Steve Earle: "Six Days On The Road"

Free Workshop in Portland

Managing The Generational Mix
Hosted by Compass Human Resources
Presented by Kate Wildrick, Human Capital Development Specialist

Join us on Tuesday, April 28, 2009 from 10am to noon, for this complimentary seminar.
Location: PSU, 1515 SW 5th Ave, Suite 1053, Portland, OR
Limited seating is available. To RSVP, please send a request to
info@compasshumanresources.com or call 503.281.1528.


More and more organizations are realizing that generational miscommunication and
friction is impacting the bottom line. As many companies gear up for the massive exodus
of the Baby Boomer generation, they struggle to incorporate, retain and develop the
younger generation who are next in line to assume these roles.

Currently, there are four (4) distinct generations that make up the workforce.
Each generation’s communication style and value system are unique as they
have been influenced by a variety of historical events, social trends and
technology. Undoubtedly, as each of these generations interact with one another
in the workplace, issues of job hoarding, entitlement and iPods arise and
ultimately affect productivity and morale.

This unique seminar is designed to equip business owners, managers and
human resource professionals with the tools to manage intergenerational
workforce dynamics.

We’ll cover:
• Generational trends affecting the workplace
• The “Generational Identifiers” that make each generation unique
• Recognize and diffuse generational miscommunication
• Leverage the strengths of each generation

Monday Music Video

George Thorogood: "Get A Haircut (and get a real job)"

For all you non-conformists out there.

Navigating the Quirks of the Sustainability Job Market

In a time when most job markets are shrinking and companies are hunkering down to weather the recession, the sustainability job market continues to grow. And it's growing for many different types of positions - engineers, architects, program managers, contractors, and support positions like accounting, HR and marketing.

Seems like it should be easy to get a job then, right? Not if you aren't already working in the industry. The sustainability market, especially here in Portland, OR, is extremely relationship-based. Up until now, the same people stayed within the industry and simply moved from one organization to another. New employees generally came directly from an environmental studies program.

Now that the industry needs "new blood" it has to hire people from many different backgrounds. However, most recruiters still use a networking approach to filling positions.So, if you're simply responding to open job postings, you are behind the curve to get the position.

The best approach to getting a job in the sustainability sector is to determine how you want to apply your skills and target organizations that use them. Then you have to find ways to develop an interaction with people in those organizations. If that sounds daunting, it is.

One of the best places to find contacts currently is LinkedIn. There is a group called Green Professionals that is growing dramatically and it's a great place to learn about the industry, let people know about your job search, and get informational meetings with key industry professionals.

Portland is home to numerous sustainability-oriented events, and the more you can attend, the better. You will begin to see familiar faces. The good news about sustainability professionals is we love to network, talk about the industry, and share knowledge. Once you get connected, great things start to happen!

You can contact me for more information about job search strategies in the sustainability sector.

Good luck!

Monday Music Video

Johnny Paycheck: "Take This Job And Shove It"

...but only after you've found the next one!

Employment Branding - Build an Image That Brings Candidates to You

There’s a catch-phrase whizzing around the human resource world these days – Employment Branding. What the heck is it? And how do you get it?

If your company has employees and former employees, you have an image as an employer (whether you like it or not). Employment branding is simply the concerted effort of perfecting a positive image in the marketplace as a company that is great to work for.

Most of you are already familiar with corporate branding. It’s a marketing method of deciding how you want your customers to view your company, including all of the creative methods that you use to persuade them to come to you rather than your competitors. Employment branding is similar, but aimed at a different audience.

There are some differences between corporate marketing and employment branding. Marketing efforts generally use an advertising approach – the organization promoting itself to the public. It consists of slogans and headlines thought up by teams of creative folks. Employment branding, on the other hand, is more closely related to public relations. Employees and former employees promote the organization using anecdotal information. Most people will believe information if it is presented by another person in a story-like format.

The first step in developing an employment brand is determining what your current image is, and what areas of improvement need to be addressed to make that image even better.

Interview your star performers.
Your best employees could easily leave and work for someone else. So why are they staying? Ask them what keeps them coming in every day. They will provide you with a wealth of information about what makes your company a great place to work. Some of those things may even surprise you, so don’t skip this step!

Let employees tell you how to improve.
Ask all of your employees what would make your company an even better place to work. Now, naturally, you won’t be able to do everything, but you should see some common themes. Once you’ve identified those themes, take action to improve. So many employers gather this information in one way or another, but never really commit to doing anything about the issues. Don’t make that mistake. Remember, you’re hoping to persuade people to leave perfectly good jobs to come work for you!

Now that you know what your core strengths are as an employer, and you have employees and former employees who are willing to endorse your company, it’s time to figure out how to get the public in the loop.

There is no shortage of ways to promote your brand to candidates. The trick is to assess your audience and hit them where they live, so to speak. Ask yourself these questions:

Who are our desired candidates?
Where do they work?
Where do they play?
How do they network?

Don’t just think about ways to connect with these people during work hours. Take a 24/7 approach. A majority of the people in the current workforce are used to receiving a barrage of information from multiple sources at any time in any place. Use that to your advantage.

Your mission is to get your employees “talking” to the public about what a great employer you are. Here are just a few ideas:

Have employees give presentations at conferences or trade shows. Even if the topic is industry-related, their enthusiasm for what they’re doing will show through.

Put employee testimonials on your web site. Structure your site so that team information includes real anecdotes about working at your company.

Get your employees published in industry or trade publications. People will see your company name in the byline.

Participate in “best to work for” polls. The act of going through the process will help your company improve even if you don’t make the final list.

Start an employee-run blog to communicate happenings that demonstrate what a great company you have.

It takes time to build a brand and get people aware of your organization. Start now and keep working at it. Eventually, people will be calling and emailing to request informational interviews. Before you know it, you’ll have a “fan club” of qualified people just waiting to work for you.