3 steps to help you grow from the feedback you receive

3 steps to help you grow from the feedback you receive3 steps to help you grow from the feedback you receiveWhile peers and managers to share feedback to can be helpful, its not always shared in a way that provides action steps. Often, its up to you - the recipient - to interpret how you can use these suggestions to grow in your career.At MovingWorlds Institute, we train mid-career professionals in leadership development, and we possess a formula for this common career dilemma. In our Global Leadership Fellowship, we teach professionals the Think Back, Think Through, and Think Forward method for feedback.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreIll work through each step, imagining that the feedback provided to you was that you didnt contribute to an important meeting.Think backThe intention in this stage is to simply state what happened, and brainstorm in a pressure-free environment what should have happened. Try not to attach any judgment to what youre describing, but rather approach this as if you were a neutral third-party. The idea here is that this will help you focus on the underlying behavior that youre trying to develop, without creating emotional reactions that can be destructive. The questions to ask yourself during this stage areWhat happened?What are the facts about the event(s) that prompted the feedback?Your VP had asked the table for ideas, but you didnt speak up.What thoughts did you have?What were you thinking about and considering during this event?Perhaps you were thinking youre idea was too out of the box and would make you look out of sync.How were you feeling?What emotions and physiological responses were you experiencing during this event?This could be something like that you had sweaty palms and were feeling nervous.Think throughAt this stage, the goal is to identify the ideal action(s) you could have taken instead. Look at the gaps bet ween the actions you took in the moment and alternative actions you could have taken will help you pinpoint the specific underlying behavior that you need to developWhat did you do? How did your actions appear to others?It probably looked like you werent engaged, because you said nothing.What should you have done? What could you have done differently?You could have shared your idea. Additionally, if youre still not sure it wouldve made sense, another option would have been to contribute to the meeting with one (or more) thoughtful question(s).What blocked you? What underlying behavior or scenario kept you from doing the thing(s) you should have done?This might be feelings of insecurity or fear, or something more systemic, like a lack of structure in the meeting.Think forwardAt this last stage of the reflective process, you want to envision what you will do next time youre in a similar situation.What will you do next time? Imagine that youre in a similar situation next week. Visualiz e the scenario in your mind and note what emotional reactions and thought processes this exercise triggers. Are you prepared to manage your feelings and take a different action than you did before?This might be suggesting an idea, asking a question, or perhaps proactively addressing a systemic issue, like proposing all meetings have an agenda emailed in advance so people have the opportunity to prepare more thoroughly.How can you prepare? What can you do to prepare and manage your trefflich reactions, emotions, and physiological responses?You could come up with a list of questions that might be asked in the next meeting, and then practice responding to this to build confidence in speaking up.How can you stick to your intention? How can you leverage your strengths and overcome obstacles to do the thing you are intending to do?You might practice on your own and or with a colleague, mentor, or friend in advance of your next meeting.As a final step, make sure to take time to write this all down and share your goals with a trusted friend or colleague to help keep you accountable. Those two things are proven to make you more likely to achieve your goalsMark Horoszowski is the CEO and co-founder of MovingWorlds, a social enterprise that operates leadership development + social impact programs for individuals as well as global corporations. Mark is a Fellow at The RSA and also serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Washington Tacomas Center for Social Responsibility and Leadership. You can find him on Twitter at markhoroszowski and experteering.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people

Understanding the Chain of Command in Your Workplace

Understanding the Chain of Command in Your WorkplaceUnderstanding the Chain of Command in Your WorkplaceAre you interested in knowing mora about the chain of command at your workplace? Chain of command describes the way in which organizations, including the military, religious institutions, corporations, government entities, and universities, traditionally structure their reporting relationships. Reporting relationships refers to an organizational structure in which every employee is placed somewherbeie on an organizational chart. The employees report to the employee who is listed above them on the organizational chart. When every employee reports to one other employee, decisions and communication are tightly controlled and flow down the chain of command through the organization. This is an intentional, traditional structure for the chain of command in organizations that want to tightly control the dissemination of information and the allocation of power and control. Traditional C hain of Command In the traditional chain of command, if you look at relationships pictorially presented on an organizational chart, the president or CEO is the top employee in the chain of command. This persons directly reporting staff would occupy the second line of the chart, and so forth down through the reporting relationships in an organization. At each level of the organization moving down the chain of command, the power to make meaningful decisions is diminished. This hierarchical method for organizing information flow, decision making, power, and authority, assumes that each level of the organization is subordinate to the level to which it reports. Terminology like a subordinate to refer to reporting employees and superior to refer to employees others report to, such as managers, are part of traditional hierarchical language and thinking. These terms are increasingly not being used as much, as a move to more egalitarian workplaces is the norm. Larger organizations are more prone to using this terminology. Command and control are intrinsic in the chain of command within organizations. The further up the chain of command your job is located, the more power, authority, and usually responsibility and accountability you have. Traditional hierarchical structures have pluses and minuses about how they work in organizations. Chain of Command Positives Clear reporting relationships exist with employees designated who are responsible for communicating information, providing direction, and delegating authority and responsibility.Each employee has one boss, thus alleviating the problem of multiple masters and conflicting direction in the chain of command, such as in a matrix organization, where employees can report to multiple bosses.Responsibility and accountability are clearly assigned and each manager has oversight responsibility for a group of employees performing a function. Employees are not confused about whom to go to for resources, assistance, and fe edback.A certain simplicity and security exists when you organize people and relationships in a structured, unbending, controlled hierarchical cascade.Chain of command communicates to customers and vendors which employee who is responsible for what decisions in their interaction. Job titles that define each level of the organization further communicate authority and responsibility to organizational stakeholders and outsiders. For example, external stakeholders know how much power the title of vice president conveys. Chain of Command Challenges Chain of command thinking originated in an industrial age when work involved more rote activities, less information, and communication options were limited, Decision making and authority were clearly placed in the hands of a few individuals at or near the top of an organization chart.Todays organizations experience a plethora of communication options, more intellectually challenging and information-based jobs, and the need for faster deci sion making. The chain of command, in many ways, impedes these new organizational options and needs. When information is available everywhere, a hierarchical order that ensures the communication of decisions and information needed by various levels of employees is unnecessary to the dissemination of information.The need for flexibility and faster decisions in an agile work environment requires that employees communicate directly with all levels of the organization. Waiting several days for the boss to be available is not acceptable if a customers need goes unserved or an employees work is slowed. The employee should be able to talk with his bosss boss or the president or make the decision on his own. If the desire is to develop employees who can immediately respond to a customer need, because customers require immediacy in this fast-paced world, employees must be able to get information immediately and make decisions without oversight to meet customer needs in a timely manner.Jobs a re no longer rigidly defined and the current expectation promotes employee empowerment, autonomy, and decision-making authority close to where the need for the decision exists. The hierarchical order may leise exist for ease of organization and reporting relationships, as laid out in a chain of command on an organizational chart. But, the lines and the former rigidity are blurred. In the past, if an employee circumvented his or her boss in favor of talking with the bosss boss, the employee received clear communication that the chain of command was in place for a purpose. While organizations still retain some of its vestiges, the chain of command is much more difficult to enforce when information is so freely circulating and communication is so easy with any member of the organization. The span of control of an individual manager has become broader, with more reporting employees than in the past. This change forces the manager to allow more autonomy. Technology has blurred the hierar chy further since information is available all of the time to any employee. Many organizations are experiencing the value of decentralized decision making. Position Power Within the concept of the chain of command, position power still plays a role in organizations. Its a by-product of the traditional hierarchical organization. For example, a quality department supervisor at a small manufacturing company asked to become the quality director in her company. Her stated reason for the change in title was that, if she was a director, people would have to listen to her and do what she wants. This is a young supervisor, who is still learning how to accomplish work through other people, but her perception that a bigger title would solve her problems was troubling. In another example, a new employee was asked to send out a note with a question and a deadline to the director and VP-level managers in her organization. The request sparked an hour of work over a simple note because it was g oing to the biggest, most important people in the company. What the Future Holds Modern management science is exploring other options for organization and customer service delivery in this brave new world. But, in the meantime, even the smallest organizations frage back on the traditional chain of command, hierarchical models of organization. The future holds out hope for innovative organizational structures that better serve the needs of employees, organizations, and the marketplace. The rise in popularity of telework and remote employees, a specific desire for millennial employees, further escalates the need for better management structures. After all, these employees are doing work that you cannot see them doing. But hierarchical thinking, a chain of command, and attributing power to position and titles all still exist.

Theres a less stressful way to receive smartphone notifications

Theres a less stressful way to receive smartphoneleidificationsTheres a less stressful way to receive smartphonenotificationsAfter you feel a buzz in your pocket or see a flash on your phone, your attention is already fractured.You could pick up your phone and see if whats called you away is something you really need to address immediately - or you could try and focus on your work, all the while wondering what youre missing out on.Since it can take close to 25 minutes to get back on track after a distraction, according to researchers who study productivity, this is obviously a recipe for a distracted day where not much gets done.Fortunately, we are learning better ways to handle smartphone notifications, according to research being conducted at Duke Universitys Center for Advanced Hindsight, which was presented by senior behavioral researcher Nick Fitz at a recent American Psychological Association conference. The research was conducted in collaboration with the startup Synapse, whi ch is incubated at the Center.Fitz and collaborators have found that batching notifications into sets that study participants receive three times a day makes them happier, less stressed, feeling more productive, and more in control. That works better than getting notifications normally, getting them once per hour, or even than blocking them of completely.Turning them off doesnt really work, Fitz said in a follow-up interview after the conference. But we can get notifications in a smarter way.So many notificationsFor the particular study Fitz discussed at the conference, they analyzed the notifications that people got on their phones and found that the average person got between 65 and 80 notifications per day (people may check their phones more frequently, thats just the number of notifications that show up).So for their study, for two weeks they had a control group check their phones normally, one group receive notifications in a batch every hour, another group that received three batches of notifications (at 9 a.m., 3 p.m., and 9 p.m.), and one group that got no notifications.While not receiving notifications people could check their phones normally but wouldnt see anything on their lock screen - the phone would ring for calls but not leave a missed call on the lock screen.In general, people report that phone notifications make them feel stressed, unhappy, interrupted, and non-productive. That held true for the study control group. Receiving notifications even once an hour was so similar to this that it didnt make much of a difference.Surprisingly for Fitz, turning notifications off completely didnt work either. People did feel that they checked their phones more intentionally, which the researchers considered positive, but people were also anxious about what they were missing out on. Its possible that over a longer period of time, several months, people may have adjusted and enjoyed this experience more, according to Fitz. Or, perhaps a system that let som e notifications through - emails from a boss or calendar reminders about important meetings - could have assuaged that anxiety.But three batches of notifications seemed to be the sweet spot, with people feeling more productive, positive, and in control.Building an even better systemAccording to Fitz, the ideal system would be context-aware - it would recognize the best times for a person to get a batch of notifications and might allow certain particularly important notifications through.Interruptions, in general, arent great but its better if they come at opportune times, said Fitz.The ideal system might be location-aware and give you your first batch of notifications as you arrive at work or hop on the subway, a second batch at the end of a lunch break, and a third batch as you head home for the evening. Perhaps emails might come through that way, but less-important notifications from Facebook would only be delivered once per day in the evening.The fact that this worked was some what surprising for Fitz, as notifications are just one component that can add stress to complicated lives. But it turns out that even adding some element of control can really improve peoples lives.Its not as if this is some panacea, were not going to solve ADD with this, said Fitz. But it certainly has an effect on people.The Synapse team plans on releasing the app they built to regulate notifications, Daywise, to the public within the next few weeks. (The study was conducted only with Android phones since it wasnt possible to have that level of control over Apple devices for now.)

We waste 17 hours every week on pointless work email

We waste 17 hours every week on pointless work emailleWe waste 17 hours every week on pointless work emailThe workingworld runs on emails. A study found that workerssent and received 112.5 billion business emails a day around the world. Even the rise of messaging and group planning platforms like Slack, Gchat and Basecamp has leid delayed the rise of work email.So yes, we must acknowledge that email is superior,but too many of us have let the endless cycle of send, reply, forwardtake over our lives. A recent Carleton University study found that people spend one-third of their working hours doing emails.Worse, the researchers found that 30% of the time, the emails being sent or received werent urgent. Even so, people answered them quickly and where they stood.What that means Employees are not setting boundaries around work and are letting it follow them into their homes. In their survey of 1,500 workers, researchers found that employees would send and receive about 86 emails at workan d 25 emails related to work from their homes.This is no way to live. Reaching inbox zero shouldnt feel like climbing Everest. Here are tips on how to be more productive with emailing so youre not wasting17 hours of your life every week answering an email you never needed to make.Block off time to disconnectModel the kind of inbox etiquette you want people to show you. If you dont want people emailing you at 10 p.m., it helps if youre not also emailing them at that hour. Block off time in your calendar and remind your colleagues that youre unavailable during such hours. If youre working with workaholics who dont respect your hints, the Muse createdemail templates on how to convince your colleagues and superiors that you are trying to stay present and why that would be mutually beneficial for everyone.There are also multiple email scheduling services that will send out emails at the best time for recipients to get them. Use them. No one wants to read a work email after midnight.Priori tize what needs a response and what doesntNot everything dictates a response. Just because someone emails you, you dont have to email them.Prioritize your inboxinto what needs an action right away and what can be answered with time, with a conversation, or not all. Clicking on that reiter is tempting but interruptions in one task makes it harder for us to return to it.A Gallup study found that when employeesare interrupted at work, it takes them about 23 minutes to get back on task.Youre only hurting yourselfby distracting yourself with emails that you know arent urgent. Set asidetime in your schedule where youll just read and answer emails so it wont take up the rest of your day.Write your emails so that you only have to send them onceWe waste too much time sending follow-up emails as we wait aroundfor people to answer our requests. Make your emails count so you dont need to repeat them.Are you including a subject line? Thats the first step. The researchers at MailChimp, an email m arketing service, found that clear, descriptive subject lines describing what the email was going to be about had a much higher success rate than just vaguely writing meeting?How you end an email matters too. Boomerang, an email productivity app, analyzed over350,000 email threads to find out the best email sign-off most likely to guarantee a response when youre asking for help. Thanks in advance, thanks and thank you had the three-highest response rates.Meanwhile, best had the worst sign-off response rate out of all the closing words used. Expressing your gratitude, even if it may be presumptive, is most likely to engender a response. This goes along with previous research on gratitude which discovered that students were more likely to answer emails asking for cover letter help if the sender included a thanks somewhere in it. So, thanksKnow when email isnt enoughAbove all, recognize that email isnt everything. The people who dont let email run their lives understand that its just o ne tool of communication. When it comes to sensitive conversations, face-to-face ensures that theres less of a chance for misunderstandings. People who are the ultimate pros at emails dont waste time emailing back and forth when a phone call or a face-to-face conversation would suffice.

Sales Resume Sample - Overview

Sales Resume Sample - Overview Resume samples are a practical way to direct yur own writing. A sample is able to help you decide what type of content you should include, along with how to format your resume. The templates help you in quantity of means. Our creative templates allow you to stick out from the masses. Though the strategy is precisely the same, you need to know when to back off or come on. There are two fundamental strategies. For instance, there are a couple contact management guide titles that are standard for many ausverkauf organizations. Perhaps you introduced a new procedure to management. Once you comprehend the essentials of effective resume composition, you can platzdeckchen them to work for you while you make your own document. As its a typical practice to award employees whove been exceptional in sales so as to motivate them, your awards in your resume would raise the value of your candidacy greatly. You would like your acceptance letter to appear clean and crisp. Writing an acceptance letter is in fact very straightforward. Theres no need to begin your resume from scratch. Be certain to make particular connection showing the way you can help them grow. If you take a close look at all our free resume writing examples, you are going to see they employ clear, succinct sentences that get right to the point. Each one of our creative style themes supply a perfectly well-balanced mix of personality, professionalism and reliability and a small style. Based on the kind of retail sales job, you might be on resume feet for many hours. Everything in your resume ought to be simple to read and simple to comprehend. You have enough time to prepare so get the most out of it. Applying for a sales job should take some time, but nevertheless, it shouldnt allow you to stress. Companies want to understand how you contributed to the success of your prior employers. Express that youre honored to accept the opportunity, and the way y ou aspire to add to the success of the business. In the instance of the sales department of a business, a sales manager is needed to manage, oversee and tackle all sales related troubles. If youre a recent graduate or career changer free of experience in retail sales, youre want to compose a sales resume objective. For instance, achievements in your college which arent related to sales shouldnt be described in detail in your resume since they will just waste your time in addition to of your prospective employers. Only if you prefer the very best retail jobs. The Hidden Facts on Sales Resume Sample Have a look at our marketing resume samples and find out how you can successfully market yourself and eventually sell your skills to possible employers. Our sample resume is a great resource to assist you attain any managerial sales position. By agreeing sales resume the usage of sample in light of our cookie policy. To make an eye-catching retail sales associate resume, you will n eed to incorporate a few vital components. Making a resume can be a difficult job. Recruiters look to know the type of person that you are and whether you will have the ability to take on the many challenges. Job looking could be quite tough and continue publishing is most likely the tasks that ought to be achieved when browsing for work. Employers know youre searching for work, and therefore you dont need to waste valuable space on your resume stating the obvious. Its critical to offer attainable future employers an idea of how youre likely to work for them. You want to have that retail job.

Bring it On Class of 2013!

Bring it On Class of 2013 Forging a career path for the Class of 2013 wont be easy, but it is certainly doable if you are willing to bring it on and showcase what you have to offer the world. The first step comes from articulating what you want in your professional life. Say it out loud write it down, and then start to own your aspirations by telling others. Before you know it, people will surface who can help you on your customized career journey. You will attract members of your Personal Board of Directors when you start to envision what it is you really want in life and there is no better time to start than now Lean In To Your CareerSheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, gave an inspiring graduation speech at Barnard College in 2011 that lives on in the blogosphere and has evolved into her best-selling book of the same name. She told the young graduates to be ambitious and self-confident, and to lea n in to their careers, especially since control was theirs for the taking. The world will present many choices during your professional lifetime and career paths can be circuitous and inevitably, they will change. But if you lay back and let things happen by default, you lose the power of choice you so richly deserve.According to Sheryl Put your foot on that gas pedal and keep it there until the day you have to make a decision, and then make a decision that honors you.Be excellent at what you do and lean into your career with self-confidence and the power to control your professional destiny.Make Time for DreamsGive yourself permission to dream. Its healthy and exhilarating to think big and be ambitious about what you really want personally and professionally. Leadership belongs to those who take it and career management is leadership behavior. Leadership has nothing to do with rank. Even if you are an entry-level employee, you must take your career future into your own hands.Its ea sy to get caught up in the day-to-day minutiae and forget to honor your dreams. Work/life integralrechnung is tough and balance is next to impossible, but dreaming will empower you to rejuvenate and focus on what you really want. Dreams are necessary to develop your goals and they tap your creativity to consider the possibilities.Only you can define what success and happiness means to you, dreaming gives you permission to design your life and career destiny. Dreaming begs the question what would you do if you werent afraid? Fortune begs the bold dont let your fears overwhelm your desire and give yourself time to dream big so you can begin to make it your reality.Expand Your Comfort ZonePut yourself out there because you will never know what you are capable of unless you try. Aim high and dont think about stepping out of your comfort zone as a painful process. Consider expanding your comfort zone as a way to sharpen your strengths and discover new passions.Naomi C. Earp, former Com missioner of the EEOC said Society moves forward because people venture something new, not because they play it safe. Push through your fear and seize new opportunities. Youve got to identify how you want to bring it career wise.Create Your Own Tipping PointBy bringing it, setting goals, and dreaming big you not only honor yourself but you can create the momentum you need for your personal tipping point. All of these things add up and will help you prioritize what you want and deserve in your professional life.Take comfort in knowing that you can be in control of your professional dreams and your career future. You can change your mind, change direction, and reinvent as often as you wish. But bringing it is your way of embracing your dreams, walking tall, and owning your self-confidence. Consider the legacy you want to leave in the world. Are you bringing it?The Class of 2013 is the succession plan for the future. The challenge is yours as well as the responsibility. Create relation ships with influencers and connectors and be ready to talk about what makes you unique. Someday soon youll be tapped to help future graduating classes find their way in the career world and this will be your chance to pay-it-forward.Celebrate the success you have earnedI am cheering you on all the way. Now the tougher journey has begun, but I have confidence that you will succeed if you assume the responsibility and take the power you have and use it wisely.

4 coffee-inspired cocktails to order out to take the edge off

4 coffee-inspired cocktails to order out to take the edge off4 coffee-inspired cocktails to order out to take the edge offNational Coffee Day is September 29, and java-lovers know that coffee is good morning, noon, and night. After work, celebrate the end of your week, and make happy hour a bit happier, with these rich cocktails that add taste and are delicious going down.The Bushy TailedThe Bushy Tailed cocktail at Lowcountry Bistro in Charleston, SC is a great choice anytime, but especially after a long work day. The sweetness mellows the whiskey and the orange liqueur gives it some depth of flavor.Cocktail recipe The Bushy Tailed1 oz. cold brew coffee1 oz. Virgil Kaine Rip Track Rye Whiskey oz. Grand Marnier oz. Maple syrup1 oz. Fresh creamOrange peel to garnishAdd the first four ingredients to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice, top with cream, and garnish with the orange peel.Across 110th StreetThis nifty cocktail i s unusual due to its refreshingly fruity flavor profile not typically associated with cocktails containing a coffee element. Served at the JIMMY at The James, in New York, City, its interesting flavor is great for coffee-lovers. Ingredients Brugal Aejo, mango puree, espresso bean.Cocktail recipe Across 110th Street2 ounces Brugal Aejo ounce lime juice ounce simple syrup1 ounces mango pureeGrated espresso beanLime wedgeAdd the first four ingredients to a mixing tin, then shake with ice until chilled. Strain into a tall glass with pellet ice and swizzle to combine. Before serving, add grated espresso bean and garnish with a lime wedge.Espresso MartiniIf your travels take you to Orange County, Ca, make sure to visit YNK tucked in the Irvine Marriott, for a dreamy Espresso Martini. Made with Averna, espresso, and vanilla bean syrup, the cocktail is from the bars Italy menu but can still be ordered as an off-menu item. The intimate bar offers imbibers a dynamic ever-changing menu not b ased on the seasons.Cocktail recipeEspresso Martini1 1/2 ounce Averna1 1/2 ounce espresso, ounce vanilla bean syrupGarnish Lemon peel 3 coffee beansCombine all ingredients in a shaker tin. Ice, shake hard (20 times), strain, and garnish.Chickory Dickory DockServed the Hide Bar in Dallas, TX, this unique coffee cocktail not only incorporates coffee, but also chai tea. This cocktail is a best seller and is the perfect refreshing dirty chai for double the caffeine but with a little something extra to take the edge off. The cocktails ingredients include Irish whiskey, cold brew coffee, chai tea, sherry, condensed milk, black walnut bitters, and crushed ice.Cocktail recipeChickory Dickory Dock2 oz. pour (equal parts whiskey, coffee, chai tea, sherry).25 oz. Condensed milk2 dashes black walnut bittersShake very hard with crushed ice in a Collins glass, add lightly grated nutmeg on top.

How to Create a Job Description

How to Create a Job DescriptionHow to Create a Job DescriptionTrying to compete for top talent in a tough hiring market? Heres another question Do you know how to create a job description that can help you find the right candidates and set the stage for a new employees success?The?job description is?your hiring blueprint, and it needs to be thoroughly thought (or rethought) through. Do it well, and the rest of the hiring process - from?evaluating resumes?and?job applications?to?candidate selection, einstellungsgesprchs?and?salary negotiation?- will flow much?more easily. But writing?it poorly risks a prolonged, expensive hiring process and increases the possibility of making a bad hire.As you gather details to update or write a job description, you may want to seek input, if appropriate, from key personnel who will work directly with the new hire. ansicht individuals may be able to provide valuable insight, because they understand the day-to-day workings of the department and the c ompany.?Knowing how to create a job description thats tight and well-designed not only will help you find the right candidates during the search?process but also set the stage for a new employees success. With that information in hand, a new team member will have a set of clear guidelines and an accurate picture of the managers performance expectations from Day One.Essential elements of a great job descriptionIf youre copying and pasting the same job description over and over again into new job postings, you probably wont attract the candidates youre looking for. This document?should change with each posting?to suit the specifics of the available position. Heres what you need to coverJob title?(and job code number, if applicable) - Be specific here. Creative titles like Jedi, wizard and rock star might sound creative and appealing to candidates, but theyre vague. You want to choose a title that job seekers are searching for and will understand. Titles?should be short Simply refer t o a?position as bookkeeper, even if the official internal title is Bookkeeper and Occasional Copier Technician/Intern Manager, Level 15.The opening hook - Writing?a powerful opening connects with your audience and generates excitement about the positions possibilities. A compelling introduction will also work to encourage potential candidates to read the rest of your job ad.Organization and culture - ?Tell job seekers about your company. To attract the best candidates, youll want to pique their interest in the organization, if not excite them over the prospect of working with you. Promote the companys strengths, lay out its mission, and paint a picture of?the corporate culture?and what its truly like to work there.Department - Job seekers will want to know which department within the company is hiring?- thats one way they tailor their cover letter and resume, research the position and decide whether theyd be a good fit for the job. Dont leave it to candidates to search for clues in your job description. Identifying the department will make both the application process and the vetting smoother.Robert Half can help you create a job description that attracts the right candidates. Let us know what your hiring needs are.REQUEST TALENTReporting structure - ?Let the candidate know exactly how the position fits into your organization. Give the supervisors job title and the titles of anyone the new hire would work with. If youre staffing a managerial role, include the number of direct reports the person?would supervise.Summary of the position - ?This is the heart of the job description. In a few sentences, give the jobs broadest responsibility, function or priority within the organization. Include an overview of expectations for the person who fills the role, the immediate and long-term objectives, and define what constitutes exceptional performance. Be as clear as possible, so the candidate understands the jobs responsibilities and the criteria for success. If you need more space, consider presenting this section in bullet points to make it easier to digest.Key duties and responsibilities - ?This narrows down the primary responsibility mentioned in the summary section. Help candidates to envision themselves already in the role. Give the estimated percentage of time to be spent on each duty (which should add up to 100 percent), and how often each is performed (daily, weekly, or periodically). If you include this detail, make sure the breakdown accurately reflects the work the employee will be doing by running the description past the team.?Compensation - ?There are?pros and cons to including a salary range?in a job posting, but candidates should know upfront whether the position is exempt or nonexempt. Even if you dont include a salary range in the job listing, establish one ahead of time based on the education and experience required for the job, along with the general level of compensation within your branch, organization, department and?reg ion.?If you decide not to give a figure, include language about offering a competitive salary. (And always research salaries?in your market for the position youre staffing. You want to meet, if not beat, market rates.) Also, be sure to highlight the benefits and perks - for most job seekers, that information is as important as the salary figure.Job location and attendance expectations - Be sure the posting includes the location of the office where the employee would work. Flextime,?telecommuting, job-sharing and other?alternative work arrangements?are increasingly common today, and if your company has?this kind of flexibility, its a great selling point to mention. But if the manager?requires their?employees to be at their?desks from 8?a.m. to 5 p.m., no ifs, ands or buts, your job description should say so.A qualifying statement - ?No job ad?will include a totally exhaustive list of duties - nor should it. Make clear that the employees responsibilities may be revised from time to time, based on geschftliches miteinander needs.Qualifications - ?What knowledge, skills, training, language fluency, aptitude or relevant experience should the successful applicant have? The more specific?you are here, the more qualified the applicants are likely to be. Just make sure the qualifications you set are absolute necessities, rather than nice-to-haves, or you might deter individuals with great potential.Educational requirements - ?List degrees, certificates and licenses the job?requires. If experience is an acceptable substitute for one of ansicht requirements, be specific about?what youd consider as an alternative.?Qualities or attributes - In addition to required?hard skills, education and experience, consider what qualities and?interpersonal skills?would contribute to superior performance. Do you expect the new hire to show initiative? Do you want top-notch customer service and?communication skills? Dont overdo it here - a litany of virtues will put off candidates. Instead, list?the four or five qualities you value in top performers who already hold this role in your company?and explain?why these qualities are needed for the job. If youre looking for someone who is great with clients or diligent about compliance and enjoys being in the weeds, for example, say so.Final thoughts on how to create a job descriptionWhatever elements you include, write the job description in plain language. Avoid using jargon that might be common within your company but is inscrutable to outsiders. Clear and concise language will be appreciated by job seekers and minimize the risk of misunderstandings in the hiring process.Equally important Be honest. Job descriptions that overstate or understate what a position entails, including the hours and pace of the work, can lead to hiring mistakes and hard feelings later on. An inaccurate or overblown ad?can create false expectations, setting your company up for a mismatch. Hiring mistakes are often the result of descriptio ns that dont accurately reflect what?a position entails. Make sure you present an up-to-date, candid picture of the job. Dont be tempted to candy-coat realities about long hours, the pace of work or other such aspects of the position. Well-written job descriptions leave no question as to a?positions roles and responsibilities.Savvy job-seekers will apply for the opening only if they meet those qualifications and feel comfortable performing the duties explained in the description. As a result, youll be less likely to hire someone who doesnt enjoy - or worse, cant perform - ?the required tasks if youve created a targeted, accurate job description on which to base the job posting. Whats more, good job descriptions can help top talent better describe their abilities in their resumes so you can see exactly how they match the requirements of the position.When you begin?evaluating candidates, compare the job description to each resume and look for commonalities. The people whose applicati ons match the majority of your requirements will be the ones youll want to answer your list of interview questions to ask potential employees. By serving as a standard tool by which to judge all applicants, the description helps ensure every person youre considering has a strong chance of performing well in the role.And heres another important tip Teaming up with a specialized staffing firm gives you access to hiring experts who not only know how to create a job description thats outstanding but can also do the job of recruiting for you. Most importantly, youll gain access to a large base of talented candidates you might not otherwise find searching on your own. Tags

Manipulating a Sales Resume

Manipulating a Sales ResumeManipulating a Sales ResumeResume-formatting methods to help highlight your strengthsJack Smith welches a very successful regional account manager in the pharmaceutical industry. In developing a new resume, we needed a strategy for the content and for the formatting. Combined, the resume can now draw hiring managers eyes from the most important to the most basic information. Manipulating a resume to read how you want it to is critical.To sell the most important points in Jacks resume, we leveraged a variety of formatting tools Between the time we received the original and when we delivered the final version of the resume, everything welches formatted specifically to highlight some elements of Jacks career and understate others.Job One, though, was getting the content right.I dont always want to call out job movement, but the last two positions Jack had had were eliminated by acquisition or closure. I included this directly under the company names. He lost t hose jobs because of structural changes in the organizations, certainly not because of performance. This information answers potential questions before they are asked.After the text was written, we began using our formatting strategy by visually separating out the basic information contact details, core competencies and education. This clearly established different sections on the resume.With the basic information minimized but easy to find, we started prioritizing the rest of the content. Everything was designed to draw the readers attention to the most relevant information.Jack wanted to stay in the pharmaceutical field and was looking for a position that was similar to his last. So job titles were bolded and put in italics. A quick look at his job history makes it clear that he has had similar positions throughout his career and can therefore hit the ground running.His employers also had well-recognized names. Because he intended to stay in the same field, the names were highligh ted with double bars. If Jack intended to look for work outside this industry, I would not have highlighted the company names so clearly. And while we wanted to emphasis the previous employers names, we could minimize the company descriptions with an 8-point font size.In order of importance, we were atHeadline (12-point font, bolded and upper case)Previous Employers (12-point font and upper case)Job Titles (10-point font, bolded and italicized)In sales, the next big hitter is quantifiable results.In Jacks field, formal recognition is important. So the absolut recognition was bolded and left-justified as a way to draw in the readers attention. Jack had consistently outperformed his colleagues for more than 10 years, and I wanted to make sure that was clearly understood.Many resumes for sales professionals just show the measurable results via different types of performance metrics, such as percentages over quota, Presidents Club, Account Manager of the Year, and so on. The text for ea ch job was fully justified with no more than four lines. But that would not tell the reader how Jack actually achieved those results.We used bullets to highlight specific accomplishments and didnt mischung them with the job duties. Accomplishments lose impact if presented in a hail of bullets indeed a resume should typically include fewer than six bullets.SummaryAfter you have clarified what you want to say in your resume, consider what you want to do with formatting. Judicious use of bolding, italics, shading, borders, margins, font sizes and bullets can highlight what is most important and de-emphasize the rest. However, dont get carried away, because then the resume will look cluttered rather than streamlined.For example, the original resumes font was a 10-point Garamond, which is hard to read. Some lines were gray instead of black (for no particular reason). The content under each job was dense and in paragraph form. The left margin was very wide, and the right margin looked rag ged. It was not easy for the eye to scan, so streamlined it all in the final resume.Though there are no definitive rules about whats acceptable, here are quick tips so that you avoid the same situationMargins I prefer to justify the text fully for a nice, clean look. The information on education at the bottom of the resume can be left- and right-justified as a space-saving technique, as shown in Jacks after resume.Fonts It is a question of style preference. For Jacks resume, I used Arial 10-point font because it is widely accepted and easy to read. Other possibilities includeTahomaVerdanaGaramondTimes New Roman. (Use 11-point font if you like Times New Roman.)Remember, some of us wear bifocals, so please make it easy.When you think you are done with the resume, step back and give it another review to just look at formatting. And if you ask someone else to review it as well, ask for feedback on both content and presentation.