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Apr 18

Corporate social responsibility: teaching kids how to use their hands

Establishing your corporate social responsibility program

A well-executed corporate social responsibility program integrates a company’s commitment to global well-being into their business plan, creating a business model that is both profitable and  charitable.

Implementing a corporate social responsibility program within your organization is a win-win. While implementing programs that benefit your community, CSR programs can also create positive brand association for your business. Check out Adecco’s guide to establishing your corporate social responsibility program for help understanding corporate social responsibility and developing your own CSR program.

What is corporate social responsibility?

Simply put, a corporate social responsibility program helps hold companies accountable for the economic, social and environmental impact they have on society. A company’s CSR efforts work to improve local and global communities and can include donating funds or resources, volunteering, and initiating environmental practices.

Benefits of corporate social responsibility: technical financial graph on technology abstract background

What’s in it for your business?

If executed successfully, the benefits of corporate social responsibility for your organization are vast. Consumers are becoming better educated about where they spend their money, increasingly basing purchase decisions on more than the product or service themselves. In fact, 87% of consumers will make a purchase because the company advocated for an issue important to them. Undoubtedly, giving back to society helps make the world a better place, but it also improves public image of your brand, increases employee attraction and retention, and fosters relationships with investors.

Corporate social responsibility and success

What do some of the top Fortune 500 companies have in common? A successful CSR program that boosts their public image while contributing to the global community.

Starbucks lives and breathes CSR in every aspect of their business. They are committed to sourcing ethically-produced products, strengthening local communities and reducing their environmental impact through green stores, packaging and energy efficiency.

H&M has incorporated corporate social responsibility into their business by committing to fair living wages for workers in factories and creating sustainable fashion. Also, through their partnership with WWF, H&M focuses on responsible water management.

Ready to start your corporate social responsibility program?

Consider these helpful tips:

  1. Select a cause that fits within your corporate culture and organizational values. This will ensure your CSR efforts are authentic to your business. For example, if your business is in the food industry, create a program that provides food to those who need it or purchase your ingredients from local farmers.
  2. Create a plan of attack and identify metrics to hold your business accountable. Building your corporate social responsibility program into your business model will help to keep your business decisions in-line with your CSR values.
  3. Involve your employees and customers in donations or volunteering efforts. Getting your staff and audience involved emphasizes your dedication to the cause and reiterates your corporate social responsibility values.
  4. Publicize your corporate social responsibility accomplishments. This will highlight your commitment to making the world a better place, helping draw attention to the cause while also promoting positive brand recognition among your customers and colleagues alike.

Here at Adecco, we value the importance of a corporate social responsibility program to leave a positive impact on our global community. Our Win4Youth program unites employees, clients and associates in fitness to support Plan International’s efforts to improve young people’s lives through education and employment. Learn more about the Win4Youth program and start tracking your kilometres and activity hours at http://www.win4youth.com.

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Hire your perfect team, or get more staffing advice from our experts.

 

Apr 12

Resume Help: Make an Impact

Building the perfect resume isn’t just a technique, it’s a science. Crafting a resume that highlights your skills, exemplifies your experience and mirrors what the organization is looking for is essential to opening that first door in your job search.

For practical job advice that guarantees results, turn to the experts at Adecco. We’ve been placing qualified candidates in high paying positions with some of the best companies for over 40 years! Looking for help on your job hunt? Check out our resume help guide to create an impactful resume and contact your local Adecco branch to register today!

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Find and apply to your dream job, or get more career advice from our experts.

 

Apr 5

Preparing for interviews - Businessman asking candidate questions, sitting at desk in workplace on chair, girl making notes

Preparing for Behavioural Interview Questions as a New Grad

 Behavioural based interview questions essentially give an interviewer an idea of how you’ve performed and behaved in the past based on actual results and scenarios. When compared to traditional interviews, behavioural interview questions are said to be 55% predictive of future on-the-job behaviour, whereas traditional is only 10% — making them increasingly popular today. As a recent grad or student with limited professional experience, it may be challenging to showcase your future on-the-job behaviour, so interview preparation is key.

The behavioural interview question style is being adopted by many top employers globally. Responses to these questions allow hiring managers to gain insight into past behavioural patterns to help predict future actions and select the best fit for their organization. To knock your interview out of the park, it’s vital to form structured responses that highlight your skills, competencies and experiences. It can be difficult to know where to start, so we’ve compiled five simple steps so you can ace any behavioural interview questions that come your way.

1. Recognize the skills required for the job

Study the skills that are outlined in the job description since it’s the perfect insight into what they’re looking for. A thorough understanding of these skills is a great way to anticipate the behavioural interview questions they may ask to gauge your proficiency as it relates to these skills. For example, if time management is a sought-after skill, the interviewer may ask you to describe a situation where you had to be strategic to meet your priorities.

2. Consider your varying experience

Entering the workforce as a new grad may leave you feeling like you’re lacking in experience. But don’t forget, experience is gained through more than a job. As a new grad, you’ve accumulated a great amount of experience through your education, group projects, exam preparation, co-ops or volunteer work, and maybe even your part-time work. Take the time to review your past experiences to identify when and how you harnessed the skills and transferable experience required for the position.

Need quick job experience? Adecco Canada has hundreds of jobs available to students and fresh graduates! Check out the current job openings here.

3. Showcase your talents and skills

Your answers should not just exemplify your priorities and values, they should also highlight your talents and skills. Showcase some of your best attributes which could be communication, organization, creativity, responsibility and stress management. Include in your answers the qualities needed to be successful within the position. Use real-life examples to demonstrate to the hiring manager what makes you the best candidate for the job.

4. Structure your answers

Structuring your answers is a sure way to guarantee that you have painted a complete picture for the interviewer. Employ the STAR method — situation, task, action and result! Describe how the situation unfolded, identify your task at hand, detail the action you completed and explain the results of your actions. Pre-develop your answers to keep them in line and focused, ensuring you don’t lose direction from the question at hand and provide the interviewer with a clear and concise response.

5. Practice your responses

Practice truly does make perfect. Simulate the interview experience with help from family or friends. Provide them with some common behavioural questions and even let them improvise with their own. Practicing your structured responses will help you gain the confidence you need to be successful in the interview process and to fine tune your answers along the way.

Fire up your job search with the help of an Adecco recruiter. With access to hundreds of positions and resources to help you nail the toughest interviews, Adecco can fast track your entrance into the workforce with the career of your dreams. Contact your local Adecco branch today!

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Find and apply to your dream job, or get more career advice from our experts.

Mar 29

Businessman looking for new opportunities: tips on finding a job

How to Find a Job: 30 Tips

Even the best candidates struggle with deciphering the best job search techniques. Building a strong resume and practicing interview strategies are just some of the vital components that go into landing your next job. Our comprehensive job search tips combines traditional techniques with personal branding methods and compensation negotiation strategies, to keep you ahead of the curve and get you to where you want to land.

Here at Adecco, we are committed to providing recruitment assistance and educational resources to help our applicants gain the skills they need to succeed within their employment. For 46 years, Adecco Canada has been linking qualified candidates with their dream jobs. A partnership with Adecco for job search help gets you access to hundreds of jobs, with some of the best companies in the world. Ready to get started? Check out our 30 Tips to Find a Job guide and register with your local Adecco branch today!

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Find and apply to your dream job, or get more career advice from our experts.

 

Mar 21

Search Series: Developing Your Work Values

In the first installment of our search series, we look at the process of identifying work values and the benefits of finding an organization in which they resonate.

Simply put, work values are the qualities, principles and standards that matter to you in your professional life. Defining them helps guide your job search, filter opportunities and can ultimately be the guiding factor towards a career that satisfies you on a personal level.

Defining your work values

Why we work and the type of work we do can be influenced by our work values. For example, if a primary work value is to help others, you may find yourself in an industry that encompasses this value such as teaching, healthcare or social assistance. Though some work values may be obvious, identifying them isn’t always easy. To compile your list, here are some key questions to help in your self-reflection.

  • What types of work do I enjoy? Influencing or helping others? A component of physicality?
  • What types of conditions do I prefer? Office vs outdoors? Travel?
  • How do I like to work? Independently or in a team? Closed off or in an open space?
  • What impacts me? Flexible hours? Remote work option? Interaction with people? Growth opportunities?

By ranking your answers from in order of priority, you’ll have a basis to start identifying the values that matter most.

Tying work values to your job search

Determining your work values can have an eye-opening effect on your job search. A list of prioritized values will narrow your search and help you to be selective — ensuring you find an opportunity that’s in line with the direction you’re heading in.  Here are some common values that can influence your job search and may even open your eyes to opportunities you may have once not considered.

  • Compensation: receiving fair pay for your work performance
  • Leadership: the opportunity to direct or mentor colleagues within the workplace
  • Independence: the ability to work and make decisions independently
  • Job Security: confidence that the organization will allow you to remain employed
  • Recognition: an environment that recognizes and rewards hard work or success
  • Relationships: a setting in which you can develop relationships with your colleagues
  • Support: hierarchical structure in which you can reach out to management and/or colleagues for help, as needed
  • Helping Others: tasks or organizational programs that impact a community
  • Creativity: ability to think “outside the box” or to incorporate your ideas within your work
  • Variety: option to perform differing tasks

Be sure to re-evaluate your values annually. Changes in your personal life or professional development can often shift your work values. Staying on top of your evolving work values will help keep you in the driver’s seat of your career.

Looking for a career that satisfies all your work values? Adecco has the perfect fit for you! Contact your local Adecco branch and register for free today!

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Find and apply to your dream job, or get more career advice from our experts.

 

Mar 14

Woman on sofa with laptop

Flexible Work, Different Work Weeks

It’s no surprise that flexible work weeks reap great advantages for employees, but did you know that employers can also gain from flexible work arrangements? From promoting a positive work life balance to candidate retention and attraction, read on for how flexible work can benefit your organization.

Flexible work weeks have become a sought-after element of comprehensive benefits packages for employees. The ability to schedule their week as they feel fit enables employees to maximize their work-life balance while reducing the stress associated with commuting, child care and other demands. Given the benefits that flexible work arrangements offer employees, are you ready to let different work weeks make a positive impact on your workforce? Check out Adecco’s guide to flexible work and elevate your organization’s productivity today.

Three common types of flexible work:

Compressed work week

Simply put, compressed work weeks involve working more hours in fewer days, commonly consisting of four ten-hour days. The additional day off, often observed on Mondays or Fridays, gives your staff a longer weekend and a greater work-life balance.

Pros

Not only does a compressed work week offer your employees larger periods of time off, it also enables employers to extend their operation hours. Plus, employees are said to have greater job satisfaction, reducing employee turnover.

Cons

Long work days can lead to exhaustion and fatigue for your staff, affecting the overall productivity of your business.

 

Flexible work hours

With flexible work hours, employees are given the freedom to coordinate their daily schedule to accommodate their personal needs.

Pros

If executed successfully, flexible work hours enable employers to increase headcount without adding work stations through communal seats and computers. Flexible workers in general work longer hours, achieve more and are more satisfied with their work.

Cons

Although flexible work hours can yield benefits to your business’s bottom line, it has the potential to complicate communication. With employees working different hours, it can be challenging to find a time to schedule a meeting, thus hindering communication on joint projects.

 

Telecommuting/working from home

Telecommuting or e-commuting involves work performed from a remote location, often a home office. Employers may allow workers to telecommute a few days a week, or, based on the needs of the business, full-time.

Pros

Telecommuting, at its best, has the potential to enhance productivity among your employees. Working from a home office enables employees to complete their workload within their peak periods of productivity while maintaining a strong work-life balance.

Cons

Employees who telecommute lack opportunities to collaborate with colleagues, miss out on social activities and may find it hard to divide their professional work from their personal lives, all potentially affecting productivity and your business’s bottom line.

As an employer, it’s clear that offering your employees flexible work can be advantageous. Enabling a flexible work week has the potential to reduce tardiness and absenteeism, decrease turnover and attract top talent. It also facilitates employment for workers with children and workers with disabilities, ensuring your business has full access to top candidates regardless of their personal situations.

With proper execution, flexible work can accommodate the needs of your colleagues and business alike, helping to make your organization a great place to work.

Lēad Blog is part of Adecco and Roevin Canada. Hire your perfect team, or get more staffing advice from our experts.

 

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