Berks & Beyond Blog

Keeping your résumé current is important to your continued career development.  But unless you’re actively looking for a job, the daily demands of life, home and work can easily push this updating process down on your priority list.  If you haven’t reviewed your résumé in over a year, here are just a few good reasons why you should take a fresh look at it:

• Even if you’re currently employed, you never know when an attractive job opening may present itself.  A current résumé can help you capitalize on an unexpected opportunity – before someone else has the chance.
• Over time, your important achievements and contributions may be forgotten.  Regular updating ensures that critical, measurable accomplishments are accurately recorded.
• In many cases, your résumé creates a first and lasting impression on a potential employer.  Make sure it’s a good one.  By periodically reviewing and honing your résumé, you can create a more powerful marketing tool that accurately and favorably represents you as a professional.

Use these tips to make your résumé update simple and comprehensive:

1. Review personal information (address, e-mail, LinkedIn URL, etc.) to ensure everything is up-to-date.
2. Review your oldest job.  If it’s no longer relevant, and you have at least 10 years of documented work history without it, remove it.
3. Update your responsibilities and accomplishments.  Consider the following:  special projects; new expertise developed or job responsibilities awarded; knowledge or skills enhancement from special training or professional development; awards or other recognition; challenges you faced and solutions developed; measurable results you helped achieved (e.g., eliminating process inefficiencies, increasing productivity or sales, improving staffing or operational performance, etc.).
4. Revist your objective statement.  If it is not in line with your current career aspirations, rewrite it.  The statement can be general, but should show some direction toward the field in which you want to work.
5. Reevaluate your references.  Verify that these individuals still work where you have noted and that contact information for each is correct.  If you have developed new contacts who can attest to your recent achievements or heightened responsibility, consider replacing them with outdated references.
6. Update your résumé format.  Check online sample résumés to see if yours looks outdated and revise accordingly.  Additionally, you should create an electronic version of your résumé if you don’t already have one.
7. Proofread everything.  Sloppy spelling, grammar and punctuation may take you out of the running immediately.  If you’re not proficient in proofreading, ask a trusted friend or associate to help.

Looking for a better career opportunity in Southern or Central Pennsylvania?  Contact a Berks & Beyond Recruiter.  We have a wide variety of temporary and direct hire opportunities in the office/clerical, light industrial, accounting / finance, engineering, human resources, management, agricultural and skilled trades sectors.

Do you need to reorganize your work space?  If you’re not sure, ask yourself:

• Do your employees have sufficient space to complete their work?
• Is your workplace healthy, providing clean air and water, enough light (natural or artificial) and an environment free of distracting noises and smells?
• Is the workspace flexible enough to quickly adjust to industry-related changes?
• Are workers able to maintain comfort by adjusting light, temperature, furnishings and acoustic levels to their needs?
• Are your technology and physical plant (heating, cooling, water, plumbing) systems reliable?

If you answered “No” to one or more of these questions, your workplace may benefit from an update.  Here are some important points to consider before you start:

• Define the Image You Want to Project.  What would you like employees, potential and current clients to think and feel when they step inside your workplace?  Use this as a backdrop against which improvements will be made.
• Size up your Current Space.  What really goes on in your workplace each day?  Take a step back and examine how your space is used right now:

Layout.  How well does your existing floor plan function?  Shadow different types of employees to determine whether the layout helps or hinders them in their efforts to get work done. 

Usage.  How evenly is your space utilized?  Stop by cubicles, offices and conference rooms every half-hour to uncover areas that are chronically empty or overcrowded.

Workarounds.  Do employees use their space, furnishings and equipment as intended?  Examine your environment to see if it supports or thwarts employees’ work processes.

• Involve Your Staff.  Getting employee feedback on dysfunctional workspace elements is vital to your efforts; however, asking employees what they want may lead to unrealistic demands (not everyone can have a corner office with a built-in coy pond).  Gather employee input throughout the redesign process, but remind them that the new design will beneficial (not perfect) for everyone.
• Look 5 or 10 Years Down the Road.  Do you have plans to expand, merge or move?  Any of these will impact the amount you invest in a current workplace redesign.
• Determine Your Goals.  Once you’ve identified your biggest issues, decide which ones you want to attack.  Choose four or five priorities to address, such as increased collaboration, improved productivity or more efficient use of space.

Need to Reorganize Your WorkFORCE?

Admittedly, we don’t specialize in commercial interior design.  But, we at Berks & Beyond are experts at helping you redesign your workforce.  We can show you how to use staffing to save money, improve productivity and run a “lean and mean” organization.  Contact us today to learn more.

The time and costs associated with recruiting, screening, testing and hiring employees are significant.  So why do it? 

If your personnel needs are short-term, seasonal or project-oriented, consider working with a staffing service.  A staffing firm can provide access to the talent you need, while eliminating many employment related expenses, including:

• Recruiting.  A staffing service can assume responsibility for advertising, posting positions online, screening résumés, interviewing and checking applicant references.  Most will also administer drug testing, when required.
• Training.  Temporary employees come to your firm armed with the skills and experience needed to do the job.  If necessary, many staffing firms will custom-design training and orientation programs to meet your needs.
• Benefits.  A temporary worker is an employee of the staffing firm.  As such, the staffing firm assumes responsibility for any benefits their employee may receive.
• Administration.  By using temporary employees, your HR department eliminates the added headaches associated with payroll processing.  The staffing firm handles all legal and administrative responsibility for payroll processing, paying workers’ compensation and unemployment premiums, and managing tax and government reporting.
• Bad hires.  If you aren’t happy with a temporary employee’s work ethic or performance, you have the right to end the assignment any time.  And if you need a direct hire, consider starting potential employees as temporaries.  This way, you can find out if a new employee has the skills and attitude you need before making a hiring decision.

For more information about our temporary staffing services for Central and Southern Pennsylvania employers, please visit Berks & Beyond’s website.

What’s the single most important variable in the success (or failure) of your business?

Your staff.

Steven Berchem, Certified Staffing Professional and Vice President of the American Staffing Association, posted a great article on the ASA website which addresses the ways today’s businesses are using staffing to gain real competitive advantage. 

Here are a few of the article’s salient points:

• As agility becomes more essential to success, smart companies are rejecting traditional hiring models and taking bold approaches to staffing.  They are moving away from lengthy hiring processes and no longer see the wisdom of filling every position with a permanent employee.
• These changes in key business practices have led companies to use more temporary and contract employees in diverse and highly skilled professions, including: accountants, attorneys, chief executives, doctors, graphic designers, IT professionals and even pilots.
• Today’s staffing employees are motivated, satisfied and educated.  In a survey conducted by the ASA, nine out of 10 staffing employees said they would recommend temporary or contract work to a friend or relative.  And while it may come as a surprise, staffing employees are actually better educated than the overall workforce, with 74% having at least some college education (compared to 62% of the traditional workforce).
• Staffing firms provide the only means of accessing some of America’s best talent.  In fact, the majority of staffing employees either use temporary or contract work as their sole means of finding a “permanent” job, or they simply prefer their current work arrangement over traditional employment.

To read or download the full article, click here.

Maximize the Value of Your Human Resources with Berks & Beyond

If you’d like to maximize the value of your staff as a source of competitive advantage for your company, contact Berks & Beyond today.  We can show you how to use staffing to become more agile, efficient and profitable.  Together, we can develop a smart staffing plan that will enable your organization to compete – and win.

Looking for something fun to do, but need a little inspiration?

Every once in a while, we all need a break from our routines.  But sometimes we just don’t have the time or means for a week’s vacation on the French Riviera.  Luckily, we live in a beautiful part of the country – a great, affordable getaway is just a one-tank trip away!

Here are a few helpful links to get your plans in gear:

Trails.com – Your Guide to the Outdoors:  great resource for day trips throughout the state.

PAHomePage.com:  links to PA parks, entertainment, vineyards, sanctuaries and more.

BnBFinder.com:  comprehensive, easy-to-use search engine which allows you to search for bed & breakfasts by region, price and more.

There are so many opportunities for fun and recreation throughout central and southern Pennsylvania.  We at Berks & Beyond encourage you to go out and enjoy our beautiful state – at a beautiful time of year.

Do you know why the U.S. staffing industry is growing at a faster rate than the overall economy?  The answer can be summed up in a single word:  flexibility.

The American Staffing Association’s Intelligence Report called Workforce Flexibility:  Staffing for a Better Bottom Line speaks to this very topic.  The article details the numerous ways our industry delivers the workforce flexibility today’s businesses need - from quickly finding experienced specialists for short-term projects to helping organizations run leaner during these tough times. 

I encourage you to follow the link above and learn more about how our industry can benefit yours.  And of course, if you have specific questions about how Berks & Beyond’s services could enhance your company’s workforce flexibility, please contact us directly.