Tag: reputation
4 Mistakes to Avoid After Being Laid Off
Being laid off is a tough spot to be in. You are facing financial stress, and the emotional toll can be steep. It can be challenging to keep control of your emotions and not react by saying or doing things that cause long-term damage to you, your relationships, and your career.
If you’re facing layoffs in these challenging times, here are 4 top mistakes to avoid to prevent your unlucky situation from becoming damaging.
Mistake #1: Losing Touch with Former Coworkers
You probably forged connections with your coworkers if you worked at your job for any length. Some of them may even be good friends. Whether you consider yourself close with former work colleagues or not, don’t lose touch with them. Staying on good terms with former coworkers gives you an excellent source for professional references and potentially even a new job.
Mistake #2: Badmouthing Your Former Employer
Feeling upset when your company chooses to lay you off is natural. Whatever the reason, it is a big mistake to voice your bitterness or anger on social media or, even worse, during an interview. Not only is it unprofessional, but it could even make you vulnerable to a lawsuit. Keep your cool, stick to the facts if asked about your situation, and keep emotion out.
Mistake #3: Not Networking
Losing your job is discouraging and stressful, so, understandably, you may not feel like reaching out to others immediately. This is a mistake because if you don’t get out there and network, you may be unemployed for much longer than necessary. Swallow your pride and ask friends and former coworkers for help.
Mistake #4: Wallowing in Your Misfortune
It hurts when you get laid off, even if you saw it coming. It’s also stressful and scary. Take some time to grieve the loss and experience your feelings of disappointment and self-pity. After a day or two, dust off your resume, search the job boards, and contact former coworkers. Returning to the job market will help you feel better and get a new job much sooner.
No matter how you look at it, being laid off is hard. It can be easy to get stuck in a cycle of bad feelings and inactivity, making mistakes that cause long-term harm. But you can turn your unfortunate situation into a positive one. And your next job could be even better than your lost one.
Laid off from a position? Beacon Staffing is here to help you start your job search!
Develop an Inclusive Workplace With These 4 Steps
Inclusivity is more than just a popular buzzword; it is a call to action for every workplace to provide equal access to resources and opportunities for all employees. Inclusion is often coupled with diversity, but the two are quite different. While diversity is more about the members of a team, inclusion is about how those unique team members come together and how their talents and strengths are utilized and realized within the workforce.
So, how can your workplace become a more inclusive environment? In this post, we’ll discuss four basic steps you can take to improve your inclusion score and make your workplace a more accepting, supportive place for everyone.
Set Your Intentions
As a leader of your business, you know that positive change within your workplace begins with you. Inclusivity is not about quotas or forced diversity. Instead, it focuses on nourishing the company by hiring a diverse range of capable, present, and prepared workers to fulfill the roles they are hired for.
Ensure Everyone Feels Safe and Protected
There are laws in place that protect workers and employers but ensuring that everyone in the workplace feels safe to speak their mind and go about their tasks is also an element of inclusivity. When employees feel that their rights and beliefs are respected and protected, they are more likely to remain with the company, improving retention rates.
From including a quiet space for meditation or prayer to allowing flexibility with the workplace dress code, there are many ways to extend comfort and acceptance to everyone in the work environment.
Improve Meeting Inclusivity
Whether your workplace is on-site, remote, or hybrid, bringing workers together for meetings is essential. Virtual and hybrid meetings have become the norm, and it is vital to consider inclusion when conducting them.
Team members may be located in different time zones and may be balancing home and schooling, so consider time and location when scheduling meetings. Also, take the time to get to know your workers and include them in meetings in ways that make them comfortable and allow them to shine.
Ensure Everyone Feels Seen and Heard
There is nothing more disheartening than feeling ignored or overlooked in the workplace. When you produce an environment where people feel comfortable speaking up and expressing themselves, set an example for your employees by actively listening. Amplify others who may be more introverted or soft-spoken. Give others the space and time to process and convey their ideas. By working to understand everyone’s style of working, we can be better peers to them and create a more inclusive environment for all.
Are you looking to diversify and grow your workforce? Get in touch with Beacon Staffing today!
5 Ways to Encourage Better Communication in Your Workplace
Effective communication is the cornerstone of your workplace. Today, communication in the workplace can quickly become a source of conflict that disrupts your company’s ability to function. Good communication improves team bonding, builds trust, and makes your workplace more enjoyable and comfortable.
Employee One-To-Ones
An “open-door” policy regarding communication with employees allows your employees to feel free to come to you. For many employees, though, talking in private is easier. Setting up weekly or monthly one-to-one meetings offers another option for employees to speak with you about job-related issues and feel comfortable.
Be consistent about holding these private meetings and if you need to cancel or reschedule, make sure you let your employees know first. This ensures that they know you value their time, building trust between you.
Regular Work Team Meetings
In addition to the one-to-one meetings, team meetings are also important. Weekly team meetings allow employees to share their goals with the whole team and learn important information together, leading to more significant opportunities for collaboration and transparency.
Team meetings are also an excellent way for managers to present new projects to the whole team, ensuring that all team members are on the same page. Open Q&A periods during these meetings provide employees with a time to ask questions and voice concerns they may have about projects or culture to the entire team.
Keep Employees Informed and Follow Up
When your employees are all on the same page, your operation runs more smoothly. Instead of verbal agreements or deadlines that could leave employees out of the loop, take notes during meetings and ensure that your employees understand business objectives and expectations.
Create a Positive Company Culture
Communication within your company will not have the same value if your employees do not feel safe communicating. You want to ensure that your employees feel psychologically safe and that they can express themselves without fear of negative consequences from coworkers and management.
The best way to create and promote psychological safety within the workplace is to lead by example. Practice humility when you make mistakes and be willing to admit you’re wrong or that you don’t have the answer to a question.
Communicate the “Whys”
Take time to explain why a task is important or why it must be done in a particular way. Employees can get frustrated when they don’t understand the details of a project or assignment. It improves clarity and understanding of the project or task, but it adds more significant meaning to work for your employees.
Keep making an effort to connect with employees, hear what they’re thinking, challenge their ideas, and answer questions. By practicing good listening and communication skills and leading by example, managers foster an effective workplace communication strategy and increase the success of their business.
Ready to add more top talent to your team? Contact Beacon Staffing today!
The Power of Appreciation
When was the last time you properly thanked your employees for a job well done? Or took note of how they do their jobs and showed a genuine appreciation for their skills and contribution?
The power of showing appreciation and acknowledging your employees’ hard work can have many positive effects in the workplace. Building a more robust culture within the workplace, improving engagement, and inspiring employees to better performance are some of the benefits you’ll see right away.
Great Ideas for Employee Appreciation
Showing appreciation doesn’t have to be expensive or even cost a thing. Here are some great ways to show your employees gratitude and appreciation:
- Recognize accomplishments right away. For maximum impact, congratulate employees in person and acknowledge their contributions in person.
- If you can’t show appreciation in person or right away, compose a thank you note or email recognizing an employee’s hard work or acknowledging their professional contribution or achievements.
- Celebrate the team publicly and regularly. Monthly team-building meetings or social events can strengthen team bonds and positively boost the work environment.
- Buy a coffee or a meal for the team. Whether you order in or take everyone out for breakfast or lunch, sharing a meal with the team boosts morale and shows appreciation at the same time.
Remember that every employee has a different preference for acknowledgment and recognition. Get to know your team of employees so you can appreciate each of them in a way that makes them comfortable.
A great way to approach showing appreciation and recognizing team members is to create a rewards system where employees can choose their own rewards or incentives. For example, a points system, with points attributed to tasks and accomplishments, gives employees the opportunity to choose their own rewards, such as days off or special privileges of some kind.
Showing your employees appreciation and recognizing their accomplishments is such a simple way to build up your company’s workplace culture and brand. Plus, showing gratitude and kindness to your employees regularly makes you feel good, too.
Do you need to hire talent for your company? Contact Beacon Staffing today!
Job Seekers: Spring Cleaning Your Digital Footprint
Social media has become a significant part of our lives, presenting us to the world in whatever light we choose to show ourselves via posts and pictures. Hiring managers understand this and use social media to learn about potential employees.
Presenting a good image online does not mean changing who you are. It does mean being more prudent about what you post and taking some time to spring clean your digital footprint to project your best online self to any prospective employers.
Make Your Accounts Private
This is a quick and easy way to ensure companies aren’t seeing anything questionable on your profile. Go through your social media profiles and change your settings to “friends.” This limits access to your post and gives you control over who sees what.
Delete Inappropriate Posts and Pictures
If you need or want to keep your profile public, remove posts and photos or set access to “Only me.” These memories and thoughts don’t have to disappear completely. You can permanently archive them or save them offline.
Add the Right Photos and Information
Make sure your profile picture and cover photo are professional-looking and easy to see. They don’t need to be professional headshots, but a good, clear selfie goes a long way toward making an excellent first impression.
Include a professional bio that introduces you and demonstrates your personality. This can be pivotal when companies look for the right type of employee. Look at your content, too if you’re part of an industry or want to be part of it, post content that relates to it. Your shares, posts, and tweets help create your brand as a person and employee. If a company sees that your brand aligns well with theirs, they are more likely to consider you when hiring.
Edit Your URLs and Handles
Customize your URL and social media handles to be professional, intentional, and memorable.
Follow Inspiring People and Businesses
What you follow tells other people what you care about, what interests you, what you support, admire, and more. Follow blogs, news sources, influencers, and other websites that mesh with your brand.
Making smart choices on social media begins with presenting a positive, professional persona on every platform. If you take the time to make a few adjustments, it can significantly benefit your chances of getting and keeping your dream job.
Do you need help finding your next role? Get in touch with Beacon Staffing or get started today by browsing our open positions!
Why Employer Branding is So Important (Especially Now!)
Your brand is an essential part of your company’s marketing strategy. With competition for talent at its peak, employer branding has become a significant factor in attracting new talent and making them want to work for you. Consider these simple tips for investing in your employer branding.
Invest in social media
Social media has become so much a part of a business that it can make or break your company overnight. Ensure that your social media presence is a positive one that gives potential employees a glimpse of a positive work environment. Show how you value your employees, including positive workplace footage and employee testimonials.
Design a dynamic website
Your website is likely where prospective employees will look to get to know your business and the skills needed to land a job with your company. A poorly designed website can quickly put potential employees off.
A dynamic, engaging website is:
- Quick and easy to navigate,
- Keeps job information simple and focused, and
- Has a system in place to answer any questions job applicants may have.
Reject with respect
If you’ve established a positive impression online through social media and your website, you’ll no doubt have many applicants – and not everyone can get the job. How you treat applicants who didn’t make the cut is a deciding factor in whether they will reapply for future employment.
Consideration and respect are essential at this stage. Take the time to compose a polite email, explain why the candidate didn’t get the job, and encourage them to apply for future employment. No rejection feels good, but the respect and acknowledgment this gives an applicant goes a long way toward improving their outlook on job hunting and your business.
Cultivate a healthy work culture
Businesses with a good work environment and healthy work culture, including competitive benefits and perks, are more likely to have recruits competing for job opportunities. Potential employees are not looking for simply a job; they are looking for career opportunities in the kind of job environment they could work in long-term. Creating a healthy work culture that rewards employees, appreciates them, and cares for them is your best job advertisement.
Excellent employer branding goes a long way toward attracting the best talent and ensuring the reputation of your business. Recruitment becomes a more straightforward, more rewarding process, and everybody wins.
Still struggling to hire? Contact Beacon Staffing today!