Channel4000.com - Answers To Your Career Questions

Answers To Your Career Questions

MAIL BAG: This column is dedicated solely to your questions. They are important to me and to the success of this column, and I appreciate all of them. Keep them coming!

Ask Ella Please send your questions and comments to askella@ibsys.com.

And now your letters:

Dear Ella,
I have had two interviews with a company for which I am very much interested in working. So far, though, money has not been mentioned. When is it a good time for me to bring up the money issue?

Dear When is it a Good Time to Bring up the Money Issue?

NEVER! Well, almost never. The best thing would have been for you to provide your current salary on your resume when you first submitted it for consideration to this company. Then, as the interview process got under way, you would have been able to assume that your salary fell within their budget constraints.

If money has not been brought up by your prospective employer yet and you are being scheduled for your third round of interviews with them, request that you also be scheduled to meet with their human resource representative under the auspices of "to learn more about the company benefits and compensation packages offered." It is probably here that the subject of salary will be discussed. If, toward the end of the interview with HR, money has not been addressed, ask them about the salary range for this position.

Dear Ella,
I have been offered a job as an art director for a major advertising agency. I have interviewed with their CEO and the staff that will be reporting directly into me; however, the person to whom I will be reporting directly -- the creative director -- has not been hired. I am a little uncomfortable accepting a position when I don't know the person to whom I will report. I don't even know if I will get along creatively with this person. I don't want to make a mistake at this stage in my career. What should I do?

Dear What Should I Do?

If you like the accounts they are servicing and they have a strong management team that you believe in, then I recommend you take the position. The labor market for creative talent is tight right now due to dot-com layoffs. A lot of terrific talent is on the street and looking for a place to land. If the company is as "premier," as you say it is, then they have had a lot of experience hiring candidates that will fit seamlessly into their corporate culture. There is no reason to think that they would hire a creative director that goes against "type." Go for it! And congratulations!

Dear Ella,
I accepted a position as an information technology manager at a public corporation late last year. Fifty percent of my total compensation is based on corporate earnings and will be distributed in the form of an annual bonus. I have been at the company now for six months and I know that the company is having difficulty meeting earnings expectations from Wall Street. We have been told that our open requisitions for outside talent has been put on hold until earnings are up, but I have projects that cannot be delivered in the time frame first promised because I am now understaffed.
In short -- there will be little to no bonus pay out this year. This expected bonus is important to my standard of living, but this job is important, too. I am thinking of looking for a new position, but with only six months on the job, I'm afraid that I will look like a job hopper on my resume. Need your expert advise on this.

Dear Need Your Expert Advice,

The largest overhead for any company is the human resource. Many companies are looking at ways to scale down in order to increase profits and that means more people will be out of work before we close this year. You are in the best position to know if you will be one of these resources to be "let go."

If you think that the changes internal to your company are strategically sound and that it is just an adjustment period, you have to make it through before you can start to realize the bonus for which you signed on, then I would stay put. However, if the "writing is on the wall" and you see that the corporate strategy first presented to you when you took the position is not being executed -- this can be evidenced by the incongruent management decisions -- then it is time to look for opportunity elsewhere. Good luck.

Dear Ella,
I have three job offers -- all in writing and all very similar; the only difference in these companies is that they manufacture for different industries. They are: consumer packaged goods; pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs; and textiles. I need to make a decision that will give me the most job security (if there is such a thing). What type of industries is doing the best, economically speaking?

Dear Economically Speaking, Consumers like you and I drive consumer packaged goods. Many retail food stores are replacing their brand-name items with their own private labels -- taking the desired "shelf space" once coveted by the name-brand manufactures, away. This is hurting CPG manufacturing revenues.

Textile manufactures depend on the success of the finished goods manufacturers to whom they sell, and the finished goods manufacturers depend on the strength of their clients -- wholesale and retail businesses. Because textile industry revenues are tied directly to the strength in consumer confidence and the amount of disposable income available to them, I would take a pass until consumer confidence stabilizes.

Pharmaceuticals/over-the-counter (OTC) drug manufacturers are doing very well. Pharmaceuticals/OTC markets are consolidating. Retrenchment (for the most part) has taken place already and they are now acting on a firm strategic plan that requires that they move aggressively and expand into new consumer markets. Many drugs once obtained by prescription are being moved to over-the-counter status, so pharmaceutical/OTC companies are hiring talent that brings a fresh approach to B2C (business to consumer) sales applications. In large part, this talent is coming from the consumer packaged goods and advertising sectors.

I think that your best bet is pharmaceuticals. Let me know what you decide.

Dear Ella,
I work for the boss from hell. When he hired me, he told me that I would lead projects. While I did not have any standardized project management methodology in my background, my boss told me that his company would pay for me to attend the management courses needed to support these efforts and assist me succeeding in my job. It has been eight months since I began with this company, and, to date, they have not provided me with any new training. I have spoken to my boss, but he says that his request for education reimbursement training has (for the moment) been denied. Should I go to his boss?

Dear Should I go to His Boss?

Only go to his boss if your willing to lose your job. There are reporting structures set up in organizations for a reason and going over the head of your boss is not a way to gain any brownie points. I would speak to your human resource contact within the company. She/he may have a solution for you. If this does not yield your desired results, I would pay for the education yourself. It will make you a better employee and show your company that you are serious about your work. This education is an investment in yourself and you can take that anywhere! Additionally, your added experience will increase your marketability in the work force when and if you decide to move on in the future.

Dear Ella,
My company is about to be purchased. I have a strong position within my company and do not feel that I am in a jeopardy of losing my job, but I will lose part of my staff. The morale is low and I am not getting the work output from them that I should. How can I motivate my group to remain unified when they don't know if they will have a job tomorrow?

Dear Will I Have A Job Tomorrow?

There are no guarantees in business or in life. I would speak to your boss, your public relations department and your human resource's VP and ask them for as much specific information related to this purchase as they can give you and can share at this point in time. Worker morale is its lowest when company lines of communication close down. Keep the information flowing and call weekly meetings to share new information and provide an open forum for dialogue between you and your staff.

Dear Ella,
I work for a company that provides marketing consulting strategies to businesses. I have decided to open my own firm, providing like services. The problem is that I signed a "non-compete" contact when I was hired, forbidding me from competing in the same industry for a period of two years once I leave them. Is the contract enforceable?

Dear Is This Contact Enforceable?

It depends. The contract usually refers to "proprietary" company information learned or formulated during your period of employment with said company. This can include client information, too. You need to take your contract to an employment lawyer. He/she is well versed in contract law and will be able to give you a succinct answer or at least a next course of action.

Dear Ella,
I am the only woman is an office of men. My job is to administrate company policy concerning workflow process. I am having a difficult time gaining the respect and trust I need from the employees in order to succeed at my job. How can I communicate better?

Dear How Can I Communicate Better

You need to decide what your job is going to be: Is it going to be to change the male culture of the company you sit in, or is it going to be to do the job you were hired to do? The only communiqu� I can recommend you now draft is a letter of resignation. You're pushing a rock uphill. You need to think more strategically when choosing an employer.

Next Week: Ethics in the workplace

Previous Stories: