24 October 2008

Sick Beta


"If you start to think about your physical or moral condition, you usually find that you are sick." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Everyone is sick somehow, but nobody is willing to face and accept this inconvenient truth.

They will only see doc when they feel uncomfortable, but they never have the intention to cure themselves when they make others uncomfortable. Instead, they suggest the victims see the doc to reduce and control the pain. They ignore the fact that they are the root cause of problem, but insist that they are always right, and the others are always wrong. They never realize that the best way to help others recover from the illness is to stop making others uncomfortable. It's actually they who need to see the doc, but not the poor innocent victims.

However, people seldom realize that they are sick. Even if they are really sick, they don't and won't admit it. They consider themselves perfect, and others imperfect. There is simply not one single chance that they are imperfect, and others perfect. This is sickness. After all, how could it be possible? How can they draw any reliable conclusions without examining and diagnosing everything subjectively? They simply hypnotize themselves and believe whatever they think is absolutely right. What makes things worse is that they also try to hypnotize others to believe in them.

This is going to be a never ending torture, until people accept that they are sick. To err is human. What’s wrong with being sick? It is not a crime. It is nothing wrong indeed.

For those who are consciously or unconsciously sick, get well soon.

22 October 2008

Exit Beta


"Every exit is an entrance somewhere else." Tom Stoppard

It should come as no surprise that there are layoffs during economic downturn. Staff being sacked need to find another job, if possible. Firms sacking staff need to find a replacement, if necessary.

Sometimes, staff resign before they are sacked. In this situation, firms need to conduct exit interviews. They use exit interviews to find out why people leave their jobs.

What questions should be asked? Try these 28 questions...

- What is your primary reason for leaving?
- Did anything trigger your decision to leave?
- What was the most satisfying about your job?
- What was the least satisfying about your job?
- What would you change about your job?
- Did your job duties turn out to be as you expected?
- Did you receive enough training to do your job effectively?
- Did you receive adequate support to do your job?
- Did you receive sufficient feedback about your performance between merit reviews?
- Were you satisfied with this company's merit review process?
- Did this company help you fulfill your career goals?
- Do you have any tips to help us find your replacement?
- What would you improve to make our workplace better?
- Were you happy with your pay, benefits and other incentives?
- What was the quality of the supervision you received?
- What could your immediate supervisor do to improve his or her management style?
- Based on your experience with us, what do you think it takes to succeed at this company?
- Did any company policies or procedures (or any other obstacles) make your job more difficult?
- Would you consider working again for this company in the future?
- Would you recommend working for this company to your family and friends?
- How do you generaly feel about this company?
- What did you like most about this company?
- What did you like least about this company?
- What does your new company offer that this company doesn't?
- Can this company do anything to encourage you to stay?
- Before deciding to leave, did you investigate a transfer within the company?
- Did anyone in this company discriminate against you, harass you or cause hostile working conditions?
- Any other comments?

Or, do firms need any questions to conduct exit interviews?