Profiles Asia Pacific, Inc.

In a web article by Gregory P. Smith employees quit for many reasons but, in general, there are five important areas that motivate people to leave their jobs.

5 P’s

1. Poor match between the person and the job
2. Poor fit with the organizational climate and culture
3. Poor alignment between pay and performance
4. Poor connections between the individual, their coworkers, and the supervisor
5. Poor opportunities for growth and advancement

Smith wrote:

As you know, it is getting difficult to attract and keep skilled employees. Many businesses and industries are desperate for help and can’t find good people with the right skills and attitudes.

While many leading companies place more effort in employee retention, most are clueless. They accept employee turnover as a normal part of doing business. High turnover organizations spend disproportionate amounts of resources on recruiting and replacing their workforce, while smart organizations invest in employee retention. Yes, there is going to be turnover no matter what you do, but blindly ignoring the reasons for turnover is foolish and expensive.

The five P’s can be addressed successfully. Employee retention begins by paying attention to what causes low job satisfaction as well as what attracts, retains, and motivates your workforce.

Here are a few items to consider:
Identify and weed out poor managers. The relationship with the employee’s front-line manager is the most common reason people leave. La Rosa’s is a large restaurant business with over 3000 employees. As part of their employee retention strategy, all employees evaluate their bosses twice a year using a special report card. It asks the employees to give their managers a letter grade from A to D in four categories. Any score less than a “B” requires a specific comment from the employee. After it’s completed, they tabulate the comments and design action plans for improvement.

Hold managers accountable for turnover. Set specific responsibilities for Human Resources, supervisors, and executives on what their specific role is in employee retention. Train managers so they understand what leads to higher retention and greater job satisfaction. Hold managers responsible for retention in their departments, set turnover goals for each manager, and track accordingly. Promote managers whose behavior is consistent with the organization’s values and philosophies.

Create a positive work environment. Money and benefits may bring employees through the front door, but poor work conditions drive them out the back. In its National Study of the Changing Workforce, the Families and Work Institute showed earnings and benefits have only a 3 percent impact on job satisfaction. “Job quality” and “workplace support” have a combined 70 percent.

Develop an “Onboarding” program for the first 90 days on the job. Don’t hire and abandon your new employees. Insure they get the support, training, and assistance they need. Quint Studer, CEO of the Studer Group, a consulting firm in Gulf Breeze, Florida, finds companies that take steps to “re-recruit” new employees can improve performance and reduce turnover in their first three months by as much as 66 percent.

Enhance connections between co-workers, managers, and the organization. To build stronger bonds between the top management and employees, one corporate office practices something called Employee Scavenger Hunt. Once or twice a year, they give every executive or manager five names of employees. They find each person, meet them, and learn about them as individuals. The process builds a better bond, improves communication, and builds trust within the organization.

Hire the best and avoid the rest. Research shows those organizations that spend more time recruiting high-caliber people earn 22% higher return to shareholders than their industry peers. Cisco CEO John Chambers said, “A world-class engineer with five peers can out produce 200 regular engineers.” Instead of waiting for people to apply for jobs, good organizations are always on the lookout for high-caliber people.

Provide learning opportunities. For many people, learning new skills is as important as the money they make. Identify career paths and provide developmental opportunities for employees early in their jobs with the organization. Promote on-going, two-way communication between employees and their immediate managers regarding career progress. In a study by Linkage, Inc. people said they would consider leaving their present employer for another job with the same benefits if that job provided better career development and greater challenges.

Make people feel appreciated. People want to be paid well, but also would like to be treated with respect and appreciation. Find creative ways to make people feel good about their job. We have helped organizations set up something called, “peer recognition.” Peer recognition allows people to reward each other for doing a good job. It works because employees are in the best position to catch people doing the right things. TD Industries in Dallas, Texas, helps their employees feel valued by using one wall within the company to place photographs of all employees who have been with the them more than five years. They also try to make everyone feel equal and have no reserved parking spaces for executives. That is one reason why TD Industries was listed by Fortune magazine as one of the Top 100 Best Places to Work.

Measure attitudes of your workforce. High-retention workplaces are using employee climate assessments to measure the attitudes and feeling of their workforce. Every organization should conduct some form of climate assessment periodically during the year.

Focus on individuals. You must manage retention one employee at a time. Focus on the key jobs that have the most impact on profitability and productivity. Everyone has a different set of needs and expectations about their jobs. By conducting an individual retention profile, managers can quickly identify the employee’s unique motivations, goals, level of job satisfaction, as well as other expectations.

Focus on the family. One small company gives their employees’ children a $50 Savings Bond twice a year when they get straight A’s on their report cards. Another survey of 1,000 companies showed half of them let workers stay home with mildly ill children without using vacation or sick days. Two-thirds permit flextime defined as allowing employees to adjust work hours on a daily basis.

http://www.businessknowhow.com/manage/retain-employees.htm

The competition in the marketplace in this era is impervious. A lot of entrepreneurs put up their own business for a reason. But only few of them knows the real essence of their company’s existence. Some even define their business incorrectly. Some identify their business as clothing business rather than fashion business, railroad business rather than transportation business, cellphone business rather than communication business while in fact it should be the other way around. There are other less obvious examples of industries that have been and now endangering their future by improperly defining their purposes. In order to succeed, at least, they need to define their purpose properly.

Most of the companies are profit-oriented, of course! Usually, the primary reason of putting up a business is to generate revenue. Interest and other factors are secondary.

The problem that most companies are not aware they are facing is that, they focus more on the needs of the firm rather than the needs and wants of the customers. They are more of product-oriented—which means that they focus more on the product itself, instead of being customer-oriented—focusing completely on the customer’s wants and needs only. It’s not about making the sale, and it is not about how much commission you make. Your focus is solely on the customer. That’s what marketing concept is really all about anyway!

Companies who define themselves based on the needs of their firms instead of the needs and wants of the customers is said to be suffering from marketing myopia.

The entire business must be viewed as customer-creating and customer-satisfying organism. Management must think of itself not as producing products but as providing customer-creating value satisfactions. It has to do this continuously that excites and stimulates the people in it. Otherwise the company will be a series of pigeonholed parts, with no consolidating sense of purpose or direction.

Dishonesty is prevalent in daily life. Oftentimes we do not realize it. However, not only employees could be dishonest but employers too. Dishonesty in small things may be a big thing for others.

Lying and cheating also flourish in an atmosphere of intimidation and vengeance, of harsh judgment and ridicule and of impulsive dismissal.  There’s an almost irrational fear of making a mistake, of not meeting productivity quotas as well as the belief that the messenger will suffer if giving honest feedback.

Everyday examples of lying in the workplace include aggrandizing the truth on personal resumes and company track records; suggesting to customers that a product is better than it actually is. Of course, there is a need to distinguish between petty sneaking and major crime. If someone is making off the odd batch of pens, you probably only need to remind them that pens are company property paid for by company funds.

The hidden costs of dishonesty can fundamentally derail organizations, creating an authority for business leaders to have clear and meaningful codes of conduct.

A solid foundation of trust is necessary for an organization to be effective, especially in today’s work environment. To be sure, innovation cannot thrive in places where people are reluctant to share creative ideas in fear of criticism or lack of support. Without trust, change initiatives aimed at making the organization more responsive to market demands are bound to encounter resistance. Employees will simply pay lip service to teamwork and collaboration without making any real commitment to organizational goals. Undoubtedly, trust has never been more essential in the workplace; ironically, it has also never been more elusive. There is growing cynicism among today’s workers. Series of events led to the rampant downsizing of companies, which, in turn, damaged employees’ perceptions of and feelings towards their employers. The notion of job security became a thing of the past. The corrupt behaviors of political leaders, as well as respected professionals such as doctors and lawyers, only add to the rising level of distrust.

“Integrity means someone who walks their talk, who is together and honest and decent and trustworthy. People of and with integrity generate trust in their workplace and people who don’t have it destroy trust. Emotional, physical and spiritual well being is affected.”- Meera Atkinson

The Benefits of Integrity

So, what do we do? Well let’s start by determining what our core value is and what it ought to be to promote positive leadership in the workplace.

When you study great leaders, and you can probably list your favorites, you see one consistent character in each of them – integrity. Integrity is the stable force behind countless leadership role models. Great leaders model integrity by being honest and doing what is right no matter the circumstances. Integrity requires you to make the right choice, even when you may not receive personal gain from the outcome, and to put your own personal agenda aside for the greater good of the organization and the people.

Effective leaders know that people need a leader who has integrity. Without it, people are missing a vital ingredient in their ability to perform. Much like the foundation of a building, integrity is essential for lasting success and provides a work environment with three key qualities: stability, safety and reference.

1. Stability

People who see their boss as honest and having a strong commitment to doing the right thing are assured that they work in an environment of stability. They know that their boss’ integrity will not be shaken when tough decisions need to be made. Their boss will “stick up” for their employees and support them. They will treat people fairly and will be more willing to share information with their employee that is necessary for them to do their jobs. Conversely, a leader who is not upfront with people and hides behind their own deceit for their own self-protective purposes will create an environment of fear, uncertainty and an atmosphere of “everyone for themselves!” These sorts of leaders are more prone to play favorites or other political games and leave their team to figure out the rules of engagement – all distractions to performance and productivity.

2. Safety

Leaders with a strong foundation of integrity make it safe for their employees to perform at their peak. Leadership integrity gives people a sense of empowerment. A good leader knows that there is safety in providing people with the freedom to be open and honest. People know that there will not be retribution for their ideas and opinions. A good leader knows how to allow people this freedom while, at the same time, ensuring that it is done respectfully and appropriately. People that feel safe will perform better than people who do not feel safe. It is also the best ingredient for instilling an environment of innovation. How many times have we heard of an innovation that not only transformed a business, but the whole industry? Good leaders know that ensuring an environment of safety encourages innovation. And with innovation comes transformation.

3. Reference

Just like in a building, a leader’s integrity forms a baseline that serves as a reference or measure. A leader with a strong foundation of integrity is a guiding light to those around them. Employees tend to emulate what their boss does. In a high performing environment, leaders with integrity are the role models for others to see and follow and form the standards for how others ought to behave.[i]

May 28, 2010

“Integrity” Most Valuable Workforce Component

9:00AM-11:00AM

RE-RUN “21st Century Career Match Instruments”

1:00PM-4:00PM

2nd Floor- Workshop Room1

Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

June 30, 2010

Recruitment Forum

9:00AM-11:00AM

“Surviving the Workforce Crisis”

1:00PM-4:00PM
6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

July 28, 2010

“How to Drive & Improve Employee Performance”

9:00AM-11:00AM
CSP “Retaining Clients Through Customer Service: The Secret to Greater Profit!”

1:00PM-4:00PM

6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

August 26, 2010

RE-RUN “Beating the 80/20 Rule to Improve your Sales Force”

9:00AM-11:00AM
“Leadership DNA of the Extraordinary”

1:00AM-4:00PM

6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

September 22, 2010

PWC Re-run “How to Communicate Effectively with Employees”

9:00AM-11:00AM
“Building Effective Teams That Exceed Goals”

1:00PM-4:00PM
6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

October 27, 2010

Recruitment Forum

9:00AM-11:00AM
“Solving Human Resource Management Challenges…The Art of Hiring Smart”

1:00PM-4:00PM
6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

November 25, 2010

SOS II - Rerun

8:00AM-11:00AM
CSP re-run “How to Keep Your Customers for Life”

1:00PM-4:00PM
6th Floor- Development Academy of the Philippines San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City

Shoal understanding of what marketing is, it’s all about selling. Selling perhaps is just portion of what marketing is really all about. New Marketers are sometimes confused about the differences between marketing and selling.

The marketing concept is to satisfy customers’ wants and needs. However, satisfying customer’s wants and needs is not easy as it seems to be. Satisfaction perhaps is never ending. As a want or need is satisfied, comes a new wants or needs to be satisfied. It is considered as the heart of every business because if there are no products to market- whether in the manufacturing, merchandising or any kind of business, the company will not generate sales. If the company does not generate sales, the accountants will audit nothing. If there is nothing to audit, aside from the expenses, there’s no reason for company’s existence unless it is for charity. Marketing after all is also about connecting, relating, and forging partnerships.

Moreover, selling is pervasive. It is both an art and science. It is an art because it requires skill that needs to be constantly practice to achieve a certain level of excellence. On the other hand, it is science because it borrows a lot of principles most especially in applied science like psychology.

The difference between marketing and selling is more than semantic. Selling focuses on the needs of the seller, marketing on the needs of the buyer. Selling is preoccupied with seller’s need to convert the product into cash, marketing with the idea of satisfying the needs of the customer by means of the product and the whole cluster of things associated with creating, delivering, and finally consuming it (September-October 1975, Marketing Myopia-Harvard Business Review).

Part of a good marketing plan of course is all about getting the marketing message in front of as many people as possible, not just any people of course, but the right people at the right time. If marketing is done well it simply disappears behind the neat graphics and sparkling ad copy. The marketing message come shining through and to stimulate, motivate or excite exactly the right people.

The first thing we thought of when applying for a job is our resume. We thought of something like putting all good things about ourselves in our resume. I have never seen a resume with negative things about the person.

Resumes and application forms give employers written evidence of your qualifications and skills. The goal of these documents is to prove—as clearly and directly as possible—how your qualifications match the job’s requirements. We usually do this by highlighting the experience, accomplishments, education, and skills that most closely fit the job you want. Resumes are like ‘passport’ to the company. The employer does not know anything about you. Perhaps, resume will tell them something about you. However, not everything that is written on the resume is correct. It has been estimated that 50% of the people lie on their resumes. Primarily, because they are so eager to get hired and they want to impress their “soon-to-be” boss.

The Personality-Job Fit Theory assumes that examining a person’s personality will give insight into their adaptability in an organization. Basically, how well they will fit in and work. By matching the right personality with the right company you can achieve a better synergy and avoid pitfalls such as high turnover and low job satisfaction[1].

Moreover, there is a need to know whether an individual can really do what is written on his/her resume.

With Profiles Skills Tests™ provide a comprehensive list of tests to measure essential knowledge and skills. Our technologies use performance-based testing, which simulates popular software products to ensure accurate, reliable measurement of the knowledge, skills, and abilities of a person.

Employment is a state where a person have job and involved in any activity and work while, unemployment means that a person is out of work and is jobless.

It pains to hear the word “unemployed”. It does not sound good either! Being jobless is something that any person will not dream of. It’s a serious matter though!

Packing your coffee mug and clearing your desk is a common scenario when the boss fired an employee—having a big box where to put all your stuffs. How would one be able to handle such kind of situation depends on the person. Being fired by your boss is the least thing that you would like to happen I believe! Who would like it in the first place? Contributing to the huge number of unemployed is not a good idea. Because being part of the unemployment rate means that you’re not helping the country’s economy but rather contribute to its downfall.

However, consider being fired as opportunity. A chance to improve oneself and correct all the mistakes that was done. It is an opportunity to make things better. Perhaps, it can be a great incentive to think again your career path and start fresh. There’s always room for improvement. Don’t lose hope. Prepare yourself for another great opportunity will come.

The book Thank You for Firing Me by Kitty Martini and Candice Reed offer valuable tips for keeping yourself together by exercising, sleeping, a sound diet, socializing and staying active, and plotting your future after a job loss. This fresh, funny, and smart guide will be their life saver, providing them with the information they need to thrive even in this tight economic environment. The book will help “used-to be-employee” to see the positive side of being fired. If you’re not happy about your job and you think it wasn’t right, maybe your boss did you a favor. (Fenelle Macarayan)

Good customer service is the bloodline of any business.

Customer Service is all about bringing customers back and sending them away happy. The real essence of good customer service after all, is all about establishing relationship with the customers. A relationship that the customers would like to have for a long term.

Customer service’s primary objective is to provide and attend to the needs of the customers to attain customer satisfaction which means that the company was able to exceed the expectations of the customers.

It is important to identify clearly who the target market is to be able to appropriately deliver their wants and needs.

As “servers” of the company there is a need to identify if the customer service representatives have the skills in handling pesky patrons, make customers feel taken care of, looked after and listened to.

Customer service must attend to the need of a customer seeking help. Customer seeking help will not only feel that she or he has been treated well but will be more favorably disposed towards the buying process of the products and/or services from your business. One way of making your customers feel that you value them is to acknowledge and greet them nicely.

With Customer Service Profile™, it can measure Individual’s Customer Service Perspective, Individual’s Behavioral Characteristics, and Individual’s Proficiencies. No more worries for bad customer service because it is used primarily for selecting, on-boarding and managing customer service employees.

Good customer service will surely be an asset to your company.