As stated in our opening, a key requirement of any organization is making sure they have the right people (and the right number of people) performing the right work at the right cost. Yet so many forces are working against them.

A sputtering economy that more than 4 years after the worst recession in generations ended (technically!) still shows unemployment hovering around 7%, instilling little confidence in consumers to make large purchases such as homes, automobiles and major appliances. Budgets have been slashed, or at the very least frozen as companies and many local governments have struggled to contain costs where they can, all the while dealing with flat or reduced revenue. At the same time, some costs continue to increase for critical or mandated items (postage, employee benefits, taxes and energy costs just to name a few), creating additional pressure on the bottom line.

Advances in technology come faster and faster, creating challenges as well as opportunities as organizations and people race to keep up, let alone to get ahead.  Such advances are also redefining the concept of efficiency. Some functions can be merged with others or...

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Employers say a skills gap that's keeping them from finding qualified job candidates is widening. But they finally may be doing something about it.

About half of businesses say they plan to train new hires this year, up from 39% in 2013, according to a recent survey by CareerBuilder.

"Training budgets that were diminished or nonexistent during the recession are starting to make a comeback," says Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder and author of The Talent Equation. The firm surveyed 1,025 employers in computers, healthcare, manufacturing, engineering and finance - fields with many open skilled positions.
   
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What do the best people do differently than the rest?

This week I started reading Switch, by Chip and Dan Heath, describing how to use benchmarking techniques as a means to implement change. This reminded me that in the late '80s I read Tony Robbins' first book, Unlimited Power, describing how he benchmarked the best .45 caliber shooters to develop a training program for the U.S. Army. Based on this I began to benchmark best hiring practices to improve my search firm's ability to find and hire top performers. The process eventually became Performance-based Hiring. There were two parts to this: first, what the best hiring managers did differently; and second, what the best people whom they hired did differently.

What the Best Hiring Managers Do Differently?
Excellent summary and six items...

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Thomas Edison had an unusual way of hiring his engineers. He'd hold up a  lightbulb and ask the candidate how much water it would hold. Some candidates used gauges, measurements, and scientific calculations to determine the answer. Others simply filled the bulb with water and then poured the contents into a measuring cup. Which candidates got the job? The ones who used the simple approach-filling the bulb with water. Develop an "Edison Test" for your business.

The Hiring Process
Once you have determined the type of individual you want to add to your team, have written...

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