Happy Thanksgiving one and all!
With most of us getting caught up in turkey and football on Thanksgiving day, it's easy for us to forget the original purpose of the holiday...to express thanks for what we're grateful for! For the Pilgrims...it was that they actually were able to produce food to eat!
For me....I'm grateful for a lot of things....my family, my friends, my good health...but when I think about work what I'm most appreciative of us my team members. I'm surrounded by passionate, hardworking people who do what it takes to get the job done both in and outside of my department.
In my own department, I work with 7 other people that impress me on a daily basis.
So thank you for all you do: Adina, Adrian, Angela, AnnMarie, Elde, Melissa, and Sylvia! You all make coming to work an enjoyable and fun experience every day.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Moving Into Management
On November 6th, I was a member of a panel discussion hosted by the Environmental Business Council's Young Professionals committee. The topic, "Moving from Analyst, Scientist, and Engineer to Project Manager" proved a lively discussion between the panel and the more than 75 young environmental professionals and college students.
The audience was most interested in what it takes to get into management. Consensus among the panel was that while technical skills are important, it is soft skills, like motivation, drive, and emotional intelligence that matter most.
They key to moving into management is to stand out from the crowd! And how do you that? Incorporate the following in to the way you approach your work...
The audience was most interested in what it takes to get into management. Consensus among the panel was that while technical skills are important, it is soft skills, like motivation, drive, and emotional intelligence that matter most.
They key to moving into management is to stand out from the crowd! And how do you that? Incorporate the following in to the way you approach your work...
- Work hard...show up early, stay late, meet deadlines and crank out the work!
- Show interest...in responsibilities and projects outside the scope of your job, in the growth of your team, and in the company's values, mission, and strategy.
- Network internally...build relationships with people outisde your department, particularly company leadership.
- Get involved...join committees, attend events.
- Find a mentor...latch on to a company manager, seek their wisdom and coaching.
- Own something...find a project or task to take the lead on.
- Admit mistakes & weaknesses...own up to your mix-ups, nobody's perfect and mistakes happen. Recognize that you have things to work on...and start working on them!
So many things factor into management decisions, but making these considerations a part of the way you work will go a long way in helping you stand out to the company's leadership.
Monday, September 22, 2008
You Have Transferrable Skills!
October 18th was Massachusetts Career Day. Career Day is a statewide program drawing attention to issues surrounding jobs and careers in the state. The initiative is hosted through the Commonwealth's 32 One-Stop Career Centers. While many of the One-Stops chose to focus on careers in administrative, retail, or hospitality work, The Work Place (www.theworkplace.org), one of Boston's public career centers, chose to focuse on Green Collar Jobs and the Green Economy.
I was asked to participate in a panel discussion that addressed the state of the job market today in the environmental industry. Many questions came up from the eager audience of job seekers, but one question came out repeatedly...."if I have so much experience in _________, how the heck do I break into the environmental industry?"
It's a fair question! Many jobs out there are seeking individuals with varying amounts of experience...and understandably so. If I'm seeking to higher an environmental consultant to provide regulatory advice to a client, that person will need a certain amount of expertise to be taken seriously by the client. Other jobs are entry level, but entry level sometimes means starting over for people with several years of professional experience.
But if working in the 'green economy' is what's most important to you, you can rely on abilities you already bring to the table: TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS! Yes, those skills that are not limited to specific tasks in specific types of companies, but are sought after in all types of companies, including the Environmental industry. Qualities like technology proficiency, expertise in functions such as HR, Finance, Marketing, or Administrative Support, sales and relationship building experience, emotional intelligence, and soft skills are all in high demand by all employers!
Take a look at our online Career Center, www.triumvirate.com/careers.html, and you'll find positions available in many function areas, sales, administration, and general labor and transportation....all with no requirement for environmental experience. You don't have to be advising on environmental compliance or managing hazardous waste to be working in the environmental industry! Rely on the skills that you already have to fulfill your dreams of working in an environmentally-focused company!
I was asked to participate in a panel discussion that addressed the state of the job market today in the environmental industry. Many questions came up from the eager audience of job seekers, but one question came out repeatedly...."if I have so much experience in _________, how the heck do I break into the environmental industry?"
It's a fair question! Many jobs out there are seeking individuals with varying amounts of experience...and understandably so. If I'm seeking to higher an environmental consultant to provide regulatory advice to a client, that person will need a certain amount of expertise to be taken seriously by the client. Other jobs are entry level, but entry level sometimes means starting over for people with several years of professional experience.
But if working in the 'green economy' is what's most important to you, you can rely on abilities you already bring to the table: TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS! Yes, those skills that are not limited to specific tasks in specific types of companies, but are sought after in all types of companies, including the Environmental industry. Qualities like technology proficiency, expertise in functions such as HR, Finance, Marketing, or Administrative Support, sales and relationship building experience, emotional intelligence, and soft skills are all in high demand by all employers!
Take a look at our online Career Center, www.triumvirate.com/careers.html, and you'll find positions available in many function areas, sales, administration, and general labor and transportation....all with no requirement for environmental experience. You don't have to be advising on environmental compliance or managing hazardous waste to be working in the environmental industry! Rely on the skills that you already have to fulfill your dreams of working in an environmentally-focused company!
Friday, September 19, 2008
Triumvirate Named Best Place to Work by Environmental Business Council
On Friday, September 19th, the Environmental Business Council of New England (http://www.ebcne.org/) named Triumvirate Environmental the BEST large environmental company to work for in New England. This is the second year in a row that the EBC has bestowed this award upon Triumvirate.
This was the second annual Best Places to Work program sponsored by the EBC. The organization issues surveys to its member organization's employees. The awards are presented based on survey results and are given to the top scoring company in four size categories: entrepreneurial, small, mid, and large size.
The EBC also recognized Triumvirate as an Outstanding Corporate Partner to the organization, whose mission is to "support and foster the development of the environmental industry" with a major goal "to enhance business and job growth of both established and emerging environmental and energy businesses".
To learn more about the EBC, check out their site http://www.ebcne.org/ or find them on Facebook.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Happy Labor Day!
Labor Day is a national holiday, giving American workers a day of respite from their usually busy schedules! It comes every year on the first Monday in September.
The holiday came from the American labor movement, and according to the U.S. Department of Labor it is a "national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country".
You can read more about the history of Labor Day at the U.S. Dept. of Labor's website: http://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm.
Enjoy your day off! You deserve it!
The holiday came from the American labor movement, and according to the U.S. Department of Labor it is a "national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country".
You can read more about the history of Labor Day at the U.S. Dept. of Labor's website: http://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm.
Enjoy your day off! You deserve it!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Monster.com Doesn't Go Green!
Most people have heard of Monster.com, it is arguably the most widely used job search engine out there. But if you're an environmental job seeker, looking for jobs on Monster has become a lot more difficult. Earlier this year, Monster fixed something that wasn't broken, and restructured their job search categories. The result? Monster eliminated it's Environmental category altogether! Instead, it dispersed hundreds of environmental jobs, burying them into one or two functional areas that are too specific for your "average" environmental job seeker, leaving said job seekers frustrated while browsing for career opportunities. This has forced companies like Triumvirate to post in less-than-relevant categories that environmental job seekers would not intuitively search in. For example, we were advised by our sales representative to post in the "Engineering" section. While our firm does do some engineering, none of our open positions are in this area...and unless you're an environmental engineer, you would'nt even be looking in that area!
While the world looks for ways to get greener and more job seekers than ever are pursuing careers in these fields, Monster has taken a step in the opposite direction. So what's a job seeker to do? My best advice is to voice your concerns to Monster.com. We're working on joining with other environmental companies to do just that. Hopefully we'll see changes soon, meanwhile use sites like CareerBuilder, which does have an Environmental industry option, and Indeed to find the careers you're seeking.
While the world looks for ways to get greener and more job seekers than ever are pursuing careers in these fields, Monster has taken a step in the opposite direction. So what's a job seeker to do? My best advice is to voice your concerns to Monster.com. We're working on joining with other environmental companies to do just that. Hopefully we'll see changes soon, meanwhile use sites like CareerBuilder, which does have an Environmental industry option, and Indeed to find the careers you're seeking.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Job Search Tip: Careful Applying for Positions That Don't Exist!
When you're applying for a position, your are often competing against lots of job seekers applying for the same job. You need to make sure that you put your best foot forward! One of the most frequent slip-ups in this process is applying for a position that doesn't exist at the company!
We get TONS of resumes and cover letters where the job seeker applies for a job title that doesn't even exist at the company! We get many responses for our Environmental Specialist position where the job seeker lists the position as an "Environmental Scientist". Or, if we're hiring a Marketing Specialist, some job seekers will list Marketing Assistant or Marketing Coordinator.
This can show one of two things....you are either a) not taking the time to personalize your response to the company and may be using the same cover letter you used to apply to XYZ Corporation...or b) you're not paying attention!
I'm not saying we won't look at the resumes, but if we have a lot of interest in a particular position, those who show that they've taken the time to get things right in their resume submission will stand out against those who didn't.
We get TONS of resumes and cover letters where the job seeker applies for a job title that doesn't even exist at the company! We get many responses for our Environmental Specialist position where the job seeker lists the position as an "Environmental Scientist". Or, if we're hiring a Marketing Specialist, some job seekers will list Marketing Assistant or Marketing Coordinator.
This can show one of two things....you are either a) not taking the time to personalize your response to the company and may be using the same cover letter you used to apply to XYZ Corporation...or b) you're not paying attention!
I'm not saying we won't look at the resumes, but if we have a lot of interest in a particular position, those who show that they've taken the time to get things right in their resume submission will stand out against those who didn't.
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