SigmaWay Blog

Social media is a crucial tool to promote personal brands in today's marketplace to reflect a strong skillset online to be considered a top candidate. Creating and sharing insightful, industry-specific content on social media is much more useful now than having a resume as writing is still considered to be a valuable skill while reading articles on the industry can vastly expand knowledge. Clearly defining one's position in the marketplace is crucial. Focusing on only 2-3 social channels, befriending other professionals and repurposing content strategically are cornerstones of promoting personal brands online today. Read more at: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-business/how-elevate-your-personal-brand-using-social-media

Thomas C. Redman (Ph.D),  in one of his article, 'Data quality should be everyone's job', published by Harvard Business Publishing, mentioned that correction of errors in the data is an expensive and time consuming process. Moreover, at times even after correction of the data, some flaws remain which leads to bad credibility of the firm and angry customers. However, if companies welcome provocateurs - individuals concerned with addressing data proactively with the help of their teams, departments, and companies, then errors can be prevented at their source itself. Most of the data revolutionists while exploring with their work found out that to eliminate the root cause of the error and prevent future error, was the best way to ensure high quality data. No matter how innovative an idea is, a Provocateur is a must for the first step in a company dealing with data. So people concerned with data should take up this role actively, which will lead not only in the creation of innovative ideas but will also ensure high quality data output. Read more at: https://hbr.org/2016/05/data-quality-should-be-everyones-job#

Technology has been leaving a mark on every possible sector. It has digitized and revolutionized the way of working in every single field of work. Similarly e-learning hasn’t left untouched with its magic. Here are some latest trends and innovations for 2016 and beyond:

·         Flash to HTML5 Conversion

·         Cloud

·         Personalization

·         Gamification

·         Mobile Learning

·         Multi-device Learning

·         Wearable eLearning

·         Big Data

·         HTML5 Tools

·         Interactive Videos

Read the complete article here: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/scingularity/technological-innovations-and-trends-in-elearning-for-2016-and-beyond-73068

Software engineers and developers often make great IT leaders. They are tech savvy, are updated with latest market trends and have the trust of the IT team. Have IT leaders in team bridges the gap between the management and your IT team. IT leader will be a person who understands both aspects of the business. So what does it takes to become a great It leader- Team building skills; Networking skills; Talent hunting skills; Smart business skills; Good communication skills; Technical skills. Read the complete article here: http://www.computerworld.in/feature/6-traits-engineers-need-succeed-it-leaders

Data Scientist has been coined as the hottest job for the year 2016 by many leading platforms. But should it be the only reason to choose data science as a profession. Not at all. So here are some more reasons that can help you. The starting salaries are on the rise, you will earn more, PhDs are no more essential. There are enormous opportunities in various industries including finance, healthcare, and transportation. You get a chance to make a difference. Read the complete article here: :http://www.itworld.com/article/3063499/5-more-reasons-to-be-a-data-scientist.html

Earlier, whenever an employee was hired, a lot of paperwork generated which required hours of works by managers. They had to file them, record them and place them securely. And whenever a need arises to have a look at that document, one will find herself in the midst of piles of document, searching for it. But now processes have changed. But now, whenever an employee is hired an email is sent to the person providing her a link where she can upload her documents which is equivalent to the paperwork done before. This saves time, space and is prone to fewer errors. This system is recoverable in case a document is lost. Cloud has made HR's life significantly easier. Read the complete article here: http://www.computerworld.com/article/3049420/cloud-computing/how-the-cloud-is-transforming-hr.html

Every organization, today, is looking forward to a sustainable competitive advantage. In this process talent management and creating a learning oriented culture has become very important to achieve this objective. The main reason, we are talking about intangible forces like creating learning oriented culture & talent as the primary source of competitive advantages for high performance organization is due to factors like hard to incorporate & replicate them in an organization. In nutshell, creating a learning culture, talent development & leadership skills among employees are very important.

Read more at: https://www.trainingjournal.com/articles/news/building-culture-learning-encourages-business-growth

A recent study by MIT University shows that there is a 78% increase over the past three years in the job posting related to analytics and this led universities to launch specialized program in Master in Business Analytics. Nowadays, data analytics are used in marketing, finance, health care, logistics, insurance ecommerce, manufacturing and government services. To know more, please read the article by Michael Norton (Writer at lowellsun.com)-: http://www.lowellsun.com/business/ci_29635724/mit-reports-spike-analytics-job-postings

India needs to invest in human capital to take advantage of its demographic transition with increased spending on health, education and skills. A positive correlation between investment in maternal and early life, health and economic growth is observed. This approach is cheaper and easier than investing in older children. India has started looking into matters with programs like Swacch Bharat, but it needs to scale up its efforts. Quality of education must be next concern. It needs to shed fund in advanced healthcare technology. Read the article here: http://blogs.economictimes.indiatimes.com/et-editorials/india-must-step-up-public-investment-in-human-capital/

Employee's attitude is obvious and can be judged, the moment you enter the workplace. They tend to carry this attitude with them when they attend a training course. Trainers can benefit a lot if they have an indication of those employees' attitude. According to a recent Korean study there are two kinds of employee attitudes - Organizational commitment and Organizational identification. The thorough study done by Korean helped them in Trainee Selection and Training Design. Read the complete article here: https://www.td.org/Publications/Blogs/Science-of-Learning-Blog/2016/03/How-Organizational-Attitudes-Can-Predict-Training-Performance

Workspace innovation can be a change in the organization physical or mental which can boost employee's productivity, efficiency and creativity. It's not a new idea, but many companies don't follow it. But startups have been able to successfully implement this. With a proper HR team who have the right mindset and creativity, customization of the workspace can be achieved economically. Three simple changes that firms can try are: Let your employees pick their job titles; Create a play /activity/relaxation room; Switch to adjustable furniture from traditional one. Read the full article here: https://www.td.org/Publications/Blogs/Human-Capital-Blog/2016/02/3-Easy-Ways-to-Innovate-Your-Workspace

Workspace innovation can be a change in the organization physical or mental which can boost employee's productivity, efficiency and creativity. It's not a new idea, but many companies don't follow it. But startups have been able to successfully implement this. With a proper HR team who have the right mindset and creativity, customization of the workspace can be achieved economically. Three simple changes that firms can try are: Let your employees pick their job titles; Create a play /activity/relaxation room; Switch to adjustable furniture from traditional one. Read the full article here: https://www.td.org/Publications/Blogs/Human-Capital-Blog/2016/02/3-Easy-Ways-to-Innovate-Your-Workspace

According to a report, analytics and big data are going to see most vigorous hiring. Established firms and startups are offering handsome income to talented data scientists. Analytics and big data sector have been on consistent growth over last five years and are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of (CAGR) of 33.2% and 26.4 % respectively. The demand for data professionals has increased. It has been predicted that in coming times data science is going to have most exciting jobs. Read the full article here: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/analytics-big-data-to-see-robust-hiring-high-pay-packets-report/articleshow/51105814.cms

Getting jobs these days are tuff. But, social media is helping people to get jobs. Here are some steps that you can follow to get a job -:

1. Set up strong profiles -: Create strong profiles on all social networking sites using short bio to show interest and skills for good online presences.

2. Start Networking -: Use social media to grow communication and professional network.

3. Get Recommended on LinkedIn -: Recommendations with positive references attract recruiters and manager.

4. Let Others Know You Are Looking -: Let your friends and relevant contacts know about what type of job you’re looking at.

5. Actively Seek Out Openings with Hashtags -: Use hashtags ‘#’ to search for relevant jobs.

6. Research Employers and Hiring Managers before Applying -: Social media profiles can be used as a research tool before applying for a job.

To know more, please read the article by Maria Onzain ( Writer at Tech.co) -: https://tech.co/steps-social-media-find-job-2016-02

Employee's degrading productivity is an issue which is faced by many companies. You can't just fire your employees and hire another as it will cost you extra. Here are few interesting ways that can help you achieve the same: 

·         Reduce the level of strictness in office: Stop hovering over employees and monitoring them so closely that it becomes uncomfortable for them. Give them some space

·         Gamification: Design the tasks in the form of games where you present rewards on milestones. Humans being competitive in nature will work more efficiently with this framework

·         Monitor progress: They are many tools present in the market which can effectively track down the progress of your employees. Show them the results. Encourage them if they are lacking somewhere

·         Communicate with your employees: An effective communication can help tremendously in increasing the productivity of your employees. It can make them feel safe and it helps in creating a family-like environment.

Read the complete article here at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/marketing-strategies/4-interesting-ways-of-increasing-your-employees-productivity-71428

Earlier, the function of human resources is associated with the person who handled employee paperwork and personnel files. But today, the role of HR has become a much more important and dynamic. Some companies even refer to HR's activities as human capital management (HCM) to reflect the strategic and leadership-oriented nature of the department. It was also found that HR experts shared their insights for companies who are looking to provide the best Human Capital management for their workforce. Few things that HCM takes care of: -1) Look beyond recruiting and onboarding. 2) Learn the best way to manage each employee. 3) Invest in the right technology. 4) Take a positive, but transparent approach to communication. 5) Continue to change with the times. To read more about HCM, follow the article by Nicole Fallon(Assistant Editor at Business News Daily) at: http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/8145-human-capital-management.html

Investment consultants have been working for hours researching and investing in asset classes like stocks, real estate, commodities and bonds. But all these asset classes pale in comparison to human capital. Human capital is the present value of your future salary. It is the most valuable asset in young age. With a professional and desirable skill set, you will always get a fair salary no matter how much inflation, your country is suffering. Everything you do to increase your earning ability like getting a higher degree, taking certification courses, all comes under investing in human capital. Like any other capital, human capital has also risked associated with it like - death or disability risk; professional competency risk. Read the full article here: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/younginvestors/09/human-capital.asp

The use of predictive analytics in the Human Resource Management is the recent development. The HR team is taking advantage of the loads of data to keep a check on the employees. Predictive Analytics is changing the relationship between employee and enterprise. Predictive models can easily predict the upcoming trends. The performance of the employees can be judged in an unbiased way rather than gut feelings. The models identify meaningful insights by collecting data from the various platforms. The kind of posts that individuals have on the social networking platforms, LinkedIn profiles all lead to predictions. HR teams use these insights to decide the promotions, pay scale etc. This also acts as a disadvantage to the privacy of workers. Soon there will be a need to redefine the worker privacy laws which will take care of these new technologies. Read more about this in the article written by Rodd Wagner (A best- selling author) at: http://www.stevenspointjournal.com/story/opinion/columnists/2016/01/22/predictive-analytics-transforms-workplace/79116764/

Finding suitable talent for your workplace is a difficult process. It is much more difficult to retain talent, if the workplace conditions are not suitable. Most of the organizations use annual feedback system to know about the employees. But the better way is to have a continuous check on the performance and behavior of employees. This helps in getting a better picture. Big Data helps in identifying the relation between engagement and retention. Cloud based solutions provide access to all the data at one place and this can be used for further decisions by HR. Data can be collected, measured, analysed at one place. And accordingly solutions can be thought of to eliminate the problem. Organizations who use big data solutions have observed a better turnover. Read more at: http://www.cio.com/article/3023311/careers-staffing/how-big-data-can-drive-employee-engagement.html