Are Your Skills Up To 2011?

In researching business jobs for this blog, I came across a position as a Contract Technical Writer. I have lots of experience in this field, since I wrote SOPs, Work Instructions and training manuals for two clients for their ISO 9000 certification projects.

In your job searches, no doubt you come across positions that you are—or were—qualified for. You have done the work and been successful. Time has a way of distancing us from our skills and experience if we don’t keep ourselves fresh and current. Many displaced workers are finding out that a long work history in a particular job doesn’t necessarily qualify them for a new job in today’s market.

I was curious about the position, and set up an account on http://www.businessworkforce.com/ so I could view the entire job posting. As a freelance writer, long-term writing projects are attractive, so I decided to apply for the position. Everything was going smoothly until after I posted my resume, filled out the forms and got a confirmation. Then, another screen popped up with some additional questions.

The first one asked specifically about my technical writing experience and was it current? In parenthesis, they had “2007 to present” as their definition of current experience. It seems like only yesterday to me that I was working in that small conference room with two industrial plant operators, drawing flowchart diagrams of their manufacturing processes. When I looked back, it has been at least eleven years since that project was completed. You may find that you have lots of experience, but a prospective employer may not consider it relevant anymore. Lesson learned—stay current in your field and seek out opportunities to keep your skills fresh.

The next question asked about my technical skills; specifically, the types of software programs that I was proficient in. Note that there is no “familiar with” category. They were looking for someone with intermediate to advanced skills. There were only three that I could check.

I would rate my skill level as intermediate to advanced with the following tools: (Check all that apply.)
Visio
Flash
Articulate Studio
Adobe Presenter
MS PowerPoint
MS Word
MadCap Flare
Doc-to-Help
AuthorID
SnagIT
Adobe FrameMaker
Adobe InDesign
RoboHelp
Adobe Captivate v5
Adobe Captivate v4

How up-to-date are you in the technical aspects and software programs used in your industry or field? Lesson learned—take every opportunity on the job to learn new systems, software and anything else related to your job or industry. If it has been awhile since you were in the job market, do some research on technical skills companies are looking for and find a way to get some training or experience. Just like cars, there is a new model out every year. Avoid being labeled as a “late model” when you can look just like you rolled off the assembly line.

Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a consultant, blogger, motivational speaker and freelance writer for BusinessWorkForce.com. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in Training magazine, Training & Development magazine, Supervision, BiS Magazine and The Savannah Morning News. When she’s not writing, she enjoys singing Alto II with the Savannah Philharmonic Chorus and helping clients discover what they love and spend their life on it. You can read more of her blogs at businessworkforceblog.com and view additional job postings on Nexxt