Running Drills: Training Your Employees For Emergencies

Two focuses of my blog are Organizational/Management Discussions and Workplace Discussions. Workplaces are not just places we go off to everyday. As we’ve seen throughout history, work is a place where crisis and emergency situations can arise unexpectedly and it’s important to have some level of preparation. The following contributed post is entitled, Running Drills: Training Your Employees For Emergencies.

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You’ll really get to see human nature in all its variability when you run drills for emergencies with your employees. Some people panic, they don’t know what to do and are at the mercy of the unfolding events. Some people go into survival mode and they just manage to do what will save them from harm. There are a few that have a good head on their shoulders, they don’t panic nor do they go into autopilot mode. They are conscious and ready to help others while saving themselves. You’ll only know what group of people you have working for you, if you do some drills around emergency training.

Fire drills

This is perhaps the simplest to undertake for any business. It is going to be a test to see the employees’ reaction time, their understanding of protocols, how they interact and help each other, but also, their ability to think clearly under immense stress. As the business owner you want to see that your employees remain calm. Panic spreads faster than a fire can and if people are not thinking clearly, they are more likely to end up harming themselves or others around them. So you want to hire a fire drill training service, that can teach employees how to react during a scenario whereby the office they are in is on fire, or the floors above or below are engulfed in flames.

Hazardous spills

If you work in warehouse storage or perhaps manufacturing, you are no stranger to hazardous spills. Training for this sort of thing is of course vital, but you also need a good biohazard spill kit. The kit will have absorbent material in it, which you pour over a spill. The material will quickly stop the spread of the liquid on the floor and make it easier to collect. It forms little solid clumps which can be swept up and removed. Personal protective equipment for the employees tasked with the cleanup is also going to be in the kit. We have found that if you have a reliable spill kit for hazardous liquids, employees are more likely to get the job done quicker and with more confidence.

Unconscious employee

Most people know what to do when they see an injured person. You know, stop the bleeding, put pressure on the wound, lay them back, lift their legs and check their pulse every 30 seconds. But what do you do when you come across someone who is unconscious? This kind of drill is very useful as the knowledge gained can be utilized in multiple scenarios. You should check the airway, check for any obvious signs of lacerations, punctures or impact trauma. Then provide CPR if required, warm their body, lift their feet above they head level and try not to move their back or neck.

Every business should run these types of drills at least once a year to keep with good common practice. It’s something that will come in handy during very rare but deadly situations.

Training Your Remote Employees

Two focuses of my by blog are Organizational/Management Discussions and Workplace Discussions. Some workplaces offered remote working but the COVID-19 pandemic brought it to the forefront. While it’s appealing to many employees, there are caveats to working remotely. The following contributed post is entitled, Training Your Remote Employees.

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As working from home has become more popular and practical, remote employees need to be trained. This trend has risen even further due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 74% of companies are making this a permanent change. Now more than ever, we are embracing technology and virtually upskilling our teams.

Photo by Monstera from Pexels

Setting up and running remote training can be done in several ways. You must find what works for your team and your processes. Tips and guidelines for optimizing your training sessions are provided in this article.

Choosing The Right Delivery Model For Your Team

You need to ask yourself, how well do you know your remote team, and what works for them? Remind yourself that remote employees are human beings who have lives outside of work. Being respectful of employee time and understanding the boundaries can help to create a great remote work culture. Remote working policies can assist in this process.

A popular way to deliver remote training is to use synchronous learning, such as online meetings. This is not the only option available. In asynchronous learning, trainees access online learning content at their convenience. To create a custom solution, blended learning uses both.

Train Remote Employees With The Right Tools

In today’s digital age, traditional classroom training approaches are ineffective. It’s critical to use the correct technologies while investing in workforce optimization skills. Remote team training and development tools will improve efficiency and employee happiness while lowering expenses.

Simple training methods, such as a pre-recorded podcast, or more in-depth training methods, such as live webinar instruction, are available. The majority of employers opt for services such as screen sharing, chat, remote access to each other’s desktops, and file sharing. Take the time to thoroughly analyse which collaboration technologies are ideal for your remote team.

Learning Experience Platforms

An entire learning portal is a learning experience platform. In addition to tracking training progress and administering certification, it adds flexibility by combining all the smaller methods of training. Trainers benefit from this because they can customize materials. Remote trainees can also study at their own pace.

Video Training Tools For Remote Training

It is important to add some live interaction through these training tools. Software and hardware that enables video conferencing can help you meet with your team virtually, adding a human touch. Don’t forget to equip your team with the right equipment.

Creating a video library of past training sessions is a great idea for all managers. Participants who cannot attend can access the videos. Compare course platforms and see which ones are the best for you.

Identify Skills Gaps

It is important to identify the skills and knowledge that are lacking in your organization, from the development of digital customer service skills to understanding this new product lifecycle management software. An analysis of skills gaps is one way of addressing this issue. It is easy for remote employees to become frustrated and underperform as a result of a lack of competence.

This guide should help you to train your remote employees and keep them feeling looked after and appreciated. Do you have any other tips that could help? Please share some of them in the comments below.

The Importance Of Adequate Safety At Work

Two focuses of my blog are Organizational/Management Discussions and Workplace Discussions. When you’re running a workplace, one of the things you’ll need to do is to ensure your workplace’s safety. The following contributed post is entitled, The Importance Of Adequate Safety At Work.

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Slips, trips, and falls happen in the workplace all the time. Many are complete accidents and are quickly resolved. Yet, a few remain that occur due to a failure to meet safety requirements or complete negligence. Therefore, and owing to the fact, there are many dangerous jobs out there, such as construction, hazardous waste removal, and law enforcement, the importance of adequate safety at work should be a company-wide policy of guaranteed employee protection.

Employees are Everything

As a business owner or manager, you should know that your employees are an essential tool in your business arsenal. Many will assume it is profit that drives a successful company, yet there is no profit to be made without adequate staff. For example, dangerous jobs such as roofing and high-rise cleaning require specialist devices like Shine On Anchors. Suppose your team didn’t safely carry out such a risky job. The risk of death or severe injury is extremely high and will land you in legal trouble, losing employee trust.

Trust is Earned

The trust of employees, partners, and shareholders relies on your ability to carry your company’s duties effectively. You earn this trust in various ways, such as providing safety equipment to staff, supplying partners with contractual obligations, and making a profit for shareholders. Employees’ confidence is paramount since losing faith in your ability to protect them will undoubtedly lead to a mass evacuation. Staff will be absent, call in sick or leave for another company. These actions will cost dearly both in terms of finances and public perception.

Lability Starts and Ends with the Employer

The safety of your employees begins and ends with you. Of course, there is no guarantee that misuse of equipment will not happen. Yet, that is why you employ supervisors and should make efforts to train staff on the correct usage of dangerous equipment adequately. Safety issues aside, 40% of inadequately trained staff leave a post within a year of starting. During this time, you are liable for any injuries that should befall an employee. This will incur high costs, as will employee exodus when the price of recruiting and hiring is factored in.

Your Business Will Suffer

Your insurer covers liability costs should something happen. Still, your premiums are likely to increase, and you will lose money as you aim to replace an employee. However, the damage to your business is expected to be more than purely financial. As a result of an unfortunate event, the public perception of your company will be severely impacted. Therefore you may lose clients and partners, shareholders may cash out, and stock prices will likely plummet.

Criminality is the End Result

You can typically avoid harsh personal penalties for breaking most rules relating to business. But gross negligence and disregard for safety are not part of them. In the unfortunate event that one of your employees is injured or fatally wounded, a full investigation will take place. During the course of the study, every aspect of the event will be scrutinized. And this means looking at past events and practices as well. It might be the case that an injury is an isolated event and an unfortunate tragedy. Yet if a pattern of safety problems emerges, you will be criminally charged.

Company Spending That Will Benefit Your Employees

Two focuses of my blog are Workplace Discussions and Organizational/Management Discussions. No matter which organization you’re running, your employees are one of your most valuable resources. As such you want to consider them when thinking about any purchases or updates. The following contributed post is entitled, Company Spending That Will Benefit Your Employees.

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It’s that age-old question for employers:

How should I spend company money?

This may be something that you have been considering today.

Of course, much of what you earn will be put into company savings. This is sensible as you never know when you might need the money you have put away. And when it comes to spending money, you will probably focus on marketing to boost your company profile. Again, this is understandable.

But when you are thinking about what you can spend company money on, consider the people who keep your business going. We could be talking about your customers here, but there are other people who push your business forward. We are, of course, talking about your employees. When you invest in them you invest in your company’s future, as your spending can make a difference to the ways in which they view and work within your business.

So, with this in mind, let’s take a look at areas of spending that will benefit your employees.

#1: Personal development

For your employees, this is a biggie. When you focus on personal development, your employees will be better equipped to do their jobs, and they will be less likely to leave your company. They will be more likely to stay because they won’t need to migrate to another company to grow and develop as people.

So, consider your employees as a group and as individuals. What training courses will develop their skills? What conferences can you book them onto? Focus some of your spending in these areas to improve and shape the employees in your workforce. They will benefit and so too will your business when they are able to excel in their roles.

#2: The workplace environment

For the sake of employee morale, do what you can to improve their environment. They will feel happier at work if you do and as such, they will also be more productive. So, at the very least, you should allow your employees to shape their own workstations. They could bring in photos from home, for example, and any other thing that could personalize their workspace.

But when it comes to spending, there is much you could do. If you have the funds to do so, you could opt for a full renovation. You could create more space, add fresh bursts of color, and create better break areas. Alternatively, you could do a little bit at a time, especially if you don’t have the funds for a complete makeover. Improving the environment with commercial wall decor is certainly one thing you could do. You could also purchase more storage to reduce the amount of clutter in the workplace. These are just some ideas but look at pictures of office fitouts online and consider the changes that could make a difference in your workplace.

#3: Technology

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When you develop your company’s technology, you will improve the efficiency and productivity of your employees. So, consider the tech that will make your employee’s lives easier and invest accordingly.

An obvious place to start is computer equipment, of course. If your employees’ computers are slow and prone to other problems, you will aid their productivity if you give them something new. Then think about the software your employees could be using. Look for those programs that will simplify the complicated tasks they may be doing manually. Take a look at these digital workplace technologies too and consider the benefits to your employees. There is much you can invest in so consult with your employees on the tech that could make a difference to them.

#4: Employee rewards

We all like to be rewarded for things we have done well, so consider what this might mean for your employees. Sure, a word of thanks and a pat on the back might sometimes suffice, but how about something tangible? Knowing that they will be due a reward could spur your employees on to work harder, so bear in mind that what you spend will also benefit the greater needs of your business.

You could spend money on your entire team. You could reward them with a meal out or a weekend away somewhere. When money is spent to bring your employees together in such ways, you might also encourage team bonding. You could also spend money on your employees as individuals. It could be something as simple as a gift card to their favorite store. Or you could splash out on something specific if you know it will please the lucky employee. You will find some good ideas in this article on creative employee rewards so have a read if you need inspiration.

#5: Outsourcing

Outsourcing doesn’t always make sense, especially when your employees are equipped to take on certain responsibilities. However, if they are already overworked and struggling to cope with multiple demands, you will make their lives easier if you outsource some of the tasks you have been asking them to do.

For your employees, this will mean a smaller workload. This isn’t a bad thing, especially if they have more than enough to do to fill their working week. Without the burden of tasks they might struggle to complete on time, they will be able to focus on quality work in the jobs they are given to do. They will also be less prone to burnout and the health issues that come with that common problem.

#6: Employee perks

Every business leader should include employee perks as they can improve the retention rate and make their company more attractive to new hires. There are all kinds of perks you could include, such as paying for child care for the employees who need it and providing healthcare insurance for all of your employees.

For more ideas, check out these employee perks. There will be an expense but as some of these perks will prove highly beneficial to your employees, they shouldn’t be ignored.

Finally

When you invest in your employees they will invest in your business. By this we mean they will devote more time and effort in what they do for you. So, consider these examples of employee spending and factor them into your budget if they make sense for you.

How To Improve Safety At Your Workplace

Two focuses of my blog are Workplace Discussions and Organizational/Management Discussions. If you’re in charge of a workplace and a staff of employees, one of your primary concerns is their safety and how it can be continuously improved. The following contributed post is entitled, How To Improve Safety At Your Workplace.

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Running a company is a significant responsibility, and one aspect of your business that should always be a priority is the safety of your employees. Ensuring everyone that works at your office and visits it stays safe is crucial. Unfortunately, accidents at work do happen, but doing all you can to eliminate the chances of an incident occurring is essential. Accidents at work can have severe consequences and can happen even in roles that are not considered high-risk. These incidents can occur unexpectedly, which means it is essential to be alert to potential dangers and prevent them from causing accidents.

Preventing Slips and Falls

Trips, slips, and falls are common incidents in the workplace, and in many cases, these could be preventable. If an employee falls and injures themselves at work, this could result in serious injuries. A fall at work could result in an employee needing extended time off work and expensive treatment to get them better.

Finding the best ways to prevent slips and falls from happening at work is essential. Wet floors due to rainwater or cleaning can cause a significant slip hazard. There are a few ways to prevent employees slipping and injuring themselves. You could place non skid tape on the floor in parts of the building that are more likely to get wet. Your building’s lobby, the kitchen, and the bathroom are all areas that may become exposed to water and become a slip hazard, so these could be the ideal areas to use the tape.

Appropriate Training

Educating your team on how to prevent accidents is a vital part of your staff training. Being aware of the possible dangers in the workplace will ensure your employees know what to look out for and prevent incidents from occurring. Reinforcing that everyone plays a vital role in keeping each other safe is also helpful. Re-training your team regularly on staying safe at work and how they can help should help everyone keep health and safety at the front of their minds at work.

During your training, it is helpful to remind your team of the simple ways to keep each other safe. Reporting faults, taking care not to cause trip hazards, and using equipment safely is vital to protecting themselves and others.

Fire Safety

Testing your fire alarms regularly and ensuring that smoke detectors in your building are working correctly is vital. Keeping up with the latest fire safety guidance and getting your business inspected are equally important and will help detect any potential issues right away so they can be resolved. As well as making sure you follow the correct fire safety procedures and your building does not contain fire hazards, you also need to prepare your staff. Training employees on where they need to go and what they need to do in the event of a fire is essential. You may wish to carry out some trial fire drills to ensure everyone knows the procedure and can safely get to the evacuation point.

How You Can Protect Yourself In The Workplace

Two focuses of my blog are Career Discussions and Workplace Discussions. No matter which workplace you’re in, it’s good to know how to protect yourself in necessary. The following contributed post is entitled, How You Can Protect Yourself In The Workplace.

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Whether you have an employment contract or you are considering an ‘at-will’ worker, you need to make sure you know all your rights. They will be different depending on your employment status, however, when it comes to being fired, it is illegal to be fired for reasons such as disability, gender, race, and other types of discrimination, all are forbidden by law.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

How can you protect yourself in the workplace? Let’s have a look below:

Information Is Invaluable

Information is the key when it comes to protecting yourself. If you do find yourself in any sort of employment dispute, you will be thankful for learning the rules and information before you fight your corner. You cannot protect yourself if you don’t know you are in the position to do so. Make sure you read any employee protocols and read the information relevant to yourself such as talking to San Diego Disability Law Group if you are entering the workplace with a disability.

Make Sure you Keep Records

It can be easy to become overwhelmed or tired at work and not have a clear memory of important facts. This is why it is essential for you to keep contemporaneous records. You hold onto any letters, employment handbooks, pay records, employment agreements, and make sure keep a record of any conversations about unfair treatment or disciplinaries. If the conditions and terms of your employment change without justification occur you need to make sure you take action promptly.

Companies will always conduct performance reviews to evaluate employees’ performance and look at their pay and promotion. You need to make sure you have a copy of your written performance review and know how to handle feedback or any disagreements about your performance. If you do have a disagreement with any of the comments that you received, you should ask to insert your notes documenting your disagreement, this can then become an essential part of your performance review and your personnel file.

There is one way of keeping these, however, they need to be clear to see when and where each incident occurred, the parties involved, and any of the details of the incident. You should also show how it was resolved.

Talk To An Employment Lawyer As Soon As You Can

Last but certainly not least, it is essential for you to seek legal advice from an employment attorney as early as possible. They are able to help you assess whether an employer’s conduct constitutes a violation of employment laws and if you can think about legal action. They are able to run through many different options, whether it is to use the company’s internal complaint mechanism or handle things separately.

Many employees may feel as though it is a tough battle when they run into issues with their employer. But that doesn’t need to be the case. If you take the steps above and research properly, then you can rest assured you are handling things properly. Make sure you always look at all your options and get help when you need it.

Standing Up For Your Rights In The Workplace

Two focuses of my blog are Career Discussions and Workplace Discussions. In some instances, situations arise where worker’s rights are threatened in the workplace. It’s for these reasons its important for workers to know what their rights are. The following contributed post is entitled, Standing Up For Your Rights In The Workplace.

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There are laws and regulations that employers have to meet the standards of and legal repercussions for those who don’t. However, when rights in the workplace are being ignored or disregarded, it can seem hard to know what you should do. After all, the power balance between employee and employer isn’t equal, and it’s not unreasonable to fear for your livelihood. So, what steps should you take to have yourself covered?

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Know whether they’re breaking the law
How you handle the case depends on what kind of issue you have with the manager or higher-up. If they are breaking company policy, then it will be a matter to be handled internally. However, you should also take a look at the things your boss can’t legally do. If it’s illegal or it breaks some form of regulation, then you have a lot more options that you can rely on if the first step doesn’t change anything or solve your concerns.

Report it internally first
Many of the kinds of wrong-doing in the workplace can be classified as professional misconduct and any business that is big enough should have procedures to report it. As Bright HR states, you can report this internally once you have an idea of what is going on. It’s best to have evidence to submit, but even if you don’t, they should make a record of the report all the same. They might act on it with an internal notice but, even if they don’t, you will have evidence that this is a long-standing issue if you need to take it a step further.

See if you could act as a whistleblower
Sometimes, reporting it internally might not be the best option if, for instance, the business owner or highest levels of management are also in on the misconduct. Or perhaps reporting it internally didn’t solve anything. If that is the case, then it might be time to look into help from places like the Whistleblower Info Center. The right legal advice services can help you make sure that you’re proceeding as carefully as possible, all the while making sure that you’re holding them accountable, whether it’s in the courts or through on the industry’s regulatory bodies.

Can your employer punish you?
The biggest fear of all is that if you speak up, you can be punished by your employers or managers. This is one of the reasons to make sure that any action taken outside the workplace is done with the right help. However, if you are mistreated or even let go after filing any complaints or cases against an employer, then that is very likely to count as workplace retaliation, which is illegal in and of itself. It may even amount to a wrongful termination suit. Once you decide to stand up for your rights, do be aware of the risk of retaliation, but be just as aware of the fact that you can fight it.

Keeping employers accountable is a big part of keeping the workplace safe. It can be scary, but with the right advice, you can make sure that you’re protected.

Keeping A Remote Working Team Productive

Three focuses of my blog are Organizational/Management Discussions, Workplace Discussions and Technology. While remote working has its advantages, it has its host of challenges as well which both management and staff must be cognizant of. The following contributed post is entitled, Keeping A Remote Working Team Productive.

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Remote working has become a lot more popular over the last couple of years. More people than ever before are doing their jobs from the comfort of their home, enabling them to make money without having to leave the house. This offers huge benefits to businesses, but the whole team has to be managed correctly to ensure that productivity doesn’t drop. To help you out with this, this article will be exploring some of the best ways to ensure that your remote team is able to maintain productivity.

Regular Conversations

Talking to your remote team on a regular basis is crucial if you want to make sure that they are productive. It can be hard to know what people are doing with their time if you don’t talk to them, and this should happen on both a one to one and whole team basis. For example, if one team member is falling behind their peers, you should talk to them over the phone to make sure that they don’t need extra support. It’s always worth keeping in mind that remote work can be more challenging for some.

Setting Targets

Setting targets for your team is incredibly crucial, giving you the chance to make sure that they are doing enough work while they are at home. Targets need to be fair, and you shouldn’t be working to push them up whenever one target is met. Not only will consistent targets help your team to work more effectively, but they will also provide you with the means to improve productivity. It can help to offer your team access to platforms that make it possible for them to track their own targets.

Monitoring Performance

Alongside setting targets for your team members, you also need to be able to monitor their performance without talking to them. While you trust your team, it can be hard to know if they are covering their backs when you talk about their work. There are a lot of tools on the market that enables you to track sales performance metrics, and you need to use this sort of platform to keep your business productive. This can be an easy way to make sure that your overall targets are being met.

Healthy Competition

Finally, as the last idea to consider, it’s time to think about healthy competition within your business. Rewarding those who perform well can be far more effective than punishing those who don’t, and you can always offer rewards to those who perform the best each week or month. This sort of reward doesn’t have to be expensive or grand, but it will help to keep your team working hard. Most people like the idea of outperforming their peers.

Working to keep a remote business productive can be extremely challenging. Of course, alongside these ideas, you also need to make sure that you have a team that is willing to work hard to achieve the goals you set. This will usually get easier and easier as time goes by.

What Can You Do When You Don’t Trust An Employee

Two focuses of my blog are Organizational/Management Discussions and Workplace Discussions. In some instances cultures in organizations become toxic between management and staff, and also amongst staff. In such times, it’s important to know what to do. The following contributed post is entitled, What Can You Do When You Don’t Trust An Employee.

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Every business owner wants and even needs to trust their employees, and for the most part, they do. But, this is not always the case. Sometimes, a candidate can impress during the interview but show an entirely different side when it comes to the actual job. Depending on the nature of the work, this could affect the safe environment you have strived to cultivate, and you won’t trust the employee to do anything. So what can you do when this occurs? Here are four ideas to consider.

Carry Out a Background Check

Background checks are a useful way to narrow down potential candidates and find someone you can trust. Most companies will already carry out background checks, but if not, there are several elements that employers must check before deciding on an official hire. These checks will highlight previous criminal activity, and it is up to the hiring manager to determine whether this will impact the candidate’s chances and performance. You’re under no obligation to hire someone with a criminal record, and choosing not to could increase your trust.

Keep An Eye On Them

If you have hired someone who is not working as well as you’d hoped, you may want to think about keeping an eye on them to ensure they perform at an acceptable level. Some managers may feel uncomfortable about this, but it is not illegal to monitor computer activity or use phone monitoring to ensure they are fulfilling their role. If the issue is especially severe, you might want to shadow them for a week and help them retrain, rather than put them out of a job altogether.

Get Feedback From Coworkers

You cannot be everywhere at all times, though. If your employee is not performing to the best of their abilities or has even lied on their application and duped you into hiring them, you can get feedback from their coworkers about performance. Any type of feedback is crucial in the workplace, so you should make the most of this, especially as the employee may work hard while you’re around and then slack off when you’re away.

Consider Practice Days

Practice days are a procedure where an employee can come in and work for the day (or half the day) to get an idea of whether the role is right for them. It can also be useful if you are unsure about whether they are right for the job, so it benefits everybody. This should be as close to their usual workday as possible while still giving them adequate support to train and prepare them for the official role. Whether you pay them for their time is up to you, and you may need to check with your region’s laws to ensure you aren’t stealing labor.

Trust

Trust in the workplace is vital no matter who you are. Whether you need to trust your team to complete projects on time or even trust them to keep others safe, you should find employees that fit the bill. If you are unsure about whether an employee is right for the job, think about introducing these policies to your business.

In the Corporate World, Does Personality Matter More Than Accomplishments?

Two focuses of my blog are Career Discussions and Workplace Discussions. In most everyone’s career, there will be a point at which most workers want to advance. But what are the keys to advancing in a given organization? The following guest post is entitled, In the Corporate World, Does Personality Matter More Than Accomplishments?

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In school, we were taught to work hard, aim for high grades, and be as active in co-curricular and extra-curricular endeavors as possible, because it’ll make our resumes more impressive. The longer the lists of our achievements are, the more marketable we would be as job candidates.

But how come renowned business leaders rarely credit their accomplishments for their success? Instead, many of them say that it’s their personalities that allowed them to achieve so much. Add the fact that some famous CEOs were college dropouts, and it now seems that accomplishments are not as critical in the corporate world as we were taught.

Still, during the hiring process, candidates’ skills and achievements are heavily assessed. Their grades may not matter as much, but their recruiters would definitely ask them about professional experience and past projects. Some jobs even require higher education, like a master’s degree or post-doctoral degree.

So what’s really more important between the two? Personality or accomplishments?

How Business Owners View Skills and Personality

For Vic Holifield, owner-operator of Poolwerx, a candidate with both the right skills and personality is the “real winner.” However, such a complete package is hard to come by.

Hence, Holifield says business owners usually have to choose between hiring the candidate with the best background or the best fit. The former are the candidates stronger in the skill department, while the best fit are the candidates that’ll thrive in your company’s culture, a.k.a. the ones with the best personalities.

When you’re faced with a candidate with the right personality but fall short on technical background, Holifield suggests not writing off that candidate. For him, being successful in a job isn’t about having every skill in place before you start. Skills can be and should be taught.

Interpersonal skills, however, play a big role in nailing a job. But unlike computer proficiency, marketing skills, or management skills, interpersonal skill is a soft skill, so it’s not taught andcan be developed outside professional endeavors. If you have great interpersonal skills, you tend to be more social and likable, so other people are naturally drawn to you, including employers and your colleagues.

Technical skills, the category where computer, marketing, and management skills belong, can be taught. So if you have a charismatic, flexible candidate, chances are he or she has the potential to learn the technical skills needed for him or her to boost his or her career.

Holifield added that training employees with the right personality may be easier than training an experienced employee. That’s because an employee who has been practicing the same job for years could’ve developed complacency, so they think they no longer have anything new to learn. On the other hand, training an inexperienced employee means you don’t have any bad habits to break. They’re also more eager to learn and have fresh ideas to bring to the table.

In customer service, personality also wins against skills. Indeed, if a customer service staff is approachable, patient, and friendly, people can interact with them more comfortably. They impress customers almost without even trying.

How Employers Test Personalities

Besides interviewing, recruiters also use a personality test for job applicants during the screening process. Personality tests in recruitment usually determine if a candidate has these traits:

• Enjoying challenges

• Seeing failures as opportunities

• Self-confidence

• Optimism

• Openness to feedback

• Seeking mentors

• Flexibility

• Focusing on results

• Aspiring for more

• Ability to negotiate

In some occupations though, the personality traits required can be very different from those above. In the police force, for example, extroversion andconscientiousness are seen as the most important traits, because they’re associated with police leaders. Openness to experience and agreeableness, on the other hand, may give police officers a disadvantage. Those traits contradict the police force’s rigid, rule-driven environment.

But in corporate occupations, the traits listed above will give the most boost. If someone enjoys challenges, they don’t immediately delegate tasks before taking them on. They’ll try to multitask as much as they can, and only delegate when a particular task can empower another employee more.

Seeing failures as opportunities raises optimism and self-confidence because instead of beating yourself up over your mistakes, you embrace the learning curve and focus on how you could do better next time. From then on, you’ll develop the rest of the top traits, helping you learn skills easier, and allowing you to move up the ladder faster.

Skills are still important, but ultimately, it’s your personality that’s going to determine your career progress and opportunities. But keep in mind that you don’t need to be a people-pleaser. Instead, let your natural personality show, but strive to be the best you can be. In other words, be yourself. You’ll be amazed at the things you can achieve because you’ve embraced who you are.