USAJobs Update: Week Eight

Welcome back to CareerPro Global’s weekly update on the USAJobs.gov site, the Office of Personnel Management’s federal vacancies job site. If you have been following along, you know that OPM is giving USAJobs an overhaul, with the final results on display come October 13. They are supplying weekly weekly updates, which we are happy to pass on to you.

“Open Help Desk Tickets during Transition

“Transition to the new USAJOBS, USAJOBS 3.0 is on its way! Are you awaiting response or assistance for an open Help Ticket submitted to the current USAJOBS? With the pending implementation of USAJOBS 3.0, there may not be an opportunity for your ticket to be addressed before the transition begins. However, the new and improved USAJOBS 3.0 also has an improved Info Center, in fact now it will be called the Resource Center. It is your single source for information on federal employment, eligibility requirements, how to apply for jobs, site help and so much more. So, before you submit a new Help Ticket request, visit the Resource Center for help first!”

Bookmark us so you always know where to come to get straightforward and user-friendly career information. And be sure to come back to CareerPro Global’s blog next week for the next USAJobs update.

“Federal job applicants headed for a better shopping experience”

Big changes are coming to the USAJobs.gov site, and CareerPro Global wants to make sure you are ready for them.

Taken from the 26 September, 2011, edition of GovernmentExecutive.com:

An overhaul of the government’s job application system, set to go live next month, will make finding a federal position more like shopping for shoes, according to an Office of Personnel Management official.

USAJobs 3.0, designed to make the process smoother for potential hires and federal recruiters alike, will debut by Oct. 13. The new system is more user-friendly and follows common conventions found on retail websites, said John Allen, director of integrated hiring systems at OPM. For example, search engine capabilities will be more powerful and the tool bar to refine results will move to the left. Searches also will catch spelling errors, have a “quick-view” pop-up option and provide context in the results, making it easier for users to narrow their focus, he said.

“It’s not intuitive [now],” Allen said. “We had to see it the way we see everything else.”

Job seekers’ interaction with the site will change slightly, depending on what they’re looking for, officials said. Users will be able to “window shop” if they aren’t applying for a specific position, meaning they also won’t have to provide as much information just to set up a USAJobs account. There will be additional data required during the application process, but some questions — such as those on veterans’ preference and special hiring authorities — will pop up only if users have indicated they are eligible. This also will allow agencies to target recruiting efforts, officials said.

According to OPM, all profile information and resumes already in the system will be saved and uploaded to the new site. Saved searches — which trigger email notifications when new jobs are posted — will not be transferred, however. Users will be able to reset their search preferences and make their current resumes searchable as well.

“We’re not getting rid of anything, we’re just moving it to a new shop,” Allen said.

Agencies will have to close all open job announcements before Oct. 6, when the system will be made unavailable to all applicants. The downtime will allow agencies to move data to the new platform built by OPM and create a level playing field for job seekers and human resources staff. According to agency officials, the system could be back up and running as early as Oct. 11.

CareerPro Global Writers Nominated for 2011 TORI Awards

This week Career Directors International (CDI) announced the nominees of the 2011 TORI Awards, also known as the Toast of the Resume Industry. CareerPro Global is very proud that four of our writers were nominated for the Best Military Conversion Resume Award. Meet our nominees below and help us extend our hardy and sincere congratulations to them all. CareerPro Global and the very satisfied clients who have worked with this talented quartet of writers know they are winners.

Are you a service person about to make the jump from the military into the civilian world and are not sure where to start your job search?  Give us a call. We not only hold certification that shows we are the best in the business, our fantastic nominees prove it. Let us help you be a winner too.

Lee K., CareerPro Global, Inc.

Lee is a member of CPG’s senior writing team, and holds the Master Federal Career Coach and Master Military Resume Writer credentials. He is also our Director of Veterans Transitions and maintains the blog Veterans Transition HQ (www.veteranstransitionhq.wordpress.com). Lee is a highly versatile writer with nine years of professional experience, and he has collaborated with a diverse range of people. He understands military and government service extremely well, since he worked his way from Private to Captain during his 14 years in the Army. He spent six of those years as a commissioned officer, including a year in Ramadi, Iraq as a Signal Officer (2005-2006). With his unique combination of writing talent, military leadership experience, and contagious optimism, Lee is the kind of writer you want working for you.

Nancy S., CareerPro Global, Inc.

Nancy specializes in the development of senior-level federal government resumes and application packages, including Senior Executive Service (SES), Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs), Technical Qualifications (TQs), and KSAs.  She is a senior freelance writer for federal job applicants, specializing in developing successful Senior Executive Service packages on behalf of clients since 2005 and has contributed to written/published and widely used guides on obtaining federal employment. A trainer for numerous federal agencies specializing in human resources, including hiring, interviewing, and resume preparation,  Nancy held a variety of Federal Human Resources Management positions as a supervisor and senior in-house consultant for the U.S. Treasury Department, Department of the Interior, and Department of Defense over a 30-year career.

Joseph L. T., CareerPro Global, Inc.

Joseph is a Certified Master Career Coach who specializes in translating corporate and military experience into government terms. He offers personal service to help you navigate the complex government application process, up to and including Senior Executive Service (SES) positions. Joseph receives numerous referrals and top ratings from satisfied clients. With prior experience working in Human Resources (HR) and as an IT Recruiter, Joseph understands exactly how your resume will be reviewed and evaluated by HR personnel at every level. His IT experience adds to his expertise on the online federal government application process. Joseph has written more than a thousand resumes for various diverse positions, as well as hundreds of responses to application essay questions. Whether you are transitioning out of the military, seeking a job in the corporate world, pursuing a job with the federal government, or want a solid resume for your next government promotion, Joseph will take the time to understand your experience and craft a resume that will stand out against the competition.

USAJobs Update: Week Seven

Welcome back to CareerPro Global’s weekly update on the USAJobs.gov site, the Office of Personnel Management’s federal vacancies job site.  If you have been following along,  you know that OPM is giving USAJobs an overhaul, with the final results on display come October. They are supplying weekly weekly updates, which we are happy to pass on to you.

“Your documents in the current USAJOBS

“Wondering what’s going to happen to your uploaded documents in the current USAJOBS? During the USAJOBS transition, which is scheduled for October 6-12, 2011, nearly 5 billion rows of data (to include your documents) will be extracted, scanned for viruses, validated, and subjected to integrity testing before it is loaded into the new USAJOBS. To ensure your documents complete the transfer, USAJOBS recommends the following:

“1) Ensure your current uploaded documents are not corrupt. Corrupt and/or contaminated documents that cannot be repaired or cleaned during the transition, will be quarantined and not imported into the new USAJOBS.

“2) Establish three secret questions prior to the transition to ensure your current account and its associated documents can be linked once your identity is validated when logging into USAJOBS for the first time following the transition.

“3) Ensure that you can still access the email account associated with your USAJOBS profile. Without the secret questions, seekers will need to establish a password for the new USJAOBS via that email account. Once the seeker’s identity is validated, the current account and any associated documents will be linked to the new profile.”

If you’ve been putting off updating your profile information on the USAJobs site, now’s the time to do it. October 13 will be here before you know it.

Bookmark us so you always know where to come to get straightforward and user-friendly career information. And be sure to come back to CareerPro Global’s blog  next week for the next USAJobs update.

Update from United States Navy: DON CHART Resume Transition to USAJOBS

CareerPro Global is glad to pass on the new many have been waiting for in regard to the CHARTS move to USAJobs. The text below is copied directly from an e-mail sent today by the Department of the Navy, Civilian Human Resources:

Navy CHARTS Transitions to USAjobs – Sept 30, 2011

Subject: DON CHART Resume Transition to USAJOBS

In an ongoing effort to improve the applicant experience, the DON will be replacing the CHART application system with the USAJOBS online system.  USAJOBS is the federal government’s official one-stop source for federal jobs and employment information.

After September 30, 2011, all DON job vacancies will be posted on the USAJOBS website and the CHART job search functionality and job vacancies will be removed.

For non Department of the Defense (DoD) employees, CHART will no longer be accessible after October 12, 2011.    If you are a DoD or DON employee you may access CHART via a computer on a registered Government network (which may also require CAC authentication) until 30 December, 2011.   Only resume and status information will be available for view.

DON will no longer use DON nation wide Open Continuous Announcements (OCAs) to gather applications for upcoming and anticipated vacancies. Most vacancies will be filled using individual vacancy announcements with identified closing dates.  For frequently filled jobs at a particular DON installation or activity, activity specific OCAs may be opened.  You can be notified via email for posted vacancy announcements by using the USAJOBS Saved Searches feature.

PREPARING FOR THE MOVE

1. Before September 30, 2011, you should access your CHART account at https://chart.donhr.navy.mil/ and print and save an electronic copy of your online CHART resume.

2. Create a USAJOBS account at www.usajobs.gov and either upload a resume or build a resume using your current CHART resume information. The DON created a specific fact sheet outlining the key steps to transfer your information. It is available at www.public.navy.mil/DONHR/employment/hiringreform.  (Please note that USAJOBS will be down for a major upgrade from 6 to 13 October 2011.)

3. Check out the online applicant tool kit and frequently asked questions located at www.public.navy.mil/donhr/Employment/hiringreform/Pages/ApplicantToolkit.aspx.

4. Explore USAJOBS and its different features, create saved searches for jobs of interest and locations, sign-up to receive email alerts for when announcements are posted.

5. Non DoD employees:  Before October 12, 2011, make a final check of CHART information and any related status updates.

6. DoD and DON employees:  Before December 30, 2011, make a final check of CHART information and any related status updates.

Specific questions regarding your CHART account can be sent to CHART@navy.mil; questions on the transition to USAJOBS should be sent to DONhrfaq@navy.mil.

Department of the Navy
Civilian Human Resources