With this recession dragging on the more I speak with HR personnel the more I loathe them.  They have absolutely no idea what to look for and how to discern talent and how a skill set can fit a position.

Recently I received a call from an HR person looking to speak to me about a New Business Development position.  My background has ERP experience (technology) and I have over 11 years in B to B experience at the highest level.  The position in question was in technology, and while it varied from my experience, was not too far removed.  I pride myself on my ability to generate revenue and adapt to a new industry, as I have done so a few times in my career with great success.

This HR IDIOT starts me out with “well, I reviewed your resume and don’t see a fit but maybe you can tell me something about yourself that doesn’t appear on your resume”.  How in God’s name do you respond to a person whose sole purpose on this planet is to oblige law so to give the appearance of even handedness.  They have no practical experience and fall under the “Those who can do, do.  Those who can’t teach”.  But in this case it’s “those who can’t work in HR”.

Well, I politely answered in a manner fitting a pea brained individual simply filling a position mandated by the state.  However, had I known how the rest of this phone interview was going to go, and knowing that she just didn’t understand how my skill set translated quite nicely, I wouldn’t answered something like this:  “I dont’ think someone of my level should have to qualify myself to someone who cannot assimilate the simplest of skill set transference  and business concepts”.

Then I should have hung up on her and tried to call back someone in upper management.  And while I know this would’ve been a fruitless exercise, I would’ve been spared the embarrassment of being castrated by some pea brained moron who should be the one on my side of the phone asking me for a job.

Just thinking out loud, but given all the tough talk last year regarding Iran’s development of nuclear weapons why is Obama so quiet?  Does he just lack the backbone to be a leader?  I would say that this is a little crisis going on over there in the middle east and what is our chosen one doing?

Going to Denmark to pitch the Olympics.

Yes, that’s what we need at this critical time.  He shouldn’t be trying to put our minds at ease about what he plans to do with Iran.  We don’t need to address more seriously the problems in Afghanistan.  We certainly don’t need try and resolve our healthcare fiasco.  And Mr. President, whatever you do, please continue to ignore the recession and the joblessness in our country. 

Oh, I see, he’s using the old “lets go to sleep and hopefully everything will be fine in the morning” tactic.  President Obama, you sly fox, you go and enjoy your stay in Copenhagen, everything will be just fine.

You don’t have to get laid off to feel the pain of this recession. Raises, bonuses and other incentive programs have been slashed since the downturn began, and employees saddled with additional workloads for less pay are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with their current position.

Forty percent of employees at organizations affected by layoffs say productivity has been negatively impacted, according to a recent survey by the Workforce Institute at Kronos. Of those 40%, two-thirds of them say that morale is suffering and that employees are less motivated than before.

Now that the pace of layoffs is slowing, and the smoke is starting to clear, smart companies are taking stock and realizing that morale can affect the bottom line.

Not all employers understand this basic fact, but worker morale is a crucial part of running a solid business. An organization may have a hard time hanging on to employees in the long term and have trouble attracting new talent if its reputation as a good place to work is soured. The company may also not be prepared to meet increased demand when the economy picks up again.

Unfortunately, this brutal recession may have caused a permanent shift in the way companies treat their employees - it not only destroyed the markets, but killed any humanity in countless companies.