Career Guidance Archives - Groupe Insearch

Essential Questions to Ask During a C-Level interview

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Hiring Strategies, Interviews, Leadership

A structured approach that focuses on research, networking, reference development, and rehearsal is the key to more successful C-level interviews. There are some differences in preparing for a C-level interview versus an entry-level one. In addition to showing your knowledge, skills, and experience, communicate your leadership style. Asking intelligent questions can also make you stand out. Executive recruiters recommend these, along with a few other tips.

What trends are you following that could influence this organization’s goals and priorities?
If I am hired as your executive assistant, what do you see as the most significant challenges in working to fulfill the goals of this organization?
What are some significant milestones that will be used to evaluate my performance?
Can you describe the work culture and environment here?
What are some of this company’s most significant achievements recently?
What leadership style wouldn’t be conducive to this company?
What would the typical workday be like for an executive assistant here?
What communication tools, professional development, etc., are available to employees?

Although this certainly isn’t a comprehensive list, it does represent some thoughtful questions that will help gain helpful insight regarding the expectations of these high-level positions. It’s a red flag when candidates don’t have any questions during an interview.

Research Industry Trends

Another effective way to connect with an interviewer and show that you are prepared to meet their organizational needs is by researching emerging trends from around the industry. Candidates are always encouraged to review annual reports, news articles, and videos when meeting with a hiring manager. Knowing about trends can also help you answer probing questions like why you want to work in this industry.

Reference Development

C-suite candidates have to be very selective when providing suitable references. Although any former colleague might work for an entry-level job, considerations need to be respected and relevant for executive-level managers. Only use people who can constructively describe your work ethic, leadership characteristics, strengths, and ability to work under pressure.

Although it’s still important to highlight your skills and experience, asking essential questions during a C-level interview is the best way to learn if it’s the right fit for you. Researching industry trends can help you create solid queries and respond to them intelligibly. Finally, focus on providing only trusted references you know could handle open-ended questions about your leadership qualifications.

August 25, 2021

Adapting to Executives Facing Upcoming Retirement

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Leadership

Retirement is something that impacts small, mid-size, and big businesses alike. It can be difficult for some leaders to give up control over something they’ve worked so hard to build. Approximately 12 million Baby Boomers also happen to be executives and business owners, and most of them will be eligible for retirement in the foreseeable future. Yet, close to half of CEOs still don’t have transition plans for when they leave. Below are some potential exit strategies that can help businesses maintain value and adapt to executives facing retirement.

Develop a Plan

Perhaps this is the best advice that executive recruiters can offer to owners and leaders considering retirement. Rather than continue working in the business, start working on it by focusing on other responsibilities that can help grow it, like marketing. The decision to either sell the business or transfer ownership to current employees gets more accessible when the right employees are hired and appropriately trained. Then, organizations should model a plan similar to this for managing the wave of retiring workers.

Decide organizational goals. Surveys and focus groups are effective ways to discover what the needs of employees and the company are.
Determine what you want from employees. Do you want to promote internally for C-suite positions or recruit external candidates? Even though external candidates tend to have more experience, employment data suggests that they are more likely to be fired than those hired from within.
Aggressively promote the succession plan. Ensure that employees understand eligibility by holding educational meetings.

Recruit Successors Earlier

It’s easier for organizations to prepare for retirements than other forms of turnover because they can usually predict the who and when. Multilevel succession plans can help small businesses develop talent to hedge against executives retiring. Alternatively, companies can partner with C-level recruiters to hire a successor as soon as possible to shadow the outgoing executive and gain knowledge transfer.

To Retire or Not to Retire

For those executives unsure if now is the right time to exit the workforce, some red flags can help. For instance, retirement might be the best option if you’re not passionate about what you’re doing or don’t feel challenged anymore. Other people opt for retirement for personal reasons such as health, family obligations, etc. Some industries are evolving so rapidly that businesses could benefit from fresh leadership.

A strong succession plan is the best way for businesses to overcome the wave of retiring executives. It should combine transparent retirement policies and internal successor development programs. Otherwise, recruiters are yet another valuable resource that can help you adapt.

August 18, 2021

Why Managers Should Never Eat Alone

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Leadership

As a leader, you want your employees to know that you value their opinions and see them as people. One of the easiest ways to demonstrate this is to have lunch with them regularly. Managers who eat with their team members receive various potential benefits, such as higher employee retention and improved performance. Lunchtime is also one of the best times to build your network. This is especially true in the C-suite, where relationship-building is extremely important.

Improve Retention

Not liking their manager is one of the most common reasons people quit jobs. Taking the time to talk with your employees and demonstrate you empathize with them and care about their success will instantly make you a likable leader. This is why you should never eat alone. Eating lunch with your team members is an excellent opportunity to socialize with them and get to know them on a more personal level. Build a connection with your team so they will want to work for you.

Improve Team Performance

Employees who feel a connection to their team and to their managers are more driven to succeed. When team members eat alongside their managers, they feel seen. By connecting with your team on their level and in an informal setting, you will build trust and loyalty. Eating lunch as a group makes sure everyone feels included, which makes people want to do better and contribute to the group’s success.

Build Your Network

Eating lunch with others is also a great way to grow your professional network. Networking is most successful when it is based on authentic relationship building and isn’t just networking for the sake of networking. Most networking nowadays has moved online, yet nothing is as powerful as face-to-face conversations. When you eat together, you form relationships built on genuine camaraderie and respect. The relationships you create at the lunch table are much more meaningful than ones limited to online communication.

Enhance Your Mood

Another reason you should never eat alone is that it is simply more enjoyable to eat in the company of others. Eating in a large group enhances mood and makes people feel happier. If you always eat alone, you may eventually start to feel lonely and excluded. Even managers need to take a break from constantly thinking about work. Lunch breaks are a chance to give your brain a rest from work stress and to let loose. This can be a lifesaver when it comes to mental health.

While many managers are in the habit of eating lunch alone, a lot of good can come from making a point never to eat alone. On the one hand, this habit will help you build a connection with your team, improving employee retention and team performance. On the other hand, it can help you grow your network while enhancing your mood and reducing stress.

August 11, 2021

Your Company Culture Impacts Employee Well-Being

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture

A company’s culture affects the stress levels of its employees. It also influences employee engagement and satisfaction. With this in mind, an organization’s culture can lead to changes in your team members’ mental and physical health.

How Company Culture Affects Well-Being

What creates a toxic company culture? Low compensation, poor management, ineffective leadership, understaffing, and conflict among team members are just a few things that can create a negative company culture. One thing all of these factors have in common is they cause unnecessary stress to employees. Constant work stress can lead to mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, and insomnia. Stress can also have physical symptoms like frequent headaches and stomachaches. In contrast, company cultures that prioritize work-life balance policies, anti-bullying policies, mindfulness programs, and other policies and programs that target stress can positively affect its employees’ mental and physical well-being.

What Benefits Come from a Culture of Well-Being

Promoting the mental and physical well-being of your team members can come with many essential benefits. Employees who are healthy work more productively:

They take fewer sick days.
They focus better.
They have more motivation.

A culture of well-being sees higher team participation, higher rates of retention, widespread support systems between peers, and more. Ultimately, when a company bolsters the mental health of its employees, the company shows its employees that it supports them and values them as people while enabling them to engage in their work and motivating them to perform at their highest capacity. This improved productivity has additional benefits to the organization, such as higher profits and better business outcomes.

What You Can Do to Foster a Culture of Well-Being

If, as an organization, you want to foster a culture of well-being, the first step is to evaluate your company’s current culture. It’s helpful if you have a comprehensive understanding of how your company’s policies, practices, values, and interactions positively and negatively impact the well-being of your team. The best way to accomplish this is to listen to your employees. By having conversations with individual team members, conducting anonymous surveys, and seeking honest feedback, you can develop a clear picture of how supportive the work environment is. As you assess your organization’s culture, consider factors like compensation, workload, vacation time, and leadership. These all significantly affect stress levels. The next step is to develop policies and programs for your organization specifically designed to improve employee well-being. It is crucial to involve employees in the process. You will ensure the programs accurately reflect the team’s needs and give them the sense of inclusion they need to feel supported. To foster a culture of well-being, incorporate more opportunities for socialization and team bonding. Socializing enhances mood and decreases stress.

In recent years, work cultures have become increasingly stressful as people have started working longer hours and seeing their work-life balance decrease. Companies have begun to realize that company culture can have a significant impact on the well-being of their employees. Cultivating a culture of well-being can reduce the stress of your team members while improving retention, employee satisfaction, and productivity.

August 4, 2021

Tips for Managing the Executive Onboarding Journey

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Hiring Strategies, Leadership

You may be surprised to learn that many executives in the United States don’t undergo formal onboarding when they begin a job. This lack of support may explain why 40% of new leaders leave within the first two years of starting a new job. These tips can help improve the executive onboarding journey.

Communication about Roles and Expectations

New hires are unlikely to succeed without clear and transparent expectations. While new leaders need to understand their responsibilities clearly, they especially need to know what to expect from their team members, peers, and mentors. Once hired, leaders will have to meet and interact with many new people. The more they know about all these individuals, the better off they are. Communicating these expectations allows hires to prepare, making good impressions early on, and starting on the right foot.

Education about Company Goals and Values

One of the main reasons so many leaders struggles when they start a new job is that they don’t know enough about its goals and values. An effective onboarding strategy for leaders will allow hires to gain in-depth knowledge about what is important to the company. This will help the hire feel more connected to the organization and give them a sense of purpose.

Education about Internal Processes

Even if they held a similar position at a different company, your organization’s internal process might differ drastically from what the new hire is used to. This is one reason starting a new job in a position of leadership can be overwhelming. As you develop your onboarding strategy, make sure to identify key aspects of your company’s internal process that new hires will benefit from knowing about. It is also important to check in with new hires regularly to make sure they are not confused about any internal process. Regular check-ins are crucial in monitoring how well hires adjust to their new work environment.

Integration into the Management Team

One of the hardest aspects of starting a new job is integrating into the team. This can be even harder at the executive level because the team is smaller. Team building activities are a key part of any executive onboarding strategy. The new hire needs chances to socialize with other executives and start to build a relationship with them. This will allow the team to develop mutual trust, which is of great importance at the executive level. Any person in a leadership position who feels like an outsider will not stay long, so integration into the management team has to be a top priority for new hires.

Beginning a job as part of the C-suite isn’t easy. New hires are given a lot of responsibility early on and have to adjust to a new culture, new company processes, new team members, and so much more. Moreover, many don’t receive a real onboarding experience. To improve the chances that a hire will succeed as an executive, communicate clear expectations, educate them about company goals and internal processes, and integrate them into the management team early on in the process.

July 28, 2021

DEI Initiatives that Have Been Making a Difference

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Industry Trends

As is common in much of the corporate world, C-level support has historically lacked diversity and inclusion. As social awareness has increased in recent years, many organizations have taken actions that have made a real difference in making the C-suite more equitable.

Compile and Analyze Data

When it comes to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, knowledge is power. A company can’t improve its diversity and inclusivity without first understanding how diverse the organization is in practice. One of the most important initiatives one can take is collecting data that can be analyzed continuously. See how the composition of your team compares to other companies in your industry and the overall labor force. Pay close attention to key diversity categories, such as age, ability, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, generation, learning styles, race, language is spoken, etc. By collecting data and comparing it to other companies and your own organizational goals, you will be able to identify problem areas and hold yourself accountable for the goals you set

Identify Problems and Set Clear Goals

By collecting lots of data, you will have the resources you need to identify where you fall short as an organization in diversity and inclusion. Look beyond simple statistics to examine how diverse groups are represented within specific departments and job titles. For example, even if fifty percent of your employees are female, your organization isn’t inclusive if men fill all the leadership positions. In addition, survey individual employees to see if they feel their work environment is inclusive. This can help you identify less obvious problem areas. Once you identify specific problems within your organization that hold you back from being inclusive, you can begin to set goals. Identify what needs to change and develop an action-based plan to move your company to where it needs to be. The plan should address aspects of the organization like hiring practices, job descriptions, company culture, and company policies.

Involve Leadership and Management

Leaders who have decision-making power must be involved in any effective DEI strategy. You must also involve line managers from the beginning of the process. Without the help of leadership, there is no way to make real changes in hiring practices and company policies. Involving line managers is also important because they have a better understanding of what the company’s day-to-day culture looks like and can help ensure that the DEI goals the organization set match up with the reality of the workplace.

Consider Technology and Its Biases

Technology is one area that diversity committees often overlook. For example, the technology used to hire candidates and evaluate employee performance can rely on data biased against specific minority groups. This bias can range from steering job ads toward certain candidates to flagging candidates for word choice. Thus, it is important to regularly assess the technology used in your hiring and evaluation processes to ensure they do not affect anyone group in an inequitable or discriminatory way. Data, questions, and criteria used to evaluate candidates and employees should be fair and should use measures that are relevant indicators of performance for a given role.

Many companies are actively working on improving the diversity, inclusivity, and equity of their organizations. Strategies that focus on collecting and analyzing diversity metrics, setting clear and measurable goals, involving leadership and line manager, and cutting out biases and technology can make a real difference in improving the inclusivity of your organization.

July 21, 2021

Company Culture, Hybrid Work Environment

Maintain Company Culture in a Hybrid Work Environment

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Corporate Culture, Industry Trends

Many organizations transitioned to alternative working arrangements during the pandemic to reduce the number of people in the office and meet social distancing requirements. Hybrid workplace models continue to trend as some high-profile companies announced that they would be allowing employees to work wherever they want. From employee safety to increased productivity, there are plenty of advantages associated with hybrid work environments. But, if work models like this are left unchecked, they present some unique challenges too. For instance, more companies are struggling to maintain employee morale because they feel disconnected from their colleagues and their purpose. Employee burnout is becoming more prevalent as a result. Fortunately, it’s still possible to maintain company culture in a hybrid work environment with these tips.

Promote a Sense of Shared Purpose

A common concern among many remote employees is the lack of teamwork and shared energy toward overall goals. Business leaders can help their teams overcome this by having regular discussions about shared purpose and how both individual and team contributions are connected to the success of a project. Hybrid workforces need frequent reminders concerning mutual dependencies while avoiding the temptation to micromanage. Instead, leaders should provide remote employees with the right tools and information required to complete work assignments. A sense of shared purpose can still be communicated through email, texts, video conferencing, etc.

Hold Employees Accountable for Results

One of the best ways to remind employees that their work matters is to hold them accountable even when working outside of the traditional office setting. It’s important to remind people that their work matters regardless of where it’s being done. The most successful hybrid work environments will have a good balance of empathetic management and accountability.

Manage Conflict Productively

It can be challenging to interpret people’s emotions during video calls, leading to even more conflict among remote employees. Disagreements are bound to happen in any work environment, but if leaders are proactive about keeping them respectful, then it helps create a positive work culture. Leaders today should encourage differences of opinions and have some standard operating procedures in place for conflicts.

Keep the Lines of Communication Open

Transparent, open communication is the key to maintaining a positive hybrid work environment. Since some employees miss out on the latest updates, leaders have to focus more on keeping everybody in the loop by sending out regular newsletters, updating social media accounts, sharing industry trends, etc.

Successful hybrid work models can require fine-tuning along the way. But, if you’re proactive about promoting a sense of shared purpose, managing conflict productively, and holding employees accountable, then a positive culture is inevitable.

July 14, 2021

C-Suite Executives Affect Customer Service

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Industry Trends, Leadership, Training

Companies are well aware that delivering strong customer service is essential to customer satisfaction. It affects a company’s reputation, as well as the average lifetime value of customers or clients.

One aspect of customer service that is not always as obvious is the impact that C-suite executives have on customer service. To maximize customer service, C-suite executives should consider the following steps.

C-Suite Executives Should Focus on Employee Engagement to Promote Customer Service

Satisfied and engaged employees tend to deliver better customer service. As such, savvy C-suite executives listen to their employees and encourage feedback. Research shows that companies with higher ratings for customer experience tend to have more engaged employees. They also tend to have more collaborations with HR.

Essentially, engaged and happy employees have a higher willingness to resolve customer issues. They will go out of their way to deliver the best possible customer experience.

C-Suite Executives Should Encourage Meaningful Connections

Another action that C-suite executives can take is to ensure that the company uses social media channels and reviews to create meaningful connections with clients. C-suite executives who incorporate this strategy will notice that consumers are more emotionally engaged with the brand. Research has shown that high engagement translates into more sales.

C-Suite Executives Should Integrate Silos

C-suite executives should also take the time to address any silos, or isolated divisions, within their organization. There are several aspects to this. To begin, silos reduce the level of employee engagement, as employees in siloed departments may not feel as appreciated.

Additionally, it is nearly impossible to ensure consistent messaging when there are siloes within a company. This is crucial, as customers will have an improved experience if messaging is consistent. Consistent messaging ensures that your product design team can deliver what the sales or marketing teams promise. Inconsistent messaging can lead to confusion and disappointment.

C-Suite Executives Should Understand Their Audiences

Any C-suite executive hopefully realizes that their marketing team must understand the audience to appeal to them. However, more than just the marketing team needs to have this understanding. The product design team needs it to create products that customers want.

Most importantly, the C-suite executives need this understanding themselves. C-suite executives are in control of the overall direction of the company. To move the company in the direction that your customers want, you must understand their needs and goals.

The C-Suite Can Include a Chief Customer Officer

The actions of all C-suite executives can affect the customer experience. That being said, many companies have chosen to have a Chief Customer Officer (CCO) who focuses on this. In the case of a CCO, other C-suite executives keep the elements of this list in mind at all times, but the CCO focuses on them.

July 7, 2021

3 Reasons Why You Should Hire the Unconventional Choices

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Industry Trends, Leadership, Training

The benefits of new perspective are innumerable. However, to make a real difference in a business, hiring one nontraditional candidate probably won’t suffice. Companies must proactively seek this type of candidate every time.

Unconventional Choices Expand Your Talent Reach

Strict instructions for the type of hire you are looking for can limit your talent pool. Today, many job seekers hire someone to post their resumes for them. Basing the hiring process on how a resume looks and reads could mean you hire someone that isn’t who you thought they were.

Looking for a candidate with a specific degree or years of working experience in a similar field, for example, automatically closes out the opportunity for the unconventional choice. Instead, expand your reach and begin looking at resumes focused on your company’s values rather than only job experience in the field.

Often, you’ll find someone with transferrable skills and a passion for continuous learning that will open your business up to a whole new world of creativity and work ethic.

Bringing New Ideas to the Table

The unconventional choice is someone with a diverse or different background from what your company traditionally seeks in a new hire. Hiring someone based on their potential opens up the business to a fresh and unique perspective. They can more easily think “outside of the box” because they have experience solving problems differently.

Thus, the unconventional choice can potentially:

Cut down project times
Create new solutions yet to be thought of by anyone else
Increase worker efficiency
Encourage other workers to test the limits of creativity

Unconventional Choices Help to Diversify Your Customer Base

Your employee base should be equally or more diverse than your customer base. A diverse employee roster means the potential to form relationships with every type of customer increases. This is especially true for any business that deals directly with the customer.

Maybe the unconventional choice has experienced highs and lows that your other employees have not. This background gives them a greater opportunity to connect with different customers because they have direct experiences with their issues.

This type of thinking also impacts advertising and sales. For example, an advertising idea could connect with the customers in ways that the traditional employee can’t because they don’t have the same experiences.

According to Harvard Business Review, hiring random people for the job in hopes of diversifying your company won’t produce benefits on its own. You must have a strategy in place. Focus on getting to know a new hire’s potential and deciding how that potential best fits the company.

These changes can all help boost your business in different ways because you took a chance on the unconventional choice.

June 30, 2021

Why a Vacation Might Be the Right Decision

By Angelica RainsCareer Guidance, Industry Trends, Leadership, Training

After a less than normal 2020 year and many people in America going without work or travel for much of the year, 2021 summer vacations look a bit more promising.

Even before the global pandemic, Americans had 768 million unused vacation days in 2019. It’s time to take those vacation days back! Studies show it’s not only great for employees’ mental and physical health, but it’s essential for productivity as well.

Used Vacation Days Increases Productivity

According to multiple studies, the work martyr trend continues to gain popularity, and Millennials are some of the main culprits since they now make up much of the workforce. From 1978 to 2000, Americans took an average of 20 vacation days per year, which plummeted to 16 days in 2014. Interestingly, new research points out that taking time off work can improve workforce efficiency.

The Wall Street Journal states that workers that take appropriate time off are healthier than workers that don’t, and healthier workers are more productive. Therefore, companies should urge their employees to use more time off each year.

Companies like Netflix, Glassdoor, and Dropbox first initiated the “Unlimited PTO” trend because they believe that employees that feel cared for work harder and better. They believe that efficient work requires sufficient vacationing to recharge and perform at their best, leaving how long to vacation up to the employee.

Many other companies started softly mandating their employees to take a minimum of two to three weeks off per year. If the employee doesn’t take time off, their boss is supposed to bring it up during their yearly review.

Vacation Days Improves Employee Mental and Physical Health

Not only are vacation days essential for productivity, but they are also essential for worker mental health. The US Travel Association found that taking the proper amount of vacation time improves the worker’s happiness with:

Their career
The company where they work
Personal and coworker relationships
Physical health and well-being

When employees are happy, their anxiety and depression symptoms subside as well. According to Corporate Wellness, rested employees are productive employees, but they are also physically and mentally healthier employees.

A Psychosomatic Medicine study, conducted over nine years, found that regular vacations reduce the risk of heart disease in men and women.

Why Employees Still Don’t Take a Vacation

By now, it is a well-known fact that employers want their employees to take vacations, and employees themselves want to vacation. So why aren’t employees taking advantage of their PTO?

Aside from the work martyr complex, here are a few reasons employees work through their vacation days:

Feeling guilty for making their coworkers pick up the slack while they’re gone
Fearing they won’t receive a promotion if it looks like they are always gone
They have no one willing or able to take time off with them
Pressures from bosses to meet deadlines
Concerned about how much a vacation costs

Most of these fears are anxiety-based. In reality, well-planned vacation time can debunk all of these fears and benefit the employee, coworkers, and business.

The US Travel Association also wants you to save the date for National #PlanForVacation Day on January 25, 2022. Everyone is invited to take time to travel and regroup for the coming year. It’s about time American workers cut into the 768 million unused vacation day tally.

June 23, 2021