from theladders.com
Don't Overlook Human Resources
The hiring manager will never know that you exist if you can't get past the recruiter or human resources representative. By Tanjia M. Coleman
Has this ever happened to you?
More often than not, the first contact a job seeker will have with a hiring company is a member of the human resources department. And far too often job seekers disregard this stage of the interview process as perfunctory and an obstacle between them and the hiring manager who will ultimately make the choice about whether or not to hire them. Many approach the meeting or phone interview with an HR representative lackadaisically or disrespectfully.
As the HR representative on the other side of the table, I’ve encountered individuals who were rude or despondent towards me because they thought that it was a waste of time to explain themselves to the human resources manager during the phone interview. These individuals would become agitated at the line of questioning, not put much thought into their responses or quickly inquire about the next step in the process, meaning they wanted to speak with the actual Hiring Manager versus someone in Human Resources.
Do so at your own peril. We decide whether you ever get to meet the hiring manager.
Age and seniority
Job seekers often make the mistake of taking into account the age or seniority of the HR representative. Whether the interviewer is an experienced or junior HR representative, always show respect, patience and understanding when describing your responsibilities, job and future goals. The phone interviewer has the power to present you with the key to your success or cause you not to receive another phone call. So forget whether she is a seasoned professional, is in your field of expertise or completely understands your contributions. This is the person holding the stack of cards in your favor or not.
One of the most important aspects of any type of interview that the recruiter and hiring manager is looking to see is "personality" and "character." In other words, don’t forget who you are: your story, what makes you passionate about your career, what inspires you (outside of a paycheck) to get out of bed every morning. In interviewing hundreds, maybe thousands of candidates, those who stick out, for better or for worse, are those who are true to themselves. You have to keep in mind that the recruiters and hiring managers are meeting several candidates to fill multiple positions at any given time. You want to act as if you are happy, encouraged and elated that you have been afforded an opportunity to showcase your skills and accomplishments.
The three “Es” of interviews
One of the biggest complaints I’ve heard over the years from recruiters is that the candidates are missing the 3 Es: They come across as lacking energy, enthusiasm and eagerness, especially on the initial interview.
Learn the three Es to wow the phone interviewer. You have to demonstrate that you have energy, are enthusiastic and eager. No one wants to talk with someone who seems lethargic, uninspired, negative or apprehensive about working hard and carrying their weight. The job of the first interviewer is to bring your work experiences to life for his hiring manager. He has probably worked closely with this person and can anticipate the type of questions and push-back he will encounter. Remember, the recruiter’s reputation is on the line as well. He's spotted something that prompted him to picked your resume out of hundreds, but he can only present the best and the brightest for an in-person interview with the hiring manager.
Always extend an offer to the interviewer to contact you at any time if they have further questions or need clarification on any information that you have provided to them. Let them know your level of excitement, flexibility and gratitude for spending time with you. At the end of the day, all qualifications aside, as human beings we align with individuals with whom we “connect” on a human level. That typically means the individuals that have shown us respect and gratitude.
Last but not least, remember if you are offered that coveted position, the Human Resources Director/Manager/Recruiter will continue play a pivotal role in your career throughout your tenure with that particular organization. Be nice.
Monday, August 30
Friday, August 27
Using smartphones to drive EHR adoption
The Health Record Review
by Patty Enrado (www.ehrwatch.com)
Several studies point to a higher adoption rate of smartphones by physicians than the general public. Given the historical low rates of technology adoption within the healthcare industry, this news may come as a surprise.
The convenience factor of smartphones for busy physicians, however, is a no-brainer. It fits their workflow and mobility. The acceptance of these devices should be leveraged to drive EHR adoption.
The problem that physicians are encountering is not being able to access patient data on their smartphones. Imagine the power unlocked for physicians if they could gain access. Being able to connect to relevant data would make EHRs and EMRs more valuable to physicians and open the door to greater acceptance and adoption.
A few barriers exist, one of which is privacy and security policies. This is an area in which hospital CIOs should attend to in order to allow connectivity and ease to connect.
Another issue is the hospital's ability to connect multiple wireless devices to their EMRs and EHRs. This is a technical issue that can be solved.
Speaking of technical issues, this is a call to smartphone application developers, communications vendors and EHR and EMR vendors to collaborate to make connectivity and access happen.
There are so many stories of physicians accessing patient data far away from the hospital or clinic and being able to treat patients efficiently, quickly and with a high degree of safety. Likewise, there are many anecdotes about happy patients and physicians.
The health IT vendor community ought to take advantage of this state of affairs. It's good for patients, providers and the health IT movement.
by Patty Enrado (www.ehrwatch.com)
Several studies point to a higher adoption rate of smartphones by physicians than the general public. Given the historical low rates of technology adoption within the healthcare industry, this news may come as a surprise.
The convenience factor of smartphones for busy physicians, however, is a no-brainer. It fits their workflow and mobility. The acceptance of these devices should be leveraged to drive EHR adoption.
The problem that physicians are encountering is not being able to access patient data on their smartphones. Imagine the power unlocked for physicians if they could gain access. Being able to connect to relevant data would make EHRs and EMRs more valuable to physicians and open the door to greater acceptance and adoption.
A few barriers exist, one of which is privacy and security policies. This is an area in which hospital CIOs should attend to in order to allow connectivity and ease to connect.
Another issue is the hospital's ability to connect multiple wireless devices to their EMRs and EHRs. This is a technical issue that can be solved.
Speaking of technical issues, this is a call to smartphone application developers, communications vendors and EHR and EMR vendors to collaborate to make connectivity and access happen.
There are so many stories of physicians accessing patient data far away from the hospital or clinic and being able to treat patients efficiently, quickly and with a high degree of safety. Likewise, there are many anecdotes about happy patients and physicians.
The health IT vendor community ought to take advantage of this state of affairs. It's good for patients, providers and the health IT movement.
Wednesday, August 25
This Week in Healthcare IT
courtesy of ihealthbeat.org
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Ingenix, a vendor of decision support applications, has announced plans to acquire health information exchange services provider Axolotl for an undisclosed amount...Investment firm Orion Healthcare Ventures has acquired health IT company Aspyra for an undisclosed amount.
Pharmacy benefit management firm Medco Health Solutions has announced plans to acquire United BioSource, a provider of research services and technology for clinical trials, for $730 million...Health care imaging connectivity company Pacsgear has purchased the assets of NAI Tech Products, a digital medical imaging firm, for an undisclosed sum.
Contracts
Health IT firm Shared Health has selected Deane Smith Media Innovations to provide public and media relations as well as executive team coaching...HHS has awarded General Dynamics Information Technology's ViPS health IT subsidiary an $80 million contract to design and deploy technology for the agency's Early Retiree Reinsurance Program.
CMS has awarded a contract worth up to $200 million to HP Enterprise Services to improve claims processing and health care delivery services for Medicare; CMS also has awarded a $3.9 million contract to public relations firm Ketchum to help promote the HITECH Act to consumers.
NIH has selected software firm Instem to supply software for the collection, management and maintenance of data for NIH's studies...MidSouth eHealth Alliance, a Tennessee-based health information network, has selected Informatics Corporation of America's CareAlign system for health information exchange...The University of North Carolina Health Care System has selected Lawson Software's human resource management suite.
Product Development and Marketing
Health care technologies provider QuadraMed has partnered with CPM Resource Center, a developer of clinical practice guidelines, to provide clients with clinical documentation tools, care planning applications and other health IT services...Providence Health & Services in Oregon has partnered with General Electric to integrate its laboratory and diagnostic imaging applications with GE's Centricity EHR software.
Personnel
Dan DiPlacido -- former director for operations at consulting firm Navigant Consulting -- has been named COO of Think First, a revenue cycle services company aimed at health care practices.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/8/20/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-august-20-2010.aspx#ixzz0xeCDc19S
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Ingenix, a vendor of decision support applications, has announced plans to acquire health information exchange services provider Axolotl for an undisclosed amount...Investment firm Orion Healthcare Ventures has acquired health IT company Aspyra for an undisclosed amount.
Pharmacy benefit management firm Medco Health Solutions has announced plans to acquire United BioSource, a provider of research services and technology for clinical trials, for $730 million...Health care imaging connectivity company Pacsgear has purchased the assets of NAI Tech Products, a digital medical imaging firm, for an undisclosed sum.
Contracts
Health IT firm Shared Health has selected Deane Smith Media Innovations to provide public and media relations as well as executive team coaching...HHS has awarded General Dynamics Information Technology's ViPS health IT subsidiary an $80 million contract to design and deploy technology for the agency's Early Retiree Reinsurance Program.
CMS has awarded a contract worth up to $200 million to HP Enterprise Services to improve claims processing and health care delivery services for Medicare; CMS also has awarded a $3.9 million contract to public relations firm Ketchum to help promote the HITECH Act to consumers.
NIH has selected software firm Instem to supply software for the collection, management and maintenance of data for NIH's studies...MidSouth eHealth Alliance, a Tennessee-based health information network, has selected Informatics Corporation of America's CareAlign system for health information exchange...The University of North Carolina Health Care System has selected Lawson Software's human resource management suite.
Product Development and Marketing
Health care technologies provider QuadraMed has partnered with CPM Resource Center, a developer of clinical practice guidelines, to provide clients with clinical documentation tools, care planning applications and other health IT services...Providence Health & Services in Oregon has partnered with General Electric to integrate its laboratory and diagnostic imaging applications with GE's Centricity EHR software.
Personnel
Dan DiPlacido -- former director for operations at consulting firm Navigant Consulting -- has been named COO of Think First, a revenue cycle services company aimed at health care practices.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/8/20/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-august-20-2010.aspx#ixzz0xeCDc19S
Ask a Recruiter-Resume ROI
My resume could use some work—should I consider hiring a professional resume service?
That depends. Ask yourself a few important questions:
• Do you have the extra cash to invest in this venture?
*Packages, on average, run as high as $1000.
• Do you know someone who has used the service provider you are considering?
• Are you having trouble identifying your most marketable skills and highlighting them in a way that really showcases what a good hire you are?
• Perhaps most importantly, what do you expect to gain from the experience?
Your future employer hires you; they view your resume as a tool to evaluate your background and qualifications. A $1000 resume can get you in the door; it cannot get you the job.
Resume services are kind of like cosmetic surgeons. Few people who seek out their services really “need” them. And it is important to remember they’re not magicians. They don’t perform miracles.
Hiring a resume service isn’t going to get you a $300K SVP job if you don’t have the SVP credentials to back it up. Hiring a resume service doesn’t mean you don’t have to do any heavy lifting—you still have to identify the positions that are an appropriate fit for your skill set, you have to land the interview AND dazzle the hiring manager all by yourself.
Anyone can help give your resume a face lift—talk to professionals you know and respect, ask them to take a look at it and see what they think. Look for advice and suggestions online, in books. If you get resume fatigue, take a break and come back to it later. It’s a living document; you can always make changes.
And if all else fails, give the resume writers a call. See what they can do for you, how much their services will set you back financially and think about the level of confidence you stand to gain from the experience. If you can afford it and you think it’s worth the expense, go for it! And good luck in your job search.
That depends. Ask yourself a few important questions:
• Do you have the extra cash to invest in this venture?
*Packages, on average, run as high as $1000.
• Do you know someone who has used the service provider you are considering?
• Are you having trouble identifying your most marketable skills and highlighting them in a way that really showcases what a good hire you are?
• Perhaps most importantly, what do you expect to gain from the experience?
Your future employer hires you; they view your resume as a tool to evaluate your background and qualifications. A $1000 resume can get you in the door; it cannot get you the job.
Resume services are kind of like cosmetic surgeons. Few people who seek out their services really “need” them. And it is important to remember they’re not magicians. They don’t perform miracles.
Hiring a resume service isn’t going to get you a $300K SVP job if you don’t have the SVP credentials to back it up. Hiring a resume service doesn’t mean you don’t have to do any heavy lifting—you still have to identify the positions that are an appropriate fit for your skill set, you have to land the interview AND dazzle the hiring manager all by yourself.
Anyone can help give your resume a face lift—talk to professionals you know and respect, ask them to take a look at it and see what they think. Look for advice and suggestions online, in books. If you get resume fatigue, take a break and come back to it later. It’s a living document; you can always make changes.
And if all else fails, give the resume writers a call. See what they can do for you, how much their services will set you back financially and think about the level of confidence you stand to gain from the experience. If you can afford it and you think it’s worth the expense, go for it! And good luck in your job search.
Tuesday, August 24
Weekly Wisdom-August 23, 2010
10 Ways to Get Your Résumé Tossed
CareerBuilder.com writer
Writing a résumé isn't exactly a speedy process. First there's the brainstorming. Then, you have to write -- and rewrite, and rewrite -- your educational and work histories until your résumé perfectly boasts your background. Plus, there's all that proofreading.
Even though your résumé took you hours to write, hiring managers will typically spend less than one minute reviewing it. If your résumé has any glaring errors, however, employers will waste no time deleting it.
To ensure your résumé gets proper attention, avoid these 10 all-too-common blunders:
1. Not bothering with a cover letter. Cover letters are so important to the application process that many hiring managers automatically reject résumés that arrive without them. Make the most of your cover letter by expanding on a few of your qualifications, explaining any gaps in employment or providing other information that will entice the employer to read your résumé.
2. Giving your résumé format a little "flair." Unusual fonts or fluorescent pink paper will certainly make your résumé stand out -- in a bad way. Keep your résumé looking professional by sticking with standard white or cream-colored paper, black type and a common font like Arial or Times New Roman.
3. Going long. Since your high school job scooping ice cream probably isn't relevant to your career anymore, it shouldn't be included on your résumé. Your résumé shouldn't be longer than two pages so only include your most recent and relevant work history.
[**be careful...stopping short on your job history can also be viewed negatively; don't go into great detail about your job scooping ice cream, but if you did it for three years after college, don't leave a gaping hole in your work history either]
4. Focusing on duties, not accomplishments. Instead of writing a list of job duties on your résumé, demonstrate how each duty contributed to your company's bottom line. For example, anyone can plan the company fund-raiser, but if you note that your fund-raiser brought in 50 percent more money than the previous year's event, the hiring manager will be take notice.
5. Having a selfish objective. Employers are trying to determine whether you're a good fit for their organizations, so everything on your résumé should point to your experience. A summary of qualifications that conveniently displays your accomplishments and background is far more effective than a generic objective statement ("To gain experience in...").
6. Being too generic. Always customize your résumé and cover letter for each job and employer to which you apply. This way, you can tailor your materials to show how you will be a perfect fit for the position.
7. Guesstimating your dates and titles. With the proliferation of background checks, any "upgrades" you give your titles or stretching of employment dates to cover gaps will likely get caught -- and eliminate you from consideration.
8. Tell everyone why you left. Never put anything negative on your résumé. If you left the position due to a layoff or you were fired, bring it up only if asked.
9. Include lots of personal information. It's fine if you enjoy fly fishing on Sunday afternoons, but unless your hobby relates to your career, it doesn't belong on your résumé. The same goes for your height, weight, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or any other facts that could potentially be used against you.
10. Assume spell-check is good enough. Spell-checkers can pick up many typos -- but they won't catch everything (manger vs. manager, for example). Always proofread your résumé several times, and ask a friend to give it a final review.
CareerBuilder.com writer
Writing a résumé isn't exactly a speedy process. First there's the brainstorming. Then, you have to write -- and rewrite, and rewrite -- your educational and work histories until your résumé perfectly boasts your background. Plus, there's all that proofreading.
Even though your résumé took you hours to write, hiring managers will typically spend less than one minute reviewing it. If your résumé has any glaring errors, however, employers will waste no time deleting it.
To ensure your résumé gets proper attention, avoid these 10 all-too-common blunders:
1. Not bothering with a cover letter. Cover letters are so important to the application process that many hiring managers automatically reject résumés that arrive without them. Make the most of your cover letter by expanding on a few of your qualifications, explaining any gaps in employment or providing other information that will entice the employer to read your résumé.
2. Giving your résumé format a little "flair." Unusual fonts or fluorescent pink paper will certainly make your résumé stand out -- in a bad way. Keep your résumé looking professional by sticking with standard white or cream-colored paper, black type and a common font like Arial or Times New Roman.
3. Going long. Since your high school job scooping ice cream probably isn't relevant to your career anymore, it shouldn't be included on your résumé. Your résumé shouldn't be longer than two pages so only include your most recent and relevant work history.
[**be careful...stopping short on your job history can also be viewed negatively; don't go into great detail about your job scooping ice cream, but if you did it for three years after college, don't leave a gaping hole in your work history either]
4. Focusing on duties, not accomplishments. Instead of writing a list of job duties on your résumé, demonstrate how each duty contributed to your company's bottom line. For example, anyone can plan the company fund-raiser, but if you note that your fund-raiser brought in 50 percent more money than the previous year's event, the hiring manager will be take notice.
5. Having a selfish objective. Employers are trying to determine whether you're a good fit for their organizations, so everything on your résumé should point to your experience. A summary of qualifications that conveniently displays your accomplishments and background is far more effective than a generic objective statement ("To gain experience in...").
6. Being too generic. Always customize your résumé and cover letter for each job and employer to which you apply. This way, you can tailor your materials to show how you will be a perfect fit for the position.
7. Guesstimating your dates and titles. With the proliferation of background checks, any "upgrades" you give your titles or stretching of employment dates to cover gaps will likely get caught -- and eliminate you from consideration.
8. Tell everyone why you left. Never put anything negative on your résumé. If you left the position due to a layoff or you were fired, bring it up only if asked.
9. Include lots of personal information. It's fine if you enjoy fly fishing on Sunday afternoons, but unless your hobby relates to your career, it doesn't belong on your résumé. The same goes for your height, weight, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or any other facts that could potentially be used against you.
10. Assume spell-check is good enough. Spell-checkers can pick up many typos -- but they won't catch everything (manger vs. manager, for example). Always proofread your résumé several times, and ask a friend to give it a final review.
Wednesday, August 18
This Week in Healthcare IT
Health IT Business News Roundup from ihealthbeat.org
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
Ophthalmic Imaging Systems reported a Q2 2010 loss of $488,000 on $4.8 million in revenue, compared with a Q2 2009 loss of $4 million on $2.9 million in revenue…Merge Healthcare reported a Q2 2010 revenue of $29 million, compared with $15.4 million a year ago.
Benefitfocus, a vendor of health care benefits management software, has acquired Benefit Informatics, a data management and analytics software provider, for an undisclosed sum...IBM has acquired Datacap, a document imaging and management technology vendor, for an undisclosed sum.
iMedX, a health care software and services company, has acquired the assets of MedTech Transcriptions...Orion Healthcare Ventures, an investment firm focusing on health care IT enterprises, has acquired health IT company Aspyra...IT network developer and management vendor Smartronix has acquired health information exchange vendor Cogon Systems for an undisclosed sum.
Contracts
Seven Air Force, Army and Navy military treatment facilities have selected CliniComp's Essentris EHR...WakeMed Health & Hospitals in Raleigh, N.C., has selected Axial Exchange's Axial Alerts service to coordinate hospitals with area physicians...Methodist Healthcare System of San Antonio, Texas, has selected TeleTracking Technologies' RadarFind technology.
Orlando Health has selected Isabel Healthcare's Web-based diagnosis decision system… Ohio-based Memorial Hospital of Union County has selected digitalPersona software to meet HIPAA requirements for the secure access of EHRs.
Delta Medical Center in Tennessee, HealthCare Partners Medical Group in California, Kentucky-based Imaging Center of London, Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County in Wyoming, California-based Saddleback Memorial Medical Center and Santiam Memorial Hospital in Oregon have selected DR Systems to manage their health data.
Product Development and Marketing
Hosting provider Atlantic.Net has partnered with Complete Healthcare Solutions, a medical software provider, to provide turnkey managed hosting for Complete...iMedicor and USA MCO have partnered to a national health care communications network.
Insurer Humana and EHR provider athenahealth have joined to promote new medical technologies and provide financial incentives to certain primary care physicians using health IT...ExpressMD Solutions has partnered with Rotech Healthcare to distribute ExpressMD's remote patient monitoring systems and services for chronically ill patients.
NextGen Healthcare Information Systems has partnered with eduTrax, a medical coding and educational content provider, to offer NextGen clients educational content and curriculum packages...Crossroads Systems, a global provider of data protection software, has entered into a partnership with Dell Services to expand offerings for users of MEDITECH health care information system applications.
Personnel
Bruce Lisanti -- former employee of Electronic Data Systems and General Electric -- has been named CEO and president of Medical Informatics Engineering, a health care IT firm...Brooks Betts -- former vice president of information services and CIO at Maine-based Lincoln County Health Care -- has been selected as the senior leader of Maine's Pen Bay Healthcare's IT department...Sunny Sanyal -- former president of the Provider Technologies division of McKesson -- has been named CEO of T-System, an emergency department information systems vendor.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/8/13/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-august-13-2010.aspx#ixzz0wzxmbtBy
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
Ophthalmic Imaging Systems reported a Q2 2010 loss of $488,000 on $4.8 million in revenue, compared with a Q2 2009 loss of $4 million on $2.9 million in revenue…Merge Healthcare reported a Q2 2010 revenue of $29 million, compared with $15.4 million a year ago.
Benefitfocus, a vendor of health care benefits management software, has acquired Benefit Informatics, a data management and analytics software provider, for an undisclosed sum...IBM has acquired Datacap, a document imaging and management technology vendor, for an undisclosed sum.
iMedX, a health care software and services company, has acquired the assets of MedTech Transcriptions...Orion Healthcare Ventures, an investment firm focusing on health care IT enterprises, has acquired health IT company Aspyra...IT network developer and management vendor Smartronix has acquired health information exchange vendor Cogon Systems for an undisclosed sum.
Contracts
Seven Air Force, Army and Navy military treatment facilities have selected CliniComp's Essentris EHR...WakeMed Health & Hospitals in Raleigh, N.C., has selected Axial Exchange's Axial Alerts service to coordinate hospitals with area physicians...Methodist Healthcare System of San Antonio, Texas, has selected TeleTracking Technologies' RadarFind technology.
Orlando Health has selected Isabel Healthcare's Web-based diagnosis decision system… Ohio-based Memorial Hospital of Union County has selected digitalPersona software to meet HIPAA requirements for the secure access of EHRs.
Delta Medical Center in Tennessee, HealthCare Partners Medical Group in California, Kentucky-based Imaging Center of London, Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County in Wyoming, California-based Saddleback Memorial Medical Center and Santiam Memorial Hospital in Oregon have selected DR Systems to manage their health data.
Product Development and Marketing
Hosting provider Atlantic.Net has partnered with Complete Healthcare Solutions, a medical software provider, to provide turnkey managed hosting for Complete...iMedicor and USA MCO have partnered to a national health care communications network.
Insurer Humana and EHR provider athenahealth have joined to promote new medical technologies and provide financial incentives to certain primary care physicians using health IT...ExpressMD Solutions has partnered with Rotech Healthcare to distribute ExpressMD's remote patient monitoring systems and services for chronically ill patients.
NextGen Healthcare Information Systems has partnered with eduTrax, a medical coding and educational content provider, to offer NextGen clients educational content and curriculum packages...Crossroads Systems, a global provider of data protection software, has entered into a partnership with Dell Services to expand offerings for users of MEDITECH health care information system applications.
Personnel
Bruce Lisanti -- former employee of Electronic Data Systems and General Electric -- has been named CEO and president of Medical Informatics Engineering, a health care IT firm...Brooks Betts -- former vice president of information services and CIO at Maine-based Lincoln County Health Care -- has been selected as the senior leader of Maine's Pen Bay Healthcare's IT department...Sunny Sanyal -- former president of the Provider Technologies division of McKesson -- has been named CEO of T-System, an emergency department information systems vendor.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/8/13/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-august-13-2010.aspx#ixzz0wzxmbtBy
Ask a Recruiter: Introducing...
Do I need to write a cover letter?
I will be brutally honest, here. Personally, I never read them and in my opinion they can do more harm than good if you don't put in an honest effort. If the job posting requires one, make it professional, keep it brief and tailor it to the job you are applying for--yes, that means writing a new one every time. This is an opportunity to demonstrate that you are an effective writer, that you understand the skills and experience the position requires and how your background matches that criteria. And if you conclude with a promise to follow up by phone later in the week, you want to make sure you actually do that. Obvious form letters, letters that have absolutely nothing to do with the position for which you are applying, letters with spelling and grammatical errors, addressing the letter to the wrong person, referencing the wrong company or wrong position are absolute dealbreakers. As my mother would say, do it right or don't do it all. And keep it brief; you don't get extra points for length. A letter that's too long or too dense (bullet points are your friend) is an immediate turn off and a green light to skip straight to the resume. If you don't want to go to the trouble of writing a letter, that's fine--but don't go the opposite extreme and send a practially anonymous application. Write something, even if it's no more than:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Attached, please find my resume. I wish to be considered for your Sales Manager position posted on CareerBuilder (position #: 12345). Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Thanks in advance,
Jane Jobseeker
I will be brutally honest, here. Personally, I never read them and in my opinion they can do more harm than good if you don't put in an honest effort. If the job posting requires one, make it professional, keep it brief and tailor it to the job you are applying for--yes, that means writing a new one every time. This is an opportunity to demonstrate that you are an effective writer, that you understand the skills and experience the position requires and how your background matches that criteria. And if you conclude with a promise to follow up by phone later in the week, you want to make sure you actually do that. Obvious form letters, letters that have absolutely nothing to do with the position for which you are applying, letters with spelling and grammatical errors, addressing the letter to the wrong person, referencing the wrong company or wrong position are absolute dealbreakers. As my mother would say, do it right or don't do it all. And keep it brief; you don't get extra points for length. A letter that's too long or too dense (bullet points are your friend) is an immediate turn off and a green light to skip straight to the resume. If you don't want to go to the trouble of writing a letter, that's fine--but don't go the opposite extreme and send a practially anonymous application. Write something, even if it's no more than:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Attached, please find my resume. I wish to be considered for your Sales Manager position posted on CareerBuilder (position #: 12345). Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Thanks in advance,
Jane Jobseeker
Weekly Wisdom-August 16, 2010
taken from The Ladders
Overworked, underpaid, underappreciated?
You're not alone; the recession impacted not only those folks who were let go over the last 18 months, but also those employees who were left behind to absorb the duties and stresses of those unfilled positions. Whether you're trying to get back into the job market or a survivor who is looking to take advantage of the opportunities to make a great career change, a solid network can make all the difference between standing out and fading into the background.
5 Steps to Building a Professional Network that Works for You!
1.Where would you like to work? Describe the geographic location, corporate culture, industry sector, company size, ownership type, competitive ranking, etc. Specify employers that match these criteria. Don’t know what you want yet? Then ask yourself what you don’t want and work in reverse until you have a picture that makes sense. Focus on specific employers or divisions as your job-search goals.
2.How has each of your target companies been affected by industry challenges, and how have they responded? Rank their performance and their desirability as a prospective employer. Allocate your efforts accordingly. Start tracking current events so you can speak intelligently about your field. Assess each of your target companies and describe why you are interested in working there. Why are they a good fit? Are there any potential deal breakers?
3.Identify your distinguishing skills and talents. Illustrate experiences that persuasively demonstrate your qualifications to confront challenges, lead others through them and find solutions. Summarize success stories that unequivocally illustrate your outstanding abilities. Quantify outcomes. Why should an employer be attracted to you? What do you offer that’s desirable and unique? What differentiates you from others with similar credentials? Anticipate push-back. Prepare to erase all doubts, promote your credibility and engender a high degree of trust.
4.Find current or former employees of each target company and connect with these insiders. Mine your personal network for people with a connection to your target employer’s decision makers. Do this even before reaching out to their HR team. Emphasize your desire to gather information or have a one–on–one 'industry talk.' Never say that you are looking for a job. No openings now? No problem, request referrals to more decision makers with contacts at additional business units. Collect more ideas and make more connections that will keep your campaign moving forward. You’ll have to generate leads exponentially until one of them evolves into an accepted job offer.
5.Continue networking forever. Concentrate on relationships, not transactions. If you don’t want to repeat this job search process from scratch ever again, personal relationships are essential. If you keep in touch with well-connected, well-placed individuals on a regular basis, you will naturally become aware of potential future opportunities through your interactions and exchanges. You will be invited to join a new venture and offer your expertise rather than having to go fish into unknown territory. Save yourself angst, money and time by maintaining a vibrant network and continually building your connections, especially by offering to help others before being asked. Generosity pays. What goes around comes around.
Overworked, underpaid, underappreciated?
You're not alone; the recession impacted not only those folks who were let go over the last 18 months, but also those employees who were left behind to absorb the duties and stresses of those unfilled positions. Whether you're trying to get back into the job market or a survivor who is looking to take advantage of the opportunities to make a great career change, a solid network can make all the difference between standing out and fading into the background.
5 Steps to Building a Professional Network that Works for You!
1.Where would you like to work? Describe the geographic location, corporate culture, industry sector, company size, ownership type, competitive ranking, etc. Specify employers that match these criteria. Don’t know what you want yet? Then ask yourself what you don’t want and work in reverse until you have a picture that makes sense. Focus on specific employers or divisions as your job-search goals.
2.How has each of your target companies been affected by industry challenges, and how have they responded? Rank their performance and their desirability as a prospective employer. Allocate your efforts accordingly. Start tracking current events so you can speak intelligently about your field. Assess each of your target companies and describe why you are interested in working there. Why are they a good fit? Are there any potential deal breakers?
3.Identify your distinguishing skills and talents. Illustrate experiences that persuasively demonstrate your qualifications to confront challenges, lead others through them and find solutions. Summarize success stories that unequivocally illustrate your outstanding abilities. Quantify outcomes. Why should an employer be attracted to you? What do you offer that’s desirable and unique? What differentiates you from others with similar credentials? Anticipate push-back. Prepare to erase all doubts, promote your credibility and engender a high degree of trust.
4.Find current or former employees of each target company and connect with these insiders. Mine your personal network for people with a connection to your target employer’s decision makers. Do this even before reaching out to their HR team. Emphasize your desire to gather information or have a one–on–one 'industry talk.' Never say that you are looking for a job. No openings now? No problem, request referrals to more decision makers with contacts at additional business units. Collect more ideas and make more connections that will keep your campaign moving forward. You’ll have to generate leads exponentially until one of them evolves into an accepted job offer.
5.Continue networking forever. Concentrate on relationships, not transactions. If you don’t want to repeat this job search process from scratch ever again, personal relationships are essential. If you keep in touch with well-connected, well-placed individuals on a regular basis, you will naturally become aware of potential future opportunities through your interactions and exchanges. You will be invited to join a new venture and offer your expertise rather than having to go fish into unknown territory. Save yourself angst, money and time by maintaining a vibrant network and continually building your connections, especially by offering to help others before being asked. Generosity pays. What goes around comes around.
Thursday, August 12
Ask a Recruiter: Take this job and…
I got the job! Now, how do I tell my boss I’m leaving?
Regardless of whatever feelings may have led to your impending departure, it is always advisable to leave things on good terms with your employer when you resign.
What does that mean?
Make it official. You need to submit a letter to your supervisor, and you should prepare a copy for HR as well, in order to announce your resignation. The letter should be polite, gracious and above all, appropriate; you don’t need to explain why you are leaving or where you will be going, just that you are.
Give a reasonable amount of notice. In some positions—sales guys, I’m talking to you—odds are, you’ll be shown the door immediately no matter how politely you quit, but you should never put yourself in a position to give fewer than two weeks notice.
Leave your position better than you found it. Do what you can to ease the transition: train someone on your essential job tasks, tie up loose ends, make things easy to find and leave clear instructions about what needs to be done once you’re gone.
Be thoughtful, professional and discreet. Don’t take this opportunity to tell your least favorite person in the office how you really feel. And even after you’ve gone, don’t air your dirty laundry—it will reflect poorly on you in your new position and you never know who might be listening.
Remember, most industries are smaller than we give them credit for and networking and references are invaluable in all of them.
Find some sample resignation letters here:
http://jobsearch.about.com/od/resignationletters/a/resignationlet.htm
Wednesday, August 11
This Week in Healthcare IT
from ihealthbeat.org
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
Cegedim Healthcare Software, a global technology services company, will acquire Pulse, a health care software provider, with a $13.5 million capital infusion...Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners V is set to acquire HealthGrades, a health care ratings organization, for $294 million.
Contracts
St. John Providence Health System in Michigan has selected eClinicalWorks' EHR software for its employed and affiliated physicians...St. Clair Hospital in Pennsylvania has selected GE Healthcare's health information exchange system with the aid of Preferred Healthcare Informatics...Allergy and Asthma Associates of Northern California has selected ITelagen, an EHR provider, to host, support and manage EHRs at Allergy's care centers.
Gulf Coast Medical Center in Florida has selected Wolters Kluwer Health to document and code gastroenterology procedures...Indiana Orthopedic Hospital has selected data mining software from InVivoLink to collect operating room data...EyeHealth Northwest has selected NextGen Healthcare's ambulatory EHR and practice management software for its Oregon care centers.
Product Development and Marketing
Halfpenny Technologies will integrate HT Systems' PatientSecure patient identification system into its information exchange software...Best Buy's small-business service unit has partnered with Cardiac Science to increase technology use among physicians.
ITelagen has entered into a partnership with Medficiency, a health care consulting group, in an effort to encourage widespread adoption of EHRs in northeastern U.S. physician practices...Samsung Electronics America has partnered with TeleHealth Services to introduce LCD televisions designed with hospital-specific features.
IBM has partnered with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to offer non-UPMC hospitals the university's SmartRoom technology...Greenway Medical Technologies announced Tech Data will make Greenway's PrimeSuite product available to thousands of IT reseller customers nationwide.
SRS will integrate its physician documentation software with Ingenix's Web-based practice management and scheduling system...Health Language and AZZLY have strategically partnered to integrate Health Language's Language Engine into AZZLY's EHR software...Royal Philips Electronics and SpineMark have joined to bring health care IT software by Philips to SpineMark's spinal care facilities.
Personnel
Tom Ogg -- former corporate director and CTO of Michigan-based Oakwood Healthcare -- has been selected as CIO of Akron Children's Hospital in Ohio...Justin Neece -- who was a partner at the Viability Company, a health care consultancy -- has been named COO of Shared Health in Tennessee
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/7/30/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-july-30-2010.aspx#ixzz0wKL5yj4u
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
Cegedim Healthcare Software, a global technology services company, will acquire Pulse, a health care software provider, with a $13.5 million capital infusion...Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners V is set to acquire HealthGrades, a health care ratings organization, for $294 million.
Contracts
St. John Providence Health System in Michigan has selected eClinicalWorks' EHR software for its employed and affiliated physicians...St. Clair Hospital in Pennsylvania has selected GE Healthcare's health information exchange system with the aid of Preferred Healthcare Informatics...Allergy and Asthma Associates of Northern California has selected ITelagen, an EHR provider, to host, support and manage EHRs at Allergy's care centers.
Gulf Coast Medical Center in Florida has selected Wolters Kluwer Health to document and code gastroenterology procedures...Indiana Orthopedic Hospital has selected data mining software from InVivoLink to collect operating room data...EyeHealth Northwest has selected NextGen Healthcare's ambulatory EHR and practice management software for its Oregon care centers.
Product Development and Marketing
Halfpenny Technologies will integrate HT Systems' PatientSecure patient identification system into its information exchange software...Best Buy's small-business service unit has partnered with Cardiac Science to increase technology use among physicians.
ITelagen has entered into a partnership with Medficiency, a health care consulting group, in an effort to encourage widespread adoption of EHRs in northeastern U.S. physician practices...Samsung Electronics America has partnered with TeleHealth Services to introduce LCD televisions designed with hospital-specific features.
IBM has partnered with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to offer non-UPMC hospitals the university's SmartRoom technology...Greenway Medical Technologies announced Tech Data will make Greenway's PrimeSuite product available to thousands of IT reseller customers nationwide.
SRS will integrate its physician documentation software with Ingenix's Web-based practice management and scheduling system...Health Language and AZZLY have strategically partnered to integrate Health Language's Language Engine into AZZLY's EHR software...Royal Philips Electronics and SpineMark have joined to bring health care IT software by Philips to SpineMark's spinal care facilities.
Personnel
Tom Ogg -- former corporate director and CTO of Michigan-based Oakwood Healthcare -- has been selected as CIO of Akron Children's Hospital in Ohio...Justin Neece -- who was a partner at the Viability Company, a health care consultancy -- has been named COO of Shared Health in Tennessee
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/7/30/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-july-30-2010.aspx#ixzz0wKL5yj4u
Tuesday, August 10
Weekly Wisdom: August 9, 2010
Watch for Interview Warning Signs
Hindsight may be better than 20/20, but if you pay attention during an interview, you might be able to head off a bad fit by Liz Ryan
I got a call from my friend Candace, and she was in low spirits. She had just returned to Wisconsin after moving to Florida to take a job. She took the job, she hated it, she lasted six months, she quit, and she moved back. "I should have known, " she said. "I should have picked up on the signs during the interview. There are always signs, aren't there? "
"I'm torn, " I told her. "If I tell you 'Yes, there are always signs' then you'll feel bad. If I say 'No, sometimes things just get weird after you're hired,' then you'll think the universe is capricious and you won't feel like you have any better odds of finding the right situation the next time around."
"Forget about my feelings!" she cried. "What do you really think?"
"I think you should tell me what you saw or heard in the interview process that you now feel you should have taken more seriously," I told her. "Then we can talk about what that sign might have meant, and what you could do differently in your upcoming job search."
The red flag
"O.K.," said Candace. "Well, there was only one sign, really. I was applying for a marketing communications job. I've always done a lot of writing and editing, and as you know, I have a Master's degree and I consider myself a really good writer. So there was one point in the last interview where my manager indicated that he was very interested in me and he was considering making me an offer. At that point he said: ‘You're an adequate writer, and I could make you better.'"
"GAAACK!" I said."
"That was a big sign I missed, wasn't it?" Candace asked.
"Well, " I told her, "the thing is that hindsight is 20/20. Hindsight is better than 20/20—it's LASIK. Through rear-facing glasses, it seems obvious that your ex-boss had issues."
"Right, well, he turned out to be a total control-freak and a guy who's impossible to please," she said. "That's why I left. Am I a complete idiot for missing that red flag?"
A Sick Ticket
"It's so easy to overlook those bizarre statements in the frenzy of the interview process," I reassured her. "Look, Candace, I've missed every sign in the book. I hired a guy in a human resources role who said in the interview that every 10 minutes, he asks himself: 'Am I having fun in my work?' I should have asked him a few questions about that. You mean literally, every 10 minutes? Who does that? It turned out that the guy was using his company cell phone to call some offshore gambling line every 10 minutes.
"O.K., back to your ex-boss. I'm an HR person and not a psychologist, but I'd call this guy a Sick Ticket. What kind of boss tells the person he's about to hire: 'You are adequate, but I could make you better?' That's totally passive-aggressive. It means that he wants to test you before hiring you, to make sure you're O.K. with being insulted. He wouldn't want to hire a person who would say something in his own defense."
"So I should have said something," Candace said.
"Hindsight is LASIK," I repeated. "Now listen. Let's say that you or any other candidate had said: 'Excuse me? You think I'm an adequate writer, but you want to hire me? I'm terribly sorry. I want to work for a company that I think is outstanding and that thinks I'm outstanding, too." Then your boss would have known that that person wasn't going to put up with his leadership style, if you want to call it that."
"And when he said he could make me a better writer that a signal that he didn't just want to be my boss, but he saw himself as superior to me, too. I mean, he's not even a writer,” Candace said.
The little weird thing
"Well, it's just such a hostile thing to say," I added. "Certainly if you hire someone right out of school, it's fine to say: 'We hope that I, as your manager, and lots of other people here will give you all sorts of professional training and mentoring.' That's great. But when you say to a seasoned professional, 'You're adequate and I can make you better,' it's like you're telling her that only with your expert guidance can she rise above her current state of mediocrity. That says a lot. The guy wanted someone under him who didn't have a lot of confidence. Too bad he hired you."
"Yeah, too bad for both of us," said Candace. "Well, now I know for next time."
"But next time the little weird thing in the interview, if there is one, will be different," I told her. "You don't have to react to it in the moment, and you don't even have to dope it out by yourself. After every interview, call a friend—me or someone else. Walk through the whole interview. A second pair of ears, a few hours after the fact, will help you figure out what means what and how to process all the information you've taken in. It can be a lot to digest on your own."
Deconstructing the Interview
"Especially when you've already talked yourself into the job," Candace added. "I'm going to have my red-flag radar on full alert on my next job hunt."
"The good news is that you'll never be sucked into that particular vortex again," I said. "Now that you've worked in the snake pit and survived, you have more confidence. You wouldn't sit still for a prospective manager telling you you're adequate, not in this lifetime anyway."
And this is true for all of you out there. Deconstruct the interview with someone, because if you don't see the signs, your friend might.
Hindsight may be better than 20/20, but if you pay attention during an interview, you might be able to head off a bad fit by Liz Ryan
I got a call from my friend Candace, and she was in low spirits. She had just returned to Wisconsin after moving to Florida to take a job. She took the job, she hated it, she lasted six months, she quit, and she moved back. "I should have known, " she said. "I should have picked up on the signs during the interview. There are always signs, aren't there? "
"I'm torn, " I told her. "If I tell you 'Yes, there are always signs' then you'll feel bad. If I say 'No, sometimes things just get weird after you're hired,' then you'll think the universe is capricious and you won't feel like you have any better odds of finding the right situation the next time around."
"Forget about my feelings!" she cried. "What do you really think?"
"I think you should tell me what you saw or heard in the interview process that you now feel you should have taken more seriously," I told her. "Then we can talk about what that sign might have meant, and what you could do differently in your upcoming job search."
The red flag
"O.K.," said Candace. "Well, there was only one sign, really. I was applying for a marketing communications job. I've always done a lot of writing and editing, and as you know, I have a Master's degree and I consider myself a really good writer. So there was one point in the last interview where my manager indicated that he was very interested in me and he was considering making me an offer. At that point he said: ‘You're an adequate writer, and I could make you better.'"
"GAAACK!" I said."
"That was a big sign I missed, wasn't it?" Candace asked.
"Well, " I told her, "the thing is that hindsight is 20/20. Hindsight is better than 20/20—it's LASIK. Through rear-facing glasses, it seems obvious that your ex-boss had issues."
"Right, well, he turned out to be a total control-freak and a guy who's impossible to please," she said. "That's why I left. Am I a complete idiot for missing that red flag?"
A Sick Ticket
"It's so easy to overlook those bizarre statements in the frenzy of the interview process," I reassured her. "Look, Candace, I've missed every sign in the book. I hired a guy in a human resources role who said in the interview that every 10 minutes, he asks himself: 'Am I having fun in my work?' I should have asked him a few questions about that. You mean literally, every 10 minutes? Who does that? It turned out that the guy was using his company cell phone to call some offshore gambling line every 10 minutes.
"O.K., back to your ex-boss. I'm an HR person and not a psychologist, but I'd call this guy a Sick Ticket. What kind of boss tells the person he's about to hire: 'You are adequate, but I could make you better?' That's totally passive-aggressive. It means that he wants to test you before hiring you, to make sure you're O.K. with being insulted. He wouldn't want to hire a person who would say something in his own defense."
"So I should have said something," Candace said.
"Hindsight is LASIK," I repeated. "Now listen. Let's say that you or any other candidate had said: 'Excuse me? You think I'm an adequate writer, but you want to hire me? I'm terribly sorry. I want to work for a company that I think is outstanding and that thinks I'm outstanding, too." Then your boss would have known that that person wasn't going to put up with his leadership style, if you want to call it that."
"And when he said he could make me a better writer that a signal that he didn't just want to be my boss, but he saw himself as superior to me, too. I mean, he's not even a writer,” Candace said.
The little weird thing
"Well, it's just such a hostile thing to say," I added. "Certainly if you hire someone right out of school, it's fine to say: 'We hope that I, as your manager, and lots of other people here will give you all sorts of professional training and mentoring.' That's great. But when you say to a seasoned professional, 'You're adequate and I can make you better,' it's like you're telling her that only with your expert guidance can she rise above her current state of mediocrity. That says a lot. The guy wanted someone under him who didn't have a lot of confidence. Too bad he hired you."
"Yeah, too bad for both of us," said Candace. "Well, now I know for next time."
"But next time the little weird thing in the interview, if there is one, will be different," I told her. "You don't have to react to it in the moment, and you don't even have to dope it out by yourself. After every interview, call a friend—me or someone else. Walk through the whole interview. A second pair of ears, a few hours after the fact, will help you figure out what means what and how to process all the information you've taken in. It can be a lot to digest on your own."
Deconstructing the Interview
"Especially when you've already talked yourself into the job," Candace added. "I'm going to have my red-flag radar on full alert on my next job hunt."
"The good news is that you'll never be sucked into that particular vortex again," I said. "Now that you've worked in the snake pit and survived, you have more confidence. You wouldn't sit still for a prospective manager telling you you're adequate, not in this lifetime anyway."
And this is true for all of you out there. Deconstruct the interview with someone, because if you don't see the signs, your friend might.
Wednesday, August 4
This week in Healthcare IT
M&A, Financial Reports and Funding
Cegedim Healthcare Software, a global technology services company, will acquire Pulse, a health care software provider, with a $13.5 million capital infusion...Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners V is set to acquire HealthGrades, a health care ratings organization, for $294 million.
**PLUS: Ingenix to acquire PICIS and Executive Health Resources
Contracts
St. John Providence Health System in Michigan has selected eClinicalWorks' EHR software for its employed and affiliated physicians...St. Clair Hospital in Pennsylvania has selected GE Healthcare's health information exchange system with the aid of Preferred Healthcare Informatics...Allergy and Asthma Associates of Northern California has selected ITelagen, an EHR provider, to host, support and manage EHRs at Allergy's care centers.
Gulf Coast Medical Center in Florida has selected Wolters Kluwer Health to document and code gastroenterology procedures...Indiana Orthopedic Hospital has selected data mining software from InVivoLink to collect operating room data...EyeHealth Northwest has selected NextGen Healthcare's ambulatory EHR and practice management software for its Oregon care centers.
Product Development and Marketing
Halfpenny Technologies will integrate HT Systems' PatientSecure patient identification system into its information exchange software...Best Buy's small-business service unit has partnered with Cardiac Science to increase technology use among physicians.
ITelagen has entered into a partnership with Medficiency, a health care consulting group, in an effort to encourage widespread adoption of EHRs in northeastern U.S. physician practices...Samsung Electronics America has partnered with TeleHealth Services to introduce LCD televisions designed with hospital-specific features.
IBM has partnered with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to offer non-UPMC hospitals the university's SmartRoom technology...Greenway Medical Technologies announced Tech Data will make Greenway's PrimeSuite product available to thousands of IT reseller customers nationwide.
SRS will integrate its physician documentation software with Ingenix's Web-based practice management and scheduling system...Health Language and AZZLY have strategically partnered to integrate Health Language's Language Engine into AZZLY's EHR software...Royal Philips Electronics and SpineMark have joined to bring health care IT software by Philips to SpineMark's spinal care facilities.
Personnel
Tom Ogg -- former corporate director and CTO of Michigan-based Oakwood Healthcare -- has been selected as CIO of Akron Children's Hospital in Ohio...Justin Neece -- who was a partner at the Viability Company, a health care consultancy -- has been named COO of Shared Health in Tennessee.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/7/30/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-july-30-2010.aspx#ixzz0vfKOqJvi
Cegedim Healthcare Software, a global technology services company, will acquire Pulse, a health care software provider, with a $13.5 million capital infusion...Private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners V is set to acquire HealthGrades, a health care ratings organization, for $294 million.
**PLUS: Ingenix to acquire PICIS and Executive Health Resources
Contracts
St. John Providence Health System in Michigan has selected eClinicalWorks' EHR software for its employed and affiliated physicians...St. Clair Hospital in Pennsylvania has selected GE Healthcare's health information exchange system with the aid of Preferred Healthcare Informatics...Allergy and Asthma Associates of Northern California has selected ITelagen, an EHR provider, to host, support and manage EHRs at Allergy's care centers.
Gulf Coast Medical Center in Florida has selected Wolters Kluwer Health to document and code gastroenterology procedures...Indiana Orthopedic Hospital has selected data mining software from InVivoLink to collect operating room data...EyeHealth Northwest has selected NextGen Healthcare's ambulatory EHR and practice management software for its Oregon care centers.
Product Development and Marketing
Halfpenny Technologies will integrate HT Systems' PatientSecure patient identification system into its information exchange software...Best Buy's small-business service unit has partnered with Cardiac Science to increase technology use among physicians.
ITelagen has entered into a partnership with Medficiency, a health care consulting group, in an effort to encourage widespread adoption of EHRs in northeastern U.S. physician practices...Samsung Electronics America has partnered with TeleHealth Services to introduce LCD televisions designed with hospital-specific features.
IBM has partnered with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to offer non-UPMC hospitals the university's SmartRoom technology...Greenway Medical Technologies announced Tech Data will make Greenway's PrimeSuite product available to thousands of IT reseller customers nationwide.
SRS will integrate its physician documentation software with Ingenix's Web-based practice management and scheduling system...Health Language and AZZLY have strategically partnered to integrate Health Language's Language Engine into AZZLY's EHR software...Royal Philips Electronics and SpineMark have joined to bring health care IT software by Philips to SpineMark's spinal care facilities.
Personnel
Tom Ogg -- former corporate director and CTO of Michigan-based Oakwood Healthcare -- has been selected as CIO of Akron Children's Hospital in Ohio...Justin Neece -- who was a partner at the Viability Company, a health care consultancy -- has been named COO of Shared Health in Tennessee.
Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2010/7/30/health-it-business-news-roundup-for-the-week-of-july-30-2010.aspx#ixzz0vfKOqJvi
Tuesday, August 3
Ask a Recruiter: Where’s Waldo
This is one we get on a pretty regular basis around here: how (or where) did you find me?
Answer:
Wouldn’t you like to know!
Just kidding, we almost never answer that way. We prefer variations on that pithy reply like: “Recruiters are crafty!” “A good recruiter never reveals her sources!” Or my personal favorite, “Magic!”
The truth is there are lots of ways recruiters find candidates—the most traditional of them being good old fashioned cold calls. Other methods include:
1. Referrals! Recruiting is a relationship-based business, so our greatest value is in our network, our ability to locate the people who aren’t lurking on the job boards or plastering resumes all over the internet.
2. That said…job boards aren’t completely useless and some are better than others. Most of the recruiters I know have made at least one or two placements using job boards, but unless they specialize in recruitment process outsourcing it’s not a great way to build their business.
3. Social Media and Online Networking. Are you on LinkedIn? You should be—after searching her personal memory bank and launching a few searches into the old database, a tech savvy recruiter’s next stop is LinkedIn.
4. Speaking of databases…most recruiting firms have a database. If they’ve been in the business for a while, it’s likely a pretty good one (or at least a pretty dense one). If you have ever talked to a recruiter, if you have ever gotten an email or a voicemail from a recruiter, your name, contact info and the details of that activity have been logged and shelved for perpetuity.
5. Miscellany: newsletters, Twitter, facebook, trade organizations, google searches and directories.
Answer:
Wouldn’t you like to know!
Just kidding, we almost never answer that way. We prefer variations on that pithy reply like: “Recruiters are crafty!” “A good recruiter never reveals her sources!” Or my personal favorite, “Magic!”
The truth is there are lots of ways recruiters find candidates—the most traditional of them being good old fashioned cold calls. Other methods include:
1. Referrals! Recruiting is a relationship-based business, so our greatest value is in our network, our ability to locate the people who aren’t lurking on the job boards or plastering resumes all over the internet.
2. That said…job boards aren’t completely useless and some are better than others. Most of the recruiters I know have made at least one or two placements using job boards, but unless they specialize in recruitment process outsourcing it’s not a great way to build their business.
3. Social Media and Online Networking. Are you on LinkedIn? You should be—after searching her personal memory bank and launching a few searches into the old database, a tech savvy recruiter’s next stop is LinkedIn.
4. Speaking of databases…most recruiting firms have a database. If they’ve been in the business for a while, it’s likely a pretty good one (or at least a pretty dense one). If you have ever talked to a recruiter, if you have ever gotten an email or a voicemail from a recruiter, your name, contact info and the details of that activity have been logged and shelved for perpetuity.
5. Miscellany: newsletters, Twitter, facebook, trade organizations, google searches and directories.
Monday, August 2
Weekly Wisdom: August 2, 2010
Welcome to the age when resumes are no longer enough. If you want to stand out, you have to have a presence that extends beyond the page, or in most cases these days, the Outlook reading pane. With that in mind, here are some tips on creating your own professional brand because today everyone is a marketer and your flagship solution is you.
Taken from Building Your Online Career Brand: Five Tools for Job-Seekers by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D.
Career Branding Tools
1. LinkedIn profile. If you are a professional -- or an aspiring professional -- you must have a profile on LinkedIn, a business-oriented networking site that consists of millions of experienced professionals from around the world, representing hundreds of industries from more than 200 countries. When you join, you can create a profile that can serve as both a resume and an introduction to your career brand. Once your profile is completed, you then build connections with other members, getting introduced to new people through the people in your network. Read Jason Keath's 6 New LinkedIn Job Search Tips.
2. Personal Website. One of the best ways to build and promote your career brand is by developing a professional Website that showcases your key accomplishments. At a minimum, you should buy a domain name based on your name (for example, mine is RandallSHansen.com) and publish your resume. Even better, publish your career portfolio, content-rich articles, and other keyword-rich materials that will lead prospective employers looking for someone with your qualifications directly to your site. Read more in my article, SEO for Job-Seekers: 10 Tips for Building Your Online Brand.
3. Twitter account. Every day, more and more individuals and businesses are tweeting information, ideas, links, and more Ð all in under 140 characters per tweet (message). Twitter, a networking and micro-blogging site, enables people to connect and communicate -- developing both a following of people as well as following the tweets of others. Tweeting key information, resources, and other professional advice -- while building a following -- is a very easy way to build your career brand. Read this great blog post, , as well as Andy Headworth's The Ten Commandments for Job-Seekers on Twitter.
4. Professional blog. If you are a decent writer and can commit to writing regularly, creating a professional blog is a great tool for building your career brand. A blog is a specialized Website that focuses on a particular subject (person, industry, profession) that can include news, analysis, commentary, and links in a variety of formats (including print, audio, images, and video). Showcasing your expertise and knowledge of your industry or profession is an excellent way to build your career brand. Read Darren Rowse's How to Build Your Personal Brand Through Your Blog, as well as my article, Tips for Blog Publishing Success.
5. Social networking profiles/accounts. Consider joining at least two social-networking sites. One should be a general social-networking site, such as Facebook, and one should be career-specific (which you can find by searching Google -- most professions have multiple networking sites). While social networking is just that -- social -- remember that networking with others (online and off) is one of the most powerful tools of job-hunting as the majority of jobs are filled through referrals, not through responses to job postings. Read Dan Schawbel's article: Twitter, Facebook, Digg: Can You Join Too Many Networks?
Taken from Building Your Online Career Brand: Five Tools for Job-Seekers by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D.
Career Branding Tools
1. LinkedIn profile. If you are a professional -- or an aspiring professional -- you must have a profile on LinkedIn, a business-oriented networking site that consists of millions of experienced professionals from around the world, representing hundreds of industries from more than 200 countries. When you join, you can create a profile that can serve as both a resume and an introduction to your career brand. Once your profile is completed, you then build connections with other members, getting introduced to new people through the people in your network. Read Jason Keath's 6 New LinkedIn Job Search Tips.
2. Personal Website. One of the best ways to build and promote your career brand is by developing a professional Website that showcases your key accomplishments. At a minimum, you should buy a domain name based on your name (for example, mine is RandallSHansen.com) and publish your resume. Even better, publish your career portfolio, content-rich articles, and other keyword-rich materials that will lead prospective employers looking for someone with your qualifications directly to your site. Read more in my article, SEO for Job-Seekers: 10 Tips for Building Your Online Brand.
3. Twitter account. Every day, more and more individuals and businesses are tweeting information, ideas, links, and more Ð all in under 140 characters per tweet (message). Twitter, a networking and micro-blogging site, enables people to connect and communicate -- developing both a following of people as well as following the tweets of others. Tweeting key information, resources, and other professional advice -- while building a following -- is a very easy way to build your career brand. Read this great blog post, , as well as Andy Headworth's The Ten Commandments for Job-Seekers on Twitter.
4. Professional blog. If you are a decent writer and can commit to writing regularly, creating a professional blog is a great tool for building your career brand. A blog is a specialized Website that focuses on a particular subject (person, industry, profession) that can include news, analysis, commentary, and links in a variety of formats (including print, audio, images, and video). Showcasing your expertise and knowledge of your industry or profession is an excellent way to build your career brand. Read Darren Rowse's How to Build Your Personal Brand Through Your Blog, as well as my article, Tips for Blog Publishing Success.
5. Social networking profiles/accounts. Consider joining at least two social-networking sites. One should be a general social-networking site, such as Facebook, and one should be career-specific (which you can find by searching Google -- most professions have multiple networking sites). While social networking is just that -- social -- remember that networking with others (online and off) is one of the most powerful tools of job-hunting as the majority of jobs are filled through referrals, not through responses to job postings. Read Dan Schawbel's article: Twitter, Facebook, Digg: Can You Join Too Many Networks?
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