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You probably learned about a SWOT analysis in school, but when is the last time you applied it to your business? It’s easy to get caught up in the chaos of everyday tasks, but taking time to evaluate your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats is a great way keep your business plan on track. Existing businesses can use a SWOT analysis at any time to assess a changing environment and respond proactively. It’s a best practice to conduct a strategy review meeting at least once a year that includes reviewing your company’s SWOT analysis. New businesses should also use this analysis as a part of their planning process. There’s no “one size fits all” plan for your business, so it is important to think of your new business in terms of its unique characteristics. This will allow you to establish a roadmap for the company right away to save you from a lot of headaches later on.
Are you starting to get the “itch” to move away from your current position? You’re not alone. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that roughly 3.5 million Americans quit their jobs every month. But, before you make the leap in quitting your job, it’s critical to have a plan in place for your next job. Applying for jobs at certain times of the year can increase your chances of getting hired. Read more below to find the right time of the year to look for a job — happy job searching!
Self-Awareness Theory is the notion that when we pay attention to ourselves, through introspection or otherwise, we judge ourselves according to our values. To be self-aware, one must recognize different aspects within themselves such as traits, behaviors and feelings. Read on to learn how to improve your self-awareness to become a better leader, maximize your potential in your current role and prepare yourself for future opportunities.
There’s no doubt that for the past 10 years, America’s corporate landscape has been fascinated with the arrival of the Millennial (Generation Y) workforce. Marketers targeted them, companies recruited them, and teachers adapted to them while the rest of the world tried to figure out how to appeal to them. It’s 2019 and fewer people are talking about the once-popular Millennial generation. Now, there’s a new buzzword permeating in the back of people’s mind: Gen Z. The generation following the Millennial crowd is the next “big thing” for companies and brands. With this new target demographic making up over 32 percent of the population, it’s important America understands Gen Z’s desires, thoughts and personalities in order to successfully gain their attention and earn their business.
Regardless of your field of work, networking plays an important role in the growth and success of your business and career. Networking events are a great way to meet new people and can serve as the foundation to building lasting professional relationships. In a study surveying participants in the US and Canada, 46% found their current job through traditional networking. Yet many professionals go to these events with no specific goals in mind and leave having accomplished nothing. If you’ve experienced this, it’s time to change your mindset around networking — no longer view it as a mindless social happy hour, but rather see it as an important time to invest in your future. Follow these tips to get the most out of professional networking events.
When working with others, it is easy to recognize their unique talents and opportunities for growth. But, oftentimes it is much more difficult to reflect on our own weaknesses and areas of expertise. If you're having trouble identifying your talents and areas for growth, a skills assessment is an excellent place to start. Skills assessments are surveys or interviews that identify and define an individual’s actual skills. They pinpoint soft skills, which are personal attributes that enable a person to interact with others (e.g. attention to detail), and hard skills, which are specific, technical attributes that can be measured (e.g. math). Mastery is most often measured on a Likert scale, where 1 is emerging and 5 is mastery. Skills assessments are an excellent opportunity to identify gaps in your hard and soft skills and potential. Learn more about the benefits of skills assessments below. The many benefits will have you wondering why you didn’t take a skills assessment yesterday!
More than one in four Americans describe themselves as “super stressed.” Between building careers and managing our hectic personal lives, it's no wonder so many people feel overwhelmed by their responsibilities. The term “work/life balance” may seem like a unicorn in the working world equivalent to good airline food or a printer that can’t sense fear. Following these steps will help you create boundaries for your personal and professional life and allow you to take control of how you spend your time.
When taking time off, it’s important to set an auto out of office reply. But, the standard “I’m away from the office and will return your emails when I return” is just doing the bare minimum. Think of your out of office response is an opportunity to impress your colleagues and potential clients, and make the best of it! Follow these simple tips to upgrade your OOO response before your next vacation.
For most employees, conversations with the boss can be daunting. But, there are some topics that can be harder to navigate than others. Maybe you’re unhappy at work or you feel like you’re being underpaid, but regardless of your specific situation, your boss is there to help. The first step in approaching a tough conversation is to set up a meeting with your boss. Send over a quick note asking for 30 minutes to go over some things. This will allow your boss to give you his or her full, undivided attention during your meeting. Here are some tough conversation topics to have with your employer and how to appropriately handle them.
We’ve all been there. You walk into the office ready to take on the day, equipped with an upbeat attitude and a long to-do list, only to be confronted with negativity before your first cup of coffee. Few things are as damaging to productivity as negative energy in the office. And the worst part is, it’s contagious. Negativity stems from many sources — poor communication, unexpected changes in staffing or nature of work, inexperienced management, or even just one disgruntled employee on a mission. Negative energy and low morale can turn even the most solid of cultures into a toxic environment, causing happy, productive employees to leave the company and ultimately impacting the bottom line. According to a Columbia University study, the likelihood of job turnover at an organization with high company culture is just 13.9 percent, whereas the probability of job turnover in low company cultures is 48.4 percent. So, how can you stop your office from becoming a toxic workplace?
