4 Easy Employer Branding Updates You MUST Make

4 Easy Employer Branding Updates You MUST Make Talent acquisition strategies and processes have a tendency to outlive their usefulness. This is particularly true in the revived war for talent. Many companies are still operating out of their recession “crisis” mode and have not fully realized that it’s time to reinvent themselves to candidates and current employees. It’s never a good time to rip the Band-aid off and change, especially if what you are doing still seems to be working. But the danger with this tendency is that the longer you wait the further behind you fall. In the meantime, your competitors get ahead. What can you do to update your employment brand? How can you demonstrate why your company is the best place to work today? Here are four easy, often overlooked updates that can create a big impact in a short amount of time they also require minimal buy-in and so are easier wins: 1)  Update your career website: This is the first impression you make. It needs to be up-to-date aesthetically, functionally, and in content. Today’s candidates have short attention spans and demand easy access â€" when they don’t get it, they click on the next search result.  Your site needs to engage viewers within the first three seconds to keep them from clicking off the page. You need to look like a 21st  century employer, speak to candidates as real human beings, demonstrate that you care about their success, and build a case for why they should choose you as the best place to invest their careers. Action steps: Feature real employees in videos to demonstrate your culture. Talk about career paths and trajectories â€" what their career could look like down the road. Create job-specific microsites to address specific candidate populations. Make it insanely easy to join your talent community and stress a clear value proposition for what they will get in return â€" job postings, career insights, invitations to company recruiting events, etc. 2) Consistently leverage social media: Go where your ideal candidates are in the social world. Find the niche sites, blogs, discussions, and forums that they participate in and engage as an active voice in those communities.  You cannot afford to have a reactive mindset. You must go out and connect with candidates who are not actively looking at you as a prospective employer. People are open to being actively recruited where they live and play, and they value employers who maintain a current, active presence in the online conversations that matter to them. Action steps: Dedicate resources to maintain a steady presence on social media. Create a well-thought out content strategy to regularly post content that offers value to your audience. Be personable, respectful, and honest. Candidates know that every company has pros and cons â€" if you are not open to discussing the challenges they can read about on company review sites like Glassdoor.com, they will not take you seriously. 3)  Update your hiring programs: Most companies have intern programs, diversity initiatives, veteran hiring programs, and other specialized initiatives unfortunately, these are often neglected and outdated. With careful examination, you can revamp and revive them to appeal to the current generation of candidates who are seeking these programs. Student employees are the future bench of your company, but most students have a tough time “breaking in” to jobs that provide the experience they need to build their careers. If you can make “breaking in” incredibly easy and appealing at your company, you will quickly become the employer of choice for young talent. Likewise, veterans are an under-tapped pool of talent â€" most need help remapping their military training to civilian skillsets. If you can make this process easy, clear, and provide the orientation/mentoring needed to adjust to a civilian workforce, you can draw on a strong pool of dedicated talent. Action steps: Look at your current programs. How are they outdated? What changes would make them appealing? If you don’t know, seek guidance from external resources. Brand your company as the “employer of choice” for the specific talent demographic that you are targeting by creating an easy process that supports them. Actively engage in the communities these candidates frequent. Build trust by having current employees from these talent pools interact with potential hires. 4)  Automate and simplify: Even with today’s technologies, many companies cling to outdated processes because change is costly and perceived as too disruptive. Purposefully look for areas where your processes can be automated and simplified. This saves you time and money, and also helps your company build its “We’re a 21st  Century Employer” brand by utilizing current technologies. Action steps: Ask employees for their input. What would make their work easier? What currently takes too much time? Are you using old school spreadsheets? What could be moved online? Where can you cut out steps without impacting the integrity of the process? What small changes would improve the hiring experience for candidates and hiring managers? It may seem daunting at first, but taking the time today to update your TA strategies and processes will help you stay at the forefront on the war on talent. With competition as it is, you can’t afford to be left behind. Author: James Holt is Business Development Manager of RPO Services at Seven Step RPO,  a recruitment process outsourcing firm based in Boston, MA and Denver, CO.

Twitter Chats A Great Place For Your Brand To Shine - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Twitter Chats A Great Place For Your Brand To Shine - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Twitter chats are when you chat on Twitter around a certain subject and mark each tweet with a hashtag (#) denoting that you are associating it with that chat or topic. While many people utilize those hashtags like keywords to be associated with on Twitter, a Twitter chat happens at one specific time and everyone gathers tweeting about that subject. One way to shine on Twitter chats, are to participate.   It helps position you and also makes you visible to some potentially great connections.   There are lots of articles on how to participate in a chat yet the best teacher is experience.   Jump on one and start learning by doing. If you’re thinking about hosting a Twitter chat and you’ve never been on one, then stop thinking about hosting one and jump on an actual chat. There’s a plethora of them! And, yet, there’s not much out there on how to lead a successful one. Why lead a Twitter Chat? Be seen as an expert to your target market Connect with other experts and resources Do real time research Nurture relationships with other industry leaders Own your niche For a year, I’ve lead #brandchat â€" a weekly conversation on Twitter discussing every aspect of BRANDING. I co-created the chat with @davidsandusky and we have learned and grown from the process. I started my “chat” days back with #journchat (created by @prsarahevans) when I was one of her media list researchers creating the wiki associated with #journchat and the rapidly growing list of chatters. I also was a very active early participant in the chat and still lurk there quite regularly. I’ve also participated in lurked in several other chats. Some that have guest speakers, some that are rapid fire questions, some that last “way too long”, some that aren’t moderated and some that or so disorganized you don’t ever want to go back! Mashable had a great article on some of the very basics of starting a Twitter chat which I refer to the who, what, why, when and where piece. But, if you think that’s all there is to it, you’re mistaken. The article covers only the very, very basics of starting a good Twitter chat but none of the nuances of really making it successful. Take it from a seasoned chat moderator â€" there is much more happening behind the scenes and if you don’t have a system down to the chat â€" you’ll be overwhelmed and discouraged. @DrFernKazlow has mentioned to me several times that she loves that I show my “personality” on the chat and really engage those chatting and those just ‘peeking in’. I can do that because I’ve put a SYSTEM ( which is an acronym for Save Yourself Significant Time, Energy and Money) in place that frees me up from the chat logistics and mundane so that they are running while I “engage” (and isn’t that one of the cornerstone benefits of “social” media?) Here are some basics: Create a Tweetgrid and copy that URL Give it to your chatters and let them know that you’ve already set it up to follow the chat. If you don’t know how to use Tweetgrid, invest some time learning. There’s some great tutorials on YouTube or you can see the video I’ve picked out to educate first time chatters on how to use Tweetgrid. Learn how to use Tweetchat You’ll have to have another way to keep up with the chat, too. Tweet chat is a great tool. But, do know that sometimes it’s “wonky” (it doesn’t help when Twitter is wonky right alongside with it). Still, you need to know it because it has some wonderful tools like the retweet and refresh speed along with smart pausing that are invaluable to any chat moderator. Create a Twitter account for the moderator Twitter chats are ‘high speed chats’ (ask any BRANDido â€"term of endearment for people who chat on Twitter) and if you are moderating the chat from your Twitter account which has your picture as your avatar â€" chances are you’ll get lost in the shuffle. Nothing is more frustrating then reviewing a host of tweets (that keeps moving and adding more to the list so you never feel like you completely read even one tweet) to pick out what questions you’re on or who the moderator is. Your avatar for the moderator account needs to be succinct and easy to spot in a sea of tweets. Have two Twitter accounts open when you chat High-speed chats results in typos. I laughingly say to BRANDidos that “the danger of being an active member of #brandchat is that you can find yourself in that fiber-filled cone of silence known as #BRANchat”. Notice the letter D is missing from that hashtag. Many a frustrated chatters find themselves ‘not seen’ by other chatters when they make this mistake. And, sometimes the chat programs won’t let you be seen because someone from that ISP has been denoted as a spammer before on Twitter so your tweets are left out in the cold. A second account helps you see who has sent direct messages to the moderator account. You can then “bring people into” the chat by @ replying to them but you won’t know to bring them in if you don’t keep a watchful eye for them. There is so much to Twitter chats and its a great way to quickly gain visibility and credibility which must occur, whether youre an employee or an entrepreneur, before you can garner profitability. Hope youll join us someday to chat about BRANDING! Author: Maria Elena Duron | chief   engagement officer and speaker   with buzz2bucks | word of mouth marketing firm.   She is also co-founder of #brandchat, a weekly conversation on Twitter. Join us weekly as we discuss company and personal brands!

Resources The building blocks of power - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Resources The building blocks of power - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career How does one gain power and success? Resources in nature cover the areas of people, money and materials. These three areas allow one person to have more control than another. The more wealth, raw materials and people you have working for you, the more powerful you will be. When I mention power, I mean the ability to gain control in a certain area, whether it be management or the creation of a separate business entity. Resources are the gateway to overcoming adversity and climbing new heights. To have more people working for you or at your disposal, means you can get more things done and in a timely manner. To have more raw materials, means you can create more product to sell to the end consumer. To have more money, means you are able to purchase more materials and pay the wages of your underlings. For example, if you notice a director at your organization and the amount of human resources under him in the hierarchy. The more people that reside under this director, the more powerful he or she is. Another item to take into account is responsibility. With an increase in money, materials and people, comes a need for more responsibility for managing these resources. If you fall short on meeting the needs of the people under you, are unable to invest money and have too many or few raw materials, you will fail and lose your position. With more power, comes greater responsibility to both your investments and the people that are working for you. If you treat your people right and give them opportunity to grow, you will grow alongside with them. Along with that increase of responsibility and growth yields a higher wage. If you notice, these resources work hand-and-hand in building your success.

Changing Your Brand Heres How to Successfully Pivot - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Changing Your Brand Heres How to Successfully Pivot - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career What is the best  branding  move companies can make when trying to pivot or change their image? Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC)  is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most successful young entrepreneurs.  YEC  members represent nearly every industry, generate billions of dollars in revenue each year and have created tens of thousands of jobs. Learn more at  yec.co. 1. Do the Groundwork A successful pivot or rebranding exercise is a result of careful research. This step gives you a clear picture of your brand’s existing position and where it can go. Find out what your target audience likes about your brand and what it would like changed. When targeting a new demographic, tap it for some insight first.  Derek Robinson,  Top Notch Dezigns 2. Listen to Your Customers When trying to make a  branding  change, its important to listen to your customers and find out what they think you can improve on. If they think your brand looks too old, then its time to make it more modern. Or maybe they think it looks too professional, and they want something more relatable. Pay attention to what customers say about your brand on social media, and survey them as well.  Chris Christoff,  MonsterInsights 3.  Be Open, and Embrace the Change I always come back to the Dominos Pizza campaign when they reworked their recipe. They owned up to their quality issues and brought the whole world into their effort to rework their pizza. It seemed like everyone respected their decision and their openness. Natalya Bailey,  Accion Systems Inc. 4. Understand Your Mission Statement Apple, which was ranked as the  worlds most valuable brand  by Forbes in 2018, lends much of its success to its dedication to its image in every level of the company. Whether an employee is an engineer, a designer or a sales representative, they understand what the company strives to be. And it shows because from stepping into the store to unboxing a new device, the customer understands it too.  Robert De Los Santos,  Sky High Party Rentals 5. Tell the Story Effectively So much of what we do as startups is storytelling (this is true for other companies as well), and to successfully communicate a pivot is to explain, tell the story and share with the world how the leap from one to another made sense.  Ilya Bodner,  Bold Penguin 6. Understand and Explain Why Make sure your new brand answers the why question, which tells your customers the reason youre in business. A lot of brands dont do a very good job of this. Additionally, clearly explain why purchasing your product or service will benefit the lives of your clients.  Andrew Schrage,  Money Crashers 7.  Prioritize Customer Relations What really counts when you want to change your image is how you interact with customers. Pay close attention to your social media, your customer support channels and how your customer service representatives connect with people on a daily basis, whether on the phone, in person or online. When you succeed at transforming your brand image, people will tell you and announce it on social media and in reviews.  Shawn Porat,  Scorely 8. Keep It Simple Many well-branded companies are using one-word names that are hip, easy to remember and describe what the company does. When rebranding your image, a simple, fun and descriptive name and logo change is the best way to go.  Jared Weitz,  United Capital Source Inc. 9.  Pivot Your Brand or Your Business â€" Not Both Either keep your existing brand but target new customers or create a new brand that elevates you in the eyes of your existing target market. If youre doing both, it isnt a pivot â€" its a completely different business.  Marjorie Adams,  Fourlane 10. Revisit Your Target Demographic Pivoting is more than just adding a new color palette or tweaking your logo. It means refining your brand’s voice and tone. The best way to do this is to revisit your target demographic. Start with your audience and what they need so that your rebranding efforts will resonate with the people who will ultimately help your brand become successful.  Shu Saito,  Fact Retriever 11. Make Changes Incrementally Start small. In most cases, you want to remain somewhat recognizable as the company that you were before rebranding. Subtle tweaks to voice, aesthetics and  products can signal major change when implemented with a directed strategy. More importantly, do your research and understand the market that you’re targeting.  Raad Ahmed,  LawTrades

4 Ideas to Boost Your Career Motivation CareerMetis.com

4 Ideas to Boost Your Career Motivation How do people find motivation to work hard?Motivation is something a lot of people end up lacking at least one day a week. Whenever you do not feel like working hard then you are lacking motivation. There are several ways to motivate yourself to work hard or to do anything. When you are feeling down, it is hard to want to do anything.evalMotivation is sometimes hard to achieve, and it takes a lot of work and dedication to become fully motivated. It is important to become motivated in order to reach your full potential and accomplish everything you are capable of.In any career or job setting, being motivated is a must. By following these few guidelines, you will become more successful and better motivated in the workplace.1) Think About it DifferentlyevalDo not think about it as working hardinstead think about it as bettering yourself. When a person is thinking about how much work it is or how hard it is then the drive to work hard dies.Energy comes easier if you look at the project a s something else besides hard work. It is crucial to make small goals that are achievable instead of one big goal. If it is a small goal, then you can more easily see yourself advance towards your bigger goals.Setting goals in the workplace is important in order to reasonably accomplish your given tasks.Reading at least 20 minutes to an hour a day will help clear your head and can be very rewarding.Reading can help take your mind off the task that you have to do which can help you succeed in the future.2) Do Not Let Things Matter that Should NotevalTo make your list more manageable, take and get rid of the things that does not matter. When you use your time doing or worrying about things that are not in your control, then you are wasting mental energy. Your mental energy is very important and if you have drained it by useless stuff then you do not have the energy to work hard on the task at hand.If you give yourself a quitting time then you give yourself time to rest and go back to it in the morning. Fresh eyes sometimes show you stuff that is missing or could be done differently. Instead of waiting for motivation and to feel like doing the task, just get up and start working on it.If you just sit around and think about it then it’s not going to get done. However, if you get up and start then you are going to be motivated yourself to get it done and see the end of the project. You need to celebrate your wins because you manage to have success. Celebration always helps motivate to continue to complete tasks.3) Employers can Help Motivate EmployeesEmployers make the business a nice place to work along with pleasant people to be around then the employees are going to be more motivated.evalIf employees know they are in an honest, respectful environment then they are going to give more effort towards the tasks they have going on. Give the employees rewards for their hard work and they will be motivated to keep on working hard. By providing employees with incentiv es and things to work towards, they will work harder and be more dedicated in achieving success. You can also offer positive feedback and give them room to grow. By offering feedback and constructive criticism, they can advance in life and get somewhere farther in life by continuing to better themselves.If your employees know how business is going then they are going to be more invested in helping improve the business. These days, a lot of employees are more motivatedto work hard if you offer them a flexible work schedule. You can plan days to have lunch cratered because if you take care of your employees then they take care of you.Being recognized for your achievements make people feel appreciated and therefore, they work harder to achieve more.Have a suggestion box so that employees feel like they have a voice and can inform you on what they want or what could be changed to better the workplace.4) Business Apps that can help save moneySome businesses use spreadsheets and other app lications to help keep track of payroll, employees, and hours worked. There are many different ways of keeping track of things in the work environment.One thing that is used is the HR Software Savings Calculatorwhich helps calculate hours and the savings that the company can have if everyone is motivated at work. Knowing what has been spent or saved by having hard working motivated employees is important especially when you have to budget money for things that are needed throughout the workplace. Apps are used by the HR department so they can send the information to the main bosses so that everyone is informed about the cost of things and the savings that can be done if things are done a certain way.In business, you have to find the software that works best for your place of employment along with what is user friendly. You do not want a software that is difficult to use because then people are not going to want to use it and they will begin to lose their motivation to work hard.When employees understand what they are supposed to do and feel comfortable in their job position, they will perform better than those who are unsure.What can Motivated People Do in Order to Work Hard?You would be surprised what motivated people can achieve. The world is endless when people want to work hard and find ways to be motivated so they can achieve everything that they put their mind too. You have to set time aside for you to clear your mind and set a quitting time so that you have time to refresh our mind and body.evalWhen your body is refreshed then you can achieve anything with a clear mind. There are so many ways that you can be productive and motivated; understanding which ones work for you is what you have to find out.Reading can help people relax and take their mind off of the many things that they have to do in a day. It is a way to continue learning while relaxing at the same time. Reading expands your vocabulary and improves your writing skills. Reading has been prove n to be a stress reliever and an important way to decompress.By taking time for yourself to decompress, you will feel motivated to work harder and become more productive!Motivation can also be obtained by listening to uplifting podcasts.Podcasts are a way to expand your knowledge and learn of the many different perspectives of other people. You can explore new topics and choose to listen to what gets you motivated. Podcasts open up a whole new realm of ideas and thoughts that can drive those motivations for working harder.evalEmployers are able to motivate their workers by providing simple incentives for the employees to enjoy. When the employer simply listens to the suggestions of the employees, it is another way to win their respect and it will motivate them to do what they can to help your business and will help them work hard.Motivation is a powerful tool to use to get someone to work hard and reach their full potential so they can achieve anything and everything.

At What Point Do I Take Any Job

At What Point Do I Take Any Job This is a common question for those who are unemployed and there are other variations of it: When do I start looking for other jobs? How to I implement a Plan B (Plan C or Plan D)? Will it hurt my career to take any job? The answer to these questions is as individual as you are.   The answer is almost always: It depends on your needs. The Tough Questions Can I ask a question though?   What if there wasnt any unemployment?   What if, the day you left your job you had $0 to live on?   What would you do?   Would there be a different sense of urgency?   Would your priorities change? Honestly, what would you do? Being in job search erodes self-confidence.   The longer you are out of work, the harder it is to believe in yourself.   And by the way, the harder it is for others to believe in you.   Everyone knows that the last two years have been tough for job seekers and yet we see companies that declare No Unemployed Need Apply.   How cruel, you say.   Well, the EEOC is looking into it, never fear (hear the sarcasm?)! Are the Under-Employed Winners or Losers I am writing this after having read Any Hope for the Unemployed 99ers written a couple of months ago by Brent Peterson (Interview Angel).   We feel sorry for the 99ers.   But who is feeling sorry for the huge number of people who have taken any job- the underemployed?     It is estimated that somewhere between 17-20% of the workforce is underemployed (The Christian Science Monitor summarizes the BLS data well here). Whos advocating for them? Well, maybe they dont need advocates.   Maybe they are the true winners.   They have been lucky enough to secure some type of employment.   Who knows, maybe they are happier than the 99ers. Now that your blood is boiling (mine too!), over the injustice, the lack of good paying jobs, the discrimination, the bureaucracy, whats to be done? The New Reality What I think the last few years have taught me, and I hope others, is to realize and believe that putting all our eggs in one employer basket is so incredibly risky.   We cant count on a single employer to provide us with a good job.   Sure, some are out there.   But we cant count on it.   We are responsible for our own financial well being.   That includes looking at career management in a new way: Creating multiple income streams Networking all the time Developing and managing a strong personal brand (reputation management) Being pro-active Thinking outside of the traditional employment box Welcoming contract work or project-based work Open to the opportunities of temporary relocation Living well below our means Wishing things could go back to the way they used to be probably isnt going to make it happen.   What will it take for you to accept this new way of thinking? If only for a short time. I dont think we can hope that Obama or any other President or politician can fix this problem, at least right now.   So can we all buy into the new reality of instability?   What other choice do we have?

Format For Resume - Your Job Is to Find the Correct Format for Resume

Format For Resume - Your Job Is to Find the Correct Format for ResumeIt is necessary to know the format for resume. If you're wondering how to format resume, read this article and learn how. Using proper resume format will be helpful to you when you use resume writing software.When you are preparing to resume, make sure that you are clear about the purpose of the resume. It should contain your objectives and you should also tell about the accomplishments in the past. Try to write an accurate summary of all the reasons why you should get the job.If you've been searching for a possible job, you must use resume software. This is the best way to prepare a resume. Using the help of software can save you much time and it can save your effort as well. Just remember that you will not get the job if you do not have an effective resume format.Make sure that the format of resume is clear and you must try to keep it simple. Try to get rid of all unnecessary words in the resume and you can use sh ort sentences. Also, you must highlight only those relevant words which should be on the first line of the resume. Then you can start with the title, the job position and then the resume and then the opening part.The most common resume formats are bullet list and bulleted list. Keep in mind that there are few exceptions but make sure that you follow these rules. You must provide the job history of your previous employer.Format should be clear so that it will be easier for the reader to understand. Do not use excessive formatting that can ruin the resume. Remember that the resume is a very important document that you need to get right in order to get the job.Formatting does not need to be done by you. It is recommended that you hire a professional resume writer so that he or she can format the resume properly. Moreover, it is also helpful if you format the resume yourself if you have enough time.If you want to avoid format formatting mistakes, you should think twice before writing a resume. Keep in mind that the format of resume is very important in getting the desired job. Thus, make sure that you are using format in a correct way.