By Jackie Jones

“…employers consistently show an employer preference for white job applicants.”

Several years ago at a workshop for African-American journalists who aspired to go into management,  consultant Ron Brown talked about the importance of being seen as a team player, spending time after work occasionally socializing with co-workers and supervisors, being willing to take on tasks that some might see as undesirable.

A woman raised her hand and said to Brown, “That sounds like ass-kissing.”

“No,” replied Brown, a recognized authority on global diversity and leadership development. “That’s effective ass-kissing.”

“If you don’t love your job as much as your bosses do why would they give you greater authority in their companies?” Brown continued. His point was that African Americans didn’t automatically have an edge just because their organizations wanted people of color.

Employers, he said, were perfectly content to hire black folks in lower-level jobs, but the game changed when they aspired to higher-paying, higher-level jobs. The key was to make sure you were well-placed so that when opportunities arose you would be among those who came first to an employer’s mind.

Corporate recruiters, employers, collegiate career advisers and executives for professional associations today say the message today hasn’t changed—in any industry.

Diversity isn’t even on the table for a lot of employers as they hunker down and try to figure out how to keep business afloat in a struggling economy. One professional association executive said owners in her field are so obsessed with the bottom line that they aren’t even thinking about how diversity might contribute to their success or survival.

What that means for African-American college graduates, especially those looking for entry-level management jobs, is that it is going to take a lot more than being young, gifted and black to secure employment.

At a congressional hearing in late September, a report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) in Washington, reported its research showed that while having a college degree usually insulates most people from downturns in the economy, that wasn’t the case in the current recession.

In fact, the report by Algernon Austin, PhD, director of the institute’s Program on Race, Ethnicity and the Economy, “In the second quarter of 2007, the unemployment rate for college-educated whites was 1.7 percent. In the second quarter of this year, it had risen to 4.1 percent.”

For college-educated black graduates, the unemployment rate was 2.8 percent in 2007 and 7.6 percent in the second quarter of this year.

While employment experts say there are jobs out there, black graduates will have to become master salesmen to get past the first round of interviews to be considered for the jobs that are available because there is another issue at play.

According to the EPI report, “Research shows that racial and ethnic minorities continue to face discrimination in the labor market. Audit or paired-tester studies where white and nonwhite ‘testers’ present similar job qualifications in similar ways to employers consistently show an employer preference for white job applicants.”

Jobs can be found, but for black graduates that likely means going outside of their comfort zones, employment experts say.

Beyond having a resume professionally prepared, dressing appropriately, studying up on the business before the interview, applicants should also be prepared to network effectively and be aware of potential pitfalls along the way.

Networking isn’t purely social, nor is it walking up to recruiters or executives and asking bluntly if they have job openings. It’s an opportunity to learn more about a business, its direction, the firm’s challenges and goals and to figure out what kinds of candidates succeed there. The time to inquire about a job is in a follow-up note or call to the employer.

Professional etiquette is essential. Turn off the cell phone before you go into the office. Interrupting a conversation to turn off the phone is considered as bad as taking the call because it shows inattention to detail. Make sure there is nothing embarrassing or potentially incriminating on your Facebook or MySpace pages or your Twitter account. Social networking can be beneficial to your career growth but not if you share personal or inappropriate information. Remember: there are no secrets in cyberspace and nothing ever really disappears.

Be savvy about background checks. Employers routinely run credit and criminal checks on job applicants. Make sure there are no red flags in your background that may cause an employer to reject you.

If a business or corporation you are interested in has a Facebook page, get on and ask questions about the business, show that you’re following trends at the company and make sure your name shows up on the discussion page often enough that it becomes familiar to company executives.

Showcase your skills and let people get to know you. Take advantage of every opportunity to get involved in activities or organizations that put you in touch with executives or the people who work with them. Take up a new sport, such as cycling or golf (even if most of your time is spent on the driving range or putting greens, which is cheaper than playing a round), jogging, etc. Consider joining a wine-tasting group or a book club. Sometimes, experts say, you may meet the friend, relative or colleague of someone who is looking to hire or run into someone who works at a firm who may be able to tip you off to upcoming openings.

Yes, there is definitely some gamesmanship involved in finding employment and building a solid, successful career. Some of it may be strange or even a little distasteful, but as the saying goes in competitions: You must be present to win.

Jackie Jones is a career and fitness coach for those who want to get their lives in shape. www.jonescoaching.net.