry you’ll share with the employer. Read the rest of this entry »

Experienced job seekers know there are four basic types of interview questions-and they prepare accordingly. First, there are the resume questions. These relate to your past experience, skills, job responsibilities, education, upbringing, personal interests, and so forth.

Resume questions require accurate, objective answers, since your resume consists of facts which tend to be quantifiable (and verifiable). Try to avoid answers which exaggerate your achievements, or appear to be opinionated, vague, or egocentric.

Second, interviewers will usually want you to comment on your abilities, or assess your past performance. They’ll ask self-appraisal questions like, “What do you think is your greatest asset?” or, “Can you tell me something you’ve done that was very creative?”

Third, interviewers like to know how you respond to different stimuli. Situation questions ask you to explain certain actions you took in the past, or require that you explore hypothetical scenarios that may occur in the future. “How would you stay profitable during a recession?” or, “How would you go about laying off 1300 employees?” or, “How would you handle customer complaints if the company drastically raised its prices?” are typical situation questions. Read the rest of this entry »

To help you construct a better, more powerful resume, here are ten overall considerations in regard to your resume’s content and presentation: Read the rest of this entry »

Reality Check: Given the choice of two candidates of equal ability, hiring managers will always prefer to interview the one with the most artfully constructed and attractive resume. For that reason, candidates with superb qualifications are often overlooked. And companies end up hiring from a more shallow pool of talent; a pool made up of those candidates whose experience is represented by powerfully written, visually appealing resumes. Read the rest of this entry »

Your resume can be arranged in one of two basic formats: summary or chronological. Read the rest of this entry »

To get the most mileage out of your resume, you’ll want to emphasize certain aspects of your background. By doing so, you’ll present your qualifications in the most favorable light, and help give the employer a better understanding of your potential value to his or her organization. To build a stronger case for your candidacy, try highlighting the following areas of interest: Read the rest of this entry »

Nearly everything written about resume design concentrates on what you should put in. But let’s look at what should be left out, or at least minimized. Read the rest of this entry »