S P O N S O R S

(March 14, 1997): What do Bay Networks, Digital Computers, The Bank of Boston, Smith Barney, and Chubb have in common? They are all members of the Massachusetts Telecommunications Council (MTC). The MTC mission is straightforward:

to promote Massachusetts as a world center for telecommunications by building on the extraordinarily high concentration of telecommunications organizations doing business in the state.

There are an additional 16 companies waiting to be added to the automated process.

Health Care Opportunities Explode

(March 13, 1997): We recently received a note from a firm that has prepared a compilation of over 500 websites offering employment opportunities in Healthcare. There is nothing short of an explosion in online resources for healthcare career opportunities. Here are the best places to begin your search:

• America's Healthcare Opportunities
• Call24 Jobline
• HealthBank
• Healthcare Careers Online
• Health Careers Online
• Health Care Job Directory
• Health Care Jobs Online
• Health Network USA
• HealthOpps
• HealthSeek Employment
• Medical Jobs
• Medmarket
• MedSearch
• Medxpress
• Mental Health Net
• Modern Healthcare Magazine
• NetMed
• Neonatology Positions

Link Search Engine

(March 12, 1997): Recruiting-links.com (a project of the SkillSearch Corporation) has been redesigned. The site offers a search engine for about 700 links to Corporate Employment pages. Competition in the market that provides centralized linking to widely distributed employment sites is heating up.

You can use the tool to search for job links by

• location of the job (region of the world, country, region)
• type of business (industry, line-of-business and segment)
• type of job (function, discipline, specialty)

The search engine is reasonably helpful about the process of focusing your search. If you want to avoid all of the standard intrductory stuff, aim your browser at the Search Page. Generally, each employment link also has an email link associated with it. You get to choose between drilling down to more detail or simply submitting your resume on the spot.

Cure For Stupidity

(March 11, 1997): One of the pitfalls of the job hunt is a sort of brain numbness that sets in as the result of being in unfamiliar territory. When combined with the difficulties of learning to navigate the Internet, an odd, almost biological reaction sets upon the job hunter. Brain Lock, or the tendency to see all input as overly difficult, is a common malady afflicting many individuals under stress in unfamiliar circumstances.

The pure clinical form of this condition is called Organic Brain Lock (OBL or "stupidity" in common parlance). The National Institutes of Health have plowed billions of dollars into research on the problem. (Politicians seem to be particularly afflicted by a genetic version of the disorder) The purely organic form appears to be incurable. But, Brain Lock caused by transitional stress can be treated effectively.

The symptoms of Transitional Brain Lock (TBL) share two common themes across large clinical groups:

• The afflicted patient believes that his/her associates are all suffering from OBL
• The patient complains (often loudly) about the apparent OBL plague, often believing that he or she is the only unafflicted person left on the planet.

Therapy for this delusional disorder is straightforward. The simplest form of the treatment involves exercising atrophied brain muscles to restore balance in the overall function of the brain. If you believe that you may be suffering from TBL as the result of your job search, we suggest the following therapeutic exercises:

• Visit Celebrity Slugfest. Although the exercise will require that you download a shockwave plugin, the therapeutic value of punching OJ, Rush, Dave, Madonna, Ted or Tori in the nose is beyond question.
• If you have a more pacifist bent, consider a visit to The Braintainment Center which is a sort of health spa for the brain.

IT Careers

(March 10, 1997): A just released study by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) extensively surveyed large and mid-size Information Technology (IT) and non-IT companies throughout the United States and found:

• The number of unfilled positions for IT employees at large and mid-size U.S. companies is approximately 190,000 nationwide.
• At large and mid-size IT companies, one IT position is vacant for approximately every 10 IT employees working at these companies.
• Eighty-two percent of large and mid-size IT companies expect to increase the number of IT workers they employ.
• 2 percent expect to reduce their IT workforce.
• Seventy-one percent of companies believe the demand for IT workers is higher than for other skilled/trained workers.
• Sixty-eight percent of IT companies cite a lack of skilled/trained workers as a barrier to their companies' future ability to grow.
• One-third of IT companies engage in full-time recruiting to fill IT positions at their companies.

If you're in a career transition, we highly recommend that you consider returning to school and adding IT skills to your portfolio. This shortage is liable to l ast quite a long time and will offer you increased security and compensation if you choose an IT career.

More Resources

• Companies with Job Ads (Nearly 1500 Links to Companies and their Job Postings)
• Tools (Everything You need for a Job Hunt)
• The daily newsletters are archived in weekly volumes in the Archives. Past issues include:

Many of the items are also included in the Tools Area. The Web's largest collection of Employment related resources is also included in the Tools Area. -----------------