MLA Notes on several sessions:
Looking Global
This
was a surprising and very well presented program which talked about
resources available for job-seekers who are fluent in more than 1
language.
Minnesota
businesses are exporting more than ever, and not just the large firms.
Over 97% of Minnesota exporters are small to medium size businesses. Dru
and Rachel had some well thought out suggestions for how a multilingual
job seeker could be helped by expanding their job search into the arena
of exporters.
Qualities that these firms are searching for include
Fluency in 2 or more languages
Having lived or worked in a foreign country
Being a former/current citizen of another country
Having a unique skill set (a degree, experience, etc)
Post secondary degrees (beyond High School)
Export/Import experience (though not necessary, it is desirable)
Possibly a veteran
The types of jobs available run the gamut from finance to marketing to law, transportation and manufacture.
One
of the ways to tap into the “hidden job market” is to tailor the job
search by identifying the top exporters in a specific industry, match
the professional skills to the job seeker and conduct what is called
these days an “informational meeting” rather than an interview. By going in to ask what the company is looking
for, you create an opportunity to connect without the stress of a formal interview. This
improves the job seekers chances of networking within his target
companies and creating a way for the business to identify them with any
potential openings that might occur. The
handouts for this session are especially useful, as they detail some of
the places a job seeker might want to investigate further:
These
resources will certainly be welcome to the job seeker who has the
abilities needed at an exporting business. Also, just as an aside,
several days after MLA ended I was asked to help a customer find
information on exporting from Minnesota. I scurried to find the link to
this session and he was absolutely delighted with the information
provided. So, this handout can be useful in several ways.
Getting their Pinterest
By: Krista Jacobson
Minnesota School of Business – Moorhead
Kate Bessey
Central Minnesota Libraries Exchange
This
session was a crash course in the social website Pinterest, which is a
virtual corkboard which displays visual bookmarks and organizes your
interests. By creating an account, you can bring material in from other
websites (pin it) and can connect your Pinterest board to both Facebook
and Twitter, though you do not need to use either of those other social
websites. The only requirement for having a Pinterest account is a valid
email address.
Pinterest
had its public launch in March of 2010 and was declared by Time
Magazine to be one of the 50 best websites of 2011. Currently, Pinterest
boasts that 12% of all adult internet users are on Pinterest, while 19%
of all women internet users are on Pinterest. That very nearly works
out to 1 in 5 women using this social website. The most commonly pinned
areas of interest are; Food and Drink, Do-it-yourself and crafts, Home
Décor and Women’s Apparel. The Pinterest site is garnering a lot of
interest with advertisers, but they do not seem to be accepting ads at
the present time.
There
are several areas of interest that would be relevant to libraries,
including Books, Writing, Photography, etc. When beginning a new
account, the user would choose from a list of topics or categories of
interest. If desired, Pinterest will recommend key pinners in those
areas where you can look for content ideas. The user is also offered a
“Pin It” button, which allows others to copy and pin content that you
have added.
The
Reader’s Advisory Committee is looking into how we could use Pinterest.
Some of the boards that might be doable include: A new arrivals board,
Books you can’t put down, a book club board, sites of local interest
for travelers to the area, etc.
Some
of the libraries currently using Pinterest creatively include: NYPL,
Sacramento Public, San Francisco Public and American Libraries
Magazine.
To view the handout, go to:
Going the extra MILE panel discussion:
Several
people, including our own Melissa Gray, were involved in this panel
discussion. The purpose of MILE (MLA’s Institute for Leadership
Excellence) is for its inductees to learn how to advocate for
libraries, specifically in MN, but also on the larger stage of the US,
and to offer formal mentoring to up and coming library leaders.
One
of the benefits of this program to its members is a formal mentor who
is assigned to the member at the beginning of the program. Both the
mentors and the mentees were extremely complimentary about their
relationships and the many benefits of having a mentor outside of your
own workplace, to talk about the tough issues at work, practice job
interviews, etc.
They
also talked about the MILE program’s impact on MLA: 3 of the last 7
Presidents of MLA have come from MILE alumni and many of the committee
chairs and movers and shakers within MLA are also alumni.
The
MILE program hosts a retreat every two years, where the current members
of MILE go to network and learn more about their own personal
leadership style. To do this, they use a tool called “Strength Finder”.
To learn more, feel free to contact Melissa at Central.
(No handouts)
--Doris @Central
