Aquent Oracle

Tips for achieving your 2009 goals ... part 2

2009-01-06T06:01:36Z

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We've now closed the door on 2008 and as promised here are a few more tips to ensure you achieve your goals for the year ahead ...

Look at what options are available to you to help you achieve your goal: Will you need to buy anything? Enrol anywhere? Get the details of something? Send away for information? Speak to someone about something? Could you enlist the help of someone? Do other people need to know? Are you going to have to do something which is very much out of your comfort zone? if so, what support will you need for that? Start thinking about it now since the answer could well be a lot closer than you may have thought ...

What do you need to do and by when? Is there anything you could be doing right now to set the wheels in motion? Have you considered where you need to be doing this and when ? What mini goals (journey goals) can you set yourself in order to keep track of your achievements? When will you know that you have achieved this? What will have happened? What will have changed? What will it look like to you? The power of visualisation is incredible ... picture yourself already there!

If it's not right or it's not working ... change it! A lot of people forget that the goals they set themselves are their goals so they can be changed at any time. When you are on the journey towards achieving something that is important to you, changes take place that can affect your focus and can cause you to change direction. That's absolutely fine. Go with what feels right for you but stay focused on your desired outcome ... regardless of any set backs.

Image courtesy of: Geekgirly

Tips to achieving your 2009 goals ... part 1

2008-12-31T01:54:14Z

As we close the door on 2008 - "the year that was" ... it's a perfect opportunity to think carefully about your goals for 2009 ...

Here are the first two tips - and over the next few days The Oracle will reveal a few more!

Be very specific about the goal you want to achieve: If you are unsure exactly what your end goal is going to be, it will be difficult for you to know what steps you need to take in order to achieve it. Get as much detail as possible, if it is something you can feel and touch then you need to know what the texture feels like. If it has colours, then you want to be able to see those colours. The clearer your goal the stronger the desire to achieve it will be.

FACT- Your brain doesn't know the difference between imagination and reality - so the more you imagine achieving your goal whilst working towards it, the closer you will get to it.

Take a reality check: What's the current situation in relation to what you want to be, have, lose, gain, start, finish, achieve, or earn? If the difference between your end goal and your reality is too huge, you may want to make some changes in order to believe that your end goal is achievable to you. Ignore what everyone else says! If it is huge, break it down into manageable chunks (I like to call these "journey steps" ) and set dates for each part of what it is you want to achieve.

Remember ... put your dreams out there and never mind what other people say when you meet with temporary defeat. For they, perhaps do not know, that every failure brings with it the seed of an equivalent success, as long as you stay focused.

HERE'S TO A SUCCESSFUL 2009!

Image courtesy of: CraftyGoat

Festive cheer ... new year ... new career! Your 20 seconds to shine!

2008-12-23T21:35:20Z

Fear you'll have little to do with your time this festive season, once the gifts are opened, the turkey's on the table and you've polished off the last mince pie you can physically stomach? What better opportunity to cast a critical eye over your existing Curriculum Vitae (or résumé) and make the changes needed to secure your dream job come 2009!

Don't wait ... Too many candidates, especially those in permanent positions wait until they're tempted by a new role to revise and update their CV, which is often reflected in the document itself.

Don't get bogged down in layout and design ... Make it as live and current as you are. Try not to let the look and layout of your CV detract from being what it should be - a genuine reflection of your career and most relevant achievements to date. Like you, your CV should be an evolving document that you continually add to throughout your working life, be it freelance or permanent.

Invest now and reap the benefits later ... Take the time (it needn't be monthly, but quarterly at a minimum) to reflect and really think about what you have achieved and any extra duties or tasks you have taken on outside of your original job title. Aside from ensuring you take an analytical view as to whether your current role is still challenging you, it will enable you to keep developing a core list of skill-sets/ experience to present to a potential employer.

Keep it chronological and avoid 'War and Peace' ... Nothing says 'organised and professional' better than an orderly CV. While a good agent will use a CV as a springboard to sell his or her best skills, research suggests a decision maker will spend on average, as little as 20 seconds reviewing your CV before deciding whether or not to progress to interview. Ensure your most recent role is at the forefront and your most relevant skill-sets and experience are highlighted.

Have fun updating ... and have a wonderful Christmas!

Is there anybody out there? ... training via conference calls ...

2008-12-12T00:56:46Z

This week I have been involved in a series of conference calls crossing many time zones ... from Boston to Bangalore, from Prague to Perth, and from Manchester to Melbourne. I have been speaking to some fairly large groups of people and so I didn't use SKYPE, but chose to rely on an international conference call facility where all the participants called in and could hear me speaking while at the same time watching my presentation from my desktop - just as if they were in the same room as me ... only they weren't! At times I felt like I was speaking to a void or empty vacuum with the silence often quite disconcerting.

How else are we meant to train colleagues in all corners of the world when there is only a very small window of opportunity available to communicate a new web site facility or training programme to an international team?

It's an amazing feeling to know that within a period of 48 hours I had spoken to in excess of 400 people in pretty much every time zone across the globe. I didn't see anyone so I don't know how they all felt, but for me speaking into a telephone to so many people in different countries and from different cultures, and hoping that my message was received loud and clear was often quite surreal ...

If you have any thoughts on the joys or frustrations of training (or being trained) via conference calls, please share them with the Oracle!

Image 1 courtesy of: K-TREE

Emotional Intelligence in the workplace ... why do I have to sit next to him?

2008-12-05T01:19:48Z

Emotional Intelligence (E.I. or E.Q. as it is sometimes referred to) is an awareness of how you speak with others, how you manage your emotions, what your body language is saying and overall, how you are communicating with those around you and with yourself. In some industry sectors and in some countries this is considered as important as a person's I.Q.

When you look at the behaviours of people you work with, there are those who come in every day with a positive, energised outlook for the day ahead. They say "good morning" to everyone, they are emotionally stable throughout the day and everyone enjoys working with that person because they know where they stand with them. This person would have an awareness of their emotional intelligence.

The opposite to that is the individual who blows hot and cold. One morning they will say "hello" when they come into the office and another morning they bring a rainstorm over their head when they walk in. They cannot manage their stress levels, their temper or themselves. In turn, they manage their relationships with other people equally as badly.

Does anyone really enjoy working with this type of person? Does this person give off a really good vibe? A great energy? Are people drawn to them because they have that "certain something"?

If you're keen to learn more about Emotional Intelligence, grab a copy of Daniel Goleman's book Working with Emotional Intelligence.

Image courtesy of: Keraoc

Giving Thanks ...

2008-11-28T00:31:53Z

This week in the United States, Americans are all celebrating Thanksgiving. So I thought I would hop aboard the Thanksgiving bandwagon and thank everyone who has taken the time to visit the Aquent Oracle over the last four months. Next week will mark four months since this blog was officially launched! Given that I recently read that today there are 184 million blogs worldwide, with a new one launching each second, as the host of this particular blog I am seriously thankful to all the visitors and contributors, and to the many who have sent questions through to the Oracle or have commented on the many topics I have put out there into the big wide blogosphere!

Please keep coming back, and let people know that the Aquent Oracle is here to provide career advice, interview tips and to answer any specific questions you may have about careers in the world of marketing, design and digital.

Image courtesy of: gravityx9

Working abroad may have its challenges ... but so too can coming home!

2008-11-21T03:56:16Z

Perhaps this is a topic fairly close to home (pardon the pun) as I have just returned from two years abroad living and working in Hong Kong. But this entry isn't so much about the many challenges associated with establishing yourself in another country, but more about what you could experience when you return home.

In the November issue of the Australian Financial Review BOSS magazine, I read a poignant article about the return of the native addressing the many challenges that await expatriates when they touch down once again on home soil.

"It's almost as though you were never away because that part of your life has no relevance here ... It's a bit hard to know what you do with that part of your life".

Many expats find the move home an awkward adjustment, both professionally and personally. You just don't expect that coming home will require as much assimilation as going abroad. After all the personal stresses such as finding a place to live, potentially finding a new job, and re-establishing contact with friends can be just as serious.

The article concludes how important it is for expats to develop a new social circle when they get home because old friends that haven't experienced living abroad may not even be interested in your international adventures.

If you've lived and worked overseas, and have any advice for those currently working abroad who may be preparing to head home, feel free to share it ...

Image courtesy of: JohhLeGear

What are you really looking for in a career?

2008-11-17T01:47:33Z

I was reading Tim McNamara's article in Australia's Desktop magazine (issue # 244 - November 2008) on Finding your Creative Path. Whilst the entire article was certainly quite thought-provoking, two particular paragraphs struck a chord.

Tim writes: "In an industry where technologies, methods, attitudes, pecking orders and, indeed, jobs change and develop almost on a daily basis, so too must employees. In the current employment climate - where employers are under increasing pressure from both market and economic conditions - people are understandably thinking about their own careers and how, through the storm, they can progress and come out on top."

He continues to describe how in addressing the career hopes and aspirations of professionals, as recruitment specialists, "we never lose sight of the fact that we are, first and foremost, interviewing people - individuals - and no two are the same. Put two art directors in a room and they may appear almost identical at face value, but scratch the surface and ask them where they're presently at in their careers or, better yet, where they want to be in their careers, and you're likely to receive two completely different responses."

It's so true ...

So in a tough market, riding the wave of the digital (r)evolution, what are you looking for? Hopefully you're looking out for Number One, but what's really pushing your career hot buttons?

Image courtesy of: trash it

Flexible work practices ... how important are they to you?

2008-11-12T04:52:48Z

Many of us talk about how great it would be to have more flexibility in our work. Perhaps the ability to have a rostered day off every two weeks, to be able to work from home every now and then, or maybe even the option of getting into the office at midday and then working through till 8pm or 9pm - giving you a better work/life balance.

Aquent recently published its 2008-2009 Aquent Orange Book, the most comprehensive international salary survey for the marketing, communications and creative industries. One of the key findings in this report was that flexible work practices was the Number 1 retention strategy implemented by those businesses surveyed across Australia and New Zealand.

Clearly employers place a huge emphasis on flexible work practices, but what is the attitude of employees towards this relatively recent organisational phenomenon? I will try not to let the fact that I am actually writing this blog entry while working from home sway my personal opinion!

Have you ever stopped to think that being given more freedom in your working hours, or in general more flexibility at work could have an associated impact on your salary? Does being in the office less necessarily equate to a reduction in salary? Perhaps you'd look at flexibility somewhat differently if it did?

Image courtesy of: Sethoscope

Aquent wins Best Multi-National Agency at recent awards

2008-11-06T05:30:30Z

At the recent inaugural REA 2008 Recruitment Excellence Awards, Aquent was awarded Best Multi-National Agency.

With representation from many of Australia's recruitment agencies both large and small, and assessed by a panel of independent judges, the awards were held in recognition for recruitment excellence in categories including Best Start-up Agency, Best Boutique Agency, Best National Agency, Best Brand, Best Talent Attraction Strategy and Best Multi-National Agency.

Winners were selected on the quality of their application content, referrals from clients, staff and candidates selected at random, along with evidence of internal procedures and best practices.

Design salaries

2008-11-03T21:21:01Z

Dear Great Almighty Oracle ... :)

I am a Senior (corporate and packaging) Designer in Amsterdam and am trying to find out any information or statistics on design salaries here in The Netherlands. Can you help or point me in the right direction?

Kind regards,
Luke

The Aquent Oracle says ...

Your timing couldn't be better, Luke!

Aquent has just released the 2008-2009 edition of The Aquent Orange Book. Now in its fifth year, The Aquent Orange Book is the most comprehensive salary survey and industry monitor for the marketing, communications and creative industries.

Internationally,The Aquent Orange Book covers the following categories, among others: creative, design, digital, advertising, marketing, market research, MICE, publishing, editorial, media, PR and communications.

The report covers 15 countries across Australia and New Zealand, Asia, China, Japan, the United Kingdom and Europe, and was supported and endorsed by 38 marketing, communications and creative industry associations - including Beroepsorgan in The Netherlands which would be of particular interest to you, Luke.

If you would like advice on salaries or the opportunity to look through The Aquent Orange Book, feel free to contact the Aquent office nearest to you.

Image: Cover of the European Edition 2008-2009 of The Aquent Orange Book designed in the UK by Playne Design Limited.

Registering with recruitment agencies ... how many is too many?

2008-10-30T05:20:40Z

This is the age-old question ...

You are super keen to find a new job and you decide to register with a recruitment agency. The recruiter you meet with asks you not to register with any other staffing agency, saying something along the lines of "leave it to us ... we'll find you the perfect role".

You feel caught between a rock and a hard place since you really do trust the agent you have met with, but the thought of him or her not finding you a new job is niggling at the back of your mind. You assume that if you would register with several agencies then your chances of finding that new role would increase exponentially.

Believe it or not this is not necessarily the case.

If a recruiter knows that you have sent your résumé all over town, then they are less likely to focus on your job search, and instead will be more proactive finding a role for a candidate who has given them at least a period of exclusivity.

Just food for thought ...

Image courtesy of: allen shore

job skills in demand ...

2008-10-22T20:52:36Z

Dear Aquent Oracle ...

What do you foresee as being the next best job skill to have as far as programs go? Is it 3D? Is it web? Is print even still alive?

The Aquent Oracle says

When I first read your question and asked a friend of mine who works in the design space what he thought, the first thing he said to me was "Can an e-newsletter ever be delivered to your post box"? I suppose this means that print is very much still alive. There are several studies that reveal that having something tangible to hold, read or flick through can often outweigh the user experience of visualising something online and on screen - this obviously depends on the demographic of the user.

In terms of the trend, there will still be a need for separate print and interactive designers as both areas still require specific technical skills. Merging these two areas would be seen to dilute the users' skill sets making them less specialised in their chosen field.

On the program front, there is an ever increasing demand for online and interactive usage. With the recent release of Adobe CS4 designers now have the ability to design for print and export the file for interactive usage, for example in Flash or After Effects (very highly sought after with the growth of rich media in the online space).

I also recently overheard a conversation where a digital guru was explaining that 3D will start reducing the cost of advertising and the need to shoot television commercials at exotic locations since these days so much can be created in 3D.

So if digital or web is the path you want to pursue, go for it! But if you are worried about whether or not print is still alive ... never fear ... print's still here!

Image courtesy of: VinCross

Keeping up with the digital revolution

2008-10-22T06:15:20Z

I am the first to admit that I am a total laggard when it comes to the digital world. I recently overheard one of my colleagues in the office on the phone talking about wireframes and information architecture, so when she hung up I casually asked "are you renovating your place?"! I won't even begin to explain the strange look she gave me. It turns out she was simply briefing one of her candidates on a potential job opportunity!

OK so I clearly have a lot to learn ...

But I then started to question my colleague on what the role was that she had been briefing the candidate about, and the conversation took on a entirely new direction as we started to discuss how candidates who want to be taken seriously in the digital world really need to up their skills.

It appears that there are far too many people (both employers and candidates alike) who are simply placing the word "digital" in front of a job title in an attempt to keep up with the times. Who would have thought a Digital Production Manager could simply be a glorified term to describe an Office Manager? Apparently it's quite the trend!

Whilst it may seem like I am stating the obvious, if you are a talent in the digital space looking for a new role, you can't expect to find a job (or even make it through the interview process) without having an online portfolio clearing demonstrating your web skills - or at least having urls listed in your CV with links to your work that highlight your hands-on digital experience.

If you want to stand out as a digital specialist, you will need to keep up with all the advances in technology by reading industry newsletters or perhaps even signing up for some courses - the content of which are always being updated.

There's a great deal of information out there, and as I think of some more career tips or pointers for the digital space, I will share them with you ...

Just as an aside ... as I walked away from her desk, my colleague suggested that I check out webopedia if I really wanted to get my head around some of the terms being thrown around in the interactive space. All I can say is that I then became even more confused when I came across supposedly the latest buzz words including sockstress and Longhorn!

I have a long way to go!

Image courtesy of: urbanbicyclist

job search: hoping for a career break into marketing

2008-10-18T16:53:43Z

Dear Aquent Oracle ...

I am a couple years out of Business School and I guess it could be said that I am a 'contractor' who has worked for over a dozen companies in the Columbus area. Many of these roles have not been marketing related per se, and came about through ad hoc staffing agency placements. I am really trying to get into a marketing career, but I now have to figure out a way to sell my non-marketing, and short-term, at times random experience.

How do I best capture this on a résumé, and explain it during an interview?

The Aquent Oracle says

Dear Columbus Contractor ...

You mention that many of your previous contracting roles were not marketing related. Am I to assume that therefore a even a few of them were within the marketing space? Marketing is certainly a very broad area and you need to really think about where you want to end up. Did you study any marketing-related subjects at Business School? Have you been exposed to a marketing team - even within an administrative capacity?

During a job interview you are going to really have to demonstrate your enthusiasm for wanting to work within marketing - and back up your passion with any previous exposure (whether it be from during your studies or your short-term contracts) you have had to the discipline. Your motivation and eagerness to work in marketing along with the right attitude will certainly go a long way and can hold a great deal of weight at a job interview. It's not all about what marketing skills and previous experience you can bring to the table.

However expressing your passion and motivation on paper in a résumé is not quite as easy to do - especially in the United States where it is suggested that a résumé is restricted to one page. This is where you really need to think about your University subjects, papers you may have written, work experience you may have undertaken, workshops you may have attended, or associations with which you may be affiliated - anything that will align you to the marketing space - and ensure it is clearly documented within your résumé.

You will also need to appreciate that you may not land the ideal job within marketing immediately. Applying for a role as a Marketing Associate or a Marketing Co-ordinator is more realistic than applying for a role as a Marketing Executive or Marketing Manager. For anyone a few years out of Business School it's still about getting your foot in the right door - and this is certainly possible for you as you have been exposed to different organisations as part of your contracting experience.

So ensure you are passionate about what you want to do, be able to articulate why you want to work in marketing, and have all the evidence on hand to back yourself up.

Image courtesy of: Nadiah Sabry