Applying to Job Postings in Craigslist

Craigslist has no advertisements. It makes its money from job postings by employees. So are all the job postings in Craigslist real and worth applying for? One of the Boulder Net Professional (a LinkedIn based Colorado Networking Group) posed a question to the Boulder Net, whether anyone got a job by applying to one of those Craigslist postings. Another member said that she had applied to several but never got any response and doubted whether or not the postings are real. There is a really nice article in today's Wall Street Journal that asks "Is it a real job behind the job posting".

If you're launching an online job hunt for the first time in a while; take caution. What may look like an ad for employment may lead to something entirely different, like a hard sell for career services or job-training manuals. Or worse, it might be a plan by identity thieves to get you to share sensitive personal information via "phishing" expeditions. Some of the job postings -- sometimes for positions long filled -- also could be from recruiting agencies looking to collect résumés.

Definitely a advice we should all take to heart and follow. It may be a better idea to send a resume that only has an email address rather than the home address. But as the article points out, applying for these online postings may only have zero to low response rates.

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Boulder Layoffs Near 30% in the past six months

In our continuing discussion of the recently concluded poll on Boulder Employment, close to 40% reported a change in their status in the past six months. The margin of error is 9%. Even then this is a high number. If we look closely at the reason for the status change

30% of the Boulder professionals reported being laid off in the past six months

This explains to an extent the high number of people , 25%, reporting unemployed. The breakdown of 30% shows that 19% laid off and still looking, 8% found a job already and 3% became self employed.

Another nagging data point is 7% reporting they expect their business to do layoffs in the next six months.

When 50% in Boulder say they are looking for new job

In the recently conducted poll of Boulder professionals, more than 50% were reported to be searching for new jobs and 25% reported unemployed. For one thing it indicates that even those with a job are not sitting safely and believe a change is needed. This makes the job search more difficult for those who are unemployed. Not only do they have to compete among themselves but also with those who are trying to switch jobs. Macroeconomics says that those who are already employed stand a better chance of getting jobs because of many reasons including the networking opportunities. This competition is not different from any other time but what makes it difficult is the high numbers of both groups.
What is your take?

High Unemployment Rate Among Boulder LinkedIn Members

I recently posted the complete results and preliminary analysis of the poll results. One data that stood out is the 25% of the people reporting as unemployed. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers are far below this for Boulder MCA, a about 4.6%. So why one in four in LinkedIn reported unemployed?

There are two possible reasons

1. People more actively use LinkedIn when they are searching for jobs, especially in between jobs.
2. Since respondents self selected the poll is over represented by unemployed

So we cannot say that LinkedIn members who work and live and Boulder area have a higher unemployment rate than the rest of the population.

Boulder Metro Employment Status Poll Results

Please use full screen mode to view the details.

Tom Peters on Is Your Job Safe

Here is an article I found through FT.com blog in Tom Peter's blog. The blog post is by author Raj Shetty. I do not agree with this approach of questioning yourself, more on that later. But now here is the link to the article and some of the questions

1.   Is your job core to what the company stands for?
2.  What will the company/department lose by eliminating your job?
3.  What is the assessment of your "value" in the eyes of the stakeholders?
4.  Is your job "offshorable?" 
5.  Can you handle office politics well?
   

The Next Milestone 400 Members

The Boulder Net LinkedIn group has now reached 400 members milestone. Join the group to collaborate with professionals who are local to you. If you are thinking of relocating to Boulder, network now with local professionals to ease your move.