What should you say and not say during an exit interview?

Although there are many reasons for leaving a job, it’s a good rule of thumb to leave it on good terms (even if the work environment was difficult).

Some things to consider:
1) When asked “Why are you leaving”, avoid saying anything negative about the position or people that you are leaving.  Focus on the fact that this current position has prepared you for this new opportunity.  Appreciate all the learning experiences and skill set that this current position afforded you.  Without this current position, you would not have been able to advance to the next level.

2) Leave with an attitude of service.  Offer 1 week of limited phone or email consult.  Even though your last two weeks at the current job should be training and handing-off to your replacement; many organizations don’t actually rehire until after you have gone and they may have some questions after you leave.  Offering some availability, illustrates your desire for the department to succeed after you leave.   It’s is not likely that they will call.  But it’s a nice offer to make.

3) When asked “Is there anything we should change, to better retain good employees like yourself?”  be prepared with procedural improvements that support the business mission and goals.  Avoid emotional and personal comments on managers and co-workers.  Focus on steps that will increase the company’s revenue, customer satisfaction, and efficiency.

4) Avoid losing contact.  Keep in touch with all your significant co-workers, managers, mentors and clients from this job.  Business network with these people after you leave.   Things change. Their positions will change; their needs will change; your position will change and your needs will change.  Opportunities will rise because of these business networks.

5) Leave with a strong handshake and smile.  Exit a job just as you would leave a job interview.  Promise to keep in touch and wish them well.

 

ITDevDVDThe Professional Development Toolkit DVD and e-course goes into the who, what, where, when and why of all of the above.

For a limited time only – the first 20 people to register for the course will get in free.   Just enter the coupon code “Open Enrollment” at

https://www.udemy.com/it-professional-development-toolkit/

 

How to handle difficult clients

How best to manage relationships with clients who can be difficult or trying.

I am a business and professional development coach. My professional website is www.LauraLeeRose.com and my company is Rose Coaching.

Whether you work in the corporate staff environment or own you own business,  you will bump into a dissatisfied customer once and awhile.  Below are some quick tips to diffuse and handle the situation.

1) Understand what your client is trying to accomplish. Most focus on what the thing the client is reporting and not on what the client is trying to accomplish. If you achieve the essence of the client’s goal, he will be appeased – even if the thing he is reporting isn’t fixed.

2) Illustrate that you are on the client’s side. Paraphrase what the client is trying to accomplish and acknowledge that he is frustrated with the current situation. Most difficulties arise when you defend your position against a difficult client. It’s a tricky situation because you don’t want to ‘bad-mouth’ your company. But you do want to acknowledge that this is a frustrating situation.

3) Take responsibility for fixing the situation. Handing-off to a manager or someone else exudes a dismissive attitude. If you can not answer the question, include someone else but stay engaged in the solution. The client wants one point-person to see this crisis through with him. Handing-off to others shows that you don’t really care.

4) Ask the client how they would like it fixed. Since every client is a unique person, you may not be able to read his/her mind. Therefore, ask them how they want this situation to be fixed. If they are invited to be part of the solution, they will not be finding more problems. Some clients will get stuck with the “what is” problem. But guide them into “Although this is a regrettable situation, this is where we are now. What can I do from this point to help you get what you need.”

5) Go above and beyond to make amends. When you make a mistake, go above and beyond to make amends. This may include additional products, services or gifts.

An example that ties all this together. Client is there to purchase an advertized a 2-piece product. You have the first piece but ran out of the second piece (which isn’t supposed to happen). This was your store’s inventory mistake. You ask how the client wants you to fix this, and they state, “I want you to honor your advertizing.” You locate another sibling store that carries both pieces. That store is an hour travel time away. You want to keep the commission so you tell the client to pay for the product here, and pickup the 2nd piece at the other store. (Not taking responsibility for fixing the problem).

Understand what the client is trying to accomplish: Client wants the full product but doesn’t want to add the time and travel to receive it. If the client has to travel another hour to pick up the 2-piece product, they are more inclined to give the commission to the 2nd store. They don’t want to pay you for passing them off to someone else. Offer to ship the product to their home with no shipping charge. Put a rush (next day) delivery from the 2nd store directly to their home – with no charge to the client.  You should also include an additional gift for the inconvenience and shipping delay.

Employers that interview but never hires.

This is Laura Lee Rose, a business and efficiency coach that specializes in professional development, time management, project management and work-life balance strategies.  In my Professional Development Toolkit package , I go into professional development and real-world IT topics in detail. If you are interested in more training in these areas, get signed up

 I know the usual reasons for not hiring a particular individual, such as under-qualification or just-not-a-fit; but what are the reasons employers interview and then decide not to hire anyone?

There are often different reasons why employers interview and then don’t hire.  Because reasons are normally asynchronous to the hiring process, they are less evident.

Since the interview process takes time and money (from advertizing for the position, filtering and sorting incoming resumes, initial candidate screening and the interview meeting),no company goes into this process with the idea that “they do not intend to really hire anyone”.  They enter this process with the full intention of finding good candidates and eventually a good employee.

But because this process takes time, things can change during the interview process itself.  The longer it takes to find someone, the higher the risk of something changing.
Some things that they may realize during the interview process are:

1) The longer it takes to find the right person, the higher the risk that they realize that this position isn’t as critical as first thought.  They may feel that they are doing fine without the extra hand.  After viewing several candidates, they realize that they rather train and promote from within. Or they find that they have actually completed the project that they were trying to hire.
2) The position disappears because of an re-organization or business strategy change. It could be combined with some other role or eliminated altogether.
3) A new project management strategy is instituted such that either the schedule is extended to allow the current resources to handle the added tasks; or the project scope is diminished such that the current resources are satisfactory.
4) A hiring freeze was just initiated.
5) A different way of subsidizing the resources is implemented instead. This could be a short-term contractor, an affiliated partner is providing the service (outsourcing), the company decides to eliminate that service altogether (and refer clients to their referral partners)

It’s important for job seekers to not take it personally, and work hard to stay on these potential employer’s radar.  Things change – which means things will change again.  If you stay on their radar (through continued business networking techniques), when things change back again, you are on the top of their Rolodex.

In the Professional Toolkit, I provide worksheet, templates and guidance on how to accomplish these things.    The Book of Answers: 105 Career Critical Situations  contains 105 work-life scenarios like the above.  The scenarios show how to accomplish your goals in similar situation.

For more information on how to get this toolkit or the “Book of Answers” email LauraRose@RoseCoaching.info

How to deal with difficult clients without losing business.

How to deal with difficult clients without losing business.

For your business to thrive, you need the right client (not just any client). Often times the difficult clients means it’s a poor match. It could mean that you don’t have the right product; the right price; or the right service level for them. In these cases, they are not the right client for you. If you continue to try to provide for the wrong clients, you will loose business for a few reasons:
1) customerserviceThey will never be happy with your service.
2) You will loose money trying to make them happy (which you will never be
able to do).
3) They will tell everyone that they know – not to go to your place
(loosing you more clients).

So – sometimes, trying to keep a client actually loses you business.

Some ways to deal with difficult clients without losing business:

1) Understand the reason the client is asking for this particular item. Sometimes what the client really needs is different from what they are actually asking for. If you take the time to understand the client’s perspective, goal and reason for the purchase (of service or product), then even if you don’t have the exact product they are asking for, you may have a different solution for them. Sometimes people get fixated on one way to fix the problem, when there are multiple solutions. You may have a different product that solves their problem – just not the one they are fixated on right now.

2) Be prepared with a list of affiliated or referred partners. If you don’t have the right solution, be prepared to hand-off to someone in your referral or affiliated program. This way the client stays happy and you get the referral fee.

3) Apologize for the situation and ask the client how he/she would like this situation handled. Try to accommodate as best as you can within the goal of your company. If you are not able to accommodate the client and you have caused them some inconvenience, provide them an in-store coupon or gift certificate that requires them to come back to redeem.

How to keep that new employee

This is Laura Lee Rose, a business and efficiency coach that specializes in professional development, time management, project management and work-life balance strategies.  The Professional Development Toolkit package covers professional development and real-world IT topics in detail. If you are interested in inexpensive training in these areas,get signed up

I received the following questions about why new employees leave a job:

  • Why do new employees leave?
  • How can a company on-board them immediately and create an environment that makes new employees want to invest in their future with the company?

 

Most new employees leave because of just a few reasons:
  • they are frustrated with the work that they are assigned;
  • they are offered a better job;
  • they are the wrong fit for this company/job.

To avoid some of these issues, do your homework:

1) Make sure you do your due-diligence in the interview process.  Understand their motives and career goals.  As best as you can, make sure their career goals, personalities and work ethic meets and matches your needs.

      This reduces incidents of  “they are the wrong fit for the job”

2) Have copies of your company policies, orientation materials and task procedures (that they will be responsible for) for them.  Make sure your training and procedures are well documented with steps, the reason for doing it this way, and your success criteria (how they know it’s completed correctly).

     This reduces the incidents of “they are frustrated with the tasks they are assigned”

3) Provide career support.  Partner the new employee with a buddy and a mentor.  The buddy system gives the new employee someone to go-to to ask daily questions.  The mentor (which is a different, higher-level person) helps them stay future career focused.  Also, setup regular one-on-one meetings with the manager.  The meetings can be as frequent as once a week but no less than once every two weeks.  The meetings can be as short as 15 minutes but schedule at least 30 minutes in the calendar.  This gives them a known and regular time to meet with their manager.  This support encourages transparency and open communication.

This reduces the incidents of “they are frustrated with the tasks they are assigned”.  Also – by building a good working relationship with their managers and co-workers, they will see this as “the better job” – reducing the ” they are offered a better job”.

In the Professional Toolkit, I provide worksheet, templates and guidance on how to accomplish these things.    In my Book of Answers: 105 Career Critical Situations, I have 105 work-life scenarios like the above.  The scenarios show how to accomplish your goals in similar situation.
For more information on how to get this toolkit or the “Book of Answers“, please contact LauraRose@RoseCoaching.info

Excelling in a group interview setting


groupinterviewInterviews are nerve wracking enough when done one-on-one, but add in a group dynamic, and it can be enough to scare away candidates.
  • How can job seekers excel in a group setting, when their competition is interviewing alongside them?
  • How can job seekers remain calm, appear knowledgeable, and prove they are the best fit for the job?
Some recommendations:

1) Focus on the attributes that you want to illustrate:  Professionalism, Team Player, Work well with others, Adds Value to the conversation; and can understand and adapt to the changing dynamics of the workforce.  After all, this group interview is no different than a regular staff meeting.  This is a good way to see how you will conduct yourself in a meeting environment.

2) By keeping the things you want to illustrate in “real-time”, you will avoid interrupting, one-upping, and even competing.  Approach the group interview as regular staff meeting.  Find ways to differentiate yourself through active listening and even asking open-ended questions.

3) Pay attending and listen to everyone’s answers and incorporate what they are saying into your answers.  Acknowledge what both the interviewer and other interviewees are saying (instead of just tuning out to figure out what you are going to say when your turn does come).

4) When you are answering your question, make eye contact to everyone on the panel (and not just the person that asked the question).

5) Avoid elevating yourself by putting someone else down.  If you want to illustrate leadership, you want to go out of your way to uplift everyone in the room.

 

 

Designing Your Scarecrows to Success

scarecrowsDesigning your own Scarecrow:  In the past, we’ve discussed doing at least 1 scary thing a week to grow and develop.   (Read full article of “How to do things that scare you” here)

Now that the fall is here – so is harvest time.  So — what types of tools have you been using to scare away those pesky voices, events, and even friends that tend to distract and sabotage your success?

While talking about the dilemma “is your glass have full or have empty”  I often reply “It’s irrelevant because there’s free refills”  Someone once asked a discussion group question – “What do you do is someone else smashes your half-full glass?”   Some folks said , “Just get a bigger glass”.  Some folks answered, “Get a bigger glass and stay away from those people in the future”.

One big mistake we all make is to assume that ‘someone else’ is smashing your glass.  No one can smash your glass, except you.  No one can affect you if you don’t allow them to.   It’s that old question “If a tree falls in the woods and there is no one to hear it, does it make a sound.” People can say anything they want (negative or positive).    If you are not listening to them, then you are not affected.  Therefore, the only reason someone can upset you is because you (for some reason) are believing what they are saying.  So – it really does come back to – it’s not what they are saying that hurts you.  It’s what you think about what they are saying that is hurting you.  Therefore, if you change how you think about what they are saying – you can turn this event into a positive (regardless of their initial intentions).

So — this is where Your Scarecrow comes into being.

We sometimes allow others (voices, events, and even well-meaning ‘framily’ (friends and family) to derail us from our personal and professional goals.   What have you put in place to keep you are target?  What type of Scarecrows have you put in place to divert and attract others away from negative influences.  And what type of Scarecrows have you put in place to help you focus on the goal at hand?

What would you like to use to help switch your mindset on some things.

A Scarecrow can be several different things:

1) A vision board of where you want to be, do or have

2) Picture of your best friend for continued encouragement

3) A pact to text a friend each time you completed a work-out or tedious task

4) A rigid routine or schedule to help keep you on track and active

5) Motivational audios or videos

6) Journalling

7) Daily phone call to a trusted friend

8) Use of a timer to limit breaks, computer window browsing, or get us back on track

9) Blocking time on the calendar for our imperatives (like family, friend, healthy lifestyle, etc).

10) Lining up accountability partners and reasonable forcing functions to help us succeed – as in a Mastermind or Synergy group.

If can be anything.   If you haven’t lined up your Scarecrows, do it today.

More information on how to be a part of a mastermind or synergy group, <<click here>>

Different Types of Managers and How to Work With Them

As you have already experienced, there are different types of managers and the different styles of management workers might encounter.  A good manager actually transitions and flows between the different roles as the environment or situation dictate.  But some managers naturally gravitate toward their dominate style and stays there – regardless of their surroundings.   The best advice for working successfully with many of the types is to take full control of your own performance, professional development and career management.

You do this by:

There are 8 text book management styles  ( summary at end of note, posted by Touchpoint in General Business on Jan 9, 2012 9:02:00 AM); but a new type has cropped up recently.  It’s the BUSY Manager.

yesmanSome managers mistaken a “hands-off” approach to mean disengaged.  Most companies are understaffed and overworked.  Therefore, managers often have more work than their employees can handle and more stakeholders/clients to report to and appease.   This often puts the manager in a tailspin – which often tempts them to disengage from their employees.  The Global Workforce environment adds additional complications when individuals are remote and on different time zones.  This also contributes to the manager losing touch in what’s actually going on in his ranks.  In such an environment, most managers are focusing on don-time delivery of current projects.

These busy managers are often impatient with items not directly associated with today’s goal.   There is very little time spent on career management and individual development plans for their employees.  There is little focus on the training on next generation technology to reduce the learning curve to get ahead of the market.  Because of their heavy schedule and budget constraints, managers are often just present focus. They are only focused on what is needed to get them to the next hurdle — but not necessary over it.   They are working to keep their heads above water and not necessarily focused on getting out of the water.   If employees depend upon managers like that – staying only present focus will eventually drown you.

If you recognize that your manager is has a “present-focus” mindset (because he has so much to do, it’s the only thing he can focus on right now) – you need to take control of your own career and professional development.  If you are thinking like the owner or manager (discussed in the Professional Development Toolkit DVD) , you can both appreciate and anticipate need.  In “Knowing How You Boss’ Mind Works video (included in the Professional Development Toolkit DVD), you can better position yourself for that excellent performance rating and promotion.

8 Types of Conventional Managers:

Posted by Touchpoint in General Business on Jan 9, 2012 9:02:00 AM

  • Active leadership: Active leaders tend to lead by example and set a high standard for themselves and their employees. They wouldn’t ask an employee to take on a task they’d be unwilling to do themselves. They are highly involved in the day-to-day work and fully aware of what’s taking place in the office.

 

 

  • Directive leadership: Although less authoritative than autocratic managers, directive leaders do not typically solicit employee input. They often cite a short timeframe, an unpredictable client or an emergency situation as the reason for acting unilaterally. Often this may be true. Other times, they may just have a bit more difficulty letting go of control.

 

 

  • Participatory leadership: Based on a coaching philosophy, this style focuses on empowering employees to seek their own knowledge and make their own decisions when appropriate. It can be very effective in fluid work environments with shifting priorities. A more advanced version of this style is the flat management style, where different managers take the lead on projects, depending on their expertise.

 

  • Servant leadership: Based on a “people-come-first” philosophy, this style has been made famous by writer Robert Greenleaf. The style is based on finding the most talented people to run your organization and then empowering them to do what they do best. The leader sees him or herself as a “servant” to the customer and encourages employees to adopt the same attitude.

 

  • Task-oriented leadership: Leaders who use this style may have once been project managers. They are experts in planning projects, allocating resources, assigning roles, setting benchmarks and keeping to strict deadlines.

 

The  IT Professional Development Toolkit, goes into the: who, what, where, when and how to accomplish all of the above. I also have a transferable skill worksheet.  For more information about the toolkit,

Blue-StartHere

When it comes time to quit your job, do it without burning bridges.

The IT Professional Development Toolkit DVD goes into further details on the who, what, where, when, and why of these topics.

When it comes time to quit your job, how can you do it without burning bridges.

Of course this depends upon how you have conducted yourself throughout your career; but if you have been professional and a valued contributor all along – here are a few tips:

1)  Highlight all the positive things that this company has allowed you to accomplish.  Show appreciation for your manager and all the opportunities provided on your behalf.

2) Share your individual career goals and plans.  You should have been sharing this all along with your manager in your regular one-on-one managers meetings (detailed in the Professional Development Toolkit).  Therefore, this will not be the first time your organization hears about your career goals.

3) If you have been sharing your career goals with your manager and mentors; and your current company can not provide your ‘next step’ – there will be no bridges burned.  You are simply continuing your career growth and following your IDP (Individual Development Plan detailed in the Professional Development Toolkit).

4) Stay in touch with your managers/mentors/co-workers.  After you leave, stay in contact with past managers, mentors and co-workers.  Everything changes.  It’s a 75% chance that those people will also move on (change their positions) within the next 5 years.  Continue to network with them to understand how their power of influence is growing.  Continue to share with them about your career plans (as well as understanding their goals).  Continue to help each other achieve those next steps.   Stay on their radar – such that when a great opportunity presents itself to them, you are on their minds.

5) You never know who other people know or what the future will bring.  Make sure you stay LinkedIn.com (or similar) connected so that you easily see who they are connected with.  This way you can more easily leverage your links or network.  Joe may not be in a direct position to help or mentor you; but you see that he knows Dr. Barklette that would be a great mentor for you.  If you had asked Joe if he had any recommendations for a mentor, he may not think of Dr. Barklette.  But because you can see Dr. Barklette in Joe’s circle, you can ask for the specific introduction.  You also know that Dr. Barklette might need a research assistant or project manager on his next program, etc.

Bottom line is that right way to quit your job doesn’t stop when you walk out of the door.  It’s really just the beginning.  Make it a point to continue the business network and build a working relationship with those past relationships.  The biggest mistake that people make is to close the door on those years of collaboration and professional network.

If you would like to know more details, please email LauraRose@RoseCoaching.info

A Vacation from Email

Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose – author of the business and time management book TimePeace: Making peace with time  and The Book of Answers: 105 Career Critical Situations– and I am a business and efficiency coach that specializes in time management, project management and work-life balance strategies.  Steve Wynkoop and I talk a lot about designing and managing our professional careers on a weekly interview on SSWUG TV.

The IT Professional Development Toolkit DVD goes into further details on the who, what, where, when, and why of these topics.

Some of us receive hundreds of emails a day. Others receive thousands. Just managing your inbox is one thing, but what about making time for everything  else you need to do while still remaining timely with email responses?

Email is one of those places where you can easily and quickly reduce your time.  Here are some steps:

1) Incorporate auto-responders to handle the Frequently Asked Questions and Concerns.  Document Q&A once and post the FAQ in an easily accessible location online.  Use the auto-responders to point people to the information or website.

2) Delegate 1st line emails to an assistant.  Just because you can answer your email doesn’t mean you should be answering your email.  Even if you don’t feel like you can keep an assistant busy, you can take advantage of a virtual assistant.  You can arrange to have a part-time virtual assistant during your busiest sales or development time or have them work just 1-2 days a week.

3) Consider a Subject Headline convention.  Ask your team to use a specific convention <Type: Informational/Status Report/Action Required/Critical Issue> and <Deadline>.  If the headline is formatted in such a way that you can determine the topic, priority and action needed from you – then you (or your assistant) don’t have to open the email to properly prioritize it.

4) Make use of Message Rules.  Use your message-rules email features to automatically sort your incoming mail to it’s proper folders without your intervention.  For instance: newsletters, junk mail, promotions, social media updates and external marketing campaigns can automatically be sorted, filtered or deleted without taking your time.  Once you have your Subject Headline Convention in place, you can easily filter and sort based on the information type and due-date in the headline (versus when the email was sent)….which is a more effective way to sort.  Then you schedule blocks of time to review the different folders.

5) Announce your intentions.  Everyone is familiar with the “On Vacation” feature of many emailers.  The reason this works is that it simply announces your communication/email schedule.  It tells people when you are away from email and for them not to expect an immediate response.   It also includes backup contacts and hand-off information.  Don’t limit this strategy to vacation.  Publish your “email response intentions”.  Some examples (but limited to):
a) When they can expect a quality response….within 1 business day, 48 hours, 1 week; etc.  If you have your Subject Headline Convention in place, you can have different SLA (service level agreements) in place for different topics, categories, priorities, folders and even  based on senders.  This can all be automated and filtered into the various folders. They will get receiving an immediate response (via your auto-responder), confirming that you did receive their email and needs xx time to provide a complete and quality response.  This automatically puts your sending at ease without adding pressure to your plate.
b) Move from interrupt mode to blocked out quality time.  Announce in your auto-responders that you normally review your email at 2-4:00pm daily (just an example).  Blocking out a specific time review your email not only releases you from the distraction of having to review each mail as it comes along; but allows you the time to give a focused and accurate response.  Responses created ‘on the fly’ are often vague, rushed and sometimes inaccurate.  They are often crafted to dismiss the issue as quickly as possible; and often create more confusion than it has answered.
People know now that you have schedules some quality time read this in detail and give it focused thought later in the day.  Most people just need to get if off their desk (not necessarily an immediate response from you).   And they will feel validated that you feel this is important enough for you to take your time in responding.   If that time period is not satisfactory to them, they can schedule a phone meeting or drop by your office.
c) Eliminate the Quadrant 3 emails.  Include a delegate, back-up, FAQ document or automation to handle some of the seemingly urgent but unimportant items.  Most of our time is spent on seemingly urgent but unimportant items (Quadrant 3 from Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People).  Just because someone is asking “now” doesn’t mean that it’s urgent.  It just means they are contacting you ‘now’.
d) Have a communication plan.  Set the proper expectations in regards to your email.  Have a communication plan with each of your significant stakeholders.  If you educate your significant stakeholders on how you plan to manage your email, people will know how reset their expectations.  It’s when you don’t tell people when you will get back to them, that they continue to pester you until you get back to them.  Setting up a communication plan in regards to phone, email, instant messages, text, meetings, etc is a great way to avoid both distractions and frustrations.

If you would like to know more about communication plans, please email LauraRose@RoseCoaching.info