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I can tell you how I did it. I walked into the CIA’s Office of Personnel and asked to fill out the “I Resign” form. It’s actually called something else that I’ve since forgotten (Form XP-39e?) but it does exist. It wasn’t quite as easy as quitting a job at Starbucks but the concept (dreamed up by Hollywood, no doubt) that “once you’re in you can never get out” is preposterous. Granted, there was additional paperwork to complete, a couple of exit interviews and a re-signing of my secrecy agreement, but it was all relatively quick and painless. Admittedly, it might be a bit more problematic if you are, for example, employed by the North Korean intel service or that of some other totalitarian regime. But, in essence, CIA is just another U.S. government bureaucracy like the EPA or the Department of Agriculture (how come no one ever claims you “can’t leave” those guys?) and the procedures and regulations are much the same.Home#LeavingTheEspionageBiz

Let’s discuss 10 red flags to watch for within the first 3 months of your job. 3 months gives you ample time to find. My credentials for this answer: 20+ years in the corporate America cube farm. Fortune 500, mid-level, and start-ups. Ready…Let’s go get it.Has your job, in the first few weeks, suddenly morphed into something different from the job role on your employment contract? And, if you call management out on it, and they use silly phrases like not “being flexible”. Congratulations, you’ve found your first red flagAside: If you learn nothing else from this post, read this: “Flexible” and “Team Player” mean do more work, but not get paid for it. Learn this quickly. Because the most important thing every morning is waking up, looking in the mirror, and being able to respect yourself.If you work in a job as a “doer”, such as developer, builder of things, etc., do you find yourself booked up in many meetings? Then congratulations, you’ve discovered a red flag. “Doers” should not be in too many meetings. Because gasp…they need time to actually do stuff. If management cannot squash this early so you can do what you do best, you’ve found yourself at a mismanaged company.In the first few weeks of joining a company, do you notice lots of “cliques” and keep running into “unexpected, unspoken rules?” If so, you’ve dug up another red flag.I remember working at a company years back, doing development. In my interview, I was crystal clear…”I don’t like filling out a lot of paperwork to push code. I just want to code, test quickly, and push it out there.” Alas, 3 weeks after getting hired, management “revealed” that every code push needs a 3 page document filled out, a web form filled out, 3 layers of approval, just to get a change in. It’s ridiculous. The more red tape, the bigger the red flag.Does your company push “social-time” off hours and unnecessary get-togethers? Do they push, and I mean push charities, social justice groups, and other hootenanny garbage? Congratulations, you’ve found another red flag. Nowhere in any standard employment contract anywhere, does it state you must be active with charity, social justice causes, and any of that other garbage. Nor should it, because none of that has one iota to do with your job and the company making money. Not one iota. So if it’s pushed on you, run for the hills.Does your company value “in-office” time more than they do accomplishments during your work hours? If so, you’ve found another archaic, and detrimental red-flag. If I get 8 hours of work done in 2 hours, then what I do after that shouldn’t matter. Because, it’s not like corporate will pay you more for additional effort. Great bosses will let you leave early and give flex time when you pump out work quickly.Do scheduled meetings always run over time, or start late, or both? Congratulations, you’ve found another red-flag. Time wasters. Also, meetings, especially corporate meetings, are notorious for posturing and politics. And if you aren't a fan of meetings like me, then this is a HUGE red flag. Meetings should have an agenda, allow no rambling, and get to the point quick. As in, who is doing what, who needs help, and when can we expect things to get done. That’s it. No more.Are you having a hard time finding a document about annual raises and bonuses? As in, you do “x” and “y”, and this is how you advance. And when you ask about it, does your manager hem and haw or avoid the subject. Congratulations, you’ve found another red flag found at 90% or more of corporate jobs.Does the majority of people at or above your level use unnecessary buzz words to describe something? As in, can you find a word from grade 5 to grade 7 on the Flesch-Kincaid reading level to replace their silly buzzword, and not only keep the meaning of what they were trying to say, but enhance it? Congratulations, you’ve found another red flag. The key to communication is simplicity and clarity. And buzzwords violate both those rules. And if we can’t have a simple conversation about “my contract” and not “annual incentive protocol”, then we have a red flag on our hands.Do the dumbest people get promoted, and the superstars get passed over or marginalized? Congratulations young padawan, you’ve uncorked another red flag. And this, like #7, happens at 90% or more of corporate companies. It’s red flag football, and you never score a touchdown.Does your new company change “direction” every 2–4 weeks? Pat yourself on the back detective, you’ve found another red flag. If management cannot figure out what to do, and they get paid large coin to do one job, then you’ve found yourself at an insane asylum. Best to pull the cord and exit stage left.Heed these 10 rules my friends, they just might save your life down the road.

This answer is going to make me sound like a spoiled brat, but here goes…I wasn’t actually looking for a new position, but I was contacted by a company for a position in a company about 5km from my house. The company was in the most beautiful office park, and I often commented that I wished the company I worked for would move there. Close to home and beautiful. There was a lake with ducks and Egyptian geese.So when they asked me to come in and have an interview, I agreed.The first interview turned out not to be an interview at all. They just wanted me to write a test. I suppose they wanted to make sure I could do the job before offering me the position, which is fine but I wanted to make sure the position was something I wanted first anyway.The second interview, was more what I wanted. After answering all of their questions, I got to ask mine.Mel: Do you have flexi-hours?Interviewer: No, but if you travel from very far away, you can start at 7am and leave at 4pm rather than the usual 8am - 5pm.Mel: Can I work from home at all?Interviewer: No. Never.Mel: What makes this a nice company to work for?Interviewer: We have a pool table. Sometimes after work we will play pool. Also the directors are really nice and we aren’t afraid to talk to them.Mel: Is that all?Then I told them about the company where I currently work.We have a pool table and 2 ping-pong tables, and a foosball table, and a dart board. Also Jenga, Chess, Pictionary, Scrabble and various other board games. We play sometimes after work, or during lunch, or when the company decides to host a tournament, or that time when there was a power failure, or when a director has challenged you.We have flexi-hours. I can start work at 6am and leave at 3pm and miss all the heaviest traffic. I also get to work from home 2 days a week.One day a year, we can spend doing work in our community. Some people work at a school, in an impoverished area nearby. Some of us go and work at an animal shelter, in that same area. The company arranges it for us, and our pay gets affected, not at all. And volunteer work is so good for the soul.The company pays a catering company to make lunch for everyone at work, every day. They also provide bread for us to make ourselves breakfast, if we want. With the bread, they also provide margarine, jam, peanut butter and other such things.On Fridays, at 2pm, we can buy beer and cider at cost (actually rounded down) from the company and drink it at our desks.And as far as having directors that aren’t scary, ours sit with us at lunch.I told you, I’m a spoiled brat. No way would I go and work for that company when I’m already working for such a great place.Sure, sometimes I get grumpy about how hard we have to work. Especially since we are geared towards being able to work from home, it means that even when you’re home and relaxing in front of the TV, you could get a call to log on and fix some urgent defect.It’s still worth it. I bet the people at that other place have to work hard too, but they don’t get to sip on a beer while sitting at their desks on a Friday.

Here is a link that might help answer your question >> DS-160: Frequently Asked QuestionsFor more information on this and similar matters, please call me direct: 650.424.1902Email: heller@hellerimmigration.comHeller Immigration Law Group | Silicon Valley Immigration Attorneys

The officer who interviews the visa applicant will usually speak and understand the most common local language. If not, another officer or a local consular employee will probably be able to translate. If the language is obscure enough, the consular officer might still find, somewhere in the embassy/consulate, an employee who has it.I remember an instance when the only employee who spoke both the primary local language and the very rare language of the visa applicant was one of the oldest, shyest, most reticent, lowest-level gardeners. He was so proud of the officers’ need of and appreciation for that rare skill that one time, that he began to dress better, stand straighter, feel and act more confident, and volunteer for and learn from special, complicated jobs. He eventually earned a permanent promotion to head gardener and did an excellent job at it.

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Finding the right job candidates is one of the biggest recruiting challenges. Recruiters and other HR professionals that don’t use best recruiting strategies are often unable to find high-quality job applicants. With all the changes and advances in HR technologies, new recruiting and hiring solutions have emerged. Many recruiters are now implementing these new solutions to become more effective and productive in their jobs.According to Recruitment strategies report 2017 done by GetApp, the biggest recruiting challenge in 2017 was the shortage of skilled candidates.The process of finding job candidates has changed signNowly since few years ago. Back then, it was enough to post a job on job boards and wait for candidates to apply. Also called “post and pray” strategy.Today, it is more about building a strong Employer Branding strategy that attracts high quality applicants for hard-to-fill roles.Steps for finding the right job candidates1. Define your ideal candidate a.k.a candidate personaNot knowing who your ideal candidate is, will make finding one impossible. To be able to attract and hire them, you need to know their characteristics, motivations, skills and preferences.Defining a candidate persona requires planning and evaluation. The best way is to start from your current talent star employees. Learn more about their personalities, preferences, motivations and characteristics. Use these findings to find similar people for your current and future job openings.2. Engage your current employeesYou probably already know that your current employees are your best brand ambassadors. Same as current product users are best ambassadors for product brands. Their word of mouth means more than anyone else’s.Encourage their engagement and let them communicate their positive experiences to the outside. Remember, your employees are your best ambassadors, and people trust people more than brands, CEOs and other C-level executives.Involving your current employees can not only help you build a strong Employer Branding strategy, but it can also help your employees feel more engaged and satisfied with their jobs.3. Write a clear job descriptionsEven though many recruiters underestimate this step, it is extremely important to do it right! Writing a clear and detailed job description plays a huge role in finding and attracting candidates with a good fit. Don’t only list duties, responsibilities and requirements, but talk about your company’s culture and Employee Value Proposition.To save time, here are our free job description templates.4. Streamline your efforts with a Recruitment Marketing toolIf you have right tools, finding the right job candidates is much easier and faster than without them. Solutions offered by recruitment marketing software are various, and with them you can build innovative recruiting strategies such as Inbound Recruiting and Candidate Relationship Management to improve Candidate Experience and encourage Candidate Engagement.Sending useful, timely and relevant information to the candidates from your talent pool is a great way for strengthening your Employer Brand and communicating your Employee Value Proposition.5. Optimize your career site to invite visitors to applyWhen candidates want to learn about you, they go to your career site. Don-t loose this opportunity to impress them. Create content and look that reflects your company’s culture, mission and vision. Tell visitors about other employees success and career stories.You can start by adding employee testimonials, fun videos, introduce your team, and write about cool project that your company is working on.Don’t let visitors leave before hitting “Apply Now” button.6. Use a recruiting software with a powerful sourcing toolToday, there are powerful sourcing tools that find and extract candidates profiles. They also add them directly to your talent pool. Manual search takes a lot of time and effort, and is often very inefficient. With a powerful sourcing tool, you can make this process much faster, easier and more productive. These tools help you find candidates that match both the position and company culture.7. Use an Applicant Tracking SystemSolutions offered by applicant tracking systems are various, but their main purpose is to fasten and streamline the selections and hiring processes. By fastening the hiring and selection process, you can signNowly improve Candidate Experience. With this, you can increase your application and hire rate for hard-to-fill roles. Did you know that top talent stays available on the market for only 10 days?8. Implement and use employee referral programsReferrals are proven to be best employees! Referrals can improve your time, cost and quality of hire, and make your hiring strategy much more productive. Yet, many companies still don’t have developed strategies for employee referrals.This is another great way to use your current employee to help you find the best people. To start, use these referral email templates for recruiters, and start engaging your employees today!GetApp‘s survey has proven that employee referrals take shortest to hire, and bring the highest quality job applicants.If you don’t have ideas about how to reward good referrals, here’s our favorite list of ideas for employee referral rewards.