Keith Coppersmith | Mike McRitchie | Resume and LinkedIn Profile Writer | Telecom Marketing Content Writer

How to Make a Career Change During COVID-19

April 14, 2021 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

The situation is far from ideal, and many people are struggling to make ends meet, while others are dealing with burnout and extreme amounts of work due to the pandemic. These drastic shifts in how people perceive their jobs has naturally led to more people considering a career change. Perhaps, for some, this has been a long time coming, but for others, the pandemic might have triggered the need to change careers. Even without the COVID-19 pandemic to think about and the risk of losing financial stability for a while, the process of changing your career can be a difficult one if you’re not sure how to approach it.

Depending on your existing experience and education, but also your passion and goals in life, you can definitely find a stress-free way to go into a different profession and try your hand at different fields. To do that successfully and to make sure that you’re on the right track despite the pandemic, we’ve compiled a few of the most effective ways to change your calling during this difficult time. Here’s what you can do!

Try with a side-gig for starters

For many people, the idea of changing careers is downright intimidating, especially if you feel that you’ve settled into your existing field of work, despite being dissatisfied with some of its aspects. Whatever has pushed you towards this change, if your target career allows for this approach, make sure you first take on a smaller project, or a side-gig.

You can keep your 9-to-5 job and build a career on the side while you figure out what exactly you’re looking for. We all know that the pandemic is a risky moment for a career change, but if you take this slow-paced, strategic approach, it will help you ease into your new field of work with less risk to think about.

Research available and opportune industries

The pandemic has ravaged many industries, but some have also flourished. Take, for instance, the staggering demand for healthcare and frontline workers, whose jobs are pivotal during this crisis, but also in everyday life. For example, transitioning your career in order to become a nurse is a noble pursuit and it can help you create a thriving, rewarding career in medicine.

There are other options in healthcare, as well, some of which require less education and lower initial investments both in terms of money and time. Do your research to find out which industries are thriving both locally and globally, and you’ll find something that matches your goals and your ambitions.

Consider apprenticeship to learn new skills

The fact that you have a few years of work under your belt doesn’t mean that you cannot qualify for specific trades you’re interested in. If you want to work as a mechanic, a landscape artist, or even in construction – there are options for people of various ages even in apprentice positions. You can apply for an available mature age apprenticeship in your area to find a good match even though you’re over 21.

Becoming an apprentice at your age is actually a solid opportunity to develop a great, rewarding career with a higher level of dedication and maturity. These and similar trades will always be in demand, so first make sure that you find something that’s popular in your community. That way, you can rest easy knowing that you’ll not just find a good apprenticeship option, but also that you’ll have plenty of well-paid work afterward.

Reach out to your network

Now, during the pandemic, networking is mostly limited to digital events, workshops, and online presentations. That might be a little bit constricting for your professional goals, but you should make the most of what’s available online and connect with your existing professional network. A good recommendation goes a long way even if you’re trying to get hired outside of your previous profession.

Add to that, you might have someone in your network on LinkedIn who works in your target field of work. Talk to relevant people to learn more about your options, and maybe grow your contact to communicate with more professionals who can help you find work.

Identify your transferable skills

Initially, you might think that being an EMT has nothing to do with your career in teaching, but if you’re a good communicator and have excellent people skills, then you can count that towards your new career. Since changing a career often requires requalification and seeking new learning opportunities to make sure you can apply for your new job, you should at least upgrade your resume to emphasize the skills you already have that can be to your benefit.

If you’re not certain which skills matter, talk to an existing expert in that field you’re interested in. Or look for someone in your network who can point you towards a good learning resource. That will help you define the most relevant abilities to emphasize in your resume.

Evaluating yourself from a professional perspective can hardly be unbiased, especially if you’ve discovered a new passion and a new calling you want to pursue. However, you do need to find unbiased ways to assess your capabilities to immerse yourself in your new career – not everyone will find it easy to join the healthcare industry or to start programming after spending decades in landscaping. In addition to getting real about your options, it’s good to build a support system that will set you up for success – start with the listed tips, and you’ll be on your way to a new professional career, despite the pandemic.

6 Best Skills for IT Professionals

March 7, 2021 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

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The tech world is changing rapidly, so certain IT jobs are experiencing tremendous growth. As a result, the demand for professionals with certain skill sets is high. Individuals with knowledge of high-demand technologies, practical experience, and soft skills are most likely to land a high-paying job.

Knowing what’s sought after in the IT market can help you acquire those skills and distinguish yourself from other applicants.

Whether you are looking for a job, trying to find your next work engagement, or looking for a change in your career, here is a list of six best skills for IT professionals that will increase your value on the job market.

Cyber-security

The number of data breaches and other security incidents is constantly on the rise, with 2020 beating all records with 2,935 publicly reported breaches in the first three quarters only. Such bleak figures have motivated enterprise executives to take action to prevent further incidents.

According to PWC, 55% of businesses plan to increase their cyber budget, while 51% will hire additional security staff.

Given the shortage of cyber-security skills among IT professionals and cyber-security gaining attention, the timing is perfect to leverage these circumstances and acquire valuable new skills.

The fastest-growing cyber-security skill areas are cloud security and application development security. There is also demand for information security, network security, and vulnerability assessment skills.

Cloud computing

Since cloud computing is still new, there is an increased demand for skilled IT professionals. And the demand is expected to keep rising since many businesses are shifting to cloud solutions due to its many benefits like cost-effectiveness.

The Coronavirus pandemic pushed businesses online and accelerated the transition to the cloud. Cloud spending has grown staggering 37% during the first quarter of 2020, reaching $29 billion.

Bear in mind that cloud engineering vacancies went up over 100% from 2016-2019 on Technojobs, and you can boost your earnings even more by obtaining relevant certification.

With new cloud technology like Microsoft Azure arising, it is a wise move to gain cloud expertise and take advantage of these new job opportunities. Enrolling in Microsoft course is the best way to ensure you have the skills to design, deploy, and manage Microsoft technologies and services.

Certification in Microsoft Azure significantly increases your chances of getting hired in the cloud computing domain.

Big data

The number of connected devices keeps growing, so companies are dealing with an incredible amount of diverse data sets. This can be a major benefit for any business looking to improve its operations, but what is lacking is the workforce with the skills to make sense of these data.

Data scientists are the people with the knowledge to analyze the collected data and interpret it to make relevant business decisions. This is also one of the highest-paying jobs in IT.

Proficiency with Python and/or RStudio, knowledge of Apache Cassandra, and other distributed NoSQL database systems are among hot skills in big data that will provide IT professionals with solid premiums.

AR & VR

Extended reality (XR) is an umbrella term encompassing augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR). These immersive technologies are expected to explode in the years to come.

Many industries have already adopted AR and VR technology, from entertainment and advertising to education and health care, so it’s no surprise that it’s estimated that the European market will skyrocket to $104.3 billion by 2026.

Of course, the demand for skilled technicians is also expected to grow, but we will see the full impact of these advanced technologies in the next five years.

So, IT professionals who aspire to enter the XR industry should develop their knowledge in Unity.

AI & machine learning

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have transformed many industries, above all automotive, bioscience, creative services, and data. Along with their popularization, hiring in these areas went up.

According to LinkedIn data, Artificial Intelligence Specialist was the number one emerging job in the UK last year.

This complex area offers an abundance of job opportunities, and it’s highly unlikely that AI and machine learning skills will become outdated any time soon.

Since there aren’t enough skilled professionals in this field, those with expertise in Python, Java, TensorFlow, R, and Natural Language Processing will be able to negotiate high salaries and secure a stable future.

Software development

Although the IT job market is quickly changing, software developers are still sought-after. We have become more digitally connected than ever, and the demand for software and applications is on the rise. And so is the demand for this role.

Full-stack pros with cutting-edge skills are particularly in demand. IT professionals with a broad range of skills in this field can expect bigger paychecks, as employers are willing to pay an average of $13,762 more for such experts.

What makes this role even more attractive is the fact that developers are adaptable to change which ensures job security. They grow their knowledge, update their skills, and learn a new technology every year, so they can manage even in an uncertain environment.

Top in-demand coding languages for 2020 included Go, Scala, Ruby, TypeScript, and Kotlin. Experience with DevOps is also sought-after by clients.

6 Ways to Improve your Resume in 2021

February 14, 2021 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

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Last year turned pretty much everything upside down, and the job market is no exception. Plenty of people lost their jobs or had their income streams affected by the pandemic. Now that the recovery is in sight, it’s time to think about getting back into the job market or perhaps rethinking your career.

The first step in this process is, of course, updating your resume. Pretty much everyone groans when they remember they have to do it. Companies keep changing their requirements, and no one is 100% sure what the right resume should look like. Should you include your high school job? How about the fact you were in a drama club? Weekly D&D games? How to explain the gap in your work experience?

Well, that’s why we’re here. Read on and find out how to improve your resume in a way that will help you land that job you want.

Emphasize your skills

Keep in mind that recruiters don’t spend too much time reading each resume the first time. You want to emphasize the most important information and make sure they read it. Now, your skills are your most important asset, so it makes sense to put them first.

In addition to drawing the eye to a short and easy-to-read list of important traits you’re bringing to the table, it also deemphasizes any gaps in your work experience. This is important because these gaps are often a red flag for recruiters who will do anything to reduce the number of applicants that need to be interviewed.

Know your target

Just like cover letters, your resume or CV needs to be tailored to the target audience. Emphasize skills, work experience, education, or hobbies that are important for the role you’re applying for. We’re not saying you should pare it down to the bare essentials, but you definitely should organize your resume in a way that puts you forward as the best candidate for the position.

Include language skills

Knowing more than one language is pretty much essential in today’s job market. If you’re applying for a public-facing position, knowing two or more will probably put you at the top of the pile.

A lot of people made the best of the 2020 lockdowns and learned new skills thanks to countless online courses. If you’ve used all the extra time to learn French online or to brush up on your Spanish, definitely include these. Even if the job isn’t public facing, the world today is highly multicultural, and knowing more languages might just be the thing that helps you land that job you wanted.

Include your hobbies

Yes, you read that right. Even if you’re an amateur woodworker or a certified scuba diver and these things have nothing to do with the job you’re applying for, go for it. It probably won’t be important for the first round, but when someone gives your resume a more thorough look, they’ll see there are things you’re genuinely passionate about, and that might have some transferable skills.

Pretty much every recruiter gets a ton of resumes to sift through, and you need to be able to stand out. You never know if your hobby will be the thing that puts you in the “keep” pile.Sometimes, you may even just have embarked on a hobby, but it’s so notable and interesting that the reviewer will want to speak to you regardless. Imagine getting an application from someone who is an active martial artist, learning in an online flight school, or volunteering for the fire department. You can see how this may warrant another look.

Add final touches and format it properly

Now that you’ve put all the information down, you need to make sure it’s formatted in a way that won’t prompt the recruiter to discard it. First, it should be neat, properly aligned, and easy to read. Make use of headings and bullet points, and bold the necessary information if you really want to make it stand out.

Everything in your resume should be effective, affirming, and honest. Try to avoid negative statements and keep it simple. If you want to explain gaps in your work history, put them in parentheses; that’s also a good way to deemphasize jobs you only did to get by and don’t reflect your career goals.

Get a second pair of eyes

It’s difficult to evaluate one’s own work, even when it comes to something as “simple” as a resume. So, once you’re done writing it, have someone else look it over. It can be pretty much anyone, a parent, sibling, neighbor, significant other, or a friend. They won’t only be able to catch any mistakes, they’ll also be able to identify things you might have forgotten to include.

It also doesn’t hurt to put it through a more robust spellchecker than Google Docs or MS Word. You definitely don’t want any errors slipping through when you should be putting your best foot forward.

Wrapping up

So, there you have it: some tips and tricks on how to improve your resume in 2021. Writing resumes isn’t rocket science, but it does take some effort and you shouldn’t just do it off the cuff. It should be more than a simple list of jobs you’ve had and schools you’ve attended. Plan it, organize it, tailor it to your audience and emphasize your strengths. Present yourself as a person with their own life that’s qualified for the job you’re applying for and an asset to the company.

Sources:
https://www.offtheclockresumes.com/blog/21-resume-tips-for-2021

https://www.nbcnews.com/know-your-value/feature/5-ways-rethink-your-resume-2021-ncna1252841

https://www.cleverism.com/22-best-examples-of-hobbies-and-interests-to-put-on-a-resume/

https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-to-explain-a-gap-on-your-resume-2063188

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristinstoller/2020/12/21/heres-where-the-jobs-will-be-in-2021/

4 Data Protection Mistakes to Avoid

December 24, 2020 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

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Data collection and analytics is on everyone’s mind these days. Companies can collect more data than ever and use it to improve every aspect of their operations.

However, the easier it is to collect data, the more vulnerable that data is. Additionally, most of this data is sensitive and contains confidential information about your business, your clients, and your business partners.

When you have such large amounts of sensitive data that is at high risk of being exposed, it’s like dealing with a ticking bomb that’s ready to explode.

Unfortunately, many businesses are completely unprepared for such a disaster. Here are some of the common mistakes they make when it comes to data protection.

Thinking it won’t happen to you

You might be thinking: “Sure, the stakes are high but what are the chances that it will happen to me?”. Many have fallen into this trap.

But if it does end up happening to you, you’ll realize that the cost of investing in data protection would’ve been much lower than the costs of recovering from a data breach. IBM’s Cost of Data breach report 2020 shows that the average cost of a data breach is $3.86 million. Also, once hit with a data breach, companies take 280 days on average to recover.

However, if you don’t think your business is above the risk of a data breach and you develop an emergency response plan in advance, you can significantly lower these costs. Companies with incident response teams save $2 million, while those with fully deployed security automation save $3.58 million on average.

Hopefully, these numbers will convince you that it pays off to invest in protecting your data, and that, even if it doesn’t happen to you, the stakes are too high to justify taking the risk.

Failing to meet compliance

In the past few years, we’ve witnessed many large-scale data breaches that have shown us just how vulnerable data is to cybersecurity threats and left everyone wondering if there’s anything they could do to improve their data protection strategy. Naturally, what followed was the tightening of data protection laws.

Businesses deal with large amounts of sensitive data on a daily basis, from information about clients and business partners to internal business data. Most of this data is highly sensitive and needs to be protected.

That’s why there are strict regulations regarding business communication records. Depending on the industry, type of business, and your location, you might be required to keep your business emails up to 7 years. To make keeping your email records easier, look for email archiving solutions that will help you set up retention periods according to industry standards and automatically expunge emails once this period expires.

Besides email compliance, make sure that your cloud storage, CRM software, or any other tool you’re using to collect and store information is in line with relevant data protection laws as well.

Keep in mind that you shouldn’t follow compliance only to get a passing grade. Often, companies that are just looking to meet a compliance target are opting for shortcuts that can potentially jeopardize their data. Instead, focus on achieving long-term security goals and try taking an extra step to make your data more secure even if it’s not technically required.

Not educating your employees

The human factor is one of the biggest risks when it comes to data loss. Sure, your IT team is probably familiar with the latest cybersecurity trends, but what about other departments?

Most of your employees are completely unaware of security risks and they can easily end up exposing your sensitive data by accident. That’s why it’s essential to educate your employees and create a strong cybersecurity culture in your organization.

Unfortunately, the lack of information isn’t the only factor that makes your employees a serious danger to your data. Sometimes, employees are more than aware of the importance of data protection, but have ill intentions and want to expose them on purpose.

Treating data protection as a project

When it comes to data protection, you can’t just set it and forget it. You need to develop a comprehensive strategy, and then continuously monitor its performance, tweak it, or even develop a completely new one if circumstances drastically change.

The truth is, data protection is not a project. Data is too dynamic and ever-changing, so you can’t rely on the traditional project management mindset if you want to protect it. Data protection is more of a series of projects and you can never really “finish it”.

There are many different steps you can take to make your data more secure and you shouldn’t skip any of them. In fact, you should treat each of them as a separate project that requires the full attention of your cybersecurity team and continuously work on improving these strategies.

Hopefully, this article will help you avoid making these common data protection mistakes and help you improve your cybersecurity strategy.

4 Tips for Managing Remote Teams

November 20, 2020 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

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Remote work has become increasingly popular over the last few years. The main reason is that companies can now expand their search for talented employees on a global scale. Fast internet and stronger computing power made this trend possible.

Having teams of remote employees doesn’t just help your company lower the overhead costs, but it also helps you tackle international markets with more efficiency. Although remote work has great advantages, it’s not without challenges.

Remote workers are separated from the main office where the majority of employees and managers are. This can lead to a decrease in productivity, efficiency and more because remote workers will sooner or later feel disengaged and neglected.

As a result, companies that don’t take care of their remote workers the right way face increased turnover rates. This is why you must manage your remote workers if you want to keep them. With that in mind, here are a few tips for managing remote workers.

Proper onboarding

Every new employee, even the remote ones, should be welcomed properly. That said, every company should have a well-designed onboarding process. As you may already know, an onboarding process doesn’t just welcome new employees but it also helps them learn the ropes and get adjusted to the company’s culture. This process can also drastically reduce the turnover rate among remote employees.

Managers can, therefore, focus on remote employees and help them get adjusted to the new work environment and conditions. Moreover, it will show remote workers that you actually pay attention to their needs and that they won’t be neglected in your company.

That way, you will ensure that they feel like a part of the team, a vital one. In addition, around 69% of new employees who are satisfied with your onboarding process are more likely to stay with your company for three years or more.

Communicate often

Communication is the key to a healthy relationship between employees themselves or between managers and employees. By regularly communicating with your remote employees, you’ll be able to get a sense of how they feel and whether or not things are going well for them. This will not only keep them engaged, but it will also help you notice any signs of distress.

You can, therefore, do something before a remote employee decides to leave your company because of the issues that weren’t properly addressed on time. However, don’t simply dump this task on the HR department.

As good as they may be, remote workers know that HR reaching out to them is just a part of the company policy. If you’re a manager, then communicate with them yourself every now and then. This will show remote employees that you actually care.

Perform regular check ups

Checking up on your remote teams should be one of your priorities. Of course, managers are busy people with a lot of tasks on their plates every day. However, that doesn’t mean you should neglect important obligations. Remote employees are essential, even though they aren’t present in the office, and if you don’t check up on them, things will soon go sideways. Fortunately, modern technology provided a seamless solution that will make this task as simple as possible.

For example, you can opt for time and attendance software from Australia; this will not only help you check up on your remote workers regularly, but it will also allow you to provide convenience for them by allowing them to clock in seamlessly. With the right tools and technology by your side, you’ll no longer have to deal with common challenges related to remote work.

Involve them

As mentioned before, remote employees can easily become disengaged if you neglect them and their needs. If you want them to remain at your company or even ensure they become loyal, you’ll have to involve them in company activities as much as possible.

Again, modern technology is here to aid you. For example, you should consider relying on proper video conferencing software. That way, you can involve remote employees in important company meetings and other similar activities.

Aside from that, you can also leverage various collaboration and communication tools to include remote employees in everyday tasks. Remote workers must be able to interact with other employees and feel like a part of the overall team so that their productivity and morale are always at optimal levels.

Remote work brings numerous advantages to companies around the world. However, there are still a lot of unexplored possibilities regarding remote work, which creates unique challenges and obstacles. One thing is for certain, if you manage your remote employees well and cater to their needs, there are good chances that everything will go smoothly and that you won’t encounter any problems whatsoever.