Career development for individual employees does far more than enhance the person’s skills. If effectively implemented, the end result of such a programme is a transformation in the employee’s perception of work from “just a job” to “a job that I enjoy and excel in.” While the onus for career development traditionally falls on the employer’s shoulders, the employee must also play an active part by making the most of the opportunities provided.
A successful career development strategy first requires a foundation that focuses on various alignments — between employer and employee goals and desires, between employees and their jobs…
In general, the majority of people around you want you to be successful. Your parents, your friends, your family, your partner, your employer, your boss, your team members — all the people with whom you interact on a daily basis and with whom you have a relationship — all want you to succeed in whatever endeavour you attempt.
But that’s in “general”! More specifically, consider these points:
Regardless of the economic or societal turmoil happening in the world, very passionate and compassionate leaders with strong convictions are the individuals who launch and operate very successful businesses, with the ability to weather any crisis. With personal conviction closely linked to strong feelings about something, it is almost impossible to be very successful if one does not possess passion and compassion. Hence, there exists a positive correlation between very successfully run businesses and passionate and compassionate leadership.
But what about other factors, such as market savvy, technical know-how, international experience, and operational tactics? “When it comes to achieving business…
No matter how financially successful a company may be, smart leaders know how to spend funds wisely, efficiently, and effectively. Yet, so many organisations squander their budgets with little or no reward when it comes to hiring and retaining the best talent.
Companies worldwide continue to struggle with the problem of employee engagement and retention. An article in the Harvard Business Review[1] cites a survey, that analysed responses from 200,000 employees across 40 companies in 60 countries. …
Many organizations waste so much money and resources on hiring, developing, retaining, and rewarding “the wrong people.” The outcome of these efforts has a huge impact on company results, be it profitability or productivity. Jacob Morgan, in his Harvard Business Review article, “Why the Millions We Spend on Employee Engagement Buy Us So Little” (March 10, 2017), provides compelling data and evidence of a strong correlation between company performance and employee experience. In his opinion, “most initiatives amount to an adrenaline shot. A perk is introduced …. over time the effect wears off.” …
Throughout my career, I have been part of diverse global leaderships teams and held various positions of responsibility. Many years ago, one of our business leaders, who was responsible for the unit, frequently advised us to “keep our eyes on the ball!” During almost every monthly financial call, and at the end of every call, he repeated these words. “Don’t forget to keep your eyes on the ball!” Nobody thought to question him about what he really meant.
At the time, my assignment involved building a new global product line that would be managed in multiple locations. My participation in…
Hidden Treasure That Can Significantly Improve your Bottom Line
Without the efforts of your employees, working in harmony with leadership, an organisation is not likely to achieve long-term success. If employees are not aligned with the company’s strategy, they may be busily working while merely spinning their wheels. In fact, rather than truly contributing to the company’s performance, they may be steering it down the wrong road.
A 2017 report by Gallup, “Re-Engineering Performance Management,” authored by Ben Wigert and Jim Harter, cites a discouraging estimate about employees in the US: The cost of poor management and lost productivity from…
Based on hundreds of appraisals and interviews with individuals of diverse gender, age, or education — while assessing their personal development (mostly career-related, but also dealing with life and self-fulfilment) — we have observed the most common problem to arise dealt with strategy (or, lack of it). In other words, many people fail to construct strategies to achieve a more fulfilling future. In fact, many people lack guidelines or frameworks that would enable them to develop effective strategies for their careers, lives, or relationships.
This observation is not as surprising as one might think, since a significant majority of people…
Internal and external hiring mistakes happen more often than one likes to believe. Unfortunately, a significant percentage of hiring decisions are the result of the hiring manager’s “gut” feelings or intense pressure to fill a vacancy swiftly. When qualified candidates are few and far between, managers must make a selection from a pool of individuals who do not necessarily possess behavioural or hard skills such as knowledge or hands-on experience. …
In reaction to any turbulent market scenario, leadership must adapt to the situation and create solutions to ensure the organisation survives the downturn. A key focus is frequently the budget, where the company can cut costs without undermining the business. Too often, the quality of the workforce and/or their output suffers — either because the company is forced to layoff talented and valuable individuals or overwhelmed employees lose their motivation and lower their productivity.
What steps can companies take to identify and maintain a talented workforce while ensuring that future growth remains on the right track? …