Archives for November 2019

4 Ways to Maximize Production in an Industrial Environment

November 27, 2019 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

It often follows that the more efficient you are with your production process the leaner your costs will be and that can only have a positive impact on your profit margins.

There are a number of smart ways to achieve a high level of production efficiency and it normally requires a series of initiatives to combine for a cumulative effect.

One example would be to install automated shutter doors for quicker transportation, and you can get more details at dynatect.com about those benefits. Meanwhile, here are some key points to consider if you are looking at ways to maximize production in an industrial setting.

Map out your workflow

A good starting point would be to carry out a systematic analysis of all current production processes so that you use that map of your existing workflow to identify pinch points where things slow down and improvements could be made.

A root and branch overhaul of how you get to the end product and what steps are involved to get to that point will enable you to use that overview to flag certain issues and create solutions.

Are employees up to the job?

You can have all the latest hi-tech equipment and machinery at your disposal but if the human operators have not been trained properly to get the most out of the tools at their disposal it is going to impact production efficiency.

As well as investing in machinery fit for purpose it is wise to take a similar approach with employees by ensuring that everyone gets ongoing training and support.

Good levels of collaboration between fellow employees can also help improve productivity and encourages a productive workplace culture.

Downtime is costly

When your machinery is lying idle it is not earning your business any money and that is precisely why it is considered a smart business strategy to commit to investing in a maintenance program.

If your machinery is kept in the best condition and breakdowns are rare as a result of proactive and periodic maintenance it should ensure that you don’t suffer much downtime.

Employee training and a maintenance program go hand in hand as a trained operator can often spot a potential problem before it has had a chance to bring the production line to a halt.

Finding ways to speed up the process

You should always be alert to ideas that could boost your productivity levels and one example would be the installation of an automated machine safety door.

This safety roll-up door provides protection by isolating hazardous operations from other nearby industrial processes and because the door opens and shuts at a decent speed it should have a noticeable impact when it comes to creating ways to maximize your productivity levels.

It is fair to say that things rarely stand still for long in business and that is why it often pays to be proactive rather than reactive with regard to identifying potential production line issues. If you can find ways to maximize productivity levels that should be good news in your quest to keep the line running and overheads as low as possible.

Five Ways to Make Your Job Search More Effective

November 25, 2019 by Contributed Post Leave a Comment

Job hunting is difficult, and can require a lot of time and energy. With thousands of job postings available online, it can be hard deciding when and where to apply. The search for the right job can be arduous, and it may take a while before you find a position that’s truly the right fit for you. Simply casting about at random isn’t going to work, so there are things you’ll have to do in order to make sure that your job hunt is efficient and effective. Luckily, we’ve put together some relevant tips below that might help you in the long run.

Know Your Skills

The first thing you’ll have to do in order to make sure that your job search is effective is have a clear idea of what your skills and capabilities are. Job openings are often very specific, and employers will likely open up interviews to candidates who seem like they’re the best fit for the position. Start by listing out your skills and capabilities, and use that as a guide to narrow down the search for the kind of job that you’d like to have. This list will also serve as a good starting point for your resume, especially if you have to tailor it to a specific application.

Set Your Career Goals

Next, set out your career goals. Where would you like to be in five or ten years? What would you like to learn from your job? By mapping out your career goals, you’ll have a better idea of the work that you’d like to do, and that’ll help you narrow down the search further. If you aren’t sure where exactly you should start, CareerAddict has a list of achievable career goals in the short- and long-term that may be helpful.

Pay Attention to Language

Language plays an important part in not only the job search, but also in the application process. From the right keywords to input in a job board, to understanding what exactly a company is looking for, paying attention to relevant terms will help your job search go a long way. Business Insider also found that the language used in job listings provides insight into company culture, so that’s another factor that you’ll need to take into account.

Be Picky

While it may be tempting to apply anywhere and everywhere, you’ll find that it’s actually counterproductive in the long term. A post by Aviation JobNet on ‘Tricks to Help You Be a Better Job Seeker’ recommends that you narrow down your search, as applying everywhere may take time and energy away from the applications that really do matter. It can also take a toll on your emotional health and self-confidence. Tailoring your search to a few relevant companies is much better than applying to dozens that may not even be the right fit.

Do Your Research

Finally, you should also make sure to do your due diligence when searching for a job. Doing your research on both companies and the positions you’d like to apply for will help you have a clearer idea of where you’d like your career to go. It can also help in writing out your resumes, as companies will be more likely to go for candidates who have a clear understanding of what the work entails. Going in blind might waste more time and effort, so set aside a period every day to do some reading up on your industry and relevant companies.

5 Ways to Reinvest Your Profits and Fuel Business Growth

November 23, 2019 by Keith Coppersmith Leave a Comment

Business has been booming lately? Got a surplus of cash? Dare to think you’ve got too much cash on your hands and your cash flow is going to waste? Great, now’s the time to reinvest into your own company to fuel business growth. By far the best investment you can make is to allocate resources towards crucial growth-oriented process in your company that will help you build and maintain your competitive advantage, build long-term and stable revenue streams, and keep the top talent in your company at your side.

But this doesn’t mean that you should just throw money at your employees (but do raise their paychecks, that’s always a good incentive), or that you should invest in innovation without proper and diligent research – instead, you need to know exactly where this excess money is going and how it’ll benefit your company in the long run. Here’s how to spend that cash in the best possible way.

Invest in employee development

It should go without saying that your employees are your most important assets, and in the famous words of the business magnate Richard Branson: “Take care of your employees and they will take care of your business. Simple as that.” This means that, aside from being a good leader and an even better boss, you should invest in the professional development of your team members – not only for the sake of their satisfaction, but the long-term success of your business as well.

The truth is that the modern business world is constantly changing and evolving with the trends, and that means that your employees need to stay on top of the latest developments and acquire the knowledge necessary to push your brand forward as a whole. This is something they can achieve only through proper funding and guidance, both of which you should provide with the right investments. Take your team members to conferences, pay for their specializations, and provide them with the latest tools that will make their jobs easier and their time in the office more productive.

Bring in professional advisors and strategic partners

Now that you have a surplus of cash coming in on a regular basis, it’s time to take some of the pressure off of your own shoulders, as well as the shoulders of your employees. Nowadays, the majority of tasks, processes, and services can be outsourced to third-party providers and professionals, which presents a wonderful opportunity for you to bring in skilled and experienced help. And what better way to ensure better efficiency and efficacy of a certain process than to allow professionals to handle it for you?

This is a common problem aspiring business leaders have to deal with when the money is tight or while the company is still in its infancy, oftentimes taking on more tasks and responsibilities than they can handle. Worse yet, money problems often require business leaders to take on responsibilities outside of their core competencies, which invariably reduces productivity and might even put the company in danger.

Expand and diversify into other asset pools

It’s important to invest your surplus into your own business, but it’s also important to invest in other assets in order to spread your wealth, minimize risk of financial downfalls, and open up other revenue streams that will allow you to build your company and even kick-start complementary businesses down the road. The key here is to make your investment work for you, so you need a stable commodity such as real estate or currencies.

Growth-oriented business leaders are particularly interested nowadays in the financial sector, as broker firms the likes of Ever Forex are making it easy for aspiring investors to get in the game with minimal capital while receiving all of the guidance and support they need to produce a positive ROI. Whether you’re reinvesting the cash in currency exchange, or physical assets such as real estate, it’s important that you find a stable first investment, and then diversify into numerous other asset groups over time.

Fund research and innovation to build your USP

If your goal is to grow and expand your business in the years to come, preferably with minimal risk and in an efficient way, then there is no denying that you need a distinct competitive advantage and a strong USP. Naturally, the best way to build a competitive edge is to fund research and development, invest in technological solutions, and create truly unique experiences for your customers. Innovation is the name of the game here, so go ahead and allocate resources towards product development, or innovate your services and expand your offering to appeal to a wider audience.

Invest heavily in branding and marketing

And finally, always remember that marketing makes the modern business world go ‘round. There’s never a bad time to fund your marketing efforts, so why not research the most effective marketing tactics and allocate your resources towards building you brand’s reputation, reach, and authority in the competitive industry? Start with the most promising tactics that don’t require a lot of financial investment, and then proceed to invest in paid advertising to put your brand on the online map quickly.

Wrapping up

When business is booming, the last thing you should be thinking about is buying that boat you always wanted. Your priority should be to reinvest financial resources into your business, and fund the key areas that have the highest potential of driving your company forward as a whole.

Accepting a Job Is Harder Than You Think

November 20, 2019 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

Job seekers and employers certainly understand the daunting challenges of looking for a new job. And while filling a position is immediately satisfying to job seekers and employers alike, filling the position with the wrong candidate is expensive and discouraging to everyone involved.

Although much has been written for job seekers and employers on the topic of how to find a new job, very little has been written on how to accept a new job. This is where the accompanying infographic, The Ultimate Guide to Accepting a Job Offer, comes in.

When job seekers and employers understand the proper steps of the acceptance process, the result is a much better fit and a far greater likelihood of successful and mutually rewarding long-term employment.

In particular, when all the details of a job offer are reviewed carefully, the candidate has a clear understanding of what he or she will be getting into. This greatly reduces the chance of surprises cropping up that cause the new hire to become disenchanted or leave the organization soon after starting.

Another critical aspect of the acceptance process is negotiation. When negotiations are handled professionally, the result is a new employee who starts the job in the best possible frame of mind, and an employer who feels likewise. Poorly executed negotiations leave one side (or both sides) feeling unhappy, or even worse, cause a great candidate to get away.

Bottom line: Don’t stop working when a job offer comes through. Instead, learn the details of accepting a job, and make the most of the opportunity.

The Ultimate Guide To Accepting A Job Offer from Advanced Resources

Getting the Most of Your LinkedIn Profile

November 20, 2019 by Guest Post Leave a Comment

LinkedIn, that according to this research, is the world’s most popular professional site for networking, has quickly become an indispensable tool for recruiters and job seekers alike. If you’re looking to boost your career, chances are that you’re already using the platform. But is your profile as well-optimized as it can be to attract the right kind of attention, or are you neglecting to make some easy changes?

Here are some tips to get the most of your LinkedIn profile!

Make Sure Your Photo is Professional

Simply adding a photo to your LinkedIn profile can make you 14 times more likely to be found. Whether others click on your profile will in part depend on the picture you choose to use. Stick with a headshot photo where you are making direct eye contact, presenting a friendly smile, and showing a professional front. Beware of any background distractions in the photo and avoid using selfie snapshots, which come across as unprofessional.

Present Headline That Speaks to Hiring Managers and Recruiters

First of all, don’t be boring. A little bit of humor won’t hurt. Your headline depends on what type of job you are looking for and on your skills and qualification. Use strong language. Strong adjectives and words will make you more professional and reliable candidate. Be specific. Include career-related details that can make a difference (certification or training). But stay concise and channel your efforts on describing yourself, your best traits or biggest professional achievements.

Highlight Your Experience in the Summary

The Summary section is an important piece of your LinkedIn profile. This is where you can directly promote and market yourself as a professional. Inform hiring managers and recruiters why you are someone they should talk to for a job opening they have available. This is also a section in which to build up keywords that matter, which will help you come up on top in search results.

Show Your Experience

In a nutshell, the Experience section of your LinkedIn profile is your online resume. To quickly create a LinkedIn profile, review your resume and copy/paste the relevant information into your profile. It’s essential that your resume matches your profile because prospective employers will check. However, when you get more time, make sure to add as much as possible to your LinkedIn profile. Employers expect your resume to be somewhat condensed and specific to the job you seek. But your LinkedIn Profile should be more vast and complete.

Showcase Your Skills

When you add skills to your LinkedIn profile, it increases your profile views by up to 13 times the amount it would otherwise receive. Often, hiring managers and recruiters search for talent based on specific skills required for the job. The more your profile is identified with specific skills and the more endorsements received for those skills, the better your profile will rank in search results. Work to identify and prioritize what skills are important for the job and engage with your contacts to endorse those skills.

Ask for Recommendations

Take time to request LinkedIn recommendations. Recommendations from people you have worked with carry a lot of weight. To a potential employer, a LinkedIn recommendation is like a reference in advance. Review your contacts and approach the ones who can vouch for your work and put in a good word in the form of a recommendation.

Include Your Location

Including a location will let recruiters find you easily and can help you connect with other professionals in your area. If you’re looking for work outside of your current location, update it to your desired location but mention your actual location elsewhere in your profile to avoid seeming deceptive.

Show Off Your Interests

Joining groups and following companies in your current or desired industry shows up on your profile and lets others know more about your career and extracurricular interests.

Now you see, that creating an eye-catching LinkedIn profile is not daunting, on the contrary, it is so rewarding and worthwhile. Invest your time in personal branding. Follow these simple tips on how to create a LinkedIn profile for job search and you will definitely get a professional LinkedIn profile that will be on the top of this resource. You will be stunned how fast hiring managers will notice your profile and you will get the desired interview.