After searching high and low for that perfect job, you finally landed it! Congratulations. But beware, contrary to everyday thinking, getting the job is the easiest part. Starting a new job brings with it a variety of change to you, the company and the people around you, both family and co-workers. Research has shown there are distinct periods or "cycles" as they are termed, associated with the tenure of your new job. Recognizing that how you perform through these cycles is critical to your success is the first step towards a successful new start and rewarding advancement.
Generally there are six cycles recognized by experts. They are: a. the Courtship period; b. the Honeymoon period; c. the Getting Serious period; d. the Adaptation and Acceptance period; e. the Advancing period; and, f. the Breaking Away period. As with any discussion surrounding human behavior, it must be pointed out that not all employees will go through each cycle in the same fashion or for the same length of time. Due to previous experiences, mentors and education, some may even seem to skip certain cycles. In addition, it is generally accepted that contract employees will move through the first two cycles very quickly, being expected by the very nature of their employment to "hit the ground running."
THE COURTSHIP PERIOD... The first period, the "Courtship Period," is characterized by excitement in the glow of new opportunity. The to-be employee has his or her psyche boosted by the promises surrounding the new employment and often feels these new offers, ideas and programs will "fix" the problem issues left unaddressed at their past or present employment. It is in this excitement that often the job is taken for the wrong reasons. In this cycle it is wise to separate the excitement created by myth from cold hard facts. Get references on the company, learn about the corporate culture there, check out Wall Street, ask other employees, present and past, about their experiences and be sure to get the most important promises—the ones leading you to take the job—in writing. Using an agency such as AESI can get you the facts quickly and assist you in choosing the job best suited for you.
THE HONEYMOON... Once you've taken the job (for the right reasons), the employee enters what is termed the "Honeymoon Period." How you handle yourself during this time is critical to your overall success. Remember the old adage, "first impressions are lasting ones." There are two sub-cycles within this period. First is the "Welcome Aboard" period, lasting about a week, where you are expected to get acquainted with your co-workers, the work environment and the general policies and procedures associated with your new company. It is common to feel confused but excited at all of the new faces and places. This generally causes anxiety which may lead to trying too hard too fast. You shouldn't make any decisions or form (and especially voice) any opinions regarding anything or anyone related to your job during this time.
Next comes the more important "Settling In" sub-cycle in which you begin to assume your new responsibilities and establish your routines. Settling In can last anywhere from one to three months. You should accomplish four main things during this period. First, identify management's priorities for the company. Your performance should be executed at all times with this list in mind. Second, identify the specific expectations the management, especially your immediate superior, has for you. These include: tasks, due dates, responsibilities and priorities. When performing your job, a feeling of anxiety at being the "new kid" is normal. You can combat this by trying not to play a bigger role than is possible. Let things develop as you learn and become more comfortable with the company and your job (the appropriate adage here, "don't bite off more than you can chew"). Make plans to meet with your manager regularly. In these meetings, discuss your performance, your progress and ask for their advice and guidance.
Third, begin to develop serious working relationships with the co-workers in your department. You should realize that you will frequently depend on one or more of them (and they you) in the course of your job. Take any praise graciously, but understand it may not be as sincere as you think. False praise is generally not a malicious thing from co-workers, but rather an effort to help you fit in and feel comfortable in your new job. As has happened all too often, relying on such praise leads to a shock if your first review is negative.
Finally, in the latter part of this period, begin to cultivate and develop your interdepartmental relationships. It is an unfortunate but crucial fact, especially in large corporations, your performance will depend much on what happens in other departments. Thus, these relationships are vital in getting your job done correctly and on schedule.
Follow these tips to help you assimilate and build the necessary relationships: 1. Embrace and adopt the corporate culture immediately, including any new technology used which is unfamiliar to you; 2. be friendly, approachable and courteous with everyone, even when you don't want or feel like it; 3. carefully choose a co-worker with whom you can ask more candid questions. This should be someone who has been at the company a while and can help you identify the subtleties of the company and make available to you the informal channels of communication at the company; 4. observe which employees at the company are looked-up to, admired and praised by both management and your co-workers. Take note of what makes them worthy of the stature and emulate it; 5. when discussing problems and solutions use the words, "we should," instead of the tendency of someone new to use, "you people should." This supports team thinking and the idea of you as a part of the team; and, 6. avoid constant references to your previous employer and the way things were done there. That employer is in the past, concentrate on the future.
Remember, when things get crazy and seem unorganized, "keep your chin up." An unwavering good attitude is vital and often infectious. It also makes you a leader. If you were honest in the interview and did your due diligence in checking out your employer, you can do the job and the company is counting on you.
As you near the end of the Honeymoon Period, a bout of disillusionment is often felt. This comes with the realization that the company, its employees and management are not perfect and that not all of the problems experienced with your previous employment are going to be fixed with the new job. Two things will usually dictate to what degree this disillusionment is felt and for how long. The first is how well the heretofore discussion has been heeded and successfully implemented. The other is your ability to be flexible with the company itself and accepting it as having its faults.
GETTING SERIOUS... How well you fare in the remaining cycles will depend largely upon how well you have handled the Honeymoon Period. Therefore, at end of the Honeymoon Period, be ready. The expectations of your performance will rise dramatically as you enter the next cycle, the "Getting Serious" period. This period usually lasts for the next three to six months and should be spent examining in detail priorities and expectations given you. Decide how you will implement the priorities to meet the expectations. It is helpful to make a list of what skills need to be acquired, discarded, honed or improved and how that can be accomplished within the framework of the company. Many companies have in-house educational seminars and/or pay for outside seminars and classes. Work to become a master over the tasks initially assigned to you. In addition, this period is the time to become more proactive in your group by making smaller recommendations for additions, deletions or changes. Continue to build your relationships throughout the company. It is easy to let lapse relationships you have fostered. Remember in addition to cultivating new relationships, you must maintain the old ones. Lastly, during this period you must guard against certain anxieties regarding your increasing role at the company and against the frustration which can often be felt when your advancement is slower than you had anticipated. Many people have unrealistic goals and expectations with regards to moving up the corporate ladder. This often causes a false sense of dissatisfaction with their job, when in fact they are performing well and as expected.
ADAPTATION AND ACCEPTANCE... The next three to six months are spent in the cycle known as the "Adaptation and Acceptance" period. During this time you should begin to see the fruits of your labor. You should be getting established within the company and earning respect from your co-workers and colleagues. The relationship building with management should begin to pay off in the form of recognition as having been the right person to hire. Now is a good time to get an overview of how your job and department fit within the company's larger framework and further the company's goals.
You should now convey to management your capacity and desire for growth within the organization. Do this by expressing your loyalty and commitment to the company and its goals and by asking for more feedback in direction and growth from management. It is also the time to begin surveying from afar the political landscape of the company. In doing this, you should stay as removed as possible. Things to guard against during this period are impatience at not advancing more quickly and the tendency to verbalize via complaining or expressing low morale in your realization that your job has its limitations.
ADVANCING... The following three to six months are spent in the "Advancing" cycle. You should master the most complex and demanding parts of your job during this period. This is the time to make noteworthy contributions and explore ways to make major well-thought and much-needed recommendations. During this period you should begin to distinguish yourself from your co-workers, not at others' expense but by superior performance. A great pitfall encountered in this period is the idea that you have mastered it all. You haven't. There is another level of politics and culture from which you, until now, have been excluded. You must also resist being too passive. Typically, corporate management is looking for people in your cycle to shine, if they are to advance further.
BREAKING AWAY... The final period can occur anytime after the Advancing period. This is known as the "Breaking Away" period. Experts agree you should now be well established and fully functioning at your job. You should now develop a good working understanding of the politics of the company and how they affect you and your performance. This leads to you developing the art of handling political situations sensitive to you appropriately and professionally. You should now begin to map out your aspirations for advancement and how that should be executed. Try not to let unrealistic expectations of the company lead you to a hasty departure. You have worked hard to get where you are; take advantage of it.
In summary, recognizing the different natural cycles one goes through in a job and understanding their relationship to both you and one another is sure to give you an advantage when taking your dream job. At AESI we offer a full range of career counseling which doesn't stop when you accept the position. Give us a call and find out how we can provide answers to help you make the best of that perfect job.
The Client Corner in this issue of Technically Speaking features the long-time Silicon Valley resident, Lockheed Martin Corporation. Employing some 9,500 employees here in the Silicon Valley and over 19,000 worldwide with annual revenues exceeding $30 billion and a back log of $47 billion, Lockheed Martin has carved out a permanent place in the defense contracting world.
Despite its massive size and success today, Lockheed Martin has humble beginnings. In 1909, Glenn L. Martin, an aviation pioneer, launched his first airplane, the body of which was constructed of only silk and bamboo. He formally founded his first airplane factory in an abandoned cannery in Santa Ana, California two years later.
Meanwhile, the two Loughead brothers (as the last name was originally spelled), Allan and Malcolm, launched their first plane, a seaplane made of wood and fabric, over San Francisco Bay. A short time later they too established a company: Loughead Aircraft Manufacturing Company, in Santa Barbara, California. Ironically, years later this company would cause much of the profound high-tech growth in the Silicon Valley and while some of the other major corporate beginnings in the Valley are historic landmarks, the town in which they were born now lies at the bottom of Lexington Reservoir, one of Silicon Valley's major water supplies.
In 1918 Martin built the first twin-engine bomber, the MB-2, and Loughead won its first of many Naval contracts. Over the next seventy-odd years these two companies would vie for the lion's share of the military's aeronautical and aerospace contracts and in the process become friendly but fierce competitors. Each filled various fixed-wing needs of the military through two World Wars, the Korean Conflict and Vietnam and continue to do so to this day.
In the early 1960's both companies expanded and began supplying aerospace technology to NASA. Lockheed (having changed its spelling in 1930) provided technology and support functions to various ground stations, including the famous Johnson Space Center, while Martin provided various satellite technologies. Through the 1970's, 80's and into the 90's, the two companies worked with one another on many space-related projects, including SkyLab; the first Space Shuttle (Martin built the external tank and Lockheed designed the insulating tiles for re-entry); the jet packs used by Shuttle astronauts, known as Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU); and, the military satellite network, the Milstar Communications project.
However, both companies' heavy reliance on military and related government contracts forced serious cuts in the wake of both the end of the cold-war and the exploding budget deficit. Eventually the restructuring led to the well-publicized merger between Lockheed and Martin Marietta, forming Lockheed Martin and making it the single largest defense contractor in the world today. Most recently, in keeping with its ongoing business strategy, Lockheed Martin announced a series of interrelated strategic transactions with Loral Corporation in which Lockheed Martin acquired portions of Loral's defense businesses. At the same time, Lockheed Martin invested heavily in Loral's ongoing space programs, purchasing a 20% equity stake.
Prior to the Loral acquisition, Lockheed Martin had five primary business sectors: Aeronautics; Electronics; Energy and Environment; Information and Technology Services; and, Space and Strategic Missiles. The Loral acquisition enabled Lockheed Martin to add a sixth sector: Tactical Systems. With its most recent quarter's earnings up some eight percent over last year, together Lockheed and Martin have weathered the post cold-war transitional storm and returned with a leaner, more productive workforce and a more diversified project and product line.
In striving to maintain this success, Lockheed Martin regularly taps AESI and our highly qualified team of high-tech staffing experts. We have helped fill many critical engineering positions at Lockheed Martin allowing Lockheed Martin to respond to its project managers quickly and expand where needed with the right personnel in a timely fashion. Currently, AESI's top engineers and technicians are involved with a variety of projects at Lockheed Martin including: Milstar, the International Space Station, the Iridium_ system, the Commercial Remote Sensing System (CRSS), as well as a multitude of classified programs. Give us a call today and find out how we can help your company weather an ever-changing economy.
The first five of a planned 66 satellites were successfully launched May 5, at 7:55 am PDT, from Vandenburg Air Force Base in Southern California. Hurtling upward at more than seven miles per second, the McDonnell-Douglas built Delta II rocket successfully deployed the first five satellites as a part of the first steps in implementing the IRIDIUM system. AESI engineers were intimately involved with the building, testing and deployment of the satellites. "We have engineers on a variety of projects dealing with Iridium and the work is always behind the scenes and away from the fanfare. It's nice to see it all come together flawlessly in the limelight. We are very proud of this work," says Marc G. Albin, President of AESI. Led by Motorola and a consortium of companies, including HP and Lockheed, the IRIDIUM system is a satellite-based network designed to provide global telecommunications capabilities to individual subscribers around the world. It is expected to be in place by the end of 1998.
For Employers, A Reference Check Is A Reality Check: Who You Know Does Count.
Would you lie to get a job? Though we know you are not one of the people who would, many people do and employers know it. With the questions which can be asked in an interview becoming more and more limited, employers know that checking references may be one of the only ways to find out if a candidate's education and experience are as represented. In other words, who you know and what they say do count.
When you report for an interview, be prepared to present between three and five references to the interviewer. "Expressing reservation or not having references ready when asked for them in an interview certainly reduces your chances of landing the job," says Lisa DeLong, a senior recruiter at AESI.
So how do you go about getting your references?
First, use references which can corroborate and accurately reflect your work habits, experience and level of performance. Valuable work-related references need to and will say more than when you started and when you left. At first glance this may seem easy, but remember, many of the same laws which limit what a prospective employer can ask also limit what a former employer can say. Some people you seek may include, in order of preference: your current employer, former managers or supervisors and co-workers. Though usually inappropriate, you may also consider using vendors, clients and customers, depending upon your specific situation, especially if your field is outside sales.
Second, as tempting as it may seem, use friends or relatives only as a very last resort. What they say usually isn't relevant to the job you seek. In addition, many employers simply dismiss them because they are a friend or relative, assuming they will not give an accurate portrayal.
Finally, once you have chosen whom you would like to use as a reference, let them know. This allows you to find out what they think about you and what they are willing to say to a prospective employer. Better that you, not a prospective employer, get the unpleasant, albeit remote, surprise that your reference doesn't hold you in the same shining light as you thought. You may also want to explore the possibility of this person writing you a reference letter, though many prospective employers will still want to speak directly with your reference person. In addition, calling your reference gives them a "heads-up" that prospective employers may be calling. Having a reference who is at ease and speaks freely with a prospective employer is as important as what is said. On the other hand, a lukewarm or wary reception will dampen and take away from whatever is said, even if it is terrific, reducing the effectiveness of your reference.
Once you have your three to five references ready to go it is a good idea to indicate this on your resume. Rather than listing them directly on the resume, as they may change from time to time, include a section entitled, "References" and under this put "Excellent References Available Upon Request." The references themselves should be placed on a separate sheet, of the same paper stock and formatted at the top with your name and other information to match your resume.
Good references put prospective employers at ease, make you more employable and many times will be the deciding factor on whether or not you get the job. Good luck and happy hunting!
Open House a Success! Our Open House on April 25 enjoyed an excellent turnout. Thanks to all who came out and checked out our new home. The crowd included many of our clients, current employees and old friends as well as our benefits consultants. Congratulations to door prize winners Paul McDonald, Anita Hendrickson, Joe Edwards, Steve McAdams and Gena Harper!
Congratulations... Goes out to Marc G. Albin, AESI's president. Mr. Albin was appointed the State Secretary of the California Association of Temporary and Staffing Services (CATSS).
Come By and Say Hello.... To more new faces here at the home office. To our administrative staff we welcome Karen Sprinkles who comes to us from the Motorola Iridium project and Kate Lentini just in from Connecticut. And, most recently from Chicago, Allan Castillo has joined us as our new COO.
Get Connected! Now any AESI employees can have access to the Information Super Highway through our exciting Web Page at no cost to our employee. If you would like more information, give Denise Usher a call.
We're Involved.... In addition to our current memberships with the California Association of Personnel Consultants (CAPC), the California Association of Temporary and Staffing Services (CATSS) and the National Association of Personnel Services (NAPS), respectively, we are proud to announce AESI has been accepted as a new member of the National Association of Temporary and Staffing Services (NATSS). Thank you.
Coming Up. Mark your calendar now. Our Annual Christmas Holiday Party will be held December 6th at Nicolino's Garden Cafe. We're counting on you to be there!
Come Visit Us. Don't forget our website at www.aesi.com. Our site is always changing. So take a peek and see our past newsletters, sample resumes, new openings, our up-to-date calendar of events and more.
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Technically Speaking is published for the clients, employees and friends of Albin Engineering Services, Inc.
Albin Engineering Services, Inc. is an outsourcing and
outplacement employment firm specializing in the high-technology career
fields, whose corporate mission is to become a model for the outsourcing
and outplacement industry through the use of high ethical standards and
outstanding customer service.
We welcome any comments you may have. Feel
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