Ever wonder if Americans are hard workers?  Well, take a look and judge yourself.  Looks to me like we put in our fair share of hours.

This infographic by Business Insurance Source spells it out quite well!

Image by: Business Insurance Source

Corporate culture is a funny topic…  everyone in the HR industry seems to be talking about it, but few have defined what it means for their organizations.  Instead, we are given example after example of what good looks like.  But, is that “good” the same for your company or your culture?

What is corporate culture anyway and why does it matter?

Who creates it and who is responsible for it?

Why is it so hard to explain?

Why do we try?

The truth is, corporate culture is a hard thing to nail down.  It changes quickly.  By the time you get to some sort of definition, something changes and you are forced to redefine.  How can you possibly present an authentic picture of what it means to be a part of an organization when elements of the group change daily?

At Rackspace, our culture is constantly changing.  Since our inception, growth, technology, economic circumstances and Racker personalities have all played a part in evolving the essence of what it means to be a Racker and our overall esprit de corps.  If I could bottle up the near palpable culture and share it, I would… but I can’t.  So, in an effort to be real and real-time, I depend on our people to share the culture they are experiencing on our career site Racker Talent.  To date, we’ve added 40 bloggers from 4 continents with an average of 2 new posts a week.  It’s been an adventure!

In my mind, culture is about today.  The events of yesterday and the prior years represent our historical context.  For the Rackers who were a part of the entire series of events, this historical context is vivid and real.  For those just joining the company, their context starts the moment they walk through the door.  Both groups make up and influence our true culture.

The more I contemplate this topic, the more I lean towards the perspective that culture is not meant to be bottled up or defined.  It’s meant to live and breath.

So, how does that work?

How can a company have a “good” corporate culture?

It’s about connectedness and organizations accepting their employees for who they are.  Quit hiring people for skill sets alone.  Start placing values above all else.  Are they a good person?  Are they ambitious?  Do they live by the values of your company?  Then, let them be.  Trust them.  Let them shape the culture that makes your place of work different and special.

You can teach people skills, but training values is near impossible.  When was the last time you witnessed someone transform from an egotistical, self-centered, mean personality to a group-oriented all around happy person?

When I roam our offices meeting Rackers and hearing their stories, I see a trend.  People here care.  They care about their co-workers, they care about their customers and they accept the calling to help build one of the worlds’ best service companies.  Mediocrity with these values is not an option.

We hire passionate people who want to make a difference.  And guess what, they bring that passion to work every day.  They help their colleagues and they go above and beyond for our customers.

Want a great corporate culture?  Quit defining it and start hiring the type of people who care about the mission.  The culture will figure itself out.

Just as I expected, the annual SHRM conference in Las Vegas was fantastic!  In fact, it would be near impossible to spell out all the different perspectives that were shared and the takeaways that I received. So, in the spirit of brevity, I’ll sum it up with these 6 points.

1.    Facebook is a battleground

No matter how you slice it, Facebook is a mindshare land grab (that may be a Marenism btw).  We all know that over 700 million folks enjoy the blue and white social playground today, but what you might not know is how heated the battle for a professional platform has become.  BranchOut and BeKnown are at the forefront of this face-off and we are sure to see more in the near future.

While BranchOut has the head start, BeKnown has the financial backing of Monster and their incredibly well developed book of clients.

In essence, both are vying for the role of LinkedIn within Facebookland.  They are aiming to create a place where job seekers can limit how much is shared while taking full advantage of the Facebook numbers.  What’s better than networking with 100 million LinkedIn users?  Networking with 700 million Facebook users.

The battle has begun.  Now it’s up to the users to decide.  I would imagine by this time next year, we will know who the victor is.

2.    It’s all about engagement

If you have been putting off your plans for learning how to manage Gen Y and the generations to follow, your time is about to expire.  It’s all about engaging these newer generations of workers and making them happy.  “Why?” you might ask.

Well, just as before the recession, Baby Boomers are exiting the workplace and Gen Y is quickly taking over the majority role.  As this continues to happen, we should all expect to be overwhelmed by best practices in leading by example, peer management approaches and purpose driven workplaces.

It’s the future.  Accept it.

3.    Your people are your brand

For those of you who know me, you’ll know that I’m passionate about this one.  It was awesome to see so many folks speaking about and sharing the gospel on making people the selling point to your company.

Like it or not, winners and losers in the recruiting space will be decided by their organizations’ abilities to keep their employee populations engaged.  Fall short and the word will spread.  Thrive and your company will be rewarded with the best and the brightest.

If we embrace brand advocates, costs to acquire will go down.  We just need to get out of their way and let them tell the story.  The rest will take care of itself.  And, if you think this is still on the horizon, I suggest you start keeping an eye on thought leaders like Ryan Estis.  His presentation, Passion on Purpose, will show you the light!

4.    Show me the numbers

If you are a vendor in the HR space, be prepared to start showing your cards.  The times of solely displaying shiny objects and making a fortune are gone.  Buyers are critical and they want real results.

As I wandered the exhibitor hall, one thing became very apparent… dialogue is real and buyers want to know facts.  If you have a serious solution, this shouldn’t be a problem.  If you don’t, go back to the drawing board and start pulling some meaningful metrics… you’ll thank me later

5.    What is social media?

A couple of years ago, I would have hoped that this year would bring hoards of informed social media users to the HR space.  Instead, it seems that help is still needed… and not just with the advanced stuff.  We need to back up and bring on a new group of savvy social users.  We’ve perhaps grown bored of Twitter 101, but that boredom may be creating a roadblock for adoption.

Let’s face it, social is fun and for most of us involved with it, we’ve met some great folks and engaged in a plethora of new ways.

After this conference, I feel a renewed duty to help others get on board and I hope others join in.

6.    Company Culture Matters

Yeah, yeah, I know… the same old spiel.  But, listen up – it’s go time!

We live in a new age that values real more than shiny… an age that values transparency more than long-standing tradition.  If you think that your cultural edge is historical success, think again.  Cool new opportunities spring up every day.  It won’t be long before your talent is bombarded by something “better.”  So, it’s time to celebrate and establish your culture for what it is.

Don’t pretend… be real.  Understand that for the right person, your company is the perfect place to work.  It’s your duty to represent it well and give people something to take pride in… namely themselves and the hard work they do for your organization.

The bottom line is important, but giving people a central mission, an identity and a cause is more important.

Want to make it big?  Show how your employees are impacting the world.

So, again… this list could go on, but these were the six things that I was left with from the conference.  Perhaps a post on each would be appropriate.

I look forward to attending SHRM again next year.  If you haven’t attended in the past, I highly recommend planning in advance for the next go around.  You won’t regret it.

If you attended, what were your major takeaways?  Anything I completely overlooked?

I first met Ryan Estis back in 2009 during the SHRM Staffing Management conference here in Las Vegas. Ryan is a memorable figure and very popular on the SHRM circuit.  His action-oriented approach to sharing thought leadership make his presentations both powerful and memorable!

When I found out that Ryan was speaking at #SHRM11, I decided to take some time out to ask him a few questions about his session and what participants should plan to take away.

Session:  Passion on Purpose

Date:  June 28th, 2011

Time:  10:45 AM – 12:00 PM

Room: Ballroom B

Q&A with Ryan Estis

Q:  Tell me about Passion on Purpose.  What will you cover in the presentation?

A:  I’m going to be presenting a conversation on leadership, culture, influence and the role that HR can play in accelerating business performance through their people strategies.

Q:  What spurred this topic?

A:  HR practitioners have a real opportunity to take ownership of essential parts of the business.  Everything from talent to overall business performance.  I think it’s time that practitioners take their roles to the next level by translating their work into overall business success.  Focus and accountability for how talent impacts company success is the logical next step.

Q:  What are the 3 main takeaways attendees should plan to receive?

1. How Culture is becoming the competitive advantage and how to leverage it.
2. How HR has an opportunity to connect leadership to culture.
3. How HR needs to approach the communication issues within their companies.

If you are attending SHRM here in Las Vegas and want to take in a great presentation, I highly recommend attending Ryan’s session tomorrow.  It’s sure to be thought provoking and filled with actionable takeaways.

Special thanks to Ryan for taking time out to discuss his upcoming presentation!

Follow Ryan Estis on Twitter (@ryanestis) or visit his website.

It’s been two years since I attended a SHRM conference.  The last one I attended took place in New Orleans and was jam packed with great sessions, solid social connections and, although I didn’t know it at the time, I had met my wife on Twitter during the conference

Fast forward to present day, plenty has changed in my life and work.  Surely, with the economic and political conditions of the day, plenty has changed with everyone else.

The event begins…

It’s hard not to have a bit of child-like excitement for the main event.  If you haven’t attended an annual conference, the closest comparison I could make would be to a rock concert.  That feeling you get after passing the front door and hearing the low hum of people through the doors ahead.  As you pass through the corridor, the buzz increases until you finally see the main stage and feel the full-on energy of the crowd.  It’s pretty exciting… well, in a dorky HR kind of way.

The conference officially got underway at 2:30 PM on Sunday, June 26, 2011.  After some brief entertainment, the speeches got started with the announcement that Hank Jackson would take the official CEO title at SHRM.  Hank was given the main stage and proceeded to explain the many priorities that SHRM is dedicating to going forward.  Good luck Hank.  Sounds like you have your hands full!

Sir Richard Branson took the stage at just after 3:10 PM to a very warm greeting by the crowd.  Let’s face it; this guy is a modern day legend… especially in the business world.   Considering the conservative disposition of HR (most of the time), it’s refreshing to see a risk taker of Branson’s category put on main stage to get the event going.  Sign of the times?  Time to take some risks perhaps?

“Screw it, let’s do it.” – Richard Branson

After some brief chit-chat and an awkward ring kissing moment, Branson started answering questions about his upbringing and philosophy on business.  He apparently started his first business at the age of 16 and shortly thereafter started his record company.  He grew up in a family that was very supportive and open to risks.  He carried that philosophy with him into business and has continued to push the envelope… luckily it has paid off.

“You wouldn’t be a proper entrepreneur if everything was success.” – Richard Branson

When asked how you go about starting a space company, Branson replied that you must first “think the sky is not the limit.” Nice answer to a very complex question.  Limits are all too often self-imposed.

Lots more ahead for the SHRM conference.  Probably more than I will be able to take in alone.  Luckily, I have Kelly by my side.  You can check out her posts at Thryving.com.

Now off to the convention hall…

Any sessions, topics or themes you suggest I keep an eye on?  Any vendors booths that are a “must visit!”?

You are probably more capable than any one particular task that you have been assigned at work – may your career always bless you with the promise of growth.  Imagine the alternative.

Pay Your Dues

For the record, I am a product of Gen Y… perhaps an earlier product of it, but Gen Y nonetheless.

It’s come to my attention, through the thousands of publications that have dissected this issue, that we have a certain sense of entitlement.

We like to move up quickly and gain rewards based on our performance.  However, we also tend to get frustrated easily when presented with too much red tape or individuals who would seek to slow our progression.

As with most anything, this can be viewed as a strength or a weakness.

As a group, I think we need to STOP and consider some essential pieces of career development.

Take a step back for a moment and realize that while a career should be interesting and engaging, the individual tasks that come together to make up our “job” are not always going to inspire us.  Sometimes, you are going to have to run through some mud in order to get to higher ground – there is good reason for this.

Earn Your Role

When I started in the Staffing Industry, I was an Office Assistant.  The funny part about it was that my to-be boss wasn’t entirely sure if I could be a recruiter because I was too quiet.

I took the role with enthusiasm.  I learned about the business from the ground up.  From data-entry, holiday party planning, job fair coordination… setting out snacks for candidates as they came in – I went through the proverbial mud.  I learned a ton about the business from that perspective and I’m grateful for having been placed in the role.

Four promotions and 2.5 years later, I was running a branch office that did over $4M a year in annual revenue.  I had five recruiters and an Office Assistant to boot!  I worked my tail off to earn that role and, I can assure you, at no point in that process did I ever turn my nose up at special projects.  To the contrary, I got involved with everything I possibly could.  I learned about financials, recruiting models, interviewing strategies, management methodology, retention planning for major accounts, sales… the list goes on.

Each skill and knowledge set was learned only by going through a bit of discomfort and, on many occasions, performing tasks that didn’t immediately seem to be applicable.

The End Result of Mud-Running

If I hadn’t planned the party, pounded out the data-entry, organized the cookies and put up with menial tasks, it would have been much harder for me to understand what I was asking from my subordinates when they were tasked with those items.  While I may have been capable of managing the team, it would have been much more challenging to lead them.

There is value in engaging with alternative tasks at work.

Have you ever worked for someone that didn’t understand your role or what you had to do in order to perform your essential job functions?  Wasn’t it frustrating?

Have you ever engaged in a project (menial or not) that didn’t immediately seem applicable… only to have it change your career?

I don’t proclaim to have all the answers (or even a small portion of them) to the meaning of “career success.”  This is something that will ultimately be unique to each person.

My only advice is to search for value in your daily routine and consider how these lessons may translate into a better understanding going forward.

Photo Credit, Photos8.com

During the final session of #HRevolution, Mark Stelzner presented the point that the HR social media crowd tends to mainly reinforce our own enthusiasm…

AMEN!!!

The goal, the future… the (hold on tight) CHANGE that we are going to see in this space will only be driven forward by everyone embracing a sense of inclusion.  Our efforts to explore the latest and greatest social media tools should be balanced with our desires to bring in the soon-to-be adopters – perhaps the hesitant-to-be adopters.

So, why should we?

In my humble opinion, social media, as it applies to HR has two apparent benefits.

1. Talent Acquisition
2. Learning

Let’s look at this closer…

Talent Acquisition

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that companies can experience great benefit from engaging with their target talent markets within social media communities.  This approach reinforces like-mindedness and shared values… not to mention openness to accountability.  All values that will be increasingly important with potential candidates to your company.

The tools and manner in which companies are approaching candidates within social media is limitless.  Personally, I would advocate some balance and limits in this type of implementation – but, truth be told, every company will have to find their own style and approach.  Effort and energy aligned, it can be very successful!

Learning

The other great benefit for HR professionals in social media is the ability to learn and share with others within your professional space.  Collaboration, collaboration, collaboration!

Knowledge has never before been so easy to gain!  With thousands of HR peers currently socializing and sharing professional thoughts, you have a real opportunity to learn.  Jump in!

How Can We Move It Forward?

Getting started is simpler than you might think.  I’ve chronicled approaches in the past, but if I had to do so again (in a simple way), I would recommend at least starting up with Twitter to connect with HR pros.

So, here is a two-part step-by-step:

1. Go to Twitter – http://twitter.com
2. Set up your account – Choose a fun name!
3. Make sure you use a picture – a name with a face is important!
4. Make sure you put some thought behind your bio.

Now for connecting with others:

1. Perform searches for “HR”, “SHRM”, “HRevolution” and anything else that you think applies to your field.  If people include it in a Tweet (message sent out on Twitter), you can find it by searching from your Twitter home page.
2. Start following people who are interesting to you!
3. Ask questions and send out helpful Tweets.
4. Respond to people who Tweet interesting things!

These eight steps will not change everything… but, I can promise you that it will get your ball rolling forward.  If a more comprehensive explanation is desired, check out the video I put together for SHRM last year – a few things have changed with Twitter, but, for the most part, things are the same.

So, let’s get HR Tweeting!  Let’s, at the very least, expand the bubble!

How else would you recommend that we include the masses?

Photo Credit, Pink Sherbet Photography

Wandering around on Facebook yesterday, I encountered a comment from Chris Brogan that stated the following:

Chris Brogan It’s weird having too many ideas. You end up having to throw them somewhere like storage, and they grow dusty. Give them all away. You’ll make more.

So, this got me thinking about the previous post on Virtual Talent Reality.  One of the challenges that I brought up was that with a decreased level of recruiters and an increased demand for talent… the prospect of recruiting through third party agencies is going to get expense – very expensive!

While Chris’ comment had nothing to do with recruiting, it has everything to do with collaboration.  As the wheels on my mental bus went round and round, I started thinking about the competitive climate that we have created in recruiting.  Why is that?  I know that agencies like to make money and I know that companies like to attract and hire the best people… but why aren’t we helping each other more?

There are a ton of holes in the plan I’m about to present, but I think that it’s possible on some level.  Yes, the kinks will need to be worked out… but, just go with it for a minute.

Let’s start with the challenge again:

Fewer Recruiters + Higher Recruiting Demand = Higher Fees = Expensive Strategy

Instead of living in our little secret recruiting worlds, what if corporate recruiting departments were to partner up.  What if they were to join forces with other companies in order to filter through the talent.  There are some candidate confidentiality concerns with this, but I’m sure it can be dealt with if the companies approach this with a high level of transparency.

Think about this:

• ATS Systems allow companies to connect their talent databases.
• Companies want to hire skilled candidates that want to work for them… if the recruiting partners both want a candidate, it can still be left to a candidate to make the right decision for them.  Did I mention “transparency”?
• Companies, working collectively, could negotiate better rates for everything from job boards to job fairs to ATS Systems.

Some challenges that could come up:

• Ensuring that candidates realize they are applying to a central database.
• Creating a channel where the candidate can confidentially apply to one company (needs to exist).
• Figuring out the distribution of financial obligations based on volume of recruiting.

Collaborative Vs. Competitive Recruiting

I can understand how some companies would look at this and say… that’s crazy!  I get it – it’s a bit out there.  But, consider the amount of money that could be saved, the increased access to desirable candidates and the ability to collectively create better recruiting processes.

We don’t need to fight over talent… we need to figure out how we can best serve talent.  Ensuring that candidates are choosing the right position will have an immediate impact on your employment branding and retention.

Just an idea…

What do you think we can do with this?  How can we collaborate instead of compete in the recruiting space?

Photo Credit, Rennett Stowe

This is more of a question than an opinion…

How many organizations are currently living in a false reality when it comes to talent?

Sure… they may currently have access to stellar talent due to the economic climate… but have they prepared for recovery.  Have they prepared for a potential talent exodus?  What happens when the talent pool realizes that they have spent the past 2-3 years underpaid and under appreciated?  What happens then?

I would normally recommend the use of agencies to help fill the gaps… but, there are two problems with this…

First, a whole lot of third-party and corporate recruiters left the industry during the downturn.  They’ve moved on.  Perhaps they can be attracted back… but, it will take time.  The second question is expense.  Reactive recruiting (often the type of recruiting agencies get called to help with) gets very expensive.  With higher demand and fewer third party providers, that will drive prices up.  This isn’t going to be cheap.

So, what’s the solution?

I don’t know how to fix this issue overnight, but if I were a betting man, I would put my money on paying close attention to your current employees’ needs, wants and desires.  There may still be a chance to make things right.

Oh, and if you are the type that sits back and says “Well… I gave them a job!” – you’ve lost your mind.  You are probably the same person that thinks it’s okay to treat employees as numbers instead of as human beings.  Good luck to you when the economy recovers… your people will be more than willing to speak with recruiters about how green the grass really is on the other side.

So… who knows?  What’s the solution?  What steps should employers be taking now to improve their internal employement branding?  What would you like to see more of?  Less of?

Your thoughts are valuable!  Thanks for sharing

Photo Credit, Scumfrog

There is little doubt that most organizations have a sincere desire to connect with their target talent markets.  They spend millions (perhaps billions) of dollars a year analyzing their potential candidates.

• How can we attract the right talent?
• How do we connect with our ideal candidates?

Social Media, for all its wonders, is not the “have all, end all” of candidate interaction.  In fact, if we were discussing this over coffee, you would find out quickly that I much prefer the balanced approach.  Embark on the path of learning the tools, but control the amount of time invested.  Build into it, don’t just decide one morning that it’s the only approach.

Before you jump at me with a sharp “Twitter changed my life!” lashing – let me clarify a bit more.

Social Media is an amazing place to be.  You can meet all kinds of great people, very quickly target and connect with like-minded individuals… and perhaps even discover new avenues for your journey that you had yet to uncover.  Unfortunately, and fortunately, it’s not the only way that a person can go about doing this.  My opinion, and this is only my opinion, is that a balance must be established.

Candidates are people who have wants, needs and desires.  They are attracted to and they interact in the communities of interest to them.  Social Media creates an opportunity for us to connect with them on a different level… in a place that they choose.

According to a recent study performed by CareerBuilder and Inavero, “The average job candidate spends more than five hours on social media sites each week; however, only one in five organizations indicated utilizing social networking as part of their recruiting strategy.”

Baby Steps Into Social Media

There are thousands of posts on what to do and what not to do if you want to get involved in recruiting within social media.  It’s actually quite overwhelming if you consider the huge amount of information.

With that said, the study clearly indicates that many organizations are holding back.  Perhaps it’s due to overall understanding, a perceived lack of ROI… there are many arguments for and against getting involved.

The bottom line, however, is that Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the many other community driven sites are here.  They are growing and they are catching on faster and faster by the day.  You don’t have to change your recruiting approach over night… but, I sure wouldn’t want to be the guy/gal who wakes up in five years to realize that one vital piece of the established recruiting approach had been entirely ignored.

So, get started… even if that means baby steps.  My advice, for what it’s worth, is the following:

1. LinkedIn – Set up your account with a complete profile.  Join some groups and occasionally jump in the conversation.  Perhaps create a survey based on what your candidates want, need and desire.  Be a presence.
2. Twitter – Find a picture you like, create a 160 character bio and set up your Twitter account.  Don’t worry about it being confusing at first… it will be that way for a while.  Check out my free video tutorial I created for SHRM on getting started and perhaps pick up a copy of Twitterville.
3. Facebook – Picture, bio, likes/dislikes in bio format.  Join some groups… interact.  If you are feeling really adventurous, go post a job using their social ad system.  On the bottom of your profile, you will see a little link that says “advertising”.  I personally recommend doing an “impressions” campaign… it’s cheap and you will get your feet wet with very little expense.

I love blogging and I think it’s a great tool… but, the time commitment is a bit much for some people.  For the time being, just work at understanding how the above tools can impact your recruiting efforts.  If you want to start playing around with blogging, check out RecruitingBlogs.com – try your hand at sharing your knowledge.  Be creative, think like your target candidates… see where you get.  Later, you can add other tools to the mix and really start building out a comprehensive targeting strategy.

Step 1 is to begin the process.  Whatever your organization decides to do, it’s a great opportunity for you to improve your skill set (yes, these tools are appearing on resumes now) and to discover what all the buzz is about.  Besides, we’d love to see you out there!

If you would like to connect with me out on one of the above mentioned sites, here are links for you to connect:

LinkedIn

Facebook

Twitter

The bottom line is just get started.  Try it… Twitter doesn’t bite

For those of you already involved in the realm, what baby steps would you recommend?  Any must-dos for those who have yet to take the leap into the world of social media?

For those who have yet to get started… I’m curious to know what has held you back?  Perceived complexity, time, clear ROI?  I’m interested.

Photo Credit, stargazr441