1. Jobs: getting one,
keeping it, and
finding the next one
information
outlookTHE MAGAZINE OF THE SPECIAL LIBRARIES ASSOCIATION
2014
Special
Conference
issue

2. 6 INFORMATION OUTLOOK 2014 Special conference issue
An interview with Paul Bernard
Do you think job seekers in different
stages of their careers should approach
job hunting differently, or are there tried-and-
true methods that work for everyone?
I think there are best practices that
everyone should follow, whether they’re
in transition or they’re trying to keep their jobs.
In general, 70 percent of a person’s job search
time should be spent networking and 30 per-
cent in other ways, such as answering ads and
working with recruiters.
However, over and
above the best practices
that everyone should fol-
low, there are some guid-
ing principles for people in
specific industries or age
groups. For instance, if
you’re in a creative indus-
try such as public rela-
tions, design, architecture,
or fashion, you absolutely
need an online portfolio.
In industries that are more
digitally focused—for instance, if you’re trying to
get a job with a digital advertising agency—it’s
probably important to “up your game” in terms
of making digital pitches to people. But I still
feel that best practices will involve, for everyone,
70 percent networking and 30 percent other.
Interestingly, one of the challenges I see
for people across all age groups is the grow-
ing sense that the online world provides all
solutions. Don’t misunderstand—I think
it’s important to have an online presence,
whether you’re 18 and trying to get a college
internship or you’re 60-plus and trying to re-
enter the job market. But my strong feeling is
that across all demographic groups, people
spend too much time in the online world and
not enough time on the telephone or meeting
people face to face. And it’s not a genera-
tional issue—we’ve all become prisoners of
the sense that the online world provides all
solutions.
We’ve been sold this bill of goods by the
media. For instance, six or eight years ago, a
prominent employment Website produced an
advertisement showing a gorgeous woman on
a beach with kiwi slices on her eyes. The ad
said, “Where were you when you found your
perfect job?” The online industry has given
us the impression that finding a job happens
by pushing a computer button—in other
words, effortlessly.
Everyone needs a plan, a strategy. All too
often, I hear people say, “I’m open to oppor-
tunities.” What does that mean? Some of
this is happening with people coming out of
school, because most colleges and universi-
ties do a horrible job of preparing people to
find a job. But I think this is true for older
people as well.
Very few people know all the right moves
to make to find a job. Maybe the most impor-
tant skill people don’t have is that they don’t
know how to hustle, despite the fact that we
are now five years post-credit crisis, post-
Lehman Brothers collapse. Many people
also have unrealistic expectations of how
long it takes and how difficult the struggle
is. Except in very select industries, it takes
a minimum of three to six months to find a
gig. In many cases, especially for people in
their fifties looking for senior positions, it will
take upwards of a year—and that’s if you’re
batting at 80 percent in terms of conducting
your job search in an optimal way.
You Can (and Should)
Talk to Strangers
In an online age,
there’s more reason
than ever to pick up
a telephone and
call someone or
shake hands with
strangers at a
networking event.
Paul Bernard is the founder and principal
of Paul Bernard & Associates, an executive
coaching and career management firm based
in New York City.
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3. INFORMATION OUTLOOK 2014 Special conference issue 7
People need to unlearn their mothers’ mes-
sage that you can’t talk to strangers. You need
to learn to carry business cards with you, prac-
tice your lines, and realize that it is your job to
meet 25 new people at a social or networking
function. I encourage people to position them-
selves between the bar and the entryway and
shake hands and say, “Hi, I’m Paul Bernard. I
wrote something recently for my association’s
magazine on such-and-such topic and I think
you might be interested in it.”
A 2012 study by the investment firm of
Charles Schwab found that workers in
their fifties are more likely than those in other
age groups to feel “stuck” in their jobs. What
advice would you give these workers?
First, I would tell them they’re not
alone—many people today feel they’re
stuck. Most jobs are at large corporations, and
the dirty little secret about our economy is that
we’re in a period of tremendous merger and
acquisition activity. So a lot of organizations
today are very large and unwieldy, and they’re
also very top-heavy. I cannot count the num-
ber of people who’ve told me they have limited
advancement possibilities—they’re in their
forties and they’re mid-level managers at com-
panies or mid-level attorneys at law firms, and
there’s no place for them to go. There’s a senior
management glut, if that makes sense.
Some of this is a function of demographics. If
you turned 50 this year, who’s right in front of
you? The people who were born at the tail end
of the baby boom, who are 54 or 55. And those
people are looking at 10 years of baby boomers
ahead of them, who are probably not going to
be taking early retirement. So, for many work-
ers, the opportunity for advancement is very
limited right now.
I think the people who are most successful in
this economy are the ones who have learned to
be adaptable. You not only have to do your job,
you have to learn to do a couple of related jobs
as well. You have to be a specialist in at least
one area, but you also need to be a generalist.
You have to make yourself indispensable.
Do you think the breadth and depth
of this recession will result in lasting
changes in people’s attitudes and behaviors
regarding employment, job skills, networking,
and other work-related topics?
What I’m seeing with my clients is that
they’re realizing they have to be respon-
sible for their future. It’s not something that’s
going to be handed to them. They’re realizing
that they have to drive the career bus, or it will
be driven by someone else in a direction that
may not be positive.
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4. 8 INFORMATION OUTLOOK 2014 Special conference issue
I also think this crisis is helping people chal-
lenge their assumptions. We were told before
2008 that the MBA toolbox had all the solu-
tions, but now people are beginning to question
that. And I think it’s very important for people to
challenge assumptions.
People are learning that due diligence is an
extremely important part of career manage-
ment. For example, they’re coming to grips with
the fact that even in this era of 150 distractions,
they have to meet their deadlines. And they’re
learning to clarify what their job is—they’re
learning to say, these are the eight things you’ve
given me to do, let’s talk about what the three
most important things are.
One other thing I think is important—and
this gets back to this due diligence issue—is
that more people are discovering that the way
to become successful in the workplace is to be
polite. I’m working with a lot of clients who are
saying, it seems the way I’m going to become
successful is to not fall into the trap of thinking
everybody else is rude, so it’s OK if I am. People
seem to be rediscovering the importance of
manners in the workplace.
Many people, particularly those in earlier
stages of their careers, seem to regard
networking as synonymous with social media. Is
there still any value to picking up a phone and
calling someone?
There’s always been some reluctance to
call people, and now, with e-mail and
instant messaging, there’s even more of an
excuse not to hear the human voice. But if we
look at human communication from a warmth
point of view, person to person is the warm-
est, telephone is not quite as warm—though at
least you still hear a human voice—and digital
is the least warm. I would include other forms
of online interviewing and conversation in the
“least warm” category.
One of the reasons to pick up the phone is
that most people get fewer phone calls these
days than e-mails. E-mail, to a considerable
degree, has created a situation where we have
to spend an hour or more each day figuring out
what’s junk and what isn’t. That has become
a tremendous irritant to many people. So, yes,
I definitely think it’s important to pick up the
phone and talk to people. SLA
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