Leadership Training

Is it hard for you to remember the last time you took longer than one week off from your job? Are you afraid of losing your job seniority or relevance if you take an extended leave? Are you starting to get burnt out because you continue to stay at your post? If so, you’re not alone…

A recent article by Maggie Jackson highlights several career minded individuals who are “veteran vacation-skippers”. Take Chris Oldham, for example:

“I’ve had plane tickets purchased, family plans made, and two days before I leave, I’ll cancel,” says Oldham, executive vice president at J.M. Coull Inc., a Maynard construction firm, who gets three weeks annual vacation plus about a half-dozen paid holidays. “It’s a way of life.”

According to a survey published in April by the New York staffing firm Hudson, 56 percent of U.S. workers don’t use up all their allocated vacation. Furthermore, 30 percent say they take less than half the time off owed to them.

Are you one of those people? My advice is to MAKE TIME for yourself, and take at least one week a year to go off on a trip that recharges and refreshes you. It doesn’t matter if you work 70 hours a week or 30, or if you love your job or can’t stand it. Regardless, it’s always a good idea to take time out to step back and enjoy some time away from work!

vacation, skipping, Maggie Jackson, Boston Globe

Every month, Yahoo! HotJobs provides a round table discussion that collects career and job-seeking advice from a group of recruiting experts throughout the country.  The question posed to them this month was the following; “What is the most common mistake candidates make in discussing or negotiating salary, and how can they avoid it?”

Click here for the entire article, but here’s one response care of Jill Davis, a recruiter with Wells Fargo’s operations team:

Look at the Big Picture

Candidates forget about the total compensation package and focus exclusively on base salary as the sole determining factor when deciding to accept or reject an offer. There are many other items to consider, such as benefits, short- and long-term career growth, personal satisfaction, company philosophy, reputation and size of the organization, and work/life balance. Many of these items can’t be quantified, but often they can make or break a team member’s long-term satisfaction with a company.

Here’s my own 2 cents on this question; above all else, an employee should have their reasons and justifications for an salary increase written out and ready to discuss in detail.  Think of it as an extension of your resume.  Outline all the successes and deliverables you accomplished, along with concrete numbers (i.e. - under my management of the customer service team, 95% of all calls were answered within 30 seconds, and 250 out of 300 customers were satisfied with the service they received, an increase of 58%, according to our surveys).

Also, if there were any mistakes or issues that came up during the year, be pro-active and bring them up.  More importantly, talk about how you handled and resolved those issues, and what you learned from the process.

By doing this, you’re showing your supervisor just how much value you add to the company, and how important it is for them to compensate you appropriately.

Salary, Negotiations, Yahoo! HotJobs

As we’ve said before in this blog, the interview is a two-way street. As a prospective candidate, asking questions that are just as sharp as the ones asked of you can show an employer just how interested you really are in their company.

Kate Lorenz, Editor of CareerBuilder.com, has put together a list of 10 Questions to Dazzle Would-Be Employers. Among them:

“Are continuing education and professional training stressed?”

“Why did you choose this company?”

Just make sure you don’t get too carried away, and ask more questions that the interviewer!

interview, questions, interviewing, CareerBuilder

As the old saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression.  A recent poll conducted by Robert Half Finance and Accounting demonstrates just how important it is for interview candidates to make sure their first impression is an excellent one.

According to a group of corporate executives they talked with, most said they form an opinion about hiring a candidate within 10 minutes, despite spending nearly an hour in the actual interview.

So how does a candidate ensure they’re making that positive first impression?  One of the suggestions given by Julie Jansen, career coach and author of “You Want Me to Work with Who?”, is to Ask someone close to you to assess you for body language, appearance and overall demeanor.

Another recommendation given by career expert Marty Nemko, author of “Cool Careers for Dummies.”, is to dress the way the boss or interviewer would dress. “Any dressier makes you look like you’re trying too hard or are out of sync with that workplace’s culture.  To find out what the boss wears, simply ask the person who contacted you to schedule your interview.”

Personally, I think this should be interpreted as finding out what the preferred dress code is.  I think that’s fine, but you don’t want to dress EXACTLY like your potential boss.  They should want you for who you are, not because you bear a striking resemblance to Mini-Me…

Want a simple, straightforward recommendation for your next big interview?  Don’t forget to smile!  According to David Lewis from Pinnacle Performance, “smiling is a powerful tool that transmits friendliness and warm to your audience.  Therefore, if you smile frequently you will be perceived as more likeable, friendly, and approachable.”

So show those big pearly whites, and good luck!

interview, first impressions, Robert Half Finance and Accounting, Yahoo! Hot Jobs

When former General Electric CEO Jack Welch was recently asked what students should be learning in business school, he replied, “Just concentrate on networking. Everything else you need to know, you can learn on the job.”

What made this statement awkward was the fact that Mr. Welch was addressing pupils at the MIT Sloan School of Management at the time. I’m sure many audience members didn’t appreciate the notion that their hefty tuition bill was better served buying cocktails for corporate execs…

To MIT’s credit, shortly after that comment (according to Fortune Magazine) they began adding more interpersonal coursework to their program. Other schools appear to be following their lead.

“MBA students we employ don’t need to come in being finance gurus. What’s much more important is that they know how to analyze issues and communicate recommendations,” says Ken Barnet, a vice president at State Street Corporation who works with both B-school interns and freshly minted MBAs.

Source: Fortune Magazine

M.B.A., importance, Fortune Magazine, MIT Sloan, State Street

Whether you’re just graduating college or have several years of corporate experience under your belt, deciding whether or not to get an MBA is a choice that thousands of people make every year.

The options are endless as well; do you go for the brass ring, an MBA degree from Harvard (ranked #1 by U.S. News and World Report)? 
Perhaps an online MBA would work better with your busy work schedule?
Or if you’re really looking for instant gratification, rest assured, Donald Trump has you covered!

But does an MBA truly prepare you for the day-to-day challenges that leaders face in the corporate world?  Not really, according to a survey done by Marketwatch last month.  

Andrea Coombes writes that Only 20% of the executives surveyed said that an M.B.A. prepares people to deal with the real-life challenges that a manager must face, according to the survey of 133 top executives at firms in the U.S., U.K., France and Germany by Egon Zehnder International, an executive search firm.  Ironically, 40% of those executives have an M.B.A. themselves.

The message, according to George Davis, a U.S. co-managing partner with Egon Zehnder International, is that “M.B.A.s are valued highly, but it’s not the panacea. Get real work. Get real expertise,” Davis said. “Make sure you have a functional skill set.”

If you have any thoughts on the value of an M.B.A. in today’s business world, please share your thoughts below in the comments. It’s certainly a hot topic that we’re sure to discuss here more than once!

M.B.A., importance, Marketwatch, U.S. News and World Report

This weekend, there was an excellent article written by Penelope Trunk of the Brazen Careerist Blog (posted on Boston.com) entitled Being loyal can be a selfish act.

The piece focuses on the many layers of loyalty, and that while companies complain that younger employees don’t stick around, it’s might be because their employer don’t give them a reason to be loyal.

“Loyalty as a function of time is a dated idea,” says Jaerid Rossi, process engineer at Specialty Minerals of Canaan, Conn. “Work is only appealing if there’s constant learning.”

Penelope writes that the key to an employee establishing a true connection with their job is to be part of something that bigger than themselves.

“People are their best when they have obligations not only to themselves, but to other people as well,” says says Bill Taylor, cofounder of the magazine Fast Company and coauthor of the book, ‘Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win.’ “People do their best work when they identify themselves as part of a team or a project.”

Penelope’s blog can be found here.

Loyalty, Brazen Careerist, Boston.com

Just the thought of picking up the phone to make an unsolicited sales call is enough to give any sales rep the shivers (pun intended)…

However, it is a necessary evil in the business world, and needs to be performed.  So how do you work on your cold calling skills?  For starters, check out this article in Entrepreneur Magazine by Barry Farber.  He offers eight strategies to utilize the next time you need to reach out and touch someone you’ve never met before.

In addition, as someone that has made his share of cold calls, I offer the following thoughts:

- Have your script in front of you, but make sure it doesn’t come across like you’re just reading it.  You should be comfortable enough with your pitch that you only need the script as a reference.

- There will be some days you have a good flow on the phone, and some you will not.  If you get in a rut, take a breather, step outside & regroup.  There’s no point in continuing down the list if you don’t have your best game going.

- Get to the person you need to, get the information they need to them, and get off the phone.  Be considerate of their time, just as you’d want someone to be considerate of yours.

- Above all, have fun with it!  Yes, it’s hard to think of cold calling as fun, but if you don’t, you will set yourself up for easy failure.  Have fun, make a personal connection, laugh, and you be pleasantly surprised how far a good attitude will take you!

cold calls, Entrepreneur, telemarketing

“Hello, how are you?”  My name is…”

Whether it’s because you’re in sales, have moved to a new area, starting your own business, or just looking to meet some new people, networking is a must to stay active and involved in your business community.  So where do you go?  How do you start?  These days, there’s a variety of options:

1)  Online through your blog

Yes, there’s blogging, of course.  In fact, if you’re wondering why nobody is reading yours, Alister Cameron (a self proclaimed ‘blogologist’) has some words of insight and advice, specifically stating that, “massively successful blogging is about establishing and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships.”  He then offers some steps to gain that personal relationship level.

But what about more traditional means of networking?

2)  Take a continued learning class

Enrolling at a local university or with an accredited business class not only makes you smarter, but teams you up with peers looking to do the same.  You never know whom you might meet or what companies will be represented.  Your own company should offer a tuition reimbursement program for such class work, so long as it’s pertinent to your job.  If not, well, perhaps it’s time to find a company that does…

3)  Social networking

No matter where you live, there are bound to be plenty of events and activities you can take part in.  Your city chamber of commerce should certainly provide some social outings.  Take a look at the local business journal as well, for a calender of events sponsored by various organizations and companies.

Of course, once you get to one of these events, how do you break the ice?  Meeting people at a large networking event can be an unnerving process, even for usually sociable people!  Of course, it always helps to go with a co-worker or friend, whom you can fall back on (or have them rescue you if needed)!

But if you’re still feeling queasy about mingling, there are companies that offer classes to enhance social communication.  Pinnacle Performance specializes in teaching interactive communication skills in a way that can help prepare you for any social situation.

Above all, make sure that you don’t take too long into the night to switch over from alcohol to soda, lest you make an impression that’s hard to forget!

networking, blogs, social skills, business classes

Now that we’ve taken a look at the interviewer, let’s change sides and focus on more effective ways for job seekers to get their foot in the door for an interview.

Everyone is trying to get noticed with a great cover letter and well structured resume, but what about doing it with a blog? Rather than sending an email with these attachments, how much more powerful would it be to include a link to your blog, where the recruiter can immediately get a better feel for your writing style, skills and interests?

The Recruiting Community Portal Recruiting.com provides some informative links to help you get started, along with some basic advice.

For a personal story on how a blog can help your job search, check out Innovation Creators, and how this writer got his new job because the company went out and contacted him…

Of course, if blogging is too old-fashioned for you, then how about a video interview? As Time Magazine reports, YouTube has nearly 2,000 videos listed under ‘resume’, and recruiting websites (old and new) are lining up to provide video resume job boards.

Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t provide the YouTube classic that started the video resume revolution; Mr. Aleksey Vayner’s ‘Impossible is Nothing’. I’ve also posted actor Michael Cera’s alternative take, ‘Impossible is the Opposite of Possible’.

Personally, I’d hire Michael over Aleksey…

cover letter, blogs, video resume, Time

According to a recent article form Live Science, more and more Americans are muttering this famous phrase…

Based on a survey conducted by The Conference Board (a market information company that also puts out the Consumer Confidence Index and the Leading Economic Indicators), less than half of the employees polled said they were satisfied with their current job.

“Although a certain amount of dissatisfaction with one’s job is to be expected, the breadth of dissatisfaction is somewhat unsettling, since it carries over from what attracts employees to a job to what keeps them motivated and productive on the job,” said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board’s Consumer Research Center.

In what areas does the dissatisfaction lie? Primarily with ‘bonus plans, promotion policies, workload and potential for growth.’ While there was a correlation in the study with higher paid workers being more satisfied with their positions than lower salaried workers, it’s interesting to note the areas of personal development and lifestyle that were highlighted by those surveyed.

Furthermore, educational and job training programs as well as non-monetary reward/recognition and performance review processes did not fare well either. Less than 30 percent of respondents claim to be satisfied with these job aspects.

In better news from the Conference Board, they reported on Tuesday that the Consumer Confidence Index hit a five-and-a-half year high.

“Consumer Confidence now stands at a five-and-a-half year high,” said Lynn “as improving present-day business conditions and an easing in the proportion of consumers claiming jobs are hard to get have combined to lift consumers’ spirits.”

Combine these two reports, and this means there are more frustrated workers out there today, with more open jobs available to them. Making it that much more critical for office managers and directors to keep their people happy, wealthy and wise!

Sources:

LiveScience
Yahoo! News
The Conference Board

Americans, unhappy, work, jobs, consumer confidence