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If Barack Obama inspired you so much that after voting for him you now want to work for him, there are thousands of jobs to be had in the new administration.
There are coveted presidential appointments and a huge array of staff positions. But you have to start the ball rolling right now, especially if you weren’t an integral part of the presidential campaign.
You can head over to the newly minted Web site for the Obama transition team and fill out an application for a job right on the site. But like traditional job sites, this strategy probably won’t get you very far. Getting a job with the new administration is pretty much like getting any job: It’s all about connections.
Samuel Mok landed a job as comptroller for the Treasury Department under President Reagan, and he also went on to work for both Presidents George Bush and George W. Bush.
He had worked in corporate America and then became a foreign service officer prior to applying for the comptroller’s job after spotting it in a newspaper ad in the late 1980s.
“It’s a highly competitive process,” Mok says. “For every position, there are countless numbers of people wanting the job. The more allies you can bring to table, the better chance you have.”
Work those connections
Those allies come from connections you may have established working or volunteering for the Obama campaign, or the ones you make now using some detective work and your existing network of contacts.
Strategies to land a job with the administration are varied depending on where you are in your career trajectory.
If you’re just out of college, some experts suggest heading to Washington and volunteering for any position you can get.
“My advice to 20-somethings is to move to Washington, D.C., and work for either the presidential transition or the inauguration,” says Michael Gordon, who worked on President Clinton’s transition team and now runs Group Gordon, a public relations firm. “You generally have to start off as a volunteer, but if you’re persistent and patient, those volunteer jobs turn into paying jobs and then administration jobs.”
For midlevel career types, the key is working your contacts, connecting with key local presidential campaign organizers, and clearly linking your experience to your desired position or department.
Find the job you want, says Mok, “and then figure out who you know and work the channels and openly lobby for that job.”
Last week, the Obama camp released information about its transition team, including names of key staff members.
Knowing this information gives you an inside view of who will be running the show. Now you can figure out if you have any connections with these individuals by using sites such as LinkedIn or Facebook. You can try to contact them directly or contact one of their friends, or friends of friends.
Another key is figuring out what Obama will be concentrating on when he takes over the White House, says Kathryn Troutman, president of The Resume Place Inc. and author of the “Federal Resume Guidebook.”
“Typically, presidents write a whole plan on what they plan to do, their big ideas, and that’s included in the president’s agenda that’s published on the White House Web site,” she says. (Take a look at President Bush’s agenda to get a feel for how this works.)
Troutman estimates that an Obama agenda will show up on the Web site within the first 90 days.
So where do you find what jobs are available?
The jobs may pop up on basic job listing sites, but there are specific portals with the bulk of these federal positions.
One of the best sources, Troutman says, is USAJOBS. “These are not presidential appointee positions, they are federal civil service positions, but all of the people who hold competitive service positions perform services in support of the president’s agenda,” she says.
Troutman expects there will be numerous financial jobs within the government given the recent call for more regulations of the financial sector. So that means federal agencies will be hiring for various positions, including inspectors, auditors, accountants or compliance officers.
Health care jobs will also be in abundance, she predicts, in everything from Medicare to Veterans Affairs.
Another source for federal jobs, according to Matt Eventoff, communications strategist with PPS Associates/Princeton Public Speaking in New Jersey, is something called the “Plum Book” released at the change of each administration. Although this has not been updated for the new president, you can see past ones here.
The Plum Book includes job descriptions and even pay scales for different positions.
Since the party running the White House has changed, Eventoff expects that there will be lots of turnover in a host of government jobs.
Revamp that resume
Don’t expect Obama to make the job selections himself, Eventoff adds, aside from the highest-level posts.
The ones making the decisions for the thousands of other positions will be the president’s transition team. There will also be advisory committees named for particular federal agencies and departments, Eventoff says. If you can find someone who knows someone in these groups, you’ll have an advantage over the thousands of other applicants that will surely be vying for the jobs. If you have contacts who know any of the early Obama appointees, now is a good time to send them your resume.
Speaking of resumes, it’s time to revamp yours if you’ve only worked in the private sector.
“The average federal resume is three to four pages, while a private sector resume is two or less,” says resume expert Troutman. “You have to put in more details in a federal resume to demonstrate you have specific qualifications for the job.”
Resumes for federal jobs, she says, have to clearly spell out specialized experience at a salary level that was equal to what the federal job will be paying.
Once your resume is sent and your contacts are milked, patience will indeed be a virtue as you try and secure a job with the new president, says Gordon.
During the Clinton years, he says, about 3,000 administrative appointments had to be filled. The process took months to complete.
“If you have any relevant policy experience, or political experience, or a particular skill set the administration can draw on, that will give you a leg up,” Gordon says.
The first thing you have to ask yourself is if you’re committed to the new commander in chief’s legacy, says Mok, because government work consists of long hours for not great pay.
“There are two reasons worth serving,” he continues. “You want to understand how the American government works, and you want to help Obama be successful.”
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{"commentId":4011751,"authorDomain":"drcaddy"}
OR, you can be like a good Kentucky democrat-and simply arrange for the collective family contribution of several hundred thousand to the Obama campaign-That will get you an "Ambassador" gig-"Change"? Yeah, right!!!! More of the same, just a different name.
{"commentId":4011751,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"drcaddy"}
- 1 vote
#26 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:44 AM EST{"commentId":4011775,"authorDomain":"katzleo"}
As I mentioned earlier, some people won't have to worry about jobs. I heard the President Elect is working on providing manna to his unemployed supporters. With their manna and their tax return based on no income all will be well. For the rest of us, we will know it is our patriotic duty and we will be glad to share with others. Life in the Utopian States of America will ge good.
{"commentId":4011775,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"katzleo"}
- 2 votes
#27 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:48 AM EST{"commentId":4012184,"authorDomain":"cswharton2001"}
Since when is there a big turnover in government workers? Every government employee I've ever known have worked their jobs since hector was a pup! And, how about that job description...........wanted: Employee's with PhD, willing to work long hours and deal with @!$%#s for minimum wage.
This country has been run by the Bushs and Clinton's for the last 20 years and the next 4 years will make it 24...........are we better off? Will anything 'change'...........I think not!
{"commentId":4012184,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"cswharton2001"}
- 2 votes
#28 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:11 AM EST{"commentId":4013680,"authorDomain":"twobanjonuts"}
Tired, know exactly what your talking about. Met and worked on a house for a PHD Engineer (did't even know there was such a thing) who oversaw the eight Nuclear plants being build here in the US.
Under Carter he was replaced by a black girl with a B.S. degree (sociology I beleive), an appointment, who was so inept at the congressional hearings that the projects were shut down. This means that billions of killowatts of power (much less in $$ than oil, coal, gas, etc) were denied the American People, and now we just had another wakeup call with the $4 gas prices. You don't think that they will not return again? Your in denial!
This is a classic case of Presidental appointment gone astray......
{"commentId":4013680,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"twobanjonuts"}
- 1 vote
#29 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 8:48 AM EST{"commentId":4018906,"authorDomain":"alamo-1"}
Work for Obama? I'd rather work for a monkey. I wouldn't work for that POS if you paid me a million dollars an hour! He makes the perfect case for abortion.
{"commentId":4018906,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"alamo-1"}
- 2 votes
#30 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 2:05 PM EST{"commentId":4022175,"authorDomain":"skipster56"}
I'm thinking about going to work for Obama. I am considering going on Welfare and food stamps and Government housing. Sounds like a great pay plan to me.
{"commentId":4022175,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"skipster56"}
- 2 votes
#31 - Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:59 PM EST{"commentId":4027761,"authorDomain":"highnoon777"}
Great idea. I bet unemployment would be a lot lower if everyone just volunteered for their jobs, especially the rich college grads.
{"commentId":4027761,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"highnoon777"}
#32 - Wed Nov 12, 2008 1:39 AM EST{"commentId":4046873,"authorDomain":"pvbattaglia"}
This article is worthless.
{"commentId":4046873,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"pvbattaglia"}
#33 - Thu Nov 13, 2008 10:18 AM EST{"commentId":4051856,"authorDomain":"bogeiger"}
Let's everyone work for our Gov. they are doing such a great job at all they do. No one will need a job BEFORE LONG just food. I would love for someone to tell me just one thing our government does to earn a $$$. WAKE UPPPP
{"commentId":4051856,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"bogeiger"}
#34 - Thu Nov 13, 2008 3:27 PM EST{"commentId":4069153,"authorDomain":"jlgab"}
If you need a job consider this: it appears there are plenty of jobs in the gun industry.
As people should have to pass an IQ test in order to have children, so should people have to pass an IQ test to own a gun.
For up to now, people never needed automatic guns, especially during the past 8 years of an idiotic dictator. NOW all of a sudden a Democratic is in office and well now they have to buy a gun they have yet to want or need. There is absolutely NO COMMON SENSE here. The only statement being made is how stupid some people are. Like it is too much to ask of people to not buy one or two types of guns just to see if crime decreases, especially when there are thousands of guns they can still buy! Good Grief! Stop the Insanity! Stop the Inbreeding!
Just what we do NOT need, a bunch of pissed-off hateful (no doubt some inbred) fanatics running wild armed with guns!
{"commentId":4069153,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"jlgab"}
#35 - Fri Nov 14, 2008 6:21 PM EST{"commentId":4099510,"authorDomain":"Theojt08"}
Oh Jodi, Jodi, Jodi,
Let's review your statements (permit me to paraphrase for brevity's sake):
(1) People never needed automatic guns.
(2) People are buying guns they don't need.
(3) People who buy guns have no common sense.
(4) If said people don't buy one or two typs of guns, crime may decrease.
(5) People who buy guns are inbred.
(1) People never needed automatic guns.
Umm, the original patent for an automatic weapon was filed in May of 1917 so automatic weapons have been around for a very long time. As far as the "need" argument - a lot of people don't "need" a Mercedes, Lexus, BMW or an SUV - still, they choose them for transport based on their own personal reasons. Likewise, some people choose Pepsi over Coke - who knows why? It's crazy, I know. Before you ask: I drink mostly Coke but sometimes I drink Pepsi. Hmmm.
(2) People are buying guns they don't need.
And need is determined by who - you? The government? The police? Perhaps you missed the history classes that explained exactly why we DO need guns. I suggest you do some research, or perhaps read an American history book. The right to bear arms keeps the government from becoming tyrannical. Thomas Jefferson said it best:
"When the government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny." -Thomas Jefferson
(3) People who buy guns have no common sense.
Personal opinion but the people I know who buy guns have LOTS of common sense. They are some of the most sincere, considerate, and moderate people I know. They are not crazed idiots looking to shoot something....they are responsible citizens who value their family and are willing to protect them to the gravest extreme. I could easily make the point that people who DON"T buy guns have no common sense. Let's look at Hurricane Katrina - where some (less than ethical) members of the police force left and/or joined in on the looting, Those upright law enforcement officers remaining could not possibly defend the thousands upon thousands of people left homeless, helpless, and completely vulnerable to all matter of criminal vermin. I surely would welcome a weapon at my side during such a civil emergency.
(4) If said people don't buy one or two types of guns, crime may decrease.
Crime HAS decreased - particularly in those cities and states where concealed carry of weapons is allowed. Look at the cities that have strictly banned handguns like DC, Philadelphia, Chicago- these cities are among those with the highest violent crime rates per capita in the entire country! So it doesn't seem like your argument of less guns equals less crimes holds much water. Looks more like violent criminals prey on those they know cannot defend themselves. Again, a few Google searches will reveal worlds of information for your perusal and understanding.
(5) People who buy guns are insane, inbred fanatics.
I won't dignify this with any further comment. Your words speak for you better than I could.
Please, don't just listen to the rhetoric promulgated by those with socialistic agendas- do your own research, question everything, validate everything on your own, FOR YOURSELF. It all will become much clearer, I promise!
All the best to you.
{"commentId":4099510,"threadId":"414626","contentId":"2092474","authorDomain":"Theojt08"}
#36 - Mon Nov 17, 2008 5:00 PM EST{"canLink":false,"threadId":"414626","isPrivate":false}
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