"No" Doesn't Always Sound The Same Way

We've all been rejected. Whether it be in high school on the person we had a crush on, when we were applying to college, when we've interviewed for jobs, or even when some of us have been let go from that a job that we've all been told, at one point or another: "no". But there's many different ways to say no and doing it in the right way in both the hiring and firing process, a company can help candidates and former employees as well as helping their own self-image. Let's take a look at the three types of candidates and how is a bad and a good way to say N-O.

External Job Candidate

These are the easiest people to say no to out of the three groups we'll talk about, but there are still proper ways to go about this. I know one former classmate who was told they had a prestigious position at an investment bank coming out of business school only to have that invitation revoked once the company hit some skids. How did this person find out they weren't going to be employed at this large bank? The news. Seriously. Instead of calling/e-mailing/writing the candidates to let them know their signed offers were not going to be honored, they instead let the news organizations reporting the story know and the classmate found out by reading about the company online. That's rough--and wrong.

The best way to go about it was done a few years back for me. I applied for a job that was I pretty sure I was under-qualified for--but I really liked the company, job, pay, and thought it would be worth it to apply. After speaking with the Human Resources representative for a few minutes on the phone the day I applied, she told me they were sifting through applications and she would get back to me. She did get back to me--later that evening and told me that they were not going any further with my application. Instead of just not calling me back (which is happened to many people I know plenty of times recently), she called me on her drive home to discuss why they were going elsewhere. She talked me through the strong points in my resume and where they felt I may not fit for the job. She also told me they would keep my resume on file and I shouldn't hesitate to reapply in the future. I was shocked by this phone call and certainly appreciated it. "No" didn't sound like "no" that time.

Internal Job Candidate

The Job Market As It Stands

We all know the job market isn't good. Despite any numbers to the contrary, we are pretty sure we'll see 10% unemployment very soon and all of us know at least one person who is currently out of a job. I know of almost 20 people who have been laid off. It's not pretty out there.

The Wall Street Journal says that it will be years before lost jobs return. And some may never return. 7.2 million jobs have just disappeared since December 2007 and there will be many Americans left standing on the sidelines once their unemployment runs out. Sad times.

The New York Times tells the story of a pair of identical twins who are living in New York City, 17 months out of college and are looking for a job--any job at all. There story isn't unlike others that I've heard from peers who are only a few years out of college; the jobs just aren't there.

Lastly, also from The Wall Street Journal, an article about law-firm hires whose first task is finding an interim job. I know some people who have been fortunate enough to receive an offer from a law firm only to have that offer deferred. Banks have also been doing this, much to the chagrin of recent college (and graduate school) graduates. With the tough hiring environment, a deferred job is better for some than no job at all.

Stating the Obvious

Sometimes, the news just states the obvious...or what we think to be the truth (I call these "duh!"s). Here are a few examples of "duh"s in the recent news relating to the job world:

• Watson Wyatt and WorldatWork did a survey that Workforce Management quotes which says that cost cutting has damaged worker morale (duh!).
  

Yes, if you have been managing and awake at all during this Big, Bad Recession, you know that A) organizations have been slashing budgets and cutting costs in order to survive; and, B) that such large-scale cost cutting tends to have a highly negative impact on the most critical part of your organization—your workforce.

So, this new survey by Watson Wyatt and WorldatWork isn’t so much newsworthy or surprising as much as it as reconfirmation of what you already know and have probably experienced firsthand. Pay cuts, furloughs, layoffs, buyouts and other budget reductions might help organizations cope with the big economic downturn, but the flip-side to that is these very cuts are doing a number on the morale and engagement of the very employees you need to get beyond these bad times.

According to the 2009/2010 U.S. Strategic Rewards Survey, “employee engagement levels for all workers at the companies surveyed have dropped 9 percent since last year and close to 25 percent for top performers. Additionally, 36 percent of top performers say their employer’s situation has worsened in the past 12 months and the number who would recommend others take jobs at their company has declined by nearly 20 percent. Compared with last year, top-performing employees are 26 percent less likely to be satisfied with advancement opportunities at their company. They are also 14 percent less likely to want to remain with their company versus take a job elsewhere.”

• One of the hardest hit sectors, the insurance industry, has job losses for a 10th consecutive month according to Insurance Headlines (H/T Wendy). The unemployment for that sector is now at 9.7% and getting close to the 10% expected number. Not surprising for the industry that contained groups such as AIG.

• Lastly, a British graduate scored a job by using a sandwich-board according to Yahoo! Finance (H/T Wendy). Job seekers are always told to think differently from others, and this man certainly did. So it's not surprise he got an offer...of some sort. This may not be the best way about getting every offer you desire, however. From the recruitment firm that decided to interview him:

"I liked the fact he had thought out of the box. I was impressed by that. I was even more impressed after the interview. He's very employable, so much so I offered him a job to work with me."

Two For Tuesday: Old and Young

We are back with another Two For Tuesday with advice for the old and the young:

-This Atlanta Business Chronicle article talks about a Watson Wyatt survey which says that older workers are worrying even more about retirement. This makes sense with 401(k)s low in value, pensions being cut or greatly diminished, and other investments (stock portfolio, home value, etc.) very low in value. Sadly, many can't retire at this point due to this.

-Next from the Charlotte Observer, advice to students and Human Resources that summer is a great time for students to make their mark. I loved all my internships and they were a great way for me to get some really good experience. But I understood it is what you make of it and did my best to make it the most valuable summer it could be.

Making Staff Decisions in a Recession from the Wall Street Journal

Job losses and pay cuts are mounting as the U.S. economy struggles. Ravin Jesuthasan of Towers Perrin says that health care and energy look like the safest industries in these tough times.

Deepening the Downturn

Updating our post from yesterday is an article from the New York Times which says that workers are getting fewer hours, deepening the downturn: click here

This is a huge problem as not only are workers being laid off, but the ones who are still employed are getting less overtime and taking in smaller paychecks--which the Times cites as a worse problem than the layoffs....

And those layoffs continue, especially in the financial sector. After Merrill Lynch announced 4000 layoffs yesterday, Citigroup went more than double that with a planned 9000 layoffs: click here

This is going to create a big problem for the United States economy. With a weakening dollar, low interest rates and rising inflation, smaller salaried and laid off workers are going to be spending less. Less consumer spending will lead to less money going to companies. And companies taking on losses will be more likely to layoff more workers. Something needs to happen to stop this cycle from worsening soon or there will be quite a situation on our hands.

If you happen to be at a company that is currently trying to grow and expand, you've hit the jackpot. There are a lot of skilled workers increasingly having their wages cut or being laid off and these people will be more than willing to line up to be hired. Not only will this allow you to get the best workers, but probably pay a lot less in the process.

If you look at the graphs to the right, you can see how this has been playing out in the United States and get some idea of where we are going in the future if this continues.

Stay tuned to see how this situation continues to develop...

UPDATE: A really good point from a fellow blogger: click here

Dissecting the Current News

Sometimes it's best to just dig into the current events and find out how it applies to Human Resources...so we'll get right to that..

First, the economy. A topic that should be the hot-button of the presidential race, especially if this downturn (read: recession) in the market continues, took another turn with today's job numbers, as reported by Bloomberg: click here

This is going to have a ripple effect on the entire economy. As people continue to foreclose on homes and pay higher prices for gas, one thing they certainly cannot afford is to be out of work. This will lead a lot more people to switch out of industries such as housing which are in a lull right now and cause even more competition in other fields. This, combined with a class of '08 graduation will create even more turmoil in the economy. So while we may not be predicting the next Great Depression...let's just say: hold on to your seats.

This next story from the New York Times has HIPAA violations written all over it: click here

HR Professionals should definitely check in with their health insurance plans to make sure that their employee's information is not leaking out to the world or they will have to start lining up at the courthouse for lawsuits

Lastly, in a story that doesn't seem to go away, sexual harassment in the workplace is not necessarily confined to just the traditional workplace. As People Magazine reports, this Rob Lowe story isn't going to end anytime soon with accusations and counter-accusations and claims of abuse and extortion: click here

The lesson to be learned here for HR is that even if you don't have a traditional workspace, there may still be sexual harassment issues and a proactive approach is always the best way...

Still Have the Dream

Despite the fact that a Black man is a leading candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination, racial harassment is a still an issue in workplaces according to MSNBC: click here.

As Clinton/Obama campaign starts to turn this battle into a race/gender issue, they may be alienating more constituents and potential voters than they think. With gender and race issues in the workplaces still a great cause of concern for many people, one can imagine some distaste for two candidates to battle each other on those grounds for the White House. The Democrats have done well in recent years building a base of minority and women voters but one wonders if some irreparable harm will be done to the candidates after the latest banter...but I digress...

In other news, also from MSNBC, a look at which businesses hold up well during a recession among other recession questions in this Q&A: click here

Lastly, a blog suggesting that you should hire people that are better than you are: click here