According to a poll just completed by the National Society for Hispanic Professionals (www.NSHP.org), work attitude was cited as most important in defining a professional. In the poll, which surveyed 556 Hispanic professionals, 37% of the votes selected ìwork attitudeî while experience ranked second by only one percent (36% of the votes). Studies finished third, but far below the first two options, with just 17% of the total votes.
These results may surprise some, but they make sense not only in the Hispanic community but in the general Job market, according to Eric Shannon CEO of LatPro.com, the No. 1 job board for Hispanic professionals.
Even though 73 percent of the candidates in our database have a Bachelor Degree or higher, studies donít create a professional for various reasons,î he explained. ìSome specific jobs do not have a school where to study, like sales management or customer support specialists whose professionalism can be measured only by their experience and achievements. The same happens with relatively new career paths, like the ones related to the internet. And companies also understand the value of experience -- that is why we see daily basis requirements stating íBachelor Degree or the equivalent of X years of experienceí.
In a follow up to the poll, one respondent with an MBA explained her reasoning: Any Latino with a degree values the title and is proud of the achievement, because in most cases we have to overcome more difficulties to go through school -- but after some years of working we all realize that a degree is a better starting point for a professional career but itís not enough. You have excellent professionals without a degree, and poor performers with the highest degrees.
Sheís not the only one to see it from this point of view. Follow-up comments from a smaller group revealed that studies are highly esteemed as a useful foundation for a successful career, but not enough to define anyone as a professional.
The complete results of the poll or the results of older polls can be see at:
Work attitude cited as most important feature - Hispanic professionals
Poll conducted by www.NSHP.org
