Pay discrimination starts early in life…

Written by Mel Kleiman on September 3, 2010

A reader just pointed this out. She learned about it when her son and daughter applied for work at the same fast-food restaurant. The boy was hired as a fry cook, which paid more than the cashier's job offered the girl. "Neither was told what jobs were available or what the jobs paid," she reported. "In fact, no females are hired as fry cooks and no males as cashiers.” Reverse this and think ab...

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24/7 Recruiting

Written by Mel Kleiman on September 2, 2010

Recruiting is like bathing; you’ve got to do it every day because there are really only two basic types of people – risk takers and risk avoiders. Most of us are risk avoiders (we don’t want to fail or be rejected). We need to ask people to come to work for us 24/7 because most won’t ask us if we are hiring.  (To read an excerpt from Mel Kleiman’s newest book, The 5 Firsts: A Simple ...

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The 10 Commandments of Employee On-boarding

Written by Mel Kleiman on September 1, 2010

  Thou shalt commit thyself to being a great employer who, in turn, easily attracts and hires great people. Thou shalt tell the truth about the job. Thou shalt make the first hour and the first day the best day a new employee will ever have on any job. Thou shalt make orientation not only about what you want and need, but, more importantly, about what’s in it for them. Thou shalt ...

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Are you asking the right questions?

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 31, 2010

Every industry seemingly tries to keeps its finger on the pulse of their customer base by building a service satisfaction question into the buying process. At the grocery store, you’re asked if you found everything you were looking for. The standard question restaurant query is: “Is everything all right?” In retail stores someone usually asks: “Can I help you find anything?” The probl...

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Make It Clear…

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 31, 2010

Do you let applicants know what you are looking for when you ask them a question or do you let them play the guessing game and hope they give you the information you want? Next time you interview, explain to applicants what you are looking for before they answer your question. Example: You are looking to find out if someone is going to be a team player. You say: “Tell me about a time when ...

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How to thrive in today’s hypercompetitive marketplace…

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 30, 2010

Even in today’s business climate, it‘s easy to shine if you focus on those parts of your business that most of your competitors will ignore or pay less attention to —what your customers and employees want and need. It is not the business with the deepest pockets that will succeed, but rather the one that knows what their customers and employees want most and then delivers it to them on a ...

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Honesty vs. Truthfulness

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 27, 2010

Yesterday, I blogged about “simple versus easy.” That got me thinking about honesty versus truthfulness. Yes, Virginia, you can be truthful without being honest. Here is an example: “Have you taken money or property from your present or past employer without permission?" The job applicant answers: “Yes.” Here we have someone who is truthful, but they not honest. Read an excer...

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The top 10 ways managers drive their employees crazy…

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 26, 2010

10. Giving raises that are virtually worthless (a few cents an hour) 9. Giving false praise and insincere thanks 8. Throwing people into jobs they are not trained for or qualified to do 7. Allowing the workplace to become dirty, disorganized, or messy 6. Putting undue stress on employees about pressures from above 5. Playing the power game (“Do it because I said so.”) and creati...

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Great hiring is simple, it’s just not easy

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 25, 2010

Yes, great hiring, like many things in life, is not really difficult if you take the time and effort to plan, develop, and use a proper system. However, just because something is simple, doesn’t necessarily make it easy. For instance, it’s simple to lose weight. You just eat fewer calories than you burn a day. The hard part is eating right and exercising. The difficultly is in the doing. ...

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Managing takes both skill and talent

Written by Mel Kleiman on August 24, 2010

Management is not a position you should fill with the most senior employee or the most convenient person available. No matter who you choose however, one thing is absolutely essential and that is that the person has the talent and skill to make every employee feel he or she is valued by that manager, the company, and the customers. (To read an excerpt from Mel Kleiman’s 100 + 1 Top Tools,...

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