Why Candidates Aren’t Applying To Your Jobs by Vivian Giang for LinkedIn Talent Solutions.
You really need to fill that post. It’s getting really urgent now but no one is applying. How can that be?
Well, Vivian Giang highlights three really critical reasons in her article. You see candidates may be interested in the position, but you may be failing before you even have the chance to speak to them. Best you go check it out…..
Don’t miss the Recommended Reads from previous weeks……
Work-Life Balance Is Easier When Your Manager Knows How to Assess Performance by Scott Behson for HBR.org
Were Annual Performance Reviews easier when ‘micro-management’ was the thing? Don’t get me wrong, I am all for giving a team ownership of their job and holding them accountable. However, when it comes to giving them constructive feedback about their performance, it can make things a little tricky. You know if they have delivered the results, but the detail of how they got there can be a little vague.
This great article by Scott Behson’s article highlights a company that gets this right. By measuring the right things, the company has given its employees the flexibility to enjoy a great work-live balance and still deliver superior results for the company. That has to be worth a read!
If You Offer Mid-Career Internships, Flaunt It by Carol Fishman Cohen in HBR.Org
Great talent is being overlooked for roles far too often. Generally it is because the employer has expectations (that are far too narrow) about what their future new hire should be like. It is a subject that really frustrates me. In fact, I wrote this about it.
So I was delighted to find this article about mid-career internships on HBR.org written by Carol Fishman Cohen. You may have internships for graduates in your organisation, but how about stretching the remit of that. Internships for career changers, or those returning to work gives you an opportunity to work with these experienced individuals to make sure they are a great fit.
As Carol states
“The benefits of gaining access to these highly qualified professionals, increasing corporate diversity, and sending a positive signal to current employees, are three powerful motivators”
If you are thinking about how to attract this often ignored talent (and I really hope you are), go check out iRelaunch.com. Carol is CEO of the company and there is a ton information to set you on your way.
How to Stop Your Employees From Quitting inTheir Seats by Catherine McIntyre at ProfitGuide.com.
Your employees might not have physically left, but have they mentally checked out?
This week’s Recommended Read of the Week lays out five simple tips to stop that happening.
The author, Catherine McIntyre, refers to research done by Brian Kropp from research firm CEB.
Such employees have hit what Kropp calls the Goldilocks spot: Not too much, not too little, but giving just the right amount of work not to get sacked.
I particularly like the tip about checking in with them before their birthday. Don’t we all get a little reflective at this time of year in a ‘is this where I wanted to be at x years old’ kind of way? Don’t save these conversations for the annual review.
Great read. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.
10 Ways Your Company is Driving Away Talent by Angela McDonald at Manila Recruitment.
Losing staff can be one of the most disruptive things that can happen to a business. It really hurts.
If it is happening to your business, you are probably already trying to figure out why. If so, this article is a great start. Angela McDonald gives us a good round up of ten reasons you may be losing talent as well as why you may be struggling to attract it in the first place.
6 Ways to Remove Hiring Bias from the Recruitment Process by Erin Engstrom from Recruiterbox.com.
OK, so I am sure you don’t intentionally have any bias when it comes to recruitment. But it can happen. And it is hard enough to find the best candidate without overlooking anyone.
This great article from Erin Engstrom at Recruiterbox.com looks who looks at some tools in the marketplace that can make sure your recruiting process is bias-free. There is some cool stuff here that is worth checking out.
As Erin states in this article
In a study of 366 public companies across the globe, consulting firm McKinsey found that gender-diverse companies are 15 percent more likely to outperform their non-gender diverse counterparts. Ethnically diverse companies are 35 percent more likely to outperform. And what organization isn’t looking for a way to increase earnings?
How to Kill Your Team’s Motivation Without Really Trying : Liz Ryan
Liz Ryan has a way of saying things just like they are. Her article about team motivation is a great example of this. Her argument is that you can’t just expect your team to be motivated, it takes some input from you too. As she rightly states
Nobody comes to work to do a bad job
So how does the intent of doing a good job get lost somewhere along the way? Liz identifies 10 energy blockers that could well be the reason the motivation disappears.
I think we have all be at one end or the other of most of these before now. A great read that will have you nodding along.
The Top 10 Characteristics of Lousy Leaders by Michael Hyatt.
Disorganisation, lack of transparency, arrogance are all things most of us try and avoid. This list from Michael Hyatt, I am sure, will conjure up images of bosses we might have had.
When I read this, I wondered whether these characteristics represent who the leader really is, or what they think a leader should be like. Do we focus enough time teaching people how to be a leader. If they have a great mentor in their own leader, they are lucky. If they do not, who do they learn from?
So, this is a quick read that will make you think. I would love to hear your thoughts.
Closing the Gate by Seth Godin.
Seth Godin is such an eloquent, succinct writer that I feel I can’t use too many words to introduce this article.
So all I will say is read this and think about how open your team is to welcoming new hires.
The Benefits of Virtual Mentors by Bala Iyer and Wendy Murphy for Harvard Business Review.
Mentors can make your employees more successful. It’s been proven. However, one mentor cannot be the guide they need for every situation. In truth, they probably need multiple mentors, but how do they know where to go to find them?
This is why I was interested to see how HCL Technologies had implemented an effective way for their employees to access virtual mentors from all over the company. Now, HCL is a large company of 103,000 employees but I think with a little thought this approach could be effectively used in much smaller organisations. Have a read and let me know your thoughts in the comments.
How to Create a Fun, Positive Company Culture in 7 Easy Steps by Gabe Abshire for Entrepreneur.com
I think we can all recount the best jobs we have had. And I am pretty sure those jobs sit at the top of the list because of the teams we worked with and the fun we had. And that doesn’t mean that if you have fun, you don’t work hard. I would argue that maybe you work harder.
The job that tops my list was with a team that I laughed a lot with. We would do some stupid, fun stuff to break up the stressful days. But we would also all, without question, be working through the night to meet a deadline when we needed to.
Gabe Abshire, in his article, talks about ways to build fun into your culture. SImple, inexpensive things to do to bring your teams so much closer together. Do this right, and before you know it your teams will be driving this culture themselves.
Click here for ideas that you can implement today
It’s Time to Redefine the Rules of Employee Engagement by Chris Cancialosi for Business2Community.com.
Radical Candor — The Surprising Secret to Being a Good Boss with Kim Scott by FirstRound.com.
Kim Scott believes that the single most important you can do as a boss is to give, receive and encourage guidance. This may normally be referred to as ‘feedback’ but Kim suggests that ‘feedback is screechy and makes us want to put our hands over our ears. Guidance is something most of us long for’.
Her stance on giving guidance is that you have to do it from a stance of caring personally about the person but also being ready to p*** them off. This article is full of advice I couldn’t help but agree with (and vow to be better at) Full of anecdotes of mistakes she has made as well as a story of the guidance her boss at Google, Sheryl Sandberg, gave to her which demonstrates it all perfectly.
I know you will love this one. Enjoy!
The Truth About Sweden’s Short Working Hours: BBC News.
Be warned, the first sentence might depress you. But don’t let it put you off. This is an interesting look at some start ups in Sweden that have adopted a six hour working day. (I know – I warned you!)
It is a really interesting concept. Same salary but the belief that less stressed, more rested workforce working less hours could be just as effective.
I know that when I went back to work after having kids, I was more productive in the limited hours I had between nursery drop off and pick up. Set hours or meandering, endless days – it would be interesting to measure productivity. If you worked smarter, got rid of pointless meetings and only worked on the important stuff, could you do your job in six hours a day? I bet you would like to try! Read it here (and try not to cry)
101 Ways to Reward Employees (Without Giving Them Cash) by Mike Michalowicz.
I sat at my desk and realised I was working on the worst project ever. Somehow my boss (who was a master at selling even the worst piece of work to you as if it would be like a trip to the seaside) had persuaded me I was the person for the job. And this project was a stinker. I knew it. He knew it. No one was betting on this one being a success.
And then a box was delivered to my home address. My boss knew, that in moments of despair , I would always find solace in one particular chocolate treat. The highly underrated, conical of loveliness – the Walnut Whip.
The box contained 100 Walnut Whips.
This is exactly the reason I have chosen this article as my Recommended Read of the Week. It is all about alternative ways to reward your employees that really make a difference. My boss could have given me £100. It would have been welcome but long forgotten. I can still remember laughing as I opened that box.
In this great read by Mike Michalowicz, you will find ideas that are simple, unusual or just a bit bizarre. Go on, find some way you could reward your employees today.
(Oh, and by the way, the project was a success. A key success factor, we suspect, was the constant sugar rush from 100 Walnut Whips eaten in an indecently short amount of time)
This Company Retains 95% of Its Employees — Here’s Its Secret by Firstround.com.
“If a company has a hard time retaining people, they either don’t know who they are or they aren’t communicating it well” Joel Grossman, Location Labs.
Location Labs credit their super low attrition rate to thinking hard about what they value as a company and making that a priority with every move they make.
This is a fantastic interview with Joel Grossman, COO at Location Labs. It gives an all round view of what makes this a place employees want to stay (60% of whom have also referred friends who now work there).
Take five minutes and click here to find out about:
- The success of a ‘disagree and commit’ culture
- Why they never negotiate on compensation when hiring
- Why they encourage a cross functional career growth
- Why it is so critical to be ‘brutally honest about who you are’ when interviewing
- How to get team members more invested in problems they are trying to solve
I think this is pretty inspirational stuff. I hope you enjoy it.
How To Motivate Your Team To Do Its Best Work
by Erin Engstrom at RecruiterBox.com.
Getting inspiration from companies that are doing something well is pure gold. Erin Engstrom peeks into the world of 8 businesses who get the best out of their teams.
This article gives a great insight into how they do that. Their approaches vary but it is clear their success is down to one fundamental behaviour. They all really value their people
I particularly like the company whose internal rewards programme consists of rewarding great work with ‘funny money’ which can be spent at the twice annual company-wide auction. This event has become a key part of their culture.
And if you are firm believer in the benefits of flexible working arrangements, this will give you something to think about. How about actively encouraging employees to take themselves off “to work remotely in other parts of the world to reinvigorate themselves”
An interesting read from Erin Engstrom. Be inspired!
Why Netflix Doesn’t Tolerate Brilliant Jerks by Jim Schleckser on BusinessInsider.com
Oh I bet we have all worked with someone like this before! That person who is the undeniable expert in a particular area. Who holds all the knowledge that the business is terrified of losing. It is an understandable fear. But what about if that person starts to believe they are therefore better than everyone else. They may bring a lot to the table in terms industry or product expertise. Unfortunately, none of the team can bear to sit around that table with them.
Do you know what Netflix does with these people? They fire them.
This is a great read about the negative impact these ‘brilliant jerks’ can have on any team-based culture.
If you like this, you may want to check out my first Recommended Podcast of the Week (scroll down to the bottom) where Anese Cavanaugh talks about how to deal with people that can change the atmosphere in a room just with their presence.
‘The Top 10 Cushiest Places to Work’ by Laura Entis at Entrepreneur.com
Ever wondered if a subsidised gym membership or a free breakfast on Fridays would be a better employee perk? Well, maybe it is time to get a little more creative.
An interesting read on the findings from Glassdoor, the job review site looking at the US companies with the most interesting benefits. The vacation budget might be more tempting than your employee dental plan. And as for the frozen eggs……
Get inspired here
Any great employee perks that you have experienced? Let me know in the comment
‘9 Things Managers Do That Make Good Employees Quit’ by Dr Travis Bradberry of TalentSmart.com.
Published on Entrepreneur.com.
‘Job Descriptions that Win: 3 Outstanding Examples’ by Kate Reilly for LinkedIn Talent Solutions.
A day, maybe more, of back to back interviews. The anticipation about finding the perfect candidate is soon pushed aside for disappointment. Why are you not finding the candidates that are right for your business? Have you ever thought that the job description may be to blame?
Every business is different, yet how many job descriptions stand out?
I loved this article by Kate Reilly. She dissects three job descriptions that seem to ooze the culture of the individual companies and sum up the actual job in language your mum would understand. Lots to learn from this I think.
Let me know what you think in the comments
‘Employee Engagement: are your happy workers disengaged?’ by Penny Loveless for Personnel Today.
You have a team that like being at work. There is lots of banter and everyone gets on really well. It is a fun place to be.
So why, despite such happy employees, is your business not taking the strides ahead that it needs to?
Penny Loveless takes an interesting look at how a happy team does not necessarily equal an engaged team. She notes that ‘when employees are happy but not engaged, they often unconsciously resist change as they don’t want to upset the status quo or change the conditions that are making them happy.”
As you work towards building that team that stays, it is important to not only focus on how much they like their job, but also how committed they are to drive your business forward.
Some great food for thought in Penny’s article. Let me know what you took away from it in the comments.
http://www.personneltoday.com/hr/employee-engagement-are-your-happy-workers-disengaged/
