Yesterday, I spent most of the day at the Tech Fair LA job fair, which featured the LA mayor, Eric Garcetti, as one of the speakers. I can’t remember the last time I saw a public official in person – that is if there was ever such a time. There is a first time for everything.
I had registered for the fair on Eventbrite months prior, but apparently its popularity grew during the approaching weeks and there was a huge turnout. A long line of job seekers waiting on the sidewalks wrapped around the Reef from corner to corner. It was quite a stroll getting to the back of the line. I must have been in line for 30 minutes, taking periodic forward steps and listening to the thoughtful conversation of a business start-up owner behind me, before making it to the entrance of the building.
As I did for two prior job fairs, I wore my custom fitted black suit, which I had ordered online from HarrySuits, only this time I included the waistcoat, aka vest. The waistcoat gave it a fancy old-fashioned style, the kind seen worn by early 1900 scientists in photographs and the men in the movie The Great Gatsby. I’m sure people had thought that I arrived dressed for a wedding. Women were giving me hair flicks left and right. I felt like Ezio Auditore (I also happened to have been playing Assassin’s Creed Revelations a lot lately).
The event floor was crowded with people. People moved about chaotically, forming lines behind certain booths. The ambient chatter noise was loud, reminiscent of a crowded nightclub or bar. The noise made communication difficult. The large turnout had its downsides.
I managed to speak with a few representatives and gave out a couple of of my resumes. Because I have graduate school coming up in less than a year, I was not too serious about looking for a job, as I expected most positions to be permanent positions. I was there mainly to sight see, try out different spiels to see how they were received, and attend the talks. If it does turn out that there is a temporary position suited form me, I would happily take it, but I do not have high expectations on that.
Event Talks
I gained quite a bit from hearing the different fireside talks. The topics included what it is like to work in the tech industry, how a MySpace founder found success in the mobile gaming sector with the company Jam City, what the recruiters at Cornerstone are looking for, how to advance one’s career, and others. Here are some highlights.
While working in the tech industry:
- Job seekers should expect to be constantly adapting to change and new technologies
- Job seekers should market themselves not on the specifics of what they know when it comes to programming, but projects that they have worked on and problems that they have solved.
When it comes to trying to landing a position:
- It is crucial to be able to establish a personal connection with those whom we seek to work with.
- During an interview, you should be prepared by having researched the company beforehand, asking about what type of candidate is needed for the role, and telling the hiring manager emphatically that you have all the qualities needed for the job, thus making their decision to hire you easier. (I know this may seem dishonest, but then there’s the point below)
- If there are gaps in qualifications, they need to be addressed.
- Employers will hire the person who displays the most passion and desires the job the most.
When it comes to career advancement:
- Once you have made it to a position, it becomes beneficial for you to volunteer for and take the initiative to work on projects outside of your role.
- Making oneself integrated with the team is what creates job security.
As business developers and entrepreneurs:
- Individuals should form teams instead of being lone wolves, and that teams should look for people with a variety of skill sets that complement one another as opposed to homogeneous members.
Mayor’s Speech
The mayor spoke about how wonderful of a place Los Angeles is, currently, to work in tech and start a company. LA differs from Northern California in that LA-based companies tend to be less focused on trying to create rapid growth through capital-heavy investments, but on easier and less risky strategies that would allow them to stay afloat for years. He mentioned the incubator and accelerator programs out there designed to help new companies take off. Thanks to the emphasis placed on tech on behalf of the LA public leadership, LA had seen a major shift from STEM majors leaving the city to work elsewhere upon graduation to staying in the city to help the native companies grow.
It surprises me just how aware Garcetti is about the tech industry – though I probably shouldn’t be surprised at all, as he is the mayor, save for the prejudices against politicians stereotypically held by followers of the hard sciences. In his brief 15-minute speech, he gave a rich overview and highly optimistic overview of the tech industry in Los Angeles.
Conclusion
So there you have it – my summary of my experience at the Tech Fair LA event. I will likely look back on this blog post in the future to help guide me in the job search. Meanwhile, I will be working on some tech projects. I would like to focus on the following: Data science, full-stack web development, mobile app development, and electronics.