Category: Tips for Engineering Contractors
5 Reasons Why Engineering Contractors Absolutely, Positively Need a Personal Brand
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman If you think branding is only for movie stars, professional athletes or consumer-driven companies like Coke or Proctor & Gamble, think again. Whether you’ve been an engineer for nine months or nine years, you’ve earned a reputation. And since recruiters and engineering managers are influenced by what they hear and read about… Read more »
Client-Facing Skills Give Engineering Contractors an Edge
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman Are you able to interpret technical and design information and present those ideas to clients in a way that’s easy to understand? Are you calm and composed under pressure? If you answered yes to those questions, you’re in luck. A Harvard University study revealed that 85 percent of jobs and promotions happened because of a candidate’s… Read more »
Survive the Screening: Mastering Telephone Interviews
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman The phone interview has become a popular screening tool for busy engineering managers. Within an hour, he or she can speak with several contractors, ask about their relevant skills and experience, and pare down the number of contenders for an upcoming project. But phone interviews can be nerve-racking especially for novices, since… Read more »
Want a Raise? Top Paying Cities for Contract Engineers
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman Your skills, education and project experience influence your value as an engineering contractor. But just like real estate, location drives regional competition for engineering talent and therefore the hourly rate you can command for your services as a contract engineer. While Texas, California and Alaska are hot spots across the board, here’s… Read more »
10 Tips for Starting a Contract Engineering Assignment on the Right Foot
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman Acclimating to a new environment can be stressful, even for veteran engineering contractors. Soothe your frazzled nerves and get off on the right foot by following these tips. No.1: Understand your manager’s expectations Avoid false starts and hasty exits by clarifying your duties and responsibilities from the outset. Hint: Your manager’s priorities… Read more »
Insightful Interviews: Favorite Questions Asked by Engineering Managers
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman Some engineering mangers favor traditional ice-breakers like: “Tell me about yourself,” or “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” Others ask insightful questions to assess an engineering contractor’s cultural fit and their technical skills as well as their ability to handle a particular project during an interview. “I never ask superficial questions,” says… Read more »
Lights, Camera, Hired! How to Ace a Live Video Interview
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman Are you ready for your close-up? With companies like Skype and Google+ Hangouts increasingly turning to video-chat software (WSJ article) to screen prospective engineering contractors, you need to shine when it’s time to turn on the webcam. Here’s how to make the most of your moment in the spotlight. Set the stage… Read more »
Land the Job! How to Ace a Contract Interview in 5 Easy Steps
By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman While managers often explore career goals and employment gaps when interviewing candidates for full-time jobs, they focus on different issues when selecting contractors to fulfill a specific engineering mission. In a nutshell, they want to know if you have the skills and experience to hit the ground running. Here’s how to convince… Read more »
How to Attract Top Engineering Talent
Sell the merits of your project to win the services of hot engineering contractors By: Leslie Stevens-Huffman With the market for engineering talent heating up, an experienced contractor may have several irons in the fire by the time they meet with you. In fact, a remarkable 86 percent of IT/engineering workers who participated in a… Read more »