southern california

Benefits of a College Degree

Benefits of a College Degree

The labor market in Southern California is extremely competitive. In order to land the job, benefits and pay that you desire, you must have an advantage over your competitors. A college degree can help you tremendously with your career goals and is actually required for many jobs. Benefits of a college degree include:

Higher pay
Gain the college experience
Obtain trade skills
Greater opportunity for career advancement

People without a college degree typically make tens of thousands of dollars less each year when compared to individuals with a degree. Studies have shown a difference of $20,000 or more for a bachelor’s degree and $60,000 or more for a doctorate and higher. Over the course of a lifetime this adds up to nearly one million dollars in income difference. However, simply having a degree does not guarantee that you will get the job you want. Experience, personality and overall skills set are also important.

Some employers are less concerned about the major you studied and more concerned that you actually earned a degree. Having a college degree shows prospective employers that you have had the experience of making short, medium and long-term goals and that you are able to work through projects, find and use resources and assess your own work. All of these skills are extremely important in the workplace. Additionally, a college degree indicates that you have the aptitude to learn new concepts. Employers want to know that they are hiring someone who knows more than just their field. The core curriculum offered at most universities exposes you to far more your major field of study.

A college education exposes you to the skills necessary for many highly competitive and rewarding careers. Universities frequently consult with major employers in order to determine what skills are most desired, and adjust their curriculum accordingly.

Some jobs require a college degree to even be considered for the position. This is often due to social expectations or it might be because of certain certification requirements. In addition, advanced degrees are sometimes required for promotion. For example, managerial jobs, especially executive jobs, typically require a master’s or doctorate degree.

iStaffing Agency helps place professional candidates into Management, Senior and Executive level positions in Southern California. iStaffing Agency specializes in Human Resources, Accountants, Executives, IT Professionals, Loan Officers and other professional candidates in addition to candidates in the Entertainment and Nonprofit sector. For more information about how iStaffing Agency can help you locate your next career opportunity in Los Angeles County or Orange County, California please contact us today.

Job Description of a Retail District Manager

Job Description of a Retail District Manager

Many retail companies in Southern California have several locations in order to better serve their customers. Companies that operate several retail stores in a region must hire retail district managers to oversee the everyday operations of their stores. These managers are responsible for coordinating the movement and distribution of goods, handling the stores’ staffing needs and maintaining contact with the head office. Retail district managers must possess strong management skills and enjoy travelling.

The work of a retail district manager often involves working across several stores in an expansive area. A retail district manager should possess excellent time-management skills. They must be able to adhere to daily schedules and visit all of the stores within a designated time period. Retail district managers must have good customer service skills in order to interact with customers in a friendly and responsible manner. They must also have good leadership skills in order to keep employees motivated and to resolve workplace conflicts. Strong communication skills are also important so that they can adequately share operational information with store supervisors or managers on a daily basis.

The main responsibility of a retail district manager is to increase the operational efficiency of the stores under their management. They must review operational reports and determine each store’s individual needs. For example, if a store is understaffed, the retail district manager must coordinate the hiring and training of new employees. They must also maintain contact with the suppliers or manufacturers in order to ensure that products will be delivered to each store on time.

To become a retail district manager you typically need to hold a bachelor’s degree in business. Some companies might even require a degree in hotel management. Since employers require retail management experience, prospective retail district managers typically start in entry level positions in order to gain job experience. Retail district managers that are looking to occupy executive positions in business firms should consider acquiring a master’s degree in business administration or strategic management.

Using Craigslist to Find New Hires

Using Craigslist to Find New Hires

Today, Southern California is full of job seekers. When companies decide to hire new employees they have many options. In recent years, Craigslist has built a reputation as a great resource of free and low-cost classifieds online. However, relying on craigslist to fill local job openings might actually cost your company more time and money than you believe. In most cases, using a staffing agency to fill open positions is far more cost and time effective.

Craigslist offers businesses a simple method for posting job listings. Hiring managers can select a city, a category, open an account and post their job listing. The ease of the process was made even more appealing by the fact that job listings could be posted for free. As time passed, Craigslist began charging for job listings in several markets in an effort to filter out fraudulent and frivolous job postings.

However, fourteen years after the launch of Craigslist, the website is losing effectiveness as a recruitment source under the weight of its own success. In Southern California specifically, job seeker traffic has grown exponentially on Craigslist while the number of job postings has fallen. The result is that every single job that is posted on Craigslist is flooded with applicants, creating a backlog of work for hiring managers. Companies both large and small report receiving hundreds of replies to job postings within only 24 hours, however only one or two of these applicants end up being worthy of an interview. Companies must spend multiple hours reviewing the overload of resumes just to find the needle in the haystack.

Another issue with using Craigslist is the lack of customer service. Once a job listing is posted, returning to the website to make edits or remove the listing isn’t difficult if you’ve saved your confirmation email. However, if you require the assistance of a real person you are typically out of luck. Craigslist communicates with its customers solely through email. Because of the size of Craigslist’s database compared to the size of its customer service team, very few customers actually receive replies to their questions.

When companies consider online resources for attracting job candidates the results will typically mirror the quality of the source. In this case it really is true that you get what you pay for, in terms of both quality and the time required to identify qualified applicants.

iStaffing Agency helps Southern California companies locate, screen and place professional candidates into Management, Senior and Executive level positions. iStaffing Agency specializes in Human Resources, Accountants, Executives, IT Professionals, Loan Officers and other professional candidates in addition to candidates in the Entertainment and Nonprofit sector. iStaffing Agency services all areas of Orange County and Los Angeles County. For more information about how iStaffing Agency can help your company with their staffing needs, please contact us today.

Top Industries in California

Top Industries in California

With a population of over 3.8 million, Los Angeles is the largest incorporated city in the state of California. Los Angeles is also on the leading edge of many growth industries. Despite the Great Recession and severe financial problems in several California cities, many of the metropolitan areas have experienced substantial job growth. For example, between June 2008 and December 2009, Los Angeles experienced an increase of 22% in job listings. From 2010-2012, the state of California experienced an increase in jobs available statewide. Even though job listings declined from March to December in 2012, they began to rise again in January 2013. By August 2013 job listings reached a 39% increase, with a total of more than 1,000,000 jobs available in California. The Orange County city of Santa Ana experienced the largest increase in job listings.

The top jobs listed in California include:

Physical Therapists
Occupational Therapists
Software Engineers
Sales Representatives
Occupational Therapy Assistants
Physical Therapy Assistants
Store Managers
IT Project Managers
Administrative Assistants
Salespeople
Senior Software Engineers
Account Executives
Assistant Store Managers
Financial Advisors
Registered Nurses
Healthcare Volunteers
Customer Service Representatives
Pharmacists
Application Architects
Procurement Managers
Business Analysts
Online Teachers
Document Translators
Financial Analysts
Mechanical Engineers and Systems Engineers

By 2016 the following jobs are expected to increase by higher percentages than other occupations in California:

Network Systems and Data Communications Analysts
Computer Software Application Engineers
Forensic Science Technicians
Skin Care Specialists
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians
Home Health Aides
Occupational Therapist Assistants
Mathematical Scientists
Traffic Technicians
Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors
Physical Therapist Assistants
Dental Hygienists
Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors
Dental Assistants
Veterinarians
Athletic Trainers
Special Education Teachers
Biomedical Engineers
Multi-Media Artists and Animators
Microbiologists
Physical Therapist Aides
Ambulance Drivers and Attendants
Medical Assistants
Database Administrators

Los Angeles, California has developed into one of the premier centers of economic and cultural activity in the world. When compared to the economy of the world’s top 20 countries, the Los Angeles five-county area ranks at number 16 and Los Angeles County ranks at number 21. The state of California ranks at number 9.

Information Technology Professionals

Information Technology Professionals

An information technology professional assists end users with problems concerning their computer systems or software. IT professionals might work as trainers, teaching computer hardware and software applications. IT professionals can work in a number of different places that are dependent on information technology, computer system networks and applications. IT professionals are sometimes referred to as computer support specialists or IT specialists.

Information technology professionals typically use their skills to help people solve computer problems in the workplace either through email, over the phone or through remote assistance. IT professionals are able to provide step by step instructions to fix hardware or software problems. IT professionals can also teach people how to use various software programs and explain to them how computer hardware interacts with the operating system.

There are many skills an IT professional must have. They must have experience and familiarity with computer hardware and software applications. They must also be willing to help customers understand how computers function. An experienced IT professional must exhibit patience in order to deal with different knowledge levels others might possess regarding computers. Frequently, an IT professional will be required to guide people through problems without actually seeing the computer or software. Using layman’s terms the IT professional must be able to guide the individual to a proposed solution.

Educational requirements for IT professionals vary. Most employers prefer a bachelor’s degree in information systems or computer science. However, there are also certification programs providing industry certification as an IT or computer professional. It is extremely important that IT professionals stay up to date on the latest computer trends, software applications and hardware devices.

Currently, the outlook for IT professionals is excellent. Over the next few years the employment of computer and information systems managers is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations. Even a few minutes of system downtime carries an enormous cost for businesses. Companies can no longer afford to have issues with internet connectivity, email communications, corrupt data or system failure. This is why IT professionals are in such high demand.

iStaffing Agency helps place professional candidates into Management, Senior and Executive level positions . iStaffing Agency specializes in Human Resources, Accountants, Executives, IT Professionals, Loan Officers and other professional candidates in addition to candidates in the Entertainment and Nonprofit sector. For more information about how iStaffing Agency can help you locate your next career opportunity in California, please contact us today.

Benefits of Continuing Education

Benefits of Continuing Education

In today’s competitive job market, continuing education is more important than ever. Continuing education programs benefit both businesses and workers. Businesses can benefit when they encourage continuing education as it allows them to maintain a highly skilled and specialized workforce. Workers that partake in continuing education programs benefit by receiving promotions, gaining more power in the job market or simply by becoming more valuable employees.

Continuing education refers to the acquisition or improvement of work-related skills by people who are already in the workforce. Continuing education includes both formal and informal training. Workers participating in continuing education might earn college degrees through formal programs, concentrate on professional development courses or participate in programs that include both formal and informal components. In general, continuing education refers to classes and seminars focused on job-related skills and knowledge.

Continuing education courses are available through:

High schools
Community colleges
Universities
Trade professional societies and organizations

Many of these channels offer night or weekend-only courses to accommodate workers. Training facilities offer state-of-the-art equipment as well as computer based training. Sometimes schools will pair up with businesses to offer programs. In addition, many companies offer their own continuing education programs. By offering these courses, businesses ensure that they maintain a steady supply of qualified workers.

People who continue to improve their work skills and knowledge are able to keep up with the latest technologies and business techniques. They receive the training necessary to climb the corporate ladder and realize additional career goals.

In addition to the most basic benefits, continuing education allows workers to better understand the purpose and goals of their occupation. Continuing education can help advance an individual’s occupation by providing them with the opportunity to obtain both theoretical and practical occupational knowledge while improving their problem-solving skills. However, the best benefit of continuing education is its ability to impart an attitude that encourages workers to find and use the best techniques available at any given time and to realize that these techniques must ultimately be improved or replaced.

Preparing for a Temp Agency Test

Preparing for a Temp Agency Test

Today, experienced individuals have many options when looking for a job. An employment agency is an ideal place to start. Some job seekers chose to use temp agencies. Temp agencies provide short-term employment opportunities. Applying for a job with a temp agency involves completing an application, interviewing with a recruiter at the agency and taking a skills test. The test is used to evaluate certain skills, which allows the agency to match job seekers with the perfect job. Preparing for a temp agency test is not difficult and can go a long way towards finding the right opportunity.

Before you arrive at the temp agency, find out which tests will be required. Typically a temp agency will use different tests for different career fields. For example, a position as an administration assistant will include a typing test. Since the agency might require testing on specific software programs, you should also ask which software versions will be used.

If you are unfamiliar with the software or you lack skills that will be tested, consider taking a training course. Most community colleges offer one-day workshops, and the internet is full of free training courses. Even if you are familiar with the software that will be used during the testing, it is still wise to take a training course to refresh your skills.

Perhaps the most important part of preparing for a temp agency test is practice. Understanding how a program works or how to use your skills is not always enough to do well on the tests. Many temp agency tests are timed. Practicing your skills significantly improves your speed and accuracy.

The day of testing you must be both mentally and physically prepared. Make sure that you get a full night’s rest the night before the test and eat a healthy breakfast. When you arrive at the temp agency, turn off your cell phone and take a few extra minutes to refocus your mind so that you are able to properly invest your energy on the test.