Unemployment Tallies
For those of you wondering where the weekly unemployment tallies have gone, I have decided to conclude that particular research project of mine. But I do have at least one more unemployment related post in the works.
My 20+ weeks of data gathering have confirmed the following:
- The job market in Indiana for web development is horrible if you are seeking a full-time position and are not interested in working through a consulting firm. (Outsourcing truly makes sense for most businesses, so that is completely understandable.)
- The job market in Indiana for web application programming is not so good if your expertise is in open source technologies (such as PHP & MySQL). If you are looking for a job at a Microsoft (ASP, .NET, C#, MSSQL) or Java based shop, there are a few more opportunities, but I still wouldn’t say that the market is good.
- The job market in Indiana for true marketing related jobs (non sales jobs) appears to be a little better than the computer fields, but without quite a bit of previous experience you’ll be hard pressed to find something.
- The vast majority of employers do not send letters acknowledging your application nor do they send rejection letters. Of the few that I did get, it was split between formal letters and e-mails. I can only speculate as to why that is.
I’m interested in hearing what other people’s experiences have been, and not just in Indiana. It would be great to know if other people have experienced the same type of thing, or if it is just me.
To answer the burning question, yes, I am still unemployed and am still looking for whatever opportunities are available. But at the same time, I am using every opportunity that I have to focus on Watershed Studio related activities. Business has steadily been picking up and is keeping me quite busy, so that’s an excellent thing…and please continue to send referrals my way, as that accounts for a major sector of my client base.
Also on the horizon…I have learned quite a few things this year in regards to operating a business and plan to begin sharing that with others, along with any new things that I learn, in the very near future. If you’re a business owner yourself, I would love to talk with you, so please get in touch with me.
December 6th, 2006 at 5:59 pm
I would say the good thing about the web development market, regardless of your speciality is that you can do it from anywhere and work with anyone. I’ve got more web design work than I can handle on my own and have to turn down adding new clients right now. I work with clients all over the US and have no problems finding work (I’m not even looking for it and still get it). I’m not sure about the job market for marketing, but I’d say finding one is all about marketing yourself to the right people. If you’re good at what you do, and deliver results your clients ask for, you’ll be noticed and get the work. After working for more than a year in the recruiting industry, getting confirmation of applications and even rejections letters is a thing of the past. There’s purely too many applicants to handle all of them in that way. I personally processed about 100 applicants a day for one employer and unless you were really what we were looking for, you wouldn’t get a response of any kind except maybe for a standard “thanks for your application” letter. I believe the key to the job market is networking with those you know and being willing to get your foot in the door somewhere not doing exactly what you want. Once you’re in, keep accepting additional responsibilities and volunteering for more work as much as possible.
December 6th, 2006 at 6:53 pm
Thanks for that insight Jason!
As far as having “normal” jobs, every job that I’ve ever held has fallen under the “it’s not what you know, but who you know” principle. And that has ran the gambit of “commercial cleaner” to ball park usher to warehouse worker to “professional” positions. If I only had one tip for people looking for a job, it would definitely be to network and let people know that you’re looking for a job. The chances are that a few people will be able to at least give you leads.
As far as web development, what you describe is what I’ve seen as well. Clients (and quote requests) come in from all over the world, and that is a very cool thing IMO. And being able to work from *anywhere* is very nice too.
December 11th, 2006 at 5:09 pm
It certainly is who you know. I may have gotten my job through CareerBuilder, officially, but I clearly caught the HR guy’s attention with my JA internship (from HIGH SCHOOL)! He’s on the board there and knew most everybody that I worked with back then. It was a unique connection that made him remember me.
Lucky me! (I’d been job hunting for at least 4 months prior to that with no luck.)