Comments on: Desperately Seeking Distinction: What’s Your Advice?

By: Neil Anuskiewicz

Neil Anuskiewicz — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:00:16 +0000

BTW, just 20 minutes ago this article was posted on yahoo news: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080710/us_nm/workplace_usa_deskrage_dc;_ylt=AovmGr_K26PtYdxdkYVL3LKs0NUE It convinces me that civility, diplomacy, tact, basic manners, etc., are the single most important job skills!

By: Paul Barsch

Paul Barsch — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:38:58 +0000

Neil, your question of “What if you disagreed with someone about X, how would you approach the situation?” is a good one. Since sometimes good coaching can help an interviewer answer that one, I might ask, “Give me two examples when you disagreed with someone in the workplace and how you resolved the conflict.” Conflict resolution skills are one of the soft skills that can really make or break how well an employee “fits” within a company.

By: Neil Anuskiewicz

Neil Anuskiewicz — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:47:13 +0000

BTW, when I said “getting personal” I meant personal comments or attacks, not sharing of personal information.
Some degree of personal talk can increase bonding and is a good thing.

By: Neil Anuskiewicz

Neil Anuskiewicz — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:45:34 +0000

Wow, that is a tough one. At our firm one of the things we look for in any new hire is whether they are going to be a disruptive influence or not. Even one demoralizing person on a relatively small staff can be very bad. We have had such people in the past but now we have a very cohesive team.
Disagreement is a very *good* and necessary thing. We do not want “yes” people but, there is a big difference between diffidence and being negative all the time (i.e., complaining constantly), getting personal, and the other deadly sins of work life.
I’d say that reading articles and books on constructive confrontation and communication skills and, of course, just practicing it in every day life can help anyone.
As to how a hiring manager can discern these traits? That is a tough one.
I am not an HR expert but I am a manager and we have built a cohesive team somehow without specifically asking questions in the interview but more relying on a degree of instinct on these matters.
On the other hand, I bet there are interview questions that might help:
“What if you disagreed with someone about X, how would you approach the situation?”
It might be instructive to hear how someone describes the way they would handle a disagreement.

By: Paul Barsch

Paul Barsch — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:04:54 +0000

Neil, thanks for submitting your two cents. Your advice is good, but how does a hiring manager discern a skill for diplomacy? What kinds of questions should they ask? How should students build such skills? Looking forward to your response.

By: Neil Anuskiewicz

Neil Anuskiewicz — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 23:37:08 +0000

I think one of the most desirable traits for any position is that of diplomacy.
This means being able to express an opinion and so on but not be an jerk about it.

By: Paul Barsch

Paul Barsch — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:02:56 +0000

Arthur, thanks for your insights, I appreciate them.
You make some good points about the importance of a compelling cover letter.
However, in many larger corporations, resumes are read by machines first, scanned for keywords, and then flagged if some threshold is met. So while I agree that a coverletter that addresses the employer’s painpoints is extremely important, it’s probably more important to know your audience and spend your time (ratio of resume to cover letter) accordingly.
So for example, applying to GE, one might go 70/30 (resume to cover letter) vs small business 30/70.
That’s my take, others might disagree…

By: @ahg3 (Arthur Germain)

@ahg3 (Arthur Germain) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:52:18 +0000

Paul,
Great points. One thing that I like to tell students — budding marketers and others — is to really think about what they say in their cover letters for internships and jobs. They often start the same way “I’m looking for a …” I tell them that — really — their prospective employers do not care what the student wants — they care how the student can help their company. LCS @ LMU makes some great points in her comments. I’d only add that students should spend more time on their cover letters than their resumes. I wouldn’t bother reading the latter if I’m not impressed with the former — would you?
ahg3

By: Paul Barsch

Paul Barsch — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:14:20 +0000

Donna, thank you for commenting. Funny you mention this, I read an article (and wish I could source it) where some of the lingo used in texting is making its way into reports and essays that students are writing for class coursework. Of course, the teachers don’t accept mangled English and thus students using text-speak in their papers end up with poorer grades.
That said, I believe some of the more popular text phrases are making their way into not only our daily lexicons but also the dictionary!
As far as keeping up with it all, http://www.webopedia.com/quick_ref/textmessageabbreviations.asp, it’s almost a new language to learn for an old guy like me!

By: Donna Chiapperino

Donna Chiapperino — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:41:11 +0000

I have read your comments and agree with each of you. Taking this conversation a step further, does anyone think that this generation’s obsession with texting is reflective in their lack of communication skills? I have seen many students with excellent ‘book’ grades, who simply cannot hold a truly intellectual conversation. I would like to know your thoughts… and what do you think will happen to the younger kids who ONLY use letters to talk instead of actually knowing how to (gasp) spell the words. Or looking at the other side, as marketers, is this how they communicate with one another and we should just learn to run with it?