How to Deal with a Passive- Aggressive Colleague

There is a certain breed of people in the workplace who can be termed as ‘passive-aggressive’. These people aren’t aggressive at the outset but harbor emotions deep down which affect their actions. They display their aggression in a rather passive manner. These situations need to be dealt calmly by professionals. Often the person is himself / herself somewhat at fault. While the colleague’s behaviour cannot be changed overnight, a doze of management training on behavioral factors can probably ease the case. Often the two people may share the common boss. In those cases openly addressing the issue to the superior is always a positive step.

Recruiting the IT Talent of the Future

Talent recruitment in the IT industry is a particular challenge due to several constraints. Unlike other industries, technology here changes rapidly and makes certain skills sets obsolete well before due date. However, while technology may upgrade, employee turnover must remain stable. Corporate training in such cases must take care of employee upgrade with regards to technical skills. Constant chopping and changing of personnel due to technology changes is not the way. Recruitment that is presently being conducted must take care of needs five years down the line and so a futuristic thought process must be taken into account.

Seven Strategies for Managing remote tech Talent

In the present business scenario, a critical element of talent management is to coordinate effectively with employees working remotely. Seven strategies have been identified by a respected publication in order to best do this. A multi faceted approach is ideal to this involving camera, mikes and software such as Slack. Daily scrums must be enabled across the globe to keep workers well connected. A bug tracker must be put in place so that issues may be tracked early and resolved immediately. Tools such as Google Hangouts or idonethis are ideal to confirm progress as this builds work momentum. Wrike is one tool which helps in project management as it enables a real time workspace with Facebook style networking possibilities. Similarly, the concept of video conferencing must be used up. Overall, communication is the lifeblood of such work styles and helps in removing mental blocks on remote employees.

Why Middle Managers are so Unhappy

A study was conducted to identify the segments of the workforce usually least engaged or committed. The understanding prior to the evaluation of results was that unhappy employees would typically be poor performers, possessing low skill sets, new recruits or inadequately educated. However, the results proved otherwise. In fact, the common string attaching all unhappy employees tended to be that they were in the middle of everything. They were middle managers with around five to ten years of experience. They feel they lack any unique appeal for the organization. They view the organization as ineffective and inefficient. In addition, they feel they are overworked, under-valued and their issues aren’t addressed on time. Unhappy middle managers do not see much scope for promotions and feel that their work lacks purpose. And then they also get bogged down by poor leadership. This is where management training programmes are needed to be effective. Employees must be accorded the opportunity to undergo complete 360 degree reform. Un-inspirational leaders must always be moved on. 

Why your Millennials are leaving You

A study conducted by business consulting giant Deloitte has revealed that millennials as a demographic group are found to be less loyal to their jobs than previous generations. As much as two-thirds of new recruits are likely to leave before the year 2020. The number is worst in markets such as Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand and only marginally better in the UK, Australia and the USA. Leadership roles instead motivate them. Millennials develop a sense of loyalty when provided with timely corporate training and mentoring. Also they tend to prosper where their values are met. They also demand ideal work environments. Lastly, a majority of millennials wish to associate with organizations that have the right company culture.

The right way to off-board a departing Employee

A major though often neglected component of talent management is the off-boarding process. A number of employees who are of critical importance to the organization and possess business know-how, need to be off-boarded in a measured manner. Instead of excessive paperwork, writing reports and exit interviews, there must be a proper replacement plan. In case the person departing is an expert, the organization must make sure that the person shares his / her expertise before leaving. Apprenticeships must be created around that person so others may pick up vital business tricks. Also management training programmes ought to be conducted with the departing individual and the team taking over. Finally, the team must realize that if individuals leave on good terms, there is always the element of the person eventually returning. For that a positive relationship must be maintained. In addition the organization, must forever be prepared for such situations and plan accordingly beforehand.

Don’t lose track of high performers who take a Hiatus

High performers in any organization are difficult to get and thus those who perform well but quit after a period are particularly regrettable losses for several organizations. It is extremely important to keep track of these people so that someday they may rejoin. Part of that process involves a detailed exit interview which will include a pointer on whether they would like to rejoin. Studies have indicated that several people go through period of profile shifts when they may leave. Also, a number of women leave their full-time jobs to focus on family during childbirth and care. As part of talent management, organizations must make sure these high performers are communicated that they will be welcome at future occasions.

How much Technology is too much in Talent Management

While technology is playing an increasing role in the art of talent management, a feeling exists that perhaps there is too much of it. Certain signs exist which clearly prove this trend to be scarily true. In such cases, project managers exist for each system. New implementations are always round the corner and employees aren’t too pleased about them. Communications get lost. Most importantly mergers and acquisitions create the harassment of duplicate systems. In order to avoid all this, only high level activities and interactions must be technology aided. On the job capabilities for top talent must be activated to facilitate smooth integration of technology to work processes.

10 disruptive HR Technology Trends for 2016

Global giant Deloitte has identified certain technology trends which in the year 2016 will disrupt human resources management. Technology is set to revolutionize employee engagement techniques. The smartphone has emerged as a platform to conduct HR operations. Talent management is now being conducted by ERP vendors. A number of HR processes are now being outsourced to firms which use Cloud based technology. In spite of this extensive use of Cloud computing, demand for technology services has not reduced. The concepts such as employee feedback and corporate culture have gained importance. The influx of real time data has facilitated the alignment of performance management with market feedback. Startups are innovating their corporate training programmes by integrating learning for their handful of employees from across disparate sources. 2016 will see further rise in the usage of predictive analytics. All these changes are set to expand employee engagement with the firm.

Why high IT Talent Turnover is your Fault

Staffing and talent management firm TEK-systems has conducted a study to understand the high rate of employee turnover in the IT industry. Fresh graduates have certain demands such as vacation time, work-life balance and continuing education. Some organizations enable employees to go for executive MBA in order to facilitate their learning. Some firms even have provision for employees to buy shares of the company, but limitations occur when seniors themselves aren’t aware of exact stipulations. Compensation is a major concern for many. At the end of the day though, it was understood by the researchers that whatever a firm does, some people will leave in any case.

IDEO’s best-kept secrets on Employee Engagement

A number of firms these days are grappling with best ways to keep their employees engaged and that is what IDEO has perfected. IDEO believes that keeping employees involved and happy is an integral part of talent management. The mission statement is eased out in such a way for all to comprehend. A culture of business innovation is wedded in where everyone needs to participate in the same. Also this creativity is more of a bottom-up approach enabling innovation to come from different verticals within the firm. Finally, a sense of social collaboration has been inculcated across the organization.

The 5 truths that must be understood about motivating Millennials

There are certain business practices which go particularly well with the generation of new recruits to most organizations now termed collectively as ‘millennials’. These practices will ensure the firm proves to be a success in the art of talent management. The products or services churned out by the firm must have an element of business innovation and be relevant to existing needs. A bit of controversy to spice things up is what attracts youngsters. However, they do value authenticity in the product and a genuine purpose to provide top service. Millennials pride themselves of being different from the crowd as well as dynamic in approach. Finally, what really motivates them is when they feel the final product has something they can associate with.

Nonprofits can’t keep ignoring Talent Development

While on the surface, non-profit organizations appear to be totally different, yet a number of challenges they face are similar to those of for-profit organizations. Talent management is clearly one of them as evidenced by the high turnover ratio. Business research conducted by the Bridgespan Group shows that less than a third of the C-Suite positions at such firms were filled by internal hires. Onboarding of new recruits requires on average, twice the amount of time as existing employees do. Low compensation and lack of professional development opportunities have commonly been cited as reasons for executives leaving these firms. Donors Choose is one such not-for-profit firm which has defied the odds, and ensured employee stability and this is something the industry has to ensure.  

Professionalism and Career Success

The exact definition of the world ‘professional’ may differ depending on dictionary, work culture, work profile or designation. But certain tenets of professional behaviour remain common to all situations. As per business research conducted by Bloomberg, certain tendencies are disliked by employers across the board. One of them is lack of punctuality. Then there is the sense of entitlement. A poor work ethic and lack of urgency are also not recommendable. Gossip must be avoided at all costs at workplace. Even proper corporate training programmes cannot bring up the level of those who resist coaching. Humility is of utmost importance. Finally, the person must avoid whining or complaining at any cost.

5 Predictions for the Freelance Economy in 2016

Business research conducted has thrown some predictions on the way freelancing as a way of working will continue in the year 2016. There has been much debate on regulations surrounding freelancing and there is need to change existing norms. Numerous functions within the broad gamut of HRM such as Human Capital Management and Vendor Management Systems need to be consolidated as part of a common HRMIS. Greater number of people will now freelance leveraging the capabilities of their smartphones. Marketplaces with kiosks for availing certain products or amenities will see a decline due to rise of the on-demand economy. Even large organizations will eventually realize the benefits of building on a freelance network and will embrace this concept.