7 tips for creating a top-performing workforce How businesses view their employees is crucial to their ability to retain them and spur innovation, writes Tammy Perkins, chief people officer with ProService. Seven ways to develop a sustainable organization include helping employees add skills and become leaders, provide buy-in opportunities, lay out ambitious goals and give feedback. Full Story: Fast Company (tiered subscription model) (8/9)
Should you use your "mad skills" to land a job? Employers are increasingly recognizing "mad skills" -- rare and unique abilities gained through hobbies or personal experiences -- as valuable assets in job applicants. Examples include learning a complex language or participating in endurance sports, which can demonstrate qualities like perseverance and quick learning. "They are essentially special skills that you can use to stand out from other applicants," says Gaby Wasensteiner of LinkedIn. "You can bring something new to a team that no one else has." Full Story: Yahoo/DPA (8/1)
Factors to look for if team seems distracted Frequent meetings, interruptions by co-workers, noise, stress and multitasking may be distracting a work team and preventing them from performing at their best, writes executive coach Naphtali Hoff. Leaders should seek to remove distractions as much as possible and realize that other factors, such as personal problems or an uncomfortable work environment, may also cause disengagement. Full Story: SmartBrief/Leadership (8/9)
Hire Smart
Structured interviews better than casual conversations A recent study reveals that employers often miss the point in job interviews by relying on casual conversations and gut feelings instead of structured questions and scoring. To improve interviews, employers should focus on aligning their strategies with their goals, avoid pursuing multiple conflicting objectives in a single interview, and dispel outdated myths. Full Story: The Conversation (8/12)
The U.S. is racing to train workers for the growing semiconductor industry. (Cfoto/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Two years after the CHIPS and Science Act was passed, colleges like Purdue University are intensifying efforts to train undergraduates for the semiconductor industry through programs like the STARS initiative. Despite these efforts, McKinsey & Co. estimates a potential shortfall of up to 146,000 workers by 2029. Full Story: NBC News (8/9)
Business trip spending not back to pre-pandemic levels When adjusted for inflation, business travel spending is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2027, according to the Global Business Travel Association, and the "new normal" includes fewer trips, particularly one-day excursions. Employers are scaling back because of flight disruptions, environmental factors and continued uncertainty about the economy. Full Story: Financial Times (8/11)
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Many professionals are contemplating career changes due to postpandemic shifts, burnout or a desire for higher wages and more flexibility, writes Allison McWilliams, assistant vice president of mentoring and alumni personal and career development at Wake Forest University. Key factors in pursuing a career pivot include evaluating risk tolerance, defining success and goals, testing new roles through shadowing or volunteering and leveraging networking, McWilliams writes. Full Story: Psychology Today (8/9)
The Water Cooler
If Olympic withdrawals have set in ...
(Anne-christine Poujoulat/Getty Images)
Well, now what are you going to watch for the rest of the summer? It must be said that the organizers of the Paris Olympics pulled off a Games for the ages, while the athletes provided loads of incredible moments and images. Here is a roundup of some of the best: Layered photos from NBC Olympic moments as classical artworks via the BBC Photos from every sport via The Athletic Blurry photos from Reuters The Top 5 from Al Jazeera
SmartBreak: Question of the Day
Irish writer and nuclear arms activist Stephen Gilbert's most notable work, "Ratman's Notebooks," was adapted into which motion picture listed here?
