1 JOBTALKS Creating Your Career Portfolio Indiana University Kelley School of Business C. Randall Powell, Ph.D Contents used in this presentation are adapted from Career Planning Strategies and used with the permission of the author.

Building a Career Portfolio How to Present Yourself to Potential Employers How would you present a comprehensive view of all of your credentials and achievements?

3 What is a Portfolio?  What is your understanding of a portfolio and its purpose?  Who has traditionally created portfolios?  Does anyone have a portfolio?

4 Definition  A portfolio is a documentation and demonstration of your accomplishments representing growth in your skills and understanding of those skills over time.  The portfolio not only documents your results but also how you got there and what you learned in the process.

5 Employers are asking…  “How much will you cost me to train?”  “Can you keep your personal life in order so that it does not interfere with work?”

6 Employers are seeking…  Proof of current relevant soft skills  Real work samples

7 Two Broad Categories of Skills  Transferable across careers, jobs, and industries organizational interpersonal work-style  Work Content do a specific type of job immediate contribution gained through course work and job experience

8 Employers of Professional Talent Want the “Total Package”  Excellent communication skills  Technical proficiency  Leadership  Teamwork  Interpersonal skills and personal traits

9 Portfolio Advantages  Clearly shows your individuality, personality, & skills  Speaks to your skills without your having to say directly “I’m good”  The resume gets you the interview, the portfolio gets you the job

10 Steps for Assessing Your Major Accomplishments 1. What I Did? 2. What I Learned? 3. What’s Next? (We will be using a group activity to reinforce these steps in a minute.)

11 #1: What I Did?  The first step is documentation of events, activities, and skills that have been accomplished.  It is a collection of your most important accomplishments, both personal and professional.

12 # 1 Artifact  Choose a tangible item to exhibit the accomplishment or skill you have just selected to showcase

13 Activity: What did YOU do?  Think of a skill you wish to highlight and an “artifact” from an activity you have done that could showcase it. OR  Think of something truly significant you have done and what skill that demonstrates. What artifact can you use to showcase that?

14 #2: What I Learned?  The next step is going back and looking at each entry and writing “statements” identifying and explaining the purpose of each piece of evidence so that the entries are meaningful when reviewed by others.  These statements should also contain reflective comments about your learning.

15 What I Learned-Sample  To develop an annual budget of $16,000  To keep accurate line-item entry books of income and expenditures  To create and maintain excel spreadsheets of monthly finances  To create annual financial statements

16 Activity: What did YOU learn?  Write a statement of what you gained from the activity that you selected just now.

17 #3: What’s Next?  Review each entry  View as springboard to future learning  Revisit and examine work accomplished  Professional and personal growth  Assimilate information into “skills and achievements” for resume and interview process

18 What’s next-Sample  Add activity and accomplishments to resume  Improve organization of records to facilitate creation of annual report

19 Activity: What is next for YOU?  Write what you will do to use or improve what you have begun in this class activity.

20 Sample Artifacts for a Portfolio  Career & professional development goals  Resumes/Cover letters  Your work philosophy  Self-assessment records  Transcripts  Work history  Skill areas  Works in progress (activities and projects)  Work & learning samples  Work term reports  Certificates, diplomas, degrees, & awards  Professional memberships & service  Records of community service/volunteer work (brochures, letters of recognition, etc.)  Newspaper clippings featuring you  Letters of appreciation  Photographs/Media  Networking contacts  Letters of recommendation/ references

21 Career Portfolio Sections  Management philosophy  Professional goals  Resume  Work samples by skill areas  Works in progress  Community service (transferable skills)  Professional memberships  Degrees, certifications & awards  References

22 Sections: Philosophy and Goals  Mgmt Philosophy-brief description of your beliefs about yourself and the industry (Career Objective Statement)  Career Goals-professional goals for the next 2-5 years

23 Section: Resume  Your resume provides a brief summary of your education and experiences.

24 Section: Skill Areas  Skill areas-tabbed sections containing information on your skills and experiences relating to specific areas Marketing People Management Technology  Target skills desired by companies you are interviewing Job advertisements Job descriptions  Focus on measurable skills Technical skills Soft skills

25 Skill areas that employers want from recent graduates.  Analytical  Communication (Oral & Written)  Computer Skills  Creativity  Decision Making  Flexibility  Interpersonal  Leadership  Listening  Multicultural Understanding  Organizational  Problem Solving  Research  Teamwork  Time Management

26 Work Samples  Work sample-physical examples of your work One for every skill Projects, reports Real work samples preferable to school projects  How do I get them? What are you good at doing? Rummage through your stuff at home and at work for samples Plan to secure work samples

27 Propriety on Work Samples  Do I need to get permission to take copies of my work? If you signed a confidentiality agreement If you are a contractor or employee  Use the templates of your work  Do NOT share proprietary or personal information  Do share letters, customer comments, class or workshop projects

28 Section: Additional Proof  Works in Progress-brief list of works, activities, projects or efforts that are on- going.  Letters of Recommendation-support or reference that verify your abilities in a certain skill area

29 Section: Transferable Skills  Sources Community service Volunteer organizations Avocations (intense hobbies) Intramural activities  Artifacts Letters of recognition Photos of projects completed Programs and brochures

30 Transferable Skills Support…  Soft skills Teamwork Presentation skills Communication skills Attitude Leadership Others

31 Section: Professional Growth  Memberships-member cards, citations, letters  Certifications  Diplomas, Degrees, or Awards-copies of actual recognition received

32 Section: Reference Materials  Academic Plan of Study-list of courses and what you learned in them  Faculty and Employer Biographies- descriptions of the people whose signatures appear throughout—who are they, what do they do  References-list of people who can verify your character, academic record or employment history

33 Group Activity 1. Break into small groups and select an individual to “record” for the group. 2. Pick 3 skills from the list in the next slide. 3. Share experiences with your group, in which you each have developed those 3 skill areas. 4. Identify and lists ways to document that experience in your portfolio. 5. Report out to the group.

34 Skill areas most wanted by employers from recent graduates.  Analytical  Communication (Oral & Written)  Computer Skills  Creativity  Decision Making  Flexibility  Interpersonal  Leadership  Listening  Multicultural Understanding  Organizational  Problem Solving  Research  Teamwork  Time Management

35 Showcase Tips: Paper Portfolio  Include an introduction and table of contents  Organize work samples into skill areas  Keep to a consistent format  Don't include original documents  Don't punch holes in your documents  Number sheet protectors, not contents  Use quality paper & captions to enhance  Create all text on computer  Use a high-quality printer  Don't use too many fonts  Be creative  Tailor your portfolio to include only relevant information to the opportunity you are seeking  Observe a maximum length of artifacts  Consider having a copy of your portfolio or important parts of it to leave behind with an employer

36 When Is It Appropriate to Present Your Portfolio  In an Interview To illustrate skills you are asked to describe As concrete proof of your accomplishments as they relate to the opportunity at hand (Generally do not send with your application package unless requested.)

37 And Also…  In a Job Performance Evaluation To remind the employer of your contributions and accomplishments Focus on the time since your last review Include career highlights, works in progress, group/individual achievements Give to supervisor 2-3 weeks before review

38 Hard Copy vs Electronic HARD COPY  Introduces oneself  Answers questions during interview  Summarizes qualifications ELECTRONIC  To compete for an interview  As additional research for candidates  As follow-up

39 Online Portfolios  Idea 1: Online resumes  Idea 2: Linked resumes  Idea 3: Online portfolio collections

40 Online Resumes

41 Linked resume

42 Close-up view of linked info Period: XX/YY – XX/YY National Agency for Telecommunications (Anatel) Bras í lia, Brazil Telecommunications Engineer XXX (detailed job assignments) XXX Reason for leaving: resigned for personal reasons. Supervisor Contact: Mr. John Boss, (+55 61)

43 Linked Online Resume

44 Resume Link to Created Websites

45 Classic Online Portfolio

46 Purposes of the Portfolio  Self-assessment: who you are and what you want to do  Repository for necessary documents: keeps everything for the career together  Interviewing tool: sell yourself  Performance appraisal tool: show supervisor your work strengths

47 In Summary  Everyone can use a portfolio to manage both their professional or career assets and showcase their potential.  The very act of organizing your portfolio brings clarity to your career direction.  This process requires reflection & analysis.  When you sequence your samples in your portfolio, you begin thinking more broadly about your collection of talents. You think more deeply about who you are.

48 Collect NOW – Sort later  Set up your system Calendar Designated collection point  Schedule your self-review times  Sort later  Think Ahead—you are worth it!

49 Evaluation Questions Use: Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know 1. I found the presentation of material easy to understand. 2. This Discussion session increased my knowledge on the subject presented. 3. I will be able to use some of the information from this Discussion session in the future. 4. The presenter was well prepared for this Discussion session. 5. This presentation should be repeated in future semesters.

50 If you would like to learn more, Career Planning Strategies textbook will supply additional information on this topic.