IEEE-USA E-Books
Reaches Out to Unemployed Engineers
By Sharon Richardson
The Best of
Today’s Engineer on Career Survival is
not a new release, but given the state of
unemployment in this economic downturn,
IEEE-USA E-Books is highlighting this e-book
in hopes of helping engineers who need help
searching for that new job, getting in the
front door, maintaining their
competitiveness, and managing their finances
while they search.
The Best of
Today’s Engineer on Career Survival is a
compilation of articles that can help you
learn how to assess the market and yourself,
and what steps you can take to survive and
remain competitive in this challenging job
market. It contains such titles as:
What Are
Engineering Employers Looking For? This
article, by Elizabeth Lions, a technical
recruiter in Oregon, is about what
engineering employers think about when they
are interviewing, and some of the things you
need to do in preparation for the interview
-- like researching the company; and finding
out what they do, and who their competitors
are. Then, Lions writes, “Ask yourself if
you are the right engineer for the job.”
Unless you
actually know the person you need to speak
with, you must go through a “Gatekeeper.”
Gatekeepers are charged with keeping their
boss from any potentially wasteful
interruptions. So, how do you get past the
Gatekeepers? In the article, Converting
Gatekeepers to Greeters, Debra Feldman,
founder of JobWhiz, writes about ways that
you can increase your odds that gatekeepers
will grant you access to decision-makers.
Feldman shares that one of those ways is to
“build a relationship with the gatekeeper.
The more interaction you have with a
particular gatekeeper, the more likely they
will want to help you.”
Other articles
in this e-book include: Picking a Good
Boss, by Donald Christiansen, former
editor and publisher of IEEE Spectrum;
Building Your Network Purposefully — Before
You Need a Job; Seeking a New Job?
Think Like an Employer; Cold Calling Your
Way to a New Job; Five Steps to a New Job;
Jump Start Your Job Search; Six Ways to
Maximize Job Search Success, all written
by Debra Feldman; Transitioning Jobs,
Managing Your Finances by Larry N.
Grogan, President of Grogan Advisory Service;
Globalization and Your Career: Building
Career Resilience, by Terrance Malkinson,
communications specialist, business analyst
and futurist; and
Successful Career Makeover for Engineers in
the 21st Century by Dr. Trudy
Hu, licensed psychologist and a national
health provider.
In addition to
those articles, there is another article by
Debra Feldman titled Sine Qua Non:
Networking. Feldman writes that
“networking is the sine qua non – absolute
necessity of job search success.” In this
article, she lists six steps that will help
you on your way to successful networking.
And last but
not least, you will find another article
entitled, Finding Employment in an
Economic Downturn, by Candy Robinson,
IEEE Region 5 Director-Elect, who shares her
experience looking for employment in a
“sluggish employment market.” Robinson
writes that she was “at the top of her game
with three degrees and 20 years of
experience” when she lost her job. She
didn’t think she would have trouble finding
another job, especially in the computer
industry. But she was unemployed for two and
a half years. In this article, she
summarizes her experiences in searching for
employment and the ultimate key that helped
her land that perfect job.
You can
purchase your copy of The Best of Today’s
Engineer on Career Survival at
www.ieeeusa.org/communications/ebooks
for the IEEE Member Price: $4.95. Non-member
Price is $19.95.
IEEE members
can purchase IEEE-USA e-books at deeply
discounted member prices – and download some
free e-books at
www.ieeeusa.org/communications/ebooks
Ideas for
new E-Books
If you’ve got
an idea for an e-book that will educate
other IEEE members on a particular career
topic of expertise, e-mail your e-book
queries and ideas to IEEE-USA Publishing
Manager Georgia C. Stelluto at
g.stelluto@ieee.org.
