It seems that “losing top talent to competitors” is keeping some senior Directors awake at night. In the past few days I’ve been approached by three different companies asking for help to reduce the risk that their top talent might leave the team.

Here are just three of the tips I advise my clients when advising on retaining talent.

1) Ask yourself the reasons why the talent joined your team in the first place. (Was it challenge of the work, learning opportunities, career path, the business looked great on their CV, resume?). Are these reasons still relevant and are they still being delivered?
If not then the talent is at risk of leaving.

2) Ask yourself the value of your “Poach Rate”. The “Poach Rate” is the additional percentage in salary that a competitor would need to offer to steal your talent. The higher the percentage increase in salary the more your talent values working for your team. If the competitor only has to offer an additional 2-5% salary increase then the reason for leaving is more likely to be poor management, poor culture, few learning opportunities etc.

3) Meet and observe your top talent. Not just at appraisal times but regularly.
Listen and look at the way they walk, talk, dress, engage with customers and colleagues at meetings. (I often go into a business and find that I can identify a talent that’s “on the way out” by just looking at how engaged they are. But then I do this as a matter of norm and often I’m not wrong!)
Ignoring talent because you believe it’s happy, or you’re too busy to observe it, tends to increase the risk that it will leave.

Finally it’s worth considering that the day a talented member of your team tells you they are leaving your team is probably six months after they made the decision to do so!

The reaction from friends and my network to my first tip was awesome and this has motivated me to produce more. So I set myself a target to upload a new answer to a difficult question every day. Two if I can manage it.

Here’s question #2 which covers “tell me about your strengths and weaknesses.

Too often people seem to find answering this question difficult because they become embarrassed over praising themselves. However, it’s only for a couple of minutes. Similarly they feel that to talk about a weakness can harm the job prospects.

I hope the video helps and more tips to follow:

Interview question strenghts + weaknesses

Finding a job in this financial downturn and when so many people are being laid off  is difficult. In recent times so many people have asked my advice on answering “difficult interview questions” that I’ve decided to share some of the tips that I’ve given to the friends I’ve mentored over the past few years.

I know there is lots of advice on the internet on handling interviews but I hope that these short clips will be useful because I will explain why the question is being asked as well as ways to answer it.

I feel that by understanding why the question is being asked it then becomes easier to think through how to respond in a positive and dynamic way that makes you stand out from the crowd.
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The first two questions I talk about in this video are:
 “Tell me about your career to-date” and
“Tell me about your strengths and weaknesses”

Within a few days I’ll have some more interview tips for you

If you’ve been listening to the news on the BBC today you will have heard that there are 27 Graduates after every job available. It’s daunting to think that almost whatever job we apply for there will be people just as qualified, sometimes better, going for the same job.

So how do we make ourselves stand out from the crowd at an interview and particularly if we don’t have much employment experience behind us?

• Consider the gap year (if you had one or are about to have one) and leverage learning points from that time. Employers are all to willing to listen to “gap year adventures”  as long as they bring to the job some enthusiasm, experience of overcoming problems and a wider focus on the world.
• If you find yourself with time to spare, how can you fill it doing something worthwhile that delivers leadership skills, care skills and so on. Running a youth football team or other charitable work could be something you would find interesting.
• Offering your services to a national or local politician as a researcher or office worker. Who knows, you might get a job out of it.

Make sure that these experiences are added onto your on-line resume (CV) as soon as you start so as to keep people in touch with what you are doing. 

The competition for jobs is going to get hotter as more people are laid-off. Maximising your time looking for jobs is essential.

Here’s a tip

Bookmark helpful articles on job search topics to read when needed. I would recommend creating lists for the following categories:

• Creating the resume (CV)
• Interview questions and technique
• Cover letters
• Creating your Personal brand
• Personal website creation
• Social networking
• Job search strategies.

Have an interview tomorrow?
Now you have an entire library of interview and tips.

“How To Use Power-words”
  Tips To Increase Effectiveness in a CV and in Sales. 

Just to say that I’ve had a great day and because I feel so great I’m giving away 100 copies of the new e-book “How to use Power- words”.

Packed with tips and advice on how to use over 120 power-words in your Resume / CV and your Sales appointments to make them sparkle and stand out from the competition.

All you have to do to receive the book is to send me your name and e-mail address HERE

Sent direct to your computer