Last month at Recruit DC, I had the opportunity to sit down with Neil Costa of HireClix to discuss the best ways to improve search engine optimization (SEO) in recruiting. SEO, according to Wikipedia, is the process impacting your job opening’s (in this case) visibility in a search engine’s or site’s (such as Indeed.com) “natural” (organic) search results. The better your visibility (earlier in the results), the more clicks your job opening is likely to get. SEO matters and can have impact on the effectiveness of your recruitment advertising and your employment brand. And, most importantly, it doesn't cost much to make improvements.

Did you happen to hear the news story last week about the young man who was applying for a job with Staples via the web and was shocked to have received a questionnaire offering him the opportunity to disclose if he is an individual with a disability? As a Human Resource professional with a background in government contracting compliance I knew exactly why the opportunity to disclose was given to the applicant, and quite frankly I was not at all surprised the applicant was not aware of the new requirements in place for government contractors. But I began to wonder how many of the employees working for government contractors are unaware of these new regulations.

As a government contractor with 50 employees and $50,000 in government contracts, you are required to have an Affirmative Action Plan (AAP). Much of the information that goes into your AAP is collected from your applicants and employee population by providing them with an invitation to voluntarily self-identify.

When clients first come to me, I often hear these senior leaders talk about the lack of sleep at night. More often than not, they describe being fearful of what they don’t know when it comes to Human Resources compliance or an employee relations issue they fear may lead to a lawsuit. While we certainly alleviate their concerns by getting their HR department into shape, what I actually get excited to hear more is when a leader is worried about not doing enough to attract and retain top talent. They want to learn how to engage employees and develop them beyond the skills they have today to make a bigger impact.

Fairfax Chamber Announces 2014 Outstanding Corporate Citizenship Awards Winners Honors Community Leaders for Dedication & Vision that Created Vibrant Northern Virginia

With the dawn of health care reform and the increased focus on regulation and cost control, it has never been more important for employers to have a good insurance broker to help navigate the logistics and best practices surrounding benefits administration. But, not all brokers are created equal.