Job Monogamy, or Where Has the Loyalty Gone - Spark Hire

Job Monogamy, or Where Has the Loyalty Gone - Spark HireIn a recent article, I discussed the notion that there is no longer such thing as job security. Some believe that company loyalty to employees is a thing of the past and employees are smart to take care, maybe even get out of the corporate world and set off on their own. But is the opposite also true? Are employees growing less loyal to the companies they work for? Jana Kasperkevic at Inc.com says yes, based on an article from the Harvard Business Review. She also says that this isnt a bad thing.With the change of demographics in the workforcethe millennials moving their way into business as the Boomers wave goodbyejob monogamy is becoming an uncommon notion. Remember from another recent article that 30% of college students claim to have started their own business while still in school. The HR Bartender shares an infographic revealing that the average employee stays with a company only 4.4. years and over their lifetime, men wil l hold an average of 11 different jobs women will hold 10 on average. The infographic also states that half of all new college grads believe that self-employment is mora secure than a full-time job, which offers quite a challenge to human resources who want to attract and retain this talent with their company.This essentially makes all employees entrepreneurs, which actually, could be beneficial to employers. Entrepreneurs have a lot of great talent to bring to a company. As Chris Yeh and Ben Casnocha point out in the HBR article, If someone cant be entrepreneurial in their own career, if someones unwilling to take risks in their career, if someones not keen on remaining agile and adaptive in their own career, how can you possibly expect them to bring to bear those strengths, those traits at your company?For Human Resources, this means adopting a changing model of hiring and efficiency. How do you snag the best and how do you leverage their talent while theyre with the company? How do you simultaneously combat the idea that you will not take care of your employees and encourage your employees not to fly the coop after only a few years?In the end, are these notions of company and employee disloyalty all that new to us? We may just be more sensitive to it. During recent economic downturn, companies had to downsize to stay afloatwhich is quickly deemed disloyalty. As the new, younger workforce comes in, we see that theyre likely to take their career into their own handshave lots of varied experience, maybe work two jobs, move around quickly to help boost their career. The culture change and shift in mindset is also viewed as disloyalty by some.Companies certainly cant cater to every need and want of every employee in an effort to keep talent. However, they can encourage employee loyalty in a number of ways. Kasperkevic suggests, companies should be more proactive and willing to invest in their workers future. Practically, this means helping the Boomers realize a secure retirement and providing ways for millennials to develop professionally. Leverage the innovation and talent already with your company to come up with unique ideas. Even by simply seeking out the opinions of your employees, you may discover more loyalty than you thought was possible.Do you think its a bad thing that employees are growing less loyal to the companies they work for? Spark a conversation below.IMAGE Courtesy of Flickr byAlan Cleaver

Use Honesty for a Powerful Closing Technique

Use Honesty for a Powerful Closing TechniqueUse Honesty for a Powerful Closing TechniqueThere are hundreds of ways to close a sale, a multitude of schlussverkauf skills and a seemingly endless supply of schlussverkauf gurus touting their new and improved sales approach. Knowing different methods to close a sale and sharpening your sales skills are hugely important as is knowing how to approach your sales position. But when push comes to shove and your career (or a large sale) is on the line, you may want to consider forgetting about which close to use and focus on taking the honest approach to sales instead. What Is The Honest Approach to Sales? Customers and prospects alike are significantly more informed than ever before. With a simple Google search, people can learn a lot about your product, service, company, industry, competitors and, depending on your social network, about you. With a practically unlimited amount of information available to them, customers are better equippe d at identifying less than honest statements made by sales professionals aggressively trying to close a deal. And when a customer senses that the sales rep sitting across her desk is not being honest, all rapport goes down the drain, along with the sales reps chances of earning a client. An honest sales approach begins with a decision made by a sales professional to treat her customer with the utmost respect understanding that without customers, her company would no longer be in geschftlicher umgang. The honest approach to sales does not mean that the sales rep is not assertive in trying to earn a sale but that all actions and steps completed or planned to earn the business are founded on honesty. The Short-Term Benefits of Honesty The allure of telling a small white lie is powerful at times. When you know that your competitor is offering your prospect something that you know you cant fully compete with, the thought of exaggerating your product or service can be tempting. Doing so, however, often has very negative short-term ramifications. One of the worst results of embellishing during a sales meeting is you often position yourself in a situation to have over-promised and, eventually, under-deliver. Taking a fully honest approach may indeed cost you some deals that could have been closed by employing a less than honest approach, your self-confidence and self-esteem will realize a wonderful bump in improvement. You will feel better about your sales skills, knowing that you do not have to rely on dishonesty or tricks of the trade to be considered in a customers sales cycle. And when you close an honest sales cycle, you will rest easier at night and be more comfortable in your success knowing that your victory was truly earned and that you earned it The Long-Term Benefits of Honesty Unless you plan on being in sales for only as long as it takes you to find a job in a different industry, being aware that the actions you take today will affect your tomorr ow is one reason why being honest in your dealings is important. Whether you accept it or not, what you do in your professional career can and will follow you throughout your career. Over-promise something to a customer and dont be surprised that the customer will let everyone in their network know about you as a sales professional. Conversely, adopt an honest approach to your career and your satisfied and loyal customers are not only likely to buy from you again but will also let others know how professional and honest you are. The results? More sales, more success, and more opportunities.