Running a blog that is career-oriented can help you stand out against your peers. Whether you’re in-between jobs or have been working in the same career field for years, starting a professional blog has its benefits.
Here are a few benefits to starting a career-oriented blog:
Networking: When you are in charge of a blog that specializes in a specific field, you will meet like-minded individuals who will seek you out for questions, for potential blog subject ideas, and quite possibly, job opportunities.
Show off your skills: The beauty of a blog is that you can run it however you choose to. If you are a good writer, make sure your blogs show that. If you gave a presentation at a conference last week, post it. Take part in the discussions that your blog generates, and make sure you back up your statements.
A difficult part of blogging is building your readership, but an established blog shows that you know how to reach people and stay connected to them, a crucial skill for any employee to have.
Know your field: Having a blog that is career-oriented is a great way to stay up-to-date with the happenings in your field. When you are writing a blog post at least one time a week (maybe more, depending on your field), you have no choice but to stay current.
As with anything, there are mixed feelings on using a blog as a hiring resource. It comes down to you, your career, and whether or not you think you could keep your professional blog going.
Are you interested in starting a blog, but aren’t sure where to start? Victoria Michelson shares her story and gives some good insights in an article on Idealist Careers.
Do you think blogging could help you in your career? Have you tried blogging before to network? Let us know what you think via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.
Ageism isn’t a new topic, especially when it comes to age difference in the workplace. We put large groups of people into categories: millennials, generation Xers, baby boomers, the traditionalists. There are even online quizzes that claim to give insight into age groups.
So is it important to have a nice mix of the categories working at your business? Is there a ratio to strive for (e.g. 50% millennials, 35% generation Xers, 10% baby boomers, 5% traditionalists)? Is age important in the work place?
It has always seemed pretty stereotypical to group people solely based on their age. People don’t always identify with the category they have been thrown into.
Some bosses are concerned with a worker’s age and the issues that are sometimes associated with an age group. Take for instance, the list that forbes.com came up with for older workers: stuck in their ways, slower to learn new technologies, poor health. As the article goes on to state, these issues can be associated with almost anyone of any age group. The same kind of stereotyping happens to millennials where looks are often taken into consideration: tattoos and piercings, a more relaxed dress code, or maybe a weaker work ethic.
The age of your employees shouldn’t affect your business, and labeling your employees as baby boomers or millennials won’t help you learn how they work.
Instead of focusing on age, focus on the quality of work. Make sure your employees are staying relevant, no matter what their age. Focus on the different skill sets that each person brings to their job, and don’t be afraid to assign mentors to newer members of the job. That might mean a twenty-five year old is mentoring your forty-five year old new hire. Employees of all ages should have the opportunity to teach, learn, and better their skills.
A cohesive workplace happens when your employees are willing to work together and share ideas. It’s important that each employee feels comfortable with their skill set and wants to teach what they know, and learn more about what they don’t.
Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.
Some people love technology. They crave the newest software, iPhone, tablet, or gaming system. Others don’t know that their laptop is capable of playing a DVD or that their phone has the power to hold all of their music downloads.
Technology uses are changing daily; social media isn’t just used to connect to your old high school friends or to follow your favorite actors anymore. The medium on how to get information to your clients or future clients has changed drastically; blogging, tweeting, and websites are key to a business’ success anymore.
Technology is changing daily. What are your employees doing to keep up?
Here are a few things to keep in mind when trying to help the not-so-tech-savvy employees improve their technology skills:
Try and keep it as stress-free as possible: Make sure either you, your IT department, or another employee familiar with technology can take your team through instructions on how to use it.
Ask your employees how they learn: Monster’s article on how to help reluctant employees gives some great insights into our topic, and this is also one of the key points that they mention. Ask your employees how they learn best, whether it be extra practice, one-on-one time with an instructor, or extra feedback.
Give your employees time: Don’t give your employees a new program and expect them to be comfortable with it by the end of the day. Depending on the program, it might take days or even weeks for your employees to feel comfortable with it (part of what we’re here to help with).
Make sure the change is warranted: You don’t want disgruntled employees on your hands if you can help it. Make sure the change is something that will further both your employees and business. Some employees might not be on board right away with the change, but when they see how it will eventually make their jobs much easier or go smoother, they will come around.
Human beings are creatures of habit. Your employees will eventually learn the new program or get used to the update in technology. Once they have time to work with and familiarize themselves with it, they will move on from the old way. And remember, not only are you helping out your business, but you are helping your employees by familiarizing them with the ever-changing technology of the twenty-first century.
Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.
In a few of our past blog posts, we have talked about the importance of the hiring process and what to look for in a candidate. It’s also important to remember that your candidates are evaluating you and your company as well.
Here are a few things that you might be doing that turns candidates away (you might not even know you’re doing them):
Online presence: First, have an online presence, whether it be a Facebook page, Twitter account, website, and/or blog (the more of these, the better). Second, keep them updated. An outdated website with minimal content makes your company seem like it can’t keep up with the ever-changing technology. Candidates want to work for a company that knows what’s going on and can adapt to change.
Job descriptions: Where are you posting your job openings? Is it on a reputable site? Where you post your job openings is directly related to the kind of resumes and applications you will get. Also, make sure the description is engaging, free of grammar and spelling mistakes, and give potential candidates a nice overview of the job description.
Response time: How long does it take you to fill a job opening? A week, month, or longer? An exact response time can’t be given as there is no set time, but you don’t want to be too slow and have your best candidates get hired on at a different company because that company responded quicker. Yet, you don’t want to be too fast and miss key information from an employee that would have shown you that they wouldn’t be a good fit after all.
You: As Forbes.com states, it’s time to realize that one of the biggest reasons why people quit has to do with you, their boss. Let your candidates and employees know how they can work their way up in the company. Be around to answer questions. Don’t overload your employees. Offer competitive salaries and benefits. And never underestimate the power of letting your employees know they’ve done a job well.
Keep in mind that your candidates are also your customers. Treat potential candidates with respect and remember that they are evaluating you and your company as well. If they are treated badly or your hiring process doesn’t run smoothly, they will remember, and they will take their business elsewhere.
For most people, it’s difficult to admit to failure, mostly because we tend to view failure as a bad thing. It’s because somewhere along the way, the word failure became personal; people think that when they fail, it reflects back on them as a person and that they are somehow insufficient or lacking because of their mistakes.
That doesn’t have to be the case.
As innovator Ben Shaffer says in his presentation on failure, you can’t get to the ground-breaking ideas without building off of the bad ones. Failure isn’t dangerous. The real danger of failure is not learning from it.
Here are a few things to keep in mind on failure and the workplace:
Create a space where it is safe to try and fail: If your employees don’t feel like they can pitch new ideas or try new approaches, they won’t. Their ideas will be kept to themselves—ideas that could possibly promote your business or help out a client in trouble. Let your employees know that it is safe to think aloud.
Learn from mistakes: It isn’t just about reflecting on the mistake or reviewing what happened. Dig into the mistake. Break it down into parts. What can still be used? What needs to be thrown away? Failure can be good. Failure can lead to positive results.
Don’t be afraid to take a risk: Risk is key to innovation. Innovation won’t flourish with only a team or department in your business. It must be something every individual in your business is a part of in order for it to be successful. Risk taking should be encouraged (within reason, of course).
Trust your employees: This goes back to why hiring is crucial for the development of your business. You know your employees and what they are capable of. Trust them to come up with new ideas and to learn from the ones that didn’t work out.
Great things can come out of failure. It just depends on how you analyze and respond to the failure.
Here at Integrated Consulting Group, we specialize in the design, development, and customization of SAP Human Capital Management business software for leading edge North American companies with global reach. Have any questions about SAP? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.
It’s scary to think that your personal information is being compromised. If you have a problem with your privacy being invaded, it seems like the smartest thing to do is delete your Facebook. But what if you are using Facebook to network?
Hopefully, the business you are interviewing with will make their hiring decision based on your skills, knowledge, and potential fit within the business. However, some companies like to look at social media sites to see who you are outside of work.
If you choose to network using your Facebook account, consider the following:
Keep it professional: Check your Facebook for red flags that potential employees might see when looking at your timeline. Look through your photos, videos, and comments to make sure you look professional. Ask yourself–what do I want my future employee to see? Delete what you don’t want them to see, and make sure in the future to avoid posting that content altogether.
Make your posts relevant: Post comments, links, and share articles that are relevant to your interests and potential jobs. Engage with others who are talking about relevant issues in your area of expertise. Share your knowledge.
Consider your networking options: Facebook is known more for social networking, but professional networking sites like LinkedIn exist and might be a better fit for your networking.
Change your privacy settings: As said above, Facebook’s privacy is lacking, but you should still make use of the privacy settings that Facebook does have. You can choose to not let the public see your tagged photos and posts on your timeline. You can also make your entire profile unsearchable. If you choose to do this, you will have to find and add potential employees as friends to connect and network.
Social media sites are useful for networking and can help you keep on top of trends and news, can help you find jobs and internships, and allow you to expand your network. Just keep an eye on your privacy.
For those of you who use Facebook (and other social media sites) to network, what are your thoughts on these privacy issues? Something you’d like to add? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.
This post is part III of a three-part series about hiring. The last two weeks, we covered what to look for when hiring and how hiring affects your business. You can find part I of the series hereand part II here.
The last two weeks, we’ve been focusing on the company’s side of the hiring process. This week, we’ll take a look at how the interviewee can stand out.
Here are a few things to remember during the interview process as a job seeker:
Revise your resume: Your resume should show your accomplishments, not just tasks you perform. Reviewing and updating your resume can remind you of your strengths and weaknesses; it also lets you see what you’ve accomplished at your current job.
Research the company: You can never be too prepared when it comes to researching the company you are interviewing with. Know the size of the company, their target audience, the products they sell, and other companies that they work closely with. Knowing about the company will impress who you’re interviewing with. It also shows that you are willing to work hard in order to be prepared.
Remember why you are there: The interview should be about much more than landing a job or a paycheck. Ask yourself: Am I a fit for this company? Will I be challenged enough? Will I like my job? It’s important to really think these questions through.
Be ready with your own questions: Don’t underestimate just how important it is that you can see yourself fitting in to the culture of the company. Go to the interview ready with a few questions to help you judge your compatibility. Not having any questions at the end of the interview can make you come off as uninterested, unprepared and unengaged.
Don’t settle. Don’t take the job if you have concerns about your compatibility. Make sure you can see yourself at this company in five, ten, even twenty years from now, working your way up and establishing yourself as a member of the team.
It’s important not only for you, but also for the company you are interviewing with. You don’t want to waste your own time, nor theirs.
Last week, I had the opportunity to travel down to Orlando, Florida for this year’s SAP SAPPHIRE NOW + ASUG Annual Conference, which took place from June 3rd-5th, 2014. This wonderful conference brings together thousands of people for a great business technology conference by SAP and an information-packed American SAP Users’ Group conference, and I’m very glad I was able to attend.
Like I did after this year’s HR 2014 conference, I wanted to take a moment and run through some of my biggest takeaways from 2014’s SAPPHIRE NOW + ASUG Annual Conference. Have a look below for a few of my biggest takeaways, day by day:
Tuesday
Tuesday kicked off with a keynote by SAP CEO Bill McDermott, titled “Simplify Everything. Do Anything.” ‘Run Simple’ is a new mantra that SAP is using, and that was the key message during McDermott’s keynote and really, throughout the whole conference. Many SAP know-how processes currently aren’t that simple, and we’re all hopeful (but skeptical) of what it will take to make running simple a reality.
SAP integration has always been a big selling point, but how integrated are things now with other things moving towards the cloud, like SuccessFactors? SAP is working quickly to make the cloud, hybrid, and on-premises systems work together, but the people working with these systems know that full integration still has a ways to go. I’d like to see SAP taking a little more time to let the kinks get worked out.
Security is also an ongoing concern. Polls of what SuccessFactors modules are being utilized often show that many modules contain sensitive employee data, like social security numbers. Being comfortable with this security will take time, and I see most companies easing into the cloud as such.
Let’s just hope that ‘Run Simple’ stays simple.
The inaugural day continued on with the ASUG Keynote from Capt. Chelsey (Sully) Sullenberger, whose keynote was very inspirational; Capt. Sully referenced experience over and over again. Over time, things evolve, and keeping up to date with the latest evolutions is crucial. Even so, having experience of what came before can provide insight on how to handle challenges. My biggest takeaway? Don’t fight change—embrace it and stay closely involved in using change to your advantage.
Mari Braybrooks, Capt. Sully, and me after the keynote.
Tuesday didn’t stop there. I volunteered on Tuesday and Thursday morning at the ASUG Hub to help people create and update ASUG.com profiles. The experience was wonderfully rewarding, and the points that conference-goers were able to receive for performing certain tasks with their profiles culminated with some great ASUG swag that was given out. (My personal favorite was the ASUG USB charger that came in handy when my phone was about to die.)
My time on Tuesday—which was probably my busiest day—finished off with a handful of ASUG sessions. ASUG provided many in-depth HCM-related sessions this year that were very educational, and the take-homes were many. To me, the best part of ASUG’s sessions is how easy it is to network with other companies looking at similar functionality. Being able to discuss what you want to do with other companies going through similar processes is very valuable and can help streamline the entire process.
Tuesday was a packed day, but was a great indicator of how valuable the conference as a whole would end up being.
Wednesday
Wednesday started off early with ASUG’s volunteer breakfast. ASUG did a great job of recognizing many volunteers, and even gave out awards to those who went above and beyond in their volunteering efforts. This year’s volunteer breakfast proved to be a fun time with many great networking opportunities. I can’t say enough about how beneficial it’s been for me—personally and professionally—to volunteer with ASUG, and it’s also just a great way to meet new people.
This year’s ASUG volunteer breakfast.
The keynote speaker later in the day was Dr. Hasso Plattner, who discussed HANA and how it’s disrupting the use of SAP software, while also opening up much more powerful functionality due to significant speed increases. While SAP HCM is seeing speed increases already, things should only continue to improve as the platform matures and we see better optimization for HCM.
After Dr. Plattner’s keynote, I moved to the ASUG Midwest Central Chapter networking event. We had several participants in our networking event, and had a great discussion about how our local ASUG Chapter can help companies fully understand and utilize their SAP software. We were also very excited to announce our ASUG Leadership 2.0: Change Management Meeting that’s taking place on Monday, July 21 at Hallmark in Kansas City. (The meeting on Friday, September 18th will also be at Hallmark, but content is still being determined and we’re looking for speakers and sponsors.)
Wednesday night saw a serious change of pace with Jon Bon Jovi, who played in the evening and, I think, really had the place rocking. I wish he’d have played more of his hits, but the evening was still very enjoyable and it was fun seeing so many people let loose. This great concert wrapped up another great day at the conference.
Jon Bon Jovi playing on Wednesday night.
Thursday
The late evening with Bon Jovi made for a tough morning start, but Dennis Miller, Kevin Nealon, and Dana Carvey were still able to get a tired audience going with their Keynote. The crowd had thinned noticeably since Wednesday, but the ASUG educational sessions throughout the day continued to provide outstanding information nonetheless.
This year’s SAPPHIRE NOW + ASUG Annual Conference was, as usual, absolutely packed with great information. If you were unable to attend (or even if you did attend) and are looking to recap the event, take a look around the conference’s website, which is loaded with recap videos (including keynotes), follow-up information, and information about next year’s conference. I attended and I still find the resources on the site very valuable, and I’m sure you’ll feel the same.
Next year’s SAPPHIRE NOW + ASUG Annual Conference happens on May 5-7, 2015 in Orlando, Florida. I highly encourage anyone interested to register. And to keep up to date in the meantime, you can get involved with your ASUG Chapter or a Special Interest Group (SIG); you should find benefits almost immediately. Getting to know and understand what other companies are going through, and ideas on how they’re approaching those situations, is invaluable if you’re about to start the journey.
I’m very glad that I got to attend this conference this year, and can’t wait to see what 2015’s conference holds.
This post is part II of a three-part series about hiring. Over the coming weeks, we’ll cover several different aspects of the hiring process, from how hiring affects your business, to what an interviewee can do to stand out from the rest. You can find part I of the series here.
On the surface, it seems obvious how hiring affects your business. But we need to dig a little deeper in order to understand just how important the hiring process is.
It’s estimated that as much as 80% of employee turnover is due to bad hiring decisions.
As we mentioned last week, it’s important to find employees who will be integral parts of your team. More importantly, it is how your new hires will fit in with your team that is crucial to the success of your business.
Remember–when you are interviewing potential employees, make sure you can see them interacting positively with your clients, because it’s your employees who are with your clients on a daily basis. Your team has the opportunity to make a lasting impression on them–either positive or negative.
Not only must you consider how your employees affect your clients; you also but need to consider the effects of employees on other team members. In an article on Forbes.com, Micah Solomon looked into the power of peer pressure. He explains that employees bestow peer pressure on other team members who then interact with your clients.
If the peer pressure or attitude of one employee is negative, it has the power to bring your whole team (and potentially your clients) down. However, if the employees you hire are a fit with your business, they have the power to affect future employees positively.
Solomon calls it a snowball effect; when you hire employees who thrive in your business and share similar goals, future employees will learn from them and continue to build the team up.
A business can’t afford to make hiring mistakes. Replacing a team member who didn’t work out is costly, both financially and on your team’s confidence level. That is why going through the hiring process carefully and precisely is so important. It’s not just about which candidate is perfect on paper—it’s about which candidate is a correct fit for the culture of your business.
Be sure to check back next week for part III of our series. Until then, if you have any questions on our series on the hiring process, feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn.
This post is part I of a three-part series about hiring. Over the coming weeks, we’ll cover several different aspects of the hiring process, from what to look for when hiring, to how hiring affects your business, and what an interviewee can do to stand out from the rest.
The hiring process may seem to be a tedious task on the surface, but having a driven, dependable team of workers is the best way to invest in your business. So how should you go about finding the right candidate for the job?
We’ve read it before: the top traits to look for in a potential employee; the questions to ask; and the key words to look for on resumes. These are all important things to keep in mind, but hopefully, you will have multiple candidates to choose from who all possess good traits, good skills, and know how to answer the tough interview questions. When this happens, how do you choose which candidate to hire?
Here are a few things to consider when hiring:
Pay special attention to the first impression: Does the candidate present him/herself as a professional? Professionalism can be measured by the clothing a candidate wears, his/her handshake, and even the way a person stands and carries him/herself. Not only are these things a sign of professionalism, they are also an indicator of confidence. Looking for a confident, professional candidate, sounds basic, but it is overlooked; confidence ranks highest on the list of skills that companies think employees are missing most.
Be specific with your questions: A good candidate will have researched your business before the interview, and will likely have a good idea of what typical questions to expect. Don’t be afraid to ask tougher, more targeted questions. You can always ask the candidate to be more specific with their answers. Nathanial Koloc has some excellent tips on how to uncover certain traits of your candidates by asking more pointed questions.
Can you see this candidate as part of your business? This might be the toughest question you have to ask yourself. It’s hard to judge whether or not a candidate will fit in based solely on an interview, but that is crucial to the hiring process. Was the candidate sociable? As Victor Lipman suggests in an article on Forbes.com, the importance of a candidate’s cultural fit shouldn’t be underestimated. Talented people sometimes don’t work out simply because their personal style clashes with the business’ expectations.
Hiring can be a difficult process, but it’s important to remember the end goal: finding someone who will strengthen your business and will be an integral part of your team.
Be sure to check back next week for the second post in the series. Have any questions or comments about anything we discussed today? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.
We’ve talked about blogging before in previous posts, specifically how a blog can further a business or HR department. But how can blogging be used as a hiring resource?
