“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?”

Over the last 20 years, much has been written and discussed about how to retain employees.  However, the past several years have proved to be particularly brutal for sustained employee or employer loyalty.  Unless you’re an employee-owned company (like my best client…hint, hint) or just unusually passionate about creating a unique company culture predicated on something as crazy as cultivating happiness at work, ala Zappos, many companies have been more focused on getting more done with less.  Which, in a nutshell, means that they’re less concerned about employee satisfaction. 

All that being said, I recently read an article that hit me right between the eyes.  It suggested that perhaps employers shouldn’t be so worried about employee retention as much as they should worry about “sustained engagement” of their current staff.  Think about it like this: within fast-changing industries like technology it’s common to expect 3-5 years out of an employee before they move on.  So maybe, just maybe, it’s better to have 2-3 years of intense contribution and engagement from an employee and think less about how long that person is going to stick around for.  Yes, there are exceptions like Zappos and Google, but they are exactly that…exceptions.

I bet you’d like to know the winning formula for creating “sustained employee engagement”, right?  Sorry – there’s no magic wand for creating that type of intense commitment.  However, in my experience, exceptionally motivated and effective employees work within organizations who share a few key traits:

•    The top leadership is not only passionate but they are “realistic optimists”.  As optimists, they expect the best from their staff and trust in their skills.  They expect people to shine and celebrate success when it’s attained.   But as realists, they also expect employees to admit mistakes and learn from them.
•    Employees have the power to make decisions: for customers, each other and the company as a whole.  You’ll find little to no micro-managing here. 
•    People care because they feel personally invested in the company’s success.  They also like to see others succeed within their team and throughout the organization.  They welcome giving credit to others when it’s due. Overall, there is little toleration for a “me-first” attitude.  That mentality works well to gain ratings for “The Apprentice” but it will sabotage most businesses.  

Reality Bites: Social Media and The Successful Job Search

 How much of this is familiar to you?

<! ·   Linkedin:    You’ve got a profile and a couple of credible recommendations.

<! ·   Facebook:  You’re on it more than you’d like to admit, but still try not to be obsessive.

<! ·   Twitter:  It’s about tweeting what you’re having for lunch.

The world of social media can be intimidating. It’s always changing and keeping up with the newest, latest and greatest isn’t always easy. If you’re looking for a job, utilizing social media to help can be a huge advantage…if you do it right. The hard reality is that managing your presence on-line takes time and effort, but not doing it could mean getting passed over for that critical in-person interview.  Think of yourself as a brand that needs management to reach its full potential.  Here are a five “musts” to help you with the process:

1. Your profile photo:  keep it professional, yet warm and engaging. If you’re in a conservative industry, match that feel. However, if you’re in a more creative field, you’ve got a bit more freedom.  Do I need to mention that pictures which are controversial or unprofessional should be avoided?  Good, I didn’t think so.
2. Don’t be a virtual motor mouth. Make sure that comments and shared content are meaningful to a wide audience and that you’re not overloading them with too many posts.
3. Google Alerts is a great way to monitor your on-line reputation. Register your name and you’ll be immediately notified if someone mentions you on-line.
4. Pay it forward, without expecting people to reciprocate. Helping other people succeed by sharing good news about them feels great – and helps build relationships. When you’re impressed by someone, send a LinkedIn recommendation extolling their virtues.  You’ll make their day – and build your own credibility as an expert.
5. Get out and about! Don’t expect instant job search success by just having a great on-line presence. You need to have face-to-face interactions with a wide variety of people within various networking situations. 

Recruitment Outsourcing: Do More with Less

We all know that companies of all shapes and sizes have been left digging out from the “The Great Recession”.  Everyone is struggling to pick up the pieces and more often than not, what employees you have left are being taxed with the extra burden.  This is especially true of human resource departments.  The challenge of sorting through more resumes than you can count, keeping existing employees happy and balancing a hiring manager’s needs is a lot to bear.  To top it all off, hiring the right talent is an ever-more urgent mandate for organizations that need to find superstars that can multi-task and operate in these fast-paced, pressurized environments.

In the past, organizations have looked at staffing agencies with a bit of a wary eye and who can blame them?  Most of the resumes that were passed on tended to be coated in effusive praise and the promise of a hefty commission if one of their candidates landed the job.  But, much like other businesses having to shift their strategies, so too, are recruiters.  More and more recruitment firms are working as trusted partners to HR departments and companies, taking a little bit of pressure off already harried staff.

The change is subtle, but it’s there if you look for it.  Gone are big commissions for sticking a company with a candidate…any candidate.  Now recruiters, like myself, act as on-going partners who provide objective feedback, frank opinions on candidates (and what their references really said) and a singular focus on finding the right candidate, not a commission. The breakdown and reasons as to “why” use an outside recruiter are actually pretty simple:

• Your hiring managers are freed up to concentrate on more profitable work
• The human resources department is focused on interviewing only the best candidates – giving them more time to devote to working on internal projects for your valuable employees
•  Third-party recruiters can gather and track down a greater collection of objective information and references on a potential hire
• An ongoing recruitment partner will drastically lower your cost-to-hire rate as they become hiring experts for your company

All that being said, I’d love to hear your thoughts about third-party recruiters!