Sirona Says

Generation Y'ers - not for us, say SME's!

Generation Y staff are surprisingly not in demand for SME companies, says the latest report from the entrepreneur think tank, the Tenon Forum. They claim that these generation Y'ers are often not just up to the job, but also show a lack of work readiness. They also go on to say that over 30% of the SME's surveyed cited poor literacy and numeracy amongst school leavers as a key issue facing their business.

So, while the generation Y'ers are an employers future lifeblood, it does appear that companies that need 'real' skills are shying away from them.....at the moment anyway. So are companies starting to realise that the generation X and the boomer's are actually still worth employing? It appears that they are actively seeking them out!! 

Entrepreneur and Tenon Forum think tank member, Khalid Aziz, Chairman of the Aziz Corporation, says: "We are becoming increasingly frustrated with a lack of work-readiness amongst graduates, many of whom do not possess basic skills, such as mental arithmetic. Those under the age of 40 have never experienced high unemployment and this is contributing to a tendency for younger employees to take work for granted or, worse, treat it as an extension of their social lives. This failure to take work seriously is not an issue amongst more mature employees."

Sir Clive Woodward's 10 Tips for Managers managing the Talent

Sir Clive Woodward has this week in The Sunday Times  given a 10 point blueprint for the overhaul of English rugby. But I think it can amended to be used for senior business managers for their talent management and motivation. So here are my (slightly amended versions) of his 10 point management blueprint:

1. Wear the tracksuit
Don't manage from the office, get down and dirty with the staff.

2. Extremism is good
Look after the good people, but don't be afraid to be a bold leader. The senior manager is that for a reason - they make the decisions and they should be extreme.

3. Money matters
Don't compromise for the sake of money. Don't let people prevent you from putting things in place that you feel essential to succeed.

How companies undermine their employees without even thinking!!

Every working day, we all come across individuals complaining about their employers. They moan about everything form the coffee to their colleagues, and sometimes they complain about the actual work itself!! However, companies sometimes do themselves no favours when it comes to building and managing their relationships with their own staff. They always seem able to completely disregard the feelings of their own employers on a day to day basis.

So if you have ever had the displeasure of being unhappy at work and moaning about your employer, then you will identify with some of the common errors made below:

How Dragons Den star Theo Paphitis motivates his staff

He may well be a famous Dragon from the BBC's series Dragons Den, but Theo Paphitis's day job is as a successful retail entrepreneur, buying and then turning round failing retail brands such as Ryman, La Senza, Partners and Contessa. In a revealing interview in Retail Week he shares a number of his secrets, a key one being staff morale and staff motivation, and how it helped him change a business for the better.