Texas now accounts for 48 percent of U.S. oil and gas rigs and nearly a quarter of the world’s rigs with 848 open working rigs in the state. With the job boom from the oil and gas industry, many jobs are opening up. We have found that about 1,500 jobs were added from June to July in the Corpus Christi area, alone. This increase dropped the unemployment rate to 6.3 percent. This is much lower than the national unemployment rate of 7.4 percent. Last year the unemployment rate was 7.0 percent for the Corpus Christi area July 2012.
With all of these new jobs opening up in the South Texas area, being informed in your job search is more important than ever. Since so many jobs are becoming available in the area, you will need to be vigilant in finding a career that will fit your skills and ambitions. You should come to your interview armed with the right questions to ask your potential employer.
What do you expect me to accomplish in the first 2 or 3 months I work here?
This question shows the employer you are ready to work and gives you a good look at what the employer will expect from you. It is important to know what skills you will be expected to have when you first start your job to see if that position is best suited for your level of experience.
What are some key traits you expect someone in this position to have?
This question will tell your employer that you are in this job long-term; that you hope to be a good employee and make this position the best that it can be. The answer the employer gives will tell you more about the job. If the employer says you will need to be “creative” or “independent” you will probably be on your own. If they say you need to be “patient” or a “leader” it could mean the opposite.
Do you like working here? What made you choose to work here?
The answers or lack of an answer to these questions will tell you quite a bit about the company. Though you might love the company as an outsider, the interviewer can give you an insiders perspective. The interviewer will also like to reflect on their own opinions to answer this question. If they like their job, this should be easy.
What improvements or changes would you like a new person to bring into this position?
This question can fill the potential employer with optimism. It will help them to think about how this position can help their company to grow. The answers will tell you how the employer wants the business to grow and how you will be utilized.
How do you plan to deal with…?
There will always be challenges in any field. This challenge may have to do with new technology or shifting economic trends. If this is a job created in the South Texas boom, you may want to ask what will happen when the boom ends and how your employer will deal with that challenge. This will show your employer that you care about the company for the long run. The answers will tell you how the employer deals with change, how stable your job is in the future, and what the employer’s long term plans are for the company.
We hope this advice helps you with your job search. Be sure to Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more tips and information!
