{Green Careers} July 2014 Recap – Writing Skills

Article by Louisa Chan Photos by Keith Wong   Job seekers of all types from students and recent graduates to seasoned professional looking to make a career change gathered for GreenHomeNYC’s latest Green Careers meeting to hear green industry veterans share their insight on the hiring process and written communication. Over 20 participants attended the event which was hosted at the offices of Green Light New York on Tuesday, July 8, 2014.   The evening included advice from Andy Padian, Vice President for Energy Initaitives for The Community Preservation Corporation and Board Member of GreenHomeNYC.  Mr. Padian, who has more than 30 years of sustainable energy experience, shared his insights on how to get a resume past the human resources gate. He reminded participants that a resume is a 1 page magazine advertisement that should bring people back for more. He emphasized the importance of having a clean resume and cover letter free of grammar and spelling errors.  

Photo by Keith Wong

  Bomee Jung, Interim Director for Enterprise Community Partners and founder of GreenHomeNYC cautioned against using new or unfamiliar vocabulary in your resume or cover letter. Instead, Ms Jung recommended using your own words and following basic paragraph structures in cover letters. On interviewing, “Have a clear story of who you are, what you want and why you want to be there,” advised Ms. Jung. If you are unsure of what you want to do, spend time conducting informational interviews with those in your networks.  

Photo by Keith Wong

  A great way to get informational interviews is to attend networking events and always have a 30 second elevator pitch ready, suggested Mr. Padian. Casual conversations with new connections can often be the starting point to a request for an informational interview.   By the end of the night participants walked away with a list of informative resume, interviewing and career advice and gathered informally for more networking and to discuss what they learned.   Article by Louisa Chan Photos by Keith Wong ——————————————————————————————————————————

The GHNYC Green Careers group provides informational resources and networking opportunities for individuals looking to break into the sustainability and energy-efficiency field. Our meetings occur on the first Tuesday of each month. Visitwww.greenhomenyc.org for updates and email [email protected] with questions.

Interested in volunteering with GHNYC? We have Volunteer Orientation & Meet-ups on the last Tuesday of every month. For more information or to attend the next meeting, email our volunteer coordinator Tad Kroll: [email protected].