Where do job descriptions go to die?

I wish I could find a lovely place to send job descriptions to die.

You know what I want instead? Job clouds.

Doesn’t that sound lovely?

A job cloud is a lovely, puffy arrangement of projects and functions that need to be completed in order for a company to be successful. Job clouds can overlap across functional areas as the needs of the company change and the people in each cloud can change as their experience and education increase.

So what happens when a new client or project comes on the scene? GO TO THE CLOUD…Ah yes, take a look at all the employees whose availability, personality and current experience makes them a good candidate to successfully engage and offer them the opportunity to participate in something new. GADZOOKS! They might LEARN SOMETHING! You might learn something from them! That’s so crazy.

I know one of my fantastic left-brained friends would want to organize the cloud into tidy project lists and start assigning agendas, building committees and the like, but let’s not over-document the thing. The beauty and the success is in the movement and ever-changing nature of the cloud. I envision implementation to involve something more like a web-based database where employees update their own profile with new skills. Failure to do so means you’re not really interested in contributing in new ways, so maybe you could be encouraged to go to a less interesting company. Managers could update project lists and define necessary education and/or experience for a successful outcome. Employees could apply for projects as they become available and/or managers could proactively seek out talent. Corporate recruiting would focus on strategically identifying gaps between existing talent and upcoming project needs, then bring in new talent or devise training/professional development programs to fill the needs.

That IT guy who barely talks might have an amazing eye for color and/or create ridiculously fresh marketing campaigns. Your recruiter might love numbers and just want to do a little finance sometimes. In the end, you get consistently challenged employees who view their role as making the company successful by contributing in new ways, instead of the “that’s not in my job description” mentality. And maybe it’d be a way of re-labeling some of those so-called bad hires. Maybe the person wasn’t a bad hire, maybe they should be contributing in a different way that originally anticipated. These personnel adjustments wouldn’t be as hard to absorb if a variety of projects were regularly available for assignment.

I know it would take a unique company to be able to transition to this effectively, but I’m a dreamer. Head in the clouds kind of girl here. Still, as people redefine their expectations of the workplace, I think it’s the future.

Things worth doing are worth doing NOW.

I heard that if you have a goal, you should never say that you’re going to start it sometime in the future. Don’t say, “I’ll start that tomorrow morning” or “I’ll do that after ____” because it creates a sense of non-urgency in your subconscious. If you can put it off for awhile, why bother doing it at all? If you want to achieve something, fully commit by taking the first step RIGHT NOW.

Nearly every HR and recruiting conference has a session about “The Future of Recruiting.” What about the present? What about the change factors we need to make TODAY to get there? It’s the individuals and companies who are making changes TODAY who will shape the future and reap its rewards.

HR Departments – Start utilizing your recruiting partners as real partners, instead of competition. Pick up the phone and tell your recruiter what they can do to help you and readily provide info that will help them be successful. You’re paying them to help you, right? Then, cross those recruiting tasks you just delegated off of your to-do list and get to those strategic projects you never have time to tackle. When open positions at your company are being filled with quality people (thanks to a well-informed recruiting partner) and you’re achieving other major HR goals within your organization, everyone wins – especially your employees and your bottom-line! Make that call right now.

Recruiters – When you get that call from HR, start thinking like a busy hiring manager and busy HR department. You’ve been hired to alleviate pressure, not intensify it. Tell your hiring managers that they’ll see fewer, but better qualified candidates. Know. Your. Client. Research their industry, understand the challenges in their market, know what potential candidates will say about them and how to overcome that. Commit to using your expertise to reduce the workload of your client’s managers. High-quality, pre-screened candidates are harder to find. Accept it and then conquer it, starting right now.

Candidates/Jobseekers – Quit your whining. Yeah, the economy has been miserable for awhile. Get over it. There are jobs out there – do you want one? If a recruiter calls you about a job and says they think you’d be qualified, don’t make them wish they hadn’t called. Don’t tell me about how much you hate the job search process, how your last boss was a jerk and the company was useless. I’m not your friend, I’m representing your potential boss. Use good manners, dress professionally, speak clearly and make sure your follow-up is timely and thoughtful. Make it your goal that everyone who talks to you will be happy that they had the opportunity. Remember that you are representing yourself AND your recruiter when you speak to an employer. Don’t embarrass me. Think of the most professional, successful person you know and mimic their best qualities. The way they dress, how they act and how they communicate is probably what made them successful. Start doing these things now.

What could you do now to move yourself and your company forward? What habits have you been TRYING to break instead of just breaking them? We could change the world starting today. Why wait for the future?

P.S. A tip of the hat to G.K. Chesterton who wrote, “If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly.” (I actually thought I was being creative with my title, but then realized it sounded a little too familiar, thus requiring further research.) The American Chesterton Society suggests that he meant some things are so important, that you should do them yourself, even if it means doing it poorly. So again I say, don’t wait until the day you can do something important perfectly, just start doing it today! You’ll get better.

3 Immediate (and FREE!) Ways to Make Your Dream Job Your Real Job

After attending RecruitFest a couple weeks ago, one session has been echoing in my mind. It was about increasing your influence and becoming a leader, but it also offered great advice about finding your path and being happy. You’ve probably read articles that say, “Think about what you would you do if money didn’t matter…” Well, it DOES matter for most people, so that’s maybe not a helpful approach to finding a happier, more fulfilling career. Instead, I’d like to recap some suggestions from successful folks who have proven what works.

Here’s the video of the session called “Peddling Influence and Leading Thoughts” from RecruitFest. HRMDirect’s Chief Strategy officer Sarah White, Former SHRM COO China Gorman, and Career XRoads founder Gerry Crispin each offer their ideas on how to become an influencer – and really, how to turn your career toward the future you want and reap significant rewards from your day.

First point? Sarah White said, “I knew that in order to get to where I wanted to be, I had to find a job and everything else that would let me be comfortable and let me be me.” This one is dead on for me! I work from home and joke with my boss that she’s forever ruined me from working in an office. What parts of your job are a perfect match for you? What parts miss the target entirely? What jobs have more of the things you love and less of the things you hate? Can you get involved in projects at your current company that would get your career headed in the direction of one of those jobs?

Next, China Gorman suggests, “Create a track record of success. Create a track record of results, so that when people think of you, they think [he/she] delivers what’s promised, delivers MORE than what’s promised, delivers more than what’s promised quicker and under budget. Create a track record that people can rely on. When they think of you, they think honest, they think trustworthy. They think I can rely on this person in a pinch. This is a go-to person. Create that kind of reputation.” This kind of reputation will earn you the chance to be involved in projects to build you up for the job you want.

So…you’ve figured out where you want to be, you’re building your reputation, and you’re asking to get involved in new things to get you there. What else? Gerry Crispin talks about focus and active listening as an important component of his own success. “We are really present in the moment, looking at that individual, engaged with that individual in conversation, really getting what they have to say…or not. We may be thinking about the next person we’re going to meet or talk to. I do think there is a differentiator there in terms of people who eventually build influence. They’re perceived as having the ability to be present.” Once you figure out where you want to go, make sure you’re paying attention to conversations along the way.

These are things you can start doing this very moment to get to where you want to be. You don’t need to go to a fancy training or hire a career coach. These experts suggest that what you need is already in your hands, heart and head. Go for it!