A reader writes:
I wrote back to this writer to clarify, asking if he had accepted the job without confirming salary. He replied: "I did. Their hiring process was kind of sloppy, I never really had a chance to bring it up between the interview and my first day."You can't really be upset that they offered you what they say is their standard new employee rate when you didn't take the initiative to go after more. All you can really do at this point is to do a kick-ass job so that you can justify asking for a raise down the road. 

Rich DeMatteo from Corn on the Job and the team at Brazen Careerist have put together a free ebook titled What I Know About Getting a Job.

The book is a series of short, actionable tips for job seekers. It contains articles by some of my favorite HR bloggers, including Lance Haun of Rehaul, Ben Eubanks of Upstart HR, Kris Dunn from the HR Capitalist, and Laurie Ruettimann from Punk Rock HR.

Oh yea. I’ve got a post in there, too.

It’s free. It’s useful. Check it out.

Download What I Know About Getting a Job

Copyright Chris Ferdinandi | Content licensed under Creative Commons

The dudes over at ERE.net have put together a spinoff site called TLNT.com. It’s basically ERE, but with a focus on the performance management side of the business instead of on recruiting.

It’s awesome. My good blogger buddy Lance Haun is one of the writers there. Definitely check it out.

Here are two of my recent favorites from the site:

• A Persuasive Argument for Getting Rid of Employee Performance Appraisals
• Three Days for Death (or Why HR Policies Make No Sense)

My only gripe with TLNT? They post a lot. Like, several times a day. My RSS reader is bursting at the seams!

Copyright Chris Ferdinandi | Content licensed under Creative Commons

Months ago, I wrote a post about taking the high road.  Sometimes, it really stinks.  I mean really.

I don’t like saying negative stuff about people and companies. And, my guess is most of us don’t (hmmm . . maybe I’m wrong about that).  But, sometimes you just want to call out the absolutely idiotic behavior of others.  Then your sensibilities set in and you realize it would be majorly uncool so you don’t.

You have to be careful though, not to confuse taking the high road for being a doormat.  If people are bad-mouthing you or jerking you around, you need to stick up for yourself.  If you don’t, no one else will.  And, if people around you are doing things that are unethical, illegal or immoral, then not speaking up isn’t taking the ‘high road’…it’s tacit approval which can undermine your personal credibility.

The important thing to remember when addressing these matters is, stay with the facts and take individual personalities out of the equation.

It’s also important to remember who you work for and what you do for a living.  I’ve seen so many people make snarky remarks and then wonder why people won’t do business with them.  Duh – because you made it personal (remember stick to the facts).

But actually, the one I’ve seen more often is people who won’t stick up for themselves or what’s right and wonder why people won’t do business with them.  Let’s face it…if you aren’t willing to stand up for what you believe in, why would any company hire you and give you access to their employees, equipment, money, etc. You haven’t demonstrated that you’ll act in the best interest of anyone, much less their company.

Simply put, taking the high road means not lowering yourself to the snippy comments of others.  It isn’t about avoiding conflict at all costs.  Conflict and disagreement can often bring positive change.  Hmmm…I see a post about conflict coming in the near future…

Image courtesy of Peter McDermott

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1. Taking The High Road
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Managers who understand younger workers’ questioning increase satisfaction, cooperation

Washington, D.C.—July 29, 2010— Leadership development and research company Leadership IQ provides insights into how to manage generational differences in a new white paper.

“Managing Generation ‘WHY’” addresses the three-letter word that alternately puzzles and annoys managers of younger workers: “Why?” One manager even equated the sound of the word with that of nails on a chalkboard.   How can one word become so grating and potentially divisive?

It comes down to a difference in generations, says Leadership IQ’s chief executive officer, Mark Murphy. Those born before 1980 were raised to do as they were told, not to question their elders, be seen and not heard. To this generation, “why” is seen as a challenge to authority or a complaint.

However, for Generation Y workers, “why” is not a dirty word. These adults grew up in a period where parents set their children on a pedestal, told them they were unique and important, and fought for them to be not just seen, but heard as well. Generation Y children were also taught that there is learning value in everything they do — so that every job that must be done has a reason, meaning, or significance.

Leadership IQ’s research found that there are two big reasons Generation Y asks “Why?”:

-The Big Picture “Why”: Generation Y workers want to know how they, as well as their work, fit into the whole. They want to know how the tasks they do affect the department, organization, field, or world as a whole.

-The Significance “Why”: Employees from Generation Y are typically enthusiastic to perform a task when they know the reason behind it. Their parents taught them that rules and instructions are important and good, but only if they make sense and fit the situation.

“Younger workers are asking ‘Why’ not because they’re insolent but because they are curious, inquisitive, and intelligent people who want to learn and grow,” said Murphy. “Instead of fearing or hating ‘Why,’ managers need to learn how to make their work fit into the larger context of the company and explain its importance.”

To help managers more effectively interact with their younger workers, “Managing Generation ‘WHY’” is available for download at http://www.leadershipiq.com/generation_why.html. The white paper is based on one aspect of a more comprehensive Leadership IQ e-course titled “Managing Generation Y.”

About Leadership IQ

Leadership IQ provides leadership training, best-practices research and employee surveys, primarily serving Fortune 500 companies. The organization focuses training and research on management and executive performance, workforce issues, negotiations, strategic planning and customer service. Leadership IQ is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with regional offices in Atlanta, Ga., and Westport, Conn. For more information, visit www.leadershipiq.com.

Media Contact:

Heath Davis Havlick
Fisher Vista/HRmarketer
831-685-9700
e-mail protected from spam bots

###

This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.

NEWPORT BEACH, CA, July 30, 2010 – Secova Inc., a leading provider of human resource and benefits management services, is pleased to announce that they have received the Superstars Award from HRO Today for delivering innovative HR and benefits administration solutions to Fortune 500 companies, state and local governments. HRO Today, a national publication serving business and thought leaders in the HR arena, recognized Secova for its innovative approach in helping client’s reduce benefits administrative costs, reduce overall health care costs and enhance participant support for hundreds of thousands of employees.

“At Secova, we offer customized solutions that simplify and manage the activities surrounding benefits administration” said Joel Carter, Co-Founder and Vice President of Secova. “Over the last seven month’s, the industry as a whole has been focused on the impact and complexities of the new health care reform law. Our sole focus is on removing the administrative and support challenges for employers and employees during this time of great change.”

Secova’s benefits administration and dependent eligibility management solutions oversee not only the welfare of the plan participant, but also the well-being of the employer and the benefits management team. With its employee advocacy customer service model, 24/7 call center assistance, and high-tech, high-touch solutions, Secova supports its clients’ and their participants across the entire administrative chain.

“As the landscape of HR migrates over the next four years, you will see more employers looking to HRO service providers to offer progressive and real-time support in all areas touched by health care reform,” said Venkat Tadanki, CEO. “Employers are looking for systems that are transparent, in terms of delivering real-time enrollment and eligibility data, while helping to ensure compliance and avoid costly penalties.”

This year’s HRO Superstars judging panel was made up of industry-leading health care advisory board members, including key thinkers and thought leaders in the human resources space. Selection of the 2010 HR Superstars was based on many factors including the nominees overall strategy, vision, and ability to consistently deliver results.

About Secova: Secova is a leading Benefits Management Services company that delivers customized “Value-Sourced” solutions designed to enhance services and reduce operating costs. Secova’s mission is to help its clients control and drive down the cost of delivering Human Resources & Employee Benefit Services. Secova’s customized and flexible benefits administration solutions are designed to complement the client’s overall benefit administration strategies, to help lower costs and improve service quality while enhancing timeliness, accuracy and responsiveness to the client’s employees.

To view future Secova presentations or webinars, HR and benefits professionals can visit the Secova website at Secova Inc.

This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.

Newport Beach, CA (July 29,2010) —myStaffingPro, a leader in applicant tracking software, has entered into a strategic partnership with job distribution and candidate response tracking company, Broadbean Technology. This partnership allows myStaffingPro applicant tracking customers to post to any job board using one simple integrated interface.

Through this partnership, myStaffingPro customers will be integrated with the Broadbean user interface. With the integration, users can quickly and easily submit a job opening to any or all of their registered job boards without logging into a separate system or repetitively creating the job opening.

“The partnership between myStaffingPro applicant tracking system and Broadbean Technology creates a seamless integration for recruiting. The offering allows customers to reduce their administrative costs by eliminating duplicate data entry. The result is a more efficient hiring process, which will save companies time and money,” said Bob Schulte, CEO of myStaffingPro.

Kelly Robinson, Founder and Chief Exec of Broadbean Technology, continues, “Broadbean’s partnership with myStaffingPro proves our continued expansion efforts in North America. The combined technologies of myStaffingPro and Broadbean streamline the online recruitment process for recruiters and hiring managers. The analytics and reports provided will, no doubt, benefit myStaffingPro’s clients, as well as our epic customer service and tech team consisting of thirty full-time employees. We look forward to long-standing relationship.”

About myStaffingPro:
myStaffingPro is a full-featured applicant tracking and recruiting system with advanced screening and configuration capabilities. The system provides recruiting professionals with the tools they need to recruit, qualify, track, and hire the best applicants. The scalable myStaffingPro system can be configured to any hiring process or budget. myStaffingPro currently delivers the hiring process for over 500 clients and has processed over 19 million applications. To learn more about myStaffingPro applicant tracking system, visit www.mystaffingpro.com.

About Broadbean Technology:
Broadbean provides global job distribution and candidate response tracking solutions to over 1400 clients worldwide and 32,000 individual users that include staffing companies, recruitment ad agencies, tech vendors, RPOs, and major employers. Our universal reach allows Broadbean to increase the effectiveness of online recruiting with in depth return on investment metrics for job board performance.
Please visit: http://www.broadbean.com

This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.

A reader writes:

I am currently looking for jobs online and have posted my resume on several job sites. I have received messages from potential employers regarding jobs for sales positions, but my resume states that I am currently looking for work in the clerical/administrative field. Why would a potential employer contact me for a position that I am clearly not interested in? Do I return those calls to these employers and politely decline, or do I leave these messages unanswered? 

A reader writes:

I recently applied for a job at an animal care facility, and I made sure to note in my cover letter than I'm a compassionate animal (and people) person in hopes that this will show my personality and also put my resume at the top of the pile. If (hopefully when) I land an interview with this company, I plan on sending out a handwritten thank-you note afterwards. Is it too cheesy to write my note on animal-themed stationery if I keep it tasteful? I want to stand out from the crowd, but not in a bad way. What are your thoughts?

Two months ago when we added a new media relations application to our HRmarketer.com software we said it was the first in what will be a number of really cool new features being added to HRmarketer.com this summer. Earlier this month we introduced enhancements to the software's SEO Center to include long-term trend analysis for keyword rankings.

This week we announced another new feature. (what summer vacation?)

Our latest enhancement is to our popular HR Lead Referral Program, a service that delivers qualified sales leads to human resource vendors each month.

With the latest upgrade, leads are automatically posted to a new database on the customer's HRmarketer.com software account where they can manage their leads or export them to the customer relationship management (CRM) tool of their choice.

Watch the video for details or read the press release.

More upgrades and new features coming soon - after a short vacation :-)