Minnesota Headhunter

WTH??? 57% Of Employers Less Likely To Promote Those Who Swear In The Office

Awwwww (BLEEP)

CareerBuilder has come out with this survey Swearing at Work Can Harm Your Career Prospects and it looks like if I worked for a bunch of companies I would have to change my colorful use of the English language.

I don’t swear for the sake of wanting to sound like a sailor or truck driver but for emphasis… there are times and places where it adds impact to what is being said

But I never swear at someone… as in calling someone a name. That’s just wrong.

And yes, I am fully aware I need to cut down my use of cuss words.

Results from the survey:

51% of workers reported that they swear in the office

4th Of July 2012 Minnesota Fireworks Shows

What follows is the best list I can come up with for 4th of July fireworks shows in Minnesota.

Please confirm date, time and location.

If I am missing any please leave a comment below.

July 3rd

Anoka

Bloomington

July 4th

Minneapolis – St Anthony Main

Minneapolis – Powderhorn Park

St Paul – Harriet Island

Albert Lea

Apple Valley

Blaine

10 Jobs That Lead To Weight Gain

I had no idea what to title this blog post… not something I would usually write about. But because I have been trying to find ways to get/keep my body moving throughout the day this is on my mind.

I used to be a skinny guy. When I graduated from college in 1995 I was a very slim 150 lbs. I was in school during the day, playing basketball in the afternoon and a bartender at night.

I was always in motion.

By 2000 I was tipping the scale around 165 lbs. 2005 I was at 175 lbs. And for a few days after a Thanksgiving and spending a few days with Mom in 2009 I was 185 lbs.

NOT the trend one wants to have.

With some really basic changes in diet like trying not to eat after 7 pm, standing and walking while I am on the phone (all day), taking stairs versus elevators and other really simple behavior changes I dropped back to 175 lbs real quick.

The past 18 months I have been much more active with some light jogging, bike riding and infrequent trips to the gym. While not losing any weight I am down 2.5 notches on the belt.

A good problem to have… I need to take my suits to a tailor so they fit a slightly smaller me.

Minnesota Job And Career Fair: Jobs Summit 2012

The Minnesota Recruiting and Staffing Association will be hosting the 2012 Jobs Summit March 27^th (next week) from 9 am to 2 pm at the Minnesota School of Business in Richfield.

This is a FREE event for job seekers and has four parts:

Job Fair

30 staffing and recruiting companies will be interviewing for full time, part time and contract jobs.

TechRepublic: 10 Low Stress IT Jobs

Justin James at TechRepublic has come up with a list of 10 low stress IT jobs.

I am not sure if the folks doing these jobs see it this way but it is in the eyes of the beholder. And where you work.

For sure I agree with #10 IT Industry Analyst.

Click 10 low-stress jobs for IT pros for the rationale on this list:

1: Computer sales

2: Desktop support technician

3: Backups administrator

4: Configuration (or presales) engineer

5: Computer lab support

6: Application architect

7: Build engineer

8: Installation technicians

9: Trainer

10: IT industry analyst

Check out Making it in IT: 10 Low-Stress Jobs for IT… Really? to see Tom’s IT Pro for their response to the above list.

 
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Did You Get Paid For Leap Day?

I asked this question on Twitter and Facebook and had varying replies.

Of course hourly workers were getting paid for their work but what about salaried folks?

Here was my thought (and to make the math simple)... say you get paid $50,000 a year and there are (on average) 260 work days in a year. But in a Leap Year there are 261 work days.

$192.31 a day in a normal year and $191.57 in a leap year or $0.74 less per day.

Your per day pay would be a little less or in my mind, you worked free for the day.

Some replies said that because they get paid every two weeks they were getting paid for the day.

Still confused I sent a message to Jason DeRusha (@DeRushaJ) at WCCO TV who does a popular segment called Good Question.

Here is what he came up with:

Study: 466000 Apps Jobs Available

I don’t know how accurate this number is but TechNet partnered with Dr Michael Mandel to see what the number of jobs available are today versus the ZERO number in 2007.

Can you say thank you Apple, Google and Facebook among the many?

As usual I do not get stuck on the numbers or what search words were used for the survey. You can click Where The Jobs Are: The App Economy

What I always look for are the trends and no doubt here in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul the high demand (and increasing every day) for mobile developers, app developers, software engineers and web developers who can create code like this is through the roof.

Add on the designer, marketing and support jobs that are created downstream and this 466,000 number seems realistic. It could also be very low.

It for sure confirms the trend.

Commercial Break:

I would be silly if I did not say that should you be reading this and looking for a Minnesota IT job including one creating mobile apps you should contact me. This includes those who may not be looking but just want to talk about salaries, demand, the local tech community, etc

Back to the post…

Here are some nuggets from the study and below is a short clip from CNBC that aired this afternoon:

Paul DeBettignies On TV Talking About Salary Increases, Klout And Vacations

A couple of times in the past month (and once in August) I have made a local TV appearance and while I was posting links on twitter and Facebook I just realized did not post them here…
 

--> Last week (Jan 25, ‘12) I was on FOX 9 News with Recruiter: Research to Negotiate Salary talking about how company executives are more willing to give salary increases this year:

 

Recruiter: Research to Negotiate Salary: MyFoxTWINCITIES.com

Smokers Need Not Apply

There was an interview on CNN yesterday about how some hospitals, the one yesterday is in in Ohio, are screening candidates for nicotine use. Unfortunately the video is not posted on their site which is unfortunate because there was a great Q&A.

So far it seems just a few hospitals are doing this.

Their reasons range from wanting to cut healthcare costs to promoting a healthier lifestyle.

Critics ask about a slippery slope like beer drinkers and those who eat meat.

I don’t know what to think about this. On the one hand I get the cost of covering employees healthcare and on the other it seems like we are getting into their behavior.

Is this business doing their best to handle out of control costs or an intrusion into (potential) employees lives?

A few articles and video:

Boring Blogger? Discover Your Niche

The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap:
 

These days, blogging is as much an art as it is a science. Not only do you have to provide quality content, but you must also build an engaged readership that will come back for more.

How, then, are you supposed to go from boring to engaging if you’re just starting out? Well, how about discovering your niche? Though it seems simple, discovering what you’re going to blog about is a lot more than just posting what you like. Here’s how you can get started:

Find your passion. Blogging is always easier when you’re posting things you like, since it doesn’t seem like a chore or an obligation. Essentially, when you post things that interest you, it isn’t boring, so you keep yourself engaged.

However, figuring out your specific niche or passion isn’t as easy as it looks because you need to narrow a few things down. After all, the most successful bloggers have one set stance, not a million different thoughts.

Search Firms Used For Competitive Intelligence And Corporate Espionage

I have had quite a few conversations in 2011 with my search firm friends (all independent of each other) about how clients who in the process of a legitimate search (as in the search already started) have asked to see candidates from certain companies or firms.

While this is a common thing for hiring managers to want, people from a certain company, these conversations and perceived incidents seemed more of a “fishing expedition” to learn more about their competition.

A colleague in Silicon Valley was asked to add to the interview pool 2-3 candidates from a particular company. It was “out of place” to ask about it at that time.

During the post interview phone call my colleague learned that the questions these particular candidates were asked were much different than the rest of the pool.

One particular candidate shared some of the code he was working on with the CIO. For the candidate... he was sharing work samples. For the interviewing company... they were getting competitive intelligence.

Infrequently over the years there have been times when candidates tell me what questions they were asked and my ears perk up and I know the client was fishing for some info.

Wondering: What do non HR folks think of the phrase "Human Capital"

From the get go let me say I am biased… I think this term sucks. I am also not a fan of “Human Resources” but that horse ran out of the barn long before I got here.

Why you ask???

I think the the words and phrases we use matter.

So when companies say that people are their greatest asset, that without them their companies would not be successful and then words or phrases are used make the people who are their greatest asset into “things”… I object.

It’s just not consistent.

So my question is posed to those not in HR or Recruiting… what do you think of and/or how do you react to the phrase “Human Capital”?

I asked this question yesterday on Twitter and Facebook and had some immediate reaction.

Want Time Off? Don’t Fake An Obituary

This one falls under the category of: Dude… WTH were you thinking???

If you like Scott Bennett of Brookville, Pennsylvania want to take some time off from work and want to get paid for it do not do what he did… he placed an obituary in the local paper for his mother.

Who is very much alive.

This fella placed the ad in the The Jeffersonian Democrat (their local paper) so he could get paid time off from his factory job.

Wondering what his mother (and employer) think of this.

 

 

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So You Want To be An Astronaut? How Hiring: NASA

This is no joke… NASA is hiring Astronauts.

For those who have dreamed of going to space there just might be a chance.

Here is the recruiting video:
 

 

NASA had a BIG announcement yesterday and they have posted the following info online at USAJOBS. Find it by clicking:

Astronaut Candidate

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Job Title:

Astronaut Candidate

Department:

National Aeronautics & Space Administration

Agency:

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Unemployed Anthem: Cost Of Livin' – Ronnie Dunn

You ever hear “one of those songs” that stops you in your tracks?

This one did it for me.

Times are difficult on Main Street U.S.A.

And in the suburbs and downtowns too.

I hope this song takes off and I hope my recruiter, hiring manager and HR friends hear it too.

And not just hear it… but feel it.

Many of the industry conferences this year have included sessions about the “candidate experience”.

I hope this makes it more personal.

Not having a job sucks and we need to remember that every application and inquiry is a person with a family, responsibilities and most of all… pride.

Here is the video and below are the lyrics (there is a 34 second intro):

 

Blogging Does Not Make You An Expert

Lately I find that I disagree with more of what I read from the job search, career, HR and recruiting community than I agree with.

Maybe it’s because being on the other side of 40 I am starting to embrace the life of a curmudgeon. I hope that’s not the case. Hopefully it’s because I have been around long enough to have a finely tuned BS meter.

And so it happens again today that I read something and my BS meter breaks. Not just goes off but breaks...

On Twitter I saw a link to The Secret to a Successful Career Transition: Blogging, clicked and was taken to Brazen Careerist.

Third paragraph in I read:

Looking back more than eight years later, I wish someone would have told me that I didn’t need to wait for a job or title or promotion to become an expert.

WHAT?!?!?!?!

They didn’t tell you because it is not true!!!

I agree with the ideas in the article that writing a blog can help with recognition.

Back To Basics: Blocking And Tackling

I think too much.

I strategize too much.

I think about the thing and what might happen next and then branch into a flow chart of all sorts of possibilities.

It can be good that I can see likely outcomes and how to get there.

It is bad when I never start doing the thing.

Three quotes have jumped out at me in the past day and a half.

The first came from an old college friend and entrepreneur Darren Cox. We were talking about his startup UCaSTT and about my HireCast Consulting.

He could tell I was a little “wound up”, had some things on my mind and was doing a lot of thinking.

He told me:

"Stop thinking, start doing shit."

The second came in an article (I do not remember which one) that referenced a quote from Chris Gardner (The Pursuit of Happyness and Will Smith):

We Don’t Need More Jobs... We Need More Skilled Workers

I hope this title does not offend anyone. Here is what I am trying to say... companies across our country have jobs that are not being filled and we have workers looking for jobs.

The skills of those looking do not match the skills of the open jobs.

I am not laying blame on anyone for this because frankly everyone is at fault.

So should we create jobs to match the skills or... should we train to fill the jobs?

Clearly you can see that I lean towards the latter.

What happened to internships?

What happened to apprenticeships?

What happened to on the job training?

My opinion: we do not need a jobs program we need a training program.

So instead of sitting idle, instead of just watching this happen why do we not do something about it?

Minnesota Headhunter Blog Roll Updated | 70 New Blogs

It has been some time (I think it was January ‘11)  since I last updated my blog roll. This update comes with 70 blogs.

I also deleted a number of blogs that have not been active for some time. That was around 45 or so.

These blogs are also added to my TwinCitiesBlogs.com project.

 

Minnesota Politics Blogs:

• Governor Arne Carlson

Minnesota Recruiter and HR Blogs:

• DG Consulting Services
• Minnesota Labor & Employment Law Blog
• TempWorks Staffing Software Blog
• Career Professionals In Minneapolis
• Celarity
• LinkUp
• netWORKed Lawyers

4th Of July 2011 Minnesota Fireworks Shows

For 2012 information click 

4th Of July 2012 Minnesota Fireworks Shows

 

 

Updated July 2nd, 2011

I am posting this a bit earlier than usual and have links for most of the shows. Give me a few days and I will get them all.

If I am missing any please leave a comment below.

June 29th

• Plymouth

July 3rd

• Anoka

• Bloomington

• Hudson

July 4th

• Apple Valley

• Blaine

• Chanhassen

• Coon Rapids

• Cottage Grove

• Delano

• Eagan

• Eden Prairie

• Edina

• Elk River

• Forest Lake

• Hastings

• Lake Minnetonka – Excelsior

• Lakeville

• Minneapolis – Powderhorn Park

• Minneapolis – St Anthony Main

• Oakdale

• Prior Lake – City

• Prior Lake – Mystic Lake

• Richfield

• Roseville

• St Cloud

• St Louis Park

• St Paul – Harriet Island

• Stillwater

• Waconia

• White Bear Lake

• Woodbury

There are some more fireworks shows later this summer:

July 11th

• Robbinsdale

July 16th

• Maple Grove

July 24th

• Stillwater

July 30th

• Rosemount

August 6th

• Prior Lake

August 20th

• Mounds View

August 27th

• Woodbury