Dear SafetyXChange Members:

Sometimes the grass really is greener on the other side of the fence. If you're living in a place where there aren't a lot of good jobs available, you might be intrigued by what's going on in other parts of the country - like the South/Southeast U.S. or Alberta and British Columbia in Canada. A colleague of mine, Jeannette Kraar, CEO of Performance Management International in Coconut Grove, FL, suggests the following five-step strategy for scoping out and exploiting job opportunities in "foreign markets."

Step 1: Figure Out Who You Are & What You Want

Identify your specific area of expertise, transferable skills, preferred job functions and industry segments.

Step 2: Gather Data on the Job Market

Go online and search for industry associations, professional organizations and state websites that can provide you with current industry and workplace data, including economic and industry trends, cost of living data and salary surveys.

Use some of the larger job boards backwards. Instead of looking for a viable job posting, get some basic information. Search by using limited criteria that could include the targeted geographic area, industry and possibly salary requirements and see what appears. Where is the greatest need? What are the most sought-after skills? Is there an area with the greatest concentration of openings?

Step 3: Zero in on Companies

Using the data you've amassed about the job market and local economy, create a target company list that includes at least 50 potential organizations. Use websites like Hoover's, D&B, local business journals and industry associations to form your list.

Step 4: Form a Marketing Plan

Develop a marketing plan that includes a professional summary of your expertise, core competencies and value you bring to the general marketplace as well as to selected industries and the particular companies you've targeted.

Step 5: Spread the Word

Contact the companies on your target list and set up informational phone interviews. Engage an executive recruiter to help you. You might want to check out ExecuNet's member-to-member networking directory and websites such as LinkedIn to locate people who work in the areas/industries/companies of interest. Once you find these people, don't be shy about asking them for help. Perhaps they can provide you with inside information about the market or the target company and introduce you to key contacts.

Conclusion

Finding suitable employment is hard enough when you cast your net close to home. The challenge becomes that much greater when the place you want to work isn't the place where you currently live. But it's a big world and one full of opportunity. So if you're not in the place you need to be to achieve career growth and professional success, you need to give serious consideration to relocating. I hope the five steps outlined above will make that a less difficult process.

Wishing you career success in all markets,
Lauryn Franzoni
ExecuNet, www.execunet.com

RÉSUMÉ PADDING
8 Who Got Caught

By Glenn Demby

Everybody does it. Padding the résumé is a venerable part of the job search. It's a fact of life.

Right?

Maybe not so much.

At one time there was a certain wink-wink nudge-nudge attitude about  résumé padding. When I was in college, a guidance counselor once told me that if I didn't stretch the truth on my  résumé, I wasn't serious about getting a job.

But the culture is changing. Although there are still plenty of résumé padders out there (60% of respondents in a recent survey admitted to résumé padding), the practice of padding has been losing respectability. It may be that résumé padding has gotten riskier. After all, the Internet has made it a lot easier for recruiters and employers to sniff out lies.

But the media also has a lot to do with the change. In recent years, there have been a number of stories about high profile public figures who got caught padding their résumé. Here are eight of them:

1. Ronald Zarella: CEO, Bausch & Lomb

The Résumé: Said that he received an MBA from New York University in 1978.
The Truth: Zarella did, in fact, attend NYU business school. But he left without graduating.
Consequence: Zarella managed to hang on to his position but took a beating in the media.

2. Kenneth Lonchar: CFO, Veritas Software

The Résumé: Said he had an MBA from Stanford University and an accounting degree from Arizona State.
The Truth: Lonchar's only degree was an undergraduate degree from Idaho State University.
Consequence: Lonchar was forced to resign.

3. Jeffrey Papows: CEO, Lotus Development Corp.

The Résumé: Claimed he had a PhD from Pepperdine, held a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and that he was an orphan.
The Truth: He had a Master's and was a red belt. And his parents are alive and well and living in New England.
Consequence: Papows was excoriated in the press and resigned. He expressed regrets about fudging his résumé but claimed that this had nothing to do with his decision to resign.

4. Quincy Troupe: UCSD Professor, Author, Poet Laureate

The Résumé: Claimed he had a bachelor's degree from Grambling.
The Consequence: He had left Grambling to serve in the military before receiving his degree.
Consequence: Troupe resigned.

5. Sandra Baldwin: President, U.S. Olympic Committee

The Résumé: Said she had an undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado and a PhD from Arizona State University and that her dissertation was on Nathaniel Hawthorne.
The Truth: Baldwin spent two years at Colorado and transferred to Arizona State where she finished her degree. She was enrolled in the PhD program and was preparing a dissertation on Hawthorne. But she never completed it.
Consequence: Baldwin was forced to resign.

6. George O'Leary: Head Football Coach, Notre Dame University

The Résumé: Claimed he had a Master's in education at NYU and that he earned three letters as a standout football player at the University of New Hampshire.
The Truth: O'Leary attended NYU but didn't complete his degree. And although he did go to UNH, he never played a single football game there.
Consequence: The lies in O'Leary's résumé became public right after O'Leary accepted the job as head football coach at Notre Dame. O'Leary had to resign five days into the job. But he rebounded, taking a job as an assistant coach in the NFL. Today, O'Leary is head coach at the University of Central Florida.

7. Lt. Colonel Joseph Cafasso: Military Affairs Commentator, Fox News

The Résumé: Described Cafasso as a war hero and said that he had earned the Silver Star for bravery, served in Vietnam and participated in the failed 1980 mission to rescue the hostages in Iran.
The Truth: The extent of Private First Class Cafasso's military service: 44 days of basic training in 1976.
Consequence: Cafasso and Fox News took a beating in the press but Cafasso kept his job

8. Michael Brown: Head, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

The Résumé: Said that Brown had overseen the emergency services division of the City of Edmond, OK, from 1977 to 1980.
The Truth: Brown served as an assistant to the city manager, essentially an intern position.
Consequence: Brown's résumé discrepancies and lack of emergency response experience came to light after what was widely regarded as FEMA's dismal performance in responding to Hurricane Katrina. He was forced to resign when the President withdrew his support. Today, Brown claims that the stories about his résumé padding are untrue and blames the inadequacy of FEMA's Katrina response on the Department of Homeland Security.

* * * * *

EDITOR'S NOTE

I'm aware that some members of SafetyXChange regard my criticism of FEMA as unfair and politically motivated. I disagree. But if any of you would like to respond to this or any other aspect of this story on résumé padding, please send your notes to me, glennd@bongarde.com. Don't send them to Lauryn. She didn't write the story.

Glenn Demby
Editor-in-Chief
SafetyXChange

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