Employee engagement is a concept often ignored by organizations. After hiring a candidate, companies do not plan any strategies or policies which can keep the employee enthusiastic about work. This is an essential aspect of employee retention and promotes stability among employees for a more extended stay in the company. Before knowing why employee engagement is essential, you must understand different categories of employees: Engaged employees are those who treat their work as their second home. They take complete responsibility and ownership of their work and stay loyal to the organization. They are the upcoming leaders and remain with the company for long. Not engaged employees are those who are pretty happy with their job but only do what their job profile demands. They do not work for the mission, goals, and values of the company. However, with the right approach, you can convert them into engaged employees. Disengaged employees have no zeal to perform. They spread negativity in the organization by talking about how unhappy they are with their work and office culture. There is a rare chance that you can convert them into engaged employees. According to Mental Health America, disengaged workers cause massive losses in productivity – between $450 and $500 billion a year. Furthermore, the only ? of US employees are engaged in their workplace. This calls for a growing need to engage your employees at a high level to ensure more productivity and better results. Here is how HR managers can improve their employee engagement: 1. Give Right Tools to Work Job satisfaction depends a lot on the company’s infrastructure. This means devising processes and providing tools to employees using which they can complete their job. You must find out tools that can enhance employees’ productivity. They can complete a job quickly with distinct processes and boost their efficiency. 2. Provide Training Employees look for a culture that offers continuous growth. They want to work in an organization where they can see a rising graph in their careers. It is important to provide regular training to employees to help them gain more skills. Organize training and enroll your employees in the same. This will provide them a sense of belongingness with the organization, and they will feel motivated when they learn something new. 3. Recognition There is no doubt that appreciating employees for good work is the key to having an effective employee engagement. Giving them rewards in the form of gift coupons and monetary benefits is very encouraging. Conduct monthly meetings and recognize the efforts of employees. 4. Introduce Open Communication Clear communication gives insights into what is going on in the mind of an employee. Know how your employees feel by conducting surveys, team meetings and using suggestion boxes. Be a good listener. Encourage them to speak up so that you can implement changes that you feel are right. 5. Share Numbers Your employees should know what is happening in the company. They must be aware of the numbers. Share every good and bad news with them so that they feel part of the organization. 6. Promote Company Culture Make your employees clear about company culture which includes goals, mission, and values. Encourage them to fit into the system by listing down the benefits. 7. Engage Right from the Start The best way to kill an employee’s enthusiasm is by giving him the monotonous task of filling out forms on the day of his joining. You can change this concept by introducing employees straight to work. Attach a mentor or a work buddy with the new joiner to make him feel engaged and part of the company right from day one. 8. Regular Feedback Giving frequent feedback to employees is more encouraging than discussing it annually in a performance review. A timely review of their performance helps them in updating their skills and performing as per the company’s expectations. Use both formal as well as informal methods of communication to do the same. 9. It’s Time to Distress Them Working non-stop for long working hours under pressure and deadlines build stress among employees. Organizations should take the responsibility of making their employees stress-free and feel happy about working. Organize fun activities that are both fun to play and useful to learn. Take them out for outings or organize parties like an annual reward. 10. Offer Work-life Balance Work-from-home options and flexible timings provide freedom to employees to work from anywhere at any time. Providing these facilities will result in more engaged employees than unhappy employees working in cubicles from 9 to 5. There is no hidden secret for increasing employee engagement. These simple tips can make your workplace more meaningful for the employees. There is no need to invest a huge amount of money in engaging your employees. By following simple practices and with creative strategies, you can quickly promote a happy work culture in your organization. After all, employee engagement is the first step towards building a happy workforce.
To make the whole concept clear to you, we thought of giving you a tabular comparison of some of the major common dos and don’ts of interview body language. Keep reading to make the most of these powerful body language tips. The Dos Enter confidently: You must enter confidently since the recruiters even check with the reception about your body language. They believe in observing from the beginning and noticing all the changes. First impressions do matter and, in some cases, they matter the most. Don’t be too nervous and try to breathe deeply to calm yourself. A firm handshake: As mentioned earlier, a firm handshake makes an interviewer feel your enthusiasm and confidence. But remember to let go at the right time. A firm handshake makes them confident about your self-assured personality. Sit straight: Keep your back straight (not too stiff) and maintain your posture in such a way that your legs are firmly placed. Lean in towards the interviewers to give an impression of you being interested in what they speak. Maintain eye contact: It is of utmost importance that you look directly into the eyes of the person who asks you questions. Make eye contact with every panelist, to look confident and convincing. The average time should be 10-12 seconds. If you get nervous, look at their nose for a few seconds Smile: The panel never wants someone who is grim and grumpy. While it is necessary to take questions seriously, it is also important to show them the light side of you. Smile and make them aware of your pleasant and agreeable persona. Also, it makes you look less nervous, so it is a bonus! Pay attention to your hands: Hands should not ever come in between the direct line of vision between you and the interviewer. Closing them to form a fist, fidgeting or bending your knuckles are a few things that must be avoided. Focus on making gestures with hands and if that is not possible, then start taking notes. Writing will not let your hands be idle and they won’t attract any undue attention. Additional things to do: Keep your phone on silent/flight mode. Remember to carry a pen in your pocket. Place your feet firmly on the ground to make the process of answering the questions easier. The Don’ts; Come up as overconfident: Overconfidence is a big no when it comes to interviews. Interrupting the recruiters believing that you know the company better than them and trying to behave overconfidently are the things which will make you look negative and arrogant. Be polite, humble and use your curiosity judiciously. This is a very important point in the common dos and don’ts of interview body language. A loose handshake: A weak handshake shows your lack of confidence and enthusiasm. You must try and mirror the handshake of your interviewer if you want to look active and confident. Don’t put too much pressure too because it can make you look aggressive. Slouch/bend too much: If you lean outwards too much or keep your shoulders bent, then it’s time for you to correct it before you appear for an interview. There is nothing more annoying than a lazy candidate who looks insecure all the time. Stare blankly: There is a difference between eye contact and staring. If you continue to maintain eye contact for more than 15 seconds at a go, then it would surely make your interviewer uncomfortable. Staring at the other things in the cabin shows that you are a distracted personality. Be the focused person they are looking for. Toying with objects: If you have a habit of clicking the pen repeatedly, adjusting your hair too often and touching your nose all the time, then you should seriously practice some ways to stop these. All of these actions look gross and interviewers would be irritated with them. You are there to impress them, not annoy them. Fidgeting or drumming your fingers on the table: These habits are signs of restlessness. Changing the position of your hands, legs or even fingers too much can seriously affect the continuity of the interview process. The last thing any company would want is a person who is so distracted that he disturbs everyone around him. Fidgeting affects everyone around you, so try to keep it in check for a positive interview experience. Additional things you should never do : Chewing a gum, checking the clock on your phone, taking a call, trying to be over-friendly/personal or going in for a hug. Maintain the decorum of your interview, as this is a thumb rule in the common dos and don’ts of interview body language.
Perception is our sensory experience of the world around us and involves both recognizing environmental stimuli and actions in response to these stimuli. Perception includes the five senses; touch, sight, sound, smell, and taste. It also includes what is known as proprioception, a set of senses involving the ability to detect changes in body positions and movements. It also involves the cognitive processes required to process information, such as recognizing the face of a friend or detecting a familiar scent. That was about what is a perception in layman language, here we will understand how the perception of an employee matter for any organization However -Not necessarily something based on reality, it can just be a perspective an individual has based on one’s view of a particular situation. When we talk about an organization, what matters the most are the employees and so what they perceive about the organization itself becomes key to its growth. Reality may be different but how employees view reality is something for organizations to look at. In employee relations, perception is a major factor. Most of the time, it is formed by organizational roles, styles of leadership, styles of communication at the workplace, etc. and so it is very important that the organization be able to form the correct perception in the minds of its employees. Thus proper and effective supervision is required to prevent employees from having a wrong understanding. If the perception of an employee is positive then it will affect an organization positively but if it is negative then it can affect the organization adversely The human mind cannot effectively deal with chaos. The mind is programmed and designed to create order when confronted with many objects. The consequence of this is that human beings generally do not really see objects; they see classes of objects. People see categories of things, and the objects that they are confronted with are seen then as instances of a specific category. Seeing a category rather than a thing is called a “perception effect.”
WHERE TO STOP? Offering great benefits is the key to building a strong workforce. From health insurance to paid time off and flexible schedules companies have been on a constant endeavor to ensure employee retention. But, the effort to minimize costs incurred by the company while still satisfying employees still remains a constant battle. Employee benefits offer them with some amount of flexibility and freedom to work along with managing some aspects of their personal life. Companies compete to offer varied benefits so as to attract and retain top talent. Offering health insurance, paid time off, work from home options, HRA, performance-based incentives, professional development with training programs and workshops, wellness programs, pension plans, maternity and paternity leave, and the list goes on…. Well, in this blitz of completion and in the attempt to retain top talent, HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH? Where should a company draw a line? Where is the golden mean – where companies are not completely drained off their funds while trying to keep their employees motivated enough? Many companies worry that offering too many employee benefits will be too expensive for the business to bear. The truth is that you cannot afford not to offer benefits. Investing in employee welfare will definitely pay off in the long run. The trick of the trade is to strike a balance between welfare and the hole it drills in your pockets. There are many options out there. Choose the ones that are best suited to fit your work culture, long term goals, and your company policies. Employee welfare need not be so complicated! Simply take care of your employees before they rush out of the door – straight to your competitors! After all, if you do not take care of your employees, your competitors will!
It is a tough task when you have to select top performers out of your team of many. We all have been in the situation of judging others or being judged. But, to actually identify a good performer tends to many common parameters I've found the below to be the top 10 characteristics of the top 1%: Goal-Oriented: These people know what they aiming at! They are clear right from the beginning why they have started and what they have to do to accomplish. Ability to Persevere: Once you have set goals, automatically challenges show up! Top pros know this and can persevere through to achieve the goals. Whether it is a challenging prospect to internal battles of ability to deliver, they are able to persevere through the most difficult challenges to still win! Creative: You might have heard “winners don’t do different things; they do thing differently” that quality of them make them separate from the group. Self-Starter: The people belonging to 1% are not going to sit around and wait; they are the first to take action and they are constantly on the move to see what they can do to progress. They are constantly thinking about their funnel and what they need to do to grow it! Growth Minded: These fellows are not content with just doing the basics. They are focused on constantly growing their skill sets to become a better version of themselves. They are focused on what else can they learn to become better at their craft, which ultimately leads to a humble mindset. Compassionate: Hey, care - they truly do care. They care about their prospects, their reputation, their brand, and all the people they work with to deliver their solution. Ownership Mentality: Accountability is not a "bad" word in the mind of a top professional. They believe they have full ownership of their results and everything else. If they have a bad month, they don't blame anyone else but themselves. No matter the result, no matter the circumstances, they always take full ownership and accountability and that is why they are successful. High Coachability: At the end of the day, no matter how good they are, they can always take feedback whether it is from their sales leader or their customers. AND they can execute on the feedback. They are willing to put the ego aside and be coachable no matter the circumstances! So there you have it - The Top Characteristics of the Top 1% of well-performing Professionals! How many of these do you have? If you want to join an organization that trains you to develop the right characteristics, has an amazing culture, upward mobility, and more then check out www.magnusminds.net
Best practice for the Git Branching and what is the key usage and difference between each. For the Git workflow, branches can be differentiated: Feature: All features/new functions/major refactoring should be done in feature branches, which branch off of and are merged back into the develop branch (usually after some kind of peer review). Release: When enough features have accumulated or the next release time frame comes near, a new release branch is branched off of develop, which is solely dedicated to testing/bug fixing and any cleanup necessary (For instance, altering some path names, instrumentation default values, etc.). Master: Once the QA is satisfied with the quality, the release branch is merged into master (and also back to develop). This is then what is shipped/used by the customers. Hotfix: If a major problem is found after release, the fix is developed in a hotfix branch, that is branched off of the master. Those are the only branches that will ever branch off of master. Note: Any commit in the master is a merge commit (either from a release or a hotfix branch) and represents a new release that will be shipped to the customer. master and develop branches should be protected branches which will prevent direct commit. All the changes must be incorporate via pull requests only. Please be aware that this model is mainly meant for: big software projects that follow classic release versioning and have a separate QA team Many popular repositories on GitHub follow a simpler model.
MSBI stands for Microsoft Business Intelligence. This powerful suite is composed of tools that help in providing the best solutions for Business Intelligence and Data Mining Queries. This tool uses a Visual studio along with an SQL server. It empowers users to gain access to accurate and up-to-date information for better decision making in an organization. It offers different tools for different processes that are required in Business Intelligence (BI) solutions. MSBI is divided into 3 categories: SSIS – SQL Server Integration Services – Integration tool. This tool is used for integration like duping the data from one database to another like from Oracle to SQL Server or from Excel to SQL Server etc. This tool is also used for bulk transactions in the database like inserting lacs of records at once. We can create the integration services modules which will do the job for us. SSAS – SQL Server Analytical Services -Analysis tool. This tool is used to analyze the performance of the SQL Server in terms of load balancing, heavy data, transaction, etc. So it is more or less related to the administration of the SQL Server using this tool. This is a very powerful tool and through this, we can analyze the data inserting into the database like how many transactions happen in a second, etc. SSRS – SQL Server Reporting Services – Reporting tool. This is a very efficient tool as it is platform-independent. We can generate the report using this tool and can use it in any type of application. Nowadays this is very popular in the market. “A visual always helps better to understand any concept.” The above Diagram broadly defines “Microsoft Business Intelligence (MSBI)” RELATED BLOGS: POWER BI Report Integration
It's been ages since we have the same look and feel for the Windows Explorer. There are some updates but the look and feel remained the same for long. However, the Redmond giant is working on a new File Explorer which is based on UWP (Universal Windows Platform). This is hidden but it's been discovered by a Redditor. So, if you want to try out the new File Explorer on Windows 10 then follow the steps below. Open File Explorer. Paste this into the address bar shell:AppsFolder\c5e2524a-ea46-4f67-841f-6a9465d9d515_cw5n1h2txyewy!App Hit Enter. At this point, the new File Explorer should startup. (Optional): Right-click the program and "Pin to Taskbar" for quick access.
The most underrated but most important topic, which is a must while implementing the SQL Query, Stored Procedures, or Functions. While implementing any SQL operations knowing the syntax and structures is a good thing, but one must know optimization. Without knowledge of optimization, any developer can create DDL and DML statements, but they are not well-designed procedures. You know why? Because while executing those statements there are chances that it will take time or may create a deadlock situation. Proper joining is also considered to be part of optimization. This above is an actual execution plan flowchart. The most simple query execution flow is mentioned below: From Joins Where Group by Having clause Column list Distinct Order by Top From: First it will fetch all the records from the table mentioned after the ‘From’ keyword. Join: joins are an essential part of any SQL statements. A developer must have proper knowledge of tables; otherwise, it can cause the wrong data population of data or extended execution time. Where: It another filter applied to any query after applying joins. It is used to decrease no. of records provided filter wise. Group by: It is used for grouping the records with aggregate functions or grouping the records particular provided column-wise. Having: When we need to provide an aggregate function with a filter then we should use it in the ‘Having’ clause. Column list: While putting ‘*’, we are calling all the columns and all records from a particular table. If not necessary then we must provide only those columns which are actually useful. Distinct: It is used to remove duplicate records while fetching the details through a select statement. Order by: This is useful to sort the data ascending or descending column-wise. Top: It is used to limit the no. of records to be displayed on the screen. Above mentioned query execution flow is 1st step of the optimization ever keyword should be placed as per the above plan. The last 3 steps (7, 8, and 9) are most crucial because it will process all the records and then do operations accordingly. ‘Group by’ and ‘Having’ clauses are also taken time while execution because it uses aggregate functions in it. Along with that, it is necessary for you to know that if not necessary then don’t do for inbuilt functions. ‘Convert’ and ‘Cast’ is the most frequent built-in functions that can extend the execution because of conversion. As mentioned above Joins are the most important part of any SQL statement because a good join increases the performance where wrong can mislead you. First of all, while implementing a join please check whether tables are properly indexed or not. Indexing is very important while the creation of a table, a table must have at least one clustered index. The lessor or no use of temp tables. Temp tables tend to increase the complexities of the query because it increases the continuous use of ‘tempdb’ database. If necessary then create a clustered index on that temp table which increases the performance and doesn’t wait for the temp table to be dropped automatically, drop it when it is of no use. Go for the execution plan if the query is taking too much time, by seeing the plan we can easily fetch which query or portion of the query is taking the time. The execution plan shows which table used maximum process time from the overall time. Make your indexes unique using integer or unique identifier which increases the performances. A table must have one clustered key and can have one or more nonclustered keys. Use small data types for indexing. For the existence of any record don’t dependent on the count statement in the query. For example, Always use ‘with (nolock)’ keyword to avoid locks while fetching records from the table. Avoid the use of ‘NOT IN’ statement in where condition, instead of that you can go for let join. In the same way no need to go for the ‘IN’ statement, you can simply use inner join. Please avoid loops and cursors while creating any store procedure, because looping also causes CPU process usage and calling the same statement again and again. So avoid it is not needed. Use ‘UNION ALL’ instead of ‘UNION’ for combining two or more ‘select’ statements.
