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Asking for training during new-hire probation period I am working in a company for about a month. But I changed my field a bit and I want to learn the unknown stuff. There is a training coming in the next month which I think will be useful for my job. But it is coming on working days. If I miss the class I would have to wait for 4-5 months for the next class offering. I am in a dilemma whether to ask the employer for the leave or put two days paid leave and go for the training. I am not allowed annual leave since I am in my new employee probation period. Is it okay to ask for the training before confirmation..? <Q> If the training is indeed beneficial for your job, I would say go ahead and ask for it! <S> If it has (positive) influence in how you can do your job, your employer wil benefit from it, too! <S> Also, it shows your employer that you're eager to learn and you are happy to gather new knowledge. <S> However, keep in mind that it really has to be beneficial for your job. <S> If it's only partly beneficial, your employer will think that you are jumping (too) quickly into unrelated areas which can be seen as a bad thing. <A> If you're a new person, you may not want to jump onto the new, fancy stuff right away, and instead get involved and absorbed into the culture and needs of the workplace. <S> It may be that the training would be beneficial to the company, but you wouldn't have a good grasp of what's beneficial until you've been around for at least half a year. <A> Your case needs to be solid. <S> Remember: If you don't ask, you aren't giving them the chance to say "Yes". <S> Note that this has applications outside of work... <A> Assuming that the training is beneficial to your job performance you need to have a conversation about training for several reasons: <S> You need to understand if the company ever pays for a training class. <S> Do they provide the money for the class? <S> Do they pay for the hours? <S> Or even better, they do both. <S> Some companies provide a maximum amount of money for training per employee each year. <S> This pays for the class fee, but does not pay for the hours. <S> Therefore the employee has to makeup the time, take vacation, or take the training online. <S> The employee still needs to ask permission from a supervisor, but there is money in the budget. <S> Some companies provide a maximum amount of money for tuition reimbursement for classes taken at a college/university for the purposes of getting a degree, or an additional degree. <S> In the US there are some IRS regulations regarding this process. <S> The company needs to approve the course of study. <S> Some companies add a requirement that if you leave the company too soon, they want to be reimbursed for the money they paid you. <S> Some companies have access to online training programs. <S> These can be very limited to required time card and safety training, or very broad to include technical subjects, and management training. <S> The answers to these issues may be found in the HR documents, or the annual benefits package. <S> You may discover that some of these educational benefits are not available to you during this initial period with the company, but you need to do your research. <S> And if you can't find the information, or if you can't understand the procedures about the company, then ask.
| If you can make a good case for your taking the training being beneficial to the employer, go ahead and ask.
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How long after a recruiter's introduction is it considered ethical to re-approach a company? Here's a situation: a recruiter introduces a candidate to a company, and the company is very interested in hiring the candidate. However, if the process at some point breaks down, how long after this process would it be considered ethical for either the company or the candidate to take up the conversation again without the recruiter? Edit: Several answers mention the contract between company and recruiter, but things can also go wrong before any contract was signed. <Q> If this is still for the same vacancy, then this should still go through the same recruiter, no question. <S> If this is for a different vacancy with the same company, then there is a different answer for the two sides of the conversation. <S> Candidate side <S> For the candidate, they have no signed contract with the recruiter (certainly not in the markets I know of) <S> and so there would be no problem with a direct approach from their side. <S> Company side <S> However, from the company side, there may be cool off periods in the agreement they have with the recruiter which they will have to honour. <S> If there is such a period, and the candidate contacts the company directly, then the company should redirect the enquiry to the recruiter. <S> As a matter of courtesy, I'd be tempted as a candidate to try and initiate contact through the recruiter anyway. <S> If they've got you to a reasonable point in the previous process, and the break off there was not their fault, then why not stick with them and have them do some of the legwork for you? <A> Normally the "cool off" period is 6 month to a year after last contact. <S> YMMV. <A> Most agreements I've seen between recruiters and hiring companies stipulate a "lock in" period (like has been mentioned, typically 6-12 months). <S> If the company chooses to hire a candidate originally presented by the recruiter within that time from the initial contact, then the recruiter is entitled to the originally stipulated fee, regardless of how the actual hiring is done. <S> In that perspective, it don't find it at all unethical for the company to go and hire the person directly, as long as they still pay the fee to the recruiter. <S> Doing it without paying the fee would be not only unethical but also in breach of contract. <S> If you are the person looking to be hired, I would advise you to be up-front with the company that you have previously been on offer through the recruitment agency and that they need to settle this with the agency before hiring you. <S> Not disclosing this would be unethical and dishonest as you would be opening up the company for potential action from the recruitment agency. <A> If the company approaches you If you are still working with the contracting/recruiting firm you should advise the company no matter how long it has been. <S> You most likely received the contact because of the introduction of the firm. <S> It is unethical to cut them out now especially if you have a business relationship with them. <S> It may be a legal obligation and you may not have an obligation or restriction to the company but ethically this is the equivalent of stealing if you accept a position where the firm would have been due some payment. <S> If you no longer have a business arrangement with the company because you terminated it <S> PRIOR to the contact I would look at what your arrangement with the recruiting company was. <S> Follow the legal obligations of this agreement. <S> If you are in question I would contact the company and ask them what they believe the obligation and expectation is and why. <S> You may have agreed not to work with a company you were introduced to for a certain amount of time. <S> If this time exceeds 6 months I would contact a lawyer to make sure that the obligation is legal. <S> Many states limit this period. <S> You want to approach the company <S> You should make sure that you have not had a business relationship with the company for the time required by the company. <S> If you are unsure what that period is contact the company. <S> At this point ethically you should follow these expectations, even if they are beyond the legally enforceable period. <S> It is possible that the company has an agreement with the recruiter that would prevent them from employing you anyway.
| It entirely depends on the relationship between the recruiter and company, the contracts they have and whatever contract/agreement you have in place with the recruiter (if any).
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What's the best way to convince a manager to let someone take initiative? One of our customer service reps has been with the company for years and is starting to feel like he's outgrown his position and is looking for new challenges. His manager is reluctant to give him days off from his current responsibilities (even just once/quarter or as a one-shot deal) because he's afraid of how it will impact his metrics and service-level agreements. How can we make a good business case to convince his manager to let him participate in a project for which he will have to be out of office for two working days? <Q> How can we make a good business case to convince his manager to let him participate in a project for which he will have to be out of office for two working days? <S> As you stated, the person concerned is already looking for new challenges - this is not likely to change and there are really two options here, as far as the company is concerned: <S> New challenges are found in the company for this person. <S> New challenges are not found in the company for this person. <S> I will start with analysis of the second case - if this person cannot find a new challenge in the company, they will certainly start looking elsewhere. <S> They are unsatisfied with their current work (otherwise why look for new challenges) and are looking for a change - if this will not happen within the company, it will be outside the company and the manager in question is left without them. <S> In the first case, there are several options as well: <S> The person concerned moves to a different department (perhaps some other sympathetic manager will take them on) - this is good for the company, as this is someone who knows and understands the company and customers already. <S> It is also good for the person - new challenges. <S> Not so good for the manager in question, as they are left without this person. <S> The person concerned is given new challenges taking them part time away from their current job. <S> Good for the person and company. <S> The manager still has some of this persons' time - they can train someone else, for example. <S> When looked at this way, the best way forward is to let this person go for a few days a week. <S> The manager himself should be concerned about relying on a single person - this is not good management and not a good position to be in. <S> As a manager, this person need to ensure that the metrics and SLAs they are responsible are met - whether the specific subordinate is around or not. <S> Having this person train others, document their roll or be available for an occasional consultation are all ways to manage this, while letting this subordinate grow. <A> As pointed out by Oded, you and/or the rep need to sit down and talk to the boss. <S> You basically have two (seemingly) conflicting interests: <S> Your boss wants to make sure that the rep's current responsibilities continue to be taken care of. <S> The rep wants to develop himself and find a new challenge. <S> The aim of the talk must be to resolve this apparent conflict. <S> How to do this will depend on the specific situation; some ideas: <S> Discuss how the rep can help ensure that his current responsibilities can be taken care even without him. <S> Point out that even if this means more work/risk in the short term (training colleagues, automating things etc.), it avoids problems in the long run because it's risky to depend on one person exclusively. <S> If you approach the talk in that spirit, you will probably find a solution. <A> It sounds like in this case, the manager is being a bit short sighted. <S> If the SLAs and metrics will take a drastic dip from the 1 day/quarter outage of a single high performing employee, then the organization as a whole is in serious trouble. <S> What happens when this guy is sick, - or worse yet, when he leaves to pursue a different job. <S> Push for a long range view - <S> what in this person's service portfolio can be learned by another person? <S> Should this guy be doing more cross training of his less experienced peers? <S> What are the bosses plans for making this organization less fragile and is there a way the senior employee can help with that? <S> What would be the ramifications of this work? <S> It may mean the senior employee will have to put in overtime, which may just be part of the job. <S> But putting in overtime to change the nature of the group is a fairly good reason, as far as overtime goes. <S> The other aspect is to be willing to hear the other side. <S> The boss may have other comments when it's pointed out that loosing any one person for a single day should not be an SLA killer. <S> For example, if the senior employee has had a high absentee rate already, or is on a performance improvement plan - then the real issue is that the hasn't managed to meet expectations and the manager is limiting the opportunity for new challenges until the employee can prove he can handle the challenge he's got. <S> Then the conversation becomes a "how can I improve?" <S> talk, instead of a <S> "how can I get what I want?" talk.
| Explain how it will benefit the company/department if the rep picks up new qualifications (better quality work, more motivated employee, and better employee retention). The basic idea is to take the manager's objections seriously, and find solutions for them.
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How should an applicant react to an early invitation to an interview? How should an applicant react if a company invites him/her to an interview before any meaningful conversation occurred? Here's the background: Company : places an anonymous advertisement on a job board. There's only brief reference to technologies used on a position. No company name whatsoever. Applicant : sends an email with several clarification questions (no résumé sent). Company : (not answering any questions from above, however providing detailed info on the technologies; again, no names) We will be glad to see you on an interview. (Asking several questions on Applicant's legal status etc) Applicant : (answered on legal status) I'm not yet confident I'm the best person for your position. There is a certain technology mismatch (sends a résumé, pointing the gaps). Can I learn a bit about your company? Can we arrange a phone interview first? Company : Can you please come to our office on Monday? The Company is located within a 3-hour travel distance either way. The position is a Mid-Senior level in I.T. Question : What is the best strategy for an Applicant to follow? <Q> I went to one of these "Interviews" 10 or so years ago. <S> It was an hour away <S> but the ad made it sound like NASA was hiring <S> and though it would have been an hour drive each way I would have loved to work for NASA <S> so I ignored the red flags. <S> I was invited in met with the "Hiring Manager," went over my resume and answered a few questions. <S> Then the "Hiring Manager" tells me how he can help me learn to interview better and help me with my resume. <S> That in just 2 or 3 weeks they can have me ready for an interview with an actual company. <S> All of this for the low price of $5000. <S> Your story sounds exactly like the set up I had with this firm. <S> It is also similar to one I had that wanted me to sell cheap electronic gadgets door to door after just a few weeks of unpaid training. <S> I am not saying that it is not worth your time to go to this interview or the service or position is not worth taking advantage <S> of.(Though <S> I have a bridge I think you could use more) <S> But anytime a company tries to force them selves down your throat I would be wary. <S> Also be wary of sales tactics like fear of loss where they make you fear that turning there offer down will have negative consequenses to you or your career. <A> I would probably respond back with something along the lines of "I'm extraordinarily busy in my current position at the moment (we're in the middle of project X) <S> so I'm unwilling to take time away unless I'm certain <S> this is a great fit for both of us, especially considering the large travel distance. <S> Can you take a few minutes to answer these questions? <S> Alternately, would it be better to talk on the phone first?" <S> They'll likely respond in one of three ways: 1) <S> They'll answer the questions, and you go from there. <S> 2) <S> They'll ask you to come in again, and you respond back <S> "I'm sorry, I won't be able to make it this Monday. <S> We can try to schedule something a bit farther out", where you actually have no intention of rescheduling. <S> If they're not bothering to answer the questions, you probably don't want to work there. <S> 3) <S> They'll ignore your response altogether. <A> First off, I've not known actual companies to post anonymous ads on job boards. <S> It may be that they do so, but I've never encountered it, and I can't think of a single reason why a real corporation would do so. <S> The only semi-plausible reason I can come up with is that has hired a recruitment firm to handle their hiring, and those guys are paranoid about you going around them. <S> Have they actually told you what the company name is, at least? <S> You've clearly got some kind of name/address to go to for the interview - do some Google searches and see what you can turn up on the place you are going and any phone numbers they've given you. <S> I'd also tell them that I believed they are not being entirely truthful about having a company for me to interview at, and that without more information I wasn't interested. <A> .6. <S> Applicant : <S> Thanks for the offer, but I'd rather learn more about the position so I can prepare for the interview and perform due diligence on your organisation. <S> Could you please forward a position profile as well as a summary on your business, or alternatively call me on 123456. <S> Even if this is a real job, if they are unwilling to give you basic details at this stage then would you really want to work for them? <A> This sounds like a form response. <S> They're following a "script" meant to get people into interview chairs where questions can be asked and answered in person. <S> Possible reasons <S> : HR doesn't know the answers, or has been instructed not to give any. <S> Common at big companies with overly burdensome hiring policies. <S> Interview team (hiring manager(s)) has said they do not want any filtering at the HR level; they want to see all applicants and make their own judgments. <S> Common at start-ups (well, we're not exactly sure WHAT we need; who we get and what they know determines the direction we'll move in) <S> or when a company just needs bodies (if you can program at all, you'll get the hang of doing what you'll be doing pretty quickly) <S> HR is extraordinarily busy and is passing the buck to the interviewer. <S> HR is outsourced and you're talking to a recruiter who may be any or all of the above, and might be a non-native English speaker to boot. <S> You're talking to a script-bot. <S> How do you know this auto-reply HR isn't the kind of thing you'll have to deal with if/ <S> when you get hired?
| If it's a recruiter's office and they are being mysterious, I'd tell them no. Honestly, if whoever or whatever is sending the replies isn't bothering to take the time to actually read them and craft a meaningful response, I would decline and move on.
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I have an opportunity to interview but I don't feel I have the skills to do the job successfully I've been given the opportunity to interview for a technical position. However, I don't feel that I have the skills to even make it through the technical screenings. This interview would be for a lateral move. Is it worth going through an interview when you know you have a slim chance of getting the job? I don't want to embarrass myself in front of my colleagues. <Q> Is it worth going through an interview when you know you have a slim chance of getting the job? <S> Yes, it is. <S> First off, you may actually have better technical ability than you give yourself credit. <S> Second if the opportunity was given to you by your colleagues, they are probably aware of your abilities - if this is for a lateral move, they may very well think you are well suited for a junior position where you can learn and grow. <S> Third - it is always good to get interview practice. <S> The more real the interview, the better - the process and interview itself will be a learning experience. <S> In regards to embarrassing yourself - you say you are not currently in a technical position. <S> The people interviewing you know this and know this is a lateral move for you. <S> This does mean that if you don't show a high level of technical knowledge, it is expected. <S> Interviews are not exams - you don't get scored, as such. <A> Your colleagues apparently recommended you. <S> That leaves several possibilities: They think you can do the job. <S> Which can mean the interview may be just a formality. <S> They want to start pushing you into a career track that has better growth potential. <S> In which case even if you don't get the job they think the process will be helpful. <S> They think you barely qualify, but can hire you easily and quickly. <S> This can help the company by opening your present position to somebody else. <S> It can also mean that they can charge more for your services. <A> Are you sure they're not putting more emphasis on aptitude then currently having specific skills? <S> It sounds like you may pick up on things quickly and they're better off in the long-term having a more talented person who may take a little more time to get up to speed. <S> Like others have suggested, take the interview. <A> You should definitely apply for the position. <S> Apart from this, you can ask about expected technical skills or training opportunities. <S> In the department where I'm currently working, everyone should have an engineer profile. <S> One of the younger project managers (his job is a very technical one <S> and he deals with partner companies) was recruited without a lot of initial technical skills (he rather has a sales rep profile....) <S> but his knowledge of the company structure and partners and his aptitudes balanced his lack of theoretical knowledge and his work is much appreciated.
| So apply for the position and do the interview.
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How should I respond to the classic "Introduce yourself" question in an interview? Almost any interview begins with the classic question of "Introduce yourself". Somehow I found mixed levels of detail as answers to this question. How should you ideally respond to this question professionally? Should I talk about college? family? private work? other activities? I'm currently working as a software developer. <Q> This is basically your elevator pitch and the goal is to give your interviewer a fair view on why they should hire you (like with all other questions they will be asking you). <S> In your case you could start with: <S> "I'm a software developer who has been working for X years..." Continue with what you've done so far <S> and always make this related to the job that you're applying . <S> Do your research on the company and the job you're applying for (it is not that difficult nowadays to look up information like that with your favorite search engine). <S> Only talk about your family, private work and other activities if it directly relevant. <S> The reason is that nobody really cares what your family situation is, all they want to know why they should hire you . <S> Things you could bring up when introducing yourself: <S> When you started working in your field and industry (or industries if you've worked at several) <S> You could talk about your previous accomplishments which could be in the Action - Method - Result form, in your case something like this: <S> "I've reduced client work (the action) by implementing a ticketing system (the method) . <S> It reduced their entry times and increased their work throughput with 10% (the result) . <S> Exemplify why you think you're fit for the job, e.g. <S> "I love working with technology X and been wanting to jump into it if there was an opportunity like yours." <S> There is no need to start with when you were born. <S> This is mostly because of networking and that you've now got your foot inside; the better relationships you have the less relevant your background becomes. <A> Your mission in an interview is to leave a clear message in the interviewer's head of who you are, and you want to control this message. <S> When asked to introduce yourself, you can take it as an opportunity to sell yourself and explain your skills and how you get things done, but in all honesty I wouldn't over think it. <S> The best approach is to relax, try and say something honest and funny about yourself and try and make the interviewer relax (remember they are often not so experienced at interviews). <S> If you're making a joke, make sure it doesn't make you sound like an idiot. <S> Tell me a little bit about yourself? <S> Hi, <S> my name's Dave. <S> I've been programming since I was a little boy and really loved it all the way through my life. <S> My mum used to ration my computer use, but it just made me want to program more. <S> That's what brings me here. <A> Highlights should be: <S> Who are you - not your school or job history or any other resume point - but who you are. <S> "A team player with a love of details", "a tester who can break anything" <S> , what kind of a person are you <S> Why is that good for this job? <S> What drew you and why is your personal style <S> a good fit (optional) - any thing directly relevant that might be odd or off-putting - even a good thing - " <S> I'm an award winning xyc developer, and I need a change, so I'm applying for this radicially different opportunity to expand my vision" <S> But keep it tight, and hone in on body language. <S> If it's more than a terse 3 concepts, you've probably gone too long. <S> Watch the body language of your interviewer big time - if they disengage, close down your intro quickly, and make note of any confused faces <S> - you can even ask about it. <A> Keep it short and make sure it sounds <S> well thought out. <S> Everyone will have a different opinion on the areas to cover. <S> It shouldn't sound memorized, but stumbling through it makes is sound like you're not prepared for this common interview question. <S> You can mention a hobby or two and a little bit about what you do in your free time to show you're well-rounded. <S> People become programmers for different reasons, so make sure you mention one of them.
| Talk about who you are and what you can do for the company. Make yourself stand out but not in an overly arrogant way - give the interviewer something to remember you by and some way to easily describe you. If you are a recent grad, you may spend a little more time on college. I've found after a couple of years off college that I rarely needed to mention that I went to one in an interview. On the phone, keep it extra tight, since "listening intently" and "playing mindsweeper out of boredom" sound exactly the same (especially with the mute on).
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When negotiatiating a job offer, can I ask to be reimbursed for two-body-problem travel? When negotiating a job offer, is it reasonable to ask the company to help pay for airfare for me to visit my wife? The details: I just graduated with a Ph.D. in computer science, and have interviewed with a large multinational company for a research engineer position on the west coast. They are interested in hiring me, and are going through the paperwork to send me a formal offer soon. Everything about the job is ideal, except for its location. My wife and I live on the east coast. My wife has a postdoctoral fellowship here, so she won't be able to move with me for at least another year. Fortunately, I was able to negotiate an arrangement with the company, wherein I can spend 1/4 of my time working remotely from the east coast office, to spend time with my wife. This would mean 1 to 2 round-trips per month. Both the research team and HR have signed off on this. Is it reasonable to ask the company to help pay for the airfare? On the one hand, strictly speaking, this travel is not for business purposes. On the other hand, I am told that much is negotiable once they give you an offer. I would like to know if this is at all reasonable to put on the table, and if so, how to best broach the subject. <Q> You should be prepared for them to say no, or to offer a lower cash salary in exchange for this other compensation though. <S> You should also speak to your accountant and make sure that you understand the tax implications (if any) of this extra remuneration. <S> The best way to bring this up is as part of the salary negotiation. <S> When you are talking with them about money, tell them that you appreciate their being flexible about location, and ask if they would be willing to reimburse whatever you want. <S> Make sure they know how important it is to you <S> (eg: if they say no, will you turn down the offer), and if you are flexible (eg: will you talk less cash in return for this?) <S> If you have already negotiated that, though, you can still talk to your boss about it, but be prepared for them to say no. <S> By that point they have probably spent their budget for you, and adding more to their costs is harder. <A> It is definitely something you should negotiate. <S> A few years ago I was looking at moving from the UK to Switzerland and part of the compensation package we negotiated included bi-monthly flights back to the UK for the first 2 years, along with all normal relocation costs for myself and my partner. <S> In your case, you may also want to negotiate a split relocation. <S> A first relocation allowance now to cover the cost of relocating you now, without your wife, and another allowance to cover the cost of your wife relocating to be with you once her fellowship completes. <S> Remember: Everything is negotiable . <A> They're aware of your situation and willing to work with you for the first year to accomodate spending time with your wife, so they must want you. <S> You're going to need to explain why you've waited until getting an offer before mentioning you want to be reimbursed for your personal travel. <S> If they offer a lower salary than you expected (or you're on a lower end of the pay scale), you're in a stronger position to ask for more. <A> Your question is similar to but different from another question on Academia SE. <S> Similar because both are two body problems. <S> Different because the other question is about academic jobs and yours is about industry jobs. <S> Since you mention east coast and west coast, I assume your country is U.S. <S> You have a PhD and your future employer is a large company, my answer may not be applicable to other cases. <S> The airfare may not be an issue if the trips between the west coast office and the east coast office(assuming you have one) are considered business trips. <S> Usually, the business trip expenses are tax deductible for your employer. <S> Large companies make hundreds of millions of dollars profit. <S> They always look for tax reliefs to avoid huge amount business taxes. <S> However, if you let them pay for the airfare, it may work against your own will. <S> They can change your schedule. <S> Say, your trip back to east coast is supposed to be in the middle of next month, your boss can tell you to cancel the trip because there is a deadline coming up. <S> He has rights to do so because the company pays the travel expense. <S> On the other hand, if the trips are not counted as business trips and the company is still willing to pay the airfare. <S> In this case, it is not necessarily good for you neither because it means that the airfare they reimburse you will be added to your income and you will be taxed by this extra pay. <S> Your tax bracket will change and you may end up with paying more taxes than you should. <S> I would ask for more salary if I were you. <S> Pay raises are usually in terms of percentage. <S> The higher your starting salary is, the more money you'll get in the future.
| If the airfare is considered business expense(You need a tax expert to confirm this), they will be willing to pay for it. It is absolutely reasonable to ask - you can negotiate any sort of terms in the contract that both of you agree to.
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Is it wise to apologize or let this one go? I recently found myself undecided in the following situation. I have exchanged emails with a potential partner company. This company is bigger, more established, and a leader in their industry. We have specific technology, and during the email exchange I hinted that if they don't work with us, we will go ahead and work with somebody else anyway. Now, this is a stupid comment at best, and I was tired and exhausted when I wrote this piece of garbage. Now looking back (after a good sleep) I regret it. I have two options: drop a note and indicate that was immature and apologize, or let this one slide and try to make up in the following conversations. Like to hear your opinions. Cannot publish the e-mails but this is the excerpt of the most annoying comment. (This is not like me at all) Don't know if this[referring to our plan to approach the market differently] would hurt your existing business but we will do this with or without you. But we much prefer to do it together, since you are probably one of the top 3 guys in the market <Q> I can see why you think this is more hardball than you intended it to be. <S> But it's done. <S> Going in with an apology now will weaken your negotiating position later. <S> I have made this kind of mistake many times and every time <S> I've found that I have to wait for what seems like an eternity for a response <S> and then it turns out that my unplanned aggressiveness has worked in my favour. <S> If you want the truth, I suspect the only thing here that they'll be offended by is " probably one of the top 3" -- either they are top 3, in which case they'll know it and they'll expect you to know it; or they're not, and they'll think you're being patronising. <S> But that's just my guess. <S> Wait and SEE what they're offended by <S> THEN apologise for that. <S> Your saying that you were tired and irritable is going to carry exactly as much weight after they respond as it does now. <A> I wouldn't say that your comment was aggressive so much as blatantly honest and decided. <S> It was actually a good thing to say because it shows that you are clearly confident in your current direction and have no fear or regret about what they will decide to do either way. <S> This is a position of strength in any negotiation, even if your side NEEDS their side much more than they need you. <S> You never want to remind the other side about how much you need them. <S> An aggressive stance would be one that tries to belittle the other side or invoke a response with negative reinforcement ( <S> Eg. <S> you guys don't stand a chance without us, look at how dysfunctional your IT infrastructure is!). <S> This almost never works if you are the smaller guy at the table, and if those roles are reversed it is basically bullying. <S> I wouldn't think your comment would come off as. <S> It is the absolute last resort for damage control. <A> Your tone may have been a bit blunt but based on the excerpt given here , I don't think it was rude enough to warrant a full-blown apology. <S> In fact, I know some people who will deliberately project this image of being very blunt and tough because they think it will work well for them (I don't know if this strategy actually works). <S> I think your best bet might be to just let it slide, and try to be a little friendlier in the future.
| Apologizing is an enormous display of weakness in negotiations, much more so than possibly being percieved as cocky and arrogant which You want them to think about what you can do for them and at the same time make it clear how much you want them because it gives you legitimacy and invites trust, also it boosts their ego a bit.
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When to send a "thank you" email? Should I send a "thank you" email to every professional connection -- in office and out -- if he or she sends me something I request? Even if it's someone I know is inundated with emails? Even if I am fairly certain this person does not want single word emails hitting his or her inbox? Sometimes is it OK to just let an emailed asset or attachment go unanswered? <Q> Do you appreciate what they did? <S> Do you want them to know that? <S> A personal thanks, next time you pass their office/desk or see them getting a coffee is always more effective than an email, especially for the kind of person you're describing. <S> It lets them know that your appreciation goes beyond five seconds after you received the item you requested. <S> If, on the other hand, it wasn't anything that important (which I usually judge by "am I going to remember next time I see them?") <S> and you're just mailing to be polite <S> then I've never seen anything bad happen as a result of a quick "thanks" email. <S> However, if you don't respond then, at the very least, you've left a busy person not knowing whether you've received something they intended you to. <S> That's way more time consuming than passing over your acknowledgement. <S> At worst, they want you to appreciate what they've done <S> and you haven't shown that. <S> Then you've caused offence, which never ends well for you. <S> So <S> yeah, just send it, unless you want to go further and add a personal touch. <A> Don't feel that you have to reply to everyone, even if thanks or you may find yourself in thank <S> you feedback loops that go on for eternity. <S> Even without a response people usually consider an email to be received and eventually read unless they get a bounce back email. <S> Initially a lot of email usage included BCC's and auto-replies <S> but these have fallen out of favor as electronic communication moves closer to resembling regular human interaction where some say thanks and some don't. <S> When to send: the person seemed to make an extra effort the person did something that was not work related or <S> work required. <S> you want to make or improve the person's impression of you. <S> the company culture values such communications. <S> the receiver has been profuse with praise for you in the past. <S> When not to send: the item is part of the work anyway <S> no extra special effort was involved the person doesn't like such one-liners <S> it's about a sensitive or offensive topic, best discussed in person. <A> Sending a single word email is annoying and meaningless. <S> If you feel inclined to send a thank you, be expressive: <S> "Thank you for the fast turn-around time on this" "Thank you, this is exactly what i wanted". <S> "Thank you for finding the time, <S> I know you're getting swamped with project A". <S> Spending a few extra seconds and contextualizing why you appreciate their efforts goes a long way. <S> If after contextualizing, it sounds excessive, you probably shouldn't be sending it. <S> Also, the worst thing you can say is thx . <S> thx is another way of saying: "I care so little about the effort or time you put in that you can have exactly three non-specific characters to show my appreciation." <S> "Thanks" is not far behind.
| I generally only thank people if I'm already emailing them as an acknowledgement.
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How can I turn down a request for personal references? I'm in the process of interviewing for a new job. I was given an offer based on my interview and the recommendation of a former co-worker who now works for this company. As part of the process, they've provided me with an application for employment that I need to fill out (even though they already have my resume, a direct recommendation from a current employee of theirs, require a background check, and have made an offer.) The application specifically requests personal references. I'd prefer not to get my personal friends involved with my professional life, or vice versa. What exactly are they hoping to find out from a personal reference that they can't get from the background check, drug screening, and professional references? And how can I politely turn down the request without potentially losing the offer? <Q> I would ask if the professional references were enough. <S> It could be they are use to entry-level workers who usually only have personal references. <S> You can always just enter your professional references on this form. <S> They may have a legitimate reason. <S> You'll ultimately have to ask them. <A> I'd check in with your point of contact on this and say just what you said. <S> Determining the company's reasoning for this can be difficult, so don't make assumptions. <S> Just ask them - what kind of personal reference do you want? <S> Is it <S> a must-have? <S> And what do you look for in doing the reference check? <S> It could be anything from "that's required for another type of position, just skip it" to something in depth and important based on a lesson learned at that company. <S> No way to tell without asking. <S> I'd keep it to the focus of making sure you give them what they need as opposed to coming across as unwilling to provide it. <S> For example "what are you looking for here? <S> " vs. "do I REALLY need to give you this??". <A> Personal references = personal professional references, as opposed to impersonal references, such as an HR person verifying employment. <S> The employer just wants to talk to people who've worked with you enough to say something useful to help them evaluate your candidacy. <A> Give only professional references. <S> Not friends. <S> Call them friends if you wish, but only provide professional references. <S> Many employers are using the internet to find out about prospective employees, by looking at their Facebook account, etc. <S> Remember, just because someone asks for something, doesn't mean you have to provide it. <S> Your friends are your own personal life, and none of their business. <S> Any company that wants to judge you based on that should give you concern to look elsewhere for employment, because they are attempting to judge you based on input, not output. <S> Employers need only be concerned with output. <S> Another thing to consider, do you really want HR to ask you again, in a year or so, to provide a list again of your personal friends as part of your evaluation? <S> No, of course not. <S> Be very careful here, only professional references at best. <S> But from my experience, if a company is asking for information you are not comfortable with, it's a red flag for them. <A> Do you have acquaintances that you could use? <S> They are probably trying to see what kind of person you are outside of work as there may be the case that even when you aren't on the clock, you may still be considered a representative of the company and thus they want to know what kind of character you'd be in those situations. <S> The idea here being to find those people that could talk about you but <S> that aren't your nearest and dearest friends. <S> If you rent where you live, then your landlord may be an idea. <S> Neighbors could also be an idea. <S> The theory here is to just get a few people that can give an idea as to your kind of character.
| As long as you provided a sufficient number of professional references along with all your other identification, I don't see the point.
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How to approach an interview after being rejected once I want to work with a company very much. I have tried getting through once and have been declined. I asked if I could reapply and they agreed. In my second attempt with the very same company, should I be open about my first attempt to get through? What should I say/avoid saying? <Q> Don't bring it up yourself. <S> It is entirely possible that the interview is for a different position at a different department and that your previous interview experience is simply irrelevant. <A> If they have asked you to another interview, then they did not reject you the first time for any reason that cannot be overcome (Such as perception of incompetence, bad recommendations, failing a drug test or a credit check, having a criminal history, lying). <S> Likely they had mulitple people who could do the job <S> and you were second or third choice or <S> they felt you were a better fit for a different job. <S> It is unlikly that a small company would ask you to interview again if they did not think it was a possibility that they would hire (no guarnatees though, you don't know how good your competition is). <S> If they asked you back for a different position, you may be in a good place, often when we see someone who we think would be better for another opening we have coming up, we might interview that person before advertising the position to get it filled right awy. <S> Go in with confidence and do your best. <A> You should tell the company that you have applied to them before. <S> They will want to know - either it will not matter or they will know what the other team thought having a view of the other team's skills and knowledge. <S> If you do not tell them then they do not have the option of doing the latter and will feel that you are wasting their time or hiding something. <S> In other words not telling them only gives a possibility of lowering the companies view of you whilst telling them has no real downside <S> and if you didn't fail the first time for bad reasons it could benefit you. <A> I am currently working for a company where I got rejected the first time round. <S> I saw an advert in my local job website that described the exact job I went for previously <S> and I told the recruiter that I had applied previously <S> and I personally feel that improved my chances of getting the job. <S> It is a chance for you to let the company know that you have developed yourself and improved your skills so that you can be a part of their team. <S> I imagine they will most likely not remember you, depending on how long ago you first tried, but I cannot see it hurting your chances to let them know that you applied previously. <S> Just remember to focus on how much yo have improved since you last spoke to them.
| Explain what you have done since the last interview that makes you a more suitable candidate this time around. If asked about it, don't lie - try to structure whatever you say in positive, constructive ways (it was a learning experience and such). If they felt that the result of the first interview was that your were an unacceptable hire, you would be marked that way in thier system or known to the hiring officials as someone not to consider.
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Should you include details unrelated to your occupation in your resume? Let's suppose I'm working on my resume to apply for some jobs. I think I should only include details that are relevant to the job I am applying for, but others think that it would be helpful to also include non-related accomplishments, such as, say, obtaining fluency in three languages, acheiving the Eagle Scout rank, getting a black belt in some form of martial arts, and so forth. Will potential employers even care about such details? Is it a good idea to include them? <Q> Fluency in three languages is a useful skill. <S> Doesn't matter how much it appears irrelevant to your job, most companies have dreams of expansion and may envision a time when your language skills might come in useful to them. <S> I suggest including that. <S> I guess some would argue that the other things show a positive determination to succeed. <S> I suspect most hiring managers will just pass over it, but I think you'd have had to have had a deeply unsettling experience involving ninjas to discount an applicant for achieving black belt. <S> So, that stuff can't hurt, but don't include it at the expense of something genuinely important and relevant or if your resume is looking a little too long. <S> But the languages ... include those. <S> Seriously. <A> The answer is not entirely clear-cut. <S> If you have an interviewer that happens to enjoy one of those same hobbies, that commonality may work to your advantage and make it easier to connect to your interviewer and leave a positive impression that you'd be a fun coworker to have on their team. <S> Or even if they don't share those hobbies, they may see positive personality traits in those skills: you have a well-rounded life (helps prevent burnout) or generosity, interest in staying fit (good for health insurance costs), or leadership skills and so forth. <S> But on the other hand, if the interviewer happens to be of a different political viewpoint, different religion, on a different side of any hot-button issue that you mention, thinks your hobby is too dangerous (risk for healthcare costs?), or the like, including such a hobby may actually work against you. <S> And some interviewers will prefer to only focus on the office side of your resume, and find hobbies irrelevant. <S> So if this portion of your resume is small and not controversial, it could be seen in a positive or neutral light, but there is risk to including a hobby section if which hobbies to list are poorly chosen. <A> Between the resume/CV and the cover letter you want to make it clear that you have the skills they desire. <S> Some parts you will focus on because they are directly related: looking to fill a position as X, and you have 3 years experience with X. Others are included to complete the timeline. <S> Don't skip mentioning an employer, because it will leave a big hole in the job history. <S> Other accomplishments are included because they tell the company that you have other traits: Intelligence (3 Languages), Drive (Eagle Scout), ability to complete tasks (unrelated college degrees). <A> Assuming you have these Skills obtaining fluency in three languages -- Absolutely. <S> That's a standard mention on a CV anyway. <S> achieving the Eagle Scout rank -- You can, but use it when you need to. <S> For example if your next job is working with Children. <S> getting a black belt in some form of martial arts --- <S> Well, stuff like this is Sports, so i would say Yes <S> and NO. <S> Its up to you. <S> if you feel is something you need to put down on your CV then by all means, but you could Generalize it and Put it in the interests part on your CV and say "you like Sports". <S> if you are asked on your interview about your interests then you can say "I do Judo <S> and i have a black Belt". <S> that way a good conversation will spark Up and probably get you the Job. <S> Never know, the Boss may be a Tiger Crane kung fu Instructor in his spare time. <S> To Sum up, When it Comes to Extra Skills on a CV think of the relevance to Each Job you are be applying to. <S> Skills like in Computing and Software would be regarded as a good thing to put on your CV because everyone nowadays uses a Computer at work and companies would save cash in training someone to use one.
| Everything on the resume has to be useful to selling you.
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Should I attend a company function? There's a big departmental picnic coming up; I've been told that, as a contractor, I won't be paid for the time if I do go to the picnic. However, as an integral member of the team (I definitely do as much and participate as fully as the employees on the team, and we're looking to get me hired-in full time as soon as possible), it seems odd to turn down a group bonding activity. It'll eat up half a day; should I eat the revenue loss for the sake of team bonding, or should I go to the office anyway and sit there by myself working? <Q> As a contractor, if things are going well you can afford to take the time off and do a bit of networking. <S> If they aren't you shouldn't turn down free food. <A> Consider that there may be a third choice - ask if you can make up the hours through the rest of the week and then go and still get paid the full amount. <A> I think in the long run, the team-building that this picnic offers is probably much more important than the half-day of pay. <S> Unless you really need that money, go have fun at the picnic! <A> I have been in a similar situation and have bristled when the company calls it a team bonding/team building event and makes integral members of the team take leave without pay to attend the event. <S> I just skip those events. <S> Keep in mind <S> the food isn't free, it is costing you four billable hours. <A> I'm always pro-team building. <S> Can you put a price on your team's perception of you in the long run? <S> It's hard enough being looked at as an outsider on a team because you're a consultant. <S> Now, putting in the extra effort to distance yourself from an all-too-cheap bonding experience (not to mention the free grub) like a team picnic, to sit at work by yourself seems... <S> I don't know, seems kinda unpleasant. <S> They'll either think of you as money-loving <S> or you don't care about bonding with them. <S> Unless of course if that's not a priority. <A> If you are looking to get permanent in the office, you should definitely focus on improving your relationships with your fellow colleagues as well as your seniors. <S> Going to a trip with them is really a good option for this. <S> Also if letting down half day salary is not gonna cost you much, then you should definitely attend the trip. <S> Also, talking to your senior about working for extra hours to make up for the trip time will definitely show your loyalty towards work and also your half day salary would be saved. <S> So you should definitely go to trip and ask your senior to make up for the half day loss by working in extra hours. <A> It sounds like you're gelling well with the team if they're going to bring you on full-time. <S> If you are on track to getting hired and just need to get past the paperwork phase, it may be a wise choice to go. <S> If missing that half day of work will really hurt you, maybe just attend for an hour and then politely leave. <S> It seems like what matters in your situation is making an appearance to show goodwill? <S> Just bothering to show up makes a big difference to people. <S> Even if you're only present for a short time, people will remember. <S> And then it sounds like you do have the ability to make up some hours and earn back the lost time. <S> For things like this, I personally think it's best not to sweat the small stuff if it's just a temporary situation heading in a promising direction.
| If the event is held after work or on a weekend I am actually more willing to attend because then everybody is on equal footing.
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Does an eagerness to engage in games with coworkers give me a bad image? I have a ping pong facility in my office and I play during lunch and after work with my senior colleagues. I started playing after my first week in the office. It has been only a month since I joined and I am quite visibly eager to play it. I don't know how my seniors take that. Though I am finishing my work on time, I feel my extra eagerness at playing may be looked at in a negative way. Is it better that I don't show much excitement in sports at least for the first 3 or 4 months of my job? <Q> After all, the ping pong table was supplied by the company with the intent that it will be played. <S> So long as playing doesn't interfere with working hours and the productivity of you and your colleagues, you shouldn't worry about it. <S> Of course, if someone does mention it as an issue, at that point you need to think about it, but not before. <A> Playing on your own time isn't a problem in principle. <S> But being out of the range of what's normal at your workplace, especially when you're new, can be. <S> So pay attention to your coworkers -- how often do they play and for how long? <S> Every day or just a few times a week? <S> Do they ever start late because they had some work to finish up? <S> If everyone else is playing less frequently than you and especially if you're right there at quitting time and they aren't, that can make a bad impression. <S> It's fine to have fun during lunch and after work, particularly since your employer provided the means, but not standing out from the norm should be a priority for you until you get settled in more. <A> Quod licet Iovi, non licet bovi. <S> Just because your senior colleagues can play ping pong during lunch, it does not automatically mean that you can, too. <S> Sometimes the company provides its employees an opportunity to play, and then resents that they use it too much -- even if the "recommended amount" was never announced. <S> People are not always rational. <S> Maybe your boss originally imagined that you all will play ping pong only after your working hours, or only once in a week; and then you do it almost every day, and the boss is not happy with that. <S> You don't know, unless you ask explicitly; but even then, people sometimes change their minds later. <S> Your senior colleagues have better estimates what they can do, how much they can risk making the boss angry, and how much the company needs them . <S> Also they already have an image within the company as "people who did successfully this and that". <S> You don't. <S> Yet. <S> So I would recommend waiting a month or two, and then starting slowly. <S> Or, in current situation, to slow down for a few weeks. <S> Of course, your willingness to risk depends on how much you need this specific job. <S> If you don't care much, you can risk more. <A> If you are getting along well with your colleagues and your manager, you are probably fine and have nothing to worry about. <S> You may just be the guy that really likes table tennis. <S> Ask one of the senior colleagues how you are doing. <S> If there are more players than table time, be considerate about not taking more than your share. <S> If it's the other way around, and there is often someone who would like to play but can't find an opponent, then you are probably a very welcome addition to the team. <A> Anyone who doesn't want to see me enjoy myself on my lunch hour has got a serious problem. <S> Every company I've ever worked for (10+) has always provided lunch amenities that were either open to all employees or restricted to clients/guests. <S> This is like worrying if you drink to much coffee. <S> Since you're new, make sure you allow others to play if they are waiting for the table. <S> There could be a certain day where the boses have an unwritten reservation for their weekly game, so let them have it. <S> I did work at a company where employees at all levels of the company (including CFO) played basketball during lunch. <S> There was a lot of resentment because we got an extended lunch hour. <S> How hard would it have been for the managers (just about every department played) to allow everyone else a little extra time? <A> At the risk of sounding trite, life is too short to worry about whether your enjoyment of ping pong is seen as unusual behavior. <S> If your choice is to assimilate quietly, then play less frequently and with less vigor. <S> If your choice is to be memorable, then play as you so choose and use the opportunity to understand the company and its culture better. <S> If your performance is called into question, then it's time to discuss your leader's view of how much you play. <S> Until then, enjoy and perhaps invite others in your group to have some fun over lunch, too.
| If you play on your own time (as you say, during lunch time and after work), there shouldn't be a problem. The presence of the table indicates that the company cares much more about whether work gets done than they care about how and when it gets done.
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Should we maintain the difference between personal and professional contacts? I am a newbie in a professional world and hence I have some new friends in my working area including some seniors. So, we are also connected from a social networking site but the issues is I am connected to all the professional friends via my personal social networking id so that they can see my the my personal spaces also there. Should there be a different id for all my professional contacts? <Q> Almost definitely you should try to keep them separate. <S> Unless you never post anything on your personal social-network accounts that you wouldn't want your professional contacts to see. <S> For most people that is not the case. <S> In fact there have been a number of high-profile stories about people being fired after a professional contact discovered "inappropriate" content on their personal social-network account. <S> You don't want to be that guy. <S> And conversely, content that would be appropriate for your professional contacts might be boring as hell to your personal friends. <S> You don't want to be that guy who bores his friends by posting his work stuff on his personal social networks, either. <S> I'd suggest that there is a natural solution to this problem. <S> Social networks targeted to professionals exist. <S> Use one (like linkedin) for all of your professional contacts. <S> Use another (like facebook) for all of your personal contacts. <S> Note that some crossover may exist, and of course you should be particularly careful about letting a professional contact cross over into your personal social network. <S> Make sure you know and trust the person and that you have a good relationship with them first. <S> There's less risk with respect to letting personal contacts cross over into your professional network. <A> Personally I take a different approach... <S> I utilize social networking and media systems with the understanding that everything on the Internet is searchable and archived. <S> Essentially if I don't want my boss to potentially learn something about me <S> I simply don't post it. <S> I know this may seem restrictive to some, especially those of you who have grown up with technology such as myself. <S> However, the realization is that to provide and create a professional reputation there is NO difference between personal and professional contacts. <S> For instance, your neighbors and family friends may not necessarily be viewed as professional contacts but when things are tough or you are looking for something new, they are often the first people you reach out to. <S> Your friends need to know you are a good friend <S> but they also need to know that if asked to recommend you for a job you are also a true professional. <S> So in my opinion no, use a single account. <S> Just make sure you know what the implications are if you post a drunken picture of your latest spring break trip with the buds. <S> This entire concept also goes back to a central idea of providing a personal brand for yourself. <A> It is nearly impossible to completely separate professional and personal contacts. <S> What happens when a friend comes to work at your company? <S> What happens when you and some coworkers start hanging out together a lot and become friends? <S> Instead of trying to maintain separate identities, I recommend having one identity and moderating what you post. <S> First, as Brent pointed out, anything you post on the Internet is public, so remember that when considering those compromising photos from that party you only barely remember. <S> If your social network doesn't support security groups, get one that does -- there's really no excuse not to have that feature these days. <S> Remember, though, that rule 1 still applies -- you've posted something to the Internet, albeit under lock, and a single weak link -- <S> that is, one gossipy member of a security group, or one person you've had a falling-out with -- stands between your secret and a wider audience. <A> Or you can use the segmentation features offered by some networks where you can organize contacts into groups and control who sees what. <S> Ultimately, it's up to you. <S> Do you feel that your private persona and professional persona are similar enough that you can mix them freely? <S> Does your personal social network contain anything that might reflect negatively on your professional persona? <S> And remember, it's not just you that post on your social network, it's all your friends and contacts as well.
| You can use e.g. Facebook for your personal friends and LinkedIn for your professional contacts. I try very hard to separate my online networks. Second, instead of separate identities, use filters -- security groups, circles, whatever your social network calls them, decide which of your friends/followers/contacts can see what content and only make the safe stuff visible to the world.
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How should you list a sensitive or questionable project that provided great experience on your resume? There are several types of projects you could work on that could be sensitive for various reasons (involvment might disclose your personal political affiliations, the legality might be questionable, etc). However, projects such as this can still be valuable experiences where you develop or exercise very strong skills, resulting in such a project making you more attractive to hire . How can you list experience on a sensitive project like this on your CV without disclosing too much information about the project itself ? Would it be okay to list it as a "personal project" ? <Q> You can always list the project as confidential but list the technologies and experience. <S> Don't lie, but certainly you can spin the actual project goals and details - these shouldn't be as relevant as the experience. <S> If you have a codename for the project, you can simply use the codename and list the achievements without going into the sensitive part. <A> The golden rule is that you should not advertise something you can't fully back up or stand behind. <S> That being said, I recognize that some people will not have that option. <S> Perhaps you made poor choices early in life and a lot or most of what you've done up to this point is questionable. <S> I don't know what your particular story is (and I don't want to know either). <S> And leaving large gaps on your resumé is equally suspect. <S> If you put something like that on your resumé, be prepared to be asked about it. <S> Especially if you write stuff like "Project name: Withheld" or "Confidential" or "Client: <S> N/A" - that only piques the interest further as it makes those things stand out. <S> So, if you need to put "questionable" things on your resumé, be brief. <S> Don't describe details, limit to technology and area, like "Built data-mining tool using technologies X, Y and Z". <S> If and when an interviewer asks about this, you have the option of elaborating and, possibly, turning it to your advantage. <S> If what you did was ethically or morally questionable, you can give context and describe it as a learning experience. <S> If what you did was illegal, don't mention it. <S> Ever. <A> Ignoring the fact that you should avoid illegal work.... <S> If there is some codename available for the project, use that. <S> If not, simply list it as a "Confidential project". <S> That's it as far as identifying the project. <S> Then provide some explanation of what you did, in terms specific enough to describe your responsibilities and accomplishments, but vague enough that you don't give away anything you shouldn't. <S> Let's say, for example, you ran a local office for an unpopular politcal group. <S> I'd suggest something like the following: <S> GENERAL <S> TITLE <S> OR <S> PROJECT <S> CODENAME <S> Supervised 20 staff members and numerous volunteers Increased volunteer numbers from 10 to 50 Oversaw fundraising campaign that raised $4M over 8 months <S> Organized a local conference on Topic X with Y speakers and Z attendees <S> It's really not too different from a regular project, you just need to be more careful about what you disclose (and make sure it's legal so that your employer can act as a reference and back up your claims). <A> This particular scenario comes up often when dealing with software engineers that are working on government projects that require a Top Secret clearance. <S> Of course, it is easy to tell people that a project is secret based on government clearance, and you won't hear follow-up questions about what the project was. <S> Generally, you would be able to detail the technologies that you used. <S> There are also scenarios where you could have been working for an illegal business without even knowing it. <S> For example, if you were building technologies that individually were seemingly harmless and used by what appeared to be a legitimate business, but you later found out they were used to power a gambling website, the portion of the work that you did was not illegal or even unethical. <S> I would, in this case, list the experience completely and not the company name or details about the business <S> (if asked, you should reveal the full truth). <S> Unless you need to list this on the resume (for reasons of needing to show how you developed a skill or to fill a gap on the resume), it is probably best to leave it off. <S> If you do include it, give the relevant details only.
| List this the same way you would list any confidential project (such as an upcoming, unreleased product that your current/former employer is keeping quiet). Describe why you did what you did, what you learned and why you would not do it again.
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Being Interviewed by fellow candidates I am applying for a promotion within my department. The process involves interviewing with several managers. Upon receiving my interview schedule I discovered that some of the interviewers are actually eligible candidates that are also considering applying for the promotion. They were provided my complete resume and all of the information that an interviewer would have in preparation. This puts me at a disadvantage or allows them to poison the well if or when they decide to apply. Is this a common practice? <Q> This is a very odd situation, which can also be seen as quite unfair. <S> If you feel uncomfortable about it, or don't trust your colleagues to remain professional, then I would suggest speaking to a HR manager/senior manager to request if your colleagues could be left out of the interviews due to a conflict of interest. <A> Upon receiving my interview schedule I discovered that some of the interviewers are actually eligible candidates that are also considering applying for the promotion. <S> I think the key here is ' considering '. <S> This is also assuming that the company has a large enough number of employees to choose from for the interview panel. <S> At a smaller company, there may be few options. <S> As others have mentioned, going to HR is another option. <S> Depending on the size of the company, you may want to be careful about that, as you may be seen as someone who is 'telling' on your competitors before anything has even happened. <S> If the other candidates have not come forward yet and you only know they are considering applying from personal conversations, I'd be careful with what you say at this point. <S> Good luck! <A> I think there's a lot of potential variance on this. <S> I have interviewed for a position where a number of people in the team interviewing me were also qualified for the job - in tech work where the nature of seniority means that a high level engineer may be a great subject matter expert and a poor manager - or vice versa. <S> On paper, they may even both look the same. <S> So just because someone in the existing group was qualified (and even interested) <S> didn't mean that it was the perfect match. <S> And if they haven't applied yet, they aren't technically a candidate. <S> I think you have to trust that: if everyone is ethical, even your competition will be looking for the right guy for the job and won't be trying to bury you just because you are competition. <S> if the hiring manager is at all savy, he can read his own people well enough to see if someone is trying to poison the well. <S> if both of the above statements are false (unethical employees, obtuse manager) - this may not be a place you want to work, anyway.
| If the parties who scheduled the interview were absolutely aware that these interviewers were active candidates for the job, or if they were aware that these interviewers were even considering throwing their hats into the ring, then I would expect they would/should not be involved in the process.
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Should I tell my employer I'm in school? Should I tell my employer I'm currently in school to complete my bachelors degree? With my current role at the company having a degree will not give me a raise or a promotion. It will also not open up new opportunities since it's a small software company and I'm already just 2 heads from the top of the pyramid -- only chance of a promotion is if my boss dies or quits. I went back to school 2 years ago and I've not let anyone at the company find out. I'm just 1 year from having my degree at which point I plan to put myself back on the job market. For now my primary focus is to just maintain my current job until I finish my degree as my job security is very good here. My concern is if my employer finds out I'm in school I fear they will suspect what my intentions are (to find a new job) with my new fancy piece of expensive paper; since it's obviously not to get a promotion. At this point I really don't plan to tell anyone, but my concern is that someone finds out and then people start to question my loyalty because I've kept a rather large secret about my personal life. To that point, I've not lied to anyone about it as no one has asked me if I was in school. I just have not been forthcoming with the information. <Q> Your employer should expect that you are constantly expanding your skills and abilities and that you will leave as soon as you get a better offer. <S> The first is almost a mandatory trait for anyone in IT, and the second is simply reality and reciprocal behavior -- your employer will certainly drop you if they feel the need. <S> Which means that they don't need to find anything out to suspect that your days with them are numbered, it just brings it more into focus. <S> You are under no obligation to tell them the specifics about your expanding skills unless they are paying for it. <S> While it may possibly be beneficial to them for you to do so, it's not a benefit you are obligated to give them <S> and it could just as easily end up having a negative impact (which you are likewise under no obligation to prevent). <A> If you've been with the company for 5 years, there's a very good chance that they've completely forgotten what your educational background was. <S> They know you're loyal, a good worker, and get things done. <S> They know you provide value to the company. <S> Therefore, once you get your degree and find another job, just say you're looking at other opportunities to expand and grow your career, and that you've found a job with X company. <S> Give them the notice period, but don't mention the degree unless they ask. <S> If I apply for a new job at another company, I don't have to tell <S> my soon-to-be former employer <S> that the time I spent working on an open source project during my off time improved my skills enough to land the new job. <S> The fact is that people move on all the time, and depending on how valuable you are to the company, they may counter-offer and they may not. <S> Saying you've been working for 4 years to get a degree without telling them might be kind of offensive, especially if you were friends with anyone there. <S> As a side note, if they counter-offer or express interest in keeping you on, it then might be advantageous to mention the new degree. <S> It will put things in perspective for your employer and help them understand that you're no longer a little fish, so to speak. <S> You're already working for them, and a piece of paper doesn't change how valuable you are to them, only how marketable you are to other employers. <A> I'll be honest here... <S> They have given you two years of employment, then to be three if you stick around long enough. <S> if you go and attempt to get another job give your current employers the courtesy of a counteroffer at least. <S> If they refuse, then give your two weeks and don't burn any bridges. <S> If you have done this so far without your employer knowing, then there is no reason why to tell them till after the fact anyway, especially if you are not going to stick around in the first place
| Basically, until you have a job offer in hand, there's no point in bringing it up since it there's no definite benefit to either you or the company. Other than that, telling them you have a degree shouldn't matter in their decision to keep you on or not.
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How can you deal with receiving no job training without becoming a pest? I have been in a situation before where I was essentially thrown into a job position with no training whatsoever. It was very much a "sink or swim" environment where I was expected to become productive and figure out my place basically on my own. This was a very, very large company (Fortune 50) with lots of employees, tasks, and highly-matrixed teams; the simple fact was that most people didn't have a lot of time to spend to walk me through some of the basics that everyone there took for granted. The result of this was that I spent an hour trying to figure something out that one of my coworkers or bosses would have been able to explain to me in five minutes or less. Is there a way to handle this without being a nuisance to your team (i.e., constantly asking for help and explanations) while still being effective and adding value to your assignments? <Q> Reasonable people will expect you to be a nuisance; new people are an investment. <S> Meet with your manager (or team lead, or whatever level assigns work and knows the systems) to get an outline of what you need to know. <S> Break it down into a list during the meeting, and get a contact for each item on the list (the manager should balance competence and workload/availability). <S> Set up a meeting with each within their schedule and have them walk you through the thing(s) <S> they are supposed to be experts in. <S> Once you have met with a person, if they don't have time (or desire) to answer future questions as they come up, bundle a day of questions and ask them all at once (schedule a time). <S> This way you only interrupt their normal work once instead of 5-10 times in a day. <S> Final thing: <S> Write down both questions and answers. <S> As someone answering questions, I'm happy to answer once, I don't really mind answering twice, and every time after I will answer but make it exceptionally clear that I'm not happy about the situation. <A> New people always take time to come up to speed. <S> If management chooses not to make your training someone's responsibility, then you'll have to make it happen on your own, by asking your co-workers. <S> That's the price the organization is paying for hiring a new person and not making your training someone's responsibility. <S> Yes, you WILL be taking their time away from other tasks. <S> But don't beat your head against the wall too long on any new problem before asking for help - 5 minutes of your co-workers time can prevent hours of lost time on your part, and overall that means higher productivity for the organization as a whole. <A> See, with a new guy in the 'barn' there's always a question what will he/she be working on. <S> It's up to the manager to assign, so naturally your peers won't be filling you in on everything (nor would you want it in the beginning). <S> Once your manager moves beyond fulfilling the head-count and gives you initial assignment, then you would interact with your peers on the subject without becoming a nuisance. <S> Meanwhile, invest your interest in the people <S> you'll be working with. <S> On human scale you'll learn more than just technicalities, perhaps even in wider team/company scope. <S> No worries, when it'll come down to work load - you'll get the share. <A> Just ask. <S> As long as you're not asking the same thing over and over; and as long as you're sensitive to taking other people's time don't worry about it. <A> I would ask but not all the time. <S> Make sure you get an idea when is a good time to interupt. <S> Gather up several questions to ask at once. <S> It takes people some time to return to a task after their concentration has been broken. <S> Although your company may not be utilizing your time to the fullest, pulling Sr staff off of an important project is not worth 55 minutes of your time. <S> Just be thankful they didn't throw you off a cliff to see if you could fly.
| Be as polite as you can about it, and be SURE to take notes so you won't have to ask the same question twice. Everyone understands the new guy will require some ramp up time, and see that there's no formal training (which is IMO less effective than just asking teammates anyways). Helping a new guy is not a nuisance, it's a leadership experience!
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Is suggesting a monthly or yearly increase in salary better? Depending on how an offer is written, it may state a monthly or yearly salary. For example, "Your monthly salary will be $5,000" vs "Your yearly salary will be $60,000, paid monthly" represents the same amount of money per year. When either attempting to negotiate a raise or job offer, is it better to negotiate using the monthly or yearly salary? Ex. "I would appreciate a raise of $500/month for X, Y, Z reasons" vs "I would appreciate a raise of $6,000/year for X, Y, Z reasons" It would seem suggesting a monthly salary increase has a psychological benefit of a lower number (even though the two suggestions represent the same net increase). <Q> Not really. <S> In the end they have a budget - probably a yearly one. <S> When it comes to money, most people will do the math pretty quick. <S> No matter how you state it, if you are asking for a salary that they can't afford, or that is signicantly beyond the rate that they can get by hiring someone else, or that they simply don't think you are worth - you won't get what you want. <S> Most of the time, the initial offer is made in a standardized format that the company reuses. <S> So if anything, it's best to speak to them in their own terms - if they start with monthly, respond in months in your counter offer. <S> The kind of psychology you propose is most directly relevant to non-researched shopping scenarios - when the consumer has spent a lot of time weighing pros and cons (like they do when making an offer), I would expect the psychological value of gimmicks to go way down. <S> Instead, I'd optimize for making my counter-offer as easy to understand as possible. <S> The more time the hiring staff has to think about what you just offered, the longer this process will take. <A> So instead of asking for a $10 000 raise from $60 000, I would suggest just saying "I would like to be paid $70K" <S> This is the least complicated and easiest thing to understand to the person making the decision. <S> Regardless of how you present the issue their answer is likely going to be <S> "I'll see what I can do", and then they will think about it rendering your attempts at tricking them useless. <S> What you want to do though, is to supply arguments for why you think that that is fair / market value. <S> If you do a good job their thought will be " <S> Yeah, X per year is worth those skills." <S> Which still doesn't mean you're going to get it - they might have budget constraints and things happening that you may not know about. <A> It depends on how they work their business. <S> Some will have a range of salaries for that position. <S> They know that a person in job description X can make between A and B dollars per unit period. <S> The unit period could be an hour, a month, or a year. <S> Some will base it on what they can charge their customer on that contract. <S> They know when they account for overhead, Fringe, G & A, profit, they have X% of the hourly rate left for salary. <S> That limits the maximum amount they can pay an employee. <S> It doesn't matter how you phrase it <S> : I would like W%, X per hour, Y per month or Z per year. <S> They will not give you an answer right away unless you were seriously underpaid, or seriously overpaid. <S> Most of the time they will have to run the numbers, which means they will translate it into whatever form they need. <S> A note about monthly salaries: Though many people give their salary as 5K a month, they are paid every 2 weeks. <S> Only if you get the same pay for January and February should you think in terms of monthly salary.
| The best thing to do is to say the total anual salary that you want.
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How do I categorize my skillset in resume? I am preparing a resume for my job search. I have the following set of skills to list: PHP, HTML, CSS, jQuery, CakePHP, CMS(Drupal), MySQL, Google API, Flickr API, OAuth I do not find stacking them all under one skillset title to be attractive. Some of them are scripting languages and some are supporting languages and some are APIs. How do I categorize them? Are there any conventional ways of doing it in a resume? <Q> I would categorize core technologies along standard Model-View-Controller lines. <S> Something like: User Interface <S> (View) <S> HTML <S> CSS <S> Programming Languages <S> (Controller) <S> PHP JavaScript <S> (this could arguably be placed in the section above, instead) <S> Databases/Backends <S> (Model) <S> MySQL <S> However that leaves out a lot of your higher-level technologies, as they don't really fit into any particular low-level category. <S> So you might also have: Servers/Platforms Drupal <S> CakePHP <S> API's/ <S> SDK's/ <S> Frameworks Google <S> Flickr OAuth <S> jQuery <S> That's roughly along the lines of what I'd do anyways. <S> You'd be surprised how many people do that. <A> Recruiter's perspective: <S> One problem I see when candidates list too many categories <S> is that you end up with too large a ' Skills ' section on the resume, and then candidates wonder why their resume is 5 pages long. <S> Being thorough is good, but you also want to be sure to keep the resume to an acceptable length. <S> I've seen skills sections broken down into 10 categories, which ends up taking an entire page for some. <S> I usually have candidates use Languages, Databases, Operating Systems, and then a catch-all such as Tools. <S> Keep in mind <S> the initial reader/screener is probably someone in HR that is looking for a particular buzzword, and where it is categorized is often beyond the scope of resume screeners. <S> You certainly want to categorize as accurately as possible, but if it's taking up half a page of your resume you should reconsider, especially (as in the example above) if you only have one single item to list under a category. <A> HR people would not read resumes as a plain text . <S> To me, there are two separate goals for a Skills section: Human-readable - attracting HR's attention in the first 10 seconds; Non-human-readable, but searchable - providing with a possibility for a keyword search; <S> These two are very different, and therefore they should be solved in different manners. <S> So, here's how I arrange my skills in a resume: <S> On a very top section, just under name and titles, I list a set of outstanding technologies <S> I'm most familiar with. <S> Just a single line answering the question, who am I? <S> I keep it as short as possible since i do expect that an HR would read it entirely. <S> And yes, it can be read entirely in 10 seconds: <S> Keywords: PHP, HTML, CSS, jQuery, CMS, Drupal, MySQL <S> Note <S> : it's great if your resume is customized for a position you're applying to . <S> A separate section, called Skills , is a comma-separated list. <S> I don't expect anyone to read it deliberately, but I want them listed and be keyword searchable . <S> Something like this: 3 years | Databases: MySQL , MSSQL) <S> 3 years <S> | Platforms: PHP, JavaScript 2 years <S> | SDK's: jQuery, Google , Flickr, OAuth
| You can include frameworks, app servers, testing tools, those API's, and a host of things in the Tools section. The benefit of breaking things up into categories is that it demonstrates that you understand a particular technology and its use, and that you didn't just google for a list of technical terms to include on your resume.
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How can I negotiate a reduced notice period? I have a written contract. It states that I have a 3 month notice period. It looks like I may be offered another job but they would like me to start sooner rather than later. How can I negotiate down my notice period? <Q> The notice period is there to protect both parties (employer and employee) and you can't suddenly say "well, it was good to be protected <S> but it suits me to leave sooner <S> so how about you just let me go." <S> That said, a lot of companies will let you go earlier as long as you can demonstrate that it won't cost them. <S> Put together a hand-over plan and show them how long it's going to take, then ask them if you can leave at the end of that period. <S> Failing that, I'm afraid you're going to have to work it or risk being taken to court (and getting a poor reference). <S> I've been in the situation of having to wait three months for a new employee. <S> I have asked them to try to get that cut down. <S> But if they couldn't <S> and I wanted them <S> then I have waited. <S> Three months comes around surprisingly quickly and finding someone else worth hiring can take a lot longer. <S> It is likely your new employer will do the same. <S> In the end, do you think they want someone who doesn't live up to their contractual obligations? <S> If Christmas is a genuine complication, why not give four months' notice and start in January? <S> If they're completely inflexible then ask yourself if you really want to work there. <S> What else do you think they're inflexible about? <A> I have once done this. <S> I had a 2 month non-standard notice period that we negotiated down to slightly under 4 weeks, of which 3 weeks was basically work time. <S> I just simply asked by boss if it can be changed <S> and then we arranged a small extra agreement where the change was stated and what were the technical conditions, ie. <S> how many working days and how many non-working days that were taken from my remaining banked flextime (roughly +30 hours) and remaining vacation days (3,5 weeks). <S> In the end it went smoothly <S> and I got to start in my next job pretty much 1 month after we had a written agreement to start (2 days before I resigned officially). <S> The exact date was agreed after it was confirmed and I signed my new work contract a week later (I was abroad at that time). <S> TL;DR <S> ask your boss. <A> You go to your manager and ask them about it. <S> "3 months notice" means the company can force you to be employed with them for another three months. <S> It doesn't mean they have to. <S> You can ask them to accept a shorter notice, and they may accept it. <S> As an employer, they might consider that someone who has just given three months notice will not be the most motivated and most hard working person. <S> And someone who would like to leave in four weeks and isn't allowed to is even less motivated. <S> On the other hand, they could expect you to do a really good job for say the next four weeks if they allow you to leave earlier. <S> And then there are places where they don't want you to appear at the workplace once you have given notice. <S> That kind of place would love it if you gave them four weeks notice or none a all because you won't be working during your notice anyway, and that way they don't have to pay you. <S> But there is the other side, and that is your new company. <S> You should never give notice, and should never talk about notice, until the new contract is signed. <S> So you can't make any promises to the new company. <S> You would have to ask them for a contract that will start three months from now, with the possibility of starting earlier. <A> Is there a project you can work some extra time to complete? <S> Could you make your leaving contingent on them finding a replacement? <S> Demonstrate that the existing people can pick up the slack. <S> This isn't an exact science, so the 3 months is just to cover themselves. <S> Find out what concerns they have and offer to make the necessary effort to address them.
| If you wanted to negotiate then you should have done that before signing the contract. All you can do is try to work something out. So talk to your manager, and see what he thinks about it.
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Dealing with high visibility into productivity I am using a mechanism that tracks throughput (so that we can estimate tasks acurately for each individual on projects). Having this data could cause issues (i.e. with people motivated to make the numbers as best they can by rushing, or just plain lying about time spent). Has anyone run into this? How would you deal with this information being readily available to the team and management? How would you prevent someone from using this data for improper purposes and or abusing the process in order to get their numbers up? <Q> The unfortunate thing about "metrics", "KPI's" or whatever you want to call them is that people are all too willing to uncritically accept such measurements as "the truth" just because they're numbers. <S> Moreover, far too much emphasis is placed on the collection and reporting of these dubious figures and relatively little effort is put into their intelligent interpretation and how to effectively use these measurements in practice. <S> A simple number is much easier to present and digest than nuanced sentences, comparative case studies, and historical background. <S> This plays into the desire of management to make crisp, quick decisions based on "objective data". <S> It understandably feels better to make black and white decisions or judgements and not have to be mired in a fog of "grey area" indeterminancy. <S> Unfortunately, reality itself often is a "grey area" and it is not always possible to make truly informed decisions based on data, let alone data that isn't even valid. <S> As an example, in manufacturing, it is not uncommon for organizations to practice "cargo-cult" versions of six-sigma or lean methodologies. <S> In these places, a superficial effort is made to collect easily measured data and then cherry-pick the data differently to report the desired outcome. <S> This leads to people "gaming the system" for their own benefit while the true outcomes fail to change in a controllable way. <S> The way to avoid this problem is to cultivate a culture where decision-makers are willing to spend significant effort to look at data intelligently and critically. <S> Such people would not blindly accept what their "business intelligence dashboard" tells them and would smirk with skepticism upon hearing the phrase "high visibility into productivity." <A> If you're tracking throughput to make future estimates vaguely accurate then there is a cost to gaming the system. <S> Make it look like you're doing more and you will be expected to keep up that record. <S> Make it look like you're doing less and the whole team looks bad. <S> BUT if you start rewarding people who inflate their personal statistics, there is suddenly a benefit. <S> So, if you don't want people gaming the system, don't reward them for doing so. <S> Simple. <S> If, however, you WANT to compare people statistically and reward your best performers then you need to look at everything: Quantity, quality, distractions to other people, helping other people, encouraging other people, time worked (if someone is overworking themselves before a review, are they going to be able to sustain that). <S> Anything that has an effect on the team's productivity, measure it. <S> How easy this is depends very much on your industry. <A> I ran into something like this in a previous job. <S> A point system was created for finding issues, completing tests, and other QA tasks. <S> Bonuses were awarded with the top point earner each month earning $500, the second earning $250, and the third earning $100. <S> Within three months, the system was discarded and deemed a failure. <S> We pumped out more work, but the consequence was a drastic dip in quality due to speeding through tasks to get more points as well as a plethora of illegitimate bugs logged so testers could garner points. <S> No employee wants to look bad in a direct numerical comparison with their co-workers, I suspect if dishonest behavior is not deliberate, there is a subconscious pull to appear to be doing a lot of things. <S> I'm not sure if you can work a logging mechanism into whatever software you use to track workflow, but doing that without letting the employees know may be your best bet to get honest results, but that comes at the cost of what some may feel is "spying behavior" on the company's part (even if it really isn't, since a company has every right to gain metrics on their employees work)
| People will only game the system if there's a benefit to doing so. Even if the employees do not have access to the metrics you are collecting, once they are aware that they are being recorded, the likelihood of behavior changing for the worst is high.
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Interview question: Why did you leave your previous role? I am currently in the job market for a leadership role, and could use some advice on how to answer this question objectively. My previous position was in many ways a dream job. The company was having explosive growth, I had been promoted three times in four years, and was a key player in driving much of the change that the company was experiencing. I had the respect of my team and coworkers, in a very fun and familial environment with fabulous benefits and fun, challenging work. Almost everything about it was wonderful. However, my director was a terrible individual to work for. He was opportunistic and Machiavellian, often pitting team members against each other for promotion opportunities, twisting and spinning situations to his advantage, and other really shady stuff. The dealbreaker was two-fold: For the third time in a row he promoted his buddy over me, even though the popular consensus was that I had outperformed his buddy. (I say this objectively; a number of people approached me afterwards and expressed their shock and dismay at his choice.) Although he routinely took credit for my ideas, on one particular circumstance did it so blatantly that again others were alarmed at his audacity. This is how he got promoted to VP. The C-level execs loved him, and now he's a VP, so I had no avenues available to address the problem. So I quit. I had other opportunities already waiting, and it was obvious to me that I would never be able to reach my full potential under this director. But this is all very negative, and I don't want to come across as catty or fickle. I loved the company, loved the people, loved the job. Hated my director. How can I explain (preferably in much fewer words!) this candidly in an interview so that it's obvious that I left due to ethical and philosophical reason, and without sounding bitter or trite? <Q> it was obvious to me that I would never be able to reach my full potential <S> There you go. <S> Add "at that company" instead of pointing to a specific individual and you have your answer. <S> It's honest. <S> It's not negative. <S> It doesn't stink of you missing out information. <S> It's saying "I'm better than I could be there. <S> I believe you offer me more potential to grow." <S> If the interviewer digs further, remain honest. <S> Some of us accept that people don't usually move companies without some negativity, and we're asking because we want to know if you have issues with something that will also be an issue at our company. <S> But, to beat off the interviewer who just churns out stock questions and expects you to remain positive, "it was obvious to me that I would never be able to reach my full potential at ..." will work just fine. <A> Nothing turns people down worse than bad-mouthing a previous employer. <S> Be understated, and let them read between the lines. <S> Start with "There are so many things I liked about ", then list them. <S> Then add "politically my position became untenable as I lacked management support", or "I felt that I reached my limit in my ability to progress". <A> How can I explain (preferably in much fewer words!) <S> this candidly in an interview so that it's obvious that I left due to ethical and philosophical reason, and without sounding bitter or trite? <S> You don't, because you can't make it sound anything other than a whiney ex-employee. <S> The response should be neutral: "it was time to move on" or "I had reached the limits of what I could do & grow at that company. <S> " The only time you will be able to explain poor ethics at a previous employer is if they ended up being a public scandal - like Enron or Arthur Anderson. <A> How can I explain (preferably in much fewer words!) <S> this candidly in an interview so that it's obvious that I left due to ethical and philosophical reason, and without sounding bitter or trite? <S> I do not think that you can. <S> It is pretty apparent from the way you worded the question that you are bitter. <S> I am not trying to judge if it is deserved <S> but it is better to recognize that you are bitter so that you can try to deal with it. <S> What did you learn? <S> What did you accomplish? <S> Accept the blame for this on your shoulders. <S> If pressed about what you did not like, simply state that you do not want to talk negatively about your former employer, <S> you respect and appreciate the opportunity they provided to much to do that. <S> Any decent employer should respect that. <A> You don't have to name individuals but just say something along the lines of: <S> There were unresolved issues that made it difficult for me to do my job effectively. <S> If you can demonstrate that you were effective in other aspects of your role - do you have (or can you get) testimonials from clients or other managers? <S> - then this one area shouldn't be a deal breaker. <S> It may even help to explain a less than glowing reference from your previous employer.
| As for answering the question I would simply state that I was no longer happy there and did not see a future with the company. Tell the truth - but not necessarily the whole truth. What you can do: Focus on the positives of the position.
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Should I resign from my current job before getting acceptance letter from the new job? I have done Bachelor in Computer Science and Engineering. During the last days of my degree, I got placed in a good multinational corporation. I got offer letter from the company. My joining was delayed by the company for about 7 or 8 months. During this time, I joined a local company, so as not to put a gap in my career. Its been 5 months for me, that i have been on the current company. Now they are going to appoint me on a project that would take about 3 or 4 months. But I hope I would have to leave the current job in not more than 2 months. I haven't received any joining letter from the second company, but I would get only a month to clear all my stuff, once I got a letter from the company. Is it a good idea to leave the current job and wait for the other company to send a joining letter? What if the other company puts more delay in joining letter? I am a bit confused about what to do in this situation. I am thinking of having a talk with my team leader. But I would like to hear some positive response from the Workplace people. <Q> Bird in hand, dude. <S> Did the employer let you know they were going to take so long to get you started after your offer? <S> Did the employer keep communicating with you over those 7 months? <S> Did your offer letter not state your expected resumption date? <S> Did you show up on that day <S> and they said to call back in 7 months? <S> If the new place is any kind of place to work for, they owe you the lead time to round off your projects. <S> Be clear on this to them, and cite the 8 month delay to them if they attempt to arm twist you. <S> I'd say you are in the driver's seat now, the new guys should wait. <A> The key point to remember is that right now you have a job (and contract) with your current employers, whereas from your prospective future employers all you have is a verbal indication that they want to offer you a job later. <S> Which means that the only certainty right now is that your current employers will pay you - your prospective future ones are under no obligation to actually give you a job in the future. <S> This means that if you told your current employers that you want to leave, and then your prospective future employers do not offer you the job, you will be unemployed without a wage. <S> The question to consider is whether you could support yourself without a job. <S> Remember that there is nothing legally binding from the new company, they have no legal obligation toward you <S> , there is no guarantee that they will actually offer you the job 9or any job) and even if they do they could easily offer you the job with a different salary. <S> It is not unheard of for companies to want to make a job offer but to then change their minds (budget cuts, or the project didn't happen, or they found someone else...). <S> My advise to you would be to stay with your current employers, and not to mention the potential new job until they actually give you a written contract and offer. <S> If they do offer you the job in 2 months time, then with 1 month's notice that takes you to 3 months anyway which is the lower end of how long the project you are starting could take, so you may well finish it before leaving. <S> And if you don't, then your current employers will still manage; who knows, they might even try to negotiate to keep you with them! <A> I would get in touch with your HR contact at the company that first offered your letter. <S> I think it is your right to know when you are expected to join (or what is the minimum time you are expected to wait). <S> In an uncertain economic climate, I have heard of offers being rescinded or being postponed indefinitely. <A> Without making you a formal offer, the MNC has no obligation to hire you. <S> I can't speak to every case, but a 7 month lead time on a college grad is in my experience unusual. <S> Unless there are security background checks that are out of sight, or you hae a very usual background <S> - it's usually quite easy to judge where a college grad will fit in a big organization and to plan for it. <S> At 7 months, you may expect that your competion may include the next round of college grads, meaning the job is not yours until you get the formal offer. <S> The trick is, I don't know what the standard is for giving notice where you are working. <S> In the US, the standard is 2 weeks, but I know in other countries it varies remarkably. <S> Again, in the US, because most companies are baselined on a similar standard, hiring companies expect that workers have to give 2 weeks notice, so it's planned into the cycle - if a formal offer is delayed, so is the start date. <S> So - in my US-centric book, 1 month is more than enough lead time for your current employer. <S> But, again, I've seen cases here on The Workplace that lead me to believe that in other countries, the standard expectation can be up to 3 months. <S> Also - the mileage of whether to give what I'll call 'tentative notice' <S> (I may have a job offer soon... and I will take it...) <S> is a very unique case. <S> I have done such things when I had a very highly trusted relationship with the manager who would be most directly harmed by my leaving. <S> At the time, it was a very easy going talk and he was incredibly supportive. <S> You really have to trust your manager on this, though, it can easily turn out to be a very bad move.
| If you are happy in your current job and are learning, there is no reason to quit until you are given a clear start date by the first company. It's very important not to burn bridges when leaving any employer, and your current employer might not give you a favorable reference to anyone if you left them hanging.
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What can I do to overcome the distraction of my coworkers talking I want to block the distraction of my colleagues' conversations. I tried different ear plugs, but none of them filtered out speech enough for me. Reading into earmuffs online, I read that ear protection is generally optimized to filter high and low frequencies while at the same time leaving the frequency ranges for speech untouched. For instance the high end 3M Peltor Optime III Premium is advertised as follows : This results in maximum high-frequency muffling, while at the same time it is easy to understand speech and signals. This makes sense on a construction site, where hearing your boss's or colleague's shout can save your life. But this is not a problem in open plan offices. So what is the solution to blocking out the room noise and conversations in an open office environment? <Q> Noise cancellation headphones like Bose QC-3 or QC-15 are statistics-based and work well for constant droning kind of noises (airplane engines, wind, street noise, etc). <S> You will still hear conversations with them if they happen anywhere around you. <S> If you really want silence, you can go with shooting ear-muffs that they use on gun ranges. <S> You can usually get them in your local outdoor-sy shops and they are not that expensive. <S> IMHO <S> this will work best, but you will look a bit goofy. <A> Get a white noise generator . <S> generally a static sound that can be a bit annoying for 10 min or so <S> but after you will rarely notice it being there but will definitely notice when it is not. <S> I have worked in places that have them and those that do not and definitely prefer to work where they are using them. <S> It works great because it tricks your mind into eliminating all of the back ground noise but you can still have a conversation like normal. <A> Noise filtering headphones or ear-muffs will always have problems with speech because its not a constant noise. <A> I see suslik answered about the Bose QC-15 headphones, and I would like to improve on that answer a bit. <S> I actually am using the QC-15 at work every day. <S> And they are simply amazing. <S> It is true that while turned on, without any music, they do not cancel out conversations going on right next to you. <S> But they do lower the volume of those quite a bit. <S> And by playing music in the earphones, even at a very low volume, you will hear nothing of the conversations going on right next to you, at all. <S> I very easily get distracted by conversations among my peers, even if I am not addressed. <S> And some tasks I cannot perform well with music, I really need silence. <S> But I found that the solution with very low music and noise-cancelling earphones works really well for me.
| Headphones with loud music, preferably in-ear, to block the sound and to distract yourself from the conversations.
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Is it unethical to network into a job with a vendor contact? My current employer has brought in a couple of firms to pitch us their product offerings in an informal fashion: "We're thinking about doing x with y, can you show us how you might help us with this?" We're not actively negotiating a sale or a service agreement. I would like to reach out to the folks I've met from these firms and try and network my way into a job with them. Is this sleazy and/or unethical? I realize it may be if they were poaching me, but this is the other way around: I'm looking to jump ship. <Q> Is this sleazy and/or unethical? <S> You have found some people you would like to potentially work with, and you are contacting them. <S> If this were a client of your firm, that might be a bit different and could be violating your contract, but as you describe it the situation doesn't seem to be an ethical question for you. <S> I think the ethics question will probably be more difficult for the vendor if they choose to speak with you, even if you are the one approaching them. <S> Your firm may get a bad taste about you leaving for this vendor, even if both you and the vendor are clear about your pursuit of the job. <S> But that is not for you to worry about. <S> The fact that you mention that you are looking to jump ship certainly helps your argument. <S> You are looking to leave regardless, and this vendor is one option. <S> The company may be less inclined to hold a grudge against the vendor if it is clear that you are unhappy and seeking new opportunities. <A> It's only unethical if you give them preferential treatment. <S> But... Managing your reputation is a lto about avoiding even the appearance of impropriety. <S> So you have to be beyond reproach in your dealing with them. <S> Also depending on your situation, you may want to be up front with your boss about your search. <S> Disclosure helps alleviate some of these issues. <A> I'll recommend some caution here. <S> Are you fully aware of the level of the relationship between your current employer and the people they've brought in? <S> I ask this because flogging your skills to them could backfire, i.e. they could possibly rat you out to your current employer. <S> Doesn't even have to be intentional on their part. <S> It simply could slip out in an informal setting like the one where they came to pitch to you. <S> If you've the luxury of time, try to build your own personal, informal relationship with these guys and then pitch. <S> Or look elsewhere
| I don't think it is unethical for you at all. Whether you met them at work or through a job ad seems somewhat irrelevant from your standpoint (as an individual employee).
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How to cope at a company where technical improvement is actively discouraged. A little background: I have been out of undergraduate college for a little under a year now. I work at a decent sized corporation as a software engineer. I am well paid and have good benefits. My concern is I have not been working this job long at all and I feel as though it is completely a technical dead end. I am not someone who has ever struggled with learning new things in the field of computer science or software engineering. I can pick up most programming languages in a week (not just imperative or OO, but functional and logic language as well). I have never touched an API I could not learn in a weekend. It has been over a decade since I can remember looking at source code and not being able to figure out what it is doing. My problem arises that at work, I feel like I have to consciously not use my technical knowledge to ever have any hope of fitting in. My workplace does have standards. I don't really have much of a problem with the coding standard, nor do I have a problem with a documentation standard for software. I think some of the things in those standards are unfathomably stupid, but they really aren't deal breakers. Some of the business process standards seem silly to me, but I go along with them because I am paid to. I'm not naive enough to believe that I will somehow change the business processes of a large corporation. The thing is, it seems like any sort of technical improvement is actively discouraged. The examples are so scattered and numerous, it hurts to even think about, but here are a few examples: If someone else can't immediately understand what I am doing, it's automatically out. Even if I do a phenomenal job of explaining it (not my words), it's probably going to be forced out. Writing portable (i.e. code that can move from one architecture to another) is actively discouraged. I could speculate as to why, but I really have no idea why. Using a standard set of functions to validate user input is completely inadmissible. I have actually been made to duplicate the same logic hundreds of times across a code base rather than use a single function to encapsulate it. A coworker was once told to decouple his software from the mathematical concept of pi. It involved mathematics in spherical coordinates. He was not successful in fulfilling this request. Trying to identify problems with software architecture decisions ends up with me getting treated like a heretic. Keep in mind this isn't the new guy refactoring the 6 million line of code base that started while he was in diapers. It's trying to suggest improvements to make everyone's life easier while developing new software. This resulted in the 'not your job' speech at least once in front of a room of 20 other engineers. I feel like this career is absolute technical dead end. As in, if I never learned something new for the rest of my life, no one would ever notice. At this point, I have completely given up on trying to create anything of value. No matter how stupid of a request comes across my desk, unless it is not simply not possible I just go along with it. The only thing keeping me at my job is the paycheck and the location. I could go on, but I would just like to get to my real question: Is all software engineering like this? I'm pretty young, so I could easily change careers. I haven't quite yet strapped on the life preserver to jump ship, but I would rather make a decision now than just become completely disillusioned with what I do. What are my options here? <Q> Is all software engineering like this? <S> No, it certainly isn't. <S> Though it is more likely to be like this in larger organizations where software exists to support <S> the business rather than <S> being the business. <S> Having said that, there are many large organisations where excellence in software is actively encouraged. <S> Whether an organization does one or the other tends to mirror the focus of upper management and those of the IT management team. <S> Such people may think of the situation as "if it is not broken don't fix it" and cannot see that it is broken. <S> Requirements like the one you describe about decoupling PI from a library (class/set of functions/whatever) used for spherical calculations sounds like something that came from someone who doesn't have an idea about programming or mathematics - someone like that is unlikely to care about code quality, let alone improving it, or the development experience. <S> Your options are: Prove to the higher ups, those that don't see the breakage, that things are broken. <S> However, if they are not technical in the least, they will probably not be convinced. <S> Leave. <S> Find a job where they do care about code quality. <S> so you feel confident that you understand how they feel about this issue. <A> Writing portable (i.e. code that can move from one architecture to another) is actively discouraged. <S> This is kind of thing <S> is common in corporate IT development teams. <S> For example, you may encounter a team that's been using VB since the late 90's and, even though they're on .NET <S> now, they still code in a VB6 style. <S> In other groups, the corporate standard is to only use Microsoft products so being portable to *nix isn't a consideration. <S> Others may be equally divided between IOS and Android developers who don't share code and have no desire to for 'religious' reasons. <S> Using a standard set of functions to validate user input is completely inadmissible. <S> This is common too, simply because refactoring a large number of existing applications/code to deal with this has been deemed too costly. <S> It's also likely someone tried to do this in the past and it ended up being a massive failure. <S> If a company spend thousands on a failed refactor they're unlikely to take one up again, even a small scale one, in the short term. <S> Trying to identify problems with software architecture decisions ends up with me getting treated like a heretic. <S> This is common too. <S> Some people who've been at a company a while will be defensive about their code, especially criticism from a junior programmer. <S> Some are just resistant to change. <S> For example, I've encountered .NET <S> programmers who're quite resistant to learning LINQ, MVC and other newer things and still code like they're on Framework 1.1 or 2.0. <S> But, each software development organization is different. <S> There are good ones and bad ones, high pressure ones and laid back ones, ossified ones and dynamic ones. <S> The one you're in right now seems rather bleak from what you've described. <S> If it's making you that unhappy, it may be time to consider moving on even though the pay and location is good. <S> When you do interview, ask questions to make sure that you're walking into a situation that's a good fit for your personality and skills. <S> Ask them how they handle portable code and standard functionality. <S> Ask about other areas you have concerns about. <S> Do this without mentioning your current employer's ways. <A> You have confused the definition of job and career. <S> You have a job with a particular company. <S> If it isn't a good fit then start making plans to leave. <S> That doesn't mean you have to switch to a completely different field. <S> There are thousands of companies that have software engineers. <S> You picked one that doesn't meet your needs. <S> Don't quit today. <S> Continue to work with them and take the time to investigate other companies. <S> They can be competitors, sub-contractors, or companies you meet though trade shows. <S> Try to figure out if their work situation is more like what you want. <S> If it looks like a good match, apply for positions there. <S> When you need a job, you have to spend the interview process convincing them that you are the perfect one for the job. <S> When you have a job, but are looking for a better one, you turn that process on its head. <A> Is all software engineering like this? <S> Of course not. <S> A better question might be 'Are all software development groups like this ?', and the answer would still be no. <S> What are my options here? <S> Sounds like your best option would probably be to find a shop of like-minded engineers and work with them. <S> If you, as a very new developer, are noticing his company's tech issues already, I'd imagine the issues run deep and are systemic and cultural. <S> As a young engineer, don't be too discouraged by this. <S> It's your first job, and although there are other groups like this, there are plenty that are more friendly to engineers like you. <S> You mentioned that you are able to pick up new languages and APIs readily, so finding new work shouldn't take too long. <S> Lots of companies seem to be doing more hiring in the junior level range as of late, so your freshness to the industry is a potential advantage. <S> If your career is the main concern, even taking a small paycut to work in an environment that rewards learning and your type of thinking would be wise in the long run.
| Learning is the most important element of any job for you at this point in your career, and the money will come if you learn your craft well. When interviewing, make sure to ask questions about their coding processes - ask enough Use non-threatening questions to get the answer you need without offending.
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What to answer when somebody asks "Hope XYZ is treating you well" I know this may sound little bit odd, but really, when somebody writes you in an e-mail "Hope XYZ company is treating you well" and let's say you work for XYZ. What does that really mean? Or is it just a conversation filler like "Hi, How are you?" I usually like to reply somebody's email with point-by-point answers. In a case like this should you even consider to write some reply for that particular remark. <Q> Context is everything here. <S> Say a former coworker is emailing you asking for help with a technical problem because you know more C++ or whatever. <S> You can ignore "Hope NewCompany is treating you well" if you want - <S> it's just politeness or small talk. <S> You can reply if you're a small talk person, but it's not a point you must respond to. <S> On the other hand, if someone you know but have never worked for says "Hope ThatPlaceYouWork is treating you well <S> , you're a star, if ever you don't like working there be sure to talk to us <S> " there's an entirely different meaning behind the words. <S> And finally, if someone is thinking of joining ThatPlaceYouWork and says this, perhaps they really want to know how people are treated there to help them decide. <S> It's up to you how much to help them, but it's something you might consider. <A> I think a lot of how you answer has to do with who is asking the question. <S> Former employer? <S> Close friend or family member? <S> Previous co-worker? <S> Of course it goes without saying that you wouldn't respond to this question while on company PCs even if its with a non-work email account. <A> ... <S> When somebody writes you in an e-mail "Hope XYZ company is treating you well"... <S> What does that really mean? <S> If a recruiter, former coworker, or somebody in a related business makes this comment, then they are definitely "testing the waters". <S> Either they have a job that they'd like to offer you, they imagine that they will have a job to offer you in the future, or they have some other motive for testing the waters (maybe even schadenfreude <S> ;). <S> If just about anyone else makes this comment, then they are either genuinely interested in your response, just making conversation, or experiencing schadenfreude. <S> More about the first scenario: <S> Imagine being married for ten years. <S> Imagine a former girlfriend/boyfriend approaching you and saying, "I hope that [your spouse's name] is treating you well. <S> " <S> OTOH, imagine being married in your late 30s. <S> Imagine a single woman/man who approximates your age saying, "I hope that [your spouse's name] is treating you well." <S> Sound familiar? :) <S> More about the second scenario: <S> Imagine being married. <S> Imagine your mom saying, "I hope that [your spouse's name] is treating you well." <S> Sound familiar? :) <A> Someone just asked me this the other day. <S> Your job is where you spend most the hours of your day, is the means of your lively-hood and in the U.S. is highly reflective to your identity. <S> So..... <S> “Hope XYZ is treating you well” <S> is code for a few things: <S> "I am curios to know how your experience of providing for yourself compares to mine...". <S> - remember most people think about themselves, not you! <S> "I would like to know how your company views you..." <S> - do they like you, are you valued <S> , how do you fit, are you "the man" there? <S> "Do you think your value is compensated properly, and o <S> yeah, how much do you make..." - money, say no more. <S> So the answer is dynamic and you can give as much or as little information as you want. <S> However, at the end of the day they are thinking about their job not yours, so I would recommend making it small talk and saying something like, " <S> yeah, it's not too bad! ".
| I'd only really answer it if it was a close friend or family member and even then I'd be pretty vague about it.
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Does an acquired company also receive the same benefits and pay rates as the parent? I'm thinking of applying to a company that was recently acquired by a much larger company with much better benefits. Will the benefits also be adapted to the acquired company? <Q> Over time, it makes sense for companies to combine into one benefits structure, offering benefits competitive with the overall industry and trying to keep all employees in a more or less similar structure. <S> In the throes of a recent acquisition, however, it's anyone's guess. <S> Personally, I wouldn't spend a lot of time pre-application worrying over this one. <S> Submit your resume and make it a question on your first call. <A> This is to protect you if the new employer's benefits are "worse". <S> It obviously works both ways in that you don't necessarily get all the "better" benefits they might offer. <S> How the transition is handled will vary from company to company and from take-over to take-over, but the goal will be to have all the new employees integrated into the main organisation as soon as possible, if for no other reason than it will be easier to manage the company if everyone is operating on the sale rules. <A> In the US in the short term they won't change. <S> Since most companies handle insurance on a annual contract they can't change in midstream. <S> And because it can take months to work out the rates when switching companies, it can even extend into the next contract period. <S> Some benefits like holiday and vacation are also budgeted for annually. <S> Moving money between pension or 401K custodians will also take time. <S> The employees in both companies will be concerned about the merger of the benefits packages. <S> They will assume that the result will be the lesser of each plan will be preserved. <S> Sometimes they end up having to craft a process that takes years to transition. <S> They sometimes make a tiered system. <S> The grandfathered employees get the better pension, new employees don't. <S> Other times that will give lump sum X extra days of vacation to ease the transition. <S> Keep in mind that any benefit is not forever, and they can change each year. <S> Many companies dropped 401K matching with back in 2008-2009, though some are bringing it back. <S> When compared to pay, work location, and job description; most parts of the benefits packages are in the noise.
| Most likely this is an "it depends". In the UK you keep the benefits you had with your original employer in the short to medium term. The biggest issue will be if there are any union agreements, these can take a longtime to merge into the new company.
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Do part-time programming jobs exist? For reasons of illness and disability, I have not worked for years, after my first job that lasted only a year. Right now, my situation is stable enough that I am able to start working again, slowly. I feel like I can manage no more than 12 hours a week, 3 days a week, perhaps working up to 16 hours a week. Because of complications with disability payments and low-income medical help, I can't earn more than around $1100 a month without consequences. Starting to look around on Craigslist and other job boards, I haven't seen any part-time programming jobs in my area (Sacramento). Do jobs like that exist? How do I find them? Or am I stuck doing online freelance gigs? <Q> They exist but due to the somewhat temporal and volatile nature of part time contract work they are not likely to be advertised on job boards. <S> As with most of my professional experience throughout my life so far, the only quality jobs I have ever had were obtained by knowing and keeping in touch with past colleagues and friends. <S> Public job postings and recruiters tended to be disaster revolving door jobs or complete dead-ends anyway. <S> If you are not on LinkedIn, open an account now, and look for as many past colleagues and friends as possible. <S> Get connected <S> , say hi to people, maybe go out to coffee and catch up. <S> People who are currently working at a consultant or contract company often times wind up with difficult clients or increasingly impossible deadlines to where they need some assistance. <S> I currently have a side contract with another company that has become a part time job for me by reconnecting with an old friend from a past job. <S> I am contract for a year <S> but I basically only get called up when they need some additional programming help <S> , it is a good extra 10-20 hours a week which is helpful for me at this point in my life. <S> If nobody seems to have anything available right now then see if your friends can take a chance to introduce you to an owner or director of a contract or consultant company, maybe to have a coffee and just talk. <S> He or she will likely remember you when they have such a need come up. <S> I hope you feel better and wish you the best. <A> Yes, they certainly exist - though this depends a lot on your environment (your location, your area of expertise, your company etc.). <S> In Germany, for example, part-time work as a programmer is not common, but it does happen. <S> However, usually these are developers who started full-time and then reduced their hours for personal reasons such as family. <S> These jobs may not be "pure" programming jobs, maybe a mix of sysadmin, programming and helpdesk, but this can be quite interesting. <S> It has its own challenges (and rewards), but you can take on as many clients as you want, and tell them when you are available for work. <A> There are a few catches though. <S> Firstly, your experience level is going to determine a lot. <S> As I was (and am) a student, part time jobs are expected. <S> If you're looking at a senior position, it's going to be harder to be part time. <S> A portfolio of some sort (apps you've made, even small things) can be mighty useful. <S> Secondly, look at start ups/small companies (not necessarily dev houses) who need something specific done. <S> I had a two year gig with a company that needed an Android app written alongside their iOS and web versions that they did in house. <S> It lasted two years because they were constantly changing their designs/content management systems/requirements, and I only worked around 12 hours per week (2 6 hour days.) <S> This will limit your scope a little, but also opens up interesting avenues: speak to a local store about getting them an app they could use. <S> If you do mobile apps, most small places could use a decently priced one. <S> If you are a APT .NET person, you could write a custom billing application. <S> There are lots of small projects to be done, and finding one that will last a while (i.e. needs updates and modifications) is best, if possible. <S> Next, since you've been out of the market and are a little inexperienced, what do you have to offer? <S> If you can work unsupervised, your options are far wider. <S> Simply having two to three small companies you make basic things for can be interesting work, and be the kind of thing you can do without constantly being treated like you're less worthy because you're part time <S> (although perhaps that one is just me.) <S> Lastly, online freelance gigs work, but in person connections are worth more IMO. <S> That's mostly because of the connections you make: I have good working relationships with my internships and part time jobs, and that will make transitioning to full time much easier. <S> If I'm way too late (posting because of the edit, original was a while ago) chalk it down to "new guy syndrome". :) <A> If you had a postion already you would probably find an employer more willing to work with you than finding one willing to work with you as a new employee. <S> From an employers perspective you represent a huge risk. <S> If they spend time getting you up to speed (a position that takes 2-3 months to get a regular programmer productive is going to take (4-9) months with someone working half time or less. <S> Also since you have a disability there is a statically good chance that you will not be able to actually resume working on a regular basis. <S> These combine to make it difficult for a business to hire someone in your position. <S> Your best bet is probably to advertise yourself. <S> Put on craigslist that you are a programmer with 12-16 hours of availability a week. <S> Your income limits mean that you will probably be priced right for this availability. <S> I would list your major skills but not mention your disability. <S> But doing so you will need to make sure that you can meet your obligation of 12-16 hours a week before you commit to an offer.
| Some companies may also be explicitly looking for a part-time person, particularly small companies who cannot afford someone full-time, or who need an expert in a specific area. Finally, you might consider freelancing. As someone who has taken these sort of jobs, yes they do.
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Incorporating off-job technical qualifications on resume I would like to revamp my resume to reflect several off-job, personal projects I have worked on in my spare time, and their associated technologies. While I think this can't be a bad idea, I am unsure what the best format to incorporate it would be since my resume (like most) outlines paid jobs in the descending chronological order. I am also interested in hearing feedback on how seriously such experience is taken. In my experience of talking with recruiters and hiring managers, they were mostly in contempt of any experience not gained in a formal, professional setting. The vibe I was getting was that they were looking more that such opportunity be given to you by a formal employer to work on something cool and if you just started something on your own initiative, well that's not serious enough. Or something to that effect. Then again, the area where I live is filled with relatively rigid standards of obsolete style of conservative professionalism (i.e. is not Silicon Valley) -- you can be really smart but if you don't conform to the look and feel of the environment, it is hard to make it. What is the best way to advertise off-job relevant technical qualifications? <Q> " I use it for related volunteer work I've done. <S> (I'm a technical writer and copyeditor, so the fact that I've edited a newsletter or maintained a website for a non-profit organization is relevant.) <S> "Other Relevant Experience" is a generic enough term that you could use it for volunteer work or personal projects. <S> As far as how seriously they're taken, I think it depends a lot. <S> Skills are skills, so it shouldn't matter where you learned them if you have them. <S> On the other hand, there's no formal review of a personal project you've done on your own, so the person looking at your resume can't judge the quality of your work unless they see a sample. <S> If you've done something professionally, then someone thought it was good enough to pay you for it. <S> I think that if you've worked on a large-scale community-run project that has guidelines and standards, that might demonstrate the quality of your work more than saying you built something on your own. <S> Another option is a "Skills" section, where you list programming languages, software, etc. <S> Because those things aren't tied to a specific job, you can list it all in that section no matter where you picked it up. <A> Why not blog about it? <S> I find that I have landed lots of interviews solely because I have a blog that includes my favorite tips and tricks, opinions, and code samples. <S> These enable potential employers to directly see what the work I do (even when not being paid) is like, and also says that yes, I like this stuff so much I'll do it even if no one is there with a paycheck. <S> I usually list the blog under "Personal Projects," and then have a summary of the most relevant/interesting code samples. <S> If this piques their interest, they then know what to look at on the blog to be able to see the most relevant parts of the blog. <S> Many recruiters do downplay the importance of a blog, and that may stem from the fact they are not developers themselves, or it might be related to the fact that many hiring managers aren't technical enough to read blogs or know what's involved in contributing to one over the long haul. <S> However, if you go to interview for a company or manager who is highly technical, it can definitely get you in the door. <A> Unlink the projects you have worked in and your employment history . <S> It's <S> a common misconception people are only doing what's on their job responsibilities. <S> A good professional always has side projects. <S> This indicates so much: professional attitude, ability to find free time, passion to study, and many other factors. <S> For example, your participation on StackExchange is also a great asset to your career! :-) <S> So, make two sections on your resume: Projects <S> Career <S> This is why: <S> Projects indicate the most interesting activities you have participated in. <S> Indicate tools and technologies you have used (and supposedly you're familiar with). <S> You may arrange them in order of your preference. <S> Place the most interesting ones on top in order to direct the interview topics toward what's best describing your professional expertise . <S> It does not matter who's the project owner. <S> List what's best for you . <S> Career is a section where your employment history is recorded. <S> List company name, branch, position name, etc. <S> List only general responsibilities there, like "software developer and DB admin"; the rest goes to the section above. <S> Some would also place professional references here (manager and colleagues). <S> It always has to be ordered by time.
| I have a section in my resume called "other relevant experience.
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Should I negotiate a higher salary when transitioning from intern to full-time employee? I'm currently finishing my internship (graduation) as software engineer and the company has asked me to come work for them after I've graduated. During the internship I developed an iPhone app which is graphically top notch. I'll be expanding the current app and developing the same app for other platforms. I'll be hired as software engineer, but I know I'll be using my graphic design skills extensively. Would it be OK or wise to negotiate for higher salary? If they would decline, is it then OK for me to refuse to do any graphic/interaction work and insist the currently employed designer should do the work (whom is notably worse)? Should they insist I do the work without getting paid, I'd be willing to walk away. I'm asking because all new-hires start at the same rate, yet the other programmers/engineers do not have any 'art' skills (and don't need them either). <Q> Yes, though be careful about phrasing your justification for deserving a higher salary. <S> If you state that their currently employed designer is worse directly that could backfire on you. <S> There may be various replies that are worth being prepared to see like if they suggest having a performance review at various points would that bring you down or would you hold firm? <S> Just something to consider. <S> So are you wanting to imply that when you use your graphic design skills the company will think of this as free labor? <S> Seriously? <S> You get paid a wage and part of that is to bring whatever skills you have that the company can use. <S> Do you think many places would let you specify getting paid $x/hour for administrative tasks, $y/hour for programming tasks, and $z/hour for graphic design tasks? <S> I don't know of many places that would work that way as then wouldn't the administrative stuff get the lowest pay since anyone could do that stuff like e-mail and phone calls and regular meetings that aren't using any technical skills? <S> Some developers wear many hats. <S> I know when I was in my early years of development, I did some technical support, system administration, database administration, network administration in addition to building new systems. <S> This is part of the job, that you'll have the opportunity to do this and that. <S> If you want something more specialized then consider finding companies where your work is sliced so thinly that you only get to do one part of things which would tend to be the bigger companies where the processes are mature and each person takes on a specific role. <A> If you can make a good justification for asking for more money, then you should ask. <S> The worst they can do is say no, and then you have to decide whether you want the job as they're offering it to you. <S> I wouldn't go so far as flat-out refusing to do any graphic-design work if you don't get the higher salary you want, because once you're working for them, you're expected to do what you can to make the product and the team successful. <S> Saying that you don't have time to do the graphics work in addition to the development work you're doing is reasonable, but refusing a whole category of tasks that you can perform as "not my job" makes you look like someone who isn't a team player. <A> Always ask for more money. <S> If you don't, then you set yourself up to not be taken seriously when it's time for a raise in the future, because they know they can keep you on the cheap. <S> Highest paid people in a group are the ones who asked for it. <S> Don't believe if you simply do a great job, you will be rewarded. <S> It doesn't work that way. <S> If you don't ask, then management assumes you are happy with the current situation and aren't looking to improve it. <S> Also, if you are not asking for more money, then it communicates that you are not worth anything more or they might be paying you too much already. <A> Unless you are going for a large salary increase, let it be ( Beatles song, right? ). <S> Sounds <S> like you are able to utilize your right brain and left brain together and are a very well rounded developer, that's awesome! <S> Naturally it sounds like you are doing more than the other engineers. <S> However, are you completely sure that your engineering skills are as matured as the other engineer (only) developers? <S> Are you on level with their expertize or do you know a little bit here and there? <S> If you are completely confident you are working on a much higher level than the rest of the others starting out and are contributing to a different craft as well (UI - art), that could give you enough to make your case. <S> However, if not completely sure, I would leave it be. <S> Here is why: If you are starting out at a higher pay, a lot more is going to be expected of you, can you handle that pressure ? <S> Is it worth the extra money to you ? <S> Would you rather be out with friends or can you stay the extra night shift ? <S> I would think at this stage you shouldn't let the money be that big a factor. <S> If you are really contributing that much more, you can be sure managers are going to notice and within time, you will be promoted and responsible for a lot, which comes with more pay . <S> If the negotiation amount is only a little higher - you might benefit more from actually not asking for it.
| People who are worth more ask for more.
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How can I constructively request well scoped project requirements? Are there good ways to ask the management to improve the clarity and detail level of work requests and be more specific rather than just throwing you into a war zone and expecting you to figure out on your own how to be useful to the team, being kind of like an individual shop within a shop. Or if the culture is like that already, and I don't find myself functioning well in such an environment of undefined roles and expectations, is it better to just look for a more structured place rather than try to change it. Or am I expecting too much? Is it bad to ask a manager to be more specific and clearly define what the expected work results should be if he seems to be vague as a matter of general habit. <Q> Managers don't want to spend tons of time creating detailed plans for what their employees do. <S> However, a really easy way you can make this happen in effect is to take the vague work requests/instructions you receive and translate them into a much more detailed document (of the type you want from them). <S> After doing this, run this document by your manager and project leads to ensure you have correctly understood what they are looking for in their vague request. <A> It's reasonable to ask for clarification of vague directives, but if you find that you are asking for more specificity than those around you of comparable experience/grade level, then the change will need to come on your end, not your manager's. <S> If a manager has ten people with comparable experience and skills and nine of them are handling his directives just fine, then he's not going to be very receptive to requests from #10 to do things differently. <S> Here are some ways that you can try to address the problem at your end: <S> Get a mentor or buddy (a fellow developer). <S> Obviously this person needs to be willing. <S> If your company doesn't have a mentor culture, you (plural) may want to try to change that. <S> You can point out to management that all new employees need some help to get settled in any company, and by investing a little mentor time they'll get to productive new hires more quickly. <S> if the directive came in some other way (email, line-item on a project plan, bug report, whatever), then before going to your manager, try a sanity-check with your mentor or a peer. <S> The question is "is there enough information here?", not "is this reasonable?" or "how does he expect me to do that?". <S> If you're still confused and need to go to your manager for help, show him that you've spent some time thinking about it first. <S> Don't ask "what do you mean by performance problem?" <S> but "are you concerned with response time, or bandwidth usage, or delays in updating the back-end database, or...?". <S> Some industries, and some companies, are fundamentally uncertain. <S> To succeed in those environments you need to be flexible and adapatable. <S> If that turns out to be beyond your current abilities, it might be better to seek out a more structured environment. <A> Impress on your manager that the accuracy of the requirements proportionally affect the accuracy of the cost- and time-estimates. <S> No requirements or unclear expectations means that you will not be able to predict when it will be done or how much it's going to cost.
| When your manager gives you a vague directive, if you're talking you can immediately ask for clarification.
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Should I email the recruiter with my resume instead of applying online? Lots of companies have online application forms, but I find that often times my resume just gets lost in the large pool that it gets put in. My school has a career site linked to experience.com that has a lot of contact information to recruiters for many companies. Would it be fine for me to just send my resume and CV to the recruiter directly instead of going through the online form? So far its worked well for the companies I've tried this with, but they were much smaller ones(2k employees). Because of that, I got two interviews within a day. But for larger sized places would this approach be appreciated by the recruiters? <Q> Probably not. <S> What you can do, however, is call the recruiter with a question about the position or company you are applying to. <S> At the end of the conversation, say something like "Thanks for the information, that sounds great, I would love to apply for [said position/company]. <S> Is it okay if I send you my resume and CV?" <S> This way, you are not sending in your resume and CV "cold" and annoy the recruiter by flooding his inbox. <S> Rather, the recruiter will be expecting an e-mail from you and will be happy when he receives it. <A> The problem with the larger companies is that the recruiter is just the person that does the initial filtering of the resumes and applications. <S> These need to exist in the system before you can move on to the next step. <S> The bigger companies may have recruiters thousands of miles from you. <S> They can have a set of recruiters working with college campuses, but they will be a different set from those trying to fill specific positions. <S> Jobs you see online could be handled by either group. <S> Even if you university has the name of a recruiter, unless they are the one tasked will filling that position, they won't be of much help. <S> Nevertheless do try to contact the recruiter because you want to use as many approaches to the job hunt as possible. <A> It is best to have personal contact unless your skills are in hot demand at the time. <S> Make a phone call and talk to them, ask some good questions, and then ask who to send your resume to. <A> Resume has to be entered to the HR system somehow by someone, to be filtered and processed. <S> If you rely on your email being imported or copy/pasted, it may get mangled, decreasing your chance of success. <S> That said, in my experience entering resume to HR databases is waste of time. <S> Possibly OK for junior positions. <S> You enter your data into HR after you got the offer. <A> Why not both? <S> If a post/site has included the recruiter's information, be smart and grab that info. <S> You will either get a call, or not hear from them. <S> Either ways no harm done. <S> Make sure you craft your email so that it grabs eyeballs and actually make the recruiter open your resume.
| Instead, work with a recruiter, who has your current resume customized for the position you want to apply .
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Is it better to write a good cover letter in English or a mediocre one in the local language? I'm applying for positions in Sweden, but come from another Nordic country. Most recruiters require that I speak both Swedish and English. Currently, I can easily keep up a conversation in Swedish and write with OK grammar, but not perfect. I know I can write a top notch cover letter in English, but believe my Swedish efforts would be mediocre at best. I could of course deliver the same content in Swedish and ask a native speaker to proofread, but I'm afraid it wouldn't shine. I need to communicate that I am fluent in Swedish, but I would also like to leverage my English skills which are beyond my competetion. Should I write a letter that stands out in English or a mediocre one in Swedish? What points should I balance when making this choice? Thanks for any input. <Q> I would probably write a paragraph or 2 in Swedish explaining that I am bilingual and can read and write Swedish fluently. <S> This will cover your concern about the company believing that you can not read or write in Swedish but allow you to shine in your native tongue. <S> Alternatively you could write the same letter in both languages. <S> I would probably get some help from someone to proof read to help you improve your non native version though I would still note that I was fluent in both languages. <S> However if the company will require you to deal primarily(or completely) in your non native language then only use that language when applying. <A> If you cannot write a good letter, you might not really be fluent in Swedish. <S> It's a bit of a catch-22. <S> I can easily see how writing in English would put you at a disadvantage <S> but I have difficulties envisioning a scenario in which writing a letter in broken Swedish would be better. <S> I don't know about Sweden specifically but generally speaking if it's not a deal breaker <S> (this employer is English-friendly <S> , your function does not require too much client interaction, you have other strong selling points) <S> then you can write in English, mention your actual language proficiency in the resume and sort it all out with the recruiter later on. <S> If it is genuinely important (say you work in PR, advertisement, etc.), writing a mediocre letter will reflect badly on your language proficiency but sending a good one with someone else's help won't do you much good either as the discrepancy between the quality of the letter and your actual language level will be quickly noticed. <S> At the same time, I would argue that the main reason to choose English that it would enable to communicate more effectively and wouldn't expect that to provide much of an edge over the competition. <A> I'm really surprised that nobody seems to have suggested the possibility of asking someone who does read and write the target language fluently to go over your text with a fine-toothed comb and correct any mistakes. <S> In fact, that's usually a good idea even if the target language is your native language. <S> Everyone makes mistakes occasionally in writing, and when you are going over a text repeatedly it is easy to start overlooking even really basic mistakes like having swapped the position of two words or missing out on a word (prepositions in particular can be very easy to miss the absence of) or using different tenses in different parts of the document where the same tense is called for. <S> By asking someone else (who is good with the language) to read through it and point out any such mistakes, you make it much less likely that any such mishaps slip through to the final version of the document, which is especially important with a job application. <S> Computerized spell-checks only go so far; there are many cases which they won't catch, and even computerized grammar checks are imperfect at best, particularly when a document has to be basically letter-perfect. <S> Of course, you'd probably want to <S> also point out that (in this case) Swedish is not your native language and that you are still learning, so that they don't expect the same kind of language proficiency as from a native when you get to speak to them and are let down because of that.
| Many job offers in Europe mention English as a requirement but apart from some very specific positions, you won't be hired because of this (and if English proficiency is an important prerequisite for a position then chances are that the recruiter will be biased toward hiring a “native speaker” and not merely people who can write English well).
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Bargaining for colleague's salary hike - Is this unethical? I'm an almost 2 years experienced programmer, currently working as a team lead in my company. I'm the above average, geek programmer who friends and colleagues generally thinks highly of. And my company doesn't like to let me go. One of my friends, a junior programmer in my company, is talented, but his last project didn't go smooth enough. So the company extended his probation period and they are planning to pay him only a very nominal increment. So he told the management that he is resigning unless he gets this much (say 1000, currency doesn't matter) increment. Upon this, the company decided to let him go. The person is my friend and I'm kind of a mentor to him. I told the management that I will be leaving also if he is not staying. I'm waiting for the company's final decision, which I hope will come in a few hours. But I want to know if what I'm doing is unethical - professionally or else. People bargain for salary hike; I'm bargaining for my friend's job. Is this wrong? UPDATE: I asked this question 2 years ago and stumbled into it accidentally today and thought of updating what happened. The company made him a slightly better offer regarding increment, which still wasn't good enough. So he quit and I also did after a couple of days. After that we decided to take some time off and did freelancing together for around 2 months and partied away the days. After that, he joined for a better job in a better company with a 100% hike. I spent another 6 months playing around (I was 23yrs then) getting involved in some open source projects and joined my current company some 6 months ago with more than double my previous salary. My decision was probably stupid and I wouldn't advice anyone to do stuff like that. But in my case, I'm glad I did it. <Q> You are not bargaining for your friend, you are bargaining for yourself. <S> You are essentially requiring the company to keep your friend on payroll as additional compensation for your work. <S> I disagree with Oded, this is not unethical. <S> You are free to determine what types of compensation you expect for your work and as long as you are not violating your current contract with the company (giving proper notice etc.) <S> you are ethically in the clear. <S> If you don't want to work for a company that fires your friend, that is your prerogative. <S> What this is is stupid. <S> It is a fairly outrageous thing to demand of an employer and can only damage your career prospects. <S> Nothing good can come of this. <S> Another way of looking at this, when looking for a new job would you ever make it a condition that the company also hires your friend? <S> Even when the company in question does not have a job opening for him? <S> No, of course not. <S> TL;DR <A> Instead of pondering if what you're doing is ethically wrong or right, I believe you should think about what your goals are and what's the most effective and safe way to try to achieve those goals. <S> If your decision to support your friend in this way was a "in the heat of the moment" thing, maybe you should approach management with an apology and say that you reacted the way you did because you felt that the company was throwing away a great opportunity in not going that extra mile in order to keep this employee. <S> This might work better in your ambition to reach your goals, and you might be able to keep your job even if your friend is fired (and you can then take your time finding a new employer if you still want to leave). <S> Also this discussion gives you an opportunity to mention your friend's strengths as reasons for keeping him. <S> Also consider that the reason your friend is in this particular predicament might be because the way he stubbornly threw out his offer possibly without any room for negotiation. <S> An employee that is unable to compromise and negotiate a situation in a way that doesn't feel like an ultimatum is probably not an employee anyone wants on his payroll <S> no matter the technical skills. <A> My best advice is to look for a way to walk this back. <S> What Buhb and Kris has already touched on in their answers, this sounds like a bit of an irrational overreaction to something that I'm sure was an emotional situation but nonetheless, irrational. <S> Talk to your manager, explain that you said some things that you regret and if given the opportunity to replay that situation, you would not handle it the way you did. <S> Explain that you are very happy with your job and that whole resignation-business was an emotional response since the guy is your friend etc. <S> Also mention that you do believe that he has potential and you hope he'll be given a fair chance to redeem himself in spite of his previously failed project. <S> If your friend still decides to turn down the offer, then that is his decision. <S> Also consider that the managements decision may be based on rational considerations. <S> He did fail in his project but rather than terminating him, the company has decided to give him a second chance. <S> But their not rewarding him either, and why should they? <S> Ultimately, he's responsible for his career, not you. <S> If he's truly your friend, he would not want you to trash your career for his sake either. <S> You can also look at this as a learning experience (sounds patronizing, but bear with me). <S> You say that you were kind of a mentor to this person, then why did he fail in his project? <S> I'm definitely not suggesting that you should feel responsible for it, if it was not your project <S> then you are not, but reflect on what you could do in the future in a similar situation to help someone avoid the same situation. <S> Part of acting like a mentor is helping other succeed (and guiding them to avoid failure). <S> You are still learning and still early in your career. <S> Don't burn yourself on some emotional blaze of glory that you're sure to regret once things settle down. <S> If your boss is half-decent, he'll let this slide if you approach him right. <A> You are not bargaining for your friend. <S> What you are doing is called blackmail - that is certainly unethical and in some countries may be illegal. <S> Even if not quite blackmail, it certainly is not a professional thing to have done. <S> Your career is yours, and your friends career is theirs. <S> Your friend has made a stand and got fired - this has nothing to do with your career. <S> I can understand wanting to look out for someone you have mentored and befriended, but this is not helping anyone. <S> Helping your friend to find a new job would have been much more productive. <S> I'd expect that you will be getting your notice soon and if you and your friend are to remain, chances are good that you will both be gone fairly quickly. <S> I don't see how the company would have any interest in keeping you after this. <S> I can see that my use of the word blackmail is not popular and I may have chosen a word that is a bit too strong for some liking. <S> Calling this "negotiation on the compensation package" is completely off base here - the OP is making a threat , using his perceived worth to the company as the stakes.
| What you asked for is tantamount to demanding a salary hike equal to what your friend was making (the company has already decided that they do not require his services, so they would only be paying him to retain you). No, not unethical, just stupid.
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Improving social interaction at work I'm working in a small team of developers and often it's very quiet. While that's a plus, it is sometimes a bit awkward if nobody talks for almost the whole day. It feels like you go to work, program the whole day and go home without exchanging more than two sentences with your colleagues. The companies I worked at before had some sort of daily ritual – everyone would meet at the coffee machine or outside to smoke for 10 minutes or so and chat. I think such rituals are important to get to know your colleagues better and improve the atmosphere at work. I think it's also important to meet outside the office or at least constrain the "chat" time because it'd be very disruptive if some people would talk the whole time (all of us sit in the same room). The problem with my current workplace is that aside from me nobody drinks coffee and we don't have any smokers either – we also somewhat lack a location to "hang out". Some of us have lunch together, but others don't live far from the office and eat at home (we also have many interns from nearby). While those of us that have been working here for a while know each other quite well, I feel that more recently hired developers (especially interns) may feel uncomfortable at times. We have been thinking about what we could do to inspire a little chat everyday, but were unable to come up with a good solution yet. We thought about trying some sort of "daily scrum" meetings, but that would hardly be a relaxed environment for smalltalk. Now I know that companies like Google get very creative with such things, and I'd be interested to hear how other companies put some social interaction in their developers workday. To sum the up the above: Looking for a replacement of the traditional "coffee break" – an environment for developers to meet, hang out and chat about unrelated stuff Shoud not be obligatory (in case you're busy / don't want to) and not take too long. While I think it's important, we still got work to do. I think 10-15 minutes would be fine (once or twice a day). Looking for something we could do daily. Every two weeks or so all of us are invited to a local pub where we hang out, which is great, but probably not enough to "integrate" new developers. While ideas for events like this are appreciated too, I'm primarily looking for ideas on a daily or at least more regular basis. Thanks in advance & let me know if something is unclear / not concrete enough <Q> I'd suggest you have some sort of "educational" meetings once a week. <S> We've had such meetings for a while _ 4-5 of us were studying a new technology, so we decided to have such meetings to exchange our knowledge. <S> As it turned out, our interns attended the meetings with pleasure. <S> The meetings were quite informal and very effective _ <S> we learned a lot and knew each other better. <S> We also noticed that some time later our interns also wanted to pick topics. <S> Attendance wasn't mandatory, but we all were there. <A> How about an afternoon walk break? <S> Everyone knocks off for 15 minutes and walks around the office park. <S> You get to socialize, you get in some exercise which makes you healthier and the break will probabaly be good for productvity too. <A> Perhaps snacks that are out of the normal routine could do the trick? <S> Every once in a while you show up with something people don't normally eat - maybe something sweet and unhealthy (Krispy Kremes, home-made butter tarts, your sister's famous lemon squares) or maybe something healthier than normal programmer fare (a bowl of Honeycrisp apples during their short season, cut up raw veggies, mini sandwiches) - and everyone stops what they're doing for a moment because hey, there's cool food here. <S> You gather around the food and talk about who made it, or who found it if it was bought, and what you like about it, and perhaps some other small talk happens too. <S> If the company as a whole wants this to happen, seems like a small budget to allow you guys to take turns buying/making stuff, along with a loose schedule for whose turn it is which week, could be pretty easy to arrange. <A> I know it's not an option to 'replace the coffee break' but still considered important to share as it gave, at some level, similar expected results... <S> So, have you tried some out-of-office activities? <S> Thinking of integration, I've started a similar wave in my company. <S> We've done so far, two: Paintball Kart racing <S> And the results are great. <S> Everyone got in touch with other teams' members that, beyond these activities, wouldn't have an opportunity or reason to talk to each other. <S> Besides these two, there are much more that could be done (even for small groups): <S> A BBQ Championships of some specific games (maybe using the workplace infrastructure, but out of working hours) <S> Participate in neighborhood activities (here in my city there are from time to time cycling nights, organized by the city hall) <S> It may not help to solve the question (replace the coffee breaks and smalltalks) <S> but may solve the underlying problem (create opportunities to get everyone to better know each other). <S> Cheers <A> We started to play casually for 5-10 minutes almost every day, giving us a break from work and a simple way to have an informal gathering with non-business talk. <S> A game like darts sounds like a good replacement for a coffee break when no one around drinks coffee (in a parallel universe?) ! <A> Have lunches togather if possible , I regulary have lunch with my team , almost 50% of my communication happens here. <S> At end of each sprint[we follow agile], we go out for bowling , paintball or something similar. <S> I also found it helpful to workout with my team mates. <A> Its a great way to open up communication between the developers and our director, and we all have a chance to bring up any serious issues we're facing. <A> Cross training. <S> Our manager created a goal that requires us to cross train in different areas. <S> This means that we must get up out of our seats and talk to the other developers to gain knowledge in an area we do not have. <S> This also greatly helps the program and is a win-win solution.
| You can suggest having regular "stand-up" meetings . One of the team members can voluntarily pick an interesting topic (that has something to do with programming or maths) and tells about it to the others. Our small developer team recently started meeting for about 15 minutes every other morning in the hallway, and we just stand-up during it. At our office, we have a small area aside from the working environment with a sitting group and a dart board.
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Should I ask about the bonus that is due during leaving? I am due for bonus from my current employer "X" in the month of January 2013. This amount comprises of about 15% of my Annual Gross Pay (AGP) and is variable . I have a new offer in hand and the new company "Y" wants me to join in November 2012. I've already negotiated with Company "Y", which is a large and well-known company, and received an offer, so it is unlikely I can negotiate further. In comparison, company "X" is a much lesser known company (they work in a niche domain), but I have been working here for 7 years. I am planning to put down my papers, but would it be reasonable to ask my current employer to pay the bonus on a pro rata basis? If so, how can I put it across them in a polite way? P.S: People who join "X" in the middle of the year get the bonus based on proportional period of time they have worked in that year, but I do not know the case for people who leave the company. <Q> I'd be stunned if how you ask makes any difference. <S> If it's not in your contract that you get a prorated bonus payment on exit then you won't get one. <S> If it is (against all odds) in your contract then you will. <S> After all, beyond keeping to the terms of a signed contract, what could possibly be in it for them? <S> The first year, it gives you a hint of things to come, puts you in a positive mood for the year ahead. <S> The morale benefits are considered higher than the financial cost. <S> But in your last year, there is nothing for them. <S> You're leaving. <S> They don't care if your morale remains high. <S> It's just a financial outgoing. <S> All that said, while I personally wouldn't bother <S> , I guess you have nothing to lose by asking the question. <S> Maybe something like "Just checking so that I know where I stand, financially: As I'll be leaving near the end of the year, will I be entitled to the annual bonus (or part thereof)?" <A> Finance/Banking is an industry where most companies give their bonuses around the same time, so many employees change companies shortly thereafter. <S> Very few people leave before getting their bonus. <S> I've heard of getting paid for left-over sick days, but not a performance bonus. <S> There are a few points you could mention in your request: <S> 7 years with a company is probably more than average in the tech world. <S> You gave plenty of notice. <S> You've been cooperative in helping the company make the transition (e.g. wrapped up projects, produced additional documentation, trained new programmer, etc.). <S> IMHO, if you haven't done all of these, you have no right to the bonus <S> and you risk "burning the bridge" with this employer. <S> You may be showing some guts by making this request, but it shows a lack understanding of how the business world works. <S> In some places in the US, if this were commission, they would have to pay it to you. <A> The bonus is, among other things, an incentive to keep you around. <S> If they payed out pro rata <S> whenever someone left, they'd lose that incentive. <S> In my line of work (software development), bonuses are sometimes offered as an incentive to get the project done on time. <S> The bonus is thus conditional on two things; first, that the project is completed by deadline ( completed having the meaning of "the client agrees that development is complete"), and second, that you are still employed as of when they pay the bonus . <A> You worked in X for 7 years. <S> If you have a look at what is written on your "performance review" papers from the previous year, you'll likely to find a fineprint at the bottom of the page saying "to receive this and that you must be employed by X and not be under a resignation notice at the payment date". <S> In that case you may try to negotiate a join in bonus with Y, but you should have done this before accepting the offer.
| Nope, because the bonus due is due after you leave.
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How do I avoid discussing government politics at work? The U.S.A. just witnessed its first debate of the 2012 presidential election. Invariably, workers all over the country will be eager to discuss what they saw on television. But this begs a larger question that can be universally applied worldwide: How do workers who know that discussing politics can often lead to uncomfortable situations (and would quite frankly just rather get some work done) avoid discussing government politics at work? <Q> The golden rule is: Never discuss politics or religion at work <S> Be the bigger person and don't get caught up in such conversations, regardless of how intriguing and regardless of how much you want to speak. <S> Even if your fuming uncontrollable disagreement with what you are hearing is boiling over into a supressed rage, it is a bad idea. <S> I used to have a boss that made no secret of his political leanings, and while he didn't try to start a conversation with me, his casual comments on various unrelated things gave away his stance pretty clearly. <S> He was always trying to figure out the political leanings of people who worked for him, perhaps because I honestly believe he looked down on employees who didn't share his world view. <S> I know I did a good job of keeping my politics a secret because his behavior towards me personally wasn't strained at all. <S> Others <S> I think weren't so lucky and may have been passed up for promotions because of this. <S> Knowing that these conversations and seemingly harmless water cooler talk could affect your career should be motivation enough. <A> How do you avoid discussing anything <S> non work related at work? <S> The interest around politics may have peaked after the debate in the US, but in Greece politics (and more specifically the economy) is what everyone is interested in discussing for at least the past couple of years. <S> You'd imagine that it would be far more difficult for us to avoid such discussions, but it really isn't. <S> Just don't talk about politics yourself, and politely excuse yourself from the company when someone else starts the discussion. <S> Coincidentally I've worked in two environments which can be considered polar opposites when it comes to discussing politics, one was a town hall (where politics were actually our work) and the other was the Army (where discussing politics is strictly forbidden). <S> Couple of years <S> after I left my position at the town hall, that involved regular meetings with elected officials, my co-workers there were surprised to find out that (at the time) I was a supporter of a minor opposition party. <S> I had spend nearly seven years in an environment where politics were all there was to talk about without disclosing my own affiliations. <S> I just never talked about it <S> ;) <S> Every workplace is different, but I don't think that in a typical workplace there's much room or time for non work related discussions. <S> Certainly we all take a break once in a while, and we all might get caught in an uncomfortable discussion around the water cooler, but those discussions tend to be short (how long can your break really be?) and easy to evade. <S> My standard excuse when things start getting uncomfortable, or I'm simply not interested in the discussion, is that... <S> I have to get back to work. <S> Simple, isn't it? <A> You cannot control what other people will say; you can only control what you do in response. <S> Viktor Frankl put it: Between stimulus and response there is a space. <S> In that space is our power to choose our response. <S> In our response lies our growth and our freedom. <S> When folks start discussing politics, you can always demurr and say you are busy, or that you don't want to talk about it. <S> Debates do not exist to change people's minds, they are performed to score points amongst the faithful of your own side. <S> This is why both sides are claiming "my guy won!"
| I did this by avoiding such conversations in their entirety.
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Should I report on an unqualified employee to my superior? Possible Duplicate: In an exit interview, (how) do I tell my manager about my replacement's lack of skills? Today was my last day at the firm I worked for, and as part of the change in the company (my resignation) - management decided to hire an additional programmer - as I was given a small programming project to complete before ending the contract, and they wanted to hire someone who could complete it, after I leave. This guy is a 4th year student (Software Engineering) and his C.V. is full of programming languages he apparently knows (summed up 3 pages) Problem is: he knows crap . I mean this guy doesn't even know basic things, like using loops, very basic Object orient programming, and such. Furthermore, he does not show any signs that a hard-working employee would have - I asked him several times to read some papers on several technologies we use - and when I asked him whether he did it (he didn't as he didn't know what I'm talking about when we coded together) - he said "Yes I've done that". Not to mention the fact that he keeps bragging saying "Oh yeah I sold already a few products I programmed" (while having zero programming experience), but leave that aside. My superior is the one who decided to hire him - I don't know what went on the job interview and what is the impression he got from him, but I have a hunch he got a whole different impression comparing to reality Should I inform him that this employee doesn't fit the position? This project has a deadline and the fact that I will be (probably) giving consulting services to this firm, make me ponder about this issue. <Q> I always believe, be the better person. <S> You have a person who has either lied, and/or used nepotism to get the job. <S> So apart from making the guy unemployed you possibly undermine the person who hired/recommended him. <S> First explain to your superior that you believe he is not qualified enough to replace you, and is liable to undermine your superiors position when it all blows up. <S> Explain your concerns in a civil and level headed way. <S> Ask your superior to assign him to something simple to complete in a realistic time that will gauge his level of skills. <S> Ask to have him do it <S> so as part of a project (eg. "Hey, we need this small app made to do X by Y for ... <S> Can you complete and get back to me"). <S> Then create the same app to show how long it would take. <S> If he is as bad as you say he is this should show it up pretty fast. <S> Also explain if he fails then the company still has time to hire someone else for your role before you leave. <S> To soften the blow on this as well is to create a list of his actual skills based on working with him and what level of training he will need to get up to speed. <S> They may end up paying for that for him if nepotism is involved. <S> All you want to be sure is the company is able to function when you leave. <S> If you don't do this, there is a very good chance that he will blame you for anything going wrong when you leave. <A> You don't outright say that he's not qualified. <S> If he proves you wrong, you look bad, if you prove him wrong, you just got someone canned without giving them a chance. <S> If you want to do anything of use for the company about this employee, give them a small report on what areas you believe that this individual needs to improve in to help get that individual up to YOUR level of knowledge and expertise. <S> This makes YOU look good, it gives the new guy a chance, and it gives sound advice for how your company can guide the noobie. <A> Saying bad things about people never looks good on you. <S> However, saying nothing seems disingenuous to me as well. <S> What I would do is: only in the case that you are on good informal terms with you superior, I would mention that you are somewhat concerned about this guy's abilityto get things done, and that you feel he might need some help along the way when you leave. <S> No more than that, and don't say the things that you've told us. <S> If you are not close with your superior, I would say nothing at all.
| Avoid blaming your superior or being aggressive when describing the employee.
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Purpose of cc to self I noticed that some people inculde themselves in "cc" when they send out an email. What is the reason for this? A quick search on google showed that several people want to learn how to be able to do this automatically. <Q> Most people I know that exhibit this behavior is <S> so they have an email in their inbox that continues the chain, and they can see their response in the timeline continuity of the chain. <A> We tend to have multiple projects live at any given time. <S> We use subject headers like: [Project A] <S> : Discussion on blah <S> I set up rules in Outlook where if an email contains "Project A" in the subject, it should be routed to the "Project A" folder in my inbox. <S> When I CC myself in these emails, I can be sure that my "Project A" folder contains all related emails, including those that I sent. <S> It also means that I can periodically clear out my Sent Mails folder without worrying about losing project specific emails. <A> Some people use their email inbox (and sometimes other tools in their email client, such as Outlook's Todo list) to manage work tasks in a central location. <S> In this case, putting emails that indicate that something requires action (a task, something to follow up on, etc.) <S> in their inbox is a way to make it more visible than in their sent items folder. <S> Adding a CC to themselves immediately puts the item as unread in their inbox until they process it appropriately. <A> I only CC myself when I need to create a "paper trail. <S> " Most of the time it is sufficient to wait for the other person's reply before I think about the thread again, but if I find that the other person is being unresponsive or if I need to follow up if the other person does not respond in a certain amount of time I will CC myself. <S> Once I have CC'd myself <S> it is easier to reply to myself later and anyone reading the thread later can see the gap in response between my two emails. <S> Usually people see this happening and want to reply so that it does not look like they are the problem.
| If you don't CC yourself, most email clients do not show your response, as it goes to the "Sent" folder, and does not appear in your Inbox or the same folder the email chain is in.
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Changing jobs at the end of a year? hiring availability It has become apparent that it is time to change jobs for better personal and career growth opportunities. Are companies hiring people at the end of the year during November and December with all the holidays or would I have better selection after the start of the new year? <Q> If i leave my current company and forfeit the Christmas bonus can I expect a bonus at a new company that I will have just started working at? <S> Your new employer may be willing to provide some sort of sign-on bonus in order to get you to start at a new job quickly and to forgo a coming bonus. <S> This is fairly common around times when bonuses are paid (end of year and early Feb/Mar). <S> When discussing your compensation with a potential new employer, be sure to mention any bonuses that are expected in the relatively near future (< 6 months) <S> Are companies hiring people at the end of the year during November and December? <S> November and December can be an interesting time to look for work for a variety of reasons. <S> One reason that some give is that during the holiday season (holidays for many), people may be in a more 'giving' spirit. <S> That is debatable, but anecdotal evidence may seem to lead some to believe that is true. <S> A much more tangible and realistic reason to look for work in those months is due to budgets and headcount. <S> If a department has a specific budget for any given year and still has money left in that budget towards the end of the year, they may be more inclined to make a hire in order to be sure they will get the same or more budget for the following year. <S> This is the same for a specific headcount. <S> If a manager is budgeted to have say 8 employees on a team, and there are only 6, that manager has an incentive to bring the team to full capacity in order to keep that headcount for the following year. <A> Companies hire people when they need people. <S> There are these things called "Hiring seasons", but that's only if the company itself goes through "Seasons" (i.e. increased workload during x,y,z months). <S> One factor that may not swing in your favor is if the end of the fiscal year is coming in those months. <S> Many times, the department budgets are being scrutinized for the following fiscal year, so some departments may put a freeze on hiring new employees. <S> In any case, it's all situational. <A> However, it has also been my experience that fewer people are looking at that time (holidays put a lot of time pressure on many of us <S> and, well, we often are just focused on time off at that point and some companies give end of the year bonuses so leaving could havea a financial impact) and the companies that are hiring often want to hire before the end of the year for budget reasons or because they really urgently need the position filled. <S> So there may be fewer jobs but less competition for them. <S> All in all if you are willing to forgo any end of the year bonus, it can be an effective time to search for and get a job. <S> But don't expect that the current company will pay out a bonus if you leave. <S> You may try to negotiate with the company doing the hiring to give you a signing bonus since you will miss out on a bonus though. <S> But don't ask for this after you have accepted the offer. <A> It really depends on location, the job market in your area and of course who you know. <S> For example, in Seattle the economy is booming at several large companies looking to hire people ASAP. <S> I don't think applying now to any position will hurt. <S> Even if they are not hiring now, when they are after the holidays, you will be on file. <S> Making connections now for later can't hurt. <S> But if you know someone who knows someone for a specific position, you can't time that. <S> Good luck!
| It has been my experience that fewer companies are hiring due to end of the year budget issues and the lack of availablity of decision makers due to using up vacation time.
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Is it unprofessional to leave a note while you are gone for a break? I need to interface with a lot of people on a day-to-day basis. The problem with this sometimes is that when I go out for lunch or for a quick snack, I am not available. I hate to make people wait for me to return and if I'm going long enough I usually leave a sticky on my cubicle saying I'm out for so and so. Firstly, is it even professional to leave stickies? It feels childish somehow. Secondly, also I have the nagging feeling of being mistaken. What if I'm mistaken to be a slacker who takes breaks that are long enough to justify writing a note, by someone like say my manager? What is the popular approach here? <Q> Has anyone ever actually commented to you on " <S> hey you weren't around earlier and it was a problem? <S> " You should ask yourself this first. <S> Second, are these interactions with people who share a messenger/interoffice communicator? <S> Assuming you have people asking and cannot use this, to answer <S> Firstly, is it even professional to leave stickies? <S> It feels childish somehow. <S> This depends completely on your office environment. <S> Some places this would be seen as completely unprofessional and some places this is completely fine. <S> Because you are asking about this, it would seem you have a slightly more professional environment, and if you really do not think a post-it/sticky would appear unprofessional, simply print off a page saying "Sorry <S> I missed you - I am away" or something similar. <S> Or if you have a whiteboard at your desk use this. <S> Lots of more professional options. <S> Secondly, also I have the nagging feeling of being mistaken. <S> What if I'm mistaken to be a slacker who takes breaks that are long enough to justify writing a note, by someone <S> like say my manager? <S> What is the popular approach here? <S> If your office is a 7:00 - 11:30, lunch, 12:00-3:30 type of office where you have a very structured working hours you may be seen that way. <S> If you work in a more laid back environment then not. <S> Having a printed sheet, by the way, would make this seem less "slackerish" if you use the same sheet every time. <S> Something else to keep in mind is you may be making a huge issue out of nothing. <S> This is to be expected in most environments. <S> Additionally, as people become management or have more responsibilities, they even more often away from their desk. <A> It depends on the environment. <S> Most places I've personally worked, the stickies aren't really necessary. <S> People are more often away from their desks than at them. <S> And it doesn't really take a rocket scientist to realize that if someone isn't at their desk or replying to email around noon that they're probably at lunch... <S> Some places though are different and the notes are commonplace. <S> See what others do and follow their lead. <A> One job I had required me to have lots of meetings and make regular trips to the various production facilities. <S> I got a small magnetic dry erase board ( similar to this one ) and hung it by the cubicle entrance. <S> I labeled it "Tangurena Finder" and had a large pie chart drawn on it. <S> I moved the magnet to indicate where I was. <S> I'd jot an estimated time when I expected to return. <S> At this job I usually spent about 10-15 hours per week in my cubicle. <S> Sometimes, jokers would change the labels on the pie chart. <S> At this time, dry erase boards were very rare to see in cubes. <S> If I were in a similar situation today, I would print the daily schedule from Outlook and post it in my cube. <S> Ad hoc/last minute meetings would be handwritten on the schedule. <A> If you're mostly away for scheduled meetings, perhaps simply sharing your calendar with your colleagues would be a better solution? <S> Microsoft Outlook allows you to share calendars with your co-workers , meaning they will be able to check exactly when you are busy and when you are available without having to walk to your desk, and without you having to manually write a note. <S> Also, in line with Enderland's suggestion of marking yourself as "Away" in your office IM system, some calendars (e.g. Outlook) can automatically do this for you.
| Most places have something you can set a status to "away" or "be right back" which is considerably more professional in my opinion. People in office environments are frequently gone for meetings or other obligations other than breaks. Again, this completely depends on the environment.
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"Safe" topics to get acquainted with co-workers, regardless of geographic location, without causing a social faux pas? In some countries like India, the first instance of bonding at the workplace comes from asking questions like "What do your parents do?" , "How many children do you have?" , and other questions that are pointedly aimed at knowing the minute, private details of a person. Then there are practices like inviting people, that you have just acquainted yourself, to your home so that they get to know details from your personal life and meet people from your family. Accepting an offer of hospitality is normally expected and rejection for any reason is considered an insult. The same questions asked to people in countries like, say the US or UK, are a strict no-no at the workplace and vehemently frowned upon since they could be interpreted as sexual advances or being too nosy. Are there some acceptable topics and behaviours for new employees at the global workplace to acquaint yourself with people without causing a faux pas of sorts? What are the topics/behaviours to avoid? <Q> I think talking about news items or similar things related to your work domain are safe topics for discussion. <S> If you are working in a technology firm or with technically minded people, talking about the latest gadget ("Did you see the review for the iPhone 5?") or an interesting technical topic ("Here is a link about how Facebook manage their global deployment") may work. <S> Food is also a safe topic. <S> Something like: "Hey, I just moved here. <S> Can you recommend some good restaurants?" <S> or "I don't know much about Indian food, can you recommend something for me to try? <S> " is a nice ice breaker. <A> If you think about it, it's the one thing all coworkers within the same company have in common, and it's a topic someone new to the company should be interested, even excited, to talk about. <S> Some of the questions I was asked, when I was new, were about: <S> Past work experience. <S> I had none, so this died down soon, but people did tell me where they worked before or where they went to college, and I just listened. <S> Company history and milestones. <S> Think of questions like "Did you know that back in 2010 we...", and typically the person telling the story was directly involved in whatever the milestone was. <S> My role and responsibilities. <S> Some had no idea what my role in the company would be about, so they just asked about that, and those who had some idea asked questions to see if I was clear on my role, and offered advice when I was not. <A> I guess talking about the weather is a good way to have an engaged conversation. <S> But breaking into a song like @kevin cline is probably going to scare people off (atleast in my case, given my voice). <S> Also adding to @Roc Marti's answer, one more topic that we could talk about is probably new trends/ competitor reviews that have an impact on the broader domain your work purports to, if not the work itself. <S> New releases in various domains (gadgets, automobiles, technology, etc.) <S> as well as the universal ice-breaker food ,could be considered to be relatively safe for having a good, non-offensive conversation with a peer. <A> You can ask people if they have any plans for the weekend or how was their last weekend. <S> Generally speaking if you find a topic that's focus isn't on you or the person you're talking about the conversation will be more comfortable (obviously don't gossip about co-workers but <S> if it's someone outside the building like the construction workers than it's ok).
| Other than fairly innocuous topics, like the weather, I think the one topic that can almost always be considered safe is the work/job itself. Also you can talk about which route you take to work, if there's construction work going on or renovations you could talk about how long it's been going on for.
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Is it appropriate to put *planned* coursework on a resume when applying for an internship? I have some very relevant coursework that I am scheduled to take over the course of this year, all of which would be completed before my hypothetical summer internship will start. Would it be unwise to list this on my resume? I'm a junior and don't have much else to put on there, and I really do plan to take these courses. (This is for an engineering position, but the question is relevant to many majors and internships.) <Q> I would draw the line at courses you are currently enrolled in. <S> Future courses aren't a certain thing, and you're applying for a position with folk who appreciate certainty. <S> Full disclosure <S> : I am an engineer, and I have interviewed various levels of interns before. <S> My work experiences are primarily US based. <S> Here's what I would rather see: academics (GPA) to date notable class projects - so we have something to talk about in the interview academic society membership and activity - membership in Tau Beta Pi <S> is far more interesting than Kegga Kegga Kegga ( <S> no, that's not a real fraternity afaik) <S> other work experience high school academics (again, GPA) for purposes of consistency if you've passed the FE / EIT although it's a bit early for you to have taken it <S> Oh, and keep it to one page, please. <S> You're right in that you don't have a whole lot to put down for a resume yet. <S> On the flip side, your interviewer knows you don't have a whole lot and doesn't expect it. <S> Your attitude and demeanor amount to a whole lot more than anything. <S> I know I'll have to train you for your role. <S> What I want to know is how easy it's going to be to train you and <S> what sort of personality / work ethic / drive do you have. <A> As long as you are in good faith about actually taking them, I wouldn't see a problem with putting it down as long as it is clearly marked as expected coursework. <S> If the interviewer feels it is inappropriate, he can just ignore it. <S> It's not like you misrepresented what it is. <A> The resume should be a list of things you've done so you should leave it off. <S> However the cover letter is more free form, you could include a bit in there about your plans for the school year and why that will make you even more qualified in June. <A> I used to teach a class for 3rd & 4th year students in which this specific question came up all the time. <S> The key factors in this question (and my answer) are: <S> you are a student in a major and and are taking courses along a particular path <S> you have little to show in traditional resume form, mostly because you're a student <S> you are not applying for a full-time position somewhere, <S> but... <S> you are applying for a summer internship <S> in which it is likely very much assumed that you are a student <S> In this situation, it would be completely reasonable to frame your academic work in these terms: <S> Degree something, at some school, expected SOMEYEAR Completed Coursework in Major Field something really specific beyond intro, completed SOMESEMESTER something else really specific beyond intro, completed SOMESEMESTER Upcoming Coursework in Major Field something really specific beyond intro, to be completed SOMESEMESTER <S> Note that I wouldn't list upcoming coursework beyond the next semester. <S> What this structure allows you to do is to point out in your cover letter <S> exactly what has & will be preparing you, as a student, for the summer internship to which you are applying. <S> Taking off the teacher hat and putting on the hiring manager hat, this path of learning/connection to what you'd be using this knowledge for in an internship with me, is exactly what I would want your resume and cover letter to convey. <A> Think of the resume as a place to list your accomplishments . <S> Completed projects: accomplishments. <S> Planned projects: not accomplishments. <S> Note my use of the term "projects". <S> Let's say, for example, that you're planning to take a course in developing Android applications, later in the year. <S> You can't put that course on your resume, because you haven't taken it yet. <S> But if you were to write an Android application, you could put that on your resume right away. <S> Of course, there's a lot of self-motivated learning required there-- <S> but if you're passionate about it, then it's probably something you're already doing, eh? <A> Is it appropriate to put planned coursework on a resume when applying for an internship? <S> You should however indicate that this work is planned, to distinguish it from completed work. <S> Something like: <S> Advanced Framis Design Studies (planned for Fall, 2014)
| It certainly makes sense to include all coursework that is relevant to the specifics of the internship, as long as it is expected to be completed before the internship begins.
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How to ask for Linked-In recommendations The other day I noticed my Linked-In profile did not have a whole ton of recommendations. I have worked with quite a few people over the past few years. How should I request a recommendation from Linked-In (both people I currently work with as well as previous coworkers who I may not have maintained communication with)? I am looking for a more detailed answer than "ask!" for this question. I realize at some stage in the process I will have to request a recommendation (though, according to the current top voted answer, this is actually not necessary). Additionally, I am looking for how to request recommendations from someone I may not have maintained communication with over the years since we were coworkers. I may not even have added them on Linked-In due to the timings of our work experience and the inception of Linked-In (or they may not even have one). Are there additional factors to consider in these sorts of situations? <Q> If you can't write a reasonably detailed recommendation for someone, you probably shouldn't bother asking him or her to write one for you. <S> Edit based on expansion of original question <S> : For people with whom you've been out of contact for a while, I think the first step is to regain contact. <S> Ask to add them with a personal note, and try to exchange an email or two. <S> Then offer to write them a recommendation and ask if they'd mind writing a short one for you. <S> A problem is that this could be considered 'stale' information. <S> I might have trouble recalling details after a few years, and feel uncomfortable because of that and because I don't know if a person has changed since I worked with him or her. <A> I recently did the following: <S> I chose specific people with whom I've had recent contact and who, collectively, provide some breadth. <S> (E.g. I'd rather have recommendations from an interaction designer, a senior developer, and a product manager than just three developers.) <S> I also sent a request to someone I'd previously provided a (solicited) recommendation for. <S> I used the LinkedIn interface to send the requests but I wrote personal messages to each. <S> In those messages I said what areas I hoped that particular person would be able to address (while saying that of course I'd welcome a recommendation on anything they cared to write about). <S> I did this partly because of the considerations in #1 and partly to overcome the "um, what should I write?" problem. <S> I did not send them all at once, because I don't want to give linked coworkers (who get those weekly updates) <S> the impression that I'm actively looking. <S> For people you haven't stayed in touch with, put yourself in the other person's shoes and ask yourself: how will this person respond to this request out of the blue? <S> If you had a very strong working relationship years ago but haven't stayed in touch, the person might remember you fondly and be willing to write one (but see below). <S> If he's likely to be asking himself "who is that again? <S> ", then he's probably going to delete the email. <S> But even if the relationship was strong and you think he'll write a recommendation, it's better to actually get in touch first yourself, outside of LinkedIn. <S> Send email, ask about his {family, pet, hobby he always talked about, etc}, share something he might be interested in if you can (such as a pointer to an article on something he's passionate about), and only then request the reommendation. <A> Here's the simplest and most direct answer: excel at your job. <S> I've written a number of LinkedIn recommendations over the years, and only once have I been approached for a recommendation by somebody. <S> The person who contacted me was someone I would have without them having to ask. <S> Every recommendation I write is sincere, because everyone I've recommended has something valuable to offer. <S> You'll get recommendations without having to ask if you really apply yourself at work and make your stuff shine. <S> It is possible to do this no matter what your title is or level of experience. <S> People can and will notice high quality work - though it's also on you to do enough self-promotion that others are aware of your accomplishments. <S> Personally, if someone has 3+ recommendations on LinkedIn, that's more than enough to convince me that they're capable. <S> I tend to view recommendations as potential references - <S> 3 is what's required to pass an interview, <S> so you can at least make 3 friends in any job, you'll always be safe in the future. <S> What can really help is an attitude of learning to enjoy the process of forming partnerships at work. <S> If you help others, they help you. <S> It's that simple. <A> There are several approaches to getting a recommendation: <S> Ask somebody to write one for you. <S> The request can be by email, phone, or via LinkedIn. <S> These are the most effective when somebody can quickly judge that the recommendation is genuine and has some weight behind it. <S> So target who you will ask. <S> You might need to expand your contacts to get a high enough level of management. <S> Write one for somebody else. <S> This works best if they are close to being your equal. <S> Just because I write an unsolicited recommendation for the CEO of the company, I can't expect them to return the favor. <S> This works best if a hiring manager may know the person that will be writing your recommendation. <S> If they see that somebody they respect in their company knows you, they might consider the recommendation as being a good recommendation. <S> You are making a large assumptions regarding LinkedIn recommendations: that they have benefit. <S> If I know the person that recommends you, then I can see the benefit. <S> Otherwise I have no way to judge the validity of the recommendation. <S> Too many recommendations may look worse than no recommendations.
| Write recommendations for others, or at least offer to do so when you ask someone if they'll write one for you. If you didn't have a strong relationship to begin with, then asking for the recommendation is premature, and you'll have to start with getting back in touch, see where the conversation leads, and decide later if asking for a recommendation is appropriate.
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What if I don't have enough work sample for an interview? I'm going to an interview for a programming job. I have knowledge of many things in the field but I don't have a lot of work samples and the ones that I have are only covering part of my knowledge, so do I need to offer my projects in such a way to cover all my knowledge, technologies and etc... or is it ok to just talk technical about some of them? what is the de-facto standard and how much my chance of getting the position will be reduced? Is it important to offer a job sample on my laptop for whatever tech I say I know how to work with? Does it matter for an interview? <Q> In order to have "samples" of your skills that would be convenient to share, consider public activities, like writing your blog, or answering Stack Exchange questions, or participating in open source projects. <S> Regarding what is the de-facto standard, based on my experience <S> (I've been at both sides of interview 20-30 times in 15-20 companies, along with few dozens times when I've been an interviewer myself) <S> de-facto standard is not to show samples of your past work, neither on laptop, nor sent by mail, nor anyhow else. <S> This is a rule with exceptions: I've been asked about something like past work samples once or maybe twice. <S> The reason why it is so is I believe widespread understanding that this is legally slippery: past work may be owned by your past employer, or may be somehow else legally protected etc. <S> It may be safe or not, depending on particular case <S> but it's often too difficult to figure. <S> ...is it ok to just talk technical about some of them? <S> Oh, be careful about "just talk technical". <S> No, not in the sense that it's not OK - but in the sense that if you mention you know something, you better be prepared to answer questions proving your knowledge. <S> And, trust me, <S> if you happen to get to an interviewer who is interested in skills / experience you mention and happens to know it, they will find a way to check your knowledge without any stinkin' samples. <S> I once skipped to specifically prepare to questions on a topic I bragged about in resume since I have a pretty good knowledge of it <S> - you know, repeat basics, refresh fundamentals, stuff like that - what an epic fail it was when a qualified interviewer drilled into it. <A> Some software companies (especially startups and hip and trendy ones run by well known bloggers) will want to see evidence of "passion." <S> Generally this means that they expect you to have been working on side projects in your spare time, not related to your day job, for an extended period of time. <S> In some cases here, if you don't have an active Github account, they most likely won't be interested in you. <S> Other companies tend to focus more on competence. <S> They won't be interested so much in quantity of your work as quality. <S> They'll want to see things such as: is it formatted cleanly, are your coding conventions consistent, is it easy to understand, does it follow best practices, is it bug free, is it secure, and does it even compile? <S> For companies such as these, just spend a weekend implementing something, send them that, and make sure you haven't done anything stupid such as giving your methods names like <S> doIt <S> () or storing passwords in a database in plain text. <S> They're more likely to check out the ones they actually care about in the interview itself. <A> In the my technology area (Ruby on Raiks) having code samples - usually on github - is definetly the standard. <S> Companies in this space want to see some evidence of yur work and most importantly your style of programming. <S> If you don't have enough already it is likely you'll be asked to lotok at some of their code and comment, also pair programming may be done to see what you know. <S> Although it's standard to ask this in my area <S> I myself usually have to say no to this with the following explanations: 1) <S> All my work is under NDA. <S> I would be happy to show you bits of code on my laptop <S> but I can't just give you full access to the repository. <S> 2) I am in a learning mode right now (this might now apply to you). <S> Every month it seems that my code and style is changing a lot. <S> I look at code from 6 months ago <S> and I think ugh! <S> that's awful. <S> So for that reason I tend not to have old code publicly available. <S> One option here is: when asked in person, show older code and show how you would refactor it. <A> A code sample does two things <S> It shows that you can do something <S> It shows HOW you do things <S> Unless the "something" is specifically what the company is looking for, the HOW is more important than the what. <S> So, your code should be be large enough to show that it is well written -- frequently it is a non-functional sample, so it doesn't necessarily even have to do what it is nominally supposed to do. <S> It should be clear as to what it is supposed to do and that you follow best practices. <S> By which I do <S> not mean where you put the braces, except you should be consistent. <S> I mean things like good variable and function names, error handling (whether that is exceptions or return codes), appopriate comments (not too many, not too few, focusing on why not what). <S> Think of the code sample as the reverse of a code review -- instead of an opportunity to catch errors and learn how to do things better <S> , it is a chance to show that you can do things correctly and without errors. <S> The GNU Hello project or Enterprise FizzBuzz would definitely be pushing the size boundaries for a code sample, but conceptually they are the kinds of thing you want as a code sample.
| It depends on what they're looking for when they're asking for a code sample. In either case, I wouldn't worry about showing off a wide range of specific skills.
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Add custom effects/formatting to my resume (to showcase my skills) I'm asked to submit resume in HTML format. As I'm applying for web-designer position, I believe adding embedded CSS would be more effective. What factors do I need to take into account considering adding custom effects/formatting to a resume to showcase designer skills? <Q> You have to understand how the résumé items work. <S> Skills Section <S> - it's rather a bulleted or comma-separated list (usually, categorized) of every skill you have and every technology you are familiar with. <S> highlight the items that are relevant to a position you're applying to. <S> Since embedded CSS is relevant to HTML development, <S> yes , it should be listed here . <S> list should only contain those tools/technologies you are willing to use in the future. <S> Projects Section - here you specify recent projects you participated with. <S> Of course, if it was your responsibility to develop CSS, list it here, too; <S> As per using a certain technology (embedded CSS) when writing a résumé, the same rules apply: <S> Do it if you can master it. <S> It will be a good asset, and may give you a certain reputation; <S> Don't do it if you aren't familiar with it. <S> IMPORTANT : <S> Keep in mind you have to be able to verbally expand how you used the technology in prior projects. <S> You will probably be asked technical questions to check your level. <S> If you haven't used it or you don't feel comfortable about it, don't put it there. <S> Study it first or you may be putting yourself in a bad situation during the interview. <A> Using CSS to improve the formatting and make the resume more readable would probably be effective at demonstrating a subset of your skills on a small scale. <S> If, however, you went over the top with too much formatting or other bling, the presentation could become distracting from the actual content. <S> You want to showcase your skills and abilities, with a tastefully chosen subset of your abilities that are relevant to the presentation of the document. <S> Keep in mind, your interviewer(s) could also choose to look at your source-code, given the nature of the position you are applying for, so you would want to demonstrate the sort of clean-well-formatted code you would be producing for them <S> should they hire you. <S> You might even want to add some embedded comments in your source-code, if appropriate, explaining design decisions you made, etc. <S> For example, you might explain why you chose to put your styles in a style block in the header of the page, rather than in a separate file vs attached to html entities with a style attribute. <S> Obviously, the choice you would make for a file that might be passed around as an email attachment or possibly even read offline, might be different than what you would choose for a live-website. <S> Having everything in one file, so when a less computer-savvy team member reads the resume and double clicks the attachment rather than saving all attachments and then opening the html file, you don't risk the formatting being missing. <S> But all in all, don't lose sight of the fact that the purpose of this document is a resume, having well-written content selling your skills and past experience, <S> all things that you feel confident discussing on your interviews may be even more important than the specific formatting you chose to use. <A> How are you being asked? <S> If online through a form, I would make a subjective evaluation of the website and try to determine whether it is likely to respond appropriately or simply be converted to plain text somewhere and become a mess. <S> - is this the type of web design you really want to show? <S> If you have contacts there I would send an email similar to, "Hello, my html resume contains embedded CSS when submitted in this format - will this be a problem with your automatic system?" <S> Make it clear you do not normally embed CSS in everything you create... <A> A good web designer will always try and place their styles in an external spreadsheet. <S> Having them inline is poor design. <S> As you are applying for a web design position this would be even more important.
| If you are not willing to use the technology, don't list it . Also consider whether or not you feel this would actually add value to your resume
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Specifying a last day in resignation letter greater than notice period I have a 3 month notice period in my contract. This means if I resign on the 18th October my last day at my current company should be the 18th January. I however would like my last day to be the 19th January (In this case it's a Friday so it is all cleaner). I could wait until the the 19th October to resign and all would be good. We have a team meeting on the 18th and if I resign before it then it can be announced at the meeting and handover etc can be discussed in it. So can I specify a last day in resignation letter greater than notice period? HR and my Boss all ready know I am planning on leaving. It will not come as a surprise to them. <Q> It's all a matter of wording. <S> Don't say "I hereby give 3 months' notice of my intention to terminate my employment", say "I hereby give notice of my intention to terminate my employment after Friday, January 19 2013. <S> " Then you have given them 3 months and a day notice. <S> Given that your contract says 3 months, you are within that requirement. <S> No one is going to worry that you've given one day more notice than you are obliged to. <S> I guess they could arguably come back with, "Actually, we hereby give notice of our intention to terminate your employment on January 18," but they could arguably do that on October 18th anyway. <S> What would be in it for them? <S> They're creating a lot of paperwork and potentially opening themselves up for a legal battle (at least in the UK/Europe). <S> Plus they'd burning a bridge that I assume they don't want to burn. <S> I think you're overthinking it. <S> If everyone knows you're leaving anyway, your giving notice of an exact date, as soon as possible, can only be a good thing for all concerned. <S> I would do it today. <A> Based on past experience, resignation letters should be 3 and only 3 sentences. <S> I will be resigning my position at $company. <S> My last date of work will be $date. <S> My address is $address. <S> 3.14 Sign and date the letter. <S> Reason for sentence 1: it is a resignation letter, there needs to be no possible misunderstanding about what is going on. <S> It needs to be in writing as I've worked for bosses who deny that the person quitting was quitting so as to screw with them starting elsewhere. <S> Reason for sentence 2: I've worked for places that have "backdated" resignation letters and claimed you quit today - not in 2 weeks. <S> Consequently, you may be expecting a paycheck that you'll never recieve. <S> This is also why you date it with $today when you sign it. <S> Reason for sentence 3: Many people move, and if you need paperwork sent to you (such as retirement , health benefits , or your P45 ), there have been places I've worked at where they would deliberately and maliciously send your paperwork to an old address so that you cannot reply in the mandated 30 day period (because either it was still tied up in the post office's change of address system, or if that expired, returned to sender). <S> It is none of their business. <S> If they ask, answer verbally, but never in any sort of writing. <A> Assuming that the company doesn't mind keeping you around (and paying you) for another day, the notice period is simply a minimum. <S> so just specify what day you'd like to be your last. <S> Of course, it is possible that the company may ask you to leave earlier. <S> However, if your boss and HR are already aware that you're leaving, it is exceptionally unlikely that there will be any objections to you staying an extra day. <A> I think this is a good gesture and you should do it. <S> On my last resignation, I actually gave out a 6-week notice instead of the required 4. <S> Because I had a lot of responsibility and in my opinion, 4 weeks was not enough time to smoothly transition everything to other people. <S> The difference between my situation and yours is that my resignation came out of the blue (or so I think), so I thought it was only ethical to give a longer notice. <A> In the US , providing a final day in distant future is acceptable. <S> Most companies will not terminate you early unless there is a blatant problem with your performance. <S> The reason is if you quit then they have no liability as far as unemployment. <S> Where if they were to force you to leave early then you could potentially receive unemployment for the period between jobs, or if that job ends up falling through continuing until you find a new position. <S> This is quite common for people leaving for things like when a spouse gets transferred, returning/going to college, joining the military, and religious missions. <S> In some cases you may have a contract that specifies that the final day will be exactly X number of days following receipt of notice. <S> Some companies with this clause will allow for notices that take effect on a specific day. <S> So you could put in the notice a month earlier than you needed with an effective date of the day that you would have turned it in to schedule your final day of work. <S> Many companies do not allow for the use of vacation/personal days after notice is received. <S> So makes sure if have this policy that tendering your notice early is not going to disrupt any time you will need off that would have been fine if you had waited to tender your notice.
| In this case the way to protect yourself is to give notice on the day that works best for your plans. Generally, no one will object if you specify that your last day will be later than the minimum required date Never ever add stuff about why you are leaving.
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How can I negotiate for additional vacation time instead of extra salary? I've just gotten an attractive job offer. I've been doing a lot of reading about negotiations, here on Stack Exchange and elsewhere . The general gist seems to be that it's silly to leave money on the table when you're in a strong bargaining position. The thing is, I don't care about money nearly as much as I do about vacation time. I would start at the standard (in the US...) 10 days per year, which seems like so little. I'd even be willing to take less money in exchange for more time off. Is number of vacation days negotiable? What's my best strategy to get more time? What's the most I could reasonably ask for? What's a rough relationship between dollars and days than I can use to calibrate my requests? Or is there one at all? <Q> It's certainly worth discussing. <S> How much flexibility the hiring manager has to negotiate vacation days really depends on the company. <S> Larger companies are more likely to have rules about the maximum number of vacation days any employee can accrue in a year ( <S> and/or how many can be carried over from one calendar year to another). <S> In general, figure that there are roughly 200 business days per year. <S> That means that 1 vacation day is worth roughly 1/200 (0.5%) of your annual salary. <S> That's obviously a rough estimate <S> but it's in the right ballpark to begin negotiations. <S> As far as how to negotiate extra vacation time goes, you would approach it the same way you would approach salary negotiations. <S> If the company gives you an offer, you can counter that the salary is acceptable but that you need an extra week or an extra two weeks of vacation. <S> Negotiating over fringe benefits is basically the same same as negotiating over salary. <A> One thing to consider, which may or may not be important to you, is the effect of your negotiation on changed vacation policies within a company. <S> I have a colleague who negotiated 3 weeks of vacation instead of 2. <S> It was all well and good, but in a year, there was a company-wide increase in vacation <S> so everybody got 3 weeks. <S> In his case, the vacation time was not increased. <S> Practically speaking, this shouldn't matter - he wanted 3 weeks and got 3 weeks. <S> But I wonder if he now wishes he had negotiated his salary. <S> That being said, I suppose the same situation can happen regarding salary increases. <S> I guess the overall takeaway is to negotiate for as much as possible. <S> They won't take away your offer for doing so if they really want to hire you. <A> The output of your work is worth more than what the company pays you. <S> That is how a company stays in business, by outputting higher value than the cost of production. <S> So by this rationale, the real cost for the company during your vacation, when you're not producing anything, is not proportional to your salary. <S> From the company's bottom line perspective, one extra vacation day is not equivalent with 1/200 of your annual salary, it's more. <S> That said, there is no general value for "reasonable" here. <S> The company will certainly think it unreasonable if you ask for significantly more than is the local industry norm where you are. <S> And again, since not having your employees around is a huge inconvenience for the company, be prepared to pay a premium for it. <S> Be also prepared to commit to taking any extra days you negotiate during a fixed period of the year (like 3 days extra, but you must plan them in July). <S> Then finally be prepared for the company being inflexible in this matter, regardless of salary. <S> Especially larger organization tend to want to keep remuneration packages fairly homogenous across peer-groups. <S> This to avoid the "why is he getting X when I'm only getting Y..." discussions. <S> Everything is negotiable, but to what extent differs greatly between companies, regions and countries Try to be as flexible as possible on your end. <S> For instance, commit to taking some of your days during only certain periods. <S> The relationship between dollars and vacation days depends on the value of your output and the opportunity-cost for the company of not having you available for periods of time. <S> If your work is such that it can be predicted and planned long ahead of time and your responsibilities can be shouldered temporarily by someone else in your absence, then it's less expensive to have you leave. <A> They are aware that an employee will move from 10 to 15 to 20 days per year. <S> They may be willing to bump you to a higher level because they know you were earning more vacation at your previous employer. <S> They are very unlikely to move you above their max rate. <S> Ask them when is it normal to be moved to the high vacation level. <S> Keep in mind that they are trying to fit your salary, taxes, insurance, and other benefits plus their overhead and profits within the maximum rate they can charge customers. <S> You might be forced to lower your hourly pay rate to keep your billing rate in a range to allow them to make a profit. <S> Another possibility is that some companies allow you to purchase additional vacation days. <S> They pull $x from each paycheck throughout the year. <S> This lets you purchase 5 or 10 additional days. <S> Others will allow you to take Leave Without Pay (LWOP). <S> You will have to investigate how they handle benefits during a pay period where you are on LWOP for a significant amount of time. <A> Start by finding out if you can take unpaid days off, and make sure that your manager will be okay with you taking a reasonable number of additional days. <S> If yes to both, you're good shape -- you can take the time if you want to, and if you don't you'll get paid for it right away. <S> That's surely better than accruing time off that you're not using and getting paid for it only if/when you leave.
| Some companies will negotiate a higher rate of accruing vacation days for a new employee that is not in a low level position.
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How to deal with decreasing enthusiasm during work I am a fresh pass-out engineer. I have just started my career as Android Developer. Its been 6 months of working with a company as a developer. I haven't faced many problems in establishing myself as a good programmer. During this period of time, I am regularly assigned work and I have finished all the assignments within the deadlines. But the main problem I face is that when I am assigned the work, at that time, my enthusiasm for doing the work reaches its peak and I usually finish 50 or 60% of work within 1 or 2 days. But as the time passes on my enthusiasm, as well as focus, on doing the same work keeps decreasing. And it becomes tougher when I need to give the finishing touch to the assignment. Its really been a trouble for me as I have just started my career and I hoped to be a good IT developer. I don't want this problem to persist, I am going to join a highly reputed company in 3 or 4 months, where I'd have to finish the whole stuff before the deadlines to gain good reputation. Has anybody faced the same problem and how do you overcome it? <Q> It seems that you are enthusiastic while building the functionality, and then lose enthusiasm when you have to implement the small details and polish things up. <S> It's common among programmers. <S> Remember, the result (and the value) you deliver is function both on your skill and the discipline to get everty detail right. <S> There can be various approaches for self-motivation to do the uninteresting part of the work, I'd suggest one. <S> In this way you will work more often, but for smaller amount of time, uninteresting job, and you will develop your discipline. <S> Additionally, identify what is uninteresting for you, and then get to know a lot about the topic and the best practices for it. <S> For years, databases and front-end stuff were both boring for me, before I actually discovered their worlds and tried to master them. <A> I'm much the same way. <S> Believe it or not, there are people who hate the design part and love the finishing touches part. <S> It's amazing how productive you can be together if you manage to get on a team with someone like that. <S> Even with good colleagues, there are still unavoidable times where tasks feel rote. <S> During those times, I use the Pomodoro Technique . <S> You can work on pretty much anything if you know it's only for 25 minutes. <S> It's also very helpful to listen to music. <S> I'm not sure why that works, but my theory is that it takes up some brain power that would otherwise get distracted, when you don't require your full attention to accomplish something. <S> Another useful technique is to add a challenge to make it interesting. <S> For example, if I have hundreds of boring compile errors to sort through, I make it a challenge to see how fast I can do it. <S> Also, make sure to take breaks. <S> Remember, the important metric is your productivity for the entire day. <S> A 15-minute walk can be a very good investment. <A> We tend to believe that the core of what we're building is the most important part, and we get excited because we're contributing that to the project. <S> Then we get down to debugging, cleaning up code, and building documentation, and we could almost just drop the project altogether. <S> As a programmer, your mind is very active. <S> Doing debugging, code cleanup, and documentation is borderline mind numbing for some. <S> Just tell yourself that these steps are even MORE important than the core of the work that you've just completed. <S> Without these steps being taken, your project has the ability to come back with unexpected results. <S> Without clean code and well written documentation, bug fixes and possible rewrites can take much longer to perform, further decreasing the effectiveness of your work. <A> Thanx to all users, who had given their valuable suggestions. <S> what i had concluded that to boost up my enthusiasm during work, as suggested by @karl beilefeldt Listen to music after some interval, so as to relax the mind. <S> Take small breaks from work and walk a bit or do some other kind of stuffto deviate mind from work. <S> as suggested by @Mechaflash Take every part of the project as the important part, it could be debugging or code cleanup. <S> Consider it as usefull as the latter part. <S> as suggestd by @Darhazer <S> Instead of doing important part of all the functions together, implement project as small fucntions, first finish one function and then jump to next one. <S> Avoid doing all functions together. <S> @superM <S> Try <S> Risk Drived DEvelopment. <S> First implement the Hardest part, so that even if you loose interest later, the risk would have been minimized.
| When my typing slows to a crawl from boredom, I'll take a 15-minute walk to clear my head, and that can get me going quickly for the rest of the day. Instead of doing all of the major functionality first and then work on the details, make sure every function is implemented with all of its details before moving to the next one. One thing that helps is to get on a team where other people have complementary interests.
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When is it appropriate to stop an interview early? Today I've interviewed a person, who refused to try to solve a simple (and quite common) practical problem. I mean, literally refused to try to solve it. He said something like: "Well, I just don't want to think about something complex now". I've tried to encourage him, but failed. "I don't want to bother about anything non-trivial right now", he responded. The question is: Is it OK to cancel such interviews immediately? Because, honestly, I've understood that we will not go further just as soon as he refused second time. Are there any other cases when it is appropriate to stop interview and to inform the applicant that he had failed? <Q> When it is appropriate to stop an interview early? <S> As soon as the candidate decides not to participate. <S> Even if you said something he "did not like" -> doesn't matter . <S> He was obviously ending the interview himself - but didn't have the balls to say it out right, <S> I mean come on, he turned you down twice! <S> I highly doubt he was that oblivious or self <S> absorbed that he just didn't feel like answering the question and <S> if that is the case I would have ended on the first rejection of the question. <S> You don't have to end it dramatically or with a bitter taste <S> but more like, thank you for the interview <S> (I got to get to the other people who are happy to answer this question, sorry you are not one of them). <S> Well, don't say the last part out loud. <A> In general I would say an interviewer stopping an interview like that should be very rare. <S> However yours does sound like a case where it might be applicable. <S> What you should do is probe why the candidate won't answer. <S> "Are you prepared to answer other questions?" "Are you sick?" <S> "Would you like to reschedule the interview?" <S> "Do you understand that in the course of doing this job you will be required to take on tasks of this complexity on a regular basis" and finally "Are you really interested in interviewing for this job?" <S> The answers to those should pretty clearly tell you whether it is worth continuing. <S> If it turns out that they were really just messing with you and not interested in interviewing, make sure to tell your HR department to mark their file so as never to offer them another interview in the future. <A> When recruiting and holding interviews, it's always a two-way sell. <S> The candidate is selling why he or she would be a perfect candidate for you, and you are selling why your company would be their dream employer. <S> If you think one step ahead, a candidate's perception of you and your company when he or she leaves the interview can (and will) have a far-reaching impact on your business and recruitment in the future. <S> If a candidate walks away thinking what a great company you are and what a dream it would be to work for you <S> even when he didn't get the job , then you've done your job as an interviewer. <S> If, on the other hand, he leaves the interview thinking that you were a jerk, that he didn't get a fair chance to prove himself or <S> just plain insulted that you ended the interview prematurely, then that's a poisoned pool for you now. <S> He or she will tell everyone they know that you're a bad company and any potential interactions you have in the future will be biased against you. <S> There is no room for personal pride <S> when recruiting, it is never appropriate to give anything but your best and most compelling performance when interviewing and recruitment is about much, much more than just the interview. <S> We drill this into all people at our company that are involved in interviewing new recruits and it pays off. <S> We have numerous instances of people who failed to qualify but who left the interview feeling so good about our company that they still recommended us to their friends, leading to some really great hires down the line for us. <A> I think that, in addition to Greg's answer, it is also fair to end the interview when you know that you're not going to hire the person for whatever reason. <S> There's no sense in wasting either participant's time going through a charade of an interview until you hit some magic time threshold. <S> It's definitely a little harsh and, as an interviewer, I hate to do it. <S> But I make sure the recruiters I work with convey to the candidates that there is a possibility of the interview lasting as little as 10 minutes. <S> And yes, I have interviewed candidates that lasted as little as 10 minutes. <S> At which point I say "Look, I'm sorry, this just isn't going to happen. <S> Best of luck." <A> I would never cancel an interview that early, but I wouldn't let it go more than half an hour before giving them a chance to terminate it: "So, have you got any questions for me/us? <S> " If they've bothered to come and talk to me <S> then I at least owe them the respect to let them ask questions, even if I have enough information to make a decision on the spot. <S> I've honestly never come across a situation like that though. <S> I'd expect to have discounted anyone like that at the phone screen. <S> And that would, in all honesty, start me wondering if there was something about the way I asked that caused them to react that way. <S> Maybe they wanted to terminate it quickly because of something else you said. <S> I've certainly been in THAT situation before. <S> I've turned up for an interview and something the interviewer said in the first ten minutes put me right off. <S> So I fluffed their technical test and left quite quickly. <A> If the candidate decides not to answer a question that you think is relevant and important, just say "Well, I think I've learned what I needed to. <S> Thank you for your time." <S> The same goes for the candidate. <S> I've been on both sides of this. <S> I've been interviewing candidates and told them I didn't want to waste any more of their time as soon as they demonstrated that they were not a good fit. <S> And I've been interviewed, and (very politely) told the interviewer that I didn't want to waste any more of her time as soon as I concluded that I wouldn't want to work there.
| Assuming you are the hiring Manager, it's appropriate to end an interview as soon as you determine that the candidate is not a good fit.
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Does shifting jobs after small periods have negative effect on career I would first like to mention my stats - I am working with a company for the last 6 months and I am also placed in a more reputed company, where I am supposed to join within 3 or 4 months. Now the query that I had is, whether changing jobs after small interval is going to harm my career in the long run? What I think is changing jobs for better career opportunities is good, but does this also put some negative effect on my resume that I had worked in 2 or 3 companies or more in small duration of time? Do I need to stick to my first job for more months or do I grab the opportunity to work with a more reputed company for better career growth. Edit- I am from IT department, more precisely Java background also would like to mention the case here is from Indian community. <Q> It depends. <S> Generally when I'm hiring you, I want you to stay at least for few years. <S> If you've been in several companies for few months, it's a warning sign. <S> On the other hand, when I look at your resume, I want to see your career path. <S> If you were recruited by a bigger company, it's good sign, no matter how short was your stay at the former employer. <S> But quitting for similar company, or quitting more then 2-3 short jobs is a warnign sign. <S> It also depends on your previous record - are those your first jobs, or you've been several years in a company and then made some bad career moves. <A> It depends a lot on the environment or even the country you work within. <S> Basically lots of job change puts ill effects on the resume, but if these job changes are for better companies, then these could seem quite reasonable. <S> But take in mind that, the company hiring you would definitely be looking for some job guarantee from your side and when they saw your lots of job change, it will definitely force them to think about it. <A> Most companies today realize that many top IT Experts tend to come from a consulting background. <S> So the number of job changes is less important than demonstrating your ability to commit and fulfill your obligations. <S> So when consulting finish out your contracts, demonstrate an ability to execute successfully, and get good references. <S> The problem becomes when you want to settle down. <S> But if you have demonstrated you are a leader in your field with a great attitude and an ability to get things done companies will go beyond the norm to land you. <S> The trick is not to settle for something that will do, but rather hold out for something that excites you. <S> I have found that setting for what is available leads quickly to dissatisfaction and the desire to move on. <S> But when you find a place that gets you excited about coming to work the opposite is true. <S> That said companies will use your many jobs to try and cast doubt on you. <S> But you can turn them into a positive. <S> Working with many companies provides you with a wide range of experience and skills that do not develop easily in a homogenous workplace. <S> Focus on making sure you are taking new skills and ideas out of each position. <S> In a single workplace career you have managers, and HR to try and help you build your career skills. <S> As a contractor you are responsible for doing that yourself. <S> Avoid taking contracts that seem easy because they want you to do something you have done many times. <S> That does not help you grow. <S> And many times can leave you behind. <S> As a contractor you should have the ability to get involved with new technologies and experimental projects, seize these opportunities. <S> Being a contractor can be just another job. <S> But if you do it right <S> you will have to work harder and do more. <S> But it is a path that can lead to success. <A> One or maybe two shorter (<9 months) employments on your resume early on in your career would probably be fine, if you can give a compelling motivation as to why they were short. <S> More than that, then yes - it will affect your future opportunities. <S> Especially when a company is hiring for senior or leadership positions, you really don't want a vagabond that is likely to leave at the first hint of a hurdle. <S> And that is what it's going to look like on your resume. <S> Employers want people they can reliably invest in for the future and that means people with a track-record of hanging in there, even when the going gets tough and people that can stay on to deliver value over longer periods. <S> Remember, recruiting someone, inserting them into the workplace and the team and training them up is very expensive both in time, labor and money. <S> You don't want to have to do it every 9 or 12 months. <A> Being a contractor for most of my life, I will say yes going from job to job in short bursts will hurt you. <S> Especially if you go from a short term job like contracting and attempt to get into full time jobs later in life. <S> Very few HR people really care to understand that contractors jump a lot, they just see short burts and ignore the rest. <S> At least in my experiance that is what happens. <S> Today's day and age someone may jump from job to job if we are talking full time employment, but it normally happens between years of time at specific places. <S> If you look like you jump from job to job in short bursts, or constantly (between 6 months and a year) it will hurt your employment opportunities. <S> If you are jumping from one job to another and don't make a habit of doing so later in life, this will be a blip, and some people may ask why, <S> but in reality as long as you show longevity in the workplace you should be fine.
| If this is your first job and you left it for more reputed company after less then a year, it's actually a good career move.
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What's the most professional way to abandon a contract project? Over the summer, in addition to working as an employee of a software company part-time and studying part-time I took on a contract project to make extra money. I gave them an estimate and we agreed to an hourly rate, but I never got anything in writing. The project involved specialty hardware which had to be ordered, so it was slow to start. At the end of the summer I lost my first job (on very amicable terms, project finished) and went in to present a prototype of the contract project expecting payment in full for the hours I'd submitted. I'd also sent in some receipts for a few hardware items I had to buy myself to get things working. The owner, who'd been in the hospital recently according to email correspondence, only gave me 1/3 of the money I was owed at this point and avoided answering any questions about when I'd be getting the full amount. Previously, I had been doing a lot of phone consulting, emails, and running around without even logging the hours. This caused me a lot of stress, but I was able to find another job. My new job is much more interesting and now I'm back at school full-time. This and being involved with the ACM means I have no time for this old project. I also just got an interview with a big software company (they're flying me in), so I'm really busy. They did send me a bit more money, so they're up to about 1/2 now, but I still have no guarantee about when I will be getting the rest of the money. The owner wants to know when I will have time to finish the project (about 75% done now), which they just ordered the last hardware component for, but I don't have any time right now. Even if I wanted more money, I could just put in more hours at my new job, and I'd know when a reliable payment would be coming. After the stress they caused me, especially seeing as how I was going above and beyond by answering all of their emails without keeping track of the time, I'm pretty upset. Since I have no idea when I'd be getting the rest of my money, much less payment for future hours, I have no motivation to continue with the project. I still have their hardware at my house however and they still owe me some money. What's the most professional way for me quit? How should I go about getting the rest of money seeing as how I didn't get anything in writing? I did email in two invoices, both showing the amounts owed and the payments they made, which were not contested, so I have a little bit of a paper trail. <Q> I get the feeling you just want out at this point, but simply walking away from the project at this point could still be misconstrued by some observers as being unprofessional. <S> Why not introduce some documentation,contract-wise at this point? <S> You can state terms on which you will complete the project and when they fail to sit and agree to a contract (which they probably will, their thinking being that they've been able to get this much out of you at a discount), you can courteously moonwalk out of the project. <A> I would respond in writing that you will be happy to resume work on the project as soon as they make the payments to you that will bring you current on the work you have already completed. <S> Until that time you are unable to continue. <S> I would further state that final delivery of the project deliverables will be only after you have received payment for the final stretch of work and any expenses incurred. <S> I would request that the principal respond in writing with payment for services rendered and include his understanding and acceptance of the terms for further work. <S> Send the letter through registered mail and retain a copy of the letter for your records. <S> This is a business thing, there is nothing personal about this decision but their business has shown they are not trustworthy of fulfilling their obligations to the project. <S> You agreed to work on the project so you should at least give them the opportunity to fulfill their obligations and for you to fulfill yours. <S> If they choose not to pay you then they are choosing not to continue. <S> It is possible if you try to pull out that they could pursue damages against you in court and <S> you could be found liable. <S> Do not try to hold their equipment hostage for payment. <S> This will only hurt your position. <S> If the principal demands that you turn over the hardware you should comply promptly and courteously. <S> If the principal does not respond to your letter and goes for a few months without payment or contact I would send another letter advising him that you have his equipment and will consider that equipment abandoned and dispose of it if no contact or arrangements are made in next 30 days... <S> then I would wait another 45-60 days before doing anything with the equipment. <S> If it is light enough you could even ship the equipment back or return it yourself. <S> Just make sure you get something signed that agrees that the equipment was returned in good condition. <A> The notion received is that you just want out. <S> You mention it's a 'contract' project, but the details seem like someone asked you to perform some work <S> and you said 'yes'. <S> If it is a contract, there should be payment and work details outlined. <S> Did you specify payment is due in full at the start of the project? <S> If no payment schedule is outlined, and they haven't payed you yet and the project isn't 100% complete, you are obligated to finish the work per the terms of the contract. <S> If you do not follow through with your promise on the contract, there may be legal ramifications if your client wants to pursue that route. <S> If it's not a contract, call a friend <S> you know can do it and that can use some extra money, give your friend the details of the project and let him/her do it and either give him/her all the money or a large cut. <S> Friend finishes it, you hand it back to the client and call it a day.
| However it is valid to demand payment for the work you have completed, and to refuse to do more work or deliver a project without payment.
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Is it ok to ask how old a fellow employee is? I live in Mexico, but my manager is in the USA. He is having a birthday soon. I will wish him a happy birthday but I was wondering if it is considered rude or unpolite to ask how old he will be? Also could this be applied with other co-workers? Is it ok to talk with other people about their age? <Q> Asking someone's age when it's not relevant to the topic at hand (TV programs <S> , well-known events, etc.) may be considered impolite. <S> It depends a lot on the company culture & that individual. <S> I worked at one company where decorations were not allowed for milestone birthdays (40, 50, etc.) <S> because the company was afraid of age discrimination lawsuits - groups had traditions of putting up black balloons, streamers, etc. <S> It was meant to be in good humor, and I never saw anyone get offended, but HR departments get nervous. <S> When in doubt, don't ask. <A> It's not as bad as talking about race, religion or politics, but some people are uncomfortable discussing it. <S> You should never ask as a part of any formal process, like an interview - most countries have rules against age discrimination, and asking can give the appearance of discrimination. <S> In general conversation, like talking about a birthday, I would always say something like <S> "Can I ask how old you are?" <S> , given them a chance not to answer if they don't want to. <S> But even then I would only do it with someone I knew relatively well. <S> With a boss from another country, I wouldn't go there. <A> Is it ok to talk with other people about their age? <S> If they are female DO NOT ASK! <S> Nothing good can come out of this, male or female. <S> What is it that makes you so curious about your co-workers age? <S> Is this something that really matters in any way? <S> Will it benefit your tasks with them in any way? <S> There are more risks than benefits here. <S> Stick to focusing on the work. <A> Ask yourself, "How does knowing my coworker's age help me better-perform my job?" <S> Maybe you need to send people on errands to other business that require the age of 21 for entry. <S> Maybe the job involves forming camaraderie with a client/customer, which would work best with a co-worker of a similar age to the client. <S> Even in case #2, it is best to ask someone "are you in your 20's" or early 30's or whatever. <S> Because of age-discrimination, this topic is essentially never appropriate for the workplace, unless the answer directly facilitates business. <S> Despite spending so much of your day with your co-workers, the relationship is rooted in the profession/job, and interactions should principally emerge from that basis. <S> If you later become buddies or friends with your coworker(s) <S> then all that passes between you is a prerogative of that development. <A> Age is a touchy subject, but particularly in the US. <S> It is definitely not okay <S> to ask someone's age in an interview situation - in fact, it's illegal. <S> Generally, I feel like a lot of it also has to do with <S> how the question is asked. <S> Some people ask about age as a friendly way of getting to know you and making a connection. <S> But many people unfortunately also use age as a proxy for experience, title, and salary rate. <S> This information can be used negatively, which is why it's touchy. <S> Hope that helps! <A> In some countries it may be ok to ask, but the United States has become a haven of the Politically Correct, and in reality the emotionally fragile it seems. <S> I honestly don't care if people ask me how old I am <S> , I either tell them it's none of their business <S> or I tell them, especially if they are cute ;) <S> That being said, don't ask, it is more for common courtesy. <S> Just say happy birthday, and give a card, depending on their outlook. <S> If they are humorous, go for a funny card, if they are strict, a standard happy birthday card will be fine. <S> In reality though, if you want to do something for their birthday, ask them for you to treat them to a lunch. <S> It will probably be good to know that the people under them appreciate them. <S> This is just me talking though, just be wary about asking for anyone's age. <S> It's common courtesy in the US not to ask a woman's age, and in reality it should be the same for your boss. <A> I think you could do it like this: <S> State you own age during some conversation. <S> If people don't feel comfortable about it, they will just let it be there, <S> if they feel comfortable they will tell you their age. <S> In a formal setting (people who you don't work with every day), i would avoid the topic completely. <S> In Germany i could imagine asking male colleagues directly in a non-formal setting. <S> In the right context i could also imagine that it is ok to ask female colleagues - e.g. a situation come to my mind where I was amazed that some female colleague worked with some software, because I thought she was too young for it, and she was not embarrassed but was amused and explained me that she was very young when she used it. <S> In Japan, I would ask during lunch, although usually colleagues (male and female) usually introduce themselves with their age, and my experience if that Chinese are also not embarrassed to talk about it.
| When in doubt, err on the side of not asking. In general it is better to avoid talking about someone's age unless they bring it up. As others on the thread have pointed out, it depends a lot on your relationship with the person in question.
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How can I politely decline collecting donations for birthday presents? There's a weird practice in some companies to collect funds for birthday presents. It is usually reasoned with "team building", "good fellowship" and stuff like that. It became almost obligatory, and you have to explain yourself every time why you don't wish to participate. Of course, it ruins my reputation since most of the team participate. To me, it sounds weird, useless, and even harmful because of many reasons: If I sympathize someone and I want to make a present, I will do it by myself; New team members certainly do not sympathize anyone else since they simply did not have time to grow such sympathy; For people working for a long time, the entire thing looks like a useless rotations of your $20 when you invest it first and then get it back as a birthday present; For my own birthday, I want to get an useful something, while corporate presents are often useless; In addition to birthdays, similar presents occur on "Men's Day" (a day of establishment of a National Army), when all female colleagues present something to male colleagues, and, correspondingly, "Women's Day". Considering I'm not a top manager who establishes these rules, what are my best options? UPDATE At the moment, my approach is that I'm following a fictional religion that prevents me to accept the birthday presents. It is weird as well, but no more than the problem. :) Related: How can I politely decline a team lunch? <Q> If this is established custom in a workplace, you can't expect to decline and have no social consequence. <S> Whatever reason you give for declining to participate, people will see you as an outsider, at least on this specific issue. <S> If you are part of other social activities, it may just be chalked up to a personal quirk of yours. <S> How you politely decline will depend very much on your relationship with whomever does the collections and with the group that the collections are done for - you could use humour (I already gave at the office/home), you can explain your objections in a polite way (I already bought a present / <S> I really don't know x yet). <S> It is up to you to judge what approach will work best without marking you out as an outsider. <A> One thing you might consider, that no one else has mentioned yet, is to talk to your Human Resources department. <S> Many times companies will have policies in place against solicitation without specific approval, and it's possible that this could fall within that category. <S> This gives people who wish to participate an opportunity to do so without exposing those who don't wish to do so, for whatever reason. <S> So, contact HR and ask if there's a policy on solicitation. <S> In most cases, your conversations with HR should be confidential, so even if there is nothing they can do, this could help you avoid looking like the bad guy. <S> Of course, one challenge is that people seem to like the idea of the whole exercise seeming like a surprise, despite the fact that many people have become very good at remembering the exact date on which they were born. <S> To solve this problem, break the collecting of money up into monthly cycles. <S> In January, put the donation box in and announce it's for February birthdays. <S> In February, mark it March. <S> Use the money collected for each month for the birthdays that occur in that month. <S> People know when their birthday is coming, so it can't really be that much of a surprise, especially if this is the culture. <S> ;) <S> And if people stop donating, then the whole birthday buying idea just might die altogether, and you still win! <S> Or rather, you're niece wins and gets her barbie doll, without sending Uncle Bytebuster to the poor house! <S> ;) <A> I sympathize with your desire not to participate, as a childless, single woman, I can't tell you how many baby and wedding showers I have been asked to contribute to <S> and I don't even ever get a present in return. <S> If you have accepted a birthday present already, then you truly are obligated to contribute to others. <S> If you haven't, then you still need to make the contribution or you are likely to be very negatively viewed by your colleagues no matter how politiely you decline and <S> no matter if you refuse a present of your own (which it would be VERY RUDE to do after they bought one). <S> If people who make less than you contribute, then you will especially be perceived as entitled and uppity. <S> So really, you should just budget a small amount for this and then pay up graciously and graciously accept the present in turn and tell people how nice it was. <S> You could try to change the company culture, but, unless a lot of the others hate the custom too, you still come off as a jerk who thinks he is too good for the rest of us. <A> I think the making excuses is making things worse. <S> Just like if a cashier asks for your phone number or zip code, you don't have to give them any reason for not doing it. <S> Or if your boss asks you to consistently work extra hours, the best reply is "Sorry, I can't," with no reason given. <S> No excuse, nothing to argue with. <S> So, I would probably say something like "the whole gift thing doesn't work for me. <S> " If you're really worried about the social consequences, I agree with user856 that you can time this appropriately to help diminish the impact. <A> I think the best solution is to bring this kind of issue up when no one is going around collection. <S> If you do it at that point it seems like you are being cheap, or <S> even worse you dislike the specific person. <S> If I would do that I would as my birthday comes up. <S> At that time let everyone know that you do not want a present from the company, and you dislike the idea. <S> By declining a present yourself, you do not seem cheap, or single any person out as not wanting to contribute to. <S> If not yourself it would be OK to do it if no one's birthday is nearby. <S> Once someone is making the rounds, it is too late, and you must chip in. <S> This has worked in my personal life, so I would think it would be the same professionally.
| But the truth is, there is no graceful way to decline these things and not look like a jerk. For instance, perhaps HR could insist that the people soliciting money must leave an anonymous donation box in the break room. One way to avoid being put on the spot could be to see if HR can enforce this policy by sending out an email that highlights any policy on the matter.
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Benefits during two weeks notice Say I give my two weeks notice on a Monday, let's say the first of the month. I have a doctor appointment on that Friday. Will my medical benefits still be active to help pay for the appointment? Also, what if I'm called in for jury duty during my last weeks, will that impact anything? <Q> Typically, in the US, your medical benefits are valid until the end of the month in which your employment ends. <S> So, if you submit your 2 weeks notice on October 19th, for a final day of employment on November 2nd, your medical benefits are in place until November 30th. <S> This is usually defined between the Employer and the Insurance company and may not apply if the company is self-insured or has less than 20 employees. <S> Obviously, a precise answer can be provided by your HR department. <S> However, if you are in your notice period and still working, then you are still insured. <S> Chad has the Jury Duty question covered. <A> You should also be eligible for COBRA Coverage in the event that your employer terminates your benefits. <S> Jury Duty will depend on your employer. <S> Most Jury summons come with a phone number that you can call if you would be unable to serve during the scheduled period. <S> If you are summoned during your notice I would call that number and ask them to reschedule you for a time after you have settled into your new job. <S> My wife was summoned shortly after she stared her job and used this number. <S> They were happy to push the summons back 3 months. <A> The actual day that coverage ends is dependent on the company. <S> It could be the end of the month or it could be on your last day of work. <S> I even knew of one company that covered you for a few weeks because they owed vacation pay. <S> Keep in mind that other benefits will end at the same time such as transportation / parking. <S> Make sure you submit everything quickly so you can get reimbursed as quickly as possible. <S> Pay attention to the balance in your medical and child care savings account. <S> You don't want to leave money on the table, and you don't want to overdraw. <S> The last day of coverage will be the last day of work. <S> Though you will be able to submit bills for a few weeks after your last day. <S> They should continue the 401K match for the last paycheck, and may even apply it to any vacation hours they pay. <S> You might want to adjust your contribution rate depending on the program of your new employer. <S> Remember that the maximum contribution counts all your contributions across all employers.
| You should still have benefits for the duration of your employment unless your employer informs you otherwise.
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Returning a favor for the boss I am in a situation where my boss has, on more than one occasion, "gone to bat" for me and personally duked it out with superiors, HR, and the customer to argue in favor of keeping me employed with the company. He was successful. I am completely convinced that my job was in real jeopardy in at least one of the situations, but the second situation was perhaps not as severe. This was not a disciplinary or performance issue, but an "HR" issue related to my ability to meet the job's hiring requirements, which are stringently defined by the customer (a government entity). Given that my boss has put his own reputation on the line and successfully saved my job, I feel like I need to return the favor. Aside from working on my assigned work with vigor, attention to detail and a strong sense of ethics and pride, is there anything I can do to repay my boss without looking like I'm sucking up to them? It gets even worse. My company is one that periodically gives out "token" awards (some of them come with no gift and no money; others come with a small gift; very few come with a substantial monetary award). The number of awards they give out is fixed and it happens on a quarterly basis. I recently received two awards in the same quarter -- one involving a nice gift and one with just a printed award on nice paper. I learned later that my boss was directly responsible for nominating me. It could be that my boss feels very strongly that I am just a perfect fit for the job and am exceeding expectations, but in my merit increase (raise) review, I was parked at what was essentially a solid "B" rating (on a scale of A+ through F). So that on its own didn't give me the sense that I am a top 5% employee, only just above average. I often hear my boss having stressed phone conversations and they seem extremely busy and overloaded with burdens -- moreso lately than any other time, and I've been working the same job full time for almost a year and a half. Is it appropriate to ask to take something off the boss's plate, even if I'm already fairly busy, and maybe work on it during off hours (after the normal 8 hours have passed)? It is safe to assume that some of the tasks the boss undertakes directly are ones that I could help with in some significant way, which would alleviate a significant time investment from the boss and is unlikely to require considerable review or re-work. If my work output on the routine assignments (which are doled out to me by lower-level senior employees, not directly by my boss ) is only of "B" quality, I don't think I'm repaying my boss enough to make them think that going to bat for me was the right thing to do. I don't anticipate them being placed in that situation again, but I want to answer accordingly for all the confidence that's been placed in me. Ancillary information: My situation is in the United States public sector, with the nature of the work being, essentially, software development and testing. However, the answers probably shouldn't be greatly impacted by this info; don't answer the question with specifics about the US public sector or software development. <Q> Has your boss been known to put himself on the line for people or he's doing this just for you? <S> I ask this <S> so you're not unnecessarily guilted into a long term favour-repaying mission. <S> The most solid way to repay confidence and faith placed in you is to vindicate and justify that input with solid output. <S> And you're aware that there is a need for more hands on deck. <S> It's safe to offer your time and effort to your boss (above and beyond the call of normal working hours) seeing as he's done the same in your favour. <S> Try not to think of it as a favour while you're at it, more like justifying his input in your career. <S> At the barest minimum, he'd appreciate the gesture (even if he declines) and know you're not just a taker and you also own a conscience. <S> Should you choose to accept more responsibility however, be sure to not carry too much or more weight that you're sure you can safely handle. <S> All your goodwill reserves will go down the tank if you end up botching your assignments because you've bitten more than you can chew. <S> Few good deeds go unpunished! <A> An easy step you can take is to approach your manager and have a meeting to discuss <S> Hello $(BOSS) <S> , I was wondering what it would take for me to improve my performance from a solid B to an A- or even A and have a conversation about this subject. <S> You might even find out they <S> really wanted to give you an A+ rating but because of budget constraints or some other completely unrelated reason could not. <S> For bonus points, writeup a proposal for additional responsibilities you can perform, and come the perspective of <S> : I was thinking about how to increase my performance from a B player to an A player - this is what I had in mind as to the steps to get there, what do you think? <S> That being said, I find it strange <S> you do not seem to know why your boss is supportive of you. <S> It seems your relationship with your boss could also benefit from increased communication (this could play into the above conversation) - if you are really getting this much indirect support <S> I really am surprised you do not have a quite clear understanding as to why this happens. <S> One last note - this is a business relationship. <S> Managers enjoy having quality employees because it lets them do their job easier and better. <S> I would strongly caution against feeling obligated to "return a favor" for the sake of decisions your manager makes from a business perspective. <A> You just mentioned that, my boss feels very strongly that I am just a perfect fit for the job and am exceeding expectations . <S> If you are regular enough, completing assignments on time and your boss is extremely satisfied with the outputs you are providing, then there's nothing wrong that your boss stood beside you in case of any job related issue of yours. <S> In my case, we have to report to our team leader and we dont have direct interaction with the HR folks. <S> We are upto the expectations of our TL. <S> We mostly have some salary and incentives related issues every month. <S> In every case, our TL speaks for us with the HR people. <S> So its fair enough for your boss to stand beside in your problem. <S> However, if your problem was severe enough, that it could put fingers on the boss's potential, then you could ask for what you can do to make up for the damage that is done.
| If your manager thinks you add considerable value to his group, as seems to be the case, it is in his interest - both personally and professionally - to keep you employed.
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How to start an email to a company? When applying for a job or even just asking clarifications on something, I have often found problems when starting the email, which might seem like a secondary problem but it does present some important issues. If writing to a person, I'd probably start "Dear Professor Smith" or something similar, but when writing to a company that has listed its email on the site, how do you start? Writing "Dear company X" kind of sends chills down my spine and I don't see it as an appropriate start. I might start right away with "My name is..." and rely on a good email subject to fix the situation but I wanted to get some confirmation on this. So my questions is: how do you properly start an email to a company/agency without having a single person to write to? I'm Italian, but I'm asking for the English language. Furthermore, the name of the person is not in the email address in my case. <Q> If a phone call will get you the name of the person you're writing to, that's best. <S> It also shows you're willing to put in a little effort (it doesn't look like part of a resume-blast to all and sundry). <S> But this is not always possible. <S> I have used "Dear (company name) team" successfully. <S> I have received applications with all sorts of salutations, from "Dear Sir/Madam" to none at all. <S> 1 <S> It didn't really make a difference to me, but I'm a technical person, not an HR person, and they might behave differently. <S> Or not; they're people too. :-) <S> 1: I'm talking here about applications that came via email; for a paper application letter, I would always use some sort of greeting. <A> It depends a bit on customs wherever you are. <S> I would follow whatever I would do in a normal letter. <S> In the UK, "Dear Sir/Madam" would be the most common approach, I think. <S> "To whom it may concern" is a more formal approach, perhaps too formal for a job application. <S> Another approach is to call the company and ask if they have an HR department or who does the hiring for a given role. <S> Or even simply who sees the emails sent to the address you have. <S> Depending on what I know about the culture of the company I'm writing to, I've even been known to go with a generic "Hi" or "Hi there". <A> One time I wrote "dear decider of my fate" and got a great response from that (the rest of the letter was equally as playful/irreverent, but also very much about selling myself). <S> One thing I've learned is that there really isn't a one-size-fits-all for this kind of thing, and unfortunately you won't always know Who your audience is. <S> However, I would recommend being yourself as much as possible when writing an email or a cover letter.... <S> actually, I would encourage just being yourself in the whole job getting process, because it helps to ensure that you're a good fit for them as well as assuring they're a good fit for you. <S> However, like you said the introduction is sort of secondary. <S> You don't want it to be off-putting, so just write whatever feels comfortable to you or nothing at all. <S> A simple "hello" is probably as innocuous as you're going to get. <S> Basically in any of your dealings with a potential employer, you don't want to draw attention to anything that's not about the issue at hand, which in an email cover-letter is all about your interest in the company and <S> how great a fit you would be. <S> Use strong language to convey those parts and downplay the stuff that doesn't matter or that causes friction. <S> In other words you don't want someone to have to think even a little bit about your salutation (unless it is specifically meant to draw them in like I did above, but that's generally a risky thing to do). <A> I think if you write "Dear "company" representative" would be a good and more formal way than hello or greetings since i can see you are concern about the formality of the e-mail.
| I have also just used "Hello" or "Greetings". Depends on the company.
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How to tell co-workers that their action is disturbing you from thinking while working If a co-worker unknowingly disturbs you doing something where concentration is important, what is the best way to tell them? When I'm programming, disturbances are particularly disruptive. Should I tell them directly or send an email to the manager? Is there an easy way without affecting too much the relation with that person? <Q> First thing to do is find out if you can do anything yourself to help with the situation (say loud noises - consider using noise cancelling earphones or a white noise generator, for example). <S> Consider whether this is something that happens consistently or not - if it is a one-off, just let it go. <S> If this is persistent, you should start with discussing the issue with your colleague - no need to escalate to management quite yet. <S> Talk to them and explain, politely that their behaviour is distracting you from your work and ask if they can stop. <S> If this is a reasonable thing to ask and they can see that their behaviour is disruptive, there shouldn't be much of an impact on your relationship. <S> Of course, this depends on the person and situation - not everyone is reasonable and not all requests are reasonable. <S> You will need to exercise your judgement. <A> I have to agree with Oded, but with a caveat... <S> You may want to talk to the person, study them a little while talking <S> , it may be a nervous twitch they don't realize they are doing, or it may be a disability, or something all together different. <A> Certainly do not escalate an issue to management that you haven't tried to resolve yourself. <S> An escalation is likely to get a notation in the person's Personnnel record and may hurt their performance evaluations or even contribute to them losing their job. <S> All for a problem they apparently don't yet know they have created. <S> Think about it from the other person's perspective, would you rather a co-worker mention that he needs the noise cut down or be called into a private meeting with the boss to be told that he has a black mark against his performance? <S> Now I don't know what type of noise it is, but there is a certain amount of normal noise in the workplace that you have to get used to and deal with. <S> It may not be his problem at all, but yours. <S> If you sit next to the sales guy and his phone conversations bother you, then you need to get used to them because that is a necessary task to performing his job. <S> Nor is it fair to tell someone they type too loudly. <S> Now, I agree there are some co-workers who make ridiculous amounts of noise. <S> Then yes, go to them and politely ask them to cut it out and if they don't, then please feel free to ask managment to discuss the issue. <S> But make sure it actually is an abnormal amount of noise. <S> You cannot expect the workplace to be totally quiet just for you. <A> This is a crucial confrontation and requires you to be 100% honest and 100% respectful. <S> Most people will interpret you are trying to tell them what to do and how to behave which will increase tension. <S> You have to do this in a way where you keep the current work relationship or even improve the work relationship. <S> First "unknowingly disturbs you doing something" needs to be a more concrete example but I will try to create a sample conversation... <S> "I want us to continue to working together. <S> I think we really do a good job. <S> I'd just like to keep the interruptions at a minimum between hours <S> X and Y while working because I need the long stretches to complete my work." <S> Depending on the type of interruptions you can explain what the interruption was... <S> If you send an email and they read it as an attempt to change their behavior even though your goal is to have quiet time... <S> many things can happen. <S> Good luck and good for you for asking before doing.
| Only if several such requests are ignored, go to management - you need to be able and explain exactly why the behaviour is impacting your work and then both offer and ask for suggestions on how to fix things.
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How do I address a cover letter if I can't find out who is responsible for hiring? I am trying to write a cover letter for an IT internship at an energy company, but cannot find any information on who is responsible for hiring interns. How do I address the cover letter? <Q> "To whom it may concern" is always fine. <S> " <S> To the Hiring Department <S> " "Dear Sir or Madam" - a bit archaic but legitimate. <S> It really doesn't matter as long as the cover letter is: <S> correct spelling and grammar describing the job opportunity you are looking for in your own words describing why you are a good fit expressing a general enthusiasm for doing the work <S> Those are the key points. <A> The Dear Mr Smith, of a cover letter is good if you have it. <S> If you don't you can leave it off (the salutation). <S> What we look for in cover letters is the following: <S> Do you know what the business is and what we do? <S> Grammar mistakes <S> And the type of work you are interested in doing. <S> Resumes with cover letters are sorted above 'just' resumes. <A> As Craig mentions, grammar is very important for any job, including programming. <S> Beth has the bigger point - it is vital to explain why you are a good fit for the role. <S> The resume and cover letter will get a Yes or No answer to "Should I interview this person?" <S> within 60 seconds. <S> Your cover letter has just seconds to say, "Here's what you want, and here's how I have it" in language that works for both the hiring manager and the HR screener. <S> So back to your case... <S> You have to show you know what they need from interns, and how you have it. <S> (Base IT skills, passion for the energy industry, long term interest in working in the field, huge respect for their firm, etc.) <S> Good luck! <A> "Dear Sirs" is what I was taught at school (UK) was the correct salutation if you do not know the actual name (but this may be country-specific).
| In an on-line world, it's ok not to who to address it to. In cases where you are applying for a position with no personal contact, it can be useful in the text to reference how you found out about the position so they know where you are coming from.
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How to distribute mentees among mentors We have a force of 14 mentors ready to coach 140 students through the first year of their university studies. Unfortunately we have decided to let the mentees choose their mentors, because we thought it would be best, if each student found the mentor that fit him or her best. But, of course, some mentors are more "friendly" appearing, others maybe a bit intimidating for students right from school (age 17 to 20), and now we have a situation where a handful of mentors each have 15 to 25 students in their group, another handful has around 5, and the last handful have 2 to none. We understand that our idea to let the students choose their mentors might have been a mistake, but that is what we have and now we would like to try and distribute the students more equally among the mentors. Is there a constructive way to deal with this situation and get students more evenly distributed now that the damage has been done? How should we explain the change? <Q> One approach might be self-correction followed by lotteries. <S> Announce that, to give every mentee the attention he deserves, you need a more even distribution <S> , so no mentor will have more than ten mentees. <S> Give them some time to volunteer for transfers (make it clear who is under-subscribed). <S> For the leftovers, try to match them up as best you can -- I would invest some human effort here rather than just randomly assigning them, to soften the blow and because there aren't that many of them. <S> For the future, have mentees request mentors rather than choosing them, to avoid being in this same situation next year. <S> A common approach is to indicate first, second, and third choice, and then you optimize assignments. <A> Is there a reason for doing only 1:1 in these relationships? <S> Could it be that the mentees each get a second or third mentor that may be a useful backup just in case the mentor gets too busy to talk to the mentee at that time? <S> I'd be tempted to suggest having "backup" mentors for some students and <S> this being assigned so that the students can have an idea of who else <S> could they go if there is an issue. <S> This would likely not change what is currently done but rather <S> add another set of options for the mentees to know who else could they ask things. <S> This also allows for multiple relationships to be built so that if that first choice doesn't work out, there is a way for the mentee to not get lost. <A> How long have students and mentors been working together? <S> If it was a very short time span, I'd suggest that you take the entire collection, randomly reassign the whole group and live through the fall out. <S> There's no real way to pick and choose who to move, and reassigning everyone, randomly, is at least equally annoying to everyone. <S> Make apologies and admit to the mistake. <S> Alternately, if enough time has passed that mentors and mentees have bonded, especially in the smaller groups - you could spend a lot of time as a matchmaking service - call in each student in the larger mentor groups and discuss the problem. <S> See if the student is happy with the limited time their mentor can provide, and whether their needs are being met. <S> You may also want to chat with the over-booked mentors and see if they hae insights into students who are not getting real value from the relationship. <S> Talk to these students and try to find a new mentor for them from the less-overbooked mentor pool. <S> It'll be a time consuming process, but one that honors relationships that may have already developed if a month or more has passed since initial assignment.
| If that doesn't sort it out, for each mentor with more than ten mentees, hold a lottery to see which ten get to stay.
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How to introduce yourself in a telephone interview (Phone rings and interviewee picks up) Interviewee: Hello! Interviewer: Hello? May I speak with Miss/Mr/Mrs X? Now in a scenario like this, what should the interviewee say? Have been pondering over it all day. Some answers that I came up with: "This is X." (Sounds mechanical and redundant, IMHO atleast.) "Yes this is him/her." (Sounds weird.) "Yes it is I." (Sounds too grammatical.) "Yes?" (Sounds too busy.) "Go on" (Sounds vengeful.) "Who else do you think is on the line?" (Sounds rude.) What is the general reaction here? I remember fumbling and grunting to tell that it was me they wanted to talk to, during a phone interview. <Q> You are over thinking it - try looking at it this way: Scientific studies show that communication is delivered more by how you say it than the words chosen. <S> For example, you could say, "Who else do you think is on the line?" with the same emotion, tone, voice level, pitch and enthusiasm as you would say to a friend - <S> Hey, what's up man <S> , haven't talked to you in so long!! <S> If you said who else do you think is on the line with this energy, you can bet he won't think it's rude, and probably be like "what's <S> up's so glad to hear from you too!". <S> See how it feels different ? <S> Keep it professional with a <S> Yes, this is Arpith but with all the dynamics of: I am so excited to be interviewed, thanks for taking your time to do this, I am confident about this position <S> and I know I will be a great benefit to this company. <S> You could even write down all these positive aspects on a piece of paper and stare at them the whole time you are interviewing - your positive internal state will make a difference! <S> Good luck on your interview and "break a leg!" <S> =) <A> "This is $name". <S> When I'm expecting the call, though (e.g. schedule phone screen), I short-circuit it by answering the ring with "Hello, this is $name". <A> The words make very little difference. <S> Anything on your list is fine, and many others - in addition, if you have a preferred short form of your name that suits your professional identity, now would be a good time to mention it. <S> It's also a good time to set the tone of the interview - for example, if you have a hard stop time in 30-60 minutes, you may wish to say so. <S> Don't assume details like this were relayed to the interviewer. <S> But realize - the first few exchanges are simply awkward. <S> Don't let it throw you - the interviewer feels awkward too. <S> Just let the nerves happen, and move on with making a connection. <S> The only truly bad outcome of that first part of the exchange is getting so hung up on the wording of a simple phrase that you can't answer the rest of the questions clearly. <A> Depending on your personality, there are a few ways I could see going with this: "Yes." - simplest and accurate answer. <S> Note that there isn't a rising tone or lack of confidence here. <S> Just a simple assertive answer to the query. <S> "Yes, are you Mr. X <S> that is to interview me today? <S> " - may be a way to confirm that it is who you think as someone else may call <S> and it would be awkward to assume that it is the interviewer on the other end. <A> To remove all redundancy and a possible awkward moment, simply answer the phone with "Hello, this is $(MY_NAME)." or something on those lines. <S> This removes the caller's need to request for you and sounds very professional. <S> Some other lines that can be used: <S> Hello, $(MY_NAME) speaking. <S> $(My_NAME) speaking. <S> You've reached $(MY_NAME). <S> Please leave a message at the beep. <S> Just kidding! <S> What can I do for you? <S> < <S> << Not recommended <A> I would recommend "this is he/she," as opposed to "yes, this is him/her." <S> "This is she," does sound a little bit weird, but it is a pretty standard way of answering the telephone and accomplishes your goal without being redundant or rude. <S> This page has some interesting insight into " <S> this is she" vs. " <S> this is her" grammatical correctness debate, but it looks like "this is she" is winning. <S> http://painintheenglish.com/case/811/ <A> I usually rely on how they asked. <S> If they say "This is X calling for $name", I reply warmly with "Oh, hi!". <S> If they say "May I speak with $name", I can't be 100% sure it's not a telemarketer, so <S> I replay with " <S> This is she" until they identify themself, at which point I reply with the warmer greeting above. <S> I feel that the warm, friendly greeting helps reinforce the idea that I was looking forward to the call, but the more formal introduction when I'm not sure who it is speaks to my professionalism. <S> It's very likely <S> I'm over-thinking it, though.
| This is $(MY_NAME). Alternatively, when you said, "Hello," you could introduce yourself at that point to say, "Hello, this is so-and-so speaking," and potentially nip the question in the bud.
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Turning down a job offer professionally I recently decided to go on a job hunt and I have approached several companies and got accepted for several places and was offered a working contract. Eventually, I decided on which job offer to take, but how do I turn down the other places down in a way which might lead to 'business in the future' either as a free-lancer, startup founder or maybe just when I'm looking for another job (with more seniority)? <Q> Hiring managers understand that if you have several offers, theirs might not be the one you chose. <S> Keep your answer polite and explain that you have decided to pursue a different opportunity - don't feel that you have to go into detail as to why you chose a different position over the one they had. <S> You can add that you will be happy to be considered for any future openings they have. <S> In general, unless you are being rude or offer an explanation that they might not appreciate (one they might not like hearing), there is nothing specific to write that will put you in their black book. <A> There are a few things to think about when deciding how to reject those offers. <S> First : they are much less emotionally invested than you are in that offer. <S> Companies and hiring managers deal with this all the time. <S> Second : try to make it not sound like you reject THEM or THEIR COMPANY but rather make it seem like it just wasn't the right decision for you at the time. <S> Something like: <S> Unfortunately, this job is not the appropriate next career step for me <S> At this time, I do not think this is the right decision for me will be received better than <S> I have accepted an offer elsewhere <S> I am rejecting this offer for $(REASON) because you are indicating the company did what they could to provide an attractive offer <S> but YOU were the party responsible for things not working out. <S> In the latter case, it is somewhat more a "you guys were not good enough or as good as competitors" type situation. <S> See the fourth point however. <S> Third : make sure to thank them for the offer and opportunity! <S> Fourth : most importantly, realize the manner in which you decline the offer (unless done really poorly and leaving a bad impression) probably will never resurface ever again within the company unless you reapply in a very short time period. <S> Fifth : you may find it worthwhile to connect via Linked-In to the hiring manager. <S> This may be dependent on the tone of your conversations with them and whether you feel it would be appropriate (for example, if they respond "thanks for letting us know, keep us in mind in the future" or some similar verbiage). <A> I appreciate your interest in my candidacy. <S> Unfortunately, I have already accepted an offer somwhere else. <S> Perhaps we can work together in the future. <S> Best Regards, Yours <S> Truly" <A> You tell them that while you have selected an opportunity to pursue at this time, you may be open in the future to new possibilities and would like to stay in touch in case something comes up. <S> A key point here is to have the follow-up chats or lunches so that you actually do follow through here as otherwise you are asking for trouble.
| You see a rejection as personal, and while some hiring managers may, they do this all the time - you are not going to personally offend someone and blacklist yourself (unless you do obviously dumb stuff in your rejection letter). Say: "Thank you for the offer.
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How to tell coworkers not to use local dialects at work I lately feel annoyed by coworkers talking in some Chinese local dialect, not the common one. I am the only one who only knows both English and the common dialect, Mandarin. I think I mentioned it to them before, but there is a guy who insisted in using that dialect among other coworkers. So, I feel I am trapped in a foreign place. Yes, too bad that all other coworkers (4 of them) are from the same province and they have some local dialect that I just don't understand at all; it's NOT the common dialect and NOT English. I am really bothered. The above is just one thing. Another thing is that I dont know how to tell the guy not to answer the phone in the office. He should understand that he needs to step out of the small startup company's small office to answer his phone. Again he was using that not understandable local dialect. So, it's totally noisy for me... Seriously, I dont know how to deal with this and how to communicate my message out to them, especially the guy who enjoys talking in the local dialect, and I have a 'friend relation' with him....so... :( <Q> Does your office have a policy for languages? <S> I know some of the work environments near me do - when people are trapped together in a common environment, the rule is "X language" only (in my case English), both for being friendly and for safety - when working around machinery, you want cries for help to be clear to everyone. <S> If you have such a policy and you've already asked your coworkers once to speak in a language you understand, it may be time to ask for help from management. <S> Rules about language differ between countries, but in the US, an environment that excludes someone based on region of origin (via language), would be seen as discriminatory. <S> It's worthwhile to separate the difficulty with inter-team communication with being inconsiderate in phone calls. <S> Asking someone who speaks a different language to leave when you wouldn't mind if anyone else stayed is not as good, as that, too, is discriminatory. <A> They're talking out loud and answer their personal phone in a closed office, ask them to stop. <S> If the dialect is so irritating to you, I see that as your problem, so get some headphones. <S> If it makes you feel excluded or like they're talking behind your back, you should mention that instead. <S> Your office may be the only place they get to exercise their native dialect. <S> You may feel trapped in a foreign place in the office; imagine how they feel everywhere else they go. <S> Hopefully you can build a working relationship to further understand and address this issue. <A> The local customs have to be taken into account when asking this sort of stuff. <S> With Chinese, saving face is very important. <S> So if you were to tell people to stop doing this at a group meeting, it is liable to illicit a negative response. <S> You should probably talk to the main person doing this in private. <S> However if it isn't work related I can't see how it would be an issue. <S> The other option is to keep interrupting them every time they talk in a local dialect and ask them what they are talking about. <S> Or study the local dialect. <S> As for the phone thing, the same situation again.
| If there's a common norm for leaving the office space for taking personal calls, then it's fair to ask him to comply, just like you'd ask anyone. Unless it is a work-related conversation, disliking the sound of their dialect sounds prejudicial.
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Helping my friend through the recruitment process We have an open position on the company I work in, in one of our meetings our manager asked us to refer people we think they would be a good fit for the team, so I called one of my friends, he is a very capable person and a very good asset on his company, when he started the process he was being underpaid. So after I referred him to HR they called him for an interview and ask him about his salary expectations, they company was ok with it and after a long selection process they told him they will give him an offer, by the time they told him this, he already got a raise in his company ( a very good one) and told the HR recruiter that his expectations changed, the recruiter said that they had a pre - established budget for the position but they would still throw an offer so my friend could analyze it, they asked him for a copy of his payroll to validate the data and told them the would be calling him soon with the offer. It’s been almost 2 weeks since that happened and they haven’t go back to him, he already sent them a polite email asking for an update but he hasn’t got a reply yet, he is asking me to talk to my boss to find out what happened but I’m not sure if this would have a good outcome, in your experience… should I get involved by talking to either HR or my boss or should I left things flow? <Q> I'm in Canada where I'd be tempted to ask my boss, "Hey, remember that guy I suggested? <S> What happened there?" as a casual question to get the answer that depending on a few other things would determine what I would pass back to the friend. <S> The key here isn't trying to get anything done other than simply asking, "What is going on there?" as you are concerned about your friend. <S> At least that is how I'd approach it. <S> While I have had some bosses that weren't nice, to my mind <S> this would still be part of the basics of what I'd expect within a workplace. <S> If I felt that I couldn't ask this question, I'd be highly tempted to consult with an attorney and see if I have a "hostile workplace" and consider legal options as the question should be OK to my mind. <S> Course, YMMV so do beware of what culture and customs may apply elsewhere. <A> You can start coming off as too pushy and with a personal motive of trying to get your friend in. <S> You did your job and beyond, they told him they would give an offer! <S> Leave the rest up to them, it is basically all negotiation from here and <S> what they discuss is none of your business. <A> I would strongly suggest letting things flow. <S> I have been "the boss" in this senario, with my direct reports asking questions about the interview and recruitment processes on behalf of their friends, and in one case, their partner. <S> To me this is crossing a professional/personal boundary. <S> Just because you have a relationship with the applicant, it doesn't mean that you have any more right to interfere or question the company process than you would with any other potential employee. <S> There could be all sorts of issues, from your boss having a large-scale budget fight over the appointment, to a problem with a reference or background check, which they are not going to share with you on a privacy basis. <A> Protect your personal reputation, but do not act as a go between. <S> You can gently ask the hiring manager and/or HR what has happened. <S> This would help if the communication chain has fallen into a black hole - missed messages, lost emails, or simply forgotten final steps. <S> Today's communication can be very unpredictable and it never hurts to see if that's what happened. <S> After all, the guy is a friend, he thought your recommendation was good, it's not OK that your company seems to be behaving rudely by not getting back to him. <S> It's a win/win - <S> no matter what the company sends back, the fact that they are timely in communications is a facet of both their reputation and yours that can only be improved by a small "hey, did you contact my friend?" question. <S> Do, however, avoid playing any part as the messenger of the exchange - no matter what the company has decided in terms of finishing the offer process, avoid being the person delivering the message, arguing for the candidate, or otherwise contributing to this process. <S> If you help out here, your objectives are mixed and you risk both your friend and your company misunderstanding your motives. <S> They have certainly reached the point in the negotiation where tension could be high, being very low key in asking any question is a good goal.
| If you have team meetingss when recruitment is a topic, I'd suggest making a general comment asking how things are progressing, but your manager and HR would probably take a dim view of direct involvement.
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How do I switch between technologies in IT industry I am working with a web development company and have 2+ years of experience of programming with PHP and overall 3 years of working in the IT industry. For long term goals and stability I want to try with mobile application development, Ruby, Python etc as these technologies are currently in demand and enhance my learning capabilities as well. I am an engg CS graduate with an experience, so to grab the concepts in these technologies will not going to be a big deal but the problem is that I really need to switch jobs for this, as my current company is not so big to give me the opportunity to test these technologies. My other concern is that if I try for example RoR then I would assume as a fresher my PHP knowledge goes in vain. Let me know how do I proceed further for a better career, what are online learning options. Any suggestions and recommendations are highly appreciated. I'm located in India. <Q> A lot of learning is done on the job, to be sure. <S> But accept that we all have to invest some amount of our non-working hours in keeping up to date and learning new technologies. <S> You say you want to learn Ruby <S> , what's stopping you? <S> Just download it and start building something, anything. <S> That's how you start learning. <S> Then when you're comfortable enough with it that you think you could start building commercial solutions, put it on your CV as "spare time projects". <S> It's also a lot easier to get an opportunity to use it your current job if you can say that you already know it and that you have identified some area or application where it would be a huge gain. <A> Small, new tech companies do not care about rigid job descriptions; if they take you on in one role, but they need something else done <S> and you are willing to devote the time to it, you will get the chance. <S> Even when working in your core area, you will have the opportunity to make decisions which, in a larger company, would be handed down to you by an architect or controlled by another team. <S> This is why one year's experience in a start-up is often worth 5 years anywhere else. <S> I know people who have gone from being an intern to being a team manager within two years at a start-up. <S> Made an incredible difference to their skills, their confidence and their earning ability. <S> It is, of course, risky. <A> Already there is a great answer by @pap. <S> If you are really serious about learning new technology, then why don't you start today. <S> Some kind of certification in the new technologies will definitely help you a bit. <S> As far as the fresher thing is concerned, you will be counted as a fresher in new technology, but your technology experience could never be ignored. <S> Your 3 years experience will show up that you are not a novice in the technology world.
| There is a way to get direct experience and high value on-the-job training in new technologies; join a start-up.
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How to approach a manager about his or her workload being too large? Short Explanation: My Manager is overworked and is managing too many systems. In my managers mind I believe he thinks himself the only person capable enough to manage everything and he is unwilling to risk a more junior employee making a mistake that he has to fix. How can I get my manager to trust me with some of his work? Full Details: In his defense he can manage all the systems better and faster than anybody else and he is probably the only person I know with his wide variety of technical knowledge. This is a problem because: Deadlines on projects are approaching and I cant continue work on my part until he finishes his part. So I wait with a mountain of work that I cannot do. I create software to interface with the system he manages that never gets implemented because he is too busy to do the finishing touches, which I don't have permissions to do. New development projects are supposed to build off the system he manages but he hasn't even built or tested that part of his system yet so when people use my software it has problems because of his underlying systems. Generally, the underlying systems should be built and tested first and then we design and build the additional systems but this is happening backwards because he is too busy. A consultant at my office tells me I am a greatly underused resource at the company and my manager should be giving me most of his technical workload. He has been a consultant for 30+ years and completely agreed with me on the situation and he is trying to help me change it. I have asked my manager multiple times if I can take some his load or if I can do specific tasks for him but very rarely has he given his work away. My manager likes me and considers me the most senior employee after him. I am sure you can imagine how frustrating this is. <Q> I'd suggest that the one key issue here is you hav outgrown your current role, and I'd add that you have significant insight based on your description of the problem. <S> If you have reached this point, then you know there are only two possible outcomes. <S> The first is actually the easiest, in many ways. <S> You have outgrown your role, and your efforts to raise this to your manager have been ignored. <S> Time to move on, and find the next career step where your skills will be appreciated. <S> The second, is harder. <S> If you want to stay, you have to find a way of highlighting to your manager that he is essentially failing in his role as your manager, no matter how well he is delivering technically. <S> He's not monitoring your workload, seeing that you are under utilised, or that you are frustrated. <S> He's also not looking for opportunities to increase your skills and experience. <S> One path into this is the fact that he is also creating a trap for himself. <S> It will be almost impossible for him to be moved out of that role until he has trained up a replacement, and so he is busy painting himself into a corner. <S> This is experience <S> talking - I've been in that "technical trap" too, and had to quit myself to escape. <S> I've also been the "manager who couldn't delegate." <S> Extend this to include career advice for yourself, what should be your next move, how you can improve on your skills and so on. <S> Try and make this informal (holiday season coming!) <S> , but don't wait too long. <S> Hope this helps, and good luck. <A> Trust is built slowly, but can rapidly erode. <S> Communication is key. <S> Is the manager in question aware of the difficulty he is creating for you? <S> Let them know that aside from task x,y, and z that are waiting on his parts, you need something to do until they progress. <S> Perhaps if they are unwilling to offload some of the key technical work, they would be willing to offload some of the non technical work that otherwise is impeding their progress, which is in turn impeding yours. <S> This probably is not a great solution to the dilemma as non technical work for technical people <S> is often less stimulating, but it is a route to consider until the manager is more comfortable with delegation of technical work. <A> Given:a. <S> your manager is a good professional and enjoys learning new things.b. <S> you two share a good professional relationship.c. <S> "he can manage all the systems better and faster than anybody else" but not better and faster than THE WHOLE TEAM working together. <S> You can speak to him by means of a book that explains techniques for effective delegation. <S> My favourite is "If You Want It Done Right, You Don’t Have to Do It Yourself!" by Donna Gennet.
| If you have a chance, start to ask him about career options; specifically where he wants to go longer term, and how he moved into his current role.
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Can I be fired if my employer thinks I am looking for another job? Here is the scenario. I work in the UK, and my probationary period was extended 3 more months a while back and I was given a agreement to sign which stated the points that I should improve. Today I asked my manager if I could do a Microsoft certification exam and claim the expenses through the company. My manager said that is not possible. He then asked me in a suspicious tone, what I needed a certification for, and I answered that it proves my abilities in a programming language, and that it would be good practice since I do not work a lot with that certain programming language. I want to know if it is likely for an employer to let someone go if they think that the employee is intending to leave them for another company, considering all the costs associated with recruiting and training employees. if you are an employer what would you think of this situation? do most people assume that certifications are acquired to improve chances of hunting a new job. <Q> In the UK, you cannot claim for unfair dismissal in your first 2 years of employment (1 year, if hired before 6 Apr 2012). <S> 1 <S> There are actually exceptions to this, if you feel you have been discriminated against on grounds of Age, Disability, Gender Re-assignment, Marriage and Civil Partnership, Pregnancy and Maternity, Race, Religion or Belief, Sex or Sexual Orientation. <S> But none of these apply to your question. <A> We won't be able to help you with legal questions. <S> But from a practical point of view, it doesn't make sense for a company to fire you for looking. <S> There are two cases: <S> They don't much like you anyway, in which case letting you quit is way less work and possibly expense than firing you. <S> They do like you and want to keep you, in which case the last thing they're going to do is fire you pre-emptively. <S> The only exception I can think of is where the job is so specialized that finding your replacement will be tough. <S> In that case, if they find someone better and you haven't quit yet, they might fire you at that point. <S> But I would be astonished if things got that far without somebody initiating a conversation about your intentions first. <S> In my experience (US, software industry, professional positions), firing is pretty rare -- usually people quit, and there is the occasional negotiated resignation when things aren't working out. <S> On the other hand, @pdr reports in a comment that he knows professionals in the US who got fired for looking (and one for just updating a LinkedIn profile), so there's variation here. <A> Since you didn't say whether you were or <S> you weren't actually looking, I'll presume the benefit of the doubt from the perspective of the employer. <S> From the perspective of the manager, asking to get funded for a certification or training or tooling that wouldn't apply to your current responsibilities would raise my eyebrow of intuitional concern. <S> Something has motivated my employee to seek skills that he doesn't really need here, so what's going on? <S> That by itself is a very honest reaction lacking in any ill-will or preconceived distrust. <S> Being prepared for this kind of response, if I were in your position, which I have; approach it from the angle that having both a broader skill set, and corresponding credentials that lend weight to it adds value to the firm, from the very least, a marketing perspective. <S> I would then proceed to hammer that point home, tactfully, with a small hammer; and discuss why some of those skills could lend a very practical benefit to some of the lingering or coming concerns. <S> If they as a manager are hesitant, consider offering to agree to a longer term extension of the existing contract, with a clause of full repayment if the contract isn't reasonably fulfilled. <S> This is a practice that I have seen employed on many occassions, even for jobs where the training and certification directly apply to the current responsibilities. <S> The alternative, pay for it yourself, to not only save from the hassle, but to take away from this experience the fact you did it on your own without aid or subsidy on their part, and thus owe them nothing beyond the original contract. <A> ... <S> my probationary period was extended 3 more months... <S> and... <S> Today I asked my manager if I could do a Microsoft certification exam... <S> and... <S> I do not work a lot with that certain programming language. <S> ... <S> really don't go together well, from your company's perspective: <S> Your probation period being extended means the company may not keep you long term, so why would they want to invest in training? <S> If they were to invest in training, then why would they invest in training you in a language you don't really use? <S> So yes, you would have got a suspicious reaction from me as well given that scenario! <S> As for whether your company could use that to dismiss you - sure, but if they're extending your probation I would think it unlikely <S> that's the deciding factor.
| The harsh truth is that you can be fired for any reason 1 with only your contracted notice period (often a week, during probation).
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How should I ask for time off to attend an interview? I'm a computer science student and I work part-time at a local software company. Before even applying for this job, I was already in the process of applying for a summer internship at a major software company. I'm now down to the last interview and they're paying to fly me to their headquarters. I have a tentative date for this now and it conflicts with my work schedule. Now I'm thinking that I could either tell my manager that I have the interview or make something up. In general, I think honesty is important, but my instinct is to lie here. The company's pretty paranoid about their IP. I have no intention to steal anything from them and the other company isn't even close to being a competitor (although they're so big, they would work on very similar things in some divisions). Should I be honest about going to the interview or make something up? <Q> You should not lie, but you don't have to tell all the details -- just say you need the time off for personal reasons. <S> Lying is just going to create bad feelings when the truth comes out (as it will, certainly if you get the new position). <S> Your manager is going to think either "oh, his personal reason was he was interviewing with X" <S> or he's going to think "when he said his pet goldfish died and <S> he needed to mourn, he was lying to me and what he was really doing was sneaking off to interview somewhere else." <S> Which of those two things <S> do you think he's more likely to remember it two years? <A> In the general case I agree with jmoreno's advice. <S> However in your specific case, you're a part-timer and a student. <S> The company must be well aware that when you graduate you are going to reconsider your employment options. <S> Have you discussed whether or not they even have a place for you in the summer? <S> A lot of companies assume that student employment will only last a few months. <S> The right way, as jmoreno says, is to ask for the day(s) off and not give any reason beyond 'personal matters'. <S> The details are none of their business. <S> If they press just politely decline. <S> However if you think there is any reasonable expectation that you might want to work for your current company over the summer, enquire as to what plans they have for you, or what you might do. <A> Actually, don't ask - Be assertive and TELL them that you NEED to take time off to take care of personal business. <S> And that is true: you DO have personal business to take care of. <S> I am pretty sure that you signed an NDA with your current company. <S> Make sure that you mention that NDA to your new employer, if it makes you an offer. <S> Having said that, I'd be surprised that you'd know much of anything that your current employer is doing with its IP, considering how low - excuse me for saying it, you are on the totem pole. <S> It's possible that at this point, I might more about your current employer's plans for world domination than you do :) <S> Get that interview date confirmed and the flying reservation locked in place <S> - You don't want to be sticking your neck out for nothing :)
| Ask for time off to take care of personal business.
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Are transcript photocopies appropriate? I plan to start looking for a new job soon and got my single free transcript from my university after graduation. Would future employers accept a photocopy of the transcript that I have? New copies cost $6 and I'd rather spend much less copying it if I can but I also don't want to seem unprofessional. <Q> Disclosure &/or support for my answer <S> : I am head of product & technology for a company that maintains academic dossiers; we deal with academic transcripts and the confidential or non-confidential delivery thereof. <S> Some general terminology: <S> Official Transcript: issued in a sealed envelope, with a signature or a seal indicating that the envelope has not been opened. <S> Can be given officially to you, or sent to an organization (a company or another school). <S> Unofficial Transcript: an unsealed transcript (such as something printed off the web out of a student account), an official transcript unsealed by someone other than the intended recipient, a photocopy of a transcript that was previously official (e.g. if you take it out of the sealed envelope and photocopy it) <S> As for the core question: Will employers want an official or unofficial transcript? <S> the answer depends on the company. <S> My recommendation would be to get a few copies of your official transcript (and keep them sealed), and also make copies (photocopy or scan) <S> so they are available for you. <S> When someone asks for a transcript, clarify with them if an unofficial transcript is ok at this stage. <S> If unofficial is fine, send them the unofficial copy. <S> If official is required, you will have some ready (and won't have to pay expedited costs) to hand over. <A> This depends on whether transcripts are a hard requirement. <S> This is a very common practice in Finance, for example. <S> On the other hand, photocopies will suffice if you just want to show the hiring manager that you're an all-around over-achiever type, and only use them to pepper your application. <S> FWIW most people understand that official transcripts cost money and will only expect them if it's an HR policy. <A> The U.S. government will take copies of transcripts with an application, and will require official copies if a job is offered. <S> Many educational institutions are the same way, but some require official transcripts even with an application. <S> In the small software company where I work a photocopy of transcript from a recent graduate is appreciated, but not usually required. <S> I've never heard of pure private sector company wanting an official transcript with a job application.
| Many companies don't require transcripts, but for those who do, a common situation is that the unofficial transcript is used in the application process, but as part of the hiring finalization the official transcript is required for your file. Companies requiring transcripts tend to want sealed versions of them coming from the institution in question to make sure that they have not been tampered with.
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Exactly when does a two week notice begin and end? This question is kind of a multiple part question. Lets assume I were to give my two week noticed today on November 7th, 2012. Is the two week notice strictly 10 works days, or the end of two work weeks (and if two work weeks, does this partial week count as one of those weeks or does it need to be two full weeks)? If it is 10 work days, does the day of the notice count? Lets assume I give the notice the first thing in the morning right when my boss walks in the door. How do planned vacation days or holidays affect the this two week period? I live in Ohio in the USA and I work as an exempt computer programmer. <Q> Unless you have a contractual obligation in the US you can define when your notice period is. <S> Typically if you were to give notice today (Wednesday Nov 7 2012) you could set your Final day of work as (Tuesday Nov 20 2012) or later and most companies would consider this sufficient notice. <S> If you provided notice on a Monday then the Friday of the next week would be acceptable as final day of work(assuming a Monday-Friday job). <S> If you have a contract you will need to look at the contract to see your obligations. <S> I have had a contract that said that I needed to provide a notice period of at least 14 days and that my final week should end on the last normal work day of that week. <S> In that case your final day from above would probably be Wed Nov 21 2012 since it is a holiday on Thursday and Friday. <S> If the location does not consider those days holidays then the final day would be Nov 23 2012. <S> I have known people who have given notice of less than 2 weeks. <S> Many companies will mark an employee as not eligible for rehire if you do not provide sufficient notice. <A> I don't think it matters much, as long as your employer agrees on the end date. <S> If I needed to train my replacement, or complete a project, I would probably offer to stay the full 2 weeks or longer, depending on the amount of work remaining. <S> The most important thing is to leave on good terms, and avoid putting your employer in a tough spot if possible. <A> Two weeks is two weeks - 14 days from the date on the notice. <S> These are not business days. <S> So - if you give it on Monday the 2nd, the end date is Monday the 16th. <S> In regards to morning or evening - it doesn't matter. <S> What matter is what the actual letter says (ie. <S> I am giving my two weeks notice starting on date - my last day will be two weeks later ). <S> Planned vacation days/holidays are something you need to discuss with HR and you manager. <S> You may be able to take them or may be required to work them in order to ensure a clean hand off of your responsibilities. <A> In USA, watch also for heath coverage. <S> If you give 2 week notice in the last week of a month, you could be terminated same day, and your health coverage expires at the end of the month. <S> So if new company is not ready to hire you on 1st (because they expected you on say 10th), you might be without coverage for few days until you start (or have to buy expensive COBRA from previous employer for that month). <S> Applying on 1st might cover you from the 1st of the next month. <S> This almost happened to me, I lucked out someone from HR in new company guided me to apply on the last day of my last month (5 minutes before business closed). <S> Rest of paperwork was done next day, on 1st.
| If I gave notice on a Tuesday morning, I'd probably tell my employer that the following Friday would be my last day. There are no laws I am aware of in the US that oblige you to provide a full two weeks notice.
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Do I need to ask my company before I can use corporate hotel rates for personal use? I'm looking to stay at a fairly expensive 4 or 5 star hotel and I'm sure my company's corporate rate can be used because I work for a very big publicly traded company. However, I'm not sure if that's allowed and I don't want to ask my coworkers because they might think I'm being cheap, or maybe even unethical to claim a "corporate" rate for a personal stay. Is there some way I can find out with out asking my manager or HR? I'm not sure if this kind of thing is typical, or if such a question will only make me look bad. EDIT: Turns out I can indeed book hotels for personal use with the corporate rate. However, I still think it's important for others out there facing a similar situation that it is better to ask, but better to ask HR since they typically are more familiar with these kinds of questions. <Q> This varies, so the only way to find out is to talk to the person in your company who books corporate travel. <S> That person will be able to tell you if corporate rates are available for personal use. <S> I have done this for hotels and rental cars, and sometimes the answer was yes and <S> sometimes no. <S> Don't think of it as "cheap"; think of it as "being economical". <S> Why pay more than you have to? <S> But don't push; if the answer is no, it's no. <A> The federal government allows the usage of their room rate. <S> ( Reference ) <S> I suspect it would work the same for other large organizations since they don't pay to obtain the reduced rate <S> it is more an incentive for their business. <A> Ask your company if they will allow the use of their booking system for personal travel. <S> However you can also call the hotel directly ask ask them if they will give you the room for the corporate rate. <S> If they do, it's entirely up to you and the hotel, and they certainly won't report it to the company. <S> Be clear that you are on a personal trip not a work trip. <S> One hotel pretty much forced their corporate rate on me. <S> I asked if there was a cheaper option <S> and they said "Do you work for someone? <S> If so, we can give you the corporate rate.". <A> Sometimes discounts like this are considered a "benefit" -- in other words, as part of your compensation <S> you're entitled to discounts. <S> At the staffing agency I contract through, they have deals with a lot of training and academic sources (with the thought that well-trained contractors bring in more money <S> so it's a win-win), and at the company with whom I am currently placed, employees get discounts on sports tickets and office supplies (including for personal use). <S> However, if it's a business deal where the company gets a discount for putting their associates up in a given hotel during company-sponsored functions or conferences or the like, it may not be okay to use that rate for personal stays. <A> I had the same question. <S> I ended up visiting our intranet section (there's also a big bulletin board in our building) <S> that shows you the company discount benefits we have with all kinds of vendors, from car rentals to hotels to Dell computers. <S> If you work for a big company there's definitely a bunch of discounts available to you. <S> (Cell phone plans are probably the #1 category, all big companies have one or often 3 carriers that offer a %-off.) <S> In my case, the codes posted on that bulletin board (which is clearly targeted at personal use) for the rental car companies were the same codes that the travel policy document listed. <S> So I was able to book with confidence knowing everything was above board. <S> The car rental website even asked me if this was traveling on behalf of <S> and I said no, and the confirmation said "travel type: leisure." <S> This makes sense too, because your company doesn't pay the difference, they just negotiated the rate, sometimes in exchange for exclusivity or just preferred status, for their business travelers. <S> So they don't care if you book 50 personal nights a year on that code. <S> As for the hotel, they hope you'll use it too because it gives you a reason to stay with them instead of booking at a competitor, or even booking them through Priceline/Expedia/Hotwire where they would have to pay a commission. <S> All this increases the ROI of their signing the corporate discount deal even further. <S> So this is why I believe you'll find that 99% of the time, you'll get a yes. <S> If you don't see the code listed among the other corporate discounts, I'd agree with the others that it can't hurt to ask HR explicitly just to make sure there's a different situation that you don't know about. <A> You need to ask for several reasons: One, the company might not like it and say no. <S> Three, if there is trouble and the company wants ammunition against you in the future, having used the corporate rate without permission might be that ammunition. <S> That said, it is most likely that they would not mind assuming that it doesn't cost the company anything. <S> If one of your coworkers claims that you are being cheap, or maybe even unethical to claim a "corporate" rate for a personal stay, that co-worker either has rich parents, or is generally a doormat, or is just being a hypocrite, so that's not something I'd worry about.
| If the corporate discount on hotel stays is listed as one of your benefits, then you can most certainly use it for personal vacations. Two, the company might not like that you do it without asking - even if they would have said "yes", someone might hold it against you that you didn't ask.
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A coworker gave our boss a very big gift. What do I do? A coworker of mine was just sent by the company to a Microsoft conference. At the conference, attendees were given Microsoft's new tablet and the Lumia 920. During our weekly meeting, my coworker was told by our boss that the giveaways were hers to keep for her own personal use. She mentioned that she didn't have any use for the phone, and my boss mentioned he wished he had one. She ended up giving it to him. I don't really know how to handle the situation. It makes me very uncomfortable. The phone is a 700 dollar value. I feel like that kind of gift creates a strange dynamic, but our team only has three people besides our boss. I feel if I say something to HR, it won't be very hard for the boss to figure out who turned it in, and I don't want him to take that out on me. What should I do? Do companies typically have policies that cover this sort of thing? I checked our handbook, and I couldn't find anything that seemed relevant in this case. <Q> Thus, in this case, giving the device away to another colleague, including a manager, is less suspect than it would be if that employee went out of her way to obtain a gift for the manager. <S> This sounds like a simple case of obtaining property through work, not having a need for it, and then giving it to the manager to do with it as he pleases. <S> I don't see this as gift giving so much as redistributing property that the company essentially paid for by proxy. <S> Even in my place of employment, it wouldn't be uncommon for people to redistribute items that they obtained that they don't need, and it never seems awkward to us. <S> As far as what you should do, say nothing. <S> Don't make a big deal out of it, and most likely, others won't make an issue out of it either. <S> Who knows, next time the boss goes to a conference and gets free stuff he doesn't need, he may give it to you or another colleague who could use it. <S> By making an issue out of this, you may force your place of work to come up with a policy that may not be in your best interests. <A> At my company, it is only against policy when there could be a conflict of interest, such as a vendor directly giving such a gift to someone in the company who might retain their services, or influence that decision in some way. <S> It has not been my experience that gifts from subordinates to superiors are disallowed. <S> To put it in more a prosaic way, “brown nosing” is not illegal or even against most companies' policies, <S> so it’s unlikely that HR will reprimand anyone, and you will most likely end up looking like a trouble maker. <S> Also, I think that in this case you should let it go. <S> The way you tell the story, it does not sound as if the boss was pressuring the employee to give the item to him. <S> Chalk it up to either ‘brown nosing’ or a genuinely nice employee. <S> Who knows, maybe next time you will be the beneficiary of such a giving person! <A> In the long run organizations generally value contribution more than anything else. <S> When it comes time for reviews, assigning big projects, promotions, etc., only poor managers make decisions on anything other than merit. <S> So my advice is, "take the high road". <S> Keep your focus and turn out the best quality work that you can. <S> Most likely what will happen is that the organization will recognize your contribution and value it based on what you've done (and will similarly value your co-worker based on his or her contribution). <S> If the co-worker receives any benefit from their giving that phone away, then it's because you have a small-minded and immature manager. <S> In the long run, those people will make other mistakes. <S> They get found out. <S> But if you focus not on politics but on performance, you'll be rewarded for them in time -- if not with this boss at this company, then somewhere else.
| Don't worry about it and let it go. Giving gifts to supervisors and managers is always a grey area; however, in this case, the equipment was obtained free of cost to the employee, as part of the fees paid by the employer to send said employee to the conference.
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Does it matter what I use to carry bulky samples of my work to an interview? I'm going for an interview and want to bring some books, magazines, and other marketing materials that I've produced to demonstrate my past work. I just don't know what to bring them all in. I don't have a messenger bag or anything like that, and one of the books is about the size of a textbook. Would it be acceptable to bring the materials in a simple grocery bag? I thought about leaving them in the car and only bringing them out if they ask to see them, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to make them wait while I go back to my car to get them. <Q> I'm going for an interview and want to bring some books, magazines, and other marketing materials that I've produced to demonstrate my past work. <S> I just don't know what to bring them all in. <S> It sounds like you are bringing your portfolio. <S> Depending on the industry, there may be more formalized options for this. <S> Ask them about whether its appropriate, or better, ask "I am planning on bringing a portfolio with examples of my work - do you have a preferred method for me to bring this?" <S> I don't have a messenger bag or anything like that, and one of the books is about the size of a textbook. <S> Would it be acceptable to bring the materials in a simple grocery bag? <S> Not very. <S> Buy some cheap messenger bag or laptop bag and use this, for around $20 or less you can both get a functional tool as well as eliminate this problem. <S> Keep in mind that having a messenger bag (while in the interview) allows easy opportunities to do the following. <S> "This project required me to do X, Y, Z, and in fact, I have a copy of the results in my bag - here is what the final project looked like." <S> This shows you are prepared. <S> I thought about leaving them in the car and only bringing them out if they ask to see them, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to make them wait while I go back to my car to get them. <S> This is a bad idea for the reasons you say, though, you are more likely to get a response of "oh, they are in your car? <S> don't worry about it" or "let's wait until a break" which probably means the time to display them will have passed. <A> I used to carry a laptop bag each time i had to appear in an interview. <S> That bag mostly contains a book or two, certificate file (including resume), and mostly the material concerned with my projects (project reports and CDs of the project setup and presentation). <A> MPO is that if you're bringing a portfolio, it should look like a portfolio, especially if this is design work. <S> If you're showing off writing, this might be less important. <S> But if I were hiring a designer and she showed up with a bunch of samples in a heap in any type of bag, no matter how stylish, I'd say "thank you for your time. <S> " <S> Presentation is everything , and if you don't care enough to properly prepare your portfolio, why should I? <S> Here are the rules I learned in art school. <S> This was almost 20 years ago now, so YMMV: <S> All samples should be matted with matching white mats. <S> Art should be shrink-wrapped or covered in plastic film <S> (I forget the name of the archival film we used to use for this--sorry, been a long time) <S> Put the finished art in a portfolio. <S> This can be a simple cardboard one that's not expensive. <S> When you get to the interview, you can line your art up on the shelf, where it will look like a million bucks, rather than strewing it across the table, where it will look like yesterday's newspaper. <S> I guarantee you your competitors will be presenting their portfolios this way (unless, as I said, you're showing off writing samples). <S> Good luck!
| You are interviewing, which means you want to present yourself in the best way possible - having a grocery bag is not even close to this. All mats should be the same size, with a minimum "frame" around the artwork of 4 inches (unless all your art is very small, in which case make it proportional).
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When should I negotiate a salary for a contract-to-hire offer? I am a graduating engineering student in the US. One of the positions I'm perusing is a contract-to-hire position, meaning that I'm will be an hourly employee with no benefits for a set period of time (in this case only a few months), after which the company would intend to hire me full time on salary with benefits. The recruiter I have been in contact with informed me of the hourly rate and the salary they were offering. Both were completely reasonable offers given what I know about my industry and location, but I would like the chance to negotiate the salary to make sure it is competitive with other offers. My question is, when should I bring this up? I'm new to contract-to-hire, and don't want to sound presumptuous by attempting to negotiate the salary without having even accepted the contract, but I'm also weary of accepting the contract term without knowing what they are really willing to offer me full-time (as opposed to just their starting number.) Admittedly I will probably know more about the process later on in the pursuit of the position, but I want to make sure I don't miss something along the way. What is acceptable and professional in this circumstance? Please note , this is neither a simple contract job, nor a straightforward full-time position; it is contract-to-hire, meaning I'm not officially hired when I sign the contract. I need advice relevant to the timeline involved in this specific type of hiring process. <Q> As you go through the interview process, it's well worth asking lots of questions here. <S> These would be my stages: Before they offer you a position: Ask all sorts of questions about the contract to permanent transition and not just salary, for example: What are the decision points for whether you will offer a permanent position? <S> If the candidate doesn't meet the criteria, do you terminate or extend the probation? <S> Will the company be amenable to negotiation of salary at that point, or will it all be fixed prior to start? <S> What percentage of candidates have failed to make the transition? <S> Can they give example of why? <S> In a contract to permanent situation, the company is treading cautiously - it can be very hard to fire a permanent employee, and much easier to fire a contractor, so the transition between these two phases is key to transition from something tenuous and slightly risky to something more committed and stable. <S> I'm not saying it's bad or not to go for it - but realize that this is a trial period for both you and the company and it's really good to know as much as you can about this transition point. <S> When the offer comes from the company <S> I'm trying to delinate here between the quote from a recruiter and the formal offer from the company. <S> A recruiter is usually given a very general baseline, and they are in no way empowered to wheel and deal prior to the interview process. <S> Your better negotiating position is when the company has talked to you enough to have a sense that they want you to work for them. <S> At that point, you're free to talk both the hourly and the salary, with the caveat that if in the first steps of the process, they mention that you'd probably renegotiate the salary when the transition time comes, then you may get resistance since they want to see how you do before making any promises. <A> I was once in your same position as a contract to hire. <S> I worked for the company for eight months, and then they opened up a full time position. <S> The job description matched my resume completely. <S> I did not get the job even though I had experience with the industry and the company. <S> They hired a guy who they could pay less money. <S> I was devastated because I moved for this company and did not get hired on full time. <S> Just be aware of things like this <S> so they do not happen to you. <A> This is normally at or after the point where the company contacts you to say "we're interested and we'll be sending out a contract <S> / we want you to come in to sign a contract / how much do you want". <S> If they press you over the phone for a number and you're not mentally prepared to stand your ground, it's perfectly fine for you to ask for some time to evaluate the package they're offering and get back to them within a day. <S> The only trick for you might be the recruiter acting as a middleman, but in my experience this means very little - it actually takes the pressure off you as it's then the recruiter's job to take your counter-offer and reasoning back to the company along. <S> I would agree that this is a very good opportunity for you to practice your salary negotiation skills. <S> You should read this article on salary negotiation for engineers , which has become an online bible of sorts. <A> Everytime a Contract goes up and a new one is on the table negotiations are expected. <S> If you choose not to negotiate, that's your choice. <S> It's quite common that they will just push a contract at you and ask you to sign and go along with what they have. <S> Any smart employer will do this, as negotiations mean more time focusing on people they already have. <S> If you have nothing to play in your favor for the contract period, you're welcome to wait until the full time position is open. <S> But understand once you have locked yourself into a pay agreement with a company, increasing that number significantly is probably not the reality unless you have bulletproof reasoning. <S> ie: low contract rate means low FTE rate (most likely).
| In general, you (or sometimes they) bring up salary after you have at least got an in principle or verbal agreement that the company is going to hire you if you can agree on a number.
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What can I do if I have a colleague who is picking on me? I have a colleague who is making unrelated non-professional remarks (for example she criticized the socks I was wearing last time). It looks like that she is frustrated and this is her strategy to relieve stress. We are not on the same project, we don't even talk and she is sitting at the opposite end of the room. I don't have the slightest idea what could be the problem but this is getting pretty annoying. Last time I confronted her with her behavior and she made obscure comments about astrological topics and told me that it is her way or the highway. None of which made any sense to me. What can I do to solve this problem? <Q> Two part answer: <S> If you do not need to work and interact with this person - don't. <S> Ignore and block her out - as completely as possible. <S> Do not respond to anything she says. <S> Don't answer emails from her. <S> This should help as if this is a bully, getting no reaction will most probably make them stop as it is not a satisfying result. <S> If, however, you do have to work with this person: Since your colleague persists in spite of being confronted by you <S> (I assume you have asked her to stop this behaviour during your confrontations), it is time to take this to a higher level. <S> Talk to your manager - if your manager is also the manager of this person, all the better. <S> Explain the problem, explain how this behaviour makes the workplace an unpleasant place and that the remarks are unprofessional and demeaning to both yourself and the colleague. <S> Tell your manager that you want this behaviour to stop and explain what you have already done in order to try and stop it. <S> If your manager agrees with your assessment of the behaviour or that this person is indeed the problem (they may not agree... think about this possibility before moving on). <S> It is possible that for political or professional reasons, they can't do anything, but assuming they can, this will now be their responsibility. <S> You can report future transgressions to your manager, as they happen and hope things will turn to the best. <S> What you should not do, under any circumstance is engage in reciprocal behaviour - <S> that will just fuel the behaviour of this colleague and will end up in a tit-for-tat escalation. <A> There may be a number of reasons why she is doing this. <S> She may just be an eccentric person with a bizarre personality. <S> If this is the case then there is probably little you can do but just ignore her. <S> We are forced to deal with people in the workplace that we otherwise would never associate with. <S> The other possibility may be that she likes <S> you and this is her poor attempt at flirting. <S> It is not uncommon for people to be picky and hyper critical towards others they are developing feelings for, especially for nonsensical things like the socks you are wearing. <S> If this is the case then take it as you will. <A> Having worked with some unpleasant people I simply suggest you ignore this behavior, she is probably trying to get some reaction from you. <S> If you don't react you take the fun out of it. <S> but whenever she makes an unpleasant comment you simply shrug and go away. <S> You don't need to like every person you work with <S> and you don't need to entertain their uncivil behavior, you need to do your job. <S> Good luck <A> Unless there's some sort of cultural difference I'm missing (I'm from Australia) <S> , I find it weird that nobody has brought up the very probable reality that you're taking offence over nothing. <S> The fact that it's something like an insult over sock colour suggests to me that she's just trying to lightheartedly jest with people, to lighten up the workplace a little bit. <S> Some people are better at this than others <S> but I find it impossible to believe that anybody would do this with the intention of harassing or embarrassing you. <S> Just laugh it off and take a stab back at her. <A> Have her supervisor, or the first "common" link in the chain of command between you and her, disillusion her of the notion that it is "her way or the highway"; it is in fact her manager's way or the highway. <S> If that discussion does not occur (first common link in the chain is too high up to care about the drama of the little people, or more likely her immediate supervisor likes her or is afraid of her too much to be direct with her), then you take it to HR. <S> If someone is making personal attacks against you, and direct in-person confrontation including a direct request to stop did not resolve the issue, then you escalate the issue until it gets dealt with. <S> That may or may not include termination of anyone's employment, and if your co-worker keeps her job she will resent you for whatever disciplinary action actually occurred. <S> She should be smart enough to keep that to herself; if not, you know where to go if the unpleasantness continues. <A> The keyword here is harassment (which she is doing). <S> Tell your manager she is harassing you - <S> legally he will have to do something to end it . <S> The employer will be liable for harassment by non-supervisory employees or non-employees over whom it has control (e.g. <S> , independent contractors or customers on the premises), if it knew, or should have known about the harassment and failed to take prompt and appropriate corrective action. <S> So basically your boss will need to address it. <S> EEOC Harassment in the Workplace <S> : It's Against the Law - www.state.ia.us <S> What Speech Does "Hostile Work Environment" Harassment Law Restrict?
| However, you do need to update your manager about it, unless he/she is already aware of it, you need to say that you are going to perform your work but this behavior is making you extremely uncomfortable. Do not answer any questions. If you need to work with her, do your tasks as usual
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Cover letter - "Include information on how you plan to follow up" I was looking at this guide for writing a cover letter. It suggests that the final paragraph should: Included information on how you plan to follow up to schedule an interview after they receive your resume I'm not sure if I agree with this recommendation as I think it might come across as a bit pushy. Is this actually a good recommendation that I should consider, and why (or why not)? <Q> This advice was very popular two decades ago with sales letters. <S> You were supposed to send paper letters to strangers like this: <S> Dear Complete Stranger, Have you ever worried about A Common Problem Everyone Faces? <S> Well with Our Exciting Product, you can achieve A Major Savings or Some Other Big Benefit. <S> I know it seems impossibly amazing, but it's real. <S> I'm enclosing A Glossy Brochure That Has More Details, and I will call you on the 17th to arrange an interview so that I can demonstrate the product to you in person. <S> And then, the books would exhort the would-be-sales-superstar, you MUST call on the 17th. <S> You must follow through on your promise! <S> Doing so will show them what a great and trustworthy person you are, and they will buy the product. <S> Seems like whoever is writing your cover letter advice has this model in mind. <S> If I got a written application for a job that included "I will call you in three days to schedule the interview" I would not be happy. <S> I might not discard that candidate as a result, but it would feel overly pushy. <S> When I'm hiring, I schedule the interviews, thanks. <S> When I'm not hiring but the applicant is trying to find that "hidden job market", I want to be able to file or toss the letter if I'm really not hiring, or reply to it if I am, but I am not interested in being pestered by someone who is "following up" just because the letter didn't inspire me to act, or even just didn't inspire me to act yet. <A> I personally prefer to thank them, reiterate my contact info, and indicate the response I hope for in the last paragraph, e.g.: <S> "Thank you for taking the time to review my resume and consider me for (the role). <S> You can contact me with any questions you may have at <S> email@address.com or on my mobile at 555-555-1212. <S> I am looking forward to speaking with (company) about how I can help (the department or project) succeed during a phone-screen or on-site interview." <S> I try to make it less generic, of course, but that's the general format I use. <S> Basically, I'm outlining their next steps and putting the information they need for those steps right in front of them so they can follow up without a second thought. <S> It's a similar idea, except you are empowering them to take the action you want from them instead of taking control directly - which can feel pushy or manipulative. <S> Influence and empowerment is almost always better than control or manipulation in the long run. <S> If you don't hear from them in a couple of days, a quick "wanted to be sure you had received <S> my application" email is an entirely appropriate follow-up, even without telling them that you will be following up first. <S> If you do end up needing to write a follow-up note, you absolutely should slip in a line like "I really think my (skills and talents that are relevant to the job) would be great for (the company), and want to make sure my application didn't get lost or submitted incorrectly." <S> You can also throw in something about why you want to work at that company - mention some company values or exciting projects to show that you've done your research and are really interested in them specifically. <S> However, I've found that I've never had to do this. <S> These days, the interview process is usually semi-automated so that applications don't slip through the cracks as much. <A> Don't state you're going to follow-up and ask for an interview. <S> Indicate you want to make sure the resume was received. <S> Maybe even to find out the timeframe of the interview process. <S> This was a good idea when you had to snail mail your resume. <S> You just wanted to make sure the post office didn't lose it. <S> The real motive is to make contact and show them some initiative. <S> If you email an individual, it is a good practice to now see if they got if, but is this person on vacation or something that may delay what you think is a normal amount of time to start interviews. <A> I've seen this more often when you are contacting the company without an advertised position as opposed to when you are responding to specific job advertisement. <S> If you are applying for a sales job, I think it would be viewed as more important because it shows sales skills (you are trying to close the sale with this statement). <S> However, as long as you don't sound arrogant about it, I can't think of why anyone would be offended or mark you off their list. <S> However, if you say you will follow-up on a particular day and you do not that can become a big-red flag that you are not reliable. <S> So if you do it, maintain a calendar of companies and the follow up date you told them so that you do follow-up. <A> It is not a bad recommendation as such, though it is something extra - that is, optional. <S> The idea is to let the company know that you plan to follow up and how - it gives them a chance to respond directly if the timing or manner you plan to follow up with is not suitable. <S> It also shows them that you are serious about the job. <S> If you do later on follow up in the manner and on time, it shows you mean what you say and that you follow through.
| In general - anything that gives you a better chance to secure an interview is a good thing.
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Should I ask to work (bill hours) on Black Friday if all my FT coworkers are off? I work at a large company as a consultant, paid hourly. The company is open on Black Friday but it is optional to come in to work. All my team mates, who are FT salaried employees, are taking that day off. While I certainly have things I can do without their presence or assistance (I am a developer), I was wondering about the etiquette of asking to work and bill hours that day considering the off status of most others. I am interested in working because if I don't work, I don't get paid but also I am a lot more productive when it is peaceful around. Is it rude or perceived greedy of me to ask to work on a day that the client is formally open but all my coworkers are off? <Q> My point of view is also that of a consultant, so do take that in mind when reading my answer. <S> There is nothing wrong with working on such a date. <S> If the company is open for business on this day (formally so) and it is an optional day off for the salaried personnel, then this is a working day like all others, as far as you are concerned. <S> Of course it is in your interest to work in such a day, which doesn't really have much meaning to you - consider that as far as the salaries personnel are concerned, they are getting a free day off, so it is in their interest to take it. <S> In the same vein, it is fine to work the days between Christmas and the New Year if the company is officially open on those days, even if all your salaried colleagues have taken these days off. <A> Check with the boss, don't worry about being greedy. <S> It WOULD be greedy, if you intented to come in, do nothing, claim you did, and take money for that. <S> So, instead, check with the boss. <S> Have a list prepped of things you can do with no FT employees about, and you may even consider that there are a few clean up type tasks that may go better with fewer people around so long as you can truly do them without help. <S> The conversation "how about I make things work more smoothly while everyone is out?" is pretty much any boss' dream come true. <S> In those cases, you're maximizing your value and checking in and not taking anything for granted. <A> If your place of employment is open, and you have the opportunity to work, then there is absolutely nothing rude or greedy to ask to work on those days. <S> Now, that being said, the company could say no, but it certainly won't be a negative mark against you for asking. <S> In fact, that you are clarifying the situation would be a good mark for you, I would imagine -- it certainly would be for me if I were your boss. <S> The situation would be different if your place of employment were not officially open, which you've carefully noted is not the case. <S> In my own company, we have several different types of employees -- full time salaried who are overtime-eligible, full time salaried who are not overtime-eligible, and contract workers who are also overtime eligible. <S> We have company holidays -- <S> days when the business is technically closed -- as well as floating company holidays -- days when parts of the business are closed but others aren't -- and we take this approach: if we are open, we work. <S> If we are sort of open <S> and you want to work, then work. <S> If we are not open, but there is work to be done and you want to do it -- regardless of your status -- then say so and we'll pay you to work. <S> For us, it comes down to communicating expectations (both sides), and I would imagine it's the same in other places, so just have that conversation with your supervisor and please don't worry you're stepping out of line, because you're not (from my perspective).
| If you work, then you get paid, that's a perfectly reasonable deal and no reason to think of it as greedy.
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Employee pay during jury duty A new employee just got summoned for jury duty. My company is based in Canada and by law, I am not required to pay their salary while they are away serving on the jury. I'm wondering if anyone else has encountered this and what they decided to do. Pay the full salary?Pay a portion of the salary?Not pay at all? We are a small business, and I most likely will need to hire a contractor to cover the loss of the employee while they are away. I'm wondering what the etiquette is for a situation like this. <Q> Because you did not define this in an employee manual then the ethical thing to do IMHO is to pay the full salary since you were negligent to define what happens in this scenario. <S> Pay their salary, revise the employee manual going forward however you wish, and then you won't have to worry about the ethical issues with this again. <A> As has been stated elsewhere, this would be best resolved by having a policy in place to address the issue. <S> Yes, it is understandable that as a new company you've not set policies for every circumstance ... as a recent hire by a small, new company myself, I'm encountering some of the same thing. <S> Although you may have already formed an opinion about this new person's work it's best to ignore that when formulating the policy. <S> That's because the next person may be the opposite of this one in terms of likeability, performance, etc., <S> but the policy has to treat them equally. <S> Since you say there's no legal issue, it seems to me that this really comes down to you (and your partners, if any), and your employment market. <S> The biggest questions in my mind would be: <S> What do other organizations who hire workers similar to your employees do? <S> If they provide pay for jury duty, then people will expect to be paid for such. <S> If word gets out that you do not provide jury duty leave, it may make it more difficult for you to hire people. <S> What kind of benefits do you want to provide as an employer? <S> This may be a personal issue (e.g. maybe you want to encourage people to fulfill their civic responsibilities), or a competitive one (making it easier to hire the people you want to employ). <A> If you did not offer the pay as benefit of employment so you are not obliged to pay it. <S> Paying it now may even set a precedence you do not want. <S> It is one thing to pay for a week <S> or so it is another if the trial lasts for months. <S> But if you are not in a position to pay the employee for work they are not doing, then by paying the employee you might be costing 10 other people their jobs not to mention your business. <S> If you are going to pay your employees for jury duty you should consider looking into one of these policies. <A> I'm going to point out that the employee still has to eat and make mortgage payments, etc. <S> It would be cruel to cut off their salary during the time they are on jury duty. <S> If you did that to me, I would quit. <S> I would also make sure that all the other people I knew in my profession knew what a crappy company you had so they wouldn't work there either. <S> However, many companies deduct the amount they get paid for jury duty from their salaries so that they get the same amount. <S> Paying for this is just a cost of business and should be factored into your annual budget. <S> Someone pointed out there is inurance available for this sort of thing, if you can find a policy, then definitely buy it. <S> If you want to stay in business though, do not make it impossible for your employees to keep a roof over their heads when they have no choice but to report to the jury duty.
| So while you may be willing to pay a week this time what if the next time it is a new employee that is summoned to a 3+ month trial If the employee is valued and you can afford the expense then paying the employee for the time on jury duty may be worth it to you. The etiquette for the situation is that you should have an employee manual that clearly defines the company policy towards Jury Duty so that everything is clear and nothing is ambiguous or vague about it. In the US there is an insurance you can purchase to cover these types of absences.
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Should I request HR to let me choose my own holidays? My company has always chosen the 10 holiday days we get for the year without even asking employees if those are the days they want to use holidays. For example, we have two days off for Christmas eve and Christmas day, as well as the Friday before Easter (called Good Friday). As an atheist, I would rather not use my holidays for those days and instead to take off presidents day, MLK day etc. I have heard that some companies such as IBM allows their employees to choose their own holidays. Is expecting this of my own employer too much? Edit: Many have commented or included in their answer the issue of statutory holidays. I work and live in the USA in the private sector, where we have no statutory holidays, according to Wikipedia . The United States does not have national holidays in the sense of days on which all employees in the U.S. receive mandatory a day free from work and all business is halted by law. The U.S. federal government only recognizes national holidays that pertain to its own employees; it is at the discretion of each state or local jurisdiction to determine official holiday schedules. <Q> For a small company, it might be. <S> If they completely close down over that period, there may be nothing for you to do, or it might incur a lot of extra expense for them to make it possible for you to come into the office. <S> However a company large enough to have an HR person for you to go to is probably large enough that you could work those days if you want to. <S> There is then the matter of employment law. <S> In many countries if you work a "statutory holiday" - one established by law or statute - you must be paid extra for doing so, and your company probably doesn't want to spend that money for no particular reason. <S> But not all the holidays you mentioned are statutory in the USA. <S> Christmas Eve isn't, for example. <S> Plenty of atheists are happy enough to take the cultural holidays off for secular reasons, so I wouldn't bring that up in your conversation. <S> Just ask "if I was willing to work Good Friday, could I take another day off later in its place?" <S> Also make it clear you are not trying to work 5 statutory holidays to put together an solid week of vacation, you just want different single day absences. <S> You might get them. <A> Firm or company holidays are typically days on which it is infeasible for the company to try to do any business above and beyond the absolute bare minimum; therefore, why not give the employees the day off anyway. <S> If you're Jewish, for instance, and you would rather take off on the High Holy Days than on Thanksgiving or Christmas, depending on the employer I think they could work with you. <S> However, you'd have to have work worth doing on the "normal" US holidays; jobs like sales or helpdesk are going to be dead whether you're there or not. <S> Jobs like coding, you could probably stack up a day's heads-down coding without needing managerial or end-user input. <A> My experience is the opposite of Kate Gregory's -- I have found smaller companies to be more willing to accommodate me. <S> I work in the software industry, not something client-facing like retail or support, so <S> my job isn't governed by "standard hours of operation". <S> Small companies have been willing to let me flex holidays, but since the small company I worked for was acquired by a large one (50k+ employees, global company), it's been an uphill battle to maintain that perk. <S> The large company wants to treat employees uniformly and is too big to really pay attention to individuals. <S> The key in my experience is to have a specific other day that you want to use it for. <S> "I'm athiest <S> so I don't care about Christmas" is less likely to fly than "gosh <S> , I already have to spend my vacation days on Passover, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, etc -- could I use some of the regular holidays for some of those?". <S> If your job depends on the office being open for business, whether that's retail, a factory assembly line, a dentist's office, or <S> whatever, then you're likely to be out of luck. <S> If your job is more flexible, there's a chance they'll agree <S> but your request should be based on a need that you have, not just "I'd rather not take that day off". <A> In my experience I have found two things regarding holidays: <S> Many companies are moving to a split system. <S> Some fixed holidays and some floating holidays. <S> It keeps the big holidays, and gives the employee options on the smaller holidays. <S> These floating holidays can be used any day, like a day of vacation, but they expire at the end of the year. <S> Regardless of if they allow floating holidays, most are somewhat flexible for some of the other holidays. <S> Most years we could work on Columbus and Veterans day, in return for taking the day before and the day after Thanksgiving. <S> Neither of these observations apply to jobs that require shift work, or mandatory work schedules (security, help desk....). <S> Or labor union rules. <S> I can't imagine a scenario where they would fire you for asking to take another day in substitution for the holiday. <S> Some families celebrate together on a different day to make sure the entire family is present. <S> Some want to travel before or after the holiday to make it easier to make reservations, or to save money. <A> Realistically ask, the worse they can say is no. <S> Being an Agnostic myself <S> I ask, most companies say no, but in reality as long as you don't bring up the reason based off of lack of religion <S> I think you will be fine. <S> The problem you may run into is that you may be told no just due to logistical issues, which basically is no one else <S> but you may or may not be there. <A> Yes, it's expecting too much, especially if you are young and relatively inexperienced. <S> You don't want to be "that guy" who not only expects to choose holidays, but also takes mild offense at having to observe certain holidays. <S> Most companies by now have "rebranded" holidays to seasonal names, but at smaller companies it's not unusual to still retain the religious origins.
| There are valid reasons for asking, besides religious ones. For our company, which does alarm verification, most employees get the standard holidays (Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, plus one "flex" holiday you could use for something like Good Friday or Veteran's Day), but if you work in our alarm center, you're eligible to take a shift even on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day, and if you've worked here less than 90 days you don't even get paid time-and-a-half to do it. You can expect more resistance if you want to take a December holiday in January, because it could mess up their accounting. So, ask, expect the worst, hope for the best.
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is it worth it to get a recruiter in a different country? I want to switch locations to a different country, but I don't have any job offer and I don't know where to start, I know that some companies will sponsor visas for skilled workers, but I'm not sure whether I should contact a recruiter agency in other country given that at this moment I don't have the legal status to work.In general terms, does the recruiters show interest in these type of situations where they have to accommodate you with a company that would sponsor a visa or I would be wasting my time? <Q> My guess would be that it would only be worth it if you have skills that are very, very hard to find. <S> Otherwise, most tech recruiters (at least in the US) tend to think more like sales people. <S> They don't see it as a matching problem. <S> They see it as a matter of finding leads. <S> If there's any reason you'll be rejected by a company, they don't want you in their lists of employees to spam at their lists of employers. <S> I would say focus on finding companies that are willing to help you with the legal status issue first and recruiters second. <A> My suggestion would be to review a few different routes that may get you where you want to be: 1) <S> If you have friends or family in that different country, it may be worth asking them if they know companies that are looking for workers in your field and would be willing to sponsor a foreigner in for the job. <S> Your current employer and co-workers may also be useful here to consider. <S> The idea here being about working around bureaucracy. <S> 2) Consider what networks may have connections of jobs in those places. <S> In my own case, I went from Canada to the US because of a job posted in my university's career services section. <S> What schools, associations or other organizations may be able to help you apply for what positions? <S> 3) International recruiters. <S> This can work if you have the experience with a specific skill set that is highly sought. <S> Part of this comes from posting your resume on various large sites within that country and then seeing recruiters call you so that they come to you rather than you go to them. <S> Something to keep in mind is that you will have to have some kind of story for the <S> , "Why would you want to move to X? <S> " that could well be asked since some companies may question why you want to make this move. <A> I would suggest that getting a job internationally at the moment is likely to be very hard - unemployment in many countries is still very high, and this tends to lead to tighter immigration controls. <S> In our case (we're NZ based, and highly specialised) <S> I can advertise directly internationally for roles above a certain pay grade (which is higher than the median national wage) - my firm had to be certified to allow this to happen - <S> BUT I am still obliged to consider NZ residents that match the job description and ideal candidate specification before any non-resident. <S> Immigration check this carefully. <S> As someone who recruits, I generally prefer local candidates over those I have to relocate. <S> Typically the process can take more than three months for the various police and medical checks, and can easily be derailed in that time by lifestyle changes. <S> To give you an idea, I have not had to relocate someone from overseas for the last 4 years, as there has been a local (or returning Kiwi) candidate that matched what we needed every time.
| If you are serious about moving to another country then working with an immigration agent based in that country is a much better idea than a recruitment agent; depending on skills, experience and the country you may be able to get a visa type that allows you to travel to the country to seek work, which of course is a lot easier.
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Might be fired from a part-time job before starting a full-time job I hope this is a relevant question. I'm a senior in college and have recently accepted a full-time offer to be an IT Business Analyst at a company that's opening up a new office in the area. However, there's a possibility I may be fired from my current part-time job. Right now I'm driving buses for my school, and the other day I got in a minor accident in a parking lot (minor damage to a parked vehicle, virtually no damage to the bus). I let my superiors know about it as soon as it happened, and while the university police came to file a report I did not get a ticket. I've talked to my supervisor and right now nobody's sure what might happen, but I could be fired for this. This would put me in an awkward situation. My full-time position is due to begin in June of next year (a month after I graduate), and the background verification process won't start until closer to that date. My question is: if I do get fired from this part-time college job, is there a possibility it will affect my full-time offer? I plan on letting the company know if it does happen, just to make sure there are no discrepancies with my application (which says that I'm still employed at the part-time job, which I was when I applied). I feel like I might be over-thinking this, but I just want to be sure I didn't mess up my future over something as irrelevant as a fender-bender. <Q> Firstly, sorry you're in this situation and hopefully you won't be fired from your current job. <S> If no one was hurt, property damage was low, and the accident was not due to some gross negligence or criminal behavior (e.g. driving while intoxicated), then a firing seems unwarranted. <S> If you're not fired, then telling your potential future employer about the situation can only serve to create problems for you. <S> Of course, if you are fired, then you should disclose this if it comes up during the background check you mention. <S> Given that the jobs are so different, I would not expect this to have an impact on your future employment, as long as you're honest and the accident wasn't due to gross negligence or criminal activity on your part. <A> You were in a parking lot fender-bender, in which police did not give you any ticket. <S> You're not a professional driver. <S> Your new full-time job has nothing to do with driving and your new employers are not interested in your driving record. <S> You probably will not ever have another driving job. <S> In summary: it doesn't matter. <A> I work for a U.S. fortune 500 company, and we use many independent contractors, and employees as drivers. <S> They often find themselves getting into minor wrecks(trucks/vans + backing up = high rate of accidents). <S> There are two ways this could go: <S> First, if you get fired for "damaging company property" that's a very, very damning offense when it comes to driving jobs for large corporations (note how I bolded that, it won't matter if you got into a vehicle accident for a non driving job). <S> It will be a blemish on your record for driving jobs, some may rule you out immediately. <S> for a IT Business Analyst the only way it would effect that is for renting cars for trips(and without a ticket <S> I don't think it even will). <S> The other way is that you more than likely won't get fired, you'll get written up or suspended but even in the company I work for things happen, and people get into accidents. <S> If the property damage is minor and no one was hurt the insurance increase will be low for the company. <S> They are going to be thinking: "If we fire this guy, how much is it going to cost to train the next guy? <S> And will he file for unemployment? <S> Or even wrongful termination? <S> " When they weigh out the costs and benefits, there is a very slim chance you will be terminated. <S> The facts as you tell them lead me to believe that without being ticketed, or hurting anyone, or putting a company vehicle out of commission you're not going to be terminated. <S> I'd just be remorseful, polite, professional, and apologetic. <S> Don't tell them <S> you're worried about <S> you're next job, tell them you're worried about THIS JOB. <S> Don't worry about anything until they make a decision, it may blow over quickly, I wouldn't tell your other employer about it until things have been final(good or bad), unless of course you're asked directly, then don't lie. <S> But like I said before for a IT Analyst they're not going to care unless it effects there insurance for rental cars.
| My recommendation is to wait through the process with your current employer.
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Is "snafu" acceptable in business communications? In an email to my new employer's HR department about a payroll problem, I started to type "there seems to be a snafu in my pay". However, I then reflected on what (I understand) "snafu" originally stood for (situation normal, all f****d up). However, the term seems to have worked its way into somewhat broad acceptance. So, has "snafu" either become an acceptable term independent of its original meaning, or do most people not know what it is short for, or should I just avoid it? Edit about the use of the term: There have been a few statements about how this particular use of snafu doesn't fit the term; i.e. that this is a single occurrence, but that using the term implies the problem to be the normal state. While I see how that contradiction may seem to exist, it's my observation (and that of others, including other statements in response to this question) that the term is usually used in response to a particular incident. While there is (obviously) room for misunderstanding I think the "situation normal" part of the term comes more from a view point that life/the universe/everything is messed up, and this single event is just one example of it. <Q> You have no control over who will see the e-mail as part of a "forward chain" which can easily lead to trouble. <S> Snafu is particularly problematic, as it implies that the people making the mistake (in this case, potentially the HR payroll staff) habitually and commonly get things wrong, over and above any swearing. <S> In my experience, if it is at all possible for someone to take offense at an e-mail, then they probably will, so I wouldn't use it in writing. <S> As for using "snafu" in conversation - I'd suggest that if you are new in the office, you get a feel for the "swearing threshold" in that workplace before using it. <S> Some environments are more robust than others <A> I'd skip it for clarity. <S> "Snafu" is certainly a common and not vulgar form of expression, at least where I'm from (the US), but it's still slang. <S> Especially when writing someone new, who you don't have a lot of contact with, go with the clearest, easiest to understand language possible. <S> "Snafu" has a nice ring to it, and it's charmingly informal, but "problem" is clearer and less likely to cause either confusion or offense. <S> You want the problem fixed as quickly as possible, and you don't want language to get in the way. <A> Although the origin of the word is vulgar, the current usage is not interpreted as vulgar . <S> I think that using "SNAFU" is definitely OK for internal and informal communication and probably even fine for wider usage. <A> I would advise using "fouled up" instead of "snafu" in your original sentence. <S> My current employer has a lot of prudish people. <S> When I've used "snafu" or "wtf" in emails, I get nastygrams from people in other states and countries who were never on the distribution of the first email. <S> I don't personally consider either of them to be vulgar or inappropriate, but there are dozens of people (out of 15,000-20,000 employees worldwide) who are offended enough to call me out and harangue my boss as well. <S> The moral of this is that you lose control of your email <S> the instant it is sent, and that while the content will be appropriate for the intended recipient, it is likely to be forwarded to some jerk who takes offense at any and every thing.
| I tend to steer clear of any kind of slang, jargon or colloquialism when I'm reporting a possible problem by e-mail, unless you know the person very well. "SNAFU" is a common and informal word-choice. In your case, the usage doesn't necessarily imply that it is routine for HR to make mistakes, but rather that circumstances and complexities which are beyond control might cause some mistakes to have been made.
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How to explain business people that their feature request is infeasible In my role some time I sit with business & operations people (people those directly connect with customers) to discuss new feature or some modifications, these people are mostly non technical and don’t know anything about the system and its internal process. Some time they give very valuable suggestion and their insight about the system but some time they request for very odd feature which I think is having very little use to end user and is very hard to implement. I cannot explain my technical difficulty because they are not going to understand it. how can I convince them there request are infeasible ? <Q> You may want to start the conversation by asking clarifications on the requirements in order to better understand them. <S> This will help put the business person at ease rather than appear confrontational. <S> Asking why they need the requirement in the first place shows interest and willingness to satisfy the needs of the end user. <S> Then, you can explain that nothing is really unfeasible as long as you apply enough time and resources to the problem. <S> Therefore, you can provide an exploratory estimate of how long it would take for you to implement the requirements. <S> They, in turn, will ask questions about the estimates and why they are so high. <S> You can also ask the business person, what part of the requirements they would like to implement first. <S> This will help them, and you, understand what is the most important piece and that part may end up being feasible. <S> In general I try to stay unemotional and focus my attention on understanding the need, decomposing in different parts, and estimating the time it will take to implement each part. <A> You don't have to explain the technical details to them, but you do need to give them an understanding as to the challenges you will face in trying to implement it. <S> One thing you always need to keep in mind <S> (and I've been a developer for almost 30 years) is that the business and operations people are experts in their business and the company operations. <S> I've come across too many technical people in my travels who lose sight of the fact that, although the people they have deal with on a daily basis know very little about computers and software development, they know far more about business and corporate operations than they do. <S> The developer has to approach the problem with the eye of a person who wants to solve their problem, not criticize their approach. <S> That being said, engage them in a discussion which will allow them to show you exactly what they need. <S> They are coming to you for assistance, and if you take the time to listen to their needs and fully understand the problem they are trying to solve, you will not only have the gratitude of a desperate group of people, you will also have a quality solution which will only make you look good to everyone it impacts. <A> " Yes of course we can implement feature X, however the way that the code is currently engineered <S> this would mean what we call a "coding epic"; without a detailed analysis with the team its hard to say for sure, but it could take about 16 weeks to implement if we dropped all other tasks, pushed back the next release and just focussed on this." <S> The advantage here is that if you have misunderstood the importance of the request - which given you are not directly talking to the end-user is always possible - if it is the most important thing in the universe, it can be addressed. <A> I think what you might be facing is really a requirements capture problem. <S> You are getting a feature-request that doesn't make sense. <S> This could mean that the business team doesn't know what their talking about, but it is much more likely that there is a mis-match between what you think they're asking for and what they really require. <S> Requirements capture is all about determining what the customers require and NOT what they're literally asking for. <S> The customers might not be able to frame their problem/request into a form that makes sense for someone to design and implement. <S> It is up to the other side to do the work to understand what outcomes are desired and then devise a plan to reach those outcomes. <S> In other words, effective requirements capture isn't a one-way transfer of requests from the customer to the implementer, it is a dialectical process where some amount of back-and-forth outputs the real requirements in rhetoric that the implementer can work with. <A> Have a proper flow. <S> Do not allow business people to make direct request to developers. <S> Change request must get filed using issue tracking software. <S> And then they wouldn't go directly to developers, but to a product manager, who would prioritize them based on business value and also on your estimation of the work involved. <S> Obviously suggestions with low business value and lot of developer work will be either rejected. <S> Or as it's practiced in some organizations, put on the very bottom of backlog (where most likely they'll stay forever). <A> Regardless of how you work to tell them "Well, the way we have our core code setup currently this wouldn't work" or "This would give little value, technically, to our customers." <S> These people know money and they know charts. <S> When giving a feasibility assessment at my workplace my development department always makes sure that a quote is included, and that this quote not only factors in the monetary value of what it would cost time and resource wise - but sanity wise as well. <S> If the project is not likely to give any value or be too problematic to try and fill then the quote is upped. <S> Pricing for the work, and possible showing of Return on Investment is going to be the easiest way to get through their head to show them that it's a bad project idea, from their point of view. <S> If you're unable to do so with either of these, then it's probably not an infeasible or bad idea.
| Go as basic as you need to go, because the better you understand the problem, the easier it will be for you to suggest an alternative path that could give them most, if not all, of what they are looking for without overly taxing your development schedule. Instead, talk business with them. In this kind of situation I find the "yes of course... however" technique is useful.
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Moving - when should I start looking for a new job? I live in one of the EU countries and in about 6 months me and my girlfriend are planning on moving to London. I am a software developer. I was planning on getting a job before we actually move there, but I don't know when to start looking for one. I think now is bit too soon, as I'm unlikely to find a company that would be willing to wait for me for such a long time. The reason we are moving in six months is that we both have some obligations here that we need to fulfil (current jobs) and we would like to save some money in case we wouldn't get jobs before we move (and could live off of those savings for a couple of months and search for employment once we are there). <Q> Indeed, you need to understand the specific job market and the subtle difference in culture, legislation, customs, etc. <S> You also need to have a feel for the number of job available and how to properly learn of their existence, being via headhunters, recruitment firms or otherwise. <S> Even if you get an interview and an offer that you can not take because you have not moved yet, you opened a door with an employer. <S> Bottom line, you have nothing to lose by starting earlier. <A> I'd consider looking at networking and seeing what kinds of jobs are common in London now. <S> What skills are worth pointing out, what recruiting firms may be worth exploring and getting to know London's software development job market would be my suggestion now. <S> While you are taking more than a few months to get some things done, I'm not saying you apply tomorrow, but rather build some relationships so it will be easier once you do move there. <A> I spent most of 2000 and 2001 in London (I'm from Australia); I didn't look for a job until I got there, and it took longer than I hoped to find one. <S> So you are definitely on the right track planning to try to nail down a job before you arrive. <S> Now, my experience of the London market - which, I remind you, is from a decade ago and may no longer be accurate - was that a large majority of software development jobs were advertised through recruitment agencies, not directly. <S> So what may be worthwhile is to get your resume out and about to a number of London recruitment agencies as soon as possible. <S> Make it clear to them that you're not going to be in town for another six months, but that you'd like them to consider possibilities for you. <S> They should know who amongst their clients needs developers now , and who is always on the lookout for talent whenever they may be available. <S> And recruitment is certainly a competitive enough game that you don't need to worry that they'll feel that you're wasting their time or anything. <S> Now any question of "which London recruitment agents are reputable and professional?" would probably be off-topic for Stack Exchange due to being too localized, but hopefully there is some other forum where you could get some tips from people working in London. <A> Six months is nothing -- a lot of these companies might be slow to respond, take time for multiple interviews, etc. <A> It is never too early to look for jobs. <S> I usually start 3 or 4 month before my contract / probation / notice period ends. <S> The rule of thumb is that you should never hand in your resignation letter until you have successfully secured another job else where. <S> They are usually willing to wait up to a maximum of 6 months anyways. <S> Start to go for interviews right now and see how it turns out.
| I personally think that it is never too early to look for a job in a different job market that you intend to move to. If they really want you, a little wait isn't a big deal!
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Technical explanation to HR As part of some phone interviews I recently had, I was asked by someone from HR to run through my CV and the technical skills I use day-to-day. I began by simply describing the tools/software I use, and was asked to "go into more technical detail" When I did, I found that what I was saying went well and truly over their heads (and ended up being counter-productive). If a recruiter/prospective employer who has no knowledge of your technical skills asks for more technical detail, what is the best way of approaching this? <Q> As we all know, HR personnel are rarely well versed in the technology we use, but there may always be exceptions. <S> Who, of course, sometimes only think they are experts :-) <S> So in such a situation, probably the best would be to ask them up front to clarify what kind and depth of technical details they are interested in. <S> In my experience, very often they are only filtering your input for buzzwords, so make sure to focus on the relevant ones. <S> This allows them to ask for more details or to let you know to retreat from too deep levels of technology. <A> One of the "soft skills" that interviewers look for is how well you adjust your explanations for your audience. <S> You would talk differently about the same project to your technical lead, your program manager, your customer, and your grandmother -- and an HR person. <S> I agree with the advice in this answer to ask for clarification and "check in" while you're talking. <S> These check-ins should focus on you, not the listener -- "am I being clear enough?", not "do you understand?". <S> In terms of approaching the situation in the first place, talk about what you did on the project or with those technologies, ask "would you like more detail about X?", and adjust as you go. <S> A breadth-first approach has been most successful for me on either side of the interview. <A> What HR wanted was not "a list" of skills. <S> They can already see that on your resume/CV. <S> When they ask for more details, they don't mean the minor version of the application server you worked with (for example). <S> They want to understand the context and some narrative of HOW you work and solve problems using your skills. <S> In other words, you should have picked some of your skills and described a successful project in which you used those skills. <S> The goal is to give them an idea of the scope and complexity of work which you do. <A> If a recruiter/prospective employer who has no knowledge of your technical skills asks for more technical detail, what is the best way of approaching this? <S> Depending on your temperament, I'd probably either ask for a format of the answer or an example of an answer so that I can get an idea of what they mean. <S> While I could say that I use Visual Studio 2010 to develop the web software I build, they may want more detail though stating IIS 7.5, ASP.Net <S> 4.0.30319 and SQL Server 2008 may be getting a bit too specific, thus the format or example that allows me to see what kind of communication they want. <S> The tone here is about understanding the request so that you can competently answer the question. <S> Most people don't go to a restaurant and expect the server to just know what to bring and thus there is communication to clarify what is wanted here. <S> Is it the name of the software? <S> Years of experience? <S> Proficiency in its use? <S> There are more than a few things I could see someone probing in asking for more detail about what I use.
| Another method would be to pause and ask regularly after each "part" of your speech (like the description of a project you worked on, or a tool you used) whether they have any questions or comments.
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Sending disagreement to boss over a mail is correct thing to do? I am working on outsourcing organization. I have worked with various other teams and people while executing an assignment. How ever while evaluating, based on the feedback gathered from all the sources my boss made me some comments and some conclusions on my abilities. How ever I feel that those conclusions and comments are not correct. I am welcome to feedback and I am happy to improve, but I am clearly feel that those feedback comments and conclusions are not correct. In such case I can not put my investment in those areas to improve and that feedback didn't helped me to realize where exactly I am not good and where I have to put my efforts to improve. My boss himself is not willing to prove those comments/conclusions as those are not coming from his own observation and from his own experience with me. Discussion went long and we argued, finally my boss move on to next step which is motivating myself and suggesting how to improve. But those are not going to help me because those comments are not correct. Finally meeting was ended. Then I went to home and think about that feedback with relaxed mind and reviewed my performance again. I feel that I haven't done great. But not worst. I feel that I am not deserved to those comments and those comments on my abilities are not correct. So next day I have write a mail saying that "I really love to improve and thank you so much for your feedback. Based on discussion I have realized x,y and z. I agree with x completely and partially Y. How ever I am sorry to express that I am unable to agree with Z. And also regarding X and Y for last 'n' months I have been improved significantly and I will put my consistent efforts to improve further more. My humble request is please provide another opportunity" I feel that I did was a good job. Then that evening when it happened to met my boss he asked me "Why did you wrote such lengthy mail? What do you expect me to do". Then I feel bad. Did I do any mistake here? How could I have done better? <Q> As a general principle, and for this particular situation, I would refer to Habit 5 of <S> The seven habits of highly effective people <S> which is seek first to understand, then to be understood Personally, rather than writing a message, I would have gone to my boss the next day and have a dialogue with him expressing that I was confused about item Z and was seeking additional clarification. <S> Then, I would have reflected on my own and decided if a behavior adjustment was warranted or not. <S> I would not necessarily have shared this introspection with my boss. <S> If a face to face meeting is not possible, then I would make sure that I seek to understand in the first few lines of the message. <S> This is important because your manager, like you, is probably overwhelmed by messages and helping him process messages faster is important. <S> This page may also help you communicate more effectively with your colleagues. <S> This being said, your attitude of wanting to improve by seeking feedback and modifying your behavior accordingly is admirable. <A> It is not normal for people to be successful in declaring parts of their evaluation to be incorrect. <S> Whether you feel that a statement isn't accurate ("you said I take too long to do X, but that's because I get all the hard X'es to do") or a condition isn't important ("you said some of the customers think I'm rude, but that doesn't matter because I write great code <S> and that's whats important") <S> your boss is paid to do a number of things that you (presumably) are not yet as good at: <S> evaluate you evaluate your peers <S> gather <S> information about you and your peers from others in the company know what matters to the company understand the longer term consequences of short term actions <S> You may think you are better than your boss at these things. <S> You may even be right (though again you may not.) <S> But the chances that you will be able to prove that to your boss and have the action taken that you desire are essentially nil. <S> Ask more questions. <S> Listen. <S> Either take the actions your boss wants you to take, or start quietly looking for another job. <S> Or both. <S> There is a lot you can learn from a boss who will honestly tell you where you are going wrong, especially when your errors are those of deciding what matters more than they are of execution. <S> There is also a lot to be learned working with someone who doesn't appreciate you much, including when it is time to move on. <A> In my experience, e-mail is probably the worst communication channel you can use for dispute resolution. <S> I have seen very, very few disagreements that have been fully resolved via e-mail, but I have encountered many situations where e-mails served to escalate the situation. <S> I do find on a personal standpoint that writing a long e-mail (or perhaps more safely, a text document that cannot be accidently sent!) <S> is an excellent way to help marshal my thoughts and feelings, structure potential discussions and test out key phrases, but this is in preparation for a face-to-face meeting, skype conversation or phone call. <S> These three (in order) should be your the channels of choice for any kind of conflict resloution. <S> E-mails are useful for (unemontional) documentation of facts <S> (not views, thoughts or feelings) after a meeting, where they can provide a clean record of what was discussed that can be sent to all parties for their records. <S> There is a lot of good advice regarding effective use of e-mails, and when to use them - this piece from Harvard Business School is a good starting point. <S> To answer the main thrust of your question, it is useful to consider the e-mail you sent from a different perspective: <S> You have chosen a written, formal communication channel to highlight areas where you think your manager's judgement is incorrect. <S> As the area you have chosen to critique (line management) is part of his role, and so essentially you are telling your line manager that he doesn't know how to do his job properly. <S> While this might not have been your intention, it is certainly one way in which a long e-mail of this type could be interpreted. <A> You apparently did what I myself would have done in a similar situation: have some sleep, calm down, analyse the situation with a clear head, then write a carefully worded mail to explain your point in written, persistent form. <S> It is not clear how much of the good advice received to your previous post <S> you have actually used <S> so I can't assess the constructiveness and problem-solving efficiency of your mail. <S> Also, maybe you could have cut it shorter and more to the point, to save your boss' time and improve the efficiency of your message. <S> At any rate, it seems that your boss has already made up his mind and is not willing to change his decision. <S> We know far from enough about the background story to be able to tell what's really going on, but to me it surely sounds like you won't be able to win this uphill battle and to build a constructive relationship with your managers, so your best option may be to start looking for another job... <A> You haven't done any thing big mistake. <S> You just did what is reasonable and acceptable. <S> But seems to be situation not in-favor to you. <S> Your boss has already made up mind and is not willing to change. <S> Politely ask them do you have any other opportunity. <S> If not ask him a favor by providing references so that they can help you. <S> Polish your resume and search for opportunities <S> some where else.
| From what you have written here, I don't see any big mistake.
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How do prospective employers screen private social networking profiles? How do prospective employers go about screening candidates' social networking profiles if they have high privacy settings and are not friends with the person? Do they have some "back door" access if they pay FB enough money to let them see everyone or some other privacy violation of that nature? <Q> As an employer, I routinely search for names of candidates as part of the pre-screening process. <S> In addition, if the candidate's resume mentions a blog, twitter account, linked in account, or public Facebook page, I check those. <S> I don't use any "back door" methods (and doubt they exist) but I will do things like "hm <S> , the blog domain is codebunny <S> [I just made that up, don't go search it] <S> I wonder if I will find anything searching for that in addition to or instead of the candidate's legal name?" <S> and I will follow links from say your StackExchange profile to your Twitter profile to your website and so on. <S> I can learn both good and bad things from such a search: <S> this candidate seems to know quite a lot about technologies we use this candidate has been publicly using technologies for as long as the resume says, or perhaps has used the phrase "I am just getting started with" far too recently to agree with the resume this candidate is a good writer, or a good speaker, and is generous with that technical knowledge this candidate is rude, or arrogant, or a showoff this candidate is connected to a number of people or communities that are important to us <S> this candidate doesn't seem to know how or why to ensure private things are kept private <S> I always keep in mind that there may be many people with the same name, and that the person I find in a search may not be the person who is applying to me. <S> I have never voted "hire" or "no hire" simply because of something I found from a search. <S> It has been fodder for interview questions though. <S> And none of this is new - <S> we used to search for what people were posting on usenet newsgroups, 20 years ago, for just the same reasons. <A> Quite frankly, to the best of my knowledge - they don't crack your settings and screen your profile. <S> In fact, the variation of how employers view social media profiles is incredibly diverse these days - the whole phenomenon is too new to have a single right answer or common norm for all employers. <S> I've seen everything from the very thoughtful (and <S> in my mind, honorable) post that Kate Gregory offers, to a deliberate effort to avoid them entirely. <S> In most cases, I would expect that to be seen as unethical and something a reasonable company would avoid. <S> However, realize that nothing about you or your behavior online is really "private". <S> I have several friends who do not even maintain social media profiles because of privacy reasons, and yet pictures of them, their legal names, and other activities are blogged, tweeted, commented on, or otherwise updated through their friend's social media activity. <S> So it's not just your privacy settings that are the control over what an employer can and can't see. <S> Try to avoid an online identity that features behavior you <S> don't want to be accountable for - certainly we've all done a few silly things we are glad our employers haven't seen, but try to avoid building an online community for yourself that encourages and highlights this behavior. <A> Just to the point of the "back door". <S> If you are applying for a job with an intelligence agency, or a any high security clearance, be assured that they have a back door. <S> Even if they don't - you will never know. <S> So, keep your profile clean. <S> Even without a backdoor, sites like FB, twitter, Instagram, etc, will gladly turn over data to a warrant or subpoena. <S> In general, if they check at all, HR people and hiring managers do what Beth said, and just do a quick search - LinkedIn, or some industry-specific stuff. <S> FB is rarely looked at because of most profiles being 'friend' and 'friend of friend' only. <S> If any company asks for your password - plainly state that you cannot provide the password as that would violate the terms of service as well as the US CFAA (if you are in US). <S> If they are testing you, you pass. <S> If they really want it, then you don't want to work there. <S> You might "like" candidate "A" when the company owner likes "B" and they fire you for that.
| I haven't, yet, seen an employer go out of their way to "crack" a profile. A common guidance I've seen that makes sense to me is to focus on enhancing your online identity through positive, professional behavior - write good articles, ask thoughful questions, be professional in your communications and be honest.
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How do I deal with a boastful colleague who has inside information from the boss? My colleague and I have the same boss. My colleague gets inside information from my boss before the information gets to me (which is relevant to my projects and some additional information which is not relevant to my projects directly but is relevant to our unit/organization etc.) and he is sort of boastful about this. He shares with me some of the info but I am sure he will suppress info which will impact him/his projects. (for e.g. he might try to grab any resources available in my unit for his projects whom I am also trying to get into my project etc.) My boss and my colleague went to same colleges in their earlier life and have worked together in a long, tough project earlier. This colleague hence has more rapport with my boss. What irks me is the boastful nature of this colleague who almost mocks me that I will not get any inside information before he gets it. How do I deal with this situation? <Q> In general, a leader should be very careful of the way he disseminates information. <S> The fact that your boss is providing your colleague with information related to your projects, before he gives it to you directly, is troubling. <S> The source of the information is your boss, not your colleague and <S> this is why you should focus your attention on your boss. <S> All in all, managing up will help you in this situation and other similar situations in the future. <S> This being said, there are a couple of concrete actions you can take to remediate this situation: <S> This will allow you to get faster access to the bits of information that are necessary to do your job. <S> You could ask your boss questions about the information that your colleague provided and that you think should have come directly to you. <S> In this instance, be careful to not appear defensive. <S> You boss may have made a mistake and some bosses are quite sensitive when you bring up things they may need to do differently. <A> One of the things I find hardest as a line manager is to ensure that I treat all of my direct reports equally and fairly; or to be more specific, that I don't inadvertantly favour those that I have the best rapport with on a personal level when it comes to their professional status. <S> Where I work <S> (NZ) <S> there are actually significant legal implications if an employee can show that they have been disadvantaged because of personal (as opposed to professional) relationships, which makes this more than simply good management practice. <S> Outside of this framework, the best approach is to make your manager aware of the situation; from their perspective they may just be using a direct report as a "sounding board" for ideas, which I know is one of my failings. <S> I tend to favour the direct and honest approach. <S> If, in general, you trust and respect your bosses leadership/management skills, then simply finding the time to discuss with him that, from time-to-time, you can feel professionally disadvantaged because of the close working relationship he has with the other staff members maybe all that it takes to bring about a correction. <A> Sounds to me you and your colleague are in direct competition and he feels threatened by you as obviously you do by him. <S> In this situation I would suggest getting your colleague on side. <A> now what do you want.? <S> the information.? <S> or you want that jackass to not get the information.? <S> either way you are helpless. <S> you cant tell your boss to not share any information with that colleague and also asking your boss to share the same information with you also will not help you much. <S> However there is always a better option IGNORANCE , have you tried one yet.? <S> pretending that you are not even bothered with that. <S> When your boss asks you about something that you were told by that colleague, then you might response <S> Yes, michael told me about that. <S> It will surely convey the boss that the information is being leaked and if it is sensitive enough, you might get some positive results. <S> try discussing it with HR, if it is so severe. <S> but it is not always preferred to be a good option, first try solving it at your end. <A> Be very careful how you deal with a matter like this, you never know the full story and you may be getting things wrong based on what your colleague is telling you, you may even be seen as divisive if you act against the situation. <S> So what you must not do is react when he taunts you, keep your communication very clear and work related. <S> I was in a similar situation that went very wrong <A> Ignore the boasting. <S> Your collegue is probably feeding off your signs of irritation. <S> Also, let him know you intend to go to the other boss for clarification if it affects your projects. <S> If there are serious implications because of withholding information, the boss may break this bad habbit. <S> Worse thing that can happen, your collegue stops bothering you. <S> If he still boasts that he knows "something" but won't tell you, I would still go to the boss for clarification. <S> These kids need to grow up.
| You could start by building a stronger working relationship with your boss and have conversation with him on a regular basis. A leader should inform parties directly involved first. Find something you have in common where you are not competing but backing each other up, then maybe he will begin to share instead of hide.
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Should I use present tense on an English CV/resume? I'm looking at an example CV/Resume, and I see the following: Develop business relationship Apply for patent paperwork This sounds incorrect to me. Either it already happened, in which case I think they should use past tense, e.g. "engineered a TPS reports framework" or it is happening now, in which case I would write: Raising funds on kick-starter Soliciting donors I think present tense diminishes any accomplishments as it sounds like the person is involved in some activity that may or may not be fruitful. In addition, the way my original example is written sounds like it is a command given to someone else - hey you, develop financial software, and you - get coffee, and you over there - clean bathrooms. Is this example CV/Resume provide any benefit by using present tense? And if not, is there any benefit to be gained by using present tense on a CV/resume (written in English)? <Q> Every CV I've produced since the '80s used present tense for jobs <S> I still held when the resume was presented, and past tense for those I had left. <S> I've employed that strategy for over 25 years, and I'm still employable. <S> As a matter of fact, I was complimented on my resume at my latest employer. <S> In addition, my resume is three-and-a-half pages long, and I didn't include the first ten years of activity. <S> Not because I didn't think it was appropriate, but, since technology is so different today compared to then, I just didn't think it was relevant. <S> A resume or curriculum vitae is a marketing tool, plain and simple. <S> It is your first point of contact to develop a potentially lucrative business relationship. <S> What you learn in academia is great when you are just starting out, but the goal is to eventually make the document your own expression of who you are based on your past accomplishments. <S> Keep what you feel is appropriate, expand what you feel is pertinent, and discard what you feel is hampering. <S> Be absolutely honest, but don't be compelled to include that which could be subject to misinterpretation. <A> I review CVs (or resumes) pretty quickly. <S> I have to, because at that stage and in the current economic climate I'm usually looking for a 75-90% "cull rate" to get down to a managable shortlist for interview. <S> I'm probably not alone in this, and that means it is wise to present yourself in the best possible (and least generic) light. <S> You need to stand out to get to an interview. <S> In my experience, present tense lists of activities tend to be associated with " roles and responsibilities " of each position; in many cases they read like they have been cut-and-pasted from a job description. <S> By contrast, the past tense tends to be associated with the candidate's (key) achievements in a given role; <S> these might be the things they are proud of, or the things they feel that highlight their suitability for the role. <S> In general - many people have similar jobs, so the roles and responsibilities in the present tense simply do not stand out; minimise these if you have to include them most people deliver different things within a role, and so key achievements in the past tense tend to be more personalised and less generic; maximise these at all costs <S> the same idea applies to education and certification; projects are more impressive than exam results, and showing how you employed your training is more impressive than certifications <S> To sum up - I am always more impressed by what someone has achieved, and how they have demonstrated what they have learned. <S> Using the past tense tends to focus your thoughts on these areas, which arethe things that make you unique when compared to others with a similar employment/education history. <A> For example, on a past job, "Developed social media strategies that raised brand awareness in the Turkish market." With a current position, "I have implemented coding standards that have helped employees better communicate during software development." <S> Of course, sometimes this comes down to personal style. <S> If a project at a current firm was done some time ago, the past tense is appropriate. <S> When looking at a CV, I want to see that the person can clearly communicate what they have done and how that has contributed to the team they work/worked with. <S> So long as they can get that across, and the qualifications are relevant, I'll put them in the queue for phone screening. <A> I don't think there is a good idea to distinguish between past and present jobs. <S> In the end, you want the reader to imagine the resume as something of the past and imagine you at the new assignment. <S> Present seems more like a description of what your responsibilities where. <S> A neutral way is to do something like this: Random Dude at Random Inc. <S> Responsibilities: - Develop business relationships - Handle patent paperwork <S> Achievements: <S> - Increased business relationship with Whatever Inc. by 20% <S> - Applied for more than 100 patents Or simply use past tense all over. <S> I mean, even if you still are developing business relationships today, you certainly where doing that yesterday? <A> For a current position, present tense would be reasonable. <S> But using present tense for past positions will seem odd to most native speakers. <S> I would not look favorably on a native English speaker who described past work in the present tense. <S> I'm more forgiving when English is not the candidate's mother tongue. <S> The best candidates will have their resume reviewed by someone fluent in English. <S> At least I would, if I were writing a resume in a language other than English.
| I think you obviously should use past tense for positions you no longer hold, and probably either a past or a perfect tense for current positions.
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Why do (some) large companies require that individual contractors come through a vendor? I work at a large company as a contractor. Every contractor at the company goes through one of several vendor companies whom the client company pays and then they pay us W-2. The vendor company does nothing in terms of team or project management, they only do the payroll and hiring. I think the client company has a policy of not dealing with individual contractors directly for some reason. I am curious what such a reason may be? Is it some sort of business insurance that the client may be requiring and that each individual contractor couldn't afford? Or something else? <Q> It depends on the company, of course. <S> Some of the more common reasons, though Minimizing the number of vendors helps the hiring company minimize the amount of vendor management they have to do. <S> There is overhead in doing things like negotiating with a vendor, processing a vendor's invoice, ensuring that the vendor's paperwork is in order, etc. <S> Working with individual contractors rather than going through contracting companies substantially increases these overheads. <S> Large company HR departments want to be very certain that they don't get dinged by the IRS for treating contractors like employees (I believe from your earlier questions that you are in the US but <S> many other countries have similar laws). <S> If they are going through large contracting companies that have many different clients, it is much harder for the IRS to argue that a particular contractor is a de-facto employee than if they work individually with consultants that don't have multiple other clients. <S> Working with large consulting companies makes it much easier for the hiring company to add additional resources as needed. <S> If they're working with a large contracting company that has dozens of contractors on the bench, it is relatively easy to add a few resources or to switch one resource for another. <S> If they're working with individual contractors, though, that's obviously much more difficult. <S> If the company requires liability insurance for contractors, that is generally cheaper when you can spread the cost across a large number of contractors than if you're getting it yourself. <S> The large company can much more easily do things like giving a discount or giving away some hours. <S> If there is a problem with an individual contractor, the hiring company's options are much more limited. <A> I think the client company has a policy of not dealing with individual contractors directly for some reason. <S> I am curious what such a reason may be? <S> Section 1706 of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 is responsible. <S> By removing the "safe harbor" (which is section 730 of the Revenue Act of 1978) provisions, this act made it too risky for employers to continue to hire engineers and computer professionals as contractors. <S> If the IRS later reclassified the independant contractors as employees, the employer becomes retroactively responsible for the employer share of the taxes along with interest and possible penalties. <S> A "safe harbor" would allow the employers to skip the past taxes, interest and penalits. <S> Since our profession has been specifically excluded as a matter of law, it is almost impossible to be a 1099 contractor without setting up your own company. <S> The contract agencies get around this issue by making you a W-2 employee of the agency while the bodyshop gets paid on a 1099. <S> This issue bothered one person so much that he flew his airplane into an IRS office in 2010 . <S> Some easy-to-read information . <S> As for myself, I'm working on a "Plan B" to get my accounting degree (and later CPA license) as one potential exit plan from programming. <S> This stuff is covered in tax accounting courses because the "independant contractor versus employee" issue is a very thorny and expensive mistake that many businesses get themselves stuck into. <A> Justin Cave covers a number of key points, you could loosely summarize as "it's easier to deal with existing vendors". <S> Our company is quite flexible in this regard, but any new vendor (individual or company) still needs to have a contract in place, which requires legal review (unless our "stock" contract is acceptable to the vendor), setting up the vendor with accounting, etc. <S> As a manager needing your services, it's just easier for me if I don't have to do this, but if you can offer something that I can't easily get from an existing vendor, then I'm willing to do it. <S> If I was at a company where the hassle factor was a lot higher for legal reviews, vendor setup, etc., it might just be easier to say no. <A> I'll also point out that from the corporate standpoint, it is less of a risk to use a known company. <S> If the developer quits a known company they will have someone in place fairly quickly (that's one reason why they maintain that bench of people). <S> If the indivdual contractor quits or is run over by a bus, then there is no one available immediately to replace that person and they may not even have all the source code avaiable for someone else once they find him. <S> Losing an indivudual contractor may mean starting the project over from scratch. <S> There is also a lot of effort you may not see in hiring people and continuing to use a known entity means that you have a partner who knows your needs <S> and you already have in place the legal stuff you need. <S> That saves a lot of time and money in the long run over negotiating with indivdual contractors. <S> Plus finding competent and capable indivdual contractors is harder than hiring a copmany to do the hiring.
| From the hiring company's standpoint, it is also a lot more likely that a large contracting company would be able to resolve issues than a single contractor could.
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How should I show relevant volunteer work on a resume? How should relevant volunteer work be shown on a resume? Should I list these activities in the "Professional Experience" of my resume? Should I have a separate section? A couple examples may provide some aid for answers: I'm a software and web developer and have voluntarily developed and maintained web sites for organizations in which I have been active outside work. Currently, I maintain a couple sites like this and have done others in the past. How would I show that on my resume if I were to apply for a software or web development job? In the past, I have held some leadership positions within some of those organizations, organizational officers such as Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President, and President, as well as serving on a committees and Boards of Directors. How would I list that if I were to apply for a managerial position? <Q> If the work is directly applicable to positions you're applying for, consider it to be 'professional experience'. <S> Doing the tasks you mentioned is no different than a paid job, and no one would likely take offense (and may appreciate) at knowing details about that experience. <S> Something to remember about resumes: they're more often fodder for interview questions and conversation. <S> If you'd like to discuss the experience, put it down. <S> For some items (like being a group treasurer, for instance) it's better to list that in a 'community activities' section if it is not directly applicable to the position you're applying to. <S> EDIT: <S> I'll also add that you shouldn't feel the need to list every single activity on your resume - add a web page address, LinkedIn profile, StackOverFlow Careers link, etc. <S> in your contact information - if you list it, someone will use it for interview prep. <A> I have a section on my resume titled "Volunteer Experience". <S> It lists the organizations I've worked with and job descriptions, just like my professional experience. <S> I've had multiple interview questions directly address this experience. <S> The hiring managers at my last two positions both cited my volunteer work as a positive in making the hiring decision. <S> I would also recommend coming up with an interview-friendly way to describe the organization you are working with. <S> For example, I was on the executive committee running an anime convention for several years and gained a lot of valuable leadership experience. <S> However, many interviewers/resume readers may not know what an anime convention is, or they may perceive it negatively. <S> I described the con as a "Japanese culture and media conference." <S> Your volunteer work is valuable, especially if you are trying to break into a new field or work your way out of entry level. <A> 2) Link to my gitHub / Sourceforge projects <S> - Add one liner intro. <S> 3) Link to my blogsite + add link to comscore (to show unique visitor stats etc) <S> Such things do matter to a lot to employers these days (and if it doesn't they would just ignore it). <S> I have been to interviews where we have spent 30 mins just talking about open source projects and how can I improve them, or how can I use them for that company.
| I have similar experiences on my resume, Right under my professional experience I have added a section where I have mentioned all such thing in "one line" and add a link to it: 1) I am president of a non profit organisation working on....
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When is the right time to give my notice to leave my current company? Finally we are called upon by the most awaited company, where I got placed a year ago. In the mean while, I started working with a local company. Now, I am going to join the company after two months. Also at the same time, my contract in the current company is going to change and we would be offered double the salary that we were previously getting. More precisely, I would tell that, the six-month training period had ended and we are almost hired for sure, we are done with all the formalities (work history checks, task completions, evaluation checks), and we are waiting for final signature of the documents. Now, I would like to ask if it is the good time to break my job suspense to my team leader that i would be working for no more than three months in this company or should I wait for my revised contract and get a salary hike. Note that I am asking this because our team leader is really a role model for me, he is really an appreciator for what we do. he motivates us to look for better growth opportunities and I don't want to disappoint him at the last moment. I would be resigning for sure from the same company, no matter if I got more salary as compared to the new company, but I would like to know if it is good to get one or two large salaries, so as i could show in the next company what I was getting from my last company. <Q> I am not a lawyer but local laws may impact the time you have to give your notice. <S> For the sake of argument, I will assume below that you can give your notice at any time like it is the usage in the USA. <S> You are naturally enthusiastic about this new company but you may still encounter some obstacles in the possibly bureaucratic hiring process. <S> As much as you appreciate your team leader, this is your career and your livelihood. <S> Being open in this sensitive period may compromise this livelihood temporarily. <S> Finally, you must not burn bridges when you leave your company. <S> Again, this depends on the local culture and the industry. <S> You never know who will be your boss or subordinate in the future and preserving a good and professional relationship with your ex-colleagues is essential. <S> I think you can safely state to the new company the salary you would have had at the previous company if you had stayed. <S> This could indeed help you in the salary negotiations. <A> we are almost hired for sure, <S> That is not good enough. <S> Do not give notice until you have somewhere else to go. <S> Not when you think you are going to have somewhere else to go. <S> What would the the consequence be to you if the company decided to terminate you immediately when you gave notice? <S> Or if something happens and that position falls through at the last minute. <S> Can you afford to be out of work for 3 months or more waiting for the new position to start? <S> Can your family afford that? <S> As far as waiting for the salary bump there is no reason to wait for that if you have a firm offer in hand. <S> Waiting until after has the potential to leave some bad feelings behind as your mentor will have just helped you get a raise only to have you turn around and leave right away. <S> Better to leave before the raise to avoid that risk <S> but only if you have a firm offer in hand. <S> That means waiting until the time between when the current job will end and and the new job starts is right at that notice window. <S> Do not talk about the new position with anyone in or around your current employer until you have given notice. <S> And in your notice be short and professional. <S> Something along these lines <S> : I thank you for the opportunities you have given me to work in the field of advanced hydro-spanner grommets, widgets, and cogs. <S> I have accepted a position at another company and will be terminating my employment on XX/XX/20XX. <S> I have enjoyed my time here and will always speak well of my experience with the company. <S> Any future correspondences after XX/XX/20XX can be sent to the following address: <S> You should of course customize it to fit your circumstances. <S> It is important to convey that you are happy with the time spent with the company and are not leaving mad. <S> Hopefully this will mitigate any hurt feelings by managers that feel they have time invested in you and help secure a good reference in the future. <A> I agree with the others on waiting until you have a firm start date. <S> With that said, you should also not be discussing this with anyone else where you are currently. <S> I made the mistake myself of not informing my boss before informing some of my coworkers. <S> He found out from one of them before I had a chance to talk with him. <S> Thankfully my boss was completely understanding and it helped that he knew I was looking. <S> Also, because I had a really good work relationship with my boss he was aware of my desire to find a better position. <S> So if your relationship with your team leader is a really good one then you should tell him as soon as you have that definite start date, even if the start date is 2 months away. <S> Otherwise wait until whatever the laws in India require. <S> You never know if you may want to return to this company in the future.
| I would not disclose to anybody that you are leaving until the time when you have firm start date in hand . Waiting to get a pay raise before you give your notice to leave may be considered a faux pas . When you leave provide the minimum notice.
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How to deal with insensitive humor in the office? Maybe I should just let this go, but I'm finding that difficult. A co-worker made what he considered to be a joking statement about people with a certain disease. I contradicted the statement, but he re-iterated what he'd said more forcefully. It wasn't really offensive in any usual way, but just stupid and insensitive and inconsiderate. Given that I lost a parent and several other family members to different types of this disease, it brings up painful memories also. Also, the boss was sitting right there the whole time. Unfortunately, the co-worker seems to be the boss' favorite (he is very knowledgeable and productive, so his social shortcomings seem to be ignored). Edit to clarify a few things: This person does frequently say things that are, in my opinion at least, inappropriate. Sometimes it's insensitive humor like this, sometimes it's over use of foul language, sometimes it's just insults (usually directed at someone outside our group). Also, as I stated in a comment, the situation is complicated with several contractors working on a long term project for a large organization and we work for different companies; escalating this to his company's HR department would be difficult. <Q> There is absolutely noting wrong with saying: <S> I have several friends that suffered and/or died from that <S> and I find it difficult to see the humor in your joke. <S> Could you not make jokes about it around me? <S> Despite what you may consider appropriate social/workplace norms; not everyone is aware that they are making you uncomfortable and they won't know unless you tell them. <S> Obviously if the jokes/comments continue then you will have to make a decision as to how far you're willing to go with your actions. <S> But you have to take the first step. <S> I've always told an employee to make this first step before escalating to a manager or HR. <S> The only exception would be if you felt that the possibility of physical or sexual violence was likely. <A> Everyone says stupid things sometimes. <S> It can only hurt you to be confrontational about something that this inconsiderate person blurted out without thinking. <S> If you have to actually retort, the best that could possibly happen is that this person and anyone who laughed will feel embarrassed about it. <S> More likely, however, it will mark you as being oversensitive. <S> If the behavior becomes repeated and chronic you have a toxic co-worker <S> and then you will need to react in some way, but keep in mind that an emotional or heavy-handed reaction often makes the behavior worse. <S> See Chapter 5 of " The No Asshole Rule " <A> Realistically, if your co-worker is very productive bosses will frequently turn a blind eye to their behaviour. <S> The more talented the person is when it comes to work, the more they can get away. <S> The first thing I would do is confront this person. <S> Tell them that you find what they say offensive because it impacts you personally, and that you would appreciate if they were more considerate. <S> You don't have to explain any details. <S> Decent (though ignorant) <S> people will realize that they've gone too far and apologize right there and then and feel ashamed. <S> If that doesn't happen you can talk to their boss. <S> You can be very blatent about things and say "I know Joe is very talented, but he says things that people just should not say at work. <S> This really bothers me, and probably others". <S> Your boss will have to say "Ok" and have a conversation with Joe. <S> If that doesn't happen, then you can go nuclear and take it to HR. <S> There will be fallout if you do this, and you might even have to dust off your resume. <S> You need to decide how far you want to go with this. <A> you have to say something in a non-challenging but firm way that sets the tone this behavior is insensitive. <S> if there are workplace policies against bullying, violence or discrimination, also make a note on your calendar (mark private) and note what action you took. <S> I work in government and we have strict policies that could get me in trouble for not making the initial report. <S> then, if the offense is repeated, you have a leg to stand on. <S> you have to follow procedure and go up the chain. <S> document those reports too. <S> in the mean time, look into personal growth info that might help you turn the other cheek, let go of ego, <S> etc., for the more minor offenses. <S> life is short, don't pay them to get in your head and aggravate you. <S> some people feed off of that. <A> This will be my opinion only of course, but this looks like an example of focusing too much on a minor issue and making a mountain out of a molehill. <S> You say It wasn't really offensive in any usual way, but just stupid and insensitive and inconsiderate. <S> Well, sometimes people say stupid things. <S> If it isn't a serious problem, why spend so much energy on it? <S> After all, that statement was the expression of guy's own opinion and of course you may disagree with it <S> but here you in fact try to make him shut up because... <S> well, just because you don't like it. <S> Really, once it's not offensive it should just be ignored.
| The first and often overlooked step in dealing with any inappropriate behavior or comments in the workplace is letting the person know that you are offended or uncomfortable with what they have said or done. Let it slide (assuming this was an isolated instance). you may have to report it to HR if prior training has made it clear you are obligated to do so.
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Saying no to an interview after saying yes over the phone I have been working for a company for less than 6 months. My team in office had a warning from management that there may be a layoff. So I was applying for all kinds of jobs mostly relevant to my current profile. I got a call from a big MNC in my field for an interview for a post. I immediately said yes and told them to send an email. But for two reasons, I am not going of taking the interview. The management of current team told me there will be no layoffs. The profile of the job is a different from my current job and I don't want to switch jobs too often within a short period of time. How should I say no politely? <Q> Cancelling is easy. <S> You call the person who set up the interview (phone is better than email unless most of the interview arrangements were done by email) and say "Thanks very much for your invitation, but my circumstances have changed and I'm no longer interested in interviewing for this position right now". <S> Don't worry, your recruiter has this happen all the time. <S> If they ask for more reasons give as much or as little of the details as you feel comfortable. <S> However... <S> Are you sure you want to cancel this? <S> Your current company went from 'no layoffs' to 'layoffs' and back to 'no layoffs' in a few weeks. <S> Who is to say it won't change again? <S> The company is clearly in the verge of instability. <S> If I were you I would at least check out this other company. <S> Maybe the job is exactly what you are looking for, with better pay and benefits? <S> You won't know unless you check it out. <S> One or two short jobs aren't going to be a problem if you have good reasons for the move - and the threat of layoffs is a good reason. <A> If a company is threatening layoffs less than six months after you were hired, it could be one of three things: <S> The company is in a highly volatile sector, where cash flows experience extreme fluctuations. <S> If this is the case, should you manage to keep your position, you can expect similar cycles of personnel changes. <S> Expect to spend a lot time mentoring and dealing with extra workload as new employees come up to speed. <S> The management of this company may be challenged when it comes to forecasting and strategic planning. <S> They may tend to be more reactive than proactive, which could explain the need to layoff employees so close to bringing recent hires onboard. <S> They could just be experiencing a temporary downturn of business or cash flow. <S> In either case, the operating budget may need to be adjusted in order to compensate. <S> This may result in fewer perks, less money available for supplies and business-related expenses, and a decrease in employee morale, as people hear the word "No" more often than they used to. <S> You never know what the new company has to offer you, unless you hear them out. <S> It costs you absolutely nothing, except the time you spend with them on the phone or in person. <S> At the very worst, you get to practice your interview skills. <S> You get to ask whatever questions you want, because, as far as you're concerned, you have a job to go back to if you don't like what you hear. <S> As an employee, this is one of the few times you actually get to be in the driver's seat, so enjoy the ride... <A> As with what was said by 'DJClayworth' I'd agree that cancelling is easy. <S> Especially if the contact was with a recruiter and not the manager looking to hire. <S> But unless you have a really strong reason/tie to your current company (of 6 months) <S> I would suggest going to the interview for several reasons as listed below. <S> Companies big and small don't always describe the open job position very well. <S> They often list everything they can think of that they 'want' a new employee to know or be able to do. <S> Which often isn't the case. <S> Just because a posting/listing doesn't sound like it fits your specific skills <S> doesn't mean you wouldn't be a great fit. <S> Phone interviews can only cover so much and an in-person followup interview can often help give you a much clearer picture of the job and the people you will be working with. <S> Even if you love your currently company and have no desire to leave I feel it is a sound decision to do anywhere from 1-4 interviews a year with other companies in your industry, <S> this not only helps you keep your interview skills up just in-case something bad were to happen. <S> It also allows you to see what is available in the industry, most notably your current salary and benefits. <S> It is often a good indication of where technology in your industry is moving. <S> Unless your in a bleeding edge industry this can help you see what skills employers currently hiring are looking for. <S> Allowing you to do your own research along those line which can help you personally as well as your current or new employer.
| I would keep the interview, but, with as much professionalism as you can muster, make them sell you on why you should leave a seemingly sure thing for an unknown.
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Can I use my own application form? I've applied for a number of jobs and application forms have ranged from brilliant PDF forms to ones crudely made in Word with very little thought for spacing. I've considered making my own application form that contains all the information asked for in typical application forms, but I wondered would this be acceptable or considered a little strange? <Q> Unless the job you are applying for would involve designing the company's application form, I would strongly advise against creating your own form. <S> Even then, using your own form would be risky but at least there would be some potential upside. <S> There is a benefit to uniformity. <S> Even if you find the form ugly, if a hiring manager (or HR) is trying to go through dozens or hundreds of applications for a particular position, they know exactly where different pieces of information are on their form. <S> If you use a different form, the manager now has to figure out where that information exists on your application. <S> If someone is looking for a way to narrow the field of applicants to a more manageable number, throwing out applicants that filled out the wrong form is a pretty easy decision to make. <S> Using your own application form will also tend to signal to the employer that you're unwilling to conform to practices that you don't agree with. <S> Every company has policies that individual employees find silly or pointless or poorly designed or inelegant in some way. <S> That doesn't mean that individual employees can opt of of using those systems. <S> And what advantage would you gain by having your own form? <S> Sure, if part of your job would be to own the application form or even to design paper forms for other processes, the hiring manager might give you bonus points for submitting a well-designed form as part of your application. <S> But for 99.9% of the jobs out there, submitting a custom application form isn't going to be an advantage. <A> It would not be acceptable, all places of employment are looking for one thing in an employee. <S> Someone who follows instructions. <S> Many larger business have those forms in a specific way for a specific reason. <S> I'm required to use a company wide form when taking applicants, and I'd be sited for non compliance if I failed to do so. <S> They are going to: - Look at you funny <S> - Ask you to fill out one of their applications. <S> - Laugh about you after you walk out the door and toss the one you made in the trash. <S> If you want to customize something you should make your resume shine, or get a haircut and give a fresh shave. <S> Just fill out what they ask on the application. <S> It's all about the first impression, "Looks the part, followed instructions, was on time, was polite <S> " that's what you're hoping to come across as. <A> We have a standard application form online that covers key information that we need to know - things like driving licence, nationality and work visa status - as they can impact on the role. <S> People can then either fill in a form for the remaining details, or upload a CV, <S> Many firms use standard forms as a way of simplifying the administration of the application process, and to create a level playing field. <S> I would never ignore a form provided, of for that matter any application instructions relating to the CV/resume length, detail and/or cover letter. <S> In our case, if the online submission is not managed properly, you are rejected automatically by the system. <S> I can scan reject applications, but realistically its unlikely unless I'm unabel to create a shortlist from the applicants I have. <S> It would need to be undertaken with significant style and flair, however, or it could easily misfire. <A> A crude application form is not a bad application form. <S> It may be hard and confusing to fill in, so it's bad for you. <S> But it not the purpose of the form to be easy to fill in. <S> The purpose it to ensure consistenyc and structure of the data they get. <S> That's why they ask to fill in a form in the first place. <S> Looking from this perspective, which is the best form to provide consistency with the existing databases, documents and processes? <S> Right, the one they used before. <S> So, in some objective way, the form they use is the best that could exist. <S> That starts to sound a little less weird if you think about a form that is so bad that it even distorts the data they get. <S> They all know that and got used to it. <S> Using a "better" form would mean they now have two kinds of data sets, which need different interpretation.
| There is a good chance that a hiring manager would suspect that someone that felt they had to design their own application form would also find a need to do things on the job in their own way which would likely end up creating more work for the manager. If you make your own application it's not following instructions, it's saying you are going to do your own thing. In some industries, especially the creative ones like advertising, a CV that simulated an application form (good or bad) could create a stand-out point of difference between your application and others.
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security clearance and self employment I am up for a job that will get me a Secret Clearance. Between 2006-2009, I was a contractor. I had 5 contracts. 4 of them I was self employed. 1 I was a w-2. For the w-2 there should be a record of my dates of employment at the contract company. The others were through an LLC and later an S-Corporation. There are no requirements for contract companies to keep records. One of the companies I worked with for a year went out of business. I might be able to get references for 2 of the contracts from people I worked with. I don't even remember my managers name on some of these. Not sure what I should provide the investigator? Will this cause a problem? Also, I think they go back 7 years. The company I was at before I contracted is a large company. I have no idea how to contact their HR department. Can I just give the company name? Will they be able to find it? <Q> When I filled out the application for my US Secret clearance two years ago, I did not need to provide references at each company. <S> What I needed to provide was a set of references covering the time period for people who could vouch for my employment and residence. <S> Your employer (or prospective employer, if this is a new job rather than a promotion) almost certainly has a designated "security officer" whose job includes shepherding people through the clearance process. <S> That person can help with specific details of the application. <A> Do you have someone not related to you that can vouch that you were doing that contract and not selling drugs, or knockoffs, or doing time in jail? <S> What they care about most is that you can prove that you were doing something legal that you say you were doing and not something bad. <S> There are different levels of security clearance that require deeper back ground checks. <S> Some of the checks can take over a year to clear even if you have everything for them. <S> Generally if you can get to the point where they are willing to start that investigation, and your skill is in immediate need they will issue you a temporary clearance. <S> This could be revoked at any time if the investigation hits a snag. <S> I worked with a contractor that lost his clearance for 3 weeks over a wrong phone number. <S> But when the issue cleared the clearance was resumed. <A> You should provide more information than they need. <S> Make a list of everything you can find: Who you worked for <S> ; Where you worked; Dates; Somebody who worked there. <S> You might have old emails or are connected to some of these people though LinkedIn. <S> You might need to look back at your old tax records. <S> Look at old resumes. <S> They will decide who they need to interview. <S> The investigators know the farther you go back, the harder it is to find people. <S> People leave companies, they retire, they seem to drop off the face of the earth. <S> Ask the security office at the company or government agency. <S> You are not the first with this situation. <S> Others have tough challenges too: they moved 10 times while in the military including war zones; they went to college out of the country; they worked for one company but at 7 different work locations. <S> You will probably be interviewed after you complete the forms, this is the time to bring the box of paperwork so that if they ask for more information you can try to find it. <S> They will go over every line on the form at that interview, if they want more info than you have, then you will be given time to gather the names and numbers. <A> I've had to deal with security clearances for a long time. <S> It's best to keep a log with details and contact numbers of people who aren't related or don't live with you to vouch for your activities at different times of projects and self employment. <S> It might take a few hours, but you can put all that in a private resume for your own purposes with dates and contact information. <S> Since you are struggling with identifying someone unrelated who can vouch for your activities for a few projects, that could slow things down. <S> It's best to make an effort to think about who can vouch for those times.
| If you have the name of a contact at the company that you were contracting and they can say that yes you were working on that contract around those dates it will usually be enough for basic security clearances.
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Should I require my employees to ask permission to use corporate discount? My company was approached a while ago by a hotel chain and we were offered a discount of 10% when any employee stays at one of their hotels. It doesn't cost us anything; it's mutually beneficial for both us and the hotel. They are simply trying to give us incentives to stay there as opposed to one of their competitors. They only require that we show an employee ID when we check in. Business or pleasure trips... doesn't matter. We made that clear at the outset because we don't want any liability if an employee does damage, etc. while on vacation. So, there is no liability issue. It's simply a discount just like an auto club or senior citizen discount. When our employees are on vacation, they sometimes use this discount--and so do I. We've been taking advantage of this for years. I was wondering, in light of this other question , should I require my employees to ask for permission from our HR department before they take advantage of this discount when they are on non-business related travel? And should I ever reject their request? <Q> Treat it just like any other fringe benefit of the job. <S> In the other question, the concern was related to the fact that we had no idea how exactly the discount was structured. <S> If the company was paying a fee for the discount or the company would be liable for damages or if there was some other potential downside for the company, it makes sense to ask for permission. <S> In your case, there is no potential downside for the company <S> so there is no reason to ask for permission. <A> I'd think there would be a benefit to knowing how useful it is. <S> How you figure that out probably depends on your company's size, culture and other travel booking processes. <S> The reason to know would be that sooner or later you may want to set up another discount program or your current hotel discount program may want to discontinue or change the program you have now. <S> If you don't know who's using it, how often, or why they are using it, then you have no real basis for any future negotiations. <S> Right at the moment, that's no big deal, since the program costs you nothing - so the value you get from it can be very small and still be a profit. <S> So it's really more of a looking forward thing. <S> The problem with any data-gathering thing is that you need to gather the data first, and make use of it second! <S> (seems obvious, but it's often only obvious in hindsight!) <S> How you find out if the program is useful is really your call. <S> You could ask everyone to check in with you, but if you have an informal company, this process may actually limit the benefit that others get from it, and there's no benefit there. <S> I'd say maybe a survey, or a quick chat here <S> and there if your company's small enough. <S> A simple <S> "how many times a year do you use it? <S> For personal travel? <S> For business travel? <S> " and "have you/would you refer this hotel to a friend?" <S> may be all you need. <S> Maybe just do it once or twice a year and be done with it. <S> Also, sending out a survey once and a while reminds employees that it's there and available for use. <S> It's easy to forget and who doesn't want to be reminded about good discounts? <A> The only reason I can think of would be for reporting purposes. <S> Do you/your company take note of what employees are using it and when? <S> Is the information required to perhaps get you some better leeway with the hotel? <S> Perhaps a 15% discount in the lower peaks to benefit everyone more so? <S> I Would say if you have no reason for knowing then why make them ask? <S> Though saying that there is also the factor of the hotel. <S> Does your agreement with them allow for employees to use it for reason other than business? <S> If they can then I would say you have no reason to ask. <S> After all, it's not like the employee will be expensing the cost of it to you for personal use! <A> You should not make them ask you. <S> At best you create an atmosphere of favoritism, at worst you attempt to enforce the policy and end up having to fire someone that made an honest mistake in order to keep discipline. <S> And in the middle? <S> You are encouraging employees to ignore your policies (bad policy, but your expressed policy nonetheless). <S> Unless there is a potential conflict of interest, you should simply make it known that the discount is available, that it is free to the company and free to the employee and that your only involvement is to let them know it exists, what they do with it is their concern. <S> Fundamentally, the hotel is trying to use you to drum up business, unless you are charging the hotel, it's none of your concern. <A> There is the potential that requiring your employees to get "approval" from HR or management could create a liability for your company that does not exist in your current state. <S> If the use of the discount were to be approved by your team and the a member of the hotel staff decides not to honor the discount, your company could end up being held liable for the expected savings. <S> The amount is small but if you have a large number of employees over time this could add up. <S> Even if you do not honor that liability you could end up the target of a class action suit over your refusal to honor your "approved" discounts. <S> It could cost your tens of thousands or more to defend yourself. <S> There is no benefit to requiring approval or permission but plenty of risk on the other side. <A> Are you suggesting that employees ask prior to each personal use or if they should ask once to see if you'll allow it? <S> I see that as a big distinction. <S> Define a Policy <S> A simple blurb in the employee handbook to tell employees if they are allowed to use the discount for personal use is all it takes. <S> That way there is no question in the employees mind at all. <S> You might want to go further and state in the policy that the employee assumes all liability resulting from personal use to make the HR and Legal types happy. <S> Ask for Approval <S> I see no justification at all to tell an employee to ask each time they want to use the discount for personal use. <S> Seems intrusive and invasive for the employee and adds no value to you. <S> The only exception that I can think of is if you wanted to track usage simply to negotiate with the hotel for a better discount rate.
| If it doesn't cost the company anything and imposes no liability, I can't envision any reason for people to have to ask permission to use the discount.
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