LinkedIn and dating; much the same really!

The business world has changed so much in the last twenty years that it is nigh on impossible imaging returning to sitting in a library flicking through reference manuals or scrolling through microfiche to unearth the information that you were after. If you’re under 30 you’ll probably have to Google microfiche – now how old do I feel!

So, where would we be without LinkedIn, the new business white pages that seems to dominate these days? I bet you couldn't imagine going back to the days before you could find people you'd lost track of or attempt to connect with pretty much anyone in the working world, whether they like it or not. And therein, lies the rub.

In many ways, LinkedIn is a lot like a dating site, except for business.

If you’re old enough you’ll remember the J. Geils Band who had a song called "Love Stinks" that goes like this, "You love her; but she loves him. And he loves somebody else; you just can't win." Trying to connect with people on LinkedIn can be just like that. Moreover, how we network and form relationships in the working world is very similar to how we do it in our personal lives.

It is an almost unquestionable fact that these days if you want to have a career, you've got to have a LinkedIn profile. On top of that it's also a great way to manage your business contacts. But LinkedIn also makes it easy to try to connect with people you don't know to further your career or your business opportunities. However, don’t be surprised that it’s not just beautiful blondes who hit on your LinkedIn profile but the occasional moose too.

OK, not the world’s best analogy, but you've got to admit, it true. I’d be surprised if you haven’t had an opportunist or two contact you on a number of occasions. They put you on the spot and then you've got to reject them. It's annoying. Unless, of course, they've got something you want, in which case you’ve just made a connection. Not for life. Just until you get what you want, get bored and dump them. Just like dating.

As for posting to all those groups and commenting on discussions, that's just like when you were single, wasting your nights bouncing from one bar to another hoping to meet that someone special. Just try to imagine all those desperate, inane, rambling nightclub conversations that ultimately led to absolutely nothing. That's right. LinkedIn is just like that.

Twitter's different. Twitter's a media outlet, an overloaded news source for people with ADD - because very few people really ever have the time to read even a tiny fraction of what is tweeted. Anyway, you're not going to form any real relationships on Twitter. Either personal or business.

I’m over thirty (and quite a bit) so yes this all makes me sound cynical and jaded, but really that's because there's nothing new here, at least not if you’ve been around the block a few times. Working at a company or doing business is all about relationships. Business relationships, personal relationships, they all work pretty much the same way. And online social networks are just a new way to find each other.

Is there anything that can be learned from this? Business life is a lot like personal life. Companies are a lot like homes. Bosses are like parents. Business partners are like spouses. Colleagues are like friends. And employees are like kids. Yes that sounds strange, but if you think about it, it might actually make sense.

As for online social networks, they're just a new way to do the same old stuff. They're another way to find and connect with each other. The same rules apply.

As ever we’re keen to hear from you, let us know your thoughts on networking, social networks and if you must – your dating experiences!!

You can contact us at: blog@chestertongray.com or tweet us at @chestertongray

Office presents; tricky but not impossible.

Now that Black Friday and Cyber Monday are behind us, holiday shopping season is officially underway. And for office workers, that includes shopping for colleagues and bosses. But buying gifts for them can be as much of an etiquette minefield as the annual holiday party. Give the wrong gift, and you can derail your career before New Year's. Give the right one, and you'll start 2013 off right.

Here are 7 brief tips which we hope can help you:

Don't blow your budget

It's all too easy to want to impress your boss and colleagues with expensive presents, but this may send the message that you're trying to buy their loyalty. If there is no agreed upon budget, spend less rather than more. An office holiday gift is meant to be a token of appreciation rather than a large holiday gift from Santa, not only will your gift be seen as more tasteful, your credit card will thank you.

Do make thoughtful choices

While your gift to your colleague won't be as personal as to your spouse or parent, show that you know something about the person. If you don't know them particularly well then choose something he or she can use at work, such as a quality pen, a stylish organizer, or an iPad or eReader cover. Gift or music vouchers or sports tickets are safe options. By and large it’s probably best to avoid bottles of booze or spa treatments (the first is risky if the person doesn't drink, the latter could send a mixed message)!!

Give gifts away from the office

If you're only giving gifts to a few select people (and not the entire staff) then you should consider doing it at lunch. However, if you're playing Santa to all, make sure the gifts are equal in value, particularly if staff members are at equal levels on the corporate ladder. You shouldn't give more to one than the other because inevitably they will compare.

Always give your PA something

Again, a small token is still fine - but always give something. It's a nice holiday gesture to show your gratitude to someone who supports you and shows loyalty throughout the year. Even if this person is new, it's still appropriate and can work wonders for the forthcoming year.

Think about joining forces

If you're not sure whether it's appropriate to get your boss a gift, consider organising a group one. By doing so it looks less self-serving and with joint funds you'll be able to give him or her a nicer gift without breaking your budget.

Remember to say ‘Thank you’

It always seems to happen that someone is caught off guard by a gift from someone they didn't buy for. Don't panic - simply give back your gratitude. It is not mandatory to reciprocate, but it is essential to accept the gift with a genuine smile on your face and say something such as, “Thank you so much for thinking of me”.

Just say no to gag gifts

Ok, we all like a joke and a laugh to lighten the working atmosphere, but anything that can be seen as possibly offensive has no place in an office environment. Save the gag gifts for very close family and friends. Unless your office is hosting a white elephant exchange where the premise is to give a silly gift, opt for tasteful over tacky.

Those few thoughts should give you plenty of time to prepare and come up with the perfect gift for your colleague(s).

As ever, the team can be contacted at www.chestertongray.com

How burnt out are you??

Here we are in the middle of the last week in July, the schools have broken up, the sun is temporarily shining and across Europe our counterparts will be shutting up shop and decamping to their holiday homes. In Britain we don’t have that culture but in my world August is a dead month as the decision makers tend to have children and to use this time to take also go away.

Everyone that I seem to speak with mentions how much they are looking forward to the break and blames fatigue as one of the reasons that they’re in the state that they are.

Whether it’s due to the lingering recession, job insecurity, increased workload or other factors entirely, fatigue or job burnout is on the rise around the world.
Neither symptom is simply about being bored or disenchanted with your work. Instead it appears to be the result of prolonged work stress and is characterised by exhaustion, cynicism, a lower sense of accomplishment and severely reduced productivity. It is a widely accepted fact that burnout can also lead to increases in stress hormones, heart disease, and mental health issues like depression. There are plenty of studies on the web about the condition which have found that there are generally three types of burnout: frenetic, under-challenged, and worn-out.

In a recent study in the journal BMC Psychiatry, researchers identified the factors which can contribute to each type of burnout and suggested possible “cures.”

Frenetic burnout
• You work increasingly harder to the point of exhaustion and border on being a workaholic.
• The more hours you work, the more at risk you are of burnout.
• You are extremely involved and ambitious, and overload yourself to fulfil the demands of your job.
• You feel guilt about the idea of not achieving your ambitious goals and are often driven by this guilt.
• The Fix: Work on understanding the cause of your excessive ambition and your guilt, while reducing your personal involvement in work to satisfy personal needs.

Under-challenged burnout
• You have little to motivate you at work, and have to cope with monotonous and unstimulating conditions.
• This type of burnout is more common in men than women and in fields like administration and service personnel.
• You feel indifferent and bored and don’t experience any personal development in your job.
• You feel cynical, because you’ve lost interest in their work.
• The fix: Understand the disenchantment caused by feeling trapped in a job that bores you. Look for ways to renew your interest in your personal development at work.

Worn-out burnout
• You have been in the same organisation for many years – the more you’re there, the greater your risk, but being in one place more than four years can trigger it.
• You give up when faced with stress or lack of gratification.
• You don’t have any control over the results of your work and no recognition, which leads you to neglect your responsibilities.
• You have a somewhat passive coping style and may become less productive, which can lead to feelings of guilt.
• This type of burnout can be buffered if you have a college degree, a stable relationship and children.
• The Fix: Work through your feelings of despair and your passive coping style, and seek out a social support network at work to help you become more motivated.

The summer holiday always acts as a catalyst for individuals to get away from those stresses and strains and to re-evaluate what they want from their career and work life balance. We inevitably see an increase in assignments in the post summer holiday, matched by candidates who are more eager to discuss opportunities than they might have been earlier in the year.

If you’re away over the next few weeks, then I’ll take this opportunity to wish you a happy and relaxing holiday and hope that you return ready to face the autumn with renewed vigour.

However, if you are one of those who has re-evaluated their career options whilst lying on a beach somewhere, then please feel free to contact one of the Directors at http://www.chestertongray.com

The things that make you go aaarrggghh!!

There are a thousand and one hurdles in business, most of which at one time or another make you want to retreat to a quiet (sound proofed) corner and scream in frustration!

I was approached earlier in the year by a client to recruit an important role for one of their global business streams which needed some specific difficult to find skills, without which the candidate would be out of their depth. The global Head Office in the States had been looking internally for a year for this person and given up, finally tasking EMEA to find this mystical candidate.

Which is where I come in!

Three weeks after being briefed I had a shortlist of five candidates from three countries, all of whom had proven track records and reputations in their field. My client and his boss started to put some diary dates together for the five candidates to be either interviewed in person or by video conference: at which point the States announced that they had transferred one of their spare Project Mangers across on a contract so that he could learn on the job!

Yup, it’s the things that make you go aaarrggghh!!

What’s in a name?

The eagle eyed amongst you who have struggled into work after the Christmas and New Year holiday period will have noticed that whilst this blog retains some of the traits that we’ve all come to know and love, there has been one significant change.

Yup, we’ve changed the company name. Which begs the question, why?

After eleven years as the UK partner of InterSearch we made the decision in December that it was time for a change. The boss and I have spent several weeks’ soul searching and scratching our heads whilst debating the pro’s and con’s of the change before setting up the new name, which we believe has a certain ring to it and reflects our beliefs in the way search should be delivered.

We’re not alone in leaving InterSearch, as a number of other countries have also terminated their membership and gone their separate ways. The team here remains unchanged and has proved over the last twelve months that it has the capability to successfully deliver global searches based purely on its own abilities.

Far from looking back with any form of regret, we are looking forward to a New Year with considerable hope and expectation. The vagaries of the global economy in 2011 will ensure that the year will be a challenging one, but one that with the right people in place yours and our businesses will be well positioned to take advantage of the market as it recovers.

If you’d like to discuss the name change or how we can work with you in 2011 then don’t hesitate to contact us at www.chestertongray.com

Making life easier for whom?

Following last week’s blog I received a number of comments and a link to a vociferous debate which was taking place on another LinkedIn forum. It too was intrinsically linked to the PSL debate but had been expanded to take in CV management systems. Rather than repeat the debate chapter & verse, I’ll tell you a brief tale of our experiences of them.

Following a number of major presentations to a global infrastructure group a couple of years ago we were selected to join their PSL as the sole recruiter at senior (non Group) board level. Terms were agreed and we were set up on their CV management system and following a few minor teething problems (clerical vacancies!) we started on our first assignment for the company. When it came to presenting the shortlist reports along with the candidate’s CV’s their system wouldn’t accept/recognise anything other than the CV. Presenting that shortlist to the line managers resulted in a swift telling off by the recruitment team. The line managers selected those that they wanted to interview based upon the reports, which were then rejected by the system as the CV’s didn’t match the recruiters key criteria template for the role.

Eventually we negotiated a way around this for other future assignments but after a year working with them we decided not to renew the agreement when we were asked to. The CV system is still in place but the number of firms who have passed through the same PSL process is a worrying sign of their view on their recruitment suppliers.

Our role is to work with companies and recruitment teams to deliver a service that goes beyond CV shuffling, but when so many companies these days use comparable systems, we have to ask who they are being implemented for? At senior level they negate the value that we add by running search processes but at the high volume end of the market their value becomes apparent.

If you are interested in talking with any of the heads of our practice groups then please contact us at www.intersearchuk.com