Career Guide

Navigating Your First Week on the Job

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First Week

Starting a new job is exciting, but it can also be a bit overwhelming to try and adapt to a new environment. Especially if you’re coming from a company that you’ve been at for a while, it can be difficult to get used to a new work environment with a different culture and team. With a ton of information coming at you from every direction, it’s important to know how to process it correctly. In this post, we’ll share with you our best advice for surviving your first week at your new workplace.

Be a sponge.

Your first week, you’re going to hear and receive a lot of new information about your new company and position. You’ll learn about company culture, preferred work and communication styles, new systems, top projects and customers, office politics, and company and department-specific goals. We could go on and on, but you get the point — information overload.

One of the best things you can do is absorb everything you can. Make sure to attend new hire orientation, team and office meetings, any other things that you think may pertain to your job. By sitting in on these meetings, you’ll start to understand what’s important to the organization and the part you play in the organization’s success.

If you get invited to happy hour, lunch or coffee with your fellow coworkers, don’t be afraid to say yes. Even if it pushes you outside of your comfort zone, you’ll start to make friends that you can count on at work. Being a part of a team requires everyone to participate, so saying yes will show your excitement and enthusiasm to be part of this new group.

Ask questions.

If you’re unsure of a project or process, it’s better to ask questions than to stay silent. As you receive new information, taking detailed notes will help you remember what you’ve learned and will give you something to review in the future. Writing something down will also ensure you don’t ask the same question twice.

Offer help.

The first few days of your job, you may have a lot of down time while you’re trying to adjust to your new role and environment. Your boss may also still be getting together your tasks and responsibilities. Instead of just sitting there with nothing to do, show initiative. Volunteer to help a coworker on a project. Even if someone doesn’t have something for you to do, offering help will show that you’re willing to put in effort to better the team.

Find a mentor.

When you’re the newest employee in the office, it can be difficult to start making connections and understanding how everything works. Find someone who has been at the company for a while and has good understanding of what’s going on. By having someone to talk to with more experience and knowledge of the company, you’ll make an easier transition. This can be a team leader or manager that others look up to as well. He or she will be able to help you make more connections within the company and give you advice to get started in your new role.

Good luck!

Even though these are tips for your first week, you should carry on these habits through your first month, year and beyond of your job. By being an engaged employee, you’ll showcase your dedication and commitment to excellence. Better work habits lead to better performance, so take the steps today to make yourself a valuable hire for your organization.

Want to join the Twitter world as a professional? Check out our blog post, Should I Be Tweeting Professionally? to learn more about using this social media platform in your job search and networking.

 

Click here to view our IT and business job board.

 

Here at Resolution Technologies, we understand that serving our clients and consultants is what matters most and promise to never lose sight of that! We take the time to understand your individual needs through face-to-face interaction and strive to always make sure your objectives are met. Resolution Technologies is a full-service Information Technology Staffing firm offering flexible solutions for our clients ranging from contract, contract-to-perm, and direct perm placements. Whatever your needs are, we promise to provide unrivaled quality and service.

Career Guide

Should I Be Tweeting Professionally?

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If you’re looking to gain a competitive edge in your job search and want to stay up-to-date with industry trends, the answer is yes. With 302 million monthly active users and 500 million tweets sent daily, Twitter is one of the strongest and well-known social media platforms out there.

You’ve probably noticed your favorite celebrities and brands are on Twitter posting engaging and entertaining content, because it’s a place to showcase things you’re passionate about. It’s also a great way to showcase knowledge. By creating a professional Twitter account, you can read and post about industry news, trends, and developments.

Interested in learning how to grow your professional network with Twitter? Read more below.

It’s important to identify yourself appropriately.

When choosing what you want your profile to look like, think of it as a resume. What do you want people to know right off the bat? Choose a Twitter handle that will make it easy to search and recognize who you are. That can be your name or the title of your blog if you have one. Include a professional photo, a link to your website, and a short description of who you are and your experience/interests.

Professional Twitter Example

Here’s a great example of what your Twitter profile should look like.

Tweet about professional topics and interests.

Now that you’ve created your Twitter profile, you can start posting updates. You can create original content or share/retweet from other sources, but make sure to keep it professional, engaging, and entertaining. It’s ok to have a personal twist — it shows that there’s an actual person behind your tweets. Just make sure you only post professional content.

Follow relevant users.

You’ve created a Twitter and posted content, but now it’s time to build your network and find accounts that interest you. Depending on your goal, that can be colleagues, industry leaders, your favorite brands, or companies you would be interested in working for. Using the search feature at the top of the page, it’s easy to find an account you love. If the person or brand you follow likes your content, they might even follow you back.

New Tweet

You can also tweet at the account with a simple greeting to introduce yourself.

Keep up with trending topics and #hashtags.

A hashtag is the # symbol followed by a word or two that relate to a topic or event. Formerly known as the pound sign, hashtags allow Twitter users to search for specific content. You can search #socialmedia, #Twitter and #jobs, and you can find tweets that relate to these topics. If you’re at a networking or professional event, they’ll often have hashtags relating to the event. You can live-tweet the event using the hashtag; you may get retweeted by the organizer of the event, leading to more retweets and new followers.

Stay organized.

It’s important to tweet consistently, but not constantly. You don’t want to tweet 25 times a day, but enough to show that you are staying up-to-date and generating thoughtful content. Applications like TweetDeck and Hootsuite help you schedule content in advance and create feeds that allow you to see and respond to tweets in a user-friendly way. Because 80% of Twitter users are active on mobile devices, it’s easy to keep track of all your information on-the-go.

You’re ready to tweet.

This will give you some guidance to get started, but don’t forget a few simple rules. Give your content some personality. Post things that are interesting, but don’t be afraid to add a personal spin. Also, make sure to NEVER post anything you wouldn’t want your managers or coworkers to see. You may think you can delete something once you’ve posted it, but it’s actually out there forever. Now, get ready. Get set. Tweet.

Want to learn more about using social media professionally? View our blog post, How To: Use Social Media In Your Job Search to understand how you can use other social media platforms to get a step ahead.

 

Here at Resolution Technologies, we understand that serving our clients and consultants is what matters most and promise to never lose sight of that! We take the time to understand your individual needs through face-to-face interaction and strive to always make sure your objectives are met. Resolution Technologies is a full-service Information Technology Staffing firm offering flexible solutions for our clients ranging from contract, contract-to-perm, and direct perm placements. Whatever your needs are, we promise to provide unrivaled quality and service.

 

Interview with World Cup Player and HR Manager, Nataly Arias

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One of our very own, Nataly Arias, just finished competing for the Colombia National Team at the Women’s World Cup in Canada. Our Marketing Intern, Jordan Tucker, had the chance to sit down with her to discuss her experience and what she’s looking forward to next.

J: Can you start off telling me a little bit about yourself: where you’re from, where you went to school and how you got here to Resolution Technologies?

N: I was born in Arlington, Virginia and was raised in Alexandria, VA. I went to college at the University of Maryland. My boyfriend moved down here to work for Coca-Cola, so after the Olympics, I moved down here and have now been in Atlanta for about 2 years. I worked a temporary job for three months and came to ResTech after that and have been here ever since, working as the company’s Human Resources Manager.

J: You just competed in the World Cup for Colombia. What got you involved in soccer in the first place?

N: I started playing when I was 4. My dad played professionally in Venezuela, so there was always a ball around. I loved to play from the beginning just for fun. It was a great way to meet new groups of kids. At first it was just about liking it, having fun, and running around. I started playing more competitively around age 7 when I was on my first club team.

J: You said you first played for fun. Once you started playing, did you ever think you’d get as far as you have?

N: At first, it was just about having fun and playing with my teammates, enjoying tournaments and traveling. Getting that trophy at the end was the motivation. I didn’t really start to have high aspirations for playing until I was probably 10 or 11 when I was able to see some international games and US National Team players. I always followed the men’s Colombia National Team, and seeing their success in the early 90s was really fun to watch. I started thinking, if men can represent their country, then I can too. I can play, and I love it, and I was willing to put in the work and the time because I never thought it was training. I just thought it was fun, so I always loved the aspect of working and getting better. I was thinking, “let’s see how far we can take this.” And then at that point, it was like let’s work towards getting into a college and getting a full-ride. Hopefully I’d get to the national stage and go from there.

J: Tell me about your experience at this year’s World Cup. What were your favorite parts, and what position did you play?

N: I’m a center-back, so I’m a defender. This is my second World Cup. I’m getting close to 50 international caps for my country. It’s always difficult for me to describe how it is or how it feels to be there because it’s a flood of emotions all the time. Our goal as a team was to go and make history. We wanted to go further than we’ve gone before. The last World Cup was a great experience for us because it gave us the experience to come back and be able to really challenge other big powers in the Women’s games. This time it was small steps — let’s win our first game, score those 3 points, score our first goal, get out of the group stage. So things like beating France (the #3 team) as the #28 team in the world got us noticed on the world stage.

There’s absolutely nothing more satisfying than representing your country in this way. As an athlete, that’s what we all work for. After all the hours of training, hard work and discipline, when you’re standing in front of your fans and your family singing the national anthem, it’s one of those moments when it’s hard to focus after because you just feel so good and accomplished. But then it’s time to play 90 minutes and leave everything out on the field. It’s an incredible honor to be included in the best female players in the world and compete at that level. There’s all that passion and intensity to be able to show people that the women’s game is growing.

J: Why Colombia? Why didn’t you play on the US National Team?

N: I grew up in a multicultural home, with my dad being from Venezuela and my mom from Colombia. Although I’m very proud of the fact that I’m a first-generation American, the culture of Colombia was always one that was close to my heart and that I associated with the most. When I got the chance to try out and play for the Colombia National Team, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Even though I wasn’t born there, I still bleed yellow, blue and red like the rest.

J: What do you think is the best part of playing on a team?

N: The best part of a team is that you really get to know people at their core. We all get to smile together, but we all suffer together too, whether that’s fitness training or weight training. We all get to pick each other up, and it’s just a lot of trust and confidence in each other. Whether you are a part of a sports team or a team at work, it’s important to work together and support each other.

J: If you had one piece of advice for someone trying to pursue their dreams, whether that’s in athletics or in their career, what would it be?

N: I would say never give up on your dreams. The only one holding you back from what you want to do is yourself. I think you can do anything you set your mind to, and the sky’s the limit. Whatever you’re wanting to accomplish, work hard at it and practice as much as you can, and you’ll eventually get to where you want to be. When playing soccer, ultimately, I do it for the younger generations so that they have a place and so they can say that they want to play at that level. There were little girls all over the world that were hopefully able to watch and have that drive and passion to say, “I want to get there someday or play in an Olympics.” That’s why we do it. We were those kids that didn’t maybe have those players to look up to, so we want to play to inspire them to pursue their passions and goals.

What’s next for Nataly?

She leaves on Wednesday, July 8th for the Pan Am Games in Canada, another Olympic-style tournament. Colombia will face Mexico on Saturday, July 11th. Nataly also hopes to compete in the next Olympics — Rio 2016 in Brazil.

 

Here at Resolution Technologies, we understand that serving our clients and consultants is what matters most and promise to never lose sight of that! We take the time to understand your individual needs through face-to-face interaction and strive to always make sure your objectives are met. Resolution Technologies is a full-service Information Technology Staffing firm offering flexible solutions for our clients ranging from contract, contract-to-perm, and direct perm placements. Whatever your needs are, we promise to provide unrivaled quality and service.

Career Guide

How To: Dress For Interview Success

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How To Dress for Interview Success

You’ve landed an interview and now you’re struggling to decide what to wear. The old saying is true — perception is reality. Your first impression to a recruiter or employer can occur the moment you walk in the room. What you’re wearing can tell a lot about who you are, so it’s important to dress your best and present yourself appropriately.

Tips to dress your best

  • It’s always best to be overdressed than too casual. A well-fitting business suit is your safest and best bet.
  • Make sure you have your clothes cleaned and pressed.
  • Prepare your outfit the night before so you don’t waste valuable time the day of. Don’t be late!
  • Wear makeup and jewelry that are appropriate.
  • Avoid wearing strong perfume or cologne.
  • Make sure any facial hair is well-groomed — get a haircut if you need one.

Men’s Interview Attire 

  • Suit (solid color – navy or dark grey)
  • Long sleeve shirt (white or coordinated with the suit)
  • Belt (that matches your shoe color)
  • Tie
  • Dark socks, conservative leather shoes

Interviewing Dos and Don'ts - Males

Women’s Interview Attire

  • Suit (solid color – navy or dark grey)
  • The suit skirt should be long enough so you can sit down comfortably.
  • Coordinated blouse
  • Conservative shoes

Interviewing Attire Dos and Don'ts - Females

Dress smart, get hired

A sharp suit alone isn’t going to get you the job, but your chances of getting a job are higher if you dress to impress. Having a well-prepared interview outfit shows that you care about yourself and can even reflect your job performance.

Paying attention to the little details can not only reflect your personality in your outfit, but can also transfer to how you handle tasks at work. You want the recruiter or hiring manager to take you seriously, so take the steps to take yourself seriously. Best of luck in your next interview! Have confidence, dress sharp, and adequately prepare yourself in order to get you to the next round.

 

Looking at connecting with recruiters or employers on LinkedIn? View our blog post, How To: Create the Most Effective LinkedIn Profile to revamp your profile before you connect.

 

Here at Resolution Technologies, we understand that serving our clients and consultants is what matters most and promise to never lose sight of that! We take the time to understand your individual needs through face-to-face interaction and strive to always make sure your objectives are met. Resolution Technologies is a full-service Information Technology Staffing firm offering flexible solutions for our clients ranging from contract, contract-to-perm, and direct perm placements. Whatever your needs are, we promise to provide unrivaled quality and service.