How Much Do Unhappy Employees Cost Your Company

How Much Do Unhappy Employees Cost Your Company Happiness, somehow keeping a positive culture and a smiling workforce, is a powerful business tool. However, happiness isnt always fluffy. Heres how employers  are finding the financial benefits of better work environments and using happiness as an instrument to drive the business forward. This infographic from Dashburst shows exactly why. Takeaways: In a year, lost work days due to stress cost $30 billion. Each year, lost productivity costs the US $200 billion. Maintaining  happy employees could cut labour costs in the US by over $2 billion. RELATED: How to Stay Happy in Your Job.

Buddha Philosophy Creates Strategic Plan - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Buddha Philosophy Creates Strategic Plan - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Admittedly, I have not studied Buddha but have heard words of wisdom expressed over the years that allude to the philosophy. To begin and appropriately so, patience and open-mindedness are indeed the key to strategic planning. It’s the holiday season proclaiming joy and happiness to all. But joy and happiness just like stress and close-mindedness begin with you. Examine where your happiness meter reads and if improvements need to be made in order to convey the holiday spirit all year round. After all, this is what people notice about you first, and is the earmark of your personal brand. Contemplate the following questions in order to find peace within and a joy filled New Year: 1. Are you or are you not happy? Which events led up to where you are today that put you in the current frame of mind? How can you either turn a negative situation around to the positive, or maximize the positive you are already experiencing? Equally important is the question, how may you share the joy by advising others how to improve upon theirs? 2. Do you stress or enjoy the holiday spirit? It is said that “being in the moment” brings additional happiness. But gift giving in the traditional sense may bring about stress in the sense of waiting in long lines, as well as monetary concern. The focus on having to purchase gifts might be changed into the gift of helping in ways other than monetary. It truly is the spirit of giving of yourself that matters. For example, you might donate time to an organization, food to a shelter, or teach classes to those trying to begin anew. Any type of community service is the larger gift of all as you help many. 3. Will you be alone or celebrating with others? Should you feel or be alone, then seek out a community that could use your wisdom and presence. Being among those where you are appreciated will make all the difference and you will leave the feeling of loneliness behind plus you just might make a new friend. 4. Who do you know that might be alone during the holidays? As names of past connections and current friends come to you, pick up the phone to have a “thinking of you” conversation. Wish them a good New Year and ask if they have special plans in the making. You will definitely help to lift the spirits of others with your inquiry and sincere interest. 5. Do you feel renewed spirit in the air? Having used some quiet time to ponder the above questions, and perhaps having taken action on some of the suggestions, should serve to motivate you into the wondrous New Year. Now it’s time to reflect on how all of the above may translate into finding your next best job or clientele. May you have an Excellent New Year! And may you perceive it as the Smooth Sale. Buddha would be proud. ??

9 Ways Recruiters Screw Over Candidates

9 Ways Recruiters Screw Over Candidates We live in a hectic world, and recruiting candidates is a tough business, like most others.  A good company reputation matters now more than ever before and in our 24/7 instant world of communication, it’s essential to make every effort to invest in great customer service and care. A poor reputation impacts the bottom line. Everybody knows that! Sadly and bizarrely, however, some recruiters and even headhunters all of whom claim to offer a personal service and insist they respect both candidates and their clients fail at one or more basic steps in their communications with candidates. Some of their errors are so basic and egregious that they both mystify and offend candidates. The consequences vary, but none is good. The candidate rightly feels let down and even insulted by the bad treatment they receive and, worse, they are never likely to forget how they’ve been made to feel. More damaging to the recruiter is the fact that, out of frustration and anger, those abused individuals will be telling their peers, family and friends in detail about who you are, the name of your company and what you did. That’s a big fail for your PR, branding and all-round reputation of your recruitment firm and you which could have permanent repercussions. One candidate may not matter to your revenue stream, but add them all up, and the impact will be devastating. Some of those disappointed candidates may also one day go on to require the services of a recruiter for their own team, as people increasingly rely on word-of-mouth recommendations as the best form of advertising, and they may be asked to recommend one based on their own experience. They may even own the budget and have the decision-making authority over which recruitment firms they can hire. Take this  2013 Nielsen study, as one compelling proof of the significance of word-of-mouth: Not surprisingly, word-of-mouth formats such as recommendations from family and friends and consumer opinions posted online prompted the highest levels of self-reported action among 84 percent and 70 percent of respondents, respectively. If they’d been treated well by you, they could be ambassadors of your recruitment firm and even introduce you to a new client, meaning you’ve developed a stronger brand reputation as well as leading to more work and revenue. Instead, you may be one of those recruiters that’s struggling to figure out why your client list and revenue is dropping. By taking on board these nine ways  not  to treat your candidate, you can be sure of gaining their appreciation, good will and, most likely, they’ll happily and naturally end up your free ambassadors for life both of you as an individual and of your recruitment company. Who among us, after all, ever forgets great service and consideration? Here’s to you and your firm achieving a great reputation with your candidates as well as your clients! 1) Don’t send out generic recruiting emails: You think they save you time but it damages your reputation. It shows you are lazy and have no consideration for the candidate. Often, too, the job(s) you email have nothing whatsoever to do with the candidate’s background, skills or current experience. That’s irritating and alienating. Who wants to be treated as a widget on an assembly line or a number in Pi? 2) Don’t pretend to be writing a personal email by addressing the person using “Hi [First Name]”. It becomes obvious within a sentence or two that, in fact, you’re still failing by ignoring rule no. 1, above. Or no. 2 in this case, and all over the candidate, at that. Its as unpleasant as it sounds. 3) Unless you’ve communicated with the candidate in the past, address them formally by using their  full  name: Make a simple effort to say/write “Dear/Hi First Name  and  Second Name”. After all, you don’t know them, have never been introduced, so you may come across as too forward, pushy and inconsiderate. Friends, colleagues and family address each other respectively by first name because they know each other. You don’t. If you still insist on addressing this unknown-to-you candidate, do them the courtesy of writing “Dear/Hi First Name (if I may)”. It shows respect and thoughtfulness! 4) Don’t Auto-Direct Message with a confirmation of a candidate’s application  without  stating in that communication the conditions for your follow-up: If only successful candidates will be contacted thereafter, make that obvious. You’d be amazed how many fail to do one or the other. And never forget to give a date for how long it will take for a reply if you commit to one. Then make sure you honour that commitment. (Too many times, the candidate who doesn’t get through to the next stage is simply forgotten.) 5) Never approach a candidate for a job only to fail to update them in a follow-up: Let candidates know it may take several days to update them, but word-of-mouth evidence makes it clear so many times recruiters don’t bother to follow-up with everybody they’ve approached: they only update the ones whom the client has chosen for further consideration. This treatment reinforces the candidate’s impression that you’re playing a number’s game, and you have no real interest in the individual person you approached in the first place. Take responsibility for your actions and follow-through. If there’s a delay on the client side or for any other reason, be sure to inform your candidate. Don’t leave them dangling, wondering and even worrying. 6) Don’t communicate with a candidate until you have at least read through all of their CV: It’s amazing how many times a recruiter will approach someone, having noted only one particular company or point on their CV, but they’ve not taken the time to read or at least  skim   the entire CV. Some of the other information and jobs on the CV may end up benefiting the case to the client you wish to make on behalf of the candidate. Don’t overlook this simple step. (I once had a recruiter first contact me for a job with an ‘unnamed client’, he gave only the industry and job title, and I expressed an interest. He then called me and gave the name of the client, and it was one  already  on my CV as having consulted with for over a period of 16 months. The recruiter didn’t have a clue and expressed surprise. Imagine what I thought of him?) 7) Don’t put a candidate forward without then making an effort to give feedback: This may be impossible in some or even many cases because the client might offer none. But at least explain that you tried (we hope you  did), and be frank about why there is no feedback. READ MORE:  Why You Should Always Give Feedback After an Interview 8) Don’t invite a candidate to consider a specific job and then take days to to acknowledge their reply, or only respond after the candidate has chased you: It’s disrespectful and reinforces the impression that, again, you’re only playing a game of numbers and don’t care about them. If you anticipate not being able to respond in a reasonable amount of time (24 hours from the time of  their  reply back to you unless, fair enough, they write back on a  Friday, you have until Monday), then be sure to let them know this in your  first  communication with them. To advise is to keep your candidate informed and shows thoughtfulness on your part. It also avoids any feelings of frustration or doubt on the candidate’s part. 9) If the candidate gets the job for which you put them forward, follow up with them after a month in the job to ask how they’re doing: Make a note in your diary and set a reminder for yourself and be sure to do it. A month is enough time for the employee to get their bearings brief. An enquiry from you sent to their personal email address or a voicemail on their mobile shows consideration. It’s evidence that you do care for your candidates and you’re not solely interested in the fee you made from placing them. That way you build a long-term relationship, not just a one-off placement. By doing so, youre investing in their future interests and long-term career, as well as your own reputation as a recruiter by doing a great job and you contribute to the reputation of your recruiting company. Everybody benefits. Such an approach can make all the difference between a candidate not only being truly grateful for being put forward, but also being a delighted ambassador for you and your recruitment company for life. Author: Robert White is Founder of PRMatters.org.

Should You Put A Picture On Your Resume Yes Or No - Algrim.co

Should You Put A Picture On Your Resume Yes Or No - Algrim.co Having the desire to put a photograph of yourself on your resume isn’t a bad inclination. It shows that you want to have a unique resume and cover letter. And that you want to stand out. This is a great first start. Standing out will absolutely help you increase your chances of getting asked to interview on-site. But, including a photograph with your resume is somewhat unorthodox. Should you do it? Table of Contents Including A Photo, Yes Or No A Photograph Could Send You to SPAM Alternatives To A Photo On The Resume In Order To Stand Out Really Wanting To Include A Photograph Including A Photo, Yes Or No The short answer is no. Including a photograph along with your resume can cause some serious question marks to arise for the Human Resources department. First, they might interpret you attaching a photo of yourself in a variety of ways. The first would be your desire to show your diversity. The second reason is that you might care about your self image. This is important but not during your job application stage. Self image becomes important during your interview, when you want to exude confidence. But at this moment in your job search process, it doesn’t add a lot of value. A Photograph Could Send You to SPAM It’s true that if you include a photograph of yourself, you might get sent to SPAM. It depends on whether or not the job applicants are going through an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) or not. But generally speaking, a photograph might send your email to the SPAM folder, due to the fact that it might appear like SPAM. Keep your resume and cover letter clean. Focus on what’s important to bring up inside of each of these assets. Alternatives To A Photo On The Resume In Order To Stand Out If you want to stand out, instead of attaching a photograph, consider some of the following ideas: Include your LinkedIn URL as part of your contact information (link). This way, if the interviewer is curious, they can visit your professional page. Include a video interview or video of yourself speaking to your desire for the job. This is similar to attaching a photograph of yourself but the video shows your verbal communication skills and ability to speak to what makes you unique. A video mentioning what you love about the company and why you want to interview can be a way to show the team that you’re passionate about getting the job. The last way to stand out would be to try and make your resume humorous or unique in some fashion. But this isn’t advised as many readers might misinterpret your message. Really Wanting To Include A Photograph If you really feel compelled to add your photograph to your resume, the best place to put it would be at the business heading of the resume. This is where your contact information goes. By putting it in this position, you give the employer the opportunity to read your name and then see your face. Keep your photograph business professional. If you need to, make it black and white. Ensure that the photograph is of you wearing business casual clothing. Avoid a photograph of you that doesn’t appear like a business headshot.

Why Use Pictures in Your Resume?

Why Use Pictures in Your Resume?When you are preparing to submit your resume to a job applicant, it is vital that you have the right picture size for your resume. If your resume is too small, you will not get a reply from the employer. But if your resume is too large, then your image might be lost and will probably be disregarded.What are some of the benefits of using pictures in your resume? Well, the most obvious is that your resume will not be overlooked. A well-written resume would get you a reply, but an even better result can be achieved if you use pictures instead.In order to have your picture to enlarge to the desired size, all you need to do is open it up in a graphics editing program and use the correct image editing tools. Open the file in a text editor, and find the picture. Then find the proper picture editing tool, like Adobe Photoshop or Corel Draw, and resize the picture as needed.Not all programs allow you to manually resize functions. Some programs have default tool s that let you simply drag and drop images around, which is what you would do if you were to print a sheet of resume paper. In order to reduce the work, you should use an image editing program that allows you to scale and crop images in advance.If you are using an old picture, then you should take a good look at it and see if it is in good condition. The colors should be balanced, the whites should be not only not overexposed but also not too dark, and the contrast between tones is right.Resume writing should always be done by hiring professionals. These are the people who know how to write a good resume, so they should be used to compose a picture-enhanced resume.However, you may be able to rewrite the resume for a specific company by starting with a resume. You should send a copy of the resume as an attachment in the email you are sending out your resume to. That way, you can send the picture of the resume to the company's HR department.After the resume has been formatted for your specific company, you can go back and resize the picture to the normal picture size. By using the standard format for resume writing, the picture will be properly inserted in the document. And when you send the resume through email, the employer will receive the resume in its original format.

Summary Sunday Social

Summary Sunday Social These are posts Ive shared this week on Twitter and want to make sure you dont miss! Undeniably, the greatest change today has been the use of social! As a job seeker or job changer, you absolutely must understand this! So, now lets take a look at how companies are using and should be using social to communicate with their customers.   It is about enpowering their employees.   Common Craft rocks at creating easy to understand videos!   Here is another example of their work.   (This is great for HR or company leaders not yet sold on the idea of embracing social) Social Media and the Workplace from Common Craft NETWORKING 12 Most Effective Networking Tactics from 12 Most While your on this site, check out many of the other 12 Most posts.   You may even want to subscribe to their site so you dont miss one of their future posts! Are You Leveraging Your Connections? from Hire Ground- NWJobs JOB SEARCH BEST PRACTICES FROM THE EXPERTS Listen to Blog Talk Radio show with JT ODonnell, Alexandra Levitt and Emily Bennington talk about What Job Seekers are Still Not Getting GOOGLE + AND TWITTER CHATS Marie Smith, well known for her expertise on Facebook, has outlined why and how important Google + is and will be.   This is for folks who dont get it! Why You Need to Get Active on Google Plus from Marie Smith Twitter Chats are fun and educational and can expand your network.   Learn more about them here: Twitter Chats A Great Way to Expand Your Network from Keppie Careers

Civil Service Administrator Jobs How To Work For The Civil Service

Civil Service Administrator Jobs How To Work For The Civil Service The civil service of the United Kingdom is one of the most diligent and respected organisations in the world. The civil service helps the government to develop and implement national policies as smoothly and efficiently as possible. In order to do this, the civil service is divided into hundreds of different departments, all of them focusing on specific areas. In this blog, we’ll give you some essential tips on how to get a job as a civil service administrator, including key information about the role and potential interview questions!#section_281211468{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px}What is a Civil Service Administrator? Civil service administrators and administrative officers play an essential role in the overall running of the service, and are present in just about every single department that you could think of. Civil service administrators have an enormous variety of tasks to perform, and it’s imperative that they are on top of things and can stay organised. Whilst wor king as a civil service administrator, your daily tasks will include:Answering phone calls or emails from members of the public.Researching and strategising in preparation for new government initiatives.Contacting customers to follow up on enquiries/cases.Managing benefit payments.Handling unhappy customers, via telephone or via email.Updating essential government records.Liaising with executive officers in regard to case management.As you can see, if you do decide to work as a civil service administrator then you’ll be quite busy! Now, let’s look at how the tasks you’ll be doing link in with the core behavioural expectations for an employee of the civil service.#section_1351731916{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px}Civil Service Administrator: Core CompetenciesNow that you’ve seen the type of activities you’d be doing in this role, let’s think about how these link with the personal requirements for the job. For just about any job that you can think of, including the c ivil service, there are particular expectations and requirements that employees must follow. This is especially important in the civil service, where you are essentially an extension of the government and Her Majesty The Queen. Therefore, it’s important that you can set an example. You may also have heard these expectations being referred to as ‘core competencies’:Organisation This is a fundamental quality for any administrator to have. Being a good administrator, particularly in the civil service, is all about being organised. You are not just organising your own tasks, but the tasks of the entire service, and therefore it’s essential that you have things in order and can plan ahead. During your interview, you should fully expect that the person assessing you will be asking questions regarding your organisational capability. This is also something that will be tested during the assessment process â€" where you may have to sit e-tray and in-tray exercises.Customer ServiceAs mentioned, civil service employees are representatives of the government. You’ll be dealing with members of the public on a regular basis, and this means that your customer service skills must be impeccable. Whether this is in person, on the phone, or via email, it’s imperative that you have a working understanding of how to deal not just with unhappy customers, but with people who have simple queries. Good customer service is about showing respect, understanding and empathy for the customer â€" you need to demonstrate to the civil service interviewer that you value the needs of the public and that this is your number one goal when working for the civil service, as we’ll explain in our next quality…Understands The Ethos of the OrganisationAgain, this applies in any job, but it’s really important with the civil service because of who they are and what they represent. You need to align yourself with the goals of the civil service, and think about what they stand for and are there to do. The civil service is designed to aid the government in the smooth and successful running of the country, and this means putting an emphasis upon the public and what matters to the overall population. This is something that you will need to make clear in the interview, and you can expect the assessors to inquire about this in detail. The civil service needs employees who match their ethos, and will actively filter out candidates who don’t.Teamwork The civil service is a collaborative organisation, that relies on the input and collective work ethic of the entire workforce to run things. As a civil service administrator, you will need to work with all kinds of people â€" not just other administrators but people from other departments in the service too, and other public service organisations such as the police or even medical staff. This means that your team skills and ability to communicate with others must be on point. You must be an amicable person, who can get along with everyone you meet â€" running the administration of a country is not a one-person job. It takes the collective efforts of everyone in the civil service to run things effectively, and this means you need to work together as an effective unit.Now, let’s look at some potential civil service administrator interview questions, and some tips on how to answer them. You can expect the interview questions to focus strongly on the competencies, so learn them beforehand!#section_675827529{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px} #image_790996892{width:100%}Tell us about yourself. What type of person are you, and what type of things are important to you? This is an ethos related question, and it’s important to recognise this. If you sit there and give the interviewer a longwinded explanation about all of your hobbies, you won’t score highly here. Really, this question can be reworded to mean the following:‘Tell us about how your personal values match up with the ethos of the organisat ion.’So, what they want here is a short and sweet explanation that confirms you care about the same things as the civil service â€" meeting the needs and expectations of the public, making the country a better place to live, and representing the government in a professional and reputable manner. Your research into the role will really help here, and you will gain even higher marks if you can point out civil service initiatives or projects which really appealed to you, and lent towards your decision to join.Tips for answering this question Remember that this is a question designed to see how well you match up with the ethos of the civil service â€" keep your answer on topic and relevant.Demonstrating your research here will really help you to score extra marks!Keep your answer short and sweet. The interviewer is simply looking for confirmation that you match their values, they do not need a full explanation of who you are and what you like to do.#section_475504427{padding-top:30px; padding-bottom:30px}Do you consider yourself an organised person? How do you think this would help you when working as a civil service administrator? Obviously, the best way to answer this question is to say yes! Make sure you show the interviewer that you are an organised person, with experience of working in roles that require this particular skill. This is a great question, because it not only gives you the opportunity to show that you have the skills required, but also that you’ve researched into the role and understand why organisation is important. The civil service will expect you to have conducted research about the position before applying, so the more you can tell them the better!Tips for answering this question Demonstrate to the interviewers that you have conducted research into the role!Make sure you show the interviewers that you are an organised and disciplined person!Think of an example before the interview of when you’ve been organised in the past. Be ready to b ack up your answer with this example.#section_1769890556{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px}Describe your qualities as a teammate. Do you think you would have any issues working as part of a team? As we’ve explained, teamwork is an essential part of working in the civil service, and this means that you need to show the interviewers that you have great teamwork skills, and thus would be a good teammate. The qualities of a good team worker include:Communication abilityThe ability to get on with othersEmpathy and compromiseLeadershipEnthusiasmThe best way to demonstrate these qualities, would be to give an example to the assessors of when you’ve used them in the past. So, think of a time when you’ve acted as a good teammate, and use this to supplement your response!Tips for answering this question Similarly to the previous question, back your answer up with a strong example.Think about what makes a good team worker, and then demonstrate these qualities to the interviewer.If you can, use your research to expand on why you think teamwork is essential for the civil service, and how it would help you to perform in the role.#section_907105198{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px}Want More Tips for Civil Service Interview Questions?  If you’re looking for further advice on how to become a civil service administrator, and other civil service careers, then we’ve got the perfect resource for you! Check out our excellent course for a comprehensive overview of everything needed to ace the civil service interview!https://www.how2become.com/courses/civil-service-interview-questions-and-answers/  #section_1071110745{padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:30px} This entry was posted in Civil Service, Interviews, Job Competencies. Bookmark the permalink. Jordan Cooke The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Selection ProcessPolice Verbal Reasoning Test Examples: Police Test Practice!