After a Pause on Hiring, Reset and Restart

When the pandemic began, it abruptly threw businesses into turmoil. Workers went remote. Hiring in many industries was put on hold. Management focused on how to stay afloat and move forward. Now that states are starting to reopen and move towards a sense of normalcy, businesses are lifting the pause button, resetting, and starting to hire again. If you’re one of them, here’s what we suggest:

hiring reset after covid

Consider hiring remote workers1. Instead of bringing people on board and planning for them to eventually come to the office, you can add permanent telecommuters to the team. Unsure? Try a candidate out as a freelancer. Start with an experienced remote worker, communicate your business’s values, and establish guidelines. Also, be sure to convey your corporate culture and to verify a candidate’s identity.

Use a hiring tool. In the best of times, it’s a challenge to make sure you bring the right people on board. Now, without meeting candidates in person, you want as much insight as possible at your disposal as you decide who to hire. We recommend PXT Select™, an online hiring assessment designed to help you select the best candidates for your organization. It not only assesses thinking style (e.g. verbal reasoning), but also behavioral traits (e.g., independence), and interests (e.g., technical). It measures verbal and math skills, too.

This is important because you don’t want to hire someone who, although good at the job, ultimately won’t stay because they don’t feel fulfilled or engaged. PXT Select takes a variety of factors into consideration and provides information that lets you know if a candidate is truly a good fit.

Candidates complete an assessment online that takes an hour or less to complete. The system generates reports that let you truly get to know a candidate. It even suggests personalized interview questions for you to ask a candidate to probe deeper for more insight on certain points. You can also use the reports to compare multiple candidates.

So dust off your pre-pandemic hiring practices and reset with these tips. You’ll start fresh and bring in the best new hires for your organization.

Email us at learn@corexcel.com to learn more.

1Forbes.com: Hiring Your First Remote Employee? Follow These 16 Tips

Emotional Intelligence (EQ) – Why it Matters!

Perhaps you’ve heard of something called emotional intelligence, or EQ. It’s mentioned a lot these days! In the workplace, it’s important to understand not only what emotional intelligence is, but also the effect it can have on your team. According to Psychology Today, emotional intelligence is the “ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others.”   

The key elements of emotional intelligence are:  game-pieces-on-a-game-board

  • Self-awareness: How well an individual identifies their emotions.
  • Self-management: How well an individual controls their emotions and adapts when thinking and solving problems.
  • Social awareness/relationship management: How well an individual can empathize and maintain healthy relationships.

 

Having a handle on your emotions and using that awareness to react differently in times of conflict is called agility. That’s why many agile leaders are integrating an EQ test in their workplace, by providing EQ assessments to better understand their teams. The idea is that managers and team members who have control of their emotions and an awareness of others are agile enough to have productive relationships with coworkers, and thus be an asset to the team.  

“It is very important to understand that emotional intelligence is not the opposite of intelligence, it is not the triumph of heart over head—it is the unique intersection of both.” 

David Caruso, Ph.D., Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence

We are thrilled to introduce an online emotional intelligence assessment for organizations. With the information this DiSC®-based assessment provides, you can make effective hiring decisions, create agile teams, and facilitate workplace harmony. 

Please contact us for more information.

So You Want to be a DiSC® Trainer? Earn Your Certification!

DiSC-based Live Training CourseConsultants, human resources specialists, and internal corporate trainers interested in facilitating Everything DiSC Workplace® workshops: We get it. The Everything DiSC Workplace® profile is a phenomenal tool that helps improve employee communication and relationships in any workplace. Earn your certification, and you’ll be on your way to running DiSC training sessions—and launching an exciting new chapter in your career!

Earn DiSC Certification Online
Our online DiSC certification program lets you become DiSC-certified from the comfort of your home (or wherever you like). The comprehensive four-week program includes three, 90-minute live training sessions. In between these instructor-led classes, you have self-directed work. At the end of the program, you take an exam that leads to certification.

Not only will you learn how to facilitate professional training sessions using the power of DiSC, but also how to customize the standard presentation to make it your own. Once you’re a certified trainer, you will be able to incorporate your own style as you present the material!

DiSC in the Workplace Matters
Every organization—big, small, corporate, nonprofit—has employees with distinct personalities and behavioral traits. There’s sure to be conflict and communication challenges. The beauty of Everything DiSC is that it provides insight on individuals’ primary and secondary behavioral styles across a variety of business functions. Whether it’s Workplace, Management, Sales, Productive Conflict or Work of Leaders, Everything DiSC helps people gain knowledge and understanding, which can improve workplace camaraderie.

Corexcel President and CEO Don Bowlby said, “We’ve found that our customers who use Everything DiSC and integrate it with their culture often experience exceptional team performance and rising stock prices. Helping that happen is extremely rewarding for us.”

To bring the benefits of Everything DiSC Workplace® to your workplace or the workplaces you support, earn your certification through our online program.

Email us at learn@corexcel.com to learn more.

Hiring the Wrong Candidates Costs You Time & Money

Hiring Roundtable

Here’s How to Hire Right

You need to fill that job, and you need to fill it now. You interview a candidate, have a terrific conversation, and hire them. A few months later, your new employee isn’t up to snuff. Sound familiar?

When you have an open position, it’s tempting to cut corners and quickly fill the spot. However, hiring mistakes cost your organization time, money, and emotions. In the long run, it pays to take the steps necessary to hire right.

A Hiring Solution

To add objectivity to your hiring process, use a hiring assessment. We recommend PXT SelectTM, a powerful online tool. PXT Select helps you hire the best candidates, onboard them effectively, and develop them over time.

The first step is for a candidate to take an assessment that looks at their behavioral traits, thinking style, and interests. Then reports are generated: 1) providing insight on the candidate and 2) letting you compare the candidate against job-specific models. You can quickly see if the candidate’s characteristics align with the ideal person for the job. There is even a report that suggests personalized interview questions to use to learn more about a specific candidate. Moreover, you can compare candidates to one another.

What sets PXT Select apart from other hiring assessments?

  • Once a candidate takes an assessment, you have ongoing access to all reports in the PXT Select suite. So down the road, when that employee wants a promotion, for example, you can use the data and check their suitability.
  • The reports are useful and easy to read. Packed with information on candidates’ skills, job compatibility, manager compatibility, and more, the reports don’t require interpretation.

Hiring tip: When you share candidates’ results with them, see how they respond. Their attitude when receiving feedback provides additional information for your decision.

Using a hiring assessment adds objectivity and efficiency to your hiring process. When you’re considering multiple candidates—all with good resumes and good personalities—the data removes some of the guesswork and points you to the best hire for your organization.

Email us at learn@corexcel.com to learn more.

Delaware Networking Event Appearance

Corexcel Booth at Delaware Networking Station 2019Interested in expanding your network? Looking to put your business on the map? Trying to grow your business online? If you answered YES to any of these, come out and join us for the 2019 Delaware Networking Station – Your Business Connection Destination! Corexcel is a proud to announce that we will be one of the attending sponsors during the largest business to business tabletop event in Delaware. Make sure to look up our Drop Pin on Google Maps to come stop by our table and see what amazing prizes we will be giving away!

Event Details:

Thursday, September 19, 2019
Chase Center on the Riverfront
815 Justison Street
Wilmington, DE 19801

Corexcel will be stationed at Table 74!

Can’t make the event? There is still plenty you can do to connect with Corexcel:

Join Corexcel’s Award-Winning Service Team!

Do you live in proximity to the tri-state area of Delaware, New Jersey & Pennsylvania?

Are you energetic? Are you also a people person? Do you focus on customers and have an eye for details?

If you answered “Yes” to all the above, we have an opportunity for you! Apply to join our award-winning service team.

We’re looking for an experienced Customer Service Associate to answer phones, respond to emails, chat with customers and reply to text messages. The position also entails interacting with our students, helping them enroll in courses and shipping products. If you like helping people and enjoy learning new things, apply today.

This is an opportunity to grow professionally and to be part of an extraordinary team.

 

*** Update *** The position for an experienced Customer Service Associate has been filled. We truly appreciate your time and interest. If you would like, you can certainly still email us your resume to learn@corexcel.com. We will keep your information on file for when new positions open in the future.

 

Build Trust – Be a Star Team Player! | Webinar

Trusting Team Players

Most of us think we are trustworthy. But do we always behave in ways that builds trust with others? Since trust is the foundation for teamwork, when you or other team members do things that derail trust, those behaviors can result in diminished returns for your team.

There is a simple but powerful model that helps you develop the skills to become a better teammate and start building a better team.

Join us to discover:

  1. 4 ways to build trust within your team
  2. The type of trust that promotes healthy conflict.
  3. How to get from Trust to Results

Date: May 22, 2019

Time: 2:00 – 2:30 PM EST

Cost: Complimentary.

Can’t attend? Register anyway and we’ll send you the recording.

Contact Us for More Information

5 Key Ways How Leadership Style Impacts Corporate Culture

Corporate CultureYour organization’s culture comes from its history and the values, beliefs, and attitudes that it holds. What behaviors are acceptable? What traditions are followed? What is your mission? These factors, and your team members’ styles, are your culture’s ingredients. Mix them together, add a dash of group dynamics, and voila! Your corporate culture is complete.

The style of your organization’s leaders also has a dramatic effect on your corporate culture, in five key ways:

  1. The pace at which decisions are made. Leaders who make quick decisions produce a fast-paced environment, which can be stressful. More methodical leaders provide a more relaxed atmosphere. However, this can diminish your competitive edge.
  2. The process for making decisions and getting things done. Some leaders take a look-at-the-big-picture approach while others obsess over details. When employees are left to work independently, self-starters shine but team camaraderie is minimized. In more collaborative settings, employees have less opportunity to showcase their own accomplishments.
  3. The standards of perfection. Do leaders expect work to be uniformly perfect, or is trial-and-error accepted in an effort to achieve innovation? Striving only for perfection can cause missed opportunities while leniency can diminish quality.
  4. The perspective on risk. Do leaders make bold decisions or proceed with tiny steps? A constant push for innovation can result in missteps while cautiousness can cause missed opportunities.
  5. The predictability of the work experience. Predictable leaders give employees a comfortable atmosphere, though things tend to remain status quo. Leaders who react to clients or the market encourage innovation. This can become a negative if the atmosphere becomes chaotic.

As leadership style directly affects corporate culture, it’s essential that leaders understand the implications of their style. An easy-to-use online tool, Everything DiSC Work of Leaders®, provides a customized strategy for leadership success. The assessment gives your leaders the personalized information and guidance they need to maximize their effectiveness.

Email us at learn@corexcel.com to learn more.

Webinar: Build Your DiSC Capabilities & Strengthen Culture

Building DiSC CapabilitiesDiSC® is an amazing, simple tool that dramatically improves communication, teamwork and enhances culture. It is easy to understand and remember. However, good managers know that completing DiSC assessments are just a first step.

It takes a conscious effort to reinforce DiSC concepts and use the learning across different workplace challenges. Ones like improving management and teamwork, reducing conflict, and embracing change.

In this short 30-minute webinar we’ll explore 5 steps to create a DiSC culture and review available resources, facilitation kits and materials that will help you use DiSC every day to improve your workplace.

Date:  April 24, 2019

CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION

Taking the Sting Out of 360 Feedback Profiling

Feedback UnderlinedEvery thriving organization relies on honest feedback. For leaders, input is crucial not only from their bosses, but also from subordinates and colleagues. To solicit input, many organizations use 360-degree performance feedback profiles. However, with the way these assessments are structured, the comments can sting—and even cause damage to morale. Fortunately, there’s a better way. Let us explain.

A Traditional 360 (The Old Way)

In typical 360-degree performance assessments, leaders assess their own performance. Their peers, subordinates, and managers assess them as well. Challenges arise because:

  • Free-form comment sections give reviewers free rein to say whatever they wish. With input provided anonymously, the comments can be mean-spirited and demoralizing.
  • In small organizations, leaders can figure out who commented. This can make people hesitant to provide honest feedback. It also causes resentment when people are brutally honest.

So how can you get the information you need to help your leaders excel? Use Checkpoint 360, a revolutionary, online feedback profile!

360 (The New Way)

Why Checkpoint 360?

  • It produces a detailed report that conveniently highlights key points in a top section. This presents leaders’ greatest strengths and their top development opportunities, so leaders can start to improve their results right away.
  • It replaces a section for free-form comments with carefully crafted questions to produce instructive, informative comments for leaders. The focus is on constructive feedback that reduces the sting!
  • It uses the DiSC® model, so it looks at behaviors and delivers detailed, easy-to-understand data—with helpful graphs.

Here’s an example. A traditional 360 assessment might ask, “Does this leader clearly communicate team opportunities?” Meanwhile, Checkpoint asks, “Do you think this leader needs to be more active about finding new opportunities for the group?” with multiple-choice answers:

  • Yes, a lot more
  • Yes, a little more
  • No

Reviewers then select additional, pre-populated comments, such as “Their passion for finding new opportunities encourages the rest of us to show initiative” or “They already do a good job of finding new opportunities.” This allows for useful, sting-free actionable feedback that your leaders need for positive development.

We’re here to help you revolutionize the way your organization delivers feedback. Email us at learn@corexcel.com to learn more.