| SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA (May 28, 2009) – After decades of lawsuits & legislation, & the institution of mandatory biannual prevention training courses for supervisors, sexual harassment may lose its place at the top of the discrimination heap; the new office evil is ageism. United Staffing Associates in San Luis Obispo is responding by offering open enrollment for a new, comprehensive harassment prevention course. Defined as terminating, demoting, or otherwise making employment decisions based on the age of an employee over 40-years-old, HR experts at United Staffing Associates (USA) in San Luis Obispo report that ageism is running rampant in this tough economic climate where replacing older, more expensive employees with younger, less experienced (& hence cheaper) workers might sound like a bright business idea. USA advises local companies to be on the watch for even subtle civil rights infringements that could lead to costly lawsuits. READ MORE | |
Thursday, June 11, 2009
"HARASSMENT" HAS A NEW MEANING
Presenting with PowerPoint: 10 dos and don'ts
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7 June, 2009 |
Cherie Kerr knows how PowerPoint can be both provocative and persuasive in a business meeting.
She's also aware that precisely the opposite can occur.
"It can be the very best friend you have," says the Santa Ana, Calif., public relations consultant. "But you have to use it right."
Kerr's two-sided view of Microsoft's popular presentation and graphics program mirrors a debate coursing through business and academia. While many embrace the values of Microsoft Office PowerPoint® 2003 as a potent business tool, there are others who contend that it's a drag on effective interaction -- that it confuses, distorts and even strangles communication.
But, as Kerr points out, any discussion of PowerPoint's merits and miscues merely illustrates the importance of using the program to best advantage. Here are 10 ways to use PowerPoint to help make your business look brilliant, not brainless.
1. Hold up your end with compelling material. In a way, PowerPoint's ease of use may be its own worst enemy. However simple and engaging it can be to build eye catching slides and graphics, bear in mind that PowerPoint isn't autonomous. The audience has come to hear you, not merely to stare at images tossed onto a screen. Build a strong PowerPoint program, but make sure that your spoken remarks are no less compelling. "PowerPoint doesn't give presentations -- PowerPoint makes slides," says Matt Thornhill, president of Audience First, a Midlothian, Va., business that offers presentation training. "Remember that you are creating slides to support a spoken presentation."
2. Keep it simple. We've all likely seen PowerPoint and other presentations where the speaker seemed ready to propose to the program. After all, it was clear that he fell in love with every wrinkle, special effect and other bit of gadgetry available. But the most effective PowerPoint presentations are simple -- charts that are easy to understand, and graphics that reflect what the speaker is saying. Some authorities suggest no more than five words per line and no more than five lines per individual slide. "Don't gum up the works with too many words and graphics," Kerr says. "Do you really need to have everything up on the screen?"
3. Minimize numbers in slides. PowerPoint's lure is the capacity to convey ideas and support a speaker's remarks in a concise manner. That's hard to do through a haze of numbers and statistics. For the most part, most effective PowerPoint displays don't overwhelm viewers with too many figures and numbers. Instead, leave those for a later, more thorough digestion in handouts distributed at presentation's end. If you want to emphasize a statistic in PowerPoint, consider using a graphic or image to convey the point. "For instance, when I once was talking about the prevalence of Alzheimer's patients, I used a photograph of an old woman rather than just throwing up a number on the screen," Kerr says.
4. Don't parrot PowerPoint. One of the most prevalent and damaging habits of PowerPoint users is to simply read the visual presentation to the audience. Not only is that redundant -- short of using the clicker, why are you even there? -- but it makes even the most visually appealing presentation boring to the bone. PowerPoint works best with spoken remarks that augment and discuss, rather than mimic, what's on the screen. "Even with PowerPoint, you've got to make eye contact with your audience," says Roberta Prescott of The Prescott Group, a Connecticut-based communications consulting firm. "Those people didn't come to see the back of your head."
5. Time your remarks. Another potential land mine is a speaker's comments that coincide precisely with the appearance of a fresh PowerPoint slide. That merely splits your audience's attention. A well-orchestrated PowerPoint program brings up a new slide, gives the audience a chance to read and digest it, then follows up with remarks that broaden and amplify what's on the screen. "It's an issue of timing," Kerr says. "Never talk on top of your slides."
6. Give it a rest. Again, PowerPoint is most effective as a visual accompaniment to the spoken word. Experienced PowerPoint users aren't bashful about letting the screen go blank on occasion. Not only can that give your audience a visual break, it's also effective to focus attention on more verbally-focused give and take, such as a group discussion or question and answer session.
7. Use vibrant colors. A striking contrast between words, graphics and the background can be very effective in conveying both a message and emotion.
8. Import other images and graphics. Don't limit your presentation to what PowerPoint offers. Use outside images and graphics for variety and visual appeal, including video. "I often have one or two very short video clips in my presentations," says New York technology consultant Ramon Ray. "It helps with humor, conveys a message and loosens up the crowd."
9. Distribute handouts at the end -- not during the presentation. Some people may disagree with me here. But no speaker wants to be chatting to a crowd that's busy reading a summation of her remarks. Unless it is imperative that people follow a handout while you're presenting, wait until you're done to distribute them.
10. Edit ruthlessly before presenting. Never lose the perspective of the audience. Once you're finished drafting your PowerPoint slides, assume you're just one of the folks listening to your remarks as you review them. If something is unappealing, distracting or confusing, edit ruthlessly. Chances are good your overall presentation will be the better for it. .
Jeff Wuorio is a veteran freelance writer and author based in southern Maine. He writes about small-business management, marketing and technology issues, and can be reached at jwuorio@adelphia.net.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Mission Possible: Mastering Your Email in Outlook and Blackberry
Amy Kardel, of Clever Ducks, will help busy professionals optimize productivity when using the tools most at hand every day: Microsoft Outlook and mobile devices, with a focus on Blackberry. By gaining control of both tools, you will get better business results while reducing stress and staying in sync with the flood of emails that come your way.
Although these devices serve as your primary access to calendar events, emails and other tasks, they often become a distraction because of the amount of information that is often thrown at you. By effectively leveraging both tools, you will find it is possible to stay on task and sort through the clutter. Amy can help make life simpler by setting up some systems, using some tricks and understanding some advanced functions of your technology.
Friday, June 26 12-1 pm at Collaborations Office at 3196 S. Higuera Street, Suite D, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
RSVP for your free lunch at: http://www.collaboration-llc.com/upcoming-programs/educational-business-lunch/
Amy Kardel Bio
Amy Kardel brings over fifteen years of proven results and professional experience in the operations of international and high tech business to the job. She is the COO of Clever Ducks – Computer Network Services, a San Luis Obispo-based IT solution provider. A serial entrepreneur, she grew and then recently sold Global Accent Translation Services, a translation agency that provides technology, business and government with foreign language services. Amy loves to speak with other business leaders and share tips to help others grow their businesses.
Ms. Kardel completed degrees in UC Berkeley and Washington University, as well as graduate course work in at the Monterey Institute of International Studies. Ms. Kardel returned to her native San Luis Obispo, California from Europe in 1993. She is active in the SLO Chamber of Commerce and Rotary. She enjoys living locally on the Central Coast while working globally with her husband Peter and four children.
Amy Kardel, COO/Business Development
1413 Monterey Street
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
main 805.543.1930
direct 805.547.2361
Thursday, June 4, 2009
EVC ANNOUNCES ROLE IN FEDERAL ECONOMIC STIMULUS PLAN FOR STATE
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif., June 4, 2009 - The Economic Vitality Corporation (EVC) of San Luis Obispo County has been designated by the State of California as a district coordinator for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the federal economic stimulus plan.
Since April of 2009, the EVC has been coordinating proposals for projects needing economic stimulus funding on behalf of the State's Business Transportation and Housing Agency (BT&H) for a region that includes the counties of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz.
The EVC partnered with the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG) and J. Knight Consulting on this first-ever project. Two reports were submitted by the EVC to the State that include proposals from cities, counties and non-profits throughout the five-county region. Projects, ranging in type and cost, include transportation, infrastructure, energy, environmental, visitor serving projects, and others- all intended to create jobs and bring outside revenue to the central coast.
The most recent work plan, submitted on June 1st, is now available on the EVC web site at www.sloevc.org/workplan. Participating organizations were invited to submit proposals needing economic stimulus funds to be distributed through a formula-based approach and competitive grant applications. Respondents were directed to focus their efforts on "shovel ready" projects that would help create jobs. Where possible, organizations were asked to identify projects that had environmental benefits and would help provide 'green jobs'. The Plan includes hundreds of proposed projects in need of funding, and some funds have already been distributed to the central coast. Additional funds are anticipated to flow into the region as organizations successfully compete for funds.
"We are doing our part to help SLO County get its share of economic stimulus monies to help revive our local economy and create jobs. As a district coordinator by the State for this first-ever approach, the EVC and its partners have developed a process that may be leveraged for future collaborations for regional economic development and job creation", said Michael Manchak, President of the EVC.
Steve Devencenzi, SLOCOG's Planning Director stated: "The Economic Recovery Work Plan is a groundbreaking effort on the part of the State to establish more meaningful lines of communication between local and State agencies, and regional organizations. This coordinated approach to strategic public investments will result in opportunities that can result in targeted and meaningful projects. We hope to continue working together to assure that this opportunity will create needed jobs and build better communities."
"The Plan represents a significant and cooperative effort among hundreds of participating organizations within a five county region. This process has provided the central coast with a model that can be used in the future for regional coordination of projects." said John Knight of San Luis Obispo-based J. Knight Consulting.
Resource web site links:
- EVC / work plan: www.sloevc.org/workplan.php
- State Economic Recovery Work Plan: www.business.ca.gov
- American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA): www.recovery.gov
About the Economic Vitality Corporation
EVC is a local non-profit economic development organization that provides business resources to help start and expand businesses throughout San Luis Obispo County. The Economic Vitality Corporation provides economic development services and business resources throughout San Luis Obispo County. The EVC stimulates the local economy by helping to generate jobs, increase investment in the community and promote the start-up, growth and attraction of businesses. www.sloevc.org (805) 788-2012
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Tryin to Pitch Products to the Savers
THE biggest challenge confronting marketers is how to deal with the Meineke mind-set consumers have adopted as a result of the recession.
The Olay Professional Pro-X campaign will focus on price and relative value.
The syndrome is named after the discounter that for years ran a campaign featuring fed-up car owners declaring, “I’m not going to pay a lot for this muffler!” What was an annoying slogan has morphed into a mantra as shoppers insist now they are not going to pay a lot for (insert product here, from soup to soap to shoes).
The reluctance of consumers to spend — coupled with a sudden sharp rise in the savings rate — has left even the savviest marketers scrambling to reconsider their strategies.
For instance, the Procter & Gamble Company, the nation’s largest advertiser, announced last month that it would adopt a “surgical” approach to reducing prices in categories in which Procter brands are being perceived as costing too much compared with competitive products.
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At the same time, Procter will also try to keep shoppers paying full price for the bulk of its brands by presenting them as more innovative or offering better value. Commercials for Tide detergent discuss how it is not as diluted as lower-priced alternatives and spots for Bounty call it more absorbent than a “bargain brand” of paper towels.
“Value means different things to different people,” said Herb Walter, consumer packaged-goods and retail advisory partner at the Washington office of PricewaterhouseCoopers. “You almost have to think about it in the plural instead of the singular.”
One type of consumer behavior that is becoming more prevalent, Mr. Walter said, is “paying closer attention to the spread of price points in a category — premium, midprice, lower — and more selectively choosing a price point.”
“If it’s Johnny’s birthday and you’ve got the relatives coming, you may splurge a bit” on food and beverage brands, he added, “but if you’re buying midweek for the family, you may buy a more value-oriented product.”
PricewaterhouseCoopers, along with the Grocery Manufacturers Association, plan to issue a report on Wednesday on the financial performance of marketers of consumer packaged goods. The report concludes that the industry is weathering the recession better than others because of a focus on delivering value along with innovation.
Value “is not just about price,” said Clayton Wai-Poi, senior brand manager for Kraft Singles cheese slices at Kraft Foods in Northfield, Ill.
As a result, “the role Kraft Singles can play in meeting mom’s needs in the current climate” extends beyond ads that describe how a meal of a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of Campbell’s tomato soup can “warm hearts without stretching budgets,” Mr. Wai-Poi said.
There are also promotions sponsored by Kraft Singles with partners like the Walt Disney Company and Minor League Baseball, he added, that are centered on affordable family entertainment.
And at Procter & Gamble, a line featuring new products that cost $42 to $62 each — a far cry from the price of a bar of Ivory soap — is getting a value designation because, ads assert, it performs like product lines costing much more.
The line is called Olay Professional Pro-X, part of the Olay skin-care brand. A print campaign from Saatchi & Saatchi in New York, part of the Publicis Groupe, that is scheduled to begin in July for the Intensive Wrinkle Protocol — a regimen kit of three products — will carry this headline: “As effective at wrinkle reduction as what the doctor prescribed. At half the price.”
The Pro-X items cost two or three times as much as the products in another Olay line, Total Effects, which cost about $20 to $25 apiece.
“It is getting into higher price points,” said Tim Bunch, Olay Pro-X brand manager at Procter in Cincinnati. So “if you’re going to lay down that type of money,” he added, “it ought to be for a brand you believe in.”
“With Olay, we’ve built that trust with women through the decades,” Mr. Bunch said. “A big element of value is standing behind your product, especially in beauty where so much is smoke and mirrors.”
Since the line was introduced in January, “consumers have really responded,” he added, to the point where Procter executives now “project Olay Professional will be the largest skin-care launch in North America in year-one dollar sales.”
Helping achieve those results, Mr. Bunch said, is an image for the Olay brand as one that “speaks straightforward and direct to consumers.”
“We tell them what we believe the truth is,” he added, which includes an acknowledgment that not all women will achieve the same results after using Olay products.
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“If you don’t see it for yourself, I would rather you find a product better suited to your needs,” Mr. Bunch said, and return the Olay items for a refund.
Hmmmm. That calls to mind the scene from the classic movie “Miracle on 34th Street” when the Santa Claus at Macy’s (Edmund Gwenn) informs a skeptical shopper (Thelma Ritter) that the fire engine she wants to buy her son, which Macy’s does not have, can be found at another store.
“The only important thing is to make the children happy,” Mr. Gwenn says. “Who sells the toy doesn’t make any difference. Don’t you feel that way?”
Ms. Ritter replies: “Who, me? Oh, yeah, sure. Only I didn’t know Macy’s did.”
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Communication is Key
One of our culture’s most popular clichés is “timing is everything”. Just ask a realtor as they wait in the unemployment line. Well, we business and HR professionals tend to believe that timing is very important – but COMMUNICATION IS EVERYTHING.
Employees spend over 75% of their time in an interpersonal situation: with clients, customers, co-workers, the boss, the public; verbally, written, email -- it is all about the communication. And speaking of email, does the irony strike anyone else that all this blogging, “twittering,” and “linking” is called social networking? The new definition of social apparently does not include personal interaction. At least not face-to-face. By now, your employees may be spending 80% of that interpersonal 75%, networking socially.
If, as studies show, employees don’t quit the company they work for so much as they “quit” their immediate supervisor, then every supervisor had better be an expert communicator…
Want more? Visit http://betseynash.blogspot.com/
Monday, June 1, 2009
SLO Tech Brew Meets June 8
June 8, 5-7:00 pm at Mother's Tavern, SLO
Santa Barbara's best networking event for technology professionals has found a regular home in San Luis Obispo.
This is a standing event on the second Monday of each month.
Keep up on what's new on the Central Coast in a casual, social atmosphere.
Join us for a cash bar, appetizers and lots of time to talk to other technology professionals.
Tech Brew is now on Twitter and LinkedIn! Make sure you check us out.
Email your RSVP
General Information:
TechBrew
805.543.1930
TechBrew@cleverducks.com
It's all about Talent Communities
Kevin Wheeler
May 21, 2009, 5:26 am ET
Subtle as it may seem, there is Grand Canyon of difference between a database of prospective candidates and a community of talented prospective candidates.
Recruiters frequently tell me they have a talent community, when further investigation reveals that they have a huge database of people they do not know at all. These databases have been built up using impersonal methods including the career website, profiles gathered through the applicant tracking system, and perhaps referrals from other employees.
Databases suffer from two major problems when it comes to being effective recruiting tools.
First of all they tend to get old very quickly, and the data about the people is frequently not current and often not even usable at all. While no one that I know of has done actual research on the quality of the data in corporate resume databases, I know from experience and from working with many clients that it is poor.
The second problem databases have is that they tell you very little. All a recruiter knows about the candidate is whatever is in the resume/profile itself. There is no additional information, no personal observations, and seldom any useful reference data. Because the resumes have been added mostly through impersonal methods, the candidates are unknown to the recruiters. This means that the qualification and assessment of a candidate begins after the resume is retrieved (assuming it is retrieved, which is very seldom) and may take quite a bit of time, assuming the candidate can even be contacted. Candidate quality is often poor, and the time to find candidates can become very long, especially for hard-to-fill positions.
Most recruiters do not really actively use their talent databases and instead turn to Internet search, cold calling, or hire a sourcer or a third-party recruiter. In effect, a talent database is a legal storehouse, suitable for printing reports and showing compliance, but of little practical value in hiring — especially the hard-to-find candidates.
You might make the case that a good recruiter should know this and develop his own community of candidates. It might be possible to maintain data on and build relationships with 50 to 100 potential candidates, but doing that would be a full-time job.
What makes the talent community I am talking about different is its ability to take advantage of technology to achieve levels of personalization that could not be achieved without it.
There are three distinctive features of corporate talent communities that make them more valuable than databases.
They can serve as initial screeners: A talent community is always growing and changing. People can become a member of a talent community in several ways, but each requires them to learn more about the organization and provides the recruiter with more information about them. For example, candidates who come to the corporate Facebook fan page and then are referred to a targeted career site are likely to be much more interested in your organization than someone just dropping by the career site to drop off a resume.
Interest is a type of screening, and combined with the right tools a career site can quickly assess a variety of things, including aptitude for the job and skill level. People who achieve certain scores or meet other criteria can be referred directly to a recruiter. This way no one is asked to just “dump” their unevaluated resume into a hopper and wait for a follow up call — which usually never comes.
This ensures that everyone who ends up in the talent community has been evaluated at some level and knows that they meet the basic requirements for employment in your organization. They have had a positive encounter, although that was entirely or almost entirely without actual contact with you or any other recruiter.
Years of experimentation and use of these tools show that most candidates respond very positively to the immediate knowledge of how well they meet requirements and are often surprised to get a phone call or personal email from a recruiter because the software has alerted the recruiter to the quality of candidate.
They are much more personal and dynamic: Candidates actually perceive talent communities as very personal. If the talent community is set up well, candidates will frequently get emails and other messages about jobs and about the status of their own candidacy. They may receive periodic requests to update their personal information and keep their address and email current. This means that information is up to date. Candidates can add more information about themselves, and recruiters can ask questions about specific skills or interests. All of this information is kept in the candidate record, and any recruiter can access this. If a new recruiter stats recruiting for a position, there may be many candidates in the community who she can learn a lot about very quickly.
Talent communities are like living organisms. They are always changing and becoming more mature and sophisticated. Recruiters may have never met a person face to face and yet know much more about them than if they have had two or three personal interviews. This computer-aided interaction, as well as testing and assessment, can provide hiring managers with a very complete picture of a number of candidates.
They are far more flexible: All of this means that talent communities are far more flexible than databases. Candidates who may have applied for one position are frequently referred to different ones after the recruiter knows them better through the interaction and testing. One candidate may be an ideal candidate for several positions, and fewer candidates get pigeonholed into a particular channel and thereby missed in the search. Vigorous and thorough screening and assessment means that quality is as high as it can be and even higher than the quality that comes through employee referral or headhunters.
It is getting easier to set up talent communities every day. Tools such as LinkedIn or Google groups may serve as rudimentary communities. Tools such as Ning can be modified and put to work as active communities. Some organizations build their own.
Communities of candidates are powerful and reduce the need for special sourcing or the use of outside recruiters. They can increase the number of positions a single recruiter can handle and provide higher quality candidates in a shorter time. They always trump databases.
But the hardest part is not the technology or the screening and assessment tools or the acceptance of the idea by candidates. What proves to always be the hurdle that is hardest to overcome is the resistance of recruiters to using the tools and embracing the concept as a way to do what they do better than ever.
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