By THOMAS W. MORRIS III
MORRIS • ASSOCIATES INC.
http://morrisdc.com/

Much like writing a resume, the key to writing a good cover letter is to understand how people read them, and by and large, they don’t.

People glance at cover letters quickly, first for format and general appearance; this takes from less than a second to a very few seconds. Then they “quick scan” for keywords and qualifications emphasized in the position description and advertisement. Actually a computer may perform the quick scan for keywords before any human even looks at your resume; this is especially true if you are applying online. Because most position advertisements get dozens if not hundreds – and sometimes thousands – of responses, computer scans have become an essential and sometimes preferred way to pre-scan applicants’ resumes.

Therefore, crafting a superior cover letter begins by carefully reading and analyzing keywords and phrases used in the advertisement that describe what the employer wants.

COMMON MISTAKES:

1. Most people don’t carefully read and analyze the whole ad; they glance through the ad and highlight a few phrases and qualifications that catch their eye – perhaps because those are key skills or attributes that they want to be using in the new position.

2. Many read the ad from their point of view and not from the point of view of either the person who will read their application or the point of view of what the organization has spent the time and money to define, in writing: the person they want to hire.

WHAT TO DO:

1. Go old-school! Print out the position description.

2. Read everything in the ad: the description of the firm or organization, the general description of the position they’re seeking to fill, the requirements, the qualifications needed and preferred, and how and where they want you to respond to the ad.

3. Grab a highlighter and highlight everything in all those sections listed above that describes the corporate culture and what they’re looking for in the position. Watch especially for words and phrases that are repeated (e.g. they might describe their organization as one that emphasizes “teamwork” and “collaboration,” and “building and working in teams” might be listed as requirements or qualifications). The real tone of what they’re looking for is usually in the company description of itself (“dynamic,” “cutting edge”); if that’s how the company sees itself, you need to infuse that same tone and those values in your cover letter. Think: what is the essence of what they want? And what are the keywords or qualifications that they’ve used to describe the essence?

4. Sit back and analyze what you’ve highlighted. In addition to identifying the essence of what they’re looking for, based on your knowledge of this kind of position, what are the key skills, qualities and personal attributes desired that are also unique to this particular organization? Remember: ads for the same position title are not the same – the emphasis will be different and unique for each company.

5. Craft the opening sentence of your cover letter around the essence of what they want. Incorporate the top skills and qualifications listed in the position advertisement that you have highlighted. Use the same words they used in the ad; those are the exact keywords the reader or computer scanner will be likely looking for. Are there themes restated and reinforced? Use these themes as major headings for copy, then group the bullet points in your letter under them. Match your background and experience to the qualifications and specific requirements of the ideal candidate described. The goal is to have the reader almost instantly get the essence of what you are communicating without having to read the letter carefully.

This is what often makes the difference in those that go in the “yes” pile from those that wind up elsewhere.

Career Management Associates

CMA

Portland, ME

By Valerie Mercer SPHR, Director of HR/Career Services
Click here to listen…
The purpose of a succession and career planning system is to match future needs of the organization (anticipated and unanticipated openings) with the aspirations and competencies of top performing and high potential employees.

Challenges:

A succession and career planning system requires investment. The economic downturn has resulted in limited funds available to staff “bench” positions, which are often developmental positions for the “up and comers”.

A working system results in having (ideally) more than one suitable person “ready” for a key job opening. In order to have choices, an organization needs to identify who is ready now and who may be ready in the future (and what the development path should be).

Benefits:

Key roles filled internally have a higher success rate, culturally, than those filled externally. A favored method is to recruit into the organization at a lower level and groom from there.

A well-developed career planning process increases the retention of superior employees since they recognize that time, attention and skill development are being focused on them for the purpose of their career development. When companies continue to challenge and reward talented employees, they reduce their drive to seek opportunities elsewhere.

Process:

Establish a system for your organization.

Keep the process simple, otherwise managers will not use it, and establish organizational metrics. Some key steps include:

• Identify Current Top Performers and High Potential Leaders
• Identify Future Leadership Gaps
• Develop Individual Career Goals
• Develop a Leadership Skills Roadmap – Competencies That Must be Achieved
• Develop Succession Plans – Lateral Moves & Developmental Opportunities
• Develop Leader/Top Performer Retention Programs With Metrics

Career advancement should be a substantive and meaningful part of performance reviews. Managers and employees should discuss and document the desired career path, ultimate career goal and “stepping stone” jobs within the organization. With the generational move to shorter term tenures with organizations, employees have to feel that there is something in it for them, in order to stay with the same organization.

The metrics that a company establishes for Succession and Career Planning might include goals such as the percent of executive level vacancies that are actually filled with an internal promotion vs. an external hire, or the percent of promotions that actually come from the high-potential pool.  These are lagging indicators, which need to be accompanied by leading indicators such as the percent of divisions/managers that have completed succession plans in place.

CMA can assist organizations in developing or refining their succession and career planning systems.

Valerie Mercer is the Director of HR/Career Services  at Career Management Associates , an HR consulting firm that specializes in Professional and Executive Search, HR Consulting and Services, Outplacement and Career Transition, Executive Coaching, and Contract Employment. Please contact her

at vmercer@cmacareer.com or 207.780.1125.

By Valerie Mercer SPHR, Director of HR/Career Services
Click here to listen…
Has your organization ever promoted an employee to fill an unplanned opening, only to have them fail?

Does your organization have a plan in place for developing and retaining your key people?

During this economic downturn, when organizations have been focused on keeping their businesses afloat, development plans for individuals have taken a back seat. However, many employers today realize that, even with the poor economy, the top-performing and/or high-potential employees can be flight risks – some want to leave and some are being targeted by competitors! And companies recognize that these top performers often determine the long term success or failure of a business – certainly a catch 22.

While these top performers and high potentials may have been content to hunker down during the start of this downturn, many are becoming restless, and even disgruntled, and will jump when the time is right. Lack of opportunity for advancement is often one of the top 4 areas of discontentment in employee engagement surveys! And, statistically, while voluntary separations have trended downward, voluntary separations for top performers have trended up!

Only 20% of organizations have formal, transparent, succession planning systems in place! A talent management system that identifies, develops and (hopefully) retains top talent is key to managing top performers and high potentials. In the absence of a system, organizations fall prey to the cycle of “threaten to quit = offer of more $$ to stay” (a short term fix, if it works at all!).  A succession/career planning system is much more effective and actually creates a proactive management system, as opposed to a reaction mechanism! This approach can be complex and expensive or as simple as having regular, structured (more than 1X per year) performance/developmental discussions with key employees, and tracking the results. But this may be a challenge since many companies do not even have a successful performance review system in place!!

Next time:  Part 2 – Succession and Career Planning  –  the why and how?

CMA can assist organizations in developing or refining their succession and career  planning systems.

Valerie Mercer is Director of HR/Career Services at Career Management Associates an HR consulting firm that specializes in Professional and Executive Search, HR Consulting and Services, Outplacement
and Career Transition, Executive Coaching, and Contract Employment. Please contact her
at vmercer@cmacareer.com or 207.780.112.

Click here to listen…
An Affirmative Action Program plan is a formal way of documenting your organization’s management policies and procedures, in place to eliminate barriers to employment opportunities for minorities, women, Veterans and qualified disabled people.  AAP Plans examine an organization’s population and its employment practices, to identify any deficiencies.  The AAP Plan includes goals designed to improve areas with any noted deficiencies, striving to provide the best probability of equal employment for all.

In general, organizations that do business with the federal government or receive federal government funds are required to implement formal affirmative action plans.  Some employers assume that they have to have an AAP in place in order to comply with federal equal opportunity employment (EEO) laws.  However, EEO laws typically prohibit unlawful discrimination against “protected classes” of applicants and employees.  Affirmative action laws require covered employers to implement plans to identify and hire certain protected class members.  Even though a plan must be written each year, it does not have to be filed with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.  The OFCCP is the regulatory body tasked with ensuring compliance with affirmative action and equal employment initiatives for all federal contractors.

Employers generally implement formal affirmative action plans in the following circumstances:

1.  as a condition of doing business with the federal government;
2. as a response to an allegation of discrimination, ordered by a court; and
3. as a voluntary resolution for past patterns of discrimination.

AAP requirements can be complex, as a result, most employers prefer not to implement them unless they meet the requirements and must do so to meet legal mandates.

Career Management Associates has dedicated and experienced staff, tasked with being informed and up to date on all Affirmative Action Plan regulations and OFCCP initiatives, ensuring our clients have the most complete and fully compliant Plans.  Contact us to discuss how we can help you develop and implement a customized AAP for your organization.

April is National Stress Awareness Month

By: Kim Lefebvre
Click here to listen…
 

For the twentieth year in a row April has been named National Stress Awareness Month.  This collaborative initiative is a cooperative effort to raise awareness about the dangers of stress and prevalent misconceptions.  During the month of April, health professionals are called upon to help focus attention on identifying the signs and symptoms of harmful stress and provide information and education about successful coping strategies.  According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), stress and anxiety is estimated to affect over 19 million Americans.  Healthcare professionals continue to warn that stress is becoming an epidemic.

Stress is a part of our everyday lives.  How one copes with stress becomes the deciding factor in whether or not it directly affects health.  Today, three out of five visits to the doctor are stress related.  In the US alone, $2.8 billion is spent on anxiety-related healthcare annually.  One in four Americans admits to having taken a “mental health day” off from work.  The Center for Disease Control and Prevention notes that one in three Americans today has issues with hypertension and high blood pressure.

Stress related illnesses and anxiety are becoming more prevalent among the younger populations.  Statistics show that one third of kids aged 8 – 17 years old report that they are worried about their family’s finances.  Relentless commercial and peer pressure, to have more material possessions, such as the best technology, gadgets and the right clothing, are taking a direct toll on their mental and physical health.   Homework and teasing are also major sources of stress for today’s younger generation.  When asked how they cope, the top answer was listening to music, followed by eating, and then talking to their parents.  Studies show that anxiety is five times more prevalent in young people today than during The Depression.

10 Tips For Relieving Stress and Getting Your Mojo Back*

1.  Engage in relaxing activities. Take a walk in nature. Get a massage. Take a scented hot bath. Curl up with a great book.
2. Listen to guided imagery.
3. Meditate even if only for five minutes. If you can’t make time for this, break up the day by taking three deep belly breaths several times/day.
4. Try to change the stressors in your life that you have the power to change.
5.  Quit trying to control the uncontrollable. For those stressors you can’t change, learn to let it go.
6. Be brutal with your to-do list, and be compassionate with yourself for what doesn’t get done.
7. Avoid watching and reading the news when you’re stressed. Chances are it will only stress you more.
8. Express your feelings. Talk to a trusted friend or write in your journal. Bottling up your feelings will only add to your stress
9.  Keep a running list of things you are grateful for. It will help keep you focused on what’s great in your life.
10.  Laugh. Watch a funny movie. Tell jokes with friends.

Remember the old saying, “Find a job you love and you’ll never work another day in your life.” Most people spend about 25 percent of their adult lives working.  Job stress hurts productivity and takes a serious toll on the mind and body.

Sometimes bringing in someone from outside your organization, to conduct a stress management workshop with team building activities can be just what the doctor ordered.  A professional facilitator can take a stressed out group of co-workers and have them laughing together and working cooperatively to perform a team oriented task in a matter of hours.  Career Management Associates has multiple customizable workshops designed to help staff recognize stress and to teach workplace coping mechanisms.  For more information about stress management and team building workshops, contact our offices.

*Published on April 14, 2010 by Lissa Rankin, M.D. in Owning Pink

 

This 2-part blog touches on the topic of Workplace Violence, often a taboo discussion. Based on recent events in Maine, I believe it is a subject that warrants discussion. Last week a disgruntled ex-employee stormed his previous employer by gunpoint. The gunman surrendered and no one was harmed but for me the underlying problem is the emotional impact on an organization and their employees. It is time to take our heads out of the sand and properly train employees and managers on Workplace Violence.

Part 2 of this blog will cover the personal and organizational impact of workplace violence.

Workplace violence has emerged as an important safety and health issue in today’s workplace.

Workplace Violence Facts:

•  Homicide is the 4th leading cause of fatal occupational injury in the United States
•  In 2004-08 an average of 564 work-related homicides occurred yearly in the United States
•  In 2008, a total of 526 workplace homicides occurred
•  Less than HALF of all threats are reported annually

Impact on Personnel: The effects of workplace violence on employees and their families cannot be quantified. Some of the effects could be physical injuries, psychological / emotional damage, trauma, absence from work, decreased sense of personal safety and morale.

Impact on the Organization: The overall impact of violence in the workplace is difficult, if not impossible, to measure. A workplace violence incident could affect morale, company image, and impact productivity. A long term effect could be the stigmatism and the negativity – how will customers, community, future employees react?

Workplace violence and domestic violence in the workplace can cause detrimental and devastating effects for organizations and their employees. The personal and economic toll can be incalculable in terms of loss and suffering. Beyond actual loss, fear of workplace violence can take a toll on morale, productivity, and attendance.

Workplace Violence is a real issue and this topic should be added to your organizations annual training schedule.

Audra Becker is the Vice President-HR Services at Career Management Associates an HR consulting firm
that specializes in Professional and Executive Search, HR Consulting and Services, Outplacement
and Career Transition, Training, Executive Coaching, and Contract Employment. Please contact her
at abecker@cmacareer.com or 207.780.1125.

 

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics the workplace is the scene of almost 1 million violent crimes every year. One in six violent crimes occurs in the workplace. About 10 percent or 100,000 of these violent workplace crimes involve offenders armed with handguns. Statistics do not lie and, with facts like this, you can’t assume your workplace is safe.

Part 1 on my blog will cover the definition, the types of workplace violence and examples.

Definition

Violence-Any physical assault, threatening behavior or verbal abuse that occurs in the work setting. Acts such as psychological trauma due to threats, obscene phone calls, an intimidating presence and harassment of any kind are included.

Workplace-Any location where damage to company resources or capabilities, or any location where the employee performs job duties.

Types of Violence

Type 1 – Criminal Intent -The perpetrator has no legitimate relationship to the business or employees and is usually committing a crime in conjunction with the violence. These crimes can include robbery, shoplifting, trespassing, and terrorism. The vast majority of workplace homicides (85%) fall into this category.

• Example: January 2011, the Arizona Shooter rampage had no connection with the victims and would be considered an act of terrorism http://tinyurl.com/273mlcs

Type 2 – Customer/Client Violence-The perpetrator has a relationship with the business and becomes violent. This category can include customers, clients, patients, students, and any other group for which the business provides services. Type 2 violence accounts for approximately 3% of all workplace homicides.

• Example: December, 2010 Florida School Board members were held at gun point by a disgruntle husband because his wife had been laid off and he was demanding justice http://tinyurl.com/24xbajd
• September 2010, Discovery Channel headquarters employees were held hostage by a deranged man who was upset over TV programming http://tinyurl.com/7ocdb8h

Type 3 – Employee/Employee Violence -The perpetrator is an employee or past employee who attacks or threatens another employee(s) or past employee(s) in the workplace. Type 3 violence fatalities account for approximately 7% of all workplace homicides.

• Example: March 2012, a disgruntled ex-employee at Maine’s Verso Paper, was armed with a shotgun when he stormed the administrative building taking hostages. http://tinyurl.com/7b7y72f
• August 2010, an employee at a Connecticut Beer Distributor opened fire killing 9 people including himself.  That morning he was to be in a meeting to discuss discipline for stealing beer. http://aol.it/hxvBWN

Type 4 – Personal Relationships- violence stems from a personal relationship. In these cases the perpetrator does not usually have a direct connection with the business, but rather with one or more employee(s) of the business. The most visible example of this is domestic violence that spills over in the workplace. Type 4 violence accounts for about 5% of all workplace homicides.

• Example:  November 2008, a senior broker at a real estate firm, was shot and killed by an ex-boyfriend of five years in the office parking lot, because of ongoing domestic violence.  http://bit.ly/eN88kx

Please stay tuned for Part 2 of my blog (Coming Soon), which will cover the personal and organizational impact of workplace violence.

Today, everyone is quick to react and we seldom think before we respond to emails or texts. Think about it, you get a text and immediately respond. You get an email and oh it will only take a quick second to call or email back and I can get this off my plate. When it comes to your job search, are you really prepared when you get an email or now a text to call back that hiring manager to set up an interview?

First think! Where are you? Are you in a loud mall? Driving with your window open? Home with the dog barking in the background? Take the time to think about if you are in a place where it is appropriate and professional for you to respond.

We all know about the 30 second commercial (elevator speech) we give when someone says “What do you do”?  But do you plan your voice mail answer.  How many times are we dialing a number while reading another email at the same time?  We are half listening when the other line picks up.  For some reason, we expected to get the actual person on the other end of the line. Then almost as a surprise, we hear the dreaded beep!  Oh no!! Dead air… I wasn’t prepared.  I have to leave a voice mail now.  The rambling begins.  By time it’s over you wish you had a time machine to do it all over again.

Here are some tips:

• Prepare in advance for the voice mail the same way you would an elevator speech.  Write it down if that helps; remember, just don’t sound like you’re reading from cue cards when you leave the message.  Name and phone numbers (slowly and clearly) at the beginning and end of the message.

• You need to be in a quiet setting to insure that the person can clearly hear what you are saying. That said, if you don’t have good cell service, don’t respond by cell phone.

• Turn off your computer in front of you so you can concentrate on the task at hand.

• Speak clearly and remember rarely to people listen to the entire message if it is over 10 seconds long. That means GET TO THE POINT. Don’t was their time.

•  Don’t give them a task to do. They are already busy; they don’t have time to call you back. Give them the answer to the question they asked or tell them you will call them back.

If you make the mistake and are not prepared but made the call anyway, hang up before you start talking and try it again later. Note: Remember that most offices have caller id so you can only do this once. Good luck!

David Ciullo is President of Career Management Associates an HR services firm that specializes in Search, HR Services, Outplacement, Staffing, Training and Coaching. Contact him at dciullo@cmacareer.com or 207.780.1125.

Loosening the Reins on Maine’s Drug Testing Law

Most of you are familiar with Maine’s drug-testing statutes, and some of you might have gone through the rigmarole of getting a drug testing policy approved by the Maine Department of Labor (MDOL).  Under Maine law, you cannot drug test employees without first having an MDOL-approved policy.  Even with an approved policy, however, employers are subject to a host of limitations on when and how they can test employees, as well as what they can do with employees who test positive for a controlled substance.  A change in the law could have a major effect on Maine employers that have employees who are covered under federal drug-testing requirements. 

Existing law for federally covered employees

Until recently, individuals “subject to substance abuse testing under any federal law” were some of the few employees who could be drug tested in Maine without an MDOL-approved policy. Even those employees, however, were still protected by the rehabilitation requirements of Maine law if they tested positive for controlled substances and could not be terminated on the basis of a single positive test.

New legislation and what it means

New legislation could change the face of Maine’s drug-testing landscape. Legislative Document 1241, as originally proposed, would have lessened certain restrictions on when nonfederally covered employees could be drug tested, including after an accident or for probable cause. An amendment, however, changed the legislation to provide that “any employer subject to a federally mandated drug and alcohol testing program . . . and its employees” are exempt from Maine’s drug testing laws in their entirety. The bill, as amended, was signed into law by the governor on June 2,  2011, and took effect September 28, 2011.

Any Maine employer with federally covered employees is no longer required to follow Maine’s drug-testing statutes for any of its employees (federally covered or otherwise). Instead, it can test all of its employees under the federal standards. The amendment’s bill summary supports that interpretation and explains that the language was designed to allow an employer covered by federal requirements “to extend its [federal drug-testing] program to its entire workforce . . . [and] have the same substance abuse policy for all employees.”

The good news

Employers that have some employees subject to federal drug-testing requirements (e.g., commercial drivers) no longer have to have an MDOL-approved policy for the rest of their workforce (e.g., secretaries, janitors, office workers, and the like). Now you can test all employees and applicants under your federal policy. If you elect to take that route, you should review your federal drug testing policy, amend it to include all employees, and be sure to communicate to all workers the changes and the end of your old drug-testing policy. It’s important to remember that to avoid the MDOL drug-testing requirements you must have at least some employees on your payroll who require federal drug testing.

Want to hear more about this subject come see David and Peter live at the 2012 Maine HR Convention on Thursday 5/10/2012 at 10:15am or contact David Ciullo at dciullo@cmacareer.com or Peter Lowe at plowe@brannlaw.com. David Ciullo is the President of Career Management Associates which is an HR Services firm specializing in HR Services, Search, Outplacement, Staffing, Coaching, and Training. Peter D. Lowe is a partner at Brann & Isaacson who provides advice and counsel to clients on labor and employment law.

I had the employee’s supervisor with me at the time the employee returned, and we were flabbergasted to see she was dressed in a white, “angelic” dress, had put on makeup and done her hair, and she proceeded to state that the President of the Company and other managers had been “drugged” by a co-worker and we were all under her [the co-worker's] direction.

She also asserted that this co-worker was trying to steal her boyfriend (some 30 years older than the co-worker) and made various other wild statements.  I continually had to interrupt her to give her the details of her termination package (benefit continuation, etc.) and stay focused on the issues causing her exit, not the outlandish claims she kept bringing up.

The Supervisor sat through the whole meeting quietly, pale-faced and fearful the employee would become violent, since she was so out of touch with reality.  It was quite scary at the time, but one of those moments that you look back on and say “I should write a book about the things that have happened in HR!”  Then think, no, it’s too unbelievable!