There are only 5 iPhone Apps needed for your job search.  That’s it, just 5.

The list I’ve compiled below provides everything you need for your mobile job hunt.  This is it, I’ve created THE complete guide to iPhone job search apps!  Oh, and maybe the best thing I can report is that they are all affordable.  In fact, four of them are free, and one costs  $.99.

Let’s jump right into the list, shall we?

1. Audio Job Interview Professional (free)

This iPhone app is genius and it is also my favorite.  Pick and choose from a list of 40 questions creating a custom interview.  After making your selections, a woman’s voice will ask you each question.  When ready, you’ll hit the record button and begin answering each question individually.  When satisfied with your answers, you can individually or batch send your interview to prospective employers.  I suggest emailing yourself the link first, and then sending it out with your resumes as a nice supplement.

Not only does it provide a nice phone screen/interview practice tool, but this iPhone app also gives your submission a voice and personal touch.  It could be exactly what you need to set yourself apart from your competition.  Somehow, this thing is free – go get it!

2. Prospector ($.99)

Applying to multiple  jobs at once is confusing, this is where Prospector steps in.   Each company you’ve applied to becomes a prospect, where you can manage and keep track of the job title, contact information (recruiter, hiring manager, etc), salary, step of the hiring process you’re currently in, upcoming appointments, and to do list items for that position/company.

The $.99 price tag is completely worth it if you’re applying to more than a few positions.

3. LinkedIn (free)

LinkedIn is the King Kong of professional networking websites and a MUST for job seekers.  When meeting new people at networking events, interviews, or wherever, use the LinkedIn app to quickly add people to your network, before forgetting about them.  The “In Person” feature instantly connects/adds other iPhone users to your network via blue tooth.  I think that’s cat’s pajamas.

The more connections you have, the more opportunities will be presented to you.  Do it, do it now!

4. BeamME (free)

BeamME sets you up with virtual business cards that can be sent out to any phone or computer.  Create personal or business styled cards and send out as appropriate.  Add a personal touch by including your headshot or customize with logo & theme.  I am in love with the “History” feature, which allows you to check who you met, when you met them, and  most importantly WHERE you met them!  Oh, and can anyone say go green?

Lastly, for the Twitter crazies, just enter someone’s Twitter handle and your card will beam over via Direct Message.  Cool, huh?

5. Job Compass (free)

Job Compass is a really nifty job search app.   Simply type in WHAT you are looking for (Job title, keywords, or company), WHERE you are looking (City, State, or zip code) and HOW FAR (select from 5-100 mile radius) and Job Compass will place each of the matched jobs on a map for you to see.  Click on red flags to check out each individual job, or hit the “List” feature to list out positions like you are used to seeing.  You can apply directly from this app, email the  posting to yourself or a friend, or just map it for later!

My suggestion?  Take a stack of resumes and head out to the center of town.  Let the app use your current location and select a 5 mile radius.  When the results come up, go buck wild visiting every destination, handing off your resume to each flagged opening.

What I love about the list above is that it covers you in basically every critical area of the job hunt.  With these apps you have the ability to start your initial job search, manage your entire search process, practice interviewing, utilize an innovative screening toll that sets you apart from others, and network more effectively, all from your phone.

Notice that popular job search places like CareerBuilder, Indeed, and Craigslist weren’t included.  If you’re going to use those websites for your job search, then it should be done on a computer, just like in old times.  A bigger screen and more visibility is needed, and for those reasons, I’ve also cut resume building apps from the list.  Use your iPhone as a tool to help you in your hunt, but these apps should certainly not be your primary job search method.

Have you used any of these apps before?

Are there others you feel strongly about?

Any job seekers willing to take my Job Compass suggestion?

Every once in a while, I see someone who is introducing innovation into their job hunt.  Yesterday I received a message on Twitter from Brian Mosely (@bmose14), asking me to review a new video he created for his job search.  His short, 3 minute video brings a unique approach to gaining exposure and ensuring his name isn’t lost in a stack of resumes.  I’m not sure you can technically call his creation a video resume, but it is the perfect supplement to his paper submission.

Like me, Brian is a complete hockey nut.  We’ve both played and coached hockey (although Brian is more advanced in those areas than I am), and are religious NHL fans.  His goal is to land a job in hockey, working for a sports team in some capacity.  When you watch Brian’s clip below, you’ll clearly see he has experience and most importantly, PASSION for the sport.  Maybe it’s just my love for hockey, but this video gave me the chills.

What are your thoughts on videos to send in with you resume?

Have you created, or used a video resume?

Before heading into college, you were warned about the “Freshman 15″.  Excessive amounts of alcohol and drunk eating caused these new found pounds for most college students.  Just like in any drastic change of lifestyle, it takes it toll on the body.  Eventually, the body does adjust to changes, but not before a new figure has been set.

Starting our first job, or even just changing jobs are lifestyle changes that can quickly add on the pounds.  Consider this your warning of the “New Hire 20″.  What causes the “New Hire 20″?

• We go from very active, or semi active lives, to an extremely sedentary life at work.  We sit all day long (commute, at desk, commute home, tv)
• Lunches out with co-workers, clients, and vendors
• Lunches in at our desk (sitting still once again)
• That asshole keeps bringing donuts and bagels everyday

These are all obvious, but it’s important that they are.  They should be easy for us to fix or stop from happening too frequently.  We can go into our first job or new job and worry about how we look and feel later, or we can make healthy choices from the beginning and be proactive about our health.  While I’m not a health expert, I would suggest the following to keep you from the “New Hire 20″:

• Wake up 10 minutes before you need to and exercise (pushups, jumping jacks, sit ups, bike, walk, run)
• Take an actual lunch break.  After eating, go for a walk outside.  If it’s cold, go to a mall or somewhere that you can walk.  It’s a nice mental break.
• Take the stairs every time
• Buy this thing and put it under your desk
• Get involved, join the company softball team (or whatever) if they have one
• Get a gym membership OR 10 minutes before bed exercise again (pushups, jumping jacks, sit ups, bike, walk, run)

These all seem obvious, but when you start your first job or get a new job, it’s easier to avoid doing these things.  We are focusing on our new job and making connections, I get it, but we still need to make sure we keep an eye out on our health.

In a post last week, I wrote a Students Guide for College Career Fairs, and compiled a list of action items that would ensure students have a competitive advantage over their peers when it comes to career fairs.  Somewhere in that piece, I mentioned that most employers are god awful at college recruiting, and especially with career fairs.  As promised, here is my Employers Guide to College Career Fairs.

Obviously, the amount of planning, time and money spent, and number of universities to attend will vary based off of how big or small the company is and the industry that company fits into.  Once this is mapped out, a company needs to select a number of target schools to attract talent from.  Unfortunately for most organizations, just selecting a school, and attending their career fairs alone won’t bring the college kids running through your doors.

To have a successful college recruitment/college career fair program, a number of connections need to be built with each school.  Relationships need to be built with faculty, professors/teachers, and students.

Faculty

When I say faculty, I mean those folks working in the career services office, the people who schedule and set up the career fair, and basically anyone that has access to influential people at the college.

Why build a relationship with these people?

• Better booth locations for career fairs
• Access to information that employers generally don’t have
• They’ll spread the word about your company

Knowing why to build is one thing, but how do you go about building the relationship?

• Employers often times complete career fair registration online, with no interaction with the staff.  If possible, go into the office, or make a phone call in order to set up your registration for their events.
• Schedule a short in person meeting with career services faculty.  Show them the benefits of working for your company, and explain that they are a target school.  Schools always aim to develop strong relationships with employers
• Find out which employees are alumni of the school, and let faculty know that these employees are willing to come in to run work shops discussing the industry
• Send the career services office a small gift, thanking them for their help in your college recruiting efforts

Professors/Teachers

Why build these relationships?

• They’ll provide referrals, and access to top students
• Give you an opportunity to come in and speak to their class
• Most of them are looking for consulting jobs to make extra cash.  Never know when one of them could help out as a consultant

How to build a relationship?

• While it is also an advantage for your company, offer to come in and speak to their class.  Teachers love a nice break from speaking (make sure to bring in quality SWAG for the teacher and students – no pens please)
• Talk to them about possible opportunities to consult with your company and make extra cash.  Unless independently wealthy, they will be listening
• Keep in contact with them.  Have a representative from the company speak in his/her class every semester, and when a consulting opportunity does come up, make sure to reach out when ideal

Students

This should be obvious, but this is why you’ll need to build relationships with students:

• Build up a pipeline of students who can work internships, co-ops, and permanent positions with your company
• Word of mouth advertising on campus
• Pre-selected list of students to talk to further at the career fair

How to build relationships with students:

• Utilize your connections with faculty and professors to reach the most talented students
• After speaking on campus or in a classroom, allow students some 1-on-1 face time with you or whoever spoke
• Have your company sponsor a wine and cheese event, or an information session on the company.  This should be done weeks, if not months before the career fair
• Take a small, select group of students out to dinner to talk about their career.  Have the company pay for this event
• Allow interested students a chance to come tour the company/office.  They’ll like feeling familiar with the area, office, and company
• Schedule 1-on-1 time with them for the career fair.  They will feel privileged, and will put your company on their short list

The Big Guys

What about the big time companies, like Google and other well branded places?  While the small companies suffer from low to zero traffic at career fairs, the large organizations suffer from too much traffic, and not enough time to converse with each student.

Even the big guys need to make connections with, and identify top talent before the career fair.  There is no way they will gain value from talking to all 500 interested students, but if they make lasting connections with 50-75 of the most talented students, then they will have themselves a successful college recruiting experience at the career fair, and beyond.

A Word on Marketing

When you do everything above, you don’t need to spend thousands on expensive SWAG, and the most ridiculous booth set ups.  With that said, students will definitely want to see a neat set up, so do spend some time and money on creating a nice atmosphere at the event.

Bring inexpensive handouts to give to students that aren’t on your list, and give your top students something special.  Something like a personalized mug, or even an i-pod shuffle (if your company can afford it) will win over their student hearts for good.

Final Remarks

If your company isn’t doing much of my above recommendations, realize that it does take time and effort to build up a relationship with a school.  Try starting with just one or two, and go from there.

Reach out to me if you have any questions on my suggestions above.  If your company is looking to upgrade their college recruiting program, feel free to contact me if a consulting opportunity is an option.

Most companies suck at college recruiting, specifically in finding talent at college career fairs.  The unorganized and unprepared companies are the reason why most college students regret attending a college job fair, or why they simply stay in and eat Ramen Noodles, watch “I am not the baby daddy” TV shows, study, drink beer, or do whatever it is that college students do these days.

There are certainly a handful of companies that really kill it at college career fairs, but the career fair itself is just the tip of the iceberg.  For a company to be successful in college hiring, months, if not years of work go into building up a name, and a relationship with the campus and its students.  However, this is a guide for students, I’ll get back to the employer side next week.

Ok, let’s get right down to it, shall we?

It’s all about making pre-career fair connections

The employers who do it right, make connections before arriving on campus.  They find out a way to reach faculty, professors, and students early so that they have an advantage over their competition.  It’s not about having the greatest brand (it helps, but that creates other complications down the line at career fairs), or having the nicest SWAG.  The secret to a successful career fair is in making connections before the actual event, and students need to know that they can completely make this happen on their own as well.

So, how can students make the most out of college career fairs?

1 – Create a “Employers I Want to Work For List” – Most schools do a nice job of advertising which employers are coming to the fair.  Try to get your hands on this list at least a month before the scheduled event.  If you can’t find a list, just head on into your schools career office and ask for one.  List out 3-7 companies that you’d like to work for, and make sure you rank them all.  Once you do this, you are ready for the next step.

2 – Find out the person who scheduled their company – In most cases, it’s an HR person or recruiter that schedules their company.  It isn’t uncommon for a business unit outside of HR to plan and schedule the career fair, so keep that in mind as well.  Take your list of 5-7 companies to your school career office, and explain that you’d like to reach out to the company in advance.  Ask for contact information of the person that scheduled their employer to attend the fair.  Try to get the most information for the top companies on your list.  If your school career office can’t, or won’t give you the information, simply call the company’s main telephone number and ask to speak to HR about college recruiting.

3 – Prepare your information – Once you reach out to employers, it’s going to get real very fast.  Make sure that  all of your information is the bees knees.  Fix up your resume, and complete your Linkedin profile.

4 – Start reaching out to employers – Email and call.  Doing both won’t hurt you.  Keep your emails short (a paragraph or two) and explain exactly why you are reaching out.  Don’t sugar coat it.  Explain that you are contacting them because you wanted to make a connection before the career fair.  This will not only impress them, but they will remember you.  If possible, ask for an informational interview (phone or in person).  Lastly, follow up with this person a week or a few days before the actual event.  Stay in their heads and they will remember your face, or at least your name.

5 -Instead of during, meet them before or after the event – Even when you’ve made a connection, that won’t change the fact that career fairs are busy as butt.  Many people attend on their own, but others are forced to attend and wait in long lines at the crowded event.  While your name and face is recognizable by your employer of choice, they probably won’t be able to give you much time.  Ask to meet them 1 on 1 before the event for 20 minutes while they set up, or possibly to grab a bite to eat during their event break or after the fair has ended.  Doing this truly sets you apart from your peers.

6 – Follow up – A week after the event, reach out to the person you met at the career fair.  Continue the relationship building process.  Companies with openings will bring in students for interviews.  Make contact first, and keep your name in their head.

If you follow the steps I’ve outlined above, you will not only enjoy attending career fairs, but you will build a long-lasting relationship with employers that you want to work for, and you’ll have a stronger chance of gaining employment with them.

It’s all about connections.  Not all employers are great at it, but you WILL be.

Last nights launch of #JobHuntChat was an incredible success, and I’d like to thank each and every participant.  Nicole, Jessica, and I had a great time co-moderating, chatting with you, and reading your brilliant responses.

#JobHuntChat’s purpose is to make sure that you’ll Never Hunt Alone Again. Judging by the number of participants and responses last night, I think we can now claim, “Mission Accomplished”.

So, what happened during last nights #JobHuntchat?  Here is our launch recap:

#JobHuntChat 2/15/2010 Statistics

• # Of Tweets —> 650+
• # of Contributors —> 100+

Top 5 Contributors

• @martymjm – 29 Tweets – Marty is a recruiter and career coach in Philadelphia
• @bitty_boop – 22 Tweets – Brittany is a Quinnipiac senior, PR major looking for work in NYC
• @abbylocke – 21 Tweets – Abby is a career marketing and leadership brand coach from Seattle
• @stephmajercik – 21 Tweets – Stephanie graduates May ‘10 and hunting for PR jobs
• @tmcantwell - 21 Tweets – Teresa is a 3 year PR pro from  NYC, looking for new opportunities

#JobHuntChat Transcript

If you are interested in following along with last nights chat, please click the link below to bring up the #JobHuntChat transcript.  Monster thanks go to Chanelle Schneider (@WriterChanelle) for putting this transcript together.

Click here for the #JobHuntChat transcript from 2/15/2010

Submit Your Questions For Next Week

Please submit your questions for next weeks chat.  If you submitted a question and it wasn’t picked this week, there is a strong chance it will be selected to be featured next Monday night. Submit your questions to JobHuntChat@gmail.com

I’m happy to announce that #JobHuntChat is coming to Twitter!  The first, and quite possibly only Twitter chat focusing on the job search will launch its first chat on Monday, February, 15th at 10PM EST.

I’ve been excited planning this chat, but now that the idea has come to life, the rest is up to you.  #JobHuntChat will take your suggestions for questions every week, and the other co-moderators (who I will get to in a second) and myself will pick out four questions to be featured each Monday night.  So, who are the Co-moderators for #JobHuntChat?

Co-Moderators

• Nicole Crimaldi | @MsCareerGirl
• Jessica Miller-Merrill | @Blogging4Jobs
• Yours truly, Mr. Corn – @CornOnTheJob

Submitting Questions

Submitting your ideas for topics and questions is easy.  Just reach out to us in one of the following ways:

• Send an e-mail to JobHuntChat AT Gmail.com
• DM or send an @ mention to @JobHuntChat on twitter
• DM or send an @ mention to any of the Co-moderators listed above
• Comment on this post

We will reach out to people for specific questions during the week, and at times have themed chats planned where questions will be even more specific.  We want to hear from you, so don’t hold back.

When is #JobHuntChat?

Chats will be every Monday, from 10PM EST to 11PM EST.  Our first chat is on February 15th

Who will participate?

This is the fun part!  I have absolutely no idea.  As you know, Twitter is a big place, and its only getting bigger.  Your questions will be responded to by other job seekers, bloggers, resume writers, career experts, HR professionals, recruiters, or maybe even @ShitMyDadSays.  We want to hear everyones opinion on the topics discussed, and Twitter allows us to do just that.

How can you participate?

For starters, send us your questions!  This is for you.  On Mondays, be on Twitter at 10PM EST, and make sure to follow each of the co-moderators.  We will be tweeting out the questions, and RT’ing the smart responses that we get.  We are looking forward to seeing how this baby forms, and your suggestions, comments, and questions will drive the success of this chat.

#JobHuntChat is here!  Never Hunt Alone Again!

Last week, I went out for some drinks with a few of my cousins and we started talking about  the job search.   Somehow, the topic of dressing for success, while working from home was brought up in the conversation.  My older cousin, Steven, thinks that people should always dress like they are in the office when working from home, and argues that they will perform better because of it.   I disagreed.  While working from home, I’ve been productive and successful while wearing gym clothes.  A comfortable Corn On The Job, is a happy and successful Corn On The Job.

Naturally, the conversation got me thinking about how people dress for phone screens.

I’m sure there are plenty of studies that go against my opinion, but I wear whatever I want, or I should say, whatever I’m wearing that day for phone screens.  If a suit and tie makes me more professional, but takes away from my personality and how I really am, do I want that?  No.  I want a company to feel my personality through the phone, and let my experience and ability to talk about that experience be the resulting factor.  Will wearing long socks and uncomfortable dress shoes get me the job?  I don’t think so.

What are people saying on Twitter?

I wanted to gain the opinion of some friends on Twitter, so I popped this question:

Do you dress up for phone interviews? Does it affect your performance if you don’t? Let me hear it.

Snazzy Phone Screen Dressers

• @WhatsWithDiane – I work better from home when I’m dressed and made up. PJ’s are cool but don’t feel right after 7 a.m.
• @JennyGuerrero - I find that the closer to a face to face interview it is (including attire & surroundings) the better I perform.
• @GraceKBoyle – I always like to shower, get ready and dress nicely for phone interviews. Mentally, it makes me prepared and equipped.
• @RobinSchooling – If I didn’t I would ‘feel’ less prepared. Part of the process for me is being in the right mind-set/serious. PJs don’t cut it
• @jamesledbetter - It’s always better to dress for success even if u r the only one who sees u

Comfortable Phone Screen Dressers

• @ImSoSarah – I work best in yoga pants and a tank top. On extra fancy days – Jeans.
• @Jon_Hyland – Sweats and a t-shirt is my preferred work-from-home attire. Clothes don’t really affect my personality
• @marenhogan – No and no.
• @TrinaWardell – I’m w/ @marenhogan – no and no – provided I am prepared (research, etc) my perf is gr8 even in PJ’s! 

What do you think?.

This guest post is contributed by Brenda Harris, who writes on the topic of executive mba programs. She can be reached at her email id: brenda.harris91@gmail.com.

Some people do it timidly and with hesitation; others are brasher and more open about demanding it as their right; and yet others threaten to quit if they’re not paid more. While we all feel the jitters when we want to ask for an increase in our salaries, we adopt different methods to go about this act because there are no fixed rules or regulations to follow. But no matter how you ask for a pay hike, you must keep a few things in mind before you talk to your boss or put in a request in some other way because if you don’t, things could backfire on you in a bad way. So if you’re mulling over a salary increase, think over these things before you go ahead with the idea:

• The current market scenario: If the world in general or your company is going through a lean period and your co-workers are getting fired or laid off by the dozen, then it’s definitely not the time to bring up the issue of a pay hike. You would think that this is pure common sense and that people will know that they’re lucky they get to keep their jobs in such a scenario, but there are times when people get ahead of themselves and convince themselves that they are indispensable to the company and that they should ask for and receive a raise.

• Your present standing at work: If you’re in the doghouse with your boss, then it’s sure not the time to bring up the issue of your salary hike. You must wait for the dust to settle and work on getting back into your superior’s good books before you can broach the subject. This does not mean that you must toady up to them; rather, let your work do the talking and your salary hike request cannot be denied without adequate consideration.

• The probability of you getting the raise: If you’ve just received a raise in the recent past, then your current request is probably going to be denied, unless there are extenuating circumstances. Also, your status within the company counts a lot when the issue of a raise comes up. Your boss may feel that you don’t merit a pay hike because you’re just not that valuable to the company. They’re not worried that you may quit if your request is denied, so there is no compulsion for them to cater to your demands. So holding the threat to leave over their heads may not be a good idea unless you are relatively confident that they will cave in or you have an alternative position lined up.

Salary negotiation is a tricky minefield that could end up hurting you badly if you’re not careful. So tread carefully, like you would on eggshells, read the situation well, and use the right opportunity and time to ask for your pay hike, preferably when your work is receiving rave reviews from your superiors.

This is a guest post from Scott Hale.  Scott blogs over at Highway to Hale, a blog about community building and creative problem solving.  You can find Scott on Twitter @sjhalestorm and catch him as a Co-Moderator of the popular Twitter chat, #u30pro.

Alluring Possibilities in Muddy Waters

Let me start with my story. It’s no secret that my graduating class of 2009 was entering a piss-poor job market. After a summer of job searching, my refusal to send out a blanket of standard resumes was starting to pay off. I was seeing some interest.

One option was a startup agency. I hadn’t considered working for a startup straight out of college, but I came into contact with a new company that was looking to grow quickly. They were very honest that they wanted to make me their first hired employee and hit the ground running with some help from investors.

To make a long story short, the company offered me a salary and benefits and I accepted. But things are rarely set in stone with startup companies. After six months, full-time is a distant dream and benefits haven’t even entered the atmosphere of thought. In other words, they jumped the gun by making an offer.

Silver Lining in Stormy Clouds

I know it doesn’t sound like a dreamy situation, but there are some serious perks to working in a startup.

• Experience: Working with a startup is as close as it gets to a baptism by fire, because experience flies at you fast. I’ve been forced to learn new skills and broaden my professional repertoire (which is awesome). With so few people on a team, you aren’t likely to have an expert on every project. It’s an opportunity and a necessity to become an expert, or at least a jack-of-all-trades.
  • You’re also going to need to dedicate a chunk of your personal time to learn these new skills that won’t be asked, but demanded of you.
• Networking: It takes some time for a startup to get some traction, and during that time, employees often have the opportunity to build their personal network and focus on their personal community. As personal brands for employees grow, the company’s visibility can tag along.
  • Not to be a pessimist, but if the startup doesn’t work out, your personal network is a great way to get back into a heavy job search.
• Options: As noted above, I don’t always have a ton of work to do with the startup – My free time has allowed me to work with some incredible people in my industry. I’m like a Social Media Mercenary of sorts. I’m learning more than I could ask for and picking up some extra income at the same time (big thanks to everybody that has taken me in).
  • Make sure you clear this up with your employers before you go out and get projects with outside employers.

A final note about startups as a thank you and shout-out to Rich for having me as a guest on COTJ: Hiring at a startup is unique. Without HR and recruiters involved, your network is more important than anywhere else. Creativity and connectivity are your ticket to trust and impressing the right people.

Startups aren’t the first places that come to mind during a job search, but they are definitely worth checking out. Just be careful and understand what you are getting into.