Rebounding Economy Making Employers Nervous About Retention

With the economy slowly recovering, a new survey of human resources executives reveals that employers are increasingly concerned about losing their top talent to other companies.  As a result, many employers are bringing back some of the perks that were cut during the recession and others are introducing new ones to attract and retain the best workers.

In the survey conducted by global outplacement and executive coaching consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., 42 percent of respondents said they were growing more concerned about other companies poaching top talent, as the economy improves.  Meanwhile, nearly 49 percent of respondents said the poaching of talent is always a concern, even in a recession.

“Even in a downturn with widespread layoffs, companies still need talent.  In fact, this may be the most important time for employers to hold on tight to their highest skilled workers.  However, as the economy improves, companies could be worried not only about other employers poaching their best workers, but also about their top talent actively seeking new opportunities,” said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Such an exodus may be just over the horizon.  A recent survey by MetLife found that nearly 40 percent of all employees hope to work for a different employer in the next 12 months.  Another study, this one from the Corporate Leadership Council, found that 25 percent of high-potential employees (a.k.a. top performers) intend to leave their current employer within the year.

In order to hang on to their talent, more and more companies are reinstating perks that were cut or eliminated because of the economic downturn that began in late 2007.  According to the Challenger survey, 39 percent of respondents said their companies were forced to reduce or eliminate perks during the recession. 

With the economy starting to spring back, about 18 percent of those polled said their companies have been able to restore all pre-recession perks.  Another 41 percent have brought back some of the perks that were cut or eliminated.  Nearly one quarter (23.5 percent) of those surveyed indicated that they have introduced some entirely new perks. 

“Whether it’s something simple, like free bagels in the lunch room every morning, or something more substantial, such as tuition reimbursement or flexible scheduling, these perks can be an essential part of worker morale and job satisfaction.  Companies that are frequently identified as ‘the best places to work’ typically offer a variety of unique and well-regarded perks,” noted Challenger.

“Nice perks alone are not enough to instill worker loyalty.  In other words, a company can’t make up for mistreating employees with a free gym membership.  But in companies where perks are an extension of a corporate culture that views its workers as partners or team members and not cogs in the machinery, employees are more likely to feel valued, engaged and happy,” he added.

The Challenger survey found that the perk most effective in retaining top talent is the performance-based bonus, selected by nearly 80 percent of respondents.  About 70 percent of respondents said 401(k) with employer contributions was an effective perk.  Other effective perks included vacation/personal time (49 percent); wellness-related benefits (43 percent); flexible schedules (40 percent); and tuition reimbursement (27 percent).

“Cash is still king.  Bonuses are always going to be popular because it conveys to employees that they are an integral part of the team and that their performance directly impacts the bottom line, so when the company does well because of their hard work, they are rewarded with extra money.  But many companies are also finding success with low-cost and no-cost perks,” said Challenger.

Offering employees opportunities to telecommute is one example of a no-cost perk that is popular among workers.  About one in four human resource executives surveyed by Challenger said telecommuting is effective in boosting retention.  And many companies find that it is not only no-cost; it actually results in cost savings, as employers are able to reduce their need for physical space.

“Other amenities, such as casual work attire, early dismissal on Fridays during the summer, and pet-friendly offices are just a few more examples of perks that are extremely popular among workers and, because they add no costs to the bottom line, companies are not forced to cut them in rough times,” said Challenger.

These types of fringe benefits seem to be in line with what employees want.  A 2008 survey by Salary.com found the most popular benefits outside of monetary compensation are professional development, the ability to work from home, an additional week of vacation and a flexible work schedule.

It appears that companies are listening.  A January survey of chief financial officers by Robert Half found that 33 percent of companies plan to offer or already offer subsidized training and education.  More than one-quarter (27 percent) will offer flexible work hours/telecommuting.  Another 25 percent will provide mentoring programs.

How to land an entry-level job: 5 tips

Recent grads, get excited. A newly-released report by entry-level job site CollegeGrad.com reveals that entry-level hiring is on the rise. In fact, hiring of entry-level grads increased 22% this year, and is the highest it’s been in three years. An increase in jobs is definitely a good thing—if you are capable of landing one of them, that is. And how do you succeed at landing that coveted entry-level job? Based on the survey results, we’ve put together five tips to help you do just that.   1.Choose a relevant major. While many students believe that a high GPA will help you land a job, the study reports that the most important hiring characteristic is actually an individual’s undergraduate major. In fact, 34% of employers report that the major is important while only 3% report that GPA had any bearing on hiring decisions. So be sure to pick a major relevant to the industry in which you are seeking employment. 2. Intern. When it comes to careers, you gotta start somewhere. And an internship is the perfect place. Internships provide valuable hands-on experience that, according to the survey, employers regard as quite important in their hiring decisions. Even if you participate in an unpaid internship, check with your school to see if you can get course credit. At the very least, you’ll get to build your resume—and that’s worth every lack-of-penny! 3. Conduct informational interviews. Let’s face it: interviews cause anxiety. But in addition to an individual’s major and whether or not they have internship experience, the third most important factor in hiring is the way you communicate during your job interview. That’s why we recommend contacting professionals you know—professors, your parents’ friends, anyone—that will allow you to sit down with them to gain interview practice through an informational interview. Sharpen your communication skills—and watch your anxiety disappear! 4. Attend campus career fairs. While the buzz lately has been that social media is the hot new recruiting method, the CollegeGrad report shows the opposite: entry-level employers prefer traditional recruiting methods. In fact, good ol’ college campus career fairs are where the majority of entry-level employers do their recruiting. Go to them! 5. Be realistic about your expectations. While your dream might be to become an editor at a large city paper, if you are offered a position as a fact-checker, we suggest you take it. The survey reports that the majority of positions available to entry-level grads are administrative. Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t work your way up; as we said before, you gotta start somewhere! By Loreal Lynch   CollegeGrad.com is owned by Schools.com’s parent company, QuinStreet.   Â

Top 6 entry-level jobs

The results are in! CollegeGrad.com’s 2011 Top Employers survey results were just released—putting the spotlight on some of the companies that hire large amounts of recent graduates. Spanning multiple industries—from education to retail—entry-level hiring is higher than it’s been in years. But what types of jobs are available at each of these top hiring companies?  

As it turns out, the job types are as diverse as the companies doing the hiring. Below, browse a selection of some of the positions available to entry-level grads. Do any of them look like a good fit for you? (If you need tips on how to land these jobs, check out this helpful article.)

 

 

1. Management Trainee. An early leader in entry-level hiring, Enterprise Rent-A-Car offers a management training program that allows recent grads to experience several facets of management and operations in order to hone in on a more specific career path.

2. Educator. As a Teach for America corps member, recent grads become long-term education advocates by serving as teachers in low-income communities, then going on as alumni to lead efforts that change the face of public education.

3. Retail Leader. At Verizon Wireless, entry-level grads have the option to learn the ins and outs of retail operations and running a business through the Retail Leadership Development Program (RLDP).

4. Consultant. PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG and Ernst & Young are three of the “big four” audit firms—and, incidentally, they are also among the “big eight” hirers of entry-level grads. Entry-level grads can obtain jobs as junior consultants, specializing in accounting and auditing.

5. Business Analyst. In 2011, Target, one of the top employers of entry-level grads, is hiring a large amount of analysts. Business analysts at Target can expect to become familiar with brand management, buying and planning.

6. Service Leader. By providing recent grads with one year of full-time service, City Year helps its corps members to develop civic leadership skills that they can use throughout their lifetime.

 

By Loreal Lynch

 

About the Author

Loreal Lynch is a content editor at QuinStreet who is passionate about issues of education. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Tufts University and currently volunteers as an ESL tutor in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Best Companies for College Grads

Third Law of Applied Terror – “80% of the final exam will be based on the one lecture you missed and the one book you didn’t read.“

We started interviewing our college interns a few months ago at my company and this Summer’s “class” will join in a few short weeks. Having graduated in what feels like a hundred years ago (and never having been an intern myself), I’m always interested in what the latest group of interns bring to the table in terms of background, tech knowledge and special interests. What is most interesting (since I didn’t do this at the beginning of my career), is the amount of time they’ve taken to research the companies where they are interviewing. Even more interesting, is that they’ve checked me out on LinkedIn and they know where I’ve worked and what I’ve done. Some have even taken time to see if they may know someone that I know based on my profile. So, if you are not getting the point by now, these college students are incredibly well prepared. Are you?

Today’s links are partially gleaned from Experience.com’s list of companies.

A Few Companies:

• Accenture – The college career page for Accenture has lots of great information. The left hand side of the page has an interactive map where you can find where you would like to work. The right hand side of the page has a summary of a few featured jobs as well as a ling to allow registration in as a job seeker. Take a look at The Entry Level Consulting piece as well as Internships and Student Programs.

• BDO – Their college career page has a mini slide show which illustrates all of the opportunities at BDO (which is an accounting firm). You can select the career path that interests you (or click “I have no idea”). Also take a look at the links on the left hand side of the page.

• Capital One Financial – Capital One also has a page dedicated to college students, but also take a look at their main careers page. Their college page has a special link for “Future Graduates” along with a list of all of the colleges where they are recruiting (hover over the college to see what jobs are available). Taking a quick look at available jobs, there are 56 job opportunities at the moment.

• Best Places to Work for College Grads – This article, from AOL.com’s Jobs section, provides some really good advice along with a bunch of embedded related links. Please check out the related links as well as the “Search Jobs” link on the right hand side of the page.

• 25 Best Cities for College Grads – You got the “who” above, what about the “Where”? This article, from thedailybeast.com provides a pretty deep dive into what cities to consider along with a bunch of criteria that is also important (like housing, average age and number of singles). Also take a look at the pictures so that you can get a view of the cities as well.

Good luck in your search.

Author info: CareerAlley.com

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.

How to Utilize Numbers to Create an Accomplishment-Based Resume

When writing a resume, one of your biggest challenges is figuring out how to get the message across that you’re a results-maker. One of the best ways to get this done is by using numbers. Quantifying what you’ve accomplished helps the hiring manager envision what you can get done at a new company. Want to know how to get it done? Here are some tips to consider.

Look at the Amount of What You’ve Accomplished

A great way to get started in using numbers is looking at amounts associated with what you’ve accomplished. This means you will bypass simply jotting down your responsibilities and take a deeper look into what you really pulled off at previous employers.

For each job you’ve worked, you can list how many items you’ve sold, how many people you’ve managed, how many projects you initiated, how many times you were voted team lead, etc. The numbers give perspective to your accomplishments, which is what you need when applying for a job.

Jot Down Money Earned

If you’ve earned money for a company, it’s a good idea to list as many dollar amounts as possible. For instance, if you were a member of your sales team and in the months of January, April and May 2010, you won salesperson of the month because you surpassed $10,000 in sales, you need to write those numbers down. Doing so not gives a clear picture of what you’re capable of earning.

Note Timeframes for Accomplishing Goals

While busy quantifying your results, it’s good to include timeframes for accomplishing your goals. So in the previous example, in addition to noting how much money you earned, you could mention that you actually hit the $10,000 in 16 work days rather than standard 20-22 days in a work month.

As a candidate, it is imperative that you that you utilize the most high-impact and relevant information in your resume to win over the person who is reading it. The more meaningful, and impactful numbers you add to your resume, the greater your odds will be of getting called in for an interview.

For more quick tips on resume writing and cover letters you can follow @GreatResume on Twitter.

Good luck in your search.

 

Author Byline: Jessica Hernandez, expert resume writer, is a nationally-recognized resume authority and former HR Manager who has achieved over a 99% success rate securing interviews with prestigious organizations through exclusive, personal branding strategies.
Author Website: http://www.greatresumesfast.com

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.

 

Expect Change in the Job Market Moving Forward

It is no secret that we live in a global economy, and because of that, job seekers may need to adapt to a changing job market. This is why higher education isn’t really an option but a necessity in the 21st Century. Other countries are looking to surpass the United States as an economic power, which means that if job seekers don’t prepare for the jobs of the future, they will be left behind. Why? Those jobs will be created in the countries with people ready to fill them.

The change in the job market appears to be more structural than cyclical. This means that once reliable industries which provided jobs are not hiring any more. According to a recent article, some jobs that could be lost include printing machine operators, telemarketers, and postal clerks. Advancement in technology is a big reason for this transition in the job market.

While technology can make our lives easier, it may force some people to look for another line of work. As you’ve probably heard in the news, most of the jobs people once had are not coming back, which means they will need education and/or training in other areas.

The global economy is here. In order to compete, today’s job seekers must prepare for the changing job market.

Source

http://thecareernews.com/newsletter.php?news=2449&archive=0

 

Author Byline: William Frierson is a staff writer for CollegeRecruiter.com.
Author Website: http://www.collegerecruiter.com/

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.

Control The Interview Process: 4 Tips For Entry–level Sales Job Applicants

In many rights, sales interviews are very similar to other interviews in different fields, however there are also some finer points for the aspiring sales job seeker to learn or order to make difficult interviews seem easy.

In particular, here are four brief tidbits of advice for those aspiring to have a lucrative, meaningful and enjoyable sales career for the a long period of time to come:

1. Would you buy it? Prior to interviewing for sales job, always ask yourself if you would buy the product or service. In sales just as in life, you can’t sell something that you don’t believe in. Also, never take a sales job if you don’t believe in the marketing department (if applicable) or the current marketing structure. A poorly written, poorly programmed website makes for a hard sale… especially if your competitors have new ones.

2. Don’t think negatively, but you must be prepared for rejection. Understand that in sales, just like in job searching there is going to be rejection. This point is especially aimed at the younger employment seeker who is thinking about a career in sales. If you want to do sales, do it. Once you get past your first few rejections and your first few botched cold-calls, it becomes second nature. When younger, I was exceedingly sensitive and would often get down on myself when I made an ill-fated sales call. Don’t let shyness or fear of rejection stop you from entering the field. It’s an amazing way to begin your career.

3. Always be closing. Remember that sales employers always want somebody who has what is most commonly referred to as a “consultative selling” approach. More or less, the term refers to a sales style that aims to uncover the client’s needs as opposed to the infamous sales style portrayed in the film Glengarry Glen Ross which most famously known for the mentality that, regardless of what the client wants or is best for them, close the deal. To express this unethical sales methodology in both an entertaining and theatrical manner, playwright David Mamet scripted the infamous “A.B.C.” or always be closing” line.

4. The employer is your partner. Salary negotiation is the #1 most difficult aspect of the job search for many applicants in the sales and marketing arena. If you are not trained at negotiation, use what I refer to as the “work with” method. This means having the mentality that the employer is your partner, not your adversary and, together your job is to work towards a solution that will have you employed by the firm. If you think of negotiation in the terms of winners and losers, you’re going to end up the latter.

In the end, follow the above tips and you should see your demand, and as an effect your compensation potential rise significantly.

 Ken Sundheim is the Pres. of KAS executive recruitment (www.kasplacement.com) a sales and marketing staffing agency based in New York City. Ken’s articles, alongside college recruiter.com have been in Wall Street Journal.com, New York Times.com, aol.com, Yahoo.com as well as many others. You could find some additional articles at Ken Sundheim’s job search and sales recruitment blog (http://www.kaswrite.com).

How To Effectively Manage Virtual Interns

Many employers are afraid to hire interns for a virtual position because they feel like it’s almost impossible to effectively manage the interns and ensure they are giving you quality work. On the surface these challenges may seem legitimate, but the key to hiring interns for virtual positions is communication! Remember, virtual interns are just like normal interns, they are highly intelligent workers that just need a little guidance. Being able to effectively manage your virtual interns can make you a huge difference in how beneficial a virtual internship program is to both the intern and your small business.

Whether you are hiring virtual interns or normal interns, you should always be using a project management tool. A project management tool serves as a way to organize everything in one central place over the internet. By using a project management tool with a ticketing system, you never have to deal with the “I can’t find it” conversation and you will find it easier to track your intern’s progress. Most small businesses that we have encountered wouldn’t be able to exist without project management tools such as Google Docs, Basecamp, or Freshbooks.

Ok, so now you have all of your projects organized in one place, but that is only part of the picture. Unless you can hire an intern that is completely self sufficient and motivated, then you are going to need a way to monitor the intern’s daily progress. That is why we always have our virtual interns send us a daily email update. In this update, our interns tells us what they did and the results they got, some of the problems and challenges they faced, and any questions they have for us.  This is great because it opens the communication lines between the small business owner and the virtual intern. We also have the intern include the number of hours they worked on that particular day and the cumulative hours they have worked on the internship so far. In addition to the project management tool tracking their work, this allows the intern to also track their own hours.

So now you are at the point where everything seems to be getting tracked and you have open communication lines. This sounds pretty good, but the final step of the process is a weekly conference call with your virtual intern. Written words can only say so much, that is why a live conversation is vital to bringing this all together. During these phone calls we encourage small business owners to not only give instructions and training, but also talk about general topics like sports or TV. This allows you to build a better relationship with your virtual intern and get to know them on a personal basis.

Every day small business owners are hiring interns for virtual positions. The main difference that separates successful virtual internship programs and failures is effective management techniques. If you look at the most successful virtual internship programs, they all revolve around clear and open communication lines. The best ways to accomplish open communication lines is to use a project management tool, require daily email updates, and have weekly conference calls. If you implement the strategies outlined above you can hire interns to help expand your small business today!

Top 10 Hiring Industries

Here is some information on industries that are expected to be hiring in the future.

Employment may be weak across the nation, but several industries are expected to rapidly hire new staff in the next few years, according to industry research firm IBISWorld.

 

 

 

“After compiling the list of fastest hiring industries, some trends were apparent,” explained IBISWorld industry analyst Justin Molavi.  “Each industry on the list fell into one or more of five sectors: environmental preservation, construction, automotive, real estate and insurance.”

 

Environmental Preservation
Increasing government regulations will keep the focus on environmental preservation, benefiting businesses in the sustainable building material manufacturing and remediation and environmental cleanup services industries. IBISWorld estimates that jobs within these industries will grow 19.3 percent and 6.3 percent per year, respectively, by 2016.

 

Construction
With economic improvement will come a rebound in the housing market, which will benefit companies involved in multi-family home building, millwork and prefabricated housing. IBISWorld expects jobs within these industries to grow annually at 10.9 percent, 6.2 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively, by 2016.

Automotive
This sector was hit hard during the recession, but as consumer confidence climbs so will car sales.  Higher automotive demand will benefit used car dealers and auto manufacturers. IBISWorld expects annual employment growth of 8.8 percent and 1.5 percent in these industries, respectively, by 2016. Auto manufacturing is not expected to grow as quickly as the other industries listed due to a high level of outsourcing in recent history. However, domestic firms are starting to move some of their manufacturing functions back to the United States. After years of outsourcing, this shift could entirely restructure the recovering industry.

 

Real Estate

There will be a renewed post-recession interest in real estate as business picks up and companies need appraisal and risk management services. Real estate asset management and consulting and real estate appraisal firms are expected to beef up personnel to accommodate growth, increasing employee numbers at 6.2 percent and 5.6 percent per year, respectively, by 2016.

 

Insurance

To hedge risk exposure, insurers are increasingly outsourcing risk management functions as well. In turn, third-party administrators and insurance claim firms will have to bolster personnel. Employment in this industry is set to grow 5.7 percent annually to 2016.

Branding Basics for Twitter

Your Twitter account is probably more important to your job search than you could ever imagine.  Recruiters and employers are continually perusing Tweets from job seekers in hopes of finding their next great candidate.

If you have a Twitter account or are looking to obtain one, you are doing yourself a disservice by not taking advantage of the opportunities it can bring to you as a job seeker.  To make the most of your profile, take a look at some strategies for branding your Twitter profile that could complement your job search.

Grab a Prime Twitter Handle

When you acquired your Twitter account, you may have not been thinking that you would eventually need to brand yourself as a professional through the profile and therefore may not have placed a professional spin on your account handle.  If this is the case, now’s the time to go out and grab a Twitter handle that complements your job search.

For instance, if your name is Jane Jackerman, you’re a CPA and your name is not already taken as a handle, grab @JaneJackerman, @JaneLJackerman, or even @JaneJackermanCPA in a hurry to start building your brand.  As employers begin conducting online searches on you, they will be able to easily find your Twitter account and see that you are busy tweeting about topics in your field.

Get Your Profile in Order

After you’ve snagged the perfect professional handle, you want to brand yourself further by filling out your profile.  This means listing a link to your LinkedIn page or professional blog as your Web site, writing a personal branding statement in the bio section, and listing the name on your resume as your name.

As for photos, you don’t have to have one up of yourself since your appearance cannot be used as an employment decision maker; however, it’s a good idea to add a professional photo anyway.  If you are dead set against this idea, consider an image that represents your brand (e.g., logo, photo of a pen and paper if you’re writer, etc.), then create a background design that is simple and professional.

Start Tweeting about Your Field

There’s no easier way to show you have knowledge of your field than to tweet about it.  If you have a passion for what you do, and you follow the events of your industry, and you attempt to make contributions, it’s best to share this information with your peers by tweeting.

Just don’t forget to build a following.  Recruit your friends and family.  Garner support from your other social networking profiles.  If you have a blog, send them to your Twitter account and ask them to follow you.  If a hiring manager sees that people respect your opinion enough to follow you, he or she might want bring you into the company’s fold.

A brand is built by defining who you are in relation to your field.  Your Twitter account can undoubtedly help you strengthen your brand while giving your job search an amazing boost.

 

Guest post by Jessica Hernandez.

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.