WorkWise Q&A: Temp Assignments, Sweater

TEMP ASSIGNMENTS

Q: Dear Dr. Culp, Who sets the time frame for temp roles? Many times it's way too long for the assignment. A few companies are completely the opposite. But I have seen temp positions for two weeks where they wanted a person to come in and install, setup, configure and implement a CMDB. The industry average time frame for this is six to 12 months. Many are much longer. Ranting

A: Dear Ranting, Your rant brings up a good point, that when you seriously consider an assignment or a posting, you should take the estimated duration as just that -- estimated. Sometimes the person who posts the assignment or offers it to you isn't a subject-matter expert. It's also possible that a problem occurred during the lay-out.

If an assignment looks compelling, find out more about it. You might be surprised to learn that:

• the job was left unfinished by a previous person, which means there's less to do;

• there are tasks to be done other than those listed, which will require more time;

• there's a typo; or

• a temp or someone else who didn't understand the assignment wrote the copy and guessed, wrong.

In other words, the printed word isn't always correct. mlc

SWEATER

Q: Dear Dr. Culp, Twenty-five years ago, I was about a year out of school, unemployed and looking for my second job having left my first. I'm a programmer; so not only was I young, but I was used to things being pretty casual. It's about what you're capable of, not how you look, right?

Anyway, a headhunter set me up on an interview to be a tech writer for a computer magazine. I don't exactly remember why I wore a sweater, but it was probably a cold day and a sweater would have been more functional than a suit. Plus, it was my nicest one.

The headhunter informed me (scolded me) that the company liked me but ultimately didn't hire me because I didn't dress up enough. I was turned down for the job based upon that alone. From then on, I've always worn a suit to an interview although I have since been interviewed more than once by a guy wearing shorts. Dressed

A: Dear Dressed, People on the other side of the desk don't always have the power. Be wary of Mr. Shorts. He might shortchange you on the job. You deserve more. mlc

Dr. Mildred L. Culp welcomes your questions at culp@workwise.net. Copyright 2010 Passage Media.