Idle Watch

About a month ago, I won a free iPad at a company event. The theme of the event was to share what inspires us. When I found out that I was a winner, I wasn't sure at first how I would use the device. So I started to wonder how I could use the device to improve my productivity as a Talent Operations Manager (what can I say, I was inspired). After downloading a few apps, tinkering with settings (and experiencing the joy that is a full iPad/iTunes update crash and restore), I wanted to share some thoughts on a few apps that I think warrant a look for TM professionals. Jot! Free by Tabula Rasa Roambi by Mellmo.com Evernote by Evernote Corp. What was nice about each of the above is they were free iPad apps. This allowed me to consider each without the mental hang up of "Is this app really worth it?" Jot! Free by Tabula Rasa Jot! Free is a great freehand drawing & text notepad. In the free version I can draw notes, objects, and flow diagrams with my finger. I ca...

As a follow up to my post on the promotion paradox , I decided to take a look at what others in the talent management industry are saying on the subject of compensation, retention, and recognition. Alice Snell from the Taleo group, recently posted her thoughts on research findings that suggests non financial forms of compensation elicit the same or greater goodwill from an employee as that of financial recognition. Top amongst the list were recognition from their immediate manger, attention from department leads, and leading special initiatives. This is rather interesting and worth calling out since many times managers feel that the only way to retain their talent is through increases in salary, which can be tough to do in strong economic times, and a real struggle in current times--especially if the staff shares their salary info with their peers. Now I am not suggesting that salary increases aren't warranted or effective. However, I do think that as talent managers we should not...

Have you ever worked at an organization where annual (or semi-annual) promotion cycles are the norm? Digitas currently has semi-annual promotion cycles. Depending on your point of view and expectations, the time leading up to promotion periods could be exciting or frustrating. For resource managers I think it's safe to say it's the toughest time of year. Attrition tends to spike around these dates, and often times you know the root cause - dissatisfaction with promotion results. As resource managers, we partner with department leads and HR to strike a balance in promotion discussions each cycle. The focus of the discussion is always centered on employee "demands" (salary, title, prestige, etc.) and what the business is able/willing to " supply " (new revenue, next level openings, rotations, etc.) in the current cycle. Inevitably like any supply and demand curve we come to a middle point. The "art" is in the give and take (budget, risk factor, op...

In my professional experience I have had a multitude of roles that have started as administrative positions but eventually bent towards actual office management. I found that I really enjoyed this line of work. So I decided to specialize in this field. After a few years of study at Baruch College for Operations Management (along with a minor in Communications), I have been working as a member of the Talent Operations (Resource Management, Staffing, Referee, etc) team at Digitas for approximately two years now. The day to day issues of JIT (just in time) Resource Management, efficiency targets versus effectiveness rates, and balancing the career development advocate hat against the company needs advocate are all thing I find interesting and challenging about the role. I was just recently promoted to a manager position in Digitas and am quite excited about the new opportunity to share my ideas on staffing and operations this role provides. I decided to write this blog for a few reaso...