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Career Edge Blog

Jun 09
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Why now is the perfect time for recruiting, hiring and training recent graduates

By Uncategorized

Picture this: amidst a skills and talent crunch, an organization’s most senior leaders and top-performers retire, taking with them much more than a gold watch – 30 or more years of experience and intimate knowledge of the company. As middle managers move up to fill the gaps, new gaps will appear, until the entire organization from top to bottom is riddled with vacancies – and customers hanging in the balance.

Suddenly recent grads of the Y generation will be at the forefront of the battle for top talent, and companies will have to compete for honour roll students and campus superstars.

Why not hire them now?

Recruiting recent grads is something some employers are making a priority – not just to fill entry-level roles, but as a strategic component of succession planning and sustainability. It’s about being proactive, rather than reactive, as some would say.

As the Globe and Mail recently rolled out their list of “Top 50 Employers for Young People” (with the editors of “Canada’s Top 100 Employers”), Career Edge was profiled in a timely feature in the Globe today, entitled “Keeping a Generation from Getting Lost.”

The article by Randy Ray highlighted the challenges faced by the large number of unemployed youth in today’s tough job market, particularly those who graduated at the height of the recession and have remained unemployed since.

The article, featuring an interview with our own Janice Rudkowski, Director, Marketing & Communications, raises the question – what will become of this cohort, and what will happen when employers need fresh talent? Will they be “passed over in favour of the next crop of fresh graduates,” as Janice postulates in the article. Will they lose some of the skills and knowledge they graduated with months, or in some cases, over a year ago?

Fortunately there are some excellent companies out there that recognize the value of recruiting and training new talent now. Loblaw and Kraft – both host employers to our Career Edge program for recent grads – both appeared in the article as examples of excellent programs that are “kick-starting careers” and enjoying the benefits of new talent.

As the economy recovers, now is a great time to build a “talent pipeline,” because before we know it, we’ll be facing a talent drought.

Jun 01
Love4

Creativity As the Single Most Important Trait

By Employer

I just stumbled upon a great article written for Bloomberg Businessweek by Frank Kern, senior vice-president of IBM Global Business Services.

IBM’s Institute for Business Value conducted a survey of 1,500 C-level execs to answer the question, “What do chief executive officers really want?”

Apparently, executives want creativity.

IBM put creativity at the top of the list of leadership qualities desired by organization leaders. The surprising results represent a significant paradigm shift. Creativity is seldom cited as one of the key traits of leaders. More common leadership traits, as Kern says, include “operational effectiveness, influence, or even dedication.”

According to the article (click here to read it), the study’s other key finding was that “global complexity” is emerging front and centre among issues faced by today’s enterprise leaders, so it’s easy to see why creativity is a trait held in high regard.

Kern goes on to say that creative leaders disrupt the status quo, challenge existing business models and make decisions quickly, avoiding “organizational paralysis.”

Creativity – once viewed as a nice-to-have-but-not-necessary trait, often over looked in intelligence testing – is becoming the most sought-after trait in corner offices everywhere.

This begs the question – how do employers test for creativity?

Many organizations require job applicants to write tests throughout the recruitment process but often these tests are designed to assess competency in the “3 R’s” (reading, writing and arithmetic) or software.

Behaviour-based interviewing can reveal a lot about one’s creativity if candidates provide examples that demonstrate their outside-the-box thinking to solve problems and address workplace challenges. But often, the opportunity to truly demonstrate one’s creativity is neither presented nor encouraged in the interview process.

A classic test of creativity often cited in university Psych courses is “Guilford’s Alternative Uses Task” dating back to 1967. Examinees are asked to list as many possible uses for a common item such as a brick, paperclip, string, etc.

Maybe one day, in the near future, this will be a standard test in interviews and leadership exercises – who knows?

May 27
Love4

6 Career Limiting Moves in High-Tech Times

By Jobseeker

Commonly known career limiting moves (or CLM’s) have been around for ages and many have stood the test of time. Dressing inappropriately at work is just as hazardous today as it was in the ‘50’s – only our definition of “appropriate” has probably changed over the years.

But with the advent of technology, there are more ways now than ever to limit your career. So if you’re looking to get fired or skipped over for that coveted promotion, read on and follow these six simple steps!

If you think we missed something, please add your career limiting moves to our list by commenting below!

1. Complaining About Clients on Social Media

If you want to lose clients and, subsequently, your job, a great way to do this is to log on to Twitter and start bashing them publicly in real time. This is especially effective since your client can probably cross-reference the time and date of your tweet with your last meeting or phone call and figure out if you’re referring to them!

Not only might you insult that particular “difficult” client, but you are showing all your customers or potential customers your character and that you’re willing to slight them in public forums. Who wants to work with someone like that?

2. Sharing Proprietary or Confidential Info Online

There is nothing wrong with being proud of your work. Just remember one thing: it’s not your work!

Yes, you may have developed/written/created it, but it actually belongs to the organization or clients who paid you to do it.

Blogs, social networks, and file-sharing sites like Box.net or SlideShare make it easier than ever to share that amazing presentation, report or creative work you did, especially if you’re thinking about beefing up your online portfolio. But consider how your boss or client would feel if they came across their proprietary work online – especially if it contained confidential info about their organization.

Also consider – what if the competition saw it? If you have to think twice about sharing it, don’t share it.

3. Plagiarizing

Plagiarizing is a great way to lose your job and even get into some legal trouble (you know, just for fun). But if you really want to make it easy for them, just steal your work right off of the internet. That way, all he or she has to do is copy and paste a line from your report and plop it into Google. This will lead them right to the source.

4. Bash Your Employer (Current or Former) Online

This one is a pretty obvious career-limiting move. By now, most people should know it’s not smart to bash your boss or the organization that employs you online, whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, or any other forum – no matter how “private” you think it is.

Still, it never ceases to amaze me how easily common sense escapes us. Case in point: a friend of mine hated his old job at a large private corporation, but fortunately, he was able to land his dream job and part amicably with the old employer.

He was happy to know he could always go back for references or other opportunities. That is, of course, until he created a Facebook page called (something to the effect of) “I worked at ABC company, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt,” which was dedicated to sharing how much he disliked working there. Thankfully, he has since followed my advice and taken it down.

5. Make Your Not-so-tech-savvy Boss Feel Bad

Organizational leaders are often superhuman beings with a million things on the go at once. They work long hours, often travel, juggle overlapping meetings and are putting out more fires than the fire department. But alas, nobody is perfect!

Many senior leaders are of generations that did not grow up with computers or iPhones, let alone the internet in their jacket pockets. In fact, they may have already been in the workforce for decades before the internet came along.

So when a boss asks you for help with technology, don’t get frustrated or patronized and embarrass them. Be discrete and respectful, and soon, you will be seen as their go-to person.

6. Write Poor Emails

My boss once wisely said, “If you wouldn’t put it on the front page of a newspaper, don’t put it in an email!”

Never assume that your email to Jane in the cubicle next to you might not accidentally get to the CEO! The boss is one click away from receiving absolutely anything that goes out. All Jane has to do is click “forward.”

In this era of dwindling face-time, your emails are increasingly a representation of your work ethic and professionalism. It’s a sign of respect to write a professional email, even if it’s a casual message to a colleague. Plus, it is much more convenient for them to click “forward” and type “FYI” (think of how often you do this) than to have to paraphrase someone’s email because they couldn’t be bothered to use full sentences.

Bonus tip: IF IT’S WRITTEN IN ALL CAPITALS IT LOOKS AS THOUGH YOU ARE SHOUTING (even if you aren’t)

May 19
Love4

The digital media value proposition: three insights on social media for business

By Uncategorized

By Guest Blogger: Janice Rudkowski, Director, Marketing & Communications, Career Edge Organization

janice pic

I was fortunate enough to attend the Getting Down to Business with Social Media session yesterday, held by Queen’s Executive Development Centre. There are lots of Social Media themed sessions, conferences and crash courses out there for business professionals to partake in. Some try to convert, others try to simply inform or educate and then others try to take Social Media Strategy to the next level.

This one was of the later – it definitely took social and digital media strategy to the next level. Neil Bearse, Manager of Web-Based Marketing at Queen’s University, presented the second hour of the session. He really hit the mark in terms of how organizations should be thinking about digital media. I took away three really important insights from his engaging, entertaining and thoughtful presentation.

1. It’s time to stop questioning why and start looking at the facts.

Millions and millions of people are already actively engaged online whether it’s for social or professional purposes. So, why are organizations still wondering if they should develop a digital media strategy? Social and digital media has already demonstrated itself as an integral part of our society. From preschoolers to grandmothers – everyone is engaging online in one way or another. So too should all organizations.

2. In essence, we’re all marketers within our organizations.

Digital media strategies don’t simply belong just in the Marketing Department. Since social media is an integral part of our everyday lives, it also has to be woven through every part of our businesses. It’s true that Marketing has traditionally been the brand keepers, but today everyone in the organization contributes to keeping the brand healthy and well. It’s not just what’s written on the company website or company brochure that dictates brand health, it’s how we talk to a customer or even how we talk to our friends and family about our jobs. Virtually every online and offline interaction feeds into the health of a brand. So, it’s crucial that everyone within an organization recognize their role, importance and contribution to the organization’s overall strategy in order for its digital media strategy to achieve success.

3. Digital media is exactly what email was 15 years ago and what the fax machine was 30 years ago to businesses.

These techno inventions changed the way people communicated. So, now we have another technological revolution which once again changes the way that we do business. The difference is, now businesses have the opportunity to reach out and engage in direct dialogue with their customers and consumers in an instant. We’re entering into a new era where a customer/consumer relationship is not just defined by face time or simply the quality of a product or service, but it’s defined by every single online and offline interaction. And now more than ever, it’s the online interaction that contributes so much value to the equation.

May 13
Love4

Aboriginal Inclusion in the Workplace

By Diversity and Inclusion

Aboriginal inclusion in the workplace is a critical part of the overall discourse that is taking place around diversity and inclusion in the Canadian workplace today.

Canadian employers are seeing a clear business case in making their organizations inclusive of Aboriginal people and other underrepresented groups, as diversity maximizes the potential of all employees, lowers employee turnovers, broadens the customer base and increases work productivity. Diversity brings cohesiveness to the workplace.

Moreover, the impending skills shortage faced by Canadian employers today may call for creative hiring solutions. Aboriginal people represent an important part of this solution, with a growth rate that is six times faster than the general population.

Unfortunately, Aboriginal inclusion has its own challenges, as there are gaps still prevalent that are acting as barriers to true Aboriginal inclusion in the workplace. In an effort to make their workplace practices truly welcoming, employers are still working to expand their understanding of the historical and cultural journey of Aboriginal people in Canada.

Conventional practices around recruitment, retention and promotion alone would not suffice to make an organization an employer of choice for Aboriginal people. This is best achieved when organizational goals and Aboriginal inclusion goals are linked together, and inclusion becomes an organization competency, part of managerial performance evaluations.

An optimal Aboriginal inclusion strategy is also backed by leadership and commitment, long-term goals, accountability, relationship building, creative recruitment, retention and promotion strategies and a plan for implementation and measurement.

What are we doing?

At Career Edge Organization, Aboriginal inclusion is viewed as a journey that will include lots of learning and sharing of best practices with our host organizations and partnering community agencies. We are currently working on streamlining our processes so that our host organizations would be able to hire Aboriginal interns through the paid internship programs we offer that are meant for recent graduates: Career Edge and Ability Edge.

In our quest for ongoing learning and understanding of Aboriginal inclusion in the workplace, I recently attended a Workshop titled “Mastering Aboriginal Inclusion”. The workshop was offered during the yearly conference called “Inclusion Works” organized by the Aboriginal Human Resource Council. Some of the critical areas that were covered in the workshop were understanding the business case for Aboriginal inclusion, the historical exclusion of Aboriginal people and how to increase an organization’s ability to recruit, retain and advance Aboriginal peoples.

In our journey so far, we have encountered some notable successes, including the three Aboriginal interns who were placed in one of the major Canadian banks within the last three months. We continue to see more of our host employers hiring Aboriginals through our paid internship programs. Our goal is to make our internships a viable medium for qualified recent Aboriginal graduates to establish their careers.

By Guest Blogger: Rizwan Abdul, Client Relations and Human Resources Manager, Career Edge Organization

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