The Most Sought-After Work Benefits to Attract Talent

The Most Sought-After Work Benefits to Attract Talent With people in the US reportedly switching careers once every 4.2 years on average in the US and every five in the UK, it’s never been more important to look at how major corporations advertise themselves to prospective employees, and what employees really look for in an ideal workplace. Although flexible working, generous sick pay, and company social activities are some of the most-often highlighted benefits according to employee reviews, the fact remains that businesses need to focus on improving work/life balance in order to retain staff Promote a healthy work/life balance According to recruitment partner Karen Dykes, the benefits companies choose to advertise on job adverts play an essential role in determining how successfully they accumulate and maintain quality staff. She said: “With talent shortages reported in many sectors, top candidates are looking beyond basic salary offerings to attract them to certain roles. Benefits packages are most certainly in the spotlight, with a particular focus on those that support work/life balance. These include generous holiday entitlement, healthcare advantages, and flexible working. “If a skilled candidate has multiple interview offers, benefits packages will come into play. They may be time-poor in terms of interview preparation time, so narrow the field by evaluating the overall package.” There’s a common misconception in recruitment that employees should be lucky to work for a business when in reality a business is arguably only as good as its employees. Therefore, it’s critical that companies use job advertisements and recruitment pages to highlight what they can offer applicants, rather than just what they want to gain from employees. Follow through on promised benefits An analysis of employee reviews left for organizations featured on LinkedIn’s 2019 Top Companies report reveals that an attractive work environment, comprehensive benefits and flexible working hours are the most attractive benefits for employees, while long days and a poor work/life balance are the most common complaints. While it’s essential to clearly advertise the benefits of your business in order to attract applicants, it’s equally (if not more important) to make sure that these benefits are evident to and appreciated by current employees. Review sites like Glassdoor, Indeed and Trustpilot are playing an increasingly larger role in helping job seekers narrow down their career choices, as current employees are naturally seen as a more trustworthy source for summarising a workplace than the organization itself. While it’s impossible to control what every employee writes in an anonymous review, businesses can and should regularly check in with their workforce to identify potential areas for improvement. This will result in more positive employee reviews to attract recruits, while also working to retain staff. Don’t rely on notoriety to attract new recruits Although being a household name undoubtedly helps when it comes to workplace desirability, companies shouldnt just rely on their notoriety to attract valuable applicants. Earlier in the year, it was revealed that more than a third of Europe’s fastest-growing tech companies are based in Britain, with London leading digital growth. These ‘unicorn companies’, named for their rarity, are private startups valued at more than $1 billion ( £785.8 million) and although benefitting from quick growth, are rarely as acclaimed as big-name brands. Despite this, the Power House Truths report reveals that smaller startups score better when it comes to work/life balance, business outlook and senior management ratings, which can only contribute to their rapid growth and eventual notoriety. In comparison, companies like Amazon, Samsung, and Apple are critiqued for lacking compensation and benefits, difficult interviews and smaller average salaries. This shows that while it’s advantageous to be a well-known established business, how you’re perceived by your current and prospective employees will have a huge impact on future growth. For those that have been toying with the idea of introducing flexi-time, adding an additional day to holiday allowances or organizing more socials to show your employees that you care about them, don’t put it off any longer. The pen is sharper than the sword, a happy workforce is a productive one, and no business should ever settle for mediocre employee reviews. About the author: Emily Garner, is Content Specialist of Blueclaw Media.

Six Things You Need to Do Before Starting Your #SideHustle

Six Things You Need to Do Before Starting Your #SideHustle Starting a sidehustle takes a lot of reflection. Starting a sidehustle takes a lot of reflection. Even though America is well out of the recession, many of us haven’t seen our salaries increase to reflect the economic improvement. Headlines about pay raises in 2015 aren’t much more encouraging, with experts saying salaries may rise a percent or two, but not enough to notice thanks to inflation. Slow growth in the economy has one silver lining: More people are considering taking on second jobs or starting their own business to earn extra income. Maybe you’re nodding your head right now, because you’ve started a child care side hustle or considered taking on freelance work in the last few years. If you’ve ever wished your paycheck would increase, and maybe even entertained the idea of a #SideHustle, read on to find out six things you’ve got to do before starting the new endeavor. Have a Serious Talk … With Yourself Sure, extra income is great, but there is much to consider. Schedule time to think about whether or not a side hustle is for you. Go to a cafe, walk around the neighborhood or just turn off your phone and other distractions and think through this decision. Are you ready to let go of your precious weekend and evening free time? Do you have the personal discipline to have two jobs and do them both well? How do you handle stress? Consider the type of job you’d want to take on. For example, a social media consultant would need to be available 24/7, since a crisis or opportunity could happen at any time. However, a dog walker may be able to set her own hours more easily, offering walks before and after work and on lunch breaks. Being honest with yourself upfront will ensure you make the right decision for the short and long term. Don’t Overlook Boring Details Look, you probably don’t want to become a makeup artist because you really like spreadsheets and taxes, but these technical details are critically important to success. One late tax bill could derail your entire operation. You will probably want to find an accounting expert who can help you with taxes, bookkeeping, licensing and business registration to get started. Maybe your side hustle won’t require all of those steps, but at the very least you need to know how the IRS classifies your side hustle when it comes time to filing taxes. You’ll also want to look into your current employer’s policies about second jobs and potential conflicts of interest. If you work through these policy and regulation-related details and still want to start your own business, you’ve proven that you are very committed to your side hustle. Think About Your Lifestyle Nothing in life happens in a vacuum. That means a second career that mandates you are on call 24/7 won’t work if you are already on call 24/7 for your primary position. If you’re in charge of picking up and dropping off the kids at day care, will you be able to do that and fulfill both positions? For example, if you are a military spouse, you’ve got to be flexible enough to relocate when your honey is relocated to his next position â€" and so does your job. Consider the reality of your family, full-time work, personality and other obligations as they relate to the type of side job you consider and find a portable career that works for your situation. Be Sure Your Idea Is a Good One I recently heard radio show caller who was looking for advice because her small yarn shop was not as successful as she thought it would be. Further questioning revealed that she lived in a small town with just 2,000 residents. Her potential customer base was very small, meaning she’d have to expand to an online business to make her idea viable. Before starting your side gig, you’ll need to analyze your business idea. Is there a need for your business or service? Does it solve a common problem in your field or region? Is there enough of a potential customer base to make the company profitable eventually? To put it another way, just because you love knitting doesn’t mean you’ll turn a profit by simply opening a yarn shop. Start Small to Test the Waters Why not dip your toe in before you start swimming? Practice your pitch on friends and family and ask for their honest advice. Ask a mentor for guidance. Start to keep the schedule of your future side hustle before you start your business. For example, if you are interested in being a freelance writer, begin coming home from work and writing articles as though you’ve been hired. You can use them on your personal website as writing samples, so this exercise can help your brand as well. In the meantime, you’ll get into the rhythm of keeping side hustle hours and workload, and maybe you’ll realize you love it or you hate it. Start Saving While the ultimate goal of your side hustle is to make money, you’ll most likely have to spend a bit before you’re cashing that extra paycheck. Even a babysitting business would require some business cards and flyers to be printed, right? Even more expenses exist if you are renting a space and starting a brick-and-mortar store. As you consider your side hustle, start a savings account so that you don’t go into debt while trying to make more money. In today’s economy, more and more people are considering taking on a second job or starting their own business. Before you rent out an office space, you’ve got to think about your lifestyle and needs, talk to other professionals and test your business idea. Do you have a side hustle? Did you consider it and decide it’s not for you? Leave your advice in the comment section below.

5 Ways To Improve Your Brand Reputation

5 Ways To Improve Your Brand Reputation A consumer will always consider brand reputation when deciding what company to use to satisfy their needs. If your brand does not have a positive reputation, you will consistently lose out to the competition which can be frustrating. Additionally, it can be hard to change public perception once you have developed a negative reputation, which is why this needs to be a key area to focus on from day one. It can take a while for results to show, but with patience and hard work you can develop a positive brand reputation which will help you to compete. Here are a few strategies to try. Improve Customer Service Brand reputation often stems from how the customer feels they were treated after dealing with the business. If you are friendly, helpful, professional and willing to go the extra mile, then a customer is much more likely to use your company again and recommend you to their friends and family. Make sure that your customer service staff are excellent and always willing to help out the customer no matter what form of communication is being used. Customer Reviews One of the most effective ways to improve the reputation of your brand is through customer reviews. This acts as social proof and shows potential customers that other consumers have had success and a positive experience with your brand. Customer reviews can be highly influential and they are a great tool for improving reputation and increasing conversions. SEO An important form of digital marketing to use to improve brand reputation is SEO. Consumers view the companies listed towards the top of search engine results lists as the most authoritative, so you need to appear as close to the top as possible. This can be achieved with the help of digital marketing agencies like clickintelligence.co who can help you to climb the rankings, improve your reputation, and increase traffic to your company website. Social Media Social media is, essentially, an enormous stage for your brand to use to communicate with the world. It can be an excellent tool for improving your reputation, but, equally, it is very easy to get things wrong and there have been countless brands that have felt the negative effects of using social media incorrectly. You can avoid this by making sure that you are sharing content which shows your expertise in the field, but is also relevant, helpful and entertaining for your target audience. You can also improve your reputation by responding to comments and messages swiftly and professionally and by never posting anything which could cause offense. Give Back Today’s consumer is increasingly conscious about social and environmental issues and this will influence their decision. Make sure you show that you are a brand that cares by giving back or raising awareness about an important issue (make sure that this is not something that could cause offense or be decisive). Getting involved with the local community and raising money for a charity are two effective strategies to try. If you want to develop a positive reputation, these are the best strategies to try. It can take some time for results to show, but it is worth the effort as it will help you to both attract and retain customers and compete with bigger brands.

How To Accelerate A Career In The Airline Industry

How To Accelerate A Career In The Airline Industry The airline industry is like any other kind of profession very competitive. You are always coming up against your peers to move up in the industry and to make a bigger splash than someone else. And then you need to remember that the airline industry itself is always changing with new regulations and rules, and you need to be flexible and adaptive enough to make sure you’re fitting the right mould at the right time. Airlines are always going through things like merges, service changes and differences in their service offering to meet a new customer base, so when you’re adaptive, it means that you have a better chance of getting the best jobs. While being clever and working hard is important, you need to also have a certain level of worldliness and skill that puts you ahead of the rest. Your smarts and your qualification can help you to get a job, but moving up requires a bit more effort to ensure you get the best jobs. Whether you undertake an airport manager course to ensure that you’re abreast of the latest developments, or get a mentor, you need to do more. We have outlined some of the key ways that you can give yourself the best possible chance of accelerating your career in the airline industry. Stay abreast of trends One great way to stay current when you are in the airline industry is to read airline industry news magazines or to consult airline websites which are going to have news and updates on them. There are a range of industry publications and news sources who publish content regularly. It’s important to get a balanced view of what is going on in your industry so that you’re proactive and not reactive. Stay connected When you work at a certain company or airline, you might enjoy a wealth of information and conversation from your peers, but when you only get to speak to the same people about the same things you get a bit of an echo chamber effect going on. As a result, you can get a better opinion about things by speaking to people at other companies and making sure you get your information from a variety of sources. By knowing what other companies and people are experiencing, you can apply this information to your own work and improve in the best possible way. Travel differently So you work for Qantas, and of course you’re always going to fly with Qantas or Jetstar because that’s just what you do. But we think that there’s a lot to be gained by flying with other companies and finding out what they do and how they do it differently to you. Seek out a great deal on a flight and fly to a destination while noting all of the ways in which other companies do what you do. Study when you can Sometimes the very best thing you can do for your career is to give yourself a compelling and competitive edge by studying something to give you a leg up. You might have all the skills and experience in a particular field but just want to get some more knowledge of airport safety or handling. In that instance it’s best to study something specific to the knowledge you want. Studying can be completed online in a lot of instances and can work with your current full time workload. Good luck with getting ahead in the very competitive world of airlines. It is a high-stakes industry and one that many people want to work in so enjoy the journey and ensure that you follow the steps above to get a competitive edge. . Image credits. Main.   Airport.

Executive Resume ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) What You Need To Know - Executive Career Brandâ„¢

Executive Resume ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) What You Need To Know

How to Drive Career Growth When Youre a Remote Worker - Sterling Career Concepts

How to Drive Career Growth When Youre a Remote Worker How to Drive Career Growth When Youre a Remote Worker Unlike those who work in an office, remote workers can’t put on the pretext of being preoccupied or productive by sitting in a cubicle acting busy. Quite understandably, the evaluation of remote workers is mostly based on their output rather than their actual working time. But like any other employee, remote workers are ultimately responsible for their career growth. Below are helpful tips to nudge your remote career upward, and lead you to the growth you crave. Tip #1 â€" Start with the interview Every company will allow you to ask questions during the interview. Grab this opportunity to ask about what they do to invest in the career growth of their employees. At the same time, emphasize how important career growth is to you. Aside from aiming for the obvious (such as a reasonably higher starting job title or salary), look at how the offer can provide you with opportunities to develop as a professional. Will they give you access to high-quality skills training, business and executive coaching, cultural intelligence team development and the like? Such concessions can show you how much space and support the company can give you as you work toward your growth. Tip #2 â€" Manage your expectations Since you’re a remote worker, you are solely responsible for your deliverables. You’re not inside an office where your manager can physically review your work. As an independent worker, you’re the captain of your ship. Manage your expectations, your role and the tasks associated with it. This will help you to immediately address problems despite working remotely. Remind yourself that remote work is very much different from office work. Don’t expect that you’ll have the same privilege as when you were working in an office. After all, you have a flexible working schedule. It’s all up to you to drive your career growth by giving your 100% to produce quality output. Tip #3 â€" Communicate well Most remote workers choose to have less contact with their coworkers. This attitude can damage team cohesion and affect both company productivity and compliance. If you truly want to drive your career growth while working remotely, communication is key. Say what’s on your mind. You never know, your idea may be the next big thing that can contribute to the organization’s success. Be prompt in attending meetings through Skype or any video conferencing tools. This will help bridge the gap between you and your colleagues, making you an integral part of the team. Tip #4 â€" Break your career goal into achievable parts A big raise or promotion at work doesn’t happen overnight. But, the worst thing you can do is to let your goal sit and wait for it to happen. Take the time to reflect on your career plan and break it into achievable parts. Before you can create the best career plan, you must first identify the answers to the following questions: What are your skill gaps? What are the criteria for promotion? What projects do you need to have experience in? What fundamental habits needed to be successful in the role you desire? What work milestones do you have to achieve? Once you have the answers to these questions, break down your goal into manageable bits to meet the criteria, and fill your skill gaps. Find ways to learn new skills. As part of your career plan, you should also find ways to learn new skills and gain new perspectives about your industry and the job market in general. One of the biggest investments you can make to move your career forward today is to enroll in cultural intelligence training and assessment. As the workplace becomes more globalized each day, knowing how to work effectively across cultures has undoubtedly become a prized skill. Tip #5 â€" Monitor your progress Of all the things that can boost your motivation during a workday, the best thing is making a progress through meaningful work. Even if it is gradual, don’t underestimate the power of making progress. Monitor your development; for as longs as there is growth, you’re only a few steps away from reaching your career goal. Even if you aren’t in the office, you should make your company feel that you’re a vital part of the business. To drive your career growth as a remote worker, make sure to communicate well and produce quality work. This way, you can bridge the gap between you and your employer, and make your hard work pay off. GUEST AUTHOR BIO Salma El-Shurafa is an experienced Executive Coach and founder of The Pathway Project. She is a Professional Certified Coach by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach from The Coaches Training Institute (CTI) and a graduate of CTI’s Co-Active Leadership program.

Are You Ready To Be A Manager

Are You Ready To Be A Manager Most managers are regular employees who get promoted, but a lot of times that promotion comes with the realization you lack some managerial skills. Its different being in management, but there are some things you can work on even as an employee that will really help you when that promotion comes. These skills are actually good to learn no matter what your position is. For instance, a bank teller needs to act with authority when explaining why a check bounced Saying It looks like you might have not had the funds in your account; I guess maybe thats why it bounced with hesitation doesnt have the same level of authority as Your account balance was $50.00 short of the check amount when it came into the bank and you dont have any overdraft protection set up, so an automatic process began. This is what you can do about the situation. If you want to be ready to move up into management, start learning what you need to know. A Checklist of Skills to Learn learn how to be comfortable having difficult conversations all managers have to be able to do this because sweeping problems under the rug doesnt make them go away. learn how to give feedback the right way tell people when they are doing a good job, and if something is wrong, say so clearly without hinting around while providing a few reasonable suggestions. learn how to clarify goals ask the boss what practical benchmarks are being looked for so everyone can be on the same page. If you cant measure it, you cant all reach it. learn how to act with authority if the decision is based on policy, say so. If you want someone to do something, dont make it sound like an option. Learn how to separate relationships from work performance sooner or later a manager has to confront a lousy employee and fire them even if that employee is a friend. This is one of the hardest things managers face. Is Your Resume Ready? One of the things that will be examined closely when your name comes up as a potential manager is your resume. If you arent confident your resume is ready for that examination, the Resume Critique  can give you professional feedback and concrete suggestions for making sure you are ready for the next step in your career.