Delivering Career Diligence

As a business owner, professional writer, and career management specialist, I am often asked “what separates a good employee from a great employee.”

Quite bluntly, in a word: diligence. To put this term into
perspective, let’s examine the formal definition and then transmit the
concept into an actual application, ultimately relating how the practice
of delivering career diligence morphs good into great.

According to numerous resources, diligence is:
* To give a constant effort to accomplish something
* To be attentive and persistent in doing anything
* Done or pursued with persevering attention
* Constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken

With the concept defined above, in order to take full advantage of your
career opportunities, you need to recognize the underlying meaning. That
is, simply doing the job is not enough AND, in the eyes of the employer,
going above and beyond job responsibilities will be rewarded by way of
recognition, (hopefully) increased income, and (hopefully) job security.

For the following example, you decide which employee is the keeper
during rough times and which two employees would be on the wrong side of
right-sizing (by the way, this situation reflects an actual event where
I had to make a choice—though the details below are thin, I believe you
can still decide their fate).

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Workplace reality:

While operating a career management firm, I oversaw an operational crew
exceeding 65 employees. I was tasked to reduce our customer service
staff by two (leaving eight employed). After narrowing the list of
possible employees to terminate to three, a second evaluation stage was
undertaken. All of the remaining three performed their job as required by defined roles so the determination was made on bottom-line value and overall contributions.

Overall contributions include such things as attitude,
willingness to learn roles beyond defined duties, professional courtesy
(actions and attire), getting to work on time, and a proven eagerness to
represent the company well.

The candidates were as follows (naturally the names have been modified):

Carmen. She always
showed up at work on time and rarely called in sick. She enjoyed her
position and had been employed with the company for 18 months. Though
she did not ask to learn other aspects of operations, she did lend a
hand when she felt comfortable with the task and team. During formal
evaluations, she never expressed a desire for professional development…
she was content with the way things were.

Vicky. She was a
recent graduate and had been employed for nine months with the company.
Though originally hired for a management training position, Vicky did
not work well with others and displayed an attitude of progress
complacency. Her performance was above average and customer service
skills were also above average. Over the past year, she also showed up
on time and rarely called in sick.

Robert. He was still within a 90-day probationary period and was introduced to the company via an externship opportunity. Though “green”
in several areas, he seemed eager to learn more than what his job
defined. He extended a professional and supportive attitude as well as a
positive commitment to progress within the company. Robert completed
two professional development on-line courses (on his own) to heighten
his customer service skills. Just before his formal evaluation, he
presented a proposal to streamline in-bound calls which had the
potential to save several hundred dollars monthly.

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Of the three selections above, which one would you have kept on the team and why?

I chose the one who I felt would progress the company beyond the moment and deliver benefits well into the future.
Needless to say, the one I chose stayed with the company after I moved
on and became a director of operations in less than one year.

Diligence means more than simply showing up on time or getting the
job done. To me, diligence is a commitment to bring the complete package
to the table.

What does the concept mean to you? In the comment box, go ahead and share your ideas with the world.

Delivering career diligence tip: Believing is not enough… To survive, you must do… more than enough.

Interested in developing your own career success techniques or in
securing cutting-edge career focused books, including how to write
effective resume/cover letters, the best strategies for a successful
interview, how to take advantage of social/professional networking, and
ways to overcome barriers to employment (arrests and/or convictions),
visit “Danny at Amazon” or go directly to http://www.edu-cs.com for a complete listing of available support.

Danny Hufman, MA, CEIP, CPRW, CPCC
http://www.EducationCareerServices.com
West Orlando News Online, Event and Career Columnist
Got Twitter? Shadow me @dannyatecs