The world of business training has undergone many changes in the past decade. Previously, this training was done mainly through live presentations, written materials some videos. But now that online learning has started to become more commonplace, even in the workplace, one can find plenty of business courses that are given online. For example, there are dozens of OSHA training courses which can be done this way.
But since there is so much choice in the world of online business training programs, managers and business owners may sometimes have trouble determining which program is right for them.
But there are a few ways to take this uncertainty out of the equation and select a good program. The first thing that you will want to consider is what exactly you want your employees to learn. It may be very straightforward, such as earning a certification through OSHA training courses.
But there are programs available on thousands of different topics, such as IT systems administration, industrial relations, product sales and marketing techniques and more. It’s always a good idea to have a list of goals related to what you want your workforce to learn and then go looking for a training program that would meet them.
The format of the course is also important. Some can be done at the employee’s own pace, as all of the material is presented in a software program or on a website. This gives your employees more flexibility, as they can choose when they will take the course. They can also opt to do it from home, rather than at the office.
There are other courses which are led by a live instructor and done through video conferencing. This will truly re-create a “virtual classroom” environment, but the participants need to be available during the times where courses are given.
Online business training programs can bring many benefits to companies. They are generally less expensive than having someone come in and give live courses to your employees. You don’t need to reserve a conference room and ensure that everyone will make themselves available during the time where the course is given.
Many of these internet based programs allow you to monitor the progress of your staff through the course materials, plus you can see the results that they’ve gotten in quizzes or evaluations, allowing you to see if there are any problem areas that you should give them more training on.
This is a guest post from Sam Peters, a blogger who enjoys writing about career development.
Soon the kids will be heading back to school, new backpacks and notebooks in hand. You’ll get back to your regularly scheduled life… or will you?
If you’ve been contemplating a career change, this fall may be the perfect time to go back to school. Here are a few options to consider.
Easy Online Learning
If you’re looking for a few new skills to add to your resume, the easiest way is to attend online webinars or training programs. They’re not as official as certifications or degrees, but online resources can teach you how to use new software, how to market using social media or other business skills that will make you more hireable or more eligible for a promotion. For specific skills, check out how-to videos on sites like Udemy. Hubspot’s got great free webinars on all topics related to marketing, which are sure to impress your employer. Check specific company sites to see if they offer webinars or other learning resources to help you.
Local Learning
If you’re more of a face-to-face learner, look for local seminars, workshops, courses and continuing education classes. Some are one-time events, while others may offer a series of classes over several weeks. Community colleges often either allow you to audit classes or enroll in continuing education courses that may provide great learning on a given topic, like a specific computer program (i.e. Photoshop), business skills or career development.
Online Certification
If you want something a bit more advanced than a one-off online course, consider an online certification in your field. Sites like ExpertRating and eLearners offer highly sought-after certification, like Six Sigma or Medical Billing, that can teach you the ropes and hand you a certificate for your efforts. The programs can be taken from home on your computer, on your own schedule. While a certification isn’t quite as prestigious as a degree, it certainly shows you’ve made the effort to better yourself professionally.
Online Degree
No longer do you have to drive to your local university and sit through hours of evening classes. Most universities offer online degree programs, which give you the ability to “attend” any school in the country. When you get online is up to you: professors post lecture notes and assignments, and you can complete them as you are able to.
Make sure if you decide to earn a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree online it’s with an accredited online program. Some websites are a little less official, and getting a degree from NightOwl University might not have the clout that, say, University of Notre Dame would on your resume.
This is a guest post by Alison Kenney.
- Ask any reporter for tips on pitching them and 9 times out of 10 they’ll say, “read my writing.” Here’s how that can help:
- If they repeatedly cover the same topic you can offer a resource in that area.
- Look at your pitch target’s headlines to get a sense of their preferred tone, format and style of writing.
- Understand what they’ve already covered and don’t re-pitch old stories.
- Reporters don’t like to be pitched stories that have already been written…if you bring up a past story, do it to offer a completely different angle or side.
- Check the AP Planner (@AP_Planner on Twitter) calendar for ideas that are timely – anniversaries of major events, etc.
- Link to, or reference, a story that has lots of stats.
- Think seasonal – what are the major trends and how can you tie your pitch to them?
- How does your story relate to major world events – e.g. the Olympics, presidential elections.
- Talk to your sales team – how do they pitch the product?
- Visualize your pitch as it would appear – with a headline, hook, quotes from different sources, etc.
- Think like a freelance writer and pitch story ideas to your editor that you can then plan to write yourself.
- Turn your story idea into a “top 10 tips” piece.
- Read different, “competing” media outlets – how are they covering a topic differently?
- Pitch a “resource” rather than a story – offer your client as an expert/authority and spell out the areas of expertise.
- Better yet, offer multiple resources for a story.
- Better still, offer a customer or someone “in the field” for perspective.
- Take a look at the competition – what articles have they been in? Don’t copy, but use them for inspiration.
- When you look at how the media covers your industry, what story aren’t they covering?
- Pitch your spokespeople as profile subjects.
- What do your clients, customers and prospects care about? Frame your story around that.
- Google your story idea.
- Read good writing.
- Can your story be pitched as a video interview?
- Can your spokespeople speculate about the outcome of an upcoming event?
- Do you have a sample product the media can preview?
- Anticipate requests for artwork like high resolution photos.
- If you’re pitching a trend, how do you prove it’s a trend? i.e. do you have multiple witnesses/spokespeople/examples?
- Consider the other side(s) to your pitch (since the editor will), what’s missing, what else will they ask about?
- Include helpful hyperlinks in your pitch to sites like the company’s homepage, the spokesperson’s bio, books they’ve written, authoritative industry sites, etc.
- Suggest meeting for coffee.
- Get to know your spokespeople – what are their hobbies, life histories, interests, unique accomplishments?
- Do you have video examples of your spokespeople in action to share with a new broadcast pitch target?
- Do you have a story about something that didn’t work or a problem that you faced that you can share?
- Brainstorm.
- For inspiration, consume media that is completely different from your targets (e.g. morning talk shows if you regularly pitch high tech trade media)
- Ask the writer how they prefer to receive pitches and what they’re currently working on
- Read letters to the editor and comments on blog posts for new approaches and to consider the “other side of the story”
- Before you pitch, read the writer’s blog, Twitter stream, LinkedIn profile, Facebook page (if it’s public)
- Note the outlet’s production cycle and deadlines so you understand the best times to make contact.
- Localize a national story.
- Nationalize a local story.
- Summarize your story idea and say it out loud; if a stranger was listening would they find it interesting?
- Explain to your kids what you do and what story you’re trying to tell and then ask them to explain it back to you.
- Remember “if it bleeds, it leads” – how does your story angle play into readers’ deepest concerns?
- A pitch is different from other marketing communications – it’s your opportunity to tailor it and deviate from the approved company messaging statements.
- Think about what would make your spokesperson a desirable resource to THIS writer you’re pitching; is it because of what the spokesperson does? Is it because of their past achievements? Or their current goal/job? Their past or current affiliations? Does their gender or other socio-cultural status make them appealing?
- If you’re struggling with the right angle, try writing your pitch in more than one way. Focus on a different angle for each new pitch.
- Read HARO or other pitch query services to get a sense of what topics are trending.
- Think like a reporter and ask yourself where they get their story ideas – scanning news wires, industry blogs, anticipating upcoming IPOs, new product launches, etc.?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
This is a guest post by Alison Kenney.
I started thinking about this blog post quite awhile ago, well before Anne Marie Slaughter’s article on Why Women Can’t Have it All appeared in The Atlantic. I think Slaughter’s argument is fascinating (and seemingly never-ending), but I’d like to focus on something she, and many other people recently, have pointed out: that there are fewer women than men at the top rungs of corporate management.
This is fairly obvious in PR – you can literally see the inequity if you were to page through a recent issue of PR Week that features photos of the CEOs of the nation’s top PR firms. But what is striking is that, unlike other industries with a large number of male CEOs, PR is a predominately female profession: seventy percent of all PR professionals are female.
I don’t have an answer, or really even a speculation about why there are so few female CEOs in an industry that is dominated by female talent.
In addition to Slaughter, several champions of women’s rights have commented on the lack of women leaders:
In his Harvard Business Review blog post on Why Boards Need More Women, Yilmaz Arguden wrote: “While most CEOs recognize the importance of appointing directors of different ages and with different kinds of educational backgrounds and functional expertise, they tend to underestimate the benefits of gender diversity…When Fortune-500 companies were ranked by the number of women directors on their boards, those in the highest quartile in 2009 reported a 42% greater return on sales and a 53% higher return on equity than the rest…Experts believe that companies with women directors deal more effectively with risk. Not only do they better address the concerns of customers, employees, shareholders, and the local community, but also, they tend to focus on long-term priorities. Women directors are likely to be more in tune with women’s needs than men, which helps develop successful products and services. After all, women drive 70% of purchase decisions by consumers in the European Union and 80% of them in the United States.”
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO has said, “Women are not making it to the top. A hundred and ninety heads of state; nine are women. Of all the people in parliament in the world, thirteen per cent are women. In the corporate sector, women at the top – C-level jobs, board seats – tops out at fifteen, sixteen per cent.”
Betsy Myers, a former senior official in the Clinton Administration and authority on leadership, says, “Women are no longer an interest group. Women are 52 percent of the population, a majority in the workforce. Companies that have more women in top positions, and more women on boards, are more profitable…Despite advances for women in the workplace, many of the statistics are discouraging. Only 3.6 percent of Fortune 500 companies are led by female CEOs, and women hold only about 14 percent of senior management positions within those companies. Despite the fact that more women than men are earning college degrees, and that women continue to make the bulk of buying decisions, corporate America has been slow to reflect that in its leadership ranks.”
Myers, and others, are forging some innovative practices for helping women achieve leadership positions:
Bentley president Gloria Larson launched the Center for Women and Business a year ago and has brought Myers on as its CEO. A recent Boston Globe article reported that the Center aims to advance women at all stages, from business-school students to upper management.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton founded the Women in Public Service Institute at her alma mater as Wellesley College. The institute is part of the Women in Public Service Project, founded by Clinton, the U.S. State Department, and the sister schools Wellesley, Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke and Smith, with the goal of putting more women into political leadership positions around the world. Clinton says the numbers show a global politics in which the voices of women often go unheard. Women occupy less than 20% of seats in parliaments and legislatures around the world, she said. The goal of the institute is to bring that number up to 50% by 2050.
With these lofty examples in mind, I wonder what we can do in PR to encourage women to lead? Do you know of any leadership programs that encourage women in our industry?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
People power boils down to one thing: potential. Just ask Stan Duncan, Senior Executive Vice President of U.S. Human Resources and Global Head of Management for Westfield. In the 20-plus years that Stan Duncan has worked with human resources divisions in several multinational companies that offer small business credit cards. He’s learned a thing or two about what makes a good job candidate. He’s learned which specific resources are vital to those who are ultimately hired and, more importantly, which questions to ask those candidates. Duncan says that it’s all about the candidate opening up to tell you what they want, what they have done, what will make them successful, and most importantly: “Why they do what they do. ”
According to Duncan, having a prospective employee reveal what they see as their own abilities and competence is a surefire way to not only get a raw understanding of their pros and cons, but also to get an understanding of their ability to adapt and their potential to last in the long term. “We aren’t looking for super-humans; in my two decades as an HR executive, I’ve yet to meet one. We want people who are talented, but most importantly, willing to grow and change as the company grows and changes, too. I believe people who know a lot about themselves do the best selling themselves in an interview. Basically, make sure you’re introducing yourself, presenting the real you in the interview.”
Duncan is certainly not shy about his two decades’ of experience as an interviewer. That was proven when he was asked what he’s learned when it comes to hiring the right people: “Doing this for 20 years certainly helps you see the big picture; it’s all about potential.” Duncan has been around long enough to see what works for the long-term–such as 0 interest balance transfer cards- and what only succeeds in the short term, and his reflections have resulted in him founding an HR model that prizes a prospective worker’s long-term potential over short-term spunk.
“Working in human resources for companies that focus on everything from career apparel, managed services, aerospace glass manufacturing to chemical agent creation has allowed me to see what always stays the same despite the change in labor practices, techniques, and strategies. Human resources are universal in that HR personnel are always seeking out that potential for a long-term employee presence once they’re hired. That’s because longevity in employment means a stronger, more developed team, which increases the likelihood that each member reaches their potential due to the longstanding support of one another.”
Without a guiding vision, the potential of individual talent to serve something greater is often wasted. Asking the right questions and paying close attention as human resources workers is the only way to uncover that potential and make sure the talent stays around long enough to make an impact. Let Stan Duncan’s success show you what can be accomplished in 20 years if you put your mind to it.
This is a guest post from Sam Peters, a blogger who enjoys writing about career development.
This is a post by PR Columnist by Alison Kenney.
Lately I’ve noticed more and more reporters skipping the interview and “writing” their articles based on email interviews.
For a case in point, take this recent HARO query:
“Emails only, please, no phone calls. And please don’t email to arrange a separate interview, I’m just looking to hear some comments from all y’all. Thanks guys.”
While there have always been reporters willing to run with the verbiage PR pros give them – such as lifting a quote from a press release when covering breaking news – now, however, the practice is being used more often and not just for breaking news stories, but more frequently in feature articles.
A couple of well-regarded blogs have commented on this practice recently, although mostly from the perspective of the media.
American Journalism Review wrote about the practice from the journalists’ and editors’ point of view (which is well worth a read). The post expresses concern that email interviews “promote lazy reporting and the use of unreliable sources…”
PR Daily recently asked, “Is the phone interview dead?” and lamented the lack of color an email interview has in comparison with a phone interview, as well as the lack of natural “back and forth that comes from a conversation. Plus, there’s no personal relationship building, however slight, when everything is done in written form.”
In response to the PR Daily post, Clay Ziegler did his own experiment and called a dozen working journalists to quiz them about their interview method preferences. He concluded that the phone interview lives and why that’s a good thing.
Like most changes wrought by new technology (and social media, in particular), old practices may not go away, but new practices – including using IM, Twitter, Facebook and email to get information and quotes for a story – are becoming more and more accepted.
What can PR pros expect as email interviews become accepted practice?
Get with the program – if you need media coverage to communicate your, or your client’s, story, get used to the new way of doing things and accept that some reporters prefer to work this way.
Be prepared – don’t stop at the point of pitching a story; think it through; have your point of view fully vetted and your quote ready.
Enjoy having more control – the good news about email interviews is that there is less chance of being misquoted or of having a reporter pick up on the one throwaway line in an otherwise stellar phone interview.
Use email interviews to bridge distances – if a client is traveling in another time zone and phone interviews aren’t convenient, email interviews can save the day.
Realize that no one speaks like PR quotes in real life – if you email in a corporate-approved quote, and the reporter fails to use good segues or connectors, the result will be a string of presser quotes that fail to add real perspective.
Keep an eye on which outlets use email interviews judiciously and properly – sloppy use of email interviews, in which its clear the writer used email for speed and convenience above all else, can devalue the quality of the media outlet’s content, thereby decreasing the value of your placement.
What do you think? Have you experienced many email interviews lately?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
This is a post by PR columnist, Alison Kenney.
Twice in the past few weeks I’ve heard other PR professionals talk about the need to learn HTML.
Sarah Skerik wrote this piece on 5 Emerging PR Trends & the New Emerging PR Skill Set for 2012 (& Beyond) for the PR Newswire blog and noted that, “Personally, I swear that one of these days I’m going to learn HTML and CSS.”
Another commenter in the same discussion, Steve Leer, a communications consultant/senior writer at Purdue University Department of Agricultural Communication, detailed the varied requirements demanded of public relations professionals by employers today: “Today’s professional communicator needs to know how to shoot and edit photos and video, be proficient in social media, create graphics, possess at least a basic understanding of Web design and know how to work with outside vendors for printed materials,”
In a recent #soloPR Twitter chat about learning more about SEO, @KristK tweeted, “A2: Know enough HTML to read code, spot problems — and when to hire a pro to help.” (There were lots of other good tips on remembering to incorporate key words, tags, incorporate link building, eliminate jargon; the full transcript available here.)
Heck, even New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is talking about learning to code.
So is HTML really important for PR professionals to know?
Here are some considerations:
HTML is essential for building web sites – HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is a coding language to develop web pages and is still considered essential for knowing how to build a web site. As a PR professional, do you need to know how to build a web site? Well, perhaps you don’t need to know how to write the code for an entire site, but I’ve sure heard lots of colleagues complain about their inability to fix problems on a site or blog, or get them to “look right.”
Knowing HTML will help you navigate SEO efforts– knowing HTML can help you write tags that will make your content more likely to be found and highlighted by search engines. This post explains meta tags and how to use HTML to do them properly. However, if you use one of the major blog publishing tools it’s likely that you can do this simply by typing your tags into the designated spots. For instance, when I post blogs in WordPress, I use the “All in One SEO Pack.”
HTML skills will help you add value to PR efforts –so many PR activities involve web-based media now that it seems silly to split hairs about where the PR role ends. In fact, in some situations there may not be anyone but the PR professional to do the work. For instance, how many times have you worked on the following types of projects?
- Linking an image to a web site
- Creating a unique landing page for a Facebook profile
- Drafting and editing e-newsletters
- Writing blog posts
- Tailoring a press release to be web-friendly
- Embedding multimedia items into pitches, emails and other written content
- Reworking a web page with new messaging
What do you think? Is it time for PR professionals to learn some code?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
Pinterest is one of the newest social media websites, and it is mainly used by women to save craft and decorating ideas. The site, however, has big potential for both job seekers and talent seekers. When used effectively, Pinterest can help prospective employees find jobs, and companies to determine if a candidate would be a good fit within their company.
Job seekers are using Pinterest to display their portfolio or create a visual resume. Since boards can be made of stand-alone pictures or links to a website or blog, the user can create a board with pins that link to their site, display a picture with a caption or a combination of both. Since all boards on Pinterest are public, a talent seeker can search using related keywords and find potential employees.
By browsing the person’s other boards and pins, the talent seeker can get an idea if the person would be a good fit for the company. A person’s boards say a lot about the person and their personality, so look for items that fit the ideals of the company. Some Columbia, South Carolina schools use Pinterest to provide career advice ranging from writing a good resume to job interview guidelines. A board’s followers are public, so look at the profiles of those who follow the board and read comments on pins to find prospective employees.
If you are advertising for a specific job, invite job seekers to create boards on Pinterest with ideas that relate to a subject. They can tag the business name in the comment section or email a link to the board. This allows the candidates to think outside the box and show what they can create, and it makes it easy for the talent seeker to look at submissions.
More and more students and job seekers are turning to Pinterest to look for jobs, including South University in Novi, MI students. They are familiar with the site, how it works and some even have their resumes and work already posted on the site. Professionals are using the site to showcase their work in many different fields, not just creative fields. For example, teachers can create boards with strategies and ideas they use in the classroom.
If you are looking for new talent, don’t forget to look at Pinterest. Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus are, perhaps, better known for finding talent, but the visual nature of Pinterest makes it ideal for job seekers and talent seekers. You can learn about a candidates ideas, previous work and their personality by browsing their boards and pins.
This Guest Post was contributed by Sam Peters, a blogger who enjoys writing about creative ways in which job seekers use Pinterest to draw attention to themselves during the job search.
A guest post from Rich Gorman.
We like to tell ourselves that we don’t really care what others think of us — but of course, it’s never really true. The fact is, popular perception and public opinion matter a great deal — whether we’re seeking to sell a product, land a job, or simply get a date.
That’s why the online reputation management industry has sprung up — because in the age of Facebook and Google, there’s never any telling what kind of information people are finding about you on the Internet. For major brands and small businesses alike, this information can be potentially devastating; if a Google search reveals nothing but negative reviews and consumer complaints, you can be sure your company’s profits will sink.
It’s not just businesses that need to be concerned about their branding and reputation, however; individuals need to be aware of this issue as well. Who hasn’t done an online search before going on that first date, following up on that prospective hire, or checking up on that new neighbor? It used to be enough to have a clean background — no arrests, no DUIs, no busted credit made for a clean bill of health. Now, one embarrassing photo or unwise Facebook comment can sabotage that first date or cost you that dream job.
But do online reputation management firms offer services for individuals, not just major corporations? The short answer is yes — all the time. Reputation management firms help lawyers and doctors, software engineers and schoolteachers, anyone and everyone remove unwanted photos or undesirable listings from the first few pages of Google, Yahoo, and Bing. They do it all day, everyday.
Your online reputation management situation may not quite call for that, however. For those seeking DIY reputation defense, there are a few basic tips and strategies that are sure to prove effective.
The first step is basic awareness. It’s vital to know what’s out there about you, and the best way to do that is to scour Google — known to many not just as a search engine, but as a reputation engine. Search for all possible variations on your name, as well as your phone number and your street address. Learning what’s out there about you is the first step toward defending your reputation, and combating unwanted listings.
Just searching on Google is not enough, though. As potent at Google may be, there are plenty of sites — including a lot of social media profiles — that are beyond its grasp. Try using a “people search engine,” like Pipl or Spock, to find out whether anyone’s talking smack about you on some long-forgotten MySpace page. These search engines will also determine whether you share a name with, say, a convicted felon or a porn star, both of which might be less than desirable if you’re trying to get a job.
If protecting your good name is the goal, opt out of mailing lists and bulk e-mail groups. Being present on these lists means your information is more accessible to those who might attempt to steal your identity. Removing yourself from these lists (or better yet, declining them in the first place) can really help make sure your identity is as safe as can be.
A great way to defend yourself from bad PR is to build a wall of good PR — which basically means making good use of social media. Populating your Facebook and Twitter accounts with information that presents you in a positive light is the key here. Signing up for those accounts but never using them is only so effective; if you post to them regularly, they’ll rank better on Google, hopefully out-ranking any negative listings you’d rather people not see.
If all else fails, online reputation management firms can provide an invaluable service, clearing your good name and restoring your reputation. However, by following these DIY defense tips, the hope is that you can keep your name clean on your own, and leave yourself with nothing to worry about on that first date or in that job interview.
Rich Gorman is a serial internet entrepreneur with an extensive background in direct marketing, affiliate marketing, and online reputation management. In addition, he helps companies and individuals with brand protection plans that prevent unscrupulous competitors from damaging their brand and reputation.
You’ve heard it time and time again: The key to a successful job search is networking… and not just when you are searching for a new position. Networking should be a constant activity you do throughout your career, whether you are searching for a new gig or happier than ever with your job.
Recently, Citi and LinkedIn launched a new group for professional women called “Connect: Professional Women’s Network”. Geared towards professional women, the group aims to help women increase their network connections, and provide members with valuable tips and inspirational stories for professional success. Group member are actively sharing interesting articles
Check it out!
And to help you network even more, Citi and LinkedIn provided me with FIVE premium year-long LinkedIn memberships to giveaway to readers. Each premium membership is worth $600 and provides you with Inmails, the ability to contact people outside your network, add personal notes to profiles so you can remember where you met someone, priority customer service, and more.
Winners will be randomly selected on Monday, May 14th.
To enter the giveaway, first join the Professional Women’s Network LinkedIn Group. Then make a comment on this blog post with a link to your LinkedIn profile. Make sure include your email when leaving a comment so I can contact the winners.
GIVEAWAY CLOSED
This blog is to share my recruiting experiences and discuss thoughts on the job market, PR industry and technology.
Alison Kenney is an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience.
