What PK Grills Looks For In a Hire

Successful job search is all about personal branding, whether it's your first job or your fifth, says Scott Moody. He knows something about that as the Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Creative Director and an officer of This Built America company PK Grills.

The Little Rock, Arkansas-based manufacturer is hiring warehouse help and an office manager. Flexibility, organizational skills and intelligence are qualities the company looks for along with a good attitude and the willingness to come to work and work hard.

"We're going to want them to be able to apply themselves to multiple areas of the business because it's a small team," he says.

The most important skills for anyone looking to succeed are interpersonal communication skills, Moody believes.

"You've got to be able to convey your ideas in a way that other people can understand and get behind to survive in business at any level," Moody advises. "You've got to be able to work with groups of people -- whether that's a large group or a small group. Being able to operate inside a group effectively is super important.

"I also think it helps to find something that you're good at and specialize in that. Become a subject matter expert at something. Make yourself valuable for the company you work for. It will make you valuable in the market."

Take any opportunity you can to learn what you're good at by trying different projects and tasks.

"Ambitious people will take that and they'll become knowledgeable about a certain topic and from there you can determine whether you want to become an expert on that topic and continue to mine it," he says. "I don't know too many people outside those with professional degrees who practice specifically what they studied in college. They figure out what they're good at."

What's his advice for people out of work a year or more?

"You've got to make yourself relevant in the digital spaces that people live in these days. You've got to have a digital presence. People do look you up before they respond to your resume. If they can't find you, that's a problem. If they can find you and your digital footprint isn't attractive to them, that's also a problem.

"Once you do make contact with an employer, the ability to succinctly convey an idea -- why YOU should be hired for a job -- is really important. It's a skill that can set people apart from the crowd."

What if you're just starting out?

"It's the same thing. I don't think anyone is going to hold lack of experience against you. We've all been in that situation where we just want someone to take a chance on us. The tipping point there is you've got to be able to make an employer confident that they're taking a chance on the right person -- again it's your personal brand."

Moody's best piece of advice is to remain flexible.

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