The Wall Street Journal (Marketwatch, January 1, 2012) suggests that job seekers need to be creative and flexible to land and keep a job.   There are a number of reasons given for this statement, and I thought they were worth reviewing. 

Employers are staying lean, and staff levels aren’t expected to increase much in the next months.  That means that the existing staff will have to respond to a wide variety of demands.  As workers shift around some of these positions may be available, but they may have changed significantly in breadth and skill requirements.  Employers also want workers who are able to adapt quickly to new responsibilities as companies try to stay competitive in a changing economy. 

Opportunities may be there in industries that the job seeker isn’t familiar with.  Economists do project growth in the health care market, professional services such as accounting and legal, retail sales and management and certain manufacturing jobs.  For each of these industries there are some special skill requirements or education.  Manufacturing may require some occupational training, but that can be accessed thru many community college programs.  The retail industry, sales in particular, requires interpersonal skills.

So, what is a job seeker to do?  Ideas presented in the article include highlighting the applicant’s creative skills to show their ability to adapt to new duties.  Technical literacy is really a basic must in most companies, including health care, where much of the business end of the industry is going automated.  If you are well versed in electronic data handling – they will want you! 

Project management and communications skills are abilities that are valued across many industries, and finding workers able to communicate clearly is getting harder to find among today’s applicants.  Job seekers need to work hard at honing their verbal and writing skills to differentiate themselves. 
Then, use marketing skills to get the point across.  Use social media (with taste and skill please) to reach prospective employers.  Understand in advance what the company values.  For example, a law practice will want to add skilled members that can bring in more business.  That asset is also valuable in other industries, so use your contact list appropriately.  Package your skills to show how you will add value to the organization – and be able to back it up with examples.  No “puffing”!
As always, good luck.

Tags: applications, hiring talent, Hiring Trends, job seeker, social network

The retirement topic is an important one right now, partially due to layoffs and downsizing in companies.  A research article on “The Society for Human Resource Management” website highlights problems and considerations when dealing with this topic.

When the employees in a company are unprepared for their retirement years, they may work beyond the time they should retire.  This is a psychological blow for the employee, and has an effect on the org staffing plan as well.  Because the recent financial crisis has taken a bite out of peoples’ savings and retirement accounts, as many as 24% of workers are planning to work until after age 70.  There is also a significant increase in the number that feel they won’t be living comfortably in retirement.

For the company, there is a significant financial impact when employees work beyond their normal retirement age.  First, health care expenses for folks over 65 can be more than double the cost of insuring people age 45 -55.  In the case of work-related accidents, severity and time away from work can increase dramatically in the older employee.  Salaries and compensation tend to be higher in the more mature worker compared to younger employees with a similar skill set.  Some sources say that productivity drops…but there is an issue with the new grads and young employees on the same topic.  There is a problem, however when an employee is there because they have to be because they can’t retire.  There tends to be a drop off in energy and productivity for these folks.

There are things the organization can do to promote a culture of retirement readiness.  The first step is obviously to look at the level of participation in retirement plans by those nearing retirement age.  Then look at how many employees at all stages of their working life are utilizing the retirement benefits of the organization to the fullest advantage. 

As the company reviews the retirement culture in their organization, they need to evaluate the plan design to assure that employees have access to options that fit their needs, and that the company makes it easy for employees to contribute or participate.  Then – communicate.  The information needs to be geared to the various ages or work life stages of the employees.  Younger workers will have very different needs and views of retirement than a 55-year-old.  Provide easy response mechanisms such as “take action” cards that encourage them to respond.  Employees should also be offered financial consulting support from an outside source to provide them information for informed choices regarding their plans. 

If the company makes matching contributions, they should try to structure the matches to encourage savings.  As is to be expected, if the company matches up to 3% of the employee’s deferred salary, that is what they will contribute.  If the plan matches at 50% for the first 3% deferred salary, changing to a 25% match for the first 6% might change the participation rates and encourage more savings without adding costs to the company.

Obviously there needs to be continued evaluation of the entire retirement picture, with specific measures such as participation rates and average salary deferrals to track how well the plan is succeeding.  Success of the plan is greater success for the organization, and a better prepared workforce.

Tags: employee benefits, retirement options, staffing plans

Right now Congress is battling about how to resolve the budget deficit.  Some might argue that the most important issue to improve our economy is to get Americans back to work.  According to an article in the Society For Human Resource Management’s HR News, economists suggest that jobs should have been the focus of the Super Committee all along.

However, in areas of the country where there is job recovery, there seems to be another problem.  There is a significant gap between skills needed for these jobs and skilled workers ready to go to work. 

The SHRM article asked for responses concerning the skills deficits in job applicants for specific organizations.  A response from the Arlington, VA Workforce Investment Board said that in some cases job seekers just don’t know how to promote themselves.  When responding to the question “Why do you want this job” the applicant’s answer may be – “Because I want a job.”  Not a good way to highlight the skills a worker could bring to the company. 

Job seekers need to be aware that the current economic productivity is similar to levels reached prior to the 2007 -2009 recession, but there are millions more people out of work.  The good news is that 58% of companies that laid off workers during the recession are making direct replacement of those jobs. The bad news is that many of those jobs now require completely new skill sets.

The applicant needs to be able to separate him- or herself from the pack by highlighting the talents and skills they bring.  Recently there has been a change in the focus of the HR Recruiters from years of experience to actual skill sets available in the job seeker pool- reflecting the trend of changing skill requirements.

The really interesting issue highlighted by companies responding to the SHRM-posted question said that the most common skill deficiencies in applicants are 1) writing in English 2) math skills 3) reading comprehension and 4) speaking in English.  The cited language deficiencies could be easily addressed by applicants through local training organizations.  Students in secondary or post-secondary educational institutions need to be aware of these needs and be focused on heightening their skills going forward.

Hiring, or hunting for a job are stressful and difficult processes, and even with the right skills, or the right group of applicants the one thing we all need is persistence and a sense of humor.  Good hunting!

Tags: applications, hiring talent, Hiring Trends, job seeker attitudes, retraining

Companies look for ways to thank employees and incentivize them – keep the team happy and productive!  One traditional reward has been the holiday bonus.  The bonus can come in many forms, from checks in various amounts (or sometimes the same amount for all) to in one case, a holiday turkey…
The problem is, this particular reward doesn’t have much lasting effect on employee morale, job satisfaction, or productivity.  In many cases it becomes perceived as part of the annual salary.  It can also cause resentment when everyone gets the same reward no matter how much they contributed to the company’s success that year.  In a case I’m familiar with, the executive team got significantly higher holiday bonuses, creating resentment among staff that felt those folks already had enough money for the holidays and it should go to the “worker bees”. 
A better idea, as suggested in an article on the Society for Human Resource Management website, is incentive pay based on meeting company goals.  A reward should align the growth and wealth-building of the company and its employees.  When companies develop the correct incentives, their growth and success can increase significantly.
This requires some groundwork.  The first, as always, is to clearly identify company goals for the short term.  These goals have to be quantifiable in order to use them as a guide for rewarding employees.  Then comes the hard part – identify specific behaviors or work that will help achieve these goals.  In addition, employees should articulate their particular goals as they relate to the business of the company. 
Company leaders should recognize that employees are motivated by similar elements—an atmosphere that encourages development, participation in the decision-making processes, opportunities for professional growth and a comfortable living now and the ability to increase their well being in the future.
So how to reward:  bonuses, deferred compensation, stock plans or other options?  This has to be defined by the leadership and be based on the company structure and financial situation. 
Finally, the reward program won’t be effective unless it is kept front and center in the business process.  It will only motivate if employees remember the commitments made and rewards available.  This type of program serves as recognition and appreciation of the individual effort to make the company more successful.
There is always opportunity to celebrate and appreciate the employees of the company en mass via luncheons or simple gift exchanges.  Bear in mind, however, that not everyone celebrates the holidays in the same way, and some not at all.  That’s another reason for not doing holiday bonuses!

Tags: employee benefits, employee morale, performance management

I have read numerous articles on the changing requirements of the job seeker – especially the newest generation of earners.  Some of the comments are not flattering – such as that the new wave of workers doesn’t really expect to have to show up to work every day, or that they expect to be paid exceptional salaries without any experience.  In reality there are good and not so good applicants in any generation.  One of the most commented – on wishes of today’s employee is more TIME.  When an applicant looks at a job opportunity, don’t be surprised if they look at salary and benefits, but also pay close attention to how much personal time/vacation time is included in the offer. 
In a  survey done by the Society for Human Resource Management(SHRM) earlier in 2011, 86% of the 550 respondents to the survey said flexibility – the ability to balance their work and personal life – is an important or very important aspect of job satisfaction.  Acknowledging the pressure of balancing personal needs and their work requirements, many employers are offering work flexibility to keep their best and brightest.  Others are using the flexible work arrangements to attract workers from their competitors!
There were actually awards given for workplace flexibility through a rigorous process developed by the Families and Work Institute.  One example – Turner Construction finds that listening to staff needs and communicating how important they are to the company resulted in a voluntary staff turnover rate of just 3.8%.  Employees surveyed feel they were being heard (an increase of from 59% in 2005 to 72% in 2011), and management  evaluations include a section on how well they promote flexible work options.  There are such perks as Friday afternoons off in the summer, even though it is a peak time for their industry. 
Another company, Ben Secours Health System, has used a variety of flexible work schedules for years – partly because of a shortage of health care workers, and partly because many departments require 24-hour coverage.  Employees can work compressed workweeks or either four 10-hour shifts or three 12-hour shifts a week.  There is enhanced pay for weekend hours, and many more.  Because women make up 85% of the workforce and women are still the primary caregiver in a majority of family units, these options are especially important in meeting staffing needs.
Even in the factory (Futura Industries in Utah) there are opportunities.  At Futura 85% of the employees take advantage of flexible work times without sacrificing pay.  Employees are cross trained, and managers can decide if they need to backfill when an employee needs some time off or if they can work with one less for that time. 
It seems that investigating flextime options can be an important factor in the success of a company to hire and retain their workforce.  Check it out!

Tags: employee benefits, employee morale, Hiring Trends