In this week's Talent and HR News Weekly Update, we're featuring insight into meaningful work, employee happiness, and more. Here’s a fresh perspective just in time for the weekend. Enjoy!
1) This Is What Happens When Employees Find Meaning at Work from Entrepreneur
“Meaningful work is something everyone wants. Employees desire jobs with a purpose they can identify with; they want to know that they’re making an impact. But is "meaning" a workplace necessity? Shouldn’t employees show up to work each day engaged and ready to go simply because the employer is paying them? The answer to that question may be "no." While, at first glance, "meaningful work" sounds like just another fluffy, feel-good ideal, it turns out that employees want and need more than a paycheck to stay engaged at work.”
2) 14 Traits You Should Look For in Employees (Talent Isn't One of Them) from Inc.
“Millennials think, act, and see the world differently, but there are core traits that are essential for success in the workforce. In today's society, millennials are graduating from college at higher rates and are increasingly finding themselves without the benefit of job security.Universities teach many different topics, but unfortunately, intentional preparation for the working world is not one of them. It's no longer enough to be educated. Graduates must be able to use their knowledge in conjunction with traits that are genuinely wanted in the workplace. Traditional employers are looking for employee traits that go beyond talent. The stereotypical traits of being lazy, entitled, and disrespectful applied to the millennial generation won't cut it. Here are 14 traits that millennials can cultivate and employers should look for when sifting through stacks of resumes.”
3) The Info Science Of Happy Cultures from Forbes
“In the pursuit of a healthy bottom line and relentless economic growth, there’s one thing that still too often gets pushed to the sidelines when companies and corporations think about culture: employee happiness. The truth is, employee happiness is absolutely essential for a healthy work culture. Looking after somebody else’s existential contentment (or a few hundred people’s contentment) might sound like a tall order, but thankfully, science has delivered some data about the importance of happiness in the workplace — as well as some common-sense solutions for how to bolster morale in your own organization.”
4) The future of the Internet of Things (IoT) job market from TechCrunch
“Since the dawn of technology, we’ve been afraid of technology eliminating our jobs. Look at the birth of the steam engine. When it was invented in the late 1700s, people believed its arrival signaled the end of manual labor and thousands of hardworking individuals would be out of jobs. Instead, the steam engine created completely new jobs in new industries like railway systems and high-productivity factories. While the steam engine did eliminate some manual labor jobs, it created new jobs like machine operators, engineers and maintenance workers. Nearly 250 years later, in a world defined by technological change, we see the same fears and concerns. Over the next decade, we’ll see this pattern play out once more in the nascent Internet of Things (IoT). With an industry defined by “bringing physical things online,” many IoT business models are predicated on improving efficiency by eliminating labor.”
5) 4 tips for more successful employee onboarding from CIO
“Onboarding is more than a one-day orientation. It's a crucial period of time in a new-hire's career that can define the rest of his or her future with the company. One of the most important phases in an employee's tenure is his or her first year with the company. Much of their success will depend on your onboarding practices. And as everything goes digital, so should your employee onboarding.”
Kathleen O'Brien (@kathleen_eliz) is a Lead Consultant & Project Manager for exaqueo, a workforce consultancy that helps organizations build their cultures, employer brands and talent strategies. Contact exaqueo to learn more about our employer brand innovation, workforce research, and recruiting strategy offerings.