February 06 Newsletter

Presentation Skills Course – Tried & Tested!

I’ve just completed a 3 day Presentation Skills Program with Rogen International (they were the ones who helped Sydney win the Olympic Games bid – very impressive!). I’ve been looking for a course for some time and found this one to be highly interactive, particularly well structured and at the end of the day… highly effective. They keep the group fairly small, 8 delegates max, which means you get much more personalised feedback, tuition and development. It was also a lot of fun, which always works for me.

If you’re interested in finding out more about this course or indeed the whole range of Rogen courses (they focus on communication skills), please visit their website, email Dinah Eagle – Rogen Consultant or call Dinah on 02 9975 1055.

Article by Nikki Beaumont – MD

Breakfast with the Prime Minister

Last week we were lucky enough to secure a table at the exclusive, invitation only, Prime Ministers breakfast, on the topic of Australia’s future workforce.

It was an excellent breakfast and really cemented for me what we’ve all been talking about for a while but without the statistics to prove it. The message was clear and simple, in the next 5 – 10 years we are going to see a considerable shortage in our workforce as the baby boomers leave the workforce and are replaced with the significantly smaller X generation.

Here’s a brief overview of the stats to prove it, the changes we need to make as employers and what the Australian Government is doing to help…

The Statistics:

Australia faces a potential shortfall of 195,000 workers in 5 years time as a result of population ageing. (Monash University study 2005)
44,000 of those shortages will be in Sydney

What we can do to protect our business’s and secure our workforce?

We need to change our whole culture and attitude towards our workforce from an employee and employer perspective to more diverse and flexible employment practices.
10 years ago we were encouraging early retirement, now we need to create part time and more flexible work for those approaching retirement and encourage them to stay in the workforce longer.
Create opportunities for people with disabilities, they are a huge untapped workforce.
Consider people on benefit and where we can fit those in to our workforce.
Proactively create more flexible opportunities and encourage and make it easier for returners to work such as mums.

What is our government doing?

The new workchoices legislation will go some way to give employers more flexibility with their workforce, the old awards system was very rigid.
The Department of Workplace Relations are running a series of breakfasts throughout the country to inform and advise employers on what the future holds and what they need to do – there is one in Parramatta on 8th March, if you’d like to go please email Debbie our Office Manager, she has managed to reserve seats for a number of our clients.
The government policies towards reducing welfare dependency will encourage people back in to the workforce.

To summarise, the workforce shortfall is a real problem for Australia and by using a combination of these strategies and planning in advance we can protect the future of our careers, our business’s and our economy.

For more information please visit the Department of Employment & Workplace Relations website.

Sales Congress 2006

A number of clients took advantage of our invitation to attend the Sales Conference at the Sydney Entertainment Centre last week which featured a some of the most respected and renowned ‘Guru’s’ within the Sales industry.

Brian Tracey, who has published many books regarding sales techniques and coaching, discussed ‘Sales Psychology’, from how to develop prospects through to how to close sales successfully. Dr John Tickell’s amusing presentation covered personal development, goal setting, and getting the most out of life and business. Keith Cunningham discussed how to beat the odds in starting business and creating wealth, while many of our call centre clients found John Jacob’s presentation on effective telemarketing particularly relevant to their industry.

How ill are your employees?

A survey was recently taken to look at employees who call in sick with bogus excuses. Forty-three percent of workers said they called in sick when they felt well at least once during the last year, up from 35 percent in the 2004 survey. (CareerBuilder.com)

The most popular motivator for missing work: good, old-fashioned rest. Almost 23 percent of workers said they just wanted to relax and catch up on sleep. Seventeen percent said they just didn't feel like going in, 16 percent attributed it to a doctor's appointment, and 9 percent said they had to catch up on housework and run personal errands.

Three-day weekend or mid-week break?
Thirty-eight percent of workers said they viewed sick days as equivalent to vacation days. The most popular day for calling in sick when feeling well was Wednesday, with 27% of workers getting over the mid-week hump by fabricating an excuse. While extended weekend absences were also popular, with 26% of workers calling in sick on Monday and 14% on Friday, those partaking may put themselves at more risk of scrutiny.

Employers are no fools however with 63% of hiring managers saying they are more suspicious of employees calling in sick on a Monday or Friday. The survey also revealed that some hiring managers were less tolerant of workers playing hooky, with almost one-fourth stating they fired an employee for missing work without a legitimate reason. While the definition of a sick day has evolved, with more employers including mental health and special circumstances in the description, workers should be mindful of company policies and their responsibilities as an employee.

When asked to share the most unusual excuses workers gave for missing work, hiring managers shared some of their favorite examples:

• "I'm too drunk to drive to work."

• "I accidentally flushed my keys down the toilet."

• "I had to help deliver a baby on my way to work." (Employee was not in the medical profession.)

• "I accidentally drove through the automatic garage door before it opened."

• "My boyfriend's snake got loose and I'm afraid to leave the bedroom until he gets home."

• "I'm too fat to get into my work pants."

• "God didn't wake me." (Employee didn't believe in alarm clocks and thought a higher power would wake her when she was ready.)

• "I cut my fingernails too short, they're bleeding and I have to go to the doctor."

• "The ghosts in my house kept me up all night."

• "I forgot I was getting married today."

• "My cow bit me."

• "My son accidentally fell asleep next to wet cement in our backyard. His foot fell in and we can't get it out."

• "I was watching a guy fixing a septic pump, fell in the hole and hurt myself."

• "I was walking my dog and slipped on a toad in my driveway and hurt my back."

• "My house lock jammed, and I'm locked in."

Terrific Temp

Outstanding performance from our temps doesn’t go unnoticed. We truly appreciate their efforts and therefore would like to acknowledge the great work they are doing for us.

Our February Temp of the Month award goes to Fiona Carmady. She has received fantastic feedback with her employers saying she is efficient, calm, has great attendance and she handles every call really well.

Fiona is pictured here whilst on assignment at Network Services. She gets a $100 voucher from the store of her choice.

Joke of the month

Some things to ponder;
- Why is there an expiration date on SOUR cream?
- If you keep trying to prove Murphy's Law, will something keep going wrong?
- Why does flammable and inflammable mean the same thing?
- How can someone "draw a blank"?
- Shouldn't there be a shorter word for "monosyllabic"?

Quote of the month

Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What's a sun-dial in the shade?

Benjamin Franklin