Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom Whats Your Digital IQ

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom What's Your Digital IQ Consulting firm PwC first issued its Digital IQ research in 2007, and recently released a2017 editionincluding over 2200 respondents from 53 countries. Of the business and IT leaders represented, 62 percent work in organizations with revenues of $1 billion or greater, and 38 percent have revenues between $500 million and $1 billion. In short, these companies certainly have enough resources to make substantialdigital investmentsand realize big-time ROI from newtechnologies. Digital Availability Explodes While Digital IQ Lags Interestingly, though, that’s not what’s happening. The latest survey shows that Digital IQ scoresâ€"a measure of an organization’s capability to get strategic value from technology investmentsâ€"have stagnated since PwC first started tracking them 10 years ago. Although new tools are entering the marketplace at rapid speed and the meaning of “digital” has expanded far beyond its IT heritage, most organizations haven’t kept up. Most are just at the very beginning of exploring what PwC calls the “essential eight:”internet of things,artificial intelligence,robotics,3-D printing,augmented reality,virtual reality,drones, andblockchain. One reason for this stasis, saysPwC blogger Chris Curran, is that the previous wave of technology game-changers (cloud, mobile, analytics) still commands significant time and money at many organizations. Also, most organizations have still not dedicated specific senior leaders to focus on creating real business value from their companies’ investments in emerging technologies, and generally lack sufficient staff with the skills necessarily to exploit the potential of emerging technologies in their enterprises. For the rest of the post, check out the QuickBase Fast Track blog.

3 Ways Leonardo DiCaprio Has Perfected His Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

3 Ways Leonardo DiCaprio Has Perfected His Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career You might think it’s easy for Hollywood-types to have a distinct personal brand. After all, they’re constantly in the spotlight for their careers, personal life and beliefs. They don’t even need to worry about perfecting their brandâ€"or do they? As you probably realize, your personal brand can come crashing down just as fast as it was built, and this is especially true when you’re in the spotlight. Just like any of us, some famous folks have a better handle on their personal brands than others. Case in point: Leonardo DiCaprio. Branding lessons Let’s learn a few branding lessons from this major Hollywood star to see why his brand is so strong: He’s been consistent with the types of movies and projects he has been involved in. If you think of Leo, you think of big-budget, blockbuster movies. Titanic, Inception, Gangs of New York, Revolutionary Road, and even some of his early career moves such as What’s Eating Gilbert Grape are highly reviewed and very successful films. It seems as though he chooses movies that align with his brand, and it’s served him well thus far in his career. He also realizes his strengths at playing certain kinds of characters, which is important for any professional hoping to build a strong personal brand. He shares his personal values and passions with his audience. Leo is well-known for being an environmental activist. He shares information on social networks and his personal website about causes that he believes in and encourages his fans to join in his efforts. According to his Wikipedia page, he “has received praise from environmental groups for his activism. In the past, he has opted to fly on commercial flights instead of chartering private jets, and it was reported that he drives a  hybrid car  and has  solar panels  installed on his house.” Obviously, in Hollywood, it’s important to not only believe in causes such as preserving wildlife or using solar energy, but to also implement these beliefs into your daily life to show your passion for the cause. He hardly receives negative press. Unlike other major celebrities who receive most of their press for alcohol abuse, drug addictions and jail time, Leo is mostly in the news for his career and widespread activism. (Although, occasionally, the gossip magazines do dish the dirt on his dating life, which is to be expected for any actor.) If you Google him, most of the top news is about new films and environmental issuesâ€"and a recent article on CBS even shares that he’s the highest paid actor in Hollywood this year. What other lessons can we learn from famous brands like Leo’s? Author: Heather R. Huhman  is a career expert, experienced hiring manager, and founder president of  Come Recommended, a  content marketing and digital PR consultancy for organizations with products that target job seekers and/or employers. She is also the author of  Lies, Damned Lies Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle  (2011),  #ENTRYLEVELtweet: Taking Your Career from Classroom to Cubicle  (2010), and writes  career and recruiting advice for  numerous outlets.

Sophisticated Lady CV Template Freebie - The Urbane Woman

Sophisticated Lady CV Template Freebie - The Urbane Woman Sophisticated Lady CV Template Freebie The Urbane Woman As a woman, you may find it challenging to maintain a feminine identity while also representing yourself as a formidable force on the job market. You must highlight your strengths, and present yourself as someone to be reckoned with. On the other hand, you might want to share a softer side as well. To help with this, we present the Urbane Woman CV template. It has been carefully designed for women seeking jobs that require the best skills along with an urbane world view and experience. Check out the unique layout, creative background, and use of scripted font. Hiring managers are sure to take a second look at this compelling resume. It even includes a place for your professional headshot.Go ahead and download it today. All we ask is a small favor. Simply share this post on social media, and help us get the word out about our free MS Word resume templates. File size: 56 KB Format: .doc Downloaded 9,867 times License: Free, personal use only. Please read the license terms for resour ces. Download previous article How To Brand Yourself Using Your Resume next article How not to Craft a Cringe-Worthy Resume! you might also likeCadmium Yellow: Simple, Yet Elegant Resume Template

Small Businesses and Direct Sellers Dont Get Lost in Facebook Time - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Small Businesses and Direct Sellers Don’t Get Lost in Facebook Time - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career For most social networking sites, it’s all about real-time interaction and what’s currently going on with your lives. After all, it’s the present that’s important, right? Who cares what happened a year ago, or even 5 years before that? But sometimes, it’s important to look back at your past to see how far you’ve come in the present, and evaluate where you’re planning to go in the future. You want to see how you’re progressing, if there has been any improvement over the past, and how to use this knowledge in the future. As a small business owner and direct seller, knowing your past timeline can be a valuable asset â€" there are so many things you can learn from this information. Are you lost in the Facebook Timeline? And this is where Facebook’s new timeline comes in. If you haven’t heard, Facebook is planning to revamp its current profile pages, and has recently released its vision of the future of profiles. The change is based on the fact that the current profile page only shows your current status, updates and photos, but it doesn’t really sum up who you really are, since it doesn’t show what you have done in the past. With the new Facebook timeline, people who visit your page can now see who you are, what you do, and where you’ve been. Both your past and present is laid out for the world to see. Though it’s still currently in its beta version, many people are quite excited about this upcoming change. In terms of visuals, the timeline is very beautiful, highly visually appealing, and quite nice to navigate. Imagine your life organized in a stunning presentation, ready for anyone to glimpse it. Though there are still some bugs, hence the beta version, people are really looking forward to what the new Facebook profile can offer. In addition to the timeline, Facebook has continually tried to improve its services, by making sure that people can really maximize their usage of the platform. From better navigations, easier customizations, new features such as group chats and video calls, and even enhanced sharing abilities, Facebook is really pushing the limits to ensure that the users can do practically anything they want right in the site. The challenge is are you seen in news feeds? The challenge for direct sellers and small business owners, however, is ensuring that their posts and updates continue to be seen in people’s news feeds. Because information sharing is so much easier, your brand’s updates can easily get lost in a person’s news feed, and may not even be viewed. So how do you avoid this? How do you make sure that your posts don’t get lost in time? Encourage likes and comments The more people interact with your posts, the more that other people will be able to see it. You see, every time someone clicks the like button, it appears in their news feed as an update, so it really helps in promoting your post. This is also true when someone comments on the post itself. To encourage likes and comments, make sure to offer great content that engages people. And sometimes, all you need to do is ask people to like your post. Even just including a “tell us what you think” after your post can encourage your audience to comment. Post at the right time There are certain times of the day and certain days of the week that more people are online with their social networking sites. For example, studies have shown that more people use Facebook before and after work, so it’s better to time your updates during this time rather than updating when everyone’s busy at work â€" your post is a lot more likely to get lost in a slew of other updates then. Weekends are also an excellent time to update since this is when most people aren’t busy with work and just want to leisurely browse their newsfeed for what’s up with their friends and the brands they follow. So make sure to use this advantage. Be short and sweet Short and sweet updates are a lot better than long posts, because people don’t really have long attention spans when they’re using social networking sites â€" they want to skim easily over information before moving on. Yes, even small business brands and direct sellers can engage their users on Facebook and other social networking sites by following these tips. So make sure that you don’t get lost in time. Study and use the changes on Facebook wisely so you can better interact and engage with your audience. Author: Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog and is also the CEO (chief engagement officer) of buzz2bucks â€" a boutique word of mouth marketing firm. She helps create connection, credibility, community and cha-ching through mobile marketing and social commerce around your brand. She is co-founder of #brandchat a weekly twitter chat focused on every aspect of branding.

Tips For Writing a Functional Resume

Tips For Writing a Functional ResumeTo be able to write a functional resume, you first need to have a good grasp of the terminology used in the industry and then you need to know some of the basics of how people process information. In this article, I will present a few tips for writing a functional resume that will help you get started on your way to building a successful career.To begin with, one of the most important tips for writing a functional resume is to be honest and straightforward. These are the two traits that most recruiters and employers look for. If you try to oversell yourself, the recruiter or employer will have a difficult time finding you.Another tip for writing a functional resume is to list all of your qualifications. You should include all of the skills, education, and training that you have acquired since you were hired. Even if you have some of these skills and training that were obtained before you joined your current company, these will still be considered i n your consideration for a new position. You will also be able to show your previous experience and knowledge that can prove valuable in helping you get the job.The next thing that you should consider in your tips for writing a functional resume is to list each of your job duties. Include these as well as the length of each assignment, including the type of task, and any dates you completed each task. By listing each job duty, you will be able to accurately relay what you did, when you did it, and how long it took you to complete the task. This will help the employer see what you do well and how you can be of assistance to them in the future.Part of the professional resume advice you should follow is to try to be consistent and not mix up your job duties. For example, say you are a project manager and you usually work with the development of new software systems. The next time you apply for a job, you should use the words 'project manager' instead of 'software engineer'. Being consi stent will make it easy for the recruiter to find you when they review your resume and will also help them narrow down their choices of candidates to interview.The final tips for writing a functional resume are about grammar and punctuation. You want to make sure that the sentences you use are clear and your communication is grammatically correct. You should also use spell check and a dictionary if necessary to ensure that you are properly expressing yourself. You also want to make sure that all of your sentences are complete sentences.When you follow the tips for writing a functional resume, you will be able to be more effective. It will also help your employer determine whether or not you have the ability to handle a job. This is because you should be able to articulate what you do well and what you know about your industry.A functional resume is just another way for you to show what you can do. By following these tips for writing a functional resume, you can make sure that you do not make any mistakes that will be detrimental to your chances of getting hired.

3 steps to take if youre returning to the workforce after being away for years

3 steps to take if youre returning to the workforce after being away for years 3 steps to take if youre returning to the workforce I just retired from the military, and the biggest obstacle Im still trying to get over is: What kind of job am I looking for? Thats kind of a problem because establishing a goal is hard when you dont have a specific objective. Ive been looking through job pages and coming up with ideas of whats available, but some of it is Greek to me and/or Im not sure if I fit the bill. Advice from Dana This is a great question and appropriate for any career-changer, including retired and returning military, mothers (and fathers) returning to the workforce, and all professionals reinventing themselves. Here are three main steps you can take: 1. Focus less on what’s available and more about what knowledge, skills and abilities you have and the type of work you want to do: Knowledge: a body of information you know such as human resources, regulations or technical information. Skill: the proficient manual, verbal or mental manipulation of data or things. For example, having skill with operating personal computers. Ability: the power or capacity to perform an activity or task. For example, having the ability to use a variety of laboratory instruments. 2. Understand the roles and careers that match your background. There are so many great, free resources on the Web. Do a search for “matching skills to jobs” and youll find many. One is careeronestop.org, a site sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, where youll find self-assessment tools. 3. Once you have narrowed the possible jobs, functions and corporate departments that fit your skill set, you are ready to look at multiple job descriptions. I recommend creating a “Job Description Profile” for each job description you have selected. Make a two-column table in Word or Excel. In the left column, list the requirements of the job, one by one. Now, on the right, list your knowledge, skills and abilities, including specific experiences that match the item on the left. When you feel comfortable with your matching descriptions, you are ready to apply! Just as important is to connect with people doing the jobs that you may want to do. Your highest priority should be face-to-face networking in the industry or business function you want to work in. When was the last business networking function you went to? Look for people in the jobs you are exploring, ask them questions, and visit them in their offices.

Reputation Management - The New Career Currency

Reputation Management - The New Career Currency Reputation Management The New Career Currency Reputation management matters more than most job seekers realize. While it is still mind-boggling to me that many people continue to resist getting onto social media platforms, the future looks even more technologically-oriented. As the information uploaded, posted, stored, and mentioned on the Internet continues to grow, what starts to emerge is a composite picture of job candidates and their reputation management. Think of it as a giant resource that adds up to the sum of you and the reputation that you have built. And employers / recruiters / headhunters are turning to this resource as a way to cloud-source their next hire as well as check out your reputation / influence level within your industry sector. Vala Afshar, CMO of Enterasys Networks in Boston, MA, in a recent interview with Career Cloud, said that the Web is quickly becoming your resume. And he’s not wrong. Your reputation management results and resume are everywhere on the web. Where you work can quickly become an online directory listing. Where you volunteer can be a Facebook post by that organization which thanks you for your involvement. What skills you possess are validated by endorsements and recommendations on LinkedIn. What awards you’ve won are posted in online press releases. How relevant you are to your industry is calculated by online influence and reputation calculators such as Kred or Klout. It’s already all there, online. And your reputation is quickly becoming your career currency.  And that reputation will get your hired.   The shift is moving from not so much of a formal “resume” to actually demonstrating influence in your industry, and therefore sending a strong message about how your reputation management strategy is working. The worse case scenario is to not have ANY content out there if an employer searches for you and nothing comes up in the search, you are seen as NOT RELEVANT.  No reputation is actually worse than a bad reputation. Everyone needs to be thinking about how all of these pieces add up to the bigger picture of who you are and what you represent. Proactively building online content can help you take some control of what’s posted, but you also need to be aware of any potential liabilities out there and address them as best as you can.  In essence, just like you spend a lot of time building up your resume, you also need to spend equal time building up your reputation. Your career future can depend on it!