A Professor That Goes The Extra Mile

Throughout my years at Utah State University, I have had the privilege to take numerous classes from many outstanding professors.  Ron Godfrey is a perfect example of a professor that has made a substantial difference in my life.  I am currently in Professor Godfrey's Operations Management class where he not only teaches students the basic operations of a business but how to be successful and productive throughout life.  In addition, Ron also spoke to my MIS 2200 class, taught by Dana Swensen, on "owning" and succeeding in an interview.  The passion Ron shows for his career is an attribute I would like to demonstrate when I enter into my career as an accountant.

The one thing about Ron that stands out is he wants to get to know each and every one of his students.  At the beginning of the semester, he set up meetings with each one of his students to get to know a little about them and to allow for students to get to know what resources he has to offer as both a professor and a career accelerator.  In addition, Ron is always giving examples of how to perform well in an interview.  He stresses that everyone should have 8-12 "behavioral" based examples that are ready to be used in an interview.  Ron has taught me how to "own" an interview, and through his class I will not only be a better employee but a better person.

Ron is always saying, "Live by your core values and you will succeed."  This is a very strong quote that will stick with me the rest of my life.  The great thing about Utah State is that students are surrounded by professors such as Ron who help you excel not only in the classroom but outside the classroom as well.  I recommend that if you have any questions about how to succeed in life that you talk to Ron, and he will provide insight to things you could never have imagined.                     

Using Blogs in Interviews to Demonstrate Great Communication Skills

Communication skills in the business world today are vital to obtaining and keeping any job that may be offered to you in the future.  Employers today want evidence that a potential employee for their company has effective and clear communication skills.  A person needs to be able to clearly and effectively communicate in any medium that is appropriate for the company, which include both oral and written skills. (Dykeman, 2010)  Blogging provides excellent evidence that one knows how to communicate well and use proper grammar in doing so.

Professional blogging has become increasingly popular within companies for both external and internal use.  A blog that you can provide in an interview not only shows your communication skills, but also provides evidence towards your professionalism.  Blogs can be served as an advertisement tool for presenting yourself to companies.  For example, blogs allow you to show the company what sort of benefits your communication skills will offer.  (Lore, 2008) 

There are many collaboration technologies that companies use today and most of them are very effective, but many are hard to present professionally in an interview.  For example, text messaging or instant messaging are mostly directed towards friends and family, which you use a different style of writing towards.  Blogging allows you to write complete paragraphs to a specific audience and elaborate on your thoughts.  Overall, blogging is a quick and easy way to show employers how your communication skills are.      

Sources:
http://www.helium.com/items/543149-top-10-qualities-and-skills-employers-seek
Lore, N. (2008). How to write a masterpiece of a resumne. Rockport Institute. Retrieved on April 18, 2009, from http://www.rockportinstitute.com/resumes.html

The Use of Collaboration Technologies in Group Work

The use of collaboration technologies is an increasing process in businesses in today's world.  In today's business environment there are ways to communicate with one another that weren't around 10 years ago.  A few examples include:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Wikis
• Blogs

Facebook and Twitter are great social networking sites to stay connected with friends or follow your favorite celebrities, but businesses have begun using these technologies immensely to provide a communication medium among employees.  Most people think blogs are just used as a place to post pictures and write about your whats going on in your life, but they can also be used for customer service or advertising new products.    Doing our group collaboration project on wikis educated me that there are much more to wikis than just Wikipedia.  Wikis are often used for project management, and they allow for people to edit and add notes or notices to the project as long as they have internet access. (Lynch, 2008)  The great thing about collaboration technologies is that they allow you to be in different places and still be able to communicate with employees in your company. 

The knowledge of collaboration technologies is necessary to succeed in the business world today.  As you can see the use of a collaboration technology increases communication skills and productivity within a company. (Chiu, 2009)  There are many more collaboration technologies other than the ones that were discussed today such as: Instant Messaging, Text Messaging, LinkedIN, and Google Docs.  The use of the technologies discussed today will provide companies with tools that allow for great communication across computers both externally and internally.  

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/156066/seven_tips_to_success_with_a_corporate_wiki.html
http://www.architechweb.com/tabid/171/ArticleID/8904/Default.aspx

Professional Blogging on the Rise

Professional blogging has become an increasing interest for all companies throughout the world.  It allows companies to advertise and get their name out there, especially when much of today's society uses blogging to communicate.  Blogging allows for companies to step away from using a "corporate voice" and allow individuals to add their own personal style.  Customers relate more to a personal style than reading something that has been scripted.  According to the textbook, this allows audiences to build emotional bonds with the blogger's organization.

Recently the CIO of Build a Bear spoke to our class and stated the main way of getting people to find out about a new product these days is social media.   Professional blogs advertise new products constantly and can always be updated instantly.  Blogs allow for people of interest to post comments and give feed back to companies on how they are doing or what they can do. 

Customer interaction should be one of the main reasons for blogging.  Letting the customers give feedback allows for companies to take their points of view into consideration.  For example, the Southwest blog  constantly has polls asking the customers what they want to see.  Blogs contain pictures, articles, and even videos to demonstrate what the company is doing and what it has to offer.  I highly suggest that companies start using blogs to communicate due to its effectiveness and having no cost.