Evaluate Yourself and Take Paid Surveys

Now, settle down and keep reading; this is not an attempt to say that you're not heading down the correct path. But, everyone might stand to make some positive changes in their life so as spend more time with family, portion your opinions and feel prefer you are being heard, and make a few extra bucks for a rainy day. Participating in purchased surveys is a cracking means to get a good begin on all these worthwhile goals.

If you are looking to spend more time with your family, having purchased surveys according to the time agenda that you select doesn't tie you down as much as punching a time clock. You pick and pick out the work you want to do - if you child would rather go to the park for a couple hrs, you have the plasticity to say "yes, allow's go!" and get back to your online survey later. Additionally, there are family-oriented surveys and mystery shops that your child or teen can participate in along with you, lending you a bang-up opportunity to spend quality time together while generating money.

Other worthwhile benefit of participating in market investigation projects such as on the web surveys, focus radicals and secret buying is that it validates your opinions. Everyone wants to feel that what they have to tell is fundamental and that customer want to listen. You improved consider that executives at major corporations are more that happy to hear your comments and concerns about their products and employment. When you take surveys, your occurrences as a consumer will be valued in many ways, especially as a means for company's to improved meet the needs of their target markets.

And last but not least, generating a little supplemental income is a cracking goal, however you evaluate it! It is not thoughts to consider that you can make a full-time gig out of having paid surveys; you can count on earning a few excess cash for socking back or spending however you delight. College students, stay-at-dwelling moms, retirees and folks just hunting for additional cash can sign up with online surveys sites and get surveys on a number of intriguing areas. Plus, there is no evaluating the bottom line - your wallet will thank you and you might just feel happier and more well-rounded.


Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/ask-an-expert-articles/evaluate-yourself-and-take-paid-surveys-3674571.html#ixzz19J461OqS
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

Future of Open Source Survey 2010

Like last year, I'll be attending the Open Source Business Conference (OSBC) next month, on March 17-18 in San Francisco. Also like last year, I will participate in a panel discussion led by Michael Skok (Partner at North Bridge, Acquia Board Member and personal friend). This year, I'll be in a panel with Larry Augustin (CEO of SugarCRM, VA Linux, SourceForge), Jim Whitehurst (CEO of RedHat) and Tim Yeaton (CEO of Black Duck Software) to discuss the future of Open Source businesses. The panel discussion will draw on the 2010 Future of Open Source survey so make sure to weigh in and provide your perspective on a number of important Open Source business questions. Take the Future of Open Source Survey 2010. As a reference, here are the 2009 and 2008 results.
We've also built a Drupal Gardens site to promote the survey, share articles on the Future of Open Source and facilitate ongoing discussion on the topic: http://futureofopensource.drupalgardens.com/. There is also a Future of Open Source Survey twitter account that you can follow for updates.

OSBC 2009 panel discussion. From left to right: me, Ron Hovsepian (President and CEO of Novell), John Lilly (CEO of Mozilla), Marten Mickos (CEO of MySQL). For more information about OSBC 2009
http://buytaert.net/future-of-open-source-survey-2010

oracle HRMS

HRMS - Human Resources Management System

The Oracle E-Business Suite Human Resources Management System family of applications automates the entire recruit-to-retire process, so you can align your workforce with strategic objectives. A single integrated data model provides an up-to-the-instant accurate view of human resources-related activities, including recruiting, performance management, learning, compensation, benefits, payroll, time management, and real time analytics.

Seamless Integration, Complete Flexibility

Oracle Human Resources Management System is part of the Oracle E-Business Suite, integrating with other E-Business Suite applications, including Financials and Projects. Implement one or several application families — or implement the complete Oracle E-Business Suite for the fastest way to high-quality enterprise information.

Achieve Workforce Excellence

With people-related costs averaging over 60% of total corporate expenditures, leading firms are paying increased attention to the contribution made by their workers and are developing a new model for HR. This model includes programs to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity of the workforce and the ability to manage locally or globally. To be fully effective, these programs require new processes supported by leading technologies. Oracle calls this new model Workforce Excellence and believes it is the ultimate goal of HR, regardless of company size, industry segment, or geography. The model is composed of four main phases: comply, automate, measure, and align.

Oracle E-Business Suite HRMS 12

Available now, Oracle E-Business Suite Human Resources Management System 12 includes key enhancements such as global transfers, checklists, and an uplifted user interface including more efficient flows for absence and salary administration. Call an Oracle representative for more details.

HRMS Components and Modules

The Human Resources Management System is based on several modules which allow companies to build an entire end-to-end HR management infrastructure.

Several of these modules include:

• Oracle Human Resources
• Oracle Advanced Benefits
• Oracle Daily Business Intelligence for Human Resources
• Oracle Payroll
• Oracle Self Service HR
• Oracle Time and Labor
• Oracle Learning Management
• Oracle iRecruitment

http://wiki.oracle.com/page/HRMS

Oracle E-Business Suite

Within the overall rubric of Oracle Applications - Apps,^[1] Oracle Corporation's E-Business Suite (also known as Applications/Apps or EB-Suite/EBS) consists of a collection of enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), and supply-chain management (SCM) computer applications either developed by or acquired by Oracle. The software utilizes Oracle's core Oracle relational database management system technology. The E-Business Suite (current version: 12.1^[2][3]) contains several product lines, including:

• Oracle CRM
• Oracle Financials
• Oracle HRMS
• Oracle Mobile Supply Chain Applications
• Oracle Order Management
• Oracle Procurement
• Oracle Project Portfolio Management
• Oracle Quotes
• Oracle Transportation Management
• Oracle Warehouse Management Systems
• Oracle Inventory
• Oracle Enterprise Asset Management

Each product comprises several modules, each separately licensed.
Significant technologies incorporated into the applications include the Oracle database technologies, (engines for RDBMS, PL/SQL, Java, .NET, HTML and XML), the "technology stack" (Oracle Forms Server, Oracle Reports Server, Apache Web Server, Oracle Discoverer, Jinitiator and Sun's Java).

A List of HR Software

1. Human resources managers have a variety of duties. They may be in charge of interviewing, hiring and training new employees, and keeping track of workers' salaries, hours, insurance and benefits. In the past, this required a great deal of paperwork, but much of the documentation needed for human resources can be aided by special computer software programs. There are many HR programs to choose from, several of which will let you download a free demo version before you buy.

HR Data Manager

2. HR Data Manager is a human resources program written in Microsoft Access. The software is customizable and has functions for tracking applicants, job information and employee records. Managers have access to applicant contact information, references, skills and a job-specific interview worksheet, as well as employee demographics, training information, certifications, attendance, leave accrual and performance evaluations. HR Data Manager can track invoices, track projects and organize job description data. The software comes in several different editions. The Basic Edition comes with applicant tracking, employee data and benefits management, performance tracking and job descriptions, with an unlimited amount of employee records. Professional Edition includes all these features, but adds training data management and the ability to import and export from and to Excel. Enterprise Edition also has project management and time tracking, and includes all source code. Enterprise Plus has all available features, 10 workstation licenses and two years of software support and updates. As of 2010, you can download a free, fully-functional 30-day trial from the HR Data Manager website.

Empower HRMS

3. Empower HRMS is software for small to midsize companies. The program handles three major areas: staff information, settings and employee self-service. The staff information system can store and search employee names, ID numbers, departments, job designations and supervisors. Administrators can create lists, pay grades, shift records and attendance reports, as well as make news reports and calendars. Self-service allows all staff to access some information. But only admin users have control over the software and can modify any section at any time. You can download Empower 2.0 with a free registration at the Empower website.

Visual Staff Scheduler

4. Visual Staff Scheduler is a Windows program specifically designed for the complexities of staff scheduling. It includes functions which allow you to easily see the number of hours an employee is scheduled, enter staffing requirements, copy schedule patterns and shift rotations and pre-set shifts and days off. The VSS Pro edition lets you create schedules or reports by time frame, department, location, time off, shift types or employee group. You can also assign attributes such as skills, certification or training and apply shift patterns onto future schedules. The VSS Premier edition allows HR managers to save popular staff schedules and perform "enterprise reporting" by creating documents for weekly and shift schedules, on-call schedules, time off and estimated cost for the entire company, by department or by individual employee. Both versions allow you to store and track employee photos, profiles and seniority.

Read more: A List of HR Software | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/list_7305761_list-hr-software.html#ixzz16xRIkHgy

By Amber D. Walker

Free Video Editing Software For Your Computer

Free video editing software is an easy and convenient way to edit your videos, and is great for beginners. Most of the free video editing programs have limited editing features, so after a while you may want to look at the mid-level digital video software or the top professional video editing programs.

• iMovie
  iMovie comes free with new Macs. iMovie offers many options for editing video and audio, and adding photos, music and narration to your movies.
• Movie Maker
  Movie Maker is Window's free video editing software, which comes installed on new PCs. Use the program to create and share high-quality movies.
• Pinnacle Spin
  Video Spin, for PCs, is free video editing software from Pinnacle. Video Spin is specifically designed to take the complexity out of video editing, but it still includes tools, transitions and effects so you can easily jazz up your videos.
• Virtual Dub
  Virtual Dub offers simple editing capabilities. You can't get too creative with the software, but you can use it to make simple, clean edits in your video footage. Virtual Dub works with PCs only.
• Wax
  Wax is a bit dated-circa 2004-and the interface looks ancient, but the software comes with a very helpful guide and allows for a lot of creativity.
• Zwei-Stein
  This free editing software works with Macs, PCs and and Linux systems. It's easy to download, with a colorful, sparse interface.
• Jahshaka
  "Powering the New Hollywood," Jahshaka is a free, open source video editing software, that will give you powerful editing capabilities.
• HyperEngine-AV
  This is a popular free software for Macs. The "trackless" editing system makes it easy to combine video, audio and photos.
• Free Online Editing Software
  Several web applications are available that provide free video editing online. These services are great for re-editing and re-mixing web videos, and some even offer to produce DVDs of your edited videos.

By Gretchen Siegchrist

Cover Letter

The cover letter is the customized, business letter that accompanies the resume when a candidate applies for a position with your company. Job search experts tell applicants to target the cover letter contents to the position you have advertised. Applicants are also advised to match their skills and experience clearly to the stated requirements of the position you seek to fill.
The cover letter, which is much less frequently reviewed by job search professionals than the resume, provides a picture of the applicant’s ability to present his or her credentials. The cover letter tells you a lot about the applicant.
From the cover letter, you can assess the candidate’s writing skills and his or her ability to make a presentation in writing. You can observe their attention to detail by their avoidance of grammar mistakes, spelling errors and typos. You can assess the depth of their interest in the job and their belief in the “fit” of their qualifications for your advertised position.
The cover letter gives you an overall view of the applicant: attention to detail, knowledge and skills, personality, interests, and so forth, whatever the candidate is willing to reveal in the cover letter.
Significantly, the cover letter saves you time when the applicant has invested the time necessary to enumerate his or her skills and experience as they fulfill your requirements. The successful cover letter allows you to make a quick decision that the candidate's qualifications match your needs - or not. This attention to customization and detail may also elevate the candidate's application to your short list.
Finally, the cover letter is an ideal opportunity for the candidate to address issues that the resume may not handle to an employer’s satisfaction. The cover letter can explain such anomalies as employment gaps, incomplete degrees, and a long term history with one employer in the same job. The cover letter is the applicant’s opportunity to shine.
Courteous employers who seek a reputation as an employer of choice, send an application acknowledgement letter. The next step an applicant should expect is either an applicant rejection letter or a request for an interview or phone screen.

By Susan M. Heathfield

Why Employers Use an Employment Application

Smart employers use an employment application that is filled out by every candidate for a particular job. Employers world wide use the employment application to gather consistent data about prospective employees. While the format for resumes and cover letters changes from person-to-person, the employment application collects consistent information in a uniform format from every applicant.
The employment application provides a regular format with the same questions that must be answered by each person who applies for your open position. This allows employers to compare applicant credentials that are listed in the same order on a form, impartially. The employer is able to compare credentials without regard for formatting, presentation, exaggeration, and hyperbole.

Use an Online Employment Application

Online employment application systems are used by a large percentage of employers. In addition to the factual data that a written application collects, an online employment application allows the employer to pre-screen and pre-qualify applicants. The applicant tracking system allows employers to search employment applications for specific keywords, degrees, employment history, and other specifics to identify candidates who are qualified for the open position.

Why Use an Employment Application for All Applicants

These are the reasons why employers need to use an employment application for all job candidates. Employers want to:

• Consistently gather the same data in the same format from each prospective employee. With an employment application, employers gain standardization of information requested.
• Gather information about the applicant’s credentials that candidates would not usually include in a resume or cover letter. Examples include reasons why the applicant left the employ of a prior employer, felony or misdemeanor crime convictions, and names and contact information for immediate supervisors.
• Obtain the applicant’s signature attesting that all statements on the employment application are true. If you allow the applicant to state “see resume” (which I don’t advise that you do), the statement should also say resume.
• Obtain the applicant’s signature enabling the potential employer to check the veracity of all data provided on the employment application including employment history, education history, degrees earned, and so forth. Fraudulent claims and information on application materials, including fake degrees, exaggerated job descriptions, fake dates of employment, and other falsehoods are increasing. Employers need to verify all data provided by the candidate to ensure that you are hiring the qualified employee you expect. Potential employees who lie on application materials are not people who have the integrity and values you seek in employees.
• Get the applicant’s signature to attest that he or she has read and understands certain policies and procedures of the employer that are spelled out on the employment application. These frequently include the fact that the employer is an at will employer, that the employer is an equal opportunity, non-discriminating employer, and any other facts that the employer wants the applicant to read and understand on the employment application. When applicable, this includes information about the employer’s policy that the applicant must pass a drug test prior to hire.
• Obtain the applicant’s signature agreeing to background checking including criminal history, credit worthiness (for certain jobs), driving record (for certain jobs), and so forth as required by the job.
• Obtain voluntary self-identification data for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and to assure your own non-discriminatory hiring and diversity promotion practices and policies are followed.

Review Your Employment Application With an Attorney

Make certain that your employment application complies with employment law in your state. Various aspects of information requested on employment applications are not acceptable in some states, especially California. Ask an attorney to periodically review your complete employment application giving special attention to areas such as criminal history, credit reporting, any aspect of job capability related to the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), and length of time the application is active.

By Susan M. Heathfield

How to Post Jobs Online

Are you convinced that the Internet is the most useful tool for employers recruiting qualified employees? You should be. You can post jobs online and use the Web for recruiting. Even a job posting in the classified section of your local newspaper is likely to produce mostly electronic resumes and applications these days.
Easily customizable, free, and paperless, why wouldn’t prospective employees apply online? You can post jobs online and reap the benefit of the many potential employees searching online for jobs. Make the online world your recruiting partner; these are the best ways to post jobs and recruit online.

• Post jobs on your company or organization website. Place the link prominently on your home page. Your job posting will attract candidates who are interested in your mission and vision as well as your open jobs. Make the recruiting portion of your website communicate your company culture, the reasons why a prospective employee will want to choose your firm, and specific instructions about how to successfully apply for your posted jobs. Your company website is your most significant online recruiting tool. Recognize its power to attract superior employees.
  
  Your company website jobs are also featured on online job search sites. Indeed.com, for example, is a search engine for jobs that drives job searchers directly to jobs on corporate career websites, employee recruiting job boards, online newspapers, blogs, and association websites.
  
  Opportunities for employers to post jobs online at social media sites are also growing daily. Don't miss the opportunity to place your stake in the ground where active and passive job searchers mingle. (See below.)
• Recruit through online social media sites. As the power and reach of sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter expand, so does their facility as an online resource to recruit employees. Each offers employers methods to recruit and hire employees, but the true power of their reach may rest in your ability to tap into the power of your satisfied employees and their online networks.
  
  I have written about how to recruit employees using LinkedIn. I am bombarded daily with job postings on Twitter. And, Facebook is beginning to reach its potential for recruiting employees online. With an involved population that exceeds the number of people residing in the US, Facebook postings about jobs and products by employees and customers reach millions in employee online networks (friends) on Facebook.
  
  Social Media Job Posting Opportunities Are Expanding: You can post jobs online at LinkedIn on your company page. Facebook also offers company pages where you can post jobs and focus on disseminating news about your company and your work environment. The apps available at Facebook, that automatically post jobs that are drawn from your website, increase daily. If you think you can't do it, look around you; you probably can. The innovations for employer job posting on social media sites are growing. Potential employees, who frequent these social media networks, can stay up-to-date on your job listings without ever leaving their favorite site. This is a key tool to attract employees who have identified your company as a place where they'd like to work.
  
  And, many additional social networking sites, based on causes, industries, interests, businesses, skill sets, and more, exist. Identify the social media and networking sites that cater to people in your industry, and that attract people with the skills you need, and participate. Each has its own protocals, which you can learn, to source great candidates online.
• Post jobs in the classified section of your local newspaper; the paper likely has an online partner. No, classified advertising in local newspapers is not dead. It has changed. Still an opportunity to fill many positions, especially local jobs requiring local candidates, your neighborhood newspaper recognizes the power and reach of the online world. When you purchase a classified ad, you automatically post the job online, at an often reasonable, additional cost. The Ann Arbor News, for example, has a cooperative online relationship with MLive – Everything Michigan. CareerBuilder.com powers the online job postings for more than 1,000 partners, including over 100 newspapers, America Online, and MSN.
• Post jobs on college and university boards that serve alumni. While these jobs are typically listed through the institution's main career services channel, the college may have special services for alumni job searchers and employer recruiters. Especially for jobs requiring degrees, you’ll locate qualified, often local, candidates. Almost all colleges and universities have some kind of career services office that allows you to post jobs online. They maintain contact with their alumni and are likely to assist alumni to job search over the course of their careers.
  
  Additionally, they may offer employer connection services that make recruiting their alums easier for employers. The institution from which you are recruiting, may also maintain an alumni LinkedIn group where you can post jobs for free.
  
  Focus your recruiting attention on colleges and universities that graduate candidates with the degrees and skills that your company needs. It may pay you back in excellent recruits to develop a relationship with the alumni career services staff.
• Post jobs through your local college or university student career center and maintain relationships with university departments that specialize in your needed skills. Many offer free job postings and feature local candidates, especially for beginning career positions and internships. Others have partnered with online services. You can focus on colleges and universities that offer degree programs that qualify their students for your available jobs. Or, focus on local campuses that have students who may want to remain in your area. Colleges are dedicated to helping their students obtain employment; often a deciding factor when students choose their college.
  
  Get to know and develop relationships with professors and others in the departments that graduate your desired candidates. Your insider relationships and information may allow you to attract the most desirable grads. They also assist you to land high quality interns - students who may eventually become your most treasured employees. And, you get to try them out before you purchase their long term services, an opportunity that savvy employers recognize is one of the key advantages of their internship programs.
• Use Job Search Engines to help job applicants notice your company and your online job postings. For example, Indeed.com offers opportunities for employers to pay to have their job listings stand out. Employers avoid the cost of posting jobs online on multiple sites that then must be monitored. Linkup indexes a company's website daily to offer applicants an opportunity to apply for your newest, often unadvertised jobs, directly through your company website. This enables employers to receive online job applications that meet your specific requirements.
  
  SimplyHired, the world's largest job search engine, lists employer jobs for free and offers a pay-per-click option that allows your jobs to stand out from the pack. Their relationships with all of the major social networking sites give your open jobs wide distribution.
  
  Stay in touch with the world of job search engines. New sites proliferate and, depending on your requirements, may help you meet your recruiting needs.
• Post jobs on commercial Job Boards such as Monster, CareerBuilder.com for general jobs, and CoolWorks.com for seasonal jobs. These job boards remain the big kahunas in the job search industry. While their massive reach will bring you quantities of resumes from unqualified candidates, the occasional applicant gem exists as well. (I once found a well-qualified CFO through Monster.com.) Because these job boards are known to all job searchers, and have a huge reach, they attract applications from most online job searchers.
  
  Their cited pricing is rarely the best price. Look for deals on the website or contact a sales agent. The sales agent will stay in touch with special offers for both posting jobs and searching the job site’s resume database. You can save hundreds of dollars over listed prices.
  
  More and more specialized job boards are entering the market. Depending on the qualifications required from the employees you seek, specialized job boards may be a better option for your online job posting than the big sisters in the online space. Specialized job boards, such as Dice.com, target key employee skill sets that your company may need. You may decrease the spam of hundreds of unqualified resumes in your inbox using more specialized job sites.
• Post jobs online at sites that provide employer-employee matching services and other services that employers may use to target specific candidates, and avoid the masses. Especially as online job searching becomes more sophisticated, employers find themselves dealing with hundreds of resumes from applicants for any desirable job. Employers can wade through the deluge by using online job sites that do the sifting for you. On a site, such as Realmatch.com, employers can post a job and reach 37 million candidates from over 1200 job sites. The special twist? The site matches the job posting to candidate credentials. The subsequent graded and ranked list of candidates saves employers time and energy. The employer pays only for the candidates they select to contact.
  
  The number and types of these sites, that provide additional services for employers, to enable them to easily identify qualified candidates, will grow. More and more specific, targeted services are required by employers who want to cut through the noise of online recruiting and job searching.
• Post jobs at professional association websites. The job postings are often low cost or free, especially for members. Your local chapters are almost all online and local candidates will view your job posting at the local association site before they will see it at the national website. Make spending decisions based on this recommendation. In the same vein, post jobs in industry-related or industry-serving online or email newsletters. The candidates you attract will generally have experience in your industry, but may be national and look for relocation expenses paid. Depending upon the ability of your region to attract job searchers, this may or may not be a good strategy for you.
• Post jobs with your state Workforce Development organization, through your state department of labor. They appreciate employer job postings. Click on the map to select a state or choose from the list for the Department of Labor/Employment Security Commission/Job Service Office in your state at About.com's Job Searching site. In Michigan, employers can post jobs with the Michigan Talent Bank through Michigan Works. You'll find multiple options for both posting jobs online and recruiting candidates.
• Post jobs on discussion boards that allow posting jobs online. The forum associated with this site allows you to post jobs in a special jobs folder, for example.
• Post jobs and job descriptions in emailed messages to business associates and colleagues. Seek candidates for your jobs. Referrals from people you know are usually good candidates because someone you know is vouching for them. Many employers maintain customized lists of personal and professional contacts, and when they have a job available for which they seek referrals, they contact their mailing list members.

Looking to the Future: Recruiting and Job Posting Online

Options for online job posting and recruiting change daily. Just researching and staying on top of employer options during the past five years has been a daunting task as the online recruiting world changes daily. I expect that online recruiting options will continue to multiply as opportunities to match employers with superior candidates is a never ending quest.

Stay in touch with innovations in recruiting online by subscribing to the HR site's newsletter. The thrice weekly email helps employers maintain their edge in management development and in recruiting, retaining, and managing employees.
By Susan M. Heathfield

Top 10 Ways to Be Happy at Work

Choose to Be Happy at Work

Copyright Rasmus Rasmussen

Happiness is largely a choice. I can hear many of you arguing with me, but it's true. You can choose to be happy at work. Sound simple? Yes. But, simplicity is often profoundly difficult to put into action. I wish all of you had the best employer in the world, but, face it, you may not. So, think positively about your work. Dwell on the aspects of your work you like. Avoid negative people and gossip. Find coworkers you like and enjoy and spend your time with them. Your choices at work largely define your experience. You can choose to be happy at work.

2. Do Something You Love Every Single Day

Image Copyright Jacob Wackerhausen

You may or may not love your current job and you may or may not believe that you can find something in your current job to love, but you can. Trust me. Take a look at yourself, your skills and interests, and find something that you can enjoy doing every day. If you do something you love every single day, your current job won't seem so bad. Of course, you can always make your current job work or decide that it is time to quit your job.

Take Charge of Your Own Professional and Personal Development

Image Copyright Noel Hendrickson / Getty Images

A young employee complained to me recently that she wanted to change jobs because her boss was not doing enough to help her develop professionally. I asked her whom she thought was the person most interested in her development. The answer, of course, was her. You are the person with the most to gain from continuing to develop professionally. Take charge of your own growth; ask for specific and meaningful help from your boss, but march to the music of your personally developed plan and goals. You have the most to gain from growing - and the most to lose, if you stand still.

 Take Responsibility for Knowing What Is Happening at Work

Copyright Stock_IMG Business

People complain to me daily that they don't receive enough communication and information about what is happening with their company, their department's projects, or their coworkers. Passive vessels, they wait for the boss to fill them up with knowledge. And, the knowledge rarely comes. Why? Because the boss is busy doing her job and she doesn't know what you don't know. Seek out the information you need to work effectively. Develop an information network and use it. Assertively request a weekly meeting with your boss and ask questions to learn. You are in charge of the information you receive.

Ask for Feedback Frequently

Copyright Jacob Wackerhausen

Have you made statements such as, "My boss never gives me any feedback, so I never know how I'm doing." Face it, you really know exactly how you're doing. Especially if you feel positively about your performance, you just want to hear him acknowledge you. If you're not positive about your work, think about improving and making a sincere contribution. Then, ask your boss for feedback. Tell him you'd really like to hear his assessment of your work. Talk to your customers, too; if you're serving them well, their feedback is affirming. You are responsible for your own development. Everything else you get is gravy.

Make Only Commitments You Can Keep

Image Copyright Jacob Wackerhausen

One of the most serious causes of work stress and unhappiness is failing to keep commitments. Many employees spend more time making excuses for failing to keep a commitment, and worrying about the consequences of not keeping a commitment, than they do performing the tasks promised. Create a system of organization and planning that enables you to assess your ability to complete a requested commitment. Don't volunteer if you don't have time. If your workload is exceeding your available time and energy, make a comprehensive plan to ask the boss for help and resources. Don't wallow in the swamp of unkept promises.

 Avoid Negativity

Copyright Stefanie Timmermann

Choosing to be happy at work means avoiding negative conversations, gossip, and unhappy people as much as possible. No matter how positively you feel, negative people have a profound impact on your psyche. Don't let the negative Neds and Nellies bring you down

 Practice Professional Courage

Copyright Diego Cervo

If you are like most people, you don't like conflict. And the reason why is simple. You've never been trained to participate in meaningful conflict, so you likely think of conflict as scary, harmful, and hurtful. Conflict can be all three; done well, conflict can also help you accomplish your work mission and your personal vision. Conflict can help you serve customers and create successful products. Happy people accomplish their purpose for working. Why let a little professional courage keep you from achieving your goals and dreams? Make conflict your friend.

Make Friends

Image Copyright Nancy Louie

In their landmark book, First, Break All The Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently (Compare Prices), Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman list twelve important questions. When employees answered these questions positively, their responses were true indicators of whether people were happy and motivated at work. One of these key questions was, "Do you have a best friend at work?" Liking and enjoying your coworkers are hallmarks of a positive, happy work experience. Take time to get to know them. You might actually like and enjoy them. Your network provides support, resources, sharing, and caring.

If All Else Fails, Job Searching Will Make You Smile

Copyright Pali Rao

If all of these ideas aren't making you happy at work, it's time to reevaluate your employer, your job, or your entire career. You don't want to spend your life doing work you hate in an unfriendly work environment. Most work environments don't change all that much. But unhappy employees tend to grow even more disgruntled. You can secretly smile while you spend all of your non-work time job searching. It will only be a matter of time until you can quit your job - with a big smile.

By Susan M. Heathfield

Tips for Better Team Work?

Have you ever wondered how some work groups exhibit effective team work and others remain dysfunctional for the life of the team? Effective team work is both profoundly simple and difficult at the same time. The factors that affect success in team work occur both within the team itself and in the work environment in which the team must function.
These ten tips describe the environment that must occur within the team for successful team work to take place. Successful team work is the cornerstone for creating functioning, contributing teams.

Keys to Successful Team Work

• The team understands the goals and is committed to attaining them. This clear direction and agreement on mission and purpose is essential for effective team work.
• The team creates an environment in which people are comfortable taking reasonable risks in communicating, advocating positions, and taking action

Communication is open, honest, and respectful. People feel free to express their thoughts, opinions, and potential solutions to problems. People feel as if they are heard out and listened to by team members who are attempting to understand.

Team members have a strong sense of belonging to the group. They experience a deep commitment to the group’s decisions and actions.

Team members are viewed as unique people with irreplaceable experiences, points of view, knowledge, and opinions to contribute.

Creativity, innovation, and different viewpoints are expected and encouraged.

The team is able to constantly examine itself and continuously improve its processes, practices, and the interaction of team members. The team openly discusses team norms and what may be hindering its ability to move forward and progress in areas of effort, talent, and strategy.

The team has agreed upon procedures for diagnosing, analyzing, and resolving team work problems and conflicts. The team does not support member personality conflicts and clashes nor do team members pick sides in a disagreement. Rather, members work towards mutual resolution.

Participative leadership is practiced in leading meetings, assigning tasks, recording decisions and commitments, assessing progress, holding team members accountable, and providing direction for the team.

Members of the team make high quality decisions together and have the support and commitment of the group to carry out the decisions made.

If a team can get these ten factors right, success and a rewarding sense of team work will follow.
By Susan M. Heathfield

Tips for a Successful Salary Negotiation

You have a job offer in hand. How much leeway do you have to negotiate salary and other conditions of employment? The answer ranges from not much to a lot. One key factor is the discussion of salary, benefits, and working conditions that occurred during the interview process.
You have likely shared your current or most recent salary with the potential employer; the potential employer may have shared the salary range for the position with you. The posted job ads may also have given you an idea about the salary range. Don’t count on this, however, since employers don’t want to lay their cards on the table first. After all, what candidate wants to be offered and accept a position in the low to mid-range of a stated salary range?

Salary Negotiation From the Employer’s Point of View

Consequently, the employer’s salary negotiation leeway depends on these factors:

• the level of the job within your organization,
• the scarcity of the skills and experience needed for the job in the job market,
• the career progress and experience of the individual selected,
• the fair market value for the job you are filling
• the salary range for the job within your organization
• the salary range for the job within your geographic area,
• the existing economic conditions within your job market,
• the existing economic conditions within your industry, and
• company-specific factors that might affect the given salary such as comparative jobs, your culture, your pay philosophy, and your promotion practices.

Bottom line? How badly do you want and need this candidate? If you are too needy, your negotiation strategy will quickly turn into a capitulation. And, capitulation, paying more than you can afford, paying disproportionately to the pay ranges of your current employees, and paying a new employee salary and benefits outside of your comfort zone is bad for the employer and bad for the candidate.
The new employee’s work is scrutinized under a microscope; employer expectations may be way too high. Fellow employees may resent the negotiated salary and think of the new employee as a prima donna. In a win-win salary negotiation, both employer and employee leave the negotiation feeling ready to get started on a long term, successful relationship.
If you’ve ever been involved in an intense salary negotiation, you know that the negotiation can consume your mental and physical energy way beyond its importance. This is because, by the time you reach the stage of making an offer, you have spent the time to develop a pool of candidates. You have interviewed various candidates for weeks.
Your organization has invested significant time and energy in wooing and getting to know your final choice candidate. More sophisticated candidates, higher level candidates, and candidates with significant career progress will counter your initial offer letter, so expect it.
Additionally, expectations and needs of candidates can sometimes blind side the employer. If multiple people have conducted interviews – which I recommend – you have little control over the expectations expressed and what the candidate comes to believe about the position as a result of the interviews. You also have no control over the content of offers from other firms that can occur simultaneously.

Salary Negotiation Tips

While they are not meant to comprehensively detail how to conduct a salary negotiation, I offer you these hints and tips to ensure you conduct successful salary negotiations.

• Negotiation is not about winning – unless both parties win. If either party feels they have capitulated, not negotiated, both parties lose.
• Make every effort to identify the most recent salary and benefits your candidate received. Most organizations ask for salary on their job applications and in their job postings and ads. Some candidates offer W-2 forms and other proof of salary. You can also ask former employers during reference checking. You may not be able to match the salary but you will have a good idea of what the candidate will seek during salary negotiations.

While they are not meant to comprehensively detail how to conduct a salary negotiation, I offer you these hints and tips to ensure you conduct successful salary negotiations.

• Know what your salary negotiation limits are. Base your limits on your internal salary ranges, the salary paid employees in similar positions, the economic climate and job searching market, and the profitability of your company.
• Recognize that, if your salary is not negotiable, and even if it is, superior candidates will negotiate with you in other areas that may be negotiable. These include benefits, eligibility for benefits or paid COBRA, tuition assistance, paid time off, a signing bonus, stock options, variable bonus pay, commissions, car allowance, paid cell phone, severance packages, and relocation expenses. In fact, sophisticated candidates will negotiate in all of these areas and more.
• Even if you are convinced of the candidate’s potential positive impact within your organization, and a negotiating candidate is likely to keep reminding you, most organizations have limits. You will regret violating your limits; even if you have to start your recruitment over, you will save yourself years of headaches and prohibitive costs
  
  In one company, a candidate tried to negotiate a severance package that provided six months of his base salary plus an additional one month for each year he worked for the company. Plus, he wanted all of this money in a lump sum upon dismissal. At $5769.00 per pay, the organization would have had to come up with approximately $116,000.00 upon his dismissal after only three years of employment. I don’t know too many small and medium-sized companies that can afford to negotiate salary in this arena or come up with a lump sum such as this.
• If your initial offer is not negotiable, or barely negotiable, try to indicate that to the candidate when you make the offer. Recently, I made an offer to a special candidate whom an organization had been trying to hire. (They waited to make an offer until the right position opened up.)
  
  I said, "We are offering you $60,000 in base salary plus the potential to earn up to $20,000 in bonuses during your first year. Others who have been with us for up to nine years are within a couple thousand dollars of that base. So, you can see how much we value you. Additionally, as you build your accounts, some of our business developers are making well over $100,000.00." I was trying to tell her that the base was firm and that the upside potential in bonus was high.

By Susan M. Heathfield

Job Offer Letter

Date
Name
Address
Address
Dear __________________________________:
It is my pleasure to extend the following offer of employment to you on behalf of (your company name). This offer is contingent upon your passing our mandatory drug screen, our receipt of your college transcripts, and any other contingencies you may wish to state.
Title: ________________________________________________________
Reporting Relationship: The position will report to:
_____________________________________________________________

Job Description is attached.
Base Salary: Will be paid in bi-weekly installments of $_________, which is equivalent to $_______ on an annual basis, and subject to deductions for taxes and other withholdings as required by law or the policies of the company.
Bonus (or Commission) Potential: Effective upon satisfactory completion of the first 90 days of employment, and based upon the goals and objectives agreed to in the performance development planning process with your manager, you may be eligible for a bonus. The bonus plan for this year and beyond, should such a plan exist, will be based on the formula determined by the company for that year.
Non-Compete Agreement: Our standard non-compete agreement must be signed prior to start.
Benefits: The current, standard company health, life, disability and dental insurance coverage are generally supplied per company policy. Eligibility for other benefits, including the 401(k) and tuition reimbursement, will generally take place per company policy. Employee contribution to payment for benefit plans is determined annually.
Stock Options: Spell out any options that may be available for purchase.
Vacation and Personal Emergency Time Off: Vacation is accrued at x.xx hours per pay period, which is equivalent to two weeks on an annual basis. Personal emergency days are generally accrued per company policy.
Expenses: Spell out any moving or other transition expenses the company will pay.
Start Date: _________________________________________________
Car/Phone/Travel Expenses: Normal and reasonable expenses will be reimbursed on a monthly basis per company policy.
Your employment with (Company Name) is at-will and either party can terminate the relationship at any time with or without cause and with or without notice.
You acknowledge that this offer letter, (along with the final form of any referenced documents), represents the entire agreement between you and (Company Name) and that no verbal or written agreements, promises or representations that are not specifically stated in this offer, are or will be binding upon (Company Name).
If you are in agreement with the above outline, please sign below. This offer is in effect for five business days.
Signatures:
__________________________________________________________
(For the Company: Name)
__________________________________________________________
Date

__________________________________________________________
(Candidate's Name)
__________________________________________________________
Date

By Susan M. Heathfield

Tips for a Successful Salary Negotiation

You have a job offer in hand. How much leeway do you have to negotiate salary and other conditions of employment? The answer ranges from not much to a lot. One key factor is the discussion of salary, benefits, and working conditions that occurred during the interview process.
You have likely shared your current or most recent salary with the potential employer; the potential employer may have shared the salary range for the position with you. The posted job ads may also have given you an idea about the salary range. Don’t count on this, however, since employers don’t want to lay their cards on the table first. After all, what candidate wants to be offered and accept a position in the low to mid-range of a stated salary range?

Salary Negotiation From the Employer’s Point of View

Consequently, the employer’s salary negotiation leeway depends on these factors:

• the level of the job within your organization,
• the scarcity of the skills and experience needed for the job in the job market,
• the career progress and experience of the individual selected,
• the fair market value for the job you are filling
• the salary range for the job within your organization
• the salary range for the job within your geographic area,
• the existing economic conditions within your job market,
• the existing economic conditions within your industry, and
• company-specific factors that might affect the given salary such as comparative jobs, your culture, your pay philosophy, and your promotion practices.

Bottom line? How badly do you want and need this candidate? If you are too needy, your negotiation strategy will quickly turn into a capitulation. And, capitulation, paying more than you can afford, paying disproportionately to the pay ranges of your current employees, and paying a new employee salary and benefits outside of your comfort zone is bad for the employer and bad for the candidate.
The new employee’s work is scrutinized under a microscope; employer expectations may be way too high. Fellow employees may resent the negotiated salary and think of the new employee as a prima donna. In a win-win salary negotiation, both employer and employee leave the negotiation feeling ready to get started on a long term, successful relationship.
If you’ve ever been involved in an intense salary negotiation, you know that the negotiation can consume your mental and physical energy way beyond its importance. This is because, by the time you reach the stage of making an offer, you have spent the time to develop a pool of candidates. You have interviewed various candidates for weeks.
Your organization has invested significant time and energy in wooing and getting to know your final choice candidate. More sophisticated candidates, higher level candidates, and candidates with significant career progress will counter your initial offer letter, so expect it.
Additionally, expectations and needs of candidates can sometimes blind side the employer. If multiple people have conducted interviews – which I recommend – you have little control over the expectations expressed and what the candidate comes to believe about the position as a result of the interviews. You also have no control over the content of offers from other firms that can occur simultaneously.

Salary Negotiation Tips

While they are not meant to comprehensively detail how to conduct a salary negotiation, I offer you these hints and tips to ensure you conduct successful salary negotiations.

• Negotiation is not about winning – unless both parties win. If either party feels they have capitulated, not negotiated, both parties lose.
• Make every effort to identify the most recent salary and benefits your candidate received. Most organizations ask for salary on their job applications and in their job postings and ads. Some candidates offer W-2 forms and other proof of salary. You can also ask former employers during reference checking. You may not be able to match the salary but you will have a good idea of what the candidate will seek during salary negotiations.

By Susan M. Heathfield

How to Make Your Current Job Work

Are you feeling increasingly unhappy about your job? Do you find yourself day dreaming about other things you could do with the time you spend at work? Do you dread the thought of Monday mornings?
Then, it may be time for you to quit your job. Or, alternatively, address the issues that you dislike about your current job. Without leaving your job, you may be able to solve the problems and make your current job - work.
Take a look at these six common reasons why people often leave their job. These will help you determine whether it's time to quit your current job or take action to make your current job - work. With a little work, you can identify changes that will re-invigorate your job and career.

Determine Why You Are Unhappy in Your Current Job

Do you dislike the work you do day-to-day on the job? Or, are there other problems that affect how you feel about your job? If you like the work and pinpoint other issues as the problem, consider what you can do to resolve these problems before you quit your job.
Good jobs are difficult to find. You don't want to make a hasty decision or burn any bridges until you've thoughtfully considered your options. You may be able to make your job - work.
Following are the six common problems that prompt people to want to quit their job. See if you can find your reasons and use the advice provided to turn your work situation around.

You Feel Stuck in Your Current Job

Are you feeling stuck in your current position with no hope of promotion? You look around your organization and don't see any job you'd like to do next. You may want to explore options with your boss.

• Talk to your boss to make sure you're right. Ask about opportunities for lateral moves and for more interesting, skill-stretching assignments. Most workplaces value initiative and people who want to continue to learn and grow.
• Consider swapping assignments with a coworker who feels like you do about trying something new. (Ask for your manager's agreement, of course.)

You Feel Unappreciated in Your Current Job

You work hard every day, but you don't feel your boss or your workplace recognize your efforts. You can't remember the last time anyone thanked you for your contributions.

• Tell your boss you would like her input about how she views your work. Tell the boss you'd like to sit down with him regularly to obtain feedback, both good and bad, so you can improve.
• Offer to chair an employee recognition team that can develop a process for recognizing the hard work and efforts of all your coworkers. After all, if you're feeling unappreciated, you can bet others are, too.
• Sometimes, feeling unappreciated has to do with money. Ask your manager for a raise or ask when you can expect your compensation review. Follow up to make sure it happens.

By Susan M. Heathfield

Leadership Job Interview Questions

The following sample job interview questions about leadership enable you to assess your candidate’s skills in leadership. Feel free to use these job interview questions in your own candidate interviews.

• You decided to reorganize the department or work unit that you lead. Tell me how you proceeded with the reorganization?
• Have you ever been a member of a successful team? If so, describe the role you played on the team and in its success.
• Give me an example of a time when you played a leadership role in an event, an activity, a department or work unit, or a project. Describe how you led the efforts. Tell me how people responded to your leadership.
• If I were to ask your reporting staff or your peers to comment about your leadership style, your leadership strengths, and your leadership weaknesses, how would they respond? What would this discussion tell me about you as a leader?
• Tell me about a time when you created agreement and shared purpose from a situation in which all parties originally differed in opinion, approach, and objectives.
• As a leader within an organization, you must often build support for goals and projects from people who do not report to you and over whom you have no authority. Tell me about a situation in which you demonstrated that you can build the needed support.
• What are the three most important values you demonstrate as a leader? Tell me a story that demonstrates each of these leadership values in practice within your workplace.
• During your work experiences while attending college, tell me about a time when you demonstrated that you have leadership ability and skill.

Leadership Job Interview Question Answers

You are questioning to determine whether the candidate has leadership skills or potential. You seek to identify the leadership style of your candidate, from his or her perspective and from the perspective of his or her direct reporting staff and peers. You are determining whether the candidate’s style is congruent with the culture of your organization. It is helpful if you have created beforehand a leadership profile that identifies the skills and traits of successful leaders within your organization.
Leadership style is best demonstrated in stories. Self-examination and commentary is self-serving, at best, in an interview setting. Ask your candidates for many specific stories and examples.
By Susan M. Heathfield

How to deal with a difficult boss? see this video...

how to communicate your strengths in a job interview? see this video...

how to follow up after interview?

If you've had an interview, the last thing you can do to cement your prospect of getting the job is follow up. But what is the best way to contact your interviewer? Should you email her a thank you letter or wait a week to print and send it in the mail? A few tips can help you effectively follow up after an interview.

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Plain notecard
• Contact information of interviewer

1. 1
   Ask for a business card during the interview. Use it to glean a mailing or email address so you can contact the person directly. You can save it long after you follow up, since you never know if you'll need to get in touch with that contact in the future. Chances are, all of the interviewer's contact information is on the card.
2. 2
   Send a printed note. While some people prefer email (and that works too), others swear by a handwritten note for a more personal touch. In the note, write a few lines thanking the interviewer for taking the time to meet with you. Bring up something somewhat personal mentioned in the interview. For example, if you found out that the recipient of your note is an avid kayaker like you, add something like, "Hope to see you paddling on the Adams River this spring."
3. 3
   Drop an email. Email is less personal, but the concept of following up really helps you stand out--regardless of what medium you use. In the email be brief and note the same thing you would in a written letter. Include a professional signature under your name with your phone number, address and email address. In the subject line, make sure you stand out so your message won't get locked in a spam folder. Something such as "Adam: Following Up on Our Interview" or "Adam: Your Interview with Kristen Fischer" or "Adam: Interview Follow-up."
4. 4
   Choose the right language. With a follow-up letter, you want to thank the person for spending time with you and reiterate your interest in the position. You could say that you feel you'd bring a lot to the position and list the name of the job. Or you may want to add that after meeting with the person, you got some ideas to improve sales or productivity in the office--or something else related to the job--then offer up an idea. Provide a more personalized salutation such as "Dear" and use a personal closing line such as "Sincerely," "Warmly" or "Best." These are still professional, but offer a more personal touch.
   
   Stay away from the use of colons in greetings and closings and use commas instead. Never command the recipient to contact you back; you're just saying thank you and showing more interest in the job. That's enough. The most important thing is to be polite and brief--and timely.
5. 5
   Watch the clock. It's never too soon to send out a follow-up note. You can email or mail the note just a few hours after the interview or the next day. Aim to send all follow-ups within 24 to 48 hours to make the best impression. If you use U.S. mail, send the letter out that day. If you email, send the letter within the 72-hour span, tops. If you interview later during the week, try to send out the follow-up message before the weekend. Some people say you may grasp the attention of the interviewer more by hitting him up on a Monday morning, but it's likely that your note could get shoved over in chaos.

By Kristen Fischer

Job Descriptions

Definition: Job descriptions are written statements that describe the:

• duties,
• responsibilities,
• most important contributions and outcomes needed from a position,
• required qualifications of candidates, and
• reporting relationship and coworkers of a particular job.

Job descriptions are based on objective information obtained through job analysis, an understanding of the competencies and skills required to accomplish needed tasks, and the needs of the organization to produce work. Job descriptions clearly identify and spell out the responsibilities of a specific job. Job descriptions also include information about working conditions, tools, equipment used, knowledge and skills needed, and relationships with other positions.
The best job descriptions are living, breathing documents that are updated as responsibilities change. The best job descriptions do not limit employees, but rather, cause them to stretch their experience, grow their skills, and develop their ability to contribute within their organization

See a Sample Job Specification for a Marketing Manager

Experience - Marketing Manager:

• 10 years of progressively more responsible positions in marketing, preferably in a similar industry in two different firms.
• Experience supervising and managing a professional staff of seven.

Education - Marketing Manager:

• Bachelors Degree in Marketing or a related field required.
• Masters in Business or Marketing preferred.

Required Skills, Knowledge and Characteristics - Marketing Manager:
These are the most important qualifications of the individual selected as the marketing manager.

• Strong effective communicator.
• Highly developed, demonstrated teamwork skills.
• Ability to coordinate the efforts of a large team of diverse creative employees.
• Demonstrated ability to increase productivity and continuously improve methods, approaches, and departmental contribution. Commitment to continuous learning.
• Expert in Internet and social media strategy with a demonstrated track record.
• Demonstrated effectiveness in holding conversations with customers, customer evangelism, and customer-focused product development and outreach.
• Demonstrated ability to see the big picture and provide useful advice and input across the company.
• Ability to lead in an environment of constant change.
• Experience working in a flexible, employee empowering work environment. Structured or large company experience will not work here.
• Familiarity and skill with the tools of the trade in marketing including PR, written communication, website development, market research, product packaging, Microsoft software suite of products, visal communication software products, and creative services.
• Experience managing external PR and communication consulting firms and contractors.
• Experience in the global marketplace is a plus.

High Level Overview of Job Requirements - Marketing Manager:
The selected marketing manager must be able to perform effectively in each of these areas:

• Researching and evaluating new product opportunities, demand for potential products, and customer needs and insights.
• Overall marketing strategy and execution of plans for the existing products.
• Working with product development teams to manage new product development.
• Managing launch campaigns for new products.
• Managing distribution channels for products.
• Ensuring effective, branded marketing communications including the company website, print communication, and advertising.
• Managing media and marketing staff and external PR agencies.
• Analysis of the effectiveness of all marketing efforts.

By Susan M. Heathfield

What is an Event Planner?

Anyone interested in becoming an event planner should begin the path by understanding that it is not party planning. This is the case whether you're considering a path with social events or corporate events. The final program may appear as if the profession is about throwing great parties, but the event planning professional focuses on the rationale or goal of having an event, and whether it is achieved. And the real work is in the details that lead up to the event. My site will help educate you about how to become successful.

Meetings and conventions bring people together for a common purpose, and meeting and convention planners work to ensure that this purpose is achieved seamlessly. Meeting planners coordinate every detail of meetings and conventions, from the speakers and meeting location to arranging for printed materials and audio-visual equipment. Meeting and convention planners work for nonprofit organizations, professional and similar associations, hotels, corporations, and government. Some organizations have internal meeting planning staffs, and others hire independent meeting and convention planning firms to organize their events.

The the event planner creates programs that address the purpose, message or impression that their organization or client is trying to communicate.
Event planners work long and non-traditional hours to plan and execute all details related to a variety of meeting formats including seminars, conferences, trade shows, executive retreats, incentive programs, golf events, conventions, and other programs.
Successful event planners develop the following skills:

• Verbal and written communications
• Organization and time management
• Project management and multi-tasking
• Self-starter and team player
• Understand Microsoft Office applications
• Detail and deadline-oriented
• Calm and personable under pressure
• Negotiation
• Budget management
• Staff management
• Marketing and public relations
• Interpersonal skills with all levels of management

Successful event planners will develop the following knowledge:

• Venue selection
• Catering
• Production
• Entertainment
• Gifts
• Transportation
• Lodging
• Conference Services

Those who pursue a career in event planning come from a variety of professions and academic backgrounds. Many employers prefer a bachelor's degree in hospitality management, business administration, marketing, public relations, or communications. However, many successful planners begin in other professions or enter through administrative roles that include meeting planning responsibilities.
By Rob Hard

Training: Your Investment in People Development and Retention

The right employee training, development and education, at the right time, provides big payoffs for the employer in increased productivity, knowledge, loyalty, and contribution. Learn the approaches that will guarantee your training brings a return on your investment.
The American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) "estimates that U.S. organizations spend $109.25 billion on employee learning and development annually, with nearly three quarters ($79.75 billion) spent on the internal learning function, and the remainder ($29.50 billion) spent on external services."
Licensing, certification, continuing education, and training to retain and grow skills are becoming increasingly important. According to the State of the Industry Report 2006: The American Society for Training and Development's Annual Review of Trends in Employer-Provided Training, the amount of employer-provided training is rising. The ASTD annual report "look[s] to exemplary organizations from the ASTD Benchmarking Forum (BMF) and the BEST Award winners to determine how they invest in employee learning and development."

Important Aspects of Training

How training needs are determined, how training is viewed by employees, and how training is delivered become critically important issues. Training trends and methods for gaining knowledge, other than traditional classroom training, such as coaching and mentoring, take center stage.
New employee orientation, or new employee onboarding, is a significant factor in helping new employees hit the ground running. Training that helps each employee grow their skills and knowledge to better perform their current job is appreciated as a benefit. Training also increases employee loyalty, and thus retention, and helps you attract the best possible employees

Options for Training and Education for Employees

Options for employee training and development are magnifying due to these factors:

• technological innovations,
• employee retention strategies, and
• the need for organizations to constantly develop their employees' ability to keep up with the pace of change.

So, sending an employee off for training at a one-day seminar or a week-long workshop is only one of many options that exist now.
The American Society for Training and Development has traditionally recommended a minimum of 40 hours of training a year for every employee. This is consistent with the emphasis employees place on the opportunity to grow and develop both their skills and career while in your employ. The chance for ongoing development, is one of the top five factors employees want to experience at work. In fact, the inability of an employee to see progress is an often cited reason for leaving an employer.
As a retention strategy for your preferred employees, training and development rates highly. Only their perception of their salary and benefits as competitive, and reporting to a manager they like, rate higher.

Options for Employee Training and Development

When you think about education, training, and development, options exist externally, internally, and online. Choices range from seminars to book clubs to mentoring programs. Here are the existing alternatives to help your employees continue to grow. For recruiting, retention, and managing change and continuous improvement, adopt all of these practices within your organization.

External Education, Training, and Development

• Seminars, workshops, and classes come in every variety imaginable, both in-person and online.
• Take field trips to other companies and organizations.
• Colleges and universities, and occasionally, local adult education, community colleges or technical schools provide classes. Universities are reaching out to adult learners with evening and weekend MBA and business programs.
• Professional association seminars, meetings, and conferences offer training opportunities.

Internal Education, Training, and Development

• Onsite seminars and classes provide training customized to your organization.
• Coaching gives employees the opportunity to share knowledge.
• Mentoring is increasingly important in employee development and training as are formal mentoring programs.
• Form a Book Club at work.

What Your Organization Can Do to Facilitate Continuous Learning and Regular Training

• Create a learning environment. Communicate the expectation for learning.
• Offer work time support for learning. Make online learning and reading part of every employee's day.
• Provide a professional library.
• Offer college tuition reimbursement.
• Enable flexible schedules so employees can attend classes.
• Pay for professional association memberships and conference attendance annually for employees.

Training is crucial to the ongoing development of the people you employ and their retention and success. Be creative to provide diverse opportunities for training.
By Susan M. Heathfield