February 17, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/17/2006 09:25:00 PM 0 comments

February 15, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/15/2006 09:25:00 PM 0 comments

Resume Writing and Cover Letter Tips

Ian Christie has been posting a series on resumes and the job search, over at . Lots of good advice to help the job hunter gain an edge in the search process.

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posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/15/2006 09:22:00 PM 0 comments

February 14, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/14/2006 09:27:00 PM 0 comments

February 09, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/09/2006 09:25:00 PM 0 comments

February 07, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/07/2006 09:24:00 PM 0 comments

February 06, 2006

10 Conversations That Can Transform Your Workplace

by Tom Terez

I'll bet there's plenty of conversation in your workplace -- about today's tasks, about that rush order, about that sudden snag, about the project that should have been done yesterday. But do you and your colleagues ever step off the task treadmill and talk about the workplace itself? If you work full time until retirement age, you're going to log at least 90,000 hours on the job. Doesn't it make sense to spend a few of those hours teaming up with co-workers to figure out how to make the workplace better?

Sure it does, but that only sparks more questions: What exactly should you talk about? How do you keep the conversation from turning into a gripe session? Is there a way to make meaningful discoveries instead of talking on and on about the obvious?

That's what this Top 10 list is all about. It gives you thought-provoking questions guaranteed to open up worthwhile conversation about your workplace. Share the list with colleagues, select the one or two questions that seem most relevant, then set aside some time to talk. There are no right or wrong answers, and you don't need a full day for this. Just an hour or so of dialogue, with ears and minds wide open, will deepen everyone's understanding and point the way to practical improvement.

1. Mind-engaging work
When was the last time you got so caught up in interesting work that you lost track of time? What were you doing? What was it -- about the work itself, how you were going about it, its connection to a greater good -- that made this such a wonderfully consuming activity?

2. Seeing the fruits of your labor
When you want to see the results of your work, what do you look at? How do you know that your effort is having a positive impact? If you could wave a wand and instantly create a more meaningful system for tracking results, what would it look like?

3. Positive problems
John W. Gardner observed, "We are continually faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems." What is your biggest insoluble problem? What makes it so tough to tackle, and what is the great opportunity that lies within? How would you go about pursuing this opportunity if you divided the challenge into manageable steps?

4. Meetings, meetings, and more meetings
How many hours do you spend each week in meetings? How many of these hours are well spent, and how many are wasted? If you could redirect that unproductive time to worthwhile activity, what would you do?

5. The voice of the customer
When your customers talk about your organization behind your back, what do you think they say? Who has the highest praise, who is most critical, and why? Now think about your own immediate customers: When they talk about you personally (and you know they do!), what do they likely say?

6. The community-individuality balance
What gets greater emphasis in your workplace: teamwork and togetherness, or individuality and diversity? If it's teamwork and togetherness, does the pursuit of unity prompt people to downplay their differences? If individuality and diversity are the main focus, does the workplace ever feel like a loose collection of conflicting styles and agendas? What can be done to maintain a good balance between unity and uniqueness?

7. From passive complaints to positive action
What is your biggest complaint about the workplace? Now, rephrase it in the form of a positive goal. Here's an example: "I'm tired of busywork. I spend half my day crunching numbers that no one looks at." Here's the corresponding positive goal: "I'd like to spend my time on work that relates to our mission and affects our customers. If my number-crunching has real value, I'd like to know exactly how." After defining the goal, think action: What can you and others do to make it happen?

8. Giving and getting respect
Johann von Goethe said, "The way you see people is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is what they become." What did Goethe mean, and how does this play itself out in your workplace? What could be done right now to make respect one of the workplace's greatest strengths?

9. Can we talk?
Is there an elephant in your workplace -- a big problem or concern that no one ever talks about? Something that's well-known to all and in desperate need of dialogue? If so, why is the elephant so unacknowledged? What are the risks of talking about it? What are the potential benefits?

10. Empowering yourself
"If I had just a bit more authority at work, I would _____." Fill in the blank with several actions you'd like to take right now to be more effective in your job. Then explore why you can't. What's holding you back? What is the one action you can get started on right now?


ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tom Terez is a speaker, workshop leader, and author of 22 Keys to Creating a Meaningful Workplace. His Web site, http://BetterWorkplaceNow.com, is filled with tools for building a great work environment. Write to Tom@BetterWorkplaceNow.com or call 614-571-9529.

Copyright 2003 by Tom Terez

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posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/06/2006 09:44:00 AM 0 comments

February 05, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/05/2006 09:30:00 PM 0 comments

Preventing Workplace Violence

George has linked to some articles on the issue of preventing workplace violence, in the post, "Beyond Gun Bans: Understanding and Preventing Workplace Violence."

Alberta Human Resources and Employment has published a guide that can be downloaded in PDF format, "Preventing Violence and Harassment in the Workplace."

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posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/05/2006 03:04:00 PM 0 comments

February 01, 2006

The Art of Recruiting

Guy Kawasaki elaborates on some steps to gaining and retaining quality employees. I have been recruiting, in one capacity or another, for a long time. I have ignored some of these (1, 4, 5, particularly) and paid the price. There are a couple of these (2, 8) that are a tough sell to managers who prefer tried-and-true, hundred-year-old hiring practices.

The art of recruiting is the purest form of evangelism because you're not simply asking people to try your product, buy your product, or partner with you. Instead, you are asking them to bet their lives on your organization. Can it get any scarier for them, and tougher for you, than this?

  1. Hire better than yourself.
  2. Hire infected people.
  3. Ignore the irrelevant.
  4. Double check your intuition.
  5. Check independent references.
  6. Apply the Shopping Center Test.
  7. Use all your weapons.
  8. Sell all the decision makers.
  9. Wait to compensate.
  10. Don't assume you're done.

Read the entire post - The Art of Recruiting

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posted by Ian McKenzie at 2/01/2006 08:54:00 PM 0 comments

January 29, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 1/29/2006 09:24:00 PM 0 comments

January 28, 2006

posted by Ian McKenzie at 1/28/2006 09:24:00 PM 0 comments