Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom Alignment A Critical Variable in Performance

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom Alignment A Critical Variable in Performance ITMPresident andHR Bartenderblogger Sharlyn Lauby recently discussed the current war for skilled talent. “It’s a candidate-driven market,” she said. “Finding the right people for the job is becoming increasingly difficult. The worst situation is when a company gets a new piece of business, but doesn’t know if it can deliver the service because it isn’t staffed appropriately.” Many HR professionals already recognized that the current state of performance management, which often involves forced rankings, is untenable. As Lauby said: “You can sell $10 million worth of business and still be the worst salesperson in the company. Instead of talking about performance in the past, we need to shift the conversation to the future.” Twenty-first century performance management must be about tying employees to the business strategy. According to Lauby, there are several opportunities to create alignment, and they arise well before a candidate signs on the dotted line. “Setting performance expectations before a new hire joins helps with engagement, results, and retention,” she said. “You can facilitate this by keeping your job descriptions accurate and up to date, and having an interview process that is collaborative and uses behavioral-based questions.” Alignment should occur at onboarding as well. HR professionals and hiring managers should use the onboarding process to educate employees on how their performance will be measured, and to provide transparency about the performance management process itself. Employee goal-setting, particularly in the form of cascading goals in which individual objectives connect directly to bottom line objectives, is a critical piece of effective modern performance management. Best practices for setting relevant goals include getting buy-in, documenting what you intend to do, phasing goals in over time, monitoring progress, modifying them as appropriate, abandoning goals that no longer make sense, and celebrating those that have been achieved. This last one should not get lost. “People who accomplish goals want to set more of them,” said Lauby. For more of Laubys insights, head over to the SilkRoad blog.

Beach Getaway Check Out These 2019 Summer Beach Reads

Beach Getaway Check Out These 2019 Summer Beach Reads When you’re a working woman, sometimes nothing is better than time off, in peace and quiet with a great new book. With summer on the horizon, full of possibilities for weekend getaways,   we put together this list of 2019 summer beach reads everyone will be adding to their travel bags for a relaxing day by the ocean or lake. Whether its just you or with your besties,   grab your lotion, beach towel, and a couple of your favorite beach reads and enjoy! You, Me, and the Sea by Meg Donohue Merrow Shawe has always known the comfort of her seaside home on the coast of Northern California. Having spent her life with her father and cruel brother, she’s ecstatic when recently orphaned boy Amir comes to live with her family. As the two fall in love, they get mixed up in activities that will force them apart and cause Merrow to question everything she’s ever known about her perfect home. For fans of the classics and Wuthering Heights, Meg Donohue’s new novel will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. The Wedding Party by Jasmine Guillory One of Reese Witherspoon’s favorite authors, Jasmine Guillory returns this summer with a new romance novel about unlikely love. Maddie and Theo have never gotten along but have agreed to put their problems aside for their best friend’s wedding. Having to interact on a regular basis with one another, it’s no surprise when the two realize the attraction between them and soon they’re spending their nights together and contemplating where they see their relationship going. With the fear of falling in love lingering, the two will be forced to make a decision about their future together. The Escape Room by Megan Goldin If you’re looking for a book that will shock you from beginning to end, you need to put The Escape Room at the top of your summer reading list. When four Wall Street executives sign up for an escape room, they soon learn that something dark is controlling the game. Playing in a game that could cost the colleagues their lives, they now must work together to get out of the escape room alive. But as secrets are exposed and the clues in the game turn deadly, these four rivals will learn who is willing to commit murder in order to survive. Lock Every Door by Riley Sager New York Times bestselling author Riley Sager returns this summer with a thriller that will give you the chills. When Jules Larsen is offered a job at a New York apartment building, the Bartholomew, she jumps at the opportunity to escape her mess of a life. As the new apartment sitter in the building, Jules quickly comes to find that not everything is what it seems at her new home and when another sitter disappears, she becomes weary that those living and working in the building are to blame. But as she tries to track down the missing girl, she finds that her life is also in danger and that she can’t trust anyone around her. A Stranger on the Beach by Michele Campbell This new thriller from Michele Campbell comes with a shocking twist you won’t see coming. Everything in Caroline Stark’s seemingly perfect life comes crashing down when she finds out her husband has been keeping a huge secret from her. Getting revenge, she spends the night with local bartender Aidan and despite her need to end the affair, Aidan begins to believe that they were meant to be together. As Aidan’s behavior towards Caroline becomes obsessive, she begins to fear for her family’s life and before she knows it, her husband is missing with authorities believing he is dead. The Road She Left Behind by Christine Nolfi If you’re looking for a family drama this summer, you’ll love The Road She Left Behind. Wracked with guilt after a car accident that killed Darcy Goodridge’s father and sister, she runs far away from her home with plans of never returning. But eight years later, her nephew has gone missing and without a mother to search for him, Darcy returns to her the place she vowed she’d never see again. Now facing her nephew’s disappearance and issues with her mother head-on, she comes to learn that there’s more to the family’s recent trauma than meets the eye. Uncovering family secrets and coming to terms with the tragic events from her past, Darcy hopes she can find closure in her hometown. Montauk by Nicola Harrison This new historical fiction book is the perfect read for your book club this summer. Beatrice Bordeaux can’t wait to spend the summer reconnecting with her husband but when his job forces him to spend the summer in the city, Beatrice is left to mingle with the high society wives at The Montauk Manor. Feeling like an outcast from the privileged women, she befriends the manor’s laundress who reminds her of the woman she once was. As she comes to appreciate the beauty of Montauk, she falls for a new man who will remind her of a tragic event from her past and remind her of the life she truly wants. Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim Natalie Tan’s dreams were crushed when her mother told her she wouldn’t support her dreams of being a professional chef seven years ago. Now traveling back to her home in Chinatown after the death of her mother, Natalie is shocked when she learns that she has inherited her grandmother’s restaurant. Apprehensive about restoring the restaurant and bringing business back to the community, a new love interest and friendship will make Natalie realize that she owes it to the neighborhood to make the business a success once again. This magical realism novel is a touching book about new beginnings and finding your true home. The Printed Letter Bookshop by Katherine Reay Madeline Cullen loved her aunt’s bookshop growing up but years later, family discourse leads her to put distance between her and the shop. Just when she thinks she has escaped that part of her history, she learns that she has inherited the shop after her aunt’s passing. Determined to fix the place up and sell it, she’s surprised to learn what an impact the shop has on its employees and the community. Caught between her difficult family history and the need to do the right thing, Madeline makes a decision that will impact her life and her community in this heartwarming novel about friendship and forgiveness by Katherine Reay. Waisted by Randy Susan Meyers Daphne and Alice both seem to have it all but constantly feel like failures due to their insecurities over their weight. Because of their unhealthy obsessions with their bodies, the two women jump at the opportunity to enter a weight loss program in Vermont that promises dramatic results. The catch? They’ll be filmed 24/7 for a documentary. When the women learn that the filmmakers are really just using them for their own wicked experiment, they exact their revenge and take back control of their lives. Any woman who has struggled with body image issues will find hope in this relatable summer read. Honestly, We Meant Well by Grant Ginder From the author of The People We Hate at the Wedding comes a new novel that will have you laughing and crying up until the last page. Sue Ellen Wright has come to terms with the fact that her family is falling apart. On the edge of divorce and her son’s recent indiscretions at school, Sue Ellen knows she needs to help get the family back on track. With this in mind, she takes them to a Greek island for a monthâ€"a place where she once found true love. Experiencing the beautiful place for the first time in years, Sue Ellen hopes this trip will bring her family the new start they are in desperate need of. The Bride Test by Helen Hoang This new romance novel from bestselling author Helen Hoang is one that will both break and mend your heart this summer. Due to Khai Diep’s autism, he is unable to truly feel emotions the way others can. With this in mind, his mother knows that she needs to find him a wife or he may never find true love. Finding Esme, a single mother in Vietnam, Khai’s mother brings her son’s new suitor back to the United States. Before Esme knows it, she’s teaching Khai what it means to love and along the way begins to fall for him despite the fact that he may never be able to feel the same way about her. The Enlightenment of Bees by Rachel Linden Mia West is happy with her picture-perfect life as an apprentice baker in Seattle and then her boyfriend tells her he needs space. With her world now in freefall, she joins her roommate on a trip that will take her across the globe. From Mumbai to Hungary and everywhere in between, Mia begins to finally realize her purpose in life and when it’s time to return to Seattle, she’ll have to decide whether she wants to jump back into her old life or follow her new passion. This romantic adventure is the perfect read to get you in the mood for your summer travels. The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead returns this summer with an impactful read about a dark and oftentimes untalked about time in American history. Elwood Curtis knows that being a young black man in the Jim Crow South is dangerous and avoids trouble as much as possible… until he commits a small offense that lands him in a hellish reform school for boys. Now in a place where young men are abused and often disappear, Elwood tries his best to stay alive and makes a consequential decision that will change his life and history for decades to come. City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert If you loved Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love you’ll want to add her latest fiction read to your bookshelf ASAP. Vivian Morris has just gotten kicked out of Vassar College and her parents have had enough, sending her to live with her aunt in Manhattan. Moving to the city provides Vivian with a new outlet as she gets involved in her aunt’s playhouse and begins to find what she thinks is her rightful place in the world. Just as Vivian begins to feel at home, she makes a mistake that will damage her professional life and the new beginning she worked so hard for. The Last Book Party by Karen Dukess Karen Dukess brings bibliophiles everywhere a unique and riveting literary fiction book this summer with The Last Book Party. Eve Rosen believes her big break has finally arrived after meeting famed New Yorker writer Henry Grey during the summer of 1987. An aspiring writer, Eve cherishes her new job as Grey’s research assistant and the opportunity to finally work in the literary world. But everything is not what it seems and the closer she gets to her dreams, the more she realizes the twisted and complicated truth about the industry. Can she survive this world, or will it eat her alive? Got some other favorite beach reads?   Leave your suggestions in the comments!

The Reformist - a Modern Free Resume Template

The Reformist - a Modern Free Resume Template The Reformist a Modern Free Resume Template Ready to advance your career forward, but need a little kick to get going with resume writing. Don’t start with a black on white Word file. Get yourself a modern resume template instead. The Reformist has everything a successful candidate needs. This design comes with a prominent header and snapshot area. Use it strategically to drop a quick personal branding statement, list your title and contact details. Then you have the sidebar area to layout your key skills and perhaps share some more personal information or a more formal resume objective statement (if you are after a corporate job). Finally, you have the standard work/education sections with plenty of space to dwell on your accomplishments.The particular appeal of this template is that it doesnt cross the line between being too bold, and yet does not appear too plain or boring. So what are you waiting for? Download this template for free in MS Word format and start writing a resume that will get you hired! File size: 181 K B Format: .docx Downloaded 15,752 times License: Free, personal use only. Please read the license terms for resources. Download previous article What Interpersonal Skills You Should List on Your Resume next article Powerful Words to Use in Your Resume you might also likeCadmium Yellow: Simple, Yet Elegant Resume Template

Approaching Your Boss to Change Your Office Space

Approaching Your Boss to Change Your Office Space Don’t like the way your office is set up? Now might be a good time to suggest to your managers that making changes are what is needed to not only improve employee morale, but collaboration as well. If you want to make changes, don’t procrastinate. Instead, make a plan to work efficiently and bring your boss a proposed solution to the office space conundrum. Below are some tips to help you approach your boss about changing your office setup and move towards a solution that will benefit everyone. Do Your Research Before you even propose something to your boss, you need to come up with a plan of action. Do your research about different types of offices, or major companies who have had success in their office arrangements. Cubicles separate people from each other, creating isolation but also allows for focus on work. Open office plans allow for more movement and choices on how they work but could be a danger to attention spans and productivity. Now, major companies are having employees sit in clusters of mixed individuals to create a space for discussion and collaboration. But, this all depends on the type of work you do and the amount of office space you have. Certain configurations will be easier, and cheaper to do than others. Describe What You Want to Do Once you have your plan in place and have done your research, it’s time to approach your boss with your ideas. Provide a general overview to your problem, and showing the impact that a bad office space has on your work, work production, and company goals. Your boss should be impressed by your forward thinking, confidence, and problem solving. Make sure that you stay respectful while you are discussing your potential ideas with your boss, even if they turn you down. Maybe now is not the time, but you can potentially bring up your ideas in the future. Discuss Benefits By focusing your efforts and conversation on concrete examples of your idea’s benefits, you will have a higher chance of being successful. Use examples of Google’s developed office space with a huge list of amenities including free food, collaborative desk spaces, and more. Or how Mozilla has a ‘four work model’ in their office design for focus, collaboration, and social. Or show your boss statistics about how the most employee accommodating companies are some of the most secure, with the happiest employees, and happy employees have great benefits for companies. It has been shown that around $50 billion is lost each year by companies from unproductive employees. At this stage, youve already gone over the specifics of your plan and now it is just about showing the benefits of your plan, and any results you have found.   Identify Your Solution Explain to your boss that you have already tried to figure out the problems and present your office space solutions. You can recommend the approach you think is best, along with some alternatives to give your manager options. Clearly defining each option, giving your opinion as well as pros and cons, and discussing any risks or barriers is key to showing your boss that youve considered all the possible outcomes. Be explicit about how your ideas of changing the office space will have far reaching effect on the goals of the company. Accept Responsibility After you have had this discussion with your manager and they hopefully liked your idea and are willing to make changes, they may want you to take over implementing your plan. This is a great way for you to not only demonstrate your commitment to ensuring the success of your company, but also your leadership skills, because you will probably need help if you are restructuring a whole office. Working with your manager and other employees to develop and final plan of action will help you not only collaborate, but take advantage of the opportunities you have presented. Article Photos Courtesy of: USC, “Psychology of the Office Space” Infographic.

Top Resume Reviews - How to Find Top Resume Reviews

Top Resume Reviews - How to Find Top Resume ReviewsHaving top resume reviews can be very helpful if you want to land a job or just look for an appropriate job. These reviews are very common but not as popular as they should be. With the knowledge of how and why you should look for these reviews, you should have a clear idea of what to look for.First, you need to find out what good and bad reviews are out there. Do a simple Google search for it. The other thing you want to do is to find out who is doing the reviewing. You should be able to tell if the review is favorable or not by looking at the contact information on the site.Second, what kind of resume is being reviewed? This is a pretty important point because some reviews will list down a very specific type of resume, such as executive, executive-level, or even executive coach. If you don't see that on the review, that doesn't mean that you shouldn't try a different one.Third, what is the length of the resume? This will help you n arrow down the review that you're looking at. You also want to make sure that the review offers it for free so that you can take their advice and create a professional resume that will show you off and attract the employer's attention.Fourth, some resume reviews only review one resume. If this is the case, you may be better off to look at a few different resumes before making a decision. This way, you'll be able to compare your resume to the others and get some of the best resume ideas for yourself. But again, you should never base your resume entirely on one review because you might end up going the wrong direction.Fifth, what is the tone of the resume? There are some websites that are very obvious to tell you what they think of the resume. If you're going to be using these to make your resume, you may want to start off with a generic one. If you do that, you might be better off using a different kind of website for your resume.Finally, the final point is to make sure that you unde rstand what they mean by 'review'. This means different things to different people. If you're not sure about the content of the review, it's probably best to skip it. If you know what they mean by it, you can move forward with it and see if it helps you land the job you want.These five points are all very important and should be taken into consideration when you are looking for resume reviews. These tips will help you decide which kind of resume is the best for you and whether or not the review you are looking at is one-sided or not. Do not let the lack of review stop you from creating a great resume for you!

How To Give Your Boring Executive Resume Some Style

How To Give Your Boring Executive Resume Some Style How To Give Your Boring Executive Resume Some Style The first rule of resumes is that Content is KING! No matter how snazzy your resume looks, if your content doesn’t convey value it’s unlikely to generate job interviews. That said, having a well formatted resume infused with some style can help set you apart from your competition. When it comes to formatting, the biggest problem with DIY resumes is sloppiness. This is often seen in inconsistent bullets, employment dates that have migrated across the page, and teeny, tiny or weird fonts that no one can read. Generally DIY resumes also don’t convey value. They don’t demonstrate the impact youve had on your employers. Poor formatting makes them worse. There are tons of articles (here’s one by me) that can help you create compelling content. Today, the subject is formatting. Here are 6 ways to ensure your resume is easy-to-read and infused with a bit of personality and style. Avoid large blocks of text and long lists of bullets. Instead provide a brief summary of each position followed by 3 to 5 bulleted achievements. Choose easy to read Sans Serif fonts for the body of the resume. Ariel, Calibri, and Verdana are good choices. Never use Times New Roman. Select a font size of 10 or 11 to ensure readability and read a printed version to be sure. If the resume runs over 2 pages cut the content, never decrease the font to 9. Use color and shading as design elements. Dark colors work well for names and headings. Lighter colors work best for highlighting and shading. Go to the Borders and Shading section to add lines differentiating the sections of your resume. Add some shading to lines for a more formal effect. Tailor color use to your industry. For example, grey and black for a senior executive in the financial industry, brighter colors for more creative fields. When it comes to your resume, content that immediately conveys value is the most important component. An eye-catching design is icing on the cake. Think of it in terms of a job interview. Your goal during a job interview is to sell yourself, show what you have to offer, well enough to be invited back for the next interview. While wearing a 10-year old suit may not prevent you from moving forward, it certainly won’t help you either. This also is true for your resume.   Particularly, once you reach the executive level or are targeting those roles. At that point in your career, a resume that you show your friends with the caveat that you just threw it together wont cut it. An easy-to-ready, eye-catching resume that clearly demonstrates your value will help you outshine your toughest competition. Updated 3/18/19.

Maximizing Interview Chemistry Connection Part 2 - Hire Imaging

Maximizing Interview Chemistry Connection â€" Part 2 - Hire Imaging This is a continued post around the important role chemistry plays in interviewing. Interview Chemistry: What is It? I’ve been a career coach for many years. I listen to what people are telling meâ€"on both sides of the interview process. Some things have changed, influenced by technology, economics and well, change itself. Some things have not. Chemistry and connection have not. Chemistry and connection boil down to people liking people. Feeling comfortable with one another. Feeling that this could go to the next level. Here are two more tips as gleaned from simply listening to what those who hire are saying: Interview Chemistry: 2 Important Tips Cast the right image. Building chemistry has much to do with attitude and image. Psychologists tell us that the way we expect to be treated affects the way we are treated. So, it would make sense to shape expectations about every interview.     I hear consistently from those on the hiring end that they often reach a positive or negative decision within the first five minutes of an interview. This is often referred to as the halo and pitchfork effects.   Why is this true? Assuming you’re a candidate with the right credentials for the job, you either create a good initial impression or you don’t. What affects this chemistry?     Basically, people silently react to the image you project: how you dress, your posture and body language, the things you say about any subject, and the way you answer questions. What kind of image do you think you project? After all, each of us is continually projecting some kind of image. And although your physical appearance “speaks” b efore you say a word, this image reaches beyond. It’s conveying an attitude of enthusiasm, integrity and confidence without arrogance. Give sincere compliments. Do you like receiving compliments? Honestly, don’t most of us? So, before the interview, read or talk to people about the organization and uncover some good things to say. In the first few minutes, let the interviewer know that you heard good things.     Showing you know something about the company is a “third-party compliment,” where you’re passing on good news you’ve heard from others. You can praise their physical premises, their people, their marketing, their service, their products, or other things. It’s important to be specific. Don’t just say that people you know are impressed by the product. Talk about why they are impressed. All of us like to hear the particulars around what others like about us professionally. By giving details, you show that you have given the subject some thought, and that your compliment is not just patronizing or empty flattery.     Yes; while social media or a recession economy might inf luence our job search, chemistry-based connection in an interview has always been there. That right image and sincere flattery backed by knowledge and sprinkled with integrity, have always mattered in an interview. My next and final tips on this subject will cover how questioningâ€"both those you ask and are askedâ€"can build interview chemistry and connection. If you missed Tips #1 and #2, here they are. Do you have any experiences or ideas you’d like to share on projecting the right image or paying compliments in an interview situation? Never wear a backward baseball cap to an interview unless applying for the job of umpire.” ~ Dan Zevin Photo:   Lewis Minor