There is little doubt that having the top data analytics talent on your side is big business. In fact, this is one of the most interesting fields in the job market today. There is incredible demand for qualified professionals in data analytics but there is a significant shortage of professionals to fill those positions. Because this field is becoming an important part of business decision making, there is a good deal of competitions for those people viewed as the top talent in the field.

Is There Really a Shortage of Data Talent?

Some experts believe that by 2018, the United States will be facing a significant shortage of talented analytics professionals. These professionals will be unavailable to companies who want to use big data. As many as 140,000 to 190,000 positions could go unfilled. That does not account for the 1.5 million managers and analysts who will have the knowledge and skill to take the analytic data and use it to make effective decisions within the business.

Those companies able to land top talent could see operating margins increase by as much as 60 percent. Many businesses are realizing this need and, as a result, are taking the time to find the best talent in the field. The effects of not having the right professionals could be astounding with product launch setbacks and various project delays likely in many organizations as a direct result.

Why Is This a Problem?

There are some factors in the market demanding this need for talent. The explosive growth in big data is one of them. The amounts of data being collected has never been larger. And, 72 percent of businesses plan to increase spending on business analytics, therefore pushing that data number even higher.

One key component of the problem in finding this talent is that many schools and universities do not have programs in place yet to teach the skills necessary to fill these positions. Even worse, many developing countries are more likely to create the graduates needed than the US is simply because there are degree fields available in those areas.

Overcoming Staffing Limitations

For those businesses that do not want to be struggling to fill such positions, time is of the essence. Having a plan to find the right mixture of IT expertise and analytical skill is necessary.

• Know the strength of talent you are looking for so you know which skills you need to hire for right now and in the future.
• Look for those with top skills. This is likely to be individuals with data experience, basic statistics, and creative problem solving.
• Look for those with great education foundations including in the areas of social sciences, market research, and advanced statistics.
• Take advantage of data and IT staffing agencies, such as Venteon, to provide on-demand data and IT specialists to fill key assignments.

It may take working with a consulting service to find the personnel you need. There is significant demand and the competition is high. Hiring and then retaining these talented professionals is critical.

Moving financial matters to the “cloud” is shifting the way many businesses are handling their accounting data today. It seems that many aspects of finance and accounting work well when managed on remote servers that follow the cloud computing model. Why is this shift happening? This week, we will examine some trends in the financial sector and why going to the cloud is the way to go. But first, let’s look at some of the main benefits of this method of managing financial operations.

Cloud Financials – The Benefits

Financing in the cloud has many unique benefits that businesses are learning to take advantage of. If you are thinking of making the switch to cloud financials, here are just a few to consider:

• No need for on-site servers which must be continually monitored to prevent security breaches and damage due to unexpected events like natural disasters or theft. This secures business continuity.
• Cost effective to handle large amounts of financial information at once, helps to speed in-house systems up during peak accounting periods. This can help your business run more efficiently.
• Updates to financial products and services can be handled seamlessly due to a network of cloud finance providers who support integrated programming. You have less downtime during service upgrades.
• Remote access to your financial data on demand, from any web browser in the world, behind a secure password system. This is the perfect solution for a business expanding into international territories.

What’s Hot for Financing in the Cloud?

Those are just a few of the benefits of cloud computing for the financial sector. Yet, the future holds many great things for companies who move to this model. Some things that are heating up the financial cloud market include SaaS combined with CRM systems being deployed by large international firms, as well as smaller businesses being able to tap into some of the financial software that the big dogs use. It’s exciting to think where the global economy is headed in the next decade.

Finding the Right People for your Cloud Finance Team

One thing is for certain, it’s important to get on board with cloud financials by hiring the best staff to manage things well. This requires the support of a financial and IT staffing agency, like Venteon, to build your team with qualified individuals who understand cloud computing and financial legal fundamentals. Hiring the folks who are fast learners and can explain these concepts to your other staff and customers can give your business the edge when it comes to your financials.

It’s difficult to find new engineering clients. For that reason, it’s growing more important than ever to maintain the engineering clients you have. It is more expensive and time consuming to try to find new clients to work with than to take steps to retain the ones you have. Doing this may seem difficult to do initially. However, with a concentrated effort on the way you operate your business, you may see improvement.

How To Hold Onto Your Clients

When it comes to maintaining engineering clients, consider the following tips. You may just need to readjust your methods slightly to see improvements.

1. Know your clients well and understand what they need from you. Find out what your clients actually need, not what you can provide to them. To do this, you must understand the client’s goals. This is part of maintaining a positive relationship with the client.
2. Be specific about what you will deliver. It is essential to have clearly defined expectations. If you are writing an engineering proposal, ensure it is very specific about the services you will offer, how they will be delivered and what the expectations should be. There’s no room for misunderstandings then.
3. Deliver what’s realistic. There is no benefit to your business or the client by overpromising. Be specific on what you can and will deliver and then deliver it. If you fail to achieve those overstated promises, the trust is broken. It is very hard to regain this trust again.
4. Show that your service is valuable to the company. To do this, you need to show that your service is benefiting the company’s bottom line. To do this, you may be reducing costs, improving profits or eliminating some type of cost to the client in another way. When you are valuable to the bottom line, you are likely to stay onboard.
5. Provide something more than the next guy. This does not mean you have to give away your services. Rather, find a way to add value to what you are offering. For example, you may want to improve the speed of completion or add in something different to the proposal. This value added bonus is a nice attraction feature for the company.

Overall, you need to work to build relationships with those who you will work with within the company. Doing so can make a big difference in whether or not you get to stick around or if you are the next one cut off the contractor’s list. By showing your worth, you’ll be able to maintain that engineering client long-term.

Venteon can help you to develop positive working relationships with the engineering teams you need to stay on top of your market. By providing you with access to high quality engineering staff, your projects will excel client expectations. In Michigan and Minnesota, work with Venteon for engineering staffing support.

Information Session Interviews

No matter if you are a candidate or a hiring manager, information sessions are the perfect time to get a feeling about the person sitting across from you. Today, where there are so many “what ifs” in the job market and the candidate pool, you must use every bit of information and resource available to you to make the right decisions.

What Is an Information Session Interview?

If you do not have any prospects to interview or you are unsure if you should apply for a position, consider an information session as the tool you need to gather information. This is the perfect way to learn something and it can be a great networking tool, too. Using an information session like this is a simple and straightforward way of getting a bit father ahead in the hiring process.

How to Make It Worth Your While

Now that you know what an informational session is, the second step in the process is to incorporate a few tips to the process. It is possible that in doing so, you will quickly learn more than you thought you could.

• Ensure you are pushing the right people. Do not waste your time on individuals or employers who are unwilling to meet and engage in such a sharing session.
• Know why you are having this session in the first place. Set some goals for yourself. For example, as a job seeker, you want to drop hints about your skills while also learning about the company’s opportunities. As an employer, you want to feel out the candidate to learn if he or she is good enough for an interview.
• Make a human connection. You need to make enough of an impression on this person to get more information and to get them to contact you again. This means shaking handles, making eye contact, answering questions, and standing out (in a positive way) in the crowd.
• Get referrals as a part of the process. To do this, be sure to ask the prospective hiring manager about others they could talk to about potential positions. You should always be looking for new links and network connections to keep expanding your optiohttp://blog.venteon.us.com/wp-admin/post-new.phpns.
• Use time but mind the time, too. In other words, if you have asked for 15 minutes from the hiring manager, respect that request and do not try to take 20 minutes to prove yourself. In short, you need to do as you promise and keep your commitment.

Information sessions are great tools for pulling more information. Do not put off using them to boost your network and to get your feelers out. Whatever you do, use them wisely because they can make or break your chances of a connection.

Venteon offers support for all your career and recruiting needs. For recent job opportunities please visit the Venteon job openings page. Also, be sure to review some of our previous relevant posts:

No Excuses – Avoid Saying Dumb Stuff in Your Interview!

How to Be the Candidate Employers Love

IT departments have far more on their hands to manage today than in the past. With workforce mobility and cloud-based file sharing becoming more of a demand by employees than ever, IT professionals need to be on their toes. What is worse is that IT administrators are unable to police the use of these tools within many organizations.

File Sharing Programs Can Make Information Management Difficult

Filing sharing programs are some of the most difficult tools that employees in most of today’s organizations are using. However, there is risk in doing so. This is especially true of the 66 percent of individuals who use a free version of the program. In doing so, they potentially expose employee files, documents and information. In fact, file sharing platforms are readily used in employee situations where the IT department does not even know about it. This puts corporate assets at risk including sensitive information and intellectual rights on the line.

Consider the risk of employee files being exposed over such an environment. Not only does this  jeopardize sensitive company data but it is also a potential identity risk for the employee. Yet, many employees using file sharing programs have no idea how much risk is present.

Programs Are Essential

Employers may be tempted simply to turn off access to such programs. However, mobile workforce, for example, is an essential program. 88 percent of employees are reporting that they need to have access to their work outside the office. In fact, 100 percent of legal workers responded to a surveys (released by SkyDox) that the needed this access. 97 percent of marketing departments and 92 percent of finance departments noted this need as well.

Educating Workers about the Risks

Many companies are taking the process in a more serious manner and educating their employees about the risks of using such systems. While they are not saying no to using them, they are limiting the type of documents and files shared in an effort to protect vitally important information.

IT professionals continue to be tasked to find a way to protect businesses from potential exposure, a task that is not easy to do. Yet, there is little doubt that employees will continue to turn to these programs because of their sheer effectiveness. Coming out of the cloud and turning work off when you leave the office is not like to be something to happen any time soon. IT professionals just need to educate and find a way further to protect company systems.

Enjoy a related post from Venteon

The Pros and Cons of Cloud Computing

Believe it or not, the right software package can do a lot to increase productivity in your accounting department. In fact, the one-two combination of a time clock coupled with time attendance software can get your staff motivated in more ways than you’ve probably ever thought possible. There are a lot of reasons this is true. Here are a few you might want to keep in mind as you brainstorm new ways to motivate your staff. Just remember that this software might feel like a stick and it only works if you dangle a few carrots (rewards, bonuses, etc.) in front of your workers to really get the most from the software solution.

1)   Tracking. Many companies have very relaxed policies about starting the time and staying in an “on the clock” mentality. It’s part of the problem that many companies that hire salaried rather than hourly employees face. A lot of time is wasted around the water cooler or simply getting set up for the day. If you had your employees punch a time card or “clock in” immediately before going to work for the day and held them accountable for their time on the clock you’d be surprised how much more productive they would be. Not just because they’re being monitored, but because they are more aware of where their time is being spent (and wasted) throughout the day.

2)   Productivity. There are actually two reasons employees are more productive in this situation. First, as mentioned above, they are more aware of their time. Second, they are aware that their time and accomplishments are being monitored. It’s a powerful combination. Employees, in general, want to be viewed as assets to the business. They want to seem indispensible. They are going to do their best to impress by providing top-notch results day in and day out.

3)   Focus. The bottom line is that this software combination will have employees putting in a more determined and focused effort for a longer, sustained period of time in each and every work day. It will make a massive difference in the overall productivity of each and every employee in the company—especially in combination with the tracking software and reports that will be used to help evaluate employees.

4)   Morale. While this might not be the first improvement that comes to mind, it’s usually a significant one that’s definitely worth mentioning. Employee morale gets a huge boost when those who are working hard are finally recognized for their contributions and those who are milking the system or treading water are also revealed by the tracking software.

If the time has come to make changes in the way your business runs—for the sake of improved productivity and/or morale—this is one method you might want to take a nice long look into.

We are living in the heart of the Information Age. This means different things to different people. One unfortunate side effect, in the eyes and minds of many, is the end of privacy as it’s been known before. One way that privacy is becoming more and more obscure is in the employment screening or background check process. Potential employers are checking credit reports, running criminal background checks, and even digging through social media posts.

A 2010 survey conducted by the SHRM (Society for Human Resources Management) discovered that 47 percent of businesses order credit reports as a normal part of the employee pre-screening process. This is a practice that the Equal Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is beginning to take note of. The state of Oregon has already banned this practice and more states are sure to follow.

Some companies have even taken to asking for Facebook passwords as part of the pre-screening process. Have we gone too far? Is there a line in the sand between relevant intelligence gathering and pre-employment screening and gathering too much information? Some politicians believe there needs to be a line in the sand. Many states are proposing legislation at this precise moment that will curtail any intrusive screening processes that may include asking for social media passwords, conducting credit checks or criminal background checks, and using information obtained through forceful “friending” in social media circles in the hiring process. (See SNOPA)

Does it seem like a little bit too much to keep up with? For the average business owner, that’s exactly what it is. Even larger businesses that have HR staff members available to handle the hiring process have more important things to worry with than simply keeping up with swiftly changing laws and employment screening or background checking processes.

The problem is that laws are changing at the speed of technology. It’s almost impossible to keep up with how quickly laws are adapting to catch up with the latest trends in employment screening practice. As a business, it should be your job to focus on the business you do while leaving things like the employment screening process and the conducting of background checks to people who are qualified to perform them quickly and accurately.

Don’t get caught up on the wrong side of changing policies. It can cost your business a lot more than you bargained for. Instead, keep up to date with the latest employment screening tools and technologies in your state. Turn to local professionals to help you find perspective employees that are a good match for the business you run and the corporate image you work hard to project. In the end, you’ll be glad you did.

Need highly skilled, pre-screened candidates? Get in touch with Venteon today!

Hiring the right person to get the job done is a difficult task, whether there is talk of candidate shortages in this field or you just have a critical position to fill.  That’s why so many companies have turned to the practice of hiring short-term contractors before offering them full-time positions. Yet some companies are still reluctant to take this approach.

Here are a few real benefits to this employment practice you might want to keep in mind as you make hiring decisions in the coming year.

The Interview Factor

Some people talk the talk, but cannot deliver when it comes down to the wire. There are many candidates out there who know the right things to say in the interview to get the job, but never seem to make good on that talk when it’s time to roll up their sleeves and do the jobs they’ve been hired to do.

On the other hand, there are plenty of excellent candidates who lack the “people” skills to get the good positions, but are extraordinarily talented in their fields. These people rarely get the opportunity to show off their talents without some serious plugs from professors and former employers who are familiar with their work. Some HR professionals will go for the people person every time without giving the talented candidate a second chance. This may be because they believe a good interview means better skills – a biased approach to hiring.

Hiring a contractor on a trial basis gives the organization as a whole the opportunity to see who has more to offer the company down the stretch. It also allows the management team to determine what candidate will actually perform when project deadlines approach.

Save Money While Testing the Waters

In this economy, every dollar the company can save is important. When hiring contractors, most companies save a great deal of money and resources by not offering benefit packages to the contractors. Companies may choose to pocket the savings or attempt to hire a larger number of contractors for greater productivity while making last-minute decisions about which contractors fit in with the organization. Others like the idea of a replacement guarantee when a contractor does not meet expectations.

An added benefit is the competition factor. When people know they must perform well in order to get the job and that there are other contractors vying for the same position within the company, there is added incentive to perform better. They’ll work harder to show off their talent and abilities more so than even the average new hire who is eager to show off his or her skills.

At the end of the day, companies have much to gain by offering contractor positions and then hiring the cream of the crop. Whether it’s getting the right person to do the job, saving money at a critical time, or some combination of the two, hiring contractors has a lot to offer your organization.

For access to a wide range of temporary contractors in engineering, finance, IT and other fields, be sure to get in touch with Venteon today.

Is your project management process not going the way it needs to go? For those who are looking at their current situation and wondering what can be done, it pays to learn where the weakness is first. Though you may know where the problems lie, until you find proof of the problem and then establish a plan for improving the situation, you will not find any improvement in this process.

In the engineering field, without the right project management process and technical staff being in place, your business will fail. However, without having a functioning and accurately working system, you are setting yourself up to fail just as much.

Project Management Defined

Having a project management process in place allows you to ensure any project coming into your business is properly managed from start to finish. These are your clients and this is your bread and butter. Without the help and guidance from trained professionals to guide the project from beginning to end, you may not even bother sending out bids on such projects. In short, you need the right people to do the job and a way to manage the process.

Establish a Project Management Process

The first step is to ensure the currently established system is working for you, and if it is not doing so, to find ways to make it work. It is a good idea to look for specific areas of concern. Where is the hold up? What is not working within the current system?

Here are some things to take into consideration.

·    Does everyone know the process and understand the role they play in it? Sometimes, a communication breakdown can be the biggest problem.

·    Do you have the right staff on hand for that type of project? If the project scope is unique or different, consider turning to a staffing agency to find the top quality engineering staff you need. This offers a short-term solution for the project’s management.

·    Find out where breakdowns are happening by talking to each person involved in the process. What struggles and concerns do they have? What limitations do they face?

·    Monitor the progress on your own. Sometimes, seeing things in action can help you to see where the underlying problem or concern is and to make near-immediate changes as they happen.

·    Do not get too overwhelmed or be set on doing things one way. Be willing to make changes as you need to. This can keep things in line going forward. Being flexible is a key component to success.

There are times when the project management process will not go the way you want it to. Your success depends on your willingness and ability to change and grow with the process as your company changes. For more tips on managing your projects, and having the specialized staff to handle each role, be sure to get in touch with Venteon today.

A good performance management system needs to go beyond the once-a-year performance appraisal that involves merely filling out a form. Supervisors and managers need to provide employee feedback all year long. Although performance appraisals are typically tied to salary increases, the true goal of a superior performance management system is focused on employee development and organization improvement over the long term. When done successfully, a solid performance management process can give a company a competitive edge.

Not a Once-A-Year Glance

All too often, performance management is done as a low-priority task when compared to other business tasks of an organization. It’s often a once-a-year “glance” instead of a detailed review. When focus is placed on improving the performance management process instead, bottom line business results can be significantly improved.

For that reason, an exceptional management process for performance development doesn’t happen overnight or in a week. It needs to be carefully planned and designed before it is implemented for managers to use in evaluating employees.

The performance appraisal form isn’t just a necessary evil in conducting an employee’s performance evaluation. Nor should it only be reviewed once a year. Rather, the completed performance appraisal form should be a tool to support an ongoing performance management process. It can help serve as a reminder that performance management should be happening the entire year.

In other words, the performance appraisal is the total of a total performance management system. It’s not the be-all or end-all. It doesn’t have a beginning or an end, but represents a continuous tool that is used to not only improve an employee’s performance, but the organization’s success as well.

A successful performance management system enables good communication about performance between a supervisor and employees. Performance management isn’t a one-way street with feedback going in one direction. Rather, it should be two-way communications that occur continuously throughout the year.

Employees Need to Take Responsibility

Employees need to know that they have a responsibility and accountability in the performance management process. To that end, they should be prepared to give their honest assessment and feedback about their past, current, and future performance. In addition, they should be a knowing participant in their plans for improvement and goals for the coming years.

Supervisors and managements should be observant of development and coaching opportunities throughout the year to improve the overall performance management process.

Practical Tips

One of the best ways to ensure that your performance management process is a year-long process, instead of an annual paperwork task, is to create a performance management checklist. The checklist should contain action steps for interim performance discussion meetings, pre-planning performance appraisals, performance appraisal meetings, post-appraisal meeting follow-ups, goal setting and goal achievement.

A year-round performance management system is the true driver of both employee and organization success.