Posts filed under ‘Civil Engineering Jobs’
Negotiating the Non-Sense in your Non-Compete
Matt Barcus
President, Precision Executive Search, Inc
Managing Partner, CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Matt’s profile & connect with him on LinkedIn
Finally, after months of suffering under a new regime as a result of a reorganization, or after months of being laid off due to a Reduction-In-Force, or after months of pounding your head on the proverbial “glass ceiling,” you have uncovered the perfect opportunity for the next step in your civil engineering career. After going through three or four rounds of interviews and conducting your own due diligence you find a company that is a good fit professionally, technically, culturally; and the path to your professional goal is crystal clear, assuming of course that you live up to your end of the bargain. But you are confident in your ability and there is no question in your mind that you’ve got what it takes to climb your way to the top. The offer comes through, the money is right, the benefits are on target, the performance metrics, though challenging, are attainable, and everything is on the “up-and-up.” And then you get to the non-compete/non-solicit/non-disclosure employment agreement. These agreements are no longer just limited to C-Level Executives or Partners, but now they are surfacing for Vice Presidents, Division Managers, and even Project Managers.
Suddenly some of that wind has been taken out of your sail.
Terminology and phrasing limiting you to go to work for ANY competitor within a 100 mile radius of any existing office, or limiting you from contacting any clients or prospective clients (prospective clients, well, that’s pretty much ANYONE), all while applying to not only to the company you are looking to join, but it all carries over in the event of an acquisition, which would further limit your geography, especially if acquired by a big civil engineering consulting firm with offices throughout the United States. Oh, and by the way, there is nothing indicating that you would be protected from any of this even in the event that you are laid off, your office shuts down, or if you were given the ultimatum to relocate. Sounds a little one sided, right? If left un-negotiated, you would have to switch careers altogether should you separate from the firm.
Putting into effect a non-compete for company executives or partners makes sense. After all, if they don’t have an ownership stake, they do at least have access to company financials and the intellectual property that has brought the company much success. They will also have access to clients that they might not have otherwise with other companies. I am personally not convinced that Non-Compete Agreements are necessary for Project Managers and others who do not have an executive role or who do not have “skin in the game,” but this is a trending policy in the civil engineering consulting industry.
Whatever the case may be, more often than not there are some areas that you should consider negotiating before accepting “as is” if you are not fully comfortable (please keep in mind I am not an attorney nor do I pretend to be – only in my own home when negotiating with my wife and kids):
-> If you are a company executive or partner, you may want negotiate some sort of severance package to help protect you and your family should you separate from the company as it will buy time for you to secure a new position within the other constraints of the agreement.
->If your non-compete contains geographic restrictions, make sure you would still have the ability to work for a “client” or client side company. In other words, make sure it is limited solely to competitors, not clients.
->Make sure that the agreement applies only to the company you are working for at the commencement of your employment, not any future acquisitions. For example – if your employer has 5 or 6 offices, but then is acquired by a national consulting civil engineering firm with offices in every major city across the United States, your options become extremely limited should you not negotiate this ahead of time.
->The non-solicitation of clients is an understandable clause – but if the agreement includes not only existing clients, but potential clients, then again you are limiting your options should you separate as pretty much everyone is a potential client. Try negotiating to only existing clients or those potential clients that have been proposed to over the past 12, 18, or 24 month period.
->Make sure that the non-compete portion of the agreement is null and void in the event of a lay off, a closing of the office, or an ultimatum to relocate with the company.
I am not an attorney, and neither are you.
No matter how dire your current work situation is, you should always go through a non-compete/non-soliticitation/non-disclosure agreement with a fine tooth comb, or even better, shell out some cash to have an attorney review the document – your wallet may become a little light, but that decision could easily save you thousands of dollars in the end… and much stress as well. You may even find that your non-compete agreement will not hold up in a court of law in your state.
Every agreement is different, and these are just a few thoughts based upon my experience in placing civil engineering professionals with consulting engineering firms. Any further advice you can give to the civil engineering community on this topic would be greatly appreciated!
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
ARE YOU HAVING AS MUCH FUN AS THIS GUY?
Matt Barcus
President, Precision Executive Search, Inc
Managing Partner, CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Matt’s profile & connect with him on LinkedIn
As a Search Consultant specializing in the civil engineering profession, I speak to dozens of civil engineers on a daily basis discussing with them their careers, their employers, their projects, what motivates them, their strengths and weaknesses, their likes and dislikes about their job, their career goals, etc. When discussing their motivation for exploring new opportunities one thing I hear from time-to-time is how they would like to find an opportunity that is ”fun.” I am sure I just got a few chuckles there as the concept of having fun in one’s career is buried by deadlines, stress, non-stop meetings, overbearing bosses, needy employees, critical clients who are never satisfied, and pressure from outside shareholders who barely know what a civil engineer is…and that’s just the tip of the iceberg! Everyone’s perception of fun is different, but is there REALLY a way to have fun as a civil engineering consultant?
Well, according to civil engineer and professional career coach Anthony Fasano, PE, civil engineers CAN have fun, and they SHOULD have fun. Here is what Anthony had to say to me on this very topic:
“ It’s amazing when I coach engineers on career growth and development, how many of them think fun and work can’t go together. My question to them is, why would you want to do something for 40 plus hours a week if it’s not enjoyable?
Many professionals ask, how can I make my career more fun? First of all, if you are passionate about what you do, you will have a lot of fun. Another tip I always give engineers is to get out there and network. Build relationships in your industry through professional societies and other networking groups. Do it with the goal of building lasting relationships and you will find that your days are much more enjoyable. Building personal relationships in your industry can greatly increase your level of enjoyment. Don’t just join these organizations, get involved!
You only get one career, why shouldn’t it be fun?”
So as you ponder your career and some different ways that you can inject some fun into it, take a look at Chris Stone’s Summary below. Chris is the President of Clark Nexsen, a 90+ year old AE firm based out of Norfolk, VA. I uncovered Chris’ profile on LinkedIn, and his profile was the inspiration for this blog…check it out:
Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, I once single-handedly defended a small village in the Amazon Basin from a horde of ferocious army ants. I am the subject of numerous documentaries.
When I’m bored, I build large suspension bridges in my yard. I enjoy urban hang gliding. After work, I repair electrical appliances free of charge. I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst, and a ruthless bookie. Critics worldwide swoon over my original line of corduroy evening wear. I don’t perspire. I am a private citizen, yet I receive fan mail. I have been caller number nine and have won the weekend passes. I bat .400. My deft floral arrangements have earned me fame in international botany circles. Children trust me.
I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy. I once read Paradise Lost, Moby Dick, and David Copperfield in one day and still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening. I know the exact location of every food item in the supermarket. I have performed several covert operations for the CIA. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. The laws of physics do not apply to me.
I balance, I weave, I dodge, I frolic, and my bills are all paid. I participate in full-contact origami. Years ago I discovered the meaning of life but forgot to write it down. I have made extraordinary four course meals using only a mouli and a toaster oven. I breed prize-winning clams. I have won bullfights in San Juan, cliff-diving competitions in Sri Lanka, and spelling bees at the Kremlin. I have played Hamlet, I have performed open-heart surgery, and I have spoken with Elvis.
Bottom line, I enjoy life and do not take myself too seriously.
Chris’ summary is taken from one of the most quotable texts found on the internet, Hugh Gallagher’s famous College Application Essay. Now I’ve never spoken to Chris, but after reading his profile summary on LinkedIn, if he truly looks through his lens on life with that perspective, I would bet that his career success can been partially attributed to his ability to have fun. So the question remains,
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
What Can You Learn From A Concrete Canoe?
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Carol’s profile & connect with her on LinkedIn
In June 2011 the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will sponsor the National Concrete Canoe Competition. Expanded to a national level twenty four years ago, ASCE reports that concrete canoe races in the United States actually began in the 1960s, when a small number of ASCE student chapters began holding intramural races. Since then, “students’ efforts to combine engineering excellence and hydrodynamic design to construct water-worthy canoes have culminated in an advanced form of concrete construction and racing technique known as the ‘America’s Cup’ of Civil Engineering.”
Over the years I have reviewed resumes of students who proudly list their concrete canoe achievement. Until I started recruiting civil engineers back in the 1980′s, I had never heard of the concrete canoe competitions nor what they could teach participants. Student and Professors have shared with me the benefits of this challenge. Here are some of their statements/achievements:
*This was an opportunity for a hands-on learning experience; taking concepts and principles and putting them into practice.
*The competition pushed us to collaborate as a team.
*Each of us learned to work together to formulate a plan, come up with a design, write and present our report, work within a budget, keep on schedule.
*Like in the workplace, we learned to work as a team with various personalities towards one goal. As engineers, at times we isolate and enjoy our analytical successes. This experience was one of my best!
*We gained actual experience working with materials, understanding their interactions and experimenting with what worked and what didn’t.
*This experience prepared me for work in the ‘real world’ of civil engineering.
Have you joined in the Concrete Canoe competition? What did you learn for the experience?
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
The NCAA Tourney Shows Why Bigger isn’t Always Better in Your Career
Featured Guest Blogger: Anthony Fasano, P.E., LEED AP, ACC
Civil Engineer, Author, Coach and Speaker
Author of Engineer Your Own Success: 7 Key Elements to Creating an Extraordinary Engineering Career (Available in May 2011)
Anthony is also the author of a FREE e-mail service for engineers called A Daily Boost from Your Professional Partner. Click here to read about this service.
The men’s college basketball’s annual tournament (March Madness) recently finished with the University of Connecticut coming out on top. For those of you not familiar with the tournament, it starts with 64 teams (68 now with the play-ins) and over a few weeks, 6 rounds and 59 games later there is one team left standing. What makes the tournament so special is that every team in it has a chance to win it; even the underdogs, often referred to as ‘mid-majors’ have the chance to make a run every year.
This year two of the mid-majors did just that. Butler and Virginia Commonwealth made it all the way to the final four and Butler to the finals amazingly for the second year in the row. During and immediately following the tournament there was a lot of talk about how the coaches of these two teams could pretty much write their own ticket to a ‘bigger’ college basketball school, which would be a step up in their career that would give them more money, more publicity and a better shot to win the tournament on a yearly basis.
While nothing has happened yet, it appears that both coaches are going to stay where there are. Yes that’s right, they are going stay with the their mid-major school. Are they crazy? That’s what many people are asking. Why would you turn down the opportunity to take a position at a bigger, better, more prestigious school (or company)?
Of course I can’t speak for either of these coaches, but here’s my take on the situation. We often hear people say that another civil engineering position is bigger, better, higher-paid, a better opportunity, however it doesn’t matter what people say, it only matters what the individual offered the position thinks. These coaches may consider their current jobs, their dream jobs. They are settled in the community with their family and they have no desire to move. They actually like the organization they work for and want to stay where they are. After all, if they took their mid-major school to the finals once (even twice) why can’t they do it again?
There is a huge parallel here for corporate professionals in the civil engineering community as we are often faced with similar positions. Do we take a higher paying job with that has an additional 30 minutes of commuting time each day? Do we sell our small company to a larger one? These questions can only be answered by the individual receiving the offer based on their goals and with the support and guidance of their loved ones. I just wanted to offer some food for thought in saying that bigger isn’t always better in your career!
Please offer your thoughts on this issue and if you were ever faced with a similar decision please share with us if you are comfortable doing so.
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
Green Engineering Jobs: Coming to an Ocean Near You?
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Carol’s profile & connect with her on LinkedIn
Picture this: the sun, beach, sand, waves, porpoises ….wind turbines?
A variety of wind farms are being proposed, designed and constructed across the US. Cape Wind proposes the first offshore wind farm on Nantucket Sound, “… Miles from the nearest shore, 130 wind turbines will gracefully harness the wind to produce up to 420 megawatts of clean, renewable energy. In average winds, Cape Wind will provide three quarters of the Cape and Islands electricity needs. Maryland’s Governor proposed a plan to build offshore wind farms in the Atlantic Ocean (Maryland lawmakers today refused to pass the plan this year). His was a $1.5 billion field of giant turbines about 10 miles off of the Ocean City, Maryland shoreline, while the eastern edge is approximately 27 miles from the coast. And in Delaware, NRG Bluewater Wind has won the exclusive right to negotiate with the federal government to build an offshore wind farm.
Will these “green” initiatives bring green engineering jobs? “Bluewater Wind officials estimated in 2008 that the project would bring 400-500 construction jobs to the state, as well as at least 80 ongoing operations and maintenance jobs. A Port of Wilmington official estimated last year that building a regional turbine assembly facility there could result in about 770 jobs during construction, and another 750 operational jobs.” The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) reported in 2010 that the wind energy sector that employs 18,500 staff in the manufacturing sector could “support tens of thousands of additional jobs manufacturing wind turbines and components if the right policies are put in place.”
Civil engineers will be needed for a variety of roles within this “green” engineering market. For example, the wind farm infrastructure consists of roads and drainage, wind turbine, met mast foundations and buildings housing electrical switch gear, planning, modeling, preliminary design, QA/QC and construction of wind farm infrastructure for sites and utilities for access roads, crane pads, crane paths…
Many of us will be interested in reviewing the results of states and P3 proposals. Will other states step up and add these green engineering jobs or, like Maryland, will legislators blow the turbine proposals out of the water? :)
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
Civil Engineering Job Interviews: Groucho Marx Syndrome
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Carol’s profile & connect with her on LinkedIn
The great comedian Groucho Marx once said “…I don’t want to belong to any club that will accept me as a member.” His self deprecating comment rings all too true with many civil engineering firms who wrongly believe that they are not worthy of attracting the profession’s top talent. I call this “low company esteem.”What are the systems of this malady? Frequently, they are manifested in comments made by principals and other hiring managers to external recruiters. Here are samplings of recent exchanges:
• ”This candidate has a great background and has tenure with their current firm. Why would they want to work here?”
• ”This candidate will probably just interview with us to get a counter offer then reject us.”
• “This candidate has had great success in their past…they will be bored here.”
• This candidate has always worked for top-tier firms. Why would they want to work at a firm like ours?”
While some of these concerns may be valid based on past experience, more often than not, insecurity leads to inertia. Frequently, when receiving a search for a senior level hire, I am given the challenge to find someone that “will take us to the next level.” While further prodding sometimes reveals that there is no internal consensus on what that actually means or entails, in the early stages of the sourcing phase, one thing becomes clear: what they want is someone just like them who will achieve a level of practice excellence that they have been unable to through their own efforts and resources.
While no one would argue that ensuring a “fit” between the candidate and both the job and the company’s culture are essential to success, sometimes the counter-intuitive hire can bring a unique perspective, as well as seeing the firm through fresh eyes. This results in a renewed focus on using the firm’s talent, brand and market penetration to help it become what it can be, instead of the pattern of focusing on the past missteps and hurdles that accompany institutional knowledge.
The first interaction a strategic hire should have, that all-important “face of the company,” should be its best cheerleader who leaves every candidate hungering to join the firm whether or not the feeling is mutual. However, if interviewers suffer from low company esteem, they’ll consistently struggle with articulating the benefits of joining their firm over another and the quest for quality staff will continue to elude them.
Human resources and corporate leaders need to first find a way to assess, monitor and increase the morale and esteem of their key hiring authorities to ensure that they are adequately equipped to attract the level of candidates that will enable the firm to accomplish its strategic objectives. They then need to identify and target the very best in the profession or market segment and approach their recruitment with the same unabashed abandoned as did Saturday Night Live’s “Stewart Smalley” character: “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough and, gosh darn it, people like me.”
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
My Co-Workers Talk Too Much!
Featured Guest Blogger: Anthony Fasano, P.E., LEED AP, ACC
Civil Engineer, Author, Coach and Speaker
Author of Engineer Your Own Success: 7 Key Elements to Creating an Extraordinary Engineering Career (Available in May 2011)
Anthony is also the author of a FREE e-mail service for engineers called A Daily Boost from Your Professional Partner. Click here to read about this service.
You are in your office trying to complete a set of civil engineering plans or wrap up a civil engineering project proposal that has to be submitted that afternoon, but there is this one co-worker who is always coming into your office and talking to you, and not about work-related issues. Most of the time they gossip about co-workers or talk about their personal issues, a recent vacation, the game last night, or even complain about their job to you. Yes I know, camaraderie and friendship are both important aspects of teamwork and morale, but when is enough, enough; and gossiping while in the office about co-workers, how unprofessional?
I see a few options for dealing with a chatty co-worker:
Close Your Door: You can always close your door (assuming you have one). That usually helps you to stay focused on the task at hand and increase productivity. However, you risk people getting upset with you for shutting them out and disconnecting yourself from the office. You may also get a few eyebrows raised as to why your door is closed often, especially from upper level managers.
Temporarily Relocate: When I was working as a civil engineer and had to read a report or review a set of plans, I would utilize a conference room, simply to get away from distractions. Not only does this save you from the gossiping co-workers, but it also gets you away from the phone and the computer.
Ask Nicely: Another option is to ask your chatty co-worker to leave, in a nice way of course. Maybe say something like, “John, I am sorry but I really have to get this report done in the next few hours, I will stop by when I am finished.”
Can you recommend any other options?
The reason I raise this topic is because I have heard many professionals complain about working late hours, only to see them chatting a good portion of their day away. Again, I am all for building strong relationships with your co-workers and I do think you should take some time to get to know them, but where do we draw the line?
How do you maintain personal relationships with your co-workers without letting it affect your productivity?
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
The Contracted Workforce As The New Paradigm?
Featured Guest Blogger: Babette Ten Haken
Sales Aerobics for Engineers
Strategies and Toolkit for the Sales-Engineering Interface
Connect With Babette On Linkedin 
Read The Sales Aerobics For Engineers Blog
Understanding the value of your employees (aka, “human assets”) and recognizing where there are gaps is essential to fulfilling your business goals and strategic objectives. The workplace is changing, that’s for sure. The economic downturn of 2008 resulted in downsized companies and a burgeoning pool of individuals available to keeping companies functioning – and profitable.
Evaluating the WHO of your business by aligning personnel with the WHAT you are trying to achieve is becoming a bit of an art form.
The architectural and engineering community has a long tradition of ramping their workforce up and down to meet project demands. Nothing new here. The accordion-like nature of the employment paradigm within this community has long been juxtaposed against a business model and employee expectations of establishing a lifelong career with a company.
Now there are a lot more folks available to be deployed on a contractual basis on behalf of your company. These are the folks who, perhaps, never were going to be lifelong company men or women for one reason or another. Yet they haven’t gone quietly into the night. Rather, they are very available and can become valuable, albeit transient, assets against a timeline or a project deadline.
I am quite certain that when these individuals entered their career path, they never considered the changing face of the workforce of 2010 and forward. And then there’s the consideration that the newbies entering the workforce in 2008 were well aware of the difficulty it might take to land, and retain, employment. While some are still waiting to become company men and women, others have joined the rank and file of the contract work force.
The fact is, the status quo has changed. The workforce paradigm is shifting. There is an entire career path consisting of project-oriented deployment. There is an entire workforce of experienced, deployable individuals – and newbies – who have come to understand that even if they are employed for the duration of the project, their success does not ensure a permanent position as reward for a project well done. The economic realities of their company may never permit permanent employment.
The paradigm of the mature, contracted workforce can play to their strong suit: some of these individuals will never be around long enough to be disruptive, which may have been their undoing in a former place of employment. Having a resume of contracted projects may prove to make a stronger statement about their capabilities than a resume that is perceived as a track record of failure: no more than three to five year tenures with multiple companies. While this type of individual is not unique to this time in history, the numbers of such individuals may be.
The problem is that the business model paradigms and the cultural paradigms into which the contracted workforce is placed remains based on outmoded mindset and structure. I mean, how can you go from contracted job to contracted job without benefits? How can you describe these transient assignments to your advantage as a means of showing the value you provide to an organization?
For the time being, things are tremendously out of sync, aren’t they? Even when permanent employment is offered, no one is quite sure how long it’s going to last. The cultural / societal infrastructure hasn’t quite caught up (or even begun to deal) with the reality of the contracted workforce. And yes, we could and probably should discuss and debate this inequity for a long time. Not exactly the employment model, or career goal, that many individuals in the current workforce were brought up - or taught – to target.
If you have gaps in your ranks, give great consideration not only in how you will fill them but with whom. These folks are hardly “stop gap” personalities, some having substantial careers under their belts. And if you are considering a career focused on filling gaps in the employment ranks, on an ongoing basis, don’t think of yourself as “less than,” but rather, an individual who is perhaps – in most instances – “more of” what is called for in the changing paradigm of the workforce of the future.
Something to think about, isn’t it?
Top 9 Most Recent “C’Mon Man!” Moments In Civil Engineering Recruiting
Matt Barcus
President, Precision Executive Search, Inc
Managing Partner, CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Matt’s profile & connect with him on LinkedIn
For those of you football fans who watch ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown, you are likely familiar with their “C’Mon Man!” segment. For those of you who don’t have the slightest clue as to what I am talking about, in a nutshell, the Monday Night Countdown crew members compile moments from the past weekend’s games that leave you scratching your head and saying to yourself (or out loud in their case) “C’Mon, Man!”
Here is segment to give you the gist of what I am talking about:
Now that you catch my drift, after speaking with a number of my recruiting colleagues across the country, I have compiled my Top 9 ”C’Mon, Man!” moments from the world of civil engineering recruiting over the past year:
- A candidate who has been out of work for 6 months goes through three stages of the interview process, she is on the cusp of receiving an offer contingent upon references checking out and she provides a poor reference that sells her down the river…C’MON MAN!
- A candidate tells us all the motivations for him to consider a change, we provide an opportunity that meets all those needs and gives him a $25K/20% increase in his base salary. He verbally accepts to the hiring manager on Friday and then on Monday decides to stay where he is…C’MON MAN!
- We successfully recruit a C-Level candidate for an extremely confidential CEO search. The candidate is aware that this position must be treated with the highest level of confidentiality and agrees to abide by the “rules” of confidentiality. After being shortlisted by the existing CEO as a candidate, said candidate decides to call a friend AT THAT COMPANY in attempt to get some inside information on the company and ultimately spilled the beans…needless to say he knocked himself out of contention…C’MON MAN!
- A client asks us to conduct a search and bring candidates to the table for a Regional Manager position…a great candidate with a solid reputation is presented and interviewed, but the client is unable to provide ANY feedback until four weeks later, only to say “not interested.” That’s it? C’MON MAN!
- A client company has two candidates they are considering interviewing …one is unemployed and has some of the skills they are looking for…the other is gainfully employed and fits most of what they are looking for. The client company would rather interview the unemployed candidate first and make a decision because they are worried that the employed candidate may take a counteroffer…C’MON MAN!
- A candidate has been so brainwashed as an employee that he tells us he will never leave his current employer because it is the “best company to work for in the history of all companies ever.” Really? The best company to work for in the history of all companies… ever? C’MON MAN!
- A company wants a” rainmaker” who will significantly increase top line revenues for their office or company, but they are not willing to pay market value…COME ON MAN!
- We spoke with an engineer who diminishes the value of obtaining her PE because she says that she knows PE’s that she has worked with and she already knows WAY more than they do…C’MON MAN!
- A candidate was referred to us by someone we respect in the industry, yet they respond to our contacting them by making a completely egotistical and arrogant statements about how great they are….C’MON MAN!
These are just a handful of “C’MON MAN” moments that have happened in our industry over the past year. I know I am dishin’ it out here, but I will be the first to confess that we have had a few “C’MON MAN” moments on our end over the years as well that we have learned from. I guess it’s all a part of what makes our careers…and life interesting!
If you have any “C’MON MAN” moments from the world of recruiting or civil engineering that you would like to share, please feel free to do so!
One more thought…”Top 10″ lists, yes. But who the heck ever heard of a “Top 9″ list? C’MON MAN!!!!!
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
Civil Engineers: Job Search & Rejection
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
View Carol’s profile & connect with her on LinkedIn
No one likes to be rejected–whether it be from a potential job, promotion, client or love interest. It’s disheartening, and human nature causes us to ask “Why am I being turned down?”
If I can generalize a bit, civil engineers are analytical thinkers and are more comfortable dealing with concrete (excuse the pun) facts. When presented with a problem, they like to solve it. Ambiguity in engineering solutions isn’t good. Now take that logical thinking and try to apply it to a potential job search or job change. The decision to make a job change is partly an analytical, but mostly an emotional, decision.
So now you embark on a job search, whether by choice or force. Perhaps you get a call from a recruiter about an excellent opportunity, your employer presents another round of layoffs or your current work environment becomes undesirable. You update your resume (which should ALWAYS be current) and forward in the process you go.
You identify an opportunity and on paper think you’ve found a good match. You may even make it through the initial screening process and have an interview. Surprisingly to you, at some point in the process, it comes to a halt. You’re rejected. Whether by the internal recruiter/search consultant/hiring executive, you’re knocked out of the process.
While it’s important to hear why you’re not a good fit, you may not be given a solid, descriptive reason. This takes us back to the analytical thinker having to accept an ambiguous explanation. It’s not natural or comfortable. But, it is the situation. Whether you really wanted the job or not, it’s now not an option. And, to top it off, you’re not given a reasonable explanation for why you were turned down. In some cases, perhaps a successful project was overlooked or an aspect of your career history was misunderstood or miscommunicated. Regardless, trying to debate or overcome the objections that are raised rarely works to your benefit.
There are many factors that play into the decision that go beyond the “paper fit.” Some of these reasons may never be discussed. Are they reasonable, or even legal? Whether they are or not, they exist:
* Personality
* Age
* Physical dress/appearance
* Confidential “off-the-record” reference
* Inappropriate comment made that you didn’t realize was inappropriate
* Real skill set needed to succeed in job is not as described in the job description
* Your skill set is not as strong as you perceive it to be
* Stronger candidate comes along
* Job put on hold
* Perception in marketplace of your current Employer/Supervisor
Just remember that although your job search is very personal to you, the rejection isn’t personal, it’s just business. And, as with business, you pick yourself up and go on.
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
