The focus of career management today is shifting from the employer to the employee. You as an employee are responsible for your career management, whether you agree with it or not and whether you like or it or not. Prior to our current employment market any organization worth its weight in gold provided career management resources to their employees. In an employee’s market, organizations, good organizations provided leadership development in a variety of forms including tuition assistance, leadership/management tracks within the organization that would help new leaders develop their skills. Annual appraisals are also a form of career management. Feedback …read more

Every small business owner has had to contend with “nightmare” employees.  For example:

The young man who had his mother write a note for him “excusing her” from working a business event.
The young woman who showed up for her interview with her mother in tow.
The father who berated the business owner for giving his daughter a poor evaluation, because it “damaged her self-esteem”.
The woman who showed up for work at a health care office smelling like smoke, and who said she was “into” health (whatever that means).
Or how about the charming young man who shows up with a multi-color mohawk?!
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While …read more

You may think you are communicating with employees, but are you really?  Do they really know your expectations?  Remember the game of “telephone” where you send a message through several people and it comes out garbled at the end?  That’s what happens in many companies when you don’t communicate individually with employees.
Case in point: I tried to buy some gardening mulch at a large hardware store.  When I got to the lumber pickup area, I was told they were out of stock.  The clerk said, “We got a memo about out of stock items.  Why did they sell it to …read more

“If you give me a raise, I will work harder and smarter.” This is the employee equivalent of “I’ll respect you in the morning,” or “The check is in the mail.” If you are trying to motivate employees by using the carrot approach, it won’t work.  In a difficult economy, when your small business may not be able to give raises, or increase employee benefits, how do you motivate employees?

I’m not saying you shouldn’t give people raises.  If you want to hire and keep good employees, you will have to pay them well and keep giving them increases.
But don’t expect …read more

It is no longer an employee’s job market – it’s all about the employer. In this crazy economy, employers are laying people off in record numbers without a whole lot of thought and certainly no guilt or compassion. So, for those of you who are job seekers, looking for a job, hoping for a job, you have to understand that unless you can differentiate yourself from the competition you will be in the job market for a while. Unless you can market yourself as a problem solver for someones organization, rather than a problem – you will continue to be …read more

I was visiting Biz Chick Rules this afternoon and stumbled on this question of a 4 day Work Week. Is it possible in the business I work in today? Well, I work in full time ministry now. I am no longer in the corporate world, but I believe my answer would be the same. The answer in a word, “no”.
In my previous corporate career, the 4 Day Work Week is near impossible. Why? Because in order for corporations to allow their employees to work a 4 day Work Week, they will need to hire more people to accomplish the same …read more

Take a look at this cartoon from Word Sell, Inc. I found the cartoon while visiting Home Biz Notes. Do you assume your employees understand your expectations? When is the last time you actually clearly communicated your expectations for their specific job assignments, work arrival time, lunch and break time, performance?

It is your responsibility as a manager to clearly communication your expectations. Otherwise you leave it for your employees to interpret for themselves. Many managers spend lots of time frustrated, or angry with those employees who get creative with instructions given. This cartoon depicts creative interpretation on a sign. How …read more

The opening of the show with Omorosa hoping that Carol gets fired and then she is the first person to hug her when she walks in the door which was very telling of who she is as a person.
Unfortunately, that was a foreshadowing of a two hour distraction, that ended with Vinnie Pastore quitting and leaving the show.
Task: Soles United – Croc Awareness Campaign – Create an In-store receptacle bin.
The bottom line of the show this week is that Empresario finally got a win!! The ladies beat the men with an excellent presentation.
Tonight’s show was more about the Ethical …read more