Attitudes towards this growing phenomenon amongst employers are proving fascinating…… a recent report says that our concepts of work and employment are going to have to change with organizations relying more on a small core workforce supplemented by an army of temporary or project workers. Portfolio workers typically are self motivated, self starters and reliable. They have to be as they will not survive unless they are excellent time managers and organizers. DR BARRIE HOPSON, “And What Do You Do?: 10 Steps to Creating a Portfolio Career”

I’m a SLASHER, are you?

While “slasher” might conjure up images of those bad ’80′s horror movies, the term has been reinvented to mean self-employed people who are pursuing “portfolio careers”, deriving their income from various part-time or freelance jobs. 

Recently I have come across more and more people who like myself, cannot answer the question “what do you do for a living”? in a simple sentence.  

In fact this could be the fastest growing segment of workers – people pursuing multiple career paths in sometimes unrelated fields. This trend is especially strong amongst the 40+ plus crowd and recent college graduates (I happen to be both) – there are various terms used for this emerging career segment –

Continue Reading “I’m a career “Slasher”, are you????”

Locally and globally, we continue to see that the nature of jobs is profoundly changing, and what we do in order to earn our incomes, and how we do it, will never be the same.  Importantly, none of this will ever again conform to what were the norms or rules or expectations across companies or through the years.  The business of getting, keeping, being rewarded for and losing jobs has become a virtual free-for-all.

Here are some of the things I am seeing as it pertains to current workplace trends:

Continue Reading “The Future of Getting, Doing and Losing Jobs”

As some of you have already noticed, Facebook just rolled out a huge revamp of some of its core features like News Feed, while adding new features like Smart Lists and News Ticker.

Business Insider put together a great list of privacy settings that you should pay attention to on these new features:

1. Know that anything you post or comment on a friend’s wall is public. Your posts will show up in others’ News Tickers
2. Remember to check sharing settings before you post an update.
3. Be very careful adding people to your Smart Lists associated with work or study. They’ll get notified.
4. Go to your profile and click “View As…” Then click “public” to see how your profile looks to the world.
5. Subscribing does not equal stalking someone you’re not friends with. “Subscribing” to somebody’s public updates is a public act, just like following on Twitter.
6. Click the drop down arrow in the top right of your screen, then “Privacy Settings,” then “How Tags Work.” Make sure you’re cool with each setting.
7. Want to only make parts of your profile public and parts private? Click “Edit Profile” on your profile and change these settings.
8. So who can see that picture, anyway? Find out by clicking the gear next to a picture.

Read the full article on Business Insider to see screenshots and examples of where to find all of these settings:

“We’re looking at a different paradigm of leadership, and it plays naturally to the strengths of women…… The tide has turned. The leadership skills that come naturally to women are now absolutely necessary for companies to continue to thrive.” Regina Sacha, Vice President of Human Resources for FedEx Custom Critical.

What I have learned (and haven’t) about female leadership

As a recent MBA graduate, I can confirm that today – leadership is still taught (almost) exclusively from a male perspective, and most case studies presented in Business schools, are based on male leadership styles.

During our Leadership Development course at Thunderbird, our Professor, Christine Pearson, Ph.D.(a brilliant woman and renown authority), presented the following:

• Sun Tzu “The Art of War”
• Niccolò Machiavelli “The Prince” and
• Jack Welch.

Don’t get me wrong, I respect the insights and knowledge from each, and have a better understanding of male leadership from studying them. We were supposed to be reflecting upon leadership and what makes one a great leader, but to my surprise NOT ONE WOMAN was presented! I know the value of understanding male leadership BUT I aspire to be the BEST FEMALE leader possible. I don’t pee standing up and I don’t have testosterone coursing through my veins – I have breasts and I like to wear a skirt, so I don’t want to lead like a man, thank you very much!

When I questioned Professor Pearson, she challenged me to compile my own list of women leaders. I accepted and put together a list of exemplary women leaders who led like WOMEN, below are a few…. and there are many more. But, why don’t we study their leadership? Why should we study Sun Tzu over the leadership of Eleanor of Aquitaine?

Continue Reading “What I learned (and didn’t) about leading as a woman in Business School”

The business landscape has changed fundamentally; tomorrow’s environment will be different, but no less rich in possibilities for those who are prepared. McKinsey & Company, worldwide (former) Managing Director, Ian Davis

A lesson from the (original) Great Depression – opportunities always exist!

Many years ago, I heard a story of a man who became a millionaire during the (original) Great Depression. This banker had lost his fortune and had watched many of his friends capitulate to the circumstances. Faced with unemployment he learned a trade and became a tile layer, he eventually worked his way back up, and was hired to work on the the construction of the Holland Tunnel in New York and got the contract to supply the tiles for the inside of the tunnel….. in the process regaining his wealth.

The Great Depression was a terrible time for many, some would compare today’s economy and the Nation’s battered spirit to that time. I have thought about this story many times lately, and the lesson. In the US, there are always opportunities to make money in ANY economy, you just have to have a little vision and be prepared to grab them.

Your own “Reinvention plan”

Continue Reading “Where are the opportunities in the “New Normal” economy”