Author Archive
Knowledge Transfer Meets Vulcan Mind Meld
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Knowledge Transfer
One of my favorite scenes in Star Trek was when Spock would place his fingers on someone’s face and chant: “My mind to your mind. Your thoughts to my thoughts.” This inevitably resulted in an exchange of critical information that saved the Enterprise and her crew. While in contemporary times we may lack the telepathic powers of 23rd Century Vulcans, we can do a lot to protect our businesses from brain drain and the loss of human capital with knowledge transfer tools and techniques.
Knowledge transfer is an urgent issue and organizations and their HR teams can’t wait for the recession to end before they begin to move forward on this critical initiative.
Here’s how:
- Lay the foundation - Perform an analysis of critical skills and key knowledge areas that your business will require for business success over the next two to five years. Next, analyze your current workforce and perform a gap analysis, considering normal turnover including potential retirement of traditional and boomer generation employees. Finally, examine the existing social networks both formal and informal that already exist.
- Get executive support - Identify executive-level champions and share your findings from the analysis with them. Knowledge transfer can’t be seen soley as an HR program if it is to gain acceptance as a strategic initiative and capture resources necessary for its success. Strong advocacy from the top is essential and will serve to stimulate the interest and participation of other valuable stakeholders.
- Roll out a program and communicate, communicate, communicate! - Using information you’ve gathered through your analysis and leveraging your support base, design a program to show the benefits of knowledge management. One option that has worked in many organizations is mentorship. Here matures and boomers are engaged to transmit deep knowledge gained over years of work and share it Gen X and Y colleagues. Along with the program, prepare to communicate with stakeholders early and often using a variety of media. This is a critical engagement factor that will pay real dividends.
- Build in the use of social networking tools to facilitate knowledge transfer - Internal social networks can bridge generational divides. Stereotypes to the contrary, boomers are embracing social networking and becoming as comfortable in using social media as their Gen X and Gen Y colleagues. Build on this shared affordance.
Knowledge transfer is a high leverage point that can give your enterprise an unbeatable competitive edge. Spock would approve!
Boomer’s Agile Job Search
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In this economy, with an average of more than five qualified applicants for every open position, adopting an agile approach is essential to giving you the competitive edge you need. I use the term “agile” in the same way that it is used in software development. As a methodology that is an adaptive, fast, efficient and effective project management that results in a superior outcomes. In the context of a boomer job search, it it means doing it better and getting quicker payback.
Here’s how to be agile:
- Use social media/social networking tools like LinkedIn to extend your reach and connect with colleagues from former employers.
- Create a career portfolio with a strong visual component. PowerPoint is an ideal vehicle for doing this. Post your visual portfolio to SlideShare or convert it to a video and place it on YouTube.
- Create a keyword-rich master resume, then tailor it for each unique job.
- Be flexible and consider contract employment opportunities even when you want a regular position. Many employers use contracting through an agency to help them manage risk. Be aware that many contract jobs become regular.
The job market has never been more competitive. With an agile approach to job search, you’ll be ready to move quickly and seize available prospects.
The Crucible and Talent Management
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The current recession is a crucible for employers and their employees. Businesses hurt by the initial downturn and attendant layoffs, continue to face uncertainty of demand for their goods and services combined with the certainty of higher taxes and greater regulation. It shouldn’t be surprising that in this environment of insecurity and constraints, short-term survival has trumped long-term talent management. Yet talent is destiny and it won’t be denied.
Throughout the recession, top performing businesses have continued to focus on talent management. They recognize that by keeping this focus, they will increase their prospects for weathering the current storm and be better positioned to gain competitive advantage in the coming turnaround.
That’s wise because research indicates that active talent management leads to improved company performance including:
- Increased cash flow
- Improved employee productivity
- Increased market value
CH2M HILL, the global engineering, consulting, construction and operations leader provides an excellent example of talent management best practices that yield positive performance. Their web-based, Alumni Connect, enables them to engage former employees and retirees. The strength of engagement is so strong that employees “boomerang” back thus helping CH2M HILL build the value of its human capital asset. The company makes a compelling case with its message:
If you have found that life is not exactly what you thought it would be somewhere else, you may want to give CH2M HILL another look. As a CH2M HILL alumnus, you are a trusted professional who knows our business and our culture. You will have the inside scoop about what it is like to work here and contribute to solving some of the world’s toughest problems.
When you apply for a position, be sure to let us know that you are a former CH2M HILL employee. If you are re-hired your prior longevity may be credited towards your paid-time-off accrual rate, which can be a great benefit.
Obviously, this is a company that understands that even in tough times, talent is destiny and must be actively managed.
Note: This post also appears as Talent Is Destiny in The Periscope Blog.
Boomer Job Interview: Making a Good Visual Impression
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Not the author!
As the saying goes, “You have only one chance to make a good impression.” Nowhere is this truer than in the interview. 80% of interviewers say that within the first few seconds after a candidate walks into a room, they’ve made up their minds. Obviously, the visual component in making a good impression is huge. If a candidate’s clothing and grooming are at variance with interviewers’ expectations, it creates visual dissonance and discontinuity that makes interviewers uncomfortable. When interviewers are made uneasy, the ”offending” interviewee is more likely to be rejected. Fair or not, it’s the way things are.
This fact underscores the importance of a candidate’s attire and overall appearance. Given the highly competitive nature of today’s job market, why is it that many boomer job candidates wear clothes and hair styles that brand them as outmoded? In part, it’s because a large number of age 50+ job seekers have not had to look for employment in a long time and settled somewhat comfortably into a state of complacency about how they appear to others. Time to confront reality.
Take pleated pants AKA ”the Dockers look.” This is an equal opportunity fashion faux pas making both men and women look 15 lbs. heavier than they are. Wearing flat-front pants addresses this problem.
Hair care is another area where many boomer candidates fall down. Wearing a hairstyle that is compatible with your shape of your face is essential. Click here for a good resource to help you analyze your face and select the right cut for you. After you’ve done your analysis, share it with your current hairstylist. If your hair care professional is unresponsive or dismissive, it may be time for a change in your stylist.
LinkedIn Profile vs. Resume
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High Profile
The LinkedIn profile has emerged as at least the equal of the time honored resume or CV. Some even contend that it has surpassed the resume at the tool for job seekers (both passive and active) wanting to project their qualifications. The profile is unparalleled as a candidate screening tool used by recruiters and employers.
Back in the day, the resume was the principal means of communicating and assessing qualifications in terms of experience and accomplishements to prospective employers. Boomers will remember getting their resumes type set on high rag-content paper in order to enhance their personal brands and gain a competitive edge. But doing resumes that way made revisions difficult and expensive. Enter the word processor and the next evolutionary step, the electronic resume, packed with keywords for use on job boards. Then the biggest transformative change of all, the LinkedIn profile.
The LinkedIn profile has been called “resume of the 21st Century.” According to Wikipedia, there are over 65 million registered LinkedIn users which, of course, explains its ascendency with job seekers and employers alike.
Will it totally eclipse the resume? Yes and no. LinkedIn with its profile and other tools will grow and evolve, offering enhanced features and functionality that complement the resume and CV. The resume will remain the core source document used as a basis for creating the LinkedIn profile and key component in a dynamic career portfolio that should include SlideShare presentations, blog posts and other evidence of professional competency.
3 Tips for Getting Back Your HR Mojo
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They've got HR Mojo!
How’s your HR Mojo? If you are making progress in creating a positive workplace that engages employees and yields positive financial results then you’ve got it and you’re OK. If you and you company are hurting due to challenging economic conditions and layoffs, then you’ve lost it and need to get it back.
Getting and holding on to your HR Mojo are necessary conditions for your enterprise if it hopes to take advantage of an economic rebound and increased business activity. HR Mojo is a pre-requisite for your personal effectiveness and credibility both inside and outside of your organization.
Evidence for HR Mojo is a sense of purpose that permeates all levels of the organization and is apparent to not only members of the workforce, but to those outside the immediate environment including customers, suppliers and business partners. While survival is critical during difficult times, HR Mojo transcends the short term and creates the prospect of sustained business success throughout a company’s life-cycle.
Here are 3 tips for getting back your HR Mojo!
Tip #1 – Lay a firm foundation for Mojo Renewal. Tap into research, resources and best practices. A good place to start is with Marshall Goldsmith’s, Mojo: How to Get It, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back If You Lose It. A compelling read, it provides a basis for gaining business and personal effectiveness. Companion apps available for free download (iPhone and Blackberry versions) enable you to track your Mojo and monitor your progress.
Tip #2 - Communicate, communicate, communicate! Getting back your HR Mojo depends on engagement with key stakeholders. In the 21st Century, the key engagement vehicle is social media including blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn. Also, there are behind the firewall solutions for intra-company communication. Get active and extend your reach using these tools.
Tip #3 - Offer compelling content – Now that you have access to social media tools, you need to offer compelling content that really engages your target audience and generates their comments and active participation. The combination of social media and interesting content engenders a communications process that is truly viral, empowering HR Mojo.
By following these tips, you and your company can get back your HR Mojo for a better future.
Your eReputation Development Project
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Grow Your Professional Brand
Enhancing your eReputation is critical to establishing your credibility as a serious professional. Here’s a project plan for building your professional brand. Whether you’re currently employed or actively pursuing a job search, establishing and maintaining an effective eReputation is critical to your success.
In my last post, Your eReputation: Take the Test, I provided you with a quick way to determine the strength of your eReputation and based on critical elements related to building your online brand. If you haven’t taken the test, please do so now and save your results. The following recommendations use these test results as the foundation for developing a strategy and tactics for moving forward.
If you scored between 0 and 3, you have a low or almost non-existent ranking in Google and an invisible presence in social networks. Note: you also earn a low score if your visible but your presence is full of digital dirt. You need to embark on an energetic program to establish a positive online presence.
If you scored between 4 and 6, you have detectable presence, but it is undeveloped with incomplete profiles on social networking sites or, perhaps, you’ve neglected to exploit search engine optimization options.
If you scored between 7 and 8, you’ve been doing a great job. Congratulations! But don’t rest on your laurels. Keep at it and refresh your content on a regular basis so that you stay on top.
Building your eReputation is best approached as a project where you break down major project elements into manageable milestones and tasks. Keep in mind the fact that you can’t build a positive eReputation overnight. It takes time and effort but the results are more that worth it! Here’s an eReputation project plan outline that should help you plan and implement your own eReputation development project over six months:
Months 1 – 3:
- Search for an clean-up digital dirt
- Secure your personal domain name
- Get a personal web site
- Get a LinkedIn and Twitter account
- Claim your vanity name in social networking accounts
- Start a blog
Months 3-6
- Build out your profiles in social networks
- Automate content publishing
- Tweak SEO (search engine optimization) for visibility in Google, etc.
- Monitor your progress in Google, set up Google Alerts
Getting Started Quick Tip: Claim your personal domain name today!
Go to GoDaddy or another Internet domain registrar and get your personal domain name for less than $10 per year. For example, my personal domain name is kitjeffrey.com and the form is firstname, lastname, .com. If yours is unavailable, find a variant such as firstname, middlename, last name.
Your eReputation: Take the Test
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eReputation Test
My eReputation test provides you with a quick and convenient way to find out if you are doing what takes to create an effective personal online brand that will help you achieve your professional goals.
Whether you’re an employed HR professional or making a job transition, cultivating a strong online presence is essential to career sustainability and delivering results.
Leading recruiters know that as they check out candidate profiles on LinkedIn and other social networks, these same candidates are looking at them. Take that a step further and recognize that your visibility to current and future employers and clients in Google and other search engines can have a dramatic effect on the opportunities that will be available to you.
Now that I’ve made the case for having a strong e-Reputation, let’s get on with the test.
Answer the following questions, 1 through 8.
1. Have you claimed a personal domain name? Yes/No
2. Do you have a personal web site tied to your domain name? Yes/No
3. Have you set up accounts in key social networking sites? Yes/No
4. Are your profiles in your social networking site accounts complete? Yes/No
5. Have you claimed your vanity URLs? Yes/No
6. Do you Google yourself at least monthly; have you set up Google Alerts for you name? Yes/No
7. Do you have a blog? Yes/No
8. Do you measure your eReputation results at least monthly? Yes/No
Now score the test. For each item you answered yes, give yourself one point. For each item you answered no, record a zero. Next add up the points and check them against the scoring guide below.
Scoring Guide
Score 1-3: You’re stalled with a low or now ranking in Google and other search engines; limited no or negative presence in social networks
Score 4-6: You’re there but need to pick up the pace and enhance your Google rank and social networking presence.
Score 7-8: You’re actively engaged with high personal brand loyalty along with high rankings and a solid presence in key social networks.
Click here to view and download a pdf, Your eReputation Test.
If you scored 6 or below, you’ll want to create a plan for upgrading your online reputation. To help you create that plan, look for my next post covering the essential elements for a 6-month eReputation makeover.
3 Tips for Dealing with Layoff Aftershocks
Posted by: | CommentsJust like its seismic counterpart, a large layoff can produce aftershocks with damaging results even after the main tremor has passed. If not anticipated and addressed proactively, the upheaval will damage the core workforce and harm productivity for months and years to come. Use these three tips to improve morale and workforce performance after a layoff.
- Re-recruit survivors
A layoff creates a climate of uncertainly. Approach survivors and let them know that they have an important part to play in the future of the business. You are counting on their business knowledge and experience to deal with the aftermath of layoff and move forward. Boomers, in particular, have the ability to mentor and transfer knowledge to other employees. - Practice active intra-company communication
Communicate the status of company progress and encourage employees in their efforts to contribute to a better future. This is a key step in engaging the workforce and generating productivity. - Use social media/social networking tools to engage external stakeholders
External stakeholders, including customers, shareholders, suppliers and the community, are vitally interested in how well things are moving forward. Negative rumors are an aftershock that can be successfully addressed by credible social media communication.
Handled Well, Layoffs Contribute to Effective Talent Management
Posted by: | CommentsLayoffs are a fact of organizational life. Whether driven by recession, restructuring or by the need to respond to marketplace dynamics, layoffs are inevitable. When they’re handled well, are based on sound business imperatives with an approach that manifests respect for those displaced and for those remaining in the workforce, layoffs can actually contribute to effective talent management, foster sustainable workforces and make it possible for businesses to prosper and evolve. When handled poorly, layoffs damage the corporate DNA and make those businesses less competitive.
A “well handled layoff” is characterized by an objective business requirement for a staffing reduction in a particular unit of a company or enterprise-wide. Thorough planning is crucial and should include an assessment of the essential skills needed for operational effectiveness during and post layoff. The generational composition of the workforce, before and after a downsizing, must be considered. If a disproportionate number of boomers are to be laid off, not only can the business can be placed at risk for age discrimination complaints, it can lose valuable intellectual capital and the ability to transfer knowledge to Gen X and Gen Y members of the workforce. Human capital is the most valuable asset a business has and the human resource professional has a fiduciary responsibility to optimize the management of this asset and this includes the retention of key boomer talent for post layoff business success.
