Archive
July 2017
Research shows that 90 percent of what we perceive about our world is absorbed visually. And, visual perceptions greatly influence our overall impression of our surroundings. That’s why a company’s physical environment is so important to get right.
Don’t have one? Good. You can skip today’s post.
As for the rest of you, say a silent prayer to whatever higher power you believe in, email me a thank you, and read on…
Nina is a one-person employee and labor relations department for a midsize hospital. Her job can get rather busy because line managers reach out to her often for support in holding their employees accountable.
We dropped my oldest daughter off at a YMCA overnight camp for the week, this past Sunday. This is the second year she attended and, this time around, my anxiety levels are a little lower and I'm getting a little more sleep than last year. Not by much, but it's better. Even writing this post makes me a little anxious.
Attitude is not about being aggressive or obnoxious. It is about being competent, taking a stand when you have the information and the facts, and not backing down. It sounds relatively simple, but it is difficult for HR practitioners when you have people all day long pressing you to move their agenda instead of doing what is best for your business and your people.
On July 26, @shrmnextchat chatted with the director of talent acquisition for Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, Carol McDaniel about A Care Plan for Talent Acquisition.
In case you missed this informative chat filled with innovative ideas for a talent acquisition strategy, you can read all the tweets here:
Q: I’ve been unhappy at work for some time now. At home, I find myself rehashing conversations that upset me that day or preparing for counter arguments that may come up next. I even fantasize about what I would say -if I could- in a resignation speech. I know that realistically I can’t quit right now but I’m having a hard time coping from day to day. What can I do while I’m stuck?
When I was in university I worked part time as an HR assistant and recruiter at a large grocery retail chain. Thanks to the grocery store price wars consumers have been benefitting from off and on over the last decade, we saw a lot of turnover at every level of the company. New execs would come in every so often, sometimes annually – sometimes even more often – and every one of them wanted to take the company in a “new direction.”
When it comes to recruiting the best people, employers are now handling their talent acquisition strategies – and their prospective candidates - with the best care possible.
Gone are the days of “spray and pray” job posting and candy-coated career fairs in hopes of finding a few good candidates.
Social Security is with you through life’s journey, even if that journey takes you far, far away. Over half a million American citizens live outside the United States and receive some kind of Social Security benefit, including retired and disabled workers, as well as spouses, widows, widowers, and children.
Talent Acquisition Specialists, time to look in the mirror for 2017. How do you make your recruiting efforts sky-rocket? Let your hiring managers run the show.
Here are some of my fundamental beliefs:
Technology, cloud computing and data continue to transform the talent acquisition space, and specialists need to stay ahead of the curve to attract talent, tech leaders said June 28 at the 2017 Talent 42 Tech Recruiting Conference.
On July 19, @shrmnextchat chatted with special guests SHRM Senior Vice President of Knowledge Development Alex Alonso (@SHRMKnwldgeSVP) and SHRM Vice President of Research Shonna Waters (@Shonna_Waters) about Strategic Employee Benefits.
The other day, I was scrolling through Facebook, and I get a notification that my friend and college roommate tagged me. He shares very openly some pretty major challenges in his life (depression, losing his house and belongings in a fire. You know, THAT kind of major). Then he says “I wouldn’t be where I am today without the following:”, listing a number of people, including me.
Two things hit me instantly:
Some trendy movements in HR just don’t live up to the hype.
There are few HR topics that garner more media attention than employee benefits.
A simple Google search of “employee benefits” yields more than 429 million results.
Paid family leave, workplace flexibility and health care now dominate the conversation in Washington, D.C., and in our workplaces, and employee benefits continues to be among the most popular topics at SHRM.
Millennial this, millennial that. Advertisements for products to hide gray hair or wrinkling skin. Slogans like “60 is the new 40.” Increasing charges of age discrimination. All these factors indicate that the U.S. is stuck in a youth oriented society. The problem is that perception drives employers to ignore older workers, often to the detriment of the company.
Older workers a rising force
My pal and FOT contributor, Tim Sackett, wrote a blog post called Sackett’s Top 10 Fast Food Foods Of All Time. It spoke to me. I’m not ashamed to say I love fast food. I’m smart enough to only consume small quantities, but damn it, I’m ‘merican.
Our world, and our lives, seem like they are nothing but an endless chain of distractions. Items rarely catch our attention for more than mere seconds at a time. If fact, it's a bit ironic to write this observation on a blog that may get read and possibly shared, liked or retweeted - but only for a moment.
On July 12, @shrmnextchat chatted with SHRM Young Professional Council's Jillian Caswell and Staci McArter about Advice for the Next Generation of HR.
In case you missed this excellent chat filled with great career tips for new HR pros, you can see all the tweets here:
How well connected you are used to be measured by the number of physical handshakes you made throughout your business life. Today your ‘social currency’ is your digital footprint.
How many digital connections, followers or friends have you accumulated through your social media platforms? Yes, platforms as in plural. It doesn’t count if you have a Facebook account to keep tabs on the kids and post photos of Sunday’s cafe breakfast!
Social media can be the key to landing a job. Best-selling author Martin Yate, a career coach and former HR professional, takes your questions each week about how to further your career in HR. Contact him at the e-mail address at the end of this column.
How do you go about innovating new solutions within your organisation (or the organisations you work with)? Recently I’ve had some great discussions on this issue, as the impact of global ways of working further permeates into our every day.
You're piloting a 37-foot-long boat on a river deep in enemy territory. Your mission: Extract a Navy SEAL team pinned down by gunfire. Your craft can cruise at over 45 miles per hour, but the noise might alert the enemy to your approach. With 360-degree vision, you notice fellow sailors around you tightening grips on weapons. Night begins to fall. And you have less than 10 minutes to save the day.
Under federal and state laws (most or all), employers can have voluntary retirement programs. Of course, there is much litigation on whether and when an employee’s decision to retire is truly voluntary.
With the rise of the Internet and disruptive technologies that are now shaping and reshaping the world, big data has revolutionized the competitive world. No longer is data just for the academics and research institutions, but now sports teams, political campaigns, the government and businesses are all buying into the world of big data.
At CFGI’s 2017 Symposium, Fragomen Worldwide speakers exposed the role of big data in business immigration by sharing best practices of integrating big data in decision-making.
Moments after stepping off the plane from New Orleans I headed into San Francisco to present at the Northern California Human Resources Association's Compensation Conference.
After a week of interacting with 10's of thousands of HR Professionals, a few questions remained:
1. Why aren't things changing at a more expedient rate?
Ready or not—here they come! Graduates of the Class of 2017 are ready to enter the workforce and will be preparing to start their careers over the next several months.
Dr. Woody: What is the essence of The Power of People? Who is this book for and why did you write it?
SHRM-certified professionals answer the question: What does your SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP certification mean to your employer?
The learning that took place at the SHRM 2017 Annual Conference & Exposition didn't end in New Orleans. By taking a look at all of the books sold at the SHRMStore during the event, we can gain some perspective on what resources HR professionals are embracing to further their careers.
On July 5, @shrmnextchat chatted with SHRM Summer Interns and their managers about "Summer Interns" and how students and employers can get the most out of summer internship programs.
If you missed this excellent chat filled with great ideas, you can read all the tweets here:
Summer internships are meant to give students the experience they will need to be successful when they enter the workplace. The best internship programs are thoughtfully planned and managed. Employees should be given a mentor for guidance and the opportunity to work on challenging projects that will help them to develop new skills.
It’s been a week since I’ve returned home from SHRM17 and I’ve been contemplating what I learned this time around. I certainly gained a lot from the sessions and the experts who presented them, from the exhibitors who took the time to educate, and from my colleagues I see but once per year.
Is it really any wonder that employers sometimes can't get the answer right? How can we when the answer to the same question either changes from the same agency, depending upon which political party is in power or varies depending upon the source being asked.
Two years ago, my wife and I were blessed with not one, but two little bundles of joy. As they grow and develop, I am coming to believe that I am learning as much from them as they are from my wife and I. It got me to thinking about my job in HR, and how I have evolved as a professional and as a leader.