So You Want to Work for A Great Employer

So You Want to Work for A Great Employer One question that pops up again and again is, how can I find a good company to work for? Let me ask you this. How would you define a good company? The answer is as individual as you. But based on analysis of Glassdoors 5-star employers, HR technology reviewer Software Advice,  compiled some interesting data  (and supplied the terrific graphics) that may help you better assess your next move. Dont Discount Small Small companies top the list of 5-star ratings given by reviewers on Glassdoor. The problem with small companies is you probably dont hear about them as often. They are out there, you just need to find them. Software Advices analysis found that the 42% of Glassdoors 5-star rated companies had between 51-149 employees. So where do you find small companies? Why not try Glassdoor, LinkedIn, and visit your local library! Dont Discount New Companies founded around  2010 have something in common.  47% of the top-reviewed companies on Glassdoor were less than 5 years old! Just because a company hasnt been around forever, doesnt mean it isnt a good place to work. Whos Hiring? Another question Im frequently asked is, whos hiring? Every company hires. But if you look at the  industries that have been growing, that may provide an indication of where to find  opportunities. (This is a national trend. You may find that in your area, the trends could be a bit different.) Business Services and Information Technology are pretty sure bets for growth these days. As you can see, the majority (81%) of 5-star rated companies were from  these industries. If you arent a programmer, coder or sales geek, dont let these industries throw you off. Any company in any industry has a full range of job opportunities. If these arent industries you have prior experience with, learn all about how companies function- how do they service customers, how do they invoice/bill,  when new clients are added how does the company staff up and when clients leave, how is the workforce re-aligned? Learn about the specific services and technology each company offers and keep abreast of competitors and trends. Just because you dont have  experience in an industry, doesnt necessarily mean you arent qualified. What it means is that you have to develop an interest and learn the new language of the industry. Prioritize Your Preferences Think about  whats important to you right now, at this stage of your career. What do you need to feel satisfied with how you spend your 40+ hours a week? Listed below are common attributes, but certainly this list is not complete. You may have other desires/needs not mentioned. You should add them. Rank these in order of importance to you. Youll need this to help you weight your decision later on when you have multiple job offers. Benefits Compensation Hard work Intelligent co-workers Learning opportunities Meaningful work Professional development Supportive Management Team/Camaraderie Transparency Heres what the 5-star companies had going for them: Top-Listed Attributes of Five-Star Companies Honeymoon  Thinking? Could the high marks be attributed to the honeymoon phase of being in a new job? Perhaps. The majority of positive reviews came from people who had been with their company less than a year. This could also be skewed due to the demographic makeup of Glassdoor users. Dont dismiss the fact that almost the same percent (41%) of reviewers had been with the company a year or more. Reviewer’s Tenure at Current Company Pros Far Outweigh Cons Sure, even the best companies have flaws. But the most  of these employers dont need to change much.  The pain points, or areas that could be seen as needing a fix, included addressing growing pains, long hours, high pressure. Top-Listed Pain Points of Five-Star Companies Keep Doing What Youre Doing The majority of reviewers felt their company was on the right track and should continue to stay the course. This is good news for these companies, as long as they have really identified what theyve been doing to create an enviable workplace. Some may just have been winging it Whether by luck or on purpose, these 5-star companies have created something good! Culture, careful hiring and listening to employees are recommendations from employees to management, in case they needed reminding! Employees’ Advice to Management at Five-Star Companies New grad, career changer, or just looking for a new challenge? How will these findings change how you approach your job search? There is so much more to think about when selecting a new job! All images credited to Software Advice

3 Keys to Adjust Your Job Search to a Tough Economy - Hallie Crawford

3 Keys to Adjust Your Job Search to a Tough Economy If youre in the midst of a job search, watching the news can be a terrifying thing. There’s gloom and doom everywhere regarding the economy, especially in the media. Let’s be real the economy will have an effect on your job search. It is tougher to find jobs, but not everything is as bad as the media makes it out to be. There ARE jobs out there and there ARE opportunities for you. The current economic situation requires that you be more aggressive with you career search. You must create a transition plan, identify your goals and your ideal job. You have to network more aggressively and market yourself effectively. See this as an opportunity As a career coach, I find career seekers typically fall into 2 categories: 1. The person who’s recently laid off, who is forced to take a look at whether they were happy in their career. People in this category should use this as an opportunity to make a positive change. They have a choice to stay in their current industry or embark on a career path that would be more fulfilling and rewarding for them. 2. The other person is the one who is unhappy in their job but is scared to do anything about it because they hear all the doom and gloom in the media. Therefore they remain in a job they’re unhappy with. People in this category should realize that life is too short to stay in a career that is making you unhappy. And that despite the tough economy, they can make a change. They just have to be smart about it. At the end of your life do you want to say that you tried and even failed, or than you didn’t try at all? You know the answer. Recognize how the economy is changing the job market As the economy changes, I am finding that more and more people are choosing to re-invent themselves or start their own business. You need to recognize that the tough economy has changed the job market and adjust accordingly. Identify other industries that can use your talents, expertise and experience. Think out of the box and clarify what skills and experience can be “transferable,” utilized in other fields. If you simply cannot find anything in your field and you’ve always considered starting your own business â€" now might be the right time. Consider starting your own business Take a look at you area of expertise. Do you have experience with accounting, graphic design, or administrative support? As our world becomes more and more virtual, you can now work from almost any location, and service clients almost anywhere. The virtual assistant industry, for example, has sprouted up as result of ability to work remotely. Look at your area of expertise and consider providing consulting services in this area. Striking out on your own can be scary and it involves risk. It is not a cakewalk and it takes effort, commitment and work. But if you do something you’re passionate about, it won’t feel like work. It’s more enjoyable and you’ll be more committed because you’re following your dream. Keep in mind the success stories of some famous businesses like Fedex and Proctor and Gamble. They were started during an economic slump. Why not yours?? Consider Career Coaching Have you thought about career coaching? A career coach can give you new insight, help re-align your goals and set a clear path to reaching your ideal career. We hope this information has been helpful to you, , Certified Career Coach Schedule a free consult with HallieCrawford.com today

Heres What I Know About Writing a Teen Resume for Summer Employment

Here's What I Know About Writing a Teen Resume for Summer Employment Writing a Teen Resume for Summer Employment Can Be Fun for Everyone You might have been a top fundraiser for your team also. Most summer jobs mostly revolve around the technical pursuits that are complete in an establishment. For example, if you had a class on communication, that may be helpful in a job for a camp counselor when you must converse with a dozen children. There might not be competition for jobs like lifeguard or camp counselor, but you might be interested in a seasoned worker in comparison with a newbie, if you're running a retail shop. Writing a Teen Resume for Summer Employment Options A resume is a document that supplies the reader with information regarding your relevant abilities, qualifications and experience. Writing a resume whenever you have not yet held your very first job can be challenging. Just take a couple of minutes to consider the skills that you possess. Skills are the thin gs which you're good at and there are a plethora of possibilities for skills which should be highlighted on your resume. The Good, the Bad and Writing a Teen Resume for Summer Employment To be sure your resume stands out from the herd, here are a few formatting tips you are going to want to follow. Meanwhile, you could be wondering what things to put on your resume considering you have not ever had a job before. Without a prior job, you are probably wondering what you ought to include and ways to get started. Have a look at this article for the complete scoop on the best way to compose a resume summary. If you do think there's a shared interest, I would greet the opportunity to meet up with you to hear more regarding your company, the essentials of the position, and the way my skills would be a great fit. You may have helped your company gather vital info in your part-time job, while it's searching for potential new customers or researching an upcoming article. A job may be an experience building stepping stone if you already know what sort of career you want to make in future. Finally, include the reason why it is important.

What 101 Things Will You Do Before You Die - Work It Daily

What 101 Things Will You Do Before You Die - Work It Daily By Colin Nanka I recently read an article that referenced this story about Ted Leonsis’ brush with death back in 1983 and how it transformed his life. “Ted Leonsis, the owner of the Washington Capitals and an Internet multimillionaire, may seem like a guy who has it all. But he hasn’t done it all. When he survived a plane crash landing in 1983, he made a list of 101 things he wanted to do in life. “ I was fortunate enough to be able to meet Mr. Leonsis back in 2000 when I was visiting a friend in Washington, DC. At the time one of my friends had been traded from the Chicago Blackhawks to the Washington Capitals and was a third line winger, and one of the hardest working players on the team. That particular time I attended, the team was retiring Dale Hunters #22 Jersey and my friend got me invited upstairs for the party. The entire team, families and friends of Dale Hunters were there. It was quite a night. At one point in the evening Ted came over and introduced himself to the friends that James had brought up. He was very down to earth, polite, with an aggressive edge. He chided James about the last time they were out playing golf, betting on the game and how James had lost. James by far had some of the least talent on the team, but best work ethics and you could tell Ted just saw something in him he identified with. He and James played golf often. As Ted moved on to talk to other people, I kept an eye on him. By the time the night was over, he had gone and talked to every single person at the party, whether they played for the team, were family…or belonged there at all. I felt a little bit like I was intruding, but he was my friend, and I got to meet the head of AOL…and it was one hell of a party. So my point. Many of us don’t take stock of life all that often. To what we have, what we have accomplished and what is out there to do. Many people meander through life, letting life blow them around like a leaf in the wind. While others, like Ted Leonsis take ownership of their path, control their destiny and raise the expectations of what their life will mean when it’s over. If you take a look at his list, it’s broken down into a few different sections. Family, financial, possessions, charity. I imagine it took him a little while to create this list and fine tune it. You may think it’s easy, but it takes time. It’s hard to even come up with 101 items. You really need to reflect on what you have done; it makes you investigate, if you were only allowed 101 things to accomplish in life, what would they be? Some of those examples from Ted Leonsis (he’s accomplished 71 and counting): 1. Fall in Love and get married 2. Have a healthy son 3. Have a healthy daughter 4. Take care of mother and father 12. Pay off College debts 22. Create the worlds largest media company 33. Support someone who makes a great breakthrough in science or art 77. Go to Brazil 100. Take a year sabbatical 101. Sail around the world with the family You will notice his first four are….not possessions or wealth. They are probably similar to most that have a family. In this he is an ordinary man, like the rest of us. He just happens to have set his bar in life pretty damn high! Colin Nanka blogs about all topics relevant that occur in his life and social community. He is passionate about life; learning from others and helping others achieve their goals. Colin keeps busy as a cloud computing evangelist for one of the fastest growing Software companies in the world today, Salesforce.com. Colin got his start in business with Xerox Corporation, in Western Canada, where he spent eight years in a number of sales, sales training, and product management capacities. He can be reached at LinkedIn or on his blog, The Social Community. Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!

3 Reasons to Always Keep One Foot in the Job MarketÂ

3 Reasons to Always Keep One Foot in the Job MarketYou have a job and youre mostly happy with it. But even if youre mostly thrilled with it, its always a good idea to stay sharp and keep your options openif only to negotiate better pay, bonuses, etc. Here are three things you can and should do to ensure youre always a hot commodity and get recognized for your talents. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Keep your contacts closeNearly 75% of all job-seekers get hired through networking. All the more reason to expand your network, make new connections, and keep your existing contacts sweeteven when you have a job. If you ever do need to shop around, youll have your network already in gear. Itll seem much more genuine to ask for help if youve kept in touch all along.Keep your resume road-readyTheres nothing worse than needing a new job in a hurry and having and out-of-date resume. Keep your resume current, as well, by doing a bit of monthly sch eduled maintenance to include new training, skills, and expertise,0 or even new responsibilities. When or if you ever meet a head hunter, youll be ready to present your best self on paper without having to scramble.Stay in the loopStay current and regular. Generate an online presence on social media and networking sites like LinkedIn and then maintain that presence. Make a schedule for articles and blog posts and website updates, even tweets. The more you keep up your brand, the easier it will be to sell it (translation yourself) if you ever have to.If you follow this roadmap, youll never find yourself in a desperate situation. You can do your job with the confidence that you can easily find another one, given all the great groundwork that youve been laying.

When Should You Take Time To Be With Kids Infancy Or Middle School

When Should You Take Time To Be With Kids Infancy Or Middle School Parents often struggle to handle work time and family time. This struggle can affect the environment in which a child is raised, compromising the quality of his or herbei development. In fact, research shows that growing up in a stressful environment is associated with delinquent behavior in a child.However, the same research bears the good news that the potential negative impacts of a stress-filled environment can be countered by having parents who are involved in their childs growing up years.So, its no wonder so many parents consider taking some time off to be at home. But when to do it? Often, parents are split between staying at home during infancy (from birth to 12 months) and middle school/early teen years (typically between 11 and 14 years old).The reality, however, is that most parents do not have the luxury to be present at every minute of their kids young life. With the need to balance between family needs, work needs, as well as personal needs, the question becomes less about why we should spend more time with ur kids and more on when would be the best stage to spend more time with ur kids.Being there during infancyAs infants, children are completely dependent on adults for care, love and comfort. As parents, the thought of leaving our fragile infants in the hands of another person can eat away at us, affecting our focus at work. As one parent, Obet Cabrillas, who is a Preacher and Spiritual Director, said in an interview discussing quality time with kids, We are a product of the people who loved us and refused to love us Leaving our little ones at home with someone else responding to their cries creates the feeling of guilt and the thought that we are depriving our babies of the love they deserve.Indeed, spending time with our babies is rewarding. We develop empathy and patience as we become increasingly attuned to their specific needs, which build a special parent-child connection. We have the privilege of watching them develop their senses, sense of focus, unique personality and initial words.Bonding time during middle school years may be more formative.While time spent with your infant is priceless, research finds that having full time maternal care during infancy leads to similar developmental outcomes for a child as utilizing day care or full time nanny care during infancy. Research also suggests that taking time off to guide the growth of children may be less important during infancy than during the pre-teen and teenage years.As any adult can attest, the middle school years are some of the toughest years for growing up. We feel awkward. We have a thousand questions running through our minds. And we have plenty of influences vying for our attention. Parental guidance and bonding time with middle school kids may need to be uninterrupted.Quality first, before quantitySince were deciding when would be the optimal time to take a step back from work and become the lead parent at home, its also important to point out that bonding time with kids should be more about quality than quantity.Studies show that the amount of time parents spend in childcare has increased since the 1970s. Fathers spend almost five more hours a week with their kids now than they did 40 years ago. Mothers spend an additional three hours per week now than in 1965.However, research shows that supporting childrens mental, emotional and social development does not depend entirely on spending so much time with children. In fact, there is such a thing as spending too much time with kids in which parents may already be depriving young ones of the opportunity to shape their identity, autonomy and imagination.But between infancy and middle school years, children may need their parents to be at home more during adolescence. Pre-teens and teens whose parents engage with them during meal time or in the car to and from school are less likely to display delinquent behavior, subst ance abuse, or poor academic performance. A study was able to determine that an average of six hours per week between parents and adolescents is enough to have positive effects in a childs development into his or her adult years.As much as parents would want to be there for their children no matter what, they do NOT need to feel guilty about being absent from certain moments. Parents simply need to be there when it matters most during middle school years and at least six meaningful and engaging hours per week.--Chiara writes about business, finance, social enterprising, health and medicine, and the unique placement of women across these areas. She is also a co-creator at FictionFolk, which designs events that aim to peddle the literature culture.Fairygodboss is committed to improving the workplace and lives of women.Join us by reviewing your employer

Healthy Workplace Preventing RSDs - Spark Hire

Healthy Workplace Preventing RSDs - Spark HireRepetitive stress disorders, or injuries (RSDs) affect employee wellness in every field. Whether your workforce is on an assembly line, in the checkout lane, or in front of computer screens, RSDs are likely a problem. So are WMSDs (work-related musculoskeletal disorders). Not only can behauptung chronic medical problems cause long-term discomfort for employees, disability claims (sometimes long-term) can wreak havoc on your bottom line. So, with this weeks segment on employee wellness, lets look at some ways you can encourage healthy habits to prevent injuries with acronyms.Invest in an Ergonomic WorkspaceI try not to begin these tips with the word invest. However, this is a case where employee wellness is worth forking over some cash. According to OSHA, total direct costs for WMSDs cost U.S. businesses around $50 billion annually. WMSDs also account for up to 34% of all lost workday illnesses and injuries.With numbers like that, it is in your best interest to have an ergonomics evaluation at your workplace. An ergonomist can take a look at your workplace, and help you figure out what upgrades would be the most helpful for your company. Solutions like raising or lowering chair height, providing in-line document reviewers, or ear rests for telephones might have a big impact for a relatively low cost. Take the time to crunch the numbers on how much WMSDs are costing your business, and determine an appropriate amount for an investment in employee wellness upgrades.Encourage Regular BreaksRepetitive stress injuries, as their name implies, are caused by repetitive motions. Carpal tunnelbauwerk syndrome and tendonitis are common examples of this type of injury, estimated to cost employers close to $2 billion annually. Encourage healthy habits by instructing employees to take regular breaks from the kind of work that causes the injury. Encourage a 60-second break every 15-to-20 minutes for rest, and stretching tense muscle s. Certain kinds of stretches can help prevent or treat RSDs.Educate Your EmployeesSet aside annual or semi-annual employee wellness meetings to talk about healthy habits for preventing stress injuries. Many of these injuries can be prevented by adopting simple practices like sitting up straight, or holding wrists level. Consider hiring a guest speaker to give a lively presentation on the importance of adopting these healthy habits. Provide employees with posters or signs to remind them about proper ergonomic positions. Explain ways to recognize early signs of a RSD. Also be sure to allow time for a Q A, so that employees can apply their newfound knowledge to their specific position.How do you encourage employee wellness through ergonomics? What healthy habits do you recommend? Give us your tips below, or send me a tweet ithinkther4iambIMAGE Courtesy of Flickr by Kare_Products