layoff blues 11

[MesaMarshall]

Well it happend, our IT dept of 7 is now 2. I am not one of the two. I am having problems finding anything withen 70 miles of my home, and cant move because the wife has a stable job.

I have my MCSA, N+, A+, and Cisco Academy Certs, Spent two years as sole systems engineer of a 300 desktop and 300 phone company.

Indianapolis is only an hour and 15 minutes away, Champaign Urbana, IL is only 55 minutes away. Is it still that dry out there?

Thanks for the help, still trying to get over the shock of being let go.

-Mesa

-Mesa

 

[chiph]

I've been in your position (well, not the married with children part...) and it does take a few days for the shock to wear off.

But you should regard your new circumstances as starting a new job -- that of finding a job. Everyday you need to get up, put your work clothes on, and work on your resume and write some cover letters. Stop only for lunch, just like as if you'd been at work. Don't let anything distract you. Do household chores after you "come home from work", not during the day.

Once you've gotten your resume polished up, and set a few letters out, you need to work your contacts in the industry. More people find work by networking, than by cruising Monster.com

Good luck!
Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[unixtechie]

It completely, I believe, depends on your skill set. When I was laid off my job in March, I had 2 offers in the same month and turned them down. In the following month (April) I decided to try turning to a completely different area of work (because of my own desire to) but with no interviews in other areas outside of IT, in May I returned to searching within the field and had an offer in the first week.

Within the first week on my new job I had another offer of employment; in the first month there was another offer; both of which I turned down (regrettably now).

But within IT, and having worked for a Fortune 400 company and having over 8 years in IT, I really had no problem.

Again, I think it depends on skill set, time in IT (doing what you are looking for), education (I have an MSEd). And of course, an interview - which means being prepared (researching the company, etc), and showing what you can offer them. Many people may have been interviewed for the job, but can you offer them something else besides all the tech "stuff" everyone else probably has too?

 

[flapeyre]

Seven years ago, I was laid off (and just a week before we were supposed to go on vacation for a second honeymoon trip). The decision to lay off came from higher up in the company, with no warning to my superiors, who were shocked. That afternoon, my first stop was to a headhunter which my boss had recommended. I spent the next week doing interviews. We then went on our vacation (it was already paid for, and non-refundable, so we figured we might as well enjoy ourselves).

The week after that, while on vacation, we came back to our hotel room to find multiple messages from the headhunter. I had a job offer from the company I now work for (doing mostly help desk stuff, but it was for more money than I had been making previously, and I was just grateful to have any job at all. It worked out for me.

Put on your best suit, get your hair cut, update your resume, and go see a fee-paid agency (where the prospective employer pays the employment agency's fee). The best jobs are not found in the classifieds.


"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward, for here you have been, and there you will always long to return."

--Leonardo da Vinci

 

[JeanNiBee]

Headhunters..

It's the only way to go. They, usually, make money off of you so they pound the pavement on your behalf.

Just make sure they are marrying you to the right job. Some of them will stick you in any position not really caring if you'll be happy or not. Make sure YOU, interview the prospective job as much as they interview you.




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[/ignore] tags.

Ex:

SELECT 1 from sysobjects

 

[jancebk]

Mesa:

First thing - if you haven't done so already - is get yourself to the Unemployment Office and file for your benefits. I learned (THE HARD WAY) that unemployment benefits start from the date you file for them (at least in my state, Ohio) and not from the date your company laid you off.

Second thing - I've been laid off three times in my IT career. Each time it was a painful experience, but I always ended up better off in the long run. Treat this as an opportunity to better yourself and your family.

Remember - "when one door closes, another one opens..."

Good luck and keep us posted...

j

 

[lespaul]

Let me add my own lay off misery. I was let go right after the dot com bubble first started to implode and three weeks before Sept 11th. I thought I was never going to get another job! But like JanceBK says, I ended up better in the long run. But it took getting up everyday, searching the internet, sending out lots of resumes and not getting much response.

What helped was an interview I did with a State Agency, I impressed them, but I wasn't really qualified. When one of the interviewers asked if I would like her to circulate my resume in Santa Fe, I asked if instead, she would contact the head of another state agency that I had already applied for a position with in Albuquerque. She contacted him and I got the job. Later I asked him if it made a difference that I had the "recommendation" and he said, "Absolutely!".

Leslie

 

[MesaMarshall]

Unemployment office : check. been there, going to be a few weeks before some funds come.

The wife bought a fax machine from office max for 30 bucks. I never realized how helpful such a machine could be. It’s a new avenue of getting resumes out.

Stopped by the local library and got all the business indexes and copied them. Pumped a good 20 bucks into their copier. I feel like I am going to be a spammer, but hey, its okay in this situation ; - ).

Ah yes head hunters, I have heard of them but I am not sure who I need to contact to use them. Is there a category in google, or yahoo that will have a listing for these companies? What are these companies called?

Looking for one in the Champaign IL, Danville, IL, Terra Haute IN area

Thanks guys!!


-Mesa

 

[chiph]

I agree with flapeyre -

When interviewing, appearance really counts. Get a haircut, make sure the suit still fits, shine the shoes. Don't go overboard on the cologne or aftershave. Watch what you say on the elevator or when you think no one is around. Use the restroom when you get there (good place to find out what sort of office they run).

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[MDXer]

Like most everyone else I have been through Layoffs. I have found some headhunters to be very good while others just want to place you so they can collect their fee. My last job and my current job were both found using dice.com. I approached the job market with the attitude "I have to go where the work is." Currently I have a 5 day commute, and a fulltime offer possibly in the works. I have interviewed with other companies that would have made the commute a thing of the past but for some reason or other things don't work out.

"Shoot Me! Shoot Me NOW!!!"
- Daffy Duck

 

[chiph]

Mesa -
This was linked from Slashdot. Yeah, it sucks being laid off, but this fellow at least found something positive about it.

http://www.dvorkin.com/essays/unemben.htm

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[ANFPS26]

chiph, that's a good web site.

Jim

 

[CajunCenturion]

Well I’m gonna raise a fuss and I’m gonna raise a holler,
I’ve been working all summer just to try and ear a doller,
The boss called me in, said his wallet’s to thin,
So I’m gonna cut you off, and take care of my kin,
Sometimes I wonder what I’m gonna do,
But there ain’t no cure for the layoff blues.

Well, my ma and pa told me you got make some money,
If you wanna use the car to go a-riding next Sunday,
So I got my resume and a coat and tie,
But the HR guy said, “I’ve got my IT guy”
Sometimes I wonder what I’m gonna do,
But there ain’t no cure for the layoff blues.

Well I lost my time and my two weeks vacation,
Gonna take my problem to the United Nations,
I wrote my congressman and he said “Son,”
Move overseas and become an In-di-un"
Sometimes I wonder what I’m gonna do,
But there ain’t no cure for the layoff blues.


Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[GlenJohnson]

Different scenario here. I wasn't laid off, my job was eliminated, (Along with about 30 others, most of us had been wih the compnay 15 to 30 years). They had already laid off what they could without closing the place. My IT job was turned into running a cnc machine on second shift with a pay cut of 35%. Can't quit because of insurance and 401K. What I did, really started pushing my own computer businesss. Get side jobs paying 3 times more than what I originally made. Still looking for a good IT job where I can get back on days and spend time with my wife, but I'll be da**ed if I'm gonna let these people break me, and all of us who have been in this position should go for it. [joke]As for head hunters, hey gang, we're supposed to be IT. Ever heard of Monster.com or carreerbuilder.com?[/joke]

Glen A. Johnson
"Fall seven times, stand up eight."
Proverb

Want to get great answers to your Tek-Tips questions? Have a look at FAQ219-2884

 

[MesaMarshall]

I just finished my MCSE on Windows 2000!

So far I have an Associate degree, A+, N+, MCP, MCSA, MCSE.

All the job listings keep asking for a BA. This MCSE was hard to get, do you think that employers will see it as an equal achievement?

thanks for all the help,

Mesa, The Jobless

-Mesa

 

[GlenJohnson]

Problem is with all the brain dumps out there. Spend $8000 and you basically have bought a cert. They guarentee it, so you don't have to have knowledge, just the awnsers memorized. MCSE is hard, I'm still working on MCSA and I know what your dealing with. Employers want experience or a diploma. You'll make it, but it won't be easy. Good luck.

Glen A. Johnson
"Fall seven times, stand up eight."
Proverb

Want to get great answers to your Tek-Tips questions? Have a look at FAQ219-2884

 

[donttreadonme]

"This MCSE was hard to get, do you think that employers will see it as an equal achievement?"

NO!!!

 

[MesaMarshall]

Dont,
Have you earned a MCSE?
I take by your instructor status, that you probably value College Education over certification and experience?

Who would you view as more of an asset to your Windows Network, a cand with 6 years exp, and a BA from Phe-online of a Cand with 6yrs exp AAS, and MCSA, MCSE?



-Mesa

 

[CajunCenturion]

Your original question MesaMarshall is whether or not an MSCE is equivalent to a Bachelors Degree. They are not even close. The value of a BA/BS by far exceeds that of an MCSE, or any other certification for that matter.

The last question that you asked is comparing an BA from Phoenix On-Line with an AAS (issuer unknown) plus and MCSA and MCSE. Much different question, for many reasons, not the least of which is that you are bringing the issuing school into the mix. A BA from Phoenix should carry more weight than an AAS from an unknown issuer. On the other hand, a BA/BS from traditional university will outshine any bachelors degree from Phoenix. For the most part, certifications will carry some, but not much weight, when being compared against any formal degree programs.

An interesting question to ask would be - How much college credit will a institution grant you for having a certification?

Opinions will vary, but in the final analysis, most such comparisons are relatively moot, because the HR folks, or the IT Staff, will be comparing the qualifications against the job requirements, and keeping things commensurate with compensation levels.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[Newtt]

A great way to look at it is the company has to compensate you for your efforts to get qualified professional people. This could be 10 years in the field, MCSE or a masters.
In reality our industry used to be any one and his / her brother / sister could get a job in computers but that didn’t mean that they had any business doing so. Now we are seeing a steady progression to matching degrees as in any other white collar type prosition.
There are still many companies out there that stand firm on the point of experience and certs is just as valuable as college it just depends on where you go.
Try not to set your standards too high if you are just starting out. there is no time limit on furthuring your edgucation.
I took a 8000.00 pay cut to get in this field 8yrs ago after some school while driving a truck. now I make three times more and enjoy my carreer much more than I ever would've before

I only have an associates degree and no certs but I run a 900 PC platform as the head desktop administrator in a great company that aprieciates experience.
I am thinking of getting my BS or BA cause it never hurts

Good luck to you and it will all be fine