Staffing Blog

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Candidate Coaching Corner

Wednesday, May 29, 2013  by Ed Bradstreet

We have provided three articles to help you be prepared for downstream situations/opportunities and build your awareness on global trends; building your knowledge base and discussing strategy with business colleagues will help you navigate the internal politics and external macro trends better, and allow you to play the game to “win”.  Bohan & Bradstreet provides career coaching/development services to senior-level and executive-level leaders. 

1. 9 Things You Should Never Say When Asking for a Raise  (http://www.salary.com/9-things-never-say-ask-for-raise/)
2. The 10 Best Performance Review Tips (http://www.salary.com/10-tips-to-get-more-from-your-performance-review/?scm=s-n-050913)
3. 10 Global Trends That Are Killing Your Career (http://www.salary.com/10-global-trends-killing-your-career/?scm=s-n-051613)

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Employee Retention

Wednesday, May 15, 2013  by Ed Bradstreet

There are an abundance of recent articles and surveys suggesting U.S. Employers are unresponsive to employee needs.  More than one-third of American workers experience chronic work stress, with low salaries, lack of opportunity for advancement and heavy workloads topping the list of contributing factors, according to a new national survey by the American Psychological Association’s Center for Organizational Excellence. On the heels of the recession, many employees appear to feel stuck, with only 39 percent citing sufficient opportunities for internal career advancement and just over half (51 percent) saying they feel valued at work.

Compounding the problem, less than half of working Americans reported that they receive adequate monetary compensation or non-monetary recognition for their contributions on the job (46 percent and 43 percent, respectively). Additionally, just 43 percent of employees said that recognition is based on fair and useful performance evaluations. In addition to feeling undervalued, employees also reported feeling unheard. Less than half (47 percent) said their employers regularly seek input from employees and even fewer (37 percent) said the organization makes changes based on that feedback. APA’s Work and Well-Being Survey was conducted online among 1,501 adults from Jan. 9-21, 2013 on behalf of the APA by Harris Interactive.

Despite growing awareness of the importance of a healthy workplace, few employees said their organizations provide sufficient resources to help them manage stress (36 percent) and meet their mental health needs (44 percent). In fact, only 59 percent reported having adequate employer-provided health insurance. Just 42 percent of employees said their organizations promote and support a healthy lifestyle and only 36 percent reported regularly participating in workplace health and wellness programs.

With almost two-thirds (65 percent) of U.S. adults citing work as a significant source of stress in APA’s most recent Stress in America survey and 35 percent of working Americans reporting that they typically feel stressed during the workday, employers need to provide resources to help their employees face work-related challenges.

“This isn’t just an HR or management issue,” said Norman B. Anderson, PhD, chief executive officer of the American Psychological Association. “The well-being of an organization’s workforce is a strategic business imperative that is linked to its performance and success.”

Each company should have an internal mechanism in place to measure the ‘Voice of Employee’.  Collecting feedback is one step of the process.  Employees expect action/change when providing feedback. Companies damage morale by not sharing the feedback results and more importantly, not assigning a Senior member of the team to be held accountable and act as a change agent for this initiative.  Companies should build a task force with cross-functional exempt and non-exempt employees to ensure a valid representation of the employee base.  The task force team should establish focus groups and interviews to gather more intelligence and help rank potential solutions.  Further, the team needs to establish milestone dates so you are managing the expectations of the entire employee base.  Delivering meaningful change does not happen overnight and can be costly to the business model, concentrate on low-hanging fruit that will demonstrate your commitment to this initiative.  Lastly, you need to address the individual needs for employees in your talent pool; this should be a micro rather than macro approach.   

http://www.apaexcellence.org/resources/goodcompany/newsletter/article/431

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Talent Management

Wednesday, May 1, 2013  by Ed Bradstreet

A key challenge for any company is finding and keeping employees who make an impact.  It is imperative for a company to have a well-through talent management process in place.  One approach may to designate talent into categories like “High Potential”, “Promotable”, and “Key/Expert Resource”.  Below are some suggested definitions.

High Potential

Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance and the potential and aspiration to move to considerably more complex leadership positions within accelerated timeframes.

Promotable

Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance, who have the ability for advancement, but may not have the same career projection as a High Potential.

Key/Expert Resource

Individuals with a history of exceptional/highly effective performance with subject-matter expertise of great value to the organization.  Not likely to move to more senior leadership positions outside of their current function or business.

When evaluating talent, we suggest the categories be based on the following core components:

• Cognitive Skills
  • Conceptual or strategic thinking
  • Intellect, cognitive ability
  • Ability to deal with
    complexity/ambiguity
• Personality
  • Interpersonal skills, sociability
  • Dominance
  • Maturity/stability/resilience
  • Character/integrity/authenticity
  • Courage
• Learning Agility
  • Adaptability, flexibility and
    nimbleness
  • Learning orientation
  • Self-awareness
  • Openness to feedback
• Motivation
  • Drive, energy and engagement
  • Aspiration, ambition and an organizational
    commitment
  • Results orientation, appropriate
    risk-taking
• Leadership Skills
  • Leadership capabilities, inspiring
    passion, managing and empowering people
  • Building a talented team, developing
    others
  • Influencing, challenging the status
    quo, change management
• Performance
  • Track record of exceeding
    performance expectations
  • Leadership experiences

Succession planning is critical in today’s business environment.  You should be ‘ahead of the curve’ so your talent bench is healthy and robust, and in place to support your business objectives. 

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Five Ways Not to Get an Offer

Monday, April 1, 2013  by Ed Bradstreet

On the average, one out of eight job applicants receives an offer. Over 80% of the time, the best candidate for the job does not get the offer because of either poor interviewing habits or lack of proper preparation. As William James once said, “Whenever two people meet there are six people present. There is each man as he sees himself, each man as the other person sees him, and each man as he really is.” So goes interviewing. In today’s world, companies have reasons to hire and not hire. Interviewing is both an art and a game. Art is the style, soft skills and characteristics displayed. The game is to get an offer and winning comes with practice, planning, and strategy. Although some have tried, you can’t accept or turn down an offer unless you get an offer. Here are the five most common ways to not get an offer:

APPEARANCE

Under-dressing is viewed as disrespectful. Clothes need to be conservative, neat, pressed, and appropriate for business formal even if the setting is business casual. Shoes need to be shined. Make-up minimized; light or no perfume or cologne; hair must be combed and not distracting; minimize jewelry and accessories.

LACK OF ENTHUSIASM

If you are not interested in the opportunity and the company, why are you going on the interview? If you are interested, then show it. Here are the most common ways of displaying lack of interest: Didn’t research the company; failed to ask meaningful questions about the position, company, culture, management style or industry; and provided at best short or vague answers to questions rather than showcasing meaningful knowledge, personality traits, and acquired skills.

ME, NOT WE

Remember the first part of William James quote, “There is each man as he sees himself.” There goes the problem. The interviewee is all about the interviewee. Too much accent on money, title, or other ego-satisfying stimuli. As Ben Franklin said, “He that falls in love with himself, has no rivals.” We too often fail to appreciate that what gives money, perks and title value is that you must exchange work for it.

UNCONSCIOUSLY SELF-DESTRUCTIVE

Consider interviewing as being an invited guest to an event that you want to attend. Bad form is arriving late for an appointment (indicative of poor planning); not fully completing the application (lack of compliance); limp, fishy handshake (lack of professionalism), failure to look at interviewer when conversing (lack of confidence or respect); poor posture (lack of poise or confidence); condemnation of past employers (lack of respect); make too many excuses (may not accept criticism well); provides evasive and/or conflicting information (perception of fabrication); poor manners (lack of courtesy); and doesn’t show appreciation of interviewers' time (lack of tact and professionalism).

BEYOND THE CALL

Interviewing is an exchange of information. It is an opportunity to exhibit your personality and communicate knowledge and experience that is appropriate to the needs and requirements of the opportunity. All that being said, some people are too forthcoming (treat the interview as a confessional and expose negativity); high-pressure (attempt to close too quickly or force decisions); aggressive (come off as conceited or with a know-it-all complex); verbose (treat interview as a lecture rather than an exchange); opinionated (lack of flexibility or inability to endorse change); and/or demanding (three for me, one for you attitude).

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Bad Boss Blues

Monday, March 25, 2013  by Ed Bradstreet

You wake up one day and there is a new boss. It could have been a promotion, transfer, internal organization, external hire or some other fate. Obvious from the get-go, you and the boss are not compatible. It doesn’t matter whether the superior is moody, incompetent, uncommunicative, tyrannical or Machiavellian. Your life will soon be in a rut because you are catching the BAD BOSS BLUES. Let’s describe a few of the distinctive varieties that top everyone’s Most Unwanted list.

OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE

Will work you until you drop. Capable of calling on Sundays, insists on arriving and leaving when it is dark out (even in the summer), provides relentless pressure, offers only a nanosecond of appreciation.

RECLUSIVE PARANOID

Will hide in his or her office.

POLITICAL NARCISSIST

Dismisses your presence because it is meaningless in the final analysis.

BLUTO

Wants to bully everyone into submission through screaming tirades, shouting at will, making scenes and management by terror philosophy.

MYOPTC BULLDOG

Has appreciation for his or her own opinion because there are possible alternatives to anything: their way or the wrong way.

CALAMITY MAGNATE

Attracts or creates every cataclysm, disaster and debacle within their warp zone abilities.

INSIDIOUS LAMPREY

Languishes on your knowledge, usurps your wisdom and lays claim to all contributions.

OVER-THE-SHOULDER QUALITY CONTROLLER

Smothers all attempts of individualism, ingenuity and the pursuit of life with a constant, never-ending, relentless triple-dot-the-“I” review.

There are numerous other personalities that can erode one’s ego and career. Always assess the situation to ensure that you haven’t overreacted to a momentary flaw (e.g., stress, illness). Examine opportunities to alter the environment by making positive suggestions or transferring to another department. If the scene remains untenable and internal change is not possible, then consider leaving. Your career and self-esteem are important. As Walter Winchell once said, “He didn’t carve his career, he chiseled it.” If life deals you a bad hand, then either fold, re-deal or change the rules.

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