1. proudly presents
Medical Devices Get your FOOT IN THE DOOR Event
Thursday, December 5th
10am – 1.30pm
Ramada Viking Hotel, Cork Road, Waterford
The Innovation and Lean Sigma Skillnet & the Business Excellence Skillnet are funded by member companies and the Training
Networks Programme, an initiative of Skillnets Ltd. funded from the National Training Fund through the Department of
Education and Skills.

2. CAREER & LIFE PLANNING
THINK ACT WORK LIVE BETTER
www.calp.ie

3. About Career & Life Planning
• Coaching & Training Organisation
• Has 5 business areas;
1. Career Coaching & Performance Improvement
2. Business & Executive Coaching
3. Youth Coaching & Education
4. Life Coaching
5. Training
• Business has developed unique 5 step Process to
assist people

4. About Joe Delaney
• 11 years recruitment experience in USA & Ireland.
• Established Career & Life Planning as part-time
business in 2008 while recruiting full-time
• Former recruitment director with BDO Ireland
• Mentor and Coach to several hundred individuals
nationally on on Momentum Program, Begin
Again, Skillnet Job Seeker Support Programs
• Married, 3 kids, plays music and trying to get fitter

5. Company Mission Statement
“We believe our processes, techniques and support
systems enable individuals to perform to their best in
their professional and personal lives jointly”

6. Career & Life Planning
5 Steps to Success
(TM Pending)
1. Cope
Better
2.Adapt
Quicker
3. Improve
Performance
4. Maintain It
Process works for all aspects of coaching services
5. Enjoy
Yourself

7. Visual Overview
• Process is easy to
understand
• Has a sequential
flow to it
• Is easily transferred
to different
personal, profession
al and business
platforms
• Software model
under development

8. Visual Overview of Client Outcomes
Improve Decision Making
Measure Results
Set Goals based
on new ways of
Thinking &
Prioiritsing Goals

9. Locations in Ireland & USA
Limerick
Loughrea
Galway
Boston, MA
7 day week service to suit national and international appointments
Flexible Service based on client times
Earliest Appointment is 6am
Latest Appointment 9pm
Weekend Appointments available

10. 1.
2.
3.
4.
Know what you can offer through good research
Know real reason why CV / Profile is so important
Know really good answers to likely questions
Have a plan that allows for personal and
professional development while getting back to
work
5. Have a plan who you want to work for

11. Components of Job Searching
Social Networking Strategy
Recruiters Strategy
Hidden Job Market
Event Strategy
Interview Delivery Strategy
CV Strategy
Networking Strategy
Offline Strategy
Alumni Strategy
Volunteering Strategy
Referral Strategy
Research Strategy
Past Employer Strategy
Company Strategy

12. Strategies for Leaving Unemployment
Experience
Experience
So
Far
+
Strategies
Self Awareness
CV Strategy
Recruiters Strategy
Networking Strategy
Research Strategy
Alumni Strategy
Interview Strategy
Past Employer Strategy
Referral Strategy
Event Strategy
Offline Strategy
Volunteering Strategy
Social Networking Strategy
Hidden Job Market
Online Job Boards
=
New Job
Next
Company
In My
Career

13. 1. Know what you can offer through good
research

14. • Each of these strategies is critically important in your ability
to get noticed in today’s cluttered job environment
• Identifying barriers that exist in each area and putting plans
in place to overcome them are critical to being successful.
• Interviews are getting harder to get and competition for
places is at a premium. You must be very well prepared!
• Ensure you are confident in
each of the above strategies
so that you can climb the next
step in your career ladder.

15. Career & Life Planning Positive steps
towards your Future

16. Reality Check
Significantly need to up
your game to get
noticed, let alone get an
i n t e r v i e w, w o r k
recognition, promotion or
job

17. 2013 is Almost Over
What’s the next 3 months going to look like for
your career?

19. Self Awareness
Create your mission statement for yourself for the rest of
2013
“I want to keep focused on taking small steps to help me
improve my ability to get noticed, perform well at
interviews and learn new skills while I’m looking for my
next job”
Or
“Develop another set of skills that will benefit my career
and allow me to look back at my performance and
recognise what I achieved”
Think Act Work Live Better

20. Look at yourself from the other side of the table
• What do other people see online, on your CV, Cover Letter, Linked In
Profile, FB Page or Twitter Account etc?
• What’s the objective of your CV & Social Media Profiles?
• Does it accurately reflect where you can add value to the employer or
tell them where you have worked and what you have done?
• Do you really know what are the key points that the interviewer is
looking for you to solve?
• This is a constant issue for people to deal with.

21. What are you prepared to change in order to get it?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
More time for Critical Thinking
Identification of barriers impeding your performance
More Planning for personal goals
More focused career planning
More networking
More willing to open your mind to different possibilities
Change your habits of job searching
Persist & Resist

22. I want you to start thinking
What skills can you bring to enhance a
potential employer?
Versus
Going looking for a job

23. Attitude
Attitude and desire of the talent is everything
to a company hiring.

24. Attitude Case Study
• Someone believed they hadn’t the skillset that a
multinational would need.
• He didn’t bother applying. He saw a closed door.
• Same guy 3 months later approached same
multinational and got hired.

25. 2. Know real reason why CV / Profile is so
important

26. Where does my CV go when I email it?
To the Hiring Manager
Jobs Mailbox
Recruitment Software
To HR
Recruiter
Someone else
Where ever it goes, it has got to stimulate a
positive response! No excuses.

27. Stimulate a Positive Response
• Understand what you are. (Product Definition)
• Understand where you can add value to what the
company is looking for (Value Add)
• Create a communication plan by utilising the
information you have researched about the
company and role locally (Research)
• Identify who is the person making the decision
and advise them where and how you can add
value to their organisation (Go-To-Market Plan)
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

28. The HABIT of a Good CV
Personal Details
References
Personal Profile
Personal Interests &
Achievements
Computer Skills
Education &
Training
Work History
including
Achievements

29. • In trying to position yourself in a crowded market
of people looking to move understand
this…employed people are now looking to move as
well as jus job seekers
• Put the time into getting a document and cover
letter that will grab attention and get the person to
include you in their shortlist for interview.
• Don’t be humble on your cv
• Don’t lie on it & know it inside out
• Remember the word Explain!

30. Social Networking Strategy
• Meaning of “Friend” has changed for ever

31. Social Networking Strategy
•
•
•
•
Its positive and has lots of benefits
Its also easy to get ignored quickly and discreetly
Its the same as it always was – who you know.
People do business with people – eircom phone
watch
• Networking objectives and strategy must stay the
same
• Social Media can be very distracting

32. Social Networking Sites
Mobile Apps

33. •
•
•
Twitter:
–
–
–
–
Getting connected with people outside your network
Pace yourself
Try getting into a routine of updating at least once 2x a week
Search for and join in on relevant conversations of interest to you
LinkedIn:
–
–
–
–
–
Find people at specific companies/recruiters
Fill in as much as you are comfortable with on your profile
Find and join groups that interest you
Personalise your invitations to connect
Acknowledge those who want to connect with you
Facebook:
–
–
–
–
–
I don’t know remember all my friends from past
Want to meet people with shared interests
Search for industry events and find 1-2 you can attend
If comfortable, a good profile photo helps to humanize you
When you join a group, leave a small note to introduce yourself

34. How to Use LinkedIn for Job Search
Write from the mindset of the person reading it
Include a Photo
Include Keywords and Skills
Add applications -- post presentations, file sharing
Add people to your network
Search for colleagues by company/school name
Watch for/join groups your connections join
Learn some details to help establish rapport
If so, request an introduction! (or send a message)
Inquire about company culture, satisfaction
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future
Add a Compelling Headline
Professional Summary
Two or Three recommendations
Search for people you know
Search for groups by industry,
affiliation, purpose
Look for hiring managers by name
Within your network? (1st, 2nd, 3rd
degree or group)
Find current and former employees
Look for recruiters (Staffing &
Recruiting Industry)

35. SOCIAL NETWORKING – THE BOTTOM LINE
• Recruiters are promoting jobs and looking for candidates
on social networks
• Employers are looking for candidates (and hiring!)
• A lack of social network presence may hurt your credibility
and may negatively impact your visibility to employers
• Candidates are vetted according to their social media
profiles and content they produce
• Opinions and 1st impressions count on Social Media sites
• Participate, but be careful what you say
• Networking objectives and strategy remain the same

36. 3. Know really good answers to
likely questions

37. Question
What’s your objective from an
interview?
To get a job or sell myself?
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

38. Perhaps these goals may be better options to
consider?
Explain yourself better than you have done in your
last interview?
Show them where you have added value in the past
and where you will add value to them
Understand more about the company and culture?
Demonstrate better attitude
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

39. Competency Techniques
STAR Approach
(Situation; Task; Action; Result)
CAR Approach
(Context; Action; Result)
Structure and Practice - Key to Success
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

40. Sample Question
“Please give an example of a time when you had to
complete a project , where there were strict deadlines and
external events were out of your control.”
Answer in STAR format:
S
T
A
R
Situation (identify the scenario – the where and when)
Task that you have to undertake – the why
Action – those steps you undertook to achieve the task
Results
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

41. Answer in STAR Format
S
At Company X, during an implementation project where I was in the role of
???
T
The project plan was developed to client specification . Identify steps;
however timeline change due to client requirements and a strike in
foreign country
A
How did you adapt to changes e.g. advise and work with client, amend
project plan for realistic deadlines, advise impact on timescale and costs,
brought on additional staff before strike started
R
Client was very happy with result , our proactive nature, communication.
Project completed on time with no financial implications or penalties.

42. Key Interview Competencies Required
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Teamwork
Responsibility
Decision Making
Communication
Leadership
Commitment to Career
Commercial Awareness
Persuasiveness
Career Motivation
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

43. Overview
Demonstrate your skills / experience in a structured way.
Allow employers to measure your responses to selected
questions using past performance
More frequent as a means of understanding your individual
personality traits

44. Examples of Competency Based
Questions
•
Give me an example of a time when you set a goal and were able to meet or achieve it.
•
Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone's
opinion.
•
Give me a specific example of a time when you had to conform to a policy with which you
did not agree.
•
Tell me about a time when you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get
a job done.
•
Give me an example of a time when you had to make a split second decision.

45. K.I.S.S.
Keep
Interview
Skills
Sharp
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

46. Interview Checklist
Opening Statement
Remember STAR Answers to likely
questions
You have to
demonstrate a real
and genuine
positive attitude.
Practice it!
Strengths
Closing / Finishing Comment
Weaknesses

47. 4. Have a plan that allows for personal and
professional development while getting back to
work

48. Sample
Career Plan
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

50. Career Overview of Job Seekers
Experience
My
Experience
So Far
+
Strategies
• Self Awareness
• CV Strategy
• Recruiters Strategy
• Networking Strategy
• Research Strategy
• Alumni Strategy
• Interview Strategy
• Past Employer Strategy
• Referral Strategy
• Event Strategy
• Offline Strategy
• Volunteering Strategy
• Social Networking
Strategy
• Hidden Job Market
• Online Job Boards
=
New Job
Next
Company
In My
Career

51. Career Plan
MONDAY
Personal Goals
Professional
Goals
9am
Exercise
Re work CV
10am
Me Time
Work on Alumni
Friends Time
Spend Time on
Linked In
12pm
Improve SelfConfidence
Improve Research
Skills
1pm
Clean Attic
Cold Calling
Companies
2pm
Clear Shed
KISS
3pm
Attend
Presentation Skills
Social Networking
11am
TUESDAY
U
Learning
Seminar
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
4pm
Meetings
5pm
Events / Talks
6pm
Network more in
Work

52. Sample Competency Grid
Competence
Change competency headings to reflect competencies of the position you are interviewing for
Organisations
where you
have gained
experience
Teamwork
Responsibility
Decision
Making
Communication
Leadership
Commitment to
Career
Commercial
Awareness
Interpersonal
Skills
Conflict
Management

53. 5. Have a plan who you want to work for that
allows you to commute less, enjoy work-life
balance, gain additional or different experience.

54. Summary Continued
•
•
•
•
Find out what your Brand or App is
Ask for help
KISS
Get experience in interviewing – not token
interviews, put yourself under pressure to
perform
• Get noticed for the right reasons on social
networking sites
• Keep offline channels very active also
• Put a plan together that you can be proud of!

55. Be way better
at your entire search, network
and communications plan
than the person
next to you
Career & Life Planning
Positive steps towards your Future

56. CAREER & LIFE PLANNING
THINK ACT WORK LIVE BETTER
www.calp.ie