Career

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    Linked: The Great Resignation generation: Gen Z wants to job hop

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

    This is something that many of us older folks don’t get, but we should be thinking about much more. I think many of us who work in the technology, legal, or eDiscovery sectors can lose sight of how demanding careers in these industries are. We are quick to scoff at the idea that we should maybe figure out how to make them a little less demanding, or at least more friendly for diverse candidates who can’t simply work all night, or be on call 24 hours a day for our clients because that’s just the way it’s done in our industry. We tend to think that because all of the jobs in the industry are like that, we don’t have to worry about competitors offering something else to our employees.

    We are not considering how many people we drive out of the industry completely, especially young people. There is a staffing shortage in these industries, and the companies struggling to find enough talent are not losing out to some other mysterious company in the industry who can pick and choose, we’re all in the same boat because the boat is leaking people every single day. People are making the choice to do something else because what we offer isn’t cutting it.

  • Linked: How to Toot Your Own Horn At Work

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 1 minute

    have often been on record as saying that leading a remote team requires over-communication. You simply cannot assume information is being shared or understood if you don’t actively communicate it yourself.

    The same goes for tooting your own horn. You simply cannot assume that people you haven’t communicated with directly about your contributions are going to know about them. We like to think that compliments and acknowledgments go beyond the immediate conversations we are having but we can’t assume that.

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    Linked: Remote working jobs: 5 problems we need to solve in 2022

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Sadly, most managers just don’t know how to do this. We’ve lived in a world where hard work = hours worked for so long that we don’t know how to do anything else, even though it was also never really true. There have always been people who “work” long hours just to look good without ever really getting anything done, and others who get work done very efficiently and see no reason to sit at their desk longer and play that game. (And everything in between these two extremes!)

    What we haven’t done in many cases is figure out better ways to measure who is getting actual work done, because sometimes that’s hard to do.

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    Linked: Remote work, innovation, and the Great Resignation

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

    I love this because there are so many companies, SO. MANY. COMPANIES. who think that creative and innovative ideas simply spring to life from people being in the same place, and completely miss that it’s not the proximity, it’s the time.

    How many time has someone said to you that they would like to work on an idea with you, and you should book some time on their calendar when you’re both available.

    And you look. And maybe in 3-4 months, you can both be available.

  • Some Employers Have Not Figured Out The Job Market Changed

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Sadly, I’ve seen and heard many stories like this too. I’ve seen some of those job listings myself. You know the ones, where they want to pay entry-level wages but also require 5 years experience or the list of requirements sound like you’re really looking for multiple people, but only paying for one. In my industry, it’s usually the laundry list of experience and certifications that give it away. Really, you are going to require multiple certifications on half a dozen different platforms and tools, as well as years of recent experience? Who even has access to that many different tools at the same time? 

    Also, if you’re hiring process involves multiple interviews and weeks of delays, you’re going to see a lot of your candidates swept up with an offer before you even get through the process.

    You need to be better. If you’re not, someone else will be.

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    Linked: Actions of a good boss turning into a bad boss

    ByMike McBride Reading Time: 3 minutes

    It’s true. Our words and actions, especially when things are stressful, undermine what we think we are. You may think you’re being a good boss, and maybe most of the time you are, but those days when you’re stressed and short with people or the days you decide to not deal with a problem, become the days that define you in the eyes of the people who report to you.

    To them, you aren’t just another person having a bad day. You are the person who controls their success at this company for better or worse, so it’s not just you having a bad day, it’s the organization having a bad day, directed at them.