7 Ways to Make Yourself Irreplaceable in the Office

In order to protect yourself from the next round of layoffs, you need to convince your employers that you're valuable and that your existence alone benefits the company.

"Today's business environment doesn't allow for satisfaction with the status quo. It requires constant growth and change," writes Mark Samuel in his book Making Yourself Indispensable: The Power of Personal Accountability.

"Being indispensable means that you are adaptable, learning and growing with your organization as it changes and evolves...at the end of the day, you are either working to make yourself indispensable or working to make yourself obsolete."

Here are the seven tips to help you become the most valuable person to your employers:

1. Never take the shortcut. Have you known many highly-successful people to be lazy? In order to be truly irreplaceable, you have to work hard. You can't take shortcuts and still expect tremendous respect.

2. Be adaptable, not rigid. It’s been said that being rigid is the fastest way to losing your job. In an age where technology, workplace environment and strategy techniques are constantly changing, the most pernicious thing you can do for your career is to cling on to something from the past and refuse to change.

"The good news about rigidity is that it gives you a sense of control — it is predictable. You understand it, know it, can explain it, and can even teach it to others," he says. "The bad news is that the sense of control is often a false one or temporary at best."

"You can always tell when someone isn't adaptable to change. They demonstrate their paralysis through resistance, advocating for the old way, talking about the "good old days," or undermining current change efforts through their lack of cooperation and cynicism."

3. Being a perfectionist will be your downfall. Most people think that being a perfectionist is what they need for success, but, in actuality, it prevents it.

"Perfectionism fosters inaction — waiting until we can guarantee success before we take action. And this negates accountability and prevents success. We wait for the perfect plan, the perfect decision, and the perfect action that won't fail."

4. Be of service to others without expecting anything in return. Most of us only do things for other people if we get something in return, but a truly irreplaceable employee is someone who makes decisions and solves problems for the good of their team and other departments in the organization.

The more you become "we-centered" rather than "me-centered" the more indispensable you become.

"Trust grows when our motives are straightforward and based on mutual benefits — in other words, when we genuinely care not only for ourselves, but also for the people we interact with, lead, or serve."

5. Be purpose-driven, not goal-driven. At work, you will have goals to achieve, but these goals are often "established without a clear sense of purpose." And since most people are often too busy to go above and beyond their daily tasks, they're not making an effort to produce actual changes.

"Substantial evidence demonstrates that in addition to motivating constructive effort, goal setting can induce some unethical behavior."

So don’t stresses out about finishing every single step you've written down on your checklist or it'll become a never-ending cycle.

6. Be assertive. Life is a game, so play big or go home. Take charge, stand apart and don't be afraid to speak up during meetings for fear of sounding unintelligent or being wrong.

7. Forgive others quickly. "The measure of accountability is based more on how you handle mistakes, mishaps, and breakdowns than on getting everything right all the time," Samuel says. "It's about how fast you can pick yourself up when you fall; how quickly you correct a mistake that you made; that little or no harm comes to your customer, family member, or friend."

 

 

Seven Reasons Why Recruiters Instantly Reject Resumes!!!

Forget "What color is your Parachute?" Here are seven reasons why resumes always get rejected according to the report conducted by tech recruiters at Kovasys IT Recruitment.

New York, NY (PRWEB) March 19, 2012

A new report from Kovasys IT Recruitment answers a question that many IT candidates are asking: "Why are the technology recruitersignoring my resume?" We have sat down with Alex Kovalenko, a technical recruiting manager at Kovasys Inc. with operations in Toronto, Montreal, New York and San Francisco, to discuss. "If a tech recruiter can not tell within ten seconds that you are worth a call then your resume will go straight into a recycle bin. Keep in mind that at our firm recruiters can review up to 50 resumes every day and can not spend hours reviewing resumes," said Alex Kovalenko with Kovasys Inc.

Mr. Kovalenko says that there are seven reasons why IT recruiters could potentially reject yourresume and are as follows:

1. Firstly, when a recruiter looks over a resume – he or she wants to find experience in the field. If acandidate is a PHP Developer with no object oriented development experience and the job is for anobject oriented Java Developer - the recruiter is not going to call. Companies are paying recruiters to find an apple to fill an apple job. Companies are not paying recruiters to help candidates transfer their skills from one field to another. If a company is going to pay a recruiter a significant retainer fee, they expect a perfect match.

2. What is candidate's level or title? If the recruiter is searching for a team lead developer and a candidate's title is a senior developer, that candidate should not expect an interview with the recruiter. Again, the recruiter is hired to find a team lead developer, not to squeeze a senior developer into a team lead position. On the other hand, if the client wants a senior developer and a candidate is a team lead - that candidate is over-qualified and even if he or she thinks they can do a senior developer’s job the client will not. The first team lead job that comes along might interest that candidate more, causing the recruiter and the company to suspect that you are going to pursue the better opportunity; neither party is willing to risk that.

3. The next area the recruiter is going to look at is the most recent experience. If the client wants aLinux Systems Administrator for a hosting company and a candidate has the experience, but it was over five years ago, recruiter will reject the resume. Any good recruiter can find a candidate with that current familiarity. If candidate was a good Linux Administrator five years ago and have not worked in that area since, their skills might be nowhere near contemporary due to new technologies like virtualization, vmware, etc.

4. Location, location, location. If a client is in New York and a candidate is in Miami - that candidate will most likely not get an interview. Relocating candidates is just too problematic if there is a viable candidate in the client’s location. In addition, most companies are not interested in paying for relocation in a bad economy. Moreover, there is usually the additional challenge of a spouse who must also relocate and find a job.

5. The next aspect the recruiter will look at is whether the industry experience matches the client’s. Again this is not an economy that allows for deciding whether skills will transfer from one industry to another. If candidate is in medical software development and the job is in financial development - the recruiter will not be calling. Skills might transfer and candidate might become a financial software developer, but it is not up to the recruiter to do that.

6. Education is the next big thing to consider and this one can be an automatic killer. Most recruiters are looking for a Masters in Computer Science or Engineering because they are hired to find the best candidates. No company will be paying a recruiter for a non-degreed or Bachelor of Arts candidate.

7. If candidate does not hold any position for an extensive period of time, job seeker should not expect an interview with a recruiter. a If candidate had six jobs in the last four years there better be a very good reason for it.

And last but not least says Alex Kovalenko: "List your accomplishments and what technologies you have worked with the two - three companies you have worked for. Make sure your resume is two pages long (even if you have worked for over 10 years) and is in traditional and chronological format."

 

Courtesy by: Alex Kovalenko

 

Developments in the job market point to increased cautiousness

The Indian economy is showing signs of deceleration, with growth in GDP and industrial production slowing down. Elevated inflation levels for a prolonged duration and the high interest rates are the two biggest factors affecting the growth momentum currently. The heightened financial and economic uncertainties in advanced economies have also dented business confidence levels. The gloomy economic condition has significantly impacted the pace of job creation in a host of sectors. The Naukri Job Speak index for Oct-11 witnessed a 3% decline in recruitment as compared to the previous year. However, the three-month moving average of the index continues to display positive trend in hiring activity.

 

A detailed analysis of the Naukri Job Speak index for Oct -11 reveals that companies across all key industry sectors have been hesitant to hire additional workforce owing to growing downside risks to growth in Europe and US and weakening domestic demand. The sharp dip in job creation within the Auto, Construction and Banking sectors is testimony to deteriorating labour market conditions. Developments in the job market point to increased cautiousness from businesses with regard to recruitment decisions. Hiring is likely to be depressed in the forthcoming months as companies struggle to cut overhead costs. The future outlook for hiring depends heavily on how well corporate profits hold up and global economic activity gains momentum.

 

 

News & Trends

           

            Netherlands-based Royal Philips Electronics, the consumer electronics company is planning to cut 4,500 jobs globally. The move is a part of a cost saving programme where the company plans to save around US$ 1 bn (800 mn Euros).

 

            According to a latest Supreme Court ruling, employees of a liquidated company are entitled to first preference of provident fund dues over arrears due to banks, financial institutions and the government. The apex court passed this ruling while upholding the Employees Provident Fund Commissioner's (EPF) appeal challenging the concurrent findings of the Company Law Board and the Bombay High Court.

 

            The unemployment rate in the USA remained unchanged at 9.1% during the month of Sep-11 over Aug-11. On a y-o-y basis, the unemployment rate declined by 0.5 percentage point. The total number of unemployed persons stands at 14.0 million. The unemployment rate in the UK for the three months to August 2011 was 8.1% of the economically active population, up 0.4 on the quarter.

 

 

Courtesy: Naukri Edge

 

Five ways to crack the whip when it is needed...

The new-age boss is expected to be the benevolent guide who will always back his team, hand-hold each member and push them to succeed by carefully eroding their faults. But there are times when he has to crack the whip.

It may result in wrath and the boss's popularity may dip for a while, but to hold the team in steadfast discipline is a propelling factor. There are ways a boss can rein in errant team members without causing unnecessary damage, says ET.

Be the change
Many managers call their team for a meeting and turn up late, washing away the relevance of the issue that was to be discussed, says R Elango, HR head of MphasiS. The team tends to mimic the ways of the manager, and this shows in their attitude in meetings and the work coming out of it.

Leave out ambiguity
"When setting targets and key result areas, the boss will have to be very clear on what he expects from each one of them so there is no place for ambiguity, which results in indiscipline," says Ronesh Puri, managing director of Delhi-based executive search firm, Executive Access.

Reward and Punish
A team head should know follow the reward and punish principle, says Elango. So if employees exceed the performance criteria but are indisciplined in their approach towards work and others during team tasks, then they should not be rewarded. Similarly, to ensure a balanced approach, an employee who may be disciplined but is not a performer should not be rewarded.

Say it Loud and Clear

An employee may not know he or she is not following the rules, and will continue if not checked. The first step, says Puri, is to talk to them and explain clearly that such behavior will not be tolerated.

The manager should find a reason behind such behavior and if it continues, send a warning letter stating the consequences could impact their appraisal. If the employee still takes it lightly, the boss should go ahead with giving him or her poor rating during review and mention why.

Set the Team Tasks
The manager should get employees to work in as many team tasks as possible. This brings in a sense of responsibility, and they will know their performance will impact others' grading as well.

An indisciplined employee may not follow instructions to the team initially but will realize how his or her waywardness is leading to low scores, for which colleagues will hold them accountable. This often is a factor that pushes people to change their ways and work better.

Article courtesy of Economic Times

6 Reasons Why You Didn't Get The Job

If only bosses could talk!

We’d be able to find out why it was that we didn’t get the call back, didn’t get the interview, didn’t get that sweet job we thought we were just perfect for. There must be a reason, right?

One of the biggest frustrations of the modern job hunt is “the black hole” — that super-gravitational mass that sucks in resumes and applications and emits no feedback, no light, no rhyme or reason.

So this week and next week, I’m going to let the boss “talk.” I’ll be doing an interview with a hypothetical hiring manager, and sharing with you all the “reasons why” the boss didn’t hire you. And then two weeks from now, I’ll follow up with practical advice as to what you can do about it.

This week we’ll focus our “interview” on those things you can control: your resume, your interview, and your application. And then next week, we’ll look at those things that are out of your control, and what that means for you …

So taking those things you can control as to why that boss didn’t hire you, let’s get started with our interview with a hypothetical hiring manager — we’ll call her Betty Boss …

Me: Betty, thanks for taking the time to talk with us.

Betty Boss: You’re quite welcome.

Me: OK, Betty, you say you didn’t hire this candidate “for a reason.” If that candidate was sitting here today, what would you tell him or her that reason was?

Betty: Well, the most important thing is, I never saw your resume.

If your resume never made it past the HR admin that screens resumes, or never gets selected by the computer technology to be shown to me, I obviously can’t hire you.

What candidates in 2012 have to realize is that they need to write their resume for four audiences: the Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) that most corporations, including ours, use to manage their recruiting process, the HR admin that sorts through the piles of resumes and selects a couple dozen, the recruiter or HR person that reviews and presents the resumes to me, and, then, of course, me.

Writing one resume that meets these four needs is a challenge, but it can be learned, or you can hire a professional to do it for you.

But if for any reason at any point in that four-stage process, your resume is not selected or reviewed, I obviously will not be hiring you.

Me: Thanks Betty, what’s another reason you might not have hired a candidate?

Betty: I think this should also be obvious to people, but it’s not: I didn’t understand why you were applying for my job.

It’s rather easy in the internet era to hit “apply” and submit your credentials, but far too often, I have no idea why you think you’d be a good fit. If the job lists “CPA a must” and you don’t have a CPA, or the job description makes it clear that it’s a sales manager role, and you’ve only been an individual contributor, why are you wasting my time and yours?

Those are the obvious ones, but let’s take it a bit further, shall we? The past few years of turbulence have caused great people to come onto the market. It’s also caused them to think about “expanding their horizons” and switching to a different field or industry.

If it is not crystal clear to me as to why you want to fill the role for which I’m hiring, I’m not going to select your resume; I’ll select one of the outstanding people currently available who fit the bill exactly.

I’d be open to hiring someone who doesn’t have the exact experience or background I’d envisioned for the role, but I need to see some evidence that they’ve thought through the transition and have already taken steps to become the person who deserves the job — they’ve taken classes, attended conferences, added additional responsibilities in their present position, etc.

If you’re asking me to take a flyer on you, I’ll do that sometimes, but you have to earn that right and show that you’re worthy of it.

Me: Thanks, Betty, I don’t think a lot of people think of it that way. What’s another reason?

Betty: Your resume didn’t grab me.

Most of my jobs these days get dozens, or even hundreds, of applications. One of the reasons I post my jobs on TheLadders is that I don’t see a lot of the nonsense applicants that I’d get if I posted it elsewhere. On average, a job posted with TheLadders gets 14 applications.

That’s still over a dozen candidates, and I’m only hiring one person for the job.

The typical hiring manager wants to interview six candidates to make a hire, and I’m no different. So your resume needs to stand out to grab my attention.

Resumes shouldn’t state things in a wishy-washy manner such as “Hired to be Vice President, Western Region” or “Responsible for a $17 mm budget.” Of course, you were hired for the job, and of course you managed a budget! That’s what a job is, by definition.

I don’t want to know that you have a pulse and you collected a paycheck for a pretty title. What I want to know is this: what did you do in that role and what did you accomplish? And how did you manage that budget more wisely, more cleverly, or more thriftily than anybody else I am considering for my job?

So if your resume doesn’t tell me those things and grab my attention, I’m not going to be able to guess and frankly, I’m just not going to be that interested.

Me: But Betty, not too many people are accomplished writers, and it sounds like you’re judging them based on the packaging rather than what’s inside.

Betty: Business isn’t about being fair. It’s about getting the best results possible given the time and resource constraints that we all face. And it’s no surprise that in a modern economy, how you package, present, and sell any product — whether it’s ice cream, enterprise software, or yourself — makes a big difference in how well that product is received by its target audience, whether that’s the consumer, a corporate purchaser, or a hiring manager like me.

Now my time is running out here and I’ve got a meeting in five minutes with the CEO, so can we please move things along?

Me: You’re a tough cookie, Betty, but sure, sure. Can you tell me why you didn’t hire this other candidate because of their interview?

Betty: Well, I do have to admit it was an agreeable interview, the candidate was rather pleasant and professional, and we had a nice chat. But that’s the problem: the interview was a nice chat.

We covered the fact that we both moved here from someplace else, the candidates’ interest in camping and hiking, we discussed the amazing phenomenon that is Jeremy Lin, and we talked about the challenges we both face in raising teenagers. So we had a really enjoyable time together.

But the candidate never got around to making the case as to why I should hire them to fill this position.

You know, I’m obviously busy, and I obviously have a need for somebody to do this work for me, and I obviously have a lot of other candidates with whom I’m speaking. So why didn’t this applicant persuade me in our face-to-face interview as to their ability to make a unique contribution, or produce a more effective end-result, for me and for this business in the role?

It was a wasted opportunity to convince me of his ability to make me look smart for hiring him.

Me: That’s interesting, which …

Betty: Which leads me to my next pet peeve with candidates, if I may be perfectly candid with you. Even if we’ve had a nice interview, you never said you wanted this job.

I understand that you’re at a stage in your career where you’re looking to branch out from the narrow box which you’ve been in before. And you shared with me the wide variety of opportunities you’re reviewing. Some of them involve changing your industry, changing your function, or even moving across country.

I didn’t hire you for my job because I couldn’t tell why you were interviewing for it — was it for fun, out of a curious interest, or because you actually really wanted this job? I’m glad you’re considering starting a consulting practice with some former colleagues, and it is certainly intriguing that you’re considering joining that hot new startup that made the cover of BusinessWeek last week, but it didn’t really convince me that you were interested in, and excited about, this job.

And I know how much hard work is ahead in this role. It’s going to be a real grind for the next couple years, and I need somebody who is going to be enthralled with, appreciate, and make a big success out of this role. So compared to other applicants for whom this is a perfect job, your motivation and your ambition didn’t set you apart.

Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll need to be going off to my meeting, so …

Me: Aww, Betty, how about just one more?

Betty: No, really, I’m afraid …

Me: Betty, c’mon, these are the top professionals in the United States you’re speaking with, how about just one more?

Betty: Well … [scowling] … OK, just one more.

I didn’t hire you because I heard back from somebody else first.

Your audience should know that getting headcount approved these past few years has been a nightmare. And because budgets have been squeezed all through the recession, fighting for a particular role to be opened is a real battle, and by the time you win, it’s already two months past what you had in the budget. So once I get a job open, I need people fast. So your resume and application were fine, and the interview went quite well, actually, and I was interested in proceeding.

But then we got to the part where we were interested in discussing an offer and you slowed to a snail’s pace in your responsiveness, while another candidate didn’t.

He networked his way in, had two of my colleagues call me, and followed up with a gracious, but deadly effective, thank-you note. He also returned my HR person’s calls the same day so we were able to move much more quickly with him.

I heard from you that you had a couple other interesting opportunities that you were certain were going to come through, and that’s why you slowed things down here. It’s entirely understandable.

But you have to understand that I have a business to run, and the gentleman who seemed more enthusiastic and did more legwork while you were hoping to land your dream job is the gentleman who is now employed here.

So while I know it’s disappointing for you that this opportunity has passed you by, and now you’re calling hoping to get momentum going again, I’m afraid it’s too late for you for this job.

And speaking of too late, I find myself in similar circumstances. I’ll really need to get going, so thank you very much.

Me: Well, thank you very much, Betty, for sharing your insights.

Well, folks, that’s a composite look at why hiring managers “didn’t hire you for a reason.” Next week, we’ll look at the things that are out of your control, and then two weeks from now, I’ll tell you what to do about it! Until then..

Courtesy: http://www.businessinsider.com/i-didnt-hire-you-for-a-reason-2012-3

Happy Holi...