Law And More:

« July 2020 | Main | September 2020 »

August 31, 2020

Once "The Ticket," M.B.A. Degree No Longer in Such Demand (maybe you were smart to go to law school)

"Business school students are bracing for an uncertain job market this coming school year as many traditional corporate recruiters shelve their usual fall hiring plans." Patrick Thomas, The Wall Street Journal, August 31, 2020.

Blame the uncertainty unleashed by COVID-19.

But in play is also the undertow of the need to do more with less since The Great Recession. And, hiring the M.B.A., instead of jut bringing aboard an undergraduate business major, is a pricey undertaking. In addition, organizations, both private sector and nonprofit, are finding it more effective to train a new hire from scratch rather than their bringing in all those assumptions about how things should be done.

This, of course, reflects the overall questioning of the value of academic degrees, ranging from undergraduate to professional and graduate. Way back in 2016, The Economist was out there hammering how the long haul for the Ph.D. was usually not worth it in career ROI.

PwC usually hires about 100 a year. Not this year. For Bain there is a reduction in the number of hires.

Also, the Relish Careers survey found that one-third of the members of M.B.A. Class of 2021 had rescinded job offers or internships. For the Class of 2020, that was about 20%. If the austerity train keeps roaring through U.S. organizations, the M.B.A., even from elite schools, may lose much of its brand equity. M.B.A.? Smirk smirk.

On the other hand, the law degree from the T-14 is still a workhorse in landing opportunities. So far, for example, there have been deferred start dates in BigLaw but few rescinded offers.

The issue is: What will happen to those hired? How long with the job last? And, if they are laid off or fired, how marketable is their JD degree and their experience?

In the late 1970s, the Ph.D. in the humanities became essentially a liability. Those with it who were hired for their dream job - college teaching - often found their contracts were not renewed. It was a buyer's market and the institutions of higher education could go for the perfect fit.

So those who assumed they had found a safe harbor were stranded out in an ocean glutted with the rest of us overeducated. Overall, we had bet the ranch (and years of our youth) on pursuing an advanced degree that turned out not to be marketable when we were ready to search for job which required that kind of credible.

It took me, a Ph.D. Candidate from the BigBrand University of Michigan, about five years to arrive at the Promised Land. That is, a career path that paid well, had status and was stable for decades. It only lost runway after 9/11.

In coaching, including undergraduates, I recommend grabbing a job over opting for a full-time pay-it-yourself advanced degree. If the latter could be useful, do it at night or online and have it paid by the employer.

The answers about your professional life are inside you. You will learn through coaching how to open yourself up to them. And get unstuck. Soon enough you will be your own coach. Affordable rates (sliding scale). Make an appointment for complimentary consultation (janegenova374@gmail.com) Download IntroducingYourCareerCoachJaneGenova

Posted at 05:44 AM in Branding, Careers, Current Affairs | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 30, 2020

California as Trendsetter - Brutal Lessons about Virtual Lobbying (think mirror neurons)

Lobbying, concludes lobbyists in California, is an in-person process.

The struggle to do it virtually in the time of COVID-19 isn't cutting it, reports those interviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Why this is important is this: CA is a trendsetter state.

What happens there or doesn't happen will have impacts throughout the rest of the U.S. As a result, lobbyists in the other states might push or push harder to have in-person sessions and meetings with legislators and power brokers resumed sooner.

For example, CA lobbyists point out how much information, insights and moving the needle had occurred through in-person contacts. That had been the situation even if the encounters were chance. It pays, often big, to be on the scene.

That might be due to the phenomenon of what neuroscientists call "mirror neurons." Researchers in Italy had documented that through mirror neurons we humans affect each other cell by cell. That might be labeled The Monkey See Monkey Do dynamic.

And, it scientifically explains what happens when females are, for example, on the same dorm or living in the same off-campus boarding house. Often they begin having their monthly periods aligned with each other's cycles.

The observation of how we humans influence each other when together, of course, is nothing new. Mom warned us to keep away from Johnny. And, sure enough, Johnny wound up in prison and we at Harvard Law School. Also, the Roman Catholic Church continually warned us against "bad companions."

For this reason, as a career coach, I motivate clients to get out there with people. You bet, press for that 10 minutes with the family lawyer in Akron, Ohio, if you are considering entering family law. You request what is known as an "informational interview." And the request is for in-person. Talk the lawyer out of a mere phone call. That's even if you have to drive all the way from Cleveland, OH.

So many salespeople I have coached have told me that when prospects are aware that kind of effort has been invested, there is more likely to be a close.

Actually, I witnessed that personally over and over again when employed full time. The owner of that professional services firm would give the business, over and over again, to the vendors who went out of their way, frequently traveling 90 minutes, to pitch.

Takeaway: In-person is the most effective approach to going after what you want. Aren't we all lobbying for something? Virtual, if it continues too long, will render inept players stuck more stuck and most stuck.

Posted at 01:43 PM in Careers, Current Affairs, Games, Go Figure, Selling, Stuck More Stuck Most Stuck, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 29, 2020

Law Students, Associates - Here it Is

You law students and associates have been requesting: Do you have a detailed description of what you're about?

Well, here it is. The extended Introduction to Jane Genova's Career Coaching Services Download IntroducingYourCareerCoachJaneGenova.

Posted at 02:31 PM in Branding, Careers, Current Affairs, Stuck More Stuck Most Stuck | Permalink | Comments (0)

The New York Times, NYC - Columnist on Business/Economy/Tech

Details

Posted at 07:47 AM in Careers | Permalink | Comments (0)

Law Students/Associates - Of Course, You're Not Sending Generic Resumes

LinkedIn confirms what savvy law students and associates always had down cold: You never send a generic resume. You custom-make the pattern resume for particular internships, assignments, jobs, promotions and awards.

Not doing that has become the biggest mistake people make in pursuing professional opportunities.

This has been on the money forever.

But, it's even more important currently.

The Wall Street Journal documents that business has embraced the reality that the global and U.S. economy will experience long-term fallout from COVID-19. Any recovery will be slow. A sign of the mindset of sustained woe is the ramp-up of layoffs. Ranging from Coca-Cola to American Airlines, recently there have been massive reductions in force.

Those who can give you learning and/or earning opportunities expect you to present the data they are looking for prominently in the resume, as well as in the cover letter. No, you can't send them on a hunting expedition.

In the resume, the key information should right upfront in the Summary. Then that should be reinforced throughout the rest of the document. Yes, you are telling a story about how you can be useful to those hiring.

All that should be highlighted in the cover letter.

For example, for a summer in a law firm specializing in IP, you need to dig around your background for "evidence" of knowledge/experience in that niche. If you plan on pursuing that kind of summer, then you have to make it your business to acquire the knowledge/experience which will catch the attention of those in the loop. The search of opportunity, including unpaid, is strategic.

Subcategories of information on the resume and cover letters would be the more generic. That includes awards which are not directly related to what specifically you're targeting. That might seem counterintuitive to you. You may be quite proud of receiving recognition for pro bono initiatives in family law. But that isn't directly aligned with your pursuit of a professional opportunity in IP. So, the item is not front-loaded.

Takeaway: A resume tells those hiring the story they need to read in order to not rule you out. In this labor market, the game among those on the front lines of recruiting is to knock the majority of applicants out of the box. Your objective is make it to the short list.

Posted at 07:06 AM in Branding, Careers, Cover Letters, Current Affairs, Games, Go Figure, Models, Resume | Permalink | Comments (0)