Category Archives: News

Bonfires and Fireworks

Happy Guy Fawkes to you all – not breaking with tradition I would like to tie in today’s blog to the theme of bonfire night.

Remember remember the fifth of November

Gunpowder, treason and plot.

I see no reason why gunpowder, treason

Should ever be forgot…

A poem brought about after Guy Fawkes was put on trial in 1606 for treason having been caught in the cellars of the Houses of Parliament with several dozen barrels of gunpowder and subsequently found guilty, which saw him hung, drawn and quartered. The poem was served as a reminder to the next generations regarding treason and the tradition has evolved with time, to include rather fantastic firework displays etc.

A powerful and emotive story which despite its age has certainly played a huge part in our lives over the years – if only we could be as effective in the workplace for lessons learned. Time and time again I have worked with project managers to programme directors who tell me stories of woe from managing pieces of work which would have greatly benefitted from the lessons learned log. This document has been either ignored / not completed or hidden away like it is a bad thing because it highlights where we went wrong. Of course it also highlights the good too but attitude seems to be that if we pretend the bad bits weren’t there now we’ve completed a project then it didn’t happen – then low and behold, history repeats itself.

Now I am not suggesting we have a bonfire and burn all the confidential waste every time we learn something but surely we are at a point where it makes sense to drag out and dust down the lessons learned log for projects similar in complexity etc. each time a new project is being scoped and particularly when it is being planned.

Here’s a poem which you could adapt for your project team:

Remember remember the project of last September

Stakeholders lost all respect,

I see no reason why lessons learned should be tossed

Or ever not be kept…

Blatantly I was never meant to be a poet but you get the idea – maybe adopting something in the office which reminds all to revisit times passed to better understand how to do things more efficiently moving forward could save a lot of time, money and energy.

International Project Management Day

Happy International Project Management Day – a day of recognition for all those involved in projects across the globe; originally thought up by Frank Saladish back in 2004 who felt there was not enough acknowledgment given to those behind the delivery of projects.

What a fantastic idea, after all the only press projects seem to get is when something has gone wrong! I have seen many a programme and project manager shy away from high profile programmes and projects – when asked why, their responses have been that they do not want to be associated with something which is likely to yield bad press along the way. I can understand why, but it also makes me wonder whether those individuals are being a tad too risk averse or have no faith in their own delivery abilities?

There’s lots going on across the globe to celebrate International Project Management day and if your business is doing something to mark the occasion – our friends at International Project Management Day would love to hear about it.

Well done everyone – I know it may feel like a thankless job, but we all support you!!

More information can be found about IPM day here.

Scary times when looking for a job?

It’s Halloween – a time for pumpkins, ghosts & ghouls, witches and skeletons to make an appearance. Keeping to the All Hallows theme I see some striking resemblances to the various elements of looking for a job.

  • Pumpkins – we all like an expertly carved pumpkin displayed in the window with a candle shining bright for all to see. Think about your CV and if you were to display it on the likes of job websites etc. is what you have on display scary or intriguing? If it is intriguing enough to take a closer look then you are on the right tracks, if it is garish and scary you may just frighten off potential employers.
  • Skeletons – do you have skeletons in your closet? If you are applying for security cleared jobs or even roles which may take a dim view on your past – are you prepared to have your background interrogated or are you setting yourself up to fail? Think about the roles you are applying for and make choices based on what will work for you – do your homework.
  • Ghosts – often translucent, and to the trained eye your CV is the same – make sure you back up your statements in your CV to ensure you are not being overlooked. Also ghosts often appear and disappear like a number of pieces of information on CVs, don’t swap around information too much as you may scare off a recruiter who will do a comparison of different versions of your CV and will have their suspicion raised.
  • Witches – often seen huddling around a cauldron deciding on ingredients (applications) going into the spell which will win over their prey (hiring managers).
  • Spiders – or web crawlers work over your CV in databases and on job boards as they search for keywords to index you for searches by employers. Make sure you are using terminology common to your profession but don’t just list a load of keywords – contextualise them in the remits for the roles. The spiders do still work just as effectively.
  • Trick or treat – knocking on the doors of the prosperous (employers) for treats (jobs), not a great deal of effort goes into direct applications / speculative approaches to businesses but it is still the leading route to success.
  • Bobbing for apples – similar to applying for jobs, leaning into a big barrel and trying your best to catch an apple in your teeth; in competition with several others but who will get it first?
  • Zombies – make sure you are alert and articulate when speaking with HR / recruiters especially when it is you calling them to ask how your application is coming along / has it been received or you have questions.
  • Werewolves – Always treat everyone you meet as you would expect to be greeted, don’t change from human to grumpy wolf when speaking to receptionists / secretaries. Not only is it rude and disrespectful, you don’t actually know who you are speaking with – they may be the MD just picking up the phone or sat in reception!!
  • Cobwebs – clear out the cobwebs from your CV; refreshing and updating your CV periodically is excellent practice.
  • Lightening – don’t wait to apply for a role, get to work immediately on tweaking your CV and submit it ASAP. Job shortlists can often be met within a few hours of a job advert being posted online.

Wishing you all a Happy, Safe and Joyful All Hallows Eve – remember a good costume to intrigue and attract others to talk to you is the best way to gain success but keep it real, no one likes to take off a mask to reveal something even more scary underneath!!

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We had some fun in the office carving our own pumpkins (see below) – this has become a bit of a tradition as I was challenged to create a themed one last year which yielded a donation to a local children’s hospice and even though we did not have a bet on this year, a donation was made again to the hospice – thanks Steve!!

 

Should you be accepting those LinkedIn invites? Managing your network – guest blog

It is easy to click on a button and find that you have got another LinkedIn contact. Box ticked. But remember, it is not a competition to get as many friends as you can and then start boasting to your colleagues at work. The social site is designed to be a business aid and help you to build and manage your professional network. So should you be accepting invites from people willy nilly?

Well, there is a simple answer to that, and it’s no. Even the company itself recommends that you only click yes on invites when they are from people you know. Managing your network efficiently is a key part of having an account, so if you can’t control what’s happening then consider whether it is really the best tool for you/your business.

There are a number of options when it comes to invites on LinkedIn. First of all you can simply choose to accept them, which will result in the person being added as one of your first degree connections. Secondly, you can opt to wait and reply to the person who has sent you an invite, without adding them to your network. Next up is the ignore button which puts the invitation into your archive folder but does not let the person know that you have declined their invitation – this is particularly handy when you do not want to offend an acquaintance. You also have the option to report an invitation as spam.

If a person comes calling that you don’t recognise then the chances are that they are from a recruitment agency. Now linking with them can be beneficial if you are in the market for a job – after all they have gone to the trouble of finding someone with your skills and getting in touch. However, if you’re not in the market then it’s likely to be a nuisance that you don’t need. Click yes at your peril! And remember too that other people will know when you have linked with a recruitment firm – if it happens numerous times then it might just start sending warning bells to your current employer!

When it comes to security, it is important to remember to change your LinkedIn password on a regular basis. Back in June the site was the subject of some unwelcome publicity after falling victim to a security breach which resulted in the passwords of more than one million of its users being leaked. That said, changing your password is not simply enough in itself, you also need to make sure that it is not something that someone else will be able to crack without trying. Research carried out after the attack revealed that one of the top passwords stolen was 12345. A considerable number of people didn’t exactly think outside the box it seems when choosing a LinkedIn password – other popular ‘secure’ choices were “job” and “work”.

So remember, while LinkedIn can be a fantastic tool when used correctly, it is vital to consider the security implications and always be careful when accepting new contacts.

Janice Lincoln is a freelance writer specialising in business matters such as looking for jobs via an it recruitment agency.