Author: Portfolio Creative

Recently Chris Kavinsky at White Boxer Design asked a great series of questions, and posted the answers on his blog. His questions were insightful and timely, and are even more so today.

One question was “…what are you seeing at the hot skills or jobs companies are looking for…”

Interactive, interactive, interactive. I can’t say it enough. We certainly have requests for a variety of types of design and creative functions (and you can see the full answer on Chris’ blog), there are a lot of opportunities out there that are not interactive. But if you are at all interested and involved in web, interactive and multimedia creative work–please keep pursuing it.

When Roger Black, with a reputation built on decades of traditional magazine design, shows his latest work designing websites and interactive magazines…people, there’s no turning back. The web is here and it needs you. It needs good designers with a strong sense of color, typography, branding and page layout. Developers who can make magic happen online. Writers who can say what needs said clearly and with a strong voice. Project managers who can help bring it all together.

With that said, we’re always looking for good web people for our clients too.

If ever you have looked for a house, you’ve heard the terms “buyers” and “sellers market.” Basically this just indicates who has the upper hand overall in the deal. The same could be applied to the job market. With so many people looking for jobs, currently it’s an employers market and employers are looking for the ideal person. The question is, will it be you?

You read the job posting, you have all the skills and the job is everything you are looking for. But are you what the company is looking for? Your resume can open the door to the opportunity but somehow you will need to close the sale by convincing the employer you are perfect for the position. I understand that you aren’t a salesperson, however, I’m going to assume that since you are here on Portfolio‘s site, you are in the marketing industry. You know all about how a product should look, how to describe it, studying your audience’s needs and wants, and creating the whole package. Good products have flopped because of bad marketing and vice versa. Equally true, millions have been made from good marketing of good products. When you are looking for a job, you are trying to sell you and the 4 p’s of marketing can easily apply.

• Your appearance, experience, abilities, attitude, and aptitude all make up your “product”. To improve the quality of your product, make a small investment in some classes, books, clothes, and a haircut. Learning to smile and good eye contact are free.

• The companies where you submit your resume would be your “place”. Don’t forget that friends, family, and associations are also great distributors of your information as well.

• The ways you “promote” yourself would your resume, cover letter, any other written correspondence, as well as the interview and any phone conversations. Be clear and concise in all communications.

• Your “price” is your salary, compensation, benefits, and bonuses. Set this amount too low and you may appear incapable of doing a very important job or not as good as your resume appears. Set it too high and you may not even get an interview because the employer can’t afford you.

Remember, not everyone will buy your product so feedback is very valuable. Use the feedback to make changes to your mix. Once you land that perfect job, you will need to continue to market yourself to reassure the employer they made the right decision.

Kristen Harris, co-owner of Portfolio Creative Staffing, was recently awarded Forty Under 40 by Columbus Business First. The Forty Under 40 award is presented to up-and-coming contributors to the community who are selected not only for their professional achievements, but for their dedication to Central Ohio and its residents. Congratulations Kristen!

Roger Black spoke at the CSCA meeting October 16th, and he blew my mind with some of the things he’s working on! If you’re interested in creative, are in Central Ohio, and are not attending CSCA meetings please remedy that right away. The quality of speakers they bring in is incredible, and the event fees are very reasonable. Next month is their Creative Best annual awards event (definitely worth attending), and there are monthly meetings throughout the year.

Okay, so it’s not a great time to be looking for a job. But is there ever really a great time? For most people job hunting is one of the most stressful processes they go through no matter what the economic situation. Layer in all of the recent financial craziness, and you might just want to close your eyes and hope it’s all just a dream, or nightmare. Open your eyes! That’s not going to help, in fact in a down market you need to be doing more not less.

When companies are hiring less and more people are looking, then it is even more critical that you stand out as the best candidate in every way. You need a resume that highlights your experience in the best possible light, a top-notch portfolio, a great positive attitude, interviewing skills that help you show how great you are, and as many connections as you can get. You have to be twice as good as everyone else, and that takes work. Take advantage of every resource you can find, even the ones you don’t think you need. Think you have a great resume? Have someone review it anyway. Believe you’re a fantastic interviewer? Have a professional work with you and give you feedback. Current on all your software? Learn something new. No matter how good you are, there’s always room for improvement.

And whatever you do, don’t do this. Poor guy, what was he thinking?!

I was reading Get A Raise in Three Months by Jason Ferreira and had a few comments…

Jason first recommends arriving early and staying late and not just 5 minutes, but instead, 30 minutes You should also email your supervisor about something so they know what time you were there. I disagree with this statement for the following reasons:

• Most supervisors know this trick of emailing to show your “commitment”.
• If you are hourly, a company must pay you for all time that benefits them, including time worked without their permission. Add one hour a day for the year, and you’ve got 260 hours. Right now when budgets are tight, it will definitely get noticed but perhaps not in a good way.
• If you are on a salary and increasing your take home pay isn’t the motivation, doing this on a daily basis could appear that you aren’t efficient with your time during the day.

The more important rule of thumb should be, be ready to start work at your scheduled time and stay as long as you’re needed to get the job done. Most days that will be at your end time, however, be available to stay late to meet a deadline. Your boss will notice that more.

Secondly, Jason states you must prove your worth. I totally agree. Some people work harder to get the job than they do working in the job. Again with tight budgets and a poor economy, many companies are looking for a ways to reduce costs. With the rule of thumb that 20% of the people do 80% of the work, if you are an 80%-er doing 20% of the work then your job could be one on the chopping block. Also many supervisors tend to base reviews on things that have recently happened so reminding them of some of the good things done in the past will certainly increase the chances of a better review.

Next, Jason recommends volunteering. I’d rather seeing someone do this than put in an hour a day arriving early and staying late unasked. Have you ever been in a meeting and someone said, “so who would like to…”, where everyone looks at each other thinking “not me?” Being the first to say “I will” will make you look like a life saver. Now, if you do something valuable without being asked, you’ll probably make your boss even happier.

Lastly, Jason says to ask for the raise. Agreed, but not after three months. When you were hired, your salary was determined based on the job responsibilities. If you are going above and beyond those responsibilities or they have changed from when you were first hired, then I believe you should ask for a raise. However, if you are doing your job as expected, your salary was based on those expectations. Remember not to talk about your salary and any raise discussions with your co-workers. Employers consider this to be confidential information, and know when someone has been talking because others start asking for raises as well.

Many companies have moved from time-oriented raises to merit based. That is why is so important to prove your worth, be willing to stay late when necessary, and volunteer. You will be considered valuable to the company because, odds are, you’ll be a 20%-er doing 80% of the work.

Portfolio Creative Staffing was recently named, by Business First, as one of the 50 fastest-growing emerging companies in Central Ohio. To be eligible, nominees must be located in Central Ohio, be privately held and have at least $1 million in revenue per year with a three-year operating history. Out of the 50 winners, Portfolio was listed as the 5th fastest growing company!

Roger Black is speaking at CSCA this Thursday, October 16th. He’ll say he’s designed more magazines than you’ve read, and it’s probably true. From developing the look of Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, Newsweek, Fast Company, and more, to his current work in website design, don’t miss this major influence on the way we absorb and design information.

Portfolio Creative Staffing has been voted the best Temporary Employment Agency for 2008, as published in Columbus CEO Magazine. With twice the votes of the runner up, we sincerely thank you for all the votes of support!

Portfolio is proud to be sponsor of this fantastic creative event! Held at Junctionview Studios on Grandview, Agora is an event that brings artists and art patrons together to celebrate Central Ohio’s diverse and talented creative community. Agora guests have the opportunity to view and purchase hundreds of works of art, wander through fifty working artists’ studios, and watch performances by dancers, musicians, and theatre groups. Attend the preview night Friday, October 17th or the main event on Saturday night.