Is commenting on a coworkers appearance always wrong According to this new study, no

Is commenting on a coworkers appearance always wrong According to this new study, noIs commenting on a coworkers appearance always wrong According to this new study, noFormer president Barack Obama once introduced Californias Attorney General Kamala Harris at a Democratic fundraiser as brilliant, dedicated, tough and by far, the best looking attorney general in the country.The remark raised a few eyebrows as Americans questioned whether or not it amounted to sexism. The then-president, who has alsocomplimented men before, called Harristo apologize.While Harris is reportedly still an Obama supporter, the situation leaves twoquestions lingering Are male-to-female, female-to-male, peer-to-peer, superior-to-subordinate or vice versa workplace compliments focused on looks or partal details like dress ever okay? And when dothoseremarks rise to actionable harassment?In the workplace or when you are dealing with someone professionally, a persons appearance is, nine times out of 10, irrelevan t - unless, of course, youre working in the fashion industry or a persons attireviolates the companysdress code. But when someone walks into work with a new hair cut or an eye-catching dress, you might feel inclined to compliment them. Likewise, if someone walks into work looking exhausted, you might feel inclined to ask them how theyre doing.While some compliments might be pure (and compliments alone dont typically constitute unlawfulsexual harassment),some can be full of inuendos that have no place in the office and create power dynamics that keepworkplaces from reaching gender parity.And in response to the recent surge of sexual harassment scandals, many people are wondering whether or not commenting on a coworkers appearance at all is ever acceptable.That said,Americans tend to agree that just because abehavior is frowned upondoesnt mean that it isnt happening in their workplaces.Thats according toa recentpollonworkplace behaviorfromNPRandIpsos, whichoffered 1,130 American adul ts a range of potentially objectionable office behaviors along with a range of options for each behavior, from one to seven (always, mostly and sometimes inappropriate it depends and sometimes, mostly or always appropriate). Seventy-two percent of people polled have seen a male commenting on a female coworkers appearance, and 23 percent have admitted to doing it. And65 percent of people have seen a female coworker commenting on a males appearance, and 26 percent have admitted to doing so.Theresearch suggests that only49 percent of people think that a male commenting on a females appearance at work is inappropriate. Another 36 percent say that it depends, and 15 percent think its totally fine. As for a female commenting on a males appearance, 46 percent think its inappropriate, 37 percent think it depends on the situation and 17 percent think its fine.But here are 10 times when commenting on a coworkers appearance is definitely NOT okay, despite what the survey says.1. Dont comment o n a coworkers physical attributesCommenting on a coworkers body parts is never appropriate, period. Doing so can certainly and justifiably lead to a trip to HR.2. Dont comment on a coworkers decision to re-wear the same clothesYourcoworker may have had slept out the night before, and commenting onthat can be construed as making suggestions about their intimatelives. Or, the coworker may not have thebudgetfor an expansive work wardrobe, so commenting on their repeated outfits could be offensive and hurtful.3. Dont comment on a coworkers baby bumpFirst, your coworker might not actually be pregnant if she hasnt yet broken the news. Second, your coworker might not want anyone to know if shes pregnant yet, and then youre spilling what are her beans to spill. Third,all baby bumps are different and all womens bodies respond topregnancyin their own unique ways, so speculating abouta womans pregnancycan come across as rude.4. Dont comment on a coworkers weight lossYou dont know if your cowor ker is ill and unintentionally losing weight or not. Unless they verbally express that theyve been trying hard to lose weight, commenting on weight loss is risky. Even if they do seem to be fishing for compliments,how you offer a compliment matters - instead of telling them how good theirbodylooks, you should probably stick to congratulating them on theirprogressinstead. Thats more of a meaningful compliment anyway, since youre acknowledging theirhard workand dedication.5. Dont comment ona coworkers outfit being provocativeIf your coworker is wearing something that, to you, seems too low cut, too short, too sheer, etc., dont mention it to them. Unless youre the HR department, youve no place doing so.6. Dont comment on a coworker who lookshung overIf your coworker comes into work looking like theyve had quite the night out, its best you leave that up to HR to handle. For one, you could be misinterpreting the situation, and perhaps theyve had a rough night for other not-so-ideal reas ons that they dont feel comfortable discussing with you - such as family or relationship issues. If they are hung over but still able to perform their work, what happens in their lives outsideof the office does not concern you. If theyre continuously coming into work hungover, and its affecting your work, thats an issue you need to take up with HR.7. Dont comment onany ambiguous injuries on a coworkerUnless they bring it up, you dont need to know why your coworker is injured. If there is a funny story as to why they randomly showed up on crutches, chances are theyll tell you. But if you ask them why theyre always bruised, for example, you might be triggering something deeper - like an abuse issue at home that theyre notwantingto discuss at work. If youre genuinely concerned about them, you might want to pull them aside in private and let them know that youre an ear for them otherwise, its usually best to keep those comments to yourself or consult someone who could help without inv ading your coworkers privacy.8. Dont comment on a coworker for blushingSuggesting flirtation at the workplace isawkwardand inappropriate. A lot ofsuccessfulwomenalready deal with rumors about sleeping their way to the top, so accusing someone of showing romantic or sexual interest (whether or not its true) is unprofessional andnegates womens successes thus far.9. Dont comment on a coworkers especially professional appearanceYou dont know if your coworkerhas another jobinterviewatlunchthat they dont want the whole office knowing about.10. Dont comment on a coworker who appears to be illAgain, you dont know if your coworker is actually ill, and commenting on their poor appearancecould open up doors to a conversation that they might not feel like having.AnnaMarie Houlis is a multimedia journalist and an adventure aficionado with a keen cultural curiosity and an affinity for solotravel. Shes an editor by day and a travel blogger at HerReport.org by night.This article originally appeared onFairygodboss.AtFairygodboss, our mission is to help you create the best career for your life. Weve helped over a million women do this by crowdsourcing hard-to-ask information about job flexibility, salaries, work-life balance, maternity leave policies and whether women are promoted fairly in their companies and departments. Come see our free job reviews and career advice

This post-interview thank you letter will get you the job

This post-interview thank you letter will get you the jobThis post-interview thank you letter will get you the jobWhat exactly should you write in that thank you letter for interview? If youre dusting off your job search skills and find yourself stumped when it comes to choosing the most effectivelanguage, youre in the right distributionspolitik.Heres thethank you letterlanguage I used to land a six-figure job offerName,Thank you for meeting with me today to discuss the JOB TITLE role at COMPANY NAME. It was a pleasure learning more about you and your vorstellung for the team. I know I have the technical skills and team-oriented personality needed to be successful in this position and I look forward to the opportunity to prove myself to you.Your name/SignatureHeres Why It WorksThis sample thank you letter for interview may seem simple, but there are lots of moving parts that make it effective. Heres a breakdown of the orderPersonalize your letter by addressing the interviewer by name . It shows you did your research and pay attention to detail.Say thank you immediately. The note does not have to be long, but it needs to do the work of keeping you top of mindNext, you should add a compliment. I like to make it personal and attribute something specific to the interviewer. Mostinterviewsinvolve talking about the role, the team, and the vision.Last but certainly not least, reiterate what you bring to the table by clearly stating why youre perfect for this role.Execution MattersAs long as you spell the subjects name correctly and can pull a few sentences together, can you really go wrong? Well, yes in fact you can.Ive come to learn that its not the act of writing a thank you but theexecutionof said thank you that resonates. And the most important aspects of executing the perfect post-interview thank you letter aredeliveryandgreifhand off.Use Quality StationaryDelivery.Skip the email and go for the handwritten note onhigh-quality stationary.Youve likely sent dozens of emails back and forth with your potential employer prior to your interview. A handwritten note will help you stand out.Cranes Paper Companyis the gold standard in quality paper products and one of my favorite stationery brands. I have a box of their plain note cards at arms reach and grab one for special occasions that call for a handwritten note.The product is also a durable investment if stored properly in a cool, dry place one box can stay in tact and last for years.Make a Clean GetawayHand off.Not toolong ago, I interviewed for a different position at a large social media platform (wink). After shaking hands with my interviewer, I sat my handbag on a chair and fished around (past my heels, chapstick, and everything else known to man) and pulled out a slightly bent thank you note with the interviewers name on it.Needless to say, I didnt get the job.Was the act of fishing around in my handbag harmless? Maybe. But competition for top jobs with major companies is fierce. In those s ituations, the name of the game is elimination. And anything can that can rule you out, no matter how small, is fair game.All that to say the hand off matters. All situations may not permit a clean hand off, but if possible I recommend giving your thank you letters to a receptionist who can hand them out in your absence or put them in the appropriate mailboxes. Another option is to mail them.Final ThoughtsWill a handwritten note guarantee you a job offer? Of course not. But in a job market where the objective is to eliminate candidates in order to find the best one, youll certainly want every advantage on your side.This article first appeared on Capitol Standard.

Amazon wants Alexa to be your new coworker

Amazon wants Alexa to be your new coworkerAmazon wants Alexa to be your new coworkerDo you need an executive assistant who can stay out of sight and always be ready to complete your bidding at your command?Thats what Amazon is banking on when it announced its new Alexa for Businessservice at its annual Web Services conference last week. Using the location of your device and the company information youre willing to feed it, Alexa, the voice-controlled virtual assistant in Amazon Echo devices, can now book you a conference room, call the help desk, manage your work calendar, and order new printer paper.In the promotional video for its new service, Amazon imagines a world where companies manage thousands of employees shared Echo devices and employees go about their days speaking their requests out loud. You can say, Alexa, pull up last quarters sales report, and that report appears seamlessly on a screen without the presenter needing to click a mouse.At its best, integrating artificial voice intelligence into your company will buy you back time you wasted on mundane tasks like finding an empty meeting room. In its testimonial about the service, office-sharing company WeWork said that having an Alexa to dim lights and set the temperature at the office simplified the everyday hassles of the workplace. I think that the more natural our interfaces become - the more they disappear - the better, WeWorkHead of Product Research Josh Emig told the Wall Street Journal.Alexa needs to eavesdrop to be the best assistantBut the drawback to making technology work assistants seem natural is that we forget who were talking to - if we treat it as a co-worker with a human name, we forget that its actually owned by one of the worlds largest corporations that benefits from receiving as much personal data as it can get on us to influence our choices.In order for Alexa to work, it needs to be listening to what you say - and that can be embarrassing or career-ending talk. Although Am azon promises to delete specific voice recordings, you may naturally forget to censor yourself when you treat it as just another assistant.By making its personal Alexa device a professional one, Amazon is signaling that it wants its products to take over your workplace as much as it already has your home. If Amazon succeeds in making Alexa go mainstream at work, there will be a future where employees have Alexas making thousands of choices on their behalf. Have my A.I. emaille your A.I. The real privacy and ethical questions will become making sure that these selected choices are the right ones.

7 Worst Things About Being a Paralegal

7 Worst Things About Being a Paralegal7 Worst Things About Being a ParalegalA career as a paralegal (also known as a legal assistant) can be a wonderfully fulfilling profession. However, paralegal jobs have their disadvantages. If you are considering a ?paralegal career, the 10 career drawbacks below outline several top challenges of the paralegal profession (to explore the benefits of paralegal work, review these 8 Best Things about Being a Paralegal). 01Lack of Career PathDarrin Klimek/Digital Vision/Getty ImagesParalegals have a limited career path in most organizations. To advance beyond the senior paralegal ranks, you must transition to another role entirely such as management or litigation support.02High StressParalegal jobs can be extremely stressful. Multiple, short-term deadlines, rising workloads, and high-dollar stakes combine to create a pressure-filled work environment. In the words of the blog Paralegal Hell, Its not the kind of stress of meeting a deadline or the fact that your boss may have lost his brain at birth. Its the fact that all your work is (1) urgent and (2) of vital importance. If you screw up, the world will certainly end. And thats just the contract for the copy machine in the workroom.03Long HoursTight deadlines, high workloads, and a dwindling workforce combine to create an environment in which long hours, overtime, and weekend work are the norm. Paralegals, who are employed in law firm environments, frequently work mora than 40 hours a week, while those employed in corporate and government arenas might enjoy more relaxed schedules. While numerous organizations have emerged to help attorneys manage work/life balance issues, few such resources exist for paralegals.04Routine WorkLets face it, some paralegal work, especially at the entry level, is mindless, tedious and routine. Law firm economics dictate that firms bill the client at the highest possible rate to maximize profits. Therefore, more complex, challenging tasks are often p ushed up the staff hierarchy, reserving the juiciest tasks for the highest-ranking staff - senior associates and partners. In small firms, paralegals wear many hats and frequently perform work that is secretarial, administrative, or clerical in nature.05Lack of RespectAlthough largely undeserved, a lack of respect is one of the most common complaints among practicing paralegals. Paralegals routinely deal with demanding partners, jealous associates, competitive co-workers, disrespectful opposing counsel, cranky clients and difficult vendors. While every law firms culture is different, long hours, tricky deadlines, and high stakes can create a caustic work environment and paralegals sometimes receive more than their fair share of grief.06Unauthorized Practice of Law (UPL)A basic tenet of paralegal practice is that paralegals cannot engage in the unauthorized practice of law all states have enacted statutes which limit the practice of law to licensed attorneys. Although each state defi nes UPL differently, the practice of law is generally recognized to include (1) accepting cases from a client (2) setting fees (3) rendering legal advice (4) signing legal documents and (5) appearing in a representative capacity before a court or other adjudicatory body. Because paralegals must work under the supervision of a lawyer, paralegals roles are limited by UPL. Also, these laws make it difficult for paralegals to receive credit or recognition outside the firm for their work. For example, if the paralegal writes a winning appellate brief, he cannot sign his anthroponym to it or take credit for it.07Lack of ChallengeParalegals are often underutilized because their roles are minimized or misunderstood. To overcome this barrier, paralegals must proactively educate law firm and corporate leaders regarding their substantive capabilities and the ways in which they can contribute to client service and profitability.

Ten Steps to a Federal Job for Vet Students

Ten Steps to a Federal Job for Vet StudentsTen Steps to a Federal Job for Vet StudentsTen Steps to a Federal Job for Vet StudentsStudents Federal Career Guide, 2nd Ed.The 2nd Edition of the Students Federal Career Guide includes special insight and education for veterans who are returning to college with the Montgomery GI Bill. There are 3 samples of veterans who are returning to college to enhance their careers after college. The Ten Steps are a highly successful strategy for federal job and internship search.Step 1. Networking The Veterans Recruitment Act (VRA) offers special hiring programs for retiring and separating military (disabled or non-disabled). The best opportunity for a direct hire is a military job fair. You must be well-prepared with an internship or USAJOBS resume, like the samples in this book.Step 2. Find Your Agency and Job Title When choosing your agency and job title, veterans can use the various military skills translators to determine how you can translate your military positions and experience into job title for government or private industry. You will need to blend the titles of your matching positions from your recent military career, plus your college major and determine what federal job titles will be right for you.Step 3. Programs for Students PATHWAYS NEW and investigate various opportunities and programs for veterans students to obtain internships or apprenticeships, such as the Wounded Warrior Programs and Internships and Apprenticeships.Step 4. Finding The Right Positions For You Many student veterans apply for internships or positions with military services as a civilian or with Department of Defense agencies in bestellung to continue a military- or defense-focused career path. Alternatively, if you are seeking a position outside of DOD or the military, then you will look at other agencies where you can use your skills and college education.Step 5. Analyzing Federal Jobs For You As a veteran applying for a federal job, yo u are eligible to receive 5 points for your military service or 10 points if you are a disabled veteran with 10% disability or more. However, in order to receive the extra points on your application, you MUST show that you are Minimally Qualified for that position. Read the vacancy announcements carefully to make sure that you have the education, qualifications, and specialized experience for the position.Step 6. Federal Resume Writing See the resume sample for Jeremy Denton, a USMC E-5 Helicopter Crew Chief. He will apply for a management Analyst, GS-7 position with a new BS degree in Public Policy. The work experience focuses on transferable skills and the degree emphasizes knowledge of policy and government.Step 7. KSAs, Questionnaires and Cover Letters Check out the resume sample for Brandon Billings which demonstrates KSAs in the Work Experience section of the resume with keywords and description from a career as E-5, USCG in Maritime Security, Law Enforcement, Investigation a nd Communication.Step 8. Apply for Federal Jobs Make sure you know what documentation you need to submit to document your military career. Submit these documents into USAJOBS as early in the application process as you can. All veterans are required to submit a DD Form 214, Military Discharge (Member Copy 4). Veterans claiming 10 Point Preference are also required to submit a completed SF-15 and, supporting documents outlined on the SF-15.Step 9. Track and Follow-up If you write to a human resources specialist by email, be sure to add to the subject line that you are a veteran (5- or 10-point veteran), along with your name. It could help with responses to your email and the understanding of your hiring programs.Step 10. einstellungsgesprch for a Federal Job In order to prepare for a behavior-based interview, write about your military leadership, teamwork, training, critical thinking, and your accomplishments ahead of time. Make sure they are relevant for the agencys mission, the po sition knowledge, skills and abilities, and that demonstrate your dedication to achieving your past and future objectives.Another great resource for Veteran Federal Resumes Military to Federal Career Guide, 2nd Ed., and Cd-ROM. Also available as an eBook. Order and receive copies of your sample veteran resumes right away.

The Chronicles of Data Analyst Resume Sample

The Chronicles of Data Analyst Resume Sample The 30-Second Trick for Data Analyst Resume Sample If you would like to go within that direction, you will need to go certified by Association of Government Accountants (AGA). Analysts might be responsible for one specific job or for several tasks based on the insurer they work for. Licensing requirements for a position as a data analyst reflect the requirements of the organization and the particular duties that are necessary for the employee. The thorough data will help your prospective employer to have a good comprehension of your worth. If you dont wish to compete in the work market for quite a long time, the advantage of having an expert from our resume-writing service on your side is just what you will need. bedrngnis to worry, you can show youve got relevant expertise in different ways. Your experience will reflect the quantity of work youve done and the scale of information you have analyzed. Vital Pieces of Data Analyst Resume Sample In case you have any questions or comments about how to compose a professional resume for a data analyst, dont hesitate to comment below. Keep reading to discover the huge data a hiring manager would like to see. Most hiring managers wish to find a cover letter together with your data scientist resume. Furthermore, analysts are from time to time accountable for database design and security. Business analysts, on the flip side, utilize the data analysis to create strategic business decisions. The sorts of firms a financial data analyst works for tend to have higher workloads as the conclusion of quarters nears, or so the analyst ought to be able to work under pressure to keep quality amounts in reporting. He should be able to interpret corporate reports such as quarterly earnings statements to help build sound financial reports if the interpretation of financial earnings statements is included in the job description. To learn more on what it requires to be a Dat a Analyst, take a look at our complete Data Analyst Job Description. A career for a Data Analyst generally needs a college education. Technical skills arent all. For inspiration, have a look at the next Data Analyst resume sample An applicant with a close match of keywords utilized in their job application with the ones utilized in the work ad is going to have greater likelihood of being hired. Your resume will frequently be screened by means of an ATS (applicant tracking system) that will hunt for relevant keywords in your job resume application so as to locate a very good match between the work ad and the job applications. In some instances, it can happen that the recruiters dont have extensive knowledge in your area. When theres no effortless approach to satisfy your information into three sentences, use four. Mock interviews are recommend since they tend to reduce the strain and nervousness connected with interviews. Your resume should be formatted in an easy, profess ional method. You also might have done Volunteer Work or independent Projects that youre able to include. Any resume ought to be tailored as much as possible to the particular job its being used to submit an application for. What will be able to help you to acquire work in the specialty that you want is a well-written and convincing career-change-level resume. Such a crucial job wants a lot of special hard and soft skills. Budget analysts should have the ability to spell out their recommendations effectively to clients or executives from various departments. Many employees wind up feeling that their existing employers find it impossible to offer what they are interested in finding and proceed to scan the marketplace. Hiring managers search for striking introductions, the sort that compels them to read the remainder of the resume. You need to reveal the hiring manager which you can give them what they want. Data Analyst Resume Sample Conventional data analysis fails to ha ndle the arrival of Big Data that is essentially huge data, both structured and unstructured. If youre interested in data analytics, you should look at earning a masters degree. For data analysts, its helpful to keep up-to-date computer skills and have at least a cursory comprehension of a number of the more prevalent programming languages. So far as tool are involved, the frequent tool is advanced Mircosoft Excel.

Facebook Profiling Moves from Art to Science

Facebook Profiling Moves from Art to Science Facebook Beats Personality Tests for Predicting Job Success. Has Facebook unwittingly become a tool that can provide us with a valid psychometric assessment of a candidate?Not quite yet, but research conducted earlier this year by prof Don Kluemper of Northern Illinois Universitys College of Business (discussed in detail earlier on Recruiter.com), shows that in their trial at least that Facebook was a more reliable predictor of job wertmiger zuwachs than a psychometric test. So, still a bombshell, nonetheless.Their findings showed thatimpressions gleaned from a five to 10 minute perusal of Facebook pages were actually a stronger predictor of a candidates likelihood to excel in a job than the personality surveys that many companies require job candidates to complete.The Study in More DetailSo, how exactly did the study work? Each of the subjects of the s tudy completed a personality questionnaire to assess five key traits of conscientiousness, agreeableness, extroversion, emotional stability and openness, and the subjects also granted three raters access to their Facebook profiles. Researchers than reviewed a subset of the subjects, who were employed six months later, and asked their supervisors to complete a performance evaluation. They then compared these performance scores to the personality scores and found that the Facebook derived scores provided a more accurate predictor of job performance than the score which came from the personality self evaluation.This is not yet the green light for Facebook profilingAlthough the results are compelling, I would urge some caution because while this study does possess academic rigor, it is isolated and has not yet been independently replicated as far as I am aware although I will happily stand corrected it anyone knows different.In addition, the study does not address or contend with any of the legal issues of using Facebook as a formal personality assessment tool.It is therefore not yet the green light for Facebook personality profiling in recruitment. Professor Kluemper has warned that it will need to be proved valid before it can be used as a legally defensible recruitment tool and that this research is just a first step in that direction.Should People Optimize Their Facebook Profile For Personality?Even though this study doesnt condone the use of Facebook for personality profiling, the reality is that many recruiters do use Facebook profiles. In fact, one survey by Reppler showed that 90% of recruiters were using Facebook profiles to screen candidates, while another by OPP reported a lower figure of 56%. Either way, since the Facebook profile is being unwittingly used as personality profiling tool, candidates should be aware of the top five things that their Facebook profile reveals about them these are as mentioned above conscientiousness, emotional stability, agreeableness, extroversion and openness to experience.As to whether candidates should optimize their profile to suit these traits No, I dont recommend making an artificial representation of yourself to suit what you think recruiters are looking for, because this is in itself not good practice, as you may be accepted for a role that you are not suited for and could be unhappy as a result.By the saatkorn token, you dont want your profile to be misleading as it could make you appear unsuited for jobs that you actually are suited to, so Id suggest that you round out your Facebook profile (so it is not too polarized), so it shows the full range of what you do and who you are hopefully making it a truer representation of who you are.