Author: padmajag

Padmaja Ganeshan-Singh is a freelance writer and an HR professional with extensive experience in employee relations, talent management and career development. She can also talk endlessly on the merits and demerits of forced distribution and pay for performance. In her free time, she tries to figure out the personality type of people she meets using the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. INTJ anyone?

What to Do When You Can’t Meet the Project Deadline

Let’s say your manager has assigned a project to you. You’re already working on a few priorities, but you accept this anyway. Why? Any one of a number of reasons. Maybe you think the project is going to add to your skillsets, or you want your manager to know that you are...

5 Tips to Prepare for an Exploratory Interview

It might feel weird to prepare for an interview when you don’t even expect it to lead to a job, but it’s worth your while to do your homework before an exploratory interview, and treat it just as seriously as you would any other job interview. You never know when the situation...

5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Work Environment

Even if you absolutely love your job, there’s always going to be something about it that you wish you could change. That’s the ideal scenario; if you’re lucky, you have an issue or two that you’d like to resolve, but nothing that impacts your job satisfaction as a whole. On the other...

5 Things to Do When You Drop the Ball at Work

Mistakes are pretty common in all areas of life. The workplace is no exception. The only difference is that the stakes might be higher. Depending on the severity of your goof, your job may be at risk. If you’re fortunate enough to realize your mistake before it causes a major catastrophe and...

7 Reasons Why You Should Work at a Startup

Let me start by saying that working in a startup is a high-risk, high-reward game and not everyone can make that switch. If you click with the employer, the rewards are huge, but if you don’t, well … hopefully you’ve gained something from the experience. If you are willing to take a...

Salary Factors: Here’s How Your Employer Decides How Much You Get Paid

What goes into determining how much money you make? In most organizations, salaries are determined by mapping roles and job descriptions with similar organizations (competitors) through a third-party compensation and benchmarking service. A typical job is broken down into its responsibilities, criticality, complexity, and market availability to name a few crucial factors....

FMLA: What You Need to Know

The main purpose of FMLA or the Family and Medical Leave Act is to help employees balance work and personal/familial needs. By way of the FMLA, you can take up to 12 weeks leave in any 12-month period for personal or an immediate family member’s medical exigencies, expansion of family, or for...

What to Do When You Find Out That You Are Wildly Underpaid

Through a casual discussion with your colleagues, you suddenly realize that you are making significantly less money than co-workers with the same experience and job title. Or, a clerical error occurs, and you see something you shouldn’t: the new team you are assigned to train going to be making nearly as much...

9 Things to Consider Before Making an Employee Referral

If you work for a well-known company or in a coveted field, you may have already received requests from friends, relatives, acquaintances, and LinkedIn contacts to forward their resumes for a suitable role in your organization. This could put you in a bind if you’re dealing with a good friend who would...

8 Tips to Prepare for a Panel Interview

The recruiter sounds very excited on the phone: “I’ve scheduled you for a panel interview with our managers next Tuesday a.m. I look forward to meeting with you. Do you have any questions for me?” You hear “panel interview” and you freeze. Handling one interviewer at a time is a task, so...

How to Work With a Spineless Manager

Does your manager avoid tough discussions, put her own boss or clients first, or overload the least resistant employee with a ton of work? She may be spineless, to say the least. Such a boss will often try to sneak out of situations as quickly as possible without hurting her chance with...

8 Things to Do When Your Peer Becomes Your Manager

You may have worked on the same team together as peers, been classmates in school, and come up for promotion at the same time. But only one of you made the cut this time, and it was not you who was promoted. Now your peer is your manager, and as much as...

7 Resume Tips for Older Job Seekers

Age may be a state of mind, but in many industries it could be the reason you’re not getting the call for an interview. Discrimination based on age is illegal, but sadly, it exists. In many cases, it is factored in even at the resume shortlisting phase. Sometimes, years of experience don’t...

Don’t Panic If Your HRBP Wants to Meet With You

HR business partners (HRBP) combine several domains of HR, including recruitment, performance management, and compensation planning. They are also involved in evaluating employee engagement and creating smooth conflict-resolution channels. If you get a call from your HRBP, it’s natural then to fear that they’re contacting you in their conflict-resolution capacity. Before you...

9 Tips to Manage your Body Language at Interviews

Whether you’re going to your first job interview, you’re out of practice, or you’re generally nervous about interviews, make sure your body language doesn’t give away your fear and apprehension. Stay aware of these general body language tips that can help you through your interview process. (Photo Credit: stockimages/freedigitalphotos.net) 1. Take control...

What to Do When You Are Being Investigated at Work

Your manager wants to meet with you and has set up a time with your local HR contact. There’s been a complaint against you about some action or behavior that violates company policies. Whether or not you’re guilty, your employer is required to conduct an investigation, and you may or may not...

workplace bullying

workplace bullying

Are You Being Bullied at Work? Here’s What to Do

If you're having trouble motivating to go to work in the morning, you might hate your job -- or you might be the victim of workplace bullying. Anyone can be a bully at work, whether it's a boss or a co-worker or a client. If you're a target, it's important to recognize...

8 Ways to Make Your Next Review the Best One Ever

Most companies have a rigorous annual performance review and a softer half-yearly check-in, just to see how things are going. You, as an employee, have a lot riding on the performance management process of your company. That number or letter you get at the end of the year decides your raise or...

5 Tips for Handling Office Romance

Spending most of the day at work could lead to relationships beyond the professional kind. CareerBuilder’s annual survey on office romance found nearly two in five (38 percent) US workers have dated someone who worked for the same company, and 16 percent said they have done so more than once. Of those...

What You Need to Know Before You Take a Long Leave From Work

Going on a long leave is seldom easy. Whatever the reason for leave, it is the joint responsibility of the manager and the employee to figure out a suitable solution to their mutual situation. Here are a few pointers to help the employee and the manager find a good middle ground. ...

What If the Boss Wants Me to Do Something That’s Against My Beliefs?

Life and work would be so much simpler if everything was in black or white. Unfortunately, we deal predominantly in shades of gray. So how do you handle work situations with a boss who tests your limits and breaches your belief system? If only choosing your own boss was an option! (Photo...

8 Post-Interview Faux Pas to Avoid

You’ve just given your interview and the suspense is killing you. Will they, or won’t they — and what should you do while you’re waiting to hear back? Whatever you do, avoid these eight post-interview mistakes that could affect your candidacy. (Photo Credit: stockimages/freedigitalphotos.net) You don’t send a thank-you note: Honestly, this...

7 Mistakes on Social Media That Could Be Hurting Your Job Search

More employers are checking out the social media profiles of applicants to weed out undesirable candidates. So while you may be proud of your 500+ Facebook friends or your 1000+ followers on Twitter, make sure your awesome virtual social life is not killing your career. Photo Credit: petesimon/Flickr A nationwide survey,...

Illegal Job Interview Questions: What Can’t They Ask Me?

Congratulations on the interview call. You’re almost there. But before you sit across the table or pick the phone to talk to your potential employer, learn to recognize questions that could be illegal. (Photo Credit: Mike Licht/Flickr) Federal and state laws prohibit prospective employers from asking questions around any of the...