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Here’s why recruiters are hiring talent even if there’s no job for them

 

A position finally opens up in that company you really like. You’ve got great advice on how to nail that interview and you’re feeling confident. The stars have finally aligned–good for you.

For many others, they’re still stuck at that first part.

But the universe is opening up for many high-skilled workers, no longer requiring so many stars to line up.

USA Today recently reported on a growing phenomenon that caught my attention. According to staffing experts, more and more companies are hiring people in highly-skilled, highly-desired roles like data scientists, software developers, digital media experts, artificial intelligence designers and certain accounting and engineering professionals–even if they have no job position to offer them.

Companies have been getting hammered as searches for great candidates linger (in a tight labor market) while associated costs skyrocket and revenue from unfilled jobs goes unrealized.

Jacob Zabkowicz, global vice president of the recruiting firm Korn Ferry, told USA Today that employers are saying, “There’s no immediate opening but we’re going to bring you on anyway. Then the person helps build their job description.”

I was astonished to discover that this is no outlier move of desperation. A late 2018 survey from Korn Ferry showed that a whopping 57 per cent of recruiters have hired for a specific skillset even if there was no specific job opening for the candidate.

Why this trend is so smart

I know several HR executives that lament what one of them calls the “Prospect Paradox”: when a role comes open you’re scrambling to find talent, when talent is available, you’re hard-pressed to find a role.

The trend of stockpiling coveted workers solves that–grab them now because you might struggle to find them later. I’ve heard many stories of important jobs that have gone unfilled for as much as a year or more. Nobody wins in that scenario.

Also Read: We analysed the hiring trends of Southeast Asias top e-commerce players, and here’s what we found

But there’s another critical point. What do these people do if you don’t have a job for them? It can mean parsing out bits of work to the new hire from other employees, which can be tricky (as I’ll talk below). More often it means hiring the person, then co-creating a role with him/her. This taps into a deep psychological need for meaningful work that leverages one’s strengths and embraces the reality that people want to be able to shape and mould their job, what scholars call “job crafting”.

Research from The University of Michigan shows that allowing people to craft their jobs, to have a hand in designing the job responsibilities, rewards, and expectations, can dramatically drive engagement, job satisfaction, resilience, and thriving in that job.

An energetic administrator once worked for me that also had a passion for meeting planning. We co-crafted a redesigned role for her where she maintained her core administrative duties, dropped some other, less “mission-critical” tasks, and then added in meeting planning for some organizations around the company. She was soon sought after for meeting planning, had elevated her performance on her core administrator’s job, and was more fulfilled than she’d ever been.

There has to be a few things true to make this work, though.

The trend of hiring even though there’s no position to fill begs some questions.

Would the talent want to be hired when there’s no job?

Presumably, the candidate is quite interested in the company, but even with that, wouldn’t you hesitate if you were asked to come on board with no specific position for you?

Also Read: 5 developing trends that will define fintech in 2020

The recruiter has to do a great job of selling the company, selling their belief in the person, and painting a clear career path for the candidate. If it’s a bridge role, be honest about it and have a plan for migration to the ultimate role you had in mind. If you’re creating a net new role, truly be open to co-creation with the candidate, and investing the time to do so.

How do you avoid inadvertently driving labour costs through the roof?

This trend is a bad idea only if the “interim” work or newly created role truly doesn’t add substantive value. Stockpile to the pace of expected increased revenue so that labour as a per cent of total costs doesn’t get too far out of whack.

What message does it send to other employees?

Would you like giving up some of your responsibilities to a placeholder newcomer? Maybe not. So in this scenario, or where a job is created out of thin air for the new hire, it’s important to have a clear, transparent message track for existing employees–or resentment will follow.

Explaining the context of the growing labour shortage for highly-skilled talent and the importance of solving it for the long-term health of the company is a good place to start.

No job opening? No problem, if you consider these factors.

Editor’s note: e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

Join our e27 Telegram group here, or our e27 contributor Facebook page here.

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Today’s top tech news: Xiaomi co-founder Lei Jun steps down amidst sales decline

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Xiaomi Co-Founder and CEO Lei Jun

Xiaomi co-founder Lei Jun steps down amidst sales decline – TechNode

Xiaomi co-founder and chairman Lei Jun has stepped down as the company president for China, according to an internal company letter.

According to a report by TechNode, his resignation followed a drop in the company’s smartphone market share since he took the position in May.

In addition to Lei Jun, Xiaomi also reshuffled seven other high-ranking executives.

Market research firm Canalys reported that Xiaomi’s smartphone shipments in China declined 20 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter and 33 per cent in Q3 with market share shrinking to nine per cent from 12 per cent during the six-month timeframe.

OYO elevates Aditya Ghosh to board, aims to focus on profitability and quality control – Bloomberg

Indian hospitality tech giant OYO has elevated key executive to board as part of its effort to push for profitability and quality control, Bloomberg wrote.

Aditya Ghosh, who had served as OYO’s chief executive officer for India and South Asia, is stepping up to a board position. He will be succeeded by Rohit Kapoor, the company’s current new real estate businesses chief.

Prior to joining OYO, Ghosh led Indian budget airline company Indigo.

Also Read: Today’s top tech news, July 9: Xiaomi even on first day of listing, 11 Street Thailand nabs investor

500 Tuk Tuks names 10 startups from its second fund – e27

500 TukTuks, the Thailand unit of early-stage VC fund 500 Startups, today announced the 10 new startups it has invested from its second fund.

This second batch of investment follows the first batch of six it had announced earlier this year.

The companies in the list range from property tech to nanotech.

Tribe Accelerator facilitates additional US$15.7M fundraising to boost blockchain innovations – e27

Tribe Accelerator, Singapore government-supported blockchain accelerator, has facilitated the fundraising of S$21.5 million (US$15.7 million) for its participating companies through its ecosystem of corporate and investor partners.

Enterprise Singapore also supports the fundraising.

The fund itself was announced on the first Demo Day of the Tribe Global Demo Tour for its second batch of participating companies in Singapore today

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Tribe Accelerator facilitates additional US$15.7M fundraising to boost blockchain innovations, commencing collaboration with Dubai

Tribe Accelerator (“Tribe”), Singapore’s government-supported blockchain accelerator has facilitated the fundraising of S$21.5 million (US$15.7 million) for its participating companies through its ecosystem of corporate and investor partners.

Enterprise Singapore also supports the fundraising, further signaling a total backing on the evolution of blockchain technology and its applications through collaboration and exchange of ideas entering 2020.

At the Singapore Fintech Festival X SWITCH 2019, Tribe also signed MoU with Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) FinTech Hive, the largest financial technology accelerator in the Middle East. The move gives Tribe access to a new pool of innovators, investors, and corporate partners.

Tribe also launched OpenNodes, a hyperconnected blockchain ecosystem platform in association with the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).

The fund itself was announced on the first Demo Day of the Tribe Global Demo Tour for its second batch of participating companies in Singapore today. Besides Singapore, the demo days are also being held in Dubai, Shanghai, and Abu Dhabi.

Also Read: In Photos: The launch of blockchain focussed Tribe Accelerator

Tribe Accelerator’s Global Demo Tour is the final phase of the accelerator programme, whereby its portfolio companies are set to showcase their blockchain solutions to chosen innovators present.

“Every idea or solution shared during the Demo day has the potential to revolutionise the way the linked industry works in the present. We will continue to harbour companies that can change the face of the blockchain industry and benefit the end-user – making the technology more mainstream,” said Ng Yi Ming, Managing Partner of Tribe Accelerator.

“At SGInnovate, we are focussed on helping entrepreneurial scientists build Deep Tech startups that can make a positive impact globally. This partnership with Tribe allows us to get closer to the action and support some promising startups through investments and venture building efforts to commercialise their products on a larger scale,” said Hsien-Hui Tong, Head of Venture Investing, SGInnovate.

Among the second cohort of 9 participating companies showcasing market-ready solutions is Affle, AID:Tech, Aqilliz, Bluzelle, DiMuto, Eximchain, Pilab, Torus, and WhiteCoat.

Dublin-headquartered AID:Tech, one of the participating companies, seeks to tackle the issue of fraud in public spending by offering solutions for aid and social welfare programs in the form of an interoperable decentralised digital ID protocol for end-users. It enables entitlements such as remittances, donations, and healthcare to be digitised and delivered through blockchain technology in a transparent manner.

Meanwhile, DiMuto integrates blockchain technology into its services, offering what it’s called a Trade Solutions Platform. It aims to help businesses gain greater visibility in the supply chain to reduce inefficient trade dispute settlement processes and enhance access to the global market.

Another company is WhiteCoat, a digital healthcare provider offering on-demand telehealth services in Singapore. It is currently offering an end-to-end, blockchain-integrated healthcare service, ranging from diagnosis, treatment, medical referrals to the delivery of medication in Singapore facilitated through its application, WhiteCoat app.

The blockchain integration in Whitecoat aims to enhance the verification of patient identity and prevent exposure of medical records in the event of a cybersecurity breach.

Also Read: Blockchain accelerator TRIBE introduces OpenNodes to build an innovation melting pot

Tribe said that it is focussing on driving government partnerships with countries that are keen on leveraging futuristic technology for economic development across the globe. The main mission is to build a world-wide collaborative ecosystem.

“Going forward we will focus on enabling global government partnerships which is a must to fuel-up the current ecosystem. One of our goals is to drive the adoption of blockchain at a national level as countries like Singapore pursue their Smart Nation ambition. Mighty Jaxx, one of our participating companies from Batch I is already supporting OpenCerts, a government initiative in Singapore, that enables the issue and validation of tamper-resistant digital certificates,” Yi Ming closed.

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4 key ways to effectively coach employee performance

 

Your employees are amongst your organization’s most valuable assets, and taking the initiative to improve their performance can underpin your business’s success. Communication is a critical element in any staff management process, but what else should your management strategy include?

Taking a coaching approach to managing your employees could help you successfully connect with your team and guide them towards improved performance. This is because coaching is a collaborative and consultative approach to managing employees. 

Whether you’re dealing with an underperforming employee or you’re just looking for new strategies to enhance your team’s performance, it’s important to identify any issues, take an interactive approach to employee management, and create workable and effective action plans for management.

At the core of this type of management strategy lies four key steps: explanation, employee feedback, discussion of ideas, and implementing an action plan and follow-up.

1. Identify and explain the performance issue

Coaching involves bringing performance issues to attention that help employees correct them before they become major problems. You need to give a clear explanation of the situation and your employee’s performance and describe the behaviour using examples so they understand.

Make sure you also clarify why something has to change. For example, you can note, “I know you’re extremely capable, but recently your team members have noticed a slower response to work requests. This has impacted our project deadlines, which we’ve had to move back.”

Also Read: How tech companies get employees to work overtime and why we fall for it

You can also describe how their performance is affecting the team’s outcomes and in turn the organization’s bottom line. Use an objective, neutral tone and avoid reacting emotionally when discussing performance issues.

2. Ask for employee feedback

Once you’ve presented your explanation, check in with your employee. Always give them a chance to provide feedback and explain the reason behind any performance issues they have. For example, probe for feedback by stating, “I value your input and want to understand if you see the same opportunities for improvement here.”

Challenge your staff members to review their goals and come up with ideas for improving their performance. Reserve judgment and interruptions until you’ve heard their account, and ask questions for clarification where necessary. Impediments to performance can include things like time, training, tools, and temperament, so you could ask something like, “Do you think these barriers exist? How do you think we could eliminate them?”

3. Discuss ideas for solutions

Once your employee has had the opportunity to provide an explanation and layout of their perspective, you can move onto the next step: reviewing and considering potential solutions. Start with the causes of the issue, and focus on their performance rather than criticizing them as an individual. For example, say, “I’d like to come up with a few different ideas to support you in doing your best work.”

When exploring solutions to specific issues, take a life-link coach approach to manage your employees by looking for ways to empower them by boosting their self-belief and self-worth. For example, you can check their previous high performance by saying, “I have every confidence you can reach your targets because for the most part you’ve been a stellar, valuable employee in the organization.” Additionally, provide the guidance your staff member will need to achieve their goals.

4. Create an action plan and follow-up

Devise a clear action plan for improvement and get your employees to commit to change. Consider setting up SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) performance goals to ensure they’re specific enough to be tracked and measured.

Don’t forget to communicate your confidence in your employee’s ability to make the necessary changes. For example, say, “I have every confidence you can meet these performance targets.” For already high-performing employees, focus on continuous improvement.

Also Read: The importance of one on one meetings with your employees

When creating a plan for improvement, set up milestones or time frames for following up and giving regular feedback so you can track progress and make adjustments where necessary.

Regular feedback can keep your employees on track and empower them by making them feel valued, but don’t overlook the importance of getting your employee’s feedback as well. For example, ask this: “How do you think it’s going? Do you have any adjustments you’d like to make?”

If your employees fall short again, offer constructive feedback for improvement. If your employee matches or exceeds expectations, recognize and reward them.

Effective coaching supports high-performing employees

Coaching is a powerful tool that any manager can use for employee performance management, but it seems many organizations aren’t harnessing the power of training and development.

Also Read: The importance of one on one meetings with your employees

The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently revealed that US organizations with 100-500 employees provided, on average, six minutes of training per employee every six months. In the UK it’s a similar sorry story, with 57 per cent of British SMEs not offering any staff training and development.

What does this really mean?

For employees who are already highly productive, it can further enhance their contributions to the organization by supporting continuous improvement and preventing stagnation.

This is why, coaching for performance management helps to support your team with improved morale and higher engagement — whilst, at the same time it ensures you’re employees are accountable.

Lastly, it can provide them with the motivation to innovate and improve productivity to become high-performing staff members, and this could pave the way for a competitive and profitable organization.

Editor’s note: e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.

Join our e27 Telegram group here, or our e27 contributor Facebook page here.

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My 57-year-old Dad told me about his vlogging plan. Is this a new trend for Baby Boomers?

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On a car ride next to his one year-old granddaughter and me, his twenty-something kid, my Dad blurted out that he plans to vlog, coyly with his signature nervous laugh. My jaw must’ve dropped but I’ve mastered the art of concealing my expression –thanks to becoming a mom of a toddler.

“What do you want to vlog about?” I asked. Well, I know he recently got so into marathon, but I never thought that THAT was the intention.

“I want to inspire people my age to get moving,” he said, plainly. Oh, wow, I can barely get out of my seat to grab a proper meal let alone exercise and here he is, well into his remaining fifties, talking about moving and how he might have the platform to do so.

It got me thinking about what the internet has done to his generation.

OK, Boomer

According to a quick Google search, Baby Boomer is the generation born between the early to mid-1940s and the mid-1960s, came of age in an era before on-demand media.

Also Read: 10 thought-provoking op-eds on e27 you need to read now

Baby Boomer is often associated with the cynical group of older people that think Millennials and Generation Z are entitled brats that never have the taste of hard work, being born and living their adulthood in the age of technology. The image stands to the point of the respective age group hating each other’s guts become normalcy, with the younger thinking the older outdated and cocky.

The term “OK, Boomer” was a viral sensation overnight when on November 4, 25-year-old New Zealand politician Chloë Swarbrick used the phrase as a rebuttal to one of her older colleagues in Parliament after the man heckled her during a speech about climate change, Vox reported.

Swarbrick then made herself clear in a following essay for the Guardian, that the meme represents a wealth of generational political concerns. “My ‘OK boomer’ comment in parliament was off-the-cuff, albeit symbolic of the collective exhaustion of multiple generations set to inherit ever-amplifying problems in an ever-diminishing window of time,” she quoted writing, pointing on the climate change issues that Boomers are known to dismiss.

Tracing it back, the hit phrase didn’t just happen overnight. It was TikTok that set the tone for the phrase to become a symbolic meme. It was sung by Peter Kuli & Jedwill in a rebuttal of baby boomers’ rants about kids these days.

The song titled “OK BOOMER!”, defines boomers as racist, fascist Trump supporters with bad hair, amplified by Gen Z’s users on the platform that rides on the song to share their own annoying encounter with the older generation.

Despite what you think about the phrase, in itself, the phrase carries the ageism undertone as well as a more complex issue such as calling out political indifference and jarringly different views on urgent matters like climate changes.

Ironically, it doesn’t exclusively put all Boomers in the same box of Millennials-haters, as the knowledge of the phrase itself shows that they’re -in fact- avid social media users that keep up with what’s going on.

Back to my Dad

How exactly my Dad came up with the idea to video himself and spread the body movement message is what I was intrigued to explore.

In the Think With Google’s piece, I found that Google has done some research about Boomers’ YouTube’s behaviour and it ticks all the boxes with my Dad.

Also Read: Op-Ed: Hey, investors: Indonesia can do with more innovation

First of all, yes, they watch YouTube, even more often than we might guess. My Dad, when he’s not entertaining my kid, his face is glued to his tablet with a headset on and you guessed it: He’s on YouTube.

Some factors that make Millennials and Boomers have more in common in their YouTube behaviors actually caused by stark differences in the time they’re now living and the facilities that in their heydays were still impossible.

The article’s first point emphasises on how Baby Boomers turn to YouTube to save time as they’re in the dawn of retirement.

One of the Baby Boomers that Google interviewed explained the logic behind it. The 63-year-old lady preferred YouTube to commercial programming that she said takes too much of her time. Also, with YouTube at hand, reading instruction suddenly becomes a drag.

The same thing happens with my Dad. There’s interactivity in typing keywords of a video you wish to find on YouTube rather than receiving what regular programmes on TV offer you for the day, and that speaks volumes, especially because Baby Boomers didn’t have the luxury of internet access in their youth.

Compared to the older generation, Baby Boomers possess both the awareness and the pride that they now have the power to information with YouTube, enough to learn things by browsing.

The information they video-searched also varies, from researching about product or service’s details before making a purchase, or in my Dad’s case, daily news, often times the absurd ones so he can parade his findings to his WhatsApp friends.

From the survey, Google recorded that 68 per cent of Baby Boomers say they watch YouTube videos to be entertained, with entertainment, music, and news as the most-watched categories on the platform.

It’s not exclusively about Millennials

My Dad saying he’s interested in a future as a vlogger says a lot about how significant the Boomers generation still is.

The Think With Google’s piece also reveals that people over the age of 50 account for 51 per cent of consumer spending, ultimately creating opportunities for brands that can think beyond impressing only younger generation and can also deliver a relevant message to the bigger spenders.

Also Read: The importance of one on one meetings with your employees

My Dad was in the know about the latest GoPro camera that he apparently has favourited to someday really purchase. For now, he said, he plans to master marathon and becomes regulars in races, slowly increasing his kilometres and building the marathoner lifestyle.

“Only then,” he continued, “I can confidently vlog about my journey.”

Boomers vlogging is not a mere trend. I bet if I make a quick search now on YouTube, I would find a channel run by Baby Boomers that I wouldn’t otherwise know if it wasn’t for my Dad’s fascination over vlogging.

Brands, businesses, and startups should start doing their homework of addressing the 50 something and include them in campaigns.

It’s time to embrace that Boomers, the ones off the media, are not the hopeless enemy of Millennials. They’ve just caught up with technology and has started sprinting to hone their digital skills, not to get competitive, but to taste the ease.

Image Credit: unsplash.com/idoevolve

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