Blog Archives - Page 24 of 52

The Rise of Life Sciences Real Estate

Leave a Comment / Awards and Recognition, Blog, Building Careers, Industry Insights

Recent life sciences real estate reports paint a picture of overwhelming demand and a great opportunity for new developers. The rise of life sciences real estate reports show a record $26B of venture capital funding poured into the sector in the first six months of 2021, according to Newmark, setting loose scores of well-capitalized startups seeking lab space. CBRE found that the 15.6M SF of speculative lab construction underway nationwide is nearly 30% leased, signaling developers can’t keep up. The overall vacancy rate for the top 12 biotech clusters, per CBRE, is just 5.6%.

But the reality is a select few developers have been able to cash in. In addition to difficulties finding talent, and the special requirements and expertise required to build lab spaces, the cost of such projects is prohibitive and the risk of failure is much higher than traditional office buildings.

As other smaller firms seek to expand or break into life sciences, they may run into similar problems. Newmark Associate Director of Capital Markets Research Daniel Littman said costs are a key barrier: Even office-to-lab conversions often come in at $100-$150 per SF for base building costs, and then $250-$300 per SF for a tenant retrofit. And that’s if you can acquire assets; especially in top markets, available assets are few and far between, and there is a lot of money chasing the space.

Harborth underscored that in addition to the difficulty finding talent, getting expertise in different markets is another hurdle. Real estate is such a local business, and even for firms seeking more national exposure, there’s a need to know local players. Transplant talent can’t instantly operate at the same level in a new market.

Carly Glova, president of commercial real estate talent firm Building Careers, said that the drive for talent has led some firms to bend their criteria, prioritizing life sciences experience over someone who is a perfect fit for a particular role, and sweetening employment offers, allowing staff to work remotely, increasing compensation packages or allowing for equity opportunities.

Due to the rise of life sciences real estate, there’s also a shortage of experienced architects and designers in the field.

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How to Stay in Touch Professionally with Your Dream Company

Leave a Comment / Blog, Job Search, Set Yourself Up For Success

When you absolutely know where you want to work next, but you’re not hired yet, it pays to know how to stay in touch professionally. After all, if you want something, you’ve got to work for it, right?

But what are some good ways to keep that steady drip contact without coming across as a stalker or something? What’s the etiquette in play here?

Whether you are actively in the interview stage at a favorite development company or strategizing a future move to a really great CRE investment firm, you’ll appreciate these tips for keeping in touch. Let’s dive right in.

Keep Your Eye on the Goal

Over the past year or two, people have had an opportunity to stop and reflect on their ideal career path. The commercial real estate (CRE) space is always evolving. But even within that greater evolution, there are numerous career paths that may appeal to some more than others.

Maybe you’ve had a chance to realize what it is you really want to do in CRE, and you’ve even identified a dream company you are branding yourself to work at in the near future. Now what?

How do you get on and stay on their radar? Maybe you’ve already interviewed for the role, but didn’t get the job. Don’t give up! This one may take time and perseverance. Keep your sights on the target, your eyes on the goal. And implement some of these helpful tips and tricks to stay in touch professionally over the long term.

Networking

Your professional network is your professional net worth. Let that sink in.

It’s all about who you know. So, leverage networking to get that job with your dream employer.

Discuss your goals with friends and family who might have connections there. Check your alumni networks. Did any of the leadership at your target company go to your alma mater? Perfect that elevator pitch, and put yourself out there. Talk to anyone from that company you can get on the phone with.

Follow Up

If you’ve interviewed or connected with a hiring manager there, invest in that relationship. Follow up a few days after an interview and again ten days out. From there, check in two or three times a year.

Keep your emails or messages brief. Remember to ask about how they are doing, and when possible, discuss their interests. Always use their preferred channels of communication, whether that’s meeting for coffee or messages in LinkedIn. Show interest in their life and deepen the relationship.

Whatever you do, don’t let the conversation turn stale. But of course, give them space. If they stop responding to your communications, wait a few months before trying one last time. Then move on to another contact at that company.

Ask For Interview Feedback

Again, assuming you’ve already interviewed with your dream company, a great way to stay in touch is by asking for interview feedback.

Drop the hiring manager a simple email stating your desire to better understand how the interview went. Acknowledge that they may have chosen someone else, and ask what areas you might improve in your interview skills or past experience.

Keep in mind that, while many companies have the expectation of hiring in a couple weeks or so, the process often takes 60-90 days. That being said, top priority candidates are often hired during the process. If this happens, and you were a close runner up, asking them to re-examine their interview notes for feedback is a great way to subtly remind them that you are a) still in the running, and b) a great candidate.

Keep in Contact with Recruiters

It goes without saying that recruiters are your best friend. If you have something to offer a particular company, staying in touch with their preferred search firm is as good as hanging out in the hiring manager’s lobby (and less creepy). Here are some tips for making a good impression and keeping in the wheelhouse of recruiters on your way to that dream job:

Talk at networking events, then send a personalized LinkedIn message and connection request.
Occasionally comment on their LinkedIn posts.
Send them a quarterly update email to mention something you’ve recently accomplished and remind them of your interest.

Remember Etiquette

Of course, remember to keep it classy at all times. Follow common-sense rules of business etiquette. For example, remember to be considerate of their time and interests. Don’t always ask for favors; sometimes send them an interesting article to read or a holiday card or a congratulatory message about an acquisition they just closed.

In your communications, keep in mind what you can do for the company and those involved in hiring. When meeting in person, always make eye contact and take notes. Speak positively about previous employers and colleagues. Keep a grateful tone in all messages.

The power of asking nicely cannot be overstated!

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The Best Salary Negotiation Tips

Leave a Comment / Blog, Interview Tips, Job Search, Set Yourself Up For Success

Are you negotiating a job offer or a raise in pay in your current role? If so, a lot depends on what you do right now, before you even begin salary negotiations. Do your homework and learn about these salary negotiation tips, and you could wind up with more money in your pocket and maybe some life-changing perks and benefits, too.

How Much Are You Worth?

Especially if you’re negotiating with a prospective employer, you need to find out how much your skills and experience are worth in today’s job market. Take the time to research salaries long before you even begin discussing pay. That way you will be prepared to make your case and land a job offer that’s realistic and reasonable.

What Are Salary Negotiations?

Salary negotiations involve discussing a job offer with a potential employer to settle on a salary and benefits package that’s in line with the market (and hopefully, that meets or exceeds your needs).

The most productive salary negotiations occur between people who realize that they have a common goal: to get the employee paid appropriately for their skills and experience.

Negotiations can include all aspects of compensation, including salary, bonuses, stock options, benefits, perks, vacation time, and more.

How to Calculate Your Take-Home Pay

When you’re considering a job offer, it’s important to know the bottom line. How much will you be bringing home after taxes, FICA deductions for Social Security and Medicare, and contributions to health insurance and retirement benefits?2 That number is your net pay.

You can use free salary and paycheck calculators to estimate your net pay and figure out roughly how much you’ll bring home in your paycheck. It’s important to get a ballpark figure before you negotiate or compare job offers.

Salary Negotiation Tips

1. Know Your Responsibilities: If you are negotiating for your current role, you should review your current job description and note what you are doing above and beyond that.

2. Wait for the Appropriate Time: Once you know what you should be earning, how do you go about getting it? Start by being patient. When interviewing for a new position, do your best not to bring up compensation until the employer makes you an offer.

3. Resist Throwing out the First Number: If you’re asked what your salary requirements are, say that they are open based upon the position and the overall compensation package. Or tell the employer you’d like to know more about the responsibilities and the challenges of the job prior to discussing salary.

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Prepare to Answer the “Why Should We Hire You?” Interview Question

Leave a Comment / Blog, Interview Tips, Set Yourself Up For Success

Every interview question is an attempt to gather information to inform this hiring decision. Many interviewers will also specifically ask you to make your case with one of these questions:

Why would you be a good fit for this position?
What makes you unique?
Why are you the best person for this job?
Explain why your background and experience would be a good fit for this job.

To close the deal on a job offer, you MUST be prepared with a concise summary of the top reasons to choose you. Even if your interviewer doesn’t ask one of these questions in so many words, you should be prepared to tell them about yourself and communicate your top reasons for why you are the best person for this job.

The interviewer’s job is to hire the best person for the position. Most of the candidates that make it to the interview stage are qualified for the job. The winning candidate must be more than qualified, especially in a very competitive job market.

With this question, your interviewer is asking you to sell him on you and your status as the best person for the position. Make his job easier by convincing him that:

You can do the work and deliver exceptional results
You will fit in beautifully and be a great addition to the team
You possess a combination of skills and experience that make you stand out
Hiring you will make him look smart and make his life easier

Why Should We Hire You?

This is your chance to wow them with your highlight reel. Your answer should summarize the top three or four best reasons to hire you. It’s better to have three or four strong reasons with memorable descriptions and/or examples than to rattle off a laundry list of twelve strengths without context.

This is an opportunity to reiterate your most impressive strengths and/or describe your most memorable selling points, tailored to align with the top requirements in the job description. Your 3-4 bullet points could include a combination of the following:

Industry experience
Experience in performing certain tasks or duties
Technical skills
Soft skills
Key accomplishments
Awards/accolades
Education/training

Accomplishments and success stories are always good bets, especially if you can describe how a key accomplishment (a successful marketing campaign, for example) demonstrates a desired competency (creativity, results-orientation).

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Hate Networking? Try This!

Leave a Comment / Ask An Expert, Blog, Job Search, Set Yourself Up For Success

Before you say it, I know. You hate networking. Networking really can suck sometimes. Even the most extroverted and outgoing among us feel a pang of anxiety, distaste, or resistance when it comes to the idea of milling around an event, seeking the important connections, and grasping for business cards or, even worse, trolling the internet (LinkedIn) for strangers who can help you and then trying to quickly ingratiate yourself so as to elicit a favor in your job search.

Hating Networking is a Mistake

It’s a mistake not because it is critically important to the rest of your career. It is critically important to the rest of your career, by the way. The more senior or entrepreneurial you get, the more your opportunities will depend on who you know and who knows you than on your resume or accomplishments. Having a robust cadre of friends and associates who like and want to help you is key.

But if you are anything like me, knowing that something is good for you makes no difference.

I know that hitting the snooze button on my alarm 5 times every morning makes me groggier and less enthused to start my day when I eventually do grudgingly put my feet on the floor.

But, oh! The heaven of just 10 more minutes in that sweet cocoon of blankets; I can just shortcut my shower. I can just take out the trash tonight after work instead. I can drink the crap coffee in the break room instead of stopping for a latte. I always find new and creative ways to hit that button.

And so do you sometimes! Because we do what we want in any given moment, not necessarily what we think is good for us. This is why there is so much attention to creating positive habits in the recent self-development literature. Because the only way to make sure you do something regularly is to turn it into the thing you want in those moments. We are genius at getting what we want!

So the reason not to hate networking isn’t because it’s good for you. The reason not to hate networking is because you have misunderstood what it is in the first place and you are throwing out the baby with the bath water. Let me explain.

Hate Networking? Here’s Why:

Standing around possibly trying to balance a plate of appetizers and a glass of wine while still keeping a hand free for shaking and business card collecting, wondering if you look stupid or if there is spinach from the mini-quiche in your teeth.
Trying to strike up conversations with strangers – some of whom could potentially make or break your career – without having any obvious common ground.
Asking for someone’s business card knowing that it will either end up in a useless pile in the corner of your desk or that you will soon be reaching out as a supplicant for a huge favor because you want them to help you get your next job.
Following up with those important people and then trying to worm your way to that favor: “I’d love for you to refer me for this job!” Or “Could you please help me get an interview?” knowing full well it is too soon to ask a relative stranger for something like this.
Or if you didn’t meet someone at a live event, cold reaching out to them via LinkedIn or email with the extraordinary burden of trying to prove your value AND convince them to help you in the 150 words or fewer recommended word count for such emails.

Hate Networking? Try This! Read More »

The Fear of Making a Career Change and How To Get Over It

How To: Present Leadership Skills on Your Resume

Leave a Comment / Blog, Job Search, Resume Ideas, Set Yourself Up For Success

Leadership is an essential function of successful management that helps to maximize work efficiency and to achieve organizational goals. Regardless of the type of the job you’re looking for or a company’s size, leadership skills are paramount. They belong to the group of the most sought-after soft skills that employers look for in candidates.

Your first contact with a hiring company or organization is through the job application and resume, so how can you demonstrate leadership skills without speaking with an employer or recruiter? It all comes down to the way you write the resume. Here are some top tips on how to optimize your resume with enhanced leadership skills.

Supply Examples of Leadership Skills

An average employer or recruiter gets hundreds of resumes for any given job position. The chances of getting an interview increase for those who stand out. The most important thing you can do when showing off leadership skills on a resume is to provide specific examples. It’s common for applicants to state they have great leadership skills without providing evidence. To stand out, mention some leadership-related accomplishments from a previous job. Ask yourself two questions: what did I do and how did I do it.

Here are a few examples:

Coached my team and to adopt a new business strategy (mention details about the strategy)
Successfully organized seminars, meetings, team-building activities, and collaborations with other companies
Had to quickly adapt to changes (include specific example) and prepare for unforeseen circumstances

Quantifiable Results

Qualities of a good leader don’t stop with the ability to motivate and lead others, they also extend to work efficiency and specific, measurable results. When writing about achievements from previous jobs, always quantify your results with statistics and hard numbers. In fact, avoid vague descriptions entirely. Employers appreciate concise writing and resumes that get straight to the point.

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Managing Up: 5 Tips to Impress Your New Boss

Leave a Comment / Blog, Set Yourself Up For Success

Whether you’ve just begun a new job or are planning a transition in the near future, it’s crucial to impress your boss. In order to thrive in your new position, you’ll need to understand how your supervisor ticks, and what you can do to complement that workstyle. Your career may depend on it.

Managing Up

There’s a new buzzword circling in the CRE and other circles: managing up. Essentially, it means to synchronize with your boss to ensure a mutually beneficial workflow. And it is absolutely key to thriving in your new role and maximizing this career opportunity.

To manage up means to bring out the best in your supervisor and yourself as an employee through proper communication, timeline management, proactive intent, etc. If you and your boss can get on the same page, your relationship will benefit from it – and so will your career.

When done right, managing up will make your boss’s job easier. But it doesn’t mean babysitting him or her. Your goal is to simply learn your boss’s preferred communication styles and methods, expectations, and other considerations. Your thoughtfulness and attentiveness to fostering a healthy work relationship in turn generates higher productivity and a more fulfilling career experience.

If you’re planning to upgrade your CRE career in the near future, or if you’ve recently been hired into a new role, here are five great ways to properly manage up and impress your boss.

Impress Your New Boss

1. Do Get to Know Your Boss

Take proactive steps to learn about your boss. What is he or she trying to accomplish in this organization? What brought them to CRE? What role do you play in his or her mission? Don’t pry, but make time to chat and learn about your new boss. Information is power, and the more you know in this situation, the more effective and helpful you will be.

2. Don’t Get Political

While you want to become a helpful asset and trusted colleague for your supervisor, the goal isn’t to choose sides in office politics. No favoritism. Remember, you are a professional. And maintaining respectful relationships with management is only part of your job. You should nurture equally respectful management with other colleagues.

3. Get Detailed

Good communication is essential in the workplace. Whenever you are assigned a new responsibility or task, immediately establish the details – what, how, when? If you aren’t given a timeline on a project, for example, offer to have a draft or outline ready by a certain time. This will open the conversation and show initiative.

4. Be Helpful

In many ways, your job is to help make your boss’s job easier. So ask! When you notice your supervisor is distracted or a little absent minded, stop and ask, “Is there anything I can do to make your job a little easier?” Show care and concern, and check in from time to time to support the team mission.

5. Bring Recommendations

Next time you ask for input or help, impress your boss by providing a few suggested options for him or her to choose from. Management has a lot to think about. The less you put on their plate, the better. Showing the forethought to make your situation a multiple-choice scenario will endear your boss to you and demonstrate your value.

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Workplace Burnout: Are You Experiencing Symptoms?

Leave a Comment / Blog, Employers, Set Yourself Up For Success

People who are struggling to cope with workplace stress may place themselves at high risk of burnout. Workplace burnout can leave people feeling exhausted, empty, and unable to cope with the demands of life.

Burnout may be accompanied by a variety of mental and physical health symptoms as well. If left unaddressed, burnout can make it difficult for an individual to function well in their daily life.

What Is Burnout?

The term “burnout” is a relatively new term, first coined in 1974 by Herbert Freudenberger, in his book, Burnout: The High Cost of High Achievement. He originally defined burnout as, “the extinction of motivation or incentive, especially where one’s devotion to a cause or relationship fails to produce the desired results.”

Burnout is a reaction to prolonged or chronic job stress and is characterized by three main dimensions: exhaustion, cynicism (less identification with the job), and feelings of reduced professional ability.

More simply put, if you feel exhausted, start to hate your job, and begin to feel less capable at work, you are showing signs of burnout.

The stress that contributes to burnout can come mainly from your job, but stress from your overall lifestyle can add to this stress. Personality traits and thought patterns, such as perfectionism and pessimism, can contribute as well.

Most people spend the majority of their waking hours working. And if you hate your job, dread going to work, and don’t gain any satisfaction out of what you’re doing, it can take a serious toll on your life.

Signs and Symptoms of Workplace Burnout

While workplace burnout isn’t a diagnosable psychological disorder, that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be taken seriously. Here are some of the most common signs of burnout:

Alienation from work-related activities: Individuals experiencing burnout view their jobs as increasingly stressful and frustrating. They may grow cynical about their working conditions and the people they work with. They may also emotionally distance themselves and begin to feel numb about their work.
Physical symptoms: Chronic stress may lead to physical symptoms, like headaches and stomachaches or intestinal issues.
Emotional exhaustion: Burnout causes people to feel drained, unable to cope, and tired. They often lack the energy to get their work done.
Reduced performance: Burnout mainly affects everyday tasks at work—or in the home when someone’s main job involves caring for family members. Individuals with burnout feel negative about tasks. They have difficulty concentrating and often lack creativity.

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Need a More Flexible Work Schedule? Here’s How to Negotiate for One!

Leave a Comment / Ask An Expert, Blog, Job Search

One of the toughest issues to deal with when it comes to employment is scheduling. In today’s world it is more or less assumed, unless stated otherwise, that you are willing and want to work a standard 40-hour workweek, from 9 to 5 (or similar) each day. It is also assumed you want to work Monday through Friday.

Let’s face it. Life doesn’t always fit into convenient 9-to-5 boxes, and a lot of us have lives outside of work. Whether you have health issues, a family to raise, other projects to work on, or simply want a different kind of life, you may not be keen on the 40-hour full time workweek. How do you secure a job with a flexible work schedule?

The very best thing you can do is look for a job which already is offering hours you find acceptable. Look for part time or season jobs or jobs which specifically say “telecommute” or “flexible hours” on the postings. There are not a lot of these out there, though, so that can make it challenging to find what you need. If you cannot, you will have to find another way to negotiate hours.

If you are applying for a job that lists a range of possible hours, you may have some options when it comes to negotiating the terms of employment. Do not ask about flexible work schedule during the job interview if you can avoid it. If it comes up, then you can address it directly, but otherwise, steer clear. Questions about hours often make you appear lazy. It is also easier to persuade someone to do something for you if they already want you onboard. Otherwise you just look like a high management employee who will be difficult to deal with.

The best time to talk about a flexible work schedule is after the job offer has been extended and after salary negotiations successfully conclude. Be warned that this is a dangerous business, and there is a good chance that the discussion will be a deal breaker—either for you or for the potential employer. Some workers will also wait until they are already working at the company fulfilling normal work hours to bring up flexibility in scheduling. The danger here is in getting sucked into a job you really cannot or do not want.

Need a More Flexible Work Schedule? Here’s How to Negotiate for One! Read More »