Let’s face it, being a boss gets harder and harder with every passing year. The world, the workplace, and the roles keep changing, and just when you think you’ve figured it out, another change, challenge, or requirement comes your way. Add it all up, and being a boss is more difficult than ever!

So how do you support your bosses on their quest and their journey to be great? What can you do to set them up for success instead of failure, to enrich lives and not ruin them? To answer this, let me share with you what I call the 4 A’s of being a great boss. I hope you find them helpful as you develop and/or review your management development strategy and approach.

1. Awareness

According to our survey, 99.6% of people have had a bad boss, so pretty much everyone. But if you asked these bosses, I’d be surprised if they actually knew their people were thinking of them in this way, considering them a bad boss. For this reason, the starting point for being a great boss is awareness in two ways:

• Aware of the existence of bad boss traits – There’s no denying that bad bosses exist, that the majority and not the minority of us have bad boss traits. And that’s because when it comes to being a boss it’s never either/or, all, or nothing. We all have a mix of traits, some bad, some good, and some great. They come and go based on the situation, the person, and even what’s happening in our lives. The key is helping your bosses be aware of any bad boss traits they may have, seeing them instead of ignoring them.
• Aware of the impact of bad boss traits – Equally important is for your bosses to be aware of the impact that being a bad boss can have on their people. How does it impact performance, engagement and even wellbeing? Raise this, discuss this, help your bosses see the often hidden harm that their actions can have on their people.

2. Acceptance

From here we move to acceptance, accepting those bad boss traits that we have been made aware of. On the surface this may seem easy, all you have to do is admit and accept that you have these traits. But the results from our survey show that this can be difficult to do. For although 80% of respondents admitted being a bad boss, when we drilled down and asked how many of the 10 types of bad bosses they felt they’ve been, only 22% on average admitted to being each.

For acceptance to happen, encourage your bosses to start by thinking, “Is this me?” instead of putting up their defenses and thinking, “Nah, it couldn’t possibly be me.” Have them think of it as an opportunity, and not a punishment.

3. Action

We next move to the step involving action, where bosses need to learn and leverage the right knowledge, skills, and tools to become great and overcome their bad boss traits. Key here is having the right tools (or building blocks as I call them) to meet the changing demands of the role, making them flexible so that as the need arises they can access them easily and use them as they see fit.

4. Accountability

Let me end with the final ‘A,’ accountability, which has two parts to it. The first is having each boss take personal ownership and responsibility for their development and improvement, doing what it takes to overcome their bad boss traits. The second is having the business put in place accountability measures as well. I say this because too often bad boss behaviors are allowed, with no consequences or repercussions. If we are ever going to rid the world of bad bosses, this needs to change. We need to pushback, we cannot and should not tolerate bad boss behaviors and actions. By doing this we not only help our bosses be great, but we also show our people that they are our number one priority.

If you’d like to learn more about our free and confidential online assessment tool, see more results from our survey, or download the first chapter of our book, please go to: https://www.badbossesruinlives.com/

About the Author

Debra Corey is an award-winning HR consultant, speaker and co-author of Bad Bosses Ruin Lives: The Building Blocks for Being a Great Boss.

The post The 4 A’s of Being a Great Boss appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

In today’s competitive job market, standing out is the key to success. As traditional resumes have been the norm for decades, a new trend has emerged – the modern visual resume format. This innovative approach to presenting your skills and experience combines design with content to create an impactful first impression. 

So, when considering how to choose the right resume format, it’s clear that the benefits of a modern visual format are manifold. Give yourself an edge in the competitive job market – embrace the visual revolution and let your resume speak volumes about who you are.

In this blog, we’ll delve into the benefits of using a modern visual resume format and why it might just be the edge you need to secure your dream job.

Captivating First Impressions

In the blink of an eye, recruiters make judgments about candidates based on their resumes. A modern visual resume format immediately captures attention with its engaging design elements. Bold headers, creative typography, and strategically placed visuals can draw the eye to essential information. By utilizing this format, you’re making a confident statement that you’re not just another cookie-cutter applicant.

2. Showcasing Creativity

The visual format provides a canvas for creativity. Through color schemes, icons, and graphics, you can represent your personality and brand. This is especially advantageous for roles in creative fields such as design, marketing, and advertising. By infusing creativity into your resume, you’re signaling to employers that you possess the innovative thinking they’re seeking.

3. Highlighting Key Information

Visual resumes allow you to emphasize crucial details quickly. Bullet points, infographics, and charts can be used to showcase your achievements and skills succinctly. This helps hiring managers grasp your qualifications at a glance, saving them time and increasing the likelihood that your resume will be thoroughly reviewed.

4. Enhanced Storytelling

Humans are wired to connect through stories. A visual resume format enables you to craft a compelling narrative that highlights your career journey. Using timelines or visual flowcharts, you can present your experiences in a chronological order that’s easy to follow. This gives recruiters insights into your progression and the milestones you’ve achieved along the way.

5. Tailored for the Digital Age

In our digital world, where online presence matters, a modern visual resume aligns perfectly. Keywords and phrases relevant to your industry can be seamlessly integrated into the design. This optimization enhances your resume’s chances of passing through automated applicant tracking systems (ATS), which scan resumes for specific keywords before they even reach human eyes.

6. Memorable and Shareable

Visual content is more memorable than plain text. Recruiters often sift through a sea of resumes, and you want yours to be the one they remember. A visually appealing resume is also easily shareable across platforms, making it simple for your network to pass along your information to potential employers.

7. Reflecting Tech-Savviness

In a world that’s becoming increasingly tech-driven, showcasing your tech-savviness can be a substantial advantage. Crafting a modern visual resume demonstrates your familiarity with design tools, graphic software, and digital presentation skills – attributes that are becoming essential in a wide array of industries.

A modern visual resume format holds the potential to make an indelible mark on recruiters. It showcases your creativity, highlights your qualifications, and tailors your presentation to the digital age. This innovative approach isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s about leveraging design to communicate your story effectively. 

Authored by Jessica King, Authority Builder SEO

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The post Are There Benefits to Using a Modern Visual Resume Format? appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

As HR leaders, staying informed about the state of the job market is crucial for effective talent acquisition and management. In this blog post, we delve into the latest employment report from the Labor Department, highlighting key trends that reflect the dynamic landscape of job opportunities in the United States.

By understanding these insights, HR leaders can better navigate the complexities of recruitment, retention, and workforce planning.

Expansive Growth Across Industries

May’s employment report revealed an impressive surge in job creation, exceeding expectations by a wide margin. With 339,000 jobs added, the country’s labor market showcased robustness despite economic headwinds such as higher interest rates. Moreover, the positive momentum extended to prior months as well, with a revision of an additional 93,000 jobs added in March and April. This remarkable growth spans across diverse sectors, including health care, hospitality, and business services. Surprisingly, even construction companies managed to add 25,000 jobs, defying concerns related to increased interest rates and their impact on the housing market.

Shifts in the Workforce

Amidst the pandemic, concerns grew as people left the workforce due to various reasons, such as limited childcare availability and health-related worries. However, recent months have witnessed a noteworthy reversal of this trend. Although the overall participation rate remained unchanged, there has been a significant rise in prime working-age individuals rejoining the labor force. In May, the share of people aged 25-54 engaged in employment reached its highest level since 2007, reflecting an encouraging development for HR leaders seeking to attract talent. Additionally, the share of women in the same age range actively participating in the workforce hit its highest level since records began in 1948.

Immigration Rebound

An essential factor contributing to the expanding labor force is the rebound in immigration, which experienced a sharp decline during the height of the pandemic. Foreign-born workers played a significant role in last year’s labor force growth, accounting for over half of the increase. This resurgence in immigration has provided additional avenues for HR leaders to tap into a diverse pool of talent.

Wage Growth

Employers are not only adding jobs but also demonstrating a willingness to offer higher wages. Average wages in May rose by 4.3% compared to the previous year, presenting an attractive proposition for workers. The positive impact of increased wages on recruitment is exemplified by Leah Koch-Blumhardt, whose family operates the Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari theme parks in Indiana. The ability to offer competitive rates has made it easier for them to attract seasonal workers, even among younger demographics. However, HR leaders should be cognizant that rising wages may present challenges in managing inflationary pressures.

Inflation and Monetary Policy

While wage growth benefits workers, it can pose challenges for the Federal Reserve in its battle against inflation. The central bank has pursued an aggressive policy of raising interest rates, and the latest employment data will undoubtedly shape their decision-making process. Betting markets currently anticipate no change in interest rates during the June meeting, following a rapid increase of 5 percentage points since March of the previous year. HR leaders should closely monitor developments in monetary policy as they impact workforce planning and compensation strategies.

Examining the Unemployment Rate

The unemployment rate, derived from a separate household survey, presents a slightly less optimistic view of the job market. After reaching a historic low of 3.4% in April, the rate ticked up to 3.7% in May. While this rate remains low by historical standards, it aligns with other data suggesting that individuals may be slightly less optimistic about job prospects.

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The post US Jobs: Latest Trends appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

In HRchat 560, Bobby Umar returns to the show to discuss ways employers can leverage influencers within the organization.

An inspirational speaker and storyteller, Bobby has delivered 1,000+ keynotes and workshops across 4 continents in the past two decades.

Inc Magazine has previously named Bobby one of the Top 100 Leadership Speakers, alongside such noteworthy giants as Sir Richard Branson, Brene Brown, and John Maxwell.

Bobby is a 5x TEDx speaker, and one of the top digital influencers in the world, with over 650,000 global followers.

You can check out Bobby’s previous appearance on the HRchat show here.

Questions For Bobby Include:

• You love to talk about thought leadership and one of the trends you talk about is multi-platform content strategy. Why is that so important?
• What are the benefits or outcomes of building thought leadership?
• Are companies scared to hire thought leaders because of their reach and the potential for negative consequences?
• Obviously, you are on Twitter, what is your take on the recent Elon Musk changes and shifts?
• Given the clients you work with, what are the biggest challenges they have to build their brands and how do you help them overcome them?

More About Bobby

To date, his social media influence has garnered over 2 billion impressions. He’s been named the 2nd best business coach to follow on Twitter and the 4th best leadership influencer according to Kred. Bobby is an international author of three books, including a #1 bestseller and most recently, he was named a Top 7 Networking Guru to follow.

A dad and a board game nerd who champions authentic connection and heart-based leadership, Bobby has appeared on hundreds of podcasts, TV & radio shows. With a background in brand marketing (Kraft & Unilever), engineering (Bombardier) and the performing arts (Second City), Bobby has led Raeallan for two decades, and runs two other companies. He is now a recognized thought leader in Digital Marketing, Personal Branding and Building Meaningful Relationships.

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The post Bobby Umar: How Employees Can Grow Your Company’s Brand appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

Seven common job interview mistakes made by students

Whether it’s your first job interview experience or you’ve been interviewed before, being well-prepared is essential to success. That’s why we decided to compile a list of the seven most common interview mistakes to help you avoid them. Read on to learn more and land your dream job!

1.    Failing to do company research

One of the most common mistakes a student can make is not researching the company beforehand. First, it can show your future employer a lack of interest in the position, lowering your chances of getting the job. Second, researching the company can also give you a better understanding of its values and mission. As a result, you can tailor your application and responses to better meet their requirements.

As a student, you may not always have the time to do extensive research on every company that comes your way. In addition, looking for a job is already a time-consuming task. Therefore, you must find ways to free up some time. Whether you need to order an essay or paper, professionals from EssayHub can help you maximize your time by taking on some of the workload. With their expertise in writing, they can produce top-quality essays that meet your requirements and deadlines.

2.    Be uncertain of resume details

It is important to include only relevant and truthful information in the resume. Some people tend to add more things to their resume than they should. This may include exaggerating skills or responsibilities, or even fabricating experience. The consequences of such actions can range from losing out on job opportunities to damaging one’s professional reputation.

Therefore, you must know all the details you put into your CV and be able to provide proof if asked. This can save your application from being rejected. Furthermore, having detailed information and supporting documents readily available can also give you a competitive edge over other candidates. It demonstrates to the employer that you are thorough, organized, and have nothing to hide.

3.    Providing standardized answers

Whether it’s a best essay service review or your response to an HR question, worn-out cliches won’t convince people. That’s why it’s important to give your unique perspective on the subject rather than repeating what you’ve read online.

Take the time to research the questions that companies often ask during interviews. Then formulate the answers using your own experience and skills. Don’t be afraid to be different. This way, you can stand out from the crowd and get the job of your dreams.

4.    Rushing replies

A job interview is a nerve-wracking experience for many. However, being an inexperienced student puts even more pressure on the candidate. As a result, you may rush your replies or fail to express your thoughts accurately, which could affect the overall impression.

To succeed in the interview, it’s important to stay calm and take your time when answering questions. Don’t rush, but also don’t make the person in front of you wait for too long. You can accomplish this by doing the research before the interview to answer questions effectively. To boost your confidence, practice answering typical interview questions with a friend or family member.

5.    Negatively referencing former employers

At one point or another, the interviewer will ask you what went wrong in the previous job. It is critical to avoid placing blame on others and instead focus on what you learned from the experience. Describe any difficulties you have encountered and how you handled them.

Tell the employer what changes you can make in the future to prevent such issues from escalating. Aim to provide an honest and constructive answer, without dwelling on negativity or speaking poorly of previous employers or colleagues. Use this as an opportunity to demonstrate your problem-solving skills and ability to learn from mistakes.

6.    Not asking questions

Another common mistake one can make is failing to ask questions. Showing an interest in the company and the role can demonstrate your enthusiasm and initiative, helping you stand out from other candidates. Asking insightful questions can also provide valuable information and give you a better understanding of the position and the organization’s culture.

Most likely, the relevant questions will pop into your head during the interview. However, you can prepare some in advance. Be sure to entrust this task to the best assignment services if you don’t have time to look for them. They can also help you write answers to common interview questions. By doing so, you can save time and gain more confidence in securing your dream job.

7.    Inability to explain why you are a good fit

Last but not least, you should always be ready to explain to the company why they need you. This can be done by highlighting your unique set of skills and how they fit with the company’s goals, as well as your past successes and accomplishments. It’s also essential to demonstrate how you can contribute to the company’s growth and success.

Don’t worry if you don’t have much experience. What matters most is showing a willingness to learn and develop skills that can benefit the company. Make it clear that you are excited about the opportunity and are eager to take on new challenges.

To sum up

Stress and anxiety happen to all of us. That is why it is important to reduce or eliminate stressors in advance. Follow our advice to prepare yourself for the job interview, perform your best, and wow the employer. Your dream job is never out of reach if you put in the effort!

Authored by Harold Dingman

The post Seven Common Mistakes Students Make During Job Interviews appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

Recruiting has taken a huge step forward and changed its familiar systems drastically. In-person interviews are replaced with virtual ones, and ads in newspapers are pushed out by online posts.

You can’t ignore the transformation of recruiting processes. Moreover, you need to keep up with the trends and go in the same direction to grow the workforce in the competitive landscape.

In recent years, social media have become an integral part of recruiting. More and more talents are discovered online. It allows for faster and easier positions to be filled.

What is social recruiting, and how can you use it effectively to force up your team and hire the best of the best? Check out our guide on social recruitment.

What is social recruiting?

Nothing difficult here: social recruiting is simply hiring activities held on social media platforms. That means the recruiter can use LinkedIn, Facebook, or any other social network to search for candidates and use social media tools to walk them through the recruiting process.

Does it work? 

Many assume that social platforms are unsuitable for such responsible tasks as recruitment. Although, there is no better instrument to search for progressive, talented professionals.

Here are some statistics proving that recruitment via social media platforms does really work.

• More than 90% of applicants use social media when looking for a job.
• About half of companies’ followers on social platforms are there to stay aware of job openings.
• Each week almost 40 million people search for job opportunities on LinkedIn.

Those numbers speak for themselves, don’t they?

Social recruitment benefits

Promote your employer’s brand

Social media is a great place to show and promote your professional brand. Showcase your culture and let the candidates know that your company is a great place to work in.

Tricky point — the attractiveness of working in the company does not consider high wages and flexible hours. It is a lot more than that. Through the social platform, people will learn more about your company’s internal systems, goals, and values, which will help them objectively evaluate if this is where they want to grow professionally.

Save money and time

Recruitment takes up much effort, money, and time. Most often companies either handle this task independently, usually ending up with failure, or delegate these processes to professional HR firms, which can cost a lot.

Social media makes recruitment much faster, allows for more personal interaction with candidates, and provides an ability to learn more about the employee online.

Reach passive candidates

Your ideal candidate can be not looking for a new job. However, social networks allow them to see what your company is up to, what positions are open, and what the environment is like at the workplace. People always compare their current conditions with those they might have if they consider new opportunities. So, social media can spread the word about you even among passive candidates and interest them.

Target perfect applicants

Do not wait for people to apply. Instead, take the initiative, reach out to candidates, and share interesting content.

One of the greatest benefits of social media is the ability to build relationships with your followers. When people see your activity on the platform, it wins them over. As a result, you get the perfect conditions to start communicating with targeted candidates.

So how should HR specialists and business owners leverage social recruitment to optimize hiring processes and land the best employees?

The best practices you should implement

Choose the channel

Start with selecting the right channel to distribute your content.

When it comes to social recruitment, there are no limits. Qualified candidates can be users of any social media platform, and you can hire them even through Instagram and TikTok. However, if you expect the best results possible and want to make everything professional, concentrate on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is, without exaggeration, the largest professional network. Recruiters use this platform most frequently. Through this channel, you can maintain relationships with active and passive candidates, create brand awareness, and build a reputation as an expert in your working field.

Build your reputation organically

Again, build your employer brand online. On LinkedIn, you can create a brand profile and reach high visibility. Show off your workspace, share details and show how employees work and collaborate.

If you post just job ads, your account will turn into a boring list of vacancies that says nothing about your company. But engaging and honest content right from the workplace will help you build a positive reputation.

Automate everything you can

In general and familiar practices, such as putting job lists on job boards, there is a lot of manual work. It is hard to process applications and transfer them from an external resource to your CRM.

LinkedIn recruitment gives all the perks of automation. Tools like Linked Helper allows to automate almost everything and provides the recruiter with additional helpful tools. Specialists can use keyword search and personalize offers, auto-follow candidates, screen applicants, and all of that with minimum effort.

Involve employees and create more content

Get your employees active on social media. It is your strongest weapon in winning professionals. It is called employee influencing. Involve your team in sharing honestly about the company culture.

The more content you and your employees share, the better. Just keep the quality and value of it and diversify it with different types. Today people are more engaged with graphics and videos, photography, and live content.

To sum up

If you run over the great talents on social media once in a while, that is not an accident. Now you know that social recruitment is a new tendency in hiring and the strategy you must implement. With the right approach, you can force up your team, and good employees are the foundation on which any business rests.

Authored by Kristina Rodopska, esbo.ltd

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The post Social Recruiting: Everything You Need to Know appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

Way to Streamline the Recruitment Process

Attracting the right talent for your company is both a difficult and time-consuming process. Finding candidates with suitable qualifications requires thoughtful planning and work. Too long a process and you risk the chance of losing a valuable potential employee; if a process is not structured right, you may find yourself making the wrong hires.

If you are a recruiter, you may be bogged down by inefficient pre-existing HR processes that complicate hiring, or you may be in the process of setting up a new hiring system of your own. In any case, having a streamlined recruitment process is key to building an awesome team!

Tips to Simplify Your Recruitment Process

With these tips, you can streamline your hiring process and make it a breeze to follow through. Having a simple but effective recruitment journey would ensure that both you and your applicants come out with a positive experience.

1. Keep clear job descriptions

A job announcement post, whether it is on social media or on your company website, is the main source of information a potential employee will interact with for a position. You may be tempted to include the usual buzzwords of “go-getter” and “team player” as qualities you are looking for, however, those don’t tell you much about the role and would only confuse interested applicants.

Instead, have clear and straightforward descriptions of the role in the job post you send out. People are most likely to apply if they know exactly what to expect and assess whether their skill set matches with the one stated in the description.

Most importantly, make sure the visuals in your job posting are neat, with necessary information clearly laid out, and one’s that align with your company’s aesthetic. Remember, the job post also represents you as an employer and attention to details such as these will go a long way in attracting the ideal candidates.

We recommend using free online resources like PosterMyWall where you can find high quality customizable job poster templates. This will help to free up tons of time and effort in your hiring process and publish job postings effectively.

2. Employ a tracking system

Being a recruiter means your inbox is constantly overflowing with resumes and cover letters. Keeping a track of all applicants in an organized way can get frustrating especially when you are receiving applications for several open roles. Having an Excel sheet for tracking applications is often the go-to but perhaps you may want to look into specialized Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).

This would work to keep all hiring-related documents in one place, track progress on each candidate’s application process, and save time taken up to coordinate with other members involved in hiring. Not only this, but having a tracking system in place would also form a repository of suitable candidates that you can easily reach out to for future job openings.

3. Use pre-recorded video interviews

Screening applicants is perhaps one of the most time-consuming parts of the hiring journey. There is only so much you can decipher from resumes and cover letters, and conducting interviews for all shortlisted candidates lengthens the process even more.

Try incorporating pre-recorded video interviews as part of your recruitment process. It may sound like this is adding an additional step to review, but it may end up saving you more time.  Video interviews can have a time limit where candidates answer a list of standardized questions sent beforehand.

A video interview such as this would shorten screening time and help you decide if the candidate is a good fit instantly. This way, you forgo additional time and effort in scheduling an interview and conducting it only to find they were not a suitable candidate.

Plus, video interviews are great for giving you a refresher, for example, if you are struggling to finalize between applicants, you can always go back to the video interview to remember their standout qualities.

4. Allow self-scheduling

Calling up applicants and finding a suitable interview time can be a long back and forth process and particularly tedious to follow through with several people at once. You can eliminate the time it takes to schedule interviews by giving applicants the option to self-schedule interview slots suitable for them. Just remember to send open slots well beforehand to give applicants enough time to prepare.

5. Use reference checks wisely

As useful as reference checks can be, they also take up a huge chunk of time. Understandably, reference checks are a crucial part of completing the hiring process and should not be skipped when you’re looking for the right fit for your company.

However, consider keeping reference checks just for final candidates instead of a mandatory step from the beginning. Focus more on skills, expertise and interpersonal skills relevant to the position before giving significant weightage to references.

Authored by Darsameen Khan, PosterMyWall.

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How to Hire The Best Call Center Agents

If you have a business with a call center, you likely already know it’s one of the vital parts of your customer service department. The call center’s role is to solve problems, address questions, provide help, and make customers satisfied and happy. If your agents aren’t doing their job properly (or well enough), it’s going to have a negative impact on your company. Customers may grow frustrated, go elsewhere, even leave you bad reviews and spread negative word of mouth.

That’s why it’s vital to recruit talented call center agents and train them properly. A good call center agent can make a huge difference in your customer satisfaction metrics. Here are a few ways you can make sure you’ve got the right people for the job.

Draft a Comprehensive Job Profile

In this day and age, your typical call center agent is likely doing more than just fielding calls. They’re much more likely to handle transactions, make outbound sales calls, and be using the latest customer service technology. An ideal candidate should be highly educated, positive, motivated, professional, and career-oriented. Your job profile should reflect this, so you start with a pool of high-quality candidates to begin with.

Offer Benefits

A surefire way to attract more candidates is to offer a perks and benefits package. Traditional benefits are a great start, but perks that add well-being to your employees can make a big difference. Workplace amenities such as company transportation, on-site food service, coffee shops, health clinics, and other facilities can make your call center a huge draw for candidates.

These can have added benefits for your company, as well — on-site medical care means employees may not have to leave the office and wait at a clinic somewhere, or even take the day off work (depending on the issue, obviously). Coffee shops, ATMs, and cafeterias can encourage employees to remain at the office during breaks and lunches, removing the need to deal with traffic or dealing with long lines during lunch rush. And an ATM means that when employees get paid, they can access their money right away, before they’re even out of the building.

Another thing that might not count as a traditional “perk,” but will still help attract some of the best candidates — have room for career advancement. Today’s call center employees hope and expect for more, including rich possibilities for moving up the ladder when their skills and experience warrants it. Few employees relish the thought of being in the same position forever, so it helps to make those opportunities known to prospective agents while recruiting.

Conduct Pre-Employment Tests

Having a large pool of prospective employees is a great start, but it’s far from the end. To make sure you have the best possible shortlist of candidates, do some pre-screening. Conduct pre-employment tests for things like multitasking, problem-solving, active listening, fluency in English (or relevant language), and more. It’s also useful to screen for attitude and make sure your candidates are positive, energetic, open to criticism and a good fit for the company culture.

Another way to screen ahead of time for candidates is to shortlist candidates with the relevant educational requirements and experience. This may seem pretty basic, but it’s an important part of the process and will cut down dramatically on the number of interviews you’ll have to conduct.

Develop an Onboarding Process

A particularly effective way to onboard an agent is to let them work alongside another agent. Call center training that includes a shadowing program lets agents pair up with other, more experienced call center agents so they can see first-hand how an established employee handles a call. This is a fantastic way for agents to both listen in on live calls and see how software and tools are used to make the customer service experience better. In general, this is much more effective than any presentation or binder of training materials.

Assess Soft Skills

When it comes to being part of customer service, a candidate’s soft skills are just as important as education and technical training. A good call service agent must be able to empathize with a customer’s frustrations, work well under pressure, and show enthusiasm and professionalism when it comes to their work. They must be able to listen actively and effectively, communicate clearly with customers and fellow employees, and possess good emotional intelligence.

Development of soft skills shouldn’t necessarily end with hiring, either — there’s a lot to be gained in making it part of your call center training process.

Implement a Probation Period

It would be great if every candidate turned out to be the right one for the job, but sadly that isn’t the case. One way you can make the process a little less painful is to implement a probation period for candidates. You can assess their hard and soft skills, see how they perform, and decide whether they’re the right fit for your organization.

Authored by Alexis Frasier

This post is supported by Co-Creative Marketing

The post Hiring Call Center Agents appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

Job hunting isn’t always the easiest thing in the world. From finding something you see yourself committing to or waiting for a callback, getting a job can be difficult at times. If you’re looking for a reputable field to work in, look no further than HR, or human resources. Many people strive to succeed in this field for various reasons. Some want to acquire an authoritative role quickly, while others strive to promote a safe and healthy work environment for employees. In this article, we’ll be providing you with a quick guide on how to get a job in HR.

Obtain Your Bachelor’s Degree

As for most careers, you won’t be eligible for any position without the proper credentials. The first thing you need is at least a BA in human resources. BAs are the norm for most job applications these days because it’s what supplies students with a majority of what they need to know. It won’t do to have you go into a field you’re not familiar with, so here’s what you can expect to learn in this program:

• Organizational theory
• Managing performance
• Employee development
• Going over potential legal issues and how to comply with them
• Recruiting and managing new employees

There’s a lot you can learn from this degree, so be sure to research further. Before we move on, there’s one other thing we should tackle: the cost. A bachelor’s degree in HR cost about $40,000 on average, but it may also cost around $80,000. It depends on the college, however, financing this on your own may be difficult. A quick and easy way to pay for it is looking into private student loans. These types of loans are used to finance your education and everything relating to it. This means you’ll be able to afford your textbooks, supplies, and any equipment you need for your program. If you’re planning to study on-campus, this loan can also cover room and board.

Start Gaining Experience

Whether you’re still in your program or planning to graduate, it’ll do you a world of good to get some hands-on experience in HR. Not only does it look good on a resume, but it’s also actually a prerequisite for most job listings. So, you might be wondering how do you get the necessary experience? The answer is simple in that you can look into internships, which are positions meant to help aspiring HR professionals gain the experience they need. In some cases, these positions might be paid, but that depends on who’s hosting the internship. Even if it’s not a paid position, you’re not walking away empty-handed. The insight you’ll get can help you traverse the HR world with ease, like getting your certification. Not to mention, this is a great way to start building your own personal network.

Types of Jobs You Can Get in Human Resources

Now that you have a better understanding of how you can find your footing in the field, let’s go over the potential jobs you can get. Human resources is a division within a company that is more than simply finding ideal candidates, these roles basically oversee everything relating to employees and their environment. Here’s a brief list of jobs you can get in this field:

• Employment specialist
• Human resources coordinator
• Recruiter
• Recruitment manager
• Human resources manager
• Labor relations specialist
• Employee relations manager
• Director of human resources

The last one is one of those endgame careers. Becoming a director will take a lot more than a BA and a handful of experience. You need to be at the top of your game and show your superiors you have what it takes to lead your employees. No matter what job you strive for, each one has their own unique requirements. Make sure to research your preferred job further before working towards it.

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Helpful Calculator For Hiring Offshore Software Developers

Outsourcing software development is no longer an unknown way to structure a business model, but it has also become widely accepted and helpful. It is very impressive to discover how offshore developer rates differ in various parts of the world. Did you know that the average development rate in Ukraine is about 30-50 dollars, while in the USA, the same service can go as high as 100-150 dollars? So what are the best offshore software development rates by country? Read on to find out.

Overview of Offshore Developer Rates

There are hundreds of outsourcing development hubs all over the world. This has made the offshore software development cost vary from one country to the other. The rates in these countries vary, but they also differ in development quality, culture, and expertise. So, to hire a development team, it is vital for you to consider the scope of these various differences. You also need to analyze the differences and choose the country that has the best cost for offshore developers.

When we are talking about rates, there are two significant pools of outsourcing destinations. First, we have regions that have a high life standard and a stable economy. Examples of such countries are the USA, Australia, Israel, UAE, and Western Europe. The offshore software development rates comparison vary from 50 to 300 dollars in the mentioned countries.

Secondly, regions that have a lesser developed market are also considered when we are looking at offshore development rates. Countries and regions such as Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe are often characterized by low rates and a high number of specialists. Recently, less economically developed regions have emerged as significant players in the global IT outsourcing market. They have developed into effective IT centers that contribute significantly to the production of mobile and web applications.

The Cost Of Offshore Development in Eastern Europe

In the past few years, Eastern Europe has become a big offshore outsourcing center in the world. Eastern Europe boasts of hosting more than one million qualified professionals that are offering affordable web development services. The main outsourcing hubs in Eastern Europe include Ukraine, Poland, and Romania. The average outsourcing development rate in Europe is between 22 to 55 dollars.

While Eastern Europe’s development expenses are reasonable, the quality is also offering promise. Eastern Europe provides excellent expertise backed by years of experience. High language proficiency is a benefit of IT outsourcing in Eastern Europe, as the majority of providers know English.

Let us take Ukraine, for example. Ukraine has a prominent position in IT outsourcing development in Eastern Europe right now. They also rank as one of the best offshore development countries in the world. The software developers of the country offer high quality for a very reasonable price. The average rate that can be found in Ukraine is 30-55 dollars. Junior developers can charge as low as 20 dollars.

The Cost Of Offshore Development in Latin America

If you are looking for a place to hire a remote development team, Latin America should not be overlooked. Latin America offers great talent at very competitive prices. If you decide to outsource to this part of the world, be ready to pay around 30 dollars for a junior specialist. A senior developer can charge as much as 55 dollars per hour.

The potential of Latin America to become a powerful country in terms of Offshore software development has only recently been recognized. This is because of the local government’s actions. Countries like Argentina, Colombia, and Brazil decided that they needed fresh sources of funding due to the ongoing economic unpredictability and political unrest. When the governments saw the need to invest in their IT sector, governments began making investments in IT infrastructure and tech education to grow the sector. The outcomes are quite positive. Today, these nations have a large pool of highly skilled workers who primarily work with US businesses.

Let us take Argentina, for example. Argentina has become of the advanced offshore outsourcing markets in Latin America. The pool of technical talents in Argentina is impressive, and it promises to grow continuously. Argentina has continued to grow culturally and economically, similar to European nations, and they have made a strong mark in the global IT arena. The rate of an offshore developer in Argentina is between 30 to 55 dollars, depending on the position of the developer.

Final Thoughts

This guide has presented a detailed overview of offshore developer rates in Latin America and parts of Europe. Some countries offer lower rates than others. So, depending on your budget, you can choose a country that offers you a lower rate.

Authored by Daniel Davis, Mellow Promo OÜ

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Smart Recruitment with Lensa in the US

With the current labor shortage in the US, companies across many sectors of activity are having an extremely hard time finding talent to fill their open positions. This phenomenon, along with the rise of employee disengagement known as quiet quitting and the trend of employees resigning from their posts en masse known as the Great Resignation, means that the role of recruiters and HR professionals is more critical and challenging than ever before.

However, on the positive front, we have seen tremendous advancements in technology that offer recruiters and HR professionals much-needed help in these difficult times.

In this short article, we’ll take a look at one such advancement in the form of artificial intelligence (AI) and how it is being used to help recruiters and HR professionals find talent, filter candidates, and improve the overall candidate experience, with one notable recruitment platform, Lensa, that takes full advantage of this technology.

How AI Is Used in Recruitment

AI systems are helpful in the recruitment process in a multitude of ways.

• Identifying the key components of a successful candidate
• Filtering out those candidates who do not meet the identified criteria
• Conducting skill assessments to verify stated expertise
• Replying to candidates and answering their queries
• Scheduling interviews (and, in some cases conducting them)
• and much more

AI software is able to work as an effective match-maker by conducting an analysis of millions of data points. These data points come primarily from job offers posted online, resumes, and performance evaluations. With an exhaustive and continual examination of big data, AI systems are able to detect patterns and identify correlations between applicants and successful employees.

In other terms, not only do AI systems comb through thousands of resumes to find the candidates that are best suited for a given position, but by also analyzing sales reports, employee retention rates, promotions, and other such data, they know precisely what criteria to look for.

Benefits to HR Professionals

The field of recruitment is highly competitive. In this day and age, it is frankly irresponsible to implement a recruitment strategy that does not incorporate AI on some level or another. AI is a valuable resource in finding ideal candidates in 2023. AI serves recruiters and HR professionals on two fronts: effectiveness and efficiency.

The goal is not simply to make a quick hiring decision but to make one that will have a lasting positive impact on the company. In this way, implementing AI in the recruitment process should significantly improve a company’s employee retention rate.

Keeping top talent doesn’t start and end with the hiring process. Successful onboarding is also important, and AI can help HR professionals with that as well. For more information on the importance of onboarding, take a look at this article on how to beat the great resignation with this 5-step onboarding process.

AI systems also take on the more menial or repetitive tasks that often encumber HR professionals.

• Filtering out candidates that are clearly underqualified
• Sending out rejection letters
• Conducting skill assessment tests
• Scheduling follow-up interviews

Incorporating AI systems in the recruitment process is thus a tremendous time-saver on two fronts. It relieves HR professionals of having to carry out time-consuming, repetitive tasks. And it ensures a more targeted recruitment which decreases the chances of having to repeat the process a few months later when the new employee eventually doesn’t work out.

The Lensa Story

Among the many online job portals on the market today, Lensa stands out for its embrace of technology and its dedication to helping both job seekers and HR professionals.

Lensa started out in August of 2016 in San Fransisco, California. Today, it consists of a team of developers and data scientists serving well over 3 million unique users. Whether it’s finding jobs for veterans with Lensa or matching top executive talent with the right company, AI is a powerful and effective tool for both job-seekers and HR professionals alike.

Conclusion

Due to factors such as the current labor shortage in the US, quiet quitting, and the Great Resignation, the challenge of recruiters and HR professionals is greater today than perhaps at any other time in recent history. On the other hand, technological advancements in AI help HR professionals by sparing them the burden of menial tasks, freeing them up to perform more creative and personalized functions, and helping to ensure a more targeted and successful hire.

Authored by Megan Davis, profy1.com

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Hidden CV Red Flags And Green Lights

When it comes to making hiring decisions, recruiters will undoubtedly put a lot of emphasis on the importance of a strong CV. There’s a good reason for this, the CV is the first way to gauge whether a candidate is suitable for a job. Get the CV wrong and it is the equivalent of falling at the first hurdle. 

However, if you work in recruitment, you might be placing too much interest in certain parts of the CV, or even rejecting candidates because of things that aren’t necessarily a problem. In this article, we take a look at assessing the equality of a CV for red flags and green lights that might not be immediately obvious. 

Red flags: changing jobs every six months

It is all too common to see a CV where a candidate has had a very large number of roles across a fairly short space of time, sometimes known as ‘job hopping’. It’s really important to check the dates on the CV to see how long someone typically stays in a role and get an idea of whether they are likely to move on in a very short amount of time.

It is easy to say in an interview that you are committed to a company, but a candidate can reveal their true intentions if they have a history of moving on quickly. It should be stated, of course, that there are scenarios where a candidate may be a high performer who has had their career advance quickly. Clearly, they should not be rejected on the basis of multiple promotions.

Additionally, if they have worked as a freelancer or contractor it is possible that on a glance, their CV looks like they have started and left jobs in quick succession. 

Red flags: obvious errors

Another key red flag on a CV is the discovery of errors. These might be spelling mistakes, impossible dates, or excessive repetition. You might think that a small error like this is not something worth worrying about – but on a CV, a very short document with a very important purpose, it reveals something about a candidate.

Errors on the CV indicate a lack of attention to detail and suggest that the candidate didn’t care enough about their application simply to do a little proofreading. Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to completely abandon a candidate simply based on a grammar slip-up, but you can let it inform your decision. 

Red flags: lies or embellishments

Different from errors on the CV, if you discover that the candidate is not telling the truth about their history, either in terms of their roles or education, this can be a real red flag that it is worth paying attention to. If someone is willing to lie on their CV it not only makes it difficult to trust anything that they say, it also shows they are willing to do unethical things to get what they want.

In both cases, this is not generally the kind of person that you want to employ, and it should be something that you really consider negatively when assessing their suitability for the job. Technically, if someone is lying on their CV it can be considered fraud.

Red flags: backwards steps

Perhaps less obvious or not as serious is the issue of a CV where a candidate has made backwards steps. For example, if the individual once had a role with the ‘manager’ in the title, but later found themselves back as a team member rather than a team leader.

This doesn’t have to be a serious red flag, but it can show you that the candidate is less suited for leadership positions. Clearly, this will depend on the specific situation, and if the candidate has taken backward steps there may be relevant information you can glean from this. 

Green light: volunteering

It is often stated that having a gap on the CV is a red light, but this isn’t always the case. In fact, in some situations, it can actually be something you can look at as a real positive. The candidate might actually have spent this time doing something that was important to them, such as:

• volunteering in a related role
• refreshing their existing skills or
• developing themselves through further education and training. 

Review a CV for signs of creativity and examples of a candidate’s efforts to enhance their skill set in a way that might bring something new and unique to a role.

Getting involved in community projects without being paid or working for a charity can be a great way for someone to give back. And as many people of working age like to experiment with different career paths, this can show an interest in diversifying their skills.

Green light: they don’t want to work full-time

For a long time, it was considered a negative on the CV if a candidate admitted that they weren’t interested in full-time, or that they didn’t want to be permanently employed. Today, with the rise in the popularity of remote working, and the growth of hybrid working arrangements, less conventional working schedules are now celebrated. 

In fact, there are now recruitment agencies specialising in contractors who can be brought in temporarily to fill roles and provide a business with a specific set of skills. 

Green light: transferable skills

A lack of direct industry experience is often seen as a negative on a CV, but this is a problem that is exaggerated. Often it can be just as valuable – or even more valuable – that a candidate brings new skills to the role. Indeed, having transferable skills from another industry can allow someone to bring a fresh perspective to a role. 

Don’t let a lack of specific industry experience be the reason that you turn down a candidate, as there might actually be a lot more than they can bring to the role. 

Green light: longevity in roles

It is always good to see that someone shows loyalty to a business and stays in a role for a good amount of time. Once again, this can sometimes be misconstrued as a lack of ambition, but in general it actually shows a positive in someone that has been very good at what they do.

If someone generally spends years in roles rather than months, you are looking at a candidate who is loyal to the business they work for and can be trusted simply to get on with the job at hand. 

About the Author

Mike James is an independent writer based in the UK, Mike writes content for the B2B market. He covers a broad range of topics including technology, cybersecurity, HR, marketing, design, co-working, and business start-ups.

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In HRchat episode 519, we consider ways to attract and engage hourly workers. My guest this time is Sean Behr, CEO at Fountain, a high-volume hiring platform that empowers companies to hire hourly workers in a streamlined and scalable way.

Attracting and Hiring Hourly Workers – Questions For Sean Include:

• Please introduce yourself and tell us about the mission of Fountain
• What industries are dominated by processes that involve hiring hourly workers?
• The idea of earned wage access is quickly becoming a key tool for recruitment and retention. How important is it that employers can offer fast/instant access to pay? 
• What hiring trends is Fountain seeing that can give us a glimpse of where the future of hourly work is headed?
• How important is it to cut time to hire?
• Fountain’s mobile-first platform keeps candidates engaged and reduces drop-off via built-in automated scheduling, text, and email reminders. Tell us about the right kind of cadence to attract hour workers.
• What advice would you give to companies in regard to rethinking their hiring practices?

More About Sean Behr

Previously, Sean was the Co-Founder and CEO of STRATIM (acquired by KAR). He also previously served in leadership roles at Adap.tv (acquired by AOL), most recently, as SVP, Global operations. Before Adap.tv, He held various management roles at Shopping.com (acquired by Ebay) including roles in HR, sales, product management and strategy development.

In addition, Behr advises, mentors and invests in entrepreneurs and early-stage companies.

Sean holds a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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How to Recruit in 2023: Finding Ideal Candidates

In 2021, the world witnessed a record number of job openings. Fast forward to the end of 2022, and the numbers don’t seem to get much better. Yes, 10.7 million job openings are better than 11 million last year, but the challenge is very real – it’s hard to find the ideal candidates. 

If we assume that the talent shortage will diminish in 2023, this will make it more likely for businesses to find good candidates for the jobs they offer. So far, it’s been hard to find any candidates, not to mention people who are a good fit. 

This is why you need to be prepared. The competition will still be big. Your competitors will try to find and wow the ideal candidates, which makes it more important than ever to optimize your recruitment strategy and figure out how to attract and recruit in 2023. 

That’s what this article is all about.

Why hiring the ideal candidates is important

Everyone wants to hire the ideal candidate for the position, but is this really necessary? After a while, the person you hire will get accustomed to the position and learn how to do the job right. That’s one way to think about it. 

And it is the wrong way. 

The ideal candidate isn’t necessarily a person that will know everything about the job position from the start. It is the person that has the qualifications, soft and hard skills, and motivation to work toward your company’s goals. This is the person you should aim to hire. 

The benefits of hiring the ideal candidate make a very long list, but the top benefits would be:

• Increased productivity. Hiring the right people will increase the overall productivity of the company. If everyone does their work well and is a good fit, the company will work with maximum productivity and minimal problems. If you hire the wrong person, they can diminish not only their productivity but also that of others. 

• Big savings. On average, every employee you hire costs $4,000. Now imagine having to replace multiple employees because you hired the wrong people. This adds up to incredible expenses that you could have avoided simply because you hired the right person. 

• Saves time. When you have to train or rehire an employee, this takes a lot of time. If you hire the ideal candidate from the start, you can onboard them and they’ll start working for your company’s goals. 
• Increases customer satisfaction. You can replace the wrong candidate after hiring them, but repairing the damage they did to the customers is not so easy to fix. One unhappy customer will tell an average of 15 people about their bad experience with your brand. And, if they decide to leave you 1 negative feedback, well – it takes 40 positive testimonials to undo the damage!

You probably want to avoid these problems for your business and find the right person as soon as possible. If this is the case, here is what you should do. 

How to find and attract the ideal employee in 2023

Offering a job to potential employees is not as simple as it was in the past. You can’t just send in a short ad to a newspaper or place a piece of paper on your store’s door saying: “employees needed”. Now that the digital world is a job seeker’s hub, you need to utilize it to find the best candidates. 

You can’t wow anyone without finding them first. After you find them, you can’t wow them unless you offer them the right things. Here’s what you should be doing to optimize your search and hiring processes:

• Use dynamic ads
• Add video content to your job post
• Use keywords to optimize your job posts for SEO
• Say yes to social recruiting
• Consider hiring remotely
• Optimize their onboarding ahead

Want to know more about this? Let’s delve into the details.

Use dynamic ads to target the right people

Dynamic ads are a very useful way to show the right person the right imagery, landing page, or copy. Chances are, you’ll be hiring people for different positions, possibly even at the same time. With Creatopy’s dynamic ads feature, you can target the candidates with the right job description and things they’d be attracted to.

Dynamic ads were mostly used in industries such as ecommerce. Today, their usage is much more widespread. Recruiters started using this strategy to persuade the audience to open their website and click on their job ads.

The thing that makes them even more effective is that they are based on a job feed. It will basically be the list with your job openings, job titles, and descriptions. You’ll make it more likely that the right people see the ad they are perfect for, and will save you tons of money because you won’t have to design multiple ads and target different segments with them. 

Before dynamic ads, recruiters had to manually create postings for different job openings and post many ads for each. With a data feed, you’ll create a single ad, add a few dynamic elements, and technology will change them depending on the viewer. 

Not only that, but Creatopy even allows you to create dynamic ads in multiple languages, or use geographic variables to target people in specific locations!

Source

Add video content to your job post

People today love videos! They watch dozens of them every single day, especially on social media. This has been going on for a while, so it’s no wonder that the recruitment world also caught up on the trend.

Today’s job seekers seem to love video content and respond a lot to it. The application rate for a job post with a video in it increases by 34%, according to research. 

So, when you’re posting a job ad for an open position, consider creating a short video to complement it. Some good ideas for this are:

• Video testimonials from people who work for you
• A peek into how the company works (‘behind the scenes’ video)
• Motivational video from the CEO or company owner

Source

Use keywords to optimize your job posts for SEO

It won’t matter how many perks you offer or how great your job posting is unless it gets to the right people. You need to make sure that your message reaches the right audience. How do you do this? 

The answer lies in search engine optimization. 

If you want to find the ideal candidates, the people that your competition is dying to get to, you need to get to them first. To do this, use keywords. Find the keywords that job seekers might type in search engines to find the position you are offering.

You have little room to include these in job posts and job posting titles, so do your best to find the perfect keywords to rank higher in search results. The Google AdWords Keyword Tool is a good start for this. 

Say yes to social recruiting

Early on, we all thought of social media as a place to build social connections and get access to interesting content. Who would have thought that platforms like LinkedIn will become one of the most powerful channels for recruiting? 

Hiring today is made much simpler thanks to social platforms like LinkedIn or even Facebook. Everyone can hop on LinkedIn and search for talent in their field. Right now, there are over 58 million registered companies sourcing talent on this platform, and that’s just one of the places to do social recruiting. 

Source

Social recruiting is one of the top trends in the recruiting world today. Employees today create their social accounts and optimize them to find good jobs, which makes this a great opportunity to source the right talent. 

Consider hiring remotely

Hiring remotely will widen your reach tremendously, giving you more chances at finding a highly qualified, ideal candidate for the position. Not just that, but this is considered one of the most desired benefits in recruitment today. Job seekers today will sacrifice up to 20% of their salary to enjoy more flexibility at work!

Optimize their onboarding ahead

“I’ll find the ideal candidate first and I’ll onboard them as I go”. If this is your plan, try again! Onboarding new employees isn’t a cakewalk, especially if you are not prepared for it. There’s a lot involved in the selection process, but you should also think about how you’ll welcome, prepare, inform, and train your new team member to help them adjust to the new job efficiently. 

Whether you decide to invest in onboarding software or create a detailed plan that will smooth this process out for the candidate, you should do this as soon as possible. According to PwC, you can find the ideal candidate but lose them because 49% of respondents decline a job offer after a poor recruitment experience. 

Ready to hire in the 2023 market?

This new year has the potential of bringing some amazing people to work at your organization. But, it’s your job to find and attract them. Hopefully, these 6 tips will help you find the ideal candidates for the open positions in your business. Good luck!

About the Author

Nadica Metuleva is a freelance writer who’s passionate about creating quality, original content. She holds a Master’s degree in English teaching and a Bachelor’s degree in translation. With 8 years of experience in the freelance writing industry, Nadica has become proficient in creating content that captivates the audience, drives growth, and educates. You can find her on LinkedIn.

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In the modern economic climate, all business owners should be taking every precaution available to ensure the security of their businesses. From double-checking your business insurance arrangements to diversifying where you get stock from, there are multiple aspects that deserve consideration.

DBS checks provide another way of ensuring business security. From attracting honest individuals to limiting the chances that you’ll face regulatory action, here are some of the top reasons why DBS checks are crucial for business security.

Comply with industry regulations

In some industries, DBS checks aren’t optional – they’re a necessary requirement in order to comply with regulations. Failure to carry out DBS checks in industries such as healthcare, law, and childcare can expose your business to potentially damaging legal action, with potentially serious ramifications.

If you’re not sure whether your specific industry is subject to any DBS regulatory requirements, reach out to a dedicated service. They’ll be able to provide advice based on your specific situation, helping to ensure compliance is achieved. 

Protect your brand

While internal damages to your business that stem from your own employees can be damaging in a number of ways, one of the most important considerations is how it affects the perception of your brand. If you can’t control your own business, why should your clients trust you to take care of their needs?

DBS checks are a helpful part of the process of ensuring that you bring only the most trustworthy individuals into your business. This minimises the chance that one of your employees will result in a scandal, whether that’s leaking sensitive information or stealing company supplies.

Maintain a positive work environment

Maintaining a positive work environment is important for a number of reasons. First, you can’t expect your employees to work effectively if they’re constantly stressed and harassed by their fellow workers. Second, it’s almost impossible to attract talented individuals in a toxic work environment. Even if you do manage to recruit them, they’ll likely leave in next to no time.

DBS checks help to ensure that your employees are trustworthy people, who are nice to worth with. Of course, it’s not the whole solution, but it plays a crucial part in the overall recruitment process.

Enhance the recruitment process

Recruitment is a costly process – there are no two ways about it. That means that businesses should try to minimise employee turnover, while at the same time optimising their recruitment process. DBS checks can help in both of those areas.

Requiring a DBS check for a position generally increases the quality of the average applicant, while lowering the quantity. That means that you have to spend less time going through the applications, while increasing the chance that you’ll come across a promising individual.

Clearly, DBS checks can play a crucial role in ensuring the security of your business. From brand and reputation management to regulatory compliance, it’s definitely something worth looking into.

Authored by James Taylor, Dispense Digital

The post Why DBS Checks Are Crucial For Business Security appeared first on The HR Gazette and HRchat Podcast.

5 Reasons You Need To Do an Employee Background Check 

As a business owner, you know that protecting your company is priority number one. So, when hiring a new employee, it’s important to do your due diligence and perform background checks on each one of them. It helps to ensure that the person you’re hiring is who they say they are, and it can also help to identify any red flags that may indicate that the person is not suited for the job. 

Here are five reasons why you should do an employee background check:

1. To Ensure Compliance with State and Federal Laws 

There are several laws at the state and federal levels that require employers to perform employee background checks. These laws exist to protect both the employer and the employee, and failure to comply with them can result in hefty fines. State and federal laws vary, but some common examples include:

• The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
• The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) 

Check with your attorney or HR department to ensure you comply with all relevant laws. Keep in mind that there are different ways to get a background check on an employee, so it’s important to choose the method that best meets your needs. A few of the most common methods include:

• Online databases: Various online services offer background checks for a fee. The FCRA requires employers to get written consent from the employee before running a check, so ensure you’re only using reputable services.
• Social media: Social media can be a great way to get information on an employee, but it’s important to use it carefully. In some cases, using social media to screen employees may be considered illegal. 
• Commercial background check services: These are similar to online databases, but they often offer more comprehensive reports. 
• Local police department: In some cases, you may be able to request a criminal background check from your local police department. This is usually only possible if the position requires working with vulnerable populations, such as children or the elderly.

2. To Assess Potential Risks 

When hiring a new employee, you want to ensure that they pose as little risk to your company as possible. A background check can help to identify any potential risks that an employee may pose, such as a history of violence or theft. This will help you make an informed decision about whether or not to hire the employee. 

In addition to assessing criminal history, also assess an employee’s financial history to identify any potential red flags, such as a history of bankruptcies or foreclosures. Financial problems can often lead to theft or fraud, so be sure that your employees are financially stable.

3. To Avoid Negligent Hiring Claims 

Negligent hiring claims can be costly and often arise when an employee causes harm to another person while on the job. To avoid these claims, employers need to take reasonable steps to ensure that their employees are safe and qualified for the job. Background checks are one of the best ways to do this. 

4. To Screen for Criminal Histories 

Criminal histories are one of the most important things to screen for when doing a background check. This is because a criminal history can indicate that an employee is not suited for the job and can pose a risk to your company. When screening for criminal histories, remember that not all crimes are created equal. 

For example, a minor traffic offense is not likely to be a deal-breaker, but a violent crime may be. So, it’s important to assess each case individually. In general, you should avoid hiring employees with any type of criminal history.

5. To Verify Information on Resumes and Applications

Finally, you can use background checks to verify an employee’s information on their resume or application. This ensures the employee is being honest about their qualifications and experience. It’s also a good way to catch any potential red flags, such as discrepancies in employment history. 

Overall, background checks are an important part of the hiring process. They help to ensure that you’re hiring safe and qualified employees. If you’re not already doing background checks, start incorporating them into your hiring process.

About the Author

Wendy Dessler, Outreach Manager, altitudebranding.com

Wendy Dessler is a super-connector who helps businesses find their audience online through outreach, partnerships, and networking. She frequently writes about the latest advancements in digital marketing and focuses her efforts on developing customized blogger outreach plans depending on the industry and competition.

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Case Study: How PitchMe’s integration with Bullhorn enriched Allen Recruitment’s database and increased the placement rate

Allen Recruitment, an international recruitment consultancy firm, shares its one-year success after implementing PitchMe’s Bullhorn integration. Allen Recruitment has used the software to manage the database and keep it up-to-date, resulting in improved candidate marketing and higher placement rates.

“Before PitchMe’s Bullhorn integration, we would reach out to five or six candidates to get one who was interested. Now it’s three or four candidates interested because the data is relevant,” said Brian Cunningham, managing director of the Allen Recruitment.

Allen Recruitment’s Challenge

Allen recruitment has quite an impressive candidate database of several hundred thousand resumes and when the database of candidates is not up to date, it can lead to lost opportunities. Brian needed up to ten soursers and researchers to manage the database and keep it updated, which was not cost-effective and didn’t deliver the expected results. They encountered many cases when they had the relevant people but never reached out to them as their information was not updated in the database.

“There’s nothing worse than the fact that we had the candidate but we didn’t put them forward quick enough, or we didn’t put them forward at all. This was the problem we were looking to solve,” added Brian Cunningham.

For Brian, it has always been important to stay on top of the most innovative recruitment technologies to find top talent. He wanted Allen’s recruiters to be able to get more relevant information on candidates, have a more engaged and up to date database, not lose . people out of the process and be the first one to get to the right candidate.

“We want to be the reason they move job. Imagine if we presented our job to them when they were about to leave. And we were the reason they moved. Nobody else has that candidate and that’s gold,” added Brian Cunningham, managing director of the Allen Recruitment.

PitchMe Solution

PitchMe realized that the newly launched Bullhorn integrated solution was the solution Allen recruitment needed to revive its database, update the records, and add all the recent employment, skills, and contact information to outdated resumes. It took PitchMe team only 7 days to set everything up before Brian’s team saw the first results and had started benefiting from PitchMe integration.

“PitchMe worked closely with us, listened to us and has brought us an amazing solution that has a huge impact on our recruiters and getting in front of the right candidate at the right time. The ability to match now where they are today, with our current requirements, allows us to get to them before the other agencies do,” said Brian Cunningham.

Not only has the process of finding candidates become much faster, but they’ve also experienced an increase in placements and better candidate engagement. Additionally, using PitchMe’s platform has allowed them to keep their database up to date with minimal effort.

“So what PitchMe does is keeps the people in our database up to date. When we hit the match, we’re considering the best people. So speed was one of the matrices that we were looking to do. It means we’re able to react quicker, we’re able to get to the candidate first,” said Brian Cunningham.

Results

• Allen Recruitment cut the time and costs recruiters spend on database management.With PitchMe, they keep their database up to date with one click.
• Enrichment of the database increased the placement rate. In the past, the companywould have only had one candidate interested out of six, with a success rate of 16%. After using PitchMe’s integration with Bullhorn, the interest rate jumped to 66%, with four people interested out of six.
• PitchMe’s integration with Bullhorn keeps Allen’s team away from manual work thatusually took hours. Now, all they have to do is run automatch and pull out all the relevant candidates and then use automation to reach out to them.
• Due to PitchMe’s integration with Bullhorn, Allen’s team improved candidate marketing.They can now engage with candidates continually and when it’s time for them to find a new position, Allen Recruitment is the first thing that comes to their mind.

About PitchMe

PitchMe, established in 2017, is a leading skills-based hiring solution that matches companies with talent based on the most comprehensive picture of a candidate’s skills. PitchMe helps companies find talent they would have missed by extracting hundreds of data points from digital sources about a candidate’s validated, real-time skills.

About Allen Recruitment

Allen Recruitment Consulting is an international recruitment consultancy firm trusted by many companies across the globe since 1998, supporting their recruitment programs across multiple countries from their offices in Ireland, the UK, Poland, and the Netherlands. Learn more at pitchme.co

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Even for the most highly qualified candidates, job interviews can cause feelings of nervousness. There’s nothing like sitting in front of your potential boss or their HR personnel and letting yourself be judged for half an hour or more. However, these job interviews also give you a chance to share your career journey and convince your prospective employer that you have what it takes to be part of the team. If you’re gunning for a senior leadership position, your employer will use your answers to determine your potential to take the company to the next level.

If you’re eyeing that job hiring in Cebu calling for a rare gem who will transform the company, here’s what you should expect and prepare for if you want to ace that important interview phase.

Questions About Your Definition of Good Leadership

People have different definitions of good leadership, and an interview will allow your potential employer to see if yours aligns with the company’s culture, mission, and vision. Your interview may include questions about your leadership style, including the specific skills and values that you find important. Interviewers may also ask about the people you look up to in order to understand your standards for good leadership.

To stand out, you can emphasize how much you value empathy and listening to your team. Showcase your transformational approach to leadership by explaining how you motivate your team to achieve goals that align with the company’s objectives.

Questions About How You Manage and Motivate Others

Good leaders must know how to heighten the morale of a group to deliver results. To assess your ability to lead a team, employers ask about how you set goals for the team and provide constructive feedback to bring out the best in others. You can showcase your mentorship skills by explaining how you actively worked with a teammate to identify their difficulties and help them drive actionable results. You can also talk about how you made sure to recognize your teammates for their efforts to prevent them from feeling undervalued.

When asked about your goals when designated to lead others, you can provide concrete answers founded on a big-picture mindset rather than the typical cold response of “just get the job done.” Provide examples of how you made sure to deliver clear instructions and communicate with each member of the team. Your answers will show your persuasion and people skills, which are both valuable in a leader.

Questions About Self-Assessment

Employers also need to determine your capacity for self-awareness. During the interview, they may ask about how you set goals for yourself and how you measure your own performance. Discuss specific goal-setting approaches such as establishing monthly, weekly, and daily goals for you and your team. Remember, employers are not just analyzing your capacity to improve the performance of others. They also need to know that you can lead yourself and work toward self-improvement.

Questions About Resolving Team Conflicts

Conflict-resolution is a leadership quality closely tied with negotiation and problem-solving. Employers need to assess your ability to settle disputes within the team and approach different perspectives with understanding and respect. Your answer to questions about resolving team disagreements can revolve around how you helped your teammates see eye-to-eye and settle on a compromise.

Questions About Overcoming Challenges

Employers usually look for leaders who are resilient when faced with obstacles. They intend to bring in leaders who have the accountability to own up to mistakes and creativity to come up with innovative solutions. Common questions revolve around difficult decisions you had to make to meet company or performance goals.

You can discuss specific times when your team had to battle deadline or client pressures, limited resources, or miscommunication. These types of questions can be tricky, so you need to answer them honestly and show that you’re the kind of leader who is willing to learn from mistakes and take on a new perspective to efficiently solve challenges.

Questions About Completing Tasks

Employers tend to pass on candidates that are scatter-brained and cannot divide labor properly to finish tasks on time. To determine if you can handle these things well, they need to ask questions about time management and task delegation. A good answer may involve discussing how you made an effort to communicate with your teammates to track overall progress. You need to show that you are organized enough to finish projects on time while still being able to motivate the team to work hard to meet expectations.

Questions About Your Biggest Achievements

Employers respect leaders who can rise to the challenge of identifying opportunities for growth. Your prospective employer must know that you can seek new directions and create a long-term vision for the company. Look back on your whole career and pick your most insightful experiences that show how you took action to go beyond what’s expected of you or your team.

Showcase Your Best Qualities, but Recognize Your Flaws

Employers want leaders they can trust to help steer the ship. While it’s good to follow the age-old tip of “selling yourself” during an interview, there’s nothing wrong with being honest about your flaws as long as you show that you’re actively working to improve. Treat your interview as an opportunity to convince your potential employer that you can make big changes at the company and have the chops to prove it.

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People strategies of the world’s most admired companies in a full-employment economy

In the wake of ‘the great resignation’ and the equally dramatic post-pandemic re-organization of our ways of working, a number of organizations are caught in a tough talent crunch in 2022.

The challenges of attracting and retaining talent have never been more real.  Combine this with consumer price and wage inflation at levels not seen for many years, and the challenges for organizations competing for scarce talent in a near-full-employment economy become obvious.  In today’s tight labor market, employee engagement has moved to the front as organizations look for better ways to engage and retain the talent they need to be able to deliver on customer and shareholder value expectations.

Employees meanwhile are looking for meaningful work and interesting career paths combined with levels of pay and benefits that are both relevant and that are aligned with a fast-changing market.  This article explores the ways organizations are mobilizing to compete more effectively in the market for talent and includes some current data and summary survey observations for both US and UK markets.

How are high-performing organizations organizing themselves better around engagement?

In the past two years, organizations across a number of industries have seen levels of employee engagement either stagnate or decline, whilst at the same time, many organizations report that attracting and retaining talent has become more difficult. Organizations are in general more concerned now than two years ago with employee engagement and retention and are committing more time and resources to pro-actively manage both of these people elements.  Key levers or areas of focus that have emerged and that successful companies are employing to drive better employee engagement and retention include all of the following:

1. The role and impact of business leaders
2. The role of and impact of managers
3. Pay and benefits
4. The move to remote and hybrid or other flexible working arrangements

The impact of leadership

Where business leaders have had a positive impact on employee engagement, organizations report all of the following as being important areas:  leadership being more available and accessible, leadership being more connected to the business and the people, leadership being more visible in both online and in-person forums and events, as well as leadership, being more actively involved in issue identification and dispute resolution.  Interestingly, more formal channels for increased leadership involvement, like the employee voice initiative in the UK have made less of a positive impact than hoped for, with a number of engagement surveys showing low or little impact return from these more formal governance and board-driven initiatives.  Rather, it is the more visible and natural people-centric approaches of key individuals in leadership that have had the biggest positive impact.

The role of managers

Managers have been able to positively impact levels of staff motivation and engagement, in a similar way.  Key factors that separate organizations that show good results and increased levels of engagement from manager interventions from those that don’t, include both increased levels of soft-skills training for managers, as well as improved information and communication infrastructure and technology support.  Interestingly, upskilling managers in terms of hard or technical skills has shown very little or no positive impact on overall levels of engagement.

Pay rates are increasing faster than before

Both the US and the UK are seeing compensation increase at rates not seen for at least 30 years.  Post-pandemic consumer price inflation is now trickling through into wage inflation and increased wage demands.  Increase levels as high as 7% or 8% have been seen by remuneration consultants in some industries and especially amongst the lowest-paid workers.  More broadly, increased demands in the region of 5% or 6% have become common with many organizations looking to manage annual increases in the 4% to 5% range.  The days of a 1% or at best 2% annual pay increase appears to be behind us for the foreseeable future.  Pay and wage pressure is often greatest at lower levels of work and where pay equity is a concern, and in sectors where talent and skills are more scarce, in part due to labor re-organizing itself during the two years of the pandemic and the large exodus of workers from some sectors.  Historical pay scales that had previously supported the organization through a number of years are now being critically reviewed and updated as organizations look to ensure that their levels of pay are indeed both fully fit for purpose and truly market related and competitive.

Employee benefits are a key component of total rewards

Employee benefits, previously often seen as a ‘nice to have’ component part of the organization’s total rewards offering are also being carefully reviewed and in some cases completely overhauled.  The move to remote and hybrid working models has exacerbated and accelerated the change.  Benefits that were built around an on-sight working model are in decline across a number of industries, whilst benefits that focus on staff wellness, both physical and mental, and individual choice and flexibility are increasingly being introduced.  A well-thought-out and up-to-date benefits offering can play a key part in an organization’s overall employee value proposition and in improved engagement and retention.

Flexibility is key

Increased flexibility in work arrangements is consistently highly valued by a significant majority of employees, across a number of different markets and industries.  In addition, benefits to support productive flexible working are becoming more common.  Industry factors and the nature of work and client delivery requirements will likely ultimately determine the longer-term preponderance of remote and hybrid working arrangements across different organizations, however, those not able to offer this benefit will need to look to strengthen other areas of their employee value propositions to current and potential new staff if they are going to be able to compete effectively for talent.

The way forward

The time of status quo and a reliance on outdated people policies and practices is over.  To be successful in the war for talent, organizations need to dig deep and invest the time and resources required to ensure that they remain relevant and competitive.  Evidence suggests that in addition to providing employees with a meaningful day’s work and valued future learning and career opportunities, companies need to urgently and critically re-look at how their leadership and managerial talent are being mobilized and utilized, as well as their approach to and levels of reward and in providing the desired flexibility in terms of both the way or working as well as in benefits offered to their people.

Authored by Paul Hunter

Paul is the founder and Principal consultant at People. Performance. Reward, an independent Human Capital advisory partner with experience in the areas of Performance and Rewards, Executive Remuneration and Governance, Organizational Design and Strategic Workforce Planning.

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In 2022, hourly workers are finding themselves in very high demand. Staff shortages in a variety of sectors and turnover rates of 150% — an increase of 68% since 2017– mean businesses that once took their ability to attract and retain staff for granted are now encountering strong resistance to their favorite strategies. There were 800,000 fewer fast food workers in the U.S. in October 2021, for instance, than there were in February of 2020.

So how does an HR department attract the hourly workers a business needs for its best chance at success? It’s important to understand that, contrary to popular belief, hourly workers come from a variety of demographics: in fact, most hourly workers are over 25 years old, and a third of them are over 45.

One thing they have in common is that they all rely on technology to find jobs. That may be why, in addition to increasing wages, improving benefit packages, and taking a more compassionate approach to employee needs, HR professionals are finding that state-of-the-art tech is a boon to recruitment, allowing them to draw job applicants and quickly respond to their concerns.

Make the most of social media

In their search for hourly workers, HR professionals are not getting a lot of traction advertising on the professional network LinkedIn. It might be time to switch over to the world these potential hires prefer. Using social media to find hourly employees has won over 84% of employers because that’s where some 86%of job seekers now look for work — they’re most likely to comb Facebook or Twitter, with Snapchat, Instagram and Pinterest being other major contenders. It’s not just a one-way street, either — according to Glassdoor, some 13% of social media users say information they’ve posted on social media helped them get a job.

Similarly, one essential aspect of successful recruitment is corresponding with potential hires in ways they prefer. This usually means SMS and messaging apps, rather than “old school” email — some people rarely check messages left there, perhaps because their inboxes are often swamped with spam. These other messaging methods allow speedy real-time communication, including booking interviews and answering candidates’ questions, and can even allow video conversations that give the hiring party a good idea of the candidate’s suitability to the job.

Create a brisk application process

Once they’ve spotted a job they’re interested in, hourly workers appreciate a mobile application process. That’s because it’s most likely to enable an accelerated response and a more convenient hiring exercise overall. That’s a plus at both ends of the transaction — 37% of hourly workers say being hired quickly is the crucial factor in determining which job they choose, and companies in need of hourly workers typically need them as soon as possible.

Prioritize employee referrals

Around 80% of hourly workers work within five miles of their home. This means that each of a business’s hourly employees likely has friends or family members in the neighborhood who might be looking for a job that doesn’t require a long commute. Employee referrals are valuable sources of reliable and efficient new employees, and they’re easiest when the company has established an automated referral system.

Businesses can get creative when providing employees with incentives for using the referral system, such as turning the process into a game where successful referrals earn them points that they can use in some manner later. An automated system will also enable employers to track how successfully this method attracts new employees, including how many referrals result in new hires.

Automate the interview process

Arranging interviews can be a lengthy undertaking — fortunately, the task lends itself well to automation. There are apps available that allow for near-instant responses, because they not only integrate with the potential interviewee’s choice of email, text or messaging apps, they also connect with calendar apps. This creates a definite record at both ends of the interview arrangement, registering the date and time of the interview, details like whether it’s a phone call, a Zoom or a Teams meeting, who’s calling whom, who will be at the meeting, and any other pertinent details. Chatbots can also be used to deal with common questions applicants might pose, like, “How many positions are being filled?”

Customer-relations management systems (CRMs) are another valuable tool, allowing resumes that have been received and approved to be stored on a database that’s available to everyone in the company who hires hourly workers. The same goes for talent acquisition software (TAS), which organizes and screens such information and can be used to interview, hire and train the winning candidates.

Capitalize on AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can not only screen potential candidates for required skills and answer questions they might have, recording the interaction for employer review, but also administer personality and skills tests, do background checks, and even conduct and record initial interviews to determine a candidate’s suitability.

HR teams can pre-record specific questions for the video, giving every candidate the same set of queries to create a level playing field. AI can also determine the applicant’s fitness for the role in terms of their language skills or customer service mindset. Once the new hire is secured, AI integrates with learning management systems (LMS) to facilitate onboarding and organize any required training.

These kinds of efficiencies are clearly a boon for hardworking managers and HR professionals. In a rapidly changing world, it’s clearly time to mark old-fashioned, time-consuming hiring procedures as spam and instead embrace the expediting force of technology.

About the Author: Steve Anevski

Steve Anevski is the CEO and Co-Founder of Upshift, an industry-leading staffing platform that connects businesses with pre-vetted W2 employees. Backed by Recruit Holdings Inc., Upshift has a success rate over double the industry standard.

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