The Watercooler

The Watercooler Blog is full of workplace tips and trends related to employee retention, engagement, interviewing and more. The Watercooler is frequently refilled, so gather ‘round often.

The Top 6 Skills You Need to be Successful in Customer Service

As noted in a recent report by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) and the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, “businesses where employees have a positive service climate have customers who are more satisfied,” contributing toward “increased competitive financial performance for the company, often including a stronger market value.” So when employers hire [...]

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4 Ways to Address Common Resume Gaps

It happens to the best of us: Sometimes you may have some lag time between your previous job and the one you hope to get. This may seem like a terrible hole in your résumé, but it’s not the end of the world; employers recognize this will happen, especially in today’s job market. As long [...]

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Why Being a Better Listener Will Improve Your Career

When was the last time you had a conversation with someone and realized that, while that person technically heard you, they didn’t listen to a word you said? It happens far too frequently – and if you’ve found yourself in that position, you know how frustrating it feels. It’s something worth considering, especially for your [...]

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How to Become an Indispensable Employee

Any employee - in any department and at any level of an organization - can be indispensable. It’s not about power, title or position. It’s about being essential to the overall success of your team and your company. Being indispensable means your supervisor and co-workers count on you so much that, without you, productivity would [...]

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How to Encourage Your Employees to Be More Productive

It happens from time to time: Employees who previously did well and stayed on task have slowly but surely fallen off the mark and become less focused on their work. Fortunately, you can help them find their productivity without cracking the whip too hard or coming across as a mircomanager. Encourage physical health. Sometimes employees [...]

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Do You Know Your True Hiring Needs?

Strategic staffing is an ongoing process. And you’re so busy each day that you may find yourself filling positions on a “must-have” basis, rather than stepping back to evaluate whether or not your company’s true hiring needs are being met. It happens to the best of HR pros. If you miscalculate staffing, you run the [...]

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