Posts

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article

How To Attract Top Talent To Your Business

/0 Comments/in , , /by

StrategyDriven Talent Management ArticleIf you want to be successful in the long-term, then you’re going to have to hire a team of people who are skilled and committed to helping you grow your business. You’re not going to get far if you’re closed-minded and behind the curve when it comes to technology and treating your employees fairly.

Be glad to know there are specific ways for how you can attract top talent to your business and help guarantee a bright future for your operation. You’ll thank yourself down the road when you have a strong team of people behind you who know what they’re doing and are loyal to your company.

Show that You’re Innovative & Cutting Edge

Employees want to work for a company that’s ahead of the game when it comes to technology and innovation. They’re looking to join businesses that are willing to take calculated risks and try new approaches. Attract top talent to your business by showing that you’re on the cutting edge of some interesting and intriguing projects. Prove to potential candidates that you’re problem solvers and aren’t people who take no for an answer.

Be Accepting of Everyone

You’ll be able to build a more stable and diverse workforce when you’re accepting of everyone, no matter their race, disability or gender. Investing in Custom Braille Stickers is a great example for how you can show that you’re a business that doesn’t discriminate. Your goal should always be to keep an open mind and hire the right person for the particular position you’re trying to fill.

Offer an Attractive Compensation & Benefits Package

You’ll attract top talent to your business when you prove that you’re willing to go the extra mile and invest in your employees. You can do this by offering attractive compensation and benefits packages to anyone who you bring onboard at your company. Cutting corners will get you into hot water, and eventually, you’ll start to lose your most skilled workers, and people won’t be interested in even interviewing with your business.

Promote Work-Life Balance

These days’ people seeking an available position are not only interested in learning more about the specific job duties, but also the company culture. Promoting an environment of work-life balance will help you catch the attention of talented workers who are looking to have a family life in addition to giving it their all in their career. Be prepared to provide examples of how you offer flexibility at your workplace during interviews and let it be a selling point for why someone would want to work for you.

Conclusion

You’ll find you’re able to grow a stable and thriving business when you have the right staff on your side. Use these tips to help you attract top talent to your business so you can continue to move forward and achieve your goals. Start the process by taking a look around and seeing where the gaps exist and then work hard to find people who are a good fit for each specific job opening.

Robbie Hardy

Empowering Women Leaders

/0 Comments/in , /by

Women leaders need to work harder, longer and smarter to achieve the same or similar objectives as their male peers – seriously? We hear this same refrain over and over to the point that many women actually believe it.

There is no data to support this premise. Girls and boys are born with similar intelligence. Society has delivered these differences.[wcm_restrict]

Parents teach their daughters to be polite and demure rather than bold and assertive. This ingrained need to be polite and not interrupt is a serious trait to overcome. It also contributes to what outwardly may appear as insecurity or uncertainty, creating a huge issue.

Women thrive by increasing their confidence and self-esteem, their comfort in themselves; their knowing who they are and all that they are capable of achieving.

So how do we facilitate these changes in behavior and attitude? First and foremost, by openly valuing the women we hire and promote. Treat them as equals and pay them as equals. In a recent panel at the United State of Women forum, Warren Buffet admitted that when he was looking for a new board director, he never considered a woman until his wife suggested a specific woman. He hadn’t realized he was inadvertently discriminating.

We all need sponsors – people who will help us navigate the corporate, academic, or even startup maze. Men and women who know how the “system” works and how to leverage it best. These sponsors help women “stay under the tent” and at the top of their game.

We also need mentors – successful people whom we trust and respect implicitly, with whom we have a natural bond. People who listen, leave their egos at the door, and are willing to provide advice and counsel but respect the fact that everyone is different, and their journey need not replicate or imitate theirs. Those who can demonstrate the art of brevity, help you articulate your ideas or solutions, stand tall, own the room, and take your seat at the table.

Empowering women can really be this simple – providing a safe yet competitive environment where results are rewarded, not who talks the loudest.[/wcm_restrict][wcm_nonmember]

Hi there! This article is available for free. Login or register as a StrategyDriven Personal Business Advisor Self-Guided Client by:

[reveal_quick_checkout id=”25489″ checkout_text=”Subscribing to the Self Guided Program – It’s Free!”]
 
[/wcm_nonmember]

About the Author

Robbie HardyRobbie Hardy spent 20+ successful years in the corporate sector before finding her true calling in the entrepreneurial world. She is author of the new book Upsetting the Table: Women Mentoring Women.

For more information visit www.RobbieHardy.com.

Rosalie Chamberlain

Find Out if Your Message Attracts or Detracts

/0 Comments/in , , , /by

You are broadcasting messages every day, both verbal and non-verbal, and they tell others what you and your company think of yourself and the world. If you are not aware of the messages you are sending, others are and one’s perception has impact on your strategy’s bottom line.

Your company culture is vital to attracting, retaining, developing and advancing talent. So how do you discover what it is you are “saying?” A little self-examination should start with knowing what your beliefs, attitudes and biases are about yourself and others.

This quiz will help you explore behaviors based on what you believe (consciously or unconsciously), how you show up and recognize some views and behaviors that hamper success. Select the most correct answer for you.[wcm_restrict]

1. What happens when an opposing perspective exists?

a. Are you open to considering?
b. Are you convinced you have the right answer?
c. Do you judge the person offering the different viewpoint?

Your biases (preferences, beliefs and attitudes) influence behaviors and decisions that create blocks that might prevent you from seeing opportunities for collaboration and leveraging talent.

2. How inclusive are you? Do you:

a. Seek input from the same person or persons or network and socialize with the same group?
b. Make decisions about someone based on their appearance or background?
c. Allow privileges for some and not others?
d. All of the above

If you selected any of the choices above, especially D, it is time to step back and ask yourself why you respond the way you do, where did you learn your truth?

3. Are you interested in having a dialogue or a debate?

a. Do you listen fully to what is being said?
b. Do you partially listen while planning how you will respond?
c. Do you respond to what has been said, with “yes, but…?”

There are times for healthy debate to examine ideas and determine what will be the best solution. However, when every response is a contrary position without acknowledging and exploring someone else’s idea, the motivation for the other person to contribute will wane and eventually fall away – or they will walk away.

4. Do you notice when you think someone of a different group is a ‘certain way’ like trustworthy, not trustworthy, too quiet, too aggressive, or any other automatic judgment that drives your behavior?

a. Yes
b. No
c. Sometimes

Check out if you are stereotyping an entire group and taking shortcuts to make decisions without fully exploring the person’s unique qualities.

5. Do you avoid exploring a topic or issue because you think it does not affect you?

a. Yes
b. No
c. Sometimes

Do you have a team or are part of an organization where topics come up that take you out of your comfort zone? Your willingness to build a culture of open communication is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your organization.

6. Is your language inclusive?

a. Do you use generic terms presuming to include everyone (gender specific terms, racial group terms, religious affiliation terms, sexual orientation terms, and physical ability terms)
b. Do you pay attention to the impact of your language?
c. Do you know what the marketing, recruiting and website language says about you or your organization?

7. Do you roll your eyes or tune out at the mention of diversity and inclusion?

a. Yes
b. No, but do not genuinely engage in conversation?
c. Look for ways to improve?

If you selected A or B, consider that it is a result of your privilege and rank that you react in this way vs. looking to see what you can do to be more inclusive. Privilege is not a gender, person of color, disability, LGBT or religious issue. It is our issue.

Becoming more aware of how you respond to others and situations is important for success and building an environment where your employees and customers or clients develop loyalty to your brand. If you want to attract the best talent for your organization, build self-awareness of the messages and signals you are sending and understand the impact on the company, the employees, the customers and you.[/wcm_restrict][wcm_nonmember]

Hi there! This article is available for free. Login or register for the StrategyDriven Insights Library – Sample Subscription.

[reveal_quick_checkout id=”25489″ checkout_text=”Click here to register for the StrategyDriven Insights Library – Sample Subscription… It’s FREE!”]
 
[/wcm_nonmember]

About the Author

Rosalie ChamberlainRosalie Chamberlain is the author of Conscious Leadership in the Workplace: A Guidebook to Making a Difference One Person at a Time and the owner of Denver, CO-based Rosalie Chamberlain Consulting & Coaching. A thirty-five year organizational culture and eighteen year coaching veteran, she specializes in maximizing talent and productivity within organizations.

Marc Robertson

The Costs of Not Bridging the Gap Between Generations

/0 Comments/in , /by

It is now commonplace to hear stories of Boomer and GenX managers having difficulty managing Millennials in the workplace. Most managers look at it as having to deal with differences in attitudes and experience that can lead to frustration and resentment at its worst. The truth is that the actual monetary costs of not bridging this gap between generations can be tremendous. The inability for generations to relate well with one another leads to the following issues:[wcm_restrict]

Communication
When millennial age workers don’t trust their managers they are not likely to openly communicate with them, especially if they feel threatened. Instead of letting their managers know there is a problem with completing a task, or they see a problem ahead that the manager doesn’t see they will tend to keep it to themselves for fear of retribution, or even worse, because they don’t really want to support that manager. The costs are substantial. You find out about mistakes too late to fix them and spend money redoing or correcting problems that could have been avoided in the first place.

Second, you could have avoided a problem altogether had you known it was coming. Now you will spend your time, part of your staff’s time, and additional cost if it delays delivery of a product or service causing a hit to your cash flow.If you add up the cost of your time based on your salary, the cost of your staff’s time, and the delay in customer delivery; it is a substantial amount of money per hour. If this lack of communication becomes accepted as part of your culture you are wasting a significant amount of money and time on a yearly basis.

Performance Issues
When an employee is afraid or resentful they are prone to hiding any lack of ability they may have. Their performance erodes, and unless it’s blatantly obvious you have to figure out what they don’t know, and how to fill in for them or train them to do it. Now you’re paying for their mistakes as well as your time in trying to figure out what’s wrong. There is an additional cost in the poor performance of one employee affecting the entire output of a team or department. Add up all of those hours, it’s a scary number.

Missed Opportunity
When people don’t trust whom they’re reporting too or feel like they want to support them they are not going to be giving you their best ideas for solving problems or developing new products or services. That can easily become a missed opportunity. They might have come up with a solution to problem that could have been solved months ago, saving both frustration, time and money.

Turnover
In a job seekers market unfulfilled employees will leave the company. The cost of replacement is real dollars in terms of down time, recruiting, and then training time.

Being proactive in addressing the differences in generations in a positive way, and creating a clear path for communication, career development and building trust. will increase efficiency productivity and profitability. Companies like IBM have even developed groups made up of Millennial age IBM employees called Millennial Corps utilizing their unique point of view to test new products and make stronger connections across the company’s thousands of employees. Companies like IBM understand the importance of proactively bridging the gap between generations.[/wcm_restrict][wcm_nonmember]

Hi there! This article is available for free. Login or register as a StrategyDriven Personal Business Advisor Self-Guided Client by:

[reveal_quick_checkout id=”25489″ checkout_text=”Subscribing to the Self Guided Program – It’s Free!”]
 
[/wcm_nonmember]

About the Author

Marc RobertsonMarc Robertson, MBA, is the founder and president of NewSkills USA and has more than 25 years of experience in the media, entertainment, and technology industries. He is the author of Working with Millennials: Using Emotional Intelligence and Strategic Compassion to Motivate the Next Generation of Leaders (Praeger, February 29, 2016).

Sharon Drew Morgen

Overcoming Opposition

/0 Comments/in , , /by

I’m regularly flummoxed when I hear people question climate change, or when folks actually believe that people of color are ‘different’ and worthy of being insulted, underpaid, ignored. What’s up with Congress and why can’t that many smart people find grounds for compromise? And why do women still only earn a fraction of what men earn? Are we not smart enough? Worthy?

With our unique, subjective stances, we attempt to change the opinions of others to concur with us: Liberals attempt to change Conservatives; races try to engender diversity; sellers attempt to convince buyers their status quo is flawed; techies/engineers/scientists/doctors believe they hold the Smart Card of Right/Knowledge/Rationale and work at pushing their opinions accordingly. Yet rarely do we make a dent. Others are ‘stubborn’ ‘stupid’ ‘irrational’ ‘ill-informed’ while we, of course, hold the high ground.

Core Beliefs Maintain Our Lives

The problem that causes all this ‘stubbornness’ and difficulty achieving alignment is the difference in core beliefs. Developed over our lifetimes via our experience and life path and forming the core of our subjective biases, they embody our Identity. And as the foundation of our daily decisions and status quo, it all feels just fine. It’s who we are, and we live – and restrict – our lives in service to these beliefs: we choose jobs, newspapers, neighborhoods and life partners accordingly. While researching my new book What? on the gap between what’s said and what’s heard, I learned we even interpret what others say to maintain our subjectivity.

Every day we (our companies, families, etc.) wake up congruent; we work hard to maintain our status quo, aided by our habits and memory. Every day, in every way, we regenerate our biases; in service to maintaining systems congruence, we filter in/out anything that causes us to question status quo. Anything that threatens this faces resistance and conflict as part of self-preservation. Why would anyone disrupt their stable internal systems just because something from outside that attacks our core beliefs tells us to? When pundits say our behaviors are ‘irrational’ they ignore the fact that all of our beliefs are rational to our systems. Everyone seeks to maintain their status quo at all costs. Literally.

And when we hear others spout ideas that run counter to our beliefs and potentially challenge our views, opinions, habits and norms, we feel challenged and set about finding ways to convince others to believe as we do. But our attempts to change minds must fail

  • Because our ‘relevant’ information, carefully culled from studies, pundits, target intellectuals or politicians to prove we’re Right, is biased according to our own subjective beliefs and likely not the same studies, pundits, target intellectuals, or politicians that our Communication Partner would believe.
  • Because we’re arrogant. We’re telling others I’m right/you’re wrong.
  • Because information doesn’t teach anyone how to change, and it can’t even be heard accurately, unless they are already prepared to do so.
  • Because we cause resistance.

Agreement Requires Belief Modification

As outsiders we will never fully understand how another’s idiosyncratic beliefs create their opinions. Nor do we need to. We just need to find agreement somewhere; we must eschew the need to be Right. We must enter each discussion as a blank slate, without a map or biases, with the only stated goal being to find common ground.

Imagine if you believed (there’s that word again) that you had no answers, no ‘Right Factor’, only the ability to facilitate an examination of a higher order of beliefs that you can both agree on.

Instead of trying to match your own beliefs, find a belief you can match. Maybe you can agree that maintaining climate health is valuable, and merely disagree on causation or cures and move on from there. Here are some steps:

  • Enter conversations without bias, need to be right, or expectation.
  • Enter with a goal to find a higher order of agreement rather than a specific outcome.
  • Chunk up to find a category that’s agreeable to both and fits everyone’s beliefs.
  • Begin examining the category to find other agreeable points.
  • Use the agreeable points to move toward collaboration where possible.

I’m a Buddhist. I’ve learned that there is no such thing as being Right. But I’ve also learned that I don’t need to disrespect my own beliefs or undermine my own tolerance level to be compassionate and recognize that everyone has a right to believe as they do. Of course sometimes I’m willing to lose a friend or client if another’s beliefs are so far outside my identity that I feel harmed. But I understand that my stance, too, is most likely biased and defensive. I, too, might have to alter my beliefs to be more amenable to collaboration.

Here is the question I ask myself at times I feel the need to change someone’s opinion: Would I rather be Right, or in Relationship?

About the Author

Sharon Drew Morgen is founder of Morgen Facilitations, Inc. (www.newsalesparadigm.com). She is the visionary behind Buying Facilitation®, the decision facilitation model that enables people to change with integrity. A pioneer who has spoken about, written about, and taught the skills to help buyers buy, she is the author of the acclaimed New York Times Business Bestseller Selling with Integrity and Dirty Little Secrets: Why buyers can’t buy and sellers can’t sell and what you can do about it.

To contact Sharon Drew at sharondrew@sharondrewmorgen.com or go to www.didihearyou.com to choose your favorite digital site to download your free book.