How To Get a Job in Silicon Valley?

Your resume is perfect, you are qualified, you have applied to hundreds of jobs in Silicon Valley, and yet you are not getting hired, right? Well, if this is your problem, then you are not alone. 

If you want to fulfil your dream of being an employee of the most sought after region for techies, here are tips:

• The easiest way to open yourself doors of top tech companies in the Silicon Valley is to enrol in some of the graduate schools. San Jose State University, UC, Berkeley, Stanford, San Francisco State University are among the top universities in the US from where the tech talent is placed by the hottest companies. So, if you have degree from one of these schools, you are in demand!
• Most of the candidates want work for Google, Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. But the reality is for every open position, they get around 250 applications. The competition is fierce for getting into these companies. So, you need to look beyond these companies. Consider start-ups which have started receiving funding. You can contact them directly and send them your resume. Remember, start-ups are not getting 250 resumes for every open position they have.
• Make your resume tells the recruiter only the important points – your contact information, education and work experience. Don’t include your other interests, hobbies in resume. Resume should have action verbs like “Designed”, “Developed”, “Created”, “Sold” to describe what you have done so far that could benefit his/her company.
• Network with the people who are already working there. Ask them how they got the job, which skillsets are in demand in their companies, hiring When you go for an interview, show your passion for that company. The interviewer should see your excitement to work there.
• Generally, Silicon Valley companies don’t hire management trainees. They want their employees to be productive right after they join. This doesn’t mean you have to have at least 5 years of experience to get hired. But, during interview you have to show your ability to grasp things quickly and get started immediately. You cannot expect a long term training program before you start contributing here.
• Regularly browse through the job search sites such as TheGongzuo.com to know what the Silicon Valley tech companies are looking for. You get a fair idea about which skills to pickup to increase the probability of getting hired.

Say Goodbye to Bad Habits

Negative thoughts, and certain actions or sayings, can prevent you from accomplishing a goal. They steer you away from the bigger picture, deterring you from whatever you’re trying to accomplish. Some bad habits cause more trouble than others. Shedding these habits will increase your productivity and allow you to enjoy the positive mood that comes with increased self-control.

• Being late to work – Punctuality is critical when you are working. Forget your college days when you enter the classroom while it is already in the session. The professional thing to do is to arrive on time and be ready to do what is expected. Being on time for meetings is even more important. Keeping people waiting in the meeting can be construed as inconsiderate, rude, disrespectful or arrogant.
• Negative attitude – Responding in pessimistic way or always finding problems in the suggestions given by co-workers is considered being uncooperative. Complaining too much about work culture, colleagues, bosses is another negative trait. These things will make you look unprofessional.
• Spending time on social media – Being on Facebook or even texting all the time when you are at work does create bad impression. Don’t spread bad things about your organization or co-workers through social media while being in the office. You could get fired if caught. Same thing applies when you are attending a meeting. Even when you feel meetings are extended beyond limit or discussion is going off-topic, don’t let your mind wander. Other people, especially your boss will catch you if you are not paying attention.
• Unprofessional looks – Again, remember you are not a college student anymore. Even if you feel comfortable in those pair of jeans and flip-flops, this is not the place where you wear these. You want to look like you take your job seriously when you walk into work. When you go to meet with a client, you represent your company and you should present yourself professionally.
• Using foul words/language – This is one of the worst habits you got to get rid of. Vulgar language an indication that an employee is not ready for promotion. You may be taken to the HR for serious discussions if you are caught multiple times using foul language. 
• Using company phone/supplies for personal use – Making long distance frequent phone calls from your desk phone is easily traceable. Don’t commit such mistakes for saving few dollars. Similarly taking home office supplies such as notepads, folders etc. or using photocopy machine for personal use beyond a limit show your cheap behaviour. 
• Unnecessary noise – Be considerate toward your co-workers as much as possible. Many people have habit of tapping toes or fingers while working or thinking. Maintain silence when at the work. Similarly, keep your phone or computer on silent so that each text message, email or IM won’t create any annoying sound that may disturb others.

If you receive any feedback about your habits, take it seriously and correct them. At the same time, develop good habits like actively looking for a job on TheGongzuo.com. We have hundreds of thousands of job listings for different positions within IT. Your chances of getting hired multiply when you register yourself at TheGongzuo.

Hottest Tech Start-ups

Majority of the tech start-ups fail because the products or services that they offer do not create any long term value to their customers. Most don’t create any value at all. Whereas, the start-ups that have real potential for growth are those that are creating long term (20 years+) value for its clients. Most of those start-ups are the ones that are revolutionizing legacy industries like: banking, medicine, telecommunication and making it easier, cheaper and quicker.

Considering the marketable ideas that tech start-ups have brought forward, here’s the list of hottest tech start-ups for this year:

Product Hunt - With more than a billion websites now crowding the interwebs, discovering new products is a massive challenge. Product Hunt is a wildly popular online tastemaking hub that showcases the latest gadgets, games, podcasts and books. To date, Product Hunt has raised an estimated $7.1 million in venture capital.

DoorDash – It is the on-demand food delivery app that brings fresh food from local restaurants to customers in 250-plus cities throughout the U.S. and Canada. It has already raised $60 million through investments.

Boxed – An ecommerce start-up that lets consumers shop from their smartphones and laptops for groceries and other household items in bulk. Started by four friends, the young company now has a total headcount of 100 and a total investment of approximately $132 million.

Luxe Valet – It is a smartphone app for valet-parking. For an hourly rate (which varies by location), Luxe’s valets will park your car in the company’s lots. For additional fees, they can also wash your ride, put gas in it and change the oil.

Medium – When it started, “Medium” looked like only a blogging platform. But then, everyone - amateurs, marketers, politicians and journalists are welcome to publish written content of all kinds on the popular site. Medium was co-founded by former Twitter CEO. So far, company has raised $82 million in venture capital.

ClassPass – People can book fitness classes through its app-based gym membership platform. This start-up now employs some 300 people and connects a growing base of customers with exercise classes at some 3,000 boutique gyms and participating studios in 30-plus cities across the U.S., Canada, Europe and Australia. It has $84 million in venture capital.

Beepi – It’s an app to buy and sell used cars. The company is expanding steadily at a     20 per cent annual rate. It is the first company to sell cars 100 per cent online. So far, it has secured $149 million in investments.

Shyp – It is an on-demand shipping app that enables people to order a courier who will cart any item off to one of its warehouses. From there, goods are professionally packed and shipped off to their destinations. Shyp tied up a partnership with eBay, debuted several new features and brushed up its branding. Available at first in San Francisco and New York City, it also extended its package pickup reach to Los Angeles and Chicago.

Acorns – The goal of Acorns is to make investing less tedious and intimidating through automation. The smartphone app automatically invests users’ leftover change from routine credit and debit card purchases in exchange-traded funds. Acorns serve some 650,000 registered users who had opened approximately 300,000 investment accounts. Its latest funding round brings total of $32 million in venture capital.

If you think, you have a bright idea that can be turned into profitable business, TheGongzuo team is looking forward to take you ahead with your dream. We have advisors to guide you along the way; we will fund your creative idea and help you launch your business. Register today at TheGongzuo to turn your dream into reality