Career News

Are you thinking your Blackberry use is out of control and you need to turn it off? Forget it. The problem is not the Blackberry, it’s you. The Blackberry actually gives you the freedom to effectively mix your personal life and work life so that they don’t have to compete with each other. Don’t talk to me about the idea that the Blackberry undermines your ability to have work-life balance. First, the idea that you could ever have it is ridiculous. But a Blackberry at least gives you hope. Without a Blackberry, you always had to choose one or the other. Work and life were always…

After my first visit to the farm, I quickly invited myself back. “I’m coming there without my kids,” I told him. When I got there, he made me hamburger that was shaped a little too much like how it might have looked in the cow’s body, and then he asked me what I wanted. “I want this to be a date,” I said. “And then what do you want?” “Well. I don’t know. I guess we kiss. That’s what you do on a date.” The farmer laughed. And he asked me if I thought I could live on a farm. I said no. I said I was thinking this would be a…

People are always asking me what our business model is for Brazen Careerist. Now that we have a network of 150 great bloggers, we are focusing on companies. A lot of companies come to us asking for access to the bloggers. Not surprisingly, companies want to recruit from the bloggers and their friends. But we think what the bloggers want is good conversation. We think that offering someone a job without conversation is like walking up to a stranger in a bar and asking for sex. It doesn’t work. You need to establish some sort of rapport first. People want that from a job offer as well. People…

The worst career advice I ever gave was to my brother’s college roommate, Robert Buckley. He was one year out of college when he asked me if he should quit healthcare consulting to become an actor. I said, No, that’s the dumbest idea I ever heard. He told me he thought he had talent, and then (like I wasn’t against the idea enough) he told me he was dating some girl he met in Vegas, and she is going to be an actress, and she said that he had talent. I actually questioned how my brother could be such good friends with someone who was so stupid. I tried to be patient, but…

It used to be that the smart kids went to graduate school. But today, the workplace is different, and it might be that only the desperate kids go to graduate school. Today there are new rules, and new standards for success. And for most people, graduate school is the path to nowhere. Here are seven reasons why: 1. Graduate school is an extreme investment for a fluid workplace. If you are graduating from college today, you will change careers about five times over the course of your life. So going to graduate school for four years—investing maybe $80,000—is probably over-investing…

The last thing many executives want to take to the beach are hefty business books that keep them tied to work, but these quick reads address pressing challenges.

At 49, Lisa Johnson Mandell found her career "kind of sputtering." So she started making herself look younger in ways other than surgery, starting with erasing some age lines on her résumé.

Internships are more popular than ever among college students. And landing the perfect one is just the beginning. Here's how to make the most of your summer internship.

Not-so-recent college graduates are demanding more career assistance from their former schools as they face tougher employment markets, and universities have begun to respond by creating job-search programs.

A small but growing number of companies are grading -- and paying -- top managers on their ability to hang on to employees.

Anyone searching for a job knows the excitement of finally landing an interview. But just imagine how you would feel, after prepping for hours to make sure you're ready to answer questions about why you'd be great for the job, to have a hiring manager lean earnestly forward and ask:"If you could compare yourself with any animal, which would it be and why?"Huh??Welcome to the whacky new world of interviewing.Lynne Sarikas, director of the MBA Career Center at Northeastern University in Boston, recently filled me in on some of the, er, creative interview questions being asked of job…

Generation Y (sometimes called the Millenial Generation) is often touted as being technologically savvy, great at coming up with new ways to work and influencing the workplace as never before. They’re also said to be a bit whiny and have a sense of entitlement.Well, it also seems they can’t keep a secret.Now, before everyone starts hitting the “comment” button to send me nasty messages, I just want to outline a conversation I had with Marian Salzman, who is touted as being one of the world’s leading futurists/trendspotters, and chief marketing officer for Porter Novelli.She noted…

We've heard the warnings time and again: What you write in an e-mail is subject to your employer not only reviewing it -- but firing you if it is believed you violated company policy.But let's get real: While at work, many of us still send our friends e-mails about where to meet for dinner, we still send that dirty joke to our significant other and we still e-mail our children to tell them that their grades are slipping and they better get on the ball. We tell a co-worker how pissed we are that our boss is a jerk.But how would you feel if you used your private e-mail account at work -- and…

There are always some sure-fire ways that you can tell your company is in trouble.The floors haven't been vaccumed in recent memory because the cleaning crew is now one 80-year-old woman who comes in every other month to dust. You are asked to re-use ovenight envelopes -- and not because the boss cares about the company's carbon footprint. Unknown people are seen going into top brass offices and holding closed-door meetings for hours. You catch the boss working on his resume.All signs that the ship is sinking, and the rats are headed for the exit. Time for you to join the exodus, right?Not so…

OK, time to fess up. It's Monday morning, and the truth is: This week is going to suck big time because you keep doing the same truly, truly stupid things over and over again.How's that for uplifting career advice? Not exactly what you expected, right?But the truth is, you keep shooting yourself in the foot, and you keep blaming other people for it. So, in the interest of keeping things simple on a Monday, I'm going to give it to you straight:You're screwing up, and you have no one else to blame but yourself.Let me give you some examples and see if you recognize anything familiar:* You…

Over the past six months, I’ve flown on roughly 10 roundtrip flights.  Excuse me for the ranting that is about to occur, but my last flight was the worst of them all.  Out of all 20 flights, only two came in on time and without any problems.    I couldn’t help but think, “What would I do if I was required to travel this way for my job?”  If your job requires you to travel, bite the bullet otherwise known as rising gas prices and DRIVE.  At least that’s the conclusion I drew.  It used to be that we flew for convenience,…

Is it just me, or do offices never seem to have an adequate amount of space for all workers?I'm not even talking about comfort. I mean literally having enough desks and chairs to go around. People always seem to be shoehorned into a corner near a fridge, or offices are shared when they should be solo. And let's not forget about the shrinking distance between cubicles.At $100 a square foot in major metropolitan areas, I can almost forgive companies for dehumanizing us into sardines. However, what excuses do their suburban counterparts have? From urban centers to quiet suburbs, I've repeatedly…

Ever notice how it often takes 10 e-mails to accomplish what could have been done in one simple conversation?  I often find this when it comes to scheduling meetings at work.  You know the drill.Cube Dweller #1: "When do you want to meet?  I can do Wednesday morning or any time on Thursday."Cube Dweller #1: "How about Wednesday at 11am? But we should probably ask Susie."Cube Dweller #1: Sounds goot to me.  Susie, will that work for you?Susie:  "I can't do Wednesday, but Thursday is good." Cube Dweller #2:  "Hmmmm.  Thursday…

Have you ever been to a job interview and felt completely overwhelmed when you sat in the “hot” seat? Have you ever felt so nervous that you were oozing buckets of sweat even before your interviewer asked you those tricky intricate questions? Well, it may not be your fault for feeling like this. It may have something to do with the cunningness of your interviewer. It is likely that your interviewer may have arranged his office furnishings to raise his own status and power, and, in doing so, lowered yours. Just look at the chairs around your office and then look at the executive…

Food days, potlucks, international feasts, share days…no matter what you call it, these gluttonous events remain a serious work hazard.  OSHA should have a workplace regulation that bans these (and vending machines while they’re at it).  As we spend more time sitting in our cubicles, our natural tendency is to find a way to relieve the boredom.  Why else would we look forward to the monthly food day with as much anticipation as a long weekend?  Ok maybe not quite that much enthusiasm. As summer rolls in with full force, many of us find ourselves scurrying…

Standout Jobs is pleased to announce that we’ve hired Steve McNair as our VP Business Development. Steve has 15+ years in the HR space working for TMP, Wanted Technologies and others. He brings a ton of experience to the team and a deep knowledge of Human Resources, recruitment advertising and more. Plus he knows a lot of people… Here’s a rather formal picture of Steve: Not to be confused with the “other” Steve McNair: Steve’s an entrepreneur at heart, and a sucker for punishment. So he’ll fit right in. As one would expect in a startup, Steve’s…

Here are a number of jobs posted recently by our customers that look really interesting: Assistant Product Manager, Fun Web Products: Who wouldn’t want to work on fun web products, right? At IAC you can do exactly that. The Fun Web Products group at IAC handles their fun and interactive toolbar products, including SmileyCentral.com, Zwinky.com, Webfetti.com and MyFunCards.com. Community Evangelist: We’re seeing more and more job titles like this, especially for Web 2.0-type startups where building communities and leveraging social media effectively is so important. This job is…

It’s not that any country, industry or business is doing such a great job of recruiting top talent (except for our customers *smile*) but it seems Canadian businesses are really struggling. From the Ottawa Business Journal I recently read an article stating that only 25% of Canadian firms have a strong recruitment program. The article was based on a recent survey completed by Bedford Consulting Group. Here are some of the additional findings: 70% of top executives and human resource leaders surveyed in a report by Bedford Consulting Group said they are experiencing a shortage of talent,…

Every so often I like to highlight different companies using Standout Jobs to power their career sites and online recruiting efforts. As we add more customers, we see a wider range of industries and company sizes represented. Here are a handful of our latest customers, each of which has a number of interesting positions available: Ericsson LMI: Anyone want to work in Ireland? I’d certainly like to visit someday, but in the meantime, Ericsson is hiring for a number of interesting telecommunications jobs including Mobile TV Solution Architect, Graduate Systems Engineer and IPTV Solution…

Yesterday, Standout Jobs was featured in the Financial Post: Playing in the major leagues - Online tool helps smaller firms compete for talent. It’s a good overview of our product, why we built it and how it helps. I was particularly pleased to see one of our clients - Apption - quoted in the story: Sam Zaid, Apption Software chief operating officer said the response he has received from his company’s career portal has helped attract high-profile candidates that may have gone to a rival firm such as Google Inc. or Microsoft Corp. “It would have taken 10 times more time to…

Have you ever given up an otherwise good job for something as silly as a little more money? Well, if I go by this article then I think I did. I had all but the flexible work arrangement. Here’s a bit of an excerpt: No. 1: Offer attractive benefits. Salary is a key consideration for members of this group, but so are benefits. No. 2: Promote work/life balance. Nearly 73% of Gen-Yers surveyed said they are concerned about being able to balance a career with personal obligations. No. 3: Narrow the rungs of the corporate ladder. Millennials are willing to work hard, but when it comes to moving…

It robs you of your life at parties. Makes you contemplate suicide on airplanes. Doubles your time at the gym, and usually slaps you around like a little bitch at the mall. This unholy bastard child of interesting conversation and violent murderer of free time is none other than UNNECESSARY SMALL TALK. It’s likely happened to us all. You’re rushing through the mall trying to pick up a few quick items and head home for sanctuary. You’re one pack of Mach3s away from being finished your “To Do” list and you mistakenly smile and make eye contact with someone you haven’t seen in 5…

Earlier this week I ran across an amazing presentation on knowledge workers and office 2.0 on SlideShare (which is an awesome site – it’s like YouTube for presentations). Check it out. “Finally,” I thought. “Someone has defined me!” I’ve been trying to figure out a subtle way to e-mail it to my boss ever since. Here’s the thing: Stephen Collins (the presenter) talks about “bursty” versus “busy” workers. Bursty workers are what we often define ourselves as in the Gen Y set. We may not look like we’re doing work, but we are. We might be at a café, chatting with…

One of the most charismatic and persuasive personal qualities that you can possess is certainty.  Having an unshakable belief in yourself and in what you do is an extremely attractive quality mainly because there is so little certainty in the world.  Things are constantly changing and the world seems more chaotic every day.  This scares us.  A person who possesses certainty will attract a following because it has a calming effect on others.  Being certain takes some experience and some risk, but there are things you can do to become more certain. Being Certain Involves Knowing…

Is asking your secretary to perform the act of fetching coffee, one of the modern office’s most mundane chores, an implied form of sexual harassment? “Yes” is according to Tamara Klopfenstein of Levittown, NY. Tamara’s story, first brought to my attention by Ask A Manager and covered in more depth by the Philadelphia Inquirer, highlights how delicate the relationship between boss and employee can be: After working for a few weeks, her (male) bosses asked her to get their coffee for them. She declined, and her manager e-mailed her, saying: “This is not open for debate. Please don’t…

Nice gem of an interview with an employment lawyer from the always smart Marci Alboher , author of the New York Times blog Shifting Careers: Can Ex-Boss Object When Ex-Employees Start Businesses? This is often a very sticky issue, and I suggest you really follow the advice described in the article.  Nothing would be more of a bummer than getting mired in legal trouble with your ex-employer while trying to launch your business! And the legal issues are not the only thing to keep in mind:  it is not a very good strategy to leave a former employer on really bad terms.  Unless they…

Last week, I floated the idea of running a 15-week workshop based on Martha Beck's book Finding Your Own North Star.  A number of people expressed interest, so I put together a detailed outline and chose dates.  Based on the number of people on the list, I proposed two distinct groups, since I don't want to have more than 10 people in each workshop, for maximum interaction and coaching. The response was great -- we are 75% full already! The Thursday group is totally sold out, but there is still room in the Tuesday group starting on July 22.  So if you want to learn more and…

I have a pile of books to read and review next to my bathtub.  The Go-Giver:  A little story about a powerful business idea sat there for awhile, until I finally picked it up the other evening and started reading it.  I was drawn in by the simple story, and got more and more encouraged by the premise as the pages went on. A review of the book by Science of Mind sets it up well: "For anyone that has ever believed that attaining success requires a greedy, self-centered approach, The Go-Giver:  A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea, could be just what the…

  Two days ago, I received an email from my favorite "adopted professor," Dr. Srikumar Rao.  I met Dr. Rao a couple of years ago when he called after reading my Open letter to CXOs blog post.  As soon as I heard his voice, I relaxed and smiled, since he exuded joy even over the phone.  We talked for over an hour, and I learned that this open, humble wonderful soul taught creativity to MBA students at Columbia and London business schools.  Despite being incredibly intelligent, he didn't have any of the academic stuffiness that plagues many other…

Over the years, I have developed deep respect for authors  like Jim Collins, Martha Beck, Guy Kawasaki, Seth Godin, Kathy Sierra, Steven Pressfield and Isabelle Allende.  I adore the wit and creativity of people like Ze Frank and Hugh McLeod. I appreciate the down-to-earth business wisdom of John Jantsch, Rich and Jeff Sloan and Andrea Lee. Maybe your list includes Joel Spolsky or Malcolm Gladwell or Anne Lamott.  Or someone with much less public exposure, like the Vice President of your company, or your neighbor down the street with a fantastic marriage or the woman at your…

Hello! I came across this interesting article on USAToday.com about how Utah has become the first state to institute a mandatory 4-day work week for most of its state workers. The goal, according to Utah’s first-term Republican Gov. Jon Huntsman, is to “reduce the state’s carbon footprint, increase energy efficiency, improve customer service and provide workers more flexibility.” It’s something for all you HR execs to think about…and your Millennial employees will love it. Less days at work AND you’re being a socially responsible employer! The article…

Hi All, Well I just had an exhaustive 3 days! I spent it with 12 amazing people (all consultants, scholars, speakers, etc.) and we went through the AiA Classic Workshop on “empowerment” together (8 hours each day for 3 days). A mutual friend, and consulting company from Japan, arranged for us to attend this (and paid our fee!) so I figured why not check it out?? I’ll explain how the Japanese consulting company fits into this in a minute. At first we were all pretty disgruntled as the content is very “Self-help 101″ and many of my co-attendees are people who…

Hi All! Here is an interesting article courtesy of Tahjia Chapman, a writer for CollegeRecruiter.com, the leading job board for college students searching for internships and recent graduates hunting for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.   Tahjia brings up an interesting point: IS a recession the perfect time to recruit entry level (Gen Y) marketing and sales talent? Speculation surrounds the idea of recessionary recruiting for businesses all over the U.S. For instance, employers shed 63,000 jobs in February, 20,000 in March, and April’s numbers are unknown. What can…

Hi All! I came across this interesting article on Recruiting Blog Swap, and it was written by Real-Time Video Job Interviews. With all the talk about how we need to go green, here’s some advice about what HR departments can do to help save the planet. Come on all you big corporate communities…that aluminum can bin in the break room isn’t enough! Oh! And the strategy(s) in this article are also great recruiting tools for attracting Millennials! So not only would you be saving the planet, you’d be using a cutting-edge technology…2 things Millennials love in an…

Hi All, In the past week I have gotten thousands (yes, thousands) of hits to my blog from people searching for info about the amazing Randy Pausch, the inspiring professor who is dying of pancreatic cancer, and presenter of his now famous “The Last Lecture“. This amazing speech has received over 1 million downloads on YouTube and Oprah invited him to present it on her show. The link I have is his appearance on Oprah. This is a courageous man, husband, and father of three young children, who knows he is dying yet is using his time left on the planet to encourage and educate others.

Not sure what to say about your termination from a job? Listen to this short podcast (NOTE: All you need to do is click the link and the audio will start automatically, no special software is needed to hear it.), that outlines the steps you should take to successfully answer the interview question, “Why were you let go?” One of our readers, Craig, sent us his story. Hear how we were able to walk him through the process of turning his experience into one he could discuss both positively and confidently in an interview. We all have parts of our professional past that we don’t…

Dear J.T. & Dale: I’ve been hearing a lot about the need for workers to develop their personal brand in order to get ahead professionally. I just graduated from college and have never really worked in a professional environment … so how can I possibly “brand” myself? — Seth J.T.: You are right — this is a hot topic, and something workers of all ages and experience levels need to consider. These days, you need to know how to differentiate yourself in the workplace — young people especially. Dale: I recently interviewed the head of human resources for Proctor…

Dear J.T. & Dale: I just graduated from college and have been on my new job for a month. I think I made a huge mistake! I’m really bored. I think I should look for a new job. — Kristi Dale: Odds are, a new job won’t help. Here’s the hard truth, and I’m calling it Dauten’s Law: “Jobs are designed to be boring.” There are exceptions, of course, like an emergency room … although let’s face it, after a while most emergencies are routine. The reason jobs are boring is that they are created with the expectation that someone could reliably…

JT: Many of you may not know that besides writing our column together, Dale also writes a column called the “Corporate Curmudgeon” which is carried in many well-known papers across the US. It’s actually how I came to know and respect Dale for his work. (It’s funny, readers often think we don’t like each other because of the way we banter in the column, but truthfully, I am very lucky to have such a great partner and we get along quite well - or so I believe? Hmm…maybe I should ask him.) Given how many e-mails we’ve been getting lately from readers who…

JT: This week’s “how I did it” comes from Kathie Maxwell who was looking for a position as what she calls a “baby catcher” – that is, a midwife. Her story is a wonderful example of how a person can get better at job searching as they go. Dale: One of the reasons that job searching is so discouraging is that every day the search goes on is another day that you did NOT find a job. So, if you let it, the job search is just a series of failures. However, if you are determined to learn and get better at searching, and use the experience to get stronger professionally, there are chances…

All Things Workplace has been nominated for the Top Leadership Blog of 2008 by a crack team put together by Kevin Eikenberry. This really is an honor, especially after seeing the other nominees. I would appreciate it if you would cast your vote here for All Things Workplace. If you've enjoyed the posts and learned something new, it would be terrific to see that acknowledged in the most "bloggy" way:-) And thanks, as always, for your daily support and comments. --Steve Roesler Person Steve Roesler Right click for SmartMenu shortcuts

Do you consider yourself to be "creative?" Do you want to breed some creativity in your workplace? Then we need to help people, including ourselves, get back to first grade. And be intentional about it. I started my career as a teacher. If you ask first-graders how many of them are "creative," pretty much all of the hands in the class go up. They smile. They show their colorful drawings and finger painting and maybe even compose a song along the way. What happens when the same question is asked of the same kids a few years later? The responses drop to nearly zero. And the…

Downsizing. Corruption. Bullying. Harassment. "Do more with less." Reduced benefits. Add to that list some of the people with whom you have to work every day (see Bob Sutton's No Asshole Rule). There's a lot of opportunity for anger and hurt on the job.Where you find anger, you find the need for forgiveness. Why?It's good for you. For your physical and mental health. For your relationships. For your ability to move on peacefully and productively. Why forgiveness instead of revenge?Christina M. Puchalski, M.D. is the Founder and Director of the George Washington Institute for…

"The two words 'information' and 'communication' are often used interchangeably, but they signify quite different things. Information is giving out; communication is getting through."-Sydney J. HarrisCommunication: Don't Mix and Match Your Verbal Wardrobe I want to offer an easy, uncluttered model to use when you want to bump up your communication game. Think about your levels of interaction on a scale of Nicety all the way to Intimacy. One of the keys to keeping your interactions on target is making sure that you "meet people where they are" and not try to take them where…

With all the talk about employee engagement, it's easy to forget that there's no one to be engaged until someone agrees to accept an engagement with the company. The Law of Employee Attraction: How Do You Become a Recruiting Peacock? Sales people are quick to let you know that nothing happens in a company until a sale is made. And even that can't happen until good prospects are found, courted, and closed. Tim Wright, (that's not Tim in the photo!) fellow EE Network member, sparked my thinking on this with his Brand EE post. He pointed to Julie Norquist Roy's article, Your Brand Here: Why…

My post from last year on the topic of addressing weakness questions at interview has been one of the most searched topics on this blog and one of the most popular posts thus far. It also spawned a number of interesting comments from readers. I received this one today from an anonymous poster, reproduced here as I received it:I have given a right answer to this one once. At that time I was not good at communication, good team player but I was not good at communicating, that's all. For that job I applied for, it was an important skill, like several others. I was honest and picked this relevent…

I came across this Dilbert today - nice that you can embed it now - and it seemed eerily familiar to me for some reason.RSS Readers may need to click through to the postAnd then I remembered ...First week in a new job, prepping to present my first ever set of P&Ls. My manager has taken me down through what I'm going to be presenting (not my numbers, not even my slides) and is now sitting with the Marketing Director watching me give a final run-through. In my defence, I have to say that at this stage in my career, I've never presented columns of figures before and, what can I say? They're…

Clive James was probably the man responsible for introducing viewers in the UK and Ireland to the wonder that is Japanese television. He used to wryly take us through the heats of an horrendous programme called "Endurance" which had the kind of morbid fascination of a train wreck.You may be familiar with the Human Tetris series that has been going the rounds on YouTube, but Barbara sent me this little gem today - Binoculars Football.RSS Readers may need to click through to the postAnd if you haven't yet had the pleasure of seeing Human Tetris, you can find it here. The mixed expressions of…

I did most of my business travel in a gentler age - warm smiles, warm towels, and a warm feeling in my tummy because someone else was footing the bill. As such, I become almost pathological when talking about low-cost airlines. Some members of my family argue that we have never actually had a "bad experience" with a low-cost airline. I quietly argue [well, I usually manage to keep things civilised for the first few minutes of the discussion] that getting us to the right country alive and more or less on time does not constitute what I think of as a "good experience."The Irish comedian Kevin…

Holidays should be relaxing. All too often, people suffer from what I call 'Octopus Syndrome' in the days leading up to their departure for holidays. Last minute stuff piling up on your desk. A huge list of call-backs to do. Colleagues apologetically (or not!) dropping stuff into your inbox mouthing, "You need to have a look at this before you head off."And that is how a ... person ... could end up at the Hertz desk in Bordeaux on the 24th of June 2006 with a driver's license that expired on the 24th of January 2006. Just a leetle bit of thought and a very sweaty half-day waiting for the…

A case involving e-mail privacy and company computers offers yet another reminder to think about e-mail practices, from both the employee and employer perspectives.

Starting a business after being laid off is one way to bounce back. But what about the legal obligations to a former employer?

A look at the legal implications of former employees airing their grievances online.

Daryn Kagan, a former CNN anchor, has made a career out of telling inspiring stories. But first, she had to create her own.

Work-life balance is given a fresh look through a blogger's whimsical drawings.

Marian Hossa a gifted hockey player was signed by the Detroit Red Wings - A winning organization. The most interesting part about the signing is that Hossa passed up on a lot of money (it could be as high as $12 million over two years) he could make with another hockey club. Instead he joined the Red Wing organization. I believe Hossa would like to win a Stanley Cup but another part of the Red Wing offer was: sacrifice. Read the following quotation from Ken Holland, the general manager of the Red Wings: “Success is about sacrifice — sacrificing ice time, sacrificing personal…

The Employee Engagement Network has a extensive list of employee engagement RSS feeds written by the members. We currently have about 35 feeds collected on one page and we continue to grow. Each RSS Feed offers you the last 3 articles of each author plus the first one or two lines of their current articles. Click here to visit the feeds and ensure you give yourself enough time to read the fine articles or posts composed by the Employee Engagement Network members:

There are no secrets.

Here is a short one minute bathroom break for your weekend. Click here if the video does not load in this window.

I was born and raised in Winnipeg, Canada and moved to the U.S. to attend grad school. I became a naturalized U.S. citizen a few years later. Since then, the first week in July has been quite significant to me for a few reasons: July 1st is Canada Day. Three days later is U.S. Independence Day. This is about the only week in the year when there's virtually no risk of snow here in Minnesota.

Well, not a wedding in the traditional sense but still a match made in heaven. Jason Davis -- founder of Recruiting.com, later founder of RecruitingBlogs.com, owner of dozens of great recruiting domain names, and master poker player. Dave Mendoza -- quite simply one of the most masterful networkers the planet has ever known and one of the very few people I know who talks-the-talk and more importantly walks-the-walk that networking is all about what you can do for others, not what they can do for you. So what's up with the wedding? Well, Jason recently extended an offer to Dave that Dave…

Eric Shannon just launched a new job board. Well, not exactly. He launched a new blog for his job board. Not quite either. He launched a new blog about job boards. Getting closer. Eric just launched JobBoardBlogs.com, which provides readers with a quick overview of blog entries posted by various job boards, including CollegeRecruiter.com. Great idea, Eric!

I've heard from a number of insiders at big general job boards like Monster, Careerbuilder, and HotJobs that 90 percent or more of their revenues are derived from the sale of job posting ads and resume searching. If that's true, it is no wonder that they are reluctant to follow our lead by eliminating resume searching in order to help the candidates using our sites obtain the security and privacy they deserve. But that's another topic for another day. Well, almost. Unlike the big general boards, our niche board has for years generated most of its revenue from non-traditional job board…

We've been receiving a steady diet of questions from college students searching for internships and recent graduates hunting for entry level jobs and other career opportunities since we re-launched CollegeRecruiter.com five weeks ago. The number of questions haven't been overwhelming but many are the same or very, very similar. Time to get more efficient. We just added a short Frequently Asked Questions section to our Contact Us page. Now rather than the candidates having to wait hours or perhaps even a day or two to get an answer back about some issue, they will normally be able to have…

(East Bay Business Times) Western Career College said Wednesday that the Western Association of Schools and Colleges has renewed its accreditation for another six years. The school is one of five private career schools in California accredited by WASC, one of six regional U.S. institutions accrediting public schools, colleges, universities and community colleges. Western Career College educates approximately 4,000 students annually at eight campuses in San Leandro, Emeryville, Antioch, Pleasant Hill, Sacramento, Citrus Heights, San Jose and Stockton. The school specializes in programs to…

(Atlantic-News Telegraph) Online degree programs have led to happier, more rewarding and lucrative careers for millions of Americans. But if you’re thinking of advancing your career goals with an online degree, choosing the right one can seem like an overwhelming task. In 2006, 17 percent of college students took courses online. The opportunity to advance their education - and careers - with courses that fit into a busy lifestyle draws many people to distance learning. But you don’t have to suffer information overload in your search for the online program that’s right for…

(Las Vegas Sun) Have you heard of Regis University? How about National University? Or Touro University Nevada? Did you know there is a University of Southern Nevada? If not, you’re not alone. Many Las Vegas Valley residents have never heard of these local universities. But these private, nonprofit schools are changing the face of higher education in the region. They offer degrees in fields ranging from religious studies and liberal arts to nursing and osteopathic medicine. In states such as California and Massachusetts, public and nonprofit private colleges compete for the best students.

Just as online courses provide a different experience for students, catering to and teaching those students requires a different approach for staff, management, and faculty. Specifically, different methods for communicating with or assessing students outside of the traditional classroom must be considered. To address the growing industry need for training in this new online education environment, McGraw-Hill Higher Education today announced a strategic alliance to combine its expertise in online learning content and technology with the career college online training expert, MaxKnowledge.

(TradingMarkets.com) To address the growing industry need for training in the new online education environment, McGraw-Hill Higher Education announced a strategic alliance to combine its expertise in online learning content and technology with the career college online training expert, MaxKnowledge. “Quality online instruction is an integral part of today’s university system, and it is extremely important to prepare online school operators with the right knowledge and skills necessary to launch and successfully execute an online program,” said Jeff Schultz, vice president,…

Kevin Eickenberry's Best of the Leadership Blogs Contest is now accepting votesI learned about this on Wally Bock's Three Star Leadership blog, which should have made the list.

A Canadian court has found that a parental restriction of a 12 year-old's Internet usage is too harsh. [HT: First Things]They're back! Daniel Flynn on a reunion of Sixties radicalsBusiness Week reports Starbucks may be cutting stores here but it's looking to expand abroad.Jeff Jarvis wonders if Google is psychoanalyzing his postsMichael Barone on why vice presidents are important for governingMovies on demand: Cool Tools looks at Roku and NetflixWaiterRant looks at an evening when the staff wanted to leave early and....Ralph Nader believes there should be a Bill of Rights for American sports…

Think only of your turf and demand that your employees do the same.Have an enemies list and withhold information and cooperation from its members.When you win a point, make sure that everyone knows you did.After defeating an adversary, find a way to twist the knife.Let sarcasm and ridicule be your main forms of communication.Burn bridges.Never forget a slight.Believe that one moment of courtesy or kindness will erase twenty instances of rudeness or cruelty.Kiss up and kick down.Associate with people who share your attitudes.

He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.- Benjamin Franklin

Writing in Business Week, Dov Seidman looks at the significance of human connections. An excerpt:Consider Ralph, a New York City doughnut maker, who captured the attention of blogger Jason Kottke. When Kottke handed a dollar bill to Ralph in exchange for a 75¢ glazed donut, Ralph pointed to a pile of change scattered on the counter and yelled "Next!" Kottke downed his doughnut while marveling that all of the customers who followed him either gave Ralph exact change or made their own change, as he had done. It seemed to Kottke that Ralph was serving an extraordinary number of customers.

Word processors have gotten so good at creating rich documents that many web workers never reach for a desktop publishing package. For creating really great looking documents, though, desktop publishing can give you many types of flexibililty and precision that word processors don’t offer. For a free, very robust desktop publishing application, consider Scribus. Scribus is an open source desktop publishing application, and it’s available for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. I don’t reach for it whenever I need to produce a basic looking document, but for logos, booklets,…

An unusual notice appeared on the 37signals blog today: On August 15th, 2008 we will begin phasing out support for Internet Explorer 6 across all 37signals products. In order to continue using the products without any hiccups, Internet Explorer 6 users should upgrade to a newer browser. 37signals make Basecamp, Campfire, Highrise, and Backpack, among other web applications - and this makes them one of the first major online vendors to dismiss IE6. While this will make the Save the Developers people happy, I wonder whether anyone else will dare to follow their lead. I know that for some of the…

With online office applications improving in quality all the time, they’re rapidly becoming the tool of choice for web workers. Between the ability to access your documents anywhere, the easy sharing, and the automatic backups, I know more and more people who are using these services. But in this rush to go online, we sometimes fail to understand exactly what we’re getting for free. Particularly as these services get used for more business purposes, it’s worth a look at their Terms of Service. As a starting point, I looked at the terms for three of the major alternatives in…

I’ve been using Web-based project management tools both as fodder for blog posts but, more importantly, to explore how they might positively impact my Web work. I’ve been using Basecamp the longest and pay about $24/month for a slightly upgraded service. After a small learning hump, most of my virtual team members are on board and some of my clients are working with it. I also started using Deskaway’s free level of service for a new client project as I wrote about in May, and after a little over a month using it, my team and I are abandoning it because it just hasn’t…

Firefox set another new record last month. No, not the 8-million-plus downloads on Download Day - that’s nice, but since this is the first time the Guiness people have ever certified a record in that category, it’s pretty meaningless. Much more important in the grand scheme of things is the browser’s continued market penetration. Net Applications has the data: a 5.5% increase in browser share in the last year, paralleling a 6% drop in IE use and leaving Firefox poised to hit 20% of the browser market this month. With 1 out of 5 browser hits being from Firefox, we’re at…

The raid that freed the hostages recalls the Israelis at Entebbe, while the FBI looks inept.

Casino stocks crap out.

Some think Olympics host Bob Costas would be best to replace Tim Russert on Meet the Press

Health providers face tough task in assuring data is available to multiple storage sites.

Search site helps Web surfers discover audio treats without feeling overwhelmed.

Employees who refer candidates to you love you.  Except when they don't.  Then it's all about the duckets... Without question, employee referral programs are a must for any organization.  While we can debate the mechanics and details, everyone I know agrees that referral programs produce some of the best hires for any company.  And it makes sense when you think about it.  Engaged employees who like what they do, where they work and who they work with, refer their friends, neighbors and contacts to you for consideration.  You vet them, hire them, and reap the…

Are companies listed in the annual "100 Best Places to Work" brilliant or lucky? I'm a Fortune subscriber and a HR pro.  So, it stands to reason that I sit up and take notice when "Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For" arrives in the mailbox.   After all, that kind of recognition is what we wish for our own company, right? Then I read the feature article on Google, and the first thing that comes to mind is "you know, I work at a great place, but there's no way we can do the things Google does, because our margins won't allow it".  I've got…

I guess I'm lucky that all the companies I've ever worked for - big and small - have taken care of all hardware I need to do my job.  Apparently, that's not the case everywhere, with as many as 40% of professionals surveyed stating they had to pay for a laptop they regularly carried. Really?  From USA Today:"Many employees — frustrated that their companies are unwilling to pay for the laptops, cellphones and other electronic devices that they want on the road — are spending their own money to get them.  Nearly 40% of professionals recently surveyed by researcher…

Ah yes, the resignation letter.  Properly crafted, an act of thankfulness, dignity and perhaps most importantly - full of language that doesn't cause the the proverbial "bridge" to combust into flames.  In other words - it takes the high road, and doesn't PO anyone.  Of course, you can always point the finger a little bit if you are so inclined.  I wouldn't recommend it, but here are some less positive alternatives, and what they really mean:"An opportunity I can't pass up has emerged" (I've felt chronically underpaid and underappreciated, and the grass…

Ah yes, the corporate values project.  You've drawn the line in the sand and spent months working through the process of figuring out what your corporate values are, and now you're ready to go public.  You've brought in the consultants and now, you're even thinking about wallet cards for your employees, and collateral to use in recruiting. Laminated or glossy wallet cards?  Which one will look better?  Play on, player... Here's a quick question I have for you, related to Corporate Values in the recruiting process.  Which matters more - your stated corporate values or…

Rising oil prices haven't been all bad. Workers in the energy industry have actually seen a boom in employment.

Pitting your employer against another in a bidding war for you is often career suicide.

Employers are using online skills and personality tests to vet applicants before seeing their resumes.

Considering a career as an elevator installer and repairer? It could earn you close to $70,000 a year.

Companies that enable employees to make decisions are three times more successful than competitors. Find out why.

I’m going to stop blogging for a while – at least taking the summer off.If you’d like to be notified if and when I return to regular blogging, just add your name to my email list (www.davidmaister.com/subscriptions ) and I’ll send you an email.I’m going to continue adding podcasts to the series based on my latest book. These will continue, every two weeks, (as in the past) until I have covered all the chapters in the book. If you want to catch up with past podcasts in this or my previous podcast series, go to www.davidmaister.com/podcasts .Until the blog…

Stephen C. Ellis is the managing partner at the law firm of Tucker, Ellis & West.What follows is the commencement address he gave at Case Western reserve School of Law in Cleveland, Ohio on May 19, 2008. The title of his remarks is "On Being a Happy(and Successful) Lawyer" Thank you Dean Simson. Even after that gracious introduction, I can guess what most of you are thinking. Who is this guy? The most informative parts of my background are not in my public bio, so let me tell you a little more to help set the stage for what I’ll be talking about. First, I am a lifetime Cleveland…

The eleventh episode of my new podcast series, Strategy and the Fat Smoker, is now live and available for download.The series is dedicated to exploring the themes found in my new book by the same name. Each chapter will be accompanied by an executive summary ebook covering the same material. I encourage you to forward these to friends and associates who may be interested in the topics covered. If you are already a subscriber to my podcast feed, this pdf will be available in your itunes.In A Natural Manager, the 12th episode in this series, we will hear the story of Jerry Labbate, the manager…

Pamela Skillings has written a fun  AND serious book called “ESCAPE from CORPORATE AMERICA: a practical guide to Creating the Career of Your Dreams.”Here are some of the lists from the book:The Benefits Of Corporate Jobs Steady…

The eleventh episode of my new podcast series, Strategy and the Fat Smoker, is now live and available for download.The series is dedicated to exploring the themes found in my new book by the same name. Each chapter will be accompanied by an executive summary ebook covering the same material. I encourage you to forward these to friends and associates who may be interested in the topics covered. If you are already a subscriber to my podcast feed, this pdf will be available in your itunes.The eleventh episode, A Great Coach in Action, tells and examines a story of exemplary coaching…

Got your attention with that one, didn’t I? Let’s talk some more about redesigning our organizations – “hacking” the enterprise. Here’s another fundamental assumption upon which our organizations are built that I think has got to go: weekends. No, I’m not arguing that we should all work seven days a week. But I do think that the idea of a corporation telling us which days to work (and when to “rest”) is outdated. The idea of a defined work week makes great sense if you’re performing synchronous tasks – activities in which everyone has to be there all together to get the…

One of today’s popular data points on Gen Y is the number of trophies that were handed out at a typical little kids’ soccer match or softball game. Commentators are quick to observe that a lot of kids got a lot trophies (boy, manufacturing those cheap, gold plastic loving cups must have been a great business in the 1990s) and jump to the conclusion that Gen Y’s as young adults are in constant need of praise and reassurance. Really? Let’s explore this thought: who got the trophies? Oh, I hear you – the kids, of course. They got trophies just for tenth place, for participation –…

I had the pleasure last week of moderating a panel of senior talent development officers representing three very different industries and diverse geographies: Deb Wheelock of Mercer (a high-end professional services firm, recruiting highly educated knowledge workers), Pamela Stroko of The Gap (a retailer faced with the classic industry challenges of creating a differentiating employee proposition and enhancing retention of its large workforce), and Sujaya Banerjee of the Essar Group (a diversified India-based enterprise participating in a variety of industrial sectors, including steel,…

I have a fair number of circular discussions with people these days. Study after study has concluded that Boomers don’t have enough money saved for retirement, particularly given the long lives that most will lead. So, I get asked repeatedly, “Don’t Boomers have to work?” Well, in fact most want to work. “But, really, don’t they have to work?” Yes, I guess so. But I’m not sure it’s a relevant question. Somehow it feels a little bit like reminding people that sex is essential for procreation. I don’t think that is the major factor affecting most people’s practices. The…

I’ve become a big fan of Umair Haque’s blog. (If you haven’t added his to your RSS feeds, I hope you will.) Over the last couple weeks Umair has been leading a lively discussion about “hacking” an industry – in other words, rethinking all the fundamental assumptions upon which the industry is built from the ground up. Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about redesigning our organizations – I guess Umair might call this “hacking” the enterprise – because I don’t think incremental change is the answer. We need to question some of the fundamental assumptions upon which…

The many comments responding to my piece of May 16th read like postcards from the 1970s – from the early bitter edge of the gender wars. I was beginning to absorb this material, figuring out how to respond when I was hit by another deluge—200 comments that came in over a 24 period in reaction to a Q&A in Computerworld. Both waves of reaction provide deep confirmation of my main finding—that the problems faced by female scientists, engineers, and technologists are enormously serious. These blogs and posts show that women around the country see SET workplace cultures as hostile, predatory…

Larry Summers was incorrect when he suggested in his now-infamous speech of January 2005 that the lack of women scientists might be explained by, among other things, genetics. Women, it turns out, are excelling in science, engineering, and technology (SET). In 2007, girls won both the Siemens and Intel science competitions and walked off with 53% of graduate degrees in the biological sciences. Despite the bias and barriers that continue to exist in our culture, a surprisingly large number of young women embark on careers in science. A new study—which I co-authored—to be published next…

Even in progressive circles, a woman's career success tends to threaten loved ones. It's old news that husbands often disapprove of a wife that outshines them. What's new is that daughters can also have a hard time with a conspicuously successful mother. With another critic in the family, women are desperate for recognition. Any employer who can conjure this up stands a real chance of winning the war for female talent. In a recent interview, Eleanor, a distinguished female academic (Dame of the British Empire, President of an Oxbridge College), told me that when her 27-year-old daughter was…

In late February, as Hillary Clinton embarked on her last ditch attempt to rescue her faltering campaign she decided to showcase her superior “leadership credentials.” In high profile speeches on foreign policy, which featured an impressive mix of hard-nosed realism and encyclopedic knowledge, she sought to differentiate herself from her soft-focused rival. She fell flat on her face. For the umpteenth time, the press described her as hectoring, abrasive, and shrill. Toughmindedness and erudition don’t get women leaders high marks on the likeability scale. We seem to prefer our female…

As a keynote speaker at Sodexho’s Inclusion Summit in Paris last month, I got an inside take on where Europe is at on the diversity front. I encountered some residual suspicion of the diversity and inclusion agenda. At the kick-off event, a “meet and greet” cocktail hour, one recalcitrant French executive put it succinctly, “none of us like the fact that this entire field was developed in America. In a George W. Bush world, U.S. exports just aren’t that popular.” But practical business realities are fast undermining such attitudes. Take Sodexho’s situation. According to Rohini…

This week's question for Ask the Coach: My bank has lost billions of dollars because of bad investments – which I didn’t make. Now I am facing budget cutbacks, getting no bonus, reducing my staff, and being expected to contribute more. This really makes me angry! Any suggestions? If it is true that “misery loves company,” you have a lot of company. In my work in the financial services world this year, I hear your frustration – and your question – over and over again. In one bank that I know well almost every part of the business had a great year – except the division that lost…

This Week's Question for Ask the Coach: In many ways leaders need to learn how to act. What can leaders learn from actors? My friend Cindy Ventrice is doing some fascinating work in using improv techniques to help leaders do a better job in providing recognition to their employees. I love how her work directly connects to what I teach so I’ve asked her to answer this question: The acting technique that I found has the most potential for leadership development is improvisational theater. I have used improv to help leaders learn to: • Listen more respectfully • Pick up on subtle cues •…

This Week's Question for Ask the Coach: In your experience, what are the biggest regrets people have at the end of their careers? What do people wish they had learned sooner? This is a great question. A wise person learns from experience. A wiser person learns from someone else’s experience. The best way to answer this question is to ask the people who actually have the experience. My friend John Izzo is the author of a great new book-The Five Secrets You Must Discover before You Die. The book is based on 250 interviews he conducted with people from age 59-106 asking them to reflect back on…

This Week’s Question for Ask the Coach: Our company is about to be acquired. My friends have warned me that this can spell trouble. Do you have suggestions for professionals in acquired companies? The standard PR hype that goes with an acquisition sounds something like this, “We are so impressed with management and the direction of the company that we are acquiring that we have no interest in changing them. In fact, we believe that we can learn a lot from all they have done right.” While the acquiring company may actually believe this message at the time of the acquisition – this…

This week's question for Ask the Coach: Sometimes I think that my biggest enemy is me. Why do we say and do things that limit our own success. We all have a list of characteristics and behaviors that we use to define who we are. For successful people, most of these characteristics can be described by very positive words, such as: “intelligent,” “dedicated,” “results oriented,” or “winner.” Almost all of us have a few negative terms that are part of our self-definition. Common negative self-descriptions that I hear from executives are: “stubborn,” “opinionated,” or “I…

When author and consultant Jim Gilmore talks about authenticity, he’s talking about keeping consumer experiences real. To determine the authenticity of a product, Gilmore applies the “Polonius test,” derived from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. “Is the offering true to itself? Is the offering what it says it is?” Affirmative answers confirm a product’s authenticity. But Gilmore's test, and his authenticity lessons overall, apply just as well to leadership.A leader must be true to herself in order to lead in a genuine way. Here are three ways to start creating authentic leadership: Create…

Okay, I’ll admit it. I am a sucker for management research data, especially on trends shaping the modern workplace. Therefore it was with great interest that I tore into IBM’s most recent Global CEO Study, “Future of the Enterprise.” The report contains enough data to keep a data miner digging for days, but what impressed me most was the design and layout. As someone who works with executives on their communications, this document serves as a template for how to articulate a point of view directly with simplicity and style. Reading this document will give any executive insights into…

What if you had to manage George Carlin? I was struck by that question as I reflected on the tributes paid to this comedic legend who blazed new trials in comedy and opened the door for a new generation of hipper comedy that was more in tune with the street than the vaudeville stage. While my question is whimsical, it gets to the heart of what many managers face. How do I keep the nonconforming superstars producing? Drawing upon comments made in an interview Carlin had with Terry Gross on Fresh Air (as well as commentary on CNN’s Larry King and his New York Times obituary), here are some…

Want to motivate your employees to demonstrate more initiative and work harder? Conventional thinking suggests that you increase their pay and incentives and they will do whatever you ask them to do. But maybe not. According to a results of the Ashbridge Management Index survey, conducted by the U.K.’s Ashbridge Business School, managers value “challenging and interesting work” more than increased compensation What's more, according to the study, more than half of managers say that the motivational approach their companies take fails to actually motivate managers and their colleagues.

If Tim Finchem, commissioner of the PGA Tour, had any worries prior to June 18, they will pale in comparison to the biggest worry he faces now. Tiger Woods, the game's brightest star and the Tour's most important revenue generator, will undergo major knee surgery and miss the remainder of the year. That includes two more majors (signature events that draw the biggest audiences), the FedEx Cup series (a points challenge like NASCARs designed specifically to maintain season-long interest in the sport), and the Ryder Cup (US vs. Europe exhibition in which, even with Tiger, the US has struggled…

I want to join the wonderful world of HR because it is just so darn interesting. I really think I could be a good HR analyst going into comp and benefits since I have been in consulting for six years and have a lot of financial data analysis, communication, and customer service skills. My issue is...when I am asked for my past salary, I am afraid to put down what I was really making before I

This is completely off topic, and I apologize for it. On Monday, one of my friends was killed in a car crash. Her parents, who were with her, are in critical condition and the doctors don't expect her mother to survive. My friend was 46. An 18 year old girl ran a stop sign and t-boned them. She walked away with minor injuries. She was also text messaging while driving. Please don't do

We're having a bit of a "discussion" behind the scenes regarding the Carnival of HR. The question is, should a host be able to require submissions on a certain theme, or should they just deal with whatever gets submitted. My opinion is that I have no opposition to an occasional theme, but I wouldn't want it to be a requirement for every carnival. Some dates just scream theme. (Well, at least,

I know. It's a day late. (Unless I get distracted and then it will be two days late.) I should be fired. In fact, this isn't the only reason I should be fired. Let that be our carnival theme: Reasons to fire Evil HR Lady. 1. HR Wench writes about the Americans With Disabilities act and Age Discrimination in answering a question about a school teacher. I'm neither disabled nor over 40, so