Heather Krasna, PhD & Associates

Q: What are your qualifications?

A: I have a PhD in Public Health with a focus on public health workforce research, making me one of the only experts in the world on employment outcomes of public health graduates and employer demand for them. I have a Master of Education in Adult Learning and Leadership, Master of Science in Nonprofit Management, a Certificate in Adult Career Planning and Development, a Certificate in Organizational Development, and 23+ years’ experience as a successful career coach to thousands of job seekers, and am a published author and recognized career thought leader in the field of public service and nonprofit job search. My book, Jobs That Matter: Find a Stable, Fulfilling Career in Public Service, has been reviewed in the US News and World Report, USA Today, NPR, Houston Chronicle, Seattle Times, New York Times Syndicate, and prominent websites including Careerbuilder.com, HotJobs, and Idealist.org. I am regularly invited to speak at national conferences on the topic of nonprofit job search. I am also a Certified Diversity Recruiter and Certified Social Sourcing Recruiter, as well as a Certified Employment Interview Coach.

Q: Are you a counselor?

A: I am a career coach, resume writer, and career adviser but I am not a licensed therapist or counselor. If and when I have a client who needs deeper personal work, mental health counseling, or career assessment testing, I have a list of highly qualified counselors I can refer you to. The coaching services you will be receiving not offered as a substitute for professional mental health care or medical care and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any mental health or medical conditions.

Q: Have you worked with someone with my background?

A: I have worked with: executives with 30+ years of experience; individuals changing careers from private or public sector to the nonprofit sector; people who are seeking promotions, moving to new mission areas, switching job functions, or reconsidering their career options; recent college graduates just entering the workforce; university faculty and deans, doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants, professional musicians, PhDs, financial services professionals, stagehands, chefs, certified fundraising executives, diplomats, inventors, foresters, social workers, program managers, executive directors, computer scientists, federal, state and local government employees, and just about every other professional; parents and caregivers returning to the workforce, freelancers looking for full-time work, individuals launching consultancies, individuals with various disabilities ranging from hearing or vision limitations to Autism/Aspergers syndrome, retirees looking for second careers, and individuals with gaps in employment; recent immigrants and international students, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals, people from countries all over the world, and individuals from every ethnic and cultural background.

Q: Do you provide job placement?

A: No. I work with you to ensure that your professional promotional materials and personalized search strategy enable you to direct your own job search. While I don’t provide job placement services, and I cannot guarantee you will have success in your job search, you will find that working with me will give you a significant advantage in your job search. I am also sometimes able to provide introductions to some of the 9,000+ people in my LinkedIn network, depending on the situation.

Q: What about confidentiality?

A: I know that people embarking on a job search may be facing many delicate issues: how to search without a current employer finding out, how to deal with a difficult supervisor or challenging organizational fit, how to handle a difficult departure from a previous position, and so on. You should feel confident that the information you share with me will be kept private, with the obvious exceptions of illegal activity or unless you give us permission to share the information more broadly. (See “usage agreement” below.)

Q: What is your payment policy?

A: We ask that all coaching be purchased by 24 hours in advance of the appointment. If an appointment is not paid for prior to the appointment time, it will be considered tentative and subject to cancellation or rescheduling.

Q: What is your cancellation policy?

A: Once an appointment is set, we ask clients to provide 24 hours notice of cancellation (excepting in cases of personal emergency), or the fees will not be refunded.

Q: Are services offered in person, or by phone, Zoom or Skype?

A: Services are offered by phone, Skype, or Zoom. At this time, I do not offer in-person services. The use of technology is not always secure and I accept the risks of confidentiality in the use of email, text, phone, Skype and other technology.

Q: How quickly can I expect an appointment, or a response to a question?

A: Most appointments can be scheduled within a week of the purchase and usually faster, but it depends on scheduling availability. For rush service (48 hour turnaround) please email me first to determine whether the schedule is possible and purchase the additional rush service fee of $150.

Q: When are appointments available?

A: I run my private practice in addition to a full-time position, so typically, appointments are available in the evenings after 5pm EST during the week, or on the weekend.

Q: What happens during an appointment?

A: All appointments are customized to the client’s needs. Often, a first session will include a strategy discussion to determine which factors are motivating your career change (typically a desire to improve one’s lifestyle, work in a certain mission area, or change job functions); and a talk-through of the resume or CV. Usually I make edits using tracked changes through the resume, and am able to send you a “next round” version of the resume after the 90 minutes are over, with numerous improvements; and will send a version with tracked changes and one without. I also typically send a long list of possible job functions, target organizations, websites, books and resources, and sometimes even introductions to some of the 5,000+ people in my network. Some clients prefer to spend a session practicing for an upcoming interview, working on salary negotiation strategy, or receiving a coaching session on LinkedIn, among other things.

Q: I purchased a coaching hour/package but decided not to use it yet. Do hours expire? Can I give the hour to a friend?

A: Coaching hours are refundable if they are not used within 6 months of purchase, or in the very rare case that a client feels the work did not match the services which were advertised (which has never happened yet!). If coaching hours are not used within 6 months, they expire and are no longer refundable. Coaching hours are not transferable.

Q: I need career coaching, but can’t afford your services. What should I do?

A: I come out of the mission-driven sector and respect that not everyone can afford personalized services. As much as we would like to help everyone in need, unfortunately this is not possible, especially because I am currently working on many volunteer leadership commitments to help bolster the public health workforce. I encourage you to read the articles posted on my blog, consider reading my books, and to consider using career services offered to alumni of colleges you may have attended, community services offered through nonprofit organizations in your area, employment assistance offered to people via your state unemployment agency or Workforce 1 Career Center, or workshops often provided through community organizations or libraries.

OUTPLACEMENT QUESTIONS

Q: My company purchased outplacement hours for one of our impacted employees. Do I get to know if they were used? Can I hear updates about the past employee’s job search?

A: Due to the confidential relationship between a career coach and the client, I cannot provide any information about the affected employee’s use of the coaching services. Outplacement coaching hours should be used within 6 months. If not used by the impacted employee, the hours are not refundable and not transferable.  We provide as clear of an estimate regarding the number of hours needed as possible.

OTHER QUESTIONS

Q: I have another question not answered here.

A: I’m happy to answer questions for individuals interested in coaching services. Please email me at heatherkrasna@gmail.com with your question(s). Unfortunately, due to my extremely busy schedule, I cannot provide answers to inquiries over the phone.

TERMS OF USE/USAGE AGREEMENT FOR ALL COACHING

By using career coaching services with Heather Krasna, you are agreeing to the following:

Heather Krasna is a career coach, resume writer, and career adviser but not a licensed therapist or counselor. The coaching services you will be receiving not offered as a substitute for professional mental health care or medical care and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any mental health or medical conditions.

If you report child, elder abuse or neglect or threaten to harm myself or someone else, necessary actions will be taken and your confidentiality agreement limited in this capacity. If your coach is ordered by a court to provide information or to testify, she will do so to the extent the law requires. The use of technology is not always secure and I accept the risks of confidentiality in the use of email, text, phone, Skype and other technology.

You hereby release, waive, acquit and forever discharge your Coach, any agents, successors, assigns, personal representatives, executors, heirs and employees from every claim, suit action, demand or right to compensation for damages you may claim to have or that you may have arising out of acts or omissions by you or by your Coach as a result of the advice given by your Coach or otherwise resulting from the coaching relationship contemplated by this agreement. You further declare and represent that no promise, inducement or agreement not expressed in this agreement has been made to you to make this agreement. This agreement shall bind your heirs, executors, personal representatives, successors, assigns, and agents.

Ready to buy coaching time? Please visit my coaching page here.