Is your job application system user friendly? Lessons from an MBA program

The days of pounding pavement, going to an office and filling out an application are done, for better or worse electronic applications are the norm.

There is a certain convenience to them obviously, especially not having to decipher peoples’ handwriting, and being able to electronically store applications. However, it is my belief that a little of the humanity has gone out of the job search, which in term causes great frustration for applicants. 

Here are some of the issues I have identified:

·         Applications are being pre-screened by computers, and while there are many so-called experts out there who are willing to give you advice on how to “write a winning resume” (for a nominal fee of course), there are no guarantees that good and qualified candidates resumes are ever going to be seen by the decision makes. The “blackhole” effect, can cause qualified people to stop looking for jobs.

·         The digital divide. Yes, computers are everywhere, but that does not mean everyone has one, or has one with internet access. There are the “haves and have nots” in the digital world.

·         The time-honored tradition of following up on applications submitted has been taken away, and this is a shame because if you have taken the time to submit a professional resume, you should expect some simple professional courtesies. The counter argument is going to be “there are too many resumes” or “not enough time”, and my response is: take the time to get back to applicants!

·         My last point can be the ultimate frustrater, and that is system errors. Have you ever taken 30 to 45 minutes to fill out an application for an opportunity that is perfect for you? You are all excited, you do everything right, you hit that submit button, and then boom: SYSTEM ERROR! Maybe it works the second time around, but you still must take all that time again, or worse, you spend all day trying to get it submitted at all and it never works! Plus, the ad says “no phone calls” or there is no email to get the issue addressed.

Ladies and gentlemen, these are communication problems, and bad communication is one of the biggest complaints all employees have about their employer: imagine how a well-qualified potential employee might feel about your company?

Many companies are not even aware that they have issues at this end of recruitment; and this system error issue can happen during the onboarding process as well causing people to quit before they start.

Does your company monitor these issues?

Dr Flavius A B Akerele III

The ETeam

YogawithKristin: Teaching Yoga & Meditation to Kids in School

YogawithKristin: Teaching Yoga & Meditation to Kids in School: I recently came across an article about a school in Baltimore that uses meditation and yoga instead of detention for kids who were str...

Sharing and article 10/19/2016

The Biggest Crisis in Higher Ed Isn't Student Debt, It's Students Who Don't Graduate

Michael Crow

President at Arizona State University

There is a lot of talk these days about student debt and the challenges that families face managing this burden. Rightfully so, particularly at a time when too many families are struggling with flat wages and rising costs. But the discussion of a debt crisis often fails to address what I would argue is the greater crisis: the fact that more than half of those who start college fail to finish.

Think about it: Tens of millions of people in the US are saddled with student debt and have no degree to help pay it off. They won’t get the substantial return on their investment—graduates with a bachelor’s degree earn about $1 million more in additional income over their lifetime than those with only a high school diploma—and they typically have not developed the adaptive learning skills that will help them prosper in a rapidly changing economy.

Read the rest here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/biggest-crisis-higher-ed-isnt-student-debt-its-students-michael-crow?trk=eml-b2_content_ecosystem_digest-hero-22-null&midToken=AQFzAxS6j-5scg&fromEmail=fromEmail&ut=07KmtC72n2BTs1

Dr Flavius A B Akerele III

The ETeam

Are your Adjunct Professors Just an After Thought? A serious HigherEd question

Can you answer a strong yes to these questions?

·         Do you have a robust and supportive onboarding process for your part-time faculty?

·         Does your part-time faculty get the administrative, technological, and general support it needs on time?

·         Do you regularly let your part-time faculty know you appreciate them?

·         Do the part-time faculty have a voice in changes that affect them?

·         When was the last time you had meaningful conversations with the part-time faculty that work for you? Do you know who works for you?

I am sure a lot of people answered yes because that is what you believe; that is what you know. However, would your part-time faculty agree with you? Can you answer that question?

If you cannot answer a strong unequivocal yes to all those simple questions, you might have some work to do in order to keep and attract your most valuable assets: your faculty.

Dr Flavius A B Akerele III

The ETeam

American obsession with age and weight: An Education issue

My formative years were spent outside of the U.S, so hopefully you will understand my perspective and confusion about this topic.

The other day I was listening to a fit looking young woman talk about how she did not used to eat because she was worried about being healthy. She ended her conversation by saying, “but I do eat now; I ask for the salad dressing on the side and will add fries”. I am sorry but that does not sound like a healthy balanced meal to me, and I did mention that she looked like she was in shape, yet she was still obsessing.

I am currently closer to 50 than I am to 45. Not a big deal in my book because where I grew up I am still considered young. Imagine my shock when a 30 something started referring himself as old, and when I shared my age, he said, “damn you are old as #@$%!”. I was actually quite insulted by that.

You cannot completely blame people, because society is teaching people that this is the way it is.

We have fat shaming and body shaming of young women in K12, if you are over 40 you are in a “protected class” to prevent discrimination. Polls mostly want the demographic of 18 to 35; not that I miss all those solicitations but it was really abrupt when they stopped.

Perhaps we can take a cue from other countries and not overproduce, serve smaller portions? Perhaps PE can be true part of K12 education not an afterthought, and let us add sports into all schools immediately and not have to wait until high school or make parents pay for expensive outside programs.

It seems to me there are more important things we should be concerned about, better things we can be teaching our kids. We can also learn from the experience of those with more age, they are better than most libraries.

Just some observation from an educator

Dr Flavius A B Akerele III

The ETeam

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/body-shaming/

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/04/opinion/sunday/youre-how-old-well-be-in-touch.html?_r=0

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/ageism/

http://www.fcsi.org/foodservice-consultant/the-americas/toxic-diets-how-the-diet-industry-is-damaging-america/