Meghan M. Biro, Author at TalentCulture

Top 4 Reasons Talent Pipelines are A No-Brainer

Let’s take a look at the U.S. labor market, shall we? According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), in February 2016, the U.S. unemployment rate was unchanged at a low 4.9 percent; in addition, 1.8 million people were “marginally attached” to the labor force, down by 356,000 from a year earlier. By definition, these individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. Among the marginally attached, there were 599,000 “discouraged workers” in February, down by 133,000 from a year earlier. “Discouraged workers are

5 Steps To Awesome Community: Leaders Go Social

Some time ago, I wrote about employees as brand ambassadors and how they can help – or hurt – an organization’s global and social brand. It depends on how well the lines between personal brand and company brand are drawn. Once a company and leadership has the brand issue sorted out, it’s time to think more deeply about social community and the actual role of community managers. Many of my clients have created community manager roles. In fact, my friend and colleague Tim McDonald (and several other talented, hard working people listed here – Take time to read the stories of

#WorkTrends Preview: How to Face the Scariest Employment Challenges of 2016

There are a number of hot issues, new developments, and emerging challenges that will inevitably catch employers by storm in 2016. Supreme Court decisions, federal and state laws, and actions by regulatory agencies have called into question the very nature of the employer-employee relationship. There are, without any doubt, a myriad of scary employment challenges for HR pros and businesses to navigate. From providing paid sick leave and equal employment opportunities to extending equal rights and benefits for same-sex partners to accommodating pregnant women, an employer must comply with new obligations that may require altering business operations. Workforce structure and policies

Your Employees Are Engaged…REALLY?

A while back, I dropped in on an innovative workspace for one of my software technology clients– it’s a very cool office space. An open-plan, communal space with worktables in rows, very low partitions between areas, and no private offices. Note that I said workspace, because it wasn’t very clear to me how a vast room offering little in the way of private work areas could become a workplace – somewhere to get things done. Of course, I can’t forget the large sunny cafeteria and the designated area for Foosball table and other games. Ok, call me jaded but….this hip tech

#WorkTrends Recap: Don’t Quit Yet: How to Create Your Perfect Job

Do you constantly think about quitting your job because it’s just not quite right and you know there’s the perfect job out there for you? Well hold that thought. During today’s #WorkTrends show, author and keynote speaker Ben Fanning joined us to talk about how you can turn your current job into one you love….and in the process, keep the great benefits. Fanning shared his number one secret to success, which is giving yourself permission to love your work. In the process, you create a space for exploration and possibility. In addition to learning how to love your work, we talked

5 Methods for Social Leadership: Try Reverse Mentoring

I’ve been thinking a lot about global leadership applications for social learning lately. I spend a portion of my time helping companies and leaders hire and retain the very best and most applicable talent based on personality and skill set so this is a topic on my mind literally on a weekly basis. I have run into a recurrent trending theme in the past few years – reverse mentoring. It’s no secret there are greater numbers of older workers in the workplace right now; many baby boomers have evaporated retirement funds due to the recession, which means fewer career positions for

Will Extended Parental Leave Ever Exist in the US?

The United States lags behind when it comes to parental rights. We’re on a shockingly short list of countries that offer no paid maternity leave and are one of just a few developed nations with no federally mandated parental leave. This isn’t a good thing for workers or companies. It leaves many people torn between health, family, and paycheck. For those who can’t afford to take time off, recovering from childbirth or adjusting to new routines can impact their performance at work. New parents who can afford not to go back to work after having children often don’t—leaving employers with vacant

#WorkTrends Preview: Don’t Quit Yet: How to Create Your Perfect Job

Do you dream about finding the perfect job – the one position out there that has everything you could ever want and need? During this #WorkTrends show, author and keynote speaker Ben Fanning will join us to talk about how you can turn your current job into one you love….and in the process, keep the great benefits. Part of the secret to success? According to Fanning, it’s giving yourself permission to love your work. In the process, you create a space for exploration and possibility. Sounds interesting, doesn’t it? In addition to learning how to love your work, we’ll dive into

5 Ugly Myths About Changing Career in 30s

You are in your 30s, they say. You should already know what you want from this life and your career, they say. Oh, really? According to the research by Vodafone, people of 31-35 years old are the most unhappy at work. They feel undervalued, unfulfilled, demotivated, and they experience a mid-career blues, thinking of career change more often than others but still worrying if it’s worth making a swap here and now when you are not so young and promising as those graduates, full of energy and ready to do everything a boss tells. All those stories about 35-year-old Mary who

5 Ways To Rock Star HR Leadership

One of the dirty little secrets of HR – Human Resources as a professional practice – is that it’s not always about the people and humanizing brands. Not really, anyway. Some HR professionals have more in common with the Governance, Risk and Control department of the enterprise. HR sometimes gets a bad rap for being more concerned with limiting risk to the corporation than it is with making sure the employees – people, everyone – are working well and that the company’s culture can sustain its people in a fast-paced business. As a talent management practitioner and speaker, I spend a

#WorkTrends Recap: Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

Today’s #WorkTrends show addressed the risks and rewards of mentoring, identified some of the reasons mentoring is disappearing, and explored how to reintroduce these important business relationships. There are a myriad of benefits to well-designed and well-executed mentoring relationships in the workplace. However, it appears that the practice of mentoring is starting to taper off and, in some cases, disappear altogether. Along with our knowledgeable guests Jonathan Segal, a partner in Duane Morris’ Employment Group, and Sue Meisinger, a consultant and speaker on HR leadership issues, we also discussed: What exactly mentoring is (as well as what it isn’t) The importance

The Disconnect Between our Educational System and Organizational Demand

Does our educational system leave new graduates at a disadvantage? The U.S. educational system has long been considered one of the best in the world, but in recent years, it’s stagnated. According to the latest Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) (a triennial global study), the U.S. was the lowest-performing industrialized country—below average in math, and only hovering around average in science and reading. Middle of the road won’t cut it in this global economy. The World Economic Forum (WEF) recently ranked the U.S. as third on the Global Competitiveness Index, behind Switzerland and Singapore, pointing to the quality of education

Time For A New Leader In The C-Suite?

Business is remaking itself, and a concern for company culture appears to be high on the list of must-have skills (led by people who can add and subtract, of course). This truly makes me happy. What about you? I’ve been touting the benefits of company culture for a many years now and am very interested, but a bit skeptical to be honest, to read of this change in direction. Isn’t the C-Suite crowded already? There’s the CEO, CFO and COO, usually long-term appointments, flanked by the CIO, CSO and CMO, with average job tenures of two years. Usually the top HR

Social Learning Leadership: A New Panacea For Ignorance?

A dear friend’s TWINS (yes all caps) just entered a prestigious New England university. They are bright, driven, focused students and they’ll do well. They’d better, because it will cost my friend north of $100K a year to keep them in New England college splendor. Smiles. It would have been more costly at Harvard, which in 2012-2013 provided cost guidelines for undergraduates in excess of $62,000. Of course a recent graduate, if he or she were fortunate enough to find a full-time job (almost half are not so lucky, according to a recent study) might expect to receive an annual salary

#WorkTrends Preview: Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

There are a myriad of benefits to well-designed and well-executed mentoring relationships in the workplace. However, it appears that the practice of mentoring is starting to taper off and, in some cases, disappear altogether. During this upcoming #WorkTrends conversation, we’ll discuss the risks and rewards of mentoring, identify some of the reasons mentoring is disappearing, and explore how to reintroduce these important business relationships. Along with our knowledgeable guests Jonathan Segal, a partner in Duane Morris’ Employment Group, and Sue Meisinger, a consultant and speaker on HR leadership issues, some of the things we’ll discuss include: What exactly mentoring is (as

Who Owns Your Company’s Brand

I’ve written a lot about the positive aspects of brand, brand humanization, allowing employees to be brand ambassadors, and to free up their personal brand to evolve just as real people do. What I haven’t talked about as much is who owns your company’s brand. Does the organization? Do the brand ambassadors? Where do you draw the line, and when? I’ll tell you a story about a software technology company (one of my clients) which hired a well-known thought leader to be the brand ambassador for one of its product lines. The company allowed the brand ambassador to Tweet and blog

#WorkTrends Recap: Diminishing Unconscious Bias in Hiring

Today’s #WorkTrends show addressed the topic of how to diminish unconscious bias in hiring–a topic that constantly plagues HR departments. Every day, unconscious biases influence hiring decisions. This issue undercuts the culture and success of many companies, from start-ups to Fortune 500s. According to our guest, author Gail Tolstoi-Miller, companies must build awareness of the biases that take place in the recruitment and hiring processes and take action. We discussed the reality that organizations need to implement formal, on-going training for people in decision-making functions, and she also shared how to combat and diminish bias throughout the hiring process. Some of

What HR Technology Can Learn from Minecraft

Minecraft, a video game that lets you build things with virtual blocks, has been a huge sensation since it hit the market in 2009. Everyone, children, and adults, seems to be obsessed with it; the game currently boasts more than 100 million players. Of course, there are behavioral and parental experts concerned that too much screen time playing Minecraft may affect social skills. However, contrary to this belief, experts have found that video games can offer quite a few benefits—including building social skills. Building social skills is important for children, but children aren’t the only ones who can benefit from the

Will Technology Replace HR in 2016?

We’ve been hearing about technology replacing humans in HR for more than five years. Algorithms, Talent Analytics, and Predictive Behavior Technology are certainly having a significant impact on HR, and making it much more of a science. Yet there’s an issue because technology is fallible too. What about the other side of the argument, that HR is an art because, at its heart, it’s about people? Which is it? Art? Or science? I say both. Today’s human resources professional resides somewhere between the warmth of personal relationships and the cold truth of data. For years, we’ve watched HR change before our

#WorkTrends Preview: Diminishing Unconscious Bias in Hiring

During this #WorkTrends, we are going to discuss how to diminish unconscious bias in hiring. Every day, unconscious biases influence hiring decisions. This issue undercuts the culture and success of many companies, from start-ups to Fortune 500s. According to our guest, author Gail Tolstoi-Miller, companies must build awareness of the bias that takes place in the hiring process and take action. She will share why organizations should implement formal training for people in decision-making functions, and how to combat and diminish bias throughout the hiring process. #WorkTrends Event: Diminishing Unconscious Bias in Hiring Tune in to our LIVE online podcast Wednesday,

Leaders: America Needs You To Be Its Batman

If you’re under 50, there probably hasn’t been, in your memory, a time of such paralyzing uncertainty. Sure, each decade since the 60s has seen its share of unpleasant news. The 60s saw JFK assassinated and the ramp-up of the Vietnam War. The 70s had Watergate, the fall of Nixon and the undignified scramble out of Vietnam. Jimmy Carter’s botched Iran hostage rescue marked the 80s, and the 90s saw the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. 2000’s Y2K was followed in close order by the dot-com bust and 9/11. While each of these periods

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Meghan M. Biro

Meghan M. Biro

Top 4 Reasons Talent Pipelines are A No-Brainer

#WorkTrends Preview: How to Face the Scariest Employment Challenges of 2016

Your Employees Are Engaged…REALLY?

#WorkTrends Recap: Don’t Quit Yet: How to Create Your Perfect Job

5 Methods for Social Leadership: Try Reverse Mentoring

Will Extended Parental Leave Ever Exist in the US?

#WorkTrends Preview: Don’t Quit Yet: How to Create Your Perfect Job

5 Ugly Myths About Changing Career in 30s

5 Ways To Rock Star HR Leadership

#WorkTrends Recap: Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

The Disconnect Between our Educational System and Organizational Demand

Time For A New Leader In The C-Suite?

#WorkTrends Preview: Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

#WorkTrends Recap: Diminishing Unconscious Bias in Hiring

What HR Technology Can Learn from Minecraft

Will Technology Replace HR in 2016?

#WorkTrends Preview: Diminishing Unconscious Bias in Hiring

Leaders: America Needs You To Be Its Batman

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Meghan M. Biro

Meghan M. Biro

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