Leading Women with International Careers - Gill Meller Viewpoint careers advice blog

Leading Women with International Careers - Gill Meller This is the third feature from our series “Leading Women with International Careers”. In this interview, Gill Meller, Legal Director at MTR, based in Hong Kong, shares her experience of moving internationally and describes how being globally mobile has benefitted her career. Gill Meller, Legal Director at MTR What was your route to Hong Kong? I spent six months in Hong Kong when I was training to be a solicitor, many years ago, and always hankered after coming back. Before Hong Kong I was in private practice in the UK but spent some time working in India and in the Middle East, and also some time on secondment in the UK with a company associated with the partial privatisation of the London Underground system. I suppose therefore you could say it was trains that brought me out here… What’s your role now? I am MTR’s Legal Director Secretary, which is a role on the Executive Team. My responsibilities include all legal issues faced by the Corporation, looking after the Board of Directors and company secretarial issues, insurance matters, enterprise risk management, corporate responsibility and sustainability and procurement and contract management â€" which encompasses the procurement of everything from paper clips to multi-billion dollar construction contracts. I manage a team of around 350 people across these different disciplines. How has moving internationally impacted your career? It has certainly made it more challenging â€" from a work and a personal perspective â€" but has also provided many more opportunities. I honestly don’t think I would be in the role I’m in now if I had stayed in the UK, but thanks to a couple of lucky breaks and because I was here on the ground in Hong Kong, MTR was prepared to give me the opportunity not only to run the legal team but also to get involved in a number of different areas of work. It’s easy to generalise, but my sense is that you don’t need to stop on every rung of the ladder when you’re overseas or globally mobile â€" opportunities come up and, if you’re prepared to take them, you can skip a few steps along the way. I also think that, in our ever shrinking world, businesses have to be increasing global in outlook and so it helps to have experience in different jurisdictions. Understanding the culture of another country and the way that business is done there can help provide insight into managing a more global business and addressing the associated challenges and, in turn, make you a more valuable commodity. You’ve worked in a number of different countries, what were the highlights? There have been many â€" singing on stage in Cantonese in front of 1,700 people (some people may have considered this to be a lowlight!), having prayers mid-meeting, dragon boating, climbing over a cow to get into the office, being offered chicken’s feet for lunch, hanging out on the 100th floor of the tallest building in Hong Kong before the windows were put in, having to climb onto the roof through the ceiling of the Chairman’s toilet to use a satellite phone. These were not all in my current role, I should hasten to add! What did you do to prepare for your relocation? Some research, both professional and personal â€" people who live away from home tend to be very generous to others making that move and so asking around to get names and numbers/email addresses of contacts in your new location can be invaluable â€" some of my closest friends now are people I met when I first arrived here. Also, research on your hobbies â€" playing a sport or undertaking some other activity is a great way to meet people, so try and find out how to get involved. Financial research is equally important â€" expat life can be expensive and you don’t want to arrive in a new city or country and find that you can’t afford to experience the place and enjoy yourself when you get there. What were the main challenges you faced when relocating? There are always days when you question what you’re doing 6,000 miles away from your family and friends at home, but it’s so easy to keep in touch these days that those relationships can be maintained. At work, as with any new role, it’s about understanding the culture and how to get things done, which can be affected not only by the company that you are working for, but also by the country or state. You have to learn what works and what doesn’t. If you were to move again, where would you like to go? In terms of a legal role, I am a little bit limited by the type of law that is practiced in a particular country or state, but there are lots of places that I would consider â€" the US maybe? What is your career plan from here? I’ve only been the Legal Director here at MTR since 2011 and so ideally a few more years in this role and then we’ll see. I’m a big believer in corporate responsibility â€" from a strategic perspective â€" and so this is an area that I might like to pursue. Do you have any advice for anyone thinking about mobilising their own career? Go for it! When I left the UK for Hong Kong, someone told me to have a fabulous time and that, as soon as it stopped being fabulous, I could go home, and it was one of the wisest â€" and most comforting â€" pieces of advice I received. If you’re exploring the possibility of making an international career move, read my recent article  â€˜Move yourself’  for further advice and guidance. Our previous Leading Women with International Careers articles: QA with Jill Von Berg, CIO at Calix in San Francisco   QA with Jessica Spence, VP Commercial at Carlsberg in Hong Kong //

Proof Job Seekers Dont Get Social

Confirmation Job Seekers Dont Get Social Jobvite has discharged their most up to date study, Social Job Seeker 2012, which studies how work searchers utilize informal organizations. What the examination calls attention to me is that there is still much more these activity searchers can do to expert effectively search for new work. The move in how organizations enlist individuals (basically through referrals) doesnt coordinate the moves or practices made by work searchers. 69 Percent Jobvites study reports 69% of utilized Americans are looking for or possibly open to a new position. They call them work searchers thus will I. (The investigation reports 75% of the workforce (utilized and jobless) are looking for new chances.) 9% are utilized and effectively looking for a new position 60% are utilized and open to a new position Leave this alone an admonition to all organizations! Your representatives need to leave you! It is Harder to Find A Job When 61% state it is more enthusiastically to get a new line of work this year than a year ago, shouldnt that mean they have to attempt new strategies and methodologies? On the off chance that you keep on doing what youve consistently done, wont you keep on getting similar outcomes? Social Profiles Dont Equal Use 85% of work searchers have a Facebook profile 44% of occupation searchers have a LinkedIn profile 51% of occupation searchers have a Twitter profile Simply having a profile isnt going to be sufficient. The genuine estimation of person to person communication is the capacity to associate with individuals. This is perhaps the biggest misinterpretation If I put it out there, they will discover me! While that CAN occur, the genuine estimation of interpersonal organizations happens when you interface with individuals, dig your system for important industry information and patterns (not work postings), and request counsel and data. What Actions Do Job Seekers Take On Social Networks? Would you be able to call things one through four vocation exercises? These are receptive quest for new employment activities. No big surprise those met for the examination thought that it was more enthusiastically today to discover a job. They are taking part in the most serious, blocked, and less beneficial exercises. Refreshed profile with proficient data Given your own profile on an employment form or during a meeting Changed security settings in light of work Scanned for occupations Investigated an expected manager previously/during application process. Associated with a likely business Had contact with a scout None of these Indeed, the none of these reactions were very high over each of the three informal communities: 48% on Facebook, 62% on LinkedIn, and 66% on Twitter. In my brain, this shows they are passing up on chances to interface with expected bosses and not so much clients of informal communities, however takers! Facebook Faux Pas More occupation searchers are finding a way to professionalize their Facebook accounts by refreshing proficient experience. That is the one zone of progress. 51% of occupation searchers are NOT utilizing Facebook for vocation gain. At the end of the day, they didn't do any of these things: I made new expert associations I approached a contact for help with a pursuit of employment/profession counsel I imparted an opening for work to a contact A contact shared an opening for work A contact alluded me for an occupation A contact gave a worker's point of view on an organization They searched for posted employments. What's more, I think that its odd that while 20% detailed getting an occupation lead from somebody on Facebook, just 12% announced sharing employment drives themselves. They more likely than not missed the provide for get message. Freely LinkedIn 62% of employment searchers with LinkedIn accounts are NOT utilizing it for profession gain. I don't know why they are on the system by any stretch of the imagination? I would be intrigued to know how and what they are utilizing LinkedIn for on the off chance that they are not kidding about progressing to a new position. Twitter Trouble 65% detailed they didn't utilize Twitter proactively. While they received referrals and employment leads, just 7% shared leads themselves. The uplifting news here is that 11% of Twitter clients announced requesting knowledge on an organization. Whoopee! Interpersonal organizations Are There are sure procedures incredible advertisers use to construct brand mindfulness and advance their item across interpersonal organizations. It would profit all activity searchers to figure out how to utilize these methodologies to improve how they are utilizing the intensity of interpersonal organizations. Here are a portion of the better acts of organizations on informal communities: Participate in conversation with likely client, customers, bosses Pull, dont push your message. Make significant substance and attract your clients to you. (This implies more than refreshing a profile) Provide for get. As it were, help other people more than you advance yourself. Reveal the requirements and needs of likely clients, customers, bosses and build up a battle to contact them. Follow extraordinary scholars inside likely organizations. Assemble a clan! Band together with associations and individuals who have confidence in you and will help disseminate your message. Methodicallly and deliberately develop your system with individuals who can help. Request guidance and help! Be real yet dont be profane. In the event that you view yourself as a business of one, these activities should bode well. Assuming, be that as it may, you see yourself as only a worker searching for an occupation, well, youll be at this quite a while.

#71 - A Day In The Life Of An IT Solutions Architect - Larry Gioia

#71 - A Day In The Life Of An IT Solutions Architect - Larry Gioia The Career Insider Podcast Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | TuneIn | RSSForEpisode 71of The CareerMetis Podcast, we will learn about:A Day in the Life of an IT Solutions Architect-Larry Gioia.Episode Summary â€" Larry Gioiaevaleval1. Larry commences the meeting clarifying his job, what consultancy is, and that the title of IT Solutions Architect descends to.2. He clarifies the different ventures wherein planners are found, and the job they play inside their field. He additionally portrays the perfect degrees that would do well inside the job of an arrangements architect.3. He separates a day in his profession, and clarifies that relying upon the customer, or occupation, things can vary a lot, however generally speaking there is a procedure that he follows so as to accomplish the objectives his customers set out.4. Larry plainly adores his work, and seizes the chance to enlighten Nissar regarding a portion of the things he appreciates most: The test arou nd the different occupations he gets the chance to do in this job, just as the assortment of work he gets the opportunity to encounter goes to the front line immediately.5. Larry likewise adores the way that he gets the opportunity to work with truly brilliant individuals, and be on the forefront of new innovations each day.6.Nissar gets some information about the difficulties inside the job of an arrangements modeler, and Larry is glad to level with him on a portion of the less agreeable perspectives. He needs to manage a ton of tight spots inside his job, and critical thinking is a basic ability so as to keep his customers cheerful and moving forward.7. He likewise clarifies that he voyages and it tends to be hard for certain individuals to appropriately adjust the requests of their activity and their life outside of work.eval8. Larry likewise discusses the different entry level positions that are accessible, and why it tends to be an extraordinary thought to investigate and figur e out the different jobs and organizations out there.9. He clarifies a portion of the affirmation forms required to carry out the responsibility, and furthermore portrays the potential headings somebody could take their profession way innovation, designing and architecture.QuotesWe're all basically specialists somehow or another, shape or formI do a ton of everything, and have taken in a ton in the process over the yearsIt's an extraordinary fit for somebody coming out of a specialized building degreeevalCommunication isn't only a single direction streetAt the day's end, it's about who you work withexplore what's out there in light of the fact that there are numerous facetsIt's not about who you know. It's about who you realize who knows who you have to knowLinks ResourcesTo become familiar with Larry Gioia, you can associate with him on Twitter or LinkedIn.Intro Music gave politeness ofAccelerated Ideas(www.accelerated-ideas.com). Soundtrack â€" Siren KickbackEnding Music gave civi lity ofAccelerated Ideas(www.accelerated-ideas.com). Soundtrack â€" No Need to Rush

What Happens After You Apply to That Position Posted on LinkedIn -

What Happens After You Apply to That Position Posted on LinkedIn - Do you ever think about what occurs after you apply to the position you saw posted on LinkedIn? I as of late posted a situation for another customer administrations chief on LinkedIn. I thought I'd share with you what I got as a business so when you're applying to positions on LinkedIn you know precisely what data LinkedIn is giving to the business. I trust that this will assist you with changing how you apply, update your profile and benefit as much as possible from your pursuit of employment technique! At the point when you apply you're added to the selection representative's up-and-comer database alongside every other person who has applied and an email is sent to the business cautioning them that a competitor has applied to their position. In that email the business gets a depiction of your profile data. What is remembered for the profile depiction the business gets? At the highest point of the email this is what the business sees: Your headshot Important aptitudes Association degree Area The 2 pertinent aptitudes feature in blue or purple is interactive and connections to the competitor's application. The aptitudes allude to supported abilities on your profile that coordinate the particular abilities the business remembered for the position posting. As a major aspect of the set of working responsibilities LinkedIn requests that businesses list the top abilities for the position then LinkedIn alarms the business with respect to what number of the competitor has that are a match. Supported abilities on your profile are significant in case you will go after positions on LinkedIn. Underneath the top segment LinkedIn incorporates your present understanding, past experience and business dates. It would seem that this: Current Experience (Employment Title) at (Company Name), Start Date â€" End Date Official Resume Writer at Great Resumes Fast â€" 2008 to 2018 How might you get the business to choose you're a fit or require significant investment an opportunity to survey your resume, full application or LinkedIn profile in the event that they just get your activity title? As indicated by Andy Foote in his article on LinkedInInsights.com there is a 100-character most extreme in the position title field. My recommendation is to augment that space and give the business a speedy look into your image and ROI. I love what my partner Marie Zimenoff does on her LinkedIn profile in her present position title: Doesn't it give you an incredible image of the worth she offers her optimal customers? How about we apply that to your intended interest group â€" bosses. Would you be able to thought of a concise method to feature the worth you can offer businesses and fuse that into your position titles on LinkedIn? This is a phenomenal and vital approach to utilize the data managers will peruse in the depiction before they make a fit/no fit choice. I suggest including a worth added proclamation/ROI articulation to each position title in your LinkedIn profile. Every one of the application messages I got contained a maximum of 14 lines of data on the candidate's present understanding, past experience, features and instruction. I was unable to advise a justifiable purpose to what number of positions or lines of content they chose to remember for each segment. For example, a few candidates had 8+ past positions recorded yet LinkedIn decided to just incorporate the initial 5. For other people, they may have had 8 lines of substance in the present experience segment however LinkedIn just incorporated the initial 4 lines. The latest positions are recorded first and afterward go backward sequential request. Conceivably my preferred piece of the applicant depiction email is the segment called Highlight. The Highlight segment advises bosses if the competitor is associated with any individual who presently works for the organization, any individual who is associated with them, or on the off chance that they've recruited anybody already from your institute of matriculation. It would appear that this:The boss can click a connection in the email to see your full application or go to their dashboard to audit all the candidates. From the competitor dashboard the business can see a similar preview data of the considerable number of up-and-comers yet with some additional data. On the applicant dashboard the business can stamp a competitor as a solid match, not a fit, message them, snap to survey their resume, or offer the profile with another person for their audit and input (by choosing the three dabs obvious in the screen capture). In case you're set apart as a solid match it moves your application to another segment of the dashboard where the business can get in touch with you through their Recruiter Inbox, track their contact with you and any messages traded, and archive how you're advancing through the meeting and choice procedure. It's in reality exceptionally smoothed out and natural. Here are my tips to expand your odds of being chosen as a Solid match: Begin looking for supports for abilities that coordinate the sorts of positions you're focusing on. Assemble your system now and interface with other people who are utilized with organizations that you need to target. In case you're as of now associated with somebody who works at an organization you're applying to, contact them for an enlightening meeting and, if that works out positively for you, think about requesting a referral or suggestion to the business. Augment the character include in your position titles to incorporate how you include esteem and convey ROI. In the event that age segregation is a worry for you know that graduation dates are remembered for the instruction area of the preview. Business dates are remembered for the present understanding and past experience areas so in the event that you've work jumped or you have business holes it will appear. Limit this by searching out referrals, utilizing your position titles to feature ROI. Continuously connect your resume to your application. It's overly simple for the business to tap resume and view your resume which will give the business MUCH more insight regarding your profession history, achievements and individual brand. You NEED to incorporate this with your application. Alright people, that is your off camera look into what the business sees when you apply by means of LinkedIn. I trust this data encourages you as you seek after your next extraordinary profession move. On the off chance that you discovered this article valuable, if you don't mind like and offer so others can benefit from outside intervention as well! On the off chance that composing your resume or LinkedIn profile is making pressure and occupying a lot of time, survey these expertly composed resume tests or discover increasingly about working with an official resume author