Career Profile

Sherif Salama
Hello Sharif,

Welcome to the Rusden's career development program, a five week course designed to
provide you with a number of practical tools and techniques which you can use to
improve your own career development and achieve your full potential.

The following career profile will help identify your underlying strengths, weaknesses
learning styles and personality type. It forms the cornerstone of the rest of the course
as we develop personal branding and networking strategies.

If you require any further information or explanations please don’t hesitate to contact
us by emailing KSYC@rusdens.com or visit our campus at http://rusdens.com/special-
offers/buddy-program/

Regards,
What are your strengths and
weaknesses?
STRENGTHS

Consider this from your own perspective, and from the point of view of the people around you. And
don't be modest or shy – be as objective as you can.

• What advantages do you have that others don't have (for example, skills, certifications,
education, or connections)?
• What do you do better than anyone else?
• What personal resources can you access?
• What do other people (and your boss, in particular) see as your strengths?
• Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
• What values do you believe in that others fail to exhibit?
• Are you part of a network that no one else is involved in? If so, what connections do you have
with influential people?

Your self-assessment highlighted the following strengths :

• Organised,
• Objective,
• Tidy,
• Cautious,
• Loyal,
• Peace-loving,
• Sensible,
• Down-to-earth,
• Responsible-minded,
• Reserved,
• Careful,
• Punctual,
• Precise,
• Demanding,
• Ability to concentrate,
• Trustworthy & Reliable,
WEAKNESSES

Again, consider this from a personal/internal perspective and an external perspective. Do other people
see weaknesses that you don't see? Do co-workers consistently outperform you in key areas? Be
realistic – it's best to face any unpleasant truths as soon as possible.

• What tasks do you usually avoid because you don't feel confident doing them?
• What will the people around you see as your weaknesses?
• Are you completely confident in your education and skills training? If not, where are you
weakest?
• What are your negative work habits (for example, are you often late, are you
disorganized, do you have a short temper, or are you poor at handling stress?
• Do you have personality traits that hold you back in your field? For instance, if you have
to conduct meetings on a regular basis, a fear of public speaking would be a major
weakness.

Your self-assessment highlighted the following strengths :

• Shy,
• Introvert,
• Poor self esteem,
• Lack of technical knowldge in the Australian construction industry,
• Moderate communication and negoatiation skills.
• Being afraid of taking new responsibilties as I dont have time and I am not confident I
will do it in perfect way.
OPPORTUNITIES

Opportunities are normally external and may relate to changes in technology, people that may influence
decisions, or training, development or support that may support your aspirations.

• What opportunities are available to you?

• What external influences can help you to achieve success?
• Who could do you know who can support you to help you achieve your goal?

Possible areas of opportunity for you include :

• Management courses
• Technical courses
• Taking new responsibilities

THREATS

Threats are also normally external and are the things that get in the way of your success.

• What obstacles are you facing?

• What external influences may hinder your success?
• Who or what could get in the way of you achieving your goal?

Possible threat you have identified include :

• Lack of money,
• lack of time ,
• huge workload making it difficult to find time.
• Mortgage making hard to find money.
Job Prospects

• Job prospects for Contract Administratorsare below average.

• Employment for Contract Administratorsto 2014-15 is expected to grow moderately.
Employment in this medium sized occupation (16 900 in November 2009) rose very strongly in
the past five years, and remained relatively steady in the long-term (ten years).
• Contract Administratorshave a relatively low proportion of full-time jobs (58.5 per cent). For
Contract Administratorsworking full-time, average weekly hours are 37.9 (compared to 41.3 for
all occupations) and earnings are low - in the second decile. Unemployment for Contract
Administratorsis above average.
• Contract Administratorsare employed across several industries including: Public Administration
and Safety; Professional, Scientific and Technical Services; Financial and Insurance Services; and
Health Care and Social Assistance.
• The (internet) vacancy level for Contract Administratorsis low. The proportion of workers
leaving the occupation (and needing to be replaced) is 16.6 per cent (annually) compared to the
average for all occupations of 13.1 per cent.
• The mix of industries employing Contract Administratorsis very favourable for employment
growth prospects.

Key Indicators
Employment Level (thousands)

Recent Job Growth (per cent)

How do you learn?

People learn in different ways. Your profile indicated indicated you prefer to approach a task through
reflective observation, that is through watching others involved in the experience and reflecting on what
happens. You like to seek practical application of ideas and conventional tests where there is a single
correct answer or solution to a question or problem.

In their article "Experiential Learning Theory: a Dynamic, Holistic Approach to Management Learning,
Education, and Development," Alice and David Kolb describe the characteristics of four learning styles:
Accommodator; Active; Multisensory; and Converger. Your profile indicates you are a multisensory.

These people are able to look at things from different perspectives. They are sensitive. They prefer to
watch rather than do, tending to gather information and use imagination to solve problems. They are
best at viewing concrete situations several different viewpoints. Kolb called this style 'Diverging' because
these people perform better in situations that require ideas-generation, for example, brainstorming.
People with a Diverging learning style have broad cultural interests and like to gather information. They
are interested in people, tend to be imaginative and emotional, and tend to be strong in the arts. People
with the Diverging style prefer to work in groups, to listen with an open mind and to receive personal
feedback.

Learning Style Inventory

The Learning Style Inventory is used to identify a student's learning style. This requires a student to rank
four responses to each of 12 sentences according to his preference. The results show which learning
style the learner prefers and help the instructor to structure learning activities to match the students
learning style. The inventory helps students understand why they prefer certain types of activities.

Implications for Instructors

Structure assignments to match the student's learning style. Offer challenges that will encourage the
student's ability to take on and complete new projects, and support his tolerance for risk-taking. Place
the student in groups where she will use information provided by other members to produce new
concepts and products. Encourage activities that will develop skills in sales and marketing. Ask the
student to write persuasive papers, make persuasive speeches, or develop ads for products or services.
Implications for Students
Rely on your intuition and use it with confidence. Take on new projects and use trial and error to solve
problems. Work in groups and try to assume the role of the learner who waits for others in the group to
find the information needed and then uses that information to construct new ideas or concepts. Practice
writing persuasive papers and speeches. Consider the possibilities that sales and marketing careers will
offer you.

Considerations
Remember that even if the student and instructor have identified the student's preferred learning style,
activities will not always favor that style. Constraints of time, materials, course requirements and the
instructor's willingness to consider student learning styles will sometimes make it difficult for the
student to learn through his preferred style. Although it's important for a student to know her preferred
style, she should learn how to use other styles as well.
What are your values?
Based on your ipersonic profile your value's represent those of a reliable realist.

Reliable Realists are down-to-earth and responsible-minded. They are precise, reserved and demanding.
Their most prominent quality is reliability and they will always make every effort to keep any promise
given. Reliable Realists are more quiet and serious persons, they do not talk a lot but they are good
listeners. They sometimes seem reserved and distant to outsiders although they often have a great deal
of wit and esprit. Their strong points are thoroughness, a marked sense of justice, doggedness bordering
on pigheadedness and a pragmatic, vigorous and purposeful manner. Reliable Realists do not dither
about if something has to be done. They do what is necessary without wasting words.

This personality type not only expects a lot of himself but also of others. Once Reliable Realists have set
their mind on something, it is difficult to persuade them otherwise. They do not like to leave anything to
chance. Planning means safety to Reliable Realists, as well as order and discipline. They have no problem
respecting authorities and hierarchies but do not like to delegate tasks. They are certain that others
would not deal with them as conscientiously as they do. In management positions, they are very task-
oriented - they make sure that things are well done; however, they do not have a great deal of interest
in personal contacts at work.

Career implications

As a Reliable Realist you belong to the introverted personality types. You don’t appreciate too much
commotion around you preferring to work relatively independently of others. You need to give yourself
plenty of time to work in peace and deal with your projects thoroughly and intensely. Your ability to
concentrate is exceptionally high and if you are interested in something you can truly immerse yourself
forgetting everything around you. Very strongly team-oriented professional fields, or employment
where your concentration is continuously disturbed, or your work is disrupted, are not really for you. It
is just too important to you to complete your projects really well.

One or two colleagues who are on your wavelength or possibly a small group of like-minded colleagues
are the most you need. Too many people are stressful to you because the emotionality and irrationality
that comes with interpersonal relationships tends to disturb you. You are reserved when revealing
yourself, and often have the effect of being aloof.
Sometimes, and although it may not be your intention, you even convey the impression of being
dismissive to the people around you. The continuous locker room and water cooler banter enervate you
more than anything else. For you, work is work, and you feel that private matters don’t really belong
there. When you choose your profession, watch out that you are not made to adjust to and interact with
others around the clock.

Reliability is your middle name. Whoever hands you a project can rest assured that it will be handled
diligently and delivered on time. The thought not to keep a promise or a commitment on time is total
horror to you. Therefore, it is important to you to be in an environment providing smooth working
conditions where you receive consistent and predictable feedback about your efforts. Clear and definite
objectives, and the assurance that the necessary resources for your activities will be available, are a
must.

You can’t stand improvisation, short-term changes of plans, and last minute rush. You are a master at
organized planning and proceed very purposefully with everything you do. You are driven up the wall if
something unforeseen throws your careful calculations into disarray. You want everything within the
purview of your responsibility to run smoothly, so that it can be dealt with one after the other.
Professional environments where it is impossible to plan from one day to the next, requiring continuous
flexibility, are not your thing. You can deal with a sudden adjustment, but please, not too frequently! A
daily life in uncertainty, not knowing if you would be able to deliver a performance meeting your high
demands, is not for you.

For more details please visit http://sites.fastspring.com/ipersonic/product/ENJobLD?language=en