Archive for October, 2010
Queensland boy missing after cliff fall at Hanging Rock Falls in …
Oct 31st
A YOUNG rugby league player from Logan died in front of his father and teammates on Saturday, slipping on rocks and plunging 8m into a swimming hole in northern NSW.
Mackenzie “Macca” Mello, 14, was having the time of his life when an end-of-season football trip went horribly wrong.
About 24 hours after he fell and failed to resurface at Hanging Rock Falls, east of Kyogle, NSW police divers yesterday found his body at the bottom of the waterway.
His distraught parents, Mark and Jacqueline Mello, made the harrowing trek to Lismore Hospital to identify their son, but were too upset to speak publicly about their loss.
A floral wreath was placed at the picturesque swimming hole yesterday as a mark of respect.
Mackenzie was a well-liked member of the Waterford Rugby League Football Club’s U14 Demons team and was also well known to the club’s U16 team and supporters.
Both teams were celebrating their end-of-season with a camping trip at Doon Doon, and went to Hanging Rock Falls to cool off.
Many returned home yesterday for an emotional reunion at the Demons’ clubhouse, where a psychologist offered a group therapy session and ongoing counselling.
Some players cried, others hugged each other, and all were there to show support for the devastated family and their club.
Logan City Councillor Luke Smith said the young people were in shock.
“His teammates were there and watched it happen,” Cr Smith said.
“They’re really numb. They are very, very emotional and his teammates are shocked.
“(This tragedy) affects the whole city of Logan.”
A close friend of the teenager who wished to remain anonymous said his classmate at Kimberley College was a natural comedian.
“That’s all he did comedy,” he said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he said, `I want to be a comedian’, because that’s how funny he was.”
Another school friend, Nakitah Cheyanne, 14, described her lost friend as “the life of the party”.
“He was so funny, he could light up the room and everyone knew him as such a nice guy,” she said.
“He loved to hang out with his friends and play footy.”
More than 400 personal messages were posted on social networking site Facebook after yesterday’s painful confirmation the youngster’s body had been found.
A NSW coroner is yet to determine the cause of death.
Instincts for Stable Career
Oct 29th
Whenever we do something new, more often than not, there will always be some kind of feeling, which can be eith doubt or happiness or sometimes even fear. Instincts instruct you with general things like how to deal with transactions. Without instincts, you could be anywhere and end up in a worst possible situation because you did not have anything to hold you. Instincts will give you an instant reaction and a “gut feeling” on why or why not you should follow any decision.
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Instincts can even be used in choosing the right career. There are a lot of jobs out there and many more will be created. However, none of them could provide you with an assurance of stability. A company could anytime dive or close down if something bad happens. You have seen it during recession wherein a company unexpectedly announces that they are filing for bankruptcy protection. This means thousands of current employees will be terminated. With instincts, you can sense when something wrong is happening and you will be able to prepare for the worst case scenario.
Honing Your Instincts
Most of the time, instincts are regarded as natural reaction to the events and factors around individuals. But instincts are not developed overnight. In fact, your instinct is the fruit of years and years of experience and education. For example, you have been working with snakes all your life so your natural instinct when you see a snake is never to run away. On the other hand, anyone unfamiliar with snakes will run at first glance. Instincts could be “trained” through experience.
This is also the same with your job security. If you have been working for years for an industry, you will instinctively know that a company is in trouble because of the factors and activities you have seen lately. Although they do not present actual facts, you can clearly sense something.
But this does not mean fresh graduates do not have the instinct when it comes to knowing how stable the job would be. If you expose yourself to the industry through news, books and online information, you have a good understanding how stable a company would be.
Reacting Accordingly
Your instincts should be considered a “tip” on how to react on things. But these instincts should not cause drastic reactions especially when you are considering your career. If you think your career is on the line along with other employees, start investigating. Of course, you do not have to snoop around “sleuthing” for information since you could be terminated from work that way. Instead of acting like something fishy is going on, ask your supervisor about it. Like yourself, they too should have an idea if there is something wrong about the company and would warn you about it.
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Following Up
If you think something is wrong, it is better to prepare accordingly. Improve your resume and update them as soon as possible. When the worst case scenario has come, you are prepared and might be already working with another company. Use your instincts to your advantage so that you will be able to survive and establish a good career.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/FmjujD754x4/instincts-for-stable-career.html
Handling Multiple Part-Time Jobs
Oct 26th
Fresh graduates and terminated professionals who wanted to be back on employment are often at a loss. Because of the challenges in the economy, there is only limited opportunity in the market today. Some may be able to find a job but it could be a dead-end profession without any possibilities of career improvement.
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To deal with this challenge, many have opted to work for two or three jobs at the same time. This is a must since the salary in small or part-time jobs are not enough to support various financial responsibilities.
But two or three jobs at the same time can easily drain your physical strength if you are not smart on handling these jobs. You might be able to earn considerably because of multiple jobs but your body might succumb to sickness. Your money will only go to medication.
Balancing Work
If you want to survive in various part time jobs, look for jobs that will complement each other. For example, a part time office work could be part with manual labor in the supermarket. This will help you rest a little bit in one job although you would still use your professional skills to survive.
Two jobs that will require manual labor will easily drain the strength of your body. You might not be able to handle the responsibilities the next day because of the stress you experienced on two jobs. With one job that requires light labor, you should be able to handle the manual job easily.
Allowance of Rest Between Jobs
Do not jump from one job to another without any rest in between. Give yourself at least one to two hours of rest before proceeding to the next post. This is a must so that you can prepare for the next job, eat a little bit or simply to rest your eyes so that you can be ready for work.
Take note that the allowance of rest between jobs should never go beyond two hours. If you extend to at least four hours, your sleep will be interrupted. Instead of sleeping for six hours straight which should be enough to get you well rested, you will end up sleeping for four hours. This will only lead to more stress as you wake up unexpectedly for work.
Find a Day Off
Never agree on job that will not allow you to go on a rest for at least a day. Make sure that your day off in your two jobs will fall in the same day. This will help you to better rest and do the things that you love in your day off. Two different day-offs is not actually a day off since you still have to work in one of your jobs.
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The Right Nutrition
Never forget to eat healthy and rest as much as possible. These are the best methods to prevent diseases or physical ailments. Two jobs can’t be easily handled without any sleep and bad food. Put to good use what you earned by purchasing food that will boost your energy and equipments or gadgets that will help you rest well.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/HjzHrc3-2DA/handling-multiple-part-time-jobs.html
Soft Skills Certification
Oct 23rd
As a professional, a significant part of your job involves dealing with people, both internal and external. For this reason, you must know how to relate with others effectively and this can be achieved when you have good personal attributes and interpersonal skills referred to as soft skills.
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While you may argue that you already have these skills, recognition can be more evident through training and certification because through this you will be provided the knowledge, tools, processes, and techniques that you can use to enhance such skills. Most importantly, a soft skills certification is solid proof of your qualifications and this, in itself, is highly beneficial to you.
Who Needs It?
Anyone who has the time and resources to undergo hours of training is eligible for a soft skills certification. There are some companies that sponsor soft skills training for their people; if your company offers this, then, do not miss such a wonderful opportunity. Getting a soft skill certification will make you a better individual, and additionally, it would qualify you for a higher position in the workplace.
There are people, however, who really need to have a certification in order for them to be more eligible for certain positions. These are:
1. Soft Skills Trainers
In the same way as a lawyer needs a law degree to practice law, you also need to be a certified soft skills trainer to be able to train. You must know the “technical” aspects of soft skills- the techniques and the knowledge, in order for you to impart them to the people in your class.
2. Call Center Professionals
The call center industry is a service and support industry. Dealing with customers and clients over the phone, chat, or email every day is not an easy feat. You must possess a good number of soft skills such as empathy, listening, communication, initiative, and handling complaints to be able to do your job well. If you do not know these things, it would be difficult for you to put them to use. A soft skills training and certification will greatly help you in performing your responsibilities as a service and support professional.
3. Team Leaders, Supervisors, and Managers
People management is one of the most difficult jobs in the world. Being certified in soft skills through proper training or workshops will help you and qualify you when it comes to knowing how to effectively manage your people.
Benefits of Getting a Soft Skills Certification
You might be wondering why paying a good amount of money for soft skills certification is necessary. Here are the benefits that make certification valuable:
1. A soft skills certification gives you the edge over competition. In the recruitment process, especially, you will have a definite advantage over those who have no qualifications as you.
2. It makes you feel more confident about yourself. Just as a computer programmer feels certain about his skills when he has a CISCO certification, you would also be more certain of your “people” skills.
3. The certification will equip you with the necessary information and understanding of how to respond to a given situation, in thoughts, words, and deeds.
4. While experience is still the mother of all skills, recognition of your soft skills capabilities can only be made more concrete in the form of a certification. While you can always say that you have good leadership skills, getting certified will make it more “real,” so to speak.
5. It makes you more qualified for a higher position. If you have undergone soft skills training and have been certified for it, this can open new doors of opportunities for you.
6. You can become a mentor yourself, teaching and coaching others the knowledge, ideas, concepts, and techniques you have mastered from becoming soft skills certified.
Factors to Consider When Getting Soft Skills Certification
There are many online and offline institutions that offer soft skills certification. Before you or your company decides on which institution to choose, you need to consider some factors which will enable you to make a sound choice.
1. Make sure that the instructors or trainers have excellent qualifications. Find out who these people are and make sure they are certified themselves, with years of practice and experience.
2. Choose an institution that can tailor-fit the program to the industry or business that you belong to. If you belong to the call center industry, the institution should be able to provide trainings, seminars, or workshops based on the requirements needed by this particular industry.
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3. Determine if all the needed soft skills are going to be covered in the training and certification.
4. Research on the credibility and reputation of this institution. Read customer feedback, if there are any, to find out if it is worth giving a try or not. You may also ask recommendations from people who have tried undergoing soft skills certification to find out which institution would best cater to your requirements.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/-npXLBa_Ilk/soft-skills-certification.html
Soft Skills for Team Leaders
Oct 22nd
One of the hardest job to handle is that of a team leader. This is because team leader mediates between upper management and regular employees. Team leaders have the responsibility to manage and look after team members, while at the same time they also need to make sure that the tasks given to them are properly addressed.
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Handling teams requires the team leaders to be equipped with a set of soft skills that will not only win employees respect and admiration, but will also make sure they reach the targets and keep team’s performance solid.
What are the soft skills that a team leader need? While there are quite a number of them, we will focus on few important ones here in this article. Starting with these should help a team leader build a strong foundation that will keep the team motivated and productive.
Why You Need Soft Skills
Soft skills are important in your role as a team leader. This is because you spend a large portion of your time managing people - not just a set of books or a computer. Your effectiveness is dependent on the way you build strong working relationships with your team members. If you realize that you do not possess certain soft skills yet, there is still time for you to develop these. Gaining awareness of which areas you need to work on and exerting an effort to improve will have a significant impact on you and your team.
The Most Important Soft Skills for Team Leaders
As mentioned earlier, there are many soft skills that an individual, if willing and determined enough, can acquire. However, we will only focus on the essential ones that every team leader should have. These are: respect, ethics, teamwork skills, and integrity.
From a business point of view, respect is about valuing other people’s ideas and opinions. This is something that you, as the team leader, must have so that your members would also treat you the same way, and would remain loyal to you. How do you show respect? This can be shown in the little things such as saying “thank you” to an employee who contributed something to the team, like completing a project early or not being tardy for the whole month. Learn to appreciate them. Another way to show respect is to create an open atmosphere where everyone can speak up and voice out their ideas and opinions. This strengthens communication between you and your team.
A good work ethic should be exemplified by every team leader. You are perceived as a role model, and if you are not doing a good job at it then you should not expect your people to be any better. A good work ethic equates to hard work and diligence; it is about being reliable, professional, and trustworthy. You can show this by being in the office on time, not going on extended breaks, and keeping yourself busy with assigned tasks.
Teamwork skills are deemed very important in the effectiveness of your role as a team leader. You have to encourage collaboration among your members instead of being competitive. Working together is a lot better than working against each other, and who would be the best person to show an example of this than you? As a team leader, it does not mean you can just boss everyone around otherwise you would be going against one of the most essential soft skills which is respect. You need to build a good relationship with your members by being there to listen and support them. Never gossip and keep your disposition friendly, although at a professional level. Share your ideas and knowledge with others, and be accountable for the team’s performance, good or bad.
Integrity, according to insurance tycoon, W. Clement Stone, is “doing the right thing even if no one is watching.” You can show this by walking your talk, spending your hours at work productively, avoid doing anything that equates to stealing, and being honest. If you expect these things from your team members, then you need to begin with yourself. Show integrity and the others will follow.
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The Leadership Role
We have mentioned the four important soft skills needed by team leaders which are: respect, good work ethic, teamwork, and integrity. These skills should all be evident in your leadership role. You need to understand that your job, as the leader, plays a major part in ensuring the success of your team. In the same way, you could also be responsible for your team’s failure.
Show enthusiasm, support, and commitment to your team. Inspire them by being a good example, and they will walk in the same path as you. Unite your team, promote teamwork, and keep them focused on a common goal, and lead by example.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/A3phd3lrJaE/soft-skills-for-team-leaders.html
Soft Skill for IT Professionals
Oct 20th
Robert Half International, the world’s largest staffing firm, conducted a recent survey which shows that of all the qualifications needed by employers for IT professionals, soft skills rank 2nd, with 32% rating.
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Although it cannot be denied that IT professionals should have excellent technical skills to perform their job well, we should also realize that these skills can only take you so far. Spending all eight hours glued to your computer is not going to bring you recognition and fulfillment in your work. You may have several certifications on your sleeve, but if you cannot even be confident enough to speak when in the presence of others, who will know how great you are?
How can your superiors recognize your potentials if you do not know how to effectively deal with people outside your department? In addition, if you do not even know how to communicate well and relate with the people you work for and work with, not even bothering to share a laugh with your colleagues every once in a while, what a dull, boring work life that would be!
Interpersonal Skills
“Interpersonal skills” is one’s ability to create a good impression on the people in your organization, by relating well with others through interactions and social communications. Here are some ways you can improve your interpersonal skills:
1. Show a friendly and warm personality. Smile at the people in the workplace, even if you do not know them well. Maintaining a sunny disposition will attract others to you.
2. Avoid complaining. When you complain, you will create the impression that you are a “can’t do” person instead of a “can do” person. If you have nothing good to say, then better keep your thoughts to yourself.
3. Laugh. Injecting humor will help you develop friendships with the people you work with. Laughter also lightens a rather sullen atmosphere. Do not be afraid to crack jokes just because you think they are not really funny, or try to be clever. As long as it is not offensive to anybody, there is nothing wrong with it.
4. Listen and pay attention. When your superiors and colleagues know that you are always willing to listen to what they have to say, they would be more willing to open up to you. Paying attention means that you actually “notice” others and respond accordingly. If someone said something nice to you, appreciate it. If somebody said “Hi,” take time to exchange friendly words with this person.
5. Praise and encourage. Many people make the mistake of only noticing the bad side of others. Do not do the same thing! Discover other people’s strengths and praise them sincerely. Encourage others to do their best so that they will be more motivated to work.
Communication
“Communication skill” is something not everyone is gifted with, and this is particularly true for IT professionals. The good news is that while some people have natural abilities to communicate effectively, this is still categorized as a skill, which means that you can learn and develop it. How do you improve your communication skills?
1. Develop confidence. One of the things that actually hinder you from communicating well is the lack of self-confidence. You need to get over this and start believing in yourself; muster enough courage to speak up and socialize.
2. Listen. Communicating is not just about you talking, it also means that you should learn to listen. This is easier said than done though. Make sure you take time to listen to what your colleagues and superiors have to say, to get a complete understanding of their message.
Take note that when people realize that you are actually interested in what they have to say, they will also be interested in you and what you have to say.
3. Keep it light. Humor is always something that keeps a conversation going. Use it to your advantage.
4. Keep your message clear and simple. Remember to keep it short and simple? You should bear this in mind, and avoid using complicated and vague words that will only confuse your listener.
5. Show sensitivity and politeness. You should be mindful of what you say and see to it that you do not offend anybody. Also, use polite words and body language, always.
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Grace under Pressure
In school, there was no proper training on how to handle pressure. We delved too much on the technical stuff, and though this is not necessarily a bad thing, we missed out on other important aspects such as how to be productive and motivated even when facing a lot of pressures. To do this you need to:
• Know how to prioritize
• Keep a positive mindset
• Maintain your energy
These are the three most important soft skills that you need when you are in the IT field. Just because you are a technical person does not mean you do not have to be a “people” person.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/_IocK5sOJQc/soft-skill-for-it-professionals.html
Soft Skills for Freshers
Oct 18th
As a fresh graduate, we do not have the necessary experience that will fully equip us with what we need to guarantee employability. We may have the knowledge, having been taught extensively in school of the necessary information we should acquire, but this does not really completely prepare us for the things to come, in the corporate world.
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Our first goal is to get a job, and once we attain this, we then work towards excelling at it so that we can advance in our career. So in essence, we want to achieve employability and career advancement. In both areas, soft skills are needed, and must be used so that we can unlock our potentials and hone our abilities.
If you want to know which soft skills you need, you will find the answer on this page. In doing so, you can better prepare yourself for this competitive world.
Self Confidence
Having the ability to believe in one’s abilities is quite important. Unfortunately, a lot of people, especially those fresh out of school, struggle with it. Being self-confident helps you positively because it makes you brave enough to make a bold step and take risks, such as volunteering to do a “big” task like giving a presentation and pitching your own ideas in business gatherings, among others.
Being confident means trusting your own abilities and skills, and using them at work. It also has something to do with believing in your own judgment, while still being open to what others have to say, instead of simply allowing others to control you, without giving yourself the chance to weigh things carefully.
Communication Skills
In any aspect of life, communication skills have always been deemed necessary. If you do not know how to communicate with others, you will find it hard to get your message across. It would be hard to speak your mind or open up to someone about what you think and feel. While this is especially true in our personal relationships, companies have always placed a high regard on their employees’ communication skills.
In reality, self confidence and communication skills go together. It is hard to have one without the other. To understand and be understood is important in the workplace because it promotes harmonious relationships, if we are looking at it on the personal side.
On the business aspect, this holds a very important role when it comes to brainstorming sessions, meetings, and discussions with your bosses and colleagues. You should be able to speak up and put your ideas on the table. If you had a really brilliant idea and yet you did not think it was brilliant at all, sooner or later somebody else might just steal the limelight from you and have the same idea. So this person gets recognized for this idea and you find out too late that it was brilliant, after all.
Time Management Skills
Being newly employed, one of the challenges you have to deal with is time management. This is common, even to seasoned workers. The problem lies in not having the ability to manage priorities, and as a result, nothing gets done.
Time management means having the ability to determine the important from the unimportant tasks; be able to pinpoint distractions and prevent them from disrupting your work; and also to create workable systems that help you become more efficient. With time management, you become more productive. You can meet deadlines without a problem, thereby improving your job performance.
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Bear in mind that when you improve your performance at work, you are contributing to the organization’s performance.
As a fresher, you need to be able to standout from the rest so that you will get noticed by your superiors. When you are new to the company, you must prove your worth in the first 90 days because this is perhaps the most crucial time of your employment. Remember that first impressions last, and it is what you do in this 90-day period that will build the impression of what your superiors will have of you. Work to impress by utilizing these soft skills effectively, and this will all be to your advantage in the end.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/MgkIOy4oa-E/soft-skills-for-freshers.html
Essential Skills Employers Seek When Hiring
Oct 17th
In school, we were taught about general education subjects such as Mathematics and Science. As we grew older and studied high school and college, we studied more about complicated stuff like Physics and Chemistry, and other specialized courses depending on the educational degree you have taken.
As we receive our diploma, we are already equipped with the necessary skills to perform the job, such as knowing cash flow management if you are a Business Management degree holder, or knowing how to make software applications if you are a Computer Engineering graduate. In terms of technical skills, you were taught everything you need to know in school.
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As we grew older and studied high school and college, more about complicated stuff like Physics and Chemistry, and other specialized courses depending on the educational degree you have taken.
On one hand, soft skills are something, which are not taught in traditional education, until your professor went the extra mile and taught you a skill or two. These competencies are something you learn from home or even something you learn on your own. Experience and upbringing are the common learning grounds for these skills.
On one hand, soft skills are something, which are not taught in traditional education, until your professor went the extra mile and taught you a skill or two.
However, if you possess only a handful of soft skills right now, it is never too late to acquire more It is a long process with lots of effort from your part, but yes, it is possible. Which skills should you have? Let us discuss only the ones that are necessary to help you get the job you want, and keep it.
Putting Soft Skills in Your Resume
Your resume is a prospective employer’s first impression of you; it tells a lot of the kind of person you are and this will help them decide whether to give you an interview or not. In your resume, you should mention salient points that will tell them the hard skills you possess, including work experience and achievements you have garnered over the years.
Employers want someone who knows how to perform the tasks needed to help the company achieve their goals, this is a given. In addition, they also want to hire employees with good character and disposition, which can be revealed through the soft skills that they own. While these are not yet visible to the employer in the resume, nevertheless, these are considered additional features that will increase your chance of getting an interview.
Top Soft Skills Employers Look For
Now that you got the green light, and are scheduled for an interview, your next step is to be able to show to your prospective employer that you are the right choice. During the interview, you will be asked some questions that will help the employer determine how skilled and knowledgeable you are about the technical competencies needed for the job. Moreover, they will also look into your soft skills and see if these will compliment the values and principles that their company lives up to. On a general perspective, the soft skills they are looking for are:
Communication Skills:
It means being confident in the presence of other people.
Team Player:
If you are able to work with others actively, putting your team’s welfare on priority.
Honesty and Integrity:
If you can live by the principles of truthfulness and fairness, work productively even when no one is watching.
Ability to Handle Pressure:
Even in under pressure being productive.
Flexibility:
Working in any environment and adjust to any type of work schedule.
Negotiation and Persuasion Skills:
If you know how to convince others in a positive manner, this is beneficial for you and to your company.
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Getting Ready to Reveal Your Soft Skills
Let us start with making your resume. There are many soft skills and some may be needed more than others may. Think about the ones you have now, and decide which of these are more necessary to help you perform the job. For example, if you were applying for a sales position, then you would most definitely need communication skills and negotiation and persuasion skills, so you need to make sure you have these qualities and highlight them in your resume.
In the interview process, you will be asked several questions that will help your employer find out if you indeed possess the skills you mentioned, and even others you have not included in your resume. Questions such as:
Did you ever run into an argument with a co-worker? If so, how did you handle it? (Teamwork)
Describe a time when you were under a lot of pressure at work. Tell us how you dealt with it. (Ability to work under pressure)
Have you worked for a stubborn superior? How did you communicate with him? (Communication skills, persuasion skills)
Prepare yourself for these questions and make sure your answers will effectively depict the soft skills they are looking for.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/0Mg-huusBvc/essential-skills-employers-seek.html
Competency Matrix
Oct 14th
Competency is defined as an individual’s set of skills and abilities that are measurable and observable. These are categorized into three: functional, managerial, and behavioral. It could be a cumulative effect of characteristics, knowledge, skills, and capabilities that, when utilized, would result to an effectual performance. It is a means by which businesses and organizations can work towards their goals. In addition, as a rule of thumb, they should be able to identify the various competencies of their employees, from upper management to the front liners.
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What is a Competency Matrix?
A competency matrix is a tool by which a person’s competencies are assessed. It is used as a means to define the required competencies for a particular position, as well as a tool to help identify the most suitable individuals for the job. As mentioned, it is categorized into three, which are: functional, managerial, and behavioral.
Functional: This refers to the technical competencies or the hard skills that a professional would need in order for him to perform his job. This varies of course, depending on the job. For example, an IT professional should be skilled at Java Development and PHP programming; a management accountant should be good at economics, corporate finance, and financial management.
Managerial: This refers to one’s ability to work productively with other people. This can be classified into: organizational, people-related, and role-related. This includes several aspects such as, time management, staff developing, decision-making, delegation, communication, and resource management.
Behavioral: This refers to the interpersonal and “people” skills of an individual. This is where a person’s soft skills are categorized. Such skills include leadership, teamwork, motivation, adaptability, communication, service-oriented, initiative, and dynamism, among others.
How to Make a Competency Matrix
A competency matrix may be customized depending on the kind of organization or business you are in. But these are the general guidelines:
1. Develop a list of all the required competences you need in order for your organization to run successfully. Of course, these have to be aligned with your organization’s objectives, vision, mission, as well as strategies.
2. Based on your list of competencies, classify them as to the following: functional, managerial, and technical. Once you have done this, identify the level of proficiency. This can be in the following format:
- Beginner
- Learner
- Skilled
- Expert
Define these proficiency levels based on your organization’s requirements.
3. Then, as soon as you have the categories and levels of proficiency identified, determine the proficiency level of each competency required for a particular job position. This should be done for all positions in your organization, and this process is otherwise referred to as competency mapping.
Competency mapping is a process that is used alongside the competency matrix. In essence, the matrix is the tool and the mapping is the process. Once you are able to identify the level of competencies of each individual, you can then pinpoint which of these competencies are required to perform successfully a job or a role.
To do this, you need to “dissect” the job or role into categories (functional, managerial, and behavioral), and determine which aspects of these categories are most needed to attain superior performance.
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Benefits of Having a Competency Matrix
Through this assessment strategy, you will be able to:
1. Understand clearly your career path because you know where your strength lies and which areas have room for improvement.
2. Identify the areas which you need further training and enhancement on, because these are clearly identified in the competency matrix.
3. Know which tasks you should be working on, and know which tasks need assistance from others because you will be able to identify the areas that you are not skilled at.
4. Pinpoint which soft skills you possess and do not possess at the moment, because these can be identified in the behavioral aspects of the competency matrix.
5. Know the objectives you need to work towards, as well as a set of expectations that you need to meet.
6. Identify who is best qualified for a particular role.
With a competency matrix, you can best identify which areas you are highly effective at, and which areas you need to improve on, including your soft skills.
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GeekLearn/~3/XjEgt22RAP4/competency-matrix.html
Improve Your Soft Skills
Oct 14th
Soft skills, otherwise referred to as people skills, are qualities that will determine your success in your personal life and career. While diplomas and certifications will help you qualify for a job position, your people skills do play a rather important role, something that must never be overlooked or forgotten.
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We are going to answer questions you may have about soft skills, of whether or not you need to improve what you possess at the moment, common reasons why you need to develop these, as well as some suggestions on how you can improve your soft skills.
Who Needs to Improve Their Soft Skills
People may not realize it, but soft skills give you better chances when it comes to employability and career advancement. Basically, any individual who wishes to land their dream job should improve their soft skills. Anyone who is currently employed and wishes to climb higher in the ladder of success should make sure they have the needed people skills that will empower them when managing people, dealing with additional work pressures, and ensuring a high level of productivity for the team or department this person is placed in charge of.
In a nutshell, anyone who wants to go somewhere and be somebody in any given field should develop their soft skills.
Why You Need to Improve Your Soft Skills
The value of soft skills in the corporate world needs no further explanation. For you to be regarded as an employee of great potential, you must possess a series of soft skills that are necessary to improve work performance. This is the essence of owning soft skills- to keep up with the competitive world. Below are some of the common reasons why we all need to improve our soft skills:
• These competencies will open new doors of opportunities for you. While it is true that you need a solid background, knowledge, and hands-on experience which you can attain from years of education and training, what good would hard skills do if you cannot get employers to notice you? When certain soft skills manifest in you, these are easily noticed by prospective employers or your current employers, and will therefore give you an edge over others when it comes to landing the job or getting promoted.
• You can influence others in a positive way. When you possess good people skills, it is easy for you to gain the trust and respect of other people. In any organization, when you are being perceived as a leader and a motivator, people will be supportive of you and will stick with you all the way.
• Soft skills will help you get through day to day stresses, unscathed. At work, pressures from bosses, from colleagues, and from clients are common and if you do not have what it takes to work under pressure, this could greatly affect your well-being and your job performance.
How to Improve Your Soft Skills
There are many ways for you to improve your soft skills. You can begin through self-discovery, realizing your strengths and weaknesses, and developing the ones you are lacking of. Once you have identified those you do not possess, you can then go ahead and make an effort to develop these soft skills. This can be made possible with constant practice and determination on your part. For example, if you lack confidence when in the presence of other people, then muster enough courage everyday to speak up and socialize with others.
If this is not enough, you can also attend workshops and trainings that are designed to help you improve your soft skills. These are organized and facilitated by a group of professionals who are experts in the field. Usually, they will help you learn and practice specific soft skills such as leadership, teamwork, positive thinking, and communication skills.
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Making that bold step to improve your soft skills is something that not everyone is lucky enough to do. Now that you have realized its worth, start making that change. You will look back on this one day and thank yourself for doing the right thing. It is never too late; take courage to learn and develop essential soft skills to succeed in your career.
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