by Angela Copeland | Aug 9, 2016 | Job Posting
BuzzFeed is seeking a Reporter in Washington, DC
The reporter, who will cover broader news coverage, must have the demonstrated ability to find and break news — whether on a focused government beat or around campaign politics. This reporter should have fantastic news judgment and a real enthusiasm for causing trouble. He or she should also understand both how politics works and how campaign politics will translate into government in 2017.
Our goal each day is to produce excellent news that is well-reported, crisp, accurate, and substantial. We don’t simply want coverage of press conferences and news of the day, but rather a reporter who will dig in to find compelling stories with impact.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the Buzzfeed website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 8, 2016 | Advice, Financial, Graduate School, Newsletter
This is a question that comes up often, as it should. Education is important. We all learned that growing up. Whether or not to go back to school can be a tough choice.
On one hand, going back to school can feel like the “right” thing to do. You’re always supposed to be learning right? On the other, it’s expensive and time consuming.
To compound things, you’re not as young as you used to be. You have responsibilities like a spouse, children, a house, a job,… The list goes on and on.
I’ll be honest. The marketing higher education puts out bugs me a little. They’re selling a hope of a brighter future. If you’ve ever visited a fertility doctor, it reminds me of all the photos of babies on the walls. They’re selling hope. Hope that may or may not be fulfilled, due to a number of factors (like your age and how much money you have).
So, back to the question at hand… Should you go back to school?
The first question I have is this. Are you looking to get a second (or third) degree? Are you looking to finish a first degree? Or, are you looking to take one off classes to keep your continuing education up?
If you’re looking to complete your first degree, or keep up your continuing education, the answer is much more straight forward. If you haven’t finished college, I am definitely an advocate of going back. It provides some level of stability, especially as you enter the later part of your career.
Over the years, I’ve worked with a number of job seekers who never completed college. They had great careers and were stellar at their jobs. Then something happened. For example, their company went out of business. It wasn’t their fault, or a reflection of their work. Suddenly, they were on the open market, trying to explain to employers why they don’t have an advanced degree. It’s stressful and can create a sudden decrease in salary in a situation like the one described.
When it comes to getting a second or third degree, there are a few things to think about.
First, why do you want to get the degree? There’s this rumor floating around that a degree in a particular field will guarantee you work. Let’s be honest. That rumor is not true.
The result of getting a second degree is highly dependent on lots of things, including what your degree is in and how needed the degree is in the job market.
A few reasons you might consider getting a degree are — You want to change career paths and re-brand yourself with a new degree. I did this with my MBA. I have a computer and systems engineering degree from undergraduate school. It was hard for me to get people to look past the fact that I knew how to write code. My MBA helped solve this issue.
Or, perhaps you’re a lifelong learner. Your company pays for you to go to school and you have the time. So, you think — why not? It’s almost like a hobby and something you’ve always wanted to do. It’s for yourself. I can get behind this. Self improvement is an important part of life.
So, say you’ve decided to go back. Now what? How do you decide where to go?
IMHO, deciding where to go to school is almost as important as whether or not to go at all. Very often, I talk to people who went to a for profit university. They invested years of their life and have huge student loans. They are shocked to learn that some employers don’t take their degrees seriously at all. So, what can you do?
Learn as much as possible about a school. Thinking about why you want to go can help to narrow down your choices. For example, when I entered business school in 2004 (wow, that was a long time ago!), I wanted to learn about starting a business. So, I found a school that had a concentration in entrepreneurship. It was also around the same time that Enron fell apart and Martha Stewart went to jail. I felt a bit concerned about ethics in business, so I looked for a program that put an emphasis on this topic in their coursework. And, I hoped for a scholarship. I put myself through school (after quitting my job), so going to a school that could help me financially was important. That’s how I selected Pepperdine University.
Another thing to check out is what’s called the “post-graduation report.” This is a report that both colleges and graduate programs publish once a year on their graduates. It explains which industries their grads are working in and how much they make.
Often, the career center helps you to get your first job out of school. And, that career center will have existing relationships with certain companies. For example, my engineering college sees many graduates going to work for places like NASA. Pepperdine however has graduates going to companies such as Disney.
You also want to pay close attention to the part about how much the graduates are making. It’s sometimes surprising to think about it, but companies often pay different amounts for graduates based on which school they went to. You can argue whether this is right or wrong, but it just is.
So, if you have two graduate programs that both cost $20K per year in tuition (for example) — and one has graduates who make $70K after graduation, while the other has graduates making $95K, it can help you to pick between the two schools.
Another good place to look for these rankings are sites like US News & World Report. They have lists of the best schools. The lists contain lots of data that can give you an even better sense of the school and how it’s viewed by the world.
One trend I’ve noticed with people returning to school is that they consider enrolling in an online program pretty frequently. It’s easier. You can fit it into your life better. It’s less disruptive.
I would caution you against doing any kind of online degree program. Think about it this way. A big part of what you get out of business school (for example) is networking contacts. You meet new people who go with you through the rest of your career. They’re your friends. Your colleagues. You help one another get jobs and with projects. You aren’t going to make those strong connections through an online program. You’re going to make them when you sit next to your classmates day in and day out in class.
The same logic applies to something like engineering. How in the world are you expected to truly grasp onto engineering concepts if you never set foot into an engineering lab?
Last, think of school as an investment. As with any investment, you should evaluate the ROI. There are many calculators online to help you to figure this out. Here’s one from Learn Vest you might try. It helps you to get a sense of how much you’ll put into school — and how much you’ll get out.
Going back to school is a highly personal and highly individual decision. There’s no one answer for everyone. My bottom line recommendation here is DO YOUR HOMEWORK. When you finish school, you want to be sure that you end up with the results you were expecting to.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Aug 8, 2016 | Job Posting
Amazon is seeking a Director of Amazon Marketplace in Seattle, WA.
Amazon Marketplace is looking for a dynamic and innovative software development manager to lead development and operations for the pricing domain within its Billing and Payment teams. You will own software systems and be operationally responsible for a variety of complex pricing model plugins, pricing plans, and other pricing related billing primitives. You will be responsible for creating next generation of financing & accounting reporting for Amazon’s third party sellers. You can consider yourself a good fit for this role if you are an experienced hands-on manager with an established background in developing and delivering software that simplifies solutions for a broad set of related problems, knowledge of billing and payments, strong technical ability, great communication skills, and a motivation to achieve results in a fast paced environment. You will be responsible for building a strong and nimble team of talented engineers and managers working in a dynamic environment. We’re looking for a skilled leader capable of getting great things done for our customers.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the Amazon website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 8, 2016 | Job Posting
Telsa Motors is seeking a Vehicle Test Engineer – Durability – Interior in Fremont, CA.
This position will work as a member of Tesla’s Vehicle Test Group to support vehicle level testing for Reliability tests performed in-house and at external test sites. The primary objective of this role is to be responsible for the interior concerns that arise from whole vehicle and component testing activities, working closely with the design engineers to ensure resolution and successful revalidation. This will be done through conducting vehicle level tests, including extreme environmental tests, in accordance with test plans and test procedures and communicate test results to internal engineering teams for successful validation to Tesla requirements. The successful candidate for this position must have a broad background in automotive vehicle level testing, preferably including interior focused testing.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the Telsa website
by Angela Copeland | Aug 7, 2016 | Job Posting
The YMCA of Southern Arizona is seeking a President and CEO in Tucson, AZ.
The successful CEO will have the gravitas and credibility to represent the YMCA to the high-level community leaders and stakeholders in the Tucson service areas and demonstrate the value and impact of the YMCA. The CEO will be uniquely positioned to champion the YMCA mission and develop partnerships to meet the needs of a diverse population. Building upon and expanding these partnerships is a key focus for the next CEO.This is an exceptional opportunity for a polished, entrepreneurial, creative leader to impact the growth of the Tucson community. The CEO is expected to be highly visible to ensure the YMCA remains a respected, credible and desired partner with a strong stake in identifying and addressing solutions to community challenges and opportunities.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the YMCA website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 6, 2016 | Job Posting
FedEx is seeking a Managing Director of Regulatory Affairs and Compliance in Memphis, TN.
This position develops a regulatory compliance program to foster 100 percent compliance with the regulations pertaining to the customs brokerage services and import compliance as an Importer of Record. Ensures that FedEx Trade Networks is in compliance with all laws and regulations governing the Company’s activities on a global basis. Provides direction to the Vice President, Regulatory Affairs & Compliance and Company’s executive committee in the area of regulatory compliance. Represents FedEx Trade Networks’ regulatory positions to governmental agencies.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the FedEx website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 5, 2016 | Job Posting
US Bank and Elavon are seeking a VP of Airline Product Management in Atlanta, GA.
Elavon is currently seeking a VP of Airline Product Management to define products around the strategy, create the propositions and own the success of Elavon’s business in the Airline Vertical supporting the Head of Global Airlines. This role will report to the North American Product Leader in charge of a vast number of products servicing key verticals across the USA, Canada and Puerto Rico. Responsibilities will include leading through a cross-functional team by driving the strategy, planning, propositions and enablement of Elavon’s airline product portfolio. The role will participate in the product lifecycle, including identifying product and customer requirements, defining the product vision, and working closely with key stakeholders and functional areas to ensure established goals are exceeded. This includes increasing the profitability and customer value of existing products to developing new products to achieve growth objectives. The development of products from existing and new ideas using industry experience and contact with customers and prospects is required. This role requires a combination of business and technical knowledge, an ability to align with corporate and business line strategies, and the execution skills to turn ideas into reality.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the US Bank website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 5, 2016 | Job Posting
The Orlando Magic is seeking a Director of Information Technology in Orlando, FL.
Work within the Technology department and with key business partners to ensure the needed infrastructure, systems, and end user computing assets are architected properly, maintained, and supported as needed on a day to day basis to ensure a high degree of availability and stability. Implement upon short, mid, and long-term infrastructure strategies to maximize capital expenditures and efficiencies and minimize total cost of ownership.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the Team Work Online website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 4, 2016 | Job Posting
The Weather Channel is seeking a VP of Emerging Platforms and Business Development in Atlanta, GA.
Reporting to the COO with an indirect report to the SVP Ad Sales, the VP Revenue will be responsible for developing a strategy to grow revenue through innovative means across a range of platforms and products.
Primarily, the VP will work with the product and the ad sales teams to pursue creative advertising solutions for The Weather Group’s owned platforms and products, including but not limited to weather-triggered advertising, digital ad insertion, and new ad products for The Weather Channel cable network, OTT services, and TV Everywhere offerings.
This role will also be charged with identifying and executing monetization opportunities that leverage our unique assets and capabilities in coordination with external partners, such as implementation of our propriety weather-triggered ad solutions on MVPD platforms, revenue sharing with content partners on our Local Now platform, and business development with new distribution partners for our video and audio content.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit The Weather Channel website.
by Angela Copeland | Aug 4, 2016 | Job Posting
Boston College is seeking an Executive Director in Boston, MA.
Eager to build on the success of Light the World, Boston College seeks a skilled professional to serve in the division of University Advancement as its Executive Director for Advancement Communications & Marketing. This is an exceptional opportunity for an accomplished professional who is interested in applying his/her talents in an environment that values groundbreaking work and outsized results.
Reporting to the Senior Vice President, the Executive Director will be responsible for setting the strategic course for Advancement Communications & Marketing while leading a robust communications team and working collaboratively with colleagues within the division and across campus.
This is a highly visible position that demands strong and focused management capability as well as savvy and creative leadership skills.
To learn more, or to apply online, visit the Boston College website.
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