Smart Objectives for Success An objective describes something which has to be accomplished and defines what organizations, functions, departments, teams and individuals are expected to achieve. Objectives may be operational or developmental. When the contribution is oriented towards the accomplishment of corporate objectives, in the light of the organization’s mission, core values and strategic plans, it is termed as operational; personal or learning objectives that involve the improvement of knowledge, skills and performance of individuals is termed as developmental.     Objectives must be SMART: S-scientific M-motivating A-achievable R-realistic T-time bound   Objectives that are mostly confined to the near future may be termed-short term objectives, which are accomplished in the stipulated time duration. Say, for example, 1000 units of pet bottles have to be produced in a week’s time. If the firm is focused on the overall production plan for the forthcoming year, then it is termed as long term objective. In a production environment, a firm has to initially go for an aggregate plan, where the production capacity of the plant is determined to make the project feasible. The firm has to make doubly sure, whether it is resourceful in terms of physical, financial and human aspects. The work centers are allotted with jobs in a mock trial to check man versus machine co-ordination and compatibility.     Pic Courtesy: Digital Information World Proper Planning: Objectives are achieved only when there is proper planning. The top management must take the pains to clearly explain the objectives to all the employees across different levels of organization to facilitate smooth functioning. When the employees understand what is expected of them, the performance gets oriented towards accomplishing the objectives; the employees get proper direction and focus. Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose Think of this, what will happen to the sales volume, if the marketing manager does not properly educate his team about the targets to be achieved for that quarter? Definitely there will be a dip in the sales owing to the lethargic and irresponsible attitude of the manager. Ultimately, the organization stands to suffer a loss in terms of time and cost of recruiting a new person to head the marketing department. Right Person for the Right Job: Organizations have to be meticulous while choosing people for the post of managers. The chosen persons must be able to identify themselves with the organization and its objectives, so that they could be a source of inspiration for people down the line. Right people for the right job, at the right place and right time is the success mantra. Objectives have to be periodically revised in the light of changing economic, political and technological developments. How to Stop Worrying and Start Living If not the objectives might become obsolete and in due course you will get stranded amidst the roaring competition.  The process of business management aims at managing people and other resources to make a modest profit. How to achieve success in an open market? By clearly setting objectives that serve as tools of motivation and persuasion, a firm can evolve and contribute strategic inputs that make the objectives realistic and...

Crucial Aspects of a Successful Training Plan Training should be aimed at improving the individual’s skill set as well mind set to gain knowledge about the work environment he will be exposed to, as well as to exhibit the right kind of attitude and behavior towards his peers and superiors. What is the need to train people? It is like molding raw clay into the desired shape and structure to suit our needs. An untrained individual, how well qualified he may be cannot fill the bill. Pros and Cons of Training: Corporate training methods include cognitive as well as behavioral type of training. But the crux of the whole thing is that the trainer must keep in mind the trainee’s present skill set or background and to train him in areas where he lacks verve. Also the pros and cons of each and every method should be analysed before training is imparted. Cognitive training is to theoretically teach trainees the concept of work and how to go about it. This is equally important as learning induces changes in behavior of individuals. Virtual Reality Training: Virtual reality training method is gaining momentum in areas of medicine, engineering and aeronautics where the trainee is exposed to situations artificially recreated for the purpose of simulation. Introduction to QuickBooks 2017 The trainee is benefited by the near perfect exposure he gets through these types of training methods. Simulations in the field of medicine are a real boon to students doing their internship and also to the surgeons performing complicated surgeries. On the job training: On the job training makes the trainees incorporate conceptual learning to be put into effective use. The experience adds value to their career and it is a good way to grow. The trainee also has to understand the significance of being trained that gives him an edge over others. Business games are popular in corporate setup where the members of a team are asked to don different roles or positions of the firm and solve a particular problem situation. This develops sound reasoning skills and instills confidence to handle crisis situations. Concept of training: The very concept of training is to make the individual tailor made for the job he is about to perform; not only the physical aspects but also psychological and social aspects have to be included in the package that will etch a comprehensive pattern in the process of management development techniques. Training improves the effectiveness and efficiency of performance, oriented towards goal setting, develops inter personal relationship and helps in the exercise of knowledge building providing room for improvement. Soft skill training: Soft skill training is a must as communication is the most important aspect that binds any organization for the purpose of delegation, clarification and development. Trainers have to be suitably trained and the common objective for both trainers and trainees would be to satisfy the objectives of the organization and work towards it. Evaluation of training gives you an idea whether your training design has been successful and the implementation satisfactory. Employee Feedback: Feedback from the employees and the ratio of performance standard achieved against the established standards sets the benchmark for the next mile of achievement to be covered. Blogging and Podcasting for Beginners Workshops, seminars, lectures, discussions aid not only the trainees but also the employers of the company to periodically refresh themselves with the ongoing changes and developments in the industry. The bottom line is, training has to bring in not only transitions but also transformations in individuals in terms of improved personality, attitude, behavior and adaptability to better their future...

The Purpose of a Job Interview Interviewing cannot be viewed just as a two way conversation, but as a process of social interaction. Personal interview is the most flexible tool that helps to obtain the most accurate information about the prospective candidate as the presence of the interviewer makes it hard for the respondent to report incorrectly. You might have seen some poker players with a winning spree. That is because of their ability to guess opponent’s potential apart from their own knowledge about the game. The same applies to an effective interviewer who elicits the most appropriate information from the interviewee by gauging his potential and scope. Ambience: The ambience of an interview should facilitate the respondents to freely come out with their ideas about what they expect from the job and also what they are capable of contributing in terms of lifting the organization to greater heights. Fear generally grips freshers who may not have had exposure to such situations that decides their future. Even before completing their engineering or professional courses students get placed in very good companies that offer much scope in terms of pay and career advancement. It has become statutory for these students to express themselves in the most impressive manner to capture the interest of the interviewers and to outsmart their rivals competing for the same position or capacity. Body Language: Your body language speaks volumes about the self confidence you possess, whether you are really capable of leading. Pleasing personality is definitely a plus and it is a winning strategy to get noticed among the pool of prospects. Try to be as modest and dignified in your behavior and attitude but at the same time be self assured to avoid any question that falls beyond the scope of discussion or if it is aimed to puncture your ego. Stress Interviews: Most of the stress interviews are structured in order to test the tolerance level of the prospective employees given a crisis situation and also to judge their decision making skills in such a situation. Rapid fire questions are thrown before you, wherein either you can buy some time to think, keep quiet to prove your self control or burst open and check out. Higher level management interviews are of this order as managers of the senior levels and CEO’s are constantly exposed to pressure situations and they need to keep their think tank cool to keep going. Systematic interviewing using lucid language is welcome. The session must be to the point and the respondent should not lose interest in the interview. Emotional and leading questions better be avoided. The interviewer must be a trained man who has the ability to conduct the interview in the most natural way and also should be well informed about all the possible and important aspects about the prospective candidates. Hypothetical Questions: Recent trend is to ask hypothetical questions where the respondent has to place himself in a particular situation and arrive at solutions. This probes beyond the skill sets that the respondent possesses and it concentrates on the crisis management ability, presence of mind and the quick wit of individuals. Corporate companies conduct their interviews in a completely different manner. They are more concerned about the attitude, morale, soft skills, role analysis and the like. How an individual performs as a member of a team or a group and how well he can lead his team in times of crisis are a matter of concern in big corporates. Say for instance, if you are the head of a company, what possible changes would you bring in terms of sales, marketing and production? What will be...

Assessment centers Some companies run a series of prolonged selection procedures (assessment centers) each lasting one or two days, and sometimes longer. Usually these are after the first round of interviews and before making the final selection, but they can be used as an initial selection process. They are usually held either on company premises or in a nearby hotel, and are measured by many employers to be the fairest and most accurate method of selecting staff. This is because they give a number of different selectors a chance to see you over a longer period of time than is possible with a single interview, and the chance to see what you can do, rather than what you say you can do, in a variety of situations. Assessment Centers typically include a number of elements. Social/informal events, where you get a chance to meet variety of people, including other candidates, the selectors, recent graduates and senior management. This is an excellent opportunity for you to find out more about the organization and to ask questions in a more informal or social setting. Information sessions, which provide more details about the organization and the roles available. Listen carefully, as it is likely to be more up-to date than your previous research. If you are unclear about anything, ask. It is often good to have a question prepared for these sessions, but make sure it is a sensible question and not one that has already been covered. Asking inappropriate questions just to get noticed does not impress the selectors. Tests and exercises designed to exhibit your potential. Selectors at assessment centers measure you against a set of competencies, and each exercise is carefully designed to assess one or more of these areas. Do not worry if you think that you have performed badly at any stage; it is more than likely that you will have the chance to compensate later on. It is also worth remembering that you are being assessed against these competencies and not against the other candidates, so rather than trying to compete against them, make sure that you demonstrate the qualities the organization is looking for. Remember that assessment centers are extremely expensive to run and that you have already come a long way to be invited – you may have as much as a one in six chance of being selected. Vestibule Training Vestibule training creates a miniature of the department for which the training program is carried on. It utilizes machinery similar to that in operation on the production floor. Qualified instructors, usually highly skilled operators or supervisors, are provided to conduct the program in this special section. Here the new employees are given a course of training in the particular machines they will be required to use and on the exact work they will do when they become a part of the regular production force. {In the early 1800s, factory schools were created, due to the industrial revolution, in which workers were trained in classrooms within the factory walls. The apprentice system was inadequate due to the number of learners that had to be trained as the machines of the Industrial Revolution increased the ability of the factory to produce goods. The factory owners needed trained workers quickly because there was a large demand for the produced goods. Towards the end of the 1800s, a method that combined the benefits of the classroom with the benefits of on-the-job training, called vestibule training, became a popular form of training. The classroom was located as close as conditions allowed to  the department for which the workers were being trained. It was furnished with the same machines...

Off-The-Job Training In basket Exercise Recently, the in-basket has become a focus of interest because of its handiness in selection across a wide variety of jobs. A range of techniques have been used to develop in-baskets. In a traditional in-basket exercise, candidates are given time to review the material and initiate in writing whatever actions they believe to be most appropriate in relation to each in-basket item. When time is called for the exercise, the inbasket materials and any notes, letters, memos, or other correspondence written by the candidate are collected for review by one or more evaluators. Often the candidates are then interviewed to ensure that the evaluators understand actions taken by the candidate and the rationale for the actions. If an interview is not possible, it is also quite common to have the candidate complete a summary sheet (i.e., a questionnaire). Lecture A lecture is the method learners often most commonly associate with college and secondary education. Yet, it is also considered one of the least effective methods to use for adult learners. In this method, one person (the trainer) does all of the talking. He or she may use handouts, visual aids, question/answer, or posters to support the lecture. Communication is primarily one-way: from the instructor to the learner. Movies/videos/computer-based training Content for the training experience comes primarily from a videotape or computer-based program. Simulations Trainees participate in a reality-based, interactive activity where they imitate actions required on the job. It is a useful technique for skills development. Simulations are widely used now-a-days in medical field where surgeons find it very useful to train their hands on a virtual human body for complicated surgeries. Self-discovery Trainees discover the competencies on their own using such techniques as guided exercises, books, and research. Role Playing During a role-play, the trainees assume roles and act out situations connected to the learning concepts. It is good for customer service and sales training. Case Studies A case study is a description of a real or imagined situation which contains information that trainees can use to analyze what has occurred and why. The trainees recommend solutions based on the content provided. Seminar Seminars often combine several group methods: lectures, discussions, conferences, and demonstrations. Conference The conference training method is a good problem-solving approach. A group considers a specific problem or issue and they work to reach consensus on statements or solutions. When choosing from among these methods, the trainer must decide which one best suits the trainees, the environment, and the investments available. Many trainers will choose to combine methods or vary them. Others will select a single method that works best for them and never vary. With so many options, a trainer is limited only by his or her...