Saturday, December 28, 2019

Patience Is More Than a Virtue

Patience Is More Than a VirtuePatience Is More Than a VirtueFinding the key to long-term success in the job search - and in life.Some people dig for gold. Others dig for oil. I like to dig for habits that people use to achieve success over an extended period of time. Im interested in how Warren Buffett started with ten dollars and built a fortune worth tens of billions of dollars. Im interested in how Ayn Rand and fruchtmark Twain wrote great novels over a period of several decades. Im interested in how Steve Jobs dropped out of college because he didnt think his parents should have to bear that expense and ended up building extraordinary products over four decades. I get excited any time I learn about a person who has achieved greatness over a long span.Three common denominators I have found among all of these intriguing examples is that they all sustained patience, effort, and learning.Sustain PatienceEvery long-term success story Ive ever studied has patience at its core.No matte r how much it seems like an overnight success there is always a period of preparation where the person or group struggled to find their way and master the art of what they were doing. Everywhere I turn Im reminded of this idea.I went to apple.com to look at what Apple is up to these days. The iPad 2 is an absolute mind-boggling product. It is the latest reminder that Steve Jobss vision from the late 1970s has come true over and over and over again. He set out to make amazing products when he was very young, and he has done so on a consistent basis for four decades.My wife, Barb, and I took our kids, Sarah and Ben, to Hannibal, Missouri for a quick two-day getaway over Spring Break. (Barb wont let me call it an official vacation.) I loved it. Hannibal is about 85 miles from my house and is the childhood home of fruchtfleisch Twain. As usual, I didnt fully understand the treasures we have so close to home until I went and looked at them as an adult. Mark Twain was really the first gre at American novelist who wrote true American novels. Ernest Hemingway wrote, All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn.Samuel Clemens, known as Mark Twain, started his writing career at the age of 27 and didnt write The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn until he was 50. Thats 23 years of focused effort to produce his masterpiece.In his 2011 Letter to Shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett wrote, The pace of the earths movement around the sun is not synchronized with the time required for either investment ideas or operating decisions to bear fruit. At GEICO, for example, we enthusiastically spent $900 million last year on advertising to obtain policyholders who deliver us no immediate profits. If we could spend twice that amount productively, we would happily do so though short-term results would be further penalized. Many large investments at our railroad and utility operations are also made with an eye to payoffs well down th e road.I love that prozentsatz because it reinforces the idea that patience is at the heart of long-term success. You simply cant assume that an investment you make today is going to pay off for you this quarter or this year.I believe that at the heart of sustaining patience is an overwhelming sense of purpose. You have to know why you are doing what you are doing. Its the only way to maintain a high enough degree of passion to remain patient through the good times and the bad times. There are only three sources of great passion that I know of. You either have to love what you do, love who you do it for, or both. Take out a sheet of paper and answer this question, Why am I doing what I am doing? For Steve Jobs it was, and is, to make great products that can change the world. For Warren Buffet it was, and is, to invest in incredibly well-managed companies that he can understand.Sustain EffortMy dad used to say a lot, Good things come to those who wait, but he also said a lot, Go do y our homework. He meant it. Patiently waiting for success is important, but working toward it on a consistent basis is also important. You dont know when your breakthrough is going to happen, but it isnt going to happen if you dont work for it on an on-going basis.Write down the names of five individuals, groups, or organizations whom you believe have achieved long-term success. Then go research their stories. Look at what they did for ten years prior to their first major success. Then look at what they did over the next ten years. Keep digging for the details of their story. I believe you will find what I have found they all worked in a very focused manner both before and after their first major achievement.Sustain LearningHeres the last piece of the three-legged stool for sustaining success that I want to focus on today keep learning all the time. I find it very difficult to go through even one day without learning at least one idea.My son, Ben, has a fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Gri mm, who has 23 students every day and goes home every night to her seven children. You read that correctly. She taught me that you have to be organized in everything you do. Nothing can be left to chance.Ive been reading two books this month called Working Days by John Steinbeck, which is his diary while writing The Grapes of Wrath, and The Art of Fiction by Ayn Rand, which is about how to write a full-length novel. From Steinbeck I learned the importance of piling on the details until a picture emerges and the importance of pushing yourself to stay focused all the way to the end of the book. From Rand I learned the enormous importance of establishing clear premises for every character, every scene, and the book as a whole. This learning is all for a business novel that I hope to finish and have published over the next two years. Remember that parte about patience and effort?Choose something in your life that you want to improve at and focus on learning how to do it better. Stay pat ient and keep pouring in the required effort.

Monday, December 23, 2019

Drip Marketing Best Practices for Recruiters

Drip Marketing Best Practices for Recruiters Drip Marketing Best Practices for Recruiters More companies are coming to the realization that sales and recruiting havequite a bit in common.Outside of the obvious audience variation potential customers vs. prospective employees the two fieldsshare a preponderance of similarities. So why have the tools for recruiting and sales been so distinctively different for so long? Well, thanks to savvy tech developments in sourcing, recruiting, and overall HR tech, thats changing. Drip marketing is one such toolquickly emerging as a recruiters best friend. While drip marketing is automated communication, recruiters can use this powerful tool to routinely follow up with interested candidates, driving an increased response rate while saving precious time. Recruiters who arent leveraging drip marketing practices are missing out on over 80 percent of potential responses to subsequent follow-up on initial outreach, based on internal research condu cted by TalentBin by Monster. Heres how recruiters can best use drip marketing and delivertop talent totheir organizations.Remain Top of MindRecruiters are constantly building up their networks, and it can be difficult to connect with candidates on a regular basis. Drip marketing can help recruiters achieve this by allowing them to set up campaigns to automatically and regularly check in with candidates. That way, recruiters canmora easily stay on top of their growing networks. Far too often in recruiting, recruiters get so busy that they drop the ball and forget to follow up. This should not betaken lightly, and candidate follow-up should not beallowed to fall through the cracks. Drip marketing will allow recruiters to ease that burden for themselves while staying on top of candidates minds.Customization Is KeyRecruiters can customize their drip marketing campaigns to target candidates with a variety of different techniques and strategies. To allow for more focused communication, r ecruiters can group candidates together by stage and industry, triggering different themes for drip marketing campaigns which can also be further customized by factoring in company culture or the nuances of specific job roles. Use this communication to sell the company or role to candidates using different points of interest each time. If successful, you will engage candidatesin more of a two-way conversation.Keep It on the Same ThreadRecruiters have the option to set up communication to engage and even more importantly reengage with candidates on the same thread.Following up on the same thread will give the impression that the messages are not automated and that it is a more authentic conversation one that is two-way and that acknowledges previous dialogue. This also makes it easierfor the passive candidate to view the recruiters original, customized message, which details the specifics of the position and the reason why the recruiter thinks the candidate would be a good fit. T his is particularly important for intermittent conversations that occur over longer periods of time.When done correctly, drip marketing can make quite an impact. A strong drip marketing campaign can be an effective tool for both corporate recruiters and agency recruiters. With the corporate recruiter, each message is a chance to elaborate on why the candidate should come work at theircompany, highlighting company culture, career growth opportunities, exciting challenges, and job role fits. For the agency recruiter, drip marketing is agreat way to keep candidates warm over time, build more meaningful relationships with key talent, and stay on their radars for future roles and referrals.In a live test with 50 candidates in a drip marketing program, only 17.65 percent of candidate responses came to the first, heavily customized email, which is a respectable response rate (due to the heavy customization of the content, as opposed to generic, non-relevant outreach). However, 26 percent c ame on the second email, 24 percent came on the third email, and a whopping 32 peercent came on the final I guess youre not interested email in the drip program. Of course, a drip marketing program can be much longer, depending on the amount of content you have, but this was just a basic case study. Still, 82 percent of responses came after the first message, underscoring the importance of this sort of follow-up in this case, a follow-up that was automated in nature.Drip marketing campaigns provide a compelling candidate experience thatdrives candidate responsiveness and brings individuals down the hiring funnel, all with little to no additional incremental work on the part of recruiters. The key here is this a drip, a strategically timed and friendly reminder to those passive candidates, without being intrusive. You can keep your pipeline fresh by reaching out with a great initial message, followed by a steady flow of additional selling points while drastically increasing your res ponse rates and saving hours of your time. All of the content will be curated by you and will get you closer to the talent youre most invested in developing relationships with. Do you want to be first in mind for those candidates that will drive success and innovation in your company? Then consider turning on drip marketing to create a steady stream of incoming talent.

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

How to not take workplace disagreements personally

How to not take workplace disagreements personallyHow to not take workplace disagreements personallyWhen someone at work says something that you think is wrong, you face a choice speak up or bite your tongue and risk the feeling festering into resentment. Although many of us shy away from conflict in the workplace, disagreeing with your colleagues and managers can actually be healthy for teams. When its done right, it promotes a positive work culture where everyone knows theyre welcome at the table. But to get to that point, you need to understand how to professionally disagree.Arguing your case at work begins with not seeing an argument as a battleground with you versus your colleague or boss. A good outcome doesnt mean winning the argument, it means finding a solution that benefits the team. It means staying polite and respectful, even when you dont feel that way. Heres how to speak up to your co-workers and managers with that mindset.What employees should be thinkingOnce youve dec ided you need to share your difference of opinion, you may get nervous, especially if youre going to be disagreeing with someone more powerful than you. But heres a helpful pep talk remember that you were hired for your unique perspective. As one human resources manager put it You dont want to hire a bunch of clones.But you do need to tread cautiously. First, think carefully about how youll raise the difference of opinion. Harvard Business Review recommends reframing your idea to make it about whats good for the company, not whats good for you. In the articles case study, a director of operations openly disagreed with his boss about delegating work to staff.Because this employee kept his cool and emphasized that his boss decision had the potential to hurt the firm, his boss listened to him. The lesson? Dont make a work confrontation personal.Its also important to remember that its not always about what you say, but how you say it. So much comes down to tone. As you lay out your argu ment, abflug out by restating the opposing opinion. It shows that you know what youre talking about and that youre not complaining frivolously. Keep your voice as neutral as possible. Take deep breaths and speak more slowly if you feel the argument start to affect your temper. HBR also advises avoiding pejorative words such as short-sighted, foolish, or hasty. If you dont think you can speak without colorful descriptions of judgment, try avoiding adjectives all together. You want to come off as level-headed as possible, so you wont needlessly antagonize your colleague.The ultimate goal when professionally disagreeing is to get the other side to listen to you, and that wont happen if you lose your cool and start yelling.What your manageris probably thinkingIf you want to reach a resolution, its helpful to understand what the other side is thinking.When your boss tells you no, most of the times their rejection of your idea or proposal has nothing to do with you the person, but how you r proposal will affect the organization.Writing in aFast Companyarticle, consultant Jim Morris recommends his employees ask, Are you open to a different opinion on this? before launching ahead with their disagreement. This question lets your manager choose the time and place for an argument and increases the odds of success.In addition, be aware of the optics of the situation before you publicly disagree with your manager. Morris discourages employees from bringing up disagreements in front of clients - not to protect his ego, but to protect the companys identity I dont want the customer to lose faith in our organization.And as always,its better to bring up disagreements in the early stages. No managerlikes to be surprised and I told-you-sos are only useful in middle school cliques. If the disagreement is directly affecting your job on a daily basis, bring it up immediately.Thats how you win in the office by recognizing that everyone is working for the same company. Your methodolog ies may be different, but youre working toward the same goal. Disagreements do not need to result in a win-lose at their best, they can lead to a win-win for all involved.

Friday, December 13, 2019

Here Is a List of Federal Holidays for 2019 and Pay

Here Is a List of Federal Holidays for 2019 and PayHere Is a List of Federal Holidays for 2019 and PayThe Federal Government provides employees with ten paid holidays each year. Private sector employers may provide ansicht holidays off with pay, holidays off without pay, or holiday pay for working on a holiday, but they are not necessarily required to offer any of these options. It depends on the employers company policy regarding holidays. Review a list of federal holidays, dates each holiday will be observed in2019, information on holiday time-off and compensation, extra holiday days off from work, and when you may have to work on a designatedholiday. List of Federal Holidays New Years DayMartin Luther King, Jr. BirthdayWashingtons Birthday(Presidents Day)Memorial DayIndependence Day(4th of July)Labor DayColumbus DayVeterans DayThanksgiving DayChristmas Day In addition, Inauguration Day is a paid federal holiday every four years. It is celebrated onJanuary 20thor the 21st if th e 20th is aSunday. Independence Day is typically called the 4th of July. Washingtons Birthday is designated as such, even though the holiday is commonly known as Presidents Day. Dates of Federal Holidays for 2019 Tuesday, January 1 - New Years DayMonday, January 21 - Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.Monday, February 18 - Washingtons BirthdayMonday, May 27 - Memorial DayThursday, July 4 - Independence DayMonday, September 2 - Labor DayMonday, October 14 - Columbus DayMonday, November 11 - Veterans DayThursday, November 28 - Thanksgiving DayWednesday, December 25 -Christmas Day Observation Days on a Weekend Federal law establishes these public holidays for Federal employees. When a holiday falls on a weekend, the holiday usually is observedon Monday(if the holiday fallson Sunday) orFriday(if the holiday fallson Saturday). Private Sector Private companies are not required to close for holidays, or to payovertimeor holiday pay to their employees for working on a holiday. E ven if they do close, they are not legally required to compensate workers with paid time off. However, companies may have policies that provide for holiday pay or paid time off. In a 2014 survey, the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) ascertained that, of those companies that anticipated offering paid holidays in 2015, the majority intended to observe seven specific federal holidays New Years Day (95%), Memorial Day (94%), the day before Independence Day (60%),Independence Day (76%), Labor Day (95%), Thanksgiving (97%), and Christmas (97%). A smaller percentage of businesses also planned to offer paid time off for Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday (37%), Presidents Day (35%), Columbus Day (16%), and Veterans Day (20%). On average, private companies offered paid holidays for nine of these eleven federal holidays. How Will You Know What Holidays Youre Entitled To? If the company doesnt explain their holiday policy during an interview, it is important to ask when you get ajob offer. Become familiar with the companys policy on holidays so you know your holiday benefits before you accept the job and sign the employment contract, rather than after the fact. You dont want to be surprised when a holiday rolls around and youre asked to work. Extra Days Off The2017 Paid Leave in the Workplace surveyfrom the International Foundation of Employee Benefits reports that some employers provide additional holiday days off includingChristmas Eve (45%) and New Years Eve (23%). Thirteen percent of employers surveyed close their offices and provided a week of paid holiday leave between Christmas and New Years. 48 percent of employers offered a floating holiday day to employees, typically one or two days a year. Employment Status Sometimes your work status determines whether you will be eligible for paid holidays by a private company. Full-time workers and/or workers with seniority are more likely to be allowed paid holidays than part-time employees are. Leve ls of seniority may also determine how many paid holidays your employer is willing to give you each year. Check with the Human Resources department for a list of paid (or unpaid) holidays at your company. Ideally, these should be clearly explained in an official employee handbook. The reason that holiday pay and time off isnt mandated is because the 1938Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)(also called the Wage and Hour Bill) does not require payment for time not worked, such as vacations or holidays. Holiday benefits are generally an arrangement between an employer and an employee, as part of company policy, or as a negotiated agreement between the company and the employees representative, e.g., a union or othercollective bargaining unit. Will You Be Asked to Work? Some workers are more likely than others to be asked to work on a federal holiday, including shift workers, emergency personnel, and those in the healthcare, retail, and service industries. Although there are no legally ma ndated holidays, paid or otherwise, for these and other non-federal workers, employees who have to work because their industry doesnt stop for holidays often have resources at their disposal. For instance, many hospitals have policies that require medical staff to work either Christmas or Thanksgiving, but not both. Furthermore, some organizations will offer holiday pay (time and a half, a bonus, or some other incentive/reward), even though theyre not required to do so. Bottom line to find out where you stand in terms of holidays, youll need to talk to Human Resources or your manager. Dont be shy its perfectly reasonable to want to know when youll be expected to be at work so that you canmake your own plans or coverage requests.

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Why People Arent Talking About How to Format References on a Resume

Why People Arent Talking About How to Format References on a Resume The Debate Over How to Format References on a Resume Even in case you understand very little about references, our forms and automated citation features will lead you through the procedure and tell you exactly what information is necessary. You may use the Source Manager to locate and reuse any source you have created, even sources in different documents. If you have to cite a secondary source, remember to clearly indicate to your audience which you did leid read the main source. If you cite a secondary source be sure you clearly indicate to your audience which you did not read the key source. The Dos and Donts of How to Format References on a Resume You will need a minimum of three business recommendations who can offer valuable insight in your job performance and individual qualities. Its possible to neither cite nor reference a work that you havent read yourself. If youre writing only a couple of documen ts and arent thinking about writing more on the identical subject for quite a while, you may not wish to waste time developing a database of references youre never likely to use. The procedure for designing a template is very lengthy and theres a substantial risk of failure as well since there isnt any guarantee that it is possible to get what it is youre expecting from your effort investment. The Appeal of How to Format References on a Resume The References section on your CV is a critical part which cant be entirely omitted. When you havent already, ask permission from every one of your references. All references ought to be dated within the previous two decades. Your references ought to be in good form. While online sources might be more challenging to obtain all of the citation information for, be certain to incorporate a stable URL or DOI, as well as the date the information was accessed. No info needs to be reported in the abstract that doesnt show up in the text of t he manuscript. Often date information is place on the base of the pages of a web site. Information on websites isnt always easily available. If youre citing a particular entry youll need details on this entry too. The abstract Like other kinds of articles, its required to incorporate a brief summary that provides a general idea about the content of the case report. If it doesnt, your reference to the short article would end after you provide the webpage variety of the post. When youre done youre likely to want to make a list of references. Who Else Wants to Learn About How to Format References on a Resume? All these sources may use the 3-em dash substituted in the area of the authors name. In-text references have to be included following using a prozentanteil or paraphrase taken from another bit of work. For instance, you can bring in a bibliography for each chapter. Things You Wont Like About How to Format References on a Resume and Things You Will If you are searching f or work, then you are going to need references. When you ask a person to offer you a reference, its always a great idea to give them a chance to decline. When youre asked for references, its possible to strategically pick the best people to represent what you would like highlighted for the opportunity, she states. Possessing all your references in 1 place may be huge benefit. Whispered How to Format References on a Resume Secrets Another means is to use exclusive area and earn bibliography style recognise it. Instead of simply concentrating on the content of your paper, you also need to be concerned about how youre write your references. Before you start to compose your paper, be sure you mean to use a uniform heading plan throughout all of your document. The MLA-formatted paper demands a header. Looking at examples of APA format may also be very beneficial. Utilizing an APA paper for internet research demands care and referencing. References The reference part of your p aper will incorporate a list of every one of the sources that you used in your paper. One of the chief benefits of BibTeX, especially for people that write many research papers, is the ability to personalize your bibliography to suit the requirements of a particular publication. Text citations, or paranthetical citations since they are better known, must be shown in a specific format based on the way in which the info is used. A clients individual file wouldnt require a citation because your reader cant go find that information again. Other essential information will be contingent on the source and also on the journal format youre following (your instructor may request that you follow a specific journals format). So once you do, its crucial that you properly and accurately document all of the source materials you have used.

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

What to Expect From Technical Resume Writer?

What to Expect From Technical Resume Writer? How to Choose Technical Resume Writer To find out more on what it requires to be a Technical Consultant, have a look at our complete Technical Consultant Job Description. To find out more on what it requires to be a Technical Writer, take a look at our complete Technical Writer Job Description. The Technical Writer will help to prepare instructional manuals and other important supporting documents which are technically complicated for fruchtwein readers and after that communicates them in a much simpler to understand language. A Startling Fact about Technical Resume Writer Uncovered The attractiveness of ordering a resume service on the internet is that youre leveraging the simplicity and ease of email and the web. Also, listing the technologies employed for each undertaking or each job is not advised. Your resume should consist of the subsequent sections. Scannable resumes need specific page designs because computer scanners ca nt read certain products. Technical Resume Writer Fundamentals Explained Recruiters are going to have better idea of your writing abilities should you actually write complete sentences employing dynamic language. Resume writers arent, in most instances, sitzordnung specialists. For instance, if youre asking for a technical position, be certain to highlight all of your technical expertise and also make certain to show off value-added skills like business sales or marketing experience. You will also wish to include relevant technical keyword phrases that recruiters and HR professionals could possibly be searching for. Other forms of work will just distract the recruiter. It is better to demonstrate your experience and any critical certifications here as well. The Bizarre Secret of Technical Resume Writer Technical writers usually take a college degree together with experience inside their subject of expertise, while its computer science, engineering or web design. You have to know of when the manuals are required. To begin with, you want the training. People must undergo training. Choosing Technical Resume Writer You will have to be specific based on what exactly the job demands of your technical writing abilities. Like all skills, youve got to work on writing to secure much better. You have a particular skill set that is hard to communicate. Finally, you should have excellent writing skills. How to Choose Technical Resume Writer Technical writers and company analysts are almost similar in regard to job descriptions and abilities necessary to work in a specific small business company. For instance, include the particular months and years that you worked at your prior jobs. Tech is famously among the most challenging fields not just to work for, but also to compose resumes. New Questions About Technical Resume Writer Resume writing is a writing discipline unlike many different kinds of writing, and is frequently described as a mixture of business writing and copywriting. Resume builds a very first impression in any interview and ought to be impressive and simple to read. Since youre on the lookout for a technical writer position, be certain to include your preceding title of Technical Writer as part of your preceding job description. If you elect to find a professional resume writer, you will soon realize that most do not own a technical foundation. The writer will work with you until youve got a last draft of the resume youre content with. In the uk and various other nations, a technical writer is often known as a technical author or knowledge author. Technical Resume Writer at a Glance Employers wish to know youre versatile. Some employers may call for a brief proposal which gets scanned into a database. Once you have written a detailed and professional resume proposal, make sure that you study up on the most effective ways to find that resume in the front of the folks who make the hiring decisions. Res ume proposals ought to be targeted to a particular company.

Friday, November 29, 2019

10 Timeless Time Management Techniques

10 Timeless Time Management Techniques10 Timeless Time Management TechniquesEveryone has the same 24 hours in a day, but some people seem to be so much more productive with that time than others. If youre not feeling productive, the usual solution that comes to mind is that you need to manage your time better. You cant really manage time, though, because there are 24 hours in a day, 60 minutes in an hour, 60 seconds in a minute, and that never changes. You can, however, control where and how you spend your time and take actions to reduce or eliminate time wasters. In fact, managing time is really all about managing yourself. Following are ten timeless ways to take control of your schedule each day to make the most of the time you have available. 1) Establish prioritized goals Withoutgoals, you might find that you tend to chase after whatever seems most urgent or is staring you in the face. Its tough not to get distracted by shiny objects. To prevent this, figure out your true you r priorities in life, and move towards them by setting yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily goals or desired outcomes. Rank each of ansicht using the following system Importance (Ahigh, Bmedium, Clow)Urgency (1high, 2medium, 3low) Always work on the most urgent and important goals and tasks (A1) first, and then move on down your list. 2) Follow the 80/20 rule The 80/20 Rule, also known as Paretos Principle, says that 80 percent of your results come from 20 percent of your actions. Its a way to view your time usage, prioritize your chosen tasks against your most important goals. Are you focusing in on the 20 percent of activities that produce 80 percent of your desired results? 3) Learn to Say No When others make requests from you, these tasks may be important to them, but conflict with your most important goals. Especially when its something youd like to do, but simply dont have the time for, it can be very difficult to say no. While its great to be a team player, its also imp ortant to know when and how to be assertive and let the person know you cant handle their request at the moment. If you do agree to take on the task, negotiate a deadline that helps them achieve their goals without sacrificing your own. 4) Overcome Procrastination Usingthe 4D System Delete it What are the consequences of not doing the task at all? Consider the 80/20 rule maybe it doesnt need to be done in the first place.Delegate it If the task is important, ask yourself if its really something that you are responsible for doing in the first place. Can the task be given to someone else? See10 Things a Manager Should Never Delegate.Do it now Postponing an important task that needs to be done only creates feelings of anxiety and stress. Do it as early in the day as you can. DeferIf the task is one that cant be completed quickly and is not a high priority item, simply defer it. 5) Eat the Frog FromBrian Traceys book, Eat That Frog, If the first thing you do each morning is to e at a live frog, you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that that is probably the worst thing that is going to happen to you all day long. Your frogs each day are the tasks that will have the greatest impact on achieving your goals, and the tasks that you are most likely to procrastinate starting. 6) Reduce the Number of Meetings Poorly run meetings are time wasters, multiplied by the number of people in the meeting. See How to Lead a Team Meeting. 7) The Glass Jar Rocks, Pebbles, Sand, and Water Categorize your tasks in this way, then tackle the rocks first. If you keep tackling the small things (the sand, pebbles, and water), and not the important strategic items, the rocks, then your jar will quickly fill up with no room for more rocks. 8) Eliminate Electronic Time Wasters Everyone has certain distractions that interrupt them and take their time away from their work. Is yours Facebook? Twitter? Email checking? Continuous messaging with friends and family? Stop checking them so often by batching these types of tasks. Set a time, then check and verstndigung im strafverfahren with all of them at once. Give yourself 30 minutes and then get back on task. Batch them and take a break once or twice each day to respond. 9) Get Organized In order to effectively manage your time and be productive each day, you have to create the right environment. Eliminating useless clutter, set up an effective filing system, have a nearby place for all of the work items you need frequently, and utilize workflow management tools to help you create a productive environment. 10) Take Care of Your Health A good nights sleep, healthy eating, and exercise will give you the energy, focus, and stamina required to make the most out of your day. It may seem that work is more important and you can always catch up on sleep, food, and exercise later. If you lose your health, though, you cant work, or do much of anything else for that matter, so dont skimp on taking care of yourself.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Know How, Why, and When to Document Employee Performance

Know How, Why, and When to Document Employee PerformanceKnow How, Why, and When to Document Employee PerformanceIn the world of human resources and employment, documentation about an employees performancecan make or break your ability to discipline, terminate, or fairly promote, reward, and recognize employees. Documentation is essential for managers and HR staff because you need to make a serious effort to record all of the events in the employment history of your employees- both positive and negative incidents of performance. Here is everything managers and HR staff need to carefully document employee performance. Why You Should Document Employee Performance Documentation provides evidence that performance issues were discussed with the employee in a timely and concise fashion.Documentation offers a history of the employees improvement or failure to improve performance over time. It is chronological and a precise description of the employees actions, the managers actions, and e vents as they occur.Documentation provides evidence that supports management decisions to take unfavorable action such as discipline or termination with an employee.Documentation offers proof that an employee deserves an available promotion or opportunity over other employees who are also eligible. Documentation provides evidence to justify salary increases, decreases, or why an employee received no raise.In the event of a lawsuit, complete and thorough documentation protects an employers interests. The documentation can support managements actions in terminating an unsuccessful employee. It also can prove that the employee was terminated for reasons that are legal as opposed to others such as illegal discrimination. What to Document Managers need to document employee performance, both positive contributions and performance failures. They need to document exactly what the employee did and said and what the manager did and said in response during the meeting or conversation. You need to document any agreements made during the conversation, goals set, improvements required and expected, and the timeline for improvement. Documentation should also contain commitments that the manager makes to assist the employee. How to Document Documentation should be written during or immediately following the meeting or conversation with the employee. At no time should you miss writing down the conversation on the day when it actuallyoccurred. Waiting until later affects the quality of the documentation because it is based on memory. One of the worst mistakes managers make is to believe that they can reconstruct an employee counseling history as needed. No HR person who has any experience of decent, timely documentation is ever fooled by a reconstructed record. Managers who reconstruct from memory bring unnecessary and unacceptable risk to their company because a made-up history wont hold up in a vermgen lawsuit. You need your documentation to appear professional, neat, and organized. Write documentation as if you are talking about the history to a third party. You never know who may read your documentation one day, so make sure that it reflects your professionalism. (Back of a cocktail napkin, envelope, or sticky note doesnt qualify as professional documentation.) Your documentation should go to an employees new manager if the employee obtains a new job- or you do- in your organization. For your memory and to inform the employees new manager, you need to put the employees name and title, your name and title, and the full date on each document. Write documentation that is factual, fair, legal, objective, complete, and consistent.Avoid opinions (Mike is sloppy. Alice is lazy. Tom was lying to me.),name-calling, editorializing (John is a jerk.Mark has an attitude problem.), and labeling (Mary is irresponsible. George is not a gruppe player.). Avoid also trying to interpret the employees behavior. (Marsha must not like this assignment. Paula appears to be in over her head.) Minimize your use of descriptive words such as adjectives and adverbs (slowly, sloppily, unhappy, moody, rude). State the employees specific behavior and actions, not your opinion or interpretation of it. In documentation, what is needed is an accurate record of the conversation. Stick with the facts and write down just what you said and what the employee said.Make sure that your documentation is unambiguous and that it gets the facts straight. (In any potential legal situation, errors in any of the documented events make all of the documentation suspect.) Finally, document any agreements, commitments, timelines, improvements needed, check-in points, and other details that might slip from memory. Make certain that you set a date and time for deadlines and due dates so that misunderstanding wont occur. Know your HR departments documentation policy, which will tell you what documentation needs placement in the employees personnel fileAny documentation of disci plinary actions should certainly be included. Where to Document and Store Since documentation about employees is confidential and private to the employee, you need to take care that any documentation remains confidential to the manager, HR, and potentially the employees next manager. Thus, putting documentation on a shared computer drive is not recommended. Handwritten documentation and a managers documentation printed out are best kept in locked storage. If you follow these guidelines, when you go to HR to ask for help in disciplining, terminating, or transferring an employee to a job with a better potential fit, HR will help you solve the problem or improve the situation. When HR tells you to document, document, document or they cant help you youll have all of your bases covered. Disclaimer Please note that the information provided, while authoritative, is not guaranteed for accuracy and legality. The site is read by a worldwide audience, and employment laws and regulations va ry from state to state and country to country. Please seek legal assistance, or assistance from State, Federal, or International governmental resources, to make certain your legal interpretation and decisions are correct for your location. This information is for guidance, ideas, and assistance.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Nine Engineering Leaders to Be Recognized at the 2018 Honors A...

Nine Engineering Leaders to Be Recognized at the 2018 Honors A... Nine Engineering Leaders to Be Recognized at the 2018 Honors A... Nine Engineering Leaders to Be Recognized at the 2018 Honors AssemblyASME will pay tribute to the contributions and careers of nine leading engineering innovators during the Honors Assembly at the ASME 2018 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE 2018) next month in Pittsburgh, Pa. The conference, which is the worlds largest interdisciplinary mechanical engineering conference, will take place from Nov. 9 to 15 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. Thomas J.R. HughesOne of the honorees, Thomas J.R. Hughes, will be presented with the ASME Medal during the Honors Assembly, to be held Monday, Nov. 12 from 630 p.m. to 730 p.m. Dr. Hughes was selected to receive the medal, which is the Societys highest award, for the pioneering development of computer-aided engineering and design technologies disseminated in ind ustrial and commercial software used throughout the world, thereby improving engineering product development and for originating and leading new fields of computational engineering research, according to the award citation. Hughes, an ASME Fellow, is a professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics and the Peter ODonnell Chair in Computational and Applied Mathematics at the University of Texas at Austin. Portonovo AyyaswamyFour other ASME Fellows Portonovo Ayyaswamy, Alan Needleman, Robert M. Nerem and Frank E. Talke will be added to the ranks of Honorary Membership at the ceremony. First bestowed in 1880, ASMEs founding year, Honorary Membership recognizes a lifetime of distinguished service by individuals whose work has contributed substantially to the highest goals of the engineering profession.Dr. Ayyaswamy, the Asa Whitney Professor of Dynamical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, is being honored for exceptional contributions to mechan ical engineering through a career marked with seminal and groundbreaking research scholarship, which has engendered transformational technology transfer for diverse applications and for exemplary professional service to the worldwide scientific and practicing thermal engineering community. A member of the University of Pennsylvania faculty since 1974, he is recognized worldwide for his contributions to various areas of multiscale and multiphase flow, heat and mass transfer. Alan NeedlemanA university distinguished professor at Texas AM University as well as a Texas AM Engineering Experiment Station distinguished research professor in the department of materials science and engineering, Dr. Needleman will be named an Honorary Member for his pioneering research in the fields of computational mechanics and computational materials science. Needlemans contributions include the development of a ductile fracture computational methodology, the development of cohesive surface methods for fracture analysis, and the creation of a framework that enables the solving of general boundary value problems using discrete dislocation plasticity. Robert M. NeremDr. Nerem, who is an institute professor emeritierter hochschulprofessor of mechanical engineering with additional appointments in the chemical and biomolecular engineering and biomedical engineering departments at Georgia Institute of Technology, is being honored for his outstanding contributions to the understanding of the dynamics of blood flow in health and disease, and the development of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine and for leadership in creating opportunities for engineers to play a vital role in advancing medicine. Nerems recent research interests have involved investigating how differences in the hemodynamic environment result in altered cellular function on different sides of an aortic valve, as well as researching stem cell technology, the role of the mechanical enviro nment in the differentiation of stem cells, and cell manufacturing. Frank E. TalkeThe professor of mechanical engineering and endowed chair at the Center for Memory and Recording Research at the University of California, San Diego, Dr. Talke is being named an Honorary Member for his contributions to information storage technology, color inkjet printing and medical device technology. Talke, who began his career nearly 50 years ago at the IBM Research and Development Laboratories, has made significant contributions in the areas of tribology of magnetic recording systems and in the production of a prototype drop-on-demand color inkjet printer. He has conducted ground-breaking research in applying laser Doppler vibrometry to hard disk drives and in studying novel lubricants and additives for the head/disk interface. Gwynne ShotwellAnother honoree at this years ceremony, Gwynne Shotwell of SpaceX in Hawthorne, Calif., will be presented with the Ralph Coats R oe Medal. Established in 1972, the award is bestowed upon an individual for an outstanding contribution toward a better public understanding and appreciation of the engineers worth to contemporary society. Shotwell, who is president and chief operating officer of the aerospace and space transportation company SpaceX, is being acknowledged for outstanding leadership in innovation for space commercialization and colonization, for technical contributions to the design of reusable rockets and for dedication to the promotion of STEM education. Shotwell, who started at SpaceX in 2002 as vice president of business development, is responsible for the companys daily operations and for overseeing customer and strategic relations. Kamlakar RajurkarASME Fellow Kamlakar Rajurkar, a College of Engineering Distinguished Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at the University of NebraskaLincoln, will receive the M. Eugene Merchant Manufacturing Medal of ASME/SME. The awar d is presented to an individual who has played a significant role in improving the productivity and efficiency of manufacturing operations. Dr. Rajukar is being honored for contributions to enhance the productivity of nontraditional machining processes used in automobile, aerospace and medical device manufacturing through extensive research in process modeling as well as sensing and control techniques. The program director for manufacturing machines and equipment at the National Science Foundation from 1999 to 2002, Dr. Rajurkar is the founding director of the Center for Nontraditional Manufacturing Research at the University of NebraskaLincoln and has served in a number of leadership roles within the universitys College of Engineering. Richard William BarnesRichard William Barnes, president of ANRIC Enterprises Inc. in Toronto, Canada, will receive the Melvin R. Green Codes and Standards Medal at this years Honors Assembly. Established as the Codes and Standards meda l in 1976, the award was renamed 20 years later in memory of Melvin Green, who was a dedicated supporter of industrial standards, an ASME Fellow and a longtime Society employee. Barnes is being recognized for distinguished leadership and professionalism in the research, development, promotion, acceptance and application of ASME codes and standards and for direct senior management involvement in the design, construction and operational support of nuclear power plants. An active ASME Standards Certification volunteer and past recipient of the Bernard F. Langer Nuclear Codes and Standards Award, Barnes is a current member and past vice chair of the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Technical Oversight Management Committee, among other positions. Ivar GiaeverThe ninth honoree at this years ceremony, Ivar Giaever, chief technology officer at Applied BioPhysics Inc. in Troy, N.Y., will be presented the Nancy DeLoye Fitzroy and Roland V. Fitzroy Medal for pioneering contributions to the frontiers of engineering that have led to a breakthrough in existing technology, or to new applications or new areas of engineering endeavor. Dr. Giaever, who is also an ASME Honorary Member, will receive the medal in recognition of his innovative experimental research in superconductor tunneling that has advanced the understanding of the phenomenon of superconductivity and led to the development of new scientific instruments. Giaever, who conducted research at the General Electric Research Laboratory for 30 years before joining the faculty of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1988, received the Oliver E. Buckley Condensed Matter Physics Prize in 1965 and was one of three researchers who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1973 for their work related to tunneling phenomena in solids.For more information on the Honors Assembly and the special events taking place at IMECE 2018, visit go.asme.org/IMECE.