Career Strategies Group F.A.Q.

Q: Are you recruiters?

A: I hate to give a lawyerly answer, but yes and no. We do direct recruiting for law firms and companies through our Corporate Services Group and our affiliate, New Jersey-based Perfect Match Recruiting. PMR recruits attorneys, executives and healthcare professionals. Many of our recruiting assignments come to us from our “graduates,” people who we have helped secure new positions. They will often come to us to find attorneys and executives for their organizations.

We are also part of a network of large recruiters, and work closely with recruiters that we know and trust. We are often a source of talent for these outside firms and we can help them identify good candidates.

However, please be aware that recruiters are looking for very specific types of individuals who possess specialized skills. Typically, they are seeking young lawyers from top schools or more senior professionals with portable business. Recruiters seldom, if ever, have opportunities for those who are seeking career changes. This is where our Career Services Group can help.

Q: Do you charge a fee for your services?

A: When we are serving as a recruiter, we do not ever charge an individual candidate a fee. However, if we are working with an individual client on identification of career options, resume development, resume distribution or coaching, we do charge a fee for our services. Typically, we provide professional career advisory and job search services on an hourly fee basis. We have a sliding fee scale. Our fees run from $225 to $315 per hour, depending upon the complexity of the case, the level of the candidate and their income.  We also provide package discounts. Many program packages carry an average hourly rate of a bit over $200, including discounts.

Q: What does a typical program cost?

A: There really are no “typical” programs. Some people need just an hour or two of career advice. Other people need comprehensive career assessment testing to identify viable options. Still other people only need a resume upgrade or distribution services. We are very “menu driven” and will seek to match an individual’s needs and budget with the appropriate services. On our Self-Help page, we have some services that are only a few
hundred dollars, while other cases can be as much as $7,500 or more. We have an excellent, low-cost facilitated self-help program for just under $1000, but most of our consulting programs are in the $1595 to $5500 range. Many of our clients are earning in the $95,000 – $195,000 range and find that our fees are very reasonable.

Q: Do you guarantee interviews or jobs?

A: No. Any organization that says it can guarantee someone an interview or a job is lying and is preying on the fears of its clients. We guarantee we’ll use all our knowledge, experience and resources to help you win interviews, and to secure a job offer. We bring tremendous expertise, decades of study on job search methods, and some considerable brainpower to the job search process. We can increase your odds of success and most likely shorten your search, but there are no guarantees except that we will work hard to help you.

Q: Will you work with anyone?

A: No. We are not right for everyone, and not everyone is right for us. We have strict standards about the candidates we will accept into our program. If we feel the candidate does not have the “right stuff” to be successful in a job search or re-careering, we will not accept the case.

Most attorneys know a bad case when it walks in the door. So, do we. While we cannot guarantee success, we only work with people whom we feel can be successful in our process.

Q: Why should I spend money on your services?

A: We are experts in job search and career change. Through our knowledge and resources, we may be able to shorten your job search by weeks or months. We can help you compete more effectively in the marketplace by creating compelling marketing materials and dynamic, innovative campaigns ….. Let’s do some math …..
Let’s say you are an out-of-work professional who had been earning $125,000. Every week that you are out of work you are losing $2,400 of income. Say you retain us for a mid-level program priced at $3,600. If, through our efforts, we are able to shorten your job search by a mere 1.5 weeks, you have broken even economically and you are back to work. If we can shorten your search by two months, you are ahead of the game by $15,600!

Does that make sense?

We are highly skilled in salary negotiations. It is not unusual for us to develop negotiation strategies that result in the client receiving $10,000, $15,000, $20,000 or more than the company’s original offer, an amount many times the fee we were paid.

Ask The Career Strategy Experts

If you have a specific question about a job search or career issue, email it to us.
While we cannot answer every single question, we will select ones that we feel
would be of general interest, and we will post the question and our answers in
an upcoming blog or newsletter. All questioners will be kept anonymous.

If you have a career development or job search question for us,
please email it to us at  info@careerstrategiesgroup.com.
Please put “Ask the Experts” in the Subject line.

Thank you … We look forward to having a conversation with you soon.

And you can also make any comment or ask a question in this form below

Career Strategies Group and Perfect Match Recruiting Join Forces

For Immediate Release
Contact: Bruce Blackwell
Phone: 914-356-8182

Career Strategies Group, a 25-year-old career management company, has signed an affiliation agreement with Perfect Match Recruiting, a privately held firm specializing in legal, executive and healthcare recruiting, it was jointly announced by Bruce Blackwell, CEO of Career Strategies, and Doris Smith-Fellenz, founder and Executive Director of Perfect Match Recruiting.

“For many years we have worked closely with recruiters in an informal network; we supply candidates for some of their hard to fill positions, and they find employers for certain of our clients,” said Blackwell, who added, “we also do some recruiting on our own, but it was never a focus of our practice. To be really effective at recruiting, you need to be out there every day working with law firm hiring managers and top candidates. That’s not our forte, but that’s where Doris really excels. For years we have looked to affiliate with a solid recruiter, and I was thrilled to finally find Doris and her company.”

According to Smith-Fellenz, “I am excited about the synergies with Career Strategies Group. They have been around the legal profession for a long time, and have an amazing database of lawyers. The hardest part about legal search,” she said, “is not finding candidates … it’s finding good candidates. We feel that task will be made easier because of the resources of Career Strategies.” Smith-Fellenz and Blackwell added that she will ultimately be doing career counseling for attorneys, especially those in the earlier stages of their careers.

One of the other goals of the affiliation will be to expand both firms’ involvement in healthcare placement.

Before officially opening Career Strategies Group, Blackwell was doing healthcare recruiting and candidate screenings, and has healthcare operations and marketing consulting experience going back to the 1980s. Smith-Fellenz has significant experience in recruiting both clinical and non-clinical healthcare professionals for hospitals, senior living facilities and medical practices.

As a first step in this affiliation, Career Strategies has added a “Jobs” section to its website. Many of the postings listed will be from PMR. Applicants are advised to email their resumes to  PMRRecruiting@CareerStrategiesGroup.com.

Sometimes Career Strategies will do an initial interview with a candidate, but mostly that function will be taken over by Doris Smith-Fellenz and her team. Candidates who are not in specification with a PMR position may be referred back to Career Strategies for other services.

“I chose the name Perfect Match Recruiting” because that’s what I look to provide for my clients, whether law firm, in-house or other positions. We have very detailed specifications, and will do our utmost to find candidates in spec. We have to turn away most of the people who apply because, while they may be excellent in their professions and accomplished in many ways, they are not what my clients are seeking. In those cases, Career Strategies may be able to help the client find a position.”

Blackwell noted that in his years of experience, he typically has to go through 100 or more resumes to find just one candidate that matches the job specification that the client has prepared. “On a typical search, I will go through 500 or 600 resumes, get 5 or 6 client prospects, and then vet them. We usually send just 2 or 3 resumes to the client for interviewing,” he said.

“The ideal candidate for my law firm clients,” said Smith-Fellenz, “is 2 to 6 years out of law school, was on Law Review at a top tier school, had a high rank in class, had a federal clerkship, and had received scholastic or other awards. There are some fine lawyers out there who don’t meet these requirements, but this is what our clients want us to find. It is difficult,” she added, “to tell people that they are not candidates for jobs they know they can do well, but who don’t match the client’s specifications.”

“Another issue is finding Partners,” she said. “Most law firms prefer Partners, seven or more years out with a verifiable book of portable business, or who have a rare specialty.”

“There are also many very good attorneys” Smith-Fellenz states, “with several years of experience who are hard to place because clients are looking for people with very specific skill sets who can hit the ground running and start contributing right away. Clients don’t want to pay recruiting fees to find candidates who need a learning curve before they can be fully productive. They are paying for it, and they want what they want. They might very well consider ‘learning curve’ candidates, but won’t pay a fee to get them. That’s where Career Strategies can help.”

Career Strategies’ career management team often works with candidates who are not “recruitable” and helps them with career direction, resume development, resume distribution and job search coaching.

Perfect Match Recruiting is located in Ocean, NJ.  Career Strategies is located in Brewster, NY.

All About Us — Career Strategies Group

As specialists in job search and alternative careers since 1992, we help lawyers, executives and entrepreneurs find new positions and new careers in law, business, academics, or the non-profit sector through innovative methods and custom-designed programs. We have particular expertise in the career issues for those 50+ years old.

Our Career Services Group does career testing and options assessment for those who are seeking to explore their viable career alternatives. We also provide job search assistance, which includes resume writing and distribution, marketing plans and job search coaching. Our job search clients range from young professionals to those aged 60+. The CSG Group is a high service, low volume operation and only accepts 6 new clients per month.

Our Corporate Group does recruiting both direct and through our affiliate, Perfect Match Recruiting. PMR has three primary business areas: legal search, executive search and healthcare search. The Corporate Group also does outplacement, law firm practice development and business coaching.  Another affiliate, Career Strategies Institute, provides graduate or post-graduate students and younger professionals with low cost do-it-yourself tools and online instruction programs. Information about our services is available on our website.

The Career Strategies process for job search and alternative career services begin with an initial consultation, a 30-45 minute in-depth review of your circumstances, career aspirations, marketing strategies and more. Even if we are not interested in taking you on as a client, you will leave that meeting much more informed about job search, alternative careers and career development than you were before you spoke with us. It will be time well spent.

While many of our clients have pursued alternative legal careers or alternative executive careers, many others have used our help to move up in their current career tracks, to start new businesses or to enhance their current business operations by better marketing or time management.

Our staff includes Ph. Ds, MBAs, Business Owners, Recruiters and JDs with both in-house and big law experience. Nearly all of us have had more than 25 years of experience in law or business, and all of us are highly qualified, caring professionals dedicated to helping our clients through career transitions, job searches and explorations of their career options.

For the individual job seeker, our services include:

• Identification of viable career options and alternative careers based on objective analysis of skills and experience
• Preparation of powerful resumes and personal marketing materials
• Creation of highly individualized marketing action plans
• Lead generation and job identification through our Contacts and Connections service
• Coaching and guidance on campaign strategies and interviewing techniques
• Distribution of resumes to targeted companies and recruiters through our massive contact database and specialized resources

For law firm and corporate clients, our services include:

• Recruiting of attorneys, support staff and administrators through our relationship with PMR and other major recruiters
• Outplacement programs for single professionals or groups of displaced employees
• Practice development and business enhancement consulting to solo practitioners and law firms
• Executive coaching for entrepreneurs and corporate managers

Credentials and Coverage

We offer a rare combination of marketing experience, in-depth knowledge of job search methods, and specific expertise in the special requirements of attorneys, senior executives and job seekers 50+. Our experience and guidance enable our clients to take control over their careers, identify their options, and then obtain the positions of their choice effectively and efficiently.

As recognized authorities on job search issues, we have been interviewed by news organizations including The New Jersey Lawyer, New Jersey Law Journal, Connecticut Law Tribune, News 12, Westchester Business Journal, the Newark Star-Ledger, the New York Post and others.

We have also lectured on job search and alternative career issues for legal and business groups in the Northeast, including the New York State Bar Association, the Institute for Continuing Legal Education, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, numerous colleges and universities, the New Jersey Bar Association, the Association of Corporate Counsel and many others. Founder Bruce Blackwell is also one of a handful of professionals to have been asked to serve a Charter Member of the Career Counseling panel for the New York City Bar Association, and has been called “a leading career expert” by the New York State Bar Association.

Let’s start a conversation today!

What Career Strategies Group Can Do For YOU

Career Strategies Group helps people earning $125,000 or more per year find the right job at the right salary with the right work/life balance. We help Executives, Legal Professionals, Entrepreneurs, Government Officials and many other types of professionals.

The common theme among our clients is that they are smart, successful, and no longer love their jobs.

Imagine how much better your life would be if you really enjoyed your work or running your business. Well, you can! And we can help!

We have provided career guidance to thousands of clients and are A+ rated by the Better Business Bureau. Please enjoy my introductory video below:

Ways in which we can help :

Career Strategies is committed to providing all the services that a person seeking a career change, a new job or an alternative career could ever need. We believe we offer the most comprehensive array of job search services available anywhere. Above all, we have a distinguished career coaching staff of specialists in job search, and particularly in alternative careers for lawyers and executives.

We have been helping senior-level clients find new positions in law, business, non-profits and universities since 1992. But, we don’t stop there. (See our extensive list under the Alternative Careers tab on our website).

We provide career growth strategies for 50+, Gen X’s in their 40’s and even 30-somethings. Our knowledge and resources also help talented and accomplished people make the best choices for their personal and professional growth.

Our services include:

• Career testing and assessment to identify realistic alternative career options
• Powerful resumes and cover letters to present you effectively to the marketplace
• Aid in finding companies and job leads, and not just relying on online postings
• Coaching, mentoring and brainstorming about creative job search techniques
• Interview preparation & salary negotiation to help you beat your competitors & land the offer.

We also offer low cost Self Help job search tools that include using social media job search options.

If you are a solo practitioner or business owner and are seeking ways to improve your career,
increase your revenues and quality of life, our coaches and business advisors can help you, too.