It has been over a year now that COVID-19 rocked the planet and many of us directly. Some of you were temporarily furloughed, took voluntary leaves of absence or in some cases were made permanently redundant. During this time, I have helped many people with updating or creating resumes, CV’s, and cover letters.

Now that the tides appear to be receding for good on COVID I am noticing a paradigm shift in how many people look at their careers, and more specifically their employers. The pandemic has provided respite in self reflection and evaluation. What are my goals and priorities? Have they changed? Do they align with my lifestyle, my family? also, Do I feel fulfilled in what I do?



​For many people, the answers to those questions are coming back with “no”. More so than ever people are tapping the brakes on their careers, jobs, etc. Now, taking the time and effort to explore new and different opportunities. Some are wanting to flex up and pursue a higher-level position while others are seeking a change in career industry or job type.

Also, now more than I have ever witnessed employees are saying a hard no to minimum wage. Where I live in British Columbia the minimum wage was just increased to $15.20 per hour. That wage is still not a livable wage based on the costs of living, especially in expensive urban centers like Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria, and the Okanagan to name just a few. Employees know their worth and they have sacrificed greatly during the pandemic.

Employers are facing some critical business decisions. While some business owners bemoan that they cannot afford to operate paying “so much” ($15.20 per hour) others are finding serious labour shortages. It is not that people do not want to work; they do. People in 2021 are putting their proverbial foot down and saying “hey! We deserve a living wage”. The labour markets in many areas are so plentiful that they do not have to settle anymore, and they are not.

One of the fringe benefits I see coming out of the pandemic is that finally, organizations and employees have a refreshed focus on work life balance and what it can and should look like. Remote working and tele-commuting became such a necessity that many companies are coming to terms with what a lot of HR experts have known for some time now. That a remote work force can be just as if not more productive than requiring everyone to show up at a brick-and-mortar office building.

Now is a prime opportunity for listening. What are your employees saying about their careers and what they think of your organization? Consider flipping the script and allow for greater flexibility in where and how work is done. Remember that people may come for a pay cheque, but when they are not happy, they quit their boss.

How is the attrition in your organization? And what is that telling you?
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Stay well, stay happy.

These numbers are based on a LinkedIn survey conducted recently. I find these numbers telling and expected. Let us spark conversation around the top 3.

​​Top Skills Managers Are Lacking:

1. 28% - Team Building
2. 17% - Providing Feedback
3. 14% - Time Management

Team Building -

It should not be a surprise that team building is always desired on the menu by employees that can directly, positively impact their engagement and sense of team and corporate culture. Team building is a small investment of time and perhaps resources that have a lasting impact and provide a good ROI. Some strategies I have used for team building include a monthly waffle and ice cream day for the lunch hour. a waffle machine is not expensive and simply uses pancake mix and creates a fun and social activity that everyone can get involved in. You could also do a crepe day, an ice cream Sunday station. Or, leave the office, rent kayaks, and go on a harbour tour, or book your team into an escape room (there are many all over the world). Lots of options to consider, if you are unsure, ask your team what they would enjoy doing, have them provide ideas.

Providing Feedback -
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Also not surprised to see "feedback" in the top 3. The word "feedback" still seems to conjure a near or actual physical reaction by people. One of my favourite authors and inspirational leaders is Susan Scott who wrote the book, Fierce Conversations - Achieving Success at Work & in Life, One Conversation at a Time. Sounds pretty deep right? So why do people resist or consider feedback to be a bad experience? It is likely because what a lot of people "think" feedback "is" was based on previous experiences that were not actual feedback. Likely they were the unfortunate recipients of what I like to call "drive-by feedback", which means that someone appeared, dumped all over them with what they think you are doing wrong and then walked away without allowing any conversation to take place. Feedback done correctly is a two-way street of messages sent and messages received. Susan Scott has a fantastic quote from her book that hits it home for me, "the conversation IS the relationship". This means that what we say, how we say it and our body language or packaging we use to wrap it up, indirectly relates to the quality of the relationships we all have in our personal and professional lives. I could write an entire book about this one topic alone so I will offer that we all need to remember or go back to basics. Feedback is not punishment, and it should not feel like it is. Ask yourself if you as a manager/person have contributed to the issue you are confronting and then own your contribution. Most importantly, just have the conversation! Practice makes permanent so the more you do it the more comfortable you will become as will those around you.

Time Management -

This survey result also did not surprise me. I feel that professionally, a lot of organizations and managers have become complacent about their own accountability to manage time. How many of us feel that our workplaces have too many meetings? or meetings that seem to earn little to no value? finally, how many of your workplace meetings start AND end on time? Have you ever felt frustrated when someone does not follow through on a time commitment with you? This is such an easy thing to not mess up. Being or looking busy does not mean a person is effective. I have three rules I have followed most of my career and they have done well for me.

1. Always ensure your team knows when are where you are. I do not mean to constantly tell them. I mean to set an expectation that can be consistent. Post your hours somewhere? I have done this in workplaces where I have direct access to up to 2300 employees.
2. Meetings MUST start and end on time, no exceptions, no excuses, ever. Nothing is more frustrating to people, or a team when they do their part to show up on time and prepared and then sit there waiting for the meeting organizer to show up. It ruins most of the goodwill that may have come out of the said meeting before it has even started. If someone receives a meeting request for a 30-minute meeting, do not be surprised how frustrated that people might be when that 30-minute meeting turns into an hour or more... I hold myself to a simple standard and ensure my team holds me and others responsible. If for some reason I am not at the scheduled meeting within 5 minutes of the start time then clearly an emergency has popped up and they are free to go, consider the meeting cancelled/postponed. Same for the end time. My team knows that if any meeting is scheduled for 60 minutes yet seems to be going over then if they have other commitments, they are absolutely free to go to their next commitment to not keep them waiting, no questions asked. When you value other people's time they will value and respect your time.
3. Keep commitments. We have all been there. Told we will hear back about _____ by such and such date at such and such time. Then... nothing. It feels like whoever made the commitment to us did not really care about whatever the commitment was and from the beginning had little or no intention of keeping to it. There are so many tools these days to ensure we keep our commitments, use them. Find a system that works for you, whether it is tech or a pencil and dayminder. When you value people's time they will value you.

In conclusion, think about how these top 3 effect you and how you could effect change with them for yourself and others. I am open to your thoughts and feedback so please do share, comment, or message me about it.

If you will excuse me, I have a time commitment to get to.

Lead well,

If you have been a reader or subscriber for a while you may have enjoyed getting to know HR professionals through my Q&A interviews. Recently I received a message from one reader that asked if I would do one, with myself! So I did! In video and uploaded to my youtube channel. Enjoy!

I hope you enjoy and find it interesting. If you do have questions comment below and do not forget to share, like and subscribe. 

Who should I interview next? 

Leadership is a choice, nobody is born a competent or effective leader. Often, it is the "small things" we do, sometimes even the easy things that can have the greatest and most powerful impact on those who look to us during a time of crisis. 

How would you rate your communication that you are providing your employees? If you are an employee yourself, how would you rate or describe the communication you are receiving from your leadership team. Comment and share in the comments below. 

Stay safe, stay healthy. 

How are you doing? How has this pandemic situation effected you and your career situation? Comment below and remember, I am here to help. 

Stay safe, stay healthy. 

I have received a few enquiries on publishing an article related to COVID-19 (AKA the Corona Virus). At first I thought I absolutely would come out with something. I have lived and worked through SARS and H1N1 outbreaks as well as the September 11th terrorist attacks.

This current and on-going global crisis has a lot of attention being paid. The further I meditated on it the more I felt there were enough voices, prognosticators and subject matter experts weighing in. Instead, I started to think about what I could offer instead that could have value for people. 

Part of my consultancy business is career coaching and resume development. As I hear every few minutes, more and more people are finding themselves unemployed via furlough, cancellation of contracts or companies ceasing operations.

As my contribution to this crisis I will provide FREE career coaching and resume writing/development services to anyone adversely effected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  

There are three posts that provide self assistance regarding resumes that can be found here;

If you are looking for direct assistance or would like for me to proof read, provide feedback or write your resume for you please submit your request using the contact me function here; 

Like disasters and most adversity we face in our lives, this too shall pass. For those of you worrying about your job situation, I am here to help. If you are looking for specific information or updates on the current state of health and protocol I have provided the following links below;

Stay safe, stay healthy and reach out to let me know how I can help you. 

All the best,

​It is my pleasure to introduce you to another human resources professional and learn more about working within this immense field.

Meet my fellow HR friend Alex, currently an HR Business Partner for a large American health care organization.










Jeff - Alex, tell us a little bit about you first.  Your career history and experience. 

Alex – Boy, this is a tough question! Where do I start? My name is Alex Roberson, and I reside in Arlington, Texas. A fun fact about me is I LOVE cruising. I am 28 years old and “living the dream” as they say. It all started when I was in college. My professor asked us to interview someone we wanted to be when we grew up. My dream job was to be in radio, working for the legendary Kidd Kraddick. I ended up meeting one of his co-hosts on the morning show and was offered an internship which opened many doors for me. Having the internship on my resume definitely helped as everyone recognized the Kidd Kraddick name. I’ve worked in the hospitality industry for many years as head doorman, then moving into healthcare marketing where I was introduced to the lovely life of HR. I worked for a smaller hospital in Fort Worth, Texas in a smaller office with a few different department leaders. My main position was marketing but we worked as a team and I was able to learn a lot about the field of HR. after three years of working with the company in marketing, I decided to check out the HR world full-time. I am now the HR Business Partner for a sister hospital in Arlington, Texas and I am loving every minute of it.

Jeff - What brought you into the field of HR?

Alex - Since we shared the same office as HR, I would always to my best to answer the phones before the HR staff and I learned as much as I possibly could. I am almost always trying to learn other positions and help out when I have free time. The VP of HR noticed my willingness to help and the rest is history. 

Jeff - What are some of the challenges you face day to day in your role?

Alex – I wouldn’t necessarily call this a challenge, but more of a major sense of urgency. In healthcare, many positions require different licensure and certifications in order for them to be compliant. With over 1,500 employees working at any given time, we are required to run daily audits to see if each employee is compliant. This is always an urgent matter that needs to be addressed immediately with their leader if the employee is not compliant. I would say that a challenge I run into is that I need a clone. Managing time is something everyone has difficulty with. The first thing I so each morning is look at my calendar for the day and figure out what my priorities are and then make a “laundry” list of my duties for the day.

Jeff - What do you find is the most rewarding part of working in HR. 

Alex – This is my favorite question! The most rewarding part of my position is seeing the smile on our employees faces when we reward them for going above and beyond. I am in charge of the rewards and recognition program, planning the annual holiday party, and all employee appreciation week activities. As a leader in HR, I always place myself in their shoes. I take a step back and say “what would they want?” I’ve been planning our annual employee appreciation week over the last few months and we have so many great things planned for our employees! I think one of the most popular activities will be the massage company that will come in and provide a 15 minute chair massage to each employee. Another rewarding part of my job would be meeting all of our new hires. New hires have a special place in my heart. I remember when I was younger and starting my career in healthcare and how intimidating everything was. I do my absolute best to get on their level and speak to them in a friendly way instead of abusing my power and intimidate them.  If you provide a smile and a positive attitude to everyone you come across in your life, they will hopefully reciprocate.

Jeff - What do you feel makes your role in healthcare/HR different than say what I do in the travel industry?

Alex - Absolutely nothing. We are all professionals and are here to take care of our employees. Working in the travel industry and healthcare are similar as far as diversity. Many of our employees have traveled here from overseas to pursue their dream of providing cost-effective healthcare. Now there are differences, of course, but I believe we are all here to serve a purpose. My purpose is to make sure our employees are providing compassionate care and working in a safe environment. 

Jeff – What advice would you give to perspective candidates or students considering a career in HR?

Alex – Do anything you can to be seen by others. Never be comfortable! One thing that worked for me is to say “yes” to everything early on in my career. Whether that be offering to run a presentation for the CEO or my VP, I always made myself available to help. Make connections and network as much as you can. 

Jeff - What changes to our industry do you foresee in the next 5-10 years?

Alex - Unfortunately, I’ve already seen a lot of HR initiatives being centralized at a corporate level. If an employee calls us for certain questions, we are asked to have them call the HR call center. I always answer their questions for them, but we do have a team of HR professionals working at a call center at our corporate office. The centralization of HR is taking over I think.

Jeff - What are your additional thoughts?

Alex – Being comfortable is something I’ve never been. I am always keeping an eye out for what is next. I am a huge fan of traveling and I’ve been looking at other types of HR work in a different field. I would like to broaden my horizon and push myself even more to learn as much as possible.

As you can see, Alex has great insight into the human resources practices within healthcare.  Alex can be contacted directly; robertalexanderr@aim.com 

Until next time, 

Jeff