How to Write a Professional Bio

How to Write a Professional Bio

Career Brand Management, Personal Branding

Professional bio: Learn how to write a standout introduction with practical tips for crafting a compelling and authentic narrative. This guide highlights key elements such as showcasing achievements, sharing your values, and incorporating personal touches to make your bio truly memorable.

Your professional bio is often the first impression people get of you. Whether it’s a potential employer, client, or business contact, the way you present yourself in a bio can influence whether they reach out or move on. A well-written bio goes beyond a simple introduction—it’s a powerful tool for showcasing your expertise, values, and personality.

What Is a Professional Bio and Its Benefits?

A professional bio is a brief introduction that highlights your career, accomplishments, and goals. It’s used across various platforms, such as social media, personal websites, company profiles, and networking sites. While resumes list qualifications, a bio provides a narrative that shows who you are, what you do, and why you do it.

The benefits of a compelling professional bio are many. It can enhance your Whether you’re seeking a job, new clients, or collaborations, a strong bio sets the tone for building professional relationships.

 

Practical Tips : What to Include in a Professional Bio

Crafting a bio can feel daunting, but breaking it down into essential elements can simplify the process. Here’s what your professional bio should include and tips on how to write it effectively:

Start with Your Name and Job Title
First and foremost, the first sentence of your bio should introduce who you are and your current professional role. For example, “Jane Doe is a Marketing Manager at XYZ Corp.” If you’re a freelancer or entrepreneur, additionally include your business name or personal brand. This helps establish your identity right from the start.

Share Your Key Responsibilities or Expertise
After stating your role, you should briefly explain what you do. Moreover, highlight your main responsibilities or areas of expertise. For instance, if you’re a software engineer, you might say, “specializing in developing scalable web applications.” This provides readers with a quick snapshot of your professional identity.

Highlight Accomplishments and Achievements
Furthermore, a bio is not just a list of roles—it’s also an opportunity to showcase what makes you stand out. Therefore, highlight key accomplishments, such as awards, certifications, or successful projects. Instead of simply stating that you are experienced, demonstrate your achievements with specific examples. For instance, “Increased social media engagement by 150% within six months.”

Incorporate Your Professional Philosophy or Values
In addition, adding a personal touch by including your professional philosophy can deepen the connection with your audience. This part answers the question, “Why do you do what you do?” Whether your values focus on innovation, helping others, or continuous learning, sharing your motivation adds depth and authenticity to your bio.

Tailor the Length and Tone to Your Audience
Moreover, different platforms call for different types of bios. For example, a LinkedIn bio might be more formal and detailed, while a Twitter bio is shorter and more casual. Thus, tailor the tone and length to suit the audience of each platform. For professional sites, a more formal tone works well, while a personal website might allow for a conversational approach.

Add a Personal Touch: Hobbies or Interests
While your bio should primarily focus on your professional identity, adding personal details helps humanize you. This could be a mention of your hobbies, where you’re from, or what you enjoy doing in your free time. For example, “When not leading marketing campaigns, Jane enjoys hiking and photography.”

Include a Call to Action
Depending on your goals, you might also want to end your bio with a call to action. For example, if you’re looking for new projects, you could say, “Feel free to connect for collaboration opportunities.” This invites engagement and shows that you’re open to new opportunities.

Stay Authentic and Honest
Above all, authenticity is key when writing a bio. It’s crucial not to exaggerate or inflate your accomplishments, as this can lead to unrealistic expectations. Be honest about your achievements and strengths while presenting yourself in the best light. Authenticity builds trust and ensures that your bio resonates with others.

Update Your Bio Regularly
Lastly, your bio isn’t a static document. As your career progresses, your bio should evolve too. Therefore, make it a habit to update your bio regularly with new achievements, roles, or skills. This keeps it fresh and relevant, especially if people visit your professional pages often.

How to Use Your PROFESSIONAL Bio

A strong bio isn’t just for introductions—it’s a versatile tool that can be used across various mediums. Whether on LinkedIn, a personal website, or even a company profile page, your bio helps define how people see you. It can open doors to new opportunities, build your reputation, and create connections. Ultimately, it’s more than just a paragraph—it’s a reflection of who you are professionally and personally.

In summary, a professional bio is a critical part of your personal brand. By including key details like your name, role, achievements, and values, you can create a compelling narrative that helps you stand out in the professional world. Tailoring your bio to fit different platforms, adding personal touches, and keeping it authentic will ensure that it resonates with your audience.

Interested in a workshop or individual coaching – contact me >>>
Executive Presence: The Key to Inspiring Confidence and Authority

Executive Presence: The Key to Inspiring Confidence and Authority

Career Brand Management, Image, Personal Branding

Executive presence is the skill set that enables individuals to inspire confidence and project authority, particularly in leadership roles. Often viewed as a mysterious quality, executive presence is not an innate trait but a skill that can be developed and refined over time.

In its simplest form, it represents the ability to instill trust among subordinates, peers, and senior leaders alike. It’s about demonstrating that you are the leader others want to follow, can be relied upon, and possess the potential for significant achievements.

Understanding executive presence is crucial for career advancement. Opportunities such as promotions, high-visibility projects, and key assignments often arise in your absence, and the confidence inspired in decision-makers can greatly influence these pivotal choices. The more significant the opportunity, the more essential executive presence becomes.

1. Appearance, Poise, and Confidence

Your appearance plays a crucial role in how others perceive you in a professional environment. First impressions matter greatly, and the way you present yourself can significantly impact your credibility and influence.

  • Dress for the Occasion: The way you dress underscores the importance of presenting yourself in a polished and appropriate manner. By dressing well, you not only align yourself with the organization’s culture but also convey respect for both yourself and your colleagues.

    Being Fit and Well-Groomed: Although beauty is subjective, research shows that attractiveness can influence career outcomes. However, executive presence is not solely about looking like a model; it’s about demonstrating your commitment to health and well-being. A fit and well-groomed appearance signals discipline and self-respect, which can enhance your executive presence and make you more approachable.

    Poise and Confidence: Poise is an elusive quality that combines charisma and authority, enabling you to project confidence even in challenging situations. Individuals with poise exhibit an “easy self-possessed assurance” that naturally draws others in. True executive presence requires authenticity, meaning you feel comfortable in your skin and focus on fostering connections rather than seeking to dominate. When this self-assuredness is paired with appropriate verbal and non-verbal cues, it becomes magnetic, attracting people toward you.

2. Effective Communication

Effective communication is a cornerstone of executive presence. The way you speak significantly influences your ability to connect with others and command respect.

  • The Sound of Your Voice: Your voice is a crucial tool in your communication arsenal. If your voice lacks clarity or authority, it may be beneficial to invest in voice coaching to develop better pitch and breathing techniques.
  • Commanding the Room: Leaders with executive presence excel at making strong first impressions and establishing a connection with their audience. They skillfully incorporate storytelling and anecdotes into their presentations, making their communication relatable and memorable. Avoiding filler words enhances their credibility and reinforces their authority.
  • Body Language: Non-verbal cues often convey more than words. Research indicates that only seven percent of a message comes from the words themselves, while 38 percent relies on vocal tone, and a staggering 55 percent is determined by body language. Therefore, maintaining an upright posture and using open hand gestures can significantly enhance your presence.

By mastering these elements of communication, you can greatly enhance your executive presence, fostering meaningful connections with your audience.

3. Gravitas

Gravitas is a fundamental aspect of executive presence that encapsulates how you act in the workplace. It’s not about adopting a diva-like attitude; it’s about embodying qualities that inspire trust, capability, and respect.

  • Showing Grace Under Fire: Individuals with gravitas excel at maintaining composure during challenging situations. They project calm and resilience, quickly bouncing back from setbacks and openly acknowledging their mistakes.
  • Being Assertively Decisive: Assertiveness means articulating what you want clearly while remaining open to others’ perspectives. Assertive leaders make decisions without being overbearing, effectively influencing their peers.
  • Speaking Your Truth: Gravitas also involves the courage to express your views honestly, even when they diverge from popular opinion. This requires a willingness to offer constructive feedback with discretion and care.
  • Emotional Intelligence: High emotional intelligence is essential for effective leadership. It allows you to inspire and nurture relationships with team members, fostering trust and respect.
  • Strong Personal Branding: Authenticity is key to gravitas. Presenting the genuine you—complete with quirks and imperfections—makes you relatable and strengthens your leadership style.

The Benefits of Executive Presence

In summary, executive presence is a multi-faceted skill set that includes appearance, communication, and gravitas. By actively developing these elements, you can enhance your ability to inspire confidence, project authority, and cultivate trust among colleagues and superiors. Moreover, executive presence elevates your professional image and significantly impacts your career trajectory, opening doors to new opportunities and leadership roles.

Ultimately, the benefits of executive presence extend beyond personal success. It fosters an environment of collaboration, respect, and empowerment, enabling you to lead effectively and inspire others. By mastering executive presence, you position yourself as a leader others want to follow, paving the way for a successful and fulfilling career.

If you’re interested in exploring this topic further or are looking for a keynote speaker or workshop, I’d be happy to help.
Whether it’s personalized advice or a tailored presentation you’re after, feel free to get in touch to discuss how we can work together. Contact me today!

Key leadership skills you need to invest in

Key leadership skills you need to invest in

Career, Career Brand Management, Personal Branding

Discover the 15 key leadership skills essential for guiding teams, driving organizational success, and advancing your career. Learn how abilities like communication, decision-making, delegation, empathy, and conflict resolution empower leaders to unite their teams and achieve shared goals.

Leadership skills are the strengths and abilities that enable individuals to guide teams, oversee processes, and drive their organization toward the achievement of its goals. These skills are essential for making thoughtful decisions about an organization’s mission, effectively allocating resources, and ensuring that employees are motivated to contribute to the shared vision.

Whether you’re a manager, project leader, or team member, leadership skills are crucial at every stage of your career—from applying for jobs to seeking career advancement. Employers consistently value leadership as one of the most important soft skills because it often incorporates other key traits such as communication, honesty, creativity, and confidence. Understanding and developing leadership skills can help you unlock your potential and succeed in any role.

Leadership is not just a single trait, but a combination of several key abilities such as delegation, conflict resolution, decision-making, and empathy. These skills empower leaders to unite their teams, support initiatives, and inspire others to perform at their best. In this article, we will explore 15 critical leadership skills that can help you foster a collaborative, high-performing team and advance in your professional journey.

LEADESHIP SKILLS TO INVEST IN


1. Effective Communication

Great leaders maintain open communication channels, using a variety of methods such as one-on-one sessions, email, video, chat, and social media. They convey ideas clearly, break down complex information, and ensure everyone understands the goals. This fosters a transparent and collaborative environment.

2. Relationship Building

Building strong, trusting relationships within the team is essential for driving engagement and performance. Leaders who invest time in forming authentic connections create a more cohesive and motivated workforce, leading to higher productivity and a supportive atmosphere.

3. Emotional Intelligence and Empathy

Empathetic leaders excel at understanding their team members’ emotions and perspectives. This understanding helps in addressing concerns and creating a positive, inclusive work environment. By managing emotions and showing care, leaders build stronger, more engaged teams.

4. Decision-Making

Leaders need to make informed, strategic decisions, often under pressure. This requires gathering insights, thinking critically, and balancing immediate needs with long-term goals. Effective leaders stand by their decisions but remain adaptable when situations change.

5. Strategic and Critical Thinking

Strategic thinking involves long-term planning and anticipating challenges, while critical thinking enables leaders to solve complex problems by analyzing various solutions and making logical connections between ideas. This powerful combination of skills ensures that leaders effectively guide their organizations toward sustainable success. By solving complex problems, they can achieve the best outcomes for their teams while remaining adaptable in an ever-changing environment. Ultimately, honing both strategic and critical thinking skills empowers leaders to navigate challenges more effectively and make informed decisions that benefit their organizations in the long run.

6. Adaptability and Flexibility

Flexibility is essential for leaders who need to navigate constant change in the business environment. Adaptable leaders adjust quickly, take on various roles, and problem-solve in real time, ensuring their teams remain resilient in the face of uncertainty.

7. Innovation and Creativity

Creative leaders inspire innovation and motivate their teams to think outside the box. They encourage brainstorming and value employees’ creative input, recognizing and rewarding new ideas that drive progress and competitive advantage.

8. Delegation

Leaders who delegate effectively empower their team members by assigning tasks based on individual strengths and skills. This not only builds trust but also promotes engagement, allowing leaders to focus on high-level tasks while their teams thrive independently.

10. Conflict Management

Leaders must be adept at managing and resolving conflicts. By staying level-headed, analytical, and impartial, effective leaders address disputes efficiently, turning conflicts into opportunities for growth and stronger collaboration.

11. Accountability and Responsibility

Accountable leaders take ownership of their decisions and actions, ensuring their teams follow suit. This builds a culture of trust and integrity where everyone is responsible for their performance and outcomes, contributing to team success.

12. Mentorship and Development

Effective leaders act as mentors, guiding and supporting their team members’ professional development. By providing constructive feedback, recognition, and opportunities for growth, leaders help employees reach their full potential.

13. Inspiration and Motivation

Leaders who inspire and motivate their teams create an environment of enthusiasm and commitment. By aligning team members’ goals with the organization’s vision and maintaining high morale, leaders foster a productive and driven team culture.

14. Recognizing Potential

A great leader is skilled at identifying and acknowledging the potential talents and competencies within their team. By recognizing and rewarding employees’ abilities, leaders foster a sense of value and encourage continued growth and contribution.

15. Feedback

Constructive feedback is vital for employee growth. Effective leaders provide ongoing, actionable feedback, helping team members understand where they stand and what areas need improvement, contributing to a culture of continuous development.

By integrating these key leadership skills, leaders can create a well-rounded, supportive, and high-performing team, ensuring both personal and organizational success.

Conclusion

Mastering these 15 key leadership skills is essential for both personal and professional growth as a leader. These abilities—ranging from strategic thinking and decision-making to communication, empathy, and conflict resolution—are not only vital for driving organizational success but also crucial for nurturing and empowering your team to reach its full potential. Effective leaders understand that developing these skills is an ongoing process, which allows them to adapt to new challenges, inspire their teams, and create a positive, high-performing work environment.

Furthermore, investing time and effort into honing these leadership traits benefits not only the leader but also the team, thereby fostering a culture of trust, innovation, and collaboration. As a result, teams become more engaged, productive, and better equipped to meet their goals. Ultimately, the commitment to growing as a leader will have a lasting impact on your career trajectory, the performance of your team, and the long-term success of your organization.

Interested in a keynote or training on the topic of leadership skills – contact me >>>

How to write LinkedIn headline?

How to write LinkedIn headline?

Career, Career Brand Management, Personal Branding

LinkedIn headline: the easiest way to boost your profile visibility, generate leads, and land more job interviews. Look no further!

Your LinkedIn headline is one of the most visible parts of your LinkedIn profile and plays a crucial role in influencing someone’s decision to reach out to you or move on to the next candidate. It’s also a key factor in LinkedIn’s search algorithm. Optimized headlines carry significant weight when the platform determines which profiles to serve for different queries. In short, optimized headlines = more searches, more searches = more views, and more views = more opportunities and deals.

If you’ve read this far, you probably understand how important your LinkedIn headline is. But how do you optimize it effectively? In this guide, I’ll walk you through how to craft a powerful LinkedIn headline that boosts your visibility, increases job interviews, and draws in more qualified leads.

What is a LinkedIn Headline?

A LinkedIn headline is a concise summary that encapsulates who you are professionally. It serves as your first impression on potential connections, recruiters, and employers and it works like a hook that grabs their attention and keeps them reading.

Importance of a LinkedIn Headline

  • Visibility: Your headline appears right beneath your name and profile picture, making it one of the most visible elements of your profile.
  • Unique Value: If you don’t customize your headline, LinkedIn will generate a basic and generic one for you. This automated headline often lacks the personal touch and specificity that showcases your unique skills and experiences.
  • Goal-Oriented: The primary goal of your headline is to convince people to read the rest of your LinkedIn profile. This is a crucial first step on a journey that could open the door to new opportunities.

Crafting an Effective Headline

To create an effective LinkedIn headline, follow these best practices:

1. Make a Strong First Impression – Use engaging language that captures attention immediately. Your headline should act as a compelling introduction to who you are and what you do.

2. Avoid Generic Auto-Generated Headlines –Take the initiative to create your own headline. Generic headlines miss out on highlighting what makes you distinct in your field.

3. Include Your Current Role or Profession – Your LinkedIn headline should immediately convey your professional identity. Use the exact title you hold at your current company, including your level of experience (e.g., “Senior,” “Manager,” “Director”). If your current job title isn’t perfectly aligned with your career goals, feel free to tweak it slightly, but avoid misleading potential connections.

4. List Your Primary Skills or Area of Expertise – Many companies now prioritize skills-based hiring. Including standout skills or certifications in your headline is crucial. Look at job listings to identify in-demand skills and highlight those you excel in that align with your career goals.

5. Highlight Your Unique Value – Your unique value is what makes you stand out from others in your field. This could be your specialized expertise, innovative problem-solving skills, or any trait that makes you valuable to employers or clients.

5. Include a Measurable Accomplishment (optional) – Whenever possible, aim to include a quantifiable achievement in your LinkedIn headline. Tangible results, such as “Increased sales by 30%,” boost your credibility and demonstrate your impact.

6. Mention a Personal Passion or Career Goal (optional) – Make your headline more compelling by adding a personal passion or career goal. This highlights your enthusiasm and helps connect with others who share your interests and values.

7. Use Relevant Keywords – Incorporate industry-specific keywords that can help improve your visibility in search results.

8. Maintain Accuracy and Honesty – Be truthful about your skills and experiences. Avoid exaggerated claims that can undermine your credibility.

Final Thoughts

Your LinkedIn headline is not just a formality; it’s a crucial tool for making a memorable first impression. By crafting a personalized, engaging headline that reflects your current role, primary skills, unique value, and measurable accomplishments, you can effectively communicate your professional identity and attract the right opportunities.

If you have a headline in mind, feel free to share it, and I can help you refine it further!

Interested in personalized advise on your LinkedIn profile – contact me >>>

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Examples of Strong LinkedIn Headlines

Sales

“Account Executive at XYZ Solutions – Empowering Businesses with Tailored Software Solutions | Achieved 25% YoY Revenue Growth”

“Business Development Manager | Connecting Startups with Innovative Funding Solutions | Passionate About Entrepreneurial Growth”

Marketing

“Content Marketing Strategist | Crafting Compelling Stories that Engage Audiences | Boosted Website Traffic by 40%”

“SEO Specialist at ABC Agency | Driving Organic Growth Through Proven Strategies | Certified in Google Analytics”

Technology

“Software Engineer | Developing Scalable Applications for E-Commerce | Committed to Agile Methodologies”

“Data Scientist | Transforming Data into Actionable Insights | Delivered Predictive Models that Increased Sales by 20%”

Finance

“Financial Analyst at Global Investments | Specializing in Risk Assessment and Portfolio Management | CFA Level II Candidate”

“Accountant | Streamlining Financial Processes for Small Businesses | Passionate About Tax Strategy and Compliance”

Healthcare

“Registered Nurse | Delivering Compassionate Patient Care in Emergency Settings | Advocate for Health Education”

“Healthcare Administrator | Improving Operational Efficiency in Patient Services | Focused on Telehealth Innovations”

Human Resources

“HR Manager | Fostering Positive Workplace Culture and Employee Engagement | Successfully Reduced Turnover by 15%”

“Recruiter | Connecting Top Talent with Leading Tech Firms | Expert in Diversity and Inclusion Hiring Strategies”

Education

“Educational Consultant | Transforming Learning Environments for Student Success | Advocate for STEM Education”

“High School Teacher | Inspiring Future Leaders Through Innovative Curriculum Development | Passionate About Student-Centered Learning”

Creative Industries

“Graphic Designer | Creating Visually Stunning Brand Identities | Portfolio Includes Work with Fortune 500 Companies”

“UX/UI Designer | Enhancing User Experiences Through Research-Driven Design | Passionate About Accessibility”


 

Top 10 qualities of a leader

Top 10 qualities of a leader

Career Brand Management, Personal Branding

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Leadership is not simply one skill, but rather a mosaic of qualities and personality traits that makes an individual a leader, a person people trust and are willing to follow.

An important part of leadership is its authority, and for people to accept this authority, it has to be legitimate. Leaders whose authority is not earned and not recognised are simply tyrants.

The definition describes leadership as a “process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal”. The definition focuses on “what” is it, but not on “how” it is done. And we all know that some people just have the necessary ingredients to be a good leader and others don’t.

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Today, I want  to outline 10 essential qualities of a leader, and I encourage you to reflect on them to determine, if you possess what it takes to be an effective leader.

Courage – This quality represents mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and face danger, fear, or difficulty. Courage involves doing what frightens others and shows bravery. The term comes from Old French “corage” and Latin “cor,” meaning ‘heart.’ Courageous leaders push through uncomfortable situations and make tough decisions. They don’t back down when challenges arise; instead, they persevere and strive. Courage inspires respect and trust from others.

Self-control – This quality refers to the ability to manage desires and emotions, especially in stressful situations. Leaders remain calm under pressure. Self-control allows individuals to regulate their responses, avoid undesirable behaviors, and achieve long-term goals. Controlling emotions and thoughts in the face of temptation is a crucial leadership skill.

Self-motivation – Leaders must drive themselves to take initiative and pursue goals. This internal force propels individuals forward. Self-motivated people act proactively and often go the extra mile due to their desire to perform at their best. They also resist failures and setbacks. Together, self-motivation and courage make them unstoppable.

Decisiveness – Effective leaders make decisions quickly and confidently, especially in tough circumstances. They understand their responsibility for those decisions. Being decisive means weighing pros and cons, calculating risks, making informed choices, and sticking to them.

Work ethic – Leaders must uphold a strong sense of ethical behavior and adhere to both formal and informal rules and standards. Furthermore, as role models, they should demonstrate exemplary work habits. In addition, they ensure that others understand and embody a high work ethic, fostering a culture of integrity and accountability within their teams.

Likeable personality – While being “likeable” may not initially seem essential for leadership, consider this: Would you rather work with someone you like? Research shows that likable leaders often perform better because of their positive demeanor. Moreover, although not everyone can be liked by all, traits such as openness, humility, and empathy are crucial for modern leaders. Thus, fostering a likeable personality can significantly enhance a leader’s effectiveness.

Sympathy and understanding – Leaders often fail when they become self-centered, forgetting that they need followers. The modern servant leadership model emphasizes the team’s importance. Leaders in this model focus on serving others, which requires empathy, active listening, and understanding. They welcome feedback, value others’ opinions, and encourage creativity.

Responsibility – A key element of leadership involves assuming responsibility. In business, this means making sustainable decisions that consider all stakeholders, including employees, shareholders, suppliers, and the community. Good leaders ensure tasks are completed and hold themselves accountable for results.

Cooperation and team spirit – Cooperative leaders participate in the same activities as their teams and do not demand special privileges. They remain accessible, open to feedback, and willing to collaborate. This approach flattens hierarchies, streamlines decision-making, and fosters team spirit—the willingness to work together towards common goals.

Visionary – Leaders must have a clear vision for the future. While focusing on short-term goals, they also need to consider long-term impacts. The decisions leaders make today influence tomorrow’s outcomes. Their vision and conviction should inspire others. Visionary leaders excel in communication, motivating teams to strive for shared objectives that benefit everyone.

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Develop or perish – key skills to remain competitive in the future workplace

Develop or perish – key skills to remain competitive in the future workplace

Career, Career Brand Management

Do you want to remain competitive in the future workplace? Check if you have the 10 key skills and competencies to stay relevant.

 

Overworked, discouraged and without energy – those are the characteristics of the XIX century workforce. An alarming picture emerges from numerous studies and burnout became a modern plague. Especially now, when social interactions are limited due to the global pandemic and most of the work is done remotely from the home office.

Many professionals start feeling that their potential or skills at work are not utilized to the fullest potential. As a result, they do not know what to look for, where to place their passions, what is the purpose and meaning of their lives. Does this sound familiar to you?

New competency model

Technological development, which is revolutionizing the world before our eyes, introduces inevitably changes in the way we live and work. The development of artificial intelligence, robotization, management of a huge amount of data – all this means that the competency model of employees is changing. And skills like comprehensive problem solving, creativity, innovation, cooperation, cognitive flexibility and empathy become more important. 

A big question is if all employees and leaders have the strength to become such?

Many employees often feel discouragement, irritation, fear or even anxiety. The tasks they perform do not give them satisfaction and joy and they don’t know the sense and purpose of their job duties. On such foundations, it is impossible to build competencies of the future that will help to win with artificial intelligence.

Ideal employee of the future

The ideal employee of the future is a flexible specialist. One that is digitally savvy and has the ability to see problems in a wider spectrum. A creative individual that can also demonstrate analytical thinking and understanding of the data.

And while machines can beat us in analyzing information, they cannot look at it creatively. For this reason, in the era of machines, there will be someone who is well-versed in his work, empathic, able to communicate and cooperate and having a flexible mind. Such a combination of features ensured success in every age and there is no indication that the machines would change something in this field.

 

Key skills to develop or acquire

Let’s look at the below 10 skills and competencies that can keep you relevant in the future workplace.

Interdisciplinarity – the ability to understand concepts from various fields and “connecting the dots”.
In the face of the increasing complexity of the world and problems, narrow specialities will not allow people to properly understand reality. Therefore, people with 360 degree view and expertise in various fields will have the advantage. 

Innovative and adaptive thinking – proficiency in unconventional thinking that goes beyond the usual patterns. Creativity, flexibility and openness to change are the base for development and progress.

Digital competencies – the ability to use a wide array of digital tool, as well as new media for effective communication.

Design thinking – the ability to use a non-linear iterative process to understand users’ needs and problems, creating solutions and prototypes,  defining tasks and their implementation to achieve the expected results.

Computational thinking – the ability to understand and translate huge amounts of data into abstract concepts. As the amount of available data increases, people will have to be able to process the huge amount of information in a meaningful way.

Deeper reasoning – the ability to recognize the deeper meaning or importance of what is being expressed. While routine and repetitive activities can be performed by robots, there is a whole range of skills that the computer will not be able to master, such as drawing deeper conclusions that go beyond the scheme.

Emotional intelligence – the ability to communicate with other people in a deep and direct way that allows you to feel and stimulate specific reactions. Employees with high emotional intelligence are able to quickly assess the emotions of other people, empathize with them and communicate more effectively. 

Intercultural competence – ability to work with people from various cultural backgrounds. In the times of progressing globalization, the ability to work with people who function in different cultural conditions may turn out to be a gold competence.

Working in informational noise – the ability to filter valid and credible information in the media noise and overload of facts and data will become increasingly important to effectively work in the world of complexity. 

Virtual collaboration – the ability to work effectively within virtual teams. The rapid development of communication techniques will require employees of the future to work at a distance within virtual teams. Usage of tools for online or virtual cooperation will be an asset.

 

 

 

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The workforce of the future

The workforce of the future

Career, Career Brand Management

The year 2020 changed everything. If any company was doubting the digital future, the global pandemic accelerated digital development for sure. And companies that were slow in adopting the change, surely suffered a lot. 

In the last decade, there was a growing talk about changing the nature of work. The conviction that work is what you do and not a specific place where you spend 8 hours is not a novelty. The anachronistic idea that work is defined by timeframe and location loses its significance, inter alia, for efficiency. The redefinition of the concept itself is associated with the factors we already experience. Remote working became reality last year and is likely to stay. All of a sudden it became a new standard, and the work itself is now measured by the accomplishment of the goals or the effectiveness of our activities.

Question is how this new standard will impact the employees? Should you start worrying if you possess the skills and qualities for the new job market?

The desirable employee of the future will have to reconcile quite extreme expectations. In addition to the indicated skills in the area of ​​exact sciences, so-called STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) the key will be soft skills like creativity, the ability to actively learn and to share knowledge, as well as cooperation with other people.

At the same time – and it should be emphasized here – soft skills are typically human and will not be covered by automation or at least it will not happen quickly. Soft skills will become the most important for employees of the future, as they will distinguish us from machines and artificial intelligence.

Professions of the future

According to the estimates, 65% of children born after 2007 will work in occupations that do not yet exist. So how do we know which of the professions will become the most desirable?

According to Forrester, automation and robotization of work will eliminate 6 per cent jobs in the USA by 2021. And 2021 is now. So,  what can we do not to be replaced by chatbots or machines?

Deloitte’s report “Essential skills for working in the machine age“ indicates that among the most important skills that will allow surviving among machines in the labour market are soft skills mainly those linked to the formulation of thoughts in speech, empathy, the ability to deduce reasoning and critical thinking. The top ten also includes the ability to actively listen and flexibility in matching facts.

To understand what skills the era of robots will require, you need to know what machines are good at and where humans are better. Machines can replace people in analyzing information, but they can not look at it creatively. And while analytical software is able to draw trends from the data set, it is unlikely that to be able to combine it with seemingly distant data or explain it with the relation to the audience. Machines can beat us on many fronts but still lack the empathy, creativity and flexible mind.

This brings me to the conclusion that the ideal employee of the future is a flexible specialist. Someone who has knowledge in a few fields and is able to have a 360-degree view, who can connect the dots and see correlations and connections between various elements.

Flexible specialist should be a visionary that sees beyond the daily tasks and activities, someone who is driven and willing to constantly learn and develop.

So, let’s look at the personal and team competences of the employee of the future.

Personal competences

Learning is the core competence. In an ever-changing world, we have to assume that our education will never end. The most developing competence is being proactive, expressed by taking responsibility for one’s life and making choices. Perhaps sometimes difficult or challenging ones, and not always succeeding. But learning from mistakes completes a proactive attitude and very often success is the result of many trials and errors from which we have drawn conclusions. Mistakes and failures are part of our everyday life. Unpredictability requires unconventional and adaptive thinking – proficiency in creative thinking and finding out-of-the-box solutions.

Team competences

Success is often teamwork and requires working in multi-cultural and multi-level industry teams. The employee of the future will have to be prepared to work in a very diverse environment, hence the need for strong soft skills, especially empathy and communication. People with high emotional intelligence are able to quickly establish relationships with others because they read emotions better and adapt their behaviour to others.

In teams where the key is to work together, achieve goals, define priorities, go beyond individuality, the ability to build trust and relationships in a deep and direct way are required. The necessity to cooperate with larger groups of people in various conditions, often in virtual teams, enforces the ability to think and see the connections between individual tasks and tasks of other team members, sharing information, understanding the perspective of people representing other disciplines of knowledge.

Do you have what it takes to stay attractive in the future workplace? What skills you need to have or develop to have a competitive advantage? More on this topic coming soon!

Career Brand Management – Skills Portfolio

Career Brand Management – Skills Portfolio

Career, Career Brand Management

To maintain your own employability, you need to develop capabilities to acquire new skills on your own or develop those which are necessary for career success.

Today, you will find out how to assess your own skills, how to perform skills gap analysis and how to read the job ads to be able to tailor your resume to succeed in the selection process.

In previous article ‘Strategic Approach to Your Career’ I asked you to set yourself career goals. Those goals should be precisely defined to make sure you are focused on a specific area of expertise required for the particular job, industry or even company. The objective of the exercise was to define job title(s) of your dream job. The next step will be the assessment of your skills portfolio, a benchmarking process and skill gap analysis in order to create a self-development plan.

In every job ad, you can easily see two sections: required skills and future responsibilities. Those two give you an indication of who the company is looking for, and what tasks the person is expected to perform.
Those two sections should be a basis for the evaluation of your knowledge and the portfolio of your current skills, abilities and competencies.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND COMPETENCIES
There is a difference between knowledge, skills, abilities and competences. So, before we continue, let’s dive into each of them.

Knowledge is simply the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject, an awareness of some facts, acquired through experience, observation or learning process.
Skills are your ability and capacity, acquired through systematic and sustained effort, to carry out complex activities or job functions.
There are also your abilities, which are acquired or natural talent or power to successfully perform a set of tasks under particular circumstances.
Lastly, huge word now: competencies. They are defined as the applied skills and knowledge, that enable a person to act successfully and effectively in a job.

Skills can be developed and improved over time, by combining your abilities and knowledge. But the underlying abilities are necessary for the skills to be developed.
To give you an example: if you were a football player, you may be very good at juggling the ball. This is a skill, which you would not be able to perform without the ability to move quickly, be flexible, which is down to your muscles and physical condition.

Competencies specify how the job tasks are performed and what the person needs to do the job successfully. They are used for a spectrum of human resources activities including:
– assessing and selecting candidates for a job
– assessing and managing employee performance
– workforce planning
– employee training and development

SKILLS PORTFOLIO
As you know, from the previous article in the Career Brand Management series, career brand has two components: the emotional one which is personal image, and the functional – which is your marketable skills.
Those are generally divided into two categories:
– hard skills – Hard skills are teachable abilities or skill sets that are easy to quantify. They might be specific to an industry or a trade or a profession.
– soft skills – non cognitive skills or personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people.
Soft skills are a combination of interpersonal people skills, social skills, communication skills, character traits, attitudes and emotional intelligence. They are desirable qualities for certain forms of employment that do not depend on an acquired knowledge.

You might have come across the term ‘transferable skills ‘ or ‘portable skills‘. Those are non job specific skills, that you can take with you, and can be effectively used to serve another employer. Decision-making, leadership, communication or problem-solving are good examples of desirable transferable skills.

You should take some time to reflect on your own portfolio of skills and list your hard skills, soft skills and transferable skills. The list will be a very handy when it comes to creating your LinkedIN profile, tailoring your resume and writing your motivational letter.

HOW TO READ A JOB AD AND TAILOR YOUR RESUME
When companies and recruiters look for a candidate, they list the required knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies. When reading the job ad, take some time to spot the key requirements, list them as keywords and make sure that your resume and your motivational letter contain them.
In most cases, your CV goes first via electronic system that scans the documents for job titles and set of keywords. A final selection that passes the system, ends on the HR person’s desk. This means that it is critical for you to always tailor your resume and the motivational letter, to pass the preliminary selection process.

 

career brand skills assesement

 

SKILLS GAP ANALYSIS – PRACTICAL EXERCISE
Look at the previous week’s article, what was your career goal, what was the job you wanted? Got it? You should have a define job title(s) for this. To be able to succeed in your career you have to develop skills that are critical for your dream job. Which are those? Check any recent job ads for your dream job and make a list of required skills.

What is between your current role and the dream role is either the expertise level, the experience or the set of skills. Remember, while the expertise and experience often come with time, the skills are something you can actively develop.
Now, search for a recent job ads for your dream position and list the key requirements, with a focus on skills. Examine the job description and break down skills areas and required  mastery level.
You should have at least five on your list. Try to assess your level of mastery in each of them on a scale from 1 to 10, 1 being none and 10 being excellent. You should be able to benchmark yourself based on to-date experience and peer comparison.

As a result, you should spot the skills that need an improvement. Make a priority list of critical skills and plan how to develop those, probably best, one at the time. To do it efficiently you should:
– define a reasonable time frame to develop the skills
– set a mastery level you want to reach

Let me give you an example. If you would like to be a Sales Director, a critical skill could be leading weekly meetings and regular sales training. You do not feel comfortable speaking in front of the group, and you would like to improve your presentation skills. You have the skill to focus on, now set yourself a time, how many weeks or months do you need?
What mastery level you would like to achieve? And of course very importantly, how would you like to do that?
Think, what courses could you attend? How could you practice?
List the obstacles, if you feel there is something that would prevent you from developing the skill. Then try to see how to overcome it.

If you would like to develop in depth knowledge of online advertising, perhaps a course in Google Advertising would be an idea. Do you have the resources, money and time to commit? You may consider the online resources, that are cheaper and offer more flexible learning system.

ACTION PLAN
1. Set yourself a clear career goal and define dream job titles
2. Assess your current portfolio of skills
3. Benchmark your skills against those required for your dream job
4. Conduct skills gap analysis
5. Set self-development plan to acquire new or develop existing skill to needed mastery level

NEXT WEEK

Stay tuned for more tips on Career Brand Development. Next week you will find out how to market yourself. I will give you a few tips on creating your professional resume and LinkedIN profile.