• a transference of invaluable knowledge between the generations;
• a transmission of your company's purpose, vision and values to new hires;
• excellent mentors for younger employees;
• the know how and expertise to tackle ‘just in time’ special projects outside their usual roles, such as task forces or working committees.

Yet more of these workers are reporting to people younger than they are.

A recent survey conducted by a US Job Site for Mature Workers found that 43 percent of workers ages 35 and older said they currently work for someone younger than them. Breaking down age groups, more than half (53 percent) of workers ages 45 and up said they have a boss younger than them, followed by 69 percent of workers ages 55 and up. This survey was conducted from November 5 and November 23, 2009, among more than 5,200 workers.

This presents unfamiliar challenges that, if ignored, can prevent you from attracting, retaining, and engaging older employees.

Workers report that there are a variety of reasons why working for someone younger than them can be a challenge, including:

• They act like they know more than me when they don’t;
• They act like they’re entitled and didn’t earn their position;
• They micromanage;
• They play favorites with younger workers;
• They don’t give me enough direction.

Leaders that recognize the importance of employees working together to move the business forward, regardless of age, will continue to build success.

Leaders can help younger and older workers to recognize the value that each group brings to the table. By helping them look past their differences and focusing on their strengths, workers of any age can mutually benefit from those around them, creating a more cohesive workplace.

 
There are a few ways for organisations and younger managers to maximize the value provided by older workers. The key is in recognizing that boomers' needs differ from younger generations (Gen-X, Gen-Y and Millenials) and to adapt your management practices accordingly. A few suggestions:

Understand others’ point of view

Different generations tend to have differing opinions on a variety of topics, from management style to pop culture. Put yourself in the others’ shoes to better understand where they’re coming from.

Adapt your communication

Younger workers tend to favor communicating frequently using technology, such as e-mail and instant messenger. Older workers may prefer more face-to-face contact. Both parties should take this and other communication differences into consideration when interacting.

Keep an open mind

Try not to make assumptions about those who are of a different age group than you. All workers have different skill sets and strengths, so see what you can learn from others rather than making judgments based on their age.

Lead with mission

 As employees age, they become more altruistic. Emphasize the positive impact of older workers' efforts on the world around them.

 
Forge social connections

 
Many older employees keep working to maintain social relationships. Offer tasks that require interaction with others.

Provide different benefits

 
Tailor benefits or incentive schemes such as insurance programs or discounts on older workers' interests. An emerging trend is for workplace wellness programs with a focus on older employees.   Programs that educate older workers and help prevent complex and costly medical interventions help companies contain costs and enhance their employees' quality of life.

 
Research

 Research who your older workers are, what they want, and how to manage them for maximum value. Ask them what they value.

Who to Hire?

It might be an operations role, it might be someone who is 20 years further into the sector and has connections and experience you can draw from, it might be someone like a CFO, or IT Director whose technical expertise will add value or a really great admin person who relieves you of all the day to day work and frees you up to work on the business rather than in the business. It all depends on the company's current leadership mix, history, strategy and place in the market.

A CFO may be required if your company is growing at a rapid rate, requiring outside financing or careful cash management; when your company requires a formal audit; or when you are contemplating a complex financial transaction such as an acquisition, merger, or public offering of stock. So how do you go about finding a seasoned CFO? Many companies work at first with a part-time financial executive, an interim manager whom they later recruit to join the management team on a permanent basis.

Traditional HR can often be outsourced. Many smaller companies manage their HR by employing a good interim HR Manager or part-time consultant to assist with initial set up and understanding of legislation, process and procedures. Recruitment can also be outsourced again to a good consultant or by hiring in a part-time recruiter who knows your longer term business strategy and company culture. Hiring a seasoned HR Director on an interim basis for a defined period of time will ensure you implement best practice policy and procedures whilst keeping your costs down.

What is the biggest challenge that young companies will face in 2010?

Some young companies may be facing issues with their lenders or investors, and they may be having a hard time making promises around company stability. If you're trying to hire experienced, strong candidates, you have to be able to show that your company is stable, has growth opportunities and has the resources required for the candidate to be successful. But honesty is still the best policy and avoid sugar-coating challenges - if someone feels they have been misled down the track this will only result in bad feeling all round.

If you're hiring less experienced staff, it's more critical than ever that you hire for flexibility and their ability to think on their feet. Within a smaller business environment these skills and attitudes are essential as the days of organisational charts with clearly defined job descriptions and career paths are out dated and have been replaced with a flat structure with people prepared to carry out diverse, flexible roles under-pinned by a culture that embraces autonomy, flexibility and a clearly defined purpose, vision and set of organisational values which everyone is guided by and which allows for good management decision making, by everyone.

What's the biggest opportunity?

Of course, companies have an opportunity to pick up talented people who have been made redundant in the last year or two, but, more importantly, they have a great opportunity to realign their company culture.

Retain Your Loyal People

If you're trying to retain staff, the future value proposition needs to be clear, honest and, if not exciting, certainly brighter than it may have been painted in 2009. Current staff  need to hear some sincere gratitude for the sacrifices, hard work and flexibility they have already shown and most likely will have to continue to show in 2010.

According to a recent report in Forbes, a daily thank you proves a powerful employee motivator

Verbal praise from a manager can be as effective as a cash award in motivating employees, yet a survey shows 75% to 80% of workers say they get little recognition from bosses. Restaurant chain Hard Rock Cafe reports worker turnover was reduced 3% when managers gave verbal recognition to workers for a minute a day.

What's the most important step a small, fast-growing company can take to build its leadership pipeline?

Recruiting top managers is not always easy. Persuading talented leaders to join a start-up is not as hard as it once was, but it still involves having a good eye for talent and the ability to sell an idea and its potential upside to a savvy operator who might well have other options.

Moreover, making the wrong hire at the highest levels of an organization can have serious consequences. The severance costs of terminating a top manager can be high-and they can be higher still when you factor in any turnover in a key department that precedes or accompanies the departure of a bad hire.

For all of these difficulties, however, entrepreneurs who have built strong management teams enjoy obvious rewards. They can rely on the skills of others to compensate for their weaknesses. They can focus on strategic issues while confidently delegating day-to-day tasks, such as managing people. And they can use their management team to secure outside funding and establish creditability with potential customers.

Some businesses have people who are our high performers and these people are in big demand out there in the market. I'm not just talking about the " Top Gun" sales person who brings in the big orders but also the other members of the team who become indispensible to your business, I'm talking about the people who will help a business succeed even in the most difficult of times. They are the ones who pick up the slack when the organization is forced to cut back; those who continually come up with ideas on how to save time, money, and effort; and never under estimate those whose positive outlook help keep the organization and their team mates moving forward.

So how do we retain these people?

The answer is simple. Leaders must give the same attention and care to their human resources as they devote to their financial assets. For leaders under pressure to perform financially it may seem difficult to balance their focus when the economy is tough, however, it is critical to the business' success to make sure the people who manage your business are not forgotten.

There are a few different ways that organizations can ensure that they are taking care of their human resources and not only retain them but develop them to become future leaders of the business..

Have Some Respect:

Even though you and the organisation are under pressure don't take it out on your people. You must continue to treat people with kindness, respect, and dignity. It will ensure their continued loyalty through the hard times.

Create a Flourishing Environment:

Creating an environment in which your best people want to stay and perform at their best takes more than a "knee-jerk" employee motivation program. The flourishing environment is a place where people are continually given the opportunity to learn, honing their skills through a solid training and developing program. It also should be a "safe" place where people feel they are free to make inquiry and start a dialogue with their boss without fear of being fobbed off. A good leader will take the time to provide feedback to their people so that they feel stretched and challenged.

Offer Cross Training:

A business that gives people the opportunity to experience and train in different aspects of the company is a great way to cross-fertilize skills sets and experience between departments and across regions. This is a great competitive advantage when organizations are required to cut back on manpower. Cross-trained employees are equipped to handle different functions in the organization far more easily than those confined in silos.

Provide Coaching:

A leader who develops skills in coaching and is able to work one-on-one with their direct reports or who brings in skilled coaches to work with the team can discover and tap the talents of those people and direct their development. Aligning their behaviors and skills to the core strategy and purpose of the business will also make them advocates for change, enhancing the success of the organization.

Give Feedback:

The leader who recognises that ongoing feedback is a continuous process and not just an annual event that happens at the annual review meeting will be one step closer to engaging their people. Feedback need not be just about performance but also should cover issues such as handling work/life balance, developing networks, job skills and training. The organisation may consider setting up mentoring programs, support groups and action committees.

Money and Autonomy:

Money is a key motivator for anyone but it's rarely the most important one. As long as a person feels fairly remunerated they will be looking for other types of benefits and a key benefit people tend to look for is that of autonomy and the ability to be part of the decision making process.

If a business can introduce ways to involve their people in how the business operates, how it can increase it's effectiveness, be more cost effective and introduce new products or services. If a leader is bold enough to open this up to the team they will find that most people have the most amazing, creative ideas and a good handle on how to implement them because after all, they are working at the coal-face everyday - who better to ask!.

So, developing people should always be part of the strategic plan. Not only will it add value to your people's lives but adds dollars to the bottom line. Organisations that create a flourishing environment for their people to work and grow in will reap the financial rewards and hang on to their best people, even when the going gets tough. This approach will help sustain the business through the down cycles and lead to success for everyone.

If, like me, you have worked in a large corporate environment in the past, you will know that as employees, often our training and career development is supported and we don't have to plan too much to achieve our goals. But as business owners, time for professional development and learning is often neglected.

Use your Professional or Industry Memberships to learn more

If you are a professional and/or accredited member of an industry group you may be required to stay up to date by completing a certain number of development hours a year. For example, I am a member of the Career Development Association of Australia (CDAA) and in order to remain a Professional member I must complete 30 hours of approved Professional Development a year. This requirement will, of course, drive you to seek out approved activities that satisfy the requirement but your professional industry group will also be providers of professional development opportunities so seek out what's available on their websites and newsletters.

As an example, the CDAA provide opportunities to attend seminars, conferences and the chance to contribute to your industry newsletter or magazine, as well as the opportunity to mentor or be mentored. All of these activities will contribute to your hours and satisfy your annual requirement but most importantly will help you to keep learning.

Even though in the back of my brain I'm aware of these activities and that I must make time to complete them, I have just checked my status and I am more than half way through my year and have only accrued 8 of my 30 hours required. However, looking more closely at the activities relevant, I realise that I am probably completing more professional development in every day activities than I am giving myself credit for. You may not have a requirement to keep a professional status with an industry group but as a business owner and leader I urge you to try and incorporate some time for continuous learning - one day you will be glad that you did!

I would like to share a few ways we can incorporate both formal and self-directed learning into our every day plans.

Write a Blog

One way of staying current is to regularly write articles for your own blog and contribute to other industry related blogs. Become a contributor to The Australian Businesswomen's Network blog. Blogging gets you in the habit of researching various topics in your area of expertise and provides an up-to-date understanding of what's going on in your industry. It helps to improve your writing skills and increases your knowledge of your area of expertise as well as building your profile as an expert in your field. So submit articles to share with your peers.

Become a Committee member

Another way to learn more is from each other by becoming a member of your state or national committee for your membership groups and associated organisations (including the ABN). Attending meetings and conferences not only earns you official development hours but also leads to new relationships with colleagues and associates within your industry, possible new leads, marketing opportunities and most of all new learning opportunities.

Read for Work AND also to be Inspired

Reading is another way to learn and keep up to date. Reading industry related journals, magazines and online publications is essential for keeping up to date, contributing to industry discussion and building your profile. Most industry websites have a newsletter that can be emailed for free, you can contribute to industry related blogs by reading articles and leaving your own comment or by starting a discussion.

Reading can also be so inspirational, even life changing. How many times have you seen or read someone being interviewed and they are asked, "What book changed your life". I have just started to read again, I found that I didn't have enough time in my day for reading but I have started to make time again and have rediscovered the joy of an engaging, inspirational story. A story can put your own life back in perspective and help you view things in a different way. It can motivate you and inspire you to make changes that you have been putting off. You can learn all manner of new things from how to save money, how to manage a crisis to how to become more healthy and happy.

One of my favourite books recently was The Four-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris. It gives some excellent tips on how to outsource your non-essential business activities so that you start to work on your business and not be destroyed by it! You can take a look through the associated website also for some great tips.

Formal Learning

The obvious way of thinking about formal learning is when you enrol and complete a course of academic study relevant to your business and professional standards. I think it's worth bearing in mind we all learn in different ways and formal learning is not enjoyed by everyone, so some people are not going to be motivated by this type of professional development. They also may have just spent several years completing their formal accreditation and the last thing they want or need to do is another formal course, but don't despair as already mentioned there are other ways to enjoy ongoing learning perhaps in ways that are better suited to your personal learning style and ways you will benefit from. Learning should never feel like a chore but should continue to fuel what we are passionate about.

Formal learning also need not be an accredited course that is directly related to your business in an obvious way but might be a way to add value to our core competencies like learning a new language, perhaps enabling us to broaden our business horizons overseas or perhaps specialist facilitation skills which will enable us to deliver our work in new and interesting ways.

Link Learning to Your Business Plan

A good place to start when figuring out where to focus your professional development is to look at your business plan. Look at what you have already achieved and see this as the cornerstones of your development plan. But, where do you see yourself in five years, how does your business need to evolve and what skills and learning will allow you to get there?

For example, if you are new to business it's probably worth investigating writing skills so that you can confidently start and maintain a good blog, as well as contribute to other blogs and articles in business related publications. A good site I have come across, for example, is www.copyblogger.com which is an excellent blog to help amateur copywriters improve their own copywriting skills. A blog that Suzi Dafnis has recommended to me recently is www.problogger.net. Here you can sign-up for daily email alerts on blogging tips, it's fantastic.

You may wish to review your core qualifications and build on them in order to get where you want to go. Post graduate courses can be completed over a couple of years part-time, and remotely in some cases so you can work at your own pace. It's a flexible and time efficient way to supplement your formal qualifications or take you into a new field. I find that SEEK Learning is a good resource for researching courses available from across the country, and all in the one place.

Keep Up with the Latest Trends

If you, like me, are a Baby-boomer or Gen Xer you will recall The Who going on about "My GGG... Generation". Not sure about you, but I'm personally not hoping for an early demise so I need to understand how things are done these days and what to expect in future.

Starting out in business, I needed to understand how business development has evolved and more and more is conducted in an online world. Blogging, social networking sites, such as LinkedIn and Facebook are already generating business leads. Getting formal training or self-developed skills in this area are worth pursuing if you want a place at this marketing table. Being able to express who you are and what your business provides in an entertaining, engaging way via your blog or website will lead to success.

Self-Directed Learning

Self-directed learning is less expensive and works well if tailored to your business needs. Perhaps you need to consider upgrading your software skills to ensure you are optimising your ability to send out well-designed newsletters, or perhaps tackle your own accounts by learning MYOB or a similar package?

It's good idea to keep a look-out for online podcasts and webinars which are mostly free to attend, on subjects of interest such as motivation, business development, networking tips, marketing tips, etc. These can all be attended via your pc or laptop from home or your office at your convenience and are a cost effective way to gather tips and useful learning to put into practice in your business. Being a member of the Australian Businesswomen's Network is a huge benefit as they regularly offer useful podcasts and webinars on various subjects for free. The newsletter sets out what's on offer.

iTunes

Another great source for free podcasts is iTunes. They offer over 150,000 free podcasts which you can download and listen to at leisure on all manner of different subjects.

I have also discovered recently the joys of iTunes University where you can download lectures, discussions, audio books and podcasts from universities across the world such as Harvard, Stanford and others, in topics that interest you, for FREE. This is a fantastic resource for those of us who feel we no longer need any more formal qualifications but love to keep learning. It's easy, flexible, FREE, and one of the most enjoyable professional learning experiences I have engaged in, outside of setting up and running my own business! I usually listen to the lectures whilst at the gym or walking the dog - that way I am doubling up on my available time by combining it with exercise.

Block out time in your diary

It's worth blocking out a few hours a week in your schedule to complete your learning, after all life is busy and it's hard to find the time, so making it a real appointment in your diary will help you stick to your goals.

Remain Curious

Finally, always remain curious about everything you encounter and the people you meet- after all, life is unfolding and every one of our human experiences are, one could argue, the best teachers of all. Eartha Kitt once famously said "I am learning all the time. The tombstone will be my Diploma". Purrrrr fectly put Cat Woman!

Clive informed us that research shows that despite huge increases in wealth, advances in health care and access to technology, western societies today are no happier than they were 50 years ago. This doesn't mean everyone is miserable; but levels of life satisfaction and well-being have not improved, despite arguably higher standards of living. The reality is that levels of anxiety, stress, fear and depression are rising.

He explained that the causes for lack of wellbeing include the breakdown of family and community relationships, increased violence, crime, drug and alcohol use, and (perhaps the most insidious culprits of all) ‘afluenza' and social comparison. Too many people believe that happiness can be found through their looks, clothes, iPods, mobile phones, trainers or cars. There's a lack of realisation that once these things are attained, we all too quickly adapt to them and promptly become envious that others have something bigger, better or newer.

Like the wicked queen in Snow White, when we can only judge ourselves by what the external world (the mirror on the wall) thinks, we can never be truly happy.

So, enough of the bad news.What's the good news?

Clive assured us all that the field of positive psychology provides a wealth of evidence that it is possible for us to increase levels of happiness and well-being and sets out a clear and applicable framework for living a life of pleasure, engagement and meaning.

We know that the most hopeful and optimistic people share three simple characteristics:
they have goals,
they have agency (self belief) in their ability to reach the goals and
they are able to identify a range of pathways or routes to success which helps them to persevere when faced with inevitable setbacks.

Five daily actions that will help you flourish

Clive went on to give us several examples of how we can begin to build our resilience, improve well-being and aim to be our best possible selves. In particular, I was fascinated by the research that was commissioned in 2008 by The New Economic Foundation, by the UK Government's Foresight Project on Mental Capital and Well-being. The review was an inter-disciplinary work of over 400 scientists from across the world with an aim to identify a set of evidence-based actions to improve well-being, which individuals should be encouraged to build into their daily lives. Here is a brief description of those five actions and how you incorporate them into your daily life:

1. Connect

Connect with the people around you. With family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. At home, work, school or in your local community. Think of these as the corner of your life and invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day.
Social relationships are critical to our well-being. Survey research has found that well-being is increased by life goals associated with family, friends, social and political life and decreased by goals associated with career success and material gains. Governments can shape policies in ways that encourage citizens to spend more time with families and friends and less time in the workplace. For example, employment policy that actively promotes flexible working and reduces the burdens of commuting, alongside policies aimed at strengthening local involvement, would enable people to spend more time at home and in their communities to build supportive and lasting relationships.

2. Be active

Go for a walk or a run. Step outside. Cycle. Play a game. Garden. Dance. Exercising makes you feel good. Most importantly, discover a physical activity you enjoy and one that suits your level of mobility and fitness.
Exercise has been shown to increase mood and has been used successfully to lower rates of depression and anxiety. Being active also develops the motor skills of children and protects against cognitive decline in the elderly. Yet for the first time in history more of the world's population live in urban than non-urban environments. Through urban design and transport policy, governments influence the way we navigate through our neighbourhoods and towns. To improve our well-being, policies could support more green space to encourage exercise and play and prioritise cycling and walking over car use.

3. Take notice

Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the usual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are walking to work, eating lunch or talking to friends. Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.
In the US, research has shown that practising awareness of sensations, thoughts and feelings can improve both the knowledge we have about ourselves and our well-being for several years. But the twenty-first century's never-ending flow of messages from companies advertising products and services leaves little opportunity to savour or reflect on our experiences. Policy that incorporates emotional awareness training and media education into universal education provision may better equip individuals to navigate their way through the information super-highway with their well-being intact; regulation to create advertising-free spaces could further improve well-being outcomes.

4. Keep learning

Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Sign up for that course. Take on a different responsibility at work. Fix a bike. Learn to play an instrument or how to cook your favourite food. Set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident as well as being fun.
Learning encourages social interaction and increases self-esteem and feelings of competency. Behaviour directed by personal goals to achieve something new has been shown to increase reported life satisfaction. While there is often a much greater policy emphasis on learning in the early years of life, psychological research suggests it is a critical aspect of day-to-day living for all age groups. Therefore, policies that encourage learning, even in the elderly, will enable individuals to develop new skills, strengthen social networks and feel more able to deal with life's challenges.

5. Give

Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger. Thank someone. Smile. Volunteer your time. Join a community group. Look out, as well as in. Seeing yourself, and your happiness, linked to the wider community can be incredibly rewarding and creates connections with the people around you.

Studies in neuroscience have shown that cooperative behaviour activates reward areas of the brain, suggesting we are hard wired to enjoy helping one another. Individuals actively engaged in their communities report higher well-being and their help and gestures have knock-on effects for others. But it is not simply about a one-way transaction of giving. Research shows that building reciprocity and mutual exchange - through giving and receiving - is the simplest and most fundamental way of building trust between people and creating positive social relationships and resilient communities. Governments can choose to invest more in ‘the core economy': the family, neighbourhood and community which, together, act as the operating system of society. Policies that provide accessible, enjoyable and rewarding ways of participation and exchange will enable more individuals to take part in social and political life.

BONUS: Get a coach!

Finally, one more way to learn about and understand how you can use your strengths and inner resources and to achieve a life of purpose, satisfaction and achievement is by attending an Evidence-based intervention, such as a workshop or one-on-one coaching. Outcomes of research studies have shown that coaching can result in significant increases in levels of well-being, resilience, hope and goal attainment in people. Exploring such findings might add value for your own life as well as the lives of your friends, family and colleagues and result in flourishing people.

Today I am speaking with Caroline McAuliffe, the Managing Director of one of Sydney's leading specialist Recruitment agencies, Execonnect

D: Hi Caroline great to have you with us today...

C: Thank you Daryl it's an absolute pleasure to be speaking with you.

D: Caroline, could you please give our listeners a 1000 foot view of who you are and what you do?

C: First and foremost I am a happily married woman, the wrong side of 40 and a mum of two wonderful children who have made my life interesting and fulfilled.
Secondly, I am originally from the auld country (as you can probably tell from the accent) but emigrated to Oz 15 years ago and have most definitely found home. I still pinch myself that I am so fortunate to be be living and bringing up my family in this paradise we call Australia.
Finally, to earn a crust I have been working with executive teams both here and formerly in the UK for over 20 years in a variety of sectors and in functional roles ranging from Executive Assistant to HR Manager to Events Manager (that was at 20th
Century Fox at Fox Studios and will always be the most fun job I have ever done).
Early last year I decided to take a career break, primarily to spend time and focus on my young son Jonny who has been diagnosed with Autism and also to enjoy some time with my 20 month old daughter. We have moved to the beautiful South Coast of NSW and have been enjoying beach life. At the same time, I have gone back to University and studied gaining a Post Grad Cert in Career Education and Development as well as qualifying as a Psychological Type Development Practitioner based on Carl Jung's Theory of Personality Type and Development.
I have launched my own private practice, ExeConnect, which will focus in three key areas of Executive Recruitment, Career Planning and Career Development. I will be focusing predominantly on on the recruitment part of the business to begin with and build the other two streams with the help of highly qualified associate executive coaches who use evidence based, positive psychology, resilience and well-being programs to help people flourish and be the best they can be.

D: Wow, How do you stay motivated?

C: I set myself goals and I endeavour to achieve these goals.
In fact I think that's what's most important is having the stated goal in the first place, having an intention and working towards that intention.
As you travel along the path, your goals may change, if you are open to opportunities, and the path may shift, but at least you wake up in the morning with purpose and vision.
I recommend making short term goals and having milestones.
Treat yourself when you achieve these milestones and celebrate the wins along the way.
My children and husband keep me motivated I have their pictures all around my desk together with picture of things I want to treat myself with or experience once I have achieved my goals.
It's not all material things either, one of the most precious motivators for me is to have the ability to choose when I work.
I want to have time to study more, spend more time with my children and to travel more.

D: What adjustments have you had to make since going out on your own?

C: The biggest thing for me is the lack of team work which I do miss.
I am good at working autonomously but I do miss the team interaction and being part of a team or leading a team.
Hopefully, I will build this business into once that is successful enough to build a small team and work and play together.
The up side of course if I have full control over how and why I do things and that is very attractive to me.

D: How has owning a recruitment business impacted on your social life?

C: If anything my social life becomes more busy when I am in full business mode.
Networking is an essential part of the business and I am an extrovert and enjoy interacting with people.
Also being part of professional organizations require me to go along to industry conferences and continue my professional development at seminars.
I tend to make friends with people I work with so it's all good for my social life.

D: How has owning a recruitment business impacted on your family members?

C: My husband is a stay at home dad and he loves this role which means I have the flexibility of working as and when I need to.
My children see me working at all hours from home so I am not a traditional role model for them.
However, with technology the way it is, it means I can work from home, remotely if we are away on holiday and I can work a couple of hours in the morning and afternoon, or into the evening but spend quality time during the day with them when I choose to - it's a benefit to family life.

D: Besides income, what have you gained by being a recruitment business owner?

I am passionate about what I do and have found my dream job.
The old saying of if you find a job you love you never work a day again in your life is true of me and I want this for everyone I work for and every candidate that walks through my door.
I am driven by clear purpose to connect people to realize shared dreams and a vision to being an inspiration to the recruitment industry and the way I go about this business means I remain aut hentic and real - for me this is probably the most important thing, because if I cannot be real and live and work in an authentic way I would be a very unhappy, unfulfilled person so starting this business is a dream come true for me.

D: How do you find time for yourself?

I am very good at not answering the phone or looking at emails after a certain time at night.
I also do not work on weekends unless it is absolutely necessary.
Now that I am running my own business I can take a couple of hours now and again and go to the hairdresser or to a spa and relax if I need to.
I think it's important to be not be rigid about the hours you work.
The 9 to5 work day is long gone. It's about being flexible, using technology but knowing when to switch it off also.

D: How do you balance your life?

C: I don't so much have a business plan as a Life Plan and that has short, medium and long term goals which cover all facets of my life including my work life.
It would be easy for my work to take over because I live my work, the boundaries are blurred so I need to ensure that the other parts of my life are given the attention they deserve with the same weight of importance.
Having two young children help me to be realistic about balance as they have many needs and I don't want to miss out on this time with them.
Having a stay at home husband help as his primary job is to take care of the domestic issues and child care , this helps enormously.
But I always take time just for me whether it be a swim, reading a book or taking a workshop or study course - this is all part of the life plan.

D: Caroline, Thank you for sharing some of your invaluable experience with our readers today.

C: It's been a pleasure chatting to you Daryl, thank you for the opportunity.

D: Could you leave us an insight into where you see the recruitment business going in the future?

C: I believe to be sustainable a recruitment firm must become specialized and niche. I am not sure being a generalist recruiter is sustainable in the long term. I believe one needs to find what it is they are experts at and focus on that and become famous for it. I think we all have to be part of the social networking recruitment experience and learn to leverage off this technology but also never to forget that we are a human business built on relationships - people will always remember how they were treated and all they are asking for is some respect and integrity from us - nothing more than we would ask for ourselves really.

D: Thank you Caroline McAuliffe.
I wish yourself and your team at Execonnect all the best for the year ahead.

C: Thanks Daryl.

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This is what Caroline said about 3hats...

D: Why did you choose 3hats as your recruitment software of choice?

C : The main reason I chose 3hats was the instant rapport and relationship that emerged with you Daryl.
I am intuitive and work from my instincts and even after our first conversation I felt you were someone I could trust and be comfortable working with.
Secondly, 3hats fulfills a large part of my database requirements, following the online trial I was impressed with its features particularly the automated responses and the website integration features.
It was important for me as a start up and sole operator to find a system that was easy to understand, quick to get up and running, limits data entry and quite importantly was very affordable for me with a limited budget.

A recent survey of 352 small and medium businesses found many were ill-prepared to deal with the third industrial relations regime in four years. The final stage of the Fair Work Act became effective on 1 January.

The new laws include a ‘modern awards' system and 10 new national employment standards replacing the minimum employment conditions that were part of the Howard government's Work Choices legislation.

Businesses face compliance obligations and risk fines, says one of the report's authors, David Griffiths, of the consultancy CompliSpace.

"What is clear from this study is that a great number of companies remain unaware and unprepared for the substantial changes," the report says.

"Employers who ignore ‘modern awards' may be in for a rude shock given that the flexibility clause contained in each award could mean their current common-law agreements no longer insulate them from obligations to pay overtime, penalty rates and leave loadings."

Among the new national employment standards are:
the extension from 12 to 24 months of unpaid parental leave that employees can request;
the introduction of an entitlement to redundancy pay for all workers, not just those covered by awards;
entitlement for carers of preschool children and children under the age of 18 with a disability to request flexible working arrangements.
Other changes provide for the extension of the definition of de facto partners to include same-sex couples and the removal of the restriction allowing an employee to take a maximum of 10 days carer's leave in any 12-month period.

Fewer than half of the businesses surveyed know of, understand, or are prepared for the industrial relations changes and less than half understand the compulsory flexibility clause in each award. More than half of the companies surveyed were considered at an extreme or high risk of falling foul of the laws, given their lack of preparation.

The survey identified call-centre employees among those to be covered for the first time by the new awards system.

Administrative staff across all industries could fall under a new clerks/private sector award.

Part-time workers in some industries would also be entitled to shift loading.

The survey covered businesses that employ more than 100,000 staff across 25 industries and was conducted from August 2009 to late last year.

For further detailed information on how this legislation could effect your business please go to www.fairwork.gov.au. Here you will find various information sheets, the answers to FAQ's and webinars to summarise and inform you on all facets of the Act including those pertaining to the following National

Employment Standards:
Hours of work
Parental leave
Annual leave
Personal, carer's and compassionate leave
Community service leave
Long service leave
Public holidays
Flexible working arrangements
Notice periods
Redundancy

It might also be worth obtaining professional advice from a HR/IR professional who can break down the information for you as to how it pertains and impacts your business, with recommendations as to what processes and procedures you might need to put in place to ensure compliance in your business and to avoid hefty fines.

Perhaps then, this is a good time to think about how engaged we really are at work. Looking around we see everyone at their posts, but is everybody really there?

If we believe the wealth of recent research on employee engagement the answer is probably that only about 3 out of 10 people really are ‘there' and are fully engaged at work. The chances are that of the 7 who remain; 2 are actively disengaged, creating negativity and potentially undermining the organisation; whilst the other 5 may be spending time ruminating about the sad state of the world or plodding along daydreaming rather than being positively focussed on the tasks, challenges and opportunities at hand.

These alarming figures mean that 70% of employees may not be as productive as they could be!

Now, don't forget that this is about the people who are actually at work. The costs of absenteeism through work related stress and general ill-health are widely known and addressed in HR policies and strategies. But absenteeism is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to lost productivity. What we are looking at here is presenteeism which is 1.5 times more prevalent than absenteeism and costs a huge £15bn a year in the UK alone.

Presenteeism is the lack of active engagement by employees at work though ill-health; mental stress such as work related worry, anxiety, conflict, lack of control or fear of job loss; personal issues and concerns; boredom, lack of purpose, goal focus or effort.

But presenteeism is not just about people worrying about their problems or spending too much time on Facebook. Many employees appear fully engaged and they have enormous loyalty to their organisations, staff and customers. They are passionate about their work and may consistently put in extra hours, even when they are sick and really need to rest. Some people genuinely believe they are indispensable and that the organisation cannot function without them. This can all have serious impact upon the individuals' mental and physical health, their family and social relationships and their overall quality of life.

Above is an example of ‘unstable' engagement. It takes place in the absence of well-being and results in eventual burnout, serious underperformance, increased presenteeism and high turnover. So to tackle presenteeism organisations need to focus on how to develop sustainable ongoing engagement. Research shows this only takes place when there is an equal focus on engagement and employee well-being.

A 2008 Towers Perrin study of over 650,000 employees has shown that the key driver for employee engagement is the belief that senior management sincerely care about the well-being of their employees. The good news is that there are increasing numbers of success stories where employees working lives have been transformed in both the public and private sectors. From local councils to multi-national corporations, organisations are benefiting from significant increases in civic pride, productivity, performance, profitability, quality of service delivery and customer or client satisfaction.

Championed from the top, important work is being done to raise awareness of well-being amongst managers to shake off the ‘soft and fluffy image' and demonstrate the evidence-base. Practical positive psychology based interventions are being used to increase well-being and build resilience in employees so they can focus on their strengths and purpose and become better able to deal with the inevitable change and challenges work and life bring. These are being implemented alongside lots of other measures that have been proven to increase engagement, such as effective communication, coaching and flexible working conditions.

The results are impressive. Overall return on investment in terms of reduced absence and productivity is cited as 6:1. World-class organisations have a ratio of 8 engaged to every 1 disengaged employee. But the ratio for average organisations remains at 1.5 engaged for every 1 disengaged, so there is still a long way to go.

The emerging reform of Australian Government and proactive approach of Australia's most successful companies show that testing economic and political times are not an excuse to stop investing in employee engagement and well-being initiatives. Quite to the contrary, because in periods of upheaval and crisis presenteeism still has to be tackled and resilient and motivated workforces are needed more than ever.

But remember, employee engagement and well-being strategies are not just focused on resolving or preventing problems. They are also about looking after the people who are present and who are doing fine, helping them to do even better - to strive towards their goals and to flourish both professionally and personally. We just need a lot more of them !

References:
McLeod, D. (2009). Engaging for Success: Enhancing Performance Through Employee Engagement
Robertsoncooper (2009). UK Perspectives on Employee Engagement & Well- being 2009-10.
Towers Perrin (2009). Employee Well-being: Taking engagement and performance to the next level. Perspectives Series.
Towers Perrin (2008). Global Workforce Study (2007-2008)

In the UK earlier this year the Prince's Trust published a report also highlighting that one in four young people are unhappy; one in ten feel that life is not worth living and that life has no purpose. These shocking figures are significantly worse for ‘hard to reach' young people not in education, employment or training.

So what's going wrong for our young people?

Research shows that despite huge increases in wealth, advances in health care and access to technology, western societies today are no happier than they were 50 years ago. This doesn't mean everyone is miserable; but levels of life satisfaction and well-being have not improved, despite arguably higher standards of living. The reality is that levels of anxiety, stress, fear and depression are rising.

Causes cited include the breakdown of family and community relationships, increased violence, crime, drug and alcohol use, and (perhaps the most insidious culprits of all) ‘afluenza' and social comparison. Too many people, particularly youth, believe that happiness can be found through their looks, clothes, ipods, mobile phones, trainers or cars. There's a lack of realisation that once these things are attained, we all too quickly adapt to them and promptly become envious that others have something bigger, better or newer.

Like the wicked queen in Snow White, when we can only judge ourselves by what the external world (the mirror on the wall) thinks, we can never be truly happy.

The field of positive psychology provides a wealth of evidence that it is possible for us to increase levels of happiness and well-being and sets out a clear and applicable framework for living a life of pleasure, engagement and meaning. We know that the most hopeful and optimistic people share three simple characteristics: they have goals, they have agency (self belief) in their ability to reach the goals and they are able to identify a range of pathways or routes to success which helps them to persevere when faced with inevitable setbacks.

How wonderful it would be if we could help young people to learn about and understand how they can use their strengths and inner resources to achieve a life of purpose, satisfaction and achievement. Evidence-based coaching, as an applied positive psychology, might be able to do just that. Outcomes of research studies have shown that coaching can result in significant increases in levels of well-being, resilience, hope and goal attainment in young people. Now is the time to be exploring how such findings might add value to existing youth support services and emerging government youth strategies which are being developed to help increase the life chances of our young people.

The integration of evidence-based coaching within the existing skills sets of youth and community workers could indeed help to create flourishing young people.

It's hard not to feel upset when your role is made redundant and your self-esteem certainly takes a battering, even if you are usually a stoic, positive person. However, it's important to remember that it is the ROLE and not YOU that has been made redundant. Also keep things in perspective, redundancy is a situation that features in the life cycle of most businesses. Financial crisis and technology are just two reasons why your role may no longer be required. But businesses always need people and are looking at ways to redeploy people - redundancy is usually the last resort after all who wants to see all of that experience and knowledge walk out the door? Having said that, there is no such thing as "a job for life" any more and people are realising that if they must remain positive and open minded about next steps down the career path.

There are steps you can take to ease yourself through this challenging transition.

Prepare Yourself

Seek professional advice if you are unsure of your rights. These professionals will advise you on what your rights are, how to negotiate with your employer if necessary and help you sort out your finances for the road ahead.

Before going to see a professional career advisor, employment lawyer, or financial advisor do your homework and work out your budget. Separate what are essential costs like mortgage repayments etc and non essential items such as holidays or eating out.

Remain Positive

As much as we know it's not personal it's hard not to take redundancy as such, even people who take volountary redundancy face a dramatic change of life and most of us go through this change cycle feeling at first denial, followed by anger and grieving before we learn to accept the new situation. Try and remmebr this is a natural process that everyone goes through and try and remain positive. Seek the counselling of a good friend, your partner or a career development professional to help you through this tricky time. There's an old Buddhist saying "Everything passes" - remember this - time will too and that time is best spent remaining positive and optimistic throughout.

Don't Give Up

Persistence is a very important trait to develop if you are not naturally inclined. Remember as you go through the job hunting stage there will be knock backs but it's a case of picking yourself up, not taking it personally, and moving on to the next opportunity. If you do get knocked back for a job, always seek feedback from the agency or the employer. It's important to take on board constructive criticism and use that information for future applications. If your resume needs reviewing there are plenty of professional resume writers who will assist you and if your interviewing skills need polishing up seek the help of a professional or practice with your partner or friends. Filming yourself is a great way to get insight into how you come across during an interview.

Be Open Minded

I think it's important to remember that the world of work is changing and as mentioned before, we need to be smart about doing our research about the type of work our skills and interests are suited to, to understand our values and what is important to us from a new employer. Employers are now seeing the benefits of offering employees more flexible work arrangements such as part time, flexitime, hours off in lieu, work from home opportunities, etc. Remember to ask any potential employer what might be available at the time of interview. Even if it's not mentioned in the job ad it doesn't mean these type of benefits are not available.