“Q. I am thinking of coming back to US after working in Dubai for 17 years, which is five years more than I worked in US.
Is this a handicap? A managing director friend of mine still hasn’t found a job a year later after coming back to DC.
How do you suggest I test the waters? I just spent three weeks in eastern US and I think I would love to come back.
Answer:
Yes, it is a handicap. There is much more effort hiring people abroad than there is someone in their local geographic area, especially given that firms have choices.
They also may not know “The brand” of the firm you worked for. They may have a good association for people working for a particular local firm and have no opinion other than judgement based upon bigotry for the firm you work for (Overseas firms do not do things “like we do.”
Lastly, there are times of the year where senior professionals are more likely to find work than others. Generally, it is the end of the third quarter through the early part of the first quarter. We have almost completed that cycle.
>How do you suggest I test the waters? I just spent three weeks in eastern US (yes coinciding with Sandy) and I think I would love to come back.
OPINION.
(1) Start networking on LinkedIn with people you know who are stateside and who know and like your work.
(2) Use the holiday times to re-connect with people, you have not spoken with in a long time to let them know how you are, what you are doing and what you are thinking of doing.Drop these same people notes every three months from here on out.
(3) Put your Skype ID on resumes as well as time zone differences to where you are
(4) Look at your job search as a marathon and not a sprint. It will take determination to get back to the US. DO NOT QUIT ON YOURSELF.
Those are the starting places. The rest involves hard work, networking and effort.
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