by Alan Collins

How would you like to get 17 of the best HR experts to sit down and share their best job search and career advice with you?

Now you can.

In this free downloadable eBook, What I Know About Getting A Job, 17 top HR pros, bloggers and job search experts share their stories, experiences and their beliefs.  It’s a quick read.   To immediately download it CLICK HERE.

Now this eBook WON’T will answer every question you have, but you’ll definitely enjoy these shared stories and experiences from your fellow HR pros.

Kudos to Penelope Trunk and Brazen Careerist and Rich DeMatteo of Corn on the Job for pulling this information together and for the 17 HR contributors for taking the time to share their insightful, inspiring, and helpful stories.

Give us your feedback.  Tell us what advice you especially like from this eBook by clicking HERE.

About the Author: Alan Collins was Vice President – Human Resources at PepsiCo where he led HR initiatives for their Quaker Oats, Gatorade and Tropicana businesses.  He is now President of Success in HR, Inc. and the author of UNWRITTEN HR RULES .  His new book, BEST KEPT HR SECRETS will be available in September on Amazon.

Mountain View, Calif., July 27, 2010 — With workloads expanding beyond one’s typical job responsibilities as a result of the economy shifting organizational roles, it’s easy for talent management to get pushed to the back burner until July and December when mid and end-of year performance reviews are due. While it might not seem like an immediate business imperative, properly managing an organization’s talent through regular performance monitoring and the identification of learning opportunities are essential for helping employees’ achieve their maximum potential on a daily basis, which increases productivity and ultimately impacts the bottom line.

“As resources become increasingly scarce, organizations must invest in the right tools to effectively oversee the development and performance of their most important asset, their employees,” said John Borgerding, President of SumTotal Systems. “Newly developing talent management technologies can help HR executives navigate today’s challenge of aligning talent development initiatives to an organization’s business goals so that talent isn’t misused or wasted. These solutions help improve communications, streamline processes and drive a performance-driven business culture.”

Bersin & Associates’ 2009 Talent Management Factbook reported that organizations with superior talent management experience 26% higher revenue per employee and a 40% lower turnover among high performers. The study also cited that companies embracing effective talent management strategies have a greater ability to hire the best people, develop great leaders, respond to changing economic conditions, and plan for future workforce needs.

Similarly, an Ernst & Young report from May 2010 found that companies that integrated their talent management programs delivered 38% greater return on equity than companies with non- or partially integrated programs, while companies that aligned talent management to business strategy experienced, on average, a 20% higher return on equity.

Implementing an integrated talent management solution that gives organizations the ability to track employee performance on a project basis throughout the year, which can in turn help identify skill gaps and needed learning development, allows for a more holistic view of a workforce. SumTotal is committed to providing solutions that offer a unified approach to talent development — incorporating performance, learning and compensation management — so companies can optimize employee value in a more streamlined and cost-effective manner.

About SumTotal Systems, Inc.
SumTotal Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of proven talent development solutions that automate and integrate learning, performance, and compensation management to drive business results on a daily basis. Our solutions strengthen and develop employee skills to accelerate time-to-market, close skill gaps, and reduce the risk of business disruptions. With more than 1,500 customers and 18 million users worldwide, we have increased the performance at some of the world’s best-known companies, organizations and government agencies. Our category leadership and applied insight help us understand the critical success factors for businesses of all sizes. For more information, visit www.sumtotalsystems.com

SumTotal and the SumTotal logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of SumTotal Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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

Is your system “broken” or do your processes and practices need to be improved? Technology is not the silver bullet that many people think it is. How do you optimize your processes and practices around talent sourcing?

Automating an inefficient process just creates an inefficient system and by throwing technology at a bad process, all you have done is sped up the chaos in an organization without getting the efficiencies you are seeking

Other items that will be covered during this webinar presentation include:

•    How do you make sure you are getting a return on your ATS investment?
•    Have you met the business objectives and decision drivers that were defined prior to selecting your system?
•    How do you measure user effectiveness, usability, and satisfaction?
•    How do you get effective training of all types of your users (recruiters, hiring managers, employees, agencies, etc)?
•    How to achieve operational efficiency and usability with your ATS system
•    How to get adoption and increased usage of the system by all users
•    How do you continue to allow the ATS to evolve to meet changing needs and requirements of the organization?

Join us next Thursday, July 29.  Click here to register.

by Alan Collins

In today’s tough economy, there’s a new career model emerging.

This is one you won’t read about in Workforce magazine, HR Executive or find as a topic at any SHRM meeting.

It’s called sidehustling and here’s how I stumbled on to it.

A buddy of mine who is an HR director in Chicago recently informed me that he was taking an advanced online class on how to sell stuff on eBay.

Totally shocked and just a bit curious, I asked him:

“Why the heck are you wasting time taking a class on eBay when you could be using the time instead to take a class on talent retention, health care cost containment or how to leverage social media in HR?  Those are the hot topics right now for HR…wouldn’t those be better for your HR career?”

“Sure, but hey,” he replied passionately, “Doing the ebay thing is my side hustle to put a little more cash in my pocket.   I absolutely love HR to death, but the health care company I work has eliminated merit increases entirely for this year and I can use the extra income.   This advanced ebay class is going to help me do that.”

He went on to say:  “You see, I’ve been a coin collector since I was in grade school.  And, I worked in a coin shop during the summer to help pay for college.  Now, I make a nice little side income buying and selling them a couple of evenings a week from home on my laptop on ebay.   At one point, I thought about opening up my own coin business full-time as a coin dealer, but it was just too risky and expensive.  So, I decided to turn my passion into my side hustle instead.  I’ve been buying and selling coins at a profit for over four years on eBay — all while keeping my day job in HR.   So back to your question…yes, I’m looking at building my skills in HR, but I want to keep my side hustle going too.”

After we talked a bit more, it was hard to argue with his logic.  And one thing struck me…

More HR folks need a sidehustle.

Let’s face it, the economy is at an all time low, the housing and job markets are in the middle of a crisis, credit is hard to find and keep, and many exceptional HR pros are out on the street or having a hard time meeting their monthly financial obligations.

While many search for a better paying job or work towards advancing their HR career right where they are, many others are also choosing to sidehustle.

If you’re in HR, a sidehustle may be a great alternative for:

• Earning a few extra bucks on the side.
• Testing and trying out a new business idea.
• Keeping some revenue flowing in if you’ve lost your job and are in transition.

Here are a few examples of sidehustles people that I know are doing successfully on evenings, weekends or part-time…while balancing the demands of their full-time gig.

• Teaching HR classes at a local university or community college
• Providing a resume-writing service or career coaching
• Consulting with small businesses
• Writing for blogs, websites, their local newspaper or for national magazines
• Teaching English (Spanish or any another language) to those wanting to become bilingual
• Becoming a paid fund raiser for local charities
• Doing event planning for local organizations
• Buying real estate and renting it out
• Buying stocks that pay annual dividends
• Selling personal photography or art
• Buying and selling collectibles on ebay

Obviously, some of these are more risky than others.  Some are related to HR.  Some aren’t.   While the people doing them won’t become as rich as Oprah, Bill Gates or Lady GaGa, they’re finding the extra spare-time income helpful.

While many are choosing not to hide their sidehustles from their full-time employers, they don’t publicize them either. They don’t want their sidehustle to get them fired from their main hustle.   So, if asked, they refer to them as their “hobbies” or “spare-time interests,” because they don’t want to be perceived as not being 100% committed to their organization’s success.

So what’s your side hustle?

One of the things I do in my spare time is to create websites.  I’ve never called this my sidehustle, but that’s exactly what it is.  It’s fun for me and it creates another revenue stream.  Besides sites I create for myself, I’ve created blogs for local judges, real estate agents and a couple of interior designers.

Over the years, I’ve learned how to produce these sites quickly in my spare time…without diverting me from my main focus which is my HR work and career.  And it’s a good change of pace for me, allowing me channel my creative juices into something not related to HR.   I’ve even created a new website about this whole idea of sidehustling…and it includes a ton of sidehustle ideas you may want to consider…check it out HERE.

From my own experience and talking with others, a good sidehustle will have the following characteristics:

• You like doing it.
• You are pretty good at it.
• It may be related to your career in HR…but it doesn’t have to be.
• You can generate some quick cash in a short period of time
• It does not require a huge amount of time away from your HR day job.
• It does not create a conflict of interest situation with your company (very important!!).
• You focus on one hustle at a time to keep your stress level low.
• Start with an easy hustle first.
• Set goals and time frames to get your hustle started.
• It is ideal if your hustle is an extension of your HR brand.  For example, if you’re an HR generalist, teaching an HR class in the evening at a local university is great for your resume and great for your pocketbook.
• Your hustle will not get you thrown in jail (dealing crack, while profitable and possible from your home, is not recommended)

What do you think about sidehustling as a supplement to your HR career?   Do you have a sidehustle?   Give us your feedback by clicking HERE.

We’d love to hear your story.

About the Author: Alan Collins was Vice President – Human Resources at PepsiCo where he led HR initiatives for their Quaker Oats, Gatorade and Tropicana businesses.  He is now President of Success in HR, Inc. and the author of UNWRITTEN HR RULES .  His new book, BEST KEPT HR SECRETS will be available in September on Amazon.

I believe sourcing for candidates is like fishing.

When people go fishing, they are aware of the fish they can actually see in the water and of course the fish they catch. However, most people who go fishing don’t spend any time wondering about all of the fish in the pond, lake, or ocean they are fishing in that they have access to, but never catch.

Similarly, when most people source for candidates – they are only aware of the candidates they find. They don’t give much thought to all of the great candidates they actually have access to, but fail to find, review, or even recognize as a potential match. 

I recently spoke at a Technology Association of Georgia’s (TAG) Recruiting Society event about this very concept. Below is a modified version of the presentation, edited to make more sense given that you don’t have the benefit of seeing/hearing me address the slides.

Enjoy!

By Alan Collins

Before updating you on the contest, let me first update you on my new book:  Best Kept HR Secrets

I’ll now be releasing this book on  September 1.

Here’s the short story behind this.

The original plan was to release this book on July 15.  However, I wasn’t pleased with some of the content and the initial proofs of the book.  So, I’ve decided to take a bit more time to make the revisions required.   I know some of you will be disappointed at the delay, but I’m excited about having some additional time to enhance the value you’ll gain from the information in this new book.  And I assure you that your wait will be worth it.

Now the good news!

This means we will be extending our contest. The contest will now end on September 1…to coincide with the release of the book.  So If you’ve not yet participated or want to participate even more than you already have, now you can.

Here’s a refresher on the contest and the rules…

(1)  All you have to do is to give us your “ONE best piece of HR career advice…. using exactly 6 words.” You must post your response HERE for it to be considered.

(2)  I’ll be selecting THREE winning responses. And to each of the three winners, I will send them a free copy of my new book: Best Kept HR Secrets when it is released.

(3) And, yes, it must be EXACTLY 6 words. Anything more or less will not be considered.  Why 6 words?  Well, here’s the story…

Awhile back, I was intrigued to read about what the Bush daughters did with the Obama daughters as the Bush-Obama transition was occurring.  Apparently, the Bush daughters wrote the Obama daughters a letter with some advice on living in the public eye inside the White House.  The most widely quoted part of that letter was very touching, “Remember who your dad really is.”  Since Jenna and Barbara’s advice was exactly 6 words long, I thought it would be interesting to see what career success advice HR folks might come up with.

(4)  Again, the contest now ends on September 1. Important:  Please include your e-mail address so that I can contact you should you win.  And YES, you can enter as many times as you like.

(5) To view your competition and all the current responses we’ve received so far, go HERE.

Now, let the contest continue!

About the Author: Alan Collins was Vice President – Human Resources at PepsiCo where he led HR initiatives for their Quaker Oats, Gatorade and Tropicana businesses.  He is now President of Success in HR, Inc. and the author of UNWRITTEN HR RULES .  His new book, BEST KEPT HR SECRETS will be available in September on Amazon.

The weekly HRchitect WebMingle is designed to give you some insight into the puzzling world of HR technology, discuss news from around the world that we find interesting, talk about upcoming events in our industry, and provide insightful interviews with people of our industry – who they are, what they do and why you should care. The WebMingle has become the most popular live weekly Internet show in the HR technology industry!

The WebMingle has truly redefined how people get information about vendors, trends and really anything related to HR technology and we are very proud of that.

This week’s guest is Lon Leneve, President & CEO of Compli.

Compli is headquartered in Portland, Ore., with regional offices across the United States.  With over 1,600 client locations in 50 states, and serving 70,000 employees, Compli is a leading provider of on-demand HR and compliance management software in the US.  Compli’s web based platform simplifies workforce and compliance management by automating the distribution and tracking of policies, forms and trainings.  Compli standardizes and automates key business processes, creating actionable steps and intelligence to drive productivity, reduce risk and increase profits.

Lon has over 30 years of financial, administrative and operational experience through his work in a variety of industries. Prior to providing executive level services via his consulting firm Lon held senior management positions at a variety of companies, including serving as President & COO of Copper Mountain Trust; President & CEO of Skylink Telecommunications; and VP & Treasurer of Americold Corporation. He began his career with the accounting firm KPMG, during which time he became a CPA. Lon brings extensive experience in areas of compliance and risk management, corporate governance, employment practices, finance and general management oversight. Lon is a frequent speaker at various industry events, including 20 Groups, compliance seminars and state association events. He holds a B.S. degree from Oregon State University.

Visit www.HRchitect.com/Knowledge/WebMingle to listen live this Thursday, July 15th at 2pm CST to the 66th show in our WebMingle series. If you missed any of our previous WebMingles, you can also access them from that page.

Below is a list of some of our upcoming guests:

July 22 – No WebMingle

July 29 – HRchitect 30 Days in 30 Minutes

We look forward to welcoming Lon Leneve with Compli to the HRchitect WebMingle this week and hope to have you join us as well.

If you would like to be considered as a guest on an upcoming WebMingle, please contact Tiffany Appleby at tappleby@HRchitect.com

Matt Lafata, HRchitect

The weekly HRchitect WebMingle is designed to give you some insight into the puzzling world of HR technology, discuss news from around the world that we find interesting, talk about upcoming events in our industry, and provide insightful interviews with people of our industry – who they are, what they do and why you should care. The WebMingle has become the most popular live weekly Internet show in the HR technology industry!

The WebMingle has truly redefined how people get information about vendors, trends and really anything related to HR technology and we are very proud of that.

Today’s guests are Dan Finnigan, CEO and Jamie Glenn Chief Product Officer with Jobvite.

Jobvite is the only recruiting platform that that delivers real-time recruiting intelligence with innovative technology for the evolving social web. Leading, fast-growing companies today use Jobvite’s social recruiting, sourcing and talent acquisition solutions to target the right talent and build the best teams. Jobvite is a complete, modular Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform which can optimize the speed, cost-effectiveness and ease of recruiting for any company.

Dan Finnigan is the CEO of Jobvite. Previously, Dan served as SVP of Yahoo! and General Manager of Yahoo! HotJobs, doubling revenue between 2002 and 2007. At Yahoo, Dan established Yahoo and HotJobs’ partnership with a consortium of over 700 newspapers, today representing 41 percent of total Sunday circulation in the U.S. Prior to Yahoo!, he led the creation of Knight Ridder Digital, the Internet company of the world’s second largest newspaper publisher, serving as President and CEO. For Knight Ridder, Dan led its joint acquisition of CareerBuilder with Tribune, serving on CareerBuilder’s Board for three years. Prior, to joining Knight Ridder, Dan helped launch, and eventually led as CEO, Smartpages.com (now Yellowpages.com) for SBC/ATT. Dan holds an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Jamie is an accomplished Internet and product development executive with a proven track record of driving strategy, product and operational initiatives to success. Previously, Jamie was VP of Product Management at Trulia. Before Trulia, Jamie was the Director of Product for Yahoo! Real Estate & Classifieds and prior to that, Business Manager of Real Estate & Real Classifieds for Knight Ridder Digital. Jamie received a B.S. in Business Administration from University of the Pacific, cum laude.

Visit www.HRchitect.com/Knowledge/WebMingle to listen live today, July, 8th at 2pm CST to the 65th show in our WebMingle series. If you missed any of our previous WebMingles, you can also access them from that page.

Below is a list of some of our upcoming guests:

July 15 – Lon Leneve, President & CEO of Compli, a Workforce and Compliance Management software vendor

July 22 – No WebMingle

July 29 – HRchitect 30 Days in 30 Minutes

We look forward to welcoming Dan Finnigan and Jamie Glenn of Jobvite to the HRchitect WebMingle today and hope to have you join us as well.

If you would like to be considered as a guest on an upcoming WebMingle, please contact Tiffany Appleby at tappleby@HRchitect.com

Matt Lafata, HRchitect