Robert Braathe's HR & Albany Jobs Blog

Teaching New Technologies to Customers

2012-02-04T13:46:25Z

In high school, when I was working at Copps Hill Shell in Ridgefield, CT, we were one of the first gas stations in the area to get credit card readers at the pumps for customers to pay at the pump. The learning process for the customers was a bit haphazard, but one of our jobs working there was to introduce the service to customers as they arrived for the first 4-6 weeks of the new readers being in place.

There were a handful of customers who still preferred paying inside of the building, and we didn't discourage customers from paying that way, as it enabled us to capture some sales inside of the convenience store.

Some of the learnings we took out of this were that there is no simple way to train the same way in every situation without having a good system in place. We set up a basic system to follow.

1. Greet the customer with a hello and telling them about our new card readers
2. If the customer said they'd rather pay inside, we'd show them how to do it so they'd become more comfortable the next time around
3. For customers paying cash, we'd also show them how it worked in case they wanted to change their payment method in the future.

Following these procedures got us to know our customers better, educate all customers regardless of whether they'd use the technology or not, and enabled us to be more than just the guys who worked at the gas station.

Fall In Love with Your Career on Valentine's Day

2012-02-03T18:30:14Z

Tune in to a special edition of Capital District Business Profiles on Valentine's Day featuring motivational speaker and career counselor Dr. Tom Denham.

Dr. Tom has worked with colleges, students, and career professionals for many years in the Capital District and has great insights on how to make a career transition.

Have you fallen in love with your career? If you haven't, it may be time to listen to your heart and also listen in to our show 330-415 on Valentine's Day.

You may be in a situation now where you are unsure where the next step may lead, and its time to remove the fear from your life by facing it and moving on!

Be The Charles Nelson Reilly Of Your Business or Network

2012-01-30T16:23:20Z

I joked with one of my friends that one of the reasons I get invited to be a panelist or participant in events is because I'm the Charles Nelson Reilly of my network.

Reilly was one of the funniest people from my childhood and he always added some wit and charm to the shows he appeared on.

In my life, I've always found that when there has been a need for someone in a pinch, when I get a call I am able to deliver a quality presentation, class, or contribution on short notice.

What can you do to become that reliable and energetic presence for those in your network or business?

Here is more on Charles Nelson Reilly from Wikipedia:

He was also a frequent guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, appearing more than one hundred times. Because Reilly was such a lively and reliable talk-show guest and lived within blocks of the Burbank studios where The Tonight Show was taped, he was often asked to be a last-minute replacement for scheduled guests who did not make it to the studio in time. During this time, Reilly was perhaps best known as a fixture of game shows, primarily due to his appearances as a regular panelist on the television game show Match Game.

Know When To Retreat Before You Need to Retreat

2012-01-28T23:12:43Z

As the New Year started, I committed myself to committing to more "big picture" time and it began today with an all day retreat with the folks at LifeStylized. My new friends Rono and Sierra invited me to attend an all day workshop to "Envision 2012" where I participated in a number of great activities to recharge and refocus on the bigger picture.

45 minutes after the session ended, I walked away with a renewed sense of self as well as a renewed focus on the future of my company and the future of me. I've got some great action items for my business and my personal life and am on my way to reinvigorating my life with passion.

Why did I attend? Because I felt I didn't need to, but because I wanted to. Many times, I fell companies and people don't make the time to focus on yearly goals until the goals have been missed. Others make time for events like this after a major tragedy. I disagree with both of these approaches. As I mentioned at the beginning of today's events, my company grew over 60% in revenues last year from 2010, and this year our goal is to bring in the total of 2010 and 2011 combined. Lofty goals, but realistic given the great people I've been able to bring in as virtual interns, colleagues and freelancers.

It's not too late to retreat this year for a day, a weekend, or an hour. Put it on your calendar and find time to focus now, rather than later.

Giving People a Taste of Your Business

2012-01-25T23:28:17Z

How do people know whether or not they should frequent your business? Do you have a good website? Do you advertise?

From an HR perspective, some people need to hear you in action or see you live in order to get a better feel for whether or not they will want to work with you or for you.

Tune in to an episode of Capital District Business Profiles, which debuts this coming Monday at 7:30pm (and in February will also air Wednesday mornings at 10am) to check out some of the local businesses that may be offering opportunities for doing business or potential job opportunities in the future.

On Capital District Business Profiles, we will be interviewing local business owners to find out more about their business and how they go about doing what they do.

The Job Search and LinkedIn

2012-01-17T17:39:22Z

I volunteered my time yesterday at the Times Union Job fair from 10-1 yesterday to critique resumes of those who were seeking jobs at the fair. One of the recurring themes I saw among the resumes I reviewed was the lack of a LinkedIn profile link at the top of the page.

If you have a LinkedIn account, you should put your LinkedIn URL on your resume to use it as an enhanced version of your resume to direct employers to greater details than your resume can provide.

LinkedIn has become such a valuable resource for employers, job seekers and consultants among many others. From finding the right talent to finding the right service provider, having LinkedIn as part of your strategy as a job seeker or business person is crucial.

For those seeking to switch jobs or finding jobs, using the Skills feature on LinkedIn can enable you to stand out from others in your field of interest.

Is Anyone Professionally In Love with You or Your Business?

2012-01-15T01:50:30Z

I have professionally fallen in love with a few businesses and businesspeople in my time. I'm not talking about the romantic, touchy feely, lovey dovey kind of love, but more of an overarching admiration and respect for the totality of another business person or business.

You know the person or business I am talking about; the business or person representing a business who loves what they do, cares about their clients or customers and is extremely passionate in their belief in their products and their belief in you.

Have you professionally fallen in love with anyone?

Here are signs that you are professionally in love

1. You wouldn't think about buying or working with anyone else.
2. You go out of your way to talk to others about how great they are.
3. You actually believe your life has been changed because of your experience.

Sounds a lot like romantic love, doesn't it?

Get people to fall professionally in love with you and your business, and you will never be short of customers, business, or momentum.

Build Your "Resume From The Future"

2012-01-12T13:31:22Z

Prior to hiring or prior to the start of the Virtual Internship Program at Braathe Enterprises and Saratoga College, I ask all of my interns to provide me with a resume "from the future". This resume contains an entry that includes what they want to accomplish during the internship as if it had already happened.

This resume from the future accomplishes many things; one is to get both the student and I on the same page on what they want to accomplish; another is to begin with the end in mind, and create broader goals that help shape the projects I design for them. By having the foresight to project larger goals for themselves and having me agree upon them, the internship becomes a fulfillment of a goal set months earlier and many of the goals are met prior to the end of the internship.

Next time you go on a job interview, consider building a "resume from the future" to show employers who may be considering hiring you.

Gas Station Boy Knows Best

2012-01-09T13:57:18Z

I remember the fun I had working at a gas station growing up and the people who would come in and treat me as if I didn't have a brain. Apparently, to many of the customers, it wasn't logical that a college kid with a high IQ could possibly want to work behind the counter of a gas station on weekends to pay for college.

I learned a lot about Human Resources and motivation in my time at the gas station. It was funny to see the interactions between people who were getting their car worked on and the mechanics and service manager. It was also rewarding to be able to manage kids my age in terms of writing their schedule and training them.

Next time you are in a gas station, convenience store, or other "service" establishment, engage the person working there in a conversation; you'd be pleasantly surprised with what you may find out about them in the discussion.

Likewise, if you work in a position at one of these establishments, look beyond the stereotypes of the role and find ways to make the work interesting, as well as opportunities to engage your customers in friendly dialogue (in fact, many of the people I talked to in my time at the gas station are clients or friends today, some 20 years later!)

A Disturbing Trend - Shame vs. Apology

2012-01-07T18:17:30Z

I've heard from colleagues and I have experience it myself; there is a lack of apologies for mistakes because people are ashamed to admit they are wrong.

Have you ever had an employee or coworker just walk off the job because they have neglected responsibility? Have you had an employee make a mistake or let you down and rather than say they are sorry, they have quit or completely fallen off the face of the earth in shame?

I've had this happen to me a few times in my career, as have my colleagues. What employees need to learn is that is ok to make mistakes, and that an apology and an act of contrition can be much more forgiving then one might think. Personally, I find it far worse for someone to just disappear off an assignment then to say "I screwed up".

For those of you early in your career who want to be taken seriously, be willing to make mistakes and apologize for them. Also, be willing to tell people AHEAD of time when you know an upcoming event or situation may possibly affect your work; your employer will be more forgiving then you believe.

Strive to be The Greatest American Hero

2012-01-05T01:53:34Z

‎2011 was an amazing year. Some thoughts for 2012:

1. Believe in abundance. There's plenty to go around for everyone if we collaborate and pay it forward. In 2011, I referred more clients to my colleagues than any other year for one reason or another, and my business was up 51 percent from 2010

2. Be different. I spent many years of my life trying to fit in and I was miserable. In 2011 I committed to being myself and telling it like it is and saw that I was more accepted by others then when I "tried to fit in" or conform to the norm. Say things you mean to say and apologize if you have to. But be yourself! The true you.

3. Instead of proving people wrong, prove people right! When I was 8 i was watching The Greatest American Hero and a friend of my dads told me "Robbie, you are going to be the Greatest American Hero". That's certainly a lofty goal to live up to but it has driven me to give freely and be better with every day.

Don't live to prove the critics wrong. Live to prove yourself and the people that believe in you right!

Be The Greatest American Hero to those you work with, know and love!

2012 - 20 Ways to Get 12 Things Done Right

2012-01-03T18:13:57Z

It's that time of year again where resolutions are broken, goals are set, new ideas are tested, and often the same results are attained using different means.

For 2012, I suggest finding 20 different ways of getting 12 things done right. What those 20 different ways and 12 things are is up to you; however, I suggest you try new ways of reaching out to people, new ways of promoting the same work you do already, and each month have a big goal that you can focus on for that month. After January, add a second thing to do right and work on that. By December, you will have 12 things you've worked on and 11 of them for more than one month.

Am I going to follow this process - you better believe it! But as assignments like this go, I like to keep my 12 things to myself, but certainly will recap my results as I proceed to keep you posted. Good luck in 2012 and let me know how I can assist!

Robert
robert@saratogacollege.com

Committ-ee! - The Value of Committees

2011-12-30T17:56:32Z

I've been on committees over the years and I must say that the value of them is suspect. A good committee commits to creating a solution to a problem, where most committees I've encountered should be called Committ-ees because they are leery of committing to anything at all.

Committees require strong leadership and commitment, as well as the willingness for others to collaborate rather than compete.

Thankfully, of late, I've been a part of some great committees who actually work well together when necessary and get results!

Share your stories of committees or committ-ees via email to robert@saratogacollege.com. I'll share (anonymously) some of the best stories after the new years.

Why You Need a Good GPA - (and I don't mean Grade Point Average)

2011-12-28T02:55:04Z

Earlier this year, I wrote about Attitude, Attendance, and GPA and why most employers and schools that matter don't care.

Today, I expand on this thought by coming up with a new meaning for the GPA acronym.

Genuine
Professional
Attitude

With a Genuine Professional Attitude, you can walk into any door and find work wherever you go. Without it, you will end up endlessly searching for work and the right opportunity.

People who are genuine show it not necessarily with their words, but always with their actions.

People who are professional walk their talk, apologize when necessary and carry themselves with a high level of credibility.

People with the right attitude look for the opportunity in every failure and success.

What is your GPA? Have you paid attention to it lately? Think of this new GPA acronym -Genuine Professional Attitude instead of your Grade Point Average.

It doesn't matter if you have a 3.0 or 4.0 if your attitude sucks, you aren't professional or are insincere!

PS - If grade point average meant anything, it would be a field you'd need to fill in on your LinkedIn profile! (Guess what, it's not!)

The Value of You're Welcome Notes

2011-12-26T12:23:41Z

I've spoken for years with friends about wanting to invent a concept called You're Welcome Notes. My friends have said although it sounds like a great idea, they wonder where the endless cycle of Thank You and You're Welcome will end.

"Do you have to send a Thank You card for receiving a You're Welcome note?" is one of their questions. My response is always no, that is a little tacky, but writing to your friends and customers is always a good idea if you want to keep a continuing conversation going.

I did a Google search on You're Welcome Notes this morning and all that came up was a Facebook page that someone came up with stating that "You're Welcome Notes are the greatest demonstration of the welcomeness of the other person's previous thankfulness"

I look at You're Welcome Notes as a great opportunity to keep in touch with people after the holidays have ended, or after you've received a Thank You Note.

Here's a situation where you can see how valuable a You're Welcome Note could be in a business situation...

You sell a product or service to someone and offer them a great experience. They send you a Thank You note thanking you for the great service rendered, and expressing gratitude for all that you did for them. A few days or a short time after, follow up that note with a short letter (or You're Welcome note) checking in with them on their experience, and thanking them for their appreciation of your work.