LIBRARY

We’ve all heard “the new normal” more times than we can count. When it comes to the workplace, so much has evolved since the start of the pandemic. Organizations are changing the way they work, and candidates are in the driver’s seat. However, the interview process and the questions asked have remained the same.

Declining a project, task, or collaboration doesn’t mean you don’t care about the workplace or your colleagues. It helps preserve time to make sure your priorities are at the forefront. Remember, working is a part of our life, not our entire life.

As the new year approaches, it’s an opportunity to examine leadership styles and make a resolution on how to improve them. Together, we can build a better workforce and retain the talent we worked so diligently to attract.

Imagine this – you are interested in building a home. Contractors are plenty and you want to hire the right one to support your vision. Before you see any of their work, you ask them to fill out a fifty-page document so they can describe who they are. A couple weeks and one novel per contractor later, you set a meeting and ask them to tell you what they can do rather than asking them to customize your dream home.

There is a big shift happening throughout our country as we move to understand the value of different personalities. Individuals, teams, and companies make concerted efforts to look for assessments that will define who they or their coworkers are in order to enhance collaboration and bring strengths to the surface.

For those who are two decades into their careers, the workplace has changed dramatically in that short amount of time. When they got their first job, it was still the “first one in, last one out” mentality of how to be successful and how to get recognized for that next-in-line promotion. Employers wanted to see employees “eat, sleep, and live” their brand, and whatever life looked like outside the office wasn’t anything employers needed to know.

Job seekers and employees alike are over the “check the box” method. Without the full weight of the company behind its programs, we won’t see true change in company culture. And in today’s world, that’s the ultimate reason for staying or joining an organization.

With countless personality assessments out there, it can be difficult to decipher between them all. Which one is right for your organization, and which one will give you the biggest bang for your buck? At Mission Recruit, each of us has been through several “either/or” assessments, all of which ask the same set of questions. The purpose of these “tests” is to understand who you are and how you can work better with your team. However, we find these results fall short in providing real value.

When jobseekers are on the hunt, you’ve got your ducks in a row when determining what to ask your potential employer. What does the team look like? What do you see for the future of this role? Is there a career path? And while we try to understand the company culture during the hiring process, it can be hard to get the answers you need in the few questions you ask.

There is a big shift happening in workplace culture related to how we present ourselves. With new generations coming in, we are saying goodbye to a façade and hello to authenticity. Who we are in our personal lives and who we are at work are finally becoming blurred lines that help us see more clearly.

As of last month, it was reported that close to nine million people in the U.S. were unemployed and seeking work. With statistics like that, it’s important to stay ahead of the game and get the inside track on what employers are looking for in their next hire.