CAREER ADVICE COLUMN: They Say They’ll Train But ...

[Thursday, October 14, 2010 | View Comments ]

Hi Dorothy - I have applied to a few jobs that says will train for positions. And when go for the interview they don’t tell you not what they are looking for the in the applicant for that position. What can I do to change that when go for interviews? The only thing can think of is where I don't have much work experience. I need to get back into the work force. I'm currently going to college online working on getting my diploma in business administration. - T

Hi T,

I think there are a few things you can do in this situation.

It’s tremendous that you are finding jobs to apply for where they are training the applicant. You do, however, still need to understand the hiring criteria for the position. Even though a hiring manager may be training the hires doesn’t mean they don’t have hiring criteria or experience they are looking for.

The best example I can give is when I started up a call center, we knew we would have a heavy overhead of training the agents. We needed to train them on the software programs, phone equipment, content and procedures. In other words, we trained who we hired. Our hiring criterion was that the applicant had to have strong computer skills (because we didn’t want to train them on how to use a computer or adapt to new software) among other skills/experience they had to have. This means you still need to understand what the hiring criteria are. Most postings include that, so you need to truly pay attention to it and decide if you meet the criteria to begin with. In the event that it is a fairly cryptic posting and just has the job title and comment like “will train”, you need to do some homework to find out what the hiring criteria is. If you can, call the company and ask. If you can’t, go on the internet and research the job title to identify what skills, experience or education the job requires. It won’t be a perfect match to the hiring company but it should be enough to give you an idea of what they might be looking for. The best place is the Occupational Outlook – you can Google it. You can save yourself time and the deflation of being told you weren’t what they were looking for.

Let me add: any time you speak to someone about a job you need to make it a practice to ask them what they are looking for in an applicant. You need to know that going in and coming out of any discussion/interview/screening. You need feedback to help you know if pursuing a job is going to be worth your effort and afterward to get information about your qualifications as an applicant.

My last comment to you is about gathering work experience. It sounds like you are reentering the workforce and are light on the work experience. Until you have a job I suggest you volunteer. You can ask for volunteer work that will stretch you and give you an opportunity to learn some new skills. This is great resume builder work. For work you are pursuing, start anywhere because you can build on wherever you start. We’re coming into the holiday season so you might want to look at retail stores for work or any type of business driven by the holiday demands. Just as a place to get started. You should also consider speaking to temp agencies that can be a great way to get work experience particularly if your experience is light or has gaps.

Do you have a career question you want Dorothy to answer?

Email her at: dorothy@nextchapternewlife.com. She will answer all questions and will keep your name confidential if she publishes your question.

Guest Expert:

Dorothy Tannahill-Moran is a Career Coach and expert on helping her clients achieve their goals. Her programs cover: Career growth and enhancement, Career Change, Retirement Alternatives and Job Search Strategy. Want to discover specific career change strategies that get results? Discover how by claiming your FREE gift, Career Makeover Toolkit at: http://CareerMakeoverToolKitShouldIstayorShouldIGo.com/

Hi Dorothy - I have applied to a few jobs that says will train for positions. And when go for the interview they don’t tell you not what they are looking for the in the applicant for that position. What can I do to change that when go for interviews? The only thing can think of is where I don't have much work experience. I need to get back into the work force. I'm currently going to college online working on getting my diploma in business administration. - T

Hi T,

I think there are a few things you can do in this situation.

It’s tremendous that you are finding jobs to apply for where they are training the applicant. You do, however, still need to understand the hiring criteria for the position. Even though a hiring manager may be training the hires doesn’t mean they don’t have hiring criteria or experience they are looking for.

The best example I can give is when I started up a call center, we knew we would have a heavy overhead of training the agents. We needed to train them on the software programs, phone equipment, content and procedures. In other words, we trained who we hired. Our hiring criterion was that the applicant had to have strong computer skills (because we didn’t want to train them on how to use a computer or adapt to new software) among other skills/experience they had to have. This means you still need to understand what the hiring criteria are. Most postings include that, so you need to truly pay attention to it and decide if you meet the criteria to begin with. In the event that it is a fairly cryptic posting and just has the job title and comment like “will train”, you need to do some homework to find out what the hiring criteria is. If you can, call the company and ask. If you can’t, go on the internet and research the job title to identify what skills, experience or education the job requires. It won’t be a perfect match to the hiring company but it should be enough to give you an idea of what they might be looking for. The best place is the Occupational Outlook – you can Google it. You can save yourself time and the deflation of being told you weren’t what they were looking for.

Let me add: any time you speak to someone about a job you need to make it a practice to ask them what they are looking for in an applicant. You need to know that going in and coming out of any discussion/interview/screening. You need feedback to help you know if pursuing a job is going to be worth your effort and afterward to get information about your qualifications as an applicant.

My last comment to you is about gathering work experience. It sounds like you are reentering the workforce and are light on the work experience. Until you have a job I suggest you volunteer. You can ask for volunteer work that will stretch you and give you an opportunity to learn some new skills. This is great resume builder work. For work you are pursuing, start anywhere because you can build on wherever you start. We’re coming into the holiday season so you might want to look at retail stores for work or any type of business driven by the holiday demands. Just as a place to get started. You should also consider speaking to temp agencies that can be a great way to get work experience particularly if your experience is light or has gaps.

Do you have a career question you want Dorothy to answer?

Email her at: dorothy@nextchapternewlife.com. She will answer all questions and will keep your name confidential if she publishes your question.

Guest Expert:

Dorothy Tannahill-Moran is a Career Coach and expert on helping her clients achieve their goals. Her programs cover: Career growth and enhancement, Career Change, Retirement Alternatives and Job Search Strategy. Want to discover specific career change strategies that get results? Discover how by claiming your FREE gift, Career Makeover Toolkit at: http://CareerMakeoverToolKitShouldIstayorShouldIGo.com/

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