CareerZine

New Market for Start-Ups: Boomer Venture Summit

I think the scientific term for the analysis and study of aging is Lifespan Development Psychology. Millions of Baby Boomers in the haunch of life are facing retirement and an extended old age thanks to modern medical advances.

Some may be pondering what they are going to do to continue work to make ends meet.  Others, with finances in order, still have questions and concerns about how to occupy their time, life, and the energy of a vital, active body and mind?

Smart companies are tapping into the largest and fastest-growing market segment in the U.S. and globally. 

Here are the statistics:
The burgeoning boomer
market …
Is now
77 million strong
It represents more than
$2 trillion in annual spending
Households headed by someone 40 or older hold
91% of America's net worth
(Kenneth Gilpin, New York Times)

There is a golden opportunity for new products, services and companies to address this market. It is also an opportunity for boomers to involve themselves in businesses directed to their cohorts. This is not a stereotypical retirement generation focused on golf, shopping, and bingo nights that acts out the word “retire”.  They will remain active and involved with a life that has been retreaded, re-envisioned, and re-invigorated. 

AARP, the American Association of Retired Persons used to conjure up images of seniors in rocking chairs, while now they are online activists rocking the vote for universal health care.

The best kept secret of Silicon Valley is that executives in their 40’s and 50’s are the driving force of successful startups and always have been. Though the Jerry Yangs, Reid Hoffmans and Mark Zuckerbergs of this world are high-profile icons of the 20-30 something CEO, However, they are not the majority of start-up CEOs. It is simply not supported by the facts.

I am seeing boomer professionals staying on the bleeding edge. They are moving into Web 2.0, clean tech and nano-technology  as well as starting their own businesses. It is no co-incidence that Santa Clara University developed an annual program featuring the role of Venture Capital and new business development in the boomer marketplace.

The second annual Silicon Valley Boomer Venture Summit happens next week and I invite you to attend if you are a boomer or wanting to sell to that demographic:

Join us at the 2008 Silicon Valley Boomer Venture Summit & Business Plan Competition on June 17 at Santa Clara University. America’s 78 million boomers mean business - the aging of the boomer market is one of the top trends to follow. 

This exciting one-day event brings together entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, marketers, and thought leaders in a unique, rich forum that focuses on innovation and investment in the 40+ market. 

Learn more about the demographics and market-leading ideas. Co-produced by Santa Clara University's Executive Development Center and Mary Furlong & Associates, go to www.SCUboomerventure.com for more information and to register.

Highlights:

• Key note, Ladan Manteghi, President, Global AARP Network

• The top VCs investing in this market including: Intel Capital, Highland Capital Partners, Mohr Davidow, Johnson and Johnson Corporate Development, Draper Fisher Jurvetson 

• Leaders from the largest U.S. non-profit organizations in aging, including AARP; ASA; Silicon Valley Council on Aging

• Finalist pitches in the 2008 Silicon Valley Boomer Business Plan Competition and awarding of two $10,000 grand prizes

• Enjoy lunch with authors, VC and other influentials,  including Dr Sandra Timmerman of Met Life Mature Market Institute, and Jeff Zimman, CEO of Posit Science

Register early and save!   www.SCUBoomerVenture.com

Summit Sponsors: AARP, Southwest Airlines, Met Life Mature Market Institute, Microsoft Health Vault, Posit Science, Retirement Living TV, Robert Half, Inc., Silicon Valley Bank, Silicon Valley Council on Aging, The Health Trust

How to Get the Tough Referrals

If you want to read this article online go to the Careerzine blogpage.

Tough Referrals

When it comes to getting referrals to business and career opportunities most people are naturally attuned to doing this with their networks.  It is a simple process: reach out appropriately, tell them who you are, what you offer, and when they should refer business to you or what you are looking for. Doing this requires little preparation because your network knows you. Further, they can be enthusiastic, credible evangelists because they have direct experience of your business, background, and abilities.

However, there is always a minority of contacts (it is arguable how small or big that is) who don’t seem willing to give you referrals. Why not just ignore them?

Unfortunately, it is all too often, through them are the exact opportunities that you seek.  It never fails that the juicy deal, great job, or key funding source is behind a person acting as a roadblock. These are the tough referrals.

What do you do? First of all, be sure it’s not you but their behavioral style you are dealing with. Determine if they simply don’t like you or your service> If that's the case, then there’s not much you can do directly with them. It would be better to work around them.  Or if that’s their style in dealing with everybody, then plan a strategy to approach them in a way that gains you the referral. 

First, handle your end in making sure your referral request is articulated to them in focused, understandable, accurate sound bites.  Try test-driving your request on your inner circle of contacts for feedback.  Then determine the type of roadblock you are dealing with in terms of their behavior. Sure, it is difficult to reduce people into simplistic categories, labeling their behaviors with sweeping generalizations. However, it can be a decent starting point in learning how to adapt and modify your approaches to achieve more and better referrals.

Here are five types of tough referral styles providing recognizable models for developing strategies that result in referral requests. You can move on from here:

The Sorter and Labeler

How do you get someone who tends to sort and label everything in their world to understand your new brand, service, positioning, or product? They know you as XYZ and now you are ABC. They had already had put you in an XYZ box, labeled it and shelved it in their memory banks. They will provide referrals based on what you were doing not what you are doing now which makes them relatively useless unless you can get them to sort you into a new bucket labeled ABC.

They are patient people who need to think things through, understand them, and make comparisons to the known and familiar. Start with their world view. This means understanding them and their boxes and labels. Where are they coming from? How do they compare things? What are their sorting buckets? Once you have a grasp on their process, then you can explain your referral request by one of their boxes or buckets. You would use comparisons to what they already know.

For example, use comparison terminology such as “It’s like this product, service, outcome, etc. It’s like when you do this. Do you know when you do this? Well it’s like that.”

And you have to be patient, slow, a step at time as they will not automatically leap to a conclusion. They will eventually re-sort you into a new box or re-label your bucket and make the referrals you want.

The Goal-Driven

This dominant type is goal driven and focused on their ideas and opinions.   Your referral request will be modified to suit what they see as right regardless of your business solution. They will even shoot down your request because it’s not their idea or in their interests.

Surprisingly, this type is the easiest to maneuver around. Again, understanding their needs, their goals, and what drives them is the starting point. Focus on how you can make your career goal, new service, product, business opportunity worth their while. In other words, what’s in it for them? Tell them and tell them again in different ways. Remember it’s all about their goals and results so deliver your referral request that way.

Give them a bottom-line on how giving you referrals will make them richer, smarter, more connected, and successful. It’s all about them so take away their pain or add to their pleasure.

The Narrow-focused Expert

They always seem to be behind the curve in understanding or knowing about anything except their narrow field of expertise, which excludes, of course, your business and career efforts. These people tend to be involved experts in a vertical niche, usually the one you want to break into. This is why you are approaching them for referrals in the first place.

You need to have a genuine appreciation, respect, even reverence for their expertise.  You will need to demonstrate a better than passing comprehension of that niche and their accomplishments so you can compliment them. They pride themselves on knowing their niche so never challenge that knowledge with your product or service or professional offering. Ask them how it would fit in instead. Let them, as experts, inform you as they refer you.

The Risk Averse

These people are concerned for their reputations, and are overly protective of their all important contacts. They tend to overpopulate places like Linkedin.com. Sadly, their world view doesn’t allow them to fully embrace the socially networked global economy’s style of doing business.

They may get what you are doing, understand your business value proposition, and/or support your career goals but they may not be willing to stick out their necks to refer you on to their contacts. They are concerned about being wrong, making a mistake or harming their reputation. What if their referral of you, your product/service is not well-received and they are associated with it?

It is a very simple strategy to gain their acceptance, trust, and willingness to refer. Make them last on the bandwagon. When you approach them, name drop everyone else who would impress them that has already referred you, adopted your product, asked you to speak, and suggested that you talk to this risk averse contact. Make them the last one to join you parade so that they feel like its safe and that they are actually missing out. Of course this means you can’t have them first on your list to approach for referrals as you will be batting zero.

The Helium Balloon

They tend to float along making commitments and promises that they just never deliver on unless someone has set their agenda, made a demand, and attached repercussions, or rewards to it.  They are continually being distracted by the next person and contact that comes their way. Whatever you tell them goes in one ear and out the other.

It’s hard to hold down these people down long enough to get them to fulfill on a referral. The best way to this handle delightful, tough referral is get their agreement on deliverables up front, know what they love, and the guilt them into performing.

They love visibility, recognition, and being acknowledged by others. You want them to give you referrals? Recognize them with something and make them feel guilty about owing you. What tickles their fancy? Chocolate? Event tickets? Dinner? Give it in advance and then keep reminding them as you ask for that referral. Typically make it something that is not immediate, thus enabling you to remind them of the gift and the request for referral as well.

Your call to them sounds like, “How was the concert? Did you order try Pad Thai? Did you send the email to Jack yet?”

Reading People

It’s who you know and who they know that can help you get ahead. And it’s how you know and understand them that expedites and enables them to help you.

Learning how to turn roadblocks into referral machines is one of the best ongoing efforts you can make for your professional career and business growth. That takes developing people-reading skills.

Using people-reading tools can make a quantum difference in the outcomes you achieve. I know.  As a counselor, I am trained in a multitude of personality and behavioral tools to help clients. The best ones can help navigate corporate political waters, determine the best career move, attract and recruit the right talent, and motivate people to do their best.

Recently, I became the Silicon Valley representative for the Predictive Index (PI), a behavioral assessment tool, which for 55 years (with that many years’ validity studies as well) has consistently, cost-effectively and successfully helped put the right people together in organizations. Using the PI for recruitment, selection and to build and manage a team results in optimum outcomes for both companies and professionals in terms of productivity, profits, job satisfaction and retention.

If you would like more information about the Predictive Index™, and its uncanny ability to read people, send me an email (patti@pattiwilson.com) and I will be happy to show you.

What Does Easy Bake Branding Look Like? A Few Examples

When I wrote about the simplicity of branding last week, I was deluged by people wanting some examples of what a decently branded resume, profile or personal marketing piece would look like.

As I said, it just doesn’t require a weekend visionary retreat to be more creative, interesting and even outrageous, if you are so inclined, in talking and writing about you.

Yes, a certain amount of self-perception would be helpful but your friends and colleagues would be more than willing to tell you exactly what they think of you, trust me on that one.

I can’t show you a resume as that would be a violation of client privacy, but I can provide examples of linked in profiles that work as good branding pieces, and unsolicited broadcast emails that I have received.

An Outrageous Headline Can Work

Let’s start with my very favorite job title on Linkedin.com.  Linkedin calls it your “professional headline”. Most people insert a job title or multiple job titles if they are consultants doing many things.

Adam Rifkin is a great example of using the headline to describe and brand himself in a unique and interesting way.  Here is his headline:

“ Undercaffeinated. Overconnected. And All Man”

Though it’s unforgettable and I have heard others who know him, quote it verbatim, certainly this style is not for everyone. The rest of his Linkedin profile is more traditional in describing  a successful bleeding edge high technology CEO, founder of multiple companies and from the doctorate program at Cal Tech Institute of Technology.   

I know Adam. What makes him unique to me, is his an outstanding sense of humor. In fact his joke list on his website is hilarious.  An unbranded profile might have simply stated something about him having a good sense of humor as an additional attribute. But he demonstrated it instead. That’s good branding.

A Profile that Draws a Picture with Words: Bill Vick

A couple other well-branded profiles from linkedin are two very different styles. The following example is a well known and respected recruiter, Bill Vick. I love his opening line because it grabs you with it’s passion, honesty and directness.

“The passion that drives me is helping others pursue and achieve excellence. Whether it’s an organization or an individual I can help.

By definition I'm a Headhunter, serial entrepreneur, author, publisher, big biller, speaker, recruiting coach, social media and recruiting industry consultant. I believe everybody has the ability to achieve success in life and my goal is to help others succeed. LinkedIn is one of the tools that has changed my business and my life.

I’ve published two books focused on recruiting excellence. LinkedIn For Recruiting about using the LinkedIn network and Big Biller, about million dollar recruiters. Both books are available at http://www.bigbiller.org.

I went from sales and marketing management with fortune 500 companies such as Revlon, Max Factor and Helene Curtis, to the computer and software industries where I launched a chain of computer stores and participated in taking a software company public. I joined Management Recruiters International (MRI) in 1986 and was their National Rookie of the year in 1987. For the last 20 years I have run my own retained executive search business and along the way created a software company focused on software for recruiting and staffing firms, and founded Recruiters OnLine Network (RON), a top 100 site. I sold my software and web businesses in 2002.

I have been a founder and board member of the Pinnacle Society recognizing achievement in the staffing industry, a national speaker for NAPS, served on the Board of Directors of The Texas Association Staffing Services (TAPS), was an officer with the Metroplex Association of Personnel Services (MAAPS) as well as a founder of the local Dallas Independent Recruiters Group (IRG) and a lifetime member of the USMC Force Recon Association (FRA)”

Bill draws you in with his first paragraph and keeps you engaged and reading what could have been a totally boring recitation of his accomplishments. Think of other professionals or your own Linkedin, profile for that matter, do they sound nearly as interesting?  It’s not what he has accomplished; it’s how he says it.

How Using First Person Creates Connection, Rapport and intimacy

Here is another example from Scott McMullan’s Linkedin profile that builds rapport and connection with the reader. He ends with a personal revelation that clinches the connection:

"I’m a software entrepreneur, product manager, and evangelist currently working as the Google Apps partner lead for Google Enterprise. I spend my days helping 3rd parties, from startups to F500, build businesses on and around Google Apps.

I joined Google through the acquisition of JotSpot, where I was Director of Developer Relations. JotSpot is a hosted, wiki-based collaborative application platform designed to be extended by 3rd parties. I ran developer and partner programs focused on putting JotSpot's platform to work.

Before JotSpot, I founded collaboration software startup Inovie Software, where I was CTO and product manager. We sold a web-based collaboration suite called TeamCenter and bootstrapped to 120+ customers and a couple million dollars in revenue before being acquired by SDRC, a public software company in the PLM space.

I kicked off my working days as a software developer at Peregrine Systems and NCR, where I developed enterprise network management software and hacked UNIX internals. I have also been a lecturer at UC Berkeley's iSchool in the area of XML and e-business.

A techie at heart, I was a PhD student in Computer Science at UC San Diego for a few years. I ultimately dropped out with a Masters after my 6,000 mile motorcycle trip across the US convinced me to pursue entrepreneurship instead of academia :)"

Scott’s profile was just as warm, engaging before Google acquired his company. Both Scott and Bill have written in first person which creates an intimacy that referring to yourself in 3rd person, especially using your last name only, just doesn’t pull off.

However, using the third person can enable branding descriptions that brag, tout, claim, embellish, flaunt, purr, preen and purvey emotions, esteem and credibility which would be hard to pull off in 1st person without sounding over the top. Writing in third person makes it sound like somebody else is writing about you and that can make those less prone to bragging more comfortable in doing just that.  Not everyone is an Adam Rifkin.  It depends on your personal style and how you want to come across.

A Twist on the Unsolicited Email Job-Seeking Letter

Finally, this is an unsolicited email letter from a job seeker, one of a dozen I get unsolicited a week. This one I actually read. Somehow, people looking for jobs find me and think I am a recruiter so I get these totally predictable letters with their resumes attached, telling me what a good XYZ they are.

However, what made it wonderfully different was the lack of a formal “dear Patti, I am a blah, blah, with a zillion or so years of experience and I think you or your company could use my help”.  No, he didn’t do his homework about what I did. It still was an untargeted email blast, but it was well branded and engaging:

“When this top 50 law firm decided to establish a comprehensive firm-wide human resources program, they recruited me as their first global head of human resources.  In minimum time and at minimal expense, the firm had a new salary program that insured market competitive salaries, a new on-line competency based performance management system to drive performance and a complete in-depth review and updating of all benefit plans.  As these programs were being developed and put in place, we opened new offices in Dubai, Hong Kong, and Beijing, a new recruiting process was implemented and HR policies were reviewed and updated.  And how did the business do while all this was happening?  Revenues were up 20% with no increase in staff.

At another company, the CEO hired me and said, "Fix it."  His company had spent millions relocating its' manufacturing plant to lower production costs.  But costs hadn't gone down.  Productivity had gone down and costs had gone up!  I analyzed the operation, found a unique source for applicants who were motivated and highly productive but didn't have any transportation -- I arranged for a state subsidized vanpool for them.  I re-priced all the jobs, created an incentive comp plan and a new training program.  Within six weeks costs were coming down, and within six months, we had taken one third of the cost out of each unit, saving millions of dollars. All with no new technology or capital investment.  It was "Fixed."

I can accurately identify problems and solutions from the disciplined perspective of a large company, and implement action plans faster and at less cost because of my emerging, fast-growth company experience.

If you need a Human Resources executive who makes things happen, we should talk.  To learn more about my background (Michigan State undergrad, Cornell Industrial and Labor Relations grad school, etc.), please call me at _______ (mobile) or 410 _________ (home).  I am open to relocation and flexible on compensation depending on location, duties and responsibilities.”


He didn’t tell me about his passion, or his penchant for coffee, or the books he wrote.  He merely described his abilities using little descriptive vignettes of his accomplishments. He told a story. He didn’t just deliver the typical tedious PSR (problem solution result) statements. If you aren’t familiar with those, don’t start, because unless you are really good at writing PSRs that are actually relevant to the work you are looking for, they just deaden a resume with a repetitive litany of canned or contrived results.

I responded to his email and asked him who wrote it for him with my compliments. He said that he did. I then offered to help him for free with some contacts. That’s the power of a well-branded statement about yourself.

Bottomline, It Takes You, Showing Up and Being Real

Personal branding isn’t the easiest thing to do. It takes honesty, courage, a willingness to be vulnerable, and an appreciation of your own special ness and uniqueness.

One of my clients put it well during the dot.com boom when she said, “there are lots of good online marketing people out there, but there is only one of me.”

Beyond knowing yourself, you have to like and accept yourself, because it’s too hard to fulfill the expectations of others to be what they want you to be. Some people who don’t appreciate my style have referred to me as blunt and even harsh when I didn’t tell them what they wanted to hear. But my clients and colleagues, think that I am direct and forthright. They say that I am someone they can count on for honesty, a reality check, and solid feedback that’s not sugar-coated to close the deal or keep them happy.

One of my favorite, long-time clients lovingly called me the “Judge Judy of career coaches” when she referred her new husband to me.  Now that would be a fun reality show to do.

As I suggested previously, you can engage the services of a good marketing copy writer who will work with you to find the right wording to bring out your uniqueness and establish your brand.  In Silicon Valley and the Bay Area there are several organizations that would provide referrals to writers such as: WIC (women in consulting), and SFWOW.org (San Francisco Women on the Web).

Or you can bounce your ideas off your friends and ask them for their honest feedback. Whatever you do, be sure and browse though random linkedin profiles, and other people’s resumes to get a feel of how really boring, dead and uninteresting the descriptions are out there. Anything you do will raise you above the herd of sameness.

Personal Branding: the New Tool for Career Success

In the past few years I have been proselytizing the value of building and cultivating a personal brand to my clients. This is a process that goes well beyond writing a resume.  Well, the tipping point has been reached on that front because now people are coming to me requesting help with brand development, enhancement, and promotion.

Personal Branding is Getting a Bad Rap.

Most of the time professionals have no idea what it means to have a brand, and are, more often than not, daunted by the prospect of creating it. Some think that they must aspire to be like the brands that are part of the cultural vernacular such as Google, Jell-O, Cheerios, Levis, Rolex and Donald Trump.

The personal branding gurus haven’t helped by selling costly weekend retreats to envision and create your brand. They call for intensive self-scrutiny and a thorough life evaluation to find the essence of your unique brand.

Good grief, unless you want to be the next president or an American Idol winner, branding yourself is simply not a monumental endeavor and most people can do it with a little help and support.

What are the Ingredients to Create a Personal Brand?

Starting with a decently written resume is a necessity. Most people know how to write PSR (problem, solution, results) statements in their job description bullets. That certainly is sufficient to hone in on what you did well, what you feel good about, and what you want to tell people about yourself.

Drawing from the accomplishments in the resume, the next step is to write a 350-450 word linkedin.com profile in either third or first person. 

Distilled down from the profile, the final step is to create a professional business card (not your company’s card) that has a one or two line statement about you and what you have to offer.

These are the ingredients to build a basic personal brand. If they aren’t clear, cogent, and focused you can’t build a brand with them. 

The 360 Branding System

The key thing that branding requires is being able to write great marketing copy. And that’s where most people get stuck and why great Super Bowl ads are expensive to create. You can hire the task out to a marketing pro or you can DIY (do it yourself).

I always tell people they need to have their “skin in the game”, meaning their hands-on participation in anything created to represent them is essential.  This includes creating a personal brand. You are the best person to determine how to put your best foot forward, spin your experience to create greater credibility and position your accomplishments to enhance your expertise.

The easiest way to go about creating your brand is to pull together a team of close colleagues, business friends e.g. a personal board of directors.  Get help, have other people do it for you. Ask for their feedback. You want their version of your talents, their view of your abilities, and their vision of makes you unique. The voices of those that know, support and like you will give you the content and copy to embellish your profile, resume and business card tagline.

Another way of doing this is to gather as many Linkedin.com recommendations as possible and use them to create your brand. 

The End Result is an Easy-Bake Brand

Developing a personal brand in its simplest form is speaking, writing, and presenting yourself in a more eloquent, interesting and creative way than you were before.  It is too hard to stretch, and effort at coming up with some kind of descriptive gimmick, twist, or spin to stand-out from the crowd.

Branding is not about comparing yourself to others. It is about articulating your best self.  If a person can accomplish that, they will be far better branded than 90% of the professional population.

The Next Challenge is Brand Visibility

To be remembered by your compelling brand, is to be networked, visible and out there. Moving your brand online is the next strategic action.

2008 Employment Trends in the Valley

There has been a sea change in the employment dynamics in Silicon over the past five years. We turned the corner on the first recession of the new century in 2003 and at the same time Linkedin.com launched to capture early adapters.  The term “social networking” became the new edgy buzz word. 

At the same time the venture capitalists began ramping up funding and a new gaggle of entrepreneurs boot-strapped their ideas in garages again. Companies started to hire, tentatively at first, without recruiters, through employees and job sites.

It took Google going public for all hiring hell to break lose. The war for talent began again with vigor despite ongoing off-shoring. The higher level innovative jobs have stayed here and the rest have moved elsewhere. Only 30,000 jobs were added in 2007 indicating that it will be a long time getting back the 500,000 jobs lost during the dotcom/telecom bust.

Joint Venture Silicon Valley published their yearly index this month for 2008. Their summary is obvious: tech is strong again, housing is too expensive and the threat of a national recession clouds the distant picture. 

Given what we have been through and Joint Venture’s prognostication, how has the employment picture been impacted? Here are several key areas:

Consulting is the Canary in the Coal Mine

Since the recession the number of independent consultants, contractors and freelancers has grown exponentially. Since they are not tracked in job numbers, it’s hard to say how big this employment group is. However what is apparent is the demand for their services has slacked off in mid-sized tech companies, not the big ones or the startups, yet. If this trend continues, consultants will be chasing a smaller piece of the employment pie going forward.  If we have an actual recession with significant layoffs then consulting will rise as companies backfill for needed talent they just lost.

A Job Search is now Marketing Function, not a Selling Function

Looking for a job is a lifestyle now that most jobs don’t last a lifetime. And it’s no longer a one-off sales call to an employer with a resume.  Searching for a job is now a marketing process that one engages in ongoing yet passively. Hence it is an online marketing effort now.  Professionals will continue to expand their visibility on-line thanks to a plethora web tools such as blogs, podcasts, vlogs, UTube, flicker, twitter, etc.  Creating an on-line presence and professional brand is now mainstreamed and part of the Valley zeitgeist.

In-Person Networking is on Overwhelm 

The sound to noise ratio has gotten beyond bearable when it comes to networking events in Silicon Valley. Everyone has a network and few know what to do with it.  The Workit list has gotten longer each week as new organizations, groups and quasi professional associations spring forth to grasp at audiences and mind-share.  Professionals will continue to strive for connections and opportunities with increased vigor if the Valley economy starts to ratchet down.

Startups= Opportunity

It’s the Valley’s signature: more start-ups, more funding and more bright ideas than anywhere else in the world. And that’s where the jobs are easiest to move into. Thanks to on-line tools like Linksv.com, early stage companies are now easier to find and approach.  Start-ups offer title increases, wealth potential, greater individual autonomy and an extended career lifespan for some people. This year more companies will be started, funded and people hired because this isn’t a tech recession this time. We have some protection, a little Teflon coating, because the Valley is a net exporter of services.   Take HP for example, 69% of their computer business revenues last quarter was offshore.

Recruiters Leave the Big Boards Behind

Recruiters started using Google keyword searches to find talent during the 2001-2003 downturn to save costs. Now trolling the Internet, social networking sites, niche vertical job sites, egroups, blogs, and podcasts have become the mainstream methods to find the “passive candidate”, read anybody with a job. In 2007, the Human Capital Institute, a think tank for corporate recruiting and HR managers headquartered of all places on K Street in DC, held a webinar entitled “The New Resume”. What was it about? Using Linkedin and Facebook profiles to screen talent.

Always at the Bleeding Edge

As the Valley embraces Nanotechnology, Green and Sustainable Technology and Clean Tech employment opportunities will continue to stay bright for those who keep current and keep up.  Nano has been a budding promise for 5 years now that is coming to fruition while the whole green space is just unfolding.  I guess that calls for a few more new associations and organizations.

Until next time, stay centered,

Patti

The War for Talent: Myth or Reality?

“Employers have been staffing up like crazy in areas where there are market opportunities, but they have been staffing down just as fast in areas where market opportunities have disappeared. The reality of the new economy is that there is tons of work to be done, but no real job security for anybody. And it is that reality that gave birth to the free agent mindset and, thus, the talent wars.”
Bruce Tulgan,
Winning the Talent Wars, 2001

After a recent visit to Google, I asked my host, a mid-level manager, what he saw as the greatest challenge to the company’s growth. His answer was immediate and simple, “Finding people to hire.”  Looking at Google’s hiring efforts at events, on-line, on campuses, and through their army of contract recruiters, they are making every effort to overcome that challenge as are most other companies in Silicon Valley.

Even now in a strong economy employers continue to lay off people while other companies like Google fight for to the talent they need.  Ostensibly this should balance out as available workers come into the marketplace, they should be hired by companies looking for new talent. They arena’t for the most part unless they do a lot to retool, retrain, and re-brand themselves to better match the talent requirements employers are seeking.

Market Opportunity vs Commoditization

Tulgan’s quote above is just as relevant today as it was during the depths of the worst recession Silicon Valley had ever experienced. It is about market opportunity, as Geoffrey Moore recognized in his 2006 book, “Dealing with Darwin.”  With accelerating product obsolescence and global competition creating commoditization of just about everything and everybody, companies are chasing the next market opportunity as fast as they can.

There is a disparity between the available workforce and the talent who fit the specific position requirements within hiring companies.  This imbalance will continue to generate the war for talent as employers compete to hire those people who fit their requirements. 

The Transferable Skills Myth

The talent war is real. In a global economy, all employers have access to worldwide talent of varying skill levels, geographic access, and sector experience.  Given the competition, demands for productivity and ever-rising revenue targets, they will only recruit and hire talent matching as close as possible to the position. They cannot afford to do otherwise.

The myth lies in the notion of transferable skills as a unique passport into a new field and sector. The problem lies in convincing an employer. Twenty five plus years ago when most people hardly changed jobs, employers could afford to risk hiring someone changing fields and sectors on skills alone.  They cannot do that now with the exception of new college grads, with typically little work experience, having skills alone to offer.

The Startup Advantage

However, startups competing with the big companies for talent are at a disadvantage in hiring. They pay less, the risk of failure is high as is the resulting non-discretionary job loss. This presents a golden opportunity for small nimble companies wanting bright, eager performers to take a calculated chance on hiring someone with the right skill set but without the requisite sector/industry match up.  The resulting benefits for both sides of the equation, employer and employee, is a win win.

The benefit for a startup is a truce, albeit temporary, in the war for talent.  With less energy and investment channeled towards hiring and recruiting the “right” talent, they can focus their resources on growing the company with the great team they have put in place. For the bigger companies there will be no truce in sight for this war.

Working 2.0: The Transformation of Employment

For a few years now the attributes of Web 2.0 have been discussed and debated. Conferences have been called and meetings convened on the topic. According to the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, which is actually a manifestation of Web 2.0, it is described as:

    “…..a term often applied to a perceived ongoing transition of the World Wide Web from a collection of websites to a full-fledged computing platform serving web applications to end users. Ultimately Web 2.0 services are expected to replace desktop computing applications for many purposes.”

It describes how the web has gone from static delivery of web pages and information to an interactive format wherein the user is an active participant in multiple types of collaborations, communities, and connections. Wikipedia is open to all users to contribute information and definitions. It is a shared collaborative, connected Internet site.

Working 2.0 is describes a very similar, corresponding, ongoing transformation of work from a group of people gathered in a centralized location with a hierarchical structure, to a distributed, interconnected system of collaborating, contributing professionals globally.

This transformation is creating new paradigms in employment. It affects the when, where, and how of working within organizations as well as for independent consultants and as solopreneurs. Here are the key areas where the transformation of Working 2.0 is having the greatest impact.

Time  2.0 (gmt)
In less than 80 years, we have gone from punching the time clock at the beginning and end of our workday to time-zone spanning teleconferences starting at 9 pm in California and noon in India.

The 8 to 5, be on time or be gone, rule at Intel went out long ago when the competition for talent began in earnest. At one time, “flex time” was the cool new perk for programmers at the then startups of Apple and Microsoft. They could sleep until 10 am, come in by noon for lunch and afternoon meetings, and then write code until 2 am.   

Now with geographically remote teams in multiple time zones, a prerequisite for many jobs is to be able to keep very flexible hours. The ability to effectively connect, collaborate and communicate with teams, talent, customers, vendors and partners across time zones and despite geographical distances is now a critical competency for any successful organization as we move forward in this century. This is even more relevant for larger organizations, as smaller, fresher companies just naturally are more nimble.

For employees, the fulfillment of worklife balance will have more promise of realization with the ever expanding demand for flexible work hours to accommodate global teams. Working moms and dads can spend time at the kids’ soccer games, get dinner, put them to bed and be back online to China by 9 pm.

Leadership 2.0
The 20th century saw the rise of management in organizations. It became a noble pursuit, a body of knowledge and a coveted degree. Management developed processes, procedures, systems, structures, rules, regulations and dress codes. Measuring the input and monitoring throughput increasingly seemed to gain priority over evaluating the end results.

Older organizations grew sluggish, bureaucratic, cumbersome, and crystallized in their approach to dealing with employees.  Young companies on growth spurts by necessity were lacking in forethought and planning around human resources, promoted the unprepared and ineffective to manage.

The over-riding challenge of Working 2.0 is the management of talent flung over the far reaches of the planet, speaking multiple languages, living in different cultures and following totally disparate value systems. Is it any wonder why “leadership” has become the new buzz among management consultants?

It takes leadership abilities not supervision skills to motivate, coach, mentor, encourage and drive teams and talent from afar. A leadership mentality is required to focus on the results produced rather than monitoring, tracking, and overseeing the process used to get to it. It’s not possible to check up on a person’s time at the desk when it resides in Dubai.

Language, culture, time zone and technology issues aside, an organization must hire, train, promote and cultivate a leadership style of management. That style incorporates the characteristics of trust and clarity, transparency and openness, flexibility and adaptability, and an aptitude to interact with emotional as well as intellectual intelligence.

Those reading this may be thinking that the above description hasn’t existed in the real life business to date. How are organizations going to find, develop and nurture a leadership style? Well, that certainly is the topic of another article. Though it won’t be easy transition, there is no long-term alternative to enlightened management and leadership. It is the basic core skill set for Working 2.0

Communication 2.0
A diverse workforce is no longer an affirmative action requirement for federal funding. It is a given in global organizations. Picture if you will, multiple cultures, a polyglot of languages, and a plethora of world views in a globally distributed workforce all sending each other email. And, amazingly, they all understand and work together for the most part regardless of the leadership or lack thereof.

The challenges are there, nonetheless, in understanding and accepting differences in cultural rhythm and tempo. Where some cultures have a greater sense of urgency and energy, others give greater deference to the authority of management, or focus on family and faith.

Companies must continue to invest heavily in accent reduction, grammatical improvement and the understanding that comes with acceptance of differences. Working 2.0 manifests Disney’s Small Small World as a real-world ride and actualizes the notion of a global village.

Web 2.0
Enabling technologies have leveled the global playing field for the small business and solo entrepreneur competing with the big guys for talent, customers and revenues. Economy of scale isn’t such a big deal anymore when LuLu.com will print books one-off for your company. From start-ups to large corporations, companies are leveraging technology to enable productivity through a distributed workforce.  The VCs want to see an outsourcing module built into every business plan before they write up the term sheet and fund a start-up.

Working 2.0 employees regularly IM with Yahoo, call internationally with SKYPE, present to customers using Webx, work together with Jotspot, and track projects with Basecamp, find new hires with Craigslist and network for deals on Linkedin, to just name a few examples of Web.2.0 technologies.

Productivity tools are rapidly transitioning to the Internet and becoming on-demand services for virtual project management, sales presentations, meeting organization, information sharing and collaborative work anytime, anywhere. Microsoft, ACT and others are rushing to launch online versions of their desktop software for calendaring, scheduling, file sharing, and project tracking. Microsoft’s LiveOffice is in free beta version to the public right now.

The Working 2.0 workforce is always on and always connected. One of several downsides is that now a vacation without bringing a cell phone, Treo or Blackberry is, well, a vacation.  But who can take those anymore? More and more we are expected to be on-call, all the time thanks to the enabling technology Web 2.0.

Lifestyle 2.0
In 2002, Marci moved to Portland where she could afford to buy a really great house in one of those “vintage” neighborhoods. She still has the same job as a usability and interface architecture professional.

Jake is one of the best biotech recruiters in the business. He lives in Santa Fe. He flies regularly to the coasts to meet with client companies but of late is taking to interview candidates using SKYPE and a pc video camera.  Raj likes to ski and lives in Durango. His high-tech employer, a Fortune 500 company, enables his remote work in order to reap the benefits of his talent. He works with his teammates in  Silicon Valley collaboratively using meeting software such as Quindi.com and groupware.

Choices now exist around where to live. Many are opting out of urban, densely populated areas for lower cost areas or back to hometowns with extended families. Others are returning to home countries for entrepreneurial opportunities.

Working 2.0 is bringing about a quality of life only dreamed of a decade ago for aspiring professionals beyond the US borders.  Many independent workers as well as employees are able to leverage the now realized talent shortage to negotiate and gain lifestyle options that would not have been feasible pre-Working 2.0.

Conclusion 2.0
It was not the intention to gloss over factors in Working 2.0 that have been experienced for some as wrenching change, loss, and disappointment. Organizations in the forefront of the Working 2.0 transformation have not always supported the required collaboration of distributed workgroups with the tools, technology, and the emotional intelligence required for success.

They often have unwittingly undermined effectiveness and productivity of distributed teams, only then to abandon the effort rather than demand the required leadership from their managers. Sometimes the actual initiation of a Working 2.0 organizational transformation has caused dislocation and redistribution of opportunities from local to global without providing economic options and alternatives for the employees impacted. Working 2.0 is not a cause of, but simply the next economic change that brings it to public attention. With attention and focus there is potential for action to ameliorate the root cause of any situation.

Organizations will move to embrace Working 2.0 and Web 2.0 as an ensemble, book-matched pair out of business and economic necessity. A connected contingency of global workers is taking center stage on an online platform as a key economic force of the 21 century. How this plays out is up the participants involved.

Until next time,
Patti