The HR consultancy interviewed 1060 employees of varying sizes of companies and found that those that worked for smaller companies were happier than those in larger corporations.

They also found that women are happier in their jobs than men with 82% claiming they were happy compared to 78% of men.

In summary, the survey found:

Top eight factors that make us happy at work

1. Friendly, supportive colleagues
2. Enjoyable work
3. Good boss or line manager
4. Good work-life balance
5. Varied work
6. Belief that we are doing something worthwhile
7. Feeling that what we do makes a difference
8. Being part of a successful team

Top eight factors that make us unhappy at work

1. Lack of communication from the top
2. Uncompetitive salary
3. No recognition for achievements
4. Poor boss/line manager
5. Little personal development
6. Ideas being ignored
7. Lack of opportunity for good performers
8. Lack of benefits

So, before you make your next career move think about what is most important to you; money or mates?

Soft skills, otherwise known as “people skills”, can be split into two types: personal skills and interpersonal skills. In other words, how you deal with problems, and how you interact with others.

The “Behavioural Interview” is becoming increasingly popular as it provides an unbiased standard interview for all candidates. This format is designed to assess how you cope in certain situations using your “soft skills”. So, if you are short of work experience on your CV, you can draw on your life experiences. This is definitely good news if you are a school leaver, graduate or returning to work after a break.

Most interviews will consist of at least some behavioural questioning, so it’s a good idea to prepare your examples in advance to prevent any head scratching in the interview room! Often you can tell if the interview will be behaviourally based by looking at the job spec. If there is a list of soft skills, or “key competencies” (the terminology can masquerade under many names!), then be prepared to be asked to demonstrate these.

Write down examples of situations, the outcomes, and what you would have done differently with hindsight for each of the following. Find a work related situation preferably, but draw from other areas of your life if your work experience is minimal:

Personal soft skills

Time management. How do you prioritise tasks? In most jobs you will have to do numerous tasks at the same time. Can you demonstrate how you have handled this in the past? You may be required to drop everything and refocus your attentions on another task. Do you have any examples of this?

Coping under pressure. How do you cope with stress? Can you think of an example that demonstrates a high pressure situation you have had to deal with?

Dealing with change. Companies sometimes restructure and require the work force to be flexible and positive about progress. New policies and procedures are always being introduced. Can you give an example of where you have positively embraced or initiated changes?

Problem solving. Think of an example of a time you solved a problem effectively. Did you save a sale/a customer/a life/the company money?

What motivates you? It could be money, job satisfaction, helping others. Have a look at the job description. For example, if you are going for a job in sales, then “money” is the obvious answer!

Decision making. When have you had to make a difficult decision? Was it the right one? What did you do if you realised it wasn’t the best course of action?

Interpersonal soft skills

Teamwork. Where have you worked well in a team? What was your role in that team? With many workplaces being open plan, employers often look for people that will “fit in” and work easily with others. This doesn’t mean you have to think of a sports team you have been involved with, just a situation where you have worked well amongst a group of people.

Motivating others. Do people like being around you? Can you think of a time when you have encouraged or helped others to complete a task?

Leadership. This could be an example of leading a team at work or in your personal life.

Influencing. Can you think of a time when you have persuaded someone round to your way of thinking; where you have convinced others of a good idea?

Communication. Have you had to write reports in the past or give presentations? Do you speak clearly and listen effectively?

Dealing with conflict. Have you resolved/mediated in any disputes? Are you aggressive, assertive or passive?

These are the main soft skills that employers look for, and to be able to confidently rattle off examples of scenarios will greatly improve your chances of landing the job!

Good luck!

These structured tests, designed by psychologists, provide employers with valid and reliable results on a candidate’s abilities or personality traits and provide a fairer, more standard selection process.

There are two types of psychometric tests – Ability tests and Personality tests.

Ability tests can cover technical skills, numeric reasoning and/ or word skills. These tests are strictly timed. Personality tests however, are not timed and have no “right” or “wrong” answers but different personality traits are suitable for different roles (for example,  a sales person would ideally score highly on the extraversion scale).

One of the most commonly used personality tests is the OCEAN personality test which measures characteristics on the following scales:

• Openness – (inventive / curious vs. cautious / conservative.
• Conscientiousness – (efficient / organized vs. easy-going /careless).
• Extroversion – (outgoing / energetic vs. shy / withdrawn).
• Agreeableness – (friendly / compassionate vs. competitive / outspoken
• Neuroticism – (sensitive / nervous vs. secure /confident).

There are numerous tests on the internet that you can google to have a practice if you suspect that you may be required to sit one of these tests in an interview. Personality tests can’t really be practiced but many people become unstuck on the ability tests simply due to the timed element of such tests.

Click here for examples of timed ability tests.

Personal Marketing, microphone in hand, asked a senior HR Manager in the public sector how these were applied in a large organisation:

Would you use psychometric tests as part of an interview procedure? If so, for which type of vacancies?

Ability Testing – We tend to use verbal and numerical reasoning for Senior Management positions.  The ones we use are the hardest ones as they are measured against  other senior managers. We do expect a high score and most of our managers would be scoring in the top 10% and if they weren’t, we’d look more closely at them in terms of their level of intellect.  We also use Ability tests for technical vacancies – mechanical/spatial ability etc.
Personality Testing – We also use personality profiling for senior management recruitment and may also use them for internal promotions.  Personality profiling is far more subjective and is used to start further discussions relating to the candidate’s personality traits that would not necessarily come up through the usual interview process.

Do  you use psychometric testing as an ongoing career development tool?

Not really although this is probably a better use of them.  We can and have used profiling tests that show career aspirations and ideal job fits, as well as ones that can help ascertain learning preferences (i.e. how is it best for you to absorb information).  We have also administered some limited 360 appraisals, which calls for a manager’s direct reports to complete questionnaires (confidentially).  This should show management style, weaknesses and strengths, and ensure that the manager’s view is similar to that of his direct reports.

How reliable and valid do you consider psychometric tests? Can you spot the “socially desirable answers” that someone may give?

Ability tests are fully valid as they are completely objective, providing that what you are trying to measure is relevant – i.e. does someone need to score in the top 10% in numerical reasoning for a marketing role?

Personality profiling is far more subjective and is only about 70% accurate.  This is why anyone interpreting these tests must be qualified and on the register with the British Psychological Society.  There should always be two way feedback on all personality profiling so that the comments shown can be validated with real examples to show they are accurate or not.  I would never share a document with others in the interview process, but would verbally summarise what the profile and my in-depth feedback meeting had discovered.   Any psychometric testing should only be used to validate or expand on areas already established during the interview process and are not the ‘be all and end all’.  There are indicators in all personality profiling that show if someone has answered in a way to show themselves in a better light, faked “good” answers, or have a disproportionate number of ‘middle’ answers.  This is another reason for an in depth discussion.  This is another area of conflict during the interview process as the whole point as a candidate is to show yourself in a good light!

So, there is not much you can do to prepare for psychometric personality testing except be aware of the traits that would be desirable for the role that you are being interviewed for, and be prepared to back those up with real life examples in the interview.  Once you have landed the job however, you may still be expected to complete psychometric tests throughout your career. So,be sure to take the time every now and then to practice timed ability tests!

Hmm, now this is  interesting. According to the job hunters’ bible, ‘What Color is your parachute?’ by Richard Bolles:

• Using the internet as a way to look for a job is, at the very most, 10% effective
• Mailing out your CV to employers at random is usually 7% effective
• Answering job ads in the press, noticeboards etc are around 7% to 24% effective.
• Using recruitment agencies is 5-28% effective

The method he deems as around 90% effective is congruent with the old expression, “It’s not what you know, it’s WHO you know”; otherwise known as “networking”.

Now networking might come naturally to you, but according to the Shyness Research Institute (yes, really!) at Indiana University, approximately 40% of people describe themselves as shy. This can mean that the prospect of “networking” is one that brings many job hunters out in a cold sweat.

So how do you master the art of the “schmooz” and maximise your chances of seizing an opportunity through networking?

1. Start close to home. If you are shy, a bit of a hermit even, there are probably friends and family that you have not caught up with for a while. Dust off your address book, go through the numbers in your phone and make contact to see how they are. Drop a friend an email, arrange to go out for a drink or invite them round for a cup of coffee and practise your small talk. Practising socialising with people with whom you have lost contact to warm up your skills for when you have to meet strangers.

2. Get a gregarious friend. I used to have a friend called Lara who was a brilliant networker. At parties, whether they were hers or not, she would manage to get everyone in the room talking with each other. She would ask lots of questions then, at a relevant point in the conversation, introduce another person in the room-  then discreetly slip away when the new connection was firmly established and moved onto the next wall flower.  A Lara is a great person to know. She takes away your nerves and does the introducing for you. Obviously you can’t drag your Lara everywhere, but watch how they do it and learn their skills.

3. Ask questions and listen. Talk to your new contact by asking them questions about what they do. Most people love talking about themselves and this keeps the heat off you! Ask lots of “open questions” that begin with a who, how, when, where or why. A question that results in a yes/no answer will be as painful as pulling teeth. If you are at an event ask others what they thought of the speaker/programme/show.

4. Watch your body language. Smile, don’t slouch, make eye contact with people, don’t fold your arms or talk too fast. If you don’t know what to do with your hands carry a pen!

5. Don’t scoff all the buffet. It may be tempting at an event to simply avoid people and make a beeline for the buffet. While everyone else is networking you have troughed your way through four platefuls of sausage rolls instead. Not a good start.

6. Be realistic. Talking with two or three people in a room is better than not talking with anyone at all.

7. Watch out for self effacing comments. Don’t put yourself down/belittle your job or achievements/apologise all the time.

8. Be a greeter. If your company is holding an event and you have been drafted in to help, offer to be the person on the front desk. Hand out the name badges, say hello to people, tell them where the bar is. You will get to know who everyone is and soon people will approach you for a chat.

9. Go online. Networking doesn’t always mean face-to-face (although this is the most effective way). Get networking via Facebook and LinkedIn. Join online groups and discussions to get your name about.

10. Get over your fear of rejection. You won’t be interesting to all people, nor will your skills or experience be of use to all you meet, so don’t worry if the conversation doesn’t go anywhere or you never hear from your new contact again. Don’t take it personally!

A report by Helen Gilbert in Personnel Today (January 29th) reveals 41% of HR managers in the UK  have rejected a job applicant due to their online profile.  Recruitment agencies are also looking at social network profiles as part of their standard background checks (click here to view the full article).

In addition, a  recent survey of graduates by recruitment website milkround.com shows that Facebook is by far the most popular social networking site, with 98% of students and graduates having a Facebook profile.  18% of those use Facebook for both socialising and job hunting; a risky strategy that may be embarrassing if potential employers access photos of drunken high japes!

Only 17% of graduates and students instead use the professional website LinkedIn for job hunting and 3% of all students and graduates surveyed say they have two Facebook profiles, one for job hunting and one for socialising.

With Facebook’s recent controversial changes to privacy, many users may now have public profiles without realising it. This means that anyone (current and prospective employers included) can access your photos, personal information and message walls. It is worth checking your privacy settings if there is anything on your profile you perhaps would not want an employer to see! Go to “Settings” (at the top of the page), then “Privacy Settings”, and then “Profile Information” and adjust accordingly.

And, if you do add your boss as a friend on Facebook, then just watch what you say. Last year a female worker was sacked after ranting in her status update:

“OMG I HATE MY JOB!!! ” and continuing on to slate her boss.

Her boss, whom she had forgotten she had added as a friend, replied just a few hours later “…I’ll pop your P45 in the post and you can come in whenever you like to pick up any stuff you’ve left here. And yes, I’m serious”.

Oops! So, be careful!

It works on a give to receive basis. Users anonymously submit their reviews of companies as employers and, in return, receive free access to information on other companies that includes how employees rate the work/life balance? Is performance recognised? What is communication from senior management like? Are there opportunities for career progression? Is this company recommended as an employer?

In addition, users who submit a review receive 12 months access to the following information:

• Unbiased expert advice in forums
• News of relevant job vacancies
• Tailored careers advice

So, make an informed decision before you apply somewhere (or accept a job offer) and take a look!

I would probably say for me that it would be:

“Always treat with respect those you meet on the way up the ladder, as you never know, you may meet them on the way down!” (my Dad’s pearls of wisdom)

For example, I have always been very polite to recruitment consultants when they have canvass-called me – whereas colleagues simply ignore their calls or are downright rude to them.  The way I look at it, I may need their help myself one day!

What has been the best career advice you have ever received?

Please comment and let me know!

A good business plan will cover the following points:

Executive summary - often written last but always read first. It is a summary of your business proposition, experience of the management team,  the product or service, summary of sales anticipated, market and financial summary. Try and keep it to 1-2 pages at the most.  This will be what investors want to see. If they like what they read they will read the rest of the plan in more detail.

Business background – detail as to the experience of the management involved. How did the business come about? What are its aims? Perform a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats/risks) that face your business.

Product/Service -What is your product/service? What are its selling points?  What is the price? Who are you aiming this product/service at?

Operational info – How will your business operate? Do you have premises? What will the overheads be? Who will manage  the company day to day?

Marketing Plan – Who are your competitors? Have you carried out market research to see if there is a need for this product/service? How much do you plan to spend on marketing? What sales tactics will you use? How exactly will you advertise/market yourself?

Financial info – a full breakdown of costs anticipated, investment required and finance already provided by management team, overhead costings, sales projections, profit and loss projections, and cashflow forecast for the next five years.

For more information on writing a business plan go to www.businesslink.gov.uk . They provide all the details and advice you need to get your idea off the ground.

In addition,  most banks have a small business advisor who can help you with all of the above.

Good luck!

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There are many advantages to working for yourself:

• You can work the hours you choose
• You can fit in around family commitments (if your business allows it)
• You are your own boss
• You can set up a business in an industry/service you have a passion for

Where to start?

Firstly, you need to think about the type of business you are planning to set up. Experience will always be a bonus but start locally with your research. Is there a gap in the market for a particular product/business or service? Do as much research as you can into competitors, cost of premises, overheads etc.

Perhaps you can set up an online business? Again, check out the competition and don’t order more stock in than you think you can realistically sell!

Write a business plan. This will help you think through your idea and can be presented to a bank if you need to ask for a loan.

Things to be aware of:

• Setting up your own business can require a lot of initial financial investment and it may take a year or two of long hours and hard work to build your business up profitably.
• With any business that you set up there are invariably risks you have to take.
• You will need to take matters such as tax and national insurance into your own hands and ensure that all your paperwork is accurate and up to date.  Of course there are always tax advisers/book keepers and accountants that you can employ to help you out with that.

Useful websites:

Business Link is an excellent Government run website that gives advice on all aspects of setting up and marketing your own business. They also run free local training courses that will teach you all you need to know about setting up by yourself.

www.businesslink.gov.uk

For tax matters then see HM Revenue and Customs website which explains what you need to do to get started. It’s not as complicated as you may think!

www.hmrc.gov.uk

According to the Metropolitan Police, 93% of CVs posted online contain enough information for criminals to steal your identity. This information could then be used to take out credit cards and loans in your name, acess your accounts, seriously affect your credit rating and even gain a passport in your name!

Here are some top tips:

• Make sure the site you are posting to is genuine as some bogus ones have been set up purely to collect CV data.  Research online the site’s reputation.
• Be wary of those emails you get out of the blue suggesting you for an interview (particularly in a field that is not your skill set), and that request further personal detail.
• Check that anyone you respond to with further information has a company domain name in their email address and not a host server address.

On your CV:

DO NOT put the following information online. A prospective employer will be able to assess if you have the correct experience for the job without it.

• Full address. Leave off your house number and road
• Your middle name
• Your marital status
• Your National Insurance number
• Your date of birth/ place of birth (the Age Discrimination Act means that you don’t have to include this information)
• Driving licence number
• Bank details (obviously!)
• Make sure you have a separate email address for job hunting. Get one free from sites such as Yahoo or Hotmail
• Do not put names and addresses of any references. They will not thank you if their ID gets stolen! Simply write “References available on request”

In addition:

• Do not put similiarly sensitive info on Facebook or other networking sites.
• Deactivate any online CVs when you are not job hunting or if you do not use that job site any more.
• Make a notes of all those places that you have applied to with your personal information online, just in case.
• If you are applying directly to a company or via an email received, then have a look on the Companies House website (www.companieshouse.gov.uk) to check they are legitimate.
• Ensure that you regularly change your jobs’ website passwords and have up to date anti-virus/security software on your laptop or PC.

How comfortable are you posting your CV online with the recent security breaches? Please leave a comment and let me know.