Blog
Debra Wheatman, President of Careers Done Write, provides expert insight to the job search process that puts your career in gear with tips for interviewing, networking, job search strategies and how to create a winning resume and cover letter.
Follow-Up on Bad Boss, “Mr. Jones”
I shared a client’s story about her horrible boss, Mr. Jones, a few months ago. I just received an update, and I thought you might be intrigued….
Return to Office Mandates Work Against Working Women
The fact is that the pre-pandemic, primarily in-office working style worked for one segment of the workforce: men. Despite more college-educated women being in the workforce than at any time in history, the share of domestic labor women perform has increased. Domestic labor women perform is worth half a trillion dollars, yet, by design, it has no value in the free market. The system relies on free and cheap domestic labor, most of which women perform, and those in power want to keep the status quo….
Bad CEO Behavior Continues: Work from Home Edition
This month’s contender for Worst CEO Behavior is Raul Vargas, CEO of Farmers Insurance Group. Mr. Vargas is the company’s new CEO, and one of his first orders of business was to reverse his predecessor’s stance on remote work. Employees hired as full-time remote employees now have until September to present themselves in the office thrice weekly. What’s driving this decision? Collaboration. And innovation….
How to Manage Office Politics
Office politics are unavoidable; people bring their unique needs, thoughts, fears, and ambitions to work. Despite people’s claims of hating office politics, like the gossip mill, it continues to flourish. Office politics are the unwritten rules that determine who gets what, when, and how — a promotion, a budget for a project-- and who doesn’t. We dislike office politics so much because our fate depends on these unwritten rules. But there are ways that you can successfully navigate office politics….
How to have better internal meetings
Let’s be honest. Few things can be less exciting than the prospect of an internal meeting. You dread creating the request and sending the invitation, and those receiving it dread adding another meeting to their calendars. Meeting culture has become so pervasive that internal meetings are now the #1 barrier to productivity. One client told me that her company is looking to mandate one meeting-free day per week so that people can focus on their work! I don’t think that’s the solution to the problem either, because the problem is that most internal meetings are inefficient and unnecessary….
Should we discuss salary and compensation with our peers and colleagues?
This is a very interesting topic and one which has been garnering more attention recently. My short answer to the question is yes; we should start bringing salary transparency to the forefront of the narrative….
Getting Rid of Archaic, Outmoded Practices and Attitudes
The last 18 months have surely been disruptive to our lives, but this has also been a time of reinvention. The very idea of the workplace has been upended; we have all learned to adapt on the fly. The concept of work is constantly evolving. In this candidate market, it is critical to make your company a desirable place to work and position it as an employer of choice. To achieve this level of reputation and recruit and retain top talent, you need to excise some of your company’s outdated, irrelevant policies and attitudes….
Talent – where have all the good people gone?
The most pressing challenge for any organization that wishes to remain competitive is access to the right talent with skills and experiences critical to achieving aggressive goals. The cost of a poor hiring decision can be significant—sometimes even exceeding the compensation for the role. This is part of why companies have become increasingly cautious (and bureaucratic and byzantine) in their hiring decisions. I speak with hundreds of people who sit on both sides of the hiring desk in my work. What I can say without hesitation is that there is an enormous disconnect between candidate and hiring company expectations. One of the most frequent complaints from candidates is that the hiring process is broken. Simultaneously, the most frequent complaint of hiring managers is the “skills gap”—a fundamental mismatch between the skills that employers rely upon in their employees and the skills that job seekers possess….
Culture or cult?
An organization's culture is a key factor that job seekers must consider when pursuing a new role. After all, a company’s culture seeps into every aspect of employees' jobs, attitudes, and behaviors. Culture should be a big deal to candidates and employers. When it’s done right, a company’s culture can redefine its brand and make it an employer of choice. Done wrong, culture can repel talent and advance toxic workplace behavior….
Building a more inclusive workplace
I recently received this question from a client:
I am in the final rounds of interviews for a new position in my field. The work is exciting, the company is growing, and the compensation is well within my desired range. I am nervous about undergoing a background check. I am concerned that verifying my education is going to raise some issues with them. I am transgender and conferred both my undergraduate and graduate degrees under my previous name, Stephanie. I’m now a man, and I go by Stephen. I dread the thought of having to explain myself to total strangers (yet again) and justify my identity. What should I do?….