Earning a Promotion During Layoffs
I am in my mid-30’s, I have been working since I was 18, and I stumbled into Data center technology just over three years ago. I live in the North Side of Chicago and I have never earned more than $90k a year — this is something I badly want to change. I have read every “how to guide”, I have attended an Ivy League Business School, earned a Bachelors of Science in Health Sciences, obtained my PMP, ITIL, and can break down the OSI model on how data is transferred from point A to point B. How the hell do I break that barrier to the six figure land? This is my story and this is what I have learned so the journey may be different for others.
Well first off you need to figure out what organizations are paying those six figure salaries, so I am only applying to the heavy hitters called FAANG. Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google (Nvidia and Salesforce are in there too but they aren’t cool enough to have an acronym). How does your network look? Do you have connections into those organizations? Less than 1% of all applicants are hired by Google yet when you look at those that have a recommendation it is 5%. You are going to need a recommendation to get your foot in the door especially when the global economy has melted down… again…
“A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats” John F. Kennedy
Obtaining the Recommendation: LinkedIn is your friend. My Military Experiences have allowed me to build a strong network over the years. Networking has been my greatest ally and I have been able to accomplish that by raising my hand and volunteering to attend various functions. Because I raise my hand I attended a Google Veteran Resume event (+1 Google recommendation from that). I also attended a program at The Tuck School of Business which offered Veterans and Olympic Athletes access to a program called “The Next Step”. The program is the equivalent to the first year of Business School. There I gained my sponsorship's into Facebook and Amazon. For Amazon and Netflix I used LinkedIn’s advanced search features to network with School Alumni for recommendations. Not everyone is going to go on out on a limb to help you but there are enough people that will lend a hand so do not become upset when you receive 10 non-responses. We are all in sales, never forget that.
Now let’s look at your resume. What is your resume? I view it as a business card of sorts. It is the hook with the bait. How do you make these organizations bite the hook? It took me 6 months to figure this question out and after multiple failed attempts at Facebook I received a call from a sourcing manager to help me apply correctly. What does that even mean? Well, my resume was sharp and concise. A solid 1 page driving the bulk of my experiences using powerful verbs to entice the reader to show my ability to lead and write. Let’s break down the lessons I have learned with my mid-career Resume.
- Length of Resume: My resume is now 1.75 pages long. When I kept it to the often cited 1 page length I had to cut A LOT of information out. As the sourcing manager stated, “I once passed over a VP because it did not directly state he managed team sizes that were required.” Do not take for granted what you assume others will know — explicitly state that shit.
- Giving yourself Limitations: As a Sr. Analyst Project Manager I collaborate and coordinate with 10 engineers and 30 clients a week. I have zero direct reports but I am a Team Lead who creates processes for more senior employees to follow. You damn well better believe I am going to expand my title to reflect my additional responsibilities that are not captured in my current pay band. The worm hides the hook to make the fish bite. When I was interviewing for a Role at a large Cloud Company the recruiter finished my second interview and asked why I listed myself as a Project Manager and not a Technical Project Manager based on my answers to their questions. This caught me off guard because the engineers were technical, not me. I was not the hands on keyboard resource and so I was limiting myself and my opportunities. I expanded my resume and role applications to being a People Manager because I work cross-functionally to accomplish the tasks at hand. I may not be handing out pay raises but I do the important tasks of rolling up the sleeves to make sure the “Stuff” is done. I ensure customers are satisfied with my teams work even when we need to enter crisis management mode. That is leadership, relationship management, and account management.
- Language Matters: What makes these large organizations successful? Amazon cites its their obsession to the customer. SalesForce says its their culture of Ohana. How do I know this? Because I googled “*Company* Leadership Traits”. The Culture code of these organizations is front and center and it is brought up during the interview processes. You know what I love about this? It takes the thinking out of framing my resume examples. If Amazon wants to know a time when I took ownership to show how I acted as a leader, I will explicitly put that on paper and present it like a chef creating art for the next Instagram photo. You know who else will also like that? Every other company in the world. Think Big, Act Big, and Deliver Results.
These are the Lessons I have learned after many… many… many failed applications. I hope this is informative for anyone that may be having a difficult time getting to that Next Step in their career. Since I took the lessons from Natalie at Facebook and combined them with the knowledge I already had, and combined that with my network and work experiences I have had a perfect record of being interviewed by the Tech Giants which drive the DOW to record highs during the second once in a generation economic downturn. Below I have an ugly version of my resume which has me talking to Round 3 Hiring Managers at FAANG. Wish me luck!
Ugly misformatted Resume
Summary
I have extensive experience in ambiguous environments and across multiple verticals where failure is measured in millions of dollars an hour or lives lost. My successes come from proactively focusing on issue identification and resolution by focusing on process maturation, well-developed stakeholder communications, continuous learning, and most importantly — Customer Obsession.
Experience
DellEMC Remote
Team Lead — Cloud Professional Services 2017 — Present
I manage technology implementations and relationships for multiple high-profile Accounts for their IT transformations by leading Engineering, Escalation, Account, and Client Teams for on time and in margin project delivery.
· Grit: I Collaborate across global locations, business units, and channel partners to deliver high-impact full-stack solutions and services by maintaining teams with trust, accountability, and commitment to Customer satisfaction.
· Ownership: Produce comprehensive adoption plans for workstreams that capture milestones and priorities at the appropriate levels which foster positive relationships, identify potential sales upsides, and drives customer success.
· Ohana: By taking ownership and identifying Team opportunities, I was promoted to Team Lead with responsibilities to design and enable best practices by leveraging LSS process engineering strategies.
· Tact: I coach my teams for career growth utilizing the GROW model and communicate with the individual, listen to their Goals, identify the Reality, Create Options, and enabling their Will to see it through.
· Operational Excellence: I work through systemic problems faced by front line employees to analyze and reduce the five forms of waste. The risk and change management programs I drive impact 200 PM’s globally and require collaboration from various levels across the delivery, sales, and product organizations. I have created new metrics and workflow processes to ensure efficiencies across the board.
· Financial: I maintain project financials to ensure that all projects are on time, in scope, and on budget. At the conclusion of the projects I revenue clients to ensure Dell Technologies is paid and that our project is delivered with positive margins. Maintaining man hours on multi-stage, multi-location, cross-functional teams with multiple stakeholders requires high degrees of communications, navigating ambiguity, and by taking the correct action in fast paced environments where everyone is multitasking and prioritizing objectives.
Chicago Transit Authority Chicago
Sr. Manager — Facilities 2015–2017
I organized Union and contract labor for 450 facilities that create the 2nd largest transportation agency in America.
· Coordination: By working in a hybrid agile model, we were able to communicate needs across departments more effectively. My weekly meetings with foremen from electrical, carpentry, pipefitting, plumbers, sheet metal, architects, engineers, and iron workers solved long standing issues while also allowing for massive federal projects like the Slow Zone elimination and Subway fan projects to be addressed with minimal issues.
· Invent and Simplify: Brainstormed and orchestrated the solution to the problem of people falling on elevated train tracks causing injuries / deaths. Analysis required communicating across multiple Private / Public agencies and contractors to ensure stakeholder perspectives were navigated. My final solution decreased embarkation time by 35%, remedied safety issues, and Mayor Emanuel used it as a photo op for forward thinking city planning.
· Frugality: Decreased annual contractor spending by $180,000, or 13%, by physically mapping the CTA track markers and distributed maps which in turn reduced miscommunication and time to repair KPI.
· Urgency: Working with the State of Illinois and Illinois State University, I initiated boiler, lighting, and automation projects with large ROIC’s, obtained $3.2 million in grants, and reduced OpEx overhead by an estimated $200k/year.
United States Marine Corps Global/Iraq
Program Manager — Marine Aviation Logistics (MALS-39) 2004–2009
I was the Lean Six Sigma process improvement co-lead for workflow modernization. Our charter was to increase the
Aircraft Readiness Rate KPI by enabling the workforce to work smarter and drive change with data backed decisions.
· Think Big: For a 300-person Aviation Electronics division I spoke with and questioned department leaders and workers to collect data, create value stream maps, and set pull limits for the largest Air Group on the West Coast.
· Organizational Development: Supporting 9 squadrons of various helicopter airframes at MALS-39, I brought aircraft readiness rates from 65–85% to a steady 80–95%. This in turn allowed for greater pilot training time, increased operational capacities for the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns, and millions saved in labor and material costs.
· Team Development: I directly managed a team of 30 Marines where I articulated areas of improvement that I identified and promoted excellence where it was present. From there I designed plans to enable the Marines to exceed in Aircraft Electronics while maintaining all standards in high stress environments.
· Workforce Development: After identifying my teams technical and physical capabilities, I worked with leadership to proactively manage risk based on deployment schedules. I was responsible for the daily operations of the Aviation Electronics Shop 610 that required planning to ensure all equipment had knowledgeable personnel. By implementing a cross training and knowledge transfer program utilizing OJT and partner requirements I was able to ensure minimal aircraft downtime from Severity 1 equipment.
· Supply Chain Management: While in Iraq, I managed Day to Day operations of 3 US Military Aviation Warehouses and staff to ensure the highest level of efficiency. I resolved logistical, contractual, and ambiguous issues as they arose for billions in assets with organizations like Boeing, Raytheon, and Northrop-Grumman.
· Attention to Detail: By maintaining the highest levels of quality I passed the collateral duty inspector exam. This coveted role required 1 weeks’ worth of testing on all aspects of aircraft maintenance and allowed me to validate that aircraft electronics were Ready For Issue into aircraft.
Lettuce Entertain You — Tru Chicago
Waiter and Bartender 2012–2014
During College I was a FoH Captain at a two Michelin star restaurant after earning two promotions.
· Hospitality: Promoted the highest levels of excellence in customer satisfaction for fine French Cuisine and wine at one of the finest restaurants in the world.
· Customer Service: I increased per-check sales by speaking intelligently and passionately about the Chefs menu and various special items while treating each table with enthusiasm and a friendly demeanor.
Education & Certifications Volunteering & Hobbies
Tuck School of Business — Business
Peer Health Exchange
DePaul University — Chemistry and Biology
German Shepherd Training
PMP
Ballroom Dancing
ITIL
Cooking
DellEMC Proven Professional
R & SQL
Harvard — Finance Cert
