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management plan for dealing with potential problems before
they occur can keep a headache from ballooning into a fullfledged
issue.”
Here are five tips on how managers can avert crises or mitigate
the damage when issues do arise:
1. Create crisis plans. Put plans in place for possible crisis
situations and conduct “fire drills” so your team knows exactly
what to do and who to consult in the event of an emergency.
This will help your staff stay cool-headed when the pressure’s
on, while cutting down on response time.
2. Be proactive. Regularly checking in on critical projects can
minimize last-second scrambling. Make sure your team
is aligned, on track and has the necessary resources and
information to meet their objectives.
3. Establish a culture of transparency. Encourage honest
communication among your team. Promote smart, strategic
risk-taking and create an environment where employees feel
comfortable coming to you to admit errors or share concerns.
4. Drill down on data. Leveraging data analytics tools can
enable you to spot potential problems – and correct course –
earlier than in years past. Business analysts can help you spot
hurdles on the horizon, such as a sudden decrease in sales.
5. Learn from mistakes. Take the time to understand what
went wrong. Put key programs and campaigns under the
microscope and strive to pinpoint the root causes of issues so
you avoid similar problems in the future.
THE WORLD’S MOST ATTRACTIVE EMPLOYERS
ARE DELIVERING WHAT MILLENNIALS WANT
Universum, a leader in employer branding, has released its 2014
rankings of the World’s Most Attractive Employers. Based on
Universum’s national student surveys of more than 200,000
business and engineering students in the world’s 12 largest economies,
the World’s Most Attractive Employers ranking reveals
top choices for today’s young talent.
CREATIVE AND FRIENDLY WORKPLACES
When asked about their employment preferences, “a creative and
dynamic work environment” is the number one most soughtafter
attribute for engineering students globally, and fourth for
business students. “A friendly work environment” is also important,
placing sixth for engineers and fifth for business students.
“It’s an indication that this generation, no matter where they
are in the world, take a different approach to work,” said Petter
Nylander, CEO of Universum. “Students know what a large role
work will play in their lives and want to work in an environment
that resonates – employers need to invest in cultivating this.”
BIG FOUR TAKE THE TOP SPOTS
AMONG BUSINESS STUDENTS
This year, the Big Four accounting firms asserted themselves as
employers of choice around the globe for business students, with
EY, Deloitte, KMPG and PwC taking four of the top five spots
right behind Google.
“It’s clear that these organizations have taken a data-driven
approach to their employer brands,” said Nylander. “They truly
understand the need for a strong company culture, training and
development and other attributes business students are looking
for, and invest in providing these things to their employees.”
AGE BECOMING THE NEW INCOME DIVIDE
Three decades of progress in reducing income inequality between
men and women has been accompanied by a growing
earnings gap between younger and older workers that could
threaten future economic growth and social stability, according
to new research from The Conference Board of Canada.
The report, The Bucks Stop Here: Trends in Income Inequality
between Generations, finds that younger workers are making less
money relative to their elders: as men and women, as individuals
and couples and both before and after tax.
“Age rather than gender is becoming the new divide in our
society,” said David Stewart-Patterson, Conference Board vice
president and a co-author of the report. “The Canadian generation
at the top of the income heap today fought long and hard for
principles like equal pay for work of equal value, but their children
now face lower wages and reduced pension benefits even for
the same work at the same employer.”
It’s normal for older workers to make more money than those
with less experience. But in the mid-1980s, the average after-tax
income of Canadians between the ages of 50 and 54 was 47 per
cent higher than that of 25- to 29-year-olds. In recent years, that
gap has jumped to 64 per cent.
The report notes that as the baby boom generation moves into
retirement, Canadians will be relying on a smaller share of the
population to drive economic growth and sustain the tax base
that supports public services.
“We need average employment incomes in the years ahead
to go up, and yet younger Canadians are falling behind,” said
Stewart-Patterson. “This is a trend that could have serious consequences
for employers, for labour unions, for governments and
for communities. If the earnings of younger workers continue
to lag, we also could see growing conflict within our society between
older haves and younger have-nots.”
The report, based on 27 years of income tax data, finds that
the size of the income gap between generations is bigger for men,
but has been growing faster among women. Between 1984 and
2010, the gap in employment income for men grew from 53 per
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12 ❚ JANUARY 2015 ❚ HR PROFESSIONAL