How to best market “You, Inc.”: Your personal enterprise

In today’s incredibly competitive job market, simply submitting a resume and filling out an application may not be enough to land even an interview, much less a position. If hiring companies are the consumers and job seekers are the products, those seeking a position must appeal to the desires of the company while at the same time ensuring that they are utilized properly and to their full potential.

John J. Buckley, Jr., FACHE, executive-in-residence of the Master of Health Administration (MHA) program at the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health, and Kaley Meadows, M.H.A., published an article, “You, Inc.” in the Journal of Healthcare Management that shows how applying business principles to the development of a career can greatly assist in reaching career goals.

According to Buckley and Meadows, “the best practices of solid business planning and marketing for business are applicable to the efforts you put forth in the continuous development and realization of your career plans.”

The article outlines several steps to develop a personal business plan: establishing a personal brand, assessing opportunities, implementing marketing and communication strategies, and preparing for interviews. These steps will become tools to “define and drive your career experience” by helping you to formulate personal mission, vision, and value statements by which to evaluate each career opportunity. The advanced planning will help identify resources such as people or finances needed to reach your goals, recognize challenges and how to overcome them, and research opportunities you are interested in pursuing.

Buckley and Meadows believe the best way to build a successful career is by developing a personal plan using business strategies.

“The pride you have in your career and your ability to manage opportunities and advancements is an important component of the personal business and career plan and those are often visible and impressive to potential employers,” states Buckley.