The Voice of Job Seekers

Mark Anthony Dyson ★ Career Writer ★ Speaker ★ Thinker ★ Award-winning Blog & Podcast! ★ "The Job Scam Report" on Substack! ★ I hack and reimagine the modern job search!

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by Mark Anthony Dyson

The Black Professional Job Search Experience and Why it’s Different

The Black Professional Job Search Experience and Why it’s Different
https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/thevoiceofjobseekers/thevoiceofjobseekers221.mp3

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It is well documented Black names and culture are differentiating factors before the initial resume vetting process companies conduct is completed. More companies and organizations are focusing on diversifying their workforce. In today’s conversation with Jennifer Tardy, we are dissecting what black professionals may have experienced in their job search and how they could best navigate it.

You are more than welcome to join the discussion. Here are three ways you can:

– Call and leave a voicemail at 708-365-9822, or text your comments to the same number

– Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message

– Send email feedback to [email protected]

Those on the mailing list are offered the chance to participate in the Job Lab. If you want to join us on October 24, the last Job Lab for the year, sign up at the blog.

Show flow:
421 Modern Job Search Tips for 2021 (sign up on the blog)
Reminders of the shows I have on LinkedIn (follow my page)
My YouTube channel
About Jennifer Tardy:
Jennifer is a former full-time recruiter, a career coach, and a diversity recruiter trainer. She spends half of her time with one-on-one career coaching and the other half with companies that want her to train on diversity recruiting.
Discussion highlights:
  • Job seekers shouldn’t be concerned about their ethnicity being revealed on their resume.
  • Jennifer says, “Don’t be concerned, be strategic. Being strategic with anything you reveal in your resume goes beyond race and ethnicity. Every single thing you list in your resume should confirm that you have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the job.”
  • Jennifer says she loves to wear bright colored earrings but will refrain from doing so in an interview because that could be distracting. She wants the interviewer to be focused on her words, not the brightly colored earrings. I have worn colorful color ties with a dark-colored suit. It’s OK to bring yourself to work if it’s not a distraction from your work.
  • Ask questions of the employer to find out how they are creating safe spaces for their Black employees to produce, learn, and grow. If you’re asked a biased question or a question that most would deem offensive, it is best to assume positive intent.
  • Jennifer says when her client makes a comment that is inappropriate or asks an inappropriate question, she remains in control by “meeting people where they are by assuming positive intent. “This allows me to put emotion aside and look to call people in as opposed to calling them out.”

I am updating my free e-book entitled, “421 Modern Job Search Tips for 2021.” I plan to release it to my email list on October 30, before everyone else will be alerted on November 13. Want it early? Go to the blog to sign up.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Job Search, unconscious bias Tagged With: Bias, Hiring, Job Search, Unconscious Bias

by Mark Anthony Dyson

How to Navigate Institutional Bias with Lizette Ojeda

How to Navigate Institutional Bias with Lizette Ojeda
http://traffic.libsyn.com/thevoiceofjobseekers/thevoiceofjobseekers203b.mp3

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There are so many angles to explore while discussing institutional bias, and you can only talk about a few at a time. Lizette Ojeda, PhD. is my guest today to discuss research and strategies to overcome bias during a job search. 
 

 Here’s how you can join the conversation:

– Call and leave a voicemail at 708-365-9822, or text your comments to the same number
– Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message
– Send email feedback to [email protected]

More about Lizette:

Career Psychologist for Executive Women in STEM who want to reignite their career, fulfill their true potential & have a balanced life. She is also a Professor at Texas A & M University. 

Highlights of our discussion: 

  • Studies show that during the hiring process ethnic names are at a disadvantage when compared to traditional Anglo-Saxon names
  • “We are all conditioned to have assumptions”
  • “…recognize it and act on it without letting it affect you as much as you possibly control”
  •   Biases vary by industry – gender, ethnicity, and race are enhanced if it’s a dominant male industry
  • Hair is a very personal thing and biases toward hair (like dreadlocks) make it personal
  • The song “Signs” was referenced during our conversation showing biases toward hair is nothing new
  • Location, area codes, are subject to bias because of where you live has a reputation
  • Episode 42 was referenced because of the discussion on name bias
  • Lizette shares several strategies on how people of color can find diverse, friendly companies
Two more shows before the end of the season. My annual podcast hiatus is from June 1 – Sept. 10. The newsletter will continue to be sent out to those on the mailing list at least once a month. I will continue to publish articles on the blog at least twice a month.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: unconscious bias Tagged With: Bias, Unconscious Bias

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Removing Bias From Hiring with Melissa Dobbins

Removing Bias From Hiring with Melissa Dobbins
http://traffic.libsyn.com/thevoiceofjobseekers/thevoiceofjobseekers188.mp3

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Removing bias from the hiring process is quite a task considering those who are still asking why. My guest this episode is Melissa Dobbins, founder, and CEO of career.place, whose purpose is to remove bias from hiring. She states on her website that she is “…radically reshaping the hiring process through the synthesis of science and technology…” Her goal is to show hiring companies how to remove bias from the hiring process.

You are more than welcome to join the discussion. Here are three ways you can:

– Call and leave a voicemail at 708-365-9822, or text your comments to the same number
– Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message
– Send email feedback to [email protected]

More about Melissa:
Through a SaaS-based offering, my company provides a fresh approach that is unbiased and focuses on what matters most when hiring talent. Career.Place removes bias from the hiring process by not relying on the resume as the beginning piece of the hiring equation. Instead, career.place’s solution asks a series of questions from salary desired to take assessments, allowing only those qualified to advance.
She has been in product management for many years including her last position as a vice president.

Here are highlights from our discussion:

  • Melissa is influenced by her experience working with highly diverse successful teams and homogenous teams oblivious to bias
  • In her experience, homogenous teams was a vacuum of creativity because everyone thought alike
  • She says that diversity and inclusion positions and teams achieved a good start
  • Removing bias from the hiring process will mean removing the identities of the individuals from the eyes of employers
  • The focus for employers is to focus on what individuals can do and the requirements to do the job, and everyone is treated fairly
  • We discuss racists vs. bias and how much of a challenge it is in the process – “No one wants to look in the mirror and think they are part of the problem.”
  • Melissa says, “Bias is the human shortcut.”
  • There needs to be more than blocking out the name on a resume to rid of bias in the hiring process

Reminder:

June 19 is the last show of the season until Sept. 11. I will send a newsletter the last Friday of each month. I have several projects and MAYBE products I am finishing. Sign up for the newsletter and/or connect with me on LinkedIn. I will be announcing update there.

I will also continue publishing articles and other content 1-3 times a week. See below for my social handles to connect with me there.

I am here for you! Use my contact information above to inquire about individual or group coaching. You can also sign up for my weekly newsletter at the top right of my page. I try to pack as much value in my newsletter to more than 2,000 subscribers as possible.

Grab my updated “118 Job Search Tips for the Modern Job Search in 2018” here.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

  • Mail
  • |
  • Web
  • |
  • Twitter
  • |
  • Facebook
  • |
  • LinkedIn
  • |
  • More Posts(756)

Filed Under: Employment, unconscious bias Tagged With: Bias, Employment, Unconscious Bias

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Join the email list and get “12 Modern Job Search Strategies Beyond the Resume 2022”

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I moderated a panel on Wealth Management for executives by Black Enterprise Magazine in October 2023 in Miami.

I was interviewed on Scripps News show, “The Why!” 4/13/2023

I talked with John Tarnoff and Kerry Hannon of “The Second Act” podcast about job searching after 50 in October 2022.

I was on “The Career Confidante” podcast to talk about “boomerang employees” and “job fishing” in June 2022.

Making Job Search a Lifestyle With “Dr. Dawn Graham on Careers,” SiriusXM Ch. 132, Wharton School of Business May 2021

In May 2020, I talked with LinkedIn’s Senior News Editor Andrew Seaman on “#GetHired” Live.”

Beverly Jones, host of the NPR podcast “Jazzed About Work,” invited me back to talk job scams, job search trends, and AI tools in April 2024

WOUB Digital · Episode 183 : Job search expert Mark Dyson says beware of scams, know AI & keep learning

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