By Dan Simmons

With a new year upon us, this is the opportune time for fresh starts.  When it comes to your career, this question begs for an answer : “Does your fresh start for 2012 involve your current employer . . . or another opportunity?” Time for an employer audit!

There’s a good chance that, like most people, you’re continually seeking ways to enhance your career.  For some employees, they have chances to do that at their current company.  However, for some employees, that’s simply not the case.

What about you?  Are you looking forward to 2012 and tackling the challenges and taking advantage of the opportunities that await you where you are now?  Are you unsure about those challenges and opportunities awaiting you —or question whether they exist at all?

Asking the right questions

If you’re not 100% sure that where you are is where you should be, then it might be time to audit your current employer.  What does that mean?  It means taking a hard look at your current situation and asking questions about your employer that you may not have considered before, questions like the ones listed below:

  • Are there opportunities for advancement?  If so, what are those opportunities?  Are you able to engage those opportunities?  If not, why not?
  • Does your employer have clearly defined goals for future achievement and success?  If so, what is your role in those goals?  What specifically will you contribute to the pursuit of those goals?
  • Are you excited about going to work every day?  Is the company culture conducive to creating (and cultivating) excitement among its employees?  Do you enjoy what you do (i.e., your tasks and responsibilities) on a daily basis?
  • What kind of work/life balance does your current position afford you?  Is there truly a balance, or is the situation more lopsided than you would like it to be?  If so, will you be able to regain a satisfactory balance in the near future?  And how will you regain it?

Your answers to these questions will better help you to figure out where you stand in your current employment position.  In other words, they will help you to audit your current employer and determine your best course of action.  The course of action you plot could involve a shot at a promotion or it could mean a move to a new employer, one that will provide you with the advancement—and the satisfaction—that you’re looking for. However, that action plan takes shape, make a decision to take a hard look hard at your career goals and plan to make that dream job a real situation.

Dan Simmons Bio

Dan SimmonsDaniel C. Simmons is a Certified Personnel Consultant who has been recruiting since 1991. Dan has won over twenty awards in the last decade with the Top Echelon Network, America’s leading placement network including Placer of the Year in 2009 & 2010.

Frequently Dan also is a recruiter trainer and has been featured at various Top Echelon Conventions and online as a speaker for various webinars. He has also been published in The Fordyce Letter the recruiting industry’s #1 magazine.

Are You Looking For a Job? Contact Dan Today!