Where Have You Been???

Dear Readers:

I've had some folks ask me where we've been, as it has been a couple of months since we posted on this site. Sorry 'bout that.

I have spent all of my writing time writing, editing and preparing some new books for publication over this summer. The first is In Transition: Rapidly Finding Your Next Executive Job (Even in Difficult Times), which was shipped from the publishers on Thursday, June 25th! Our next book is The Six Figure Resume Guide which will be shipped in about two weeks. By August, we'll have a book for non-executive white collar personnel called Getting Employed (Even in Difficult Times). This book gives effective strategies for non-executive personnel to find employment, including over 400 killer interview questions and how to answer them. By September, our book 1001 Killer Interview Questions and Their Answers (working title....we haven't decided on a final yet) will be out. Then, finally (at least for a little while) we're putting out a career management book the working title for which is Highly Cynical Career Management Techniques.

Some of these have DVDs to go along with them. In Transition has two associated DVDs currently in editing. The first DVD is a multiple DVD set with over 6 hours of training on finding executive employment. This will be about a 4 DVD set. We also have a 2 DVD set on answering the 4 "biggie" killer questions, with footage of actual clients answering these questions. I'll put up on my management blog sites further informaiton as it becomes available. Our wonderul internet publicist, Keith Eckhardt, is tirelessly working to get the DVDs finished and put up venues to allow people to buy these books and sets. If you'd like more information on these, please feel free to go to info@heckersdevgroup.com.

So...to make a long story endless....and to quote the Governator....we'll be baaack....very soon.

I hope you're having a great summer!

J

We're Doing Something Right

The unemployment figures Friday are, indeed, frightening. When the number of people who are unemployed and underemployed are added together, an astounding number, 15%, of Americans are unemployed. This is hitting the Executive Sector especially hard.

However, I want to give you a ray of hope. Our clients, even those who are very difficult to employ, are getting employed very rapidly. Our average for "C" Level clients is less than 7 months. The national average for "C" Level client is at 24 months and climbing. Our average for VP Level Candidates is less than 6 months. And our average for Director Level executives is slightly more than 4 months.

One of our "C" Level clients is 70 years old, and worked in non-profit...and is employed. He entered our program in November, and the date of his employment was in February. Another CFO client is trying to decide between which of his opportunities he should take. And we have similar success stories for VPs and Directors.

What we're doing right is hooking people into our extensive network of alumni and current clients to get them employed in this economy. Everyone who is being hired at the executive level is being hired through networking at a very high level. Our network is second to none, since Nicole and I are lifetime residents of Denver and the Front Range. We have even helped numerous out of town clients get jobs in the Denver and Front Range areas.

While I don't like to use this blog space for advertising what we do, we're doing many things right and our people are getting employed. We limit the number of people we take and we are not cheap, We cost between two weeks' and six weeks' salary for executives. Considering, however, how many months we cut off of the job search, can you really afford not to talk to us?

We don't take everyone who comes to us. We do not work with "linear" in-the-box, concrete thinkers, so if you're one of the hide-bound dinosaurs of Corporate America, please don't bother. But we'll be happy to speak with you and see if we can help in any way for those holistic, organic, out-of-the-box thinkers that America needs now. Our number for a free evaluation is 303.480.5484, and we welcome your call and look forward to coffee with you.

If you're tired of daytime TV, we'd love to help.

Please note, we work only with Director Level, VP Level and "C" Level (CXO Level) Clients. We are a fee-paid service, and require a portion of our fee before beginning our program. We do not work with people "pro bono," nor "on contingency," and we are not recruiters. For more information on us, go to www.heckersdevgroup.com or www.heckersdevelopmentgroup.com for the HTML site.


J.

Executives and Money Issues

One of the biggest obstacles to executives becoming employed is their attitude about money. It isn’t surprising that money is the center of existence for many executives. After all, they went into business, not social work. When I was growing up, our old Monsignor said to me “John, the most sensitive part of the human anatomy is the wallet. You can grab a man by the privates and he won’t scream as loud as if you grab him by the wallet.” Father Schmidt, may he rest in peace, was so right!
However, as with most things that we hold near and dear, money can also be the source of our derailment as executives. The problems here are numerous. It is time for some tough talk around money issues and where executives are on this most sensitive part of their anatomy.

1). Fear. There was a billionaire in Paris who, in this recent financial crisis, lost about 1/3rd of his billions. He committed suicide because he was financially ruined. Now, before you laugh and point too hard, I’ve seen executive after executive get to almost the same point when, really, very little of their income has been reduced.
As an example, our fee to help executives, with an incredible success rate, is less than a month’s salary. Considering that our folks average about $220K per annum, plus bonuses, it is substantially less than a month’s salary.
And, consider that a fee for an executive coach is an investment in one’s main channel of income…to increase it dramatically. Yet you’d think with some folks that I was asking them to empty their bank accounts, take off their Rolex, and hand me the keys to the Mercedes!
Many of our executives bitch and gripe about paying for parking at some of the events. Or paying $350.00 to join an association to meet other executives. Or buying a few new suits. Or even a very good haircut (we have someone to whom we send our executives to fix their hair).
Executives are cheap, cheap, cheap, in many instances. Yes, this probably means you! This attitude of paying the least possible for things to support and assist your career search, simply because you are temporarily without income, is very counterproductive.
But the executives are often nowhere near as cheap as their spouses, especially the wives (although I certainly know a few very cheap hubbies!). The thought of {{{gasp!}}} paying money to help to get a $250K a year job much more rapidly sends them into an anxiety attack. This is also incredibly counterproductive.

2). Misunderestimating. Sorry, folks, couldn’t resist. The fact is that when executives look at their bank accounts, they see a yawning chasm where there might be Mt. Everest. Until recently, Bill Gates could never see that he had enough. He was consistently panicked about making more and more and more and more money. This is a pathology. It is also a black hole. All the money in the world will not make someone internally insecure into someone secure. All this talk about “financial security” is so much hooey. What is often going on is a need to be in control of all situations. As this is impossible on this plane of existence, no amount of money is ever going to be enough.
What has to happen is to look at one’s “burn rate.” From the burn rate, calculate how many months you are able to exist. Then ask what you can do to reduce the burn rate. Do you really need that cruise? I’ve seen people balk at spending money on the things that will get them a new job, but spend money on a new car, a vacation, an expensive present, and so on. Reduce the burn rate as much as possible!
Then look at what to spend money and time on that will reduce the amount of time that you will be looking for a job. This might be a transition coach, group and association fees, clothing, travel to a city you want to move to, etc. Get your priorities straight! A new car is not as important as a fee to a major networking group that will put you into contact with other top executives and people in your community immediately. Yes, a new car might make you feel better about yourself, but is your three year old Mercedes really ready to be put out to pasture?

3). Stretch your money. Do some intelligent things with your money. You might consider moving into some safer investments for a time. You might consider putting the extra home up for sale. What about simply garaging the third car and taking it off of insurance for a while until you’re re-employed. How about a very temporary consulting assignment in November, December, and late June through mid-September when executive hiring is at a “low” anyway? Howsabout cutting back on some of the kids’ activities? (It is good for the kids to feel the cold hand of reality sometimes, too.) Does your spouse really need to go to the spa every week? And so on.
This blog is written to upper management and executives. If you’re not one of these folks and reading this anyway, you probably think I’m being pretty nasty and exaggerating. I’m not. This is the way these folks live. (I don’t, and even most of my clients don’t, but a large enough proportion of them do, that I know whereof I speak!) Those of you who do live this way…you look really silly to the rest of the nation who would love to have your problems right now. Which brings me to…

4). Get real about your situation in life. You wife is sobbing because you have to put the country club membership on hold for a few months. Well, brother, the wife of one of the people who you passed in the hall every day at Lehman Brothers is crying because she can’t pay the mortgage on their three bedroom, modest home, and the cable has been turned off, and there isn’t enough food in the fridge to feed the family. Grow up! Get real about your situation. Many of you are not in any real trouble. Yes, your lifestyle isn’t going to be the same. But you, too, were part of the problem that led to this. (For whom did you vote in previous elections? What belief systems do you have about the economy? What decisions did you make at your company that contributed to the current economic crisis? We’re all in this together, folks, including me.)
So, get real about money. Even your “broke” is not truly broke. You can still pay the mortgage, keep the heat on, put food in the fridge, etc., even if it means tapping your IRAs and investments. Some very hard working and good people don’t have IRAs and investments to tap, can’t pay for the simple necessities of life, and had almost nothing to do with the current crisis (whereas we all did at our levels). Frankly, I’m surprised these people are not rioting in the streets, pulling us out of our homes and taking them over. This is what would happen in these situations in most other countries. It speaks to the quality of Americans that they haven’t done so…yet.

5). Greed. Greed (and stupidity) is what brought us to the current economic crisis. Greed isn’t going to get us out of it. Be real about what salary and benefits you’re going to be making. Don’t try to hold up an employer for more than the market will bear. Don’t try to hang on to all your money. Dip into the IRAs if necessary, and liquidate the investments. Hey, given the volatility of the market, you might be glad you did!

Here’s the bottom line. Now is the time to stop collecting and hoarding and spend a bit to get going on your job search. Don’t be stingy or greedy. Don’t hold out for every penny you can make. And don’t hold on to every inch of your lifestyle. This might be your wake-up call from the Universe. Get real about your money!

Idiocy in the Job Search (or: Hey! This is an EMPLOYER’S Market!)

I’ve had my eyes opened. We have a need for someone to expand our business…and we’ve seen many résumés, with 2 out of about 60 we really like. We posted with our partners and friends at Jobing.com, who have, by the way, done a great job of helping out. (www.jobing.com. If you are an applicant, register with them now. If an employer with a job opening, ask for Craig Hakes at 303.227.3377 and post your description with them. Let them know I sent you.)

To respond to this post, either comment below or email me at jheckers@heckersdevgroup.com. I welcome your comments.

But the lack of intelligence and old fashioned manners in the job-seeker world is truly amazing! So, let my bad experience be your education, as always. Here are a few really stupid human tricks that some of our applicants have done.

1). Ignored the post entirely. Our post clearly says up front that people applying any other way than instructed will be automatically not considered. Then it gives a set of things we have to have before we talk to someone, including reading one of our blogs and replying to a couple of questions that are posted there (so we know that the person read it.) Out of the 60 résumés, only two followed the directions completely. This proves that they are not bright enough to be employed anywhere (except, maybe, the Post Office or the TSA), much less at our firm.

2). Got nasty. When I didn’t just delete these congenital idiots who couldn’t follow simple directions, but sent them back instructions asking them to apply again, some got nasty and told me I was rude, proving the point that no good deed goes unpunished (I shoulda just deleted them rather than giving them a second chance). Even if I had been, what kind of houseplant IQ does it take not to say something ridiculous like that to a potential employer, hmmmm? Never criticize an employer. If you don’t like what they require or want from you, don’t apply.

3). Showed ignorance. We’re trying to hire someone to serve as a Career Coach Associate. One of the duties is writing résumés, which we’ll train them on. But several of the résumés had major misspellings and misuse of words. I think that these folks probably didn’t make the grade. (The two people I liked did everything right, BTW….great résumés, read the blog, followed directions — proving that I did not pose an insurmountable test or anything.)

4). Sent canned responses. This is in part an extension of #1, as we said “NO CANNED COVER LETTERS,” and asked for a statement of 500 words or less telling us why they wanted to work for our firm. Instead several job seekers sent a canned cover letter that had absolutely nothing to do with the position or any information we wanted. Duh.

5). Didn’t even use our names. If the name of the person to whom you’re applying is in the job posting — ummmm….use it! Not doing so is incredibly rude, as well as un-bright.

6). Applied even though they had 20% of the qualifications or less. That 20% consisted of being able to breathe air and be of the human species (for some, I wasn't sure that "being of the human species" applied..). Really, in some of the résumés that is the only similarity I can find to anything in the job description.

When you do this you’re wasting everyone’s time, and really torquing off an employer. “Papering” your résumé is just plain idiotic. Don’t do it!

7). Applied to the wrong email address. Once again, follow directions. How many working brain cells does it take to send an email to the correct email address when it is sitting there with a link on it?

8). Just forwarded their “Jobing” profile without even a canned cover letter. It is bad enough to get a “canned” cover letter, but to just get a profile…sent to the wrong email address…with none of the qualifications for the job…and numerous misspellings…well, these people need to go on Welfare, because no employer who needs someone who can even use a broom well will hire these people.

9). Send really offensive cover letters. One guy started out his ridiculous cover letter with “Congratulations! Your search for the right person is over!” Yeah. Whatever. I'll make that decision, thank you, not you. Don’t send hokey stuff like that, people. It just marks you out as someone who will be a “salesy” employee who will apply high pressure sales person type tactics to your clients or customers and make them so angry that they’ll go to your competitors. I would prefer to slowly slice off vital parts of my anatomy than to subject my great clients to a high pressure loser like that. And please don’t tell me, the employer, what decision I need to make.

Be humble when you write. I don’t mind someone saying “I believe I am the right person for the job,” and giving me examples that mirror the job description to tell me why. I like it, in fact.

What I really hate, though, is someone who tells me that I'm the idiot if I don’t hire him (this is a mistake usually made by the male of the species), and doesn’t give me one good reason why I should.

10). Telling me that I’m looking for impossible qualifications (or that I don’t pay enough). Out of 60 résumés, we have two good ones. We always knew that we were seeking a special individual. But the fact that two people did have the qualifications and thought the salary range was good is proof that we simply asked for the improbable and difficult, not the impossible. Besides which, I do the improbable and the difficult at least 3 or 4 times a day. The impossible I only perform once or twice a week. If I had received no viable candidates, well, maybe they’re right. But two out of 60 is actually a good “hit” ratio, since we’re seeking someone who fits into our unique culture and has high` intelligence.

I could go on, but I won’t. The upshot is this. It is an employer’s market. You aren’t going to get anywhere by being nasty, rude, not following directions, or generally acting stupid.

If you do fit, follow the instructions and apply, remember it is still an employer’s world. You aren’t in control now and you won’t be in control after you get hired — if you’re lucky enough to be hired. Also remember that the amendment that would have required employers to give a reason for firing someone was withdrawn. Employers in Colorado and most other states can fire you for any reason whatsoever or no reason at all. While you could get away with a great deal of crap in a tight labor market, real unemployment now is hovering around 12%, regardless of what the government propaganda says.

If you don’t want to be part of the “unemployed” statistic, polish your shoes and your attitude, be polite and deferential and generally behave yourself.

Good hunting,

J.

The Web Can Be Friend or Foe

Every new technology can be a “mixed blessing.” My cell phone makes me more accessible — and wakes me up early in the morning with some marketing call or wrong number. My computer gave me repetitive stress syndrome. My copier ate an important document. And so on.

But the most dangerous technology out there for your career can be the Internet. While the Internet opens great possibilities for searching for jobs, some common things people do on the Internet can actually cost them, not only jobs, but their careers, or worse. Here are two major things many people do to interfere with their careers on the Internet.

1). Post a résumé or your profile on a job board. Caution is essential, as well as a bit of discernment. Some people post on every job board. This only slightly increases their chances of being hired, as almost all companies who are searching on job boards use a utility (or an employee) which will search all of the most common. But it greatly increases your chances of lowering your salary. If you’re posted on every job board, it is clear that you’re desperate and will probably take a lower offer. Post cautiously. If you’re a woman, do not post your address or home phone. There are many less than savory characters out there.

Instead, post on a very few. The Ladders is a waste of time in my opinion, as all contacts by recruiters or employers must be made through them. Execunet is OK if you post a resume on it and put contact information, especially email info, on the rez. Jobing.com is good, as they are very picky about their employers and have a variety of other services, as well.

2). Have a MySpace account. One of the most dangerous career moves you or your children can make is to create a MySpace account and post personal information of any kind on it. A picture of you in a skimpy bathing suit or less, or passed out on a beach after a party with a bottle of Tequila in your hand can be enough to cost you a job in the future.

Also be aware that deleting a website or changing its information doesn’t do any good anymore. There is a site, http://www.archive.org/, which has technology which lists and shows screenshots of web sites back to 1996.

Even if you want it to, nothing ever goes away on the web! For a truly scary experience, type in your personal website or the website of a friend on this site and hit “search.” You will see a page giving the history of this website, and screenshots of the whole site, back to its inception or 1996, whichever is later.

It is common for younger generation workers to keep sites like MySpace and to post what they think is hilarious information on there, like pictures of themselves in compromising positions, naked, or drunk and performing stupid stunts. There are actually three dangers.

The first danger is that, while younger generations see this as “private,” it is very public. Even if no one but friends are supposed to be able to see the site, a skilled computer geek can see it in nanoseconds. Employers or agencies that do background checks often employ these geeks at very high rates of pay to do just that.

The second danger is that any pictures can be copied and sent anywhere without your consent by friends, hackers, geeks and others who can gain access to your site. The Internet is a public space, and there is no protection on the face of the earth that can prevent a bright individual from copying and distributing your pictures. Think about explaining to your next boss how a topless picture of you wound up on hotbabes.com or the like. Good luck. Better luck explaining to your mom or dad , husband or wife, boyfriend or girlfriend, etc. why you didn’t get the job. Have fun.

The third danger is the site I quoted above, called “Way Back.” While I have only had business sites, I’ve played with this instrument and it can pull up websites of companies that have been out of business for years, as well as personal sites.

There is a fourth danger for your children and teenagers. Their judgment is rarely the best. They can give information that exposes them to sexual predators, kidnappers, pedophiles, and other dangerous people. Additionally, what they do on MySpace never goes away. When they update, all they’re doing is creating another archive file. If I currently had children in this age range, MySpace, Facebook and other similar sites would be completely prohibited to them. If you love your kids, I suggest you do the same. It is simply not safe for them, and you cannot monitor them every second of Internet use. Block the sites and threaten serious punishments if you find they’ve opened an account…and check frequently.

If your kids are on MySpace, get them off of it. Today. This is one thing they do not need, and which exposes them to irreversible harm. It would be safer to feed them my ex-wife’s cooking. (Think: “Dinner is ready when the smoke alarm goes off.” Really.)


While the Internet poses dangers, it also offers opportunities. The same site listed above can be used to check out a prospective employee or date — and should be. Anyone who does not “Google” a prospective employee or date is living in the middle of the last century.

The Internet is like any power tool. Use it wisely and it can save time and build bridges. Use it carelessly and it can end a career or expose you to stalking, identity theft, or even death. It is a public forum, not a private space. Assume that anything and everything you do on the Internet is subject to discovery and behave accordingly.

Be careful out there!

J.

Ten Career Limiting Moves for Executives

As you move up the executive ranks, there are certain behaviors that will give you a boost, and others that are very career limiting moves. Here are some of the career limiting moves and how to avoid them.

1). Getting too close to your boss. This may seem counter-intuitive, but don’t let yourself get too close to the boss. It is especially important not to be friends with the boss. Be friendly. Invite the boss and his/her spouse to dinner (preferably at a nice restaurant). Accept any invitations given to you. But never, never think that the boss is your friend. S/He isn’t. If the choice comes between you and losing his/her job, which do you think will win? And letting the boss know your personal life challenges can only lead to disaster.

2). An office romance. There is an old saying that applies. “Don’t dip your quill into the office inkwell ‘cause someone will come along and cut your feathers off.” Crude, but true. As soon as you enter into an office romance, you are a target.

I tried to tell this to one young friend of ours who started to go out with a senior official of her company while she was consulting there. It didn’t last. Neither did she. If you absolutely must date someone you’ve met at work, one of you should quit and find other employment if it looks promising after 3 or 4 dates. Otherwise there is a very large hole in your armor.

3). Dishonesty anywhere. If someone is dishonest with me they’ve just been dishonest with someone who has a very large Rolodex and isn’t afraid to use it. A moving company did something dishonest to my widowed mom. They didn’t want to deal with it when I brought it to their attention. I let my network know what they’d done. The next day they received over two hundred phone calls from people. They wound up making a fairly large settlement.

Honest disagreements will happen. But cheating someone, stealing from them, or defrauding them will get around very rapidly and ruin your career chances. I know one gentleman who had to move out of town because of a bad reputation. Great guy, but had made a few judgment errors. Run your life and your business with integrity, or you’ll pay the price.

4). Letting your network lapse. I see too many of my clients let their networks lapse once they get employed. This is a very large mistake. In fact, the lack of a network is how most of the transition executives I deal with got in the position of needing to utilize my services in the first place. Keep up your network!

5). Losing focus. Everyone has life issues that arise. There are deaths and illnesses and other unforeseen cosmic noogies that surface from time to time. Take a few vacation days, deal with it as well as possible, but then focus on your work again. Don’t get sidetracked with volunteer work, family issues, and so on.

6). Identifying with the company. One of my clients was a true company man. He had a company shirt, a company ball cap, a company cup, and even a company crest ring. Yep. He was a good company man right up to the time he was laid off. A goodly portion of his identity was temporarily taken away. You work for a company, you don’t live for a company, unless it is yours. Even with the fact that my wife, Nicole, and I are in practice together and our name is on the letterhead, we don’t live for the company. We live for life and work at our company. But we’d still be us if we didn’t have the company. You should take the same attitude.

7). Taking the part of employees. Don’t get too close to your employees. I made this mistake early in my executive career. The employees had some legitimate gripes, and I went to bat for them. That was a very big mistake. Don’t make it.

Do what you can to look like you’re on the side of employees while making sure that your superiors know that you are pushing the corporate agenda. If you want to right injustices, join the Peace Corp or start your own company where you can put your ideals into effect. But don’t try to reform corporate America. It won’t work and it annoys the powers that be.

8). Thinking you know all the answers. One of the most rapidly growing careers is that of Executive Coach. Why? Because intelligent executives know that they need to have an independent sounding board to bounce things off of and some independent advice. If you don’t have one, get one. But watch yourself. Make sure that the individual you’re contracting is experienced and skilled. Often times your company will pay for this.

9). Isolating yourself. Keep up. Read. Watch CNN and other stations. Talk with others outside of your company. Join associations and groups where you can, not only network, but also meet like-minded people.

10). Mixing personal and professional life. Keep the office at the office and the home at home. Don’t let anyone see much of your personal life. I rarely invite clients to my home. My home is my home.

I used to have an office in my home (in Highlands Ranch at the time) where I’d see clients. This did have some advantages. But it also let them see too much of me and my family. It is usually a mistake to bring the office home or the home to the office.

These, of course, aren’t the only career-limiting moves that executives can do, but are a few of the big ones. Watch for my upcoming book Highly Cynical Career Management to be published around the December holidays. In the meantime, watch your back and watch yourself!

Three Tips for Avoiding the Next RIF

What do you do when you hear nasty rumors being spread around the office that there will be layoffs, or a RIF (reduction in force), and you fear you could be on the list? Don’t assume it’s time to bid R.I.P. to your career, but rather take a calm yet proactive approach to the situation. Look at your marketability and use it as a springboard to explore other opportunities elsewhere, or decide to make the most of it at your current position.

If you decide you’d like to stay where you are currently, here are 3 tips to make you indispensable to your organization. (In the following stories names and identifying info have been changed to protect client identities.)

1) Become an expert and make yourself available to teach what you know. One employee, Sal, worked in a small office in technical support. A major component of the business was to process credit cards. He saw that the company was paying a large portion of fees to the credit card companies and for processing. This issue had been largely overlooked by all of the staff. Seeing that a fair amount of money could be saved, he took it upon himself to learn everything he could to reduce the fees and negotiate different rates. He became the point of contact whenever there was a problem with the vendors. He taught other staff how to navigate the fairly complex and abstruse system. Furthermore, Sal familiarized himself with any changes and rate increases. With his knowledge of a core component of the business and his willingness to share what he knew, Sal avoided any mention of his name when the company was forced to downsize. And at the same time, he increased his value to the company by saving tens of thousands of dollars annually.

2) Go green and organize a contest. After being horrified by the reams of wasted paper his office produced to generate one report, Tim decided change the profligate nature of his department. He realized the paper waste for the report could be cut by at least 50%. With upper management’s approval and the small budget he was allotted, he sponsored and organized a contest where individuals were recognized for reducing the waste by half. Everyone joined in to solve the problem and most met the 50% goal. He distributed little “Save a Tree” award trees to each member who met the marker. He gave the largest tree to the employee who engineered the highest waste reduction. Given the competitive nature at the office, his contest was highly successful. The morale of the department improved as everyone recognized their commitment to save the environment. Tim was asked to oversee the “Save a Tree” contest annually and was appointed the head of a new committee dedicated to making the office environmentally friendly. With Tim’s extensive contributions, not only did he take steps to save the environment, but he saved his job as well.


3) Shape and strengthen the culture of your office. Mary had always been known as a strong contributor to her company. She was well liked and always took the initiative in any situation. Rumors had circulated that upper management wanted to improve the morale of the department. To help bond her work group, with her boss’ approval, Mary decided to organize a wine tasting at a popular restaurant nearby. The attendance was at almost 100% and a huge success. People talked about the event for days afterwards. Management asked Mary if she had any other ideas she could implement. After careful thought and help from a skilled facilitator who volunteered time to the project, she began a peer advisory group for the professional development of staff. The group took off, spawned several other groups and exceeded everyone’s expectations. With a second success under her belt, Mary was now informally put in charge for molding the organization from a cultural standpoint. The most popular events she organized became annual traditions. It was clear over the period of a few months that Mary had single handedly improved the overall morale and sense of cohesion within the organization, which increased productivity and contributed to a high functioning department. Instead of the possibility of being on future RIF lists, Mary became one of the most popular and beloved members of the team. Given her string of contributions that helped shape the organization, no one, including management could afford to let her go.

With these few tips, you’ll find that you’re an indispensable member of your organization. Although you’ll feel a sense of loss as others around you face lay-offs, if you follow these guidelines, you’ll be glad you positioned yourself to be integral to the functioning of your department and the last person upper management would ever consider letting go.

All the best,

Nicole Heckers, MA, CPC, BCPC