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Are Resumes Still Relevant?

Back in the day, job search was all about the resume and cover letter. Most job seekers spent many painstaking hours creating the perfect template for each one, and proceeded to use them over and over again. On a good day, you remembered to change the company name before submitting. On a bad day, you smacked your forehead, felt like a dummy, and moved on to the next job posting.

Sounds quaint, doesn’t it?

Modern recruitment and talent searches are vastly different. Most processes begin or happen exclusively online. Candidates are asked to fill out forms and applications and submit information electronically. Cover letters are often optional. But what about resumes? Do they still matter?

The short answer is yes. You need to have a document that summarizes your work experience, skills, and accomplishments. But now that document is just one piece of a larger career development picture, and it’s much more fluid.

Say goodbye to the trusty template

Of course you have a basic resume template. But if you’re actively seeking work, it’s going to change each time you apply for a new position. Many recruiters and companies are using Applicant Tracking Systems that scan resumes for key words related to the specific job in question.

The good news is that these systems can help reduce hiring bias by treating each resume the same. The bad news is that you’ve got to up your keyword game and customize your resume accordingly. Unless you’re only looking for positions in a very specific niche, you’re going to need to re-work and edit your resume each time you apply.

Tip for job seekers: Constant resume editing is a breeding ground for typos and mistakes. If you’re a job seeker, the spelling and grammar check is your friend. And if you have a real friend who is willing to take a look as well, even better. Reading your resume out loud will help you identify mistakes like missing punctuation, extra words, awkward phrasing, etc. 

Tip for employers: The days of disqualifying a candidate for a single typo are over. Look at the information in the scope of the larger picture. Are the rest of the desired skills and experience there? What kind of position is this person applying for? Perhaps precision writing isn’t critical to the job. Is English your candidate’s second language? Take that into consideration.

Say hello to LinkedIn

LinkedIn has become a critical job search tool, both for job seekers and recruiters. More than just an online resume, LinkedIn includes valuable information about who you are and what you are like to work with. Recommendations from your network can highlight not just your skills, but other attributes like work ethic, attitude, integrity, and commitment.

Meanwhile, your LinkedIn activity can reveal a lot about what kind of energy you bring to the table.

  • Do you play well with others?
  • Are you interacting in ways that make you a desirable team member?
  • Are your posts and comments negative and snarky or positive and thoughtful?

What’s that you say? You’re not on LinkedIn? That’s a problem.

Whether you’re looking for a new position, to fill an open one, or just happily employed, LinkedIn is an extremely valuable resource. You can make new business connections, join professional groups, and keep up on the latest business news and conversations.

Tips for job seekers: Recruiters use LinkedIn to search for candidates by key words, company, position, and job function. They also look at rival companies, industry groups, and even alumni from certain schools. Make sure your profile is up to date and filled out completely. Staying engaged and active on the platform will help build your professional credibility and brand. Treat LinkedIn as an office setting. Don’t say anything you wouldn’t be comfortable saying at work.

Tips for employers: Use LinkedIn to your advantage in the candidate search process. Create a company page that is enticing to potential candidates. Build a network you can go to for quality referrals. Stay in touch with former colleagues and valued staff members. Interviewing a candidate? Check out their profile to find additional attributes and/or potential red flags.

Say yes to the right fit

Talent search isn’t what it used to be, but that’s not a bad thing.

Technology allows the process to be faster, more comprehensive, and more flexible than ever. Take advantage of the tools and information that are available to you and you’ll soon be on your way to finding your dream job. Or your dream candidate.

Photo by Kirill Kedrinski 

 5 Pillars of Employee-Related Expenses eBook

Ask the Experts: Mandatory Flu Shots

Guest blog content provided to Q4iNetwork Consultants by Think HR thinkhr logo.png

Question: Can we require our employees to get flu shots?

Answer: While there is no law that prohibits employers from mandating flu shots — and in some states, the law requires all healthcare workers to get flu shots — you should carefully determine if the benefits to your business outweigh the risks. There has been a rise in litigation brought by employees who object to this requirement for medical, religious or personal reasons. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed or joined several lawsuits over claims that inflexible mandatory vaccination policies are discriminatory.

Employees may be entitled to exemptions from a flu shot policy for medical reasons under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or religious reasons under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Requests for exemptions must be evaluated individually yet treated consistently; a difficult task. You will need to engage in an interactive process with the employee, just as you would for any other request for accommodations, to determine if they can be granted without presenting undue hardship to your company.

The EEOC recommends against mandatory flu shot policies, instead suggesting employers encourage employees get vaccinated on their own. Offering no-cost flu shots on site can further improve workplace vaccination rates by making it more convenient for employees.

If you choose to enact a mandatory flu shot policy, write it carefully to protect your company from the risk of discrimination claims. Make sure the policy:

  • Is worded concisely.
  • Outlines the reasoning behind the policy.
  • Is applied consistently. (Managers who enforce it should be trained on the policy and how to handle requests for exemptions.)
  • Explains the process for requesting exemptions due to medical contraindications or sincerely held religious beliefs. Any medical information obtained as part of the request for an exemption should be kept confidential.

Learn More

Get 6 tips for maintaining a healthy workforce during a seasonal flu outbreak. ThinkHR customers can learn more about the ADA and Title VII by logging into their accounts. If a pandemic flu or other disease outbreak happens, our white paper, How to Handle an Infectious Disease Outbreak, is a good resource. The CDC maintains a list of vaccination laws for various illnesses.

 

Photo by Pressmaster

5 Pillars of Employee-Related Expenses eBook

Human Resources: You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby

If this tagline rings a bell, it should be no surprise. An extremely popular advertising campaign in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, it was the “Just Do It” of its day. For over 20 years, the Virginia Slims slogan was used to convince women that the road to female empowerment was paved with specially-designed lady cigarettes. “Virginia Slims is the only slim cigarette made just for women. They’re tailored slim to fit your hands and your lips.”

In hindsight, it sounds ridiculous. It’s obvious that equality isn’t about cigarettes, and we all know that smoking is an unhealthy habit regardless of gender. In today’s world, this once compelling message just doesn’t makes sense.

In other words, we’ve come a long way.

Marketing isn’t the only business function that’s changed significantly over the years. HR has made a dramatic transition as well. Once upon a time, Human Resources was primarily viewed as an administrative function. Pushing paperwork was the order of the day for the ladies in HR. Things like long term business goals, strategy, and profitability were left to the boys in the corner offices.

But once again, times have changed.

Today’s HR professionals are a different breed. And nobody’s calling them baby. Because that would be an HR (and PR) nightmare.

The most effective HR departments aren’t just there to process new hire and termination paperwork or get people signed up for employee benefits. Yes, these are still important functions, but they are now being considered within the context of the organization’s strategic goals and vision. To do this effectively requires asking some big questions.

  • What is our true purpose?
  • Who do we need on our team to help us accomplish our vision?
  • How can we align our hiring and onboarding processes with our goals and values?
  • Are we building a company culture that inspires people and makes them want to stay?
  • How can we use our employee benefits as a tool to attract and retain quality employees?
  • What technologies do we need to equip our business to work more efficiently and streamline resource consumption?

Answer these questions without key Human Resources people in the room and you’ll be missing out on some extremely valuable input.

The time to keep HR on the sidelines has passed

HR needs to have seat at the table when these critical business issues are being hammered out. If you’re not including them, you’re not going to benefit from the vast depth of knowledge and expertise they can provide.

Your Human Resources team has their collective fingers on the pulse of your organization. If your business is unhealthy, you can bet they’re aware of it. Often before anyone else. If employee engagement is off the charts in either direction, there’s a very good chance they can tell you why.

Taking advantage of this hard-earned insider knowledge will help you make better business decisions, and execute them in a more effective way. If you’ve been thinking of your HR team as an administrative body, it’s time to look at them in a new light.

Reap the benefits of integrated HR

Your Human Resources team can provide key insights and feedback to help you develop strategies to move your organization toward achieving its long term goals and vision.

A good HR team can help you:

  • Identify organizational pain points for employees
  • Streamline company workflows, technology, and policies
  • Analyze your human capital resources through workforce planning
  • Define an ideal employee profile and recruiting strategies to support it
  • Create hiring practices that reflect your organizational mission and culture
  • Pinpoint high potential employees and create career development opportunities
  • Assess compensation structures to make sure they are promoting retention and equality
  • Design an employee benefits strategy to help reduce organizational overhead and increase employee health and satisfaction

And yet, far too many companies aren’t taking advantage of the value they have in this regard. Instead of pulling HR into important meetings, they are merely delegating the resulting work and tasks. This isn’t the way to build a better business. This is the way to get more of the same. Or worse yet, less of the same.

Relegating your HR professionals to an administrative role is the equivalent of offering them skinny cigarettes. It’s just not healthy.

Human Resources has come a long way. Is it time for you to catch up?

 

Image from an article by FlashBak

Stop Giving it Away!

Everyone wants to get paid for the value they deliver, but some businesses are their own worst enemies in this regard. 

The way companies deliver products and services is based on many factors, including industry standards, how businesses operate, and the current state of the market. At some point, phrases like “free!” and “value-added” (AKA free!) became all the rage.

A free or value-added service is one given to clients to create the perception of additional value. In many industries, this has become an important component of competitive sales. There was a time when everyone was on a level playing field in terms of the products they offered and the rates they charged. But when some businesses start giving away their services, the whole dynamic gets thrown off. And everyone loses.

It sounds like a great idea 

But does it really do what we want it to do?

Many companies have bet heavily on the fact that if they offer a certain service for free, customers will not only use it, but that they will understand the true value of it. A second wager is that eventually, these same customers will come to love the service so much that they will be willing to pay for it— or buy up. 

Unfortunately, what many have learned is that it’s way too easy to train people to pay nothing. And that when the personal or business investment is zero, the perceived value is often zero as well.

Therein lies the problem

Businesses spend a lot of time designing services that are appealing and useful to their customers. But how can anyone see the value in something they’re getting if the person giving it away doesn’t even value it?

And yet we’ve taught ourselves to not talk about the money and time and effort and manpower that goes into providing those services. What’s more, by giving these things away, even on a temporary basis, we’ve taught our customers to expect that everything we do for them should be for free.

By not placing a dollar value on our value-added or free services, we are getting exactly what we’re charging. Nothing.

How can we change it?

It all starts by changing your own mindset. Stop de-valuing and commoditizing your services. Instead, focus on how you help clients achieve results— and the financial benefits of doing so. 

  • If you’re still using the term value-added, stop. Replace the idea of free services with the idea that you offer relevant and valuable solutions. Convey this message to your clients and, more importantly, believe it yourself.
  • Understand how your customers can benefit when your products and services are used properly. Know what results can be achieved, how to achieve them, and what they mean financially.
  • Only offer the solutions that make sense. Just because you’ve got twelve different products doesn’t mean everybody needs them. Don’t overwhelm customers with unnecessary information. Focus on delivering relevant information and results.
  • Educate your prospects AND clients about your offerings. A customer who doesn’t know how to use what you’ve sold them won’t get the results they need. Or the results you promised. And that isn’t going help either one of you.
  • Be upfront about the real costs of what you’re providing. What does it cost today? What will it cost next month? Next year? Hidden costs are frustrating, as are pricing models that increase over time. These scenarios are perfect breeding grounds for skepticism, misunderstandings, and unhappy surprises.

You wouldn’t be in business if you didn’t have something valuable to offer. But you won’t stay in business if you keep giving it away.

It’s time to recognize that value yourself, communicate it to your customers, and yes—charge people accordingly.

 

Photo by Olena Yakobchuk

Why Propose Benefits for the Unbenefited? 3 Reasons

Guest blog content provided to Q4iNetwork consultants by freshbenies freshbenies-Logo-CMYK 2018

What are you doing for employees that don’t qualify for benefits or didn’t elect health insurance coverage?

Although rising health insurance premiums may make this question more challenging for employers to answer, it’s also become increasingly important to ask. There are two distinct ways to serve the unbenefited:

  1. Benefits the employer can provide
  2. Benefits the employer can offer

Here are three reasons why you should consider proposing benefits for your unbenefited employees.

1. Unmet needs = opportunity

These two groups of employees represent a severely underserved benefit population: 

  1. Those who aren’t eligible for medical coverage
  2. Those who didn’t elect medical coverage

The latest Milliman study shows costs for healthcare are increasing for employees at an even faster rate than employers. This factors into the number of employees who don’t elect medical coverage. Add to this the 28 million Americans who work part-time and you can see both the need and opportunity for innovative benefits to serve this population.

Here’s a recent example:

A new broker asked me for a proposal for 800 employees. After we discussed the group in more detail, he explained the 800 employees already had medical coverage, but there were over 4,000 employees in the entire group. I asked him, “What about the other 3,200+ employees?” There was silence on the other end of the line. 

Our 71% average utilization rate more than justifies adding freshbenies to employees with existing medical coverage, but there’s arguably even more value created by providing services like freshbenies to ALL employees.  

Plus, with the newest freshbenies membership, employers have scalable options including a stand-alone freshSAVINGS PACK – 9 savings networks for Rx, Dental, Vision, Chiropractic and more. This bundle adds tremendous value to a population of non-benefited employees, plus it can be further customized with optional voluntary Add-Ons.

2. A holistic benefits strategy

Providing benefit solutions for an entire group, not just those with existing medical coverage, is a strategy that both recognizes and leverages the interconnectedness of employee satisfaction.

Let’s take two employees: Jack and Jill. Both are eligible for health benefits. Jack declines coverage while Jill opts for the new high deductible health plan. Both Jack and Jill work equally hard and are equally valuable to their company. Yet, over the course of the next twelve months, Jill’s employer will likely contribute hundreds to thousands of dollars toward her benefits. Meanwhile, they will contribute nothing toward Jack’s. 

Which employee do you think will feel more valued by their company? Which will be less likely to look for another position? Which would readily refer a friend for an open position? Of course, the answer is Jill. But doesn’t Jack deserve some benefit love from his employer, too?

And, there are so many more benefits you can offer. You have the standard worksite benefits like disability, accident, critical illness, long-term care, etc.

There are also perks like Telehealth, pet insurance, identity theft protection, legal savings, other savings networks, student loan repayment, parental leave, tuition reimbursement programs, remote working options, wellness stipends or reimbursements, behavioral health/counseling, volunteer time off, entertainment passes, etc. 

Employers who provide benefits for all their employees, independent from the health plan and eligibility rules, can also expect to benefit through:

3. Better benefits leads to better performance

Putting together a holistic benefit strategy is a win-win scenario. Doing so will allow you to deepen and solidify your relationship with your employees by making sure their pain points are being addressed.

At the same time, you’re also able to differentiate yourself as an employer by providing a comprehensive (and attractive!) benefits packages for current and future employees.

Your employees are the engine that make your business run. Make sure they’re feeling healthy, happy, and valued, and they will take you far.

 

Photo credit andriano