Here is an extremely well written article on workplace environments:
http://hr-mpact.com/Documents/positive-environment.pdf
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Nothing is Forever
I have been on a blogging hiatus but am ready to get moving once again! Recently, professional athletes have not been doing a great job of being role models with several criminal cases pending and some downright odd behavior patterns. Perhaps, some of these cases simply deal with the fact that there are a few rotten apples in every bushel. Just as troubling is their disregard for the people who support them who are struggling to stay afloat in this sluggish economy. Athletes appear to believe they are entitled to grossly inflated salaries no matter what.
This year's NFL draft had several interesting sidebars. One that stood out involved Johnny Manziel's (aka: Johnny Football) reaction when he was finally taken as the 22nd pick in a draft where many had rated him in the top 4 or 5 selections just a few days before. As he approached the podium at Radio City Music Hall, he rubbed his fingers together signifying he realized how wealthy he was about to become. Considering how far his market value had dropped, and how many people watching the broadcast are struggling to stay afloat financially, this was a very greedy display of his sense of entitlement.
Stephen Drew is a successful shortstop, not the greatest one to ever play the game, but pretty decent. Rather than re-sign with the Boston RedSox this season, he tested the waters as a free agent. No one came to terms with him. Until yesterday, he was out of baseball. Boston rehired him yesterday and his gross earnings will end up being about $14Mil less than last year based on playing a truncated season. Here is a case where holding out for what he felt he was entitled to backfired.
Over the past two years, I have coached several individuals who were unemployed. Many of them were offered new opportunities at significant drops in pay from what they were used to earning. My advice was that some level of earnings plus an actual job to freshen up one's resume were worth accepting. I did a quick check on some of those folks this week and they are still not working.
The simple message is that no one owes any of us anything. If your bank accounts are running empty, your 401K is trickling down the drain,and no other serious job is headed in your direction at present, how can you turn a job down? Nothing is forever in this world and it is much easier to trade up from a job than to be on the street with nothing happening.
This year's NFL draft had several interesting sidebars. One that stood out involved Johnny Manziel's (aka: Johnny Football) reaction when he was finally taken as the 22nd pick in a draft where many had rated him in the top 4 or 5 selections just a few days before. As he approached the podium at Radio City Music Hall, he rubbed his fingers together signifying he realized how wealthy he was about to become. Considering how far his market value had dropped, and how many people watching the broadcast are struggling to stay afloat financially, this was a very greedy display of his sense of entitlement.
Stephen Drew is a successful shortstop, not the greatest one to ever play the game, but pretty decent. Rather than re-sign with the Boston RedSox this season, he tested the waters as a free agent. No one came to terms with him. Until yesterday, he was out of baseball. Boston rehired him yesterday and his gross earnings will end up being about $14Mil less than last year based on playing a truncated season. Here is a case where holding out for what he felt he was entitled to backfired.
Over the past two years, I have coached several individuals who were unemployed. Many of them were offered new opportunities at significant drops in pay from what they were used to earning. My advice was that some level of earnings plus an actual job to freshen up one's resume were worth accepting. I did a quick check on some of those folks this week and they are still not working.
The simple message is that no one owes any of us anything. If your bank accounts are running empty, your 401K is trickling down the drain,and no other serious job is headed in your direction at present, how can you turn a job down? Nothing is forever in this world and it is much easier to trade up from a job than to be on the street with nothing happening.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Looking Ahead to 2016
I wanted to share this interesting look at the employment projections for 2016. Trends are not all that different than I would have expected except that positions related to Information Technology seem to be trending upward. Here is the link to check out:
http://www.boston.com/jobs/2013/12/23/the-year-the-fastest-growing-jobs/GGDo2PVgihmpsurdiPGUhO/story.html
http://www.boston.com/jobs/2013/12/23/the-year-the-fastest-growing-jobs/GGDo2PVgihmpsurdiPGUhO/story.html
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Some Thoughts Inspired by Black Friday
2013 is winding down and I am personally hopeful that 2014 will bring much greater opportunities in the job market. As I wandered through a half empty shopping mall at 8:00 AM on Black Friday, feeling quite good that I dodged temptation and did not head out at 8:00 PM on Thanksgiving helping deprive retail workers of the time they should have been allotted to spend with their families, I started thinking about a variety of topics.
First, I was very impressed by the energy some of the retail associates demonstrated that day even though many of them were either awake all night or up many hours before sunrise. Two young men in particular stood out as they handled multiple customers with skill and worked their stockrooms to identify merchandise that was absent from their sales floors. Several of these individuals are destined for success and hopefully many will be offered management positions when they are available.
Second, I noticed that people were buying more essentials such as linens, pillows, sweatshirts, winter jackets and less jewelry, glitzy clothing, and overpriced toys. We are definitely still being exceptionally cautious with the precious few dollars available to us. I certainly hope manufacturers realize that is where to put most of their investments and leave the more frivolous products for another time when perhaps their will be more ready cash on hand.
Third, the average age of the employees in many of the larger stores seemed significantly older than in recent years. With unemployment still at near record highs, it is easier to find seasoned professionals ready to take holiday jobs as their unemployment benefits and 401K plans run out. It is sad to see this happen and think of all the teens and college students who will struggle to fund their educational plans because they could not obtain seasonal work. Personally, I have noticed in recent weeks that several engineers, chemists, accountants, etc. who are in my LinkedIn network have announced they are working in seasonal retail jobs. I am happy they are working but disappointed it has come to this.
Being eternally optimistic, I am glad that many people are back to work at some level, putting cash in their wallets and giving them some positive energy to build upon. I am equally happy that many retail prices seem to be the same or even lower than last year which might make it possible for merchandise to sell a bit better, creating some new jobs along the way. While not at all easy, we definitely need to keep finding new ways to produce lemonade!
First, I was very impressed by the energy some of the retail associates demonstrated that day even though many of them were either awake all night or up many hours before sunrise. Two young men in particular stood out as they handled multiple customers with skill and worked their stockrooms to identify merchandise that was absent from their sales floors. Several of these individuals are destined for success and hopefully many will be offered management positions when they are available.
Second, I noticed that people were buying more essentials such as linens, pillows, sweatshirts, winter jackets and less jewelry, glitzy clothing, and overpriced toys. We are definitely still being exceptionally cautious with the precious few dollars available to us. I certainly hope manufacturers realize that is where to put most of their investments and leave the more frivolous products for another time when perhaps their will be more ready cash on hand.
Third, the average age of the employees in many of the larger stores seemed significantly older than in recent years. With unemployment still at near record highs, it is easier to find seasoned professionals ready to take holiday jobs as their unemployment benefits and 401K plans run out. It is sad to see this happen and think of all the teens and college students who will struggle to fund their educational plans because they could not obtain seasonal work. Personally, I have noticed in recent weeks that several engineers, chemists, accountants, etc. who are in my LinkedIn network have announced they are working in seasonal retail jobs. I am happy they are working but disappointed it has come to this.
Being eternally optimistic, I am glad that many people are back to work at some level, putting cash in their wallets and giving them some positive energy to build upon. I am equally happy that many retail prices seem to be the same or even lower than last year which might make it possible for merchandise to sell a bit better, creating some new jobs along the way. While not at all easy, we definitely need to keep finding new ways to produce lemonade!
Monday, October 28, 2013
Have Your Resume Updated Even if You Are Employed
Most people who are gainfully employed tend to
neglect the fact that everybody should have a current resume. Rule of thumb is to update it annually unless
your job description changes dramatically at a shorter interval. When I recommend this practice to employed
individuals they frequently look at me like I am speaking in a language which
they do not understand.
Why do I need a resume if I am working? I love my job and my company so writing a
resume seems like a waste of time. No
one else at my company knows my job so I am there till I retire. So many people in my industry know me that I
would never have trouble landing a job by word of mouth if I needed to find a
new one.
Let’s see if we can poke holes into each of these
statements. My objective is not to make
fun of anyone who feels very secure but rather to prepare you for the right
hook to your cheekbone when you least expect it to hit you. I am going to attack the aforementioned
points in reverse order just because I feel like doing it that way as they are
all important.
Industries tend to go into large slumps in
clusters. By that I mean that if one
company in a field begins to struggle, others will likely follow suit
quickly. Do you remember when our area
was blessed to have B. Dalton, Barnes and Noble, Brentano’s, Borders and a
plethora of lesser known book retailers.
Thanks to nooks, kindles, and other e-readers it is getting hard for
booksellers to keep their doors open and I believe the only one left standing
locally is Barnes and Noble. Telecomm is
another industry that has shed thousands of jobs in Central Jersey. Even if you knew dozens of strong contacts in
either of these fields locally, there is a pretty strong chance that many of
them are now job hunting as well.
The theory that uniqueness in job description leads
to long term job security no longer is terribly accurate. Numerous companies have obviously merged or
been purchased by huge multinational organizations who really do not give a
crap about the individual worker. They
are all about numbers and bottom lines.
More than likely, your very unique role is being filled by others in a
different part of the world making your role expendable when budgets are
reviewed.
The first two points I made earlier blend together
fairly well. You might very well be
gainfully employed today and absolutely love your job but, that is today. The world is so volatile right now that we
never know what tomorrow might look like.
Companies are shutting doors at amazing rates and management teams are
being shifted around all the time which could take your status from having a
job for life to filing for unemployment overnight.
After saying all this in a rather blunt and bleak
way, I will soften it a bit by saying that if you are gainfully employed and
happy where you are, do everything possible to stay gainfully employed and
happy where you are. The point I am
striving to drive home is we should never close our minds to the eventuality
that we may have to make a move and be prepared for it.
There are other reasons to have your resume current
at all times. You never know when you
may be presented with an opportunity to apply for an internal promotion. Promotions are not necessarily simply handed
out. Sometimes, you have to make a case
to higher authorities to justify their decision making process. The challenge is that the window of time for
preparing yourself might be very short and to take a resume that has not been
dusted off for several years is not as easy as it looks.
My rule of thumb is to pick a date on which you will
annually review and update your resume.
Some people pick their work anniversary whiles others might select their
birthday or wedding anniversary. It
really does not matter as long as you remain consistent. There is no need for a complete overhaul but
be sure to add any new skills or responsibilities you have acquired in the past year as well as any new
certifications, degrees, seminars attended or special accomplishments. Make sure that you read the finished product
and ensure that it still flows nicely and is easy to read. Ask a friend or family member to review it as
well. This way, if opportunity knocks,
internally or externally, or if a situation arises where you must begin
searching for a job, you will be ready to go!
Monday, September 16, 2013
Patience!!!!
Several components go into conducting a successful job search such as having a great resume, remaining organized throughout the process, developing great interview skills, proactively following up on job leads and interview results, maintaining a current list of solid references, etc. A lesser known component for success, one that is becoming increasingly significant, is developing a high level of patience.
Recently, I coached an individual who had been out of work for quite some time due to a combination of a staff reduction at her company and a long term disability. She sent out countless resumes and went on a decent number of interviews to no avail. This alone tested her patience but was only a table setter for her final frontier in the job search world.
An employer contacted her for a position a step or two below where she hoped to land but the company has a great reputation and a decent benefits plan. She went to the interview, met with four people for about an hour then was told that two others were part of the hiring process but not available that day. Naturally, she figured this was a way of brushing her off. As she drove home, she got a call to come back the next day! This meeting with two people lasted a total of 20 minutes and she was told someone would get back to her.
Four or five days passed with no further contact and the candidate called me for advice. I suggested she call the original person who invited her to the interview and ask for an update on her status. She had to leave voice mail and was very frustrated but did not give up hope. She received a call two days later with an offer contingent on a background check which she submitted all required forms for immediately. A week later, she was told to go for a drug screening. Another week later, she was told the results were inconclusive due to a testing glitch and she had to retake the test. Finally, 5 days later, she was officially hired.
From time of submitting her resume to the actual date of hire was a span of almost two months. Countless times, she was ready to give up but really wanted the job and kept pushing forward. The key here is that patience got her the job offer. Today, hiring processes are slower than i have seen over the past 30 years. If you are impatient and anxious and give up quickly, you are cheating yourself..Patience is an acquired quality for many of us but I strongly suggest you find a way to be patient in order to succeed!
Recently, I coached an individual who had been out of work for quite some time due to a combination of a staff reduction at her company and a long term disability. She sent out countless resumes and went on a decent number of interviews to no avail. This alone tested her patience but was only a table setter for her final frontier in the job search world.
An employer contacted her for a position a step or two below where she hoped to land but the company has a great reputation and a decent benefits plan. She went to the interview, met with four people for about an hour then was told that two others were part of the hiring process but not available that day. Naturally, she figured this was a way of brushing her off. As she drove home, she got a call to come back the next day! This meeting with two people lasted a total of 20 minutes and she was told someone would get back to her.
Four or five days passed with no further contact and the candidate called me for advice. I suggested she call the original person who invited her to the interview and ask for an update on her status. She had to leave voice mail and was very frustrated but did not give up hope. She received a call two days later with an offer contingent on a background check which she submitted all required forms for immediately. A week later, she was told to go for a drug screening. Another week later, she was told the results were inconclusive due to a testing glitch and she had to retake the test. Finally, 5 days later, she was officially hired.
From time of submitting her resume to the actual date of hire was a span of almost two months. Countless times, she was ready to give up but really wanted the job and kept pushing forward. The key here is that patience got her the job offer. Today, hiring processes are slower than i have seen over the past 30 years. If you are impatient and anxious and give up quickly, you are cheating yourself..Patience is an acquired quality for many of us but I strongly suggest you find a way to be patient in order to succeed!
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
The Other Guy Did It
This entry is my first in almost three months due to a very difficult time period experienced by my family. Now it is time to get back in gear and bring my blogging up to speed!
Customer service is crucial to survival at any time but especially in our current economy. It plays a major factor in which businesses will thrive and which will disappear. At the same time, anyone dealing with the public at any level, be it in person, on the phone, or electronically, is constantly under a microscope. How you present yourself definitely impacts your current and future levels of success.
Over the past several months, I have observed various levels of customer service from commercial airlines, airport service staff, home health aides, hospice care professionals, clergy, charitable organizations, etc. The range I witnessed has been all over the charts. Whether it was in NJ, North Carolina, Florida or over the phone, I saw everything from exemplary to efficient to absolutely awful.
My reaction is that the amount of experience one has on a job does not necessarily equate to the quality of service provided. Passion for the task at hand, a genuine interest in making other people's days better, a desire to provide excellence all the time, and a hunger to be perceived in a positive manner all can make up for a lack of experience.
Recently, I experienced a lack of all of the above. A local diner, which has been in existence for at least 50 years, was purchased a few months ago by one of the top diner families in NJ. When I heard the news, I was excited that this establishment which had barely survived for the past many years due to mediocre food and deplorable customer service might actually come back to life! I waited anxiously for the transition period to end before convincing my wife to give the place a try. Last week, signs went up announcing the grand re-opening under new ownership so we stopped by for dinner.
Needless to say, our experience got off poorly when the waitress came over to greet us (with a smile) and said that she was chomping on ice since it was her first day and she was tired and kept crunching while telling us that even though new owners took over, the menu and food were pretty much unchanged. This did not bode well. We asked her about some of the menu items and she proclaimed that all she had tasted was the cheesecake and knew nothing about the food. She also forgot to bring an order pad and tried to memorize our requests which came out of the kitchen wrong. First, she asked me if that was what I ordered, then blamed the chef! Once the order was corrected, she stopped by and asked me how I liked the 'bad boys' on my plate and told us she would be disappearing for five minutes. When she reappeared, my wife commented about the stench of tobacco in a smoke free establishment. She had trouble finding our check but did thank us nicely for coming in.
The manager was working the cash register. He took our money and said thank you without asking how our meal was so I decided to engage him. I told him the food was good but customer service was shaky at best. He asked me if I meant the waitress had a big mouth and I said that was part of the problem. He did not ask me what else went wrong so I did not bother to tell him. His only reply was that he did not hire her, the other guy did it.
One of my biggest issues with customer service is that a little training goes a long way. Had the manager wondered around instead of sitting at the counter for over an hour (place was half full at best), he would have picked up on the problem and perhaps given some on the job training. No matter what line of business you are in, how the public perceives you will determine your future success!
Customer service is crucial to survival at any time but especially in our current economy. It plays a major factor in which businesses will thrive and which will disappear. At the same time, anyone dealing with the public at any level, be it in person, on the phone, or electronically, is constantly under a microscope. How you present yourself definitely impacts your current and future levels of success.
Over the past several months, I have observed various levels of customer service from commercial airlines, airport service staff, home health aides, hospice care professionals, clergy, charitable organizations, etc. The range I witnessed has been all over the charts. Whether it was in NJ, North Carolina, Florida or over the phone, I saw everything from exemplary to efficient to absolutely awful.
My reaction is that the amount of experience one has on a job does not necessarily equate to the quality of service provided. Passion for the task at hand, a genuine interest in making other people's days better, a desire to provide excellence all the time, and a hunger to be perceived in a positive manner all can make up for a lack of experience.
Recently, I experienced a lack of all of the above. A local diner, which has been in existence for at least 50 years, was purchased a few months ago by one of the top diner families in NJ. When I heard the news, I was excited that this establishment which had barely survived for the past many years due to mediocre food and deplorable customer service might actually come back to life! I waited anxiously for the transition period to end before convincing my wife to give the place a try. Last week, signs went up announcing the grand re-opening under new ownership so we stopped by for dinner.
Needless to say, our experience got off poorly when the waitress came over to greet us (with a smile) and said that she was chomping on ice since it was her first day and she was tired and kept crunching while telling us that even though new owners took over, the menu and food were pretty much unchanged. This did not bode well. We asked her about some of the menu items and she proclaimed that all she had tasted was the cheesecake and knew nothing about the food. She also forgot to bring an order pad and tried to memorize our requests which came out of the kitchen wrong. First, she asked me if that was what I ordered, then blamed the chef! Once the order was corrected, she stopped by and asked me how I liked the 'bad boys' on my plate and told us she would be disappearing for five minutes. When she reappeared, my wife commented about the stench of tobacco in a smoke free establishment. She had trouble finding our check but did thank us nicely for coming in.
The manager was working the cash register. He took our money and said thank you without asking how our meal was so I decided to engage him. I told him the food was good but customer service was shaky at best. He asked me if I meant the waitress had a big mouth and I said that was part of the problem. He did not ask me what else went wrong so I did not bother to tell him. His only reply was that he did not hire her, the other guy did it.
One of my biggest issues with customer service is that a little training goes a long way. Had the manager wondered around instead of sitting at the counter for over an hour (place was half full at best), he would have picked up on the problem and perhaps given some on the job training. No matter what line of business you are in, how the public perceives you will determine your future success!
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Keep Your Shirt Tucked In!
From the title, you might think this article will be about dress codes and interview apparel. One might also assume I am giving my opinion on current trends in business casual attire. Anyone who knows me realizes that fashion statements will never have a home in this blogger's world!
By keeping one's shirt tucked in, I am referring to avoiding comments or statements on interviews which can cost you a job offer. A hiring manager does not need to know that you are only available to work from 7:30 until 3:30 daily because your girlfriend insists you arrive at home no later than 4:00 PM! The fact that you went through a divorce and had to leave your job because your father-in-law owned the company is not something to share at a first interview. Mentioning that you are changing jobs because the police in the town where you most recently were employed do not like you and follow you around is probably not going to give a warm and fuzzy feeling to the recruiter sitting across from you at the interview.
By now, I anticipate that a number of you think I am making this up as entertaining reading to brighten up a rainy Saturday morning! I guarantee you that this is not the case. What you have just read makes up a very small sample of the things I hear from candidates I have sent on interviews over the last 25+ years. Many of the stories come from the interviewers but a lot of it has been told to me straight from the candidates. As cable television and the internet have made us less formal than ever before, what people will share about themselves has gotten terribly out of control
I do not care if the interviewer seems very relaxed and casual. I do not care if the interviewer airs their dirty laundry in front of you. I do care that the candidate must remain professional at all times. Sometimes, you are being led into a huge pile of quicksand by a very sneaky interviewer. Keep your shirt tucked in at all times and you will succeed!
By keeping one's shirt tucked in, I am referring to avoiding comments or statements on interviews which can cost you a job offer. A hiring manager does not need to know that you are only available to work from 7:30 until 3:30 daily because your girlfriend insists you arrive at home no later than 4:00 PM! The fact that you went through a divorce and had to leave your job because your father-in-law owned the company is not something to share at a first interview. Mentioning that you are changing jobs because the police in the town where you most recently were employed do not like you and follow you around is probably not going to give a warm and fuzzy feeling to the recruiter sitting across from you at the interview.
By now, I anticipate that a number of you think I am making this up as entertaining reading to brighten up a rainy Saturday morning! I guarantee you that this is not the case. What you have just read makes up a very small sample of the things I hear from candidates I have sent on interviews over the last 25+ years. Many of the stories come from the interviewers but a lot of it has been told to me straight from the candidates. As cable television and the internet have made us less formal than ever before, what people will share about themselves has gotten terribly out of control
I do not care if the interviewer seems very relaxed and casual. I do not care if the interviewer airs their dirty laundry in front of you. I do care that the candidate must remain professional at all times. Sometimes, you are being led into a huge pile of quicksand by a very sneaky interviewer. Keep your shirt tucked in at all times and you will succeed!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
