The Five O'Clock Club

Learn the Game for Moving Inside Your Firm
Then Teach the Job Game to Inner-City High School Youths.
by Kate Wendleton

Half of the people attending The Five O'Clock Club are employed and looking for a new job. We tell them, “The best job hunts start at home” —by which we mean they might do better in their present organizations.

Many people say they have already tried to search internally, but “nothing’s happened.” They respond to postings, sometimes get called in for meetings, and then resent it when someone who was “wired”—who already knew people internally—gets the job instead of them.

Some say they have even spoken to Human Resources, and hope HR will help them make that move internally. They don’t realize that much more is involved than simply being pointed in the direction of an opening. For example, did they have a good résumé and cover letter, know how to interview and follow up after the meeting? Perhaps they were granted the interview as a courtesy, and didn’t realize all the work they would have to do to really be considered for the job.

But an internal job search is just like an external job search. In the outside world, only six percent of all jobs are filled through search firms (the equivalent of Human Resources) and only six percent of all jobs are filled through ads (the equivalent of job postings). The article on page 6 of this issue will show you how people find jobs internally, and get ahead in their present organizations. And it’s done through proper networking and through contacting people directly. It’s done by having a good résumé and cover letter—yes, even internally —and by interviewing professionally.

We can tell you how to make sure that you’re the one the hiring team wants. But first, you have to go through the steps all successful Five O’Clock Clubbers go through:

• Go through the assessment to find out more about yourself and how to talk about yourself.

• Prepare your résumé and cover letter.

• Decide whom you want to meet with internally.

• Prepare your pitch about yourself.

• Develop your plan for the meeting.

• Meet with people in the department or divisions you are targeting. Make sure they would hire you if they had an opening.

So, the game is—contact those who actually do the hiring, the IT department or division heads, and not only HR. Meet with department or division heads who have no openings right now, but may keep you at the top of their list if they do hire someday. Then you’ll be the one who’s wired in. And, when they have an opening, they’ll tell you, “Just sit tight. I have to post this job, but you’re going to get it.”

That’s how the game works.

Help Students Learn the Game

You know a lot about how the workplace functions. Inner-city high-school students may never have been exposed at home to the correct attitudes and information. You can be trained to help them, and then get them ready for the world of work. Your efforts will have a far greater impact than you may see. Those you train will influence their families and friends. Someone who may have never had a chance in the job market will now know the game—because of you. See the last page of this issue for information on how you can get involved.

Kate Wendleton, Editor-in-Chief