My name is Corey Bobak and I am a Software Consultant for Manhattan Associates in Atlanta, GA. I received my degree in Management Information Systems degree a little early in December of 2015. I also interned at Erie Insurance in their IT Client Services Department during the Summer of 2015. Manhattan Associates is the leading supply chain software solutions provider and has many Fortune 1000 clients especially in retail and fashion. Manhattan’s client list include: Nike, Adidas, Under Armor, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, Ralph Lauren, Victoria’s Secret, Target, Best Buy and Coach to name a few. Here are five ways that I landed my ideal job:
1. Having a “Ready” Resume
Believe it or not, there is more to a resume than font choice and spacing. While these are important, the words that are used to describe your experiences as accurately and in the best way possible are far more important. I had my resume reviewed several times…sometimes just to review a single bullet point! Prior to going to the career fair in the fall of 2015, I had my resume reviewed 5-6 times and each time it got better at telling my story. “Storytelling” is a term for explaining different professional experiences and being able to use events or instances in your past in a way to showcase skills or behavior. This is an integral part of having a ready resume, because there is no real point in having points on a resume that cannot be talked to.
2. Attending Information Sessions
There are so many of these on campus and very few students take advantage of them. I have had friends tell me “I can find out everything I need to know about the company on the internet. I do not need to go to the information session.” While that may be true in some cases, there is no better chance to network. Going to the information session for Manhattan Associates allowed me to get personal testimonials from current employees and helped persuade me that it would be a place I would want to start my career. I had the chance to not only hear from 4 consultants from Manhattan Associates, but I was also able to learn the type of work, company culture, travel, and opportunities they had to offer…most of which I could not have learned online.
3. Research, Research and more Research
This is a very important part of the job search. Manhattan was also at the career fair and when I approached their table, I had 5 different things that I could talk to the recruiter about. This not only showed them that I was interested, but also allowed me to connect with the recruiter in a genuine conversation. Basic research is needed for the career fair; for example, Manhattan Associates is not associated with Manhattan, NYC, but the company was founded in Manhattan Beach, California. There are also topics to discuss and can be easily found by Googling the company and clicking on the news tab to find out what is happening with the company. Knowing who the CEO is and if there are any major changes to the company like a merger are good things to know as well.
4. Knowing the Fit
Knowing the fit is different than knowing what you want. Job hunting is an exciting and stressful time, and knowing what you want is very hard to determine; however, knowing the fit is similar to answering the question, “Why should I hire you for the job?” This was important for me because once I was able to convince myself that my experiences and ambitions fit this position, it became easier to convince others. I recommend making a small list of wish list items for a job like benefits, opportunity, perks or location. I set a couple of wish list items aside when I started my search and they were to be in the tech field and have the chance to travel a lot. When it came time to decide Manhattan became the clear and obvious choice.
5. Interview Prep
Interview Prep and Research go hand and hand, but interviews require more digging. A website called Glassdoor was my favorite tool in interview prep. Glassdoor has testimonials from current employees on the company, reviews from other people who have interviewed, salary ranges and more. The interview reviews give you an insight into the structure and often times include questions that they faced in the interview. Knowing the questions before you have to answer them is a huge advantage when it comes to answering them during an interview. Mock interviews are a great way to be able to practice articulating your past experience to fit questions faced in an interview. Another reason for my success in the interview was that I went to the information sessions and had the opportunity to meet and connect with my recruiter. This made the interview itself more conversational and made me more relaxed when answering questions.
