Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom

Career Durability: Ensure You Have a Job As Long As You Want One

You might remember that last fall, I helped DeVry University with a survey about workplace sentiment during the COVID-19 pandemic. At a time when employees should be feeling recognized and celebrated, nearly one in four employed Americans said they believed that American workers are not valued. And, more than a third of survey respondents claimed that based on their employer’s actions since the start of the pandemic, they feel disposable.

Were these feelings valid? Could employers actually take or leave employees, not caring if they were successful or unsuccessful, contributing or not contributing, employed with the company or leaving to go somewhere else?

The workforce is changing in major ways. The pandemic sped up a movement from strict scheduling to flexible “work on your own time” engagements. Prior to COVID-19, we were already seeing smart machines and automation as part of daily work, and the tremendous growth of the gig economy.

Taken together, these trends show that the old ways of sustaining a career no longer work. In past decades, you could go to college or a trade school, get a degree, and use the skills associated with that degree to work for one – or maybe a few – organizations over the course of your working life.

That is no longer the case. Jobs – and the skills required for those jobs – are changing rapidly.

In these times, nothing is certain except change, and this is unnerving. In fact, Ceridian’s 2021 Pulse of Talent report, which surveyed more than 5,000 people across five regions, found that 66% of individuals are taking job security into account more now than before the pandemic.

Career durability is a ticket to long-term security

To avoid feeling – and indeed being – disposable, today’s employees need to be the leaders of their own careers. They must build what we call career durability.

Career durability involves acquiring the skills, mindset, and knowledge to be an engaged and productive member of the workforce – continuously. On LinkedIn, I explained career durability as including these five areas:

• Hard skills: skills that allow you to complete tasks in a specific job.
• Soft skills: skills for collaborating effectively with others.
• Applied technology skills: skills that allow you to leverage available technology to do your job better.
• Institutional knowledge: job or industry expertise gained through experience.
• Growth mindset: being willing to improve, learn, and reconsider existing ways of doing things.

For more where this came from, read the full article at the Ceridian Dayforce Wallet blog.

How Working Parents Can Hack Their Professional Development

Considering the average working parent's schedule, most don't have time to pursue an additional degree or attend lengthy onsite trainings while parenting and working full time. 

However, keeping skills current is essential to gainful employment through the automation age. Let's have a look at six alternate ways working parents can upskill without drowning in additional commitments.

1. Read a book on your phone.

In my home office, I have a stack of business books I've been meaning to (at least) skim, but the idea of sitting down with 250 pages overwhelms me. 

Instead, working parents should consider downloading a relevant professional development book onto their smartphones, and stealing a few minutes to read while waiting in line at the grocery store or sitting in the doctor's waiting room. 

You'd be surprised how the time adds up! Employing this strategy, I went from reading a book a quarter to a book a month.

2. Listen to podcasts on your commute.

On a related point, commuting by car, train or foot involves at least an hour a day for most working parents. You can stay entertained and learning about your field by searching podcast directories, such as Apple's Podcast app, Google Play Music and Spotify, and choosing one that appeals to your sensibilities and development goals. 

Usually spanning 30 to 60 minutes, podcast episodes are the perfect size to consume while making your way to and from work.

3. Take an online course during lunch or after bedtime.

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are free, short or long-form courses provided by established universities like Stanford and Yale, as well as specialized sites like Coursera, EdX and Udemy. These offerings include a mix of learning modalities including filmed lectures, readings, quizzes and online community interaction. 

The good news is working parents can sign in whenever they have time. You might also consider standalone webinars from third-party associations or companies in your space. For example, I regularly attend webinars sponsored by the American Management Association and the Human Capital Institute. If I can't make the live events, I'll listen to the recordings after my kids are in bed.

For more where this came from, head over to the AMEX Business site.

The Real Story Behind Stretch Assignments

Stretch opportunities are all the rage in the workplace. But as popular as they are, it’s unclear why some people decide to accept a stretch assignment or role – and others step aside. It’s also unclear why women haven’t benefited from stretches as much as men.

Selena Rezvani is Be Leaderly’s VP of consulting and research and a recognized speaker on women and leadership. She recently led Be Leaderly’s original research on how both genders decide if they are ready for a stretch, and how they make that decision. The report also explores how employers can create a workplace that supports employees who step out of their comfort zones. Based on a survey of 1,549 U.S.- based professionals, the research uncovered the following:

• Men (48%) and women (52%) are equally interested in ultimately advancing into senior vice president or C-suite roles.
• However, the largest portion of women (45%) don’t feel their employers make it easy to gauge if they are ready for a promotion, while the largest portion of men (40%) think their employers help them know whether they are prepared to advance.
• Women are less engaged in and passionate (67%) about their jobs than men (77%), another possible explanation for why fewer women take on stretch opportunities. A strong correlation exists between employees who feel engaged and passionate about their work and those who perceive that their employer makes it easy to assess their readiness to advance.
• In order to apply for a job, both women and men feel that they need to meet, on average, 75% of the qualifications for the role – a surprising difference from accepted thinking about gender attitudes toward the qualifications people feel they need to try for a new position.
• Women may hold back from taking stretches because when assessing how ready they are for a new job, they are less likely than men to overestimate or “round up” their skills, and more likely to underestimate or “round down” what they know or can do. (73% of women disagree that they round up their skills while 60% of men disagree).
• For both men and women, the top criteria for deciding whether to take a stretch assignment are having the influence to create a positive outcome (40% women/43% men), and getting an assignment that lines up with their career goals (33% women/33% men). Both genders say office politics is the biggest practical challenge to taking a stretch assignment (38% women/33% men), with lack of time a close second (34% women, 31% men).
• Money matters. Men are 3.5 times more likely than women to cite pay as an important factor in evaluating the appeal of a new assignment, job or level.

So what do we make of this? Well, if the workplace is being disrupted by sweeping, large-scale trends, employees must have the opportunity to continually redefine and hone their skills. One way employers can offer that is through stretch assignments that provide intrapreneurial short-term “gig economy” type work with minimal risk and disruption, all within the organization’s dominion. Employees, especially millennials, want to “job-craft” their roles. Offering an internal gig economy – or stretch marketplace – delivers big.

Hiring Managers: Are You Supporting Vets?

In a recent Prudential Financial and IAVA survey published on Military.com¹, two-thirds of veterans said they faced a difficult transition to civilian life, partly because they speak a different language than the business leaders hiring them.

Tom Tarantino, chief policy officer for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, said that we aren’t doing a good enough job of training people leaving the military to look for work. “It’s less a matter of veterans overestimating their skills than it is miscalculating how their experience translates to nonmilitary jobs and how well business leaders comprehend what veterans can offer,” he commented.

Because of these disconnects, a veteran who managed a few dozen people in the military might only be considered for an entry-level, individual contributor role in a private-sector organization, and significant achievements might be overlooked because they occurred in a military rather than a business setting.

Preparing New Vets for Transition

A few years ago, as a workplace and career author and consultant, I worked with the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Defense to overhaul the military’s Transition Assistance Program (TAP)². This mandatory five- to seven-day program educates departing troops on job skills, vet benefits, and personal finances. The course explains the expectations, behavioral styles, cultural norms, and “lingo” associated with civilian employment and helps veterans adjust to a less rigid routine with increased individual competition.

Perhaps most importantly, it guides veterans in effectively translating skills acquired in the military – which often include strategic thinking, scenario planning, critical thinking, problem-solving, coaching, self-discipline, time management, attention to detail, teamwork, interpersonal communication, and adaptability – to civilian jobs in which these exact attributes are needed.

For the rest of this post, please visit the DeVryWORKS website.

Hot Career Change: From Finance to Technology

A few years ago, if a financial professional said they were abandoning the world of money for the world of software, they might have been laughed out of the room. But recent examples (including a banker who went to work for Google, a Barclay’s exec who joined a tech firm, and an economist who launched a healthcare technology venture capital firm) illustrate that financial prowess is exactly the sort of expertise that tech companies desperately need.

Wall Streeter takes Google by storm

A recent Business Insider article described the journey of Sameer Syed, a JP Morgan investment banker who took a position working in strategic partnerships at Google. According to Syed, financial training requires the development of a tremendous work ethic, communication, and a fresh perspective that traditional technology workers sometimes don’t have.

Attention to detail and flexibility are two other traits that often aren’t represented as strongly in tech firms. For instance, Syed’s colleagues have commented on his emails and presentations. “They were like, ‘Oh wow, this is very clean and professional. It looks like we hired a bank to do it,'” he told Business Insider. “Working in banking, you can’t have mistakes or errors, and sharpening this skill is super valuable.”

Despite the stereotypes about stiff bankers, Syed said that financial professionals are taught to adapt to changes and learn on the job quickly. Tech startups want to know that a prospective employee can pick up a new concept and get it immediately. Financial pros can do this because they’ve been in the position of having to rapidly pick up new regulations and products.

For more on this intriguing career path, check out the full post on the QuickBase Fast Track blog.

Why You Don't Need to Save the World

I once knew a guy named Brian. Brian was a recent college graduate and he wanted to work for an environmental nonprofit, but he couldn’t find a job. All of the organizations that interested him could only offer volunteer roles, and Brian needed to pay his rent.

Brian received a job offer in pharmaceutical sales. At first, he was resentful – Big Pharma wasn’t what he signed up for when he went to college. But after thinking it over, he decided to take the job and make the best of it. 

Brian used the huge company as his personal training ground. He talked to people in every department to learn about different functions of the business. He mastered the process of how new drugs were invented, approved, manufactured, and sold, and learned essential transferable skills including finance, marketing, IT, customer relations, and of course, sales.

Brian quickly became one of the top-ranked salespeople in his division and was promoted to manager. At this point, he was more marketable to the nonprofits, so I asked if he’d leave Big Pharma. “Why would I do that?” he said. “I want to do work that matters, and I’ve found a way to do that here.”

Sound good so far? Check out how you can do the same at my new Mashable column.

New Job Preparedness Study Emphasizes the Importance of Integrity and Adaptability

The Career Advisory Board that I established by DeVry University recently released the fifth annual Job Preparedness Indicator survey. This year’s findings indicate hiring managers are receptive to candidates changing careers, especially if their previous experience can be applied to the new position; but above all else, integrity is the No. 1 trait that candidates should possess.

Our annual research surveys 500 hiring managers in the U.S. to identify gaps between job candidate attributes and the applicant traits for which hiring managers are seeking. These gaps are identified by assessing desirable skills that are least common among entry-level, mid-level, and senior-level candidates. Here are some of our key takeaways:

Do your research, especially for a career change

• Hiring managers are increasingly more willing to consider candidates changing industries, with 38 percent stating they were very likely to consider a career changer with the right skills. Eagerness to learn is an asset, as more than half of respondents want to hire people who show willingness to gain the right experience and further develop their skills.
• The top concerns cited in the survey about career changing candidates included a lack of industry experience and an inability to assimilate into the organizational culture. However, 60 percent of hiring managers noted that these candidates can improve their chances of serious consideration for employment by devising a concise and sensible explanation for the change.

Attitude is everything

• Interestingly, for the fifth consecutive year, hiring managers say attitude outranks skill – especially when it comes to personal ethics. This year, however, integrity was ranked the No. 1 most important trait for a jobseeker to possess at any level.
• Candidates should keep in mind that hiring managers are naturally skeptical. Job seekers should be prepared to share examples of themselves being authentic and transparent in the workplace.

Adaptability is key

• In today’s business environment, change and evolution are constant. Hiring managers want to see candidates demonstrate adaptability and flexibility to changing situations.
• Job seekers need to articulate how they have adapted to change, with positive outcomes resulting because of their adaptive nature.

Make a good impression

• Technology allows hiring managers and candidates to connect virtually; however, face-to-face interviews remains as the preferred interview method – meaning job candidates need to know how to make a connection and hone their interpersonal skills for in-person interviews.
• As 46 percent of hiring managers surveyed cited strong interviewing skills as an important trait, candidates need to engage the interviewer in the conversation and not just answer their questions.

For full study results, head over to CareerAdvisoryBoard.org.

 

How to Be a Standout in Your Field

Brand strategist Scott James of publishing firm Greenleaf Book Group knows something about making a name for yourself in a field where everyone is smart and at the top of their game. He’s come up with the four questions that separate experts from pretenders.

Scott James believes there’s a clear line between experts who have built a platform and brand around their expertise and experts who are great at their work but haven’t figured out how to do this. What does this line look like? James says it’s the ability to answer the following four questions off the cuff. It shows that experts with big ideas think about specific, high level gauges of success, progress and growth all the time and guide their actions and initiative accordingly.

What’s Working? 

Experts know the answer to this because they measure everything. Those who build a business around their expertise know which email approach adds the most to their bottom line and they know if flying to a certain city for a meeting is the right move. They have a system in place to keep track of such things, and they take the time to assess and understand their data. Every successful expert can rattle off the two or three things they do that drives their business and expands their audience—and they can do so without thinking about it too hard.

What is Making You Stand Out?

Experts with strong personal brands know that they are swimming in a crowded ocean, and they can pinpoint what it is about what they do that other people get excited about, and they know how to talk about what they do in a way that honors their uniqueness and targets the specific needs of the people they want to influence.

What’s Next?

Experts think several steps ahead. The ability to be deeply in the project that is happening now and already be thinking at 50,000 feet (and how today is laying a foundation for three years from now) is a difficult mental tightrope to walk. But whereas some people get buried in the details of their current project and let everything else go, experts can walk that tightrope because they know it’s critical. Experts can’t afford to wait until after their current project is finished to think about what’s next.

For the rest of my tips, have a look at the QuickBase Fast Track blog.

Saying No to CEO

Even if you’re not intimately familiar with the bond market, you’ve probably heard of powerhouse bond house Pimco and its founder Bill Gross.

Gross, known internationally as the “Bond King,” made headlines in late 2014 when he quit the house he founded over 40 years ago for a far less lucrative position managing a new fund at Janus Capital. Allegedly, he tired of the constant clashes with other members of the Pimco management team.

Good riddance!

One might expect that Gross would be devastated, his ego battered and bruised. But instead, the creator of a $200 billion fund told Barrons that he was thrilled to give up his management responsibilities.

“I was always an investment guy, and the other stuff – hiring, paying people, planning, and so on – became a problem for me,” he said.  “I am uniquely exuberant about clearing all that stuff off my dish. I’ll still be intense, but the intensity and decibel level drop a bit in a smaller place. Also, common sense suggests that it will be easier to implement ideas in a $100 million portfolio than in a fund with more than $200 billion.”

Leaders come in all shapes and sizes

This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite quotes this year. It illustrates that Bill Gross knows himself, and also recognizes that leadership and contribution don’t require a CEO title. Not everyone is cut out for – or enjoys – the tremendous challenges and pace associated with running a large organization. Not everyone wants to lose the day-to-day participation in the projects they love in favor of becoming a generalist removed to the boardroom.

Some, depending on their personalities and work styles, will be far happier and more effective operating on a smaller scale, or even as individual contributors with no direct reports.

We’ve been taught since birth that we should always be climbing – trying to get from A to B to C – when in fact that’s a very personal choice. Career paths in the 21st century are highly individualized, and what is right for your neighbor or your mentor might not be right for you.

For more, have a look at the full post at Intuit's Fast Track blog.

Hot Field Alert: Project Management and Certification

The field of project management is always changing, but is official certification the way to keep up? Only you can answer that question for yourself, but here are some rationales from the Project Management Institute to consider.

Objective Third-Party Endorsement

A PMI certification reflects your project management knowledge, skills and abilities. As a respected institution in the industry, PMI can provide unbiased support for your project management expertise and professional experience.

Proof of Achievement

A PMI certification shows that you have demonstrated excellence in the field by meeting standard requirements established by global project management practitioners. The global aspect is critical because there may come a time very soon when the ability to manage cross-national project teams is imperative.

More Moolah

A PMI certification can lead to greater earnings. Many certification holders experience salary increases because of their certification status, and these increases definitely add up over the course of a career.

Opportunity Knocking

A PMI certification identifies you as a practitioner who has demonstrated competency in general project management processes or in specialty areas of practice based on industry standards. This may well lead to recruitment into a sexier area of project management or a role that’s a step up from your current one.

Employer Recognition

Employers like to see candidates and employees who invest in their own professional development. Certification shows your commitment to the field and illustrates that you are to in it to win it. This perception makes it likely that the most prestigious employers will consider hiring you for their open PM positions.

For more on why getting certified as a PM might be a smart move, check out the full post on Intuit's Fast Track blog.