Here’s What to Say When Boss Asks: ‘Why Isn’t This Done Yet?’ I’m sure none of you have been asked that question before. I, being an incredible putz, have been asked that question many times. U.S. office workers get interrupted on the job as often as 11 times an hour, costing as much as $588 billion to U.S. business each year, according to research. I wonder how they get to that staggering dollar amount. A typical manager is interrupted six times an hour, one recent study showed, while another found the average cubicle worker is interrupted more than 70 times a day. The telecommuting trend has a new study to… Read More
Continue ReadingEmpowering The Sales Team
Sales & Marketing Management has an excellent article out titled Break the Bureaucracy. The gist of the article is the revenue differences between companies that micromanage their team vs. companies that empower their team (especially sales). First, an intuitive point from the author: The result of this micromanaging? Young hires felt they got no respect and so returned no loyalty, Swanson remembers. Within 18 months, he and 10 other entry-level analysts had quit. This point cannot be overstated. The younger generations greatly prefer a more horizontal org chart with less hierarchy. The example in the article describes how this analyst working for a bank (well known for multiple layers of… Read More
Continue ReadingTelecommuting Trend Expands
Telecommuting is the Norm is a quick article from Sales & Marketing Management’s website. I don’t think this trend is surprising to most people. We have seen a tremendous shift towards this approach in outside sales positions over the past 2 years especially. Most candidates now expect some form of telecommuting capability including wireless-connected laptops, VPN connections and PDA cell phones. If your company does not offer these telecommuting basics, consider this excerpt from the article: “The war for talent, combined with commuting times and costs, and an increasing need for work-life balance are all factors that promote telecommuting,” says Jim Lanzalotto, vice president of strategy and marketing for Yoh.… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Multitasking Myth – Physical Limitations
Multitasking is one of those words that has entered business lexicon but should be considered an urban myth. We posted on this topic a few months ago and now I have come across a short Q&A article from CareerJournal.com that addresses the physical aspects of so-called multitasking. First, kudos to the author of the question who can really turn a phrase (emphasis mine): You’ve written that too much multitasking can leave the mind and body marinating in stress hormones. Can you elaborate on the physiological effects?…Brief or infrequent stress responses pose little risk. But when a person responds this way habitually or over long periods, the risk of injury or… Read More
Continue ReadingMy Dog Ate My Homework
Remember that old line? Apparently some employees believe it still has legs even after graduating. We love lists here at The Hire Sense and CareerBuilder offers up one of my seasonal favorites – Thirty-Two Percent of Workers Called in Sick With Fake Excuses in the Last Year. I have no idea how many companies still separate sick days from vacation days – I was under the impression most companies just offered PTO now. At any rate, a couple statistics from the survey: Twenty-seven percent of hiring managers reported they have fired a worker for calling in sick without a legitimate reason. The most popular motivator for missing work was the… Read More
Continue ReadingWho is the Toughest? – Part 2
Back in early November I posted on a newsletter article from Workforce Management that middle managers are the most resilient group in the workforce. In one of their late November newsletters they previewed a new study due out in January from Monica Wofford International, a corporate training firm. They found that middle managers are lacking the emotional intelligence to advance into top leadership positions. They also found that middle managers tend to resist coaching as a toll for improving performance. They have piqued my interest and I will be sure to share with you more of what they learned in this study when it is released.
Continue ReadingUsing Email At Work
Emailing from work is a high risk endeavor especially now that company’s are required to store all company emails. Right on cue, CareerBuilder.com offers Netiquette: The Niceties Of Workplace Email Use. They quote a survey with a rather small sample size, but there is a surprising statistic: A 2006 survey of 416 companies by the ePolicy Institute in Columbus, Ohio, concludes that 26% of them have fired employees for inappropriate email conduct. That’s up from 21% in 2001. I have seen some egregious emails come from corporate email accounts. I have also dealt with many candidates who use their company email to converse with me regarding a job opportunity. I… Read More
Continue ReadingPresenteeism?
Sick? Your Boss Wants You to Stay Home, Survey Says. Did we really need a survey for this? I have never encountered the word presenteeism: 56 percent of employers now report that “presenteeism,” when sick employees show up for work, is a problem for them.Just 39 percent said that in a survey two years ago. We may need to add a new category to The Hire Sense . . . epidemic. I had to mention this article to reveal a company secret – The Rock Star suffers from presenteeism.
Continue ReadingCEO’s and Shareholder Value
A quick story from the Pioneer Press – Early exit cuts Stroucken pay package. The departing CEO of H.B. Fuller located north of St. Paul is taking a compensation package with him worth $18.5 million. The article simply states: The news release noted Stroucken is receiving $4 million less than he would have had if he had stayed through the March 31, 2007, the end of his contract. There is something you don’t see too often in today’s world – a CEO who could have made much more had he completed his contract that ends in 6 months. Obviously, he is leaving with a lucrative compensation package, but here is… Read More
Continue ReadingFlexibility and Loyalty
More from the work-life front of management: Flexibility with holiday schedules can boost worker loyalty. Absolutely true. I know, many people will comment about the abusers of such flexibility. You know, if they are abusers, they are currently applying their trade to some other area of your business. Best not to punish the upright workers due to the deceivers. Here is a good reminder for managers any time of the year: First, an owner needs to have the attitude that a worker’s personal life matters, even if the staff is small and there’s plenty of work to be done. So true of the younger generations no matter what the season.… Read More
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