Tag: human resources

Tech Savvy: How To Tell if a Potential Hire is Ready For Work in the Digital Age

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The Necessary Tools

It’s hard to believe that less than a generation ago, many executives accepted the belief that touching a keyboard was beneath their position – that such business tools were meant for clerical and administrative staff only. Today, dexterity with the keyboard is only the beginning of the skills that are necessary to be a productive employee in many jobs and careers.

The importance of technical expertise and computer literacy in a candidate depends, of course, on the specific position being considered. For IT staff, the individual will have to show work experience, proper training, and certifications. However, for line operations, here are few tips to access some of the basic skills you may be seeking in an applicant:

  • Have them prepare a sample piece of work. For example, if the position is in market research, ask the potential candidate to create a simple spreadsheet similar to the work being done. Likewise, if it is a creative position, have the candidate produce a minor design project on a computer. Matching the sample work you request to the skills and technologies needed for the job may help decide which potential candidate is right for your company.
  • As an alternative, ask what specific projects have been completed in those areas of work. Let the candidate describe the software/hardware used and how they approached the task. If they can provide samples or online examples, it shows that a candidate is prepared, and technologically capable.
  • Explain the specific technical skills, software applications and technologies that are an integral part of the position being sought. Ask about the individual’s experience with those or similar products. Listen to whether they approach the issue with confidence or reservations.
  • Get the interviewee to talk about their non-work involvement with technology. Do they only reluctantly use digital tools and resources or is it second nature to their lifestyle?
  • Don’t confuse active participation in social media with technical expertise. Is it important for the job being discussed that the individual know what a “like” or “share” means to SEO issues?

It is an accepted fact that technology today is changing faster than most people and companies can track. Always interview candidates with the perspective that, in most cases, a person’s facility with technology and their ability to quickly adapt to new versions and tools is as important as competence with any given program or current hardware.

The Checklist: An Aid or a Crutch?

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The use of a standard checklist during an interview is a handy tool often used by managers that are tasked with evaluating potential new hires. However, here are just five of the ways that a checklist can defeat the very purpose of the interviewing process:

1. You may discourage real talent. One of the biggest mistakes a manager can make is the arrogance of thinking you’re the only one making a decision during the process. The best and most talented recruits always have other options. It’s easy to come across as dry and disinterested when using a checklist, without really listening or personalizing your questions to the candidate’s resume. To an astute candidate, this may indicate a less than desirable management environment compared to other opportunities.

2. Offensive questions may be asked. If you are using a checklist, it must be regularly updated to ensure compliance. There are frequent changes in the area of hiring and discriminatory inquiries, and any questions you ask must reflect these changes. For example, the documents used to verify eligibility to work in the U.S. for the Form I-9 were recently updated. Consequently, asking if a candidate has a certain form of identification may now be considered discriminatory and have compliance implications.

3. You may miss a unique skill or capability of the applicant. When seeking diversity and uniqueness, limiting your questions to those on a checklist may cause you to miss something fresh and valuable that a candidate offers. If the interviewee doesn’t volunteer some special aspect of their experience or qualifications, you may miss it by relying on your standard questions and checkpoints rather than personalizing your interview.

4. You can make it too easy. When interviewing candidates, your goal is to get to know the real individual. If the same questions are asked in a standard format of all recruits, sharp candidates could discover questions ahead of time, and help them to prepare an answer they think you want – instead of providing the real insights you are seeking.

5. You can miss important details. Simply relying on a checklist instead of your own judgment and instincts during an interview makes it easy to focus on standard questions and not follow-up on the details of an answer. Relating back to issue three, this creates the possibility of missing a valuable skill or experience that a candidate might possess due to the rigidity of a checklist.

Checklists can be helpful, but your judgment is the real critical factor in any effective interview.

How to Create an Attractive Corporate Culture

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When it comes to recruiting, having the right company culture is the key to drawing top tier talent. Even companies with high wages and great benefits can still experience high employee turnover if their company culture is lacking. Here are some tips on how to create a more attractive corporate culture:

Encourage Innovation

Few people enjoy being micromanaged. Many businesses find that allowing employees to be creative and take ownership of their work leads to increased performance. Communication is the key to inspiring employee ownership within your organization. At the beginning of a project or company initiative, encourage managers to sit down with employees and discuss their vision for the project. Once they have a clear understanding of what the expectations are, allow them the freedom to accomplish it in their own way.

Promote Fun

Creating a fun work environment is a great way to boost employee satisfaction. Company sponsored sporting events, family days and barbeques are great ways invest in morale-building activities. Another idea is to give your company break room an overhaul – consider adding a Ping-Pong table, pool table or designated nap area for your employees. Remember that the more your employees enjoy working for you, the more productive they will likely be.

Embrace Company Values

Employees enjoy being part of something larger than themselves. You can accomplish this by establishing and maintaining the priorities and values of your organization.

Celebrate Achievements

Do not let open enrollment and disciplinary meetings be the only interactions you have with employees. This is a quick way to lose some of your top talent. Take time to celebrate accomplishments of all sizes. For small accomplishments, take some space in the employee newsletter or on the interoffice board to congratulate employees for a job well done. Larger accomplishments may warrant a luncheon or a certificate. Regularly acknowledging and celebrating accomplishments is a good way to keep your employees striving towards their personal bests.

The way that your corporate culture is perceived has a huge impact on the type of talent that your organization will draw. These simple tips will allow you to create a company culture that draws and retains high-performing, happy employees.

Before the Interview: Screening a Candidate Through Social Media

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There are a range of different factors that might be taken into consideration when businesses look at  potential employees during the hiring process. A person’s education, past work history and references are all important, and how a person conducts themselves during an interview is also notable. However, even some of the most tech-savvy companies are forgetting about social media. A potential candidate almost certainly has a social media presence, and hiring managers can learn a lot through this.

Inappropriate Photos or Language

According to a recent survey from Career Builder[1], roughly 39 percent of companies are currently using social media as a way to screen potential hires. The largest reason to do this, according to many leaders in the HR field, is to weed out those candidates who feature inappropriate pictures, drug use or racist language in their profiles or online communication.

Great Communication Skills

While the presumption is that candidates can be taken out of the race through their social media presence, employers should also be looking for evidence of solid communication. Tweeting to a brand, linking friends in photos and even a solid LinkedIn profile with numerous endorsements can say a lot of great things about a potential employee. While some hiring managers will treat the social media screening as a kind of witch hunt, be sure to look for the positives as well.

Legal Issues For Pre-Employment Screening Online

Although the practice of screening employees before hire through their social media profiles is certainly a common practice, Fast Company[2] reminds managers and business owners that there are some legal issues that can come into play. By checking a candidate’s profile on Facebook, for example, you will come across details like their age, gender, religion and even pregnancy status. Although you might not let these details influence you, it can be hard to deny that in court. A safer approach is to let someone not associated with hiring conduct the social media searches and only bring relevant information to your attention.

There are clearly numerous benefits to looking a candidate’s social media presence before hiring them. However, care should be taken to avoid any legal issues surrounding this online screening.

[1] http://thehiringsite.careerbuilder.com/2013/07/01/two-in-five-employers-use-social-media-to-screen-candidates/

[2] http://www.fastcompany.com/1843142/using-facebook-screen-potential-hires-can-get-you-sued

5 Benefits of Hiring Part-Time Employees

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When it comes to choosing the right workforce, key concerns are hard costs, consumer demand and organizational structure. Part-time employees may be exactly what you need to help meet these demands. Although many companies gravitate towards full-time employees, hiring part-time employees can be quite advantageous.

With this in mind, here are five benefits of hiring part-time employees:

1. Cut Labor Costs

Hiring a part-time employee is very economical. Generally, these employees work for an hourly wage and can be scheduled based on the needs of the business. If your company needs more hands on deck during the holidays or a slimmer workforce during the summer, part-time employees may be exactly what you are looking for. Also, most part-time employees often do not receive benefits. This can result in significant cost savings.

2. Boost Employee Morale

Part-time employees allow you to boost morale by giving full-time employees a break. When employees are asked to work long hours with very little time off, morale can take a beating. By using part-time employees to fill gaps in the schedule, you can reduce the number of hours that full-time employees have to work. This will also save costs by reducing the amount of overtime wages.

3. Flexibility

Unlike full-time employees, part-time workers do not have to be scheduled for a set amount of hours. Many businesses find it useful to use part-time employees to fill shifts that are not covered by regular full-time employees. This may include night or weekend shifts. The ability to schedule these employees on an as-needed basis allows managers to maintain productivity levels without paying unnecessary wages.

4. Less Burnout

The burnout rate among part-time employees is very low. Since they work fewer hours, part-time employees are often refreshed and enthusiastic about the work they do.

5. Higher Quality Work

Another perk of hiring part-time employees is that they can be trained to specialize in a specific task. This allows them to produce higher quality work than employees that frequently have to rotate positions. This can be especially useful in administrative or manufacturing roles.

Part-time employees can be an asset to any company. This flexible type of employee allows businesses to maintain productivity while tightly managing labor costs. Part-time employees may be exactly what your business needs to maintain a unique, diversified workforce.

What to Look For When Conducting a Video Interview

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Over the past decade, the rise of video interviews has been impressive. Starting first with technology companies, video conferencing is now a common way for businesses to interview potential candidates. In fact, one survey from 2012 reports that 63 percent of companies use Internet-based video conferencing technology for the interview process[i]. In many ways, conducting a video interview is similar to a face-to-face meeting, thanks in large part to the rapid rate of technological improvements. However, there are some key differences. Here are the top things to look for when conducting a video interview:

Eye Contact

When using Skype technology to conduct an interview over the Internet, interviewees often make the mistake of looking at their own face on the screen rather than looking directly into the camera. While this can sometimes be attributed to using new technology, those individuals who maintain eye contact are typically those who are self-assured and confident. Those interviewees looking at their own picture may be nervous or uncomfortable about the interviewing process. Just as you would take eye contact in a traditional interview to be a strength, you should consider eye contact through the camera in a video interview.

Professional Appearance

Since video interviews typically only show the top half of a person’s body, some interviewees are only dressing professionally from the waist up. While the odds of you seeing their jeans or sweatpants on screen are slim, take note of their surroundings. Are the walls bare and the desk clean? Both the potential candidate and their workspace should come across as clean, professional and mature.

Predetermined Answers

Having great answers to all of your questions is an advantageous thing, but interviewers should be sure that potential job candidates are not simply reading predetermined or scripted answers. Preparing for an interview shows focus and organizational skills, but simply reading from a card can be seen as negative. Ask some unusual or completely unexpected questions to determine their ad lib communication skills.

With the cost of flying a candidate to a job interview being so high, an increasing number of companies are turning to online video conferencing interviews.

[i] http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/survey-six-in-10-companies-conduct-video-job-interviews-167973406.html

How Have Virtual Staffing Platforms Changed the Recruitment Process?

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Technology has revolutionized the recruiting process. The days when newsprint ads were a primary component of the hiring process are long gone. Now, with technology changing by the nanosecond, virtual staffing platforms have taken center stage.

Virtual staffing platforms have positively changed the recruiting process in a variety of ways. Here are just a few of the benefits that it has brought to the table:

More Diversity

In the past few decades, diversity has been a hot topic in the recruiting industry. As companies begin to place an increasingly large emphasis on maintaining a diverse workforce, recruiters are challenged to find candidates that are not only talented, but also diverse. Virtual staffing platforms offer a solution to this problem by giving recruiters access to more candidates. As an example, positing a company vacancy online will likely yield a more diverse candidate pool than a classified ad in a newspaper.

Cost Effectiveness

Another benefit of virtual staffing platforms is that they help cut hiring costs. For instance, many recruiting portals now utilize some form of data mining software. This allows recruiters to save time by quickly identifying applicants with the most relevant skills. Also, video chatting software reduces travel expenses and minimizes the time constraints associated with scheduling an interview.

Larger Talent Pool

Virtual staffing platforms eliminate geographical boundaries. With just one click, you can connect with the brightest minds from across the globe. Before the virtual staffing platforms became integrated into the recruiting process, recruiters were often limited to the talent within their geographical area. Now, as the recruiting process is more virtual than ever, this is no longer the case.

When it comes to the recruiting process, virtual staffing platforms have changed it for the better. Recruiters now have access to a broader, more diverse talent pool without the added time and expenditures of manual recruiting. As technology continues to advance, the recruiting process will surely continue to take positive strides.

What Do Potential Hires Prefer: Higher Salaries or Flexible Schedules?

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When a company prepares to offer a job to a potential hire, many different attributes compose the employment package offered. This employment package is meant to entice a candidate to accept the job, and it should include the benefits that a company can reasonably offer and that a potential employee would find integral to their career and life. Among the things a job applicant will look for within an employment offer are job and company stability, alignment of the offered position with their career interests, the company and office culture, and, of course, salary and benefits.

Salary is often thought to be the most important component of a job offer, but the reality is more complicated. While an applicant will look for a dollar amount that is commensurate with the industry and their experience and expertise, they’ll also be looking for a broad range of benefits to cover the needs of themselves and their family as well as opportunities to promote work/life balance. In the modern workplace, this has led to an increasing number of organizations offering flexible scheduling and work arrangements.

While the amount of money that goes into their bank account each payday is vitally important to job candidates, many are willing to accept a reasonably lower salary in exchange for the ability to work more flexibly. This may include working from home, working better hours or arranging work schedules to suit outside interests such as family, school or community involvement.

What this means to a company hiring to fill vacancies is that while an attractive salary will net suitable candidates, a balanced package that includes flexibility can enable the engagement of employees who might otherwise look elsewhere. Many job-seekers currently looking for new opportunities prefer the opportunity to align their work and personal interests over simply earning the highest salary. When bundled with additional benefits and when in alignment with the candidate’s expectations of work culture and future stability, a company can pull in better employees who will be engaged in their work and committed to the organization’s overall goals, aims and vision.

3 Ways to Speed Up the Hiring Process Without Sacrificing Quality

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In the hiring world, there is a common misconception that a long hiring process is the best way to search for talent. In reality, finding and hiring talent is a business decision as much as it is a people one. From the business standpoint, you need to get the position filled quickly. A quicker hiring process lowers the overall cost per hire. Here are three ways that you can find talent quickly, without sacrificing quality:

1. Look Internally

Before you draft a job description and begin your search for the perfect hire, post the job internally. There could be an employee with the exact qualities you are looking for right under your nose. Although hiring internally may still leave a position to be filled, hiring a clerical or general production laborer is much less time-consuming than searching for the experience and knowledge it takes to fill a higher-level position.

2. Amp Up Your Job Descriptions

A job description is your chance to convey this to prospective employees. Be descriptive – instead of simply listing job duties, try providing a brief description of the company, its benefits and why individuals would want to work there. When it comes to outlining the requirements of the job, be as specific as possible to narrow your search.

3. Flexible Interviewing

Whenever you are searching for a specific type of employee, always assume that other companies want them too. In order to be competitive, you may want to offer flexible scheduling options. In a world dominated by smartphones, tablets and laptop computers, you are no longer limited to in-person interviews. Video chatting platforms allow you to conduct an equally thorough interview without the hassle of coordinating schedules. This gives you the flexibility to schedule the interview virtually any time.

When it comes to hiring, speed is not necessarily indicative of quality. The secrets to filling a position quickly are modifying your strategy and being flexible. Doing this will enable you to find a quality candidate in no time.

Starting Off on the Right Foot: The Importance of Employee Orientation

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For many new employees, the first day at a new job can be as exciting and unnerving as the first day of school. Common concerns may include how well they will fit in, how quickly they will adapt to their new environment and how they will interact with an entirely new group of people. On this day, employers and human resources management are presented with an opportunity to make a strong first impression with an employee orientation.

The primary objective of a new employee orientation is to integrate employees into the company. Themes and topics discussed during an employee orientation may include:

  • A walkthrough of the facility
  • A presentation detailing the company culture and values
  • A brief overview of company policies
  • An introduction or presentation identifying executive staff
  • A brief history of the company and its goals

Although there is a lot of information that needs to be conveyed during the orientation, remember to make it fun and interactive. Try to incorporate a variety of presentation methods like PowerPoint presentations, videos and company-themed games like Jeopardy. Using various presentation methods is especially useful for presenting dry, rigid material as it allows you to retain their attention. The ultimate goal should be to ensure that each new employee feels valued, engaged and excited about this new opportunity.

To add structure to an employee orientation, consider making a checklist or outline. This will allow employees to stay actively involved during the presentation. Ending each section with a review or fun quiz is a great way to make the material more memorable. Do not forget to set aside some time to inform the new hires about company perks and benefits. Let them know when they become eligible for benefits and the best ways to take advantage of them.

Companies with new hire orientation programs frequently report higher levels of job satisfaction, stronger retention rates and a more motivated workforce. Taking the time to welcome new employees into an organization through an employee orientation sets a positive tone and is a great way to start off on the right foot.