• in control – you stay in control of your information and your profile: you know exactly what employers and recruitment agencies will see and know that it’s up to date. You decide who gets to see it and when – and you’ll soon be able to track exactly who’s looking at your profile and why. It also helps protect your personal details, because your information is kept in one, secure place – rather than being sent out, beyond your reach, to lots of different people.
• saving time – you only have to go to one place to update your profile, and you can then share it instantly with as few or as many agencies and employers as you want – and you can post it directly onto job boards too.
• first in line – having an iProfile gives you an immediate edge on other candidates, because iProfiles are often the only thing or the first thing that’s searched when it comes to filling a vacancy. They make recruitment much more efficient – so they’re the first port of call for thousands of employers and recruitment agencies.
• better placed – whether or not you’re actively seeking a new role, using an iProfile helps you in your career, by providing a focus to your development that you can share with others – and get feedback and advice on.

If this sounds interesting, here’s a video you might want to watch that explains how it works a bit more succinctly:

I thought it was pretty interesting, though I wish there was a way you could create different views on your iProfile. Sometimes it’s good to be able to tailor certain information for a particular role you are interested in applying for, and accent those strengths you may feel that the recruiter is really looking for. The technology works really well. I was quite impressed that uploading my Word CV resulted in it’s being automatically broken down by the website into the relevant sections of your website. User interaction is quite slick too and the site is a pleasure to use.

The interesting thing is the focus on “Achievements” rather than cold-hard facts, and allowing users the ability to updated these as they happen, thus never leaving anything out. It doesn’t matter if this was getting your MBA, delivering a multi-million pound system or learning how to build patio furniture, the website can handle anything you can throw at it.

There are a whole variety of different subjects you can learn from the comfort of your own home. Most of them allow you to schedule them as you wish, fitting them around family or work commitments and allowing time for all the other pressures you might have in your life. The variety of things you can learn, if you set your mind to, is just astounding.

For example, today I came across an Online Degree in Entrepreneurship by the Kaplain Open Learning College which looks pretty interesting. It’s aimed at people looking for some business grounding in their new ventures or looking for an injection of new ideas into what they are doing at the moment. It includes the following modules:

Level 1 Modules:

• Introduction to Online Learning and Personal Development Planning
• Business Environment
• Fundamentals of Marketing
• Business Skills
• Business Finance
• Human Resource Management

Level 2 Modules:

• Project Management
• Business Planning
• Marketing and Sales Management
• Web Design and Internet Marketing
• Market Research and Innovation
• Business Finance For Entrepreneurs

which is a pretty interesting mix. I like the fact that they mix straight business subjects with Internet? Marketing and web Design, which gives people a flavour of what you can do online. If you think this is the sort of thing that might interest you, check them out

Did you know for example that nearly half of those responding earn a salary between $45,000 and $85,000 per year in nearly equal groups. Here’s a chart of how salaries are split into bands showing the ranges of all the respondents to the survey placed themselves in:

My favourite sections are the ones that are relevant to a global market, particularly the parts outlining Top Tech skills that employers are looking for, and Top Certifications that actually mean something. But don’t just take my word for it, read it for yourself

At the end of a job interview, the human resources manager asked a young engineer, ‘And what starting salary are you looking for?’

To which the engineer replied, ‘About $125,000 a year, depending on your benefits package.’

The interviewer replied, ‘Well, what would you say to a package of five-weeks vacation, 14 paid holidays, full medical and dental insurance, a company matching retirement fund up to 50 percent of your salary and a company car leased every two years, say a red Corvette?’

The recent college grad sat up in amazement. ‘Wow, are you kidding?’ he asked.

‘Yeah,’ the interviewer replied, ‘but you started it.’

The BizTalk Team is pleased to announce the availability of the updated and improved Exam 74-135: Developing E-Business Solutions Using Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004. The BizTalk Server exam covers all aspects of BizTalk Server from the installation of BizTalk Sever to designing, implementing and deploying a BizTalk Server solution.

- Some of the questions are knowledge based and will come from BizTalk Server training content.

- The majority (80% +) of the questions on the exam are task based questions, which specifically test your hands on experience with BizTalk Server.

How to get your self prepared and registered:

- Preparation Guide for Exam 74-135: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/exams/74-135.asp

- MSL Exam
Registration Site: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcpexams/register/default.asp

It Pays to Be an Expert & Win Cool Prizes!>

Everyone who registers for the exam between now and July 31st will be entered in a raffle to win one of 10 Virtual Laser Keyboard. The virtual laser keyboard works by using infrared technology to produce an invisible circuit and project a full-size virtual keyboard on to any surface. The virtual PC keyboard behaves exactly like a real one, complete with realistic tapping sounds and works with your PDA, Smartphone, laptop or PC.

In addition, the first 250 people who pass the exam between now and July 31st will win a portable USB mini-photo frame. Use the frame to share your favorite photos with family and friends by hanging it around your neck or using it as a keychain. This unit is light, portable and displays up to 26 photos in JPG, TIF, BMP, GIF.

[Scott Woodgate's E-Business Outbursts]