Guest Article: How probation should be assessed by Ross Clennett

Last week Greg Savage spoke at the RCSA 2015 International Conference on the topic of 'The DNA of the Recruiter of the Future'.   Greg finished with two key messages:  1. Always be hiring 2. The people with the best people will win. Do you have the best people?   I agree strongly with both of these points. The second point has been one of the core
Article source:Ross Clennett - How probation should be assessed»

Check out more of Ross Clennett's work at hisblog

Guest Article: Innovation Judo (Book Review) by Ben

I’ve been reading like crazy lately and have had trouble keeping up with my reviews. Usually it’s even worse: I have no time to read all the books and they just pile up around me. This time around I picked up Innovation Judo: Disarming Roadblocks and Blockheads on the Path to Creativity by Neal Thornberry, PhD (Amazon). I’m a sucker for innovation-focused stuff, and this was definitely a great read on that front. A few good pieces I pulled from the book:

• Incentives: Want to encourage innovation? Make sure your incentive pay aligns with what you’re trying to promote. Rewarding someone with a movie ticket when they saved the company $10,000 isn’t going to promote additional innovations (or it better be the most awesome movie ever).
• NIH is poisonous: The “not invented here” mentality that many organizations espouse is a dangerous one. It ultimately leads to more silos and less innovation. Procter & Gamble used to be very closed off, and the book talks about how the business was losing millions of dollars annually due to that sentiment. Now it requires 50% of new ideas to come from outside the company, and it wants to increase it to 80%. That’s a powerful shift and a reason why the company still stands strong year after year.
• Wackiness: We run into this all the time. People make decisions that make no rational sense and ultimately end up breaking something or causing more work. That can even be the CEO in some cases. Thornberry talks about how nobody wants to tell CEO they are making bad decisions. The good thing is that in the end it usually falls to HR, which can be an opportunity to improve the value of the CEO-HR relationship.

Bottom line

Innovation is about more than sitting in a room “brainstorming” ideas like “we should use less paper in our new hire applications” or “maybe we could print front and back to save money on costs.” It can be a serious differentiator between you and the competition. If you are looking to improve the quality and quantity of innovation your organization is producing, I’d encourage you to check out Innovation Judo by Neal Thornberry, PhD. Get your copy here.

See other book reviews about HR, leadership, and more.

Article source:Ben - Innovation Judo (Book Review)»

Check out more of Ben Uebanks' work at Upstart HR

Guest Article: Bound to Fail by Jay Kuhns, SPHR

I think it’s interesting that we default human nature to negative behavior. Think about it for a minute. People take the easiest path…and it’s human nature. Employees do just enough to get by…and it’s human nature. Leaders sit back and avoid conflict because….well…it’s human nature.

And we almost expect things in life to go poorly…we’re bound to fail…it’s human nature.

I’m calling B.S. on human nature. There is a huge difference between courage (which is the human nature I prefer) and laziness. Laziness is not human nature…it’s a choice…it’s an excuse…and makes people look like fools.

Self-Confidence First

When was the last time you heard someone characterize a leader’s courageous style as their “human nature?” We all know…albeit only a few leaders…whose courage seems to come naturally. 

They have no fear when it comes to trying new strategies. They don’t worry about consequences the way we think they should. 

They are rule breakers…they don’t care about norms…they just see endless possibilities.

It’s in their nature.

Bound to Win

So how do we move from “life is horrible” to “I am so committed to helping my organization win that I’ll try anything?” What is the secret that moves us from the hapless masses that quite candidly are a waste of our time…to moving in to the rarefied air of being confident, fearless, and loaded with so much courage we scare those around us?

The answer is quite simple…but the execution is difficult for most. Corporate pressure and politics cloud our ability to think clearly. They become derailers that move us away from winning for our organizations. You must do what you are scared to do…what you think is too politically complicated…and what may compromise your position. 

Others may mock you along the way. So what?

Others may openly question if you’re doing the right things. So what?

You may even end up feeling quite alone along the path to progress.  So what?

How About You

You are NOT bound to fail. You are bound to take risks…to try new things…and make a real difference.

Do not falter.

Do not look back.

Do not rejoin the hordes of leaders stuck in 1995.

Lead. Today.

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses. 

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Article source:Jay Kuhns, SPHR - Bound to Fail»

Check out more of Jay Kuhns' work at No Excuses HR

Protecting your ‘corporate memory’ when your more experienced employees leave

Corporate memory, often referred to as organisational memory, is the umbrella of information and knowledge accumulated by an individual employee during the course of their employment. This information can be a collection of data relevant to the organisation or specific knowledge pertaining to the overall running and effectiveness of the organisation. More importantly, this wealth of knowledge may have been accumulated through various organisations within the same industry, thus adding to its value. This knowledge allows current and future employees to better understand the context that they are operating in and ensure that history does not repeat itself – all the while increasing your competitive advantage. Every effort should be made to maintain and retain your Corporate Memory as your competitive advantage may be based on it. 

Reasons why it is lost:

• Downsizing
• Retirement
• Poor organisational design
• Unappreciated value of corporate knowledge
• HR performance reviews and job design specialists routinely miss the usefulness of insights gained from experience. 

What could be done to keep it:

• Promote a collective and shared mentality for corporate knowledge
• Try to document knowledge
• When people are leaving the organisation, interview or survey them to identify and record corporate knowledge. - This can effectively be incorporated into your existing exit interviews. 
• Human Resource staff members can implement an annual corporate knowledge process. The aim of this is to collect and then share the insights of corporate knowledge across the workplace.
• A review of procedures by more experienced employees would allow for their experience of what works and what does not work to be brought to the forefront of the business.
• For more senior roles within the business, it is essential that there is a substantial cross-over period where one employee mentors the newer employee. This needs to be executed until enough essential knowledge and information has been passed on to allow the newer employee to effectively meet role requirements.
• Most importantly, information must be found, captured and shared. And, experiences should be shared if they are hard to document.

Web based solutions such as products by HarQuen provide an effective means of collecting, storing and sharing with others in the organisation. It can be as simple as a recorded snippet of conversation with a golden insight, or a short video made by an employee sharing their insights into their role over the years. Insights are then easily shared between employees ensuring individual insights reach the wider organisation and make a difference to the roles of employees across the board. For more information visit the free demo page for VoiceAdvantage, or get in touch with PsychPress on (03) 9670 0590 or email info@psychpress.com.au.  

Guest Article: Weekly reMix Holiday Edition by Melissa Fairman

This weekend Americans and Canadians are celebrating Labor Day, the book end to the summer marked by barbecues (I’m slow roasting a pork), beer (in my case a lovely glass of wine) and parades.

 

Many people have forgotten the real reason for the holiday: a day off work to celebrate the workers, who in our past worked in brutal conditions, long hours and with no minimum wage. This short video give you a fresh reminder of how the holiday came to pass and a friendly reminder that we still have progress to make (scroll down skip the video and see what I read this week):

 

 

Here is what I read this week:

 

On The Social Front:

The Most Buzzed-About Social Recruiting Posts of the Week – via ERE Media

New SHRM Survey Shows Growing Reach of Hiring From Social Media – via John Zappe at TLNT

New SHRM Survey Shows Growing Reach of Hiring From Social Media via TLNT

 

On Being Better HR Pro’s:

Stop Telling Us to Blow Up HR: Give us real advice or go home – via Laurie Ruettimann

Is De-Skilling a Threat to Safety in the Workplace? Via Aubrey Daniels Blog

When Was the Last Time You Changed Someone’s Life?  – via Cost of Work

 

On the Legal Front:

Can You Legally Fire an Alcoholic Who Doesn’t Request Treatment? Via Eric Meyer at The Employer Handbook.

 

In the there-is-life-after-HR space:

Relax, Turn Off Your Phone, and Go to Sleep via HBR

How Making Time for Books Made Me Less Busy via HBR

What Would You Have Done in Nazi Germany? – via Penelope Trunk

 

Staying calm in the face of annoying/angry/irritation people front:  

10 Ways to Keep Cool and Composed – via Great Leadership by Dan

My CoWorker Keeps Making Snide Comments About My Hours – via Ask A Manager

 

And a little bit of HR humor to wrap up your week:

What HR Say and What We Really Mean – via Change Effect

 

Article source:Melissa Fairman - Weekly reMix Holiday Edition»

Check out more of Melissa Fairman's work at HR Remix

Guest Article: Lessons in success: Do the work; the hard work most others won't do by Ross Clennett

I am on Hamilton Island for the 2015 RCSA Conference as I write this. Speaking at the conference will be a person I know very well: Sue-Ellen Watts. Attending the conference, but not speaking (as she has done previously), will be Nicole Underwood, a person I also know very well.  Sue-Ellen and Nicole were my first two clients, after I opened my coaching doors in 2004. At the time of each
Article source:Ross Clennett - Lessons in success: Do the work; the hard work most others won't do»

Check out more of Ross Clennett's work at hisblog

Tools and Strategies for Effective Job Hunting

It’s always a toss-up between spending time on an application and applying for more jobs. The truth is that many people miss out on securing employment because they simply aren’t able to meet the application deadlines or do not allow sufficient time to submit quality applications.

There are many tools available to help you manage your job-seeking-presence online. Here are some tools and strategies that you can implement to help you through the stressful time that is job hunting.

Strategy #1: Allocate time
One of the hardest things about job hunting is getting started. One of the easiest places to start, however, is by making lists and scheduling time. Allocate time in your calendar to job hunting and make it a part of your routine. The more you practice applying for jobs, the more it will become like second nature. It is important to allocate time to this task to ensure you give yourself the permission to work solely on job hunting, and not do anything else. In addition to allocating time, set targets and goals to help motivate you and keep you on track.

Tool #1: Subscribe to job alerts
Nowadays, all job seeking websites have tools to help you manage your online job-seeking-presence. Subscribing to job alerts is a great way to get the right jobs, that are relevant to you sent straight to your inbox. This will save you time from heading to multiple places to see what is out there. It will also help you stay up-to-date with jobs as they are placed out into the market.

Strategy #2: Create the best online profile possible
Job boards generally allow you to create a 'Job Seeker' or 'Applicant Profile'. This allows you to pre-upload your resume so as soon as you see a job that you like; making it quick and easy to apply for that job. Creating an online profile also allows employers to find you when they are actively searching for the right candidate. To improve the effectiveness of your application, use key words that are common in your Allied Health profession.

Tool #2: Organise your skills
Each application should be adapted to suit the job role and company, which can be a time-consuming process. Make this process easier by organising your skills (e.g. in an excel spreadsheet) so that you can easily link the skills you have with how you demonstrate them and the type of jobs that require these skills.

These steps will help make the job search easier in the midst of a busy schedule. Remember, it's never too early to start the process of finding your next great role! For more information relevant to you, check out the Career Advice section on Career Exchange.