LinkedIn and other social professional/career networks can be powerful tools to use during a job search.

Of course, there are certain unwritten rules regarding how to comport yourself on these networks. Here is a short primer of do’s and don’ts to help you navigate them successfully.

First, remember — and remember it well! — that these are professional networks. You must always act in a mature manner. Never post messages with profanity, never call anyone an idiot, never lie. If you wouldn’t want your current — or future — boss to read what you say on a professional network, don’t put it there.

Echoing the don’t lie tip, don’t fudge your work experience or education. LinkedIn, for example, allows you to list your jobs and accomplishments as well as your educational background. It’s very easy today for a potential employer to find the truth about prospective workers. If you brag in your description about how you literally saved a company from going under and someone in your network sees that lie, he or she could out you in a very public and extremely humiliating way online, for everyone to see. Very bad for your career. Very bad.

LinkedIn allows you to “connect” to many former colleagues in your profile. If you’d like to approach someone in their networks, be sure to ask permission first. Explain why you’d like to contact the person (and be sure there’s a legitimate, professional reason to do so). If you do so, your connection very well may give his or her connections a “head’s up” — with praise about your background — that you’ll be e-mailing them shortly. Be sure to thank your connection for the introduction and be sure to let him or her know the results of the connection.

Don’t get huffy and send whiny e-mails if your connection either doesn’t respond to your request to an introduction or tells you he or she won’t introduce you to the connection. If you don’t hear anything back from either your connection or the person to whom you wished to be introduced, don’t hound anyone with e-mails or calls — there could be very valid reasons for a non-response. Constant e-mails and/or calls does nothing  but show that you’re a) desperate and/or b) immature.

In essence, look at LinkedIn and other online networking sites as virtual professional business meetings, the type where one exchanges business cards with other professionals. You’d conduct yourself in an extremely professional manner at these functions, wouldn’t you? You always should do the same online.

Network your way to a terrific Bay Area position with some of San Francisco’s best companies by connecting with BaySide Solutions. We can help place you in temporary, temp-to-hire and direct placement positions with some of San Francisco’s finest companies. We look forward to hearing from you.

We’ve all done it: hired someone who just turned out to be truly awful employee or, at the least, someone who never moved above mediocre.

Here are five common mistakes just about every hiring manager has committed, and tips on how to avoid them.

During an interview, stop talking! The point of an interview is to get to know the job candidate talking, not to hear the soothing sounds of your own voice. Listen 80 percent of the time and you’ll learn a lot of valuable information about your candidate. Watch how she responds to your question about why she left her previous employer. Note how he perks up when he talks about how he’s read your annual reports for the past five years and learned that you doubled in size in that time and then baldly states he wants to work for a winning company just like yours! You also may want to consider using behavioral interview techniques so that you can learn how your candidate handled challenges and opportunities in previous jobs.

Be sure the candidate is very clear regarding the job’s duties and expectations. Will she be expected to travel two days a week in her sales job? Does the PR person need to pitch to X number of media professionals a week? Will the administrative assistant report to two or three managers? This helps clear up any misconceptions about the job (she thought she traveled two times a month; he thought he would be supporting a group of five directors, etc.)

Don’t place so much emphasis on the  first interview. Aim to take your first impression of a candidate more lightly than you probably are inclined to do. Realize that many people who interview can end up not being a good employee. In addition many people get very nervous during interviews and clam up. That awfully “nice” and “quiet” person could become quite testy once he’s been on the job a few weeks. Meanwhile, many truly shy people can sometimes be quite wonderful contributors to your company’s success.

Aim for several interviews (at least two) before making your choice. See if you can get others to sit with the candidate as well. You also may want to give some personality tests to see if a person’s talk matches her true personality. For example, regarding sales positions: some experienced interviewees can be very gregarious during an interview but then clam up when facing sales prospects. Test for the correct sales personality.

In addition, be aware that there’s a dark side to every positive personality trait. A “caring” person can go overboard and become too involved with office personalities. Conversely, someone who’s proud of her “I get the job done” trait could become so pushy around others as she strives to complete tasks that she alienates her co-workers.

Ask the exact same questions of each candidate for the same position. This way you’ll be able to compare candidates using the same criteria. You’ll be better able to compare candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. Develop a ranking/rating system for your interview process.

Let Bayside Solutions take the often tedious, lengthy and highly subjective interview process off of your to-do list. Our Bay Area staffing firm can bring you skilled and professional workers for temporary, temp-to-hire and direct hire assignments with just a phone call. We look forward to hearing from you.

If you’ve been working at one employer for a few months and think it’s time for a promotion, here are some ideas to help you do so.

First of all, promotions go to those who deserve them. Who do extra. Just because you’ve worked at a business for two years doing the same thing doesn’t mean a promotion comes automatically. Those who get promoted have earned it.

So, do the work. Be a positive force. Have enthusiasm. Aim to do your best every day.

Do you have the skills and education to do the position you seek? Do you walk your talk and do as you say you will. Do you have the necessary degrees, if a certain degree is necessary? Are you continually upgrading your skills? Do you do more than “just enough”?

When you’re given a challenging assignment, do you embrace it, or do you whine (and if you do whine, we hope you don’t do so at work!)?

Don’t rest on your laurels. That is, if you finished a terrific project last month, don’t sit back and do nothing. Instead, focus on giving it your all on the tasks and projects before you now. Only you care about how well you did yesterday; your boss is going to care big time about how well you do tomorrow.

Volunteer for projects. Take initiative. Solve your boss’ problems.

If you’re an assistant manager and are gunning for the manager position, do your work as a manager would. Demonstrate that you already have what it takes to be a manager now.

Document your successes. Write them down. Do them today because six or nine months from now, when it’s review time, you — and your boss — will have forgotten. You can this success document to put together a case for a promotion because you’ll probably have to….

Ask for a promotion. If you want to be promoted, you’ll more than likely have to ask for it. Be prepared to present your case to your boss in a professional manner, reminding her of your accomplishments, how you’ve helped your employer grow, save money, get new clients, run more efficiently, etc. State your case clearly and use any documentation you may have on hand (your success log, an “atta girl” letter from you boss, etc.) to prove your case.

If you’re ready to promote yourself into a new position, give Bayside Staffing a call. We have some terrific temporary, temp-to-hire and direct-hire assignments at some of San Francisco’s best companies. Contact us today.

Are there individuals at your company who seem to “know it all” and enjoy letting others know they know it? Are there people who can take a seemingly offhand remark and make it into a declaration of war? Are there those who appear to hear instructions, yet do things their way on their time schedule?

Yet as maddening as these behaviors are, sometimes a company’s “divas” are the best performing employees, mavericks with ‘tude, but with a solid work ethic and who enjoy reaching and exceeding goals.

Basically, there are two kind of office “divas.” Those who  are high-performing mavericks as described above and, well, those who are drama queens, making Everests out of problems and challenges that truly are anthills. (Both men and women can be drama queens, by the way.)

Both are challenging to manage. Both can be a true pain in the keister. But the mavericks are keepers as they stretch your management style to the max while accomplishing far more than other employees, while the drama queens are true pains in the derriere.

Here are just a few tips on how to deal with each:

Mavericks: Yes, they can be arrogant. Yes, they can be hard to control. But so long as they exceed at their positions, which they invariably do, you need to aim to give them  clear objectives and goals while also giving them a long and loose leash. Should your mavericks be annoying as all get out to other employees — the imperial attitude, the flaunting of rules, etc. — you should sit with them and give unambiguous goals regarding their behavior with others (thankfully, many mavericks tend to congregate in sales positions, so they may be out of the office more often than not).

You’ll need to listen to their venting that they meant no harm, people are too sensitive, etc., when you tell them they’ve hurt the feelings of others, and you’ll need to listen gently and with some sympathy. Then, as you counsel them on their behavior, do so quietly but firmly, engaging their sense of being “above all this” and stressing that you know they prefer to walk a higher path.

As for the office drama queens, counseling also is in order, with specific goals and objectives regarding their behavior as well as outcomes. Never tell them they are drama queens; instead keep any counseling session business-like and based on facts. Give them deadlines regarding when you expect tasks and projects done (their love of drama and problem creation often distracts drama queens so much that they often miss deadlines and fail to finish tasks.) As you counsel them, be prepared: they may start blaming others for the missed deadlines, etc.

Be very firm with drama queens. Give them deadlines and give them firm consequences for missing those deadlines.

Tired of sourcing new employees and finding too many with poor attitudes? Bayside Solutions finds excellent employees for San Francisco companies. Whether you need workers for temporary, temp-to-hire and direct placement positions, we thoroughly screen our candidates for skills and attitudes, ensuring that anyone we send your way will be able to fit right in to your company’s culture. Contact us today.

The Boomers are out; Gen Y is in.

So how do you attract the best and brightest, without turning your IT organization upside down? You have to strike a new balance. Prepare for the changes to come by learning more about Gen Y. Stay flexible, and meet millennials halfway by accommodating their needs as much as possible.

To help, here are some great strategies for recruiting the best IT talent the next generation has to offer:

1. Take a viral approach. Develop Flash videos and other materials for your organization (think interactive, entertaining and hip) that young people will want to send on to their friends. For example, Facebook allows you to develop apps that sit on other people’s profile pages. They, in turn, can invite friends to include the app on their own pages. A viral approach can enhance awareness, properly position your IT organization with millennials, and increase job referrals.

2. Leverage industry blogs, forums and social network groups. The best Gen Y professionals stay on top of their game by constantly seeking out new information. Become a trusted source they turn to. Write and post articles that are ahead of the curve in your area of technical expertise, and you’ll attract the IT performers you need.

3. Put your best foot forward. Like it or not, millennials judge organizations by their technology acumen and arsenal. In many cases, millennials even research your IT portfolio before agreeing to sit down for a job interview. So if you haven’t already, develop or update your IT profile. Outline your current platforms, software and hardware; create a review of your company’s cutting-edge projects (current or slated); show how your organization incorporates Web 2.0 tools.

4. Beyond your technology profile, you should also be prepared to demonstrate your company’s CSR (corporate social responsibility). Gen Yers place a high importance on an employer’s ethical standing–show them how your ethics and beliefs match their own.

5. Use your current Gen Yers. Millennials are particularly peer-influenced. As a result, your Gen Y employees may be your best choice for connecting with Gen Y candidates–especially on college campuses. As already devoted members of your IT staff, your current millennial employees can tell potential candidates what life will be like “in the trenches,” and serve as “IT ambassadors” to address individual questions and concerns.

6. Market your company to parents, too. Many millennials were raised by hyper-involved parents. Now, these “helicopter” moms and dads hover over every life decision their children make – including career moves. To win over Gen Y, you must win over their parents as well. Consider offering family site tours, hosting a Parent’s Day, or including information on your website that parents would find helpful (plain-language overview of your business, review of benefits and extras that emphasize company support, training and/or mentoring programs, etc.).

7. Consider a virtual job fair. Some companies have used Second Life to recruit talented millennials for IT slots. By creating avatars to conduct virtual job seminars, these employers have attracted a subset of talent not easily recruited by traditional methods. While the start-up cost is moderate, your organization may want to consider a virtual job fair if you have the internal talent to handle scripting, avatar development and recruiting video creation.

8. Enlist the help of specialists. Recruiting millennial IT talent is a daunting task, under the best of circumstances. To help save time and money, while minimizing your frustration, consider working with an IT staffing service.

At Bayside Solutions, our Technology Solutions division maintains a database of highly qualified candidates, and can quickly deliver the tech-savvy candidates you need.  To discover more please contact us today.

Whether preparing to evaluate job candidates, or getting ready for an upcoming job interview yourself, this list of top interview questions will help you prepare:

Question 1: Describe a recent project where you were responsible for managing multiple people or teams. What were some of the key challenges and how did you handle those challenges?

This question demonstrates a result-oriented leadership behavior. Project managers need to demonstrate delivery and a desire to attain the end goal. Staffing project managers who simply point out problems but do not help resolve them will not drive the project to completion. Effective project managers demonstrate how they’ve managed a project, coordinated across multiple teams, overcame obstacles and delivered the project’s goals.

Question 2: Describe a time when you implemented a new idea without being asked or pursued a new opportunity that could improve the project or company.

Demonstrating courage and a willingness to take action without being asked is a key delivery characteristic of effective project managers. Project sponsors entrust the project’s goals, budget and their own reputations on their project managers. Project sponsors don’t have all the answers and need intelligent and motivated people to solve problems, identify new opportunities and take action without being prompted.

Question 3: Describe a scenario where you had to balance competing customer demands with project constraints. How did you ensure customer satisfaction while maintaining the goals of the project?

Maintaining a customer focused approach while ensuring the project deliverables are completed on time is a delicate balance. Business partners don’t understand all the technical details required to turn business processes into software solutions. They just want the system to work and accommodate their changing business needs. Effective project managers build rapport with their business partners, seek to understand the underlying needs and proactively address their concerns. It is a difficult balance as project managers commit to delivering the project scope while addressing a business customer’s changing requirements.

Question 4: Describe a time when you had to balance quality management with a challenged project schedule.

As projects execute and schedule variances occur, there is a tendency to shorten the quality testing cycle to maintain a project end date. In some projects, the end date can be extended, and in other projects, the end date must be maintained. Effective project managers recognize the importance of quality management in the software development cycle and prioritize the test cases and test cycles that deliver the project’s critical functionality. These project managers successfully commit to a quality mindset and ensure defects are resolved or mitigated.

The project manager should also recognize the challenge of managing the triple constraint and maintain a commitment to quality. Recognizing delays in the schedule early will help project managers adjust testing schedules so the support team isn’t called in from a day off or a holiday.

Question 5: Describe a time when you had a difficult situation working with a vendor or another peer. What was your approach to resolve the issues while maintaining a positive relationship?

Without a cohesive team, a project manager cannot be effective. Projects often depend on vendors and supplier team members to provide services. The nature of the client-vendor relationship emphasizes mutually beneficial goals. However, the vendor doesn’t always prioritize the client’s interests as heavily as their own. The ability to effectively develop teams across corporate borders is critical to project delivery. Clients will always try to maximize services at a minimal cost while vendors are motivated to increase costs for additional services.

In a challenged project with strained vendor relationships, it becomes even more important to focus on the critical issues to work together and deliver the end goal. The same skill is needed when working with other peers who are not necessarily motivated to help the project team. Strong relationships help solve problems and support project delivery. The best project management system, tools and techniques cannot replace the power effective relationships have across multiple teams.

Need more help?  Our Technology Solutions Team would be happy to help.
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