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Careers & workplace advice from Hays

Over the course of your career, you’ve likely worked with counterparts who are respectful, collaborative, and with whom you get along fabulously. You’re also likely to run into counterparts decidedly less pleasant to interact with. They may be rude, condescending, insulting or aggressive – or all four.

In these challenging circumstances, achieving a successful negotiation result for yourself or your organisation can be especially draining and difficult. So, here’s my expert advice on navigating those tricky situations:

Seek to understand

Trying to understand what’s prompting the aggressive behaviour in a counterpart isn’t easy, but it is incredibly helpful. Seeking to understand the behaviour will help you prepare thoroughly for the negotiation and remind you that you shouldn’t take this behaviour personally.

Perhaps your counterpart is feeling threatened, and this behaviour is their ego’s way of asserting itself. They may also be under severe pressure from their stakeholders to bring back a specific result, and this aggression is a tactic to put you on the back foot and gain the upper hand in the negotiations. Sometimes, a private matter may have reached the boiling point in their lives and you’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

It’s important to note that understanding the behaviour doesn’t mean condoning or accepting the behaviour. Tapping into your empathy, and understanding what may be driving this behaviour is important in preparing yourself for taking action to end it.

The two options for handling an aggressive counterpart:

  1. Ignore it
    Chances are, your counterpart is looking for a reaction from you. Anger, frustration – even to match their own insulting behaviour. Don’t give it to them. Don’t react. Don’t respond. Just continue as if nothing is happening. If their aggression was a tactic to throw you off your game, they’ll see that it’s not working and stop. If their behaviour was an outburst, they’ll soon burn themselves out without any fuel being added to their flame.
  2. Call it out
    Keeping your cool during a barrage of attacks from a counterpart is difficult. But keeping your cool and taking action to end their behaviour can be even more so. Your goal in calling out the aggression is to make their behaviour the issue. For example, you can do this by saying “Can we all agree to try and diffuse this atmosphere?” or “Would you like me to call a break? You seem to have a lot of hostility towards me and I would like to resolve it.”

Interrupting the behaviour like this gives both of you the opportunity to calm down, and address the issue head on, and then regroup to focus your efforts on achieving the best possible outcome in your negotiation.

Read my book to find out more about how to negotiate with intelligence, flexibility and power.

This blog was co-authored by Nathalie Reynolds (@AdvSpringCEO), CEO of advantageSPRING and Devon Smiley (@AdvSpringDevon), Head of North America at advantageSPRING.

To find out more about the 1 and 2 day negotiation programmes that the team at advantageSPRING deliver for corporates around the world and to see testimonials from clients visit www.advantagespring.com or e-mail [email protected]

Worried your career is going in the wrong direction? Our career management tips will help you get back on track
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There’s no escaping your personal brand. From the blogs you write to your status updates, the people and organisations you follow to the content you like, your collective online activity personifies your ‘brand’. From it, hiring managers glean a lot of information about you, such as the workplace culture in which you thrive, your values, your ability to adapt to change and the likelihood of you being successful in their organisation.

Continue reading How to use social media to enhance your 2017 job search →

Knowledge workers are emerging as a hiring ‘hotspot’ thanks to the growing number of knowledge-intensive jobs that require suitably skilled, experienced and educated candidates to perform non-routine tasks. While that’s good news for professionals such as analysts, architects, engineers, teachers, marketers, nurses and lawyers, who all require a large amount of knowledge to succeed in their role, it’s another death toll for jobs involving routine tasks, which are already under threat from automation. So how can you become a valued knowledge worker?

 1. Develop the expertise employers need

A growing number of diverse, progressive and fascinating courses are now available through universities and training institutions. Before you enrol consider the future employment or promotional opportunities that the successful completion of your selected course could provide. Look at the skills and knowledge in demand and consider how you can combine your passion for a particular subject with long-term employment prospects.

2. Gain relevant experience

Employers today rate relevant experience as a non-negotiable pre-requisite in candidates – they want knowledge workers who’ve not only read the latest text books but have applied their expertise in a real-world environment.

For seasoned professionals, this means matching your knowledge, skills and experience with the job requirements, and using specific examples in your CV or interview to demonstrate your suitability for the role. For example:

  • I successfully designed and delivered a new online sales booking system which in the first 6 months increased sales by 20 per cent.
  • I implemented a new HR strategy which reduced staff attrition by 13%.
  • I’m a team player and worked with our international and local marketing teams to implement a global rebrand across 12 countries.

For graduates, it means gaining relevant industry experience through volunteer work experience or a study placement. Contact organisations you are interested in working for once you graduate or in your ideal industry or sector and ask about work experience opportunities. Even a few weeks gives a graduate an advantage over others who lack such experience.

3. Be digitally literate

Of course, in today’s digitally and rapidly evolving world of work, digital literacy is also necessary for any knowledge worker. That’s one big plus that today’s graduates have going for them – they are tech-savvy, with an understanding of computational thinking, app building and the user experience. Up-skill if necessary and look for opportunities to incorporate new digital skills or technology into your job. Don’t forget to give your CV a digital makeover.

4. Refine your soft skills

Today’s knowledge workers also possess strong soft skills. Communication and people skills top the list of those valued by employers and can differentiate one candidate from another. Therefore look for opportunities to develop and display your communication and people skills and share real-life examples in your CV and interview.

For example, an accountant could build trust with other departments and learn how to explain the meaning behind numbers in non-technical language. They could also view accountancy in the wider business picture in order to liaise with colleagues effectively and add value. While you are still studying you can also look for opportunities to develop and demonstrate such skills, such as by organising a meeting on MeetUp or Eventbrite for people with shared interests.

A final piece of advice

My last tip is to stay on top of new trends, mobile phone applications and technologies relevant to the world of work. Consider if gaining experience or working knowledge in each would enhance your employability. Even if you only experience a new technology once, such as by visiting a store where you can try a pair of VR goggles, it gives you the opportunity to be able to discuss them from your own experience – which for emerging trends is often more than the colleague sitting next to you can do.

I hope you found this blog useful. You may also find these tips helpful:

 

 

Most jobseekers these days are well aware of how an inappropriate tweet or Facebook picture can negatively impact how they are perceived by employers. However it’s not just candidates who need to be aware of their online presence. A recent study conducted by our Hong Kong offices found that 76 per cent of surveyed jobseekers would be influenced by a company’s online reputation when considering choice of employer.

What’s more, candidates now have more power than ever. Today, they have more resources to research your company online via employee forums, customer review sites, press releases and social media when they research a prospective employer.

Consequently, competition is fierce for attracting the most valuable candidates. So, how can you manage your online reputation to attract the best talent?

Use social media to position yourself as an employer of choice

Social media is a great way to position yourself as an employer of choice. These platforms allow you to provide insights into what it’s like to work at your organisation, whilst promoting your vacancies, successes and brand values.

However, it’s important to appreciate the myriad ways in which your social media accounts can actually damage your company’s online reputation. For example, some of your followers could make negative comments or leave poor reviews. If you ignore them and hope that not many people see them however this will only serve to put you behind your competitors using their strong social media presence to appeal to jobseekers. If your followers are making negative comments – it is important that you remain open and responsive. Take any feedback on board and always respond in a professional manner.

Social media is a specialist skill, not to be underestimated. Find somebody with flawless spelling, a consumer focus, and the experience to know how to represent a brand on social media; plus the portfolio to back this all up.

You should also consider how your employees are representing your company on their personal social media accounts. Have clear guidelines regarding how they should conduct themselves when representing your company – whether it’s when wearing branded items in pictures or speaking about your company in status updates.

Social media may come with its risk, but done properly, you can use it to your advantage when reaching out to the talent pool.

Look at your employee reviews and develop an action plan

Current and ex-employees now openly feedback on every aspect of your organisation – from the interview process to progression opportunities, on online forums, such as Glassdoor. Therefore it is essential that you look out for these to see what the people you hire have to say and respond accordingly.

Take the rough with the smooth, no business will have 100 per cent positive reviews. You should, however look for any common trends that may need addressing. Nothing should come as a shock if you are running your business the right way and have culture of visibility, openness and transparency. Therefore any unexpected and recurring feedback should be taken on board as you work towards implementing the necessary changes for a better environment. You should also conduct exit interviews with anybody planning to leave for this same purpose.

In making these changes, you should notice a happier workforce. At this point, you are ready to encourage these happy employees to act as brand ambassadors during and after their time at your organisation – leaving positive online reviews to outweigh the negative. Sifting through the online criticisms and making improvements can take time and effort, but this practice is essential for attracting and retaining quality employees.

Take control of your PR image

Understanding your audience and the people you are trying to attract is essential to ensuring your message reaches the right people. You must decide which online publications to target, for instance if you are trying to attract marketers then you should target the marketing trade press. Once the publications have been identified you must then decide on the type of candidate you are trying to appeal to and the messaging most likely to attract them and draw them into your employer brand. For instance, surveys have shown that Millennials take businesses corporate social responsibility activities into account when making a decision as to whether they join a company or not, so if you are trying to attract more junior employees then you must make sure you are clearly communicating what your business does in that area. Maintaining a good reputation across online media is important to your brand in general, to make sure you track mentions of your company.

In summary, thanks to the increase in online review sites, social media and digital press – jobseekers are able to shop around when it comes to deciding on their future employer. They will assess things like your marketing, customer service and employee engagement and retention strategies. Consequently you may need to take an honest look at your current online reputation, consider the feedback, make some changes and employ the best people to help you do this. Doing this will take time, effort and even budget, but it will pay dividends to the quality of your workforce in the long run.

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Hiring managers and recruiters know instantly when you’ve prepared for a job interview and when you haven’t. If you have prepared properly, you will seemlessly link your skills and experience to those the available job requires. You will cite examples of your work that are relevant to the nature of the industry, organisation and position. And you will perfectly describe how your present job equips you for this one. In other words, you will have a good story to tell that’s relevant to the job you’ve applied for and you clearly articulate this to take the hiring manager on your career journey with you.
Continue reading What’s your story? →

Crafting the perfect CV is often the first – and most crucial – step in landing your next role. It’s your chance to make a strong first impression, but even small mistakes can undermine your application. 

With AI tools readily available to help you, there’s little excuse for basic errors. A perfect CV should reflect your professionalism, attention to detail and readiness for the role you’re applying for. However, many jobseekers still fall into common traps that can cost them an interview.

From formatting flaws to inconsistent tone, these issues are easily avoidable with the right approach. In this blog, we’ll explore four major CV mistakes and how to steer clear of them so your application stands out for all the right reasons. 

Four major CV mistakes to avoid at all costs 

There are many types of common mistakes that you can make on your CV. People often make the biggest CV mistakes because they prioritise communicating their experience and suitability for the role. When writing your CV, make sure you look out for:  

1. Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors 

Errors in spelling and grammar are inexcusable. With the help of spell-checking software and AI tools, these are both easy to avoid. Before submitting your CV and cover letter, you must always: 

  • Use spell-checking software - make sure it’s set to the correct language!​ 
  • Read a printed copy – it’s easier to pick up on mistakes.​ 
  • Read your CV aloud – again, this will highlight any glaring errors.​ 
  • Read your CV backwards – it might sound odd, but this is a proven way to pick up errors. 
  • Ask a friend or relative to proofread the documents for you​ 
  • Use Copilot, ChatGPT, Grammarly or Kickresume to help you spot any grammatical errors. 

2. A lack of consistency  

Ensure all elements of your application are consistent. Consistency helps to demonstrate that you have taken care with your CV. Here’s how to show your attention to detail: 

  • Ensure you’re consistent in your use of abbreviations and capitalisations​ 
  • Use the same simple font and font size throughout your application – the same goes for bold and italicised copy​ 
  • Make sure all writing stays in the first person.​ 
  • Similarly, ensure you maintain a professional tone throughout.​ 
  • Check the dates between your roles in the ‘Employment history’ section match up. 

3. Formatting issues 

In the age of Applicant Tracking System (ATS) tools that scan CVs automatically, formatting is more important than ever. If your application is hard to follow or deviates too far from a clear layout, you’ll be ranked unfavourably in comparison to other candidates. Here’s how to avoid this: 

  • Keep it simple – avoid the temptation to get carried away using backgrounds, borders or clipart.​ 
  • Zoom out of the document to get a clearer view of formatting.​ 
  • Print the documents out to quickly flag formatting errors.​ 
  • If your CV is more than one page, ensure your page transitions are smooth. For instance, don’t start a sentence at the bottom of the page that finishes at the top of the next.​ 
  • Send your CV as at PDF, which should ensure the formatting stays as intended.​ 
  • Check your CV reads well on across different devices.​ 
  • When uploading your CV to your LinkedIn profile, ensure all formatting is correct.​ 

4. Overstatement and arrogance 

It may get past an ATS tool, but any exaggeration or over-the-top self-promotion will be obvious to recruiters and hiring managers – and it won’t impress them. Here’s how to make a strong impression while retaining your authenticity: 

  • Don’t refer to yourself in the third person, as it can come across as overly formal or even pretentious. 
  • Focus on what makes you unique, instead of using buzzwords that other candidates are likely to have included (unless you can back it up). 
  • Get rid of unnecessary jargon – clarity and precision are more impressive than trying to sound sophisticated through complex language. 
  • Be honest with your claims and avoid the temptation to inflate job titles or stretch employment dates. 

Avoid common CV mistakes and create an outstanding application  

Avoiding these common CV mistakes can significantly improve your chances of landing an interview. By taking the time to proofread, format correctly and present yourself authentically, you’ll show recruiters that you’re serious about the role. A perfect CV isn’t just about what you say – it’s about how you say it. 

Before you apply for a role, it’s important to ensure your online presence is aligned with your ambitions. Today’s jobseekers have several ways to enhance their applications through their digital profile. Find out more in our next blog, or check out our full step-by-step series for writing the perfect CV.