Need Work? Check Out This Great Article in Money Magazine

Those of us who are no longer young--or within a couple decades of being so--sometimes need to develop more sophisticated methods of job hunting. Today I read a very interesting article by Paul Keegan in the July 2009 issue of Money Magazine Special Report.

Go from fired, or retired, to hired. (Paul Keegan) Page 62

If you can find this article, it's worth a look. Essentially six experts helped "make over" several candidates to give them a more sporting chance in the job market. There were a lot of very good tips--many of which most of us never consider.

So, check it out. (And, if you can find an online link, let us know so others can benefit...) If I manage to find it again, I'll modify this post.

Now, of course the magazine wasn't mine. Naturally, I read it while waiting for my turn under the barber's scissors. And, naturally, I jotted down the details on my smart phone. Then, of course, when I want on line I couldn't locate the article so...

Intellectual property rights my.... (assets)!

I am constantly astounded at the number of enterprises that actually expect their employees to simply hand over their intellectual property rights. There is a time and a place for that "work for hire" contract, but I think corporations are way too greedy to understand the concept.

You really need to keep an eye on these rights or they will be taken away from you...

Are you a new graduate? Fully employed knowledge worker? Just a "plain old normal" person? Watch your prospective employer very carefully. In these days of virtually no corporate loyalty to employees, quiet little work for hire clauses manage to slip their slimy tentacles into even the most common sense employment or mutual benefit agreement. Sorry to point out the obvious but, your rights to your creations have been thoroughly subsumed by the corporate legal mentality (What's LEGAL takes precedence over what's RIGHT or what's ETHICAL. This is also reflected in the "If you want the job, sign this onerous agreement," mentality.)

The result? Anything you create--in some cases even if it isn't at work--can easily become the sole property of the company. Don't expect to get a cut of the millions in profits leveraged from your creative juices--those belong to the company... (Here's your hat and cheap imitation gold watch---now, beat it.)

Why am I pursuing this rant? Because companies are constantly whining that their employees are no longer "innovative." Is our collective leadership so disconnected from reality that they actually believe today's knowledge workers do not recognize the pattern? When your longevity with a specific employer is measured by the clueless whims of the latest executive butt in the corner office, why would you be willing to take one for the team?

Folks, this is common sense stuff. If our employees cannot expect honest and fair treatment of their ideas and dreams from executive management, where does management get off expecting them to give it all away? And don't use the empty cliche about their paycheck being their reward... A good knowledge worker doesn't need you anywhere near as much as YOU need THEM.

Want to build credibility? Try volunteering to help someone else...

Are you constantly waiting to be trained? Or to gain experience in some career area of expertise? If so, quit waiting for someone else to get you off your duff and go volunteer.

Very frequently, our own bosses cannot simply hand us the opportunity to learn a new skill or process. Learning on the job can be both expensive and detrimental to your future employment (should you make a serious mistake). Instead of littering the work place with your pleas to grow, go help someone--or some enterprise--less fortunate.

I've been working to increase my knowledge of grants and the arenas surrounding fund raising. Neither is a strength for me and, like most small businesses, mine can't afford to hire highly experienced experts.

Solution: I volunteer my time serving on the fund raising committee of a local non-profit organization. Using this resource, I can build my skills, experience, and background while doing something good for someone beside me. Check it out. You might actually meet new people, make new connections, and accomplish something you could never approach in your narrow day-to-day job.

Don't limit yourself to what you can see in your immediate surroundings--there is an entire world of possibilities out there that you've probably never considered tapping into.

Is truth important, or are we tied down by "politically correct"?

"Do you want the unvarnished truth, or do you want to hear the sweet-talk?"

When it comes to business processes and project status, I've heard it both ways. Some executives want you to sweet-talk them and some want to be made clearly aware of the precise facts. How about you?

Granted, there are always conditions and dependencies. Every situation is different... Let's assume that we'll all be polite, but not play diplomatic double-speak games. That being the case, in general, how do you feel, as an employee, about "telling it like it is"? Or, if you're in management, how do you want your personnel to deliver communications?

OK - So you're credible... Can you prove it?

A lot of us believe we are credible. Some highly so. Unfortunately, others, including those for which we have worked, might not be in complete agreement. When this disconnect occurs, all the work you have done--the value you delivered--simply disappears and the mistakes--or apparent mistakes--are blasted right to the top.

It's been my experience that a majority of my employers have simply had no clue what I can bring to the table. I'll bet you are in the same boat. Most frequently--and this has been proven time and again by credible research--the "c-suite" has never even tried to tap into your potential. For the most part, these folks are busy being busy and simply have no time or interest in recognizing the potential value in the minds of their personnel.

Result? No matter how good you may be, the "enterprise" doesn't have a clue. Could this be one of the reasons why so many companies feel the need to bring in outside experts--simply to tell management precisely the same things existing personnel have been trying to say? Yep...

Real World - In nearly every project management, negotiations, or technology asset management course I teach, at least 2/3 of the attendees report that their company (their immediate superior?) rarely, if ever, taps into their capabilities. These same folks inform us that their company will pay incredible fees to consultants who proceed to convey the same messages the employees have been trying (unsuccessfully) to convey.

So...and a great deal of my ranting will come back to this critical point: If you want to be credible, you have to take responsibility for documenting what you know, enhancing your own professional development, and ensuring that your name equates with value--both within your own enterprise, AND in your professional industry.

Nobody else is going to perform these tasks for you. YOU have to take control. The days are long gone when we could even partially rely on a single employer (even a dozen or more) to provide us with a stable income. We have all become disposable commodities--to be sucked dry, then tossed on the trash heap along with the other diapers. For the most part, the enterprise has moved on from being an ethical local resource to being a pure profit center. Loyalties are significantly more frequently tied to how much money you made for the company--today--than how much value you bring over the long term. Who was it that said: "If you want loyalty, buy a dog"?

Again: If we, as professionals, expect to remain of value to the enterprise then WE must take control of our own capacity to carry that value wherever we go. The tool kit we used to carry in our hands is now in our respective brains--it's our talents and abilities to link thought with actions. As such, that mental/professional toolkit goes with us wherever we go. Either we (YOU) are in control of our (YOUR) future or we (YOU) are not.

(Sorry... My purpose in this blog is to speak up. If this offends you...read the books Nickel & Dimed, or Bait & Switch--Or any of a thousand other resources that clarify the current relationship between employer and employee.)

Employment: Will Your Professional Value-Adds Transfer Jobs?

Will your personal/professionals transfer to your next job? In this economy, they better, or you are in for a heap of trouble. Ask yourself a few career-critical questions:

• What unique skills, talent, and value do I bring to the enterprise?
• How mobile are these value-adds?
• In how many different ways (industries) can I apply them?
• Do my value-adds stand independently, or do I need others to deliver?

Check out this short article for some easily implemented strategies/tactics to enhance your personal/professional portability.

Read the Knowledge Brief HERE

Don't get caught as a Pirate simply because you didn't do the paperwork!

One of the key reasons we hear so much about software piracy or music piracy is that virtually any use an average person or company makes of these copyright protected products can be easily interpreted as illegal.

In reality, the vast majority of so-called software piracy events are nothing more than license violations-coupled with lousy record keeping business processes. Of equal importance is that the so-called anti-piracy industry, in reality, invests significantly more time and effort in copyright enforcement than in violations prevention (We’ll discuss this side of the scam in another Briefing).

Our First Bottom Line: There is an enormous and highly lucrative global copyright enforcement industry that feeds on consumer lethargy and it will continue to feed on our individual bottom lines until we all wake up and take action. Software piracy is--to a very real extent--in the eyes of the beholder. Unfortunately the most powerful beholders have arranged it so that the legal definitions of piracy are so conveniently cloudy virtually anyone--right down to an 11-year old child (and younger) can violate federal and global copyright laws.

Read on HERE for some serious details on how you set yourself up for that punitive copyright violation audit...