Many candidates feel that midsummer is not the right time to find a new job. It’s true that many companies hold off on posting key positions until fall and that the hiring process can slow to a languid crawl during midsummer due to vacations. However, there are useful ways you can use summer “downtime” to pave the way to career advancement. One way is to put the “70:20:10” model to work to enhance your skill profile.

What is the “70:20:10” Model?

The 70:20:10 model is a proportional breakdown of how people learn effectively and was developed by Morgan McCall and the Centre for Creative Leadership (CCL) in the 1980s. While it’s neither scientifically proven nor exact in its mix, the notion that informal learning carries the heaviest weight on the job has influenced approaches to training. Essentially, the CCL originally conducted a survey with 200 executives. The survey’s findings were that individuals obtain 70 percent of their knowledge from job-related experiences, 20 percent from interactions with others, and 10 percent from formal educational events. Thus, the theory has been that 90% of your professional knowledge comes from “informal” learning. The 70:20:10 rule or model revolutionized approaches to corporate training. It has also led to new ways of looking at training, with the internet giving rise to increasing proportions of both social and formal learning opportunities. Read the rest of this entry »

With summer in full swing, your idea of fun might not have anything to do with the workplace. However, numerous studies show that humor in the workplace can relieve stress, increase productivity, build trust, and when done right, help promote employees to leadership roles. No kidding!

The Laughter Drought

Babies laugh 400 times a day. The average person over age 35 laughs an average of 15 times on each weekday, according to Gallup. Something tragic has happened on our way to the work world: we’ve lost our sense of humor. While humor might be tragedy plus time (according to Mark Twain), this tragedy is no laughing matter. Employee wellbeing, teamwork, productivity, and leadership hang in the balance. So, get your giggles on! Read the rest of this entry »

In addition to strong programming skills, candidates for big data jobs need varying levels of experience with cloud infrastructure. The following are some sample certification resources, as well as a graduate program focused on mining data. Read the rest of this entry »

With data being produced at a rate of 2.5 quintillion bytes per day, the skills needed to utilize and manage this data are in high demand. Today, we’re discussing ways you can enhance your skill set, as well as sought-after roles for companies working in or adjacent to big data.

Enjoy Part 2 of our “Big Data is Moneyball for Business” piece below! Read the rest of this entry »

With the advent of digital, mobile and IoT technology, people are producing data at a rate of 2.5 quintillion bytes per day. By 2020, it’s estimated that 1.7MB of data will be created every second for every person on earth. Ninety percent of data in the world has been created in the last few years. What will we do with this data, and who will do it? Read the rest of this entry »

A popular trend among employers cited in Linked In’s annual report on Global Talent Trends is the quest to find employees with strong technical skills, but equally strong “soft” skills. What does that mean, exactly? Let’s break down the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ in order to understand the ‘how.’ Read the rest of this entry »