Here’s an article by Seth Godin that says it as well as [...]]]> When we change our thoughts we can change our life. Consider adapting the BACO and BAPO concepts to the way you manage your career. It’ll be a huge leap outside your comfort zone but the pay-offs will be in direct proportion to the stretch! 

Here’s an article by Seth Godin that says it as well as anyone:

BACO and your career
Brian Trelstad and his team at Acumen have had great success using a metric they call BACO (the best alternative charitable option). They can compare the results of the development and investment work they do to the results that direct aid or charity would generate instead. In short: when you understand the alternative, it’s far easier to not only measure your work, but value it.

If you are familiar with a great restaurant just down the street, that raises the bar for a new restaurant to get your business…

If you live in a one-company town and have but one skill, you don’t have a lot of options. The boss tells you what to do and you do it. On the other hand, if you’re a world-class Ruby on Rails programmer with a reputation on Stack Overflow, you have plenty of options, and as a result, your boss treats you with more respect… and you can be a lot more choosy about which projects you take on (realizing, of course, that you stake your reputation on everything you do.)

Call it your BAPO… best alternative professional option. It changes your posture when you have an option. If you’ve got another client more interesting or better paying than this one, you can confidently act that way–it raises the bar in the way people treat you. When St. Luke’s was the hottest ad agency in the UK, they made the decision not to grow–in order to take a new client, they had to fire an old one.

What do you think that did to the behavior of the current clients?

Corporations and organizations brainwashed generations of people to believe that they had no option. Go to school, go to the placement office, get a job, do what you’re told. The amazing reality of our time is this is no longer true. And yet. And yet few people are developing their alternative, building an external reputation and yes, even moonlighting on the weekends. When you have the option, not only does your confidence change, your work does as well.

The reality is if you read a variety of articles or talk to a group of “experts” you’ll actually get a broad range of opinions [...]]]> A certain television station likes to pitch its programming with the slogan: “It’s not reality it’s actuality.”  It’s an interesting statement, although a bit confusing – much like today’s job market.

The reality is if you read a variety of articles or talk to a group of “experts” you’ll actually get a broad range of opinions about the current state of the job market.

The National Association for Business Economics reported statistics indicating there has really only been a marginal increase in jobs due to the stimulus money. However, government reports have shown job losses have actually slowed throughout country for the past four quarters.

If we flip over to the recruiter community to look at the Recruiter Confidence Index, 53% of the industry is confident the job market is picking up. However, if you’re actually waiting for your phone to ring from a recruiter with a job offer, the reality is, you’ll be out of work for a very long time.

A 2009 ExecNet survey polling over 8,000 professionals provides an interesting perspective from the trenches.

• Only 5% of companies polled are still cutting back or have hiring freezes. Many “cut back too far”, with 14% adding positions and 57% looking to “trade up.” These numbers are actually up significantly from this time last year.
• Companies have taken their focus off of retention. The reality of this shift will be a different kind of bail-out with disgruntled employees “jumping ship” once the economy becomes more stable. The irony is that this turnover will place more of an emphasis back on retention making the job you land more stable.
• There are expanding industries. Healthcare and Clean/Green Technologies lead the pack in opportunity with Energy, Pharma/Med/Biotech and Environmental-related industries rounding out the top five.

So what does this really mean for you?  What do you have to do to get employed – now?

Here are a few tips that actually work so you can too:

1. Be positive and action oriented. Shake off the fear, dump the negative perceptions and get to work on your search. You’re still the same competent, skilled and experienced person you were when you had a job. So print up some business cards using your expertise as your title and start networking. You could be a handshake away from your next great success.
2. Get comfortable as an expert. There is something you do really, really well and probably enjoy doing more then anything else. Run with it. Mrs. Fields was an expert in cookies. She was never nominated for the Nobel Prize but she made a big batch of money.
3. Be relevant. No one cares what you’ve done for the past 20 years. Everyone cares about what you can deliver in today’s economy, industry and market. Tell them in simple, concise, personable language. Dump the jargon and be authentic,
4. Be solution-oriented. Forget about the laundry list of responsibilities you’ve had. Talk in terms of bottom-line results. Be the “aspirin for their headache”.
5. Be a master networker. There are no short cuts. This is still the best and fastest way to get employed. Create a profile on LinkedIn (www.linkedIn.com) and join some groups related to your expertise and interests. Interact with groups, associations and other industry experts you can become aligned with. Go to networking meetings each week and be actively engaged. Give and get business cards and follow up with the objective of building relationships. Offer assistance, provide value and make introductions. The more you give, the more you will receive. Remember, people help and hire others they know, like and trust and this takes time. So speed it up and whatever you’re currently doing – double your activity to reduce time in search.
6. Be focused, proactive and strategic. Set objectives for each week and break them out to daily activities. Create a target list of companies where you’d like to work and network your way in. ExecuNet reported that 58% of hires last year were for existing positions. That means 42% were newly created jobs (otherwise known as the hidden job market) and landed by people who acted on this strategy.
7. Be aligned with people and resources that can help you. Get a coach; create an advisory board of positive, connected peers; and build a strong diverse network and nurture long-term relationships.
8. Be smart. Do your homework and conduct research so you can make fact-based decisions about your career to ensure you’re actually working with reality not hype. Just yesterday I actually met five people over 50 who had landed great jobs….really.

Share with me examples of you putting this to work and getting results.  The rest of us want to know.

Topic: Panel Discussion – Opportunities in 2010, HR, and the Professional [...]]]> Title: South Florida Association for Financial Professionals
Location: Banker’s Club Downtown Miami
Link out: Click here
Description: The South Florida AFP Presents:

• Roberta Kressel, EVP of Human Resources at BankUnited
• Tom Shea, CEO of Right Management
• Carlos J. Arboleda, Director of Banking & Financial Services at Stephen James Associates

Topic: Panel Discussion – Opportunities in 2010, HR, and the Professional Labor Market
Start Time: 12:00
Date: 2010-02-23
End Time: 13:30

Since one size doesn’t fit all (We’re talking [...]]]> Wouldn’t it be great if your career came with a guarantee for success? We all know that won’t happen. But here’s some good news. When you evaluate fit by looking deeper then basic responsibilities and compensation, you’ll find employment partners where you will be best suited to succeed.

Since one size doesn’t fit all (We’re talking about company size. What were you expecting?), here’s a breakdown of categories based on company sales:

• Large: $500M+;
• Medium to Large: $201 – $500M;
• Medium: $51 -$200M;
• Small: $11 – $50M;
• Start-up: $0 – $10M

1. Work/life Balance. This is something both companies and employees are striving for. Employees want a life and companies want to avoid costly burnout that affects productivity and quality. Fortune’s 2005 “100 Best Companies to Work For” showcased how culture is key. Using criteria that included benefit programs, health care and paid time off, the 100 best were broken out between 37 large companies; 34 mid-sized companies and 29 small companies demonstrating that good things can come in all sizes.

2. Resources. Resources and support are indicated as key reasons large organizations can attract accomplished professionals. True “means to an end” resources allow employees to focus on the core responsibilities of their job instead of spending time handling administrative or nonessential and unimportant tasks.

3. Bureaucracy. Culture will definitely affect this, but as a rule, larger companies have deeper layers and more complex issues that intensify the need for tighter rules and regulations and all the red tape that accompany them. As a result, the decision-making process and implementation ability can be slower and more cumbersome in a larger company then a smaller one.

4. Job Advancement. Start-up companies can offer the most rapid advancement opportunities but it is important to remember there is a risk factor tied into the thrill ride. If you are jazzed by speed, challenge, opportunity and change, these dynamics just might out-weigh the risk. I liken start-ups to riding in a sexy, sleek sports car. There is a lot of power, velocity, creativity and appeal, but if you hit a wall, you probably won’t make it out alive. On the flip side, medium size companies with flat organizations mean you’ll have to wait for someone to get fired or retired to get the next promotion. The larger the company, the longer it can take to move up through the ranks.

5. Company Growth. With companies of all sizes participating in the merge and acquire strategy, growth is no longer limited to sales projections and new product releases. Greater market share and revenue generation are often the result of acquisitions and partnerships. However, The Center for Simplified Strategic Planning Inc. has found that “as the economy has gained efficiency through technology and globalization, small companies have tended to lead the way into new niches and markets. As a result, job growth at all levels in smaller companies has consistently outpaced opportunities in large companies.” That said, based on research conducted by ExecuNet, search firms expect the greatest growth in 2005 to be in medium sized organizations.

6. Job Security. In a study done by Applied Research Corporation, it was found that small companies (not to be confused with start-ups) offer the most job security. They said “a small size organization that has strong management can more easily adapt to fluctuations in the market. In addition, smaller privately held firms have demonstrated greater tenacity, more patience in their strategic direction and a lower tendency to shut down profitable operations. The best bet is a rapidly growing smaller company in an emerging industry.”

7. Influence. Pick your poison – Start–ups represent the greatest opportunity for individuals who prefer to become involved from inception, allowing them to interject their skills and talents to shape the company’s direction and positioning in the marketplace. A small company has less tolerance for misallocation of resources so employees find more autonomy that comes with greater accountability and an emphasis on finding the best balance between planning, analysis and action. In larger companies the actual span of control can be smaller internally, but in well branded companies with high name recognition influence can come by way of association providing industry clout.

8. Risk. Beyond size, this is where you have to look at the business plan, strength and skills of management, competitive advantages, corporate culture, organizational goals, professional positioning, the mix of your skills and abilities with the organizations needs and expectations as well as your income potential.

9. Compensation. Here’s the news from industry expert Nan Andrews Amish: “Compensation at the top companies is phenomenal. Compensation at the mid-sized companies will be negotiated. Compensation at entrepreneurial companies will be deferred to after your success.”

10. Self-Assessment – Where are you at in your career? Are you established or working on the track record? Would you thrive as a little fish in a big pond or a big fish in a little pond? Do you crave 24/7 global dominance? Do politics make you cringe? When it’s all said and done the most compelling reasons to choose one size company over another is the people you’ll work with, the values that are shared, the culture that is established, and the chemistry in your business relationships.