How to send a thank-you card that beats out 1,500 other candidates
In the lobby of kCura’s LaSalle office, there’s a big puffy green couch that serves as the firm’s mascot — a nod to humbler beginnings, when kCura’s founding circle called on the sofa to pull double...
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If your Halloween costume includes a diaper, don’t wear it to work
Toward the end of the day on the Friday before Halloween, my office holds an annual costume contest with legit prizes like a weekend up in New Buffalo and tickets to the Bulls. Let me put it this way:...
View ArticleWhy this company won’t advertise its jobs
Instant Technology began as a one-woman show run out of founder Rona Borre’s condo. Twelve years later, squeezing Instant Technology’s 50-plus Chicago recruiters, account managers and other employees...
View ArticleHow to use a standing desk without looking like a tool, and other workplace...
I recently adopted a standing desk because I read that people who sit for most of the day die earlier. It’s working nicely for me. I feel more alert and less prone to distraction. But after a few beers...
View ArticleCEO seeks candidates ready for low wages, bitter cold and long hours of darkness
LiveWatch CEO Brad Morehead has increased the headcount at his firm four-fold in the last three years, from 20 to more than 100. The home security company wants to kill ADT by offering self-installed...
View ArticleThe worst way to react to free pizza in the office, and other workplace concerns
We get pizza every week around 6, and people have started lining up for it at 5:30 or earlier. By the time I get there, the line is out the door, and by the time I get to the pizza, it’s usually just...
View ArticlePut away the Armani suit, and 5 other interview tips from a Marine vet CEO
Lou Ennuso is the CEO at software company Adeptia. A David among Goliaths, the 100-person firm joined Oracle, SAP and Microsoft as the only firms to be ranked in two of IT research firm Gartner’s magic...
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How to tell the difference between an old-fashioned boss and a workplace bully
With the whole Miami Dolphins fiasco, I’ve been hearing a lot about bullying in the workplace, which has me wondering if the whole thing isn’t just a generation gap. I’ve been in business for about 35...
View ArticleCover letters are kind of dumb, and 5 other job tips from a recruiter
Sarah Doll leads online lender Enova’s talent management team. Doll directs a team of 10 whose charge it is to fill the 200-plus positions that open up each year, a pace that’s fueled by annual revenue...
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Strip club invitations from investment bankers and other workplace advice
Let me start by saying I’m not a complainer. I played three sports in high school and softball in college. Nobody bullied me. Now I work in a cutthroat finance environment, which is still a boys club....
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Bottomless Grey Goose instead of a raise, and other workplace concerns
Our company is throwing a really lavish holiday party at a fancy club in the West Loop. That’d be fine if they hadn’t told us last week that business is not going so hot and we won’t be getting raises...
View ArticlePut a lotto ticket in your thank-you note, and 5 other interview tips from...
Before John Robak ascended to the presidency at Chicago-based environmental engineering firm Greeley and Hansen, he spent nearly a quarter of a century in human resources. That means he can remember...
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Baby Jesus in the lobby manger and other workplace concerns
In my office, we have a Christmas tree where we put gifts for underprivileged kids. Then there’s a Menorah and one of the Kwanzaa candelabras. This all seems to be in the generalized holiday spirit,...
View ArticleBenchPrep’s founder explains how comic books can get you hired
BenchPrep has 28 employees. Ashish Rangnekar hired 27 of them. Such is life as the founder of a successful startup, where the team comes together in the founder’s image. And BenchPrep is successful....
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What to do when you draw an old fling in the office Secret Santa
Each year, my department does a fancy version of Secret Santa (spending $50-$100 on gifts). This year, I drew the name of a colleague whom I messed around with a little last summer. Nothing much...
View Article10 pieces of interview advice to get you a better job in 2014
A year’s worth of interviews with CEOs, HR managers, and dozens of other people who have the power to hire and fire have left us with a wide range of tips on how to get a job. Since we all happen to...
View ArticleTo get a job at Belly, don’t read this article
Belly founder and CEO Logan LaHive doesn’t need much in the way of an introduction. The Bay Area native helped get Redbox off the ground as the director of new business before taking off to spend six...
View ArticleYou don’t necessarily need experience to get a job at Alinea
Grant Achatz’s business partner Nick Kokonas is as creative in the office as Achatz is in the kitchen. Kokonas pioneered variable pricing and ticketing models that the duo employs at Alinea and Next....
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