professional Archives - The Wilson Group

Home / professional

CFO/Controller

Send your confidential resume to wgrupe@thewilsongrp.com

Regional and well-established retail and wholesale distribution company with deep Texas roots is seeking a CFO/Controller for their Coastal Bend corporate offices. In this capacity you will:

Set the company’s financial strategy and direction
Oversee and drive team to achieve mutually agreed goals
Prepare and analyze company financials and road map with management

Qualifications:

Previous experience in a Controller position with strong analysis & budgeting responsibilities
Exp. in inter-company transactions
Strong reconciliation skills
Exp. in an inventory-driven environment a +
Ability to handle pressure
Proficiency in Excel
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
10+ yrs. accounting experience, CPA preferred.

Are you tired of the “Big Bank” bureaucracy and looking for a pleasant community banking environment in rural Central Texas?

Contact Anne Wilson at 361-883-3535 or awilson@thewilsongrp.com

If you are from the area, this is a great opportunity for a banking commercial lender to advance within a team-oriented, community bank environment, where there are no limitations on sales territory if the potential customer lives in Texas.

The role you’ll play:

Take care of customers
Grow the bank and your portfolio
Participate in community organizations and activities

Background Profile:

Expertise in Commercial Lending within a bank
5++ years’ experience in banking as a loan officer
BS or BBA in Finance/Banking/Business or equivalent experience

Compensation:

Well above Standard + annual performance bonus
Cell Phone allowance

Spring Cleaning Social Media

Believe it or not, when searching through potential job candidates, employers do check personal social media accounts. Regardless of if you have an award-winning resume or stellar references, unprofessional social media posts could be the deciding factor between being hired or not. We’ve compiled some tips for cleaning up your social media, hopefully helping you turn it from personal to professional.

Facebook:

With both personal posts and photos available for perusing, Facebook is a great place to start your spring social media cleaning. First impressions are important, meaning the first things employers will see when reviewing your profile is your profile picture and cover photo. Go through these images, deleting anything an employer would find unprofessional: photos showing alcohol, various stages of undress, inappropriate gestures, and offensive terms or slurs in comments should be deleted. Next, visit the privacy page located under settings. Facebook’s privacy settings let you customize who can see your posts. The default setting is that everyone, regardless of if they are your friends on Facebook or not, can see what you post. We recommend changing this setting to “Only Friends”, meaning only your friends on Facebook can see your posts. Chances are, employers will not be your friends on Facebook during the job search, nor will they add you. Next, review your Activity Log. All activity on Facebook is compiled here; take a while to go through these posts, deleting anything inappropriate.

Twitter:

Like Facebook, Twitter accounts have a profile picture and cover photo. Make sure these pictures are appropriate. If they’re not, change them. Though it may be a tedious process, personal tweets could contain compromising content. Take the time to check for and delete any unsuitable tweets, including those with bad language or crude images.

LinkedIn:

Because of its professional nature, LinkedIn is much easier to monitor than Facebook and Twitter. However, to reach your maximum professional potential on Linkedin, it’s important to make sure your information and job experiences are up to date. Exercise some self restraint on what you post, however. There’s no need to post every job and skill you’ve ever had, rather list the most important and recent ones. Consider using a headshot for your profile picture. If you don’t have one, it may be a good idea to have one taken professionally. If you decide that you would rather take one yourself, make sure it is done well. Dress to impress, stand in a well lit area against a solid colored background, and ask a friend to photograph you from the shoulders up.

8 Things You Should Know About Millennials in the Job Market

You may be hearing more and more about of the term “Millennials” when discussing job searching these days. That is because this group of individuals is are currently taking over the work force. Millennials include everyone born from 1982 to 2000, which is roughly 70 million Americans. Though you might not think it is wise to hire a twenty-something right out of college with less experience, you should give it another look. Before discounting all of these Generation Y’ers as “kids”, here are 8 things you should know about them.

1. They like flexible work spaces. Millennials are constantly connected, whether it be to a laptop, tablet or smartphone. Last month, oDesk reported that about 90 percent of Millennials are interested in flexible work arrangements. Being connected all the time leaves room for millennials to leave the office and work from home or the local coffee shop.

2. They’re technologically inclined. The most definitive feature of millennials is their knowledge and immersion in technology. Millennials have a knowledge of computers and social media far beyond that of older generations because this technology is already part of their lives. It might even save money on tech support if you hire employees that cannot remember life without internet.

3. They may be cost efficient. People that graduate during a recession are much more likely to settle on a starting salary. This gives applicants with less experience a lower price tag than those that are more qualified. Depending on the position, a lower price tag with a little extra training might be exactly what you need.

4. They’re adaptive. With the economy as it is today, there is no telling what the future will bring. Millennials thrive on this mindset. They welcome change and can adapt to fit the needs of the job. Millennials are also more willing to learn new about technology, and are constantly up to date from internet news sources.

5. They’re team players and love to collaborate. They share ideas through all kinds of social media sites and internet databases. This skill makes millennials ideal candidates for group work, large projects and collaboration.

6. They are ambitious. According to an article in The Atlantic, productivity has significantly increased since 1995, while wages have stayed about the same. This means millennials are working much harder for the same pay. Millennials also value career progression and personal growth above all other factors in their current job.

7. They’re impatient. Millenials want answers right now. Most of this is due to the accessibility to the internet, but if millennials want an answer to a question they find it immediately. This makes them virtual bloodhounds on the researching front. However, this aversion to ambiguity also causes impatience for questions to be answered by others in the workplace.

8. They like helping the community. Millennials love green initiatives. According to the Rapid Learning Institute, 50% of millennials have done some sort of community service in the past year. Include an environmental effort or charitable cause and millennials find a sense of pride in their work and feel that sense of meaning. They have a need for a meaningful job and prioritize meaningful work over pay or achievement.

Individuals in the “millennial” category are different from any other demographic in the workplace. Whether you find this good or bad, it is a reality. Millennials are here to stay and adjusting your workplace or hiring a millennial might be just what you need.

What do you think of millennials? Let us know! Also, be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for even more updates!

Professional Networking

Networking is often a tool that goes unused during a job search. Yes, it may be intimidating reaching out to others. However with the market now flooded with plenty of candidates, employers are finding more value in applicants with trusted, mutual connections. By properly utilizing connections, your chances of receiving a job offer are increased. So how do you network?

Use LinkedIn…correctly!

First, understand that LinkedIn is not just another social media platform. Use your account professionally. Join networks that are relevant to your field and previous experience. Start discussions that are professional and thought provoking. Also, use an appropriate picture. Be sure your profile picture is not pixelated or grainy. Make the investment to have a nice professional photo taken by a friend or photographer in good lighting. Make sure the picture is appropriate for your industry, and that you are presenting yourself the way you would like to be seen by your potential employer. Your picture should be memorable, not boring.

Maintain your connections

Don’t overwhelm your contacts, but also don’t underutilize them. There should be a healthy balance of communication with the people in your network. Avoid constantly emailing or calling a particular person, but communicate with them often enough so they remember who you are.

Get involved

Join professional organizations around your area that relate to your field. Not only is this a resume booster, but you will get to know other professionals around the area. Also, see if your alma mater has an alumni association in town that meets regularly. Who knows, maybe one of your former college classmates could be the key to finding your dream position.

Networking is great both during a job search and after one. Even after you have a job, maintaining your network can be a great way to know other professionals and industries. You never know when you may need to utilize those connections again!

We hope this advice helps you in your job search and through your professional career. Also, be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for even more updates!

Are You Sabotaging Your Job Search?

Not getting any job offers? Frustrated with how long your job search is taking? Ask yourself the following questions to be sure your are not sabotaging your job search.

1. Do you only look when you’re desperate?
Never stop networking, even when you’re at your dream job. You never know what might happen, and if you have an updated LinkedIn page and you’ve kept up with your connections, a recruiter may be contacting you before you’re even looking for a job.

2. Are you bringing up money too soon?
Don’t let hiring managers think that you’re more interested in how much the job pays. Money is a delicate subject and don’t ask too soon, or you may turn off your hiring manager.

3. Have you talked bad about your last company?
Always be professional. That means no bashing your last company, no matter what your feelings are. Don’t let hiring managers think that you might do the same after you leave their company as well.

4. Is your resume the length of a Tolstoy novel?
Short, sweet, and to the point. Only include what’s relevant. You need your resume to be attention-grabbing. Not dread-causing.

5. Have you forgotten your manners?
Always write a thank-you note after an interview. E-mail AND handwritten. This is your chance to say anything you didn’t say during your interview.

6. Have you harrassed your hiring manager for answers?
No one enjoys the child on the road trip constantly asking “Are we there yet?” So don’t be that person to hiring managers. If you got the job, they will contact you.

7. What comes up when you Google yourself?
Always double-check what comes up when you Google yourself. If your social media pages/websites are anything but professional, that will definitely hurt your chances of getting the job.

8. Are you too picky?
Are you only applying to jobs with a certain job title at a certain company? Expand your job search and your options. Don’t limit yourself based on salary. Yes, you should know what salary range you’d want, but also keep in mind things that help if salary isn’t quite ideal: benefits, hours, vacation, etc.

9. Are you unwilling to take chances on contract/temporary work?
This could really help you get to networking within a company. Many companies will hire people who have worked temporarily for them after seeing the difference they make in the company. It is always a good thing to do to get your foot in the door.

10. Are you too self-obsessed?
If you walk into an interview embittered by application rejections and a lack of job offers, you’re most likely thinking “what’s in this for me?” Well, don’t. Companies are trying to find the best fit for the position, and you need to prove that to them.

So have you been doing these things? If so, then it is OK. Now you know what to do to make sure that you’re job-searching properly.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more updates!