Blogging4Jobs

As we begin to see the rays of sunshine begin to shine through the gloom and doom of the economy and the economic recession, it’s important to remember that change is near.  This addition of the Carnival of HR highlights Talent Management and the focus on the current and future economies.  With so many great submissions concerning Talent Management, we look to highlight some of the best HR, training, and recruiting minds in the industry today.

But first to know where we’re going, we need to know where we’ve been.

• Mick Collins with Info HRM looks at the year in review with What a Year.
• Melissa Prusher of Devon Group with 10 Minutes with Lisa Rowan gives us some insight on the economic rebound.
• Sharlyn Lauby of HR Bartender with a post on Ethics reminding us its important not to always run with the herd regardless of the economy.

And as the economy improves and the inevitable turnover churn begins, bloggers discuss the important of engagement.

• Melanie Quinn of Capture ISG with 5 Reasons Why You Need Employee Surveys.
• Jennifer V. Miller & Lisa Rosendahl team up with a dual post on Mentoring.  Lisa’s post is  A Mentoring Frame of Mind while Jennifer brings a different point of view with The Sweet Spot of Mentoring.
• Jon Ingham with Strategic HCM further explores employee engagement and disects my own post in Developing Social Capital.

Employee engagement and reducing turnover starts from the top down and bottom up.

• Wally Bock from Three Star Leadership bring us Leadership without Position.
• The HR Store encourages others to go bold or go home with, Feedback and Performance Management Reviews.
• Amit Bhagria, of Young HR Manager outlines the steps involved in Performance Consulting and One Step Beyond Training & Development.
• Vishveshwar Jatain of Benify inspires us to do more with 6 Offbeat Ways to Beat Attrition and Improve Retention.

The changing face of HR is key in the financial, corporate recovery, and rebirth.

• Trisha McFarland of HR Ringleader with “Re-Branding HR.”
• Mark Stelzner of Inflexion Advisors and his post, Mad Men and the Future of HR.
• Cathy Martin of Profitability Through Human Capital with HR Rock Stars.
• Gireesh Kumar Sharma of Talent Junction reminds us that HR’s Role is Critical in Terminations.

And for those of us who are the more than 16 million looking for work or those who are considering jumping into the job search, our HR Carnival experts offer some great advice.

• Laurie Ruettiman of Punk Rock HR and Interviews, Unemployment and the Cloud.
• BP Rao of People at Work and Play discusses the social media platform Linkedin with India-Big Market on LinkedIn.
• Ken Klaus of Talent Apps grabbed my attention offering expert advice on engagement and choice with The Da Vinci Conundrum.

Or for those that are looking for those that are looking for more. . .opportunities, more hours in the day, and more fun at work.

• Dan McCarthy of Great Leadership warns us with Head’s Up Your About to be Promoted or Fired.
• i4CP and their post Uncovering the Secrets to Higher Productivity by Mark Vickers.
• Drew Tarvin of Humor that Works reminds us that laughter is the best medicine with 101 Ways to Create Humor at Work.

A special thanks to our contributors, HR Minion our humble carnival ring leader as well as the opportunity to host the Carnival.  Look for the next Carnival of HR on October 14th hosted by Strategic HCM.

Talent Management is changing and forward-thinking companies must begin preparing for the changing job market.  Over the last several weeks, the news publications and news networks have begun reporting positive changes in the economic markets.  The Globe and Mail reported last week, that as the economy improves, we will see a “W” shaped recovery.   A W shaped recovery has a large dip which we have already experienced, followed by a rise, and follow by another dip before we return to a stable and improving economic environment.  According to EconomyWatch there are almost as many alphabet letters as potential economic recovery scenarios from V, W, U, S, and L.  Being an optimist, a realist, and not an economist, I believe what we are currently experiencing is a V recovery although slow.  And based on my non-economic assumptions and research, my belief is that in Q2 of 2010 we will begin to see the job market drastically changing.

In this recession, employees were thrust into the job search as collateral damage from corporate cost cutting strategies.  Candidates were forced to take lesser positions resulting in lower salaries and benefits in order to feed their families and survive.  As the economy being to improve and positions are added, these job seekers will re-enter the marketplace often with short tenures at their previous companies in search of increased benefits, flexibility, and compensation.  Job hopping and gaps in employment won’t be near as important factors in considering candidates as previously.  As successful business leaders, we must consider the following to compete in the changing job market and consider employee retention and recruiting strategies in this new economy.

• Poll our employees. These high performing and under paid employees who either entered the workforce after being restructured or laid off will be in high demand.  Determining what is most important is extremely crucial to lessening and planning for increased turnover.  As American’s have spent less, what’s important has changed.  Do not assume that salary is most important, scheduling, benefits, and personal development are also motivating factors in ensuring employee retention.  SurveyMonkey offers a low cost way to survey your employees and determine their wants, needs, and desires for as little as $200 a year.
• Seek feedback. It’s one thing to survey current employees to determine what’s important.  It’s another to actually have a conversation either in a group setting or individually to dialogue and learn more.  Host meetings with your teams, be open, and allow them to speak freely about what’s important.  Employees who feel valued and empowered are much more productive than those that are managed by fear.  They are also less likely to leave their current company.
• Take action. All the meetings and surveys in the world can’t convince employees that you mean business.  Develop an action plan based on their input and over communicate your plans as well as your reasoning behind them.  In my experience, sometimes the smallest things can make a difference.  Be creative in your actions and make decisions with your employee demographic in mind.  Adding a $500 gaming system to your break room can be a difference maker to Gen Y employees while offering financial and newspaper magazine subscriptions can appeal to the Boomer and more traditionalist generations.
• Follow Up. Communicate, communicate, and communicate some more.  Follow up with your staff quarterly being open to recommended changes and feedback along the way.  Yes, following up takes work, but so does interviewing and training new employees.  How do you want to spend your time in 6 months after losing over half your staff to new opportunities?
• Build a Candidate Pipeline. Not every employee is motivated by gaming systems and magazine subscriptions.  Being reaching out and building relationships with performers in positions and industries you may be interested in recruiting over the next 6-12 months.  Develop a strategy to engage these potential candidates as a way to seek out referrals and develop a brand within your industry niche.  You don’t have to spend a lot of money to host a networking event, pick up the phone, or work with your local university.  As we have seen in the rise of social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and FaceBook, it’s the relationship that matters.