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Staying On Task Before a Vacation Is the Hardest Part

This will be my last post for 2011, it is sad yet exciting to think that the year is coming to a close.  It’s been an exciting year—Charlie Sheen went crazy crazier, Kim Kardashian got married, the St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series,  Apple introduced the world to Siri, protesters gathered around the world thanks to Twitter, Kim Kardashian got divorced, Kate and William got married, and Bin Laden is no longer, but I digress, because the post I actually sat down to write was on the topic of staying on task despite the anticipation of vacation time.

I’m on this topic because I like many others am prepping to go on vacation, so as I write this blog all I can think about is sleeping late, celebrating the holidays, seeing friends and family, drinking tasty beverages, and most importantly sleeping de-stressing. 

Now my last day in the office is today, however I haven’t been able to stay as focused as I would like (hence that first paragraph).  The anticipation of watching A Christmas Story for 24 hours is too exciting to keep me fully focused on my work (and trust me there is A LOT to do before I leave this afternoon).  As I’m sure I’m not the only one feeling the stresses before a “stress free” holiday I thought I’d share some things that work for me (or usually work for me) to keep my head in the game.

• Feel Distracted? Take a Walk. If you’re desperately trying to concentrate on a task and your mind keeps wandering, your body might as well wander off with it.  Take a break, clear your mind, and come back to what you were doing with a fresh perspective.
  
  
• My favorite—Make a List. Write down all the outstanding items you have to do. It’s always a great feeling to cross things off.
  
  
• Only Do What HAS to be Done.  If something has to wait to be addressed when you're back in the office-keep in mind that that is okay.  It is not a life or death situation (unless you're a medical professional, world leader, soldier, etc...).  So if it comes down to leaving something unfinished, don't let it ruin your time off.
  

We hope these pointers help you enjoy your time off and we here at EmploymentMetrix will see you in 2012!  Seasons Greetings, Happy New Year, and thanks for reading!

 

Our Top 5 Favorite Fictional Company Party Moments in Honor of the Holiday Season

So many dread the company holiday party.  While some of them are great and others are a bust, you can always rely on the company holiday party to provide a good laugh and if that doesn’t happen enjoy our top five favorite fictional company party moments (even if they’re not holiday specific).

5. Chandler’s company is having a party because they had a lot of liquor leftover from the Christmas party on Friends. Monica attends Chandler’s company party with him and learns he has a fake work laugh and informs her that she will need one too to survive the night.

4. Elaine Benes’s “little kicks” dance on Seinfeld.  As president of J. Peterman Elaine thinks it is her duty to get the dancing portion of the evening started, however her dancing is so terrible that she loses the respect of her staff in the process.

3. The cast and crew of TGS vow to chop down the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree on 30 Rock. Office parties are a time for togetherness, and, apparently public vandalism. After briefly embracing the spirit of giving during the holiday season (can’t stress briefly enough here) within seconds the cast and crew of The Girly Show are back to their usual selves with a mission to chop down the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.

2. Afternoon Delight on Arrested Development. Gob can’t wait for the company celebration as he believes the employees will toast him, but he has alienated them by boasting about his expensive suits so he is more likely to be roasted.  Meanwhile the innocent tune “Afternoon Delight” embarrasses the Bluth family even more when they discover that the song is not so innocent.

1. A Benihana Christmas on The Office. Michael is depressed because his girlfriend breaks up with him, so to cheer him up the guys take him to lunch at Benihana where Michael and Andy make dates with two waitresses that they invite to the company party—hilarity ensues.

 

Finding a Job is All About Location, Location, Location

In anticipation of Beyond.com’s Q3 Trends Report being released, we thought that we’d whet your appetite with some highlights from the report—particularly regarding the location of jobs. 

Find out:

• Top 10 States for Hiring.
• Industries with the most opportunities.
• And Top 5 cities for each top hiring industry.

Download the “Where The Jobs Are" [INFOGRAPHIC] Now

 

Happy Thanksgiving

As much as I point out the annoyances about things that happen in the workplace, (for instance, right now there is an incessant hammering going on) I thought that for just one week, I would try to put all those things aside and be thankful.  So I decided to make a list of things I’m thankful for. 

Here it is:

• Thank you commuters for taking off the week of Thanksgiving, my drive into the office this morning was a breeze.
  
  
• Thank you Black Friday for distracting my coworkers from doing actual work— as they are too focused on plotting their course of action to receive as many door busters as possible.
  
  
• Thank you to my coworkers who are getting a jumpstart on the holiday (eating) season and have already started to fill the communal kitchen with delicious baked goods.
  
  
• Thank you to those teammates on vacation this week, because they thought it would be a slow time, but them being out makes my supposed slow week crazy.

But in all seriousness, I truly am thankful for the wonderful team, I get to work with everyday at Beyond.com.  Happy Thanksgiving to everyone and I hope you all have safe holidays!

Beyond.com Selected by AlwaysOn as a Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 Winner

Beyond.com, a Career Network focused on helping people grow and succeed, today announced that it has been chosen by AlwaysOn as one of the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners.  Inclusion in the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 signifies leadership amongst its peers and game-changing approaches and technologies that are likely to disrupt existing markets and entrenched players. Beyond.com was specially selected by the AlwaysOn editorial team and industry experts spanning the globe based on a set of five criteria: innovation, market potential, commercialization, stakeholder value, and media buzz.

Beyond.com and the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 companies will be honored at the IMPACT Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic event, November 29th and 30th, 2011, at the Ritz Carlton in Philadelphia, PA. 

This two-day executive event features CEO presentations and high-level debates on the most promising emerging technologies and new entrepreneurial opportunities on the East Coast. PACT’s annual venture conference, IMPACT 2011, is the most established venture conference in the northeast. For over 20 years, IMPACT has been showcasing the best and most promising investment opportunities in the technology, life sciences, and clean technology sectors.

“The Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners are transforming the mid-Atlantic region’s technology community through innovation and creativity,” said Tony Perkins, founder and editor at AlwaysOn. “The companies represent some of the highest-growth opportunities in the mid-Atlantic private company marketplace across all industry sectors, including digital media and entertainment, on-demand computing as well as greentech and the life sciences.”

The Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners were selected from among thousands of mid-Atlantic technology companies nominated by investors, bankers, journalists, and greentech industry insiders.  The AlwaysOn editorial team conducted a rigorous three-month selection process to finalize the 2011 list.

Tips to Avoid Crossing The Line in Social Recruiting

This week we have a guest blogger, Kyle Lagunas, the HR Analyst at Software Advice–a company that conducts human resources and applicant tracking software comparisons.

When it comes to using social media websites for recruiting - what we call social recruiting - how far is too far? Beyond learning the hard way what works and what doesn’t, there are some best practices emerging to help recruiters know when they’ve pushed the proverbial envelope too far. And hiring professionals are discovering a new line of recruiting applications and tools built into applicant tracking software to help them rise above the same old hashtag to better identify, connect with and place viable candidates.

For all their good intentions, many folks using social media in their recruiting efforts are running into the same issues. Here are the top three:

• Spamming job posts. Want to render your social recruiting efforts ineffective? Spamming people with your job opportunities is a surefire way to do just that. The key to social recruiting is to be social and engaging. Share industry news and articles of interest, exchange personal messages, etc.
  
  
• Prying rather than researching. Some positions require a flawless social media presence. For the rest, you shouldn’t be digging too deeply into their profiles. Screening should be focused on general impressions of candidates to see if they would fit within your company culture.
  
  
• Penalizing candidates for level of access. It’s not unusual for candidates to deny recruiters access to their Facebook profile, inviting them to connect via LinkedIn instead. Many people use Facebook for personal, rather than professional networking - especially in Generation Y. Don’t write off candidates for showing a bit of backbone and managing their public image - it’s hardly something to penalize.

Lessons Learned from the Trenches

Some people are experiencing more success in social recruiting than others, and have picked up a few tricks worth sharing. Carolyn Betts, CEO of Betts Recruiting, is one such person, and was recently featured in a New York Times article, for leveraging social media to grow her recruiting success. She and I chatted last week, and she shared some lessons she’s learned from the trenches.

• Focus on strategy. You won’t be able to make the most of social media if you’re going into it blindly. You need to have a plan for how you want to accomplish your goals. Betts suggests starting with one social media site, familiarizing yourself with it, then growing your presence gradually.
  
  
• Have realistic expectations. When you consider the industry you’re in and the position you’re hiring for, are your deal-breakers realistic? You need to determine upfront how much weight you are giving a candidate’s social media presence.
  
  
• Leverage the right apps and tools. Many successful social recruiters know that in order to make the most of your social recruiting efforts, you need to leverage the right tools. Why go it alone when there are applications with built-in best practices for recruiting more effectively?

Software Expanding Recruiters’ Reach

Human resources software is growing to help recruiters make use of social media in their hiring strategy. But before recruiters can fully harness these helpful tools, they must determine whether or not they are in the right social media playground.

According to a recent study, approximately 85 percent of U.S. companies used LinkedIn for recruiting last year, though only 30 percent of active job seekers are on LinkedIn. As such, many recruiters are finding LinkedIn a bit overcrowded. Where are the candidates? The large majority of them are on Facebook.

Because the data recruiters are looking for is a little harder to find on Facebook, however, many miss the sourcing opportunity this vast network provides. Fortunately, there are third-party software developers devising methods to put actionable candidate information into the hands of recruiters quickly and efficiently. Some of these recruiting solutions are standalone applications that leverage recruiters’ networks. Others - like Bullhorn Reach - are applications designed specifically for automating social recruiting.

For further reading, check out Kyle's HR blog at: http://blog.softwareadvice.com/articles/hr/social-recruiting-how-far-is-too-far-010271/

Take This Job and…

Resignations have been big in the news this week.  With the scandal at Penn State University and Eddie Murphy withdrawing as host of The Academy Awards I have resignation on the brain and it got me thinking about resignation best practices from an HR perspective.

Resignations can go sour fast—employees can be asked to vacate the premises immediately, the resigned can check out for the last two weeks on the job, transitions might not happen in a timely and orderly fashion OR they can go smoothly, with the resigned staying on board to recruit and train their replacement, tie up loose ends, work hard until their last day on the job, etc… But to be honest—after a resignation is tendered—a combination of both the good and the bad probably follows suit.

So for those of us who are left behind and for those of us that resignations are tendered to, here are a few tips to follow to ensure the resignation goes smoothly for both parties.

• Be happy for the person moving on. Wish them the best in their next phase and secure their contact information to stay in touch—either as a networking contact or simply as a friend.  
  
  
• Don’t burn any bridges. Allow your former colleague to leave on good terms, if you were in their shoes you wouldn’t want to leave on bad terms. Besides, you never know who you may cross paths with again in the future.
  
  
• Don’t kick the recently resigned to the curb. Taking a resignation personally is never a smart move. When a resignation is tendered, don’t overreact and ask the employee to leave immediately.  You’re only hurting yourself and the staff left behind that has to pick up the slack and make assumptions about unfinished projects—all while feeling like they did something wrong to be treated that way.
  
  
• Respect the remaining staff and inform them in a timely manner. Telling those who are staying on staff that a resignation was given in a timely manner is crucial.  If the staff finds out that a team member is leaving and that team member gave notice six days prior—that makes the team feel wronged.  While relaying this kind of information may not be easy, it’s best to do it sooner rather than later.  If you wait too long you might have other resignations heading your way.     

If You Don’t Factor Mobile Into Your Recruitment Plan You’re Making a HUGE Mistake

Sometimes when I’m in a public place—riding a train, walking down the street, or even sitting in a restaurant, I love to observe how many people are engrossed in their cell phones.  And I will tell you I’m no different. 

My Smartphone is my lifeline, I don’t leave home without it—I don’t even leave a room in my home without it (but don’t tell my mother that, because then she’ll wonder why I don’t ALWAYS answer the phone when she calls).

But I have become so addicted attached to my phone that I do EVERYTHING on it, from paying bills, checking movie times—and buying movie tickets, sending emails, playing Words With Friends (I recently discovered that “Nachos” is not an acceptable word—I know I was shocked too!), to reading my favorite blog, EmploymentMetrix (shameless plug!).  So with so much reliance on our Smartphones and unfortunately a large number of people out of work, it is little surprise that job searching and recruitment has gone mobile—in a big way!

Mobile job search apps are BOOMING and the number of candidates searching for jobs on their mobile devices has skyrocketed by more than 100% in the last year alone. So if you’re an HR Pro that has yet to factor in mobile into your recruitment plan, you’re making a BIG mistake.

Check out the latest infographic from Beyond.com—it shows that more than 77% of job seekers use mobile job search apps.  Job Seekers use these apps to quickly react to new job postings, discreetly search for jobs, and simply the freedom it allows them to search for jobs anytime from anywhere.  Potential candidates are no longer tied down to their home computer to search and apply for jobs, now they can do it on their commute to work, while they’re waiting in the doctor’s office, or even waiting for that barista to make their favorite tasty beverage.   So if you have yet to jump on the mobile bandwagon you’re going to be left behind—that goes for HR pros and job seekers alike!

Am I The Only Person That Thinks There’s Too Much Unnecessary Talking In the Workplace?

Have a coworker that likes to talk just to hear themselves talk?  Maybe you’re even that coworker.

Yeah well I have news for you, there comes a point where you should just stop talking and walk away. And while you’re at it stop using big words and elusive phrases to sounds impressive.  While you think you’re sounding really smart, the person you’re talking to is thinking, “Why is the conversation still happening? Jokes on you because while I’m in agreement with what you’re saying, I stopped listening to you ten minutes ago. Now you might as well be standing in front of a mirror talking to yourself because I’ve been thinking about my plans for tonight as I occassionally nod my head.” 

That’s what’s really happening, so if you think that what you’re saying is actually being heard, you’re SO wrong.

Talking just to talk is pointless—only if it’s in a social situation and even then it’s questionable.  So if you’re someone who likes to hold court, know when you should stop.  Just because you have the floor doesn’t mean that people are listening to you—in fact in today’s world of Smart Phones, Reality Television, and Social Networks where you get all of the day’s news in 140 characters—the chances of your coworkers tuning into what you’re saying is small—no matter how important it is.  In actuality, you probably have a better chance of your colleagues absorbing your thoughts by sending your ideas via text.

Just a thought from the Millenial Generation.

Your Messy Coworker: Are They Lazy or Creative?

I was recently sent an infographic by a coworker about office hoarding. To sum it up it said that employees with messy work spaces were less likely to be promoted than those coworkers with organized desks and offices.  I was sent this as a joke; because this is what my desk looks like on a consistent basis.


Now if you ask me for a document I know exactly where it is on my desk, so my messy desk doesn’t keep me from doing my job.  But I can see how the messy desk can be discouraging, however I learned all of my business etiquette from Seinfeld's George Costanza. 

George had it all figured out, he said that it looks like you’re not working hard enough if you don’t have a messy desk. He emphasized that volume counts and stressed the importance of piles, in fact he even threw in this gem: “If you know somebody is coming to your cubicle, bury the document you’ll need halfway down in an existing stack and rummage for it when he/she arrives.”

Now this doesn’t really translate all that well for the modern workplace—now that everything is digital for the most part, but it’s still relatable and I can see how it  would be a turnoff for management.

But really—should those with messy workspaces be looked down upon for having a different work style? Having a messy space shouldn’t crucify you as a hopeless case of disarray not worthy of promotion, in fact I would think it should be seen as just the opposite, a sign of creativity and potential for advancement. 

In fact, I’m proud of my messy desk, when I get comments about it, I chuckle, because I think that the mess keeps me on my toes and sometimes the silly things I prominently displayed like a giant novelty pen, magic wand, koosh ball (an original one for the ‘80s), a bobble head, and a piggy bank in the shape of a monkey keeps the creative juices flowing.  In fact when I sat down to write this post, I didn’t know what I was going to write about, but I looked around for inspiration and all the silly things on my desk sparked my interest and here we are.

So if you’re frustrated with your coworkers messy spaces don’t sweat it, as long as they do their job and do it well, you should be happy to have a little diversity on your team.  After all, the coworkers I sit near with tidy spaces many times have a skill set that I lack, but I’m happy that they’re there to help when I need their expertise and vice versa.