From working in the corporate world as a Human Resource executive, Katherine Burik learned that corporate talent acquisition and utilization had become drastically inefficient. She felt she had a better process. She began advising individuals seeking a job or career change or preparing for interviews to be more confident in an orderly job search process.
She helps her clients improve their hiring process so they can make a better career match.
Hiring the right talent is the single most important task a company can do to achieve its goals. The business must have the right person in the right place at the right time to achieve their goals and remain profitable. Often, that doesn’t happen.
The right applicant for a particular position, from the company’s perspective, must help grow the business and its profitability. From an individual’s perspective, making the right job choice is critical to the family’s economic future, as well as, improving quality of life, away from the job.
Often the corporate and individual’s needs are at odds. Like Don Quixote’, Katherine keeps tilting those windmills to improve the hiring process for corporations seeking the right talent and individuals seeking the right career match.
Corporations Need to Determine Exact Need
With corporate clients, Katherine works backwards, by understanding the outcome they wish to achieve after identifying the right candidate. Then she uses her process and expertise to determine exactly what employee knowledge, skills and abilities are required to fill the position.
By determining the job parameters that need to be filled, it becomes mucheasier to search and interview to select the right candidate for the position.
Individuals Need the Right Process
Katherine’s true passion is working with individuals seeking a career change or trying to determine the right career path for them.
She started the business working individually and in small groups and workshops with clients struggling to understand their perfect career path and how to navigate the unwieldy job search process to find the position that is right for them.
If someone is stuck in a job they hate, Katherine helps them understand the root cause of the problem and develop a plan to improve their working condition or find a better job.
Plans can be individually customized for every situation.
An individual needs more than a perfect resume to find the perfect job. Each client must identify:
-What they want
-What they want to achieve
-What are the next steps
Her work with individuals utilizes almost the same process as corporations. She helps clients understand their desired outcome then organize their job search process to achieve that goal.
Personal Mission
When Katherine became frustrated with “Corporate America” she decided to start a business that focused on her personal mission.
“My personal mission has always been to solve business problems with humor and creativity so that the organization or the individual that I work with are stronger.”
Katherine saw many problems in the business world. As a human resource executive, she personally witnessed inefficient corporate talent acquisition, which was a waste of corporate resources. She had a better idea and built her business around individuals seeking a better work environment or career path.
The “Aha moments.”
As the name implies, the “Interview Doctor” has perfected her skills over the years. She is proud that in almost every session with individual clients they invariably reach an “Aha Moment.”
The smile creeps across their face, their eyes widen and Katherine can see the wheels begin to turn. That is the moment she lives for and receives the most satisfaction from. It is then that she knows she has helped another client embark on the right path to a new career, helped them define and understand their current career problems or helped someone ace an interview to get that job offer.
Her Vision
Katherine wants to expand her current business to reach the maximum number of individuals. She wants to grow her career coaching and career planning to assist clients achieve the life/work balance everyone is searching for.
“I also want to be known as a person who can help a company create a better job search process. Everything I do is focused on that very slender niche. I’m not a recruiter. I don’t want to be a recruiter. I don’t coach on many other things. This is what I want to be known as and I want to grow my business to have the widest possible impact with the advantages that I provide.”
Katherine understands marketing.
In addition to being a published author of three books, Katherine maintains a blog and speaks at group functions to attract new clients.
“My ideal client is a process-oriented person who’s probably at a stage in their career where they want to make a change.”
Katherine has authored three books in “The Job Seeker Manifesto” series: “Job Search Marketing Plans”, “Resumes 3.0” and “Tell Me About Yourself.” All three books explain the hiring process and how individuals can improve their career outlook to achieve their perfect job. She also averages 50 speaking engagements every year, split between corporate, small groups or workshops.
LinkedIn is a tool that Katherine takes advantage of and it has become one of her favorite topics for her speaking endeavors. Here’s a bonus tip: She shared with us a little-known secret about successfully using LinkedIn, which is to develop a profile that mentions your keywords a minimum of 20 times. Katherine revealed that you maximize the potential to be found among the thousands of LinkedIN users when you deploy keywords throughout your profile.
LinkedIn, her books and blog, as well as, speaking engagements and video episodes on BizTV Shows, help future clients learn more about Katherine’s expertise in job placement and scoring the perfect position to reach career goals.
Life on a Boat
Since 2012, Katherine and her husband have lived primarily on a boat, shared with their dog and cat. Most of her work is as a consultant and can be done over the phone or internet from whatever port they may be in.
She likes the fact that she can operate her business from where ever she may be and enjoys the adventure of visiting various ports of call along the coast. She has become efficient at scheduling her many speaking engagements to fit into her life style.
Some couples might find the confines of a 500-square foot living area a bit restrictive, but she and her husband enjoy the freedom a boating lifestyle provides, plus they feel it has deepened their relationship.
Get in Touch
It certainly was our pleasure to interview Katherine Burik. Visit our website to listen to our entire podcast with her.
If you would like to learn more about Katherine’s business the “Interview Doctor” visit her website: http://jobinterviewcoaching.org/ and watch her videos on NEOH BizTV Shows at: http://neohiobiztvshows.com/katherine-burik-strategic-job-search-guru/
If you would like to chat with her call: 330-495-2337, or she can be found on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook.
Read our feature column about Katherine in the magazine.
