“I can’t stand my boss.”

“I HATE my job.”

These are very powerful statements that I hear on a regular basis from normal people all around the country.  These statements come from actuaries, bankers, food production professionals and sales people who are frustrated.  Normal, talented, hardworking people are humbled every day by confounding professional situations that affect them both inside and outside the normal work hours – these frustrations permeate their personal lives, affecting spouses, children and others in their wake. 

I’ll be honest, one of the many things that keeps me in this business is a recruiter’s ability to be a part of the solution for problems like these.  Unfortunately, however, no one (including a recruiter) can help a frustrated candidate until the frustrated candidate decides what they want to do with their lives.  Realizing that you are an unhappy employee is only part of the healing process.  Defining the ideal next step is just as critical or the embattled employee is doomed to continued unhappiness.

Deciding what you want to do with your career is MUCH harder than it appears on paper.  Today, there are several directions that almost any professional can take their career.  Within those directions there area several sub-directions that can allow someone to branch out and be a specialist.  Choosing the wrong path at any time in one’s career can mean the foregoing of future career progression, compensation or opportunity.  Choosing the right path can ensure a happy, productive professional career.  Changing jobs is a big deal.

If you could sculpt an ideal job opportunity what would it look like?  How would you interact with your boss and co-workers?  What would the office culture feel like?  What the heck would you do all day every day?  What would your salary be?  In a world of fairness and realism, visualize the professional scenario that would satisfy you the most.  When you begin your interview process, bring that wish list with you.  Screen companies as they screen you.  In each interview, rank the opportunity based on the criteria that you have outlined (just as a corporate recruiter would evaluate you in a job interview).  Map this out in a “T” chart for every interview and when the process is completed, my guess is that you will have made the strongest career decision of your life.

I would be very interested to learn what some of the people who read this blog list as their primary job considerations.  If you could carve out a top three list of things that are most important to you in a job search, what would they be?  Feel free to add comments below.  My criteria are as follows – 1) Am I working for an organization that is best positioned to help the candidates and companies that rely on me?  2) Am I working for an organization that is best positioned to help me realize my potential?  3) Am I working in a culture that is collaborative and rewarding?  What is important to you?

Jeff Kovar, Aureus Group Executive Recruiter

About the Author, Jeff Kovar
Jeff has been with the Aureus Group Executive team since September 2008 and in the recruiting business since April 2007. Prior to entering the recruiting world, he worked for five years in the corporate currency exchange business. He specializes in working with $100K+ candidates in the actuarial, financial, accounting, banking, and many other functional areas from coast to coast. Jeff enjoys golfing, watching Nebraska football, spending time with his wife Jenny, their son Connor, and jogging with their two labs, Freddy and Cali.

Aureus Group team members Mike Tatreau, Andrew Hendrickson, Mindy Holm, and Lisa Brannan take a moment to pose for a photo when delivering the gift baskets to Cooper Village for the holiday party.

The youth of Cooper Village don’t generally have anyone to provide them with “holiday cheer” and unfortunately, all of them are in need of items like socks, T-shirts, etc. Cooper Village had 45 children during the holidays this year. As a group, Aureus decided to put together individual gift basked containing a number of items that were a combination of fun and practical. Each basket contained: A drawstring backpack, T-shirts, three pack of socks, pens and pencils, stocking cap, football, hackie sack, mini Nerf ball, Gatorade with koozie, Doritos, and snack crackers.

In past years we were able to provide Cooper Village with a projector television and a couple of Wii councils. So this year we provided them with four additional Wii games and a ping pong table for their community room. The kids will also be rewarded for good behavior through tickets to UNO, Creighton, and Omaha Lancer sporting events. Along with the gifts, we were able to provide the kids with a holiday party complete with sandwiches, chips, cookie, ice cream, and soda.

None of this would have been possible without contributions from Aureus Group employees who were kind enough to contribute anything they could to help these kids have a happy holiday. Along with Aureus Group, corporate sponsors provided donations. This list includes; Costco, CVS Pharmacy, Wal-Mart, Subway, Mr. Goodscents, Scheels, UNO, and Creighton.

About the Author, Mike Tatreau Aureus Group Recruiter
Mike was born in Omaha and raised in Blair, Neb. graduating from Blair High School in 1997. After graduating Mike went to Wayne State College, graduating in 2002 with a bachelor’s in business administration with a management focus.  After college it was back to Omaha and on to real life working in a couple of industries including Finance. In March of 2008 Mike started with Aureus Group working as a recruiter for the Accounting and Finance branch where for the past two years Mike has coordinated the holiday volunteer event with Cooper Village. Mike plays softball and is looking for more time to play golf. Above all else he loves to spend time with his soon to be three year old daughter Shea.

In addition, Aureus Group is also proud to support the Heartland Chapter of the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) as a 2010 IIBA Heartland Chapter Business Analysis Conference sponsor and exhibitor. The chapter will hold its first annual conference on Thursday, October 28 at the Scott Conference Center in Omaha.

http://www.aureusgroup.com/email/HDC_2010_winner.html

The breakout sessions were timely and informative. My favorite strategic session was “Thinking INSIDE the Box – Working with CFOs”.  Karl Ahlrichs of Expert Speaks did a fantastic job outlining the gap between most organization’s human resource and C-level initiatives. Bridging this gap and aligning strategies are the keys to our organizations’ success. My biggest take away is elementary but something most of us forget to do . . . always speak to your audience, use their terminology and take the time to prepare your thoughts so you can efficiently communicate ROI, bottom line, and what’s in it for everyone.

We also enjoyed exhibiting and mingling with clients, partners, and new friends.

 Congratulations to the Grand Prize Trip winner, Diane Blair and our booth raffle prize winner, Chris Tibbs!

Aureus Group account managers Jillian Huston (far left) and Kara Strong (far right) pose with Chris Tibbs, winner of the Aureus Group raffle prize after the 2009 SHRM Conference.

As co-sponsors of the Grand Prize Trip, Quinn Vandenberg (far left) and Kellie Lieurance representing Baird Holm stand with Chris Carlson from Aureus Group and Angie Smathers from Celebrity Staff (far right) after awarding Diane Blair (center)a trip package to Vancouver.