How AI and Automation Can Benefit Your Business

How AI and Automation Can Benefit Your Business The AI and automation movement has created many exciting opportunities for all industries by being able to increase levels of productivity and efficiency. AI’s ability to process mountains of complex data at lightning speed is a powerful new engine for businesses. Firms that have already integrated this technology effectively are racing ahead. It’s time for others to catch up or be left behind. While large corporations are working on game-changing projects, such as self-driving cars and miracle medical cures, the smaller businesses are reaping the benefits of AI and automation at a more micro level. For SMEs, the main benefits of the technology include its ability to: • complete time-consuming, repetitive tasks • provide efficient customer service • improve communication amongst employees Recruitment AI and automation can bear the responsibility of time-consuming activities such as manually screening resumes. These technologies are more efficient in sifting through piles of job applications, as well as correctly aligning the skills of potential candidates to the relevant vacancies. SmartRecruiters and Zoho are just a couple of the well-known systems used to prioritize applications based on keywords such as skillset, number of years of experience, etc. The integration of this technology can help reduce bias and free up more time for managers to interview candidates. Email Marketing Email marketing is a powerful tool for reaching out to new and existing customers. Having an automated system allows you to send personalized emails at specific times in a bid to capture engagement. MailChimp is a popular choice for automated emails as it has a number of functions that can be integrated with other platforms. Relying on automated systems means that time and resources can be invested elsewhere. As a result, these technological advances have changed the face of direct mail and email marketing and are now playing an integral role in most business marketing strategies. Team Management The nature of management has changed thanks to the emergence of platforms such as Asana. It gives managers the freedom to manage teams in remote locations by creating automated reminders for any upcoming deadlines. Another great tool is Slack. It’s become the preferred method of communication in many businesses, replacing traditional email due to its automated features. By using a special bot, this platform is able to reach out to every team member through private messages, that can also be shared with the team as a whole. This reduces the need for traditional time-consuming meetings since all employees are able to view important documents and reports simultaneously, whilst also providing their own input. Customer Service Chatbots are useful tools for businesses as they can take over repetitive tasks such as dealing with multiple customer inquiries. They are essentially pre-programmed automated bots that typically serve as the front-line of communication for customers, in which they are capable of answering customer queries. But that’s not all. An AI bot built with machine learning to understand language has the ability to self-learn and get smarter, and as a consequence become more efficient and competent in handling complex questions. The healthcare industry has seen examples of its level of sophistication by prompting patients to take their medication. Chatbots can also be used for booking flights and, asking for recommendations, and even ordering food this is where large companies such as Starbucks and Pizza Hut are leading the way. To conclude, what’s the running theme here? Time being saved. For SMEs, time is one of the most valuable currencies in helping to achieve growth. By using this technology effectively, SMEs will be able to free up more time from not having to complete menial but important tasks and focus more attention to areas of greater complexity. Check out the infographic below for more. About the author:  Asavin Wattanajantra is Sage’s dedicated expert in issues that impact large corporations worldwide. He has spent over ten years working as a digital B2B and content marketing strategist, copywriter, community manager, account manager, and journalist. His expertise lies within topics relating to industry 4.0, digital transformation and cloud innovation.

4 tips for salary negotiation

4 tips for salary negotiation Dont be afraid to negotiate your salary. Once a hiring manager chooses you from what is probably the largest pool of candidates shes ever seen, you know youre a top candidate. The current economy wont give you the edge to ask for first-class air travel, but you do have options that can improve your salary outcome. 1. Dont disclose your pay requirements during the interview process. The first person to provide numbers establishes the range. If you give a number first, the interviewer will either tell you youre in the same ballpark as him, or youre too high. If you ask for less than the interviewer was considering, youll probably get it â€" and never find out you might have earned more. So interviewers always want you to disclose your requirements first. (Do not try to remedy this situation by giving an unreasonably high number because then you will sound unreasonable.) Your first line of defense is to say youd like to talk about salary once you have an offer. Still, a good interviewer will persevere. So try asking the interviewer what HE would pay someone for this job. Whatever number he gives, you can say, That will be a fine starting point. (You will ask for more later.) 2. Do not negotiate until you have an offer in writing. Heres why (and you should remember this for when the tables are turned): Lets say the job pays a salary and a performance bonus, but you dont know about the bonus part. If you do not get a written offer specifying the pay elements before you start negotiating, then you might negotiate a higher base salary but lose a portion of your bonus. Thats because the bonus gives your hiring manager some wiggle room. She can take it off the table before you know youre supposed to receive it. (Then she can report back to her boss and say, I saved us $5K.) Get the full offer in writing so you know what you have to work with during your bargaining. Once you have that written offer, ask for a night to think about it and come back with a counter offer. Admittedly, you may hate confrontation and feel youre a poor negotiator, but you have nothing to lose and youre likely to get more money. Plus you will get better at this each time you try. Remember, almost no one loses a written offer because he asks for more money. 3. Do your research and plan your attack. To know what to ask for in negotiations, you MUST know the pay range for your position. Check out salary surveys online and in trade journals. Do not quote any numbers from surveys conducted earlier than 2001. They are inflated. Get more recent information. Talk with friends in similar jobs or recruiters who regularly fill this type of position in your geographic region. Find the top of the salary range and ask for that. Show the hiring manager your research and remind her why you are worth the top of the range. If you are fortunate enough to find out that your offer already is in the high end of your salary range, then propose taking on more responsibilities so you can ask for slightly more pay. Suppose you are a marketing manager with a background in technical writing. You can say that while most marketing managers pass off technical writing in marketing documents to someone else, you will handle this yourself. This entitles you to ask for slightly more. 4. Know what you need. Each person is compensated in different ways â€" and not always monetarily. For instance, if you love what you do, you may not mind earning less than your neighbor with the same degree. Likewise, if you have a shorter commute. Friends can advise you, but you are the one in the job, and you must decide if you want it, regardless of the size of your paycheck. No salary survey can tell you that. Decide whats important to you and what trade-offs youll make pay wise, but be honest with yourself. Dont give up being paid more because you hate negotiating. Self-knowledge, good negotiation skills â€" and a little chutzpah will help ensure you earn what you deserve starting with your next job.

How Will Augmented Virtual Reality Play a Role in Recruitment

How Will Augmented Virtual Reality Play a Role in Recruitment More and more companies are choosing to go the virtual reality route. Even recruiters. Many recruitment agencies are embracing what virtual reality can bring to them. Why? Because it makes sense. Imagine interviewing candidates in a digital space without having to schedule a time for them to come in physically. It opens a door into an untapped market which allows people of different profiles a chance at roles they werent  previously able to interview for. At least thats what I think. Does our expert panel think the same? Jonathan Kestenbaum   While I don’t see a huge use case for talent acquisition today, I do think that VR will play a huge role in the training and development of employees. If VR were to play a larger role in everyday life, I anticipate there would be some use cases around employer branding. Jonathan Kestenbaum, Executive Director, Talent Tech Labs Cheryl Cran   Employers will be able to provide a ‘day in the life’ of working in their company where potential hires can review using VR and interact with potential co workers, see how meetings are conducted, get a better sense of culture and more. Cheryl Cran, CEO Future of Work Expert, Synthesis at Work Inc Nathan Perrott AR VR will be more suited and more effective to certain aspects of the recruitment process than others. For example, the benefits of using VR in assessment have already been proven. We’ve also used VR in talent attraction with some success. AR has been fairly limited until now, with the need to host the content on a specialist platform and then provide the user with download or usage instructions. However, now that Facebook has essentially democratised AR by opening up their platform for development, there will be some excited possibilities for its usage in recruitment. Nathan Perrott, Director of Digital Marketing Strategy, AIA Worldwide Adam Glassman   I think that’s yet to be determined. There are some theories, and some use cases, to be sure. One area in particular where it could be very valuable is in employment branding efforts. Imagine being able to do a virtual office tour, or see what an off-hours employee event looks like. Imagine getting a real preview of what it’s like to work at a company â€" and in a particular role as well â€" through augmented reality. That’s a powerful component we’ve yet to tap into, but could in the very near future. Adam Glassman, Recruitment Strategies Manager, Alorica Hung Lee   AR/ VR will be most logically be applied in employer branding, talent attraction, and talent assessment and training. We have already seen some incredible early examples of companies producing AR job advertisements or VR office tours and AR/VR job assessment. This is probably the technology trend that will be one of the earliest to secure mainstream adoption in the world of recruitment over the next 12-18 months or so. Hung Lee, CEO, WorkShape.io Chris Russell   Job training is the first thing that comes to mind. Workers will most like be trained in a virtual reality world in order to qualify for work. It exists somewhat now like with flight simulators but the technology will be wearable very soon. Chris Russell, Managing Director, RecTechMedia.com Bryan Chaney Recruiters are storytellers, and we’re continually looking for more and more interesting ways to show off our workspaces and the roles and teams we’re trying to fill. The current standard that companies need to reach is video, so the logical next step has to be immersive video, or VR. If the tech and the hardware can catch up, I see virtual and augmented reality playing a part in our shopping, our food and restaurant choices, and very easily our job searches and career decisions. Imagine a mobile 360 degree video showing off a live game room or meeting space, where you the candidate can interact with actual employees. That’s the next step in storytelling story showing. Bryan Chaney, Director of Employer Brand, Indeed

3 Alternatives to an internship to help your career

3 Alternatives to an internship to help your career This post is sponsored by  Trud.co.uk Internships help with giving you some ‘real world’ experience in a mostly academic world till you graduate. It is largely agreed that those who do internships have a better chance of finding a job after graduation. This has mean that finding an internship is no easy task. Gone are the days when you could write to your newspaper and get an internship with them. They are a lot more sophisticated now, and almost all employers run a dedicated screening and interview process to hire interns. So what about those that don’t find an internship? What can they do? To answer just that, I spent some time to put together 3  alternatives to an internship  over 12 weeks (a small internship timeline) that will help job seekers  improve their career prospects after graduation. 1. Do an online business course The reason to look for an internship is to learn from the experts and people doing the job. You would also get a feel of the ethos of the workplace and how business is done. By not doing an internship you are missing out on that. But you can to a lesser extent learn about business by doing a course online. You will still learn from an expert and it is still better than not doing anything at all. You can even showcase the course on your resume or LinkedIn profile. For example, here’s a course on the  Foundations of Business Strategy delivered by Michael Lenox, Slover Professor of Business at University of Virginia. Cost? FREE. If you are slightly more entrepreneurial, you can see this course and this one on Leadership.   How much do these cost? FREE. There are just 1000s of FREE courses being delivered by leading online courses platforms. Have a look and aim to do at least one over the 12-week period. 2. Offer your service to a small start-up/venture There are lots of start-ups in the UK springing up now. If you find an interesting one, email them and ask them if they’d like to take you on to help them out for 12 weeks or so. And I am speaking about true start-ups, not businesses that have been there for more than a year, generating hundreds of thousands of pounds and still calling themselves start-ups. For example, a small online start-up focusing on food delivery or medicine could still do with someone helping on the accounting, social media, some research work, etc. It’s voluntary and you can do it in your own time… of course a business will always expect some deadline for any work it gives you. I am not suggesting you work for a company that generates thousands of pounds in revenue and doesn’t pay you for work. Instead, look for the ones that aren’t in it for profit, etc… This is one of my favorite  alternatives to an internship, if you cant find one. Career Geek Blog is looking for bloggers… gain some experience that way, you can always ask me questions and get exposure for your writing. How much does this cost you? Nothing. Work from home. FREE. 3. Build a personal brand work on yourself Personal branding is something we all neglect. Dont worry, its nothing to do with work experience etc, however if you have some time its worth spending it on personal branding. Work on yourself. Find out what you really like and see if you want to learn something new. Would you like to code? Here, take this course on how to code in eight weeks. Otherwise, heres something YOU SHOULD DO Get your resume updated/improved Join LinkedIn and build a damn good profile If you enjoy writing, start a blog Read, read, read it will help you improve. This post is sponsored by  Trud.co.uk Hope this helps you. You can also read these 5 Career FAQs. Oh, and this is a presentation you must see the  3 secrets of highly successful graduates. 18

Two Niche Job Areas That Make Money

Two Niche Job Areas That Make MoneyThere are two basic types of resume writing niches that make money. One is that people who do not have any experience writing resumes will be very good at it and you will eventually hire them because they write something you want. The other type of resume writing niche that makes money is for those who have the actual experience.The first resume writing niche that makes money is the one that does not make money. It is the field of education.If you have never taken any kind of college class, you are not going to get hired to teach at the college level because no one wants to pay for your classes. Not only that, but they are also not going to pay for you to sit through some useless college lecture.Now, those who are good at writing curriculum vitae often sell their talents to some very lucrative resumes writing niches. If you are looking for a position in the elementary, middle or high school education field, you may want to hire a career coach who ha s been to all of the best high schools in the country. That way, you can earn your college degree much quicker than you otherwise would have without that extra two or three years of experience.It is also possible to be a teacher and write your own resume. You need to be able to write a curriculum vitae that explains the advantages and value of teaching at an advanced level. You need to state in detail what your educational background has been and how that can benefit the students you teach.I know that this will sound like a very rich quick scheme, but that is exactly how some teachers get their starting salaries, after the local public school system pays them. Once they have established themselves as good teachers, they will then take the higher paying positions. Again, this resume writing niche that making money is a good way to earn a lot of money over a short period of time.The other resume writing niche that makes money is that of being a therapist. This is because they have pat ients come to them with life threatening illnesses and they help them to recover and even to cure their illness. The downside is that you are doing physical therapy for someone with cancer or with Alzheimer's, and those kinds of illnesses can make it very difficult to concentrate on your own writing.However, there are some very lucrative professionals who have turned to writing a curriculum vitae and turning it into a resume writing niche. You should always keep this in mind if you are someone who would like to get into this kind of job.

Do You Keep Thinking, I Need a New Job!

Do You Keep Thinking, I Need a New Job! Do You Keep Thinking, I Need a New Job! Do You Keep Thinking, I Need a New Job! December 15, 2012 by Career Coach Sherri Thomas Leave a Comment Do you keep telling yourself, “I need a new job!”Are you thinking it every day? Do you dream of starting a fresh, new career where people appreciate you?  Where you can do the kind of work you enjoy, and be valued for your expertise? Or maybe reinventing yourself into a completely different job or industry where you’re doing something youve always dreamed about thats meaningful and inspiring? Maybe you’ve been pushing away that dream because it seems impossible, or overwhelming, or maybe because you simply don’t know how to change your career? But what if you can no longer silence the dream?  When that voice keeps coming back to you, louder and stronger, saying “I need a new job!”, and no matter how many times you push it out of your mind it keeps coming back. What do you do then? The reason so many people stay in unmotivating and unfulfilling jobs  is because it’s easy to do. It’s familiar, it takes minimal effort, it’s easy to blank out and be a zombie for 8 hours a day, and there’s comfort in knowing you’re getting the bills paid. It’s easy because there’s minimal risk and minimal effort.  But there’s also minimal reward. Doing drudgery work actually drains you of energy, makes you irritable and lowers your quality of life. However, when you’re energized in your job, then youre making higher contributions, and therefore, have more opportunities for promotions, advancement and a higher quality of life. Earlier in my career, I made the mistake of believing  that if someone hired me, then that was where I was meant to be.  BIG mistake!!  I learned that I need to set the bar higher for myself. I learned that jumping into a new, and sometimes scary career was worth the risk. I also learned how to create more options and how to make better decisions about where I work and who I work for. Life is way too short to stay in a meaningless job where you’re unfulfilled, unchallenged and under-valued.  I’ve had a few of those jobs myself and I remember waking up every morning and dreading going into work. The highlight of my day was having lunch with some of my colleagues. If the highlight of your day is eating lunch â€" then it’s time for you to make a career change or at least, start exploring new opportunities! I’ve reinvented myself four (4) times and each time, I successfully landed in my dream career!  For me, I tend to stay in a career 4-5 years, and then through natural curiosity (or A.D.D.? ;)) I tend to re-brand and reinvent myself  into a different job role or industry. Each one of my career changes started out the same way â€" by allowing myself to dream about career possibilities and then creating an action plan. YOUR ASSIGNMENT Allow yourself time to dream.   Give yourself permission to daydream about career possibilities.    (In fact, this is one of the key assignments I give to my clients which is why I believe they have such a high success rate!) Then, write it down and start talking to others who are in that industry or job role.  Find out what a good day looks like for them, what a bad day looks like, what their biggest challenges are, etc. The point is for you to find out whether you really want to be in that job one day.  If you do, then the next step is to start taking action. How could you make that transition? Which of your skills are transferrable?  Which companies are hiring for that job role?     If you get stuck, then reach out for help by talking to mentors or hiring a career coach.   Once you start taking action, youll be well  on your way to making your dream career a reality!  ?? â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€" Sherri Thomas is a Career Strategist, international speaker and best-selling author of  â€œThe Bounce Back”  and  â€œCareer Smart â€" 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand.  â€œ Get more tips and strategies on how you can bounce back from a layoff, re-org, bad manager or other career threatening setback in Sherri’s new book, “The Bounce Back” now available on  AMAZON  and  BARNES NOBLE. You can download three FREE chapters of THE BOUNCE BACK at  http://www.MyBounceBack.com â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"â€"- Need a few gift ideas this holiday season?     Check out these great gifts to help someone on your list jump start their new career Brand new “Six Week, Six Step Career Change Program”   Designed for professionals and executives who want a new career.  The perfect gift for someone who needs help getting hired into a new career, and includes the “Career Change Boot Camp” 2-CD program, the e-book “Interviewing Smart â€" Insider Secrets to Getting the Job“, professional, customizable and proven resume templates, and “The Salary  Compensation Guide” to help you negotiate the best deal for you!    â€œCareer Change Boot Camp Program” The most  popular gift this holiday season is  a complete do-it-yourself self study  program that includes step-by-step strategies, tools and resources to help you change careers quickly and easily.  Includes 2 CD’s, eWorkbook and transcripts so you can get started immediately! New book, “THE BOUNCE BACK â€" personal stories of bouncing back higher and faster after a  layoff, re-org or career setback”   Provides personal stories, strategies and lessons learned from myself and 13 other  professionals who navigated through career setbacks to come out on top! Available in hardcover and Kindle formats on  AMAZON  and  Barnes Noble.     Book, “CAREER SMART â€" 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand”   On AMAZON’s TOP 10 LIST for personal  branding books!  Available in hardcover, Kindle and audio on  AMAZON  and  Barnes Noble.  

Career planning is important - Sterling Career Concepts

Career planning is important Career planning is important Look for a Career, not just a Job. Wait. I shouldn’t look for a job?  No, thats now what I meant.  Im recommending strategic career planning, not long-term unemployment. A job is a short-term function. Career planning involves long-term satisfaction. Don’t just look for a job â€" look for a career. Look to identify your calling. Look to identify what you are meant to do. Career Planning Is Not a Quick Fix Think about and try to answer the question: how can you use your skills, education, and experience for maximum benefit? While going through this process, you may not see your ideal position advertised in a job posting, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Consider and identify (1) which type of problems you could solve for a company, and then (2) which type of companies need those problems solved. Investigate how you could solve that problem for that kind of company. Which department or group would this fall under?  To whom would this position report?  Use LinkedIn to research potential contacts and leads in these areas. You are correct if this sounds like it might be more labor-intensive and time-consuming that simply applying for jobs online, but I promise you it will be much more rewarding in the long-term.