Business has its own pet language, doesn’t it? Much like sports, there are some favorite clichés that are common speak in most office buildings. Yahoo does a good job of chronicling some of the worst. A couple examples: Synergize Say what? This word has infiltrated nearly every cube and conference room in the country. The fault here can largely be placed on one seminal advice author. In Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Successful People, the No. 6 habit is Synergize. Of the habit, Covey writes, "To put it simply, synergy means two heads are better than one." Covey readers might recall getting the same advice in simpler terms several… Read More
Continue ReadingInterview Question Psychosis
Let me be honest, I have sat in on some interviews that were borderline psychotic. Questions from left field, overt anger and emotions, lying responses that were easily observed…and those were the good ones. In all seriousness, interviewing is difficult and being a good interviewer is even more challenging. Most managers do not spend their time honing their interview skills. This fact often leads to bizarre questions. It also leads to bizarre question patterns. Every year there seems to be a list of the oddest interview questions from the year – it is a guilty pleasure of mine to read them. Perhaps you would enjoy the list also? To whet… Read More
Continue ReadingIntroverted Leaders
Great article here from the Harvard Business Review titled The Hidden Advantages of Quiet Bosses. Oh, where to begin on this one? I have seen this thought process play out firsthand with many customers and even in my own career. In the sales world, extroverts are generally held in higher regard than introverts – that has been my experience. This same value structure typically plays out in promoting salespeople into sale management roles. The extroverts often get the position. However, here is a differing position put forward in the article: To be sure, extroverted leaders have important strengths. However, they also tend to command the center of attention and take… Read More
Continue ReadingKeep It Clear
I have sat through some interviews which have been enlightening in terms of the struggles of hiring managers who do not hire often. One of the blatant deficiencies I observed was this – a lack of good questions. Is there anything more important than questions in interviewing an external candidate? Even an internal candidate. Here is one instance of what I observed – a rather inexperienced manager asked esoteric questions that left me scratching my head. The candidate did a good job attempting to answer the question without embarrassing the hiring manager. One question took almost 2 minutes for the hiring manager to ask! The question included an analogy, an… Read More
Continue ReadingTexting And Lightning
The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter–it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning. -Mark Twain If you would, allow me to speculate a bit. I’ve been involved in volunteer activities with high school students over the past 2 years so I have become a reluctant texter (is that a word?). I learned quickly that their preferred method of communication is texting. I didn’t even have texting on my cell service when I started. I now have unlimited texting out of necessity. I tell you this in regards to a concern I see in this younger generation. I’ve read… Read More
Continue ReadingNew Phrase
I was reading this article from our local business magazine and came across this phrase which was new to me (emphasis mine): Twin Cities television viewers are most drawn to sports, comedies and dramas, and they’re increasingly using digital video recorders and other time-shifting technologies to watch their favorite programs, according to Comcast Corp.’s second annual “TV Pulse Survey.” I would argue that Taleo is a “time-shifting technology,” if you get my drift.
Continue ReadingWriting Gone Bad
A sentence I just read in a laptop battery warranty statement: We are happy to send a replacement when you receive a defective item from us. “when”!?!
Continue ReadingLegalities Of Employee Blogging
Inc.com offers up a timely article regarding employee blogging and the different pitfalls for companies who allow it. Honestly, I haven’t put as much thought into this topic as the writer. I did find these 10 points interesting (thought I don’t follow them): 1. Remind employees to familiarize themselves with the employment agreement and policies included in the employee handbook before they begin blogging. 2. State that the policy applies to both blogs for the company and personal blogs. 3. Blog posts should not disclose any information that is confidential or proprietary to the company or to any third party that has disclosed information to the company. 4. If an… Read More
Continue ReadingDisappearing Telecommuters
Saleshq.com offers up tricks for telecommuters in this article. There are some solid points like this: 5. Communication It’s very easy to forget the outside world when you work from home. While you do get to avoid the intricacies of corporate politics, it also means that you have to be your own advocate. Make sure there are multiple ways for your boss and colleagues to contact you. Check your email frequently, and respond as immediately as you can. Keep your phone at hand, and make sure you call if there’s an office meeting. An instant messaging service works well for open communication if something changes last minute. For more long… Read More
Continue ReadingIntroverts Make Great Salespeople
You heard me right, that is an indirect quote from this Inc.com article. This topic comes up often in our sales hiring activities as the conventional wisdom is that extroverts make better salespeople. Not true. Successful salespeople have a wide variety of abilities that go far beyond their communication style. And that is the point here, introvert/extrovert is more of a communication style than anything else. It is important to know a salesperson’s style, but it is not predictive of sales success. Here is some excellent advice from the article (emphasis mine): “When selling as an introvert, use your abilities as a good researcher to really know audience, know what… Read More
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