Gas Prices And Work Trends

Gas prices are driving companies to adjust their reimbursement policy for outside salespeople.  We have seen a handful of salespeople who have taken a real hit due to the fact they are on a monthly car allowance and not mileage reimbursement. Telecommuting is already grabbing a larger foothold in the work world which is a trend that predated the gas price increase.  Our local Pioneer Planet quotes a recent SHRM report regarding telecommuting: (The SHRM study) found 18 percent of employers are allowing workers to telecommute, up from 4 percent in a survey a year ago. That doesn’t sound like much, but a 4% increase in 1 year is remarkable. … Read More

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Defining Excellence

Selling Power released an archived article titled Four Elements of Excellence.  The short article provides a well-thought description so let’s cut right to the chase.  Here are the four: 1.) Goal Setting 2.) Commitment 3.) Feedback 4.) Organizational Support I would say that is a good list.  The one that jumps out is goal setting.  This is something we see in the sales arena often, but not in a good way.  Many sales managers believe an annual quota is all the goal setting a salesperson needs. But let’s jump back to the article: Without specific goals, you’ll never know whether you’ve achieved excellence because you’ve never defined it. Hence, the… Read More

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More Job Interview Bombs

CNNMoney.com offers up the latest story about this Springtime topic (must be all of the college grads hitting the interview circuit that gets these stories started).  There are some beauties in here: “One job applicant came in for his interview with a cockatoo on his shoulder.” “We had one person who walked out of an interview straight into a glass door. The glass shattered.” “The candidate got his companies confused and repeatedly mentioned the strengths of a competing firm, thinking that was who he was interviewing with.” “A candidate fell asleep during the interview.” Fell asleep?  I’m guessing the only way that happens is if the interviewer is doing all… Read More

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