A VITAL Organization

There are times when we need to recite the meaning of the associations we've developed. After some time passes, we forget the fervor that went into striving to earn the distinctions those associations merit and symbolize. The initials become tantamount to year-old tattoos. We're no longer aware that they're even there; they're simply part of who we are.

An employer needs to know (or is that "wants" to know) what the initials "C.A.C." mean. Well, if you look up the organization that issues that certification, you'll find it is issued by the California Staffing Professionals Association (CSP), the California complement of the American Staffing Association (ASA).

Check the CSP home page and you'll discover they bill themselves as a "VITAL" organization. But all of those letters are capitalized. That means "VITAL" is an acronym. What the letters stand for are concepts that are representative of what the organization is and qualities it offers.

Visionary

Integrity

Training

Advocacy

Leadership


There are a number of certifications that are available through evaluative testing performed by both the national as well as the state-level organizations. Successful performance will earn the applicant a particular designation to represent their knowledge and expertise. The ASA lists the types of certifications available through them. The CSP (Certified Staffing Professional) used to be the initials for the credential earned through the CSP organization. That state designation changed its name circa 2000 and became known as CAC or California Accredited Consultant. It still represents the same accomplishments. The rigors are limited to California laws instead of state as well as federal laws. It still requires knowledge of ethical practices.

The CSP has a continuing education requirement; the CAC does not. (Please, don't ask me why.) In a way, the lack of continuing education requirement is a bit disappointing. But when you consider that one who is passionate about their profession will be taking as many steps as possible to remain abreast of industry practices and knowledge, it makes sense that the requirement no longer exists. Additionally, one who is actively practicing will in all likelihood also be attending chapter meetings and thereby staying up to date on innovations through the educational section of each meeting.

You may be wondering about the significance of certifications and credentials. (Maybe you're not.) Unearthing the language that provides the official CSP explanation of their CAC brought me to a site called Designation Check. They have a page, Credentials Explained, where the various types of credentials are explained, whether there are any differences between a "designation" and a "certification", and more. It's useful to gain an understanding and appreciation of the document (or the initials) that represents the distinction the person holds. It appears Designation Check's specialty is in the area of finance. The information they provide is reliable with regard to certifications for any industry. Certification is a standard practice for any profession.

Back to being a VITAL organization. Back to an examination of whether you've found a consultant. Some have dotted all their "i"s and crossed all their "t"s. They've earned their credential through a valid organization that maintains their standards over time. NOLO tells us about other aspects of starting a consulting business in California. One of them is having a license, which can be a simple as obtaining a fictitious business name (a "dba") through the county where the business is being conducted. It's good for five years. It's required because it helps the public realize it is a business they're dealing with or a group of owners who are operating under a particularly formulated name; it isn't the name of an individual. Also, the dba basically tells the (local) government that this is a business and it may pursue and defend its rights in a court of law under the registered name of the business. Otherwise, the individual doing business under that name has no standing. (Further explanation is required but in another writing.) Once the registration is renewed, so is the standing. The legitimacy of the business is otherwise not affected.

Likewise, if the certifying organization has stopped requiring continuing education and proof of it, the prudent practitioner will continue to enhance their knowledge through various alternative (but reliable) channels and keep track of those "credits". They will continue to be vital, especially if they've needed to step away from things for one reason or another and later decide to re-enter the field.

As with any other profession when you're evaluating the consultant, you'll want to do some screening. Pay attention to what they've been doing in lateral areas. Should you decide to hire them, you'll start them on what should be manageable and then increase the difficulty level as your relationship evolves and your organization can become VITAL because of the quality input you've chosen.

Resources:

• California Staffing Professionals Association
  
• American Staffing Association
  
• Credentials Explained
  
• NOLO Starting a Consulting Business
  
• Why Become Certified
  
• How Professional Certificates Can Help Jump-Start Your Career
  

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Growth

You may have come to the point of anticipating the posts that Charity Rowell was writing as she interned on The Consultant's Desk. Her mission was to share with us the concepts she was learning through her studies. We grew with her as she talked about concepts she gained from her classes in Human Resource Management, protocols that are being taught, interpretations of terminology, and other wisdom coming from the advanced education system.

She did a good job of sharing what she's getting from the classes she attended. We benefited by her generous sharing of the documents she produced as class projects. They can serve as models when you need a starting point for something similar.

Charity was an intern in search of real world experiences and places to share the development of her education. It seems she reached that plateau. She wanted to stretch into unexplored areas. We decided it was time for her to start making her management decisions on her own blog. You can continue to follow the evolution of her development there.

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Earning Letters to Be a Leader

A recent community discussion was raised about the need for a degree and/or certification in order to be eligible for hire as a Human Resource professional. Many perspectives are offered in that discussion. Most lean toward experience and skill plus certification. I remember a lecture from my undergrad Management instructor about being a leader and the qualifications for that role. He set forth the concept that you don't need to have a degree nor a background in the business nor industry that you're leading. What you do need is a knowledge of how to run a business and how to lead. The other details can be delegated to trusted advisers and consultants who are experts in that particular area and who do not have some hidden agenda for power grabbing of their own.

A university degree says the individual has been taught how to think and reason through issues. They have been exposed to the latest principles and concepts. They have managed to pass the academic tests structured to evaluate how well they grasped those concepts. Unfortunately, it became vogue during the '80s and '90s to negotiate an A in whatever course was taken so that the true value of the grade was watered down. Even having a 4.0 academic standing now leaves room for speculation.

Certifications are good milestone checks for how well a person has gained a good understanding of the principles. To the extent they are required at periodic intervals and evaluate new practices and concepts in addition to the basics, they are very useful. But certifications are expensive propositions. In this economy, they are for those who have the funds to take them or work for an employer who is willing to sponsor taking the test.

Which brings me back to the qualifications of a leader. The person has proven experience from many situations and venues. They understand the importance of continued education and endeavor to stay abreast of technology and practices. They look to case studies for guidance where they have no direct experience of their own.

To the extent they demonstrate the essential characteristics of a professional in deportment, demeanor, appearance, and respect for others, in addition to using good judgment, the person without all the letters but with a great amount of experience is just as qualified in many respects.

As a closing thought, some years ago a woman who was a practicing lawyer talked with me at a networking function for recruiters and HR pros. She wanted to transition from law to HR but was getting a lot of resistance and being told she didn't have the necessary qualifications. What I interpreted was that HR folk are extremely territorial. Even though she had the advantages of being a professional from another industry as well as the necessary knowledge of the law as it would apply in essentially all of the situations that would present to her, the established population didn't want an outsider to infiltrate the ranks. Incidentally, I've checked her LinkedIn profile and it appears she finally broke through.


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• Hard hat required: district leaders--even those with limited school construction experience--can successfully manage projects to create the best ... An article from: District Administration
  
  
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The Elusive Difference, Part 1

[NOTE:First published on ZoomInfo's Insight Report in May 2007, this article is now republished on The Consultant's Desk in order to preserve its access.]

Wow! January 2007 entered with a landmark event. For the first time in U.S. history, a woman took the third most powerful office in the country. Although she’s maintained a stellar track record of being more than capable of handling executive-level decision making, building alliances, enforcing rules, accurate listening skills, as well as speaking and presentation agility, the wisdom of and her ability to serve in that office became a question of the day.

She firmly asserted her having merited the position by unflinchingly making the decisions that were required, based on solid reasoning. She did not waffle. She did not apologize. She did not pander for the typical “soft” persona. Well, maybe she did during her acceptance speech. But in the ensuing days, the gloves were off and the sleeves were rolled up. What the country and the office require is a leader. Nancy Pelosi advanced as one.

Finding Women Candidates - Management and Executive

If there are women in Congress who are as capable as Pelosi, most certainly there are women in all ranges of business who are equally qualified in education and training, decision making, and so on. The question then becomes one of why there are so few women in these positions.

If we use education as a filtering-in criteria, there is definitely a pool of candidates. Out of the more than 12 million women who have earned a Master’s degree or higher (in 2004), compared with only 7 million of their male counterparts, there are only 16 percent who are in Fortune 500 company C-level positions and merely 15 percent who serve on those boards. The other issue is where these accomplished women can be found because, going by the statistics, they really do exist.

Bureau of Labor Statistics analyses of men and women who have completed more than four years of college shows from 1990 to 2004, the numbers are nearly equal, and the gap is closing on an average of 1.85 percent every five years.

One difficulty cited as a reason for not finding qualified women for executive and boards positions is that the pool is too small. Additionally, nearly everyone is vying for the same candidates. It’s important to take off our blinders to means of finding and recognizing qualified talent.

A November 2006 article noted that one of the reasons there are so few women in Fortune 500 and public corporation executive positions is because the process takes so long; it tends to suffocate asserting one’s leadership skills. Women opt for fast-growing smaller, private companies or start their own in order to jettison their progression and exercise their abilities in a more affirming environment.

Importance of Gender Representation

Any good organizational consultant will tell you that having diverse views adds value to an organization’s bottom line. It stands to reason that the more perspectives you add to the mix, the less tunnel vision there is. Eliminate tunnel vision; create vision of not only the goal but multiple goals and diverse paths for achieving any one of them.

It’s been noted that women are excellent listeners, tend to be more empathetic, and are accustomed to handling multiple projects simultaneously. However, another important factor in having a woman’s perspective in executive, decision- and policy-making positions is that she can provide the insights with regard to purchasing power and preferences. In other words, women in representative positions can help an organization recognize unseen advantages and opportunities.

Overcoming the Myths

There are many objections to women’s serving in positions of leadership. It’s amazing we have any at all! But like the disabled, there are those 16 percent who have pushed through the marble ceiling and go to the war table every day. The getting there was fraught with a plethora of objections. Some of them look like:

• They’ve been out of the industry for years while raising kids. They’re no longer abreast of current practices.
• Allowing them to work on flex time and alternative schedules just doesn’t provide the amount of time required to be a real leader.
• Work from home just isn’t workable for executives.

These objections (and others) pander to the stereotypes. These days, maternity leave can be as short as six weeks. The other thing is, there’s now paternity leave that can run for as long as 18 months. Additionally (and overcoming several of the objections to women as executives), a recent University of Maryland study found that over the last 40 years, women are working more hours and have also increased their number of parenting hours while still remaining quite competitive in their field.

The burnout factor of the Internet Bust and accompanying demands for overtime (sometimes as much as 40 hours per week) caused people to start taking a hard look at what’s important. Quality of life won. Work-life balance and flex schedules are equi-gender.

While the objection to working from home may be valid for some types of professions, let’s put this in perspective. The executive who’s a road warrior is just as much a type of work from home/suitcase as the telecommuter. It is doable. Many men are opting for this. Perhaps this road warrior / telecommute personality is one that should be sought.

[go to The Elusive Difference, Part 2]

How Do You Do It?

Recently, people have been emailing me and commenting on the phenomenal "things" I'm doing. They vow they will at some point have an opportunity to meet me and attest that they admire people who know their subject matter so well. They never actually point to anything specific. Given the feedback that comes to me from industry colleagues, I'm mystified but also flattered.

Last night I talked with a colleague. We laughed a little at the fact that we seem to be moving in tandem with one another. What precipitated the actual phone conversation was my accepting one request for a connection on a networking site. With accepting the one request, I was provided a river of other requests for connecting and networking opportunities. I shared this experience with the colleague. He confirmed that people have been waiting to connect with me because they admire what I've been doing and how I've been doing it.

The first step is learn everything possible about your industry. Learn the knowledge, the principles, the practices, the players. It's important to get to a point where you see relationships to what you're doing in everyday occurrences and can adequately articulate those connections.

Then, like going into a good dress store, start trying on the various suits and look at how they drape your form as it relates to the foundations that brought you to the recruiting industry. Not everyone does the same thing (thank God) and not everyone has the same specialty. Not everyone has the same interests or strengths. So get to know who you are in the spectrum of things. It's fine to start broad and then start narrowing. Most tailors do this in order to get the best fit.

The next important thing is to focus on the business side of things. Personality conflicts and competition have no room for life in this industry but they seem to be the mainstays of a large percentage of the industry. Focus on what you need to do and what you do. Produce commendable content and results. Charge a reasonable price for what you do.

With all of the factors surrounding your feet, it's time to start picking up the right things in order to create the correct suit for you and then wear and market it. As you go, you will meet streams of people. People, especially in the recruiting industry, are extremely important. They learn who you are, they talk about what you can do, they refer you or recommend you, the ask that you be assigned to work on a project. Thus, people are worth being more than a name in the rolodex, excuse me, contact list. It's important to build relationships with people.

Those who could be competitors can also be alliances, collaborators, who recommend you or help you complete an assignment because it cannot be done by one person. Sort out who is trustworthy and ethical. Form a good bond with them. Return the favor and courtesies.

There's probably more. That will have to come at a later date. This is sufficient for now.

recruiting, alliances, education, industry knowledge, focus,