Gateway is a new project which creates  a platform for experienced professionals to share their wisdom with enthusiastic young graduates.

Did you know?

• 14% of post-secondary educated youth were unemployed in 2010

• Only 67% of university graduates from the 2007 class were remaining on PEI in 2009
• By 2020 more people will be exiting the workforce then entering it

A series of events and workshops will offer employers new strategies in attraction, retention, and best practices in next generation friendly businesses.   In conjunction, 20 post-secondary educated youth will learn about the local labour market, professionalism in the workplace, and what it takes to reach their career goals.

Please click here for more information.

Do you have a degree or diploma?
Still unemployed? In a job that has nothing to do with your education?

You are not alone!

Join gateway – a group of young educated people just like you.  10 events/workshops that will help you get connected to local employers.     Earn career experience credits which will help you get your foot in the door.

• 7 out of 10 participants from the previous pilot project are now employed!

Come to the info session to learn more… free coffee and muffins… just sayin.

• Wednesday January 25th @ 10am – 160 Belvedere Ave
• Wednesday February 1st @ 10am – 160 Belvedere Ave

Contact me any time.
Kinza Baker
kbaker@cdspei.ca
628-3551

CBC Radio Wednesday January 5, 2011

Youth Employment

Photo by Flickr User: Valeblos

The percentage of young people working or looking for work is at its lowest level in more than a decade. Some say that’s a reflection of an extremely tough job market for young people. But others say it has more to do with young people’s changing expectations when it comes to work. We talk to Sean Lyons, about his new study looking at generational differences when it comes to career paths, expectations and attitudes. And we also talk to two 20-somethings about their experience job hunting.

Click here to listen:     

CBC Radio The Current  “Shift – Youth Employment”

http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/shift/2011/01/05/youth-employment-1/

Cesar Ulloa is a Senior Staffing Manager in the Accounting & Finance Contracts division at Winter, Wyman, the largest and one of the most recognized staffing organizations in the Northeast. Find out more on the Winter, Wyman blog or follow on Twitter @WinterWyman.

Finding a job during the holiday season may be easier than you think! Bust the holiday job-search myths, and find your next job.

Do you have a tip for job hunting during the winter months? Tell us in the comments below.

Holiday Job Search Myths

Nobody hires in December.
December is typically a busy time of the year for hiring. Several industries, such as retail, bring on temporary employees to help with everything from payroll to filing.

The budgets for jobs are exhausted.
Several companies review their budgets not only for the year ahead but also for the remainder of the year, and may find a surplus. Also, not all companies work on a calendar year. Some fiscal years have already begun back in October.

Nothing ever happens between Thanksgiving and the third week of January.
Some of the busiest weeks are between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Many companies are preparing for the approaching year and these hiring decisions usually get made before the start of the New Year.

Use December to plan your search and be ready to hit the market after the first of the year.
The holidays are a more relaxed time of the year, and job seekers should take advantage of that. Hiring managers are in a festive mood and job seekers should be very proactive in their approach. If other job seekers believe in the myth that the holidays are slow for hiring, then you could be at more of an advantage with less competition.

Even if an employer may have an opening, many hiring managers are tied up with budgets, deadlines and family obligations, and they are difficult to get a hold of.
Temporary jobs are not only a great option in the workforce, but a great employment option and usually don’t require multiple interviews so decisions can be made quickly. They usually don’t require the decision of several hiring managers.

Job Search Tips During the December Holidays

Go to holiday networking events.
This is a great way to meet people who are in the holiday spirit. Again, the holidays are a time for cheer, so why not get out in an environment where decision makers are in a festive mood.

Send holiday cards with your business card enclosed to hiring managers.
This is a great opportunity to reach out to hiring managers, and even if you think your card may get lost in the holiday shuffle, you never know the impact it could make.

Network at your family parties.
It’s a small world, and you never know who your brother, cousin or mother knows in your industry. A personal connection to a possible job opportunity, recruiter or hiring manager is a great way to get your foot in the door.

Finding a job during the holiday season may be easier than you think! Bust the holiday job-search myths, and find your next job.

Do you have a tip for job hunting during the winter months? Tell us in the comments below.

Find Out How “In Demand” You Are in The Job Market With Identified

November 16, 2011 by Veena Bissram 23

Name:Identified

Quick Pitch: Identified is a professional marketplace that helps users improve their professional marketability.

Genius Idea: Provides users with real-time, interactive feedback on how companies evaluate your professional information online.

What do companies find when they search for you? Do they like what they find?

People naturally want to know what companies think about them and how they compare to other professionals in the job market. The problem is most resume databases and job sites don’t provide any feedback or responses.

Identified, an online professional marketplace, fixes that problem by providing a link between professionals and companies and letting people know how “in demand” they are in the current job market.

As companies search for professionals on Identified, the staff analyzes the search results from more than 60,000 of these companies to find out important data – which professionals are they searching for? From which universities are the professionals they’re clicking on from? Who are they messaging? Are they hiring professionals with specific career experiences?

Identified finds out, for example, if law firms are mostly searching for Harvard University graduates or if Internet companies are primarily searching for professionals who worked at Google. The results are delivered to professionals in the form of a score, which helps them learn about the skills and career experiences that are in demand right now for those companies.

“We realized that there is no channel of communication between companies and users,” says Brendan Wallace, CEO and co-founder of Identified. “Identified helps companies make better recruiting decisions while also helping professionals make better career choices so they can get the jobs they want.”

The professional marketplace links to your Facebook account as a starting point to generate a free score based on your education background, work history and network. The more information you add in these three areas, the higher your score increases. If your score happens to be low, Identified provides tips on how to add more information, such as college major and GPA, to be more marketable to companies.

How Identified scores are calculatedIdentified shows users in real-time how attractive they are to companies. The score provides a reference check and measurement of what and who companies are searching for.

For example, Google has an Identified score of 100. Google’s Identified page displays graphics that show statistics about the company’s employees, including most common universities, majors, and job titles, and information about recent hires. If professionals want to work at Google, this information will help them understand what is takes to land a job at the company.

Most common majors and job titles of Google’s employees“People should know exactly what will get them to the career path they want to be on,” says Wallace. “Instead of making career choices on limited information, Identified provides users with all the data that helps them make better decisions to plan out their careers.”

If you’re wondering why Identified extracts users’ information from their Facebook accounts instead of LinkedIn, here’s why:

• Age: 44 is the average age for LinkedIn users, while Facebook’s is 24. Identified aims to target the sub-30s generation.
• Size: Facebook has nearly 700 million more users than LinkedIn.
• Engagement: Facebook users update their user information more often; most LinkedIn users are unsure of what to do after they fill out their career profile.

Identified was inspired by a personal experience from Brendan Wallace, the startup’s CEO. Although Wallace was always an aspiring entrepreneur, he did not know enough information on how to follow that career path. After graduating from Princeton University, he settled for a conventional career in investment banking. He ended up quitting his job to follow his dream as an entrepreneur, and started Identified in 2010 with his former classmates to help people reach their maximum potential in life.

The professional marketplace has raised $5.5 million to date from notable investors, including Eric Schmidt, Google Chairman and former CEO; Bill Draper, founder of Sutter Hill Ventures & Draper Richards; and Tim Draper, founder of Draper Fisher Jurvetson. Identified has nearly 150,000 users and approximately 1500 companies that have used the site to search for ideal candidates for their industry.

Identified scores are public and accessible to anyone on the Internet. What’s your score?

Image courtesy of Identified, Identified

Click here to watch this CBC The National Video:

Talking Jobs – The Bottom Line.

QR CODE – Content-rich Resume from Victor petit on Vimeo.

Are you looking for new ways to attract and retain talented employees?

If you answered yes, CDS is developing a project you will need to be a part of!

Stay tuned for details..