A TALE OF TWO INTEGRATIONS – Lessons for sales planning

by John Archer

It seemed sensible logic.  You take a large, successful national IT staffing company add 20-odd equally successful project and “solutions” companies in a booming market and watch your revenue grow. Cross selling alone will surely reap significant rewards.  Right?  Unfortunately not twelve months later, with the growth promised to Wall St not materializing, the staffing side was spun off to start anew. Continue reading

Fast-track onboarding – engaging employees before they begin

Jane Sunley - Purplecubed This article was written by Jane Sunley, CEO of Purplecubed.

Most of us have been there – a job offer is made, accepted and notice period worked. During this time the new employer sends a contract and details of where the new starter should go on day one. Then silence… very little, or no contact, is made until the new recruit turns up at 9am on their official start date.

Notice periods tend to be at least a couple of weeks; 14 days or more of the new employee steadily moving backwards down the excitement scale – from elation after accepting an amazing job, to interest upon reading the contract, wonder; what might the job entail until the nerves kick in, fear around the first day – where to go, who to ask for, will they like me, will I like them? Continue reading

Has HR rushed too quickly to the service center?

by Gareth Cartman

Once upon a time, HR were viewed as fluffy people, or at worst, pen-pushers who took your holiday forms. Today, apparently, they’re a faceless department, a phone number, a web portal… HR as we knew it has been killed off by the service center, and the only people to blame are… HR.

The attractions of the shared service center are manifold. IDC recently underlined the massive rush towards HR outsourcing in its shared service form, with the benefits of centralized data, actionable metrics and cloud technology all to the fore. HR is, so they say, clamoring for help, and outsourcing is the answer to all of their problems. Continue reading

Act Like a Leader Before You Are One

Amy Galloby Amy Gallo

If you want to become a leader, don’t wait for the fancy title or the corner office. You can begin to act, think, and communicate like a leader long before that promotion. Even if you’re still several levels down and someone else is calling all the shots, there are numerous ways to demonstrate your potential and carve your path to the role you want.

What the Experts Say “It’s never foolish to begin preparing for a transition no matter how many years away it is or where you are in your career,” says Muriel Maignan Wilkins, coauthor of Own the Room: Discover Your Signature Voice to Master Your Leadership Presence. Michael Watkins, the chairman of Genesis Advisers and author of The First 90 Days and Your Next Move, agrees. Not only does the planning help you develop the necessary skills and leadership presence, it also increases your chances of getting the promotion because people will already recognize you as a leader. The key is to take on opportunities now, regardless of your tenure or role. “You can demonstrate leadership at any time no matter what your title is,” says Amy Jen Su, coauthor of Own the Room. Here are several ways to start laying the groundwork. Continue reading

8 Ways to Undermine Yourself as a Leader

Josh Linknerwritten by Josh Linker

As entrepreneurs, we spend a lot of time honing our leadership style and working tirelessly to ensure our teams are motivated to work with us. There are countless resources to improve on various attributes you utilize both in and out of the office, but there’s less information readily available on pitfalls to avoid. You might think you’re doing a good job, but here’s a list of how you might be undermining yourself. Continue reading