Liam Horan, Managing Director, Sli Nua Careers Ltd, talks to Aidan Crowley of Community Radio Castlebar –  a series of career tips interviews that will be broadcast each Monday on CRC-fm at 5.30pm GMT.

This week:

I’ve just recently joined a new company – just two months ago, in fact. I’m really enjoying it though I’m only learning the ropes. There are five in our section, plus the manager. The others are more experienced than me, and have a better understanding of the culture of the company, but I’ve got good feedback about the progress I’m making. Out of the blue, the manager’s vacancy has arisen: she has a got a job opportunity elsewhere that she just can’t turn down. I’m thinking about applying for her position. I know it sounds – and feels – a touch premature, but an opportunity like this might not present itself again. What do you think? (Larry, email).

Q: I was self-employed for the last 15 years. Recently, the economic downturn has laid me low: I went the full 15 rounds since the recession hit, but I was facing a formidable foe. Now I am writing my CV and I’m not sure how I should depict this period of my life. I hear that employers don’t like to hire people who have been self-employed. How should I show this phase of my career on my CV? (George, email)

Community Radio Castlebar has a licence from the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland to provide a community radio service to Castlebar and the surrounding environs and was established in June 1995. The station broadcasts seven days a week, 24 hours per day.

In June 2007 the station was awarded a further ten year licence for the period 2007 to 2017 on the basis of the business plan submitted to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland.

The station is managed by a company by limited guarantee which has a board of thirteen directors elected from the general membership. The membership is made up of three groups representing local statutory agencies, voluntary and local business groups and individual members of the community.

The mission statement of the station is:

“The service should reflect the needs in the local community as well as educate, entertain and inform its listeners”