If you just happen to be a people person, than you already know how important interpersonal skills are as far as building work relationships goes. Needless to say, your interpersonal skills are equally as important during the interview process, if not more important, which means you should fine tune these skills before the interview process, if you really plan to get the job.

Specifically, your focus should be on non-verbal communication - both that which you convey to the interviewer or interview panel and that which is reflected back to you by the interviewer(s). You absolutely must be able to sniff out the clues on how well you are performing during the interview in order to take any corrective action. The fact of the matter is that more than 50% of communication is non-verbal and this is especially true during a job interview. Chances are that the interviewer isn't going to pull information out of you or give you the benefit of the doubt on missed opportunities to clarify yourself or sell your skills during the interview. Thus, you must take responsibility for mastering the interpretation of the signals and messages that body language conveys.

Quite often as a job applicant you might miss the boat on picking up the non-verbal clues projected during the interview, if you're accustomed to concerning yourself with trying to make a statement or make an impression, rather than listening to the non-verbal hints that provide valuable insight on the direction you need to drive the interview to be successful. Keep in mind that if you hadn't made, at least, an initial impression then you wouldn't be sitting across from your prospective employer.

In short, while it is obviously important to make sure you get the tried and true elements down packed i.e. making a fabulous first impression or more specifically like proper appearance, the tone and pitch of your voice, and of course your own body language. At the same time, it is paramount that you make sure you fine tune your interpersonal skills such that you are able to interpret the body language and expressions of the interviewer during your five minutes of fame, if you really want to get the job. Let's face it - a lot of hiring decisions are emotional. Thus, make sure you don't get passed over because you failed to focus on your soft skills or should i say active listening skills. Whichever term works for you. Just make it happen.

If you're technical and looking - as they say - Dell is hiring now. Dell needs no introduction as most know the Michael Dell story and the how Dell was founded. Dell's headquarters in the suburbs of Austin, TX specifically Round Rock. What are the hot jobs with Dell? Well there are quite a few of them including Technical Sales Representative, Technical Support Manager, Technical Analyst, Systems Engineer Adviser and Supply Chain Project Manager Consultant to name a few.

Dell's current hiring frenzy can likely be attributed to its new division - Dell Services. As the name implies, Dell like other big players in the PC market such as IBM, is tapping into the professional services side of PC sales. Smart move huh - look at all the cash IBM is raking in with its professional services business unit. Also, in case you didn't know, Dell is in the final phase of acquiring Perot Systems. Why Perot Systems? Another smart move on Dell's part, since Perot Systems is or was a major player in professional services in particular Information Technology (IT) outsourcing. Perot Systems basically provided all the IT related services for companies that didn't have the technical expertise or simply didn't want to maintain IT in house.

So now that Dell is acquiring Perot Systems, Dell has a lot of professional services clients on the books. So that means what? Good news for you that's what. Dell is going to continue to expand that line of business, which means Dell will need qualified applicants in various Information Technology positions - as mentioned above, to make the expansion a reality. So now that you know Dell is hiring in Round Rock, what are you waiting on - an invitation? Hurry and get your name in the hat. Oh, and don't worry if you don't live in the Greater Austin area, Dell has many other positions across the US. Get going.

For the minority that do have jobs, what can you do to keep your job? That is especially true as the touch economic climate often means an increase in mergers and acquisitions. You probably already know that mergers and acquisitions means layoffs and job cuts. If that is true, is there any hope of saving your position from getting the axe? Yep - Courtship!

A new boss or bosses means establishing new working relationships. This quite often means proving that your work performance is up to par - i.e. crank out work like a workhorse. Also, showing that can and will adapt quickly to the new climate and ultimately the new rules of the road, that comes with the new climate is extremely beneficial. Think about it, if you were the new boss, would you want to hear, "Well Tom used to like for me to do this or that?" Probably not, Tom's out, and the new boss is in. Deal with it. Life is a constant sphere of change. Adapt or die - as the saying goes.

If you're able to build a rapport with the new management quickly and can demonstrate that you carry your own weight in terms of performance than your chances of surviving are considerably greater than your cubicle mate, who wants to hold fast on to his/her tenure.

Keep in mind that sometimes no matter what you do, decisions are often made in advance on which departments will get trimmed and which will continue to function. In that case, there is nothing really that you can do except realize that the writing is on the wall and jump start your job search. At the same time, you don't want to act alone in your job search. Again, look for opportunities to build rapport with incoming management, in hopes of landing a job recommendation before you exit. If you have to go - go gracefully and be sure to secure a job reference at all costs. Sometimes change is for the better. Be prepared.