Tag: Job search

Job Search Update

Since the last post I made, I’ve done a few things as part of being unemployed. Here’s a selection.

I got in touch with a recruiter in Ontario who hires nationally, through a developer friend who lives in Ontario, and based on our conversation, I told the recruiter that I am not as concerned about the technology used or that they match dollar for dollar my previous salary, but rather that I am willing to take a chance with a company & team which is willing to go the extra mile to make their customers and employees happy. I also mentioned that my preferred technology stack at the moment is not PHP & WordPress, but rather full-stack JavaScript, and HTML5 hybrid mobile apps.

I met with a local recruiter, who pretty quickly came to the conclusion that I am probably often misunderstood by people, and offered to me some advice around maneurisms. Simple things like even maintaining eye contact. I asked him a bit about transitioning to a different technology stack, like .NET, and he said that it can be done, but there would initially probably be a salary penalty. I’ll keep it in mind for now.

I went to the orientation for the self-employment program offered by the YMCA-YWCA, where I got the application for joining the program. I think that program looks amazing, and I’ve already filled out the application, just didn’t get a chance to bring it in today, since I didn’t know whether the right person will be in the office, and they didn’t return my voice mail.

I also attended an orientation session at Opportunities for Employment. This is also pretty cool, and I even got a free suit there! Check me out:

dan-suit

Then there was the Ramp up Year Ender last night. Always a great and friendly group of people. I made sure to tell everyone I spoke with that I was unemployed and to keep me in mind for any opportunities they hear about. One person asked me to send them my resume, one asked to set up an appointment to explore what work we can do together, and another to email them my contact info so they can introduce me to people who might be interested in speaking with me. And all around good wishes and kind friends, and that means a lot.

Today I put up a WordPress plugin up on GitHub, and actually got contacted by someone looking for a developer! ( message me if you also wanna be considered for this job, and I will share the ad for the opportunity with you ). The CEO of the company who contacted me seems very cool, based on a video interview I found on-line.

Thanks for reading. Have a good one.

Laid off software developer’s guide to the Winnipeg job search galaxy

I got laid off last Thursday, for the first time in my career. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. I am sure that this will be a great opportunity to explore career options, and learn from this experience. 🙂

The first thing I did, after being escorted out of the building by the security team, was to go to the EI office on Yorke. Turns out that office moved 2 years ago, so I went to where they moved, the Service Canada location in Portage place and applied for EI.

While applying for EI, I got in touch with my boss at the job I left a month and a half ago. They haven’t yet filled my position, and they will keep me in mind along with other candidates they are considering at this time.

Over the next few days, I’ve been considering my options. I think that my preferred option would be to learn enough creative communication skills ( including graphic design and online marketing  ) to be able to build my own business around offering web & mobile software design & development services.

As part of being unemployed, I got to visit the Manitoba jobs and Skills Development Centre, where they offer a number of services, including help with job search, career consulting, trade apprenticeship, self-employment and education and skills training.

I decided to blog about my job search today. I think I would like to blog each day about my efforts, for several reasons:

  • it might help another laid off software developer in the future, to see what I did when I got laid off
  • it might be good marketing for me to show how I go about getting things done
  • it might be good proof, if proof is needed for EI reasons, that I am trying to get employment
  • it might provide a venue for those who would like to help me, to get in touch and share any info they think might be useful to my job search
  • it might produce positive results which I can’t think of up-front 😉

Thanks for reading. Please get in touch through a comment on this post or contact me in another way. I’d love to hear any information you think might be useful to me, or discuss any questions you want to discuss with me.