4 Recruitment Lessons From Englands World Cup Campaign

4 Recruitment Lessons From England’s World Cup Campaign For the first time in decades, England’s World Cup chances are actually looking promising. Early success has united the British people, with discussions dominating the workplace, Tube trips and after-work drinks. Optimism is at a high, thanks to strong performances by Gareth Southgate’s men and some poor results by other teams â€" world number one team Germany is out and within the first two days of last 16 qualifications, powerhouses Argentina, Portugal and Spain have all been sent packing. While their success can be attributed to a number of factors, Southgate’s selection strategy is arguably one of the defining influences. With a left-of-centre approach and a willingness to go against the grain, recruitment professionals can learn a lot from his methods. Here are four of the best: 1. Not one size fits all Southgate’s chosen formation 3-5-2 has created a dependable base from which the team could build plays and open up possibilities for the midfielders. These midfield positions could be filled by a number of players due to their versatility, giving the coach a chance to play a number of different players without changing the game plan. This approach demonstrates that when it comes to recruiting, not one size fits all. While there may be some key skills that you need to satisfy, each person can bring something new to the role. Therefore, don’t limit your search to candidates that perfectly fit the bill â€" spend more time examining qualities outside of technical skills. Is every candidate on your shortlist a great team player and adaptable? Do they have anecdotal examples about experiences where they’ve worked through an issue with a client or colleague? 2. Invest in the youth The England squad has just 449 international caps between them â€" fewer than 20 per person â€" and are the youngest squad in the entire tournament, with an average age of 26. With Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup in the future, Southgate has recognised the potential of younger players such as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, giving them the opportunity to establish a coherent playing style. We can learn a lot from this when recruiting: if a candidate is good enough, they are the right age. A graduate that’s willing to muck in, learns quickly and fits the team environment may be a better choice than someone with the exact skills that won’t suit the company’s culture. The same could be said of the inverse â€" a quieter or mature personality could be better suited to a mellow environment compared to an upstart that thrives on the energy of the workplace. 3. Teamwork makes the dream work If this World Cup has taught us anything, it’s that a star player is not enough for ongoing success. Lionel Messi couldn’t help Argentina, Cristiano Ronaldo wasn’t enough for Portugal and even Neymar has been slow to warm up in Brazil’s campaign. With no star name, the onus to perform has been spread between all 23 players in the squad, reducing the individual pressure and encouraging an emphasis on teamwork. Even the captaincy was shared in qualifying â€" Harry Kane wasn’t announced as official leader until after the final squad was revealed. The same should be said of any workplace. No business can be carried on the shoulders of one individual, so when fulfilling permanent or temporary staffing requirements, it’s worth considering how the potential new hires will work in a team environment. Taking the time to understand as much you can about a company’s culture will go a long way in finding the right fit. 4. Merit over reputation Despite being England’s number one goalkeeper in the past, Joe Hart was left out of England’s squad, pipped for three less-experienced options: Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford and Nick Pope. With exceptionally strong performances by all three in the Premier League, it came down to merit over reputation, with Southgate opting for younger energy rather than experience. Similarly, when sourcing candidates, look for achievements over where they’ve worked. Someone who has managed the diaries of five or more people at a less prestigious company may be a better fit than someone who led one in a well-known business.

5 Things to Consider While Sourcing for Expat Health Insurance

5 Things to Consider While Sourcing for Expat Health Insurance If you are a lady entrepreneur who has to fly occasionally on business missions, then you must understand the frustration of finding good international insurance. I am lucky because having travelled severally now, I rely on a single provider. However, on my first few trips, all I remember was being very frustrated trying to shop for the same. The task, according to most travellers, is very intimidating to the first-timers. That is why I felt that it was necessary to craft a post to inform you of the things you need to check out for while shopping for expat health insurance. Repatriation and emergency medical evacuation This is the second aspect of your cover that you must consider. Ensure the provider has the repatriation and evacuation services especially if travelling to areas with scarce medical and rescue resources. This aspect would save not only your life but also the costs of medical evacuation that can be very costly. Medical provisions Your insurance provider of choice should be connected to a wide-range network of medical providers in the place that you intend to visit. Again, you should understand their out-of-network and in-network plan covers. In this way, you are sure of how the premiums will be affected. The coinsurance and deductible While sourcing for the premiums and benefits of premiums, also consider the coinsurance and deductible. Some providers trick you with an attractive premium but underneath, their deductible and coinsurance is very high. In fact, I would advise you to go for a plan that offers a high premium but lower coinsurance and deductible. Image courtesy Townswebarchiving Find an English insurance broker I know this might sound funny: but it is very essential. Of course, if you speak Spanish, you can get a Spanish merchant. The concept here is that you need to have access to doctors, support, security and hospitals that you can communicate with. Nobody wants to find themselves communicating in sign language to call for medical aid. Choose between an international and local provider Finally, you know that some providers are international while others are global, or both. Better put: you might purchase insurance that will only cover you while in the country of purchase. Pervasively, you might buy a protection that will apply in more countries. I always go for the international cover. Reason: what happens if my flight had to make an emergency landing in a different nation then my pressure kicks in out of the fright? Anyway, you need not worry. The only pressure that will kick me, dear ladies, is if you embark on an international tour without applying the advice I provided for you! Safe travels! Image courtesy of iStock

Four-day webinar with Penelope Networking for people who hate networking

Four-day webinar with Penelope Networking for people who hate networking This webinar includes four days of video sessions and email-based course materials.  You can purchase this webinar for anytime, on-demand access. The cost is $195.   Buy now! I need to tell you at the top of this that I also have a special guest for this webinar: Guy Kawasaki. I probably should have a huge picture of Guy because really, he is the king of networking. The last time I hung out with him was at SXSW and he rented a limo to party-hop, because he was invited to all 50 parties that were going on that night. So we are bouncing from party to party and finally I announced, Did you see how nice the lighting is in this limo? Im not getting out anymore. I brought a book. Im reading it. But Guy kept going. I asked him how he could manage that and he said,Its just part of my job. Networking is part of your job, too. Its part of everyones job because really, all good things come from having a network.  Well, except one-night stands. But actually, I never had a good one-night stand, because if I liked the one-night stand then I would stalk the guy til hed do it again and then it went from a good one-night stand to a bad short-term relationship. So all good things come from networks. The reason there is not a huge picture of Guy on this post is because Im amazing at building a network, but my special skill is being able to build a network without ever leaving my house. Have I showed you a photo of my kitchen? I love it so much. I love my kitchen because theres nothing in it. So you can bet that my how-to-network webinar is not going to be about working a crowded room. After living in LA for ten years and NY for ten years, I realized that I had an incredible network that allowed me to pretty much do whatever I want in my career, but creating that network didnt require me to leave my apartment. In fact, I do better when I network in front of my computer, because I have Aspergers. I have no social skills if you put me in front of people. So if you hate networking, Im definitely your best teacher because Ive had to learn to run my whole career without ever going to a networking event. And now I live on a farm, so Im definitely not showing up anywhere, and my network is as strong as ever. Melissa is also going to do the course with me. To give you a reminder, Melissa gets fired all the time, but she always gets a new, amazing job. You know why? She is incredible at networking. When Melissa needs a job, she just sends an email and gets one. I dont even know how she does it, because Im one of the people who fired her. So shes going to tell all of us in the webinar. We will have a contest in the webinar, and the winner will get Melissa writing emails for them to get a job. (I did not ask Melissa ahead of time, so Melissa, that is a little surprise for you.) We will rig the contest so crazy people cannot win. But you should know that Melissa and I have a very high tolerance for crazy. And, come to think of it, that might be why we are so good at networking. So here is the outline of the course. Session 1:  Discover your best way to network.   It doesnt work to network if you hate what youre doing, because then people will hate meeting you. This session will help you find a networking tactic that is both effective and comfortable for you. Ill tell you a bunch of tactics you never dreamed would work. Session 2: Target people you need help from. Get them interested in helping.   Bonus guest! Guy Kawasaki! Networking is about helping. If you know what you have to offer and you know what people need, then you are set. Ill tell you how to figure out what people need. But also, since you are able to help a wide range of people (yes! really!) Ill show you how to figure out who to focus on helping at which points in your life. Session 3: Leverage your network to get whatever you want.   Do you know how many connections I have on Linkedin? Like 1000. But statistically, you only need 30 people in your network for it to be a killer network. Ill explain why, and Ill show you how you already have about half of those people, no matter who you are. Once you know who your 30 people are, youll be blown away by how you can leverage those people to get whatever you want next in your career. Session 4: QA Ask me anything!     Remember, the cost of this webinar is $195.   Buy it now! This course is sponsored by Workfolio, a Forbes top-10 site for your career.

Video - 10 Interview Mistakes to Avoid

Video - 10 Interview Mistakes to Avoid This is a first for Career Geek Blog. It is a video post and is brought to you by Careercake.com, a fantastic video blogsite. Careercake.tv is run by Aimee  a motivational speaker, presenter, author and recognised recruitment expert. Find out more. Different to the usual comments of dress smart, be on time, etc. 10 Interview mistakes to avoid. If you liked the video, please visit Careercake.tv  for more. 0

5 Things on Your Resume That Make You Sound Too Old - Career Pivot

5 Things on Your Resume That Make You Sound Too Old - Career Pivot Your Resume and Your Age The format and contents of your resume say a lot about your age. Age discrimination is a fact of life in today’s job market. This goes both ways for the young and the old. I want to discuss the signs that you are over 50 years of age and, hopefully, get you past the initial gatekeepers who might think you are too old. Home Address For many years, we sent our resume and cover letter through the mail. We put our home address right on the top. Fact is, there is no longer a need to put your home address on the resume anymore. There are other reasons not to include your home address: Economic profiling Length of commute Personal safety If the employer needs your home mailing address, they can ask for it. (More: Is the resume still relevant) E-Mail Address One sure sign that you are over 50 is to have an aol.com e-mail address or even an e-mail address from your cable provider like rr.com on your resume. Either sign up for a Gmail address or get an e-mail forwarding service from: A professional society â€" I have had e-mail addresses from IEEE and ACM both technology associations Your Alumni Association â€" I have an e-mail address from my Northwestern Alumni Association Get your own domain â€" I have one client who acquired his full name as a domain name like MarcMiller.com All of these options say something about your professional brand. I always recommend using a separate e-mail address for your job search. (More: Social Media Strategy â€" My Resume) Listen to the most recent episode Home Phone Number Who under 45 years of age still has a home phone? We ditched our home phone five years ago, and I am quite a bit older than 45. If you still have a home phone and do not want to give out your cell phone number, get a Google Voice number. Put the Google Voice number on your resume as your cell number. You can set it up so that it will ring on multiple phones (both home and cell). It can be configured to transcribe the message, and then email and text you the transcription. Some of the transcriptions can be really funny. I had one recruiter leave me a message and her name was transcribed as stressed out waters. Double Space After Period I am going to go out a limb and declare that putting two spaces after a period is obsolete. It is how most of us were taught to type on a typewriter. Therefore, most of us who do this (I have taught myself to stop putting two spaces after a period and it was hard) are over 50 years of age. Over the years, I have heard that this has been used as a method of screening out older candidates. Skills Limit the skills you list on your resume to current and relevant skills. I have seen many technical resumes that list every system, software program, and technology that the applicant has ever worked on. I could list that I wrote MS-DOS control programs, wrote machine level code developing word processors, managed IBM mainframe computers, and lots of other obsolete technologies. Unless I was applying for a position that required these skills, all it tells the reader is I am over 50 years of age and maybe older. Look at your resumeâ€"what does it say about your age? Show it to others and ask them what it says about you. Age discrimination is a fact of life in the job market today. You do not want to be filtered out by the staff who are screening initial resumes and lose the opportunity to demonstrate your talents and skills. By the way, I chose to use resume rather than résumé in this article for the purists. This post is part of a weekly series on the Personal Branding Blog. You can read the original post on the Personal Branding Blog. Marc Miller Like what you just read? Share it with your friends using the buttons above. Like What You Read? Get Career Pivot Insights! Check out the Repurpose Your Career Podcast Do You Need Help With ...