Interview Tips

With workers laid off in a myriad of industries, including commercial real estate, it must be incredibly difficult to begin a CRE job search now, right? There’s so much uncertainty in the markets and so many others competing for the same jobs. Where do you start? How can you strategically launch your job search during these tricky times?

Begin Your CRE Job Search Right

These are scary times. And it’s important not to jump into this half-baked. Maybe you were a happy analyst whose furlough never ended or a property manager looking for new opportunities. What was your state of mind before the pandemic news came? Were you looking to change career tracks or seek advancement in your current path?

This is the perfect time to get in touch with who you are and reflect on your future. Things have changed, and maybe you have, too. Don’t rush into this. Begin your CRE job search right by asking a few questions like:

• Will my position still be in demand in this new environment?
• Am I good at what I do and where can I bring the most value?
• Do I enjoy this role? What am I passionate about?
• What new opportunities have current events created?

Develop Your Brand

Once you’ve decided whether to stay in your current career field or go after a different side of the commercial real estate industry, it’s time to brand yourself. In a competitive market, getting hired at your dream firm doesn’t happen by accident. You must stand out from the crowd.

If you’re serious about developing a high-impact brand for yourself in this new job search, here are a few steps with which to start:

• · Learn the key mission of each target employer
• · Identify which of your skills best match that mission
• · Craft a targeted branding statement that highlights this match

Learn New Skills

One of the best things to do when you begin your CRE job search is improving your skill set. The difference maker between you and the many other candidates is often the skills and certifications you have on your resume. Be sure not to underestimate the power of soft skills such as communication, leadership, and problem-solving.

Can you take a few classes right now in your down time? Can you update any outdated certifications? Perhaps take on larger roles in volunteer organizations? Closely follow the requirements in your target roles, and align your current strengths with those parameters.

Work with a Recruiter

If you are targeting a successful CRE company, chances are that firm already knows the importance of partnering with a search firm. They’ll likely prioritize candidates who have already been pre-screened by their search partner and interview those people first. Or in many cases, they will work on retainer, in which case, the recruiter is the gatekeeper.

Here at Building Careers, we actively nurture our relationships with numerous CRE professionals and leading CRE companies. We’ve been matching the right candidate to the right role for years. If you’re a good fit for the job you want, we will be a powerful advocate on your behalf. And if the fit just isn’t right, chances are, we’ll know of the best alternatives.

If you are one of the thousands of CRE professionals laid off or furloughed during the current crisis, don’t be nervous. You can begin your CRE job search right and stand out from the crowd. Let us know if we can help!

Jobseekers often have a hard time deciding the best way to follow up after an interview. Once it’s over, you’re instantly waiting for feedback. When you are eager to hear about a new opportunity, it can be frustrating to wait, but sometimes the interview process takes a lot longer than you’d like.

The employer has to interview all the suitable candidates, which might take a few weeks since this depends on the availability of both the applicants and everyone who will interview them. To keep your expectations in check, it’s always a good idea to ask the interviewer about their timeline for deciding on a candidate before you leave the interview room. This way you’ll know when it’s appropriate to follow up.

The Right Time for an Interview Follow Up

Your first step should be to send a thank you note to the interviewers (or the person scheduling your interviews) within two days of the interview. Only one in 20 candidates send a thank-you note after an interview, so taking the time to write one is a great opportunity to leave a positive impression on the interviewers.

I suggest sending it by email and keeping it brief — thank everyone who interviewed you for their time, re-emphasize your interest in the role, and express excitement about the next step in the recruitment process. You can also reference specific conversations that may have come up in the interview and use your thank you letter to highlight the ways your skills and experience are a good match for the position. Finally, if there’s something you forgot to mention during the interview, this is a great opportunity to bring it up.

If the company hasn’t told you anything about the next step, it’s best to wait at least a week before you follow up. If you are overeager, you risk annoying the recruiter or the hiring manager. However, if you’ve sent your thank-you note and the decision date the hiring manager indicated has come and gone, it’s time to follow up.

How to Follow Up After an Interview

For an interview following up, start with the person who said they’d be in touch with you. That could be the recruiter, recruiting coordinator, or the hiring manager. Email is definitely the best way to follow up without appearing pushy.

Here are a few pointers:

• Address the person you are emailing by their first name
• Mention the job title of the role you’re following up about and the date you interviewed to refresh their memory
• Confirm that you’re still interested in the position and that you are eager to hear about next steps
• Finally, ask for an update

Read More: https://www.livecareer.com/resources/interviews/prep/job-interview-follow-up

Do you have your eyes on the ideal CRE position, but don’t know how to brand yourself as the perfect fit? You might be wondering how to get the attention of the hiring manager or guarantee that your resume will win you an interview. Or perhaps you’ve applied to numerous companies and can’t seem to land an interview with the ones that matter.

What’s the secret? What does it take to position yourself for the commercial real estate job you want?

The Power of Personal Branding

As businesses already know, branding is a powerful tool for distinguishing your value from that of your competitors. It’s all about strategically associating key messaging with your name. Branding encompasses not only brand awareness – getting on the radar – but also brand value. Organizational branding in CRE is huge, but personal branding is just as powerful.

Each time a resume comes across a hiring manager’s desk, a first impression is made. Perhaps there isn’t enough information to make a positive impression, or perhaps the information is simply unimpressive. Either way, this is a missed opportunity for branding.

But when a hiring manager has enough relevant information to understand the value you can bring to the organization, your chances of landing that interview are much higher.

How to Brand Yourself for CRE:

First, determine what your ideal career path is and who you want to work for. Perhaps this is a re-brand for you, and you’re switching from the brokerage side to CRE investing. Or maybe you’ve been in the industry for some time but only recently became serious about future advancement. Now is the time to nail down exactly what you want and where you’d like to be in the next few years.

Next, identify the top three-five organizations you’d like to work for. Absorb everything you can about their company cultures, missions, values, and uniqueness in the market. Become a superfan. Network with anyone you can who currently works there or your local recruiting resource to make an introduction. Don’t overlook employees who aren’t in the C suite. Any connection is a potential key to the inside track.

Then, identify the key points of value you can bring to these companies. What attitudes, experiences, and training of yours uniquely meshes with their goals? If need be, update your certifications or take additional training. Then, craft a branding statement for your resume that speaks directly to each target organization (tailor this statement for each application). In a nutshell, tell the story of you and the future contributions you can make to directly impact the organization’s objectives.

Next, get serious about your digital footprint. Google yourself to ensure your online record accurately reflects your career focus. Curate and share quality content in your space. Build a community around this content. Share your successes and accomplishments. Update your LinkedIn profile to emphasize the key points of value you offer these companies. A professional headshot is a must.

Once You’re Ready, Go for It!

The last and most important step is to put yourself out there. You’ve taken the steps to brand yourself for your ideal CRE job. So, don’t hide your brand under the proverbial bushel. Start making some noise.

Sharing with others invites them to share with you. This is the essence of a vibrant and strong network of contacts. And in a healthy network, asking for referrals and reaching out to contacts in these target organizations is completely natural. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, tell your story, and ask for that interview!

With a strong plan in place and an emphasis on clearly connecting your value to their goals, you’ll successfully stand out in a crowded field of candidates. For additional help branding yourself for the CRE industry, get in touch with our career experts.

Locally in San Diego, Building Careers is working in conjunction with NAIOP to kick 2021 off with a personal branding Lunch & Learn, so be on the lookout for details!

Looking for a job can be a bit like dating. It can be easy to go online and find a match for a first date, but what happens after that is what matters the most. Will that first date (or first interview) turn into a long-term relationship? Or is it going to be a bust?

Job searching can be hard work. It’s not just a question of finding a job – any job. It’s important to find the right job, a job that is an excellent fit for you now and for the future, either as a stepping stone for your career or as an opportunity you’ll be comfortable with for the long haul. If it’s the wrong job, you’ll end up having to start a job search all over again if the position doesn’t work out. Besides it being stressful, you’ll need to avoid being considered a job hopper when writing your resume.

Because job searching is time-consuming, as well as hard work and because it can be even harder when a job doesn’t work out and you end up quitting or getting fired, it’s best to spend your time trying to get it right from the time you start job hunting. Here are five secrets to finding a job you’ll love.

1. Discover What You Want to Do

Before you start your job search, spend time making sure you’re looking for the right job. If you’re not certain about what you want to do, take a career quiz or two to generate some ideas. If need be, get career coaching or counseling to help get you on the right track. Use the job search engines to search for jobs that are a match for your skills, experience, and interests.

2. Connect with Current Employees

Don’t just apply for the job. Take it a step further. Use your connections on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and other networking sites to discover whom you know at the company. Ask them for insight and information on the company, in general, as well as about the job. Your contacts may also be able to provide you with a referral for the position. Check out the company’s LinkedIn page and social media profiles to gather information.

Read More: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/top-tips-for-finding-a-job-you-will-love-2060996

Contact Us: https://www.buildingrecareers.com/contact

Contact Carly Glova: CGlova@BuildingRECareers.com

As more companies transition teams to remote arrangements, managers and employees are learning firsthand that it takes a different skill set to work from home. And for those that are hiring right now, they’re looking for employees who can show that they’ve got what it takes to work from home right out of the gate.

These are five skills remote employees need to possess, as well as how you can prove to an employer that you’re a good candidate:

1. Organization

When you work from home, you have to be more disciplined in your organizational and scheduling skills, says Angela Hall, associate professor and associate director for graduate programs at Michigan State University’s School of Human Resources and Labor Relations. “You need to be able to set a schedule and work, even though you have distractions,” she says.

Hall recommends setting up goals at the beginning of the workweek as a way to stay on track. “Knowing how long this will take can take trial and error,” she says. “Things that might take a long time to complete in an office might go quicker at home, and conversely some things take a lot longer at home.”

You can demonstrate these skills in an interview by talking about how you built a schedule for yourself when you worked at home, says Hall. “Talk about your successes,” she says. “Even if the job wasn’t remote, you can share a time when you had a long-term project and you had to self-manage and organize. Self-management and self-organization are the big keys when working remotely.”

2. Self-Motivation

Remote employees need to be proactive and take initiative to get things done without being constantly reminded, monitored, or pinged for progress updates, says Wang. “In an office setting, your manager may sit next to you and can monitor you or help you throughout the day,” she says. “In a remote setting, you need the person to be able to do things on his or her own with a lot more independence.”

Remote workers need to be self-starters, says Hall. “Employers want to know, does this person require a lot of direction? Does this person keep their deadlines? Can this person set goals and achieve them?” she says. “Employers often structure interviews with behavior-based questions that post hypothetical situations, asking how the employee would approach a project.”

Be sure your answer demonstrates your motivation by including the methods and systems you use to get the job done. “You can say, ‘This is what I would do in this situation,’” says Hall. “Share how you would structure a task and prioritize important work. Show the employer how you get things done.”

Read More: https://www.fastcompany.com/90490491/5-skills-you-need-to-demonstrate-to-land-a-remote-job