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Federal Job Search Archive

USAJOBS 3.0 is Coming October 13, 2011

Posted in Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, www.USAJOBS.gov
by Kathryn Troutman on September 2nd, 2011 | 1 Comment - Make a comment »

USAJOBS will be shut down Oct. 6-13th for Upgrade!

If you find the USAJOBS federal job application system frustrating and difficult, there’s some good news coming your way. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is about to give the government jobs website a complete makeover. The newly redone website is set to make its debut on October 13th. Agencies will be closing all announcements by October 6th, so the old system can be taken off line and the new one set up, and all data moved over. OPM is promising a few new changes that job applicants should like.

First, according to OPM associate director of employee services Angela Bailey, OPM will be able to search resumes for specific applicant information. This is a process that currently takes months. The result will be quicker, more efficient, better-targeted recruiting efforts. Agency recruiters will be able to find and use data and information much more quickly.

In addition, the goal is to make the system more user-friendly. Job seekers will only have to enter personal information once. Users will also be able to expect improved search results with details about salaries, grade levels and job categories.

OPM is working on more changes to streamline the federal hiring process, including a skills testing tool, to replace the Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs) statements that applicants are currently trying to squeeze into their resumes. Stay tuned. It looks like more change is on the way.

The Leadership Journey

Posted in ECQs, Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing
by Kathryn Troutman on August 29th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

By Diane Hudson Burns, FJSTC, CPCC, CLTMC, CPRW
SES Project Manager, The Resume Place

The Leadership Journey chart, used by OPM (*acronyms are translated below), is the focus of a chapter in the new book, “The New SES Application” (publication date September 2011 by Kathryn Troutman and Diane Hudson Burns).

The Leadership Journey serves as a road-map for leadership development and walks a professional through his career via leadership steps, with a goal of attaining SES. The chart covers all 28 leadership competencies required of OPM to be selected for SES. The model is used to help individuals and federal agencies build the development segment of employees’ succession plans.

The core Leadership competencies are basic competencies for all employees (Managing Yourself) – these are the cross functional competencies that are the foundation of leadership and personal management: Interpersonal Skills; Oral Communication; Continual Learning; Written Communication; Integrity/Honesty; Public Service Motivation. Research indicates that without these core competencies, success at upper levels is not possible.

The Leadership Journey illustrates the customary levels of management and leadership. Associated with each level are related competencies that are critical for success at that level, and form a developmental step for the next level of management or leadership. There are key experiences at each level that are designed to reinforce the associated competencies. These key experiences eventually serve as building blocks for the ECQs.

As the model’s steps move upward, Managing Yourself, moves to Managing Projects (equivalent to GS 5-11 positions). Employees in this stage of their careers build project management skill sets and five additional leadership competencies in Team Building; Customer Service; Technical Credibility; Accountability; Influencing/Negotiating.

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10 Big Mistakes Vets Make
Applying to Federal Jobs

Posted in Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, KSA Writing, Vet Federal Resumes
by Kathryn Troutman on August 26th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

Leaving a military career after 5, 10, or 20 years is traumatic. The career transition out of military is difficult no matter what your rank. The good news is that the federal government is basically just “the other side of the desk.” You’re going to take the “hands-on” skills and technical training from your military experience and convert it over to the policy, program, support, and administration side of the work you have been doing – maybe. The first federal resume after military is your most important resume and the most complex because you will translate your skills for a new career, mission, and customer.

Veterans are perfect for federal civil service positions because of their dedication to public service, the nation’s security, specialized expertise, knowledge of certain missions, technical skills and training, leadership, dedication, work ethic, attitude and willingness to learn and start-over. What’s more, these skills allow you to add 5 or 10 preference points to your application score.

However, sometimes transitioning veterans rush through the federal application and make several mistakes when applying for public-sector jobs

TOP 10 MISTAKES

1.) I only apply for jobs on USAJOBS (or CPOL or DONHR or WHS).

If you limit your search to just one agency or website, you are truly restricting yourself.

There are at least five major sites where you can create a profile, set up a resume builder, answer questions, and apply for a federal job:

- www.usajobs.gov – The official government jobs website, includes Air Force civilian positions
- www.cpol.army.mil – The website where all Army jobs are posted and where you would apply for an Army position
- military.com/careers – A commercial site that manages resumes and job postings for federal agencies.
- www.donhr.navy.mil – The website for Navy and USMC civilian positions
- www.whs.mil – Department of Defense civilian jobs are posted here as is the resume builder and application.

2.) I only apply for jobs without KSA narratives.

If you limit your search to applications that do not require KSAs, you will cut out many job opportunities with the Departments of HHS, VA, Interior, Commerce, Justice, Labor, Transportation and others. You will need to learn how to write KSA narratives and questionnaire essays for a successful federal job search. KSAs are just examples that demonstrate you have a certain Knowledge, Skill or Ability. You can use the KSA Builder developed by The Resume Place to write your “stories” that will demonstrate that you do have a certain knowledge, skill, or ability.

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Writing a PPP Federal Resume for BRAC-Impacted Workers

Posted in Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, Vet Federal Resumes
by Kathryn Troutman on August 25th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

There is immediate help available for workers and military personnel affected by BRAC (Base Relocation and Closure). Kathryn Troutman, President of The Resume Place, is an expert in the Priority Placement Program (PPP), which was established to provide career transition assistance to workers whose military base has been closed. PPP is a proven success. It has placed more than 250,000 federal employees to date. However, if you want this program to work, you have to be ready with a proper BRAC Resume. Kathryn Troutman and The Resume Place are ready to help!

Ms. Troutman is the well-known author of the “Ten Steps to a Federal Job” book series. She has also designed her own five step guide to designing and writing a PPP Resume.

The resume is similar to the USAJOBS resume, but it has distinct differences. Probably the most notable is that it is written and formatted for a human being, not for the USAJOBS Resume Builder. There are other important differences as well, so if you’re using PPP, you need to make sure you know exactly what you are doing.

Ms. Troutman is the Federal Resume Writing Workshop Leader for the BRAC Center in Crystal City, VA. The BRAC Center provides assistance to BRAC-impacted workers in Arlington County, VA. The Resume Place, Inc., gives free estimates for Priority Placement Program Federal Resumes.

The Federal Resume Guidebook, 5th Edition includes a chapter on writing the PPP Federal Resume for your information.

OPM’s USA Staffing System Error Loses Roughly 70,000 Federal Applications

Posted in Federal Job Info, Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, www.USAJOBS.gov
by Kathryn Troutman on August 18th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

If you applied for a federal job between late afternoon Sunday, August 7, 2011 and midday Tuesday, August 9, 2011 the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has some bad news for you and 70,000 of your closest friends: Your application is lost in cyberspace and it isn’t coming back. The USA Staffing system was unexpectedly taken offline on August 9th, according to a message first posted on a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) server. The error occurred during routine maintenance, but the only way to fix it was to take it entirely offline and restore it to its pre-glitch form. This means any work done during those two days was erased. Many more people who tried to apply for positions on August 10th found that they couldn’t. The result was a flurry of complaints posted on the USAJobs Facebook page. OPM has apologized for the problem.

The good news is that anyone who applied during that time is getting a second chance. Any position that closed between August 7th and 10th has now had its deadline extended to August 15th. In addition, HHS says anyone whose application was affected by the outage will receive a notice from OPM. That means that if you applied during this time, it’s time to make sure your resume and supporting documents are still organized and together. The government is making sure you can still take that shot at the job you want.

The staff at The Resume Place is committed to helping you locate, apply for, and land government jobs. The Resume Place also provides our clients with expert federal career training and consultation. Contact us today for a free estimate on your federal resume writing project. Visit us at http://www.resume-place.com or give us a call at (888) 480-8265.

The Federal Times published an article regarding the USA Staffing computer glitch.

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