Women In Leadership

Introducing Stella & Dot

2010-11-26T19:31:00.003-06:00

Welcome to Stella & Dot – Geneva Lake

www.stelladot.com/genevalake

Join me as I show you the latest in Stella & Dot!

Warmest Wishes,

A Note From A Recruiter’s Desk…

2010-04-04T16:18:00.002-05:00

Job Numbers Released

As the new job numbers came out this week, I couldn’t help but wonder if we are really getting out of the so called “jobless recovery” or if we are simply turning one corner blindly to run right into a wall.

From a White House press release on April 2, 2010.

Payroll employment increased 162,000. Even after adjusting for the 48,000 temporary Census workers hired and a rebound effect from the February snowstorms, this number suggests an increase in underlying payroll employment. Moreover, revised estimates now show a small job gain in January and a smaller job loss in February than previously reported. As a result, for the first quarter of 2010 as a whole, job growth averaged 54,000 per month. This is a dramatic change from the first quarter of 2009, when average job loss was 753,000 per month.

Nearly 50,000 of the 162,000 jobs were temporary government jobs, another nearly 50,000 were temporary jobs from the private sector leaving roughly 62,000 as actual permanent jobs. The minimal gains are nonetheless gains however, will not be enough to get us back to where we were before the recession any time soon.

From My Perspective

For every hourly, service industry job opening, there are at times hundreds of applicants. Upon reviewing an online resume submitted to me this week a candidate wrote the following:

Job Skills:
i have no job skills for which the position i am applying for

This is a literal quote written exactly as the candidate wrote it on the online resume submitted and is all too common. The number of candidates without basic job skills is astounding! Most commonly I see candidates with no basic job skills including basic communication skills. I have literally seen applicants who misspelled every word on their resume except for the word “I”. In addition to lacking basic job skills, candidates often times have trouble holding a job for more than a few months at a time.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, there are a tremendous number of candidates that are overqualified for the positions they are applying for. For instance, a Line Cook openings may have a former Executive Chef apply for the position, Bartender roles are having former restaurant owners and consultants apply. In my personal experience, once hired for these roles, these newly minted employees last until a better opportunity comes along which for some is a matter of weeks or months. Can you hardly blame them! This could be good or bad depending on what your organizational needs are, but be prepared that they may only be with you for a short period of time.
The applicant in the middle is often times the elusive candidate, a diamond in the rough so to speak. When reflecting on the candidate pool for some hourly service industry positions, a few things have jumped out at me and seem to be much more exaggerated given the current economic conditions.

The education gap in this country is tremendous from one region to the next. (I am right now working in the Milwaukee-area market). Many high school students are not leaving school with basic job skills and when I say basic I mean even just being able to spell the simplest of words.
The younger generation (high school – college) has an entitlement mentality when it comes to employment, salary, benefits, etc. For many the idea of working hard to earn something is a foreign concept.
The underemployed in the country right now mask the true unemployment numbers and fail to show how dire the employment outlook really is in many markets.

These ideas are of course my perspective based on my personal experiences. There are always exceptions in any group and the ideas expressed here are generalizations.
There are no good or immediate answers to all the issues addressed here. However, I challenge everyone to think about education, if our youth continues to come out of the education system without job skills, we will continue to perpetuate the education gap. On the reverse side of this argument, it is important to teach our youth personal responsibility. Take personal responsibility to utilize the resources that exist to better oneself.
I believe the current economic conditions have changed the job market for a long time to come and it is important that we change our thought process to reflect the newly created reality (more to come on this newly created reality soon).
This is a note of reflection from my desk this week, I look forward to your comments.

Kalous HR Consulting

2010-03-28T13:31:00.001-05:00

We offer a full range of HR solutions tailored for your specific business needs. With continually changing employment laws and regulations, most organizations today don't know, what they don't know. We know what you need to know!

Areas of Specialization Include:

HR Audits & Analysis
Organizing the HR function for your business
Legal Compliance
Interim HR Management
Recruitment & Retention
Training (Employer & Employee)
Employee policies, procedures & handbooks
Job descriptions - ADA requirements
Unemployment claim prevention, protests & hearings
Workers' Compensation including investigation
EEOC charges & EEO reporting
Labor Relations
Compensation
Performance Appraisals
Employee Surveys
Assisting in guiding employers through disciplinary action, documentation, termination, hiring, recognition, maintaining employee files, etc.

Our Mission:

Our mission is to assist you in making your business a success by strategically managing the Human Resources function and teaching you to be knowledgeable in Human Resources. We will work with you as a business partner for your continued success, HR is our passion, let us help you so you can enjoy yours!

www.kaloushrconsulting.com

LinkedIn Best Practices For Business

2009-05-22T20:28:00.000-05:00

Great article on using LinkedIn for business....

http://e-strategyblog.com/2009/05/linkedin-best-practices-for-business/

Seeking A Job - Here Are Your Sites!

2009-05-06T14:44:00.000-05:00

Searching for jobs?

Check out these sites:

http://www.marketingprofs.com/chirp/2009/21/my-big-fat-job-list

A-

Updates to LinkedIn

2009-04-10T21:30:00.000-05:00

LinkedIn continues to evolve and is gaining new members and being updated at a record pace due to the current economic conditions, more specifically, the job market.

LinkedIn has become a primary source for Recruiters and HR Professionals to seek and research candidates for open positions. Using this type of a site allows recruiters to be selective of their candidates and conduct focused searches (as compared to looking through hundreds of resumes, many of which the candidate is not qualified for the position).

They continue to add new applications such as slide shows and blogs for professionals to market themselves. Another recent update is the ability to add some personal information. I recommend professionals be selective about what information they put out on the web however, if you are seeking employment, you many want to consider updating your profile to include some additional contact information. Again, some information such as martial status and birthday you may want to stay away from just to avoid potential discrimination issues. The information that can now be added is below:

Personal Information
Phone:
Address:
IM:
Birthday:
Marital status:

Just another resource that is available for Free that continues to evolve!

A-

Finding Balance, While Maintaing Momentum!

2009-03-30T10:36:00.000-05:00

Cleaning the house, laundry, running errands, grocery shopping, making dinner, mowing the lawn, maintaining the garden & landscaping, raising the kids, time with friends & family, and oh yeah, running a business! Sound familiar? How do you find balance and still maintain your business momentum?

As I blog about this, I must confess that I struggle with this myself and consider this to be a continuous area of improvement and focus. I have found that for me, finding balance is about de-cluttering my life and is really a personal evolution that has not come easy or quick.

So what do I mean by de-cluttering your life? Consider some of the things I have done and think about what you can incorporate into your life:

The first thing I did was to take stock of my relationships, were there people in my life that were constantly negative and bringing me down? Where there people who seemed to always need some "drama" happening in their life and if it there wasn't, they would create or seek it? I will tell you that there are people that I consider to be friends but no longer have close relationships with anymore. I also left a husband now ex-husband in the aftermath of my former life, but have moved myself into a better place with an intimate group of close friends and family that make me feel better as a person just because I have them in my life. I also have a new husband with goals and values that are in sync with my own.
The second thing I did and probably the easiest for me was to de-clutter my space. Letting go of "things" that I had held on to for no specific reason other than I may need it someday! I sorted out my closet (which I still do seasonally), photos, collectibles (dust collectors), etc. I organized and sorted and maintain a philosophy of something comes in, something goes out when it comes to "stuff" in my life. I set away time each week to clean and organize, everything has a place and once you define these places and put things in them when not in use, your well on your way to maintaining daily organization.
The third thing is to de-clutter your time. There are a lot of things in life that I consider to be clutter, the TV is a huge source of mental and time clutter. Do you need to watch the news morning, noon and night? Probably not, could you just watch it in the evening while making dinner or in the morning with getting through your morning beauty routine. Do you have to sit and watch Grey's Anatomy every Thursday night or could you download it off iTunes and watch it while you workout? Do you need all those TV shows are could you narrow it down to a select few? Think about how much time you watch TV and what you watch? Think about how stressed and busy you feel, would eliminating a few hours of TV time in favor of more productive things eliminate some of that stress? Email and Internet is another thing that clutters our time, dedicate some specific time each day to respond to emails rather than sitter there all day jumping on every email that comes in. Avoid the Facebook/Twitter/MySpace trap, these are legitimate ways to promote your business and network however, you should dedicate an allotment of time to do this and not get caught sitting in front of it all day waiting for people to update their status. Are there obligations in your life that you'd rather not do or that don't keep you moving forward personally and professionally? Think of other things that clutter your time and how you can eliminate or reduce the amount of time spent on these things.
Think about what is important and make the time! Family, sleep, exercise, etc. You make your list and you make the time, will eliminating some TV make more time for these things?
Learn to say No! Will joining the PTA eliminate time for the really important things and people in your life? You have to learn you can't do it all and will need to say no.
Learn to delegate! Can your kids help with household chores, does it make sense to have the neighbor kid mow your lawn? What is the value of your time? During the time spent mowing the lawn could you have made money working for a client, etc? Would you have made more than it would cost to pay someone to mow the lawn or clean the house? At some point, these are things you need to think about.
Make lists! Making a list helps you to organize your time so you don't have to run back to the grocery store for that one thing you forgot.
Make a long-term plan and think about the benefits! Think about where you want to be in 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, 5 years and so on. Write it down and look at it often, this will keep you on track and help you to keep moving forward. Think about the long term benefits to exercising vs. watching TV... will 30 minutes of yoga recharge you better than 30 minutes of TV? Weigh all your options and choose the one that aligns with your goals.

This list is not all-inclusive, but should get you thinking and will be a good start to finding some balance and maintaining your momentum.

A-

Part-time Work @ Home

2009-03-16T16:52:00.000-05:00

Are you a stay at home mom looking to contribute to the family finances or someone trying to figure out how to add extra income to your current income or maybe you were recently laid-off and would be happy with any income?

There are options out there, but there are also a lot of scams! If you think sending $30 away to an ad you saw online will get you a job stuffing envelopes at home and making $30K a year, forget it!

Here is what you should know:

Check the Better Business Bureau's website to find out if a company is legitimate, they rate companies on a letter grade scale, A+ being the top, just like when you were in school.

Think outside the box (retail box that is)! E-commerce companies like Amway Global have reinvented themselves with top quality health & beauty products (recently mentioned in InStyle Mag by Sandra Bullock), they have also partnered with companies like Nike, Sony, Kenneth Cole, Steve Madden, Levis and even Uggs just to name a few. Its a regular Target online, cutting out the middle-man & advertising = money for business owners. With over 8 billion dollars in sales and 50 years in business they are one of the top home-based businesses today.

Be careful of companies that over-promise and under-deliver! If it sounds like it is too easy or too good to be true, it probably is. Nothing is free or without work.

For questions about work from home options, please feel free to contact me!

A-

Twitter Keeps Growing and Growing...

2009-03-16T16:51:00.001-05:00

Twitter grows to over 8 million users...

http://www.socialtimes.com/2009/03/twitter-us-growth/

A-

EEOC Food for Thought...

2009-03-13T17:04:00.000-05:00

The EEOC reports that the top five most commonly filed employee suits are:

1. Sex discrimination and harassment (30.1 percent)
2. Retaliation (22.2 percent); 3. Race discrimination (13.5 percent)
4. Disability discrimination (12.8 percent)
5. Age discrimination (8.2 percent)

Common issues in the workplace include: Age discrimination, this is on the rise due to baby boomers returning to the workforce. Whistleblower protection Employee Internet and E-mail intrusion of privacy.

Average compensation to claimants based on employee size.
15-100 employees: $50,000
101-200 employees: $100,000
201-500 employees: $200,000
501 or more: $300,000

A-

To Tweet or Not to Tweet - Twitter

2009-03-12T19:46:00.000-05:00

Great Article for Business Owners About Twitter:

http://goodplum.com/2009/02/28/twitter-enlightenment-for-business-owners/

This will help you understand a little more about Twitter and if it is right for you... follow us on Twitter (akalous).

A-

Nielsen: Social Nets Overtake E-mail

2009-03-11T20:23:00.000-05:00

Great article on the power of social networking, if you our your business has not yet got onboard, now is the time!

"...the reach of social networking and blogging venues is growing at twice the rate of other large drivers of Internet use such as portals, e-mail and search."

http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/digital/e3i3a9dedf59710f3d571f3cd3443a1a54c

Contact us today for social networking 101, we can help set you and or your business up for success!

Interviewing Tips From An Insider

2009-03-09T16:42:00.000-05:00

As a former corporate recruiter for a large global organization, I have interviewed for roles ranging from receptionist to controller to development. There are a few things that you should know when you go in for an interview. First impressions are absolutely everything! As a recruiter I would typically know if a candidate is going to survive to the next round of interviews within the first 5 minutes. Here are a few tips to help you make a good first impression.

- Be nice to the receptionist, smile and if possible, make pleasant conversation. They have more power than you think and will often be asked to give their impression of a candidate.

- Smile!

- Dress in a well-fitted suit (if appropriate) or other dress attire. By well-fitted I mean not too big or too small!

- If you are a smoker, don't smoke right before the interview, the smell can sometimes be over-whelming, especially if your interviewer is a non-smoker.

- Make eye contact, but don't over-do it by never looking away or blinking... you want to try and have a "normal" conversation with your interviewer.

- Bring a copy of your resume on a higher quality stock of paper than just copy paper.

- Research the company ahead of time (Google them), come prepared with well thought, written questions to ask at the end of the interview or when prompted by the interviewer.

- Try to appear comfortable even if you are not, practice common interview questions with a friend or in front of the mirror to help become more comfortable. Join a local group in your community, etc. that might push you out of your comfort zone a bit, the more you do it, the more comfortable you will be. Volunteering is also a great way to put yourself out there.

- Keep a positive mental attitude, postitive attracts positive and negative attracts more negative, keep this in mind as you go about your daily life.

A-

Copy Resumes for Free March 10th Only!

2009-03-08T15:57:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday, March 10, all customers can have 25 résumés copied free during regular business hours at any FedEx Office Print and Ship Center. The one-day-only event is good for black-and-white copies and valid only for orders placed and picked up at the store. Orders may be submitted in printed format or as a digital file; copies will be printed single-sided.To find the FedEx Office center closest to you, visit FedEx Office (http://www.fedex.com/us/office/) or call 1-800-Go-FedEx (1-800-463-3339).

A-

Intelligent Woman Seeking Work... Does this sound familiar?

2009-03-06T17:19:00.000-06:00

If you are like so many in this economy, you are either unsure your job has the stability it once did, have lost your job or are looking for work to supplement your household income. There is no such thing as lifetime employment anymore, the days of working for the same company for 40 years have come and gone, "its just business" has replaced loyalty.

I cannot tell you the number of people who have reached out to me over the last few months looking for employment and advice. First thing is first, don't panic! Take a deep breath and repeat until your heart rate has stabilized... Then, tell everyone you know that you are looking for a job, don't be too proud or shy! Shout it out on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, create a LinkedIn account and post information as if this were your resume, gather contacts and request recommendations. More recruiters use LinkedIn than any other site to find the right candidate for their roles. 90% of people find jobs from someone they know, an acquaintance, a friend of a friend, colleague of a colleague and so on, so reach out to everyone you can.

When conducting your online job search use a site like Indeed.com, this site pulls from several other major sites so you don't have to check them all. You'll still want to check some specialty or local job boards too as these might not be pulled in.

Keep in mind your resume has to stand out in a virtual sea of resumes. Have someone review or proof it for you, one spelling error could keep you from an interview. Be sure to update your cover letter to fit the opportunity you are appling for, changing it to highlight your experiences that match what they are looking for.

Finally, if you are a stay-at-home mom or someone who is looking to add an additional part-time job to help make ends meet, consider at home roles that you can do when it is convienient for you. There are numerous opportunities out there, think about your special skill sets that someone may be willing to pay you for. For more information on part-time business opportunitites, please email me at akalous@ltdteam.com.

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude." Thomas Jefferson

A-

Welcome!

2009-02-03T22:12:00.000-06:00

Welcome to my Women In Leadership blog. My hope is to create a forum for women in leadership roles to share ideas, offer advice and just communicate to advance as professionals. I will be posting ideas around leadership, communication, professionalism, entrepreneurship and more. I look forward to your comments!

A-