One Step Closer

Well after the third attempt I finally managed to get an answer out of learning links who have offered the position to someone else. I am not surprised as the job description including a lot of design elements, something I have little experience with. In the last two days I have been offered (and turned down) two other interviews and it seems highly likely I will take the job with Super Fun Days Out. It has been nice to have a few days where job searching has not been at the top of my priority list and also to realise that I have reached a point now where even just sitting back relaxing, I am receiving invitations to interview for jobs. It has led me to analyse why.

I noticed a sudden change about 2 weeks ago. What was special then? Very little, I made one little alteration to my C.V (to include the social networking training) and a few more jobs appeared. Oh and we entered May. This suggested that either in May everyone suddenly becomes job happy and desperate to help graduates, or that my volunteering role had hit the 3 month mark. 3 months of experience suddenly made me interesting, whereas 2 months, 30 days left me reeling in obscurity. It is an odd system when this is the case. I did not become a better marketer on the 30th April, nor did I level up. It was an entirely unremarkable day on my calender. I can sort of understand why 3 months experience becomes attractive but it has to lead to criticism of the process, after all the potential and skills of an individual does not change on that single day, even if in the eyes of the employer, they are suddenly eminently more attractive and ready to enter the world of the professionally employed.

Hopefully this can only mean good things, and if the 3 month contract on offer ends at that point, that I won't be left floundering and lost for long.

Job Offer

Last week I went for an interview with a young company based in Southampton. The company in question advertises fun days out. (from zorbing to paintball to clay pigeon shooting and white water rafting) It is a small organisation run by dedicated shareholders and they are looking for someone to come in and manage the roll out of a range of new services to their existing customers. The role is an internship, initially running for 3 months with the potential for a full time longer role to be put in place after that period.

I was impressed with my interviewer (The C.E.O) and the company and although the role involves more sales and telephone usage than I would like it was certainly an interesting one. However, not wanting to hedge my bet on securing a longer term job I asked to see the business plan and projections which would give me an idea of the liklihood of securing a long term role. That for me is after all key. I do not want to end up back unemployed in 3 months time.

This morning the C.E.O rang me..at 8:40, after some confusing questions he offered me the job and suggested we could pen to paper at the early part of next week. I thanked him for the offer but felt it was only fair to notify him I was waiting to hear back from other companies about other roles both of whom should get back to me by the end of this week. He agreed albeit relunctantly to put a deadline of Saturday to accept the offer.

So now I have 4 days after which I will hopefully be employed. It is possible that he may choose to pull out and offer the role to someone else, which would be very disappointing. But I simply felt I had to keep my options open. The other roles potentially on the table are not set contracts and therefore provide stability. If I take the job I would need to find somewhere to live in Southampton until the end of August but most rental contracts run for a year. Potentially then, I could be tied to Southampton for another 10 months after the role finishes, something not to be entered into lightly. On the other hand given my increased success in gaining interviews recently, I would hope to be unemployed for a much shorter period. I also have to consider then, what the role could do for my C.V and the role offered will not verse me in new software or provide me with any major new skills, where the others involve training.

I am expecting that I will take the job, having failed to secure a role with Learning links, but whatever the outcome, at the end of this week I will have a decision to make, and then hopefully, the search will finally be at an end.