by Elaine Varelas

Despite our best efforts as HR managers, the reality is that people leave organizations. While effective retention programs can reduce turnover and encourage longevity with a company, eventually people move on. Some may retire, get an offer from another organization, move out of state, or leave to raise families. In some cases, as in a reduction-in-force, or an M&A or restructuring, people may leave en masse.

HR managers are often charged with instituting strategies to retain employees. While this is the ideal option, it is not always possible to keep everyone onboard. While retention programs are cost-effective and worthwhile, HR managers must also prepare for employees’ ultimate departure.

When employees exit an organization, they don’t just leave behind an empty desk. They also take with them their knowledge of how they do their jobs, and more importantly, how they get things done. If HR managers don’t put systems in place to capture that knowledge, it can get sucked into a vast black hole, leaving the organization vulnerable. How can HR managers create a more seamless transition when there is job turnover and ensure that proprietary knowledge stays intact?

Document—It may seem logical to believe that a manager is the keeper of the proprietary knowledge within his or her group. In reality, though, managers may lead a team or department, but they don’t know everything about each individual job. Consider creating an “owner’s manual” for each position within a department that explains the job and the processes used to accomplish day-to-day and long-term tasks. This is important for executive-level positions, but also for entry-level posts. Imagine if your assistant left without an detailed explanation of files, programs, and contacts. You’d be lost (I know I would be)!

It is also imperative to document important correspondence, proposals, and plans. In the age of electronic media, it is easy to shoot off an email or text and then press “delete.” Important documents must be filed either in hard-copy or electronic format.

Make it a priority—One reason we don’t document our work is because we think it’s busywork. We have so much to do, we don’t want to waste our time documenting our work. But if Jim is the keeper of the spreadsheets for a department and Jim goes bye-bye, that will not only cost the organization time, but it may also cost dollars if deadlines or opportunities are missed. Employees can always find a more pressing matter that takes precedence over documenting work, so HR professionals need to educate managers about the value of the assignment so they can communicate it to their people—and give them the time they need to follow through.

Cross-train—Another way to make sure that critical knowledge isn’t lost when employees leave is to encourage “role hopping” within the company or departments. While employees shouldn’t be required to know everything about two or more jobs, multiple people should be trained to take on multiple tasks. This can also be helpful during extended absences for other reasons, such as illnesses or family leave.

Developing a mentor program is another way to promote a natural method for passing knowledge along. Mentor programs are also effective retention tools, for both the mentee and the mentor, which is an added bonus.

Create efficient processes—HR managers may also make the information that is available within the organization more accessible. How easy is it to retrieve a document in the company’s system? Is it possible to do a keyword search to find relevant information? Are like documents (proposals, spreadsheets) stored together in the same location? Are there templates for documents so there is consistency and uniformity within departments and throughout the organization? By making it easier to create or retrieve information, HR managers can help cut down on the practice of “reinventing the wheel,” ease frustration among employees (“Where is that plan we did last year?”), and improve efficiency.

Have a succession (or back-up) plan—As the Boy Scouts motto states, it is better to “be prepared.” If HR managers can anticipate losses and the fall-out from them, they can help put policies in place to minimize the effects of people leaving. Where is the organization at risk? Ask managers to look at their departments and identify the weak spots. Make sure that there are formalized procedures to follow so that managers can protect their people and their intellectual capital.

Flexibility is also important as some employees may request alternatives to the traditional workday. What can the organization do to keep people on? New parents may want a part-time schedule. Employees reaching retirement age may want to take a sabbatical or spend part of the year in a warmer climate. What is the organization willing and able to do to keep employees and their brain trust?

Be transparent—Some employees may be reluctant to share how they do their jobs for fear that the organization is trying to learn what they do in order to oust them in favor of someone less seasoned and less expensive. Make it clear to people that the process is about capturing knowledge and not about forcing people into an early retirement.

By putting systems in place to protect proprietary knowledge, HR managers can help organizations recover more quickly when employees leave. Losing employees is always difficult, but that loss shouldn’t be compounded by also losing the key knowledge needed to do the job.

Workforce planning is a strategic response to changes in workforce demographics, business models and economic conditions.

There's no doubt that the current economy has wreaked havoc on some workforce plans and has made it difficult to conduct workforce planning for the future. However, it's in just such a climate that workforce planning is more necessary than ever.

My company, Professional Staffing Group (PSG), has been surveying our clients on their HR Planning over the past two quarters of this economic downturn. The latest survey results can be found on our web site.

Respondents have felt the impact of the current economy and its affect on their workforce planning. We've found that:

Uncertainty is prevalent: Employers have high levels of uncertainty regarding their 2010 staffing levels and hiring plans. When asked about anticipated changes in staffing levels, the most common response was "unknown." Many employees are uncertain about the future of their current jobs too. According to a Conference Board survey only 45 percent of workers are satisfied with their jobs.

Pay raises are not anticipated: 63 percent of respondents do not expect to raise pay in 2010; 35 percent expect small increases of 0-2%; and only 2 percent of respondents expect to give pay raises over 2%.

Employees have many concerns: the perceived level of employee concern is quite high in a number of areas: shrinkage of career opportunities (72% perceived their employees to have either a considerable or moderate level of concern); impact of economic downturn on organization (72% perceived their employees to have either a considerable or moderate level of concern); decrease in job security (68% perceived their employees to have either a considerable or moderate level of concern); and increased workload due to recent layoffs (47% perceived their employees to have either a considerable or moderate level of concern).

Employers have concerns too: the most common concerns are retention of top talent, employee engagement, staffing levels that are too low and recruiting top talent.

Spending is not expected to increase: HR budgets were cut drastically in 2009, but employers expect to keep those levels intact for now. Training and Development is the one area that may see a spending increase in the short term.
In summary, there's a lot of stress on Human Resource professionals' efforts to recruit, retain and motivate the workforce, and it's difficult to predict long-term supply and demand.

My first recommendation is to take on the uncertainty by considering these three questions:
1. Where do we have clarity or minimal uncertainty?
2. Where do we have a degree of certainty but many things are unknown?
3. Where are we relying simply on best guesses?

Steps Toward Better Workforce Planning
Once you've outlined the uncertainty it's possible to reduce its impact through strong communication. I recommend involving your entire organization and communicating your three categories of (un)certainty with your employees. Also communicate the possible scenarios for handling the uncertainties and how employees could be impacted. Through this exercise you will also create benchmarking and milestone opportunities.

Our recent survey also found that uncertainty over rates of attrition, turnover and retention is a major HR challenge in 2010. In fact, staffing is the most uncertain area for HR right now. Thirty-one percent of the survey respondents don't know what their staffing level changes will be in 2010 and 29 percent don't foresee a change. Thirty percent of the respondents anticipate increasing headcount in 2010 but are almost equally divided on which quarter that hiring will occur.

One way to mitigate this uncertainty is to utilize flexible staffing. Flexible staffing can include: temporary employees hired through an agency or directly, part-time employees, independent contractors, retirees who return to work, consultants/freelancers/contractors, on-call workers or outsourced employees.
In a recent special report on contingent staffing, Workforce Magazine reported that 73 percent of employers in a recent study said they anticipate some level of increase in their contingent workforce by late 2010, with nearly 35 percent planning increases of 50 percent or more. Workforce also wrote that the labor law firm Littler Mendelson predicts that contingent labor could rise to as much as 30 to 50 percent of the entire U.S. workforce, triple the average of 13 percent that a Staffing Industry Analysts survey estimated it to be in 2008.

Headcount and talent are two key elements in workforce planning and looking at both will help you determine where your workforce gaps are. Smart HR managers evaluate their current workforce, as well as the talent that is becoming available and the expertise that is leaving, to understand where the gaps are, or in some cases, where they are likely to be in the future. You can then work on filling the gaps with recruiting, retention, motivation, succession planning and contingent staffing efforts.

No matter what you think the current economy dictates to your business, retention always matters. Unmanaged attrition can be disastrous to your organizational health. For example, if a company loses employees primarily from the bottom rungs of the organization, it could wind up with a disproportionately older workforce than it had before. In contrast, if it loses employees primarily from the middle, it could lose an important cadre of skills and future leadership. If it loses primarily older workers, it could be losing considerable experience and knowledge.

The most popular recruiting and retention strategies among Boston HR managers who were surveyed are to invest in low-cost training, change recruiting focus, develop a succession plan and develop a new talent management plan.

Don't let the uncertainty of today's economy prevent you from making smart investments in workforce planning for the future. Instead, think about how you can use uncertainty to your advantage. Start by preparing multiple view scenarios for the future that include your relative certainties and uncertainties (the three categories), review your projections and periodically update them. Doing so will ensure that your organization is best positioned to succeed through demographic change and economic uncertainty.

Aaron Green is founder and president of Boston-based Professional Staffing Group and PSG Global Solutions. He is also the vice chairman of the American Staffing Association. He can be reached at Aaron.Green@psgstaffing.com or (617) 250-1000.

By Elaine Varelas

Is it just me, or did the decade whiz by? It can’t be ten years already since the Y2K scare, yet I can’t remember life before reality TV, crocs, and iPods. Over this last decade, there have been countless changes to the business world: advancements in technology and cultural shifts have transformed the way we work. Here are the top ten developments that changed how HR managers do their jobs:

Seat at the leadership table—In the year 2000, HR professionals were fighting for a spot at the leadership table, as they tried to prove that workforce issues are one of the most important components of any business’ success. The issue has finally been resolved, as research and financial evidence verified that the most competitive and innovative companies have an effective HR presence on the leadership team.

Google—Google and other search engines have made millions of gigabytes of information available to us with just the click of a mouse. HR managers can now gather information about a candidate, fact-check a resume, peruse the competition’s job listings, and keep informed about what is happening in any industry—all within minutes. This vast database of information also poses some challenges as people’s work and personal lives become increasingly digital—and accessible. HR managers may now be saddled with handling a damaging blog posted by a disgruntled former employee, an embarrassing lawsuit from years ago that surfaces in a Web search, or the fall-out from discovering compromising photos of that “star” candidate.

Multitasking—Multitasking seems to be dominating how we work, so much so that doing one thing at a time seems almost lazy! It isn’t uncommon for many of us to be emailing a client, speaking on the phone with our boss, reading a text message from our spouse, and eating lunch all at the same time. When we try to do so much at once, we have to be even more diligent about errors (Did I just send my grocery list to my client?)

Smart phones—Smart phones are one of the prime catalysts for our multitasking ways. We can now access email, texts, calendars, photos, video, and files all from our phones. This technology helps us stay connected 24/7, and allows immediate communication. Of course it is also starting to blur the line between work and private time—and creating some HR dilemmas: Are employees expected to be “on call” after business hours? How quickly do managers expect to get a response to a message? What are the policies about using company equipment for personal use, or conducting personal business on company time?

Social Networking Sites—Websites like LinkedIn and Facebook have made it more convenient to connect with friends and colleagues and build a network. These sites have created a new avenue for recruitment, and an additional way for teams and colleagues to stay connected. They have also led to the further mucking-up of the line between work and personal time, and can present some quandaries: Should employees “friend” their managers or clients on Facebook? Is creating a LinkedIn profile a personal or professional endeavor?

Security—It used to be that the word “security” only referred to job security. Since 9/11, that has changed. Organizations now need to ensure their employees’ safety; when they travel, in the office building, and by making sure their personal information is protected on the company’s servers.

Paperless recruitment—Green is no longer just a color, but a movement. As organizations look to reduce, reuse, and recycle, many offices are going paperless. Resumes are now emailed (no more paper cuts!) and interviews are set-up via email. The recruitment effort has also gone multimedia: want ads in newspapers and magazines are being replaced by online job boards, TV channels devoted to job seekers, and networking websites.

Meeting technology—Meeting software, such as GoToMeeting, and webinars allows for people in disparate locations to gather for meetings or seminars via computer. Companies can now have a global presence without constant travel.

Heath care benefits—As health insurance costs skyrocket, many organizations have cut back on what they can offer employees. In the past, most employees and their families received extensive health coverage at no cost or for a nominal fee. Today, many organizations offer fewer health benefits (and some offer none), don’t extend coverage to employees’ families, or have asked employees to kick in a larger portion of the cost.

Texting—Once the domain of teenagers, texting has become a viable way of communicating with candidates, especially those who are employed. HR managers can schedule interviews, request information, or confirm meetings during the workday by accessing a candidate’s personal phone.

Many of the developments of the last decade present enormous opportunity for pioneering new ways of doing business, staying connected to one another, and recruiting new employees. Some of the progress we’ve made also creates challenges, such as sticky situations that may arise as the line between work and private time blurs. It is more important than ever for HR professionals to work with company leaders and develop policies, set boundaries, educate managers, and communicate to employees. HR managers need to stay ahead of these developments. After all, who knows what exciting changes this new decade may bring?

By Aaron Green

These are interesting times for human resources professionals who are tasked with recruiting. During the recession many organizations deeply cut their human resources and recruiting budgets; organizations that were not hiring new staff enjoyed a short-term cost savings as a result of these cuts. However, now an increasing number of organizations are finding they do need to hire new staff, as employees are needed to replace those lost to attrition and upturns in business are creating a need to add staff.

Many companies are now finding they lack staff and resources to recruit needed employees. Recruiters are caught in the middle and are being asked to do more with less. Here are my suggestions for successful recruiting on a tight budget:

Build an Employment Brand
Coordinate with your marketing resources to promote your organization as a positive environment for employees so that candidates and prospects will already be 'warmed up' and interested in coming to work with you. Cost-effective ways to do this include building your web presence (the HR page on your company's main web site, a Facebook Fan page, and Twitter, for example), nominating your company for awards such as Best Places to Work contests, being involved in community events, and making yourself available for PR efforts so your messages can be communicated via the media. Having interested candidates contact your company is obviously the most cost effective way to recruit; the challenge is earning the reputation that puts your company in that position.

Utilize your Current Workforce
If your professional recruiting resources are limited, deputize other employees and have them participate in recruiting efforts. Referral bonuses and other financial incentives for bringing in candidates and/or signing new employees will motivate your employees to become involved in your company's recruiting efforts. Involving co-workers in awareness campaigns and giving them incentive to do so is a cost-effective way to recruit and build morale at the same time.

Spread the Word
Let people know you're hiring and what they can specifically do to help. Cost-effective ways to do this include updating your company web site and email signatures with links to details on open positions, and letting customers, suppliers, partners and others know what positions you have open. Be as specific as possible; telling them "we're hiring" is not as effective as saying "we need a chemical engineer with 8-10 years experience." You'd be surprised at how word travels.

Network, Network, Network
Identify the professional associations, affinity groups, and other industry events and groups that are most important to your organization (and for what reasons) and then make sure you are properly and consistently represented in those groups. By way of example, if you are looking for an accountant, you could contact the Massachusetts Society of CPAs and the Boston Chapter of the Association of Latino Professionals in Accounting and Finance. Not only will this help you build a candidate pipeline but it can also help you spread the word about open positions faster and more effectively.

Try Alternative Job Boards
While the major job boards like Monster and Careerbuilder can be effective, they are also expensive. If your budget is tight, look into free and low-cost alternatives. Some reputable alternatives include Craigslist and Google Base. Local papers will often also have an inexpensive job posting section in their online edition. Social networking sites such as TweetMyJobs and business networking sites like LinkedIn have also become increasingly popular as alternatives to job boards. In addition to having a LinkedIn company page that can build your brand and advertise jobs, recruiters can search profiles within their network to discover potential candidates they might already be connected to. Joining groups within these social and business networking sites also allows you to advertise your openings for free via discussion boards. Leverage other online networks and community sites that specialize in your industry or in the career specialty that you want to recruit, including diversity organizations that assist job seekers. If you are seeking entry level or part time candidates, reaching out to local colleges that will often have resources to help their students connect to employers (such as job boards on their websites or career centers), is often a free and easy way to find candidates.

Staffing Firms
While utilizing staffing firms costs money, they can be a cost effective solution in many instances. If you have limited resources and time, paying a staffing firm for a successful contingency search can be less expensive than the alternative. If you don't have an up-to-date network/candidate pool it can be quite costly in time and opportunity cost to start a search from scratch.

In addition, staffing firms can typically provide temporary employees or short notice as well as temp-to-hire candidates that you can test out prior to making a decision and/or while you look for a permanent hire.

Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)
If you have a large number of similar positions to fill, RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) could be a cost-effective option. RPO means transferring all or part of your recruitment activities to an external vendor. Those recruiting activities can include sourcing, screening, testing, interviewing, background checks, coordinating offer letters, and orientation. The RPO provider is an outsourced recruiting department equipped with a package of skills, tools, technologies and activities. With RPO, you avoid paying an agency for each search and you get access to more and better resources than you could likely afford by doing it yourself.

The above-mentioned tactics work in any economy, and will be useful to any of my fellow recruiters who strive to maintain quality hiring practices on a limited budget.

Aaron Green is founder and president of Boston-based Professional Staffing Group  and PSG Global Solutions. He is also the vice chairman of the American Staffing Association. He can be reached at Aaron.Green@psgstaffing.com or (617) 250-1000.

By Elaine Varelas

Last month we talked about becoming a better and more effective HR manager: concrete steps you can take to enhance your skills, improve your career, and increase your value to your organization. This month, the focus is on the organization. What resolutions can you make to improve the HR function at your company? After all, isn’t the essence an HR manager’s role to create an office life that is more efficient, productive, cohesive, and enjoyable for everyone?

Here are some office resolutions HR managers may be able to address in their organizations:

Identify and diffuse the biggest aggravators—What is it at your organization that drives everyone crazy? Is the wireless server always down? Is the printer in a constant state of jam? Does the elevator have a chronic case of “Out of Order?” Oftentimes, the things at work that get us frustrated and snappy with others are relatively minor—and easy to remedy. In fact, learning that your bonus will only be 3% instead of 5% can actually be less irritating than knowing you need to fill out a form in triplicate each time you want to take a personal day. It is the breakdown in technology, processes, and systems that can get us steamed and cause a ripple-effect of anger or unease throughout the organization. Identify those aggravators within your organization and work to rectify them.

Solve problems through partnership—As Americans we have a long, proud history of conflict (the Revolution, Civil War, divorce court) and competition (sports, politics, preschools). We are so used to looking at the world in terms of right and wrong and winner and loser, that we sometimes lose sight of solving our problems. At the start of a new year, many of us are filled with hope in the promise of what’s to come. It’s an excellent time to harness that positive energy to resolve to address conflicts in a more effective and peaceful way. Before you whip out the incense and start piping New Age music through the corporate sound system, look at partnering to solve problems from a business perspective. What will take less time and fewer resources? What will leave employees, clients, and customers feeling like they were dealt with fairly? What is the end goal: to determine who is right or to resolve the issue? Every interaction should have a focus on partnership. Make sure managers have the training to follow through.

Encourage employees to strive for their “personal best”—When runners cross the starting line at the Boston Marathon in a few months, most won’t be trying to win the race. Instead, they’ll be attempting to beat their own personal record. What is each person’s highest potential? Ask employees to think about what they want out of their jobs and the organization. You may have a few people who want to win the race (break into the C suite), finish strong (become a star manager) or walk a 5K (satisfied to keep producing in their current jobs). Push people to find their own personal best and work towards those goals.

Have managers define their style—Many managers are so busy doing their jobs, they don’t realize how they do their jobs—or they think they are a certain kind of manager, but their direct reports would disagree. Ask managers to define their management style. Are they collegial? Controlling? Delegating? Micromanaging? How do they want to manage, and what changes, if any, do they need to make to be the managers they want to be?

Instill curiosity—Just as “Question Authority” was a popular bumper sticker in the 1970s, adopt “Instill Curiosity” as your HR mantra for 2010. One way to get people excited about their jobs is by encouraging them to learn about how it all works, and how their role impacts the entire organization. Do people at your company see themselves as just another cog in the wheel or is their contribution to the whole apparent? What can you do as an HR manager to help employees see how they fit into the larger workings of the company? Are the systems and processes easy for everyone to understand? Is communication frequent and honest? How else can you instill curiosity?

Encourage transparent leadership—It is almost impossible for employees to follow their curiosity within an organization if the leadership team is inaccessible and taciturn. Meet with leadership to determine how they want to be known. They may express a desire for an open leadership style, but their actions must match up. Closed-door meetings and off-limits financial sheets may lead employees to believe their company leaders have something to hide. A leadership team striving for transparency must share information with employees and ask for feedback. Work with your leaders to help them reach their desired leadership style.

As 2010 begins, resolve to make work a better place for employees. With these changes, you can make a happy New Year for all employees.

Looking ahead to 2010, here's what I am hearing from HR professionals about what will be the top staffing challenges in the year to come:

1. Retention
Even if they aren't happy in their jobs, many employees have been sticking around and riding out the recession. There are reasons employees have stayed put: they fear that being the "last one in" at a new company means they'll be the "first to go" if that employer has to make job cuts, they may be concerned about the financial stability of a prospective employer, and there's a general attitude that the "devil you know beats the devil you don't" mentality. Once the employment climate improves, many employees will look to leave their jobs. This pent up desire to leave will create real problems for employers who don't manage properly. HR and senior management teams should have their retention plans and hiring plans in place now to combat the challenges this issue will present in 2010.

2. Doing more with less
Many organizations have cut their HR budgets substantially. As companies start to grow again, there are simply fewer resources to handle HR duties. Already, some Human Resources teams are overwhelmed with the process of finding new employees - they just don't have the staff to handle the workload required to properly recruit, screen and hire while keeping up with other key HR priorities.

3. Changes in Benefits
In response to the recession and the financial pressures it brought, many companies cut employee benefits in 2009 which resulted in some bad will among employees. As employees assess benefits in 2010 they will be reminded of the benefit cuts. HR professionals will need to be actively involved in managing benefits, communicating with employees to minimize bad will, and looking for new and creative ways to improve their company's benefits package in a cost effective way.

4. A tightening labor market for certain positions
Recent reports cite Boston as among the best cities for managerial-level job seekers. In fact, although the national unemployment rate is about 10 percent, the unemployment rate for workers with a college degree is about half that. Recruiters and hiring managers who are looking for mid-career level professional talent have a closing window of opportunity to hire before facing decreased candidate availability.

5. Speed to hire
Before the recession better companies were conditioned to respond quickly to desirable candidates. To beat the competition they had the right mindset and the right systems to prevent top prospects from slipping away. Over the past year, organizations that were hiring had the luxury of not having to move quickly and could draw out the hiring process. In 2010 companies will need to move more quickly in order to land the best candidates, as highly qualified candidates are beginning to have employment choices again.

6. Promoting from within
For many companies the recession created a situation where there were less promotion opportunities. Employees were willing to accept the fate of a slower career path because they wanted to be a team player and help the company, or maybe they were simply happy to keep their job during a nasty recession. In 2010, with economic conditions improved, employees who are ready will be anxious to be promoted. Better employers will be focusing on performance assessments to see who's ready to move up and will be preparing employees with feedback on what they need to do to get promoted. Get the conversation going - talking about their future with the company helps employees feel more engaged and contributes to retention efforts.

7. Flexibility
While change is a constant in the world today, 2009 was by any standard an exceptional year for human resource professionals. For many organizations 2010 will bring just as much change. For companies that made adjustments to restore or ensure financial stability, that change may take the form of new initiatives to support growth or adapt to the newly shaped organization. Some companies may still require strategic organizational changes or cost cutting in order to compete. To excel in 2010, HR will need flexibility; plans developed at the beginning of the year might need to change quickly to capitalize on opportunities that avail themselves during the year.

Aaron Green is founder and president of Boston-based Professional Staffing Group  and PSG Global Solutions. He is also the vice chairman of the American Staffing Association. He can be reached at mailto:aaron.green@psgstaffing.comor (617) 250-1000.

By Elaine Varelas

December is here and 2009 is coming to a close (hold your applause, please!). While many of us are eagerly awaiting the end of this tumultuous year, there is no guarantee that a flip of the calendar will miraculously change the state of the economy. In fact, the New Year can stir up some additional anxieties. Many of us are asking, “What will next year hold? Will my company still be here in 2011? Will my job survive the year? While we don’t have influence over the global marketplace and can’t control all the issues that plague our organizations, there are some things we do have power over. We can control our professional development. We can become better at our jobs, stronger in our industries, and even more indispensible to our organizations. For the New Year, resolve to be a better HR manager. Here are six strategies for starting your New Year off right:

There's no question that the past year has presented plenty of challenges to Boston's human resources professionals. Recently my firm, Professional Staffing Group, received survey responses from more than 100 Boston organizations across 13 different industry groups about their human resources planning for the remainder of this year. The responses were a mixed bag with some organizations moving forward with recruiting, hiring, rewards and retention practices and other organizations remaining hunkered down.

We asked respondents whether they planned to make any changes in the way they reward, retain, and recruit employees in light of the current economic conditions.

By Elaine Varelas

Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away, yet many of us are struggling to find reasons to be thankful. The economy has us feeling stressed and worn out. Yes, we’re all thankful to have jobs, but the worries brought on by the economy can be overwhelming. With the holidays quickly approaching, many people are getting anxious about the expenses of the season (gifts, parties, travel, oh my!) And we haven’t even mentioned the looming flu season, which is predicted to be one of the most aggressive yet. It’s no wonder employees are feeling a little down at work.

While there isn’t a way to seal off the building to make sure negative thoughts or feelings don’t sneak in, HR managers can curb negativity so that it doesn’t take over the workplace and undermine productivity. It is possible to keep people positive without piping endorphins through the ventilation system

I've been writing lately about how staffing firms can help your business in this economic climate. I've also written on Finding and Selecting a Staffing Agency. This article provides tips for maximizing the value you get from your staffing firm.

By Elaine Varelas, October 1, 2009

We’ve all been there. We have that one last position to hire for, and despite sifting through what seems like a MILLION resumes, not one candidate’s qualifications seem to be a good fit. Then, all of a sudden, there it is among the papers destined for the recycle bin, almost as if it is being surrounded by a halo of light (cue the heavenly music here). There is that one perfect resume; the right match of education, skills, and experience, and YES, a salary requirement way below what you were expecting to pay. But before you rush through that phone interview and set up face-to-face meetings with the CEO and all five vice presidents, wait! Like our mothers always said, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

In a down economy HR managers may only be trying to fill a handful of positions, but they are still getting bombarded with resumes—as many as thousands for each position. With jobless rates approaching 10% nationwide, if people aren’t qualified for a post or don’t have suitable experience, they may send along a resume anyway. HR managers are left to weed through countless inappropriate resumes to get to the one or two that may be worth a second look. At the same time, HR managers are under increasing pressure to make every hire count.

Some candidates, in their desperation to land a job, may also be stretching the truth a bit on their resumes. HR managers must be able to peruse resumes and determine what’s fact and what’s fiction. Look out for these common exaggerations to avoid wasting time chasing after that “imaginary star employee.”

Time warp—This resume shows a candidate jumping from freshman year in college to CEO in a 6-year span. Watch out for unusual leaps in education or work experience. Also pay attention to a high number of jobs in a short period of time or big gaps in work history.

Show me the money—Be wary if the salary requirements don’t match up with the purported level of experience. Some people hope to get an HR manager’s attention by inflating their experience and keeping their salary request true to their current level, or giving themselves a significant cut in pay to get in the door.

Master of none—People who say they are experts in all areas of business (finance, management, marketing, IT) probably haven’t mastered any.

Do as you say, not as you do—If a resume boasts that a person is an expert in technology, the resume should include an email address and a LinkedIn profile, not just a landline and fax number. Resumes that state that people have led teams and projects, but the job titles don’t say “management” should also raise red flags.

Beware of resumes bearing gifts—If the resume is attached to an expensive gift basket, or tickets to a hot event, the giver may be trying to distract you from the resume’s content (and hope that you’ll feel indebted enough to at least call for a phone interview).

These are some of the more apparent examples, but how can you protect yourself against less obvious deceptions? The resume may look good, but before you invest your time and effort at the interview stage, do a little fact-checking of your own. It’s possible to get a better idea of people’s backgrounds, experience, and level of advancement without even talking to them. Here’s how:

Six degrees of separation—How did this person get to you? Was the resume forwarded by a colleague or employee, or is it in response to an ad? Resumes that landed on your desk through a reference should hold more weight than those that arrived “cold.”

Be a cybersleuth—Go online and do a search for the person’s name. You can use a search engine like Google or a web-based research site such as Zoominfo. You can also see if the candidate has a LinkedIn profile or a presence on another social networking site.

Missing Link?—If candidates do have LinkedIn profiles, examine them closely. Do you know any of their contacts? Do their connections have job titles similar to what they are seeking at your organization? For example, if the candidate is applying for a CFO post, their contacts should be other executive-level people, not just assistants and junior professionals.

Match game—Once you’ve completed your online research, compare that information to what was provided by the candidate. Does it match up? If there are several discrepancies, that person may be bluffing.

Just ask—If the candidate was referred by a colleague or employee, contact that person to get additional information. You can also utilize your LinkedIn connections to see if any of your contacts overlaps.

It’s a competitive market, so people are using attention-getting maneuvers to get noticed (yes, even stretching the truth). Be sure to do your due diligence so that you can be confident that the person who eats up your time (and your team’s time) is the person represented on paper, and that the resume is not a deceptive, albeit attractive mask.

Last month I wrote about how staffing firms can help you weather the recession and prepare for employment recovery. This month I'll provide some tips on finding and selecting a staffing agency that is best suited to your needs.

By Elaine Varelas, 09/07/09

Gazing up at the sky on a clear night can give you an appreciation for stars. It almost looks as if they were strategically placed, and they shine even brighter because they are offset against the dark nighttime sky.

As an HR manager, you can think about the “stars” in your organization in a similar fashion. If you are deliberate in choosing and placing your top talent within the organization, those people will also shine and create a more brilliant overall organization.

When you look at developing strategies for recruiting and retaining stars, you will of course be looking at people, not celestial bodies. And when you do, you shouldn’t begin by asking, “Who do we need?’” you should first ask, “Where do we need our stars?”.

It isn’t realistic or economical to have a goal of filling every post in a company with a star. It wouldn’t even be a sound strategy if money were no object: those with star-potential would easily become bored in some entry-level positions, and would leave the organization in search of a more challenging role. Managing the resulting turnover would be a nightmare! And just as stars would be unfulfilled in certain positions, there are many working people who just don’t want to be stars! They are looking for stability, security, or even good health insurance and two-weeks of paid vacation. What they don’t want from work, is a high-stress job.

Instead of looking to crowd an organization with stars in every post, HR managers should direct leadership teams to consider where top talent is most needed. If you can’t have superstars everywhere, where does it make sense to have them? In what posts will high-potential people have the most impact? Of course, organizations want to have the best talent, but it is more important to have the best talent in the best spot.

The identified positions will be different for every organization, even those in similar industries. For example, a high-end hotel chain may focus on hiring friendly and knowledgeable concierges, while budget hotels may need speedy, efficient housekeepers. The needs of a company will also evolve over time. A role that is vital in a troubled organization may not be as important during more stable times. The positions where stars are required are also not always C-suite jobs. An organization may have a need in a mid-level post. There are also, most likely, positions within the company where it just won’t matter if you replace an average performer with a star, so these key positions must be identified with care.

Once the leadership team identifies the most crucial positions, HR managers can help the team define the role. Why is this position important? How does it align with the company’s vision and long and short-termed business goals? What skills and experience are needed to properly fill this post? What will this person “look like” on paper and in person? Defining the position will help organization pinpoint the right people for the job—and can alter the recruitment and retention strategies. An organization that is poised for a turnaround might need a CFO who has helped pull other companies from the brink of bankruptcy, but that experience might not be necessary in a company that is steadily growing by 5% each year.

Once you start looking for the people to fill the roles, beware of the “shooting star.” This person might look glorious on paper (“I’ve never seen such an impressive resume!”), but if the experience and skills don’t match what is required for a top position, that “star” may just fizzle out at your organization. This is especially important during lean fiscal times when every hire counts.

Some of an organization’s needs may be filled by looking at the people already employed at the company. Make sure managers within the organization know which positions you want to fill and what type of people you want to fill them, and help them to determine who, if anyone, on their teams may be a good fit. Managers should also be schooled on how to identify potentials and high-potentials so HR managers can work to develop this next generation of superstars.

There is a well-known business mantra that states that an organization needs, “the right people in the right place at the right time.” But by focusing first on positions and finding those people who will best meet the needs of the organization and have the greatest impact, HR managers can ensure that they have “exceptional people in the right positions at the right time.”

Elaine Varelas is Managing Partner at Keystone Partners, a career management firm headquartered in Boston, and has over 20 years of career development and HR experience. She also serves on the board of directors for Career Partners International, the world's largest career management partnership. E-mail her at evarelas@keystonepartners.com.

Most economists are now saying the economic recovery has begun and the recession may even be over. At my staffing firm, Professional Staffing Group, we have seen a noticeable uptick in hiring of temporary employees by our clients over the past couple of months, and even more hiring is forecasted by clients. Historically in past economic recoveries, hiring of temporary employees precedes general hiring, and temp hiring is often viewed as a leading indicator of the overall employment market.

Whether you love it or loathe it, use it or overlook it, social media is a part of our everyday life. For employers and HR managers, social media can be a powerful tool for communicating, researching and interacting with employees, job candidates, customers and the general public. Are you leveraging social media to the fullest in your recruiting, hiring and reputation management efforts?

The term performance management has developed a bad reputation. When people hear the phrase, they picture iron-fisted leadership teams squeezing all they can from employees without giving them the tools, time, or guidance to meet their deadlines and goals. Many employees also dread performance review time. The process can feel like a game of “Gotcha!” where managers breeze over what is accomplished and focus on the long list of “didn’t dos” (all with a satisfied, perverse smile on their faces). But many managers would also rather avoid those contentious meetings, especially at a time when the economy doesn’t allow for much wiggle room to reward outstanding work, or to provide the training or development employees need to do their jobs well.

Yet, managing to performance becomes an even more prominent issue during lean times. When companies are flush with capital and growing at a steady pace, they can afford to keep all of their employees—even those who aren’t top-performers. Healthy organizations, subsisting in a vibrant economic landscape, can support under-performers and absorbs their costs. When the economy tanks and cash flow gets tighter, however, organizations must depend on each of their employees to deliver 100%.

Of course, performance management doesn’t have to mean selectively letting go of those people or workgroups who consistently don’t measure up. Performance management strategies can be utilized to help transform under-performers into wholly productive employees.

Performance management can be likened to taking care of your car. Your vehicle will only keep running at its best with regular maintenance. You don’t punish a car when it starts to act sluggish; instead you give it the parts and service it needs to reach peak performance: an oil change, transmission fluid, a tire rotation, or new brake pads.

Similarly, performance management programs also require maintenance. Managers need to look at their teams. How are they successful? Where are there performance issues? What obstacles are in the way of reaching top performance? Managers must meet regularly with members of their teams to set expectations, outline goals, develop a timetable for review, and create an opportunity for feedback. Ideally, the goals and timelines will be so clear that employees will be able to write their own reviews—thus eliminating surprises—or the dreaded game of “Gotcha!”

Employee should be encouraged to be honest about what they need to reach their milestones, and what is standing in their way. In turn, managers must be willing and empowered to help remove those obstacles. They need to work with their teams to determine what is keeping employees from accomplishing their goals and finishing projects on time, and work to solve those issues. Some things may be easy to fix: a new sales person may be struggling because she is still waiting on business cards or another employee may need to trade in his desktop for a laptop so he can be more flexible about where and when he works. Other success-blockers may be more challenging, such as a mainframe that continually crashes during working hours, or a conflict between an employee and a superior. Regardless of the impediment to achieving their goals, employees need to feel that their managers are prepared to give them what they need to be successful.

By involving employees at the start of the performance review process and asking for their input, managers can ensure employee buy-in and accountability. This strategy can also take the stress and anxiety out of performance review meetings, since the outcomes are agreed upon ahead of time, and eliminate excuses (i.e. “I never got Excel installed on my laptop, so I couldn’t work on these spreadsheets at home!”). Employees can also feel confident that they have some control over the process. Instead of walking into a performance review meeting not knowing what to expect, employees can use the opportunity to garner constructive feedback, pinpoint development opportunities, and work on building their careers.

Performance management practices can also help identify those employees who continue to under-perform. If after meeting with their managers, discussing expectations, and being supported with the tools they need to do their jobs well, employees still come up short, the organization may need to act. Organizations can only invest so much in people who don’t return the investment, and it isn’t fair to the rest of the team to carry a person who isn’t a good fit.

Of course, a sound performance review strategy will assure that a majority of people will become top-performers. By taking a proactive approach to performance management, organizations can help employees feel more invested in their work and excited about their jobs so they will want to be more productive for themselves and their organizations.

Although the country is in the midst of a recession and the unemployment rate as I write this blog is at 9.4 percent, with 14.5 million people unemployed, recruiters and hiring managers are not strolling down easy-street. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are approximately 3 million jobs that employers are actively recruiting for but are so far unable to fill. And, although the unemployment rate has increased substantially, the number of unfilled jobs has essentially stayed the same since the beginning of the recession.

Innovation or Repetition: The Cyclicality of HR Practices
By Elaine Varelas, June 1, 2009

If you’ve found yourself avoiding the nightly news and averting your eyes from the daily headlines, you are not alone. Yes, the economic forecast is dire, and we are being bombarded with messages of doom and gloom. Unfortunately, we can’t beam ourselves into the future, post-recession, where everyone is happily employed and making money again. We have to live through the downturn until the economy picks up.

If you can’t take one more ounce of bad news about the economy, here is a glimmer of hope: desperation can breed ingenuity. Some of the best ideas have come at the most hopeless times. In fact, many of America’s most famous products were invented during the Great Depression. Scotch tape, baby food, Polaroid pictures, and chocolate chip cookies were all conceived during an era when there wasn’t money to pour into R&D, focus groups, or pilot programs. The good news is that despite the ominous economic predictions—or maybe because of them—we get creative.

What innovations will come out of this recession? What advances will happen at your company? Take a look at your organization’s HR strategies and practices. How are they determined? At many organizations, programs and services are cut or added depending on availability of funds. While this is sometimes unavoidable, basing business decisions solely on cash flow creates a more reactionary approach to planning. It doesn’t allow for vision, inspiration, or a long-term view. The uncertain economy may be forcing companies to make some tough decisions, but it is important that organizations not just have a knee-jerk reaction to economic forces. This is not the first time we’ve weathered a recession and it won’t be the last. The ebb and flow of the economic cycle is a natural part of business.

When it comes to planning and strategy, many of us get stuck in a rut. We do something one way because we’ve always done it that way. Or we flip back and forth between what we’re doing now, and what we did in the past (centralize then decentralize; outsource and then back in-house; report to HR, then report to the business unit). While there are important lessons to be learned from the past, recycling an old method to address a new challenge may not always be the best option.

If the current way isn’t working and the old way isn’t much better, there must be room for fresh ideas. How can organizations discover what that new way will be? If necessity is the mother of invention, we should be seeing some whoppers of inventions these days! Never before have we needed to be more efficient by finding ways to cut costs while providing exceptional service, and doing more with fewer resources. What widget will help us do what we do better?

If ingenuity and creative thinking are the ways to gain a competitive edge in a stilted economy, how does your organization fare? Is there room in the organization for innovation? Are ideas (even seemingly outlandish or impossible ones) rewarded or squashed? Are people encouraged to think differently? Or do people get stones thrown at them for suggesting a new way? It may be the unconventional or counterintuitive idea that will be the breakthrough strategy for an organization to get ahead. HR managers should look at their teams and systems for evidence of this kind of creativity, and continuous improvement. They also need to look to the leadership team. Does leadership foster an environment where new ideas are welcomed and rewarded?

Sometimes innovation happens by trial and error. Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of the chocolate chip cookie, ran out of bakers chocolate for her recipe and substituted a chopped-up semi sweet chocolate bar. It didn’t melt like it’s chocolate cousin, and one of America’s favorite sweet treats was born. Are your employees encouraged to take chances and try new ways of doing things?

It can be risky to encourage innovation, especially when resources are tight. It is important to step out of the current crisis and look ahead. What may be a short-term loss could prove profitable over time. By fostering an environment where innovation is encouraged, you organization’s HR function can help promote success today and in the future.

Most of us can’t imagine wrapping a gift without scotch tape or feeding an infant without jarred baby food. We take these inventions for granted. The advances of today will also become ingrained in our everyday lives. What will that invention be at your company? Is your organization ready for the next new big idea? When we make room for and encourage creative thinking, innovation happens.

The current recession is bringing out the best and worst behaviors from managers. Management’s actions will have a significant impact on employee loyalty for years to come. Let’s take a look at some examples:

By Elaine Varelas

Manager of Customer Delight.
Chief People Officer.
Director of First Impressions.

These titles may seem like names for silly jobs you would only find in an offbeat company like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. In fact, these jobs do exist in the real world. You just may recognize them by their more staid monikers—Customer Service Representative, SVP Human Resources, and Receptionist.

But these job titles are anything but silly. In fact, they reflect a sound strategy for inspiring employees and reinvigorating a tired corporate culture. For resource-strapped HR managers (or Chief People Officers) looking to build enthusiasm and cohesiveness among recession-stricken troops, redefining roles and titles can give organizations a much-needed shot of adrenaline to motivate employees in a stilted economy.

Could these unconventional titles work in your organization? Do job titles really matter? Do employees care what their job is called, as long as they know what they’re supposed to do? In fact, titles do matter. While there’s nothing wrong with light-hearted or whimsical titles, company leaders should not just make up outrageous or extraordinary titles just to placate anxious workers. This isn’t just a distraction technique—producing rainbows, teddy bears, and balloons in place of bonuses and promotions—to while away the time until the economy rebounds. This is a legitimate strategy to better define people’s roles and responsibilities in the organization and get them excited about the work they do.

As we all learned in grade school, language is powerful. It can frame the way people look at themselves their careers and the organization. It also sends a message to clients, customers, and leaders. This is who we are, what we stand for, and what we want to be. This is a way to help people take pride in their jobs and their organizations.

If titles are assigned creatively and purposely, people may have an even better understanding of their role in the company. By giving people impressive and directive job titles and descriptions, organizational leaders and HR managers can help improve the company’s culture in an economical way. It can also help boost productivity and morale at a time when the economy has placed many employees on edge.

Redefining people’s titles can also help them hone in on their job responsibilities, especially if the new titles are framed in terms of expectations and results. The titles should explain the roles’ main focus. For example, the title of Corporate Trainer could be changed to Director of Managerial Expertise. Instead of the title describing what the person does (I train people), it can mirror what the person is responsible for accomplishing (I help managers refine their skills). Creating this results-driven type of title can help give employees a renewed sense of purpose in their workdays.

This year’s class of college graduates will face their share of challenges in this new employment market. What can employers expect when hiring from the class of 2009 and what is the best way to approach recruiting this year’s college graduates?

By Elaine Varelas

These tumultuous economic times have caused severe upheaval in many organizations. Some companies are closing their doors, others are laying off huge numbers of people, and many are merging with others just to survive. This type of disruption can stun a company and its employees. An organization is forever altered after a major change, and employees may be left wondering: What happened? Who are we now? Is my job safe? Do I even want to work for this “new” organization?

It can be torturous to be one of the “walking wounded,” those who survived the firing squad—at least this time around. Yes, they are the lucky ones who still receive a paycheck, but their workload may be doubled (or tripled), many of their friends and colleagues are gone, and they could even have a new boss or department. Adding to their anxiety is that they may be working for a different leadership team and may no longer have a clear understanding of what the company does, stands for, or is trying to accomplish.

One way HR managers can help an organization and its employees to recover more quickly from a recession-induced set-back is to focus on the organization’s culture. Oftentimes, company leaders are swift to re-set the direction of the organization. This can even happen as a result of the major change, if a company sheds a department or tightens its service offerings. As the business focus shifts, however, it is imperative that these changes be communicated to employees, and that the culture of the organization also be re-set to reflect the new workplace reality.

On opposite ends of the generation timeline in today’s workforce, Generation Y, or the Millennials, (those born after 1980) and the Baby Boomers (born before 1965) each have different approaches to their work. Both groups are influenced by their age, their experience and background, their peers, and their generation’s values.

While it would be too sweeping a generalization to tell you that all Boomers make the best managers or that everyone in Gen Y excels at working with new technology, it is important for HR managers to understand the differences in workers of these two very different generations, how to manage those differences in the workplace, and how they can best work together toward common goals.

By Elaine Varelas

Sometimes it seems as if the economic forecast is so dire that we are willing to try anything-even calling upon our favorite childhood superheroes-to free us from this financial crisis. (Wonder twin powers activate: form of job creation and a surging stock market!) But, sadly, even superhero strength may not be able to pull us out of the current recession. The ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound or fly faster than a speeding bullet aren't exactly the qualities we need to help us endure the challenges ahead. But what are the qualities? What skills and characteristics should today's leaders possess to help ensure organizational resiliency?

The current economic climate is unprecedented for this generation of leaders. Some are even likening this recession to the Great Depression. It is yet to be determined if this downturn will rival the economic disaster that began in 1929 and gripped our nation for close to a decade, but what if it does? How can this generation of executives lead us through this economic upheaval when most of us have only read about the depression in history books?

One thing we have learned from history is that challenging times require a different type of leadership. There are specific core competencies that are required to ensure organizational resiliency through any kind of major change. And this economy is forcing change upon many organizations as cuts backs, layoffs, and restructuring are monopolizing the "to do" lists of CEOs everywhere. HR managers must understand what leadership skills are needed during turbulent times and make sure their company's leaders have what it takes to navigate through these changes. Here are the five core competencies HR managers should look for and help develop in their company's leaders:

There are many advantages to utilizing global teams. Businesses will say that ‘going global’ gives them access to talent, helps reduce costs, increases flexibility and responsiveness, offers diverse perspectives and provides a local presence in countries where they do business.

However, successfully implementing, managing and growing global teams takes effort and involves elements not present when managing strictly domestic teams. Conflicts or lost productivity can arise from cultural differences, lack of clear and consistent communication and incompatible leadership.

By Elaine Varelas

It seems that each day our steadfast network television anchors put on their somber faces to relay the news of yet another massive layoff. Some of the best-known companies in a variety of industries - manufacturing, finance, technology, and retail - are having to make substantial cuts to their workforces. What isn't reported is the small businesses that are also having to let people go, or the large companies that are hoping a smaller reduction in force (RIF) will be enough to help keep the organization in business. But just because these scaled-down layoffs don't make the nightly news, that doesn't mean that don't have an impact. If a "minor" layoff is in your organization's future, here are some things HR managers should consider to ensure it doesn't cause major problems at the company:

Don't underestimate the impact of a small-scale layoff - Many HR managers and company leaders assume (or at least hope) that, because a layoff is small, it will go unnoticed. They believe that by not making a big fuss about having to let "just a few people go" they can minimize the fall-out with those employees who remain. But don't be fooled, people are watching, even when leadership thinks the reduction is tiny. Not publically acknowledging the RIF can cause distrust and a loss of morale.

By Aaron Green

Many companies are reacting to this recession by laying off staff and instituting hiring freezes, as well as delaying raises and promotions under the belief that these actions will reduce costs -- and they do in fact reduce costs, in the short term. However, over the long term these measures often end up costing more than the initial savings. Here's why:

• If you allow morale to drop, your competition can recruit your best people away, while low performers stay on, reducing productivity.
• Decreased staff levels can result in overburdened employees who feel burnt out and frustrated; this situation negatively affects customer relationships.
• Hiring freezes mean lost opportunities to hire available superstars who can improve your organization.
• Replacing downsized employees may take a long time to achieve, and the qualities certain talented employees bring to your company may take years to be fully replaced.
• Employees grow increasingly unhappy; and once they have the opportunity (i.e. when the economy improves), they quit just when you need them the most.
• Your employment brand as a good company to work for is damaged, limiting your ability to hire and retain in the future.

Unfortunately circumstances sometimes necessitate cost cuts and there is just no way around it. As opposed to making company-wide staffing cuts and freezes, following are some suggestions that might fit your situation:

By Elaine Varelas

We are at the cusp of a new year — a time typically filled with hope, promise, and renewal. But many of us are facing this year with trepidation and some anxiety. Will the economic woes that dogged us in 2008 — the plummeting financial markets, and the threat of home foreclosures and job loss — follow us into the new year?

By Aaron Green

Since millennials, or Generation Y, entered the workforce they’ve only seen positive trends in demand for labor, career development opportunities and unemployment rates — until now.

The current recession is sure to have an impact on this youngest generation of workers, the millennials. Here are some trends to watch for in 2009:

By Elaine Varelas

‘Tis the season of snowmen, sleigh rides, shopping, and of course, holiday wishes. Despite the wobbly economy, children everywhere are snuggled up in their beds with visions of iPods, cell phones, Hannah Montana gear, and Nintendo Wii gaming systems dancing in their heads.

This time of year, adults have wishes too (and it isn’t just to win the lottery so they have enough cash to pay for their kids’ desires). They also have wishes about their jobs. While children draft a wish list and send it off to a jolly elf in the North Pole, working folk can send their wishes to The Hire Authority right here in Boston.

By Aaron Green

During an economic downturn, many recruiting practices need to be changed – but sometimes not in the ways you might expect.

Economic pressures on workers combined with a higher unemployment rate might lead you to assume that recruiting and hiring are easier during a downturn. Depending on the nature of your job openings, recruiting is not necessarily easier in a downturn, but it is different. Some of the challenges we are use to are still there and are easier to meet (e.g. fewer demands and less negotiating from candidates) but there are new challenges too.

By Elaine Varelas

The sports world is teeming with famous rivalries: Mohammed Ali and Joe Frazer, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, Venus and Serena, and of course the Red Sox and the Yankees. In most cases, these opponents help bring out the best in each another. They train harder, play smarter, and excel whenever they face their rivals. There is a mutual respect for the others’ craft, and it is apparent to spectators. The competition gives athletes a renewed sense of motivation and a concrete goal to work towards.

By Aaron Green

“Temp-to-perm” is a short-hand term that staffing and recruiting professionals use when talking about filling a job with a temporary employee with the option of offering it to that employee on a permanent basis after a trial period. Temp-to-perm, also sometimes called temp-to-direct or temp-to-hire, can reduce guesswork and risk and raise the odds of finding a candidate who fits well within your organization. It can be a win-win situation for employers and candidates who get to do a test run before committing permanently. To determine if temp-to-perm is the right hiring strategy for you, answer the following five questions.

By Elaine Varelas

As the school year gets underway, I am reminded of the perpetual quest of eighth-graders everywhere: to just fit in. While the trends have changed, and today’s teens are sporting earbuds instead of legwarmers (or hip-huggers), the need to fit in is just as strong. While conformity may get you through middle school unscathed by ridicule, it can be a little boring. One thing we learn as we bump along the path to adulthood is that fitting in and following trends doesn’t allow you to make much of an impact — especially in the business world.

The same is true for organizations — the non-conformists often catapult to success while followers can fall flat. In fact, the most successful companies are often unconventional — those businesses that pioneer a new way of doing things or are the first to produce a must-have product. They have a competitive edge because they do something completely different than the rest. They strive to stick out from the crowd and reap the rewards because of it.

By Aaron Green

The old school view of job hoppers was to stay away from them, with the assumption that something must be wrong with them and/or that they will leave you too. Employers were reluctant to invest in employing and developing job hoppers. However, times have changed and progressive hiring managers realize that they need to adjust their perspective to the new norms around job hopping.

Why employees job-hop

Job hopping isn't limited to any one industry, job type or level. It's present in all industries and occurs for reasons ranging from chronic dissatisfaction with salary and work environment to job stress and staff downsizing. Job hopping can be particularly attractive to new workers who seek a broad range of work experience more quickly than one company may provide; they view themselves as free agents. Millennials, or Generation Y, the youngest generation in today's workforce, has been tagged with being job hoppers, a label supported by recent statistics. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than half of all 20-24 year olds had been with their employer less than 12 months.

By Elaine Varelas

When we think about people leaving a legacy, we often conjure up images of the rich, famous, and powerful: presidents, popes, royalty, and celebrities. And we usually only start talking about a legacy after that person has died. In fact, we all leave a legacy, in life and at work — and we can influence that legacy especially if we have many years still ahead of us.

If you gave your notice today, how would you be remembered by your colleagues and company leadership? Would they still be talking about you next week, next year, in five years? Were you the deal-closer, the hot head, the star manager, or the person who instituted a major policy initiative?