The second state wide Job Fair and Career Expo sponsored by NH Department of Employment Security and WMUR-TV appeared to be a smooth operation. It will take some time, of course, to know how many attendees will get jobs as a result of this event. But at the last job fair in April, despite its being most known for getting overrun by too many people, it actually produced north of 350 jobs for New Hampshire citizens.
As one who volunteered to work at the fair I got only varied snapshot views. I didn’t get much time to see the employers’ booths. What I did see seemed to be heavy on commission sales jobs. I guess a job fair is a place to refill high turnover ranks. In the early morning I parked cars. I noticed right away, once folks stepped out of their cars that the crowd could be divided into two groups, those who dressed for success and those who did not. True, not every job required a coat and tie, and if your work history has been in jobs that did not require that attire, then you very well might not show up at a job fair wearing one. But on the other hand, showing up in “casual Friday” mode is not a useful tactic. Fortunately, as the day went on my admiration for the attendees increased.
I then performed resume reviews along with about five other professionals for four hours. About 35-40 people met with me looking for feedback and any advice that might give them an edge in this competitive environment. I applaud these people for sitting and waiting for a long time in order to speak with one of the reviewers. It shows a strong commitment to their job search.
However, I continue to notice that too many resumes are not showing the principle of professional branding. Good resumes need good leads that let a reader know right away who this person is and what they want to do. This simple notion still has not yet penetrated the conventional wisdom of resume writing. There are other improvement details that come up in these reviews of course, but none as important as building this paper as a self-marketing document. I also offered a presentation to about fifty people on the topic of career transition. The group was attentive and took notes more diligently than many graduate level classes that I have sat through.
Fewer people showed up to this job fair than in April. I wonder why. The unemployment picture is no better. Was it that too many thought there would be a repeat of an overwhelmed venue? Was it because many are starting to think that the Recession is coming to an end? Was it because people are starting to give up looking for a job? (Let’s hope it’s not that one!) Whatever the reason, I’m more inclined to be impressed by those who threw themselves into a hard day trying their best to navigate an uncertain event with more than 5000 others. When you are out of work and wanting to work, looking for a job is your job. Making a job search plan and pounding away at it as you would a job for which you were hired is what needs to happen.
So, to those who stick with fighting against the odds and getting themselves back up each day to try yet again, I say congratulations. The NH Job Fair and Career Expo had many of you in attendance. I really, really hope that many of you find that a satisfying job came as a result of the fair.
