Premierehire Career Guide - Jumpstart Your Career

JOB SEEKERS
E-GUIDE
Jumpstart Your Career

TABLE OF
CONTENTS
SOCIAL MEDIA02.
THE RIGHT RESUME03.
THE COMPELLING COVER LETTER04.
THE SUCCESSFUL INTERVIEW05.
THE FOLLOW UP06.
PREPARING FOR AN OFFER07.
THE PROFESSIONAL EXIT08.
WORKING WITH A
RECRUITMENT AGENCY
09.
UTILIZE YOUR NETWORK01. 03
05
07
10
13
16
18
21
24

3 | JOB SEEKERS E-GUIDE
A strong professional network is becoming
increasingly valuable to the job search process
so it’s important to consistently make and
maintain connections. After all, you never
know when a contact might help you towards
your career goals.
UTILIZE
YOUR
NETWORK
01.
Follow our guide to ensure you make the most of your network

Make a List: Make sure to leverage your own
social circle. Write down the names of all
your friends, family and former colleagues.
Be thorough and don’t discount anyone.
Then make a point of discussing your career
aspirations and skill set with them. One of
them might be able to recommend you or put
you in touch with one of their own connections.
Grandma might be retired but that doesn’t
mean she doesn’t have friends in high places.
Keep in Contact: You never know when a
social or professional connection might come
in handy. Make sure you always keep in touch
with people and don’t burn any bridges.
Get Social: These days connections around the
world are just a click away. Make use of social
networking to engage with potential employers
and keep in touch with professional contacts.
You can also join professional forums on sites
such as LinkedIn and Facebook to establish
yourself as an expert in your field. The next
section provides information on how to make
the most of your social media profiles.
Get Out There: Not everything is online. There
are still those who prefer to do their networking
face-to-face. Use your skills to volunteer. Not
only will this add extra experience to your
CV, it might also put you in touch with useful
contacts. Make sure to also attend conferences,
professional gatherings and industry events to
meet other people in your field.
Be Genuine: Networking isn’t just about what
others can do for you. Make sure you show
an interest in your new and old contacts. Ask
about their lives, share ideas and information.
They’ll be much more likely to want to help
if they feel as though you actually care about
them.
Be Prepared: If you make a new contact or
someone offers to help you with your career
aspirations, be ready. Make sure to have a
professional business card to hand out and
have a consistently up-to-date professional
portfolio to send. This includes your references,
resume, cover letter and online profiles.
Follow Up: When someone offers their
assistance, it’s up to you to follow up.
Exchange contact information if you haven’t
already and get in touch to discuss how to
move forward. If the assistance results in a job
opportunity, remember to thank your contact.
It’s polite and only solidifies your connection.
UTILIZE
YOUR
NETWORK
01.

SOCIAL
MEDIA
Social media can make or break your
job search. It’s easy to assume that
its role is purely social but today
many hiring managers and recruiters
use social media to find and connect
with prospective employees. A well-
constructed social media profile could
lead to a wide variety of excellent
career or internship opportunities.
But social media can also damage
your chances. If your profiles are
not professional and tailored to the
opportunities you want, employers will
bypass you immediately.
02.
Follow our guide to make sure you take full advantage of social media in your job search

Public Profiles: Publically accessible
social media profiles should always appear
professional. When you’re shortlisted as a
candidate for interview, more often than
not a potential employer will search for
information about you online. If they discover
unprofessional content on your profiles, your
chances of an interview are definitely over.
Appropriate Content: Content on public
profiles, whether photos, statuses or comments,
should always be professional and appropriate.
No potential employer or professional contact
wants to see drunken escapades, crude
language, negativity or recreational drug use so
if you want to discuss or upload photos of any
or all of these things, then make your profile
private. Alternatively, leverage your public
profiles by establishing yourself as an expert
in your field. Post about your industry, interact
with influencers and offer tips and advice to
your professional peers.
Private Profiles: If you have content you want to
share with friends that you don’t wish potential
professional contacts to see, it’s important
you make your private profiles well and truly
private. Check your settings and make sure
strangers can’t see anything besides your basic
information. If you’re unsure how to go about it,
there are often guides online which can help.
Make sure at minimum your profile picture is
appropriate and consider also changing the
name attached to your profiles. With a different
name, a potential employer is a lot less likely
to stumble upon your private profile while
searching.
Look for Tips: If you want to use your social
media profiles for networking purposes, go to
the help section for the social network you’re
using or look up tips and guides online. They’ll
help you leverage the site to your advantage
and maximize your professional impact.
SOCIAL
MEDIA
02.
Linkedin is the number one professional
networking site. With the ability to post your
resume and interests, join professional groups
and find job postings, this is your go-to public
social media profile. It should always be kept
up-to-date with your information and highlight
your qualifications, skills and work experience.
Remember that recruiters look for you with
keyword searches so make sure your profile
includes these. According to LinkedIn, users
with complete profiles are 40 times more likely
to receive job opportunities.
Facebook is currently one of the best known and
most used social networks in the world. This
is the first site most potential employers will
visit to find out about prospective candidates.
If your profile is public, make sure to follow our
guidelines on content above. You can also use
Facebook as a networking tool, as mentioned
earlier. “Like” companies you are interested in
working for, engage with their posts, keep up-to-
date with what’s happening and inquire about job
postings that match your skill set.
Twitter has quickly become one of the most
important players in the social media world.
Make sure you leverage it fully by ensuring you
have a professional profile and background
photo, and a powerful statement about your
field of interest in the bio section. Then post
content per our guidelines above and follow
potential employers and industry influencers.
Doing this, means you can engage with them,
keep up-to-date with what’s happening and get
targeted employment information.
BEST SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS FOR NETWORKING

Your resume is frequently the first a potential
employer will see of you. Ultimately, a good
resume means a good first impression and
often the difference between an interview and
the trash can. Your aim is to create a well-
crafted, impressive document that displays the
experience, accomplishments and skills that
make you the perfect candidate for the job.
Follow our guide to help you stand
out from the crowd in the right way
THE RIGHT
RESUME
03.

THE RIGHT
RESUME
03. LAYOUT
Chronological or Functional Format: Some
believe a functional resume is best for new
graduates and those with little experience. This
is not true. Most hiring managers see the use
of this format as an attempt to hide something,
usually the lack of experience or employment
gap the resume writer is in fact trying to
conceal. It is far better to be upfront using a
chronological resume. Bolster experience with
volunteering roles and throw a positive light
on employment gaps in your cover letter by
explaining how you used them to your benefit
to learn useful new things.
Divide and Conquer: Always divide your resume
into skills, work experience and education
in this specific order. Your skills, be they
languages, computer skills or certifications,
should always come first and can help with
keyword searches done by recruiters. These
are the bait which attract the hiring manager
to keep reading. Your work experience then
shows the knowledge needed from the perfect
candidate, while your education solidifies you
as a candidate they want to interview.
Write it in Word: Microsoft Word has long been
the go to resume writing tool. You may want
to stand out, and for creative industries this
will undoubtedly be important, but most hiring
managers will not appreciate the effort. They
want to see a professional, standard resume
style that they can quickly and easily look over.
So save yourself time and write your resume in
Word.
Send it as a PDF: While recruiters like to see
your resume as a Word document, prospective
employers expect your resume to be sent in
PDF format. So, unless stated otherwise in the
job description, make sure you do just that.
Easy on the Eye: Make sure your resume is
neatly and professionally laid out. Hiring
managers will at best skim each resume before
moving on to the next. Your goal is to make it
as easy as possible for them to recognize you
as a potential candidate. Take care to have
headings for each section and differentiate
employers and job titles from the rest of the
content by italicizing, bolding and using
the white space between lines to emphasize
important information.
Use Bullet Points: Block text is daunting. No
one wants to spend fifteen minutes sifting
through a wordy document to get to its core
message and hiring managers certainly won’t.
Bullet points break up text. Use a maximum of
two to three to highlight your accomplishments
for each role.
Skip the Photo: Federal regulations state
that resume photos are discriminatory. So no
matter how pretty or handsome you are, leave
the photos for your social media. Using one
will either cause your resume to be rejected
or leave your prospective employer with
the impression that you don’t know how to
construct a resume.

THE RIGHT
RESUME
03. CONTENT
Be Concise: A resume should ideally be one
page in length and a maximum of two. Hiring
managers are faced with hundreds of resumes
a day. You’ll have at most 30 seconds to show
them you’re a candidate they want to meet so
make sure your qualifications are front and
centre.
Measurable Results: Always provide meaningful
and measurable accomplishments. A potential
employer wants to see the results you can offer
them, not the daily tasks you completed. After
all, the 30% increase in revenue you brought
to your previous company will impress far more
than your ability to collate documents.
Be Relevant: Being the captain of your high
school football team or the host at a restaurant
may impress your friends and family but if it’s
not relevant to the job you’re applying for it
won’t impress the hiring manager reading your
resume. Always customize your resume to the
job you’re applying for and assess how each
role shows the relevant skills that make you the
perfect fit for the job.
Use Keywords: Read the job posting carefully.
The hiring manager will have used keywords to
describe their ideal candidate. Highlight those
words and include them in your resume. They
will stand out to the manager looking at your
resume later and will keep them reading.
Use Action Verbs: Hiring managers want to see
a proactive applicant. No one wants to employ
someone who seems passive and uninteresting.
Always use dynamic, positive verbs such as
“achieved” or “launched” to describe your past
accomplishments.
State the Facts: Present yourself as a proactive
applicant but don’t come across as arrogant.
Your accomplishments may be great but giving
the impression that you’re superior to others is
off-putting. Most employers want a team player
as much as they do a leader.
Spell Check: Never rely on an automated spell
checker. The number one reason resumes
end up in the trash is spelling. If your resume
has spelling or grammatical errors, it will
automatically be rejected. So read it, re-read
it, ask someone else to read it and then leave
it overnight before re-reading it again. If after
this you still can’t find any errors then you can
send it off.
Phone a Friend: As mentioned before, always
have someone else read over your resume
before sending it off. As the person who wrote
it, you know what you were trying to say. Fresh
eyes can not only show you spelling errors but
can also reveal when your writing isn’t clear. If
your friend or family member can’t understand
what you’re trying to say then a hiring manager
certainly won’t.

THE
COMPELLING
COVER
LETTER
04. Your cover letter is your second and
sometimes final opportunity to secure an
interview. A well-written cover letter is
your chance to distinguish yourself from
other applicants, selling yourself as an
intriguing candidate beyond the standard
bullet-pointed accomplishments of a
resume.
Follow our guide to help you write a compelling cover letter

THE
COMPELLING
COVER
LETTER
04. LAYOUT
Make it a Letter: The clue is in the name but
your cover letter should always be drafted
as a standard professional letter with the
appropriate greeting and sign off.
Be Concise: A cover letter should fill at most
half a page. Just as with the resume, you can
be the best candidate in the world but no
hiring manager is going to put in the effort to
read even a one page document when they
have 100 other applications to sift through. So
save some of it for the interview and keep it
short.
Easy on the Eye: Make sure to avoid block
text in your cover letter. If you’re concise this
should never be a problem, but large amounts
of text is off-putting to the person faced with
reading it. So use your spacing wisely and
don’t forget to paragraph!
Send it as a PDF: If possible always paste
your cover letter into the body of an email to
avoid landing in the spam folder, but if the job
posting asks for a copy always provide it in PDF
format.
Find a Name: Where possible, always address
your cover letter to a specific individual. It
makes your cover letter more personalized and
lets the prospective employer know not only
that you put in the effort to find out who to
contact but also that you’ve customized your
letter to them. If a job description doesn’t
specify a person to address, contact the
company and ask.
Customize: You don’t have to rewrite your
entire cover letter for every application but
always make sure to tweak it to address the
specific job posting you’re applying for. Use
the job description’s keywords and change
the examples to the ones which best suit
the qualifications you need to exemplify.
Prospective employers will recognize generic
cover letters and sending them out will only
lead to one place, the trash can.
Don’t Be a Parrot: Never repeat the content
of your resume. Your cover letter is your
opportunity to elaborate on your skills and how
great you are but don’t just rehash what you’ve
already said. Think of other situations where
you utilized your skills, the more interesting
and impressive the better!
CONTENT

THE
COMPELLING
COVER
LETTER
04. CONTENT cont.
Don’t Just State It, Prove It: Always support
the claims you make in your cover letter. It’s
not enough to say you have the skills they
want, you have to prove it. Describe situations
where you used certain important skills they’re
looking for to resolve issues. If problem-
solving is key, make sure to describe that time
your previous employer’s computer system
went down and you introduced the temporary
manual process that saved the day.
Be Friendly: Hiring managers read hundreds of
cover letters a day. After a while, they all just
blend together. Don’t just write another bland,
cliché-filled document. You should always be
appropriate and professional, but don’t be
afraid to inject a little humor and personality
into your writing. A well-placed joke will make
the hiring manager smile and go a long way to
making you memorable.
It’s Not About You: Your family may care about
your career aspirations and how the job you’re
applying for can help you but prospective
employers definitely don’t. Always frame
everything in terms of what you can offer them.
Proofread: Your cover letter should be just
as well-written as your resume. If it has any
spelling or grammatical errors, you’re headed
for the rejection pile. So, just as for that
resume, read it, re-read it, ask someone else
to read it and then leave it overnight before re-
reading it again. If after this you still can’t find
any errors then you can send it off.
Phone that Friend: If you look back at the
resume section, you’ll remember I said it’s
important to have someone else read over your
work before sending it off. This goes double for
your cover letter. With a letter, there are many
more opportunities for misunderstanding than
a bulleted list. So have some fresh eyes take
a look. If your friend or family member can’t
understand what you’re trying to say then a
hiring manager certainly won’t.

THE
SUCCESSFUL
INTERVIEW
05.
No matter how well you’ve presented
yourself in your resume and cover letter,
it’s important to prepare and make the
right impression at the interview. It’s the
point at which the key impressions are
given and decisions made.
Follow our guide to help you build on the great impact your resume and cover letter have already made
In fact, a recent study found that 44% of
managers rely on their gut instinct to make
a decision and 47% of managers make
hiring decisions in 30 minutes or less so
your first impression is critical.

THE
SUCCESSFUL
INTERVIEW
05.
IN ADVANCE
Be Prepared
Preparation is key when entering an interview. Re-read the job description in advance so
you remember what they’re looking for, practice answers to general interview questions and
gather multiple copies of your resume, cover letter and references to bring to the interview.
The interviewer will undoubtedly have some of this information on hand but having the copies
ready to distribute if necessary will make you appear professional and organized.
Memorize Your Resume
It may seem obvious – they’re your life experiences, how could you forget what you’ve done? –
but in the middle of a stressful interview it’s easy to forget the reasons why you’re the perfect
fit for a job. Take the time to memorize the information on your resume and cover letter so that
you can go in and blow them away with your qualifications and experience.
Research
Always research the industry you’re trying to get into and the company you’re interviewing
with. Look over their website to find out about their values and goals, use Google to find any
available news stories about them and research their competitors. Make sure to leverage
this information during the interview to make it clear you know them and their industry. If
possible, find an area they are interested in that you can offer insight into or help with.
This is your first meeting with a potential employer and your aim is to make a positive,
lasting impression. One way to be remembered, since interviewers can sometimes
get overwhelmed with several candidates, is to distinguish yourself with a common
connection with the interviewer. Look for clues in their office or check out their social
media beforehand. Maybe you both love dogs, chat about it briefly so your follow up
can reference this to help them remember you.

THE
SUCCESSFUL
INTERVIEW
05. ON THE DAY
Dress Appropriately: First impressions often dictate
the success of an interview. Ultimately, you must
always wear appropriate professional clothing.
For men, this is a suit, plain dress shirt and
polished dress shoes. No patterns, no sneakers
and definitely no shorts! For women, this can
be a dress, suit or skirt and blouse with flat or
slightly heeled shoes. Minimal make up, no bright
lipstick, excessive jewelry, short skirts/dresses
and definitely no skyscraper heels! Finally, make
sure your clothes are well-pressed and your hair
brushed.
Be Early: Always arrive 10 minutes early for an
interview. This gives you the time to find the
location, take a deep breath and read over any
last minute information you’ve found. But don’t
get there too early either. Arriving too early leaves
you with too much time to overthink things and
become anxious.
Turn Off Your Phone: It may seem obvious, but
double check to ensure your phone is on silent or
turned off before your interview. If it rings aloud,
it will be difficult to recover from the negative
impression it has given the interviewer. If it
vibrates in your pocket, it can break your focus,
causing you to lose your train of thought while
answering important questions.
Fake It Till You Make It: Going into an interview
is rarely a relaxing experience but it’s important
you don’t give the impression that you’re
uncomfortable. Enter the interview with good
posture, a big smile, eye contact and a firm
handshake to show the interviewer you’re self-
confident and in control.
Relax: I know it’s easier said than done but having
the right body language during an interview is
just as important as having good body language
entering it. Here are a few things you can do to
relax and appear confident:
■■ Sit up straight
■■ Maintain eye contact
■■ Don’t cross your arms and legs
■■ Keep your hands and jaw relaxed
■■ Take deep breaths between answers
and smile!
Use the STAR Method: STAR stands for Situation,
Task, Action and Result. It can sometimes be
difficult to structure impressive answers under
pressure. This method helps you frame quick,
powerful responses to your interviewer’s questions.
Briefly describe a Situation where you found a
certain skill useful, the Task you were asked to
complete, the Action you took to achieve it and
the meaningful Results of those actions. This way
you offer the interviewer what they want to hear
without waffling.
Ask Questions: Prepare one or two questions to
ask your interviewer about the company and your
potential role. The interviewer will undoubtedly
ask you whether you have any questions at the
end of your conversation and having a couple of
thoughtful ones prepared shows intelligence and
interest. Questions such as “Can I clarify anything
further for you regarding my qualifications for this
role?” are also useful. However, now is not the time
for queries about salary, vacation or retirement
plans. You don’t want to seem more interested in
the compensation than the job.

Follow our guide to help you do it the right way and
establish yourself as a strong contender for any role
THE
FOLLOW UP
06. Your opportunity to make a positive
impression is not over once the interview
is finished. You may wonder if following
up with your interviewer is too forward
but it isn’t.

Self-assess
The moment your interview’s over and you have the chance to sit down, write down the name of
your interviewer, your recollections from the interview and your thoughts about how it went. Was
there anything you feel needed further clarification? Were there any concerns you need to address?
These will all be useful when it comes to writing your follow up message.
When to Write
Send your thank you note within one to two days of the interview. Any later than this and the
interviewer will probably have forgotten you among the other candidates.
Email or Write
Write each of your interviewer’s a brief one to two paragraph personal email or note to thank them
for their time and reiterating your interest in the position. If you have an address for them, make
sure your note is hand-written. In our age of technology, this is unusual and will differentiate you
from other applicants. Never phone your interviewer. They are busy people and don’t have the time
to be bombarded by hundreds of thank you calls from applicants. Doing so will only irritate them.
Summarize Your Strengths
Use the information you noted down from your interview to briefly address and resolve any
concerns the interviewer might have had and then emphasize the strengths that make you the
perfect candidate for the job.
Jog Their Memory
Always try to make a specific reference to your conversation to remind the interviewer who you are.
If you discussed your industry insights or mutual interests, make a point of saying how much you
enjoyed talking to the interviewer about them.
THE
FOLLOW
UP
06.

PREPARING
FOR AN
OFFER
07.
Take a look at these questions and guidelines to make sure your offer of employment is the right one for you
Your interview is over, you’ve made
the right impression and you receive
that all important offer of employment.
Congratulations! But the work isn’t over
yet. Preparing for an offer is just as vital
as the steps that came before it. Your
first reaction may be to accept but it is
important to evaluate every opportunity
carefully before making a decision.

Questions to Ask: As thrilling as it is to get an
offer, you should always remember your career
goals. Think about the following questions before
making any decisions:
■■ Does this offer satisfy you overall? Does
it meet all your non-negotiables? (i.e.
compensation, benefits, challenging
position, company values, friendly people
etc.)
■■ Is this position a step forward? Will it
enhance your resume and help you move
forward with your career a few years down
the line?
■■ How does it compare to your current job
and compensation package?
■■ How does it compare to other
opportunities you are considering?
Talk it Over: Once you’ve thought about the
questions yourself, talk to your close friends,
family and partner. They may be able to offer
insights or spot issues with the offer that you
haven’t noticed.
Ask Questions: Don’t be afraid to ask for
clarification on things you’re not certain about.
You should fully understand everything about
the offer, the position and the company before
moving forward with any discussions on salary.
If there are factors other than salary in the offer
which don’t meet your requirements, then it
is better to reject it before wasting their time
negotiating salary. You also don’t want to end
up signing a contract for a job you later regret
accepting.
PREPARING
FOR AN
OFFER
07. THINK IT OVER
NEGOTIATING SALARY
Do Your Research: Before all else, always make
a point of researching the average salary those
in your area receive for similar positions. Use
professional associations, salary websites such as
Payscale.com and Salary.com, and job boards to
determine a rough estimate of what you should
expect to be paid.
Know Your Numbers: Never enter a salary
negotiation without knowing your non-negotiables.
You should always have:
■■ A target number – This is your ideal
salary. If they offer you this, you’ll accept
immediately.
■■ A minimum number – This is the minimum
salary you’ll accept. For this number, it’s
important to factor in the other reasons
this is a good opportunity. If everything
else about this job offer is an improvement
on your current situation and it will propel
you forwards in your career then you may
still be better off accepting regardless of
the lower compensation package.
■■ A turn down number – This is $1 less than
your minimum number. If they offer you
this and refuse to negotiate higher, you
will turn it down. Anything higher than this
number you are willing to accept.
Be Open to Compromise: An offer may not always
match up to the target salary you have in your
head. It is important that you take into account
the overall benefits of this new position and be
open to compromise.
Don’t Begin the Discussion: Always leave it up to
your prospective employer to raise the subject of
salary.

PREPARING
FOR AN
OFFER
07. NEGOTIATING SALARY cont.
Don’t Name a Number: Once the negotiation
begins, never be the first to name a specific
number. Most, if not all, prospective employers
already have a salary in mind for the position.
If you offer up a number, you may accidentally
under-sell yourself or scare them off by naming
something out of their range. They may try to
tempt you into giving one by asking questions
such as “What sort of compensation did you
have in mind?” The appropriate response to this
is to reverse the question with something like
“What sort of compensation would you say is fair
for this role given my qualifications?”
Take your Time: Once they’ve named a number,
it can feel as though you need to give your
answer immediately. If you need time, let them
know you will think about it. Then take that
time to evaluate how this offer measures up to
the numbers in your head. Some companies
will actually purposely start low as a strategy so
if you feel you should negotiate for more, then
make sure to frame your response appropriately.
No Sob Stories: You may have student loans,
children, car payments and/or expensive rent
but these are not compelling reasons for a
prospective employer to raise their offer. Make
sure you frame your answer in terms of what
you bring to the table. Remind them of the skill
set that made you the ideal candidate and the
challenges you will be taking on for them. Then
suggest a counter-offer or salary range you would
be comfortable with.
Don’t Blink First: This is the most important
stage of the negotiation. Once you’ve stated the
number you’re looking for in terms of salary,
be pleasant but silent. No matter how long the
silence drags on or how awkward it becomes,
do not open your mouth until after the hiring
manager has responded. Most importantly, do
not backtrack and do not try to explain yourself
further.
Find Other Angles: If you reach the point where
you feel the hiring manager is unwilling to
go higher and you are still unhappy with the
numbers, suggest that you look at improving
other forms of compensation, such as your
retirement plan or vacation days.
Make a Decision: When all avenues have been
discussed and there is no more leeway, think it
over, talk to friends, family and your partner and
then make your decision.
Withdraw from the Market: If you’ve chosen to
accept the offer, remove your resume and job
search information from any job boards you’ve
been using. The last thing you want is for your
new employer to see it and think you are still
shopping around for a better offer.
Thank Your Helpers: Let those who helped you
in your job search, such as a recruiter, friends or
colleagues, know that you’ve accepted an offer
and thank them for what they’ve done. But make
sure it doesn’t get back to your current employer
before you have the opportunity to take the steps
in the next section.

You’ve accepted an offer of employment
and you’re excited to move forward with
your career. But before you can, it’s
important to make a professional exit
from your current employer.
Follow our guide to help you leave on good terms and with your relationships intact
Maintaining positive relationships with
former colleagues and employers is
vital to a successful career. You never
know who might become an important
connection in the future.
THE
PROFESSIONAL
EXIT
08.

THE
PROFESSIONAL
EXIT
08.
Don’t Burn Bridges: As I mentioned earlier in
the Networking section, you never know when
a contact will become useful. You should
always maintain a professional and friendly
attitude towards everyone. Take down contact
information for your colleagues before you
leave and make the effort to stay in touch.
They could become valuable references in the
future.
Prepare a Resignation Letter: A pleasant, well-
written resignation letter can go a long way
to smoothing over a transition. Express your
gratitude for the opportunity and thank your
supervisor for their support. Compliment the
company and your colleagues but make sure
to refer to how this decision helps you move
forward with your career aspirations. Then
give them the standard two weeks’ notice and
indicate your last day.
Offer to Train Your Replacement: You know
your duties better than anyone. When you
leave, your supervisor and colleagues will have
to pick up the slack and teach a new team
member. Offering to train a replacement takes
that weight off them and they will remember
you fondly for it.
Prepare a Transition Plan: Training a
replacement is great, but preparing a transition
document as well is even better. You will
undoubtedly be offloading a lot of information
on your replacement. If the replacement
remembers every process and step you take
to complete your tasks, it will be a miracle.
So take some time to write up a guide to your
duties so they can refer to it after you’re gone
and avoid bothering your colleagues.
Contact HR: Make sure to find out from your
HR department what your grace period and
continuation provisions are.
Thank Everyone: Let your supervisor and
colleagues know in person how much you
enjoyed working with them. Regardless of the
truth behind the words, it is a professional
approach to the situation and will mean your
colleagues remember you in a positive light.
Bringing tasty snacks to sooth the blow, doesn’t
hurt either!
Don’t Gloat: You may be excited about your
new position but don’t gloat to your colleagues
about your future prospects. You want them
to understand and not resent that this is a
positive step forwards for you. Giving the
impression that you’re dying to get out of the
door, won’t endear you to anyone.
Work Hard: Work as hard on your last day
as you did on your first. It is vital that you
maintain a professional demeanor and get
the job done. When you leave, you want your
colleagues to remember you as an asset rather
than the person who spent their last two weeks
on the job slacking off and giving them more
work.

THE
PROFESSIONAL
EXIT
08.
Take Stock: Think about why you started
to look elsewhere for employment (lack
of a challenging work environment, weak
compensation package, lack of positive
career growth etc.). Then consider what your
current employer is offering you. Does it really
address the reasons why you began to look
elsewhere?
Questions of Salary: If your current employer
is offering a salary raise, it’s important to
consider why they suddenly consider you
more valuable. If they have the budget, why
wasn’t it offered earlier? It may simply be
the raise you were entitled to anyway at your
next employment review or they may simply
consider it cheaper to tempt you back with
a salary increase than to train someone new.
Worse still, they may just be buying time until
a replacement can be found and you can be
fired. Ultimately, none of these reasons are
positive.
Questions of Perception: The cat is already
out of the bag. Your supervisor and colleagues
are aware you planned to move on to another
company, possibly even a competitor. If you
choose to stay, this sense of betrayal can
linger among your co-workers, impeding your
chances of promotion and good teamwork in
the future. Not to mention, if the company
experiences a downturn, you may find yourself
the first on the chopping block for your
perceived disloyalty.
Questions of Commitment: Accepting a
counteroffer after already committing to a
new employer, will damage your chances of
receiving an offer in the future. Not only have
you proven yourself untrustworthy, but you’ve
also negatively impacted your prospective
employer, your recruiter and anyone else who
has helped you secure the new position by
wasting their time and resources. People talk
and word will probably get around.
Stand Firm: There were reasons you chose to
move on from your current employer and it is
doubtful their counteroffer will really address
those issues. Stand firm and graciously
decline the counteroffer. You have a bright
future ahead with your new company.
THE COUNTEROFFER CONUNDRUM
Once you’ve handed in your resignation, your current employer may try and tempt you
to stay. A raise or promotion can sound enticing – why make the effort to move else-
where when you can get what you want right here? – but these offers rarely address the
issues which made you want to move on in the first place.
The following points will help you evaluate a counteroffer.

WORKING WITH A
RECRUITMENT AGENCY
AND PREMIEREHIRE
09.
If you are new to working with an agency please know
that agencies do not charge you a fee if you are referred
to or placed at a company. The employer engages an
agency to find the type of employee they are seeking and
they pay a fee for doing so. Our role as a recruitment
agency is to make a good fit to meet the employer’s
objectives and the job seekers career goals.
Follow the steps below to get the most out of
your recruitment agency from the very start

WORKING
WITH A
RECRUITMENT
AGENCY AND
PREMIEREHIRE
09.
When you send this information to
Premierehire, we will assess if you are a
potential fit for any open positions, and our
Staffing Manager or one of our Executive
Recruiters will contact you to request an
interview. You may review posted openings
on our website at www.premierehire.com.
Please note that some of our opportunities
never get to our job board since we actively
seek out qualified candidates to meet our
clients’ needs as quickly as possible.
To ensure that we can find you when an
opportunity arises please register at
www.premierehire.com so that you are in
our database.
The first step in engaging an agency is to find those that recruit for the type of
position you are interested in. This should be evident from their website. Next,
apply online at their site and/or e-mail your resume and a brief summary in the
body of the e-mail with:
■■ What you are looking for (be as specific as possible)
■■ Key assets you have to offer
■■ Geographic area you are willing to commute or move to
■■ Pay range expectations
■■ When you are available to work (start date, hours)
■■ Are you open to short term or contract work
■■ Examples of the companies you would like to work for, plus any you do
not want to work for
Our clients hire mostly on a permanent or
contract to permanent basis. Occasionally
our clients will have a short term need for
a key project, peak work load, or employee
leave coverage. These opportunities range
from entry level to executive.
In addition to this e-guide, we have
additional resources for job seekers on our
website. Please go to our resource center at
www.premierehire.com/resources.
Smart Start Career Coaching: At Premierehire, we also provide in depth career assessments & job search coaching. This program is designed help you
better position yourself based on your strengths, gain some insight and ways to effectively describe and validate your aptitudes and leadership skills,
better understand the type of work you will be most successful and satisfied in, and prepare for interviews. Included in this program is feedback on your
resume and LinkedIn profile as well as as individualized coaching on your job search. Learn more at our website under Job Seekers and Career Coaching.
Visit: http://www.premierehire.com/job-seekers/career-coaching-leadership-coaching

09.
WORKING
WITH A
RECRUITMENT
AGENCY AND
PREMIEREHIRE
At Premierehire, our purpose and passion is to create mutually rewarding career
placements for the individual and the organization; helping each party find the
right fit.
We follow a unique methodology called SmartStart for hiring and on-boarding in order to
maximize individual potential, team synergy, organizational return, and employee retention.
Ultimately, we put talented people and companies together. This happens every day at
Premierehire – in just about every industry – with a talent roster that includes:
■■ Engineers
■■ IT/IS experts
■■ Finance & Accounting
■■ Human Resources
■■ Call Center, Administrative, Clerical
■■ Sales & Marketing
■■ Project Managers
■■ Executive Management - C-Suite
We wish you the best of success in your search and hope that our collective wisdom in this
document will guide you to the job or the career you desire.
Best regards,
The Premierehire Team

Premierehire Career Guide - Jumpstart Your Career

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