How Much Your Honesty Might Cost You

How many times have you heard from your manager that your integrity and honest opinion would be much appreciated? Probably many. But has it ever made you suspicious?

Especially, in the situations when your opinion apparently does not completely alight with the one of your management. Shouldn’t you be careful when you speak your mind? You’d better be so. Of course, it is not that you should never trust your manager. Sometimes your expert advice and clear point of view may help a great deal. But there are circumstances when you’d better off holding back, if you are not sure. Don’t assume at once that your manager necessarily wants your help. She/he might just want to understand who you are and what you’re up to. Don’t delude yourself with the idea that managers tolerate any critics from you, even if they say so.

Managers are people with a certain degree of vanity. Otherwise, they would not have become managers. Hearing critique from anyone especially from their subordinates might be quite unpleasant, to say the least. Why then would they ask their subordinates to be honest with them? It’s easy. They just want to know whom they deal with, and how trustworthy their colleagues/subordinates are. One day they may have to make quite unpopular decisions that may cause a negative feedback from your fellow employees. And in these situations they must know if they can rely on your understanding and support or not.

We are not suggesting that you lie to your manager all the time, but for your own safety, know exactly what is behind this interest in your opinion.

Even if you have to disagree with your manager, try to substantiate your ideas with most powerful arguments you can find so that she/he would not take it personally, but see your professional approach and most importantly willingness to help. Just remember, the managers are looking for someone they could trust. It won’t happen if you never speak up, as having your own opinion is one of the criteria of competence and professionalism. Nor will it happen if you and your manager totally have no ground for agreement.

A Job Description and a Real Job

Why do companies sometimes struggle with finding qualified candidates, whereas many candidates with a great experience cannot nail a job that they seem to be qualified for? A so-called “War for talent” has been a real concern for recruiters lately.

As a matter of fact, you can see positions at some organizations being vacant for quite a long time. And it is not always just about money. Remuneration might be quite lucrative but still is not able to attract qualified candidates. Why?

Amongst other reasons, there is one that hardly has ever been given a proper attention to. Just a quick look at job requirements can shed light on the problem. Continue reading

Temporarily Unemployed

Unfortunately (or sometimes fortunately), not everything in our life happens according to our plans and desires. Unexpected lay off is one of those unpleasant things that almost none of us feels secure against. Well, how to handle this if it happens? Of course, when everything is going just alright at work and  nothing remotely dangerous seems to happen, it is hard to make yourself think of what you are going to do should you be let go. As well as it’s almost impossible to prepare yourself for getting a bad news without being emotional. Regardless how well you think you prepared for taking it, you almost surely will be struck by it at least for the first moment. Continue reading

Quick Interview Tip

Supposedly, you are looking for a job and when a prospective employer or recruiter eventually reaches out to you one day, you probably will be willing to talk to them right away. Do not rush. If an interviewer suggests calling you back and scheduling an interview for a later time, take advantage of this opportunity. But be specific and quick with helping the recruiter to set up a time at both your and her/his earliest convenience. Continue reading

On the Other Side…

Most of the content of this blog covers some ideas or recommendations to those looking for a job. But at this moment we decided to address those who facilitate the hiring process i.e. recruiters and hiring managers. We’ve already made this attempt in our earlier article “Who Benefits from Interview Tips”. After all, the success of the interview depends not only on a candidate’s performance in it, but, to a certain extend, on an interviewer’s skills and ability to get out of the conversation as much as possible, keeping within legal and ethical bounds. Continue reading

How to Work with a Recruiter

Consider recruiters as your business partners in a very serious project – job search. Being treated this way they would feel more respectable and therefore may be helpful.

Be honest with them and speak openly about any concerns you may have regarding a potential job opportunity, so that they could help you. Of course, it depends on how professional your recruiter is. A professional recruiter always appreciates integrity of their candidates, which helps them coordinate their work properly and find the right fit. Continue reading

How to Quit, the Right Way?

You may have different reasons for leaving your current job. Ether you are being let go or resigning at your own will, it is crucial to handle this situation highly professionally. Why? Just for one reason, at least – your future employer inevitably will want to talk to your previous manager about your performance.

Latest studies revealed that a reference check is not always a good predictor of a candidate’s future performance though. Some more radical HR professionals even consider a reference check as an anachronism. And there is an obvious reason behind this critical statement – your future employer knows neither you as a candidate nor your references but, nevertheless, tries to make their decision on what absolute strangers would tell about you. Continue reading

Probationary Period – Ways to Survive

There are no specific terms of how long the probationary period may last. It might take from 3 to 12 months, depending on the position, type of organization or industry specifics. Regardless of this, the goal for someone going through a probationary period remains always the same – to survive in the new job. Even if you managed to survive the probationary period, you should not put down your efforts any further. Remember that you remain a novice for at least one year or more. Anything could happen in the organization and the last person who joined it would be the first to go. Continue reading

Employment Termination for Just Cause or Poor Performance

There may be different reasons for employment termination. However, be it an employee’s poor performance, staff reduction, а function elimination or anything else, the process of dismissal must be backed up by sound justification and professionally conducted. We wish you will never have to use our advice. But, if you happen to be fired for poor performance, make sure that your employer presents to you all evidence of your poor performance: Continue reading