How the CV Man Landed his Dream Job

How the CV Man Landed his Dream Job You may recognise  Alfred Ajani, AKA The CV Man, as the guy who landed himself his dream marketing job, by handing out his CV in Waterloo Station. After having a tough time finding a job after graduating last Summer, Alfred did not become disheartened by job rejections and rather took his job search into his own hands, knowing that he had to do something a little different to stand out in such a competitive job market. After being spotted in Waterloo Station holding a sign advertising his 2.1 in Marketing, he was offered a job at the Asoria Group and the rest is history.   A few months on, the tables  have turned and Alfred has been the one doing the hiring. Alfred shared his story with us and heres what he had to say: What pushed me to go to Waterloo station many asked. Many say I was desperate. I tell them I was ready to work and take my ideas to market. My main idea is self-promotion, what are you doing to stand out? With traditional methods of applying I would be waiting for a response for at least two weeks. I would sometimes have no response or an automated message stating unfortunately, I do not have enough experience. It is a problem with graduate jobs in general. After unsuccessfully applying for over 300 jobs I decided to take matters into my own hands and get myself the role I wanted, which is what The Asoria Group offered. Millions of graduates before me have been in my shoes and have received that email telling them they are too inexperienced for the role. The headaches and hair pulling starts, where are we supposed to get this experience from? There is the option of the gap year, but how many second year students are lucky enough to land one of those at a respected company? However my message when sharing my story is to join a start-up (like The Asoria Group). The things you can learn in such a short period of time such as organisation structure, how to run a business, how to grow a business, and the trial and error of new marketing campaigns are invaluable. Safe is risky and we are ready to try anything here. Millions of graduates after me will receive that email and be even more confused than me as to why they pay so much to study at university, to come out with even less job opportunities than their friends who didn’t go to university. It was a stressful period but as the saying goes, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, I reached mine and I like to think this was the role for me, I was meant to come here and do what I am doing. What am I doing? Now Marketing, PR and Project manager I still find time to make TV and radio appearances and the odd motivational speech to attract more graduates to join me at The Asoria Group. My main project at the moment ‘Women in Business’ I have been speaking with women across the sectors we operate in to gather their stories experiences and advice. I have been sharing their stories through video logs and blog posts, the popularity of this project is great and we have already seen an increase in the number of females applying for our roles both internally and externally. I’ve seen a few graduates pop up at stations all over the world now with placards advertising their skills. It’s great to be such an inspiration but this particular graduate caught my eye. And I hired him. I am proud to announce the hiring of The Asoria Group’s latest superstar recruiter, Nutty T. Squirrel. Nutty continues The Asoria Group’s diverse and out of the box hiring strategy. Nutty came to the attention of The Asoria Group, when he was spotted in Waterloo Station holding up a sign saying “2:1 in Acorn Management, Coventree University Graduate, Please ask for a CV.” Nutty comes on board with a wealth of experience in collecting and storing acorns for winter, scurrying around really quickly and climbing trees. He will be working alongside our internal recruitment team at various events across the country helping to recruit new graduates to sales roles in The Asoria Group. How could I not hire a squirrel that took a nut out of my tree? If you think you have what it takes to join The Asoria Group team, drop Nutty your CV and make sure you keep up with Nutty’s exploits on his Twitter @NuttyDaSquirrel. Author:  I am Alfred Ajani the Coventry University graduate from South London also known as ‘The CV Man’.  I am Marketing and PR Projects Manager at The Asoria Group, responsible for driving the Marketing and PR function of The Asoria Group. My role is to bring innovative solutions to traditional challenges within the recruitment industry.

Professional Resume Writing Services

Professional Resume Writing ServicesOne of the most popular types of resume is a professional resume. They are created for all types of companies from small businesses to large corporations. They are used to help employers weed through a list of resumes and select the best one based on certain criteria. That criteria include the applicant's education, skills, work experience, awards and career goals.What is good about resumes is that they provide employers with all the necessary information needed to determine whether or not the applicant has the educational background necessary to do the job. The key is to write the resume in a way that will showcase the applicant's strengths and skills and what employers want to see in an employee. In order to do this, they need a resume writing service.Professional resume writers have the skills needed to compile a resume that includes the applicant's academic credentials, certification, professional experience, and personal contact information as well. A resume needs to be professionally designed and the assistance of a resume writing service allows them to do just that. These professionals will keep a resume current and up to date to ensure employers find the most recent information possible.A resume writing service provides a professional resume that allows employers to quickly sift through the massive amount of resumes they receive every day. Since so many companies are trying to meet deadlines, it is often difficult to write a resume for each applicant. It is important that a professional resume writer can write a professional resume in a short period of time.Before they begin, they take into consideration what type of candidate they can write a resume for and how much time and effort it would take to write that candidate. This can make a huge difference on the quality of resume that is written. It also takes time to contact the company to come up with the right style and format of resume.Resumes are different depending on the company that requires them. Some of the types of resumes include technical resumes, general resumes, or career resumes. There are also a few specialized resumes such as medical, executive, and IT resumes.Resumes provide employers with the ability to quickly determine the skill level of an applicant. It is important that you have a professional writing resume because it is very easy to be confused when it comes to formatting a resume. If you hire a professional resume writing service, they can give you a professional resume that will impress the employer.Writing a resume is a complex process. That is why it is important to get the assistance of a professional writing service. You can be sure that your resume will be unique and will showcase your unique skills.

Social Media Advice From The President of a Social Media Company [Interview]

Social Media Advice From The President of a Social Media Company [Interview] Today in my networking challenge I am interviewing Ashley Ranger. Ashley is the President of Excelamktg. She was at the forefront of social media since the beginning and was the youngest person to lead the Social Media Division at Universal Music Group. Ashley, thank you so much for sharing your advice with us! In case you can’t watch the video, read all of the great social media advice below instead! 1) What is your best social media advice for young professionals who want to succeed in their professional lives? What is great about social media is that you have the ability to use it for personal use and learn the ins and outs of how the platforms work. This is going to put you at a really great advantage in the workplace. If you really know things like the Facebook algorithm, how to use hashtags, etc, you are going to know a lot more than the average person. I tell people to start building your own personal brand online in social media so you will learn some principles that you can apply towards business social media and also use it as a great networking tool when you establish yourself.   It will help you find jobs and help show that you an authority in the social media sphere. 2) How do you recommend learning about social media so that we can become experts? Books and literature are great.   Online surfing is also great like reading sites like Mashable. Also, set up profiles on different platforms like Pinterest.  Sign up and play around, add all your friends, start following businesses and see what they are doing there. Just get acclimated to how these platforms work and what they are used for which will be invaluable knowledge for you to use in the future. 3) You have worked for amazing like Universal Music Group, Globe Shoes and Lucky Strike Entertainment. How did you get these jobs? I knew from an early age that I wanted to work in marketing.   I started doing internships when I was 16 so I got a really early start in the career world.   I did 5 or 6 different internships because I really wanted to build a solid resume before I stepped into the next level. I wanted to get a better job than just an entry level job and it ended up working out very well. During my internships, I was actually able to get a lot of hands-on experience with some of the new social media tools that were coming up at that time. Myspace was getting bigger and bigger so I learned how to use Myspace.   When I went to Universal, I started off in a different kind of position.   I was helping them do production but they found out that I had the expertise to do their Myspace instead. They let me take that over because none of the Executives at Universal knew how to use it.   It was kind of through serendipity but also through a lot of hard work. 4) Did you do a lot of networking within the company once you got there? Networking is something that I didn’t really learn and appreciate until more recently especially in the last couple of years since owning my own business. When I was younger I was trying to find work-life balance that everyone tries to get. I wasn’t necessarily going out of my way after work to go to networking events since it wasn’t a huge priority for me even though I loved my career and I wanted to further myself. But, once I did figure out that it can be a huge element and can open up so many doors to you, I really liked networking. 5) How did you make the decision to start your own company? It was kind of my chance but I have had entrepreneurial spirits for a long time.   I have always wanted to have some kind of business of my own.   For awhile I thought I would actually have some kind of etsy store.   I use to do a lot of handmade items on the side just as my passion project. I always thought I would do something like that and just market myself. But, I met my business partner a couple of years ago and he owned Excelamktg which had a creative department and my experience was very synergetic with what they were doing â€" websites, branding and print materials and they were looking for someone who had marketing expertise. So it naturally evolved from there and we started working together. We started to see that the clients they had were really interested in what I had to offer. We started hiring some people to do in house social media and then split it off into its own company and the rest is history.  Now we have 30 employees so it has grown really fast and it has been really good. 6) What is your advice to a young professional who has an idea for a business but doesnt know where to start? There are so many tools out there for your disposal with the internet age that we are living in. It depends on what kind of business that you want to open. It’s always a really good idea to start small and make it manageable to begin with. If you have an idea, think about the most basic elements that you can start doing to get that idea to grow. Look at resources online like LegalZoom is a really good resource to just learn about certain legal aspects of actually having a business. If you have a product that you make and created, Etsy is a great resource to just put up a shop and start doing your own social networking and social media marketing to bring attention to that shop. Kickstarter is a great way for people to raise funds if you need capital for a project.   There are so many things out there that are built to help you be able to take your idea into reality. Do the research necessary to know what those tools are and take that step to get the ball in motion.   Actually move towards your goals rather than just having it be a dream. 7) What do you wish you would have known when you were a young professional woman just starting out in her career? Networking. I couldn’t be more of a proponent of networking now.   I have met so many amazing people over the last couple of years and even just out at a restaurant having dinner and randomly meeting someone at the table next to me has turned into a client that we work with in such a large capacity,   It just shows that being open all the time to learn what other people do and how it might interact with what you do and keeping those relationships up is vital. You want to build that support network around you for your customer base and to find quality employees to work for you.   All of that can be accomplished with networking. Just get out of your comfort zone and look into what networking events are around you and just dive in. Things will come out of it that are very beneficial. [Related Post:  3 Reasons Why IRL (In Real Life) Networking Still Kicks Butt] 8. What would you say to someone who is nervous or shy and scared to go to a networking event? This was something that I actually had to deal with. I wasn’t the kind of person that could easily walk up to someone and introduce myself and tell them about my business and what I had to offer. I kind of waited for people to come to me at first.   Really it is just making that first step and actually going and saying that this is something that I actually want to do even if I am nervous. You go the first time and maybe you are shaking and you are nervous and the second time you will be less nervous. It is really just talking to people so if you can talk to people you can network. It’s not a scary thing and another thing that I realized over the past couple of years now that I am a business owner is that there really is no difference between you and someone who owns a business.   They might have more experience than you but they don’t have any qualities that you don’t have. So look at people on an equal level and don’t be intimidated. Know that even if you are beginning your career that you will have a lot to offer someone. What social media advice from the interview are you going to implement?

Career Question Should I Take a Sales Job

Career Question Should I Take a Sales Job Dear Nicole, I graduated college about 6 months ago with a marketing degree and have had a really tough time finding a full-time job.   I was offered a sales job a few days ago but I am reluctant to take it.   My mentor always told me that once you get into sales, you are no longer seen as a marketing person but a sales person and that it can easily change your whole career path. I don’t want to be ungrateful or too picky, but ultimately my goal is to build my marketing skill set and add value to client projects (not to be a sales person).   What would you do? Thanks Kristina Hi Kristina, Thanks for your email!   I’m sure many people are in a similar situation and appreciate you asking this question.   In fact, I was in a similar situation about 6 years ago. I graduated with a Finance degree and was offered a job in sales during my senior year of college. I was so thrilled to get a job offer so early but was concerned with the exact same thing: would my professional skill set grow if I took a job in sales? Would I be in sales forever?   Am I cut out for a job in sales? Ultimately, I ended up taking the sales job and â€"believe it or not- having that sales job on my resume ended up helping me at interviews and in different work situations many times. Regardless of what you do, knowing how to sell, overcome objections, handle rejection and close deals is a crucial for almost any profession- even marketing.   I only stayed at my 1st job for about 7 months before I took an opportunity in Commercial Banking (a job that really did develop my finance skill set and where I stayed for almost 3 years). For me, sales was sort of like “business boot camp” for the real world: sales jobs teach you how to organize your time, set goals, figure out the “numbers game” of life, deal with the highs and lows of business, think like an entrepreneur and most importantly you learn how to get comfortable being uncomfortable.   Every cold call I made and every one-on-one client meeting I had was scary, but it got easier with time. As you move up the ranks in your career, you’ll need to manage client expectations, close deals, get more clients and handle many ups and downs. For me, a job in sales was a great way to prepare for all of this.   Today I’m self-employed as a marketing consultant who must sell work in order to make a living and I’m so grateful for the excellent sales training and experience I had almost 6 years ago. Ultimately this decision is up to you, but don’t discount the value of starting your career in sales.   If I were you, I’d take the job knowing that it won’t be perfect, and it may not be forever, but it will teach you something you needed to learn.   I’d also be sure to keep a blog or do some pro-bono marketing consulting on the side so you can keep your resume fresh in case you do decide to pursue other marketing opportunities. Good luck Kristina! Nicole What advice do YOU have for Kristina? How do you feel about starting a career in sales? Are you in sales? Have you ever worked in sales?   What advice would you give to someone starting out in sales?

Writing and Objective in a Resume

Writing and Objective in a ResumeWriting and objective in a resume is a traditional way to describe the purpose of an applicant. Using this format should be fine, but there are times when the need for a thorough objective does not seem to be there. Fortunately, there are ways to remove the need for this most important part of a resume.Employers look for applicants who will fill the position immediately and provide the type of productivity that is expected. But many of these applicants do not actually know what they are applying for or know what to expect. This makes the writing and objective in a resume an ineffective way to answer the question, 'why do you want this job?'The first step is to provide a full explanation of why you want this position. Do not simply say, 'I want this job because I love it.' Many applicants are aware of what they want to achieve and simply repeat the standard phrase to avoid answering the question directly. Instead, describe what you plan to do if hired. When you describe the kind of work you are looking for, be specific, get specific, and get more specific. For example, instead of saying, 'to write technical documentation,' tell them, 'I need a team of writers to produce a high-quality technical documentation of a given project. This documentation must be completely accurate, unambiguous, and must meet industry standards.' Provide them with the names of any books or journals that are required to complete the project.Specify the level of detail you need. In some cases, one paragraph will suffice and can make it very difficult to understand the other sentences. Rather than stating that you are looking for a managerial position or that you are only looking for a sales assistant, supply the specifics so that the employer can understand why you are actually looking for that position.When you provide the details for your writing and objective in a resume, be sure to add a sentence summarizing why this position is right for you. For examp le, instead of saying, 'I love writing technical documentation,' provide them with a statement. If you have already written the entire document, use it to summarize why you are interested in this position. Make sure you do not make it sound like you are announcing your candidacy. It is much better to simply state the reasons why you want the position and give them the specifics.Before you start filling out the sections, take the time to review the documents that you have filled out to see if there are sections that are duplicated or if there are new sections that you should include. Sometimes the information is already included in the documents, but sometimes the employer requests new sections. If they do, it is fine to include those sections, but you should go over them again and make sure that they match up to the other sections you have filled out.Writing and objective in a resume can be effective if used properly. Taking the time to review it and fill it out correctly will allow you to present yourself as a professional with a good understanding of the job you are seeking.

Truck Driving Can Be A Thrilling Adventure, But Is It The Career For You

Truck Driving Can Be A Thrilling Adventure, But Is It The Career For You If you’ve ever spent time wishing you had more freedom on the job, being able to travel about as you please, you might have considered driving a truck. After all, truck drivers get to cruise the open road, don’t have a boss breathing down their neck, and aren’t confined to a stuffy office.What’s more, the industry is growing, despite all the doom and gloom about its future and the threat of robots taking away jobs. In fact, there are more reasons than ever to become a truck driver. Take a look at these.1. Perfect for AdventurersevalPhoto Credit â€" Flickr.comSome truck driving jobs involve driving goods across cities and counties, but the vast majority of jobs are actually interstate. This means that most truckies spend a lot of time by themselves, in their cabins, out on the open road.evalFor people who crave the company of others, those hours can be long and tough to get through. But for those who love solace and that feeling of adventure, driving a truck can actually be a thrill.The majority of truck drivers don’t mind being away from their homes and families for days or weeks at a time. They see it as an opportunity to explore the open road and a chance to earn some good money.Truck drivers don’t have to plan their own routes most of the time. Usually, that’s done by the firm they work for or a contractor. However, more and more truck drivers are using GPS systems to plan their trips in real time while out on the road, making adjustments where necessary.2. Becoming A Truck Driver Is Relatively StraightforwardThe cool thing about becoming a truck driver is that it doesn’t require going to college, spending four years trying to get a degree, and winding up $100,000 in debt. All drivers need to do is get a Class A or Class B CDL at a fraction of the cost, and they’re ready for life on the road.It should be pointed out that truck driving isn’t just a career for men anymore. There are now plenty of placements and opportunities for women in th e industry too, a segment of the workforce that is growing fast.3. Career Options Are GoodPhoto Credit â€" Flickr.comBecause most people aren’t suited to the truck driving lifestyle, wages in the sector are high. Entry level salaries start at an impressive $40,000 per year if you find the right company. And as you get more experienced, you can increase your pay even more.Top truck drivers get paid on the order of $85,000 a year, or about as much as the average college grad. On top of the basic pay package, most big commercial haulers offer additional benefits to their drivers. These include life insurance, health insurance, medical and dental insurance, as well as a bunch of retirement perks.evalThe bottom line is that truck driving is not for the feint of heart and ideally suited to particular personality types. If you’re an adventurous type who doesn’t mind challenging road conditions, then truck driving is for you.

Laugh of the day - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Laugh of the day - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog Far be it from me to serve as a tool of some multinational corporations viral marketing campaign, but this little movie is extremely funny, and VERY well executed. Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

Hallie Recommends Georgia Coach Association February program - Hallie Crawford

Hallie Recommends Georgia Coach Association February program I am on the board of the Georgia Coach Association this year. We have some great programs lined up. If youre in or around Atlanta, I hope youll check this out… What’s Your Bigger Game for 2007? Come to our February Meeting and Find Out! In January, 230 members and guests were inspired by Rick Tamlyn’s ‘Bigger Game’ change and leadership model. Come to the February 17th meeting, and discover how to implement this Model in your life and business right now. After a quick, fast-track review of the Model itself (great for those who missed the January meeting), you’ll engage with top-notch table moderators so you can: Deepen your learning about how to use the Model in your life, and your work Discover ways to get yourself and your clients un-stuck Gain command of this innovative Coaching Tool Leave with Action Steps to move your Bigger Game forward. Details: Date and Time February 17, 2007 9:00 am â€" 12:00 noon Location Hilton Suites Perimeter 6120 Peachtree Dunwoody Rd. (just north of the intersection at Peachtree Dunwoody and Hammond Dr.) Atlanta, GA 30328 770.668.0808 GCA Member fee: Free Guest Fee: $20 Enhance your coaching education, network with other coaches and professionals, receive CEUs, and much more. Look forward to seeing you there! GCA Program Committee Georgia Coach Association Atlanta Coach