Heather Gillbanks ⋅ Houston , TX General Electric ⋅ 26 years experience

With all respect to the answers of others, I have a different perspective. Please do not cold call as a strategy. Here are three things you should consider, instead:

1) work your existing network for at least an introduction to people with open roles; don't forget about linked in ... It has powerful search capability. Seek those you DO know in the target region
2) expand your network to find new opportunities (when networking, look what you can do for them, first)
3) use the concept of a pain letter (Google Liz Ryan, human workplace). This approach is far better than a traditional cold call. At least at the moment, it seems to be working, too.

Best of luck with your search!

Jim Rohrbach ⋅ Evanston , IL ⋅ 22 years experience

Hi Frank!

Cold calling is an ineffective way to pursue a job. Networking is the way to go, and as Deborah says, you can do it remotely. Be happy to help you with some ideas, but first I need to know exactly what job you'd like to get. Forward your resume to me: Coach@SuccessSkills.com. We can set up a time to talk.

Jim "Da Coach"

Tim Keefe ⋅ Washington , DC U.S. Army, Specialist ⋅ 6 years served

Yes, agree with the Meetups. You should have fertile ground out there in Denver, and I suggest signing up for them before you move out there.

James Gonsalves ⋅ Annapolis , MD Hewlett Packard ⋅ 27 years experience

Frank - The key is to cold-call the hiring manager and give your pitch to that person. "I'd like to meet for coffee about your project as I have some ideas on how I can help make it successful. I recently did some PM training on xxxxxx and would love to share what I learned from that session....can we meet next week for 30 minutes?

Offer to share something that the hiring manager may not already know. Many folks in the PM world are not up to date.

I don't know the latest and greatest in Project Management but I have seen some interesting info lately around "ScrumMaster" approach to PM. There are workshops which can help you get certified as a Scrum Master. Also - just read an interesting book on DevOps (and PM) called the Phoenix Project...The best PMs out there are successful due to their Leadership skills first and ability to communicate and stay organized. Your background sets you up for success... Also - PMs need to be sellers too. They dig in and the good ones are constantly looking for new projects to manage or ways to expand the scope of the project they are currently working. Good luck and reach out anytime if you want to collaborate...Semper Fi!

Kevin Adams ⋅ Blue Bell , PA H&M ⋅ 13 years experience

Please don't "shotgun"; it's a quick way to be ignored in the future.
Definitely use LinkedIn! Build out that network. Join LinkedIn groups -- look for Groups that match your interests and see who else is connected with the types of jobs that interest you, the types of companies that interest you, the types of job descriptions that interest you. Then leverage that by looking at those companies' current openings, send a friendly message to a potential hiring manager asking them questions -- draw them into a conversation, not a job interview. Then you can assess whether you can provide answers, skills, experience to match that conversation. This is a much more targeted approach. Let's call this one a "rifle approach".

Rick Russell ⋅ Fort Worth , TX ⋅ 30 years experience

Frank, Another tip for finding a job that you mind find valuable are MeetUps. I've had two veterans that I mentor find jobs that way. Find meetups in the area you want to work. IE., both of mine were going into the IT field. One security and one data. There are tons of meetups in those areas. You'll have to search (and try different words like Big Data and Data Scientists for mine). Some meetups are very specific. Spark, Hadoop meetups speak just to those areas. I've met several candidates this way and I think you might develop another network of companies and potential hiring managers.

Bob Molluro ⋅ Wilmington , DE Benchmark Consulting Services ltd. ⋅ 30 years experience

Frank put most of your energy into getting a personal introduction to the person you are trying to get an interview with. You already have lots of good suggestions on how to use LinkedIn. Find people who who are already Linked to the person you are trying to reach. Cold calling is the equivalent of trying to hit the lottery. Lots of optimism and hope and zero results.

Jennifer Polhemus ⋅ Santa Monica , CA Precision Research (self-employed) ⋅ 25 years experience

When you DO get around to cold-calling someone, use few words and be direct. Better to say something memorable than try to cram an entire resume into an "elevator" pitch. Try sentence. Breath. Sentence. Breath. Question. Good luck!

Frank Morrison ⋅ Aurora , CO U.S. Marine Corps, Sergeant ⋅ 12 years served

Thanks Thomas. My email is fmorrison42@gmail.com If you'd like, send me an email and I'll reply with my resume.

I am looking for a position as a project manager, possibly with a tech company considering my affinity and skill with computer programming.

Thank you everyone for your wisdom, it is greatly appreciated knowing you are all giving your time to help us veterans get our feet planted in the next phase of our lives!

Thomas Monte ⋅ Trenton , NJ Verizon ⋅ 20 years experience

Frank,
I agree with Deborah. Your best bet is to post a resume profile on Linkedin, Monster, etc. However, you need to make sure you have a solid resume first and an idea of what you are interested in doing when you return to Denver.

The best way to prepare for interviews is to do interviews. If you want, I can look at your resume and do a mock interview with you.

Drew Schildwächter ⋅ Wilmington , NC Salesforce ⋅ 7 years experience

Frank: I would start by finding professionals in your target industry and just asking them to tell you more about what they do. You can begin to build an idea of what happens in the industry, show some interest, and begin to learn the common problems. You can then begin to do as Deborah suggested and pair your value with their needs.

Deborah Meyer ⋅ Columbus , OH Anthem, Inc. ⋅ 35 years experience

Frank: You can network remotely - through this group, LinkedIn, view the company's Facebook page - etc. If possible try to connect with fellow veterans working at your desired company.

I don't have a script, but all interviews and ultimately hires - share the commonality of mutual need/benefit. Describe to them the skills and attributes you bring and discuss how you can help them reach their goals. Ex: Your organization has really grown, am I correct that you are seeking a person like myself who has experience in hitting the ground running with minimal direction?

Thank you for your service!
Deborah