There is a common language used by top-level managers in every company. It is a language centered on business concepts and understanding a handful of concepts.
For example, CEOs instinctively move toward the action that will maximize profits and minimize costs or expenses. Investment is the first concept and cost savings is second. To them this is as basic as breathing, and they often don’t consciously realize that they have moved in that direction. However, many HR professionals focus on costs or on how a candidate feels about a given action, and they emphasize these over the investment side or over the impact on profits in presentations and conversations. Read more…
I am a Baby Boomer and a business traveler who normally stays at the classic hotels or at chain hotels like the Sheraton’s or Hilton’s. While on a business trip to Paris and Amsterdam with my wife, we had a one night layover before our morning flight to the US. My frugal wife chose the Citizen M for its location (3 min walk from the airport) and price (around 150 euros including taxes.) Read more…
Networking and collaboration are the operating principles that are defining how people find their next job, how they work and how they think about the world. Over the past many decades, the operating principles have been individualism and “do-it-yourself.”
Networks in Recruiting
Traditionally to find a new job we seek a position/title we think fits us on a job board or corporate career site, write a resume which we submit, and we wait for an answer from a recruiter. We are considered only for the specific position we applied for and rejected or followed up with based on that. As a job seeker we generally know only what the job description tells is about the position.
Networks are changing that picture already by allowing a seeker a vast amount of choice and information. A diligent job seeker can find out what other employees at that company think about the company and perhaps even the position. She can often send inquiries directly to current employees. Recruiters can scan a variety of people for skills and competencies that match needs and reach out even if the person has not applied for that specific job. Recruiters can learn much more about the candidate Read more…
No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main. . . any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.
John Donne, Meditation XVII
English clergyman & poet (1572 – 1631)
As John Donne knew over 400 years ago we live interconnected lives that influence others and are influenced by others. It is interesting that in times of turmoil, war and recession people see the deep value of working together. World War II produced camaraderie and teamwork that boosted production and kept spirits up during a dark time in both England and the United States. This recession has renewed the value of family, shown that making money is never core to happiness, and rejuvenated charitable and social organizations.
Awareness of the power of cooperation to get things done is also filtering into the workplace. The hot topic in leadership development is collaborative leadership. Strategic partnerships have grown by necessity out of the recession and I think most business people are seeing the economic benefits of being more closely connected to customers, suppliers, vendors, consultants and employees. Virtual teams and teamwork are the subject of many corporate meetings and events. Successful, innovative firms such as IDEO have mastered skills in teamwork and joint design. Read more…
Companies from Best Buy to IBM are starting to apply quantitative measurement to talent management and HR. They are reaping profits and cost savings from doing so. As other organizations catch on to this, measurement will finally become a part of HR. And this will put many HR professionals in a strange space – that of determining with some level of certainty which people perform better than others, which managers have lower turnover, and which functions add the most value (revenue/loyalty/patents).
Most HR professionals are uncertain about measurement, not usually understanding what it means and not quite believing that it can be done to people. And, until sophisticated algorithms and software were developed it was a challenge. But, the new HRIS tools along with CRM and specific measurement software, are making it easier to gather data and mine it. Longitudinal studies can be carried out and base levels can be established so that the impact of future changes can be observed and correlated. Read more…
In many cases the shortage of skilled labor may be caused more by very narrowly defined job descriptions and a lack of imagination than by any real shortage.
We set up expectations and define jobs based more on what we want (or think we want) than on what is realistically available.
Many of us say that we cannot find qualified C# programmers, for example, when we all know that there are very few people with good skills in this area. We are left with two choices: wait to find a disgruntled one that we can steal from some other employer or decide to do something to change the supply by developing training programs or taking on apprentices.
Many emerging jobs require a new perspective, rather than an entirely new skill set. An interior designer could easily do the new job of home stager – someone who decorates your house prior to selling it — but for a much lower price. Many skills for jobs in the health care arena can be learned quickly, but are all based on a common set of skills around patient care, communication, and appreciation for and understanding of technology. The real challenge is perpective, atttiude and sometimes the willingness to work for less. Read more…
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