Labor Shortage 1
First of all, it's always been really
hard to get "good help." If you are hiring in the up part of a
business cycle, it always seems like there is a shortage. Conversely, it
the down cycle employees seem plentiful. "Good help", however, is always
scarce.
All of the talk about a
more generic labor shortage (one that transcends the vagaries of the
business cycle began in the early 1990s. It was clear then, as it is
now, that the rapid population growth of the 20th century was coming to
a close. The U.S. population more than tripled during the 20th century -
a growth rate of about 1.3 percent a year - from about 76 million in
1900 to 281 million in 2000.
(Read More)
Reveille and Hyperbole: Adecco, the world leader in workforce solutions, has acquired the assets of TalentTrack, LLC, a recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) company based in Toledo, Ohio. This acquisition will further bolster Adecco's already robust service delivery infrastructure for outsourced recruitment solutions in North America, continuing to enable Adecco to capture additional market share in this burgeoning segment of the HR services industry. The terms of the transaction are not disclosed.
Elsevier Inc, the world's leading publisher of health sciences textbooks, journals, and electronic products, and HEALTHeCAREERS Network have partnered to offer the new Evolve® Career Center for students and faculty in the nursing and health professions. Launching at http://evolve.elsevier.com, the online center will integrate with the existing Evolve® website, giving users access to more than 25,000 searchable nursing and healthcare jobs.
Verbatim Solutions, a leading global translation services company and language translation industry pioneer, is pleased to announce their latest development, a free translation tool, available to all internet users worldwide.
JobsInLogistics.com, the leading online job board targeting the logistics, supply chain, transportation, distribution and manufacturing professions, reported financial results for the second quarter of 2007. The job board announced a revenue increase of 47 percent compared with the same quarter of 2006.
Social Media, Ltd. launches centralized blog concept for Web 2.0 Companies.
Deck Chairs: Capital H Group, a rapidly growing human capital consulting firm, has hired Brad Nelson, formerly a director at Deloitte Consulting, to lead all operations in California.
…
Upcoming Event:
SourceCon 2007
Grand Hyatt Atlanta in Buckhead
3300 Peachtree Road,
Atlanta, Georgia, USA 30305
$899.00 –
register here –
Career Coaching 360 President Sherri Thomas continues to provide personal career coaching and advancement strategies to professionals and executives by presenting a career development seminar on Saturday, August 18, 2007 at the Killiney Castle in Dublin, Ireland.
Deep Release: Save Mega-Bucks by Hiring Right the First Time -- Silver Business Solutions Releases Case Study
Companies spend millions of dollars each year in the United States battling employee turnover. One cause of turnover: The "perfect" candidate in the interview process turns out to be not so perfect on the job. It doesn't have to be that way. A new case study from Silver Business Solutions reveals that well thought-out preparation is the key.
Silver Business Solutions released a case study supporting the idea that companies who hire right the first time save money.
"Managers don't innately possess interviewing and candidate selection skills," said Christine Silver, owner of Silver Business Solutions, adding that best practices indicate that losing an employee cost a company one to three times a person's annual salary. "This is a talent that needs to be -- and can be -- learned."
The good news is that there is an ideal candidate for every job. However, a specialized set of skills is required for managers to hire the right person for the job.
Hiring Right: A Logical Solution
Silver said by putting sufficient time prior to the interview hiring managers can eliminate candidates who look great on first blush, but fail miserably once job responsibilities begin.
Well thought-out preparation is the key, according to one hiring manager who took Silver's Hiring Right training workshop.
"After taking the class I had a strong system to make the interviewing process more efficient," said Mike Okagaki, Depomed Manager of Quality Control. "We found ourselves spending a lot more time on prospective applicants' resumes. This sort of planning makes the interview experience a positive one."
Hiring Right: A Case Study
With a rapidly rising head count, it was obvious that Depomed couldn't afford to spend its resources bringing anyone but the best and brightest into the fold. Errors would be costly and slow the pharmaceutical company's growth
Silver met with Depomed's key hiring managers and put her more than 15 years of human resources coaching experience to the test.
"Companies do the best they can with limited resources, but sometimes they need a little nudge to bring everyone together," said Silver, who brings a practical, no-nonsense approach to her workshops.
Silver's Keys to Hiring Right workshops teach attendees:
* The three key elements of an interview.
* The costs of making hiring mistakes.
* How to prepare for an interview.
* The secrets to conducting an effective interview.
* How to evaluate candidates and spot the real performers.
The End Result
Okagaki said the Hiring Right process is effortless and serves as a catalyst for identifying candidates that are a good fit for the company.
"If a person needs to hire or manage somebody they should absolutely take this class," Okagaki said. "I guarantee that you and your company will be rewarded."
For a free consultation or to schedule a Hiring Right Workshop contact Christine Silver at 408-963-6494.
About Silver Business Solutions:
Christine's 15 years in Human Resources and Training form the foundation of her thriving consulting practice. Her training and coaching expertise covers the following skill areas: interview and candidate selection, leadership development, effective communication, making presentations and customer service. Her experience as a one-on-one coach has helped managers in their performance management efforts.
Since 2002, Ms. Silver has worked closely with Marty Brounstein, consultant, speaker, author and principal of The Practical Solutions Group.
Deep Release: Setting An Effective Marketing Budget
ImageWorks Studio has recently released guidelines and tips for SMB's to set effective marketing budgets.
One of the most important decisions that a small to medium-sized business has to make is how much money to spend on a marketing budget. Prospects often ask, "How much should I spend on marketing?" The answer is, "It varies by industry and business size."
It is also based on how much a business wants to grow, and how fast.
Both SCORE and USSBA define the variable for a proper marketing budget to be between 2% and 10% of sales, noting that for B2C, retail and pharmaceuticals can exceed 20% during peak brand-building years.
Most companies underspend on their budgets, thinking that not to spend is to save. This, quite simply, isn't true. It's been said before, and it bears repeating - you have to spend money to make money. The trick is to spend money wisely on a tailored marketing plan aimed at fulfilling the company's goals. Keep in mind that marketing efforts are directly correlated with revenue, so now is not the time to be penny foolish.
Budget-Setting Guidelines
There are two main things to consider when setting a marketing budget:
- The development or refinement of the brand and channels used to promote the brand. These include logos, Web sites, blogs, email campaigns, sales presentations, brochures, ads, etc.
- The ongoing expense of promoting and advertising the brand to a customer base.
For most small to medium-sized businesses, the percentage of revenue dedicated to a marketing budget is determined by industry and size. Below is information that we have put together based on several creditable sources.
- If revenue is under $5 million, then the marketing budget is usually 7-8%.
- If revenue is $5-10 million, then the marketing budget is usually 6-7%.
- If revenue is $10-50 million, then the marketing budget is usually 5-6%.
- If revenue is $50-100 million, then the marketing budget is usually 4-5%.
- If revenue is Over $100 million, then the marketing budget is usually 2-3%.
Here's an important consideration:
Every industry is different, so companies that sell to specific government branches or one that has an ultra-specialized niche may be able to deduct 1-2% from the above figures. If a company is B2B or B2C, it may need to raise the marketing budget by 1-3% to see solid results. Retail and pharmaceuticals lead the spending, with many of these companies spending more than 20% of net sales. Overall average is reported as 6%.
Many other circumstances will merit an increase or reduction in the marketing budget as a percentage of revenue. Feel free to contact us to discuss this, or visit http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/index.html.
During an initial branding build or a re-branding phase, a company should have a higher budget, which can be reduced in the future. This will allow a business to contract for all the media needed to make a high impact on its brand impression.
Last year, ImageWorks clients spent on average spent between $50,000 and $120,000 building or rebuilding their "brand language." The broad range reflects business size and industry.
Can I still grow my company with "baby steps"?
Sure. We call this organic growth, and it is how nearly every business starts off. Remember washing cars or mowing lawns for a few bucks? Next thing you know, a neighbor wants it done. That neighbor gives a referral to another neighbor, and so on. Many businesses grow their clientele on word of mouth alone, and are very successful.
But they usually hit a brick wall. That's where building a solid branding campaign helps. To rely on partial branding or organic growth alone, a company risks losing revenue from business it did not get because X% never discovered it or did not have their interest piqued when they interacted with the brand. Nor can a company account for lost revenue from those who perceived the current brand negatively and left the site without you ever knowing it. This is why it is so important to build the brand correctly. Why risk millions to save thousands?
Why do so many small and medium-sized businesses fail?
One reason is that companies do not allocate enough money for marketing. Successful and highly profitable small and medium businesses (SMBs) know how to allocate adequate funding to marketing each year. SMBs realize that marketing, if done properly, brings back solid returns and vice versa--whereas not allocating enough in their budget for marketing could spell disaster. Think of marketing this way: It is a fundamental ingredient for profitability and growth.
Michael Delpierre and Scott C. Margenau, the key principals at ImageWorks Studio, a leading marketing and branding agency, contributed to this article. They specialize in branding and marketing strategies, persuasive content and optimization, and revenue-generating programs for their clients. To learn more about ImageWorks Studio and what it can do for you, visit http://www.brandsthatsell.com/.
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