tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60195802769592601802024-03-06T07:49:58.921+01:00The Happy EmployeeMy former blog about HR, the Universe, and Everything. My new cyberhome is at www.etiennebesson.comHappy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.comBlogger146125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-82481127272956871872010-09-26T05:11:00.000+02:002010-09-26T05:11:22.506+02:00Will The Real Happy Employee Please Stand Up?<span style="font-size: small;"></span><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Nope, the real Happy Employee won't stand up anymore on this blog.</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I enjoyed writing on www.thehappyemployee.com, but it's over now.</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Please don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that "I've moved on" or anything stupid like this. But here's the places where you can find me now:</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.twitter.com/happyemployee"><span style="font-size: small;">www.twitter.com/happyemployee</span></a></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.etiennebesson.com/"><span style="font-size: small;">www.etiennebesson.com </span></a></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://ch.linkedin.com/in/etiennebesson">http://ch.linkedin.com/in/etiennebesson</a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">And since this blog is hosted by Google, you can also visit my Google Profile:</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.google.com/profiles/etbesson">http://www.google.com/profiles/etbesson</a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finally, here are some of my favorite posts:</span></div><ul><li><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/12/quote-competence-lj-peter.html">I read the book about the Peter Principle</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/09/are-you-like-pizza-guy.html">A Pizza delivery guy who impressed me</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/employees-are-necessary-evil.html">Employees are a necessary evil</a> - probably my all-time favorite post and I recycled it on <a href="http://www.etiennebesson.com/employees-are-a-necessary-evil/">etiennebesson.com</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">My book review on Daniel Pink's <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/book-johnny-bunko-last-career-guide.html">Johnny Bunko</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/5-reasons-to-be-nice-to-ceos-pa.html">5 reasons to be nice to the assistant</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">I joined Twitter in July 2008. <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/07/im-on-twitter.html">This post</a> now cracks me up ;-)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">They forced me to <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/05/dressing-up-for-business-made-simple.html">wear a suit and tie</a> for a while, sr'eesly!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">My <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/05/shrm-in-world_01.html">rant about SHRM</a>. Back then when it was still cool for HR bloggers to be anti-SHRM ;-)</span></li>
</ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks for reading and I would love to hear from you on the Twitters!</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Etienne - The Happy Employee</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </div>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-35275397291701352692009-02-19T07:00:00.000+01:002009-02-19T07:00:01.037+01:00HR Communication, 24-style<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Frank Roche at <a href="http://www.knowhr.com/blog/">KnowHR</a> often mentions that HR communication should be surprising. Episode 3 of the new 24 season (it's already the 7th) is a great example of how to surprise your audience.<br /><br />Granted, episodes 1 and 2 were nice, although not earth shattering. But the third episode was just packed with goodies and surprises.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />(HR) communication at its best!</span><br />Plenty of unexpected turns, awesome reveals, old friends showing up out of nowhere, fun tech hacks, etc.<br /><br />But then again, <span style="font-weight: bold;">if you're working in HR, you certainly don't have two trial runs</span> because by the time you fire off your gem to "group: all staff", nobody will be reading your messages.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">My recommendation:</span><br />Safely store drafts one and two in the Recycle Bin or feed them to your hungry shredder (you might know the saying: a shredder is a HR Pro's best friend...) and <span style="font-weight: bold;">only publish the glorious version 3</span> of your communication!<br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">.</span></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-51935633276778470082009-02-18T23:16:00.003+01:002009-02-19T00:09:30.177+01:00ROWE-y: Doing Personal Stuff At The Office<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >The other day I learned an important lesson from my new colleague. The cool thing is that she just joined our team less than a month ago and she's 15 years younger than me.<br /><br />Like most Gen-Xers, I was "raised" professionally by Baby Boomers who have a strong sense of values in terms of working hard, making sacrifices and strictly separating their work and personal lives. Except, of course, when they bring work home.<br /><br />Lately, I've been realizing that I'm unconsciously trying to keep my personal life away from the office. For example<br /></span><ul><li><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >I'm slightly annoyed when a friend calls me at work</span></li><li><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >When I need to call the authorities or some service provider, I usually forget about it until their offices are closed anyway.</span></li><li><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >And when I check my personal email at the office, although I don't get out of my way to hide it, I do it discreetly.</span></li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Now to the good part:<br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Our boss announced that she was going home. Trying to be funny, I said to our young <a href="http://www.unwords.com/unword/padawan.html">Padawan</a>:<br /></span><blockquote style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Cool, now that she's leaving, lets watch some YouTube.</span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >For a split second she looked at me like I was the biggest idiot in the world. Or at least that was my interpretation of her facial expression. So I asked her what she was thinking. She simply said:<br /></span><blockquote style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">I didn't understand why you couldn't watch YouTube before.</span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Of course, I could have answered that, duh, it was just a joke. But I kept my big mouth shut realizing that I had an opportunity to learn something.<br /><br />Now that I'm writing this I realize that I already made some progress today:<br /></span><ul style="font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I saw an add for a nice apartment and called without second thoughts</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I checked my personal email several times today</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I had a long lunch</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I had some fun with colleagues in the afternoon</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I visited the <a href="http://portableapps.com/">PortableApps</a> site (<a href="http://portableapps.com/apps/office/pdftk_builder_portable">PDFTK</a> and <a href="http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/toucan">Toucan</a> sound very promising and <a href="http://portableapps.com/apps/office/openoffice_portable">OpenOffice v3</a> is available)<br /></span></li></ul><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Of course, I didn't count all of this as work time, so I know that I'm not cheating my employer. But today I didn't worry about people thinking that I might be slacking off. I was just having a good time.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Conclusion:</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />I learned a lot from my Baby Boomer colleagues and mentors. But for now, I'll listen to some Millenials.<br /><br />And thus concludes my second attempt at <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/09/rowe-y-no-more-bragging-about-long.html">trying to become more ROWE-y (or become ROWE-ier)</a>.<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-24467981672942984932009-02-14T01:05:00.004+01:002009-02-14T01:28:30.651+01:00HR Wench And Boobs<span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" >Did you read the title of this post? Really?<br /><br />I'm having fun right now and it might not be healthy in a long-term kind of way. When Jenn reads this post, she will either hate me forever and a day or uncontrollably roll on the floor and - between spasms of giggles - shout "what an idiot, I'm laughing so hard every fiber in my body hurts when I even try to breathe. I will never ever again eat Swiss chocolate!"<br /><br />Okay, now that I wrote this flamboyant introduction, it's actually not half as wild as you might have expected.<br /><br />I went to my RSS reader, checked out <a href="http://hrwench.blogspot.com/2009/02/staying-positive-and-sane-while-job.html">Wenchie's new post about staying positive while looking for a job</a> (it's a great post, you really should check it out), thought I might add some smart-ass comment so I opened a new tab to her blog page, read the existing comments, <a href="http://www.cluewagon.com/2009/02/meet-the-one-with-the-naked-boob/">clicked on Kerry's link and read the boob post</a>. It's a funny post. If you work in HR, you know that it might happen. And if you work in HR long enough, you know it will happen to you eventually.<br /><br />Tip: google "career change now, and-I-mean-RIGHT-NOW!"<br /><br />Oh phooey, I still need to post a smart-ass comment on Wenchie's blog...<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-74722215284019940492009-02-12T07:00:00.000+01:002009-02-12T07:00:01.155+01:00Link: In Defense Of HR Professionals<span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" >I'm certainly the first to admit that there are a lot of numskulls working in HR (like everywhere else). When asked about my career choice I often reply that <span style="font-weight: bold;">I certainly wouldn't work in HR if I had a choice</span>. And everybody who ever shared an office with me heard me groan that I should have learned an honest profession when I was young.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fact is that I love working in HR.</span> Last week a manager said that it was obvious that I felt comfortable working in HR. I think I'll buy this man a beer.<br /><br />Here's what <a href="http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/02/bud-crystal-bashes-heads-of-hr.html">Bob Sutton wrote on his blog</a>:<br /><blockquote>HR people often get more abuse than they deserve because they are so often put in a position where no one notices them when they do something right, but they get blamed out of proportion when things go wrong.</blockquote>If you're an HR Pro, do yourself a favor and go read it.<br />If you think all HR departments all over the world are populated exclusively by idiots, go read it and have some pity ;-)<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-88225750779677324972009-02-08T15:01:00.002+01:002009-02-08T15:13:14.438+01:00ARSE Used Over 180'000 Times<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://electricpulp.com/guykawasaki/arse/">ARSE (Asshole Rating Self-Exam)</a><span style="font-family: arial;">, based on Bob Sutton's book "The No Asshole Rule" </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/02/the-asshole-rating-selfexam-arse-over-180000-completions.html">was used more than 180'000 times</a><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: arial;">Don't be an ass, </span><a style="font-weight: bold; font-family: arial;" href="http://electricpulp.com/guykawasaki/arse/">go do the ARSE now</a><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: arial;">. </span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">It only takes 5 minutes. If you did it before, find out if your score changed.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Today my score was 3 (0 to 5 points: "you don't sound like a certified asshole, unless you are fooling yourself"). In March 2008 my score was 4. I had just quit a job that I loved very much but I badly needed a change. In December 2007 I scored 5 ("borderline certified asshole") and was looking for a new job.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Conclusion: The ARSE may not be scientifically valid, but it's certainly interesting.</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-71459527402938557162009-01-24T02:33:00.004+01:002009-01-24T03:18:44.102+01:00Geeky: Listening to music at work<span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" >"My boss told me the other day that I was spending in average 6.5 hours per day on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/">YouTube</a> according to the company's Internet statistics. But I'm only using YouTube to listen to background music while I work. Are they allowed to check what I'm doing online? What about privacy?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">This is not an actual reader question.</span> But I heard this story from a friend and decided to turn it into a fake reader question.<br /><br />Secondly, I could start an <span style="font-weight: bold;">analysis of the </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.edoeb.admin.ch/index.html?lang=en">Swiss Data Protection Law</a>, but I just don't feel like it at the moment. Me know, me am lazy ;-)<br /><br />Thirdly, <span style="font-weight: bold;">using YouTube extensibly at work</span> doesn't make much sense to me. Whether your employer uses legal or illegal means to track your web traffic isn't the point. Anybody could walk by your desk five times a day and see that you're on YouTube.<br /><br />Furthermore, streaming videos all day uses a lot of bandwidth and although many people still think that <span style="font-weight: bold;">the Interwebs are for free</span>, connecting to this cyber maze still costs a lot.<br /><br />Besides, <span style="font-weight: bold;">using YouTube to listen to music doesn't really make much sense to me</span>. But that's just lil' ol' me...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">So here's my geeky solution:</span><br /></span><ul style="font-family: arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">buy a USB stick. The last one I bought had 16 GB and didn't cost that much anymore</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">download <a href="http://portableapps.com/apps/music_video/coolplayerp_portable">CoolPlayer+</a> (a portable app) and copy it to the stick</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">fill up the remaining space on your stick with your favorite mp3 songs</span></li></ul><span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">The beauty of portable apps</span> is that you don't need to install the programs, you just copy them somewhere. Even if you don't have admin access to your work computer, you can use programs and it costs your company zilch in terms of bandwidth.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Alternatives:</span><br />Of course, you could just copy your mp3 files to the hard drive and use the pre-installed media player. But this wouldn't be geeky, now would it ;-)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.careerealism.com/">@JT</a>: Thank you, the Twitter message that you wrote 17 days ago and which I only saw today motivated me to write again! And your new site logo looks really cool!<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-90095610627043185482008-12-14T01:07:00.005+01:002008-12-14T01:52:38.319+01:00Quote: Competence (L.J. Peter)<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Dr. Laurence J. Peter, creator of the Peter Principle, said:</span><br /></span><blockquote style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Competence, like truth, beauty and contact lenses, is in the eye of the beholder.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">(Peter L.J. & Hull R., <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle">The Peter Principle</a> - Why things always go wrong, 1969)</span><br /></span></blockquote><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">This quote isn't helpful if you're looking for a definition of "competence". If you've been looking for your contact lenses, however, maybe they were in your eyes the whole time and you've just experienced a classic "duh" moment.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">You may have some specific criteria for evaluating your own competence. This is good and necessary on a personal level and should validate your self-esteem. But if you want to boost your career, all that matters is whether your manager thinks you're competent or not.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">So the next question is: <span style="font-weight: bold;">what does your manager expect from you?</span><br />I can spontaneously think of two completely different criteria for competence. Your manager's main goal is that you:</span><br /></span><ul><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">provide great customer service</span></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">execute processes as efficiently as possible</span></span></li></ul><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Of course you're an engaged professional and want to offer your customers both. But unfortunately trying to get the best of both worlds often results in mediocre performance and disappointed managers.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Let me illustrate the two examples: </span><br /><blockquote><span style="font-family:arial;">An employee pops into your office an has a question. You know that it will take you 15 minutes to make your customer happy.</span><br /></blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >Great customer service</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">You drop what you were doing and take care of the unplanned request. The employee will be very happy but you might have to go home later than planned or won't be able to deliver some things on time.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >Efficient processes</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Dropping what you were doing is not efficient, so you ask your customer to send you an email and promise to take care of the request within 72 hours. The employee seems a bit disappointed when he leaves your office and you lock the door behind him to avoid further distractions.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Depending on what is expected of you, both reactions can be appropriate. The art is to find out what your manager expects of you.<br /><br />Since many managers have trouble formulating their expectations, here's a hint:<br /></span></span><ul><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">If your company has 1 HR person per 50 employees, you should be able to provide customized services and satisfy spontaneous requests at once.</span></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">If there's only 1 HR person per 300 employees, you're probably better off defining some Service Level Agreements (e.g. all requests must be sent to hr@YourCompany.com and will be processed within 72 hours).</span></span></li></ul><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">...and did you find your contact lenses?</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">.</span></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-72811467869493064802008-11-26T23:55:00.002+01:002008-11-27T00:43:30.508+01:00We're All Gonna Die<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">No, I'm not depressed and I'm not borderline suicidal either.</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Yes, I'm a big fan of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroes_%28TV_series%29">Heroes</a>. Although lots of people say that it's lost its edge, I still luh-huve it. Very much, very deeply and very fondly.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">At the beginning of ep 3x10 (for the die-hard fans: at 9 min 4 secs) <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2647420/">Brea Grant</a> playing the character Daphne Millbrook says</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><blockquote>We're all gonna die...</blockquote></span><span style="font-family: arial;">Yes, we're all gonna die. Someday. Eventually.</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />I can only speak for myself, but tomorrow will be the first day of the rest of my life.<br /><br />So what is today? The day before the first day of the rest of my life? How long will my life be? Who knows, who cares? I once heard that TODAY matters. What about tomorrow? Too complicated? Too ethereal? And what does it have to do with HR? And what does "ethereal" mean?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">[switch to HR topic]</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Too touchy-feely pink-and-fluffy?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">[now we're back to HR]</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Yeah, HR is all about emotions and being nice to each other.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Oh wait, aren't HR peeps known to be tough as nails, emotionless and slaves to the corporate line? Yes, no, maybe, a little, a lot, very much, not at all?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">In case you've been wondering: no, this post has no purpose.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I've been enjoying some time off the Interwebs. One year ago I would have felt miserable being away from the Net for more than 5 hours. At the moment I haven't been posting for quite a while, I check my emails once a week (usually) and have been ignoring Twitter completely (hey, is it true that Twitter rejected a multi-billion offer from Facebook?).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/">Tim Ferriss</a> would probably call this a "mini-retirement" from the Web.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm too young to be a retiree, but it's never too early to retire.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Okay, I'm not sure if the last statement sounded cool, insightful, lame or whatever. Maybe some Net-addict will add it to some online quotes database?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Buddy, are you still checking my blog from time to time hoping that I will post something? If so, puh-leaze leave a comment ;-)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">And now for the punchline:</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I enjoyed my time being (more or less) offline. I miss being (actively) online. I love writing. Lately, I didn't have anything to write about. But the <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034492/">Bamby movie</a> told me one thing: If you have nothing nice to say, shut the fuck up. Or in my case: if you have nothing interesting to write about, just read books, try out <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mvc8Au4YO60">Ramsay's Broccoli soup</a> (it's delicious!), watch Heroes and have a good time.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">And that's the <a href="http://www.colbertnation.com/home">Word</a> for today.<br /></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span><br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-45319746058036617022008-10-01T23:16:00.004+02:002008-10-02T00:00:36.764+02:00Contest: Ugliest Tie<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />It's not an HR Challenge. It's just a fun little contest... for the ugliest tie.<br /><br />Send me a picture of your </span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >ugliest tie</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >. There's a few rules, and a very tough jury, but you might win a book!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Ze Rules<br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Send me a picture of your ugliest tie.<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Condition:</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > you must have been wearing this tie at least once in a professional setting. Srsly!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >I need to see it!</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />Post it anywhere you like on the Interwebs. But make sure I know about it. I'll then add it to my Picasa account for everybody to see.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >The jury</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />Ties are mostly part of a man's, man's world. This is why I asked 5 wonderful ladies to perform some jury duty:<br /></span><ul style="font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://twitter.com/megbear">Meg Bear</a> from <a href="http://talentedapps.wordpress.com/">Talentad Apps</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://twitter.com/caliandjody">Cali</a> from <a href="http://caliandjody.com/blog/">Cali & Jody</a>, the wonderful ladies who brought you ROWE. And although you'll never realize it, also the ones who made sure Skynet will never conquer the world!</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://twitter.com/HR_Minion">HR Minion</a> from The Awesome & Geeky <a href="http://hrminion.blogspot.com/">HR Minion Blog</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://twitter.com/thehrmaven">HR Maven</a> from the Incredibly Cool <a href="http://www.thehrmaven.com/">HR Maven Blog</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://twitter.com/jtodonnell">JT</a> from <a href="http://careerealism.wordpress.com/">Careerealism</a>, because every job really is just temporary!</span></li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >The book</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />The winner will get a book. If you win, I'll ask you to send me a link to your Amazon wishlist and you'll get a book sent to you by snail mail.<br /><br />Here's my ugliest tie. I've got way uglier ties, but this is the blarghiest one I've ever been wearing at work.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzVMkFIo7lElYQVF4E0BkTUZzR_HNV7yNk2he968dYJbLq4XkyFwIOTBATiW7n6BqGXZIxgDta7Y598ltQkgzKtTKFfwVGhIvYhzmPKQDJZEcwCz2Og56tv7qOvD7bkjgYf-61tuCfD5w/s1600-h/Ugliest_Tie.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzVMkFIo7lElYQVF4E0BkTUZzR_HNV7yNk2he968dYJbLq4XkyFwIOTBATiW7n6BqGXZIxgDta7Y598ltQkgzKtTKFfwVGhIvYhzmPKQDJZEcwCz2Og56tv7qOvD7bkjgYf-61tuCfD5w/s320/Ugliest_Tie.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252307389682488770" border="0" /></a><br />Now it's up to you. Do your worst!<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-77186544540506770472008-09-20T22:55:00.003+02:002008-09-20T23:00:51.648+02:00Things We Would Love To Say<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">There are things most HR professionals would love to say from time to time. I know I do. But insulting people is (un)fortunately not in our job description ;-)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Dr. House doesn't care. He's rude, insensitive and he speaks his mind. I'm only halfway through episode 1 of the 5th season, but he already inspired me. Someday, maybe, I'll tell a line manager:</span><br /></span><blockquote style="font-weight: bold; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">You're being an idiot!<br /></span></blockquote><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-8574084295501398232008-09-17T22:05:00.002+02:002008-09-17T23:27:07.004+02:00Are You Like The Pizza Guy?<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span><span style="font-family: arial;">The pizza delivery guy really impressed me. I met him the other day in the elevator and immediately commented on his huge delivery bag.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">"It's for family pizzas," he explained. I grunted something to indicate that I understood.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">"They're really convenient." And without missing a beat, he added "The prize is very good, and they even come with a free drink."</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">That's when we reached the ground floor. If he had handed me a 4-color leaflet with a list of available toppings and a big fat phone number printed on top, I would have asked for his CV and given it to the sales director first thing the next morning. Okay, we don't have a sales director, but you get my drift.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Afterwards I wondered how our employees respond when asked where they work. Do they just mention the name of their employer or do they add two or three positive things about our company or products?</span><br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-46940923787809010692008-09-13T03:32:00.003+02:002008-09-13T23:00:01.614+02:00Tagging Season Has Started<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >It's tagging season again. This time I've got tagged twice. The <a href="http://hrwench.blogspot.com/">HR Blog Diva</a> who tagged me last December for the <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2007/12/tag-christmas-meme-and-who-wants-to-be.html">Christmas Meme</a> got tagged <a href="http://twitter.com/hrwench/statuses/919441511">three times</a>. This is what happens when you become an online celebrity ;-)<br /><br />The interesting thing is that both <a href="http://www.bigorecruiting.blogspot.com/">Maren Hogan</a> and <a href="http://www.thehrmaven.com/">HR Maven</a> informed me via Twitter <a href="http://twitter.com/marenhogan">direct</a> </span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://twitter.com/thehrmaven">message</a></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >. And Maren answered the challenge <a href="http://bigorecruiting.blogspot.com/2008/09/6-random-things-i-got-blogtagged.html">via vlog</a> (or whatever young people call these things nowadays). The times they are definitely a-changin'.<br /><br />So I'm supposed to tell you six random things about myself. Luckily I'm good at saying random things...<br /></span> <ol style="font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I burned my arm when I was 1 year old and I still think that the scar looks kinda cool<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I bought my first bass guitar when I was 16 and joined my first rock band 1 year later</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">The ironing board is still standing in my living room</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I've had my driving license since 1991 but bought my first car this April</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I'm trying to come up with number 5. Hey, that was random!</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">The Chief Personnel Officer at a former company gave me a Fender Stratocaster and I call her White Beauty</span></li></ol><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bonus:</span> I call my Black Golf "La Nera"<br /><br />Now I'm supposed to tag 6 innocent bloggers...<br /></span><ol style="font-family: arial;"><li><a href="http://ihatehr.com/">Rachel Robbins</a><br /></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://humancapital3.blogspot.com/">HC3</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://capital-humain.blogspot.com/">Claude Rinfret</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://mrscrubby.blogspot.com/">Mr. Scrubby</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Cali Ressler (<a href="http://caliandjody.com/blog/2008/08/05/cj-revealed-part-2/">5 random things</a>)<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Jody Thompson (<a href="http://caliandjody.com/blog/2008/08/03/cj-revealed/">5 random things</a>)<br /></span></li></ol><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Okay, I cheated a little bit with <a href="http://caliandjody.com/blog/">Cali & Jody</a> because they already posted random things in August.<br /><br />But you know what? Sue me! And by the way, I live in Switzerland. Good luck! A judge would probably pat you on the head, give you a lollipop and say that he finds you amusing.<br /><br />And here is the Tag Policy (approved by the Executive Management):<br /></span><ol style="font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Link to the person who tagged you.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"> Post the rules on the blog.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Write six random things about yourself.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Tag six people at the end of your post.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Let each person know they have been tagged.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Let the tagger know when your entry is up.</span></li></ol><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >*****<br />UPDATE<br /><a href="http://careerealism.wordpress.com/">JT O'Donnell</a> said in the comments that 5 (or 6) things were doable. So I'm also tagging her now ;-)<br />.</span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-28684425931208717282008-09-13T00:48:00.001+02:002008-09-13T00:51:50.381+02:00The Interwebs - And Why Sometimes I'm Too Enthusiastic<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >It's almost scary how much I love the Interwebs. And sometimes I can even go a bit overboard with my enthusiasm.
<br />
<br /><a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/2/511/716">Jenn Barnes</a> published a post on <a href="http://hrmtoday.com/">HRM Today</a> called <a href="http://network.hrmtoday.com/profiles/blog/show?id=2141137%3ABlogPost%3A10116">10 Reasons Why HR Professionals Should Blog</a> (hint to recruiters: she's currently looking for a job!).
<br />
<br />So I started happily commenting on 5 of the 10 points and hit the "add comment" button. Afterwards I realized that my comment was almost as long as the original post and felt that this was a really rude thing to do. Luckily the HRM Today engine (hosted on <a href="http://www.ning.com/">Ning</a>) lets you delete comments.
<br />
<br />On the other hand I really liked what I had written, so here it is, so to speak within my own four virtual walls.
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<br />________________________________
<br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Comments on the <a href="http://network.hrmtoday.com/profiles/blog/show?id=2141137%3ABlogPost%3A10116">10 Reasons Why HR Professionals Should Blog</a></span>
<br /><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1.It's fun</span>
<br />Yeah, you betcha. I'm definitely having a blast with this whole online stuff including my <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/">blog</a>!
<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2. It's a great conversation starter</span>
<br />Nope, my techie friends are usually not interested in HR and many of my HR buddies think the Interwebs are for crazies and don't have time to read these blog thingies. Seriously, most times I mention my blog during a conversation the topic changes within 20 seconds or less.
<br />And then people wonder why I spend so much time with my HR blogger friends on <a href="http://twitter.com/HappyEmployee">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://hrmtoday.com/">HRM Today</a> ;-)
<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">6. You participate in talking about the profession instead of hearing about the profession from others (especially those pesky "experts"). </span>
<br />It's true, exchanging ideas with and learning from like-minded people from all over the world is amazing.
<br />And the funny thing is that some of them are actually "experts", but in this situation they're just another blogger who talks to you instead of at you.
<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">8. Sometimes you have fans - and they are adorable and sometimes even "star struck" when they meet you in person. Really!</span>
<br />Star struck? Not yet. But I'm realizing that some truly awesome people are reading my blog. Some leave comments, others tell me through email or <a href="http://twitter.com/HappyEmployee">Twitter</a>. Some are complete strangers who impress me with their insights or just because they're friendly and supportive. Others are bloggers I truly admire and I would never have expected them to notice what I write.
<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">10. You learn more about yourself, the profession and technology than you ever thought possible.</span>
<br />This is so true! When blogging I reveal my point of view on certain things and everybody in the world with an Internet connection can potentially read it. This forces me to think very hard about certain things. It's amazing how much I learned and the matrix (as in <a href="http://www.williamgibsonbooks.com/books/neuromancer.asp">Gibson</a>, not the <a href="http://whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/">movie</a>) is a major reason why my passion for HR is still growing and growing.
<br />.
<br /></span><basefont>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-4423361697190184882008-09-11T00:40:00.001+02:002008-09-11T00:44:42.734+02:00ROWE-y: No More Bragging About Long Hours<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >This is my public commitment:<br /></span><div style="text-align: left;font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold;">From now on I will stop bragging or complaining about the hours I spend at work.</span> </blockquote></span>It's no secret that I'm a big fan of <a href="http://caliandjody.com/">ROWE</a> (Results-Only Work Environment). And although I won't actively promote it at work, I will start making adjustments to my attitudes and work habits.<br /></div><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />Therefore <span style="font-weight: bold;">"ROWE-y". Not quite ROWE, but getting closer.</span> Baby step after baby step.<br /><br />The <a href="http://caliandjody.com/book/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">7th ROWE Guidepost</span></a> is:<br /></span><blockquote style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Nobody talks about how many hours they work.</span></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">If I work too many hours, it's my problem.</span><br />True, if I'm on sick leave because of burn-out, then it becomes my manager's problem too. But at the end of the day, it's still my responsibility.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Whenever somebody tells me how tough their job is and how many hours they put in I feel the urge to prove that I'm a hard worker too.</span><br />At the same time saying that I worked over 50 hours last week is lame. 60 or 70 hours would sound much tougher.<br /><br />But I'm sick of this. It's a senseless pissing contest which you can only loose because you'll end up either frustrated or in a coma.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">If I can't brag about long hours, I will have to validate my value to the company in a different way.</span><br />The alternative is to figure out what I'm actually doing all day, deciding what is really useful and necessary and then, of course, remember all these great things that I'm doing for my employer. Because seriously, of the several dozen things I did today, I could hardly remember 10 right now.<br /><br />Whether I work many or few hours, I'll start concentrating on my achievements. This is me getting ROWE-y!<br />.</span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-56322429751620114052008-09-09T22:01:00.001+02:002008-09-09T22:03:18.450+02:00Less Cheese, More Meat!<span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" >Are there still people who pretend that the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Interwebs</span> aren't any good for <span style="font-weight: bold;">generating and sharing ideas?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mark's article at HC3</span> <a href="http://humancapital3.blogspot.com/2008/08/take-control-of-your-job-and-your.html">Take Control Of Your Job And Your Success</a> reminded me of an idea I had for a t-shirt. I also mentioned his article as an inspiration for my post <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/09/give-them-what-they-want.html">Give Them What They Want</a>. Mark then <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/09/give-them-what-they-want.html?showComment=1220723880000#c1351456702964996458">shared in the comments</a> one of the reasons why he's in charge of HR for a multinational corporation:<br /><blockquote>I jumped to doing all the things in HR most just dream about when I figured out <span style="font-weight: bold;">"its not all about me"</span>...I am with you on this one, less cheese, more meat!!! [..]<br /></blockquote>By the way, "It's not about you" is the <span style="font-weight: bold;">3rd career lesson</span> in Dan Pink's book <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/book-johnny-bunko-last-career-guide.html">Johnny Bunko</a>.<br /><br />And as today's grand finale, here's a terrible picture of my great idea:<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGA_5N6Bdh52_zGCz5v8P1IzU-Q2wJiYAs500Csv358YnfbTGwriyUPyDb4_BJSawrJEXE3GjFNVsGZ5Lwr7yFHjKXAWRm7Ed6-SIIl6AxcahcIlaK-dOqeIln4js8cwCADpMJJ8m9Gw/s1600-h/tee_cheese_s_cr.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGA_5N6Bdh52_zGCz5v8P1IzU-Q2wJiYAs500Csv358YnfbTGwriyUPyDb4_BJSawrJEXE3GjFNVsGZ5Lwr7yFHjKXAWRm7Ed6-SIIl6AxcahcIlaK-dOqeIln4js8cwCADpMJJ8m9Gw/s320/tee_cheese_s_cr.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244112969654621138" border="0" /></a><br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-86086944663982421212008-09-08T22:30:00.001+02:002008-09-08T22:34:05.022+02:00HR Carnival: I'm Finally In!<span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" >The newest <span style="font-weight: bold;">Carnival of HR</span> is up at <a href="http://guerillahr.blogspot.com/2008/09/carnival-comes-back-to-guerilla-ville.html">Guerilla HR</a> and this time I finally contributed something. Patrick Williams even gave <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/employees-are-necessary-evil.html">Employees Are A Necessary Evil</a> the <span style="font-weight: bold;">award for most shocking post title</span> ;-)<br /><br /><br />Short commercial break:<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jon Ingham</span> from the <a href="http://strategic-hcm.blogspot.com/">Strategic HCM</a> blog and another Carnival of HR participant, will hold a webinar on 11 September 2008 about <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Evolution Continues: Trends in Digital HR</span> (<a href="http://www.knowledgeinfusion.com/news/webinars_view.php?id=96">free registration here</a>).<br /><br />Jon is based in the UK, <a href="http://www.google.co.uk/books?id=rtAqmqnUCXgC&pg=PP1&ots=31zLc2sMM1&dq=jon+ingham&sig=ijDbs961ifpwFfPmxFAGRLrmsh8">wrote a book</a> and you can <a href="http://twitter.com/joningham">follow him on Twitter</a>.<br /><br /><br />And finally, <span style="font-weight: bold;">a little walk down memory lane:</span><br /></span><ul style="font-family: arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I mentioned the Carnival of HR in November 2007 and it was hosted by... Patrick Williams at Guerilla HR! Follow the link to find out <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2007/11/link-carnival-of-hr-guerilla-hr.html">what I once (allegedly) said about working in HR</a>.</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">I also mentioned another Carnival of HR that same month and disclosed <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2007/11/link-carnival-of-hr.html">what I wanted to do when I grew up</a>. Now I feel ready to contribute.</span></li></ul><span style="font-family: arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />The <span style="font-weight: bold;">next Carnival of HR</span> will be released 17 September 2008 at <a href="http://www.sharpbrains.com/blog/">Sharp Brains</a>. The full schedule can be found at the <a href="http://evilhrlady.blogspot.com/">Evil HR Lady's</a>.<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-80827961566641732702008-09-05T01:14:00.000+02:002008-09-05T01:14:36.395+02:00Give Them What They Want!<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm in a great mood today (see </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/09/interwebs-are-village-shameless-self.html">previous post</a><span style="font-family: arial;">), but I really need to get this off my chest: </span>
<br />
<br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">HR people need to stop whining all the time.
<br />
<br />Instead, we need to start listening to our customers and provide them with what they really need.</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Free bonus tip: </span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">They might want something different from what we think they need.</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Shocking hypothesis:</span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">They might even be right!</span>
<br /></span></div><span style="font-size:100%;">
<br />
<br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Rick at <a href="http://flipchartfairytales.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/the-demotion-of-hr/">Flip Chart Fairy Tales</a> <span style="font-weight: bold;">discussed a McKinsey article</span> mentioning that</span>
<br /></span><ul style="font-family: arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">HR professionals see themselves in a far better light than Line Managers see them</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">HR thinks they should be the judge of how effective they are
<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">And we're still looking for reasons why we should have a seat at the table</span></li></ul><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Mark at <a href="http://humancapital3.blogspot.com/2008/08/take-control-of-your-job-and-your.html">Human Capital 3</a> wrote a very inspiring post explaining why he can't stand mediocrity and <span style="font-weight: bold;">encouraging HR professionals to strive for more</span>.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Yes, <span style="font-weight: bold;">I want my seat at the table someday</span>. But I'm not ready yet and still have a long way of hard lessons and painful mistakes in front of me.</span></span> <div style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">
<br />I also want to start seeing my HR job more like a business. How can I expect line managers to play along with all the cool HR stuff like employee development programs if they still struggle with basic processes? <span style="font-weight: bold;">Why should they see me as a valuable strategic partner if I don't deliver them solid support with basic things?</span>
<br /><blockquote>Wait, we're in HR. We read all the good books and know what the company needs. We're just misunderstood and under appreciated. Nobody understands us. The other kids are so mean.
<br /></blockquote>Or could it be that I have to prove myself first? Do I understand my line managers' business and know what they're struggling with day after day? Did I seriously think about how I could make their lives easier?
<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Would the line managers agree to pay me if I was an outside consultant?</span>
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<br /></span><span style="font-size:100%;">My recent post <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/employees-are-necessary-evil.html">Employees Are A Necessary Evil</a> is probably a sign that I'm losing patience lately. And I know that I have a tendency to make snarly comments, but I really like this quote from the TV show <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810788/">Burn Notice</a>. It's about spies, but I decided to apply it to us HR folks.</span><basefont></div> <div style="font-family: arial;"><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:100%;">You know HR professionals... bunch of bitchy little girls.</span></blockquote></div><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-35566537926633800392008-09-04T23:48:00.001+02:002008-09-04T23:49:18.112+02:00The Interwebs Are A Village (Shameless Self-Promotion)<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Now this is just too cool: While <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/book-johnny-bunko-last-career-guide.html">reviewing Dan Pink's book Johnny Bunko</a> I mentioned the <span style="font-weight: bold;">red stapler</span>. Believe it or not, it seems that I was the first one to pick up on this <span style="font-weight: bold;">Office Space</span> reference and <a href="http://www.johnnybunko.com/bunko-blog/staple-this/">Dan mentioned it on his blog</a>!<br /><br />He also called me <span style="font-weight: bold;">"a blogging HR Guru"</span>.<br />This man's got a great sense of humor ;-)<br /><br />Be sure to check out <a href="http://www.johnnybunko.com/bunko-blog/">Dan's blog</a>!<br />And for the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Obama fans</span>, here's a post <a href="http://www.johnnybunko.com/bunko-blog/bunko-lessons-from-barack-obama/">showing how the principles from the book apply to Obama</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Other things that are just too awesome not to mention here:</span><br /></span><ul style="font-family:arial;"><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Dan Pink <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/i-recently-reviewed-daniel-pinks-johnny.html">commented on my blog</a><br /></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Wally Bock <a href="http://blog.threestarleadership.com/2008/08/27/82708-a-midweek-look-at-the-business-blogs.aspx">recommended one of my posts</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Frank Roche also <a href="http://www.knowhr.com/blog/2008/08/13/knowhr-read-this/">recommended one of my posts</a></span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;">Bob Sutton <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/03/no-asshole-rule-im-so-proud.html">commented on my blog</a></span></li></ul><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Now I really need to post a review of <a href="http://caliandjody.com/book/">Why Work Sucks</a>. And maybe, who knows, the two nice ladies might even mention it ;-)<br /><br />This is my little trophy gallery so far.<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-1486989275759059832008-08-31T23:42:00.001+02:002008-08-31T23:48:51.537+02:00Johnny Bunko Trailer<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >I recently <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/book-johnny-bunko-last-career-guide.html">reviewed Daniel Pink's Johnny Bunko</a>. Here's some fun bonus stuff.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">HR Minion</span> reminded me that she <a href="http://hrminion.blogspot.com/2008/04/my-first-book-report-since-high-school.html">had been faster</a> (and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dan Pink</span> even left a comment). Same as with our <span style="font-weight: bold;">Wanted movie reviews</span>: <a href="http://hrminion.blogspot.com/2008/07/wanted-its-not-about-recruiting-or-is.html">hers was published</a> 3 weeks <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/wanted-movie.html">before mine</a>.<br /><br />However, and I think this is important, I managed to mention the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.xomba.com/office_space_the_coveted_red_stapler">red stapler</a> in both reviews ;-)<br /><br />Below the <span style="font-style: italic;">infotaining</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Johnny Bunko trailer</span>.<br /><br />And this part still cracks me up every time I watch it:<br /></span><blockquote style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">In the 70's and 80's people asked: <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=hXfX7tch5ukC"><span style="font-weight: bold;">What color is your parachute?</span></a><br />In the 90's people asked: <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=oXn3AAAACAAJ&dq=who+moved+my+cheese"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who moved my cheese?</span></a><br />Now a new generation is asking a new question about their work and their lives:<br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" >WTF?!</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></div></blockquote><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WtRNiMZsTro&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WtRNiMZsTro&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />.</span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-9942474171316492402008-08-31T13:15:00.000+02:002008-08-31T13:15:00.616+02:00Something I Wanted To Say...<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">I suck at marketing.</span> Or call it self-promotion if you like.<br /><br />And my memory is terrible. There's something I wanted to announce for the last couple of weeks, but I just can't put my finger on it...<br /><br />*****************************************************************<br /><blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold;">THE HAPPY EMPLOYEE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For immediate release</span><br />The "The Happy Employee" blog has found a new home at<br /><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/">www.TheHappyEmployee.com</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">About the THE blog</span><br />"The Happy Employee" is a blog about Human Resources and combines wisdom with weirdness. It's not yet a mainstream success but does enjoy the much appreciated patronage of a small but extremely loyal, intelligent, beautiful and competent circle of regular readers.<br /><br /></blockquote></span><span style="font-size:100%;">*****************************************************************<br /><br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Oh yes, now that I think of it, did I tell you that I bought myself a domain name for my birthday?<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-64151059431301824682008-08-27T11:00:00.001+02:002008-08-27T19:43:25.167+02:00Alltop Thinks I'm Kind Of A Big Deal<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >I'm featured on <a href="http://hr.alltop.com/">Alltop HR</a>!<br />And I'm allowed to display their badge on my blog!<br />This is awesome!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In case you didn't hear about Alltop</span><br />It's basically a homepage with lots of links to blogs. Like a blog directory.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Guy Kawasaki</span><br />But since <a href="http://www.guykawasaki.com/">Guy Kawasaki</a> is involved, everything about Alltop is pretty exciting. Guy is a venture capitalist, author, used to work for Apple and so on. He's also the one who put <a href="http://bobsutton.typepad.com/">Bob Sutton's</a> <a href="http://electricpulp.com/guykawasaki/arse/">ARSE (Asshole Rating Self-Exam) online</a> which I used for my <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2007/12/challenge-asshole-rating-self-exam-arse.html">ARSE Challenge</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Neenz</span><br /><a href="http://twitter.com/NEENZ">Neenz</a> is Alltop's gatekeeper. Convince her that you should be listed and she will add you. She's also got a great sense of humor. For example, she said that they would be honored if I added their badge to my blog. I mean, the reason I wanted to be featured in the first place was to display the "confirmation that I kick ass" badge ;-)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Okay, but what is Alltop again?</span><br />Alltop is described as a <a href="http://alltop.com/about/">digital magazine rack of the Internet</a>. Choose from around 180 categories and you will be presented with the top blogs on this topic. You can then hover over the title of a post to read the first sentences and click to visit the blog.<br /><br />Oh yes, did I mention that <a href="http://twitter.com/NEENZ/statuses/889840431">Neenz is an incredibly nice gal</a>?<br />(hint: check the <a href="http://badges.alltop.com/">Alltop badges</a>)<br />.</span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-52417761665532415462008-08-25T22:18:00.001+02:002008-08-25T22:19:46.476+02:00Employees Are A Necessary Evil<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Employees are human, but at the end of the day they're just a resource.</span><br /><br />Don't get me wrong, I love working in HR and since I don't want to start my own company, I'm happy being an employee. Of course, I don't mind the monthly paycheck either. But sometimes a cold shower of tough reality can't hurt.<br /><br />Maybe the company you're working for tells you that employees are its most important resource.</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >That's wrong! </span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Some companies can exist without staff, but no company can survive without money.</span><br /><br />Believe me, if your employer could make money without you, you wouldn't be on his payroll. In fact, <span style="font-weight: bold;">if I started my own business, I would do everything to avoid having employees.</span><br /><br />Like I said, I'm happy to be an employee. I'm also grateful for working with some very capable and dedicated people who have all my respect.<br /><br />But if you're in charge of a business, especially if its your own company and your livelyhood is on the line, you will approach staffing decisions very carefully.<br /><br />Now the good news is that <span style="font-weight: bold;">if you have a job, you're necessary.</span> But it doesn't mean that your employer is happy about it.<br /><br />And remember: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Necessary is not the same as irreplaceable.</span><br />.</span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-40168733894114374582008-08-21T22:52:00.000+02:002008-08-21T22:54:14.473+02:00New Job: Arrive On Time (Not Too Early, Not Too Late At All)<basefont><div style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">I talked about this before, but punctuality is extremely important. For some it's natural while others will always struggle with it. And of course, the perception of punctuality varies depending on the company, country or culture.
<br />
<br />But especially if you're unsure about the company or are just starting your first job in a new country, I would recommend the accountant's approach: be precise. If you're supposed to be there at 9:00 am, don't be there later than 9:00 am (not 9:01 am). On the other hand, you shouldn't show up before 8:55 am, otherwise you will look like you're overeager, desperate or simply can't manage your time.
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<br />And keep in mind that the people expecting you <a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/new-job-maybe-your-manager-is-nervous.html">might be nervous as well</a>. Maybe your new boss is desperately looking for the perfect thing to say when he greets you. Or the person who will train you is trying to get as much done as possible before you arrive. Don't show up at 8:25 unless you want to annoy them. Hint: not the best strategy for your first day.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bonus:</span>
<br />On your way to work, come up with a good password. This way, when you get your new laptop and the IT guy tells you to choose a new password NOW, you won't freeze, feel embarrassed and finally use your birthday.
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<br />And it will keep your thoughts busy so you might forget to be nervous for a few minutes. Because, lets face it, there are so many things that could go wrong on your first day ;-)
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<br />
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Previous posts in the New Job Series</span>
<br /><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/07/new-job-before-first-day.html">Part 1: Before The First Day</a>
<br /><a href="http://www.thehappyemployee.com/2008/08/new-job-maybe-your-manager-is-nervous.html">Part 2: Maybe Your Manager Is Nervous Too?</a>
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<br /></span></div> Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6019580276959260180.post-50164445516977076542008-08-18T23:34:00.001+02:002008-08-18T23:36:13.748+02:00Book: Johnny Bunko (The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi23T7ug5MiDjO6yATf5zqB9i3rF3BLf3ogZsEo6SsVvn7gYcPP0n9o2UmaQWX5a2QrWZ8hNg2jkuehLFESCVWrPh3S6OACe_14CY_dRLUOkqCt0LFqrreV_jhEKZHVb6jd5bm2SaPe_bI/s1600-h/johnnybunko_small.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi23T7ug5MiDjO6yATf5zqB9i3rF3BLf3ogZsEo6SsVvn7gYcPP0n9o2UmaQWX5a2QrWZ8hNg2jkuehLFESCVWrPh3S6OACe_14CY_dRLUOkqCt0LFqrreV_jhEKZHVb6jd5bm2SaPe_bI/s200/johnnybunko_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235972590974403346" border="0" /></a><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.danpink.com/">Daniel Pink</a> could have written a classic business book about choosing a career, but he took a risk, tried something new and wrote a manga!<br /><br />The ad for <a href="http://www.johnnybunko.com/">The Adventures Of Johnny Bunko (The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need)</a> says that it's <span style="font-weight: bold;">"Americas first business book as manga"</span>. It contains very nice and expressive art in the style of Japanese comics as well as fun dialogues. But it's also full of valuable advice presented in a very engaging way.<br /><br />In Daniel Pink's own words:<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><blockquote>Today the question at the center of work is: WTF?!</blockquote></span>The book explores this question resulting in the "six lessons of a satisfying, successful career". You probably heard them before in one form or another. But believe me, never like this. Or has any career counselor ever said to you that</span> <span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;"><blockquote>when it comes to work, you're as clueless as a cucumber.</blockquote></span>I really liked how Pink introduces Johnny Bunko as a hardworking but disillusioned and somewhat clueless knowledge worker and then walks him (and the reader) through the six lessons.<br /><br />I also enjoyed seeing the name of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Seligman">Martin Seligman</a> (Learned Helplessness) and the face of <a href="http://www.cgu.edu/pages/4751.asp">Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi</a> (Flow) in a manga.<br /><br />But the absolutely coolest was of course the <span style="font-weight: bold;">red stapler</span>! Okay, it's in black & white, but it was so obvious, it had to be a red stapler.<br /><br />The only bad thing about the book is that it's too short. But I always say that after reading a great manga.<br />.<br /></span>Happy Employeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08762348762747591103noreply@blogger.com0