Sexual Harassment Is Still a Problem
Toastmasters: Speaking with Ease
For Jobseekers, Holidays Are Good
Corrections or additions?
These articles were prepared for the December 15, 2004
issue of U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Survival Guide
Feeling constrained by the 4.7 GB capacity of today’s DVDs? Are you
getting into high-definition video production with the new HDV format,
and wondering how to deliver HD content? Don’t fear – hope is here
with high-def DVD on blue-laser disc. Capacities of 20+ GB may be on
the street as early as next year.
However, just when you thought you had all the competing DVD formats
figured out – R/RW/RAM-dash vs. plus and the new double-layer DL, a
high-def DVD format war is about to begin between Blu-ray and HD-DVD.
But why wait for new disc formats? Microsoft’s Windows Media HD can
deliver HD video at standard-definition rates today, playable on
standard PCs. And the WM HD DVD format even can package HD productions
on standard DVD discs, complete with a DVD-like interface.
Confused yet? It gets worse-these next-generation HD formats will
require dramatic changes to today’s DVD authoring tools and processes.
These formats blow away the limitations of today’s DVD specification,
moving from basic menus and links to a fully programmable interface,
requiring new authoring skills more like multimedia and Web
programming.
Doug Dixon attempts to make sense of it all on Wednesday, December 15,
at 6:30 p.m. at a meeting of the Princeton Media Communications
Association (PMCA) at Princeton Theological Seminary’s Templeton Hall
Basement Studio. Cost: $15. Call 609-466-2828, ext. 20.
Dixon, a noted technologist and author – and U.S. 1 contributor –
provides a heads-up on how to begin preparing for these new
developments for delivering HD content on DVD discs. Come learn about
the technology behind these new formats, and the market forces that
ultimately will determine their successes. See how the Windows Media
HD format can be used today to deliver full HD/surround-sound
productions. And get a preview of how DVD authoring will change in
this new world.
Get ready, in short, to take your holiday home movies, and, yes, your
work presentations, too, to the next level.
Top Of PagePostage in the Nick of Time
Many post offices in Central New Jersey have a new mailing elf – a
self-service kiosk that you can use to send your holiday packages.
Just plunk your package or envelope on the scale and follow the
prompts on the touch screen.
The official name of the mailing elf is the Automated Postal Center,
and 2,400 of them have been installed nationwide, 24 of them in
lobbies in Central New Jersey, and their availability extends the
hours during which you can do your mailing. In the Carnegie Center on
Roszel Road, the lobby is open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. In Plainsboro on
Schalks Crossing Road, the hours are from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. On
Livingston Avenue in North Brunswick, it is 5:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Others APCs are in Brick, Bridgewater, East Brunswick, the Kilmer
office in Edison, the main branch in Edison, Englishtown, Freehold,
Hillsborough, Howell, Jackson, Kendall Park, Lakehurst, Middletown,
Milltown, Monroe, Old Bridge, Piscataway, Red Bank, Somerset, and Toms
River.
If you can use an ATM machine or sign yourself onto an airplane
flight, you can mail packages with the APC. But for now, a staff
person in the lobby will coach you through it. Put your package or
letter on the scale. Then, using a touch screen, you answer questions
(no liquids or firearms are enclosed), are given choices (first class,
Priority, parcel post, or Express Mail), and are offered extra
services, like insurance or delivery notification.
You pay with a debit or credit card – no cash. The machine prints out
the electronic label and a receipt, and you stuff your package in the
adjoining bin. Naturally you can buy bulk stamps here as well, and you
can also look up zip codes.
Our reporter lugged 8 packages, ranging from one ounce to six pounds,
into the Roszel Road lobby on Monday, December 13. About eight people
were waiting in line for the counter. In the time that it took her to
follow the prompts, print out the labels, and deposit her packages in
the giant maw of the mailing receptacle, she would have worked her way
almost to the head of the counter line.
What’s missing with the APC? You can’t send international mailings,
use Registered Mail, or purchase money orders on it. You can’t ask a
clerk to add Priority Mail tape to help seal the package or whether
she thinks the package rattles too much.
And during the busy holiday mailing season, you may still have to
stand in line. If you don’t like waiting in a bank line while some
idiot procrastinates with an ATM machine, you’ll hate cooling your
heels while someone fiddles with their zip codes. The “live person”
line may not be available at 6 in the morning, but during regular
hours it might be quicker.
– Barbara Fox
Top Of PageWhen To Form An HR Department
The employer’s road is not one for sissies. Long gone is the simple
handshake that once solidified the bond between the company owner and
the individual who drew a salary. Now both sit befuddled across a desk
wading through paper – revolving healthcare selections, benefit and
severance plans. Constrained by layers of paper, they must deal with
additional constraints imposed by state, federal, and Department of
Labor strictures. An employer must confirm a job candidate’s national
origin but cannot dare ask about his childcare arrangements.
Some days it almost seems it would be easier for the employer to
forget the staff and do all the work himself. It would be nice to get
a really efficient human resource team or even one professional, but
the problem is that there are so many aspects to modern HR that it is
difficult to even start to delegate the tasks. In hopes of guiding
besieged business owners through this maze, the Employers Association
of New Jersey (EANJ) hosts a seminar, “Establishing/Expanding a Human
Resource Department,” on Friday, December 17, at 9 a.m. at the
Middlesex County College campus in Edison. Cost: $10. Call
609-393-7100 or visit www.EANJ.org.
This roundtable features John Sarno, executive director of the
Employers Association of New Jersey; Becky Dent, an EANJ trainer
specializing in family and medical leave laws; and representatives
from the U.S. Department of Labor.
“I can honestly say that every aspect of my education gets called upon
in my work almost every day,” says Sarno. A native Garden Stater,
Sarno was raised in Elmwood Park. He graduated with a degree in
psychology from Ramapo College (Class of 1977) and earned a master’s
degree in counseling and education, as well as a law degree, from
Seton Hall. “All this allows me to not only teach employers
compliance, but to understand what and why they want to learn,” he
says.
Outsourcing has become the thrift-seeking buzzword these days for
everything from maintenance to medical diagnosis. But with this lower
price tag comes a risky loss of control. Employees’ personal records
and their various withholding escrows are the owner’s sole
responsibility; a responsibility enforced by an astoundingly
unforgiving government. Besides, even for the small firm, in-house
human resource handling is nor necessarily more costly.
The question is: when do you move up to one full-time professional or
from one up to a full department?
Role revolution. The traditional tasks of the folks in personnel have
been to hire, fire, and figure out the payroll. But with an increasing
buffer of legalities and compliance procedures engulfing each worker,
Sarno views human resource people primarily as risk managers. They are
the ones who can see a possible disability or gender grievance coming.
They know the employees. They know what work practices benefits will
breed contentment and production – or the opposite. They know what
kind of paper needs to get generated when.
Further, the human resource professional may now be the best person to
take on the job of training in compliance and procedural necessities.
“Do not count on your general company lawyer to keep up on all the
latest labor law,” says Sarno. “The laws are endless and almost
impossible to ingest unless yours is a big corporation, which has
hired a specialized labor attorney.”
Beyond numbers. There is no precise formula for definitely determining
how many employees a company should reach before it starts – or
increases – a human resource department. But Sarno does point out that
50 has become a very magic employment number. Firms with 50 or more
workers become subject to conditions of the Federal Family Medical
Leave Act, the New Jersey Family Leave Act, and a host of other
regulated programs and practices. If your business is about to grow
across the 50-person line, you might want to plan for the extra
expense and staff time in your human resource department.
Several factors beyond size may add to the human resource department’s
burden. Does your company have or plan to seek government contracts?
Not only have government jobs traditionally added reams more
worker-centered paperwork, but in this climate you may be responsible
for providing security checks as well. For the business that deals
with heavily regulated materials or requires random drug testing, a
fully staffed human resource team can prove a godsend, preventing
production slow downs and poor morale.
Going public. An extra layer of employee concern comes when the
business is finally ready to go public. Immediately a third party must
be ever appeased: the stockholders. This very sensitive and very
powerful group of folks reacts quite waspishly to the slightest whiff
of a problem. “Reputation maintenance and shareholder communication
suddenly become the job of the human resource department,” says Sarno.
He gives the examples of whistle blowing and sexual harassment;
problems that the private company can handle in a strictly legal
fashion, but that can blow into a stock-plummeting disaster for the
publicly-held firm.
Handling healthcare. The 21st century has kicked off with innumerable
problems for the human resource worker, but none is greater than
healthcare. While providing healthcare has severely wounded profits of
many large corporations, it has broken the back of countless small and
mid-size companies. To survive at all, human resource executives must
become creative hunters. They have to wade through all the possible
plans. They must team up with other businesses and broaden their
numerical advantage. The days of merely dialing up an insurance
company and accepting a quote are long gone. Ferreting out affordable
coverage takes substantial expertise.
Wage/hour legislation. In theory, says Sarno, the state and federal
laws regarding wage and hours worked laws are now streamlined. But New
Jersey has always demanded more than the federal minimum. In instances
such as overtime, the regulations are strictly governed by job
categories. For example, an assistant manager must spend 80 percent of
his actual time on management tasks outlined in his job description.
If he unloads trucks, or performs other tasks for more than 20
percent, he loses his exempt status and his employer is liable for
overtime. But in the retail trade, the overtime percentage changes to
60 percent. Tricky, and potentially costly.
One-of-a-kind benefits. EANJ’s latest survey of its employer members
indicates that there will be little rise in the actual size of
benefits packages. This is not the employee’s primary concern anyway.
What workers really want is a customized benefits package. They want
to choose from a menu containing everything from day care to elder
care reimbursement, tuition to tooth whitening. And with the national
wave of job insecurity, many hiring candidates are inquiring about
what bridge training and employment pickup plan is included upon
termination of the position they do not even yet hold.
Probably the only trend that remains sure is that maintaining each
employee will become even more costly and require more staff labor.
Once you face this cold hard fact, it becomes not a question of if
your human resource capabilities should expand – but how often.
– Bart Jackson
Top Of PageSexual Harassment Is Still a Problem
The office Holiday Party (re-christened to replace “Christmas” with a
more politically-correct term) is famous for what? Sure, everyone
knows. It’s not festive decorations or gourmet spreads that first
spring to mind. In fact it’s hard to suppress titters at the very
mention of the annual event, at which the major entertainment is
seeing who will corner whom behind the egg nog table.
Used to be that the chief fall-out was unnatural quiet around the
office for a week or so after the event as the giddy gropers kept a
low profile, hoping that no one had noticed their indiscretions, and
everyone else whispered about who had observed what. Now, however,
such untoward conduct can have legal ramifications. Everyone should
know better than to mix sexual hijinks and work – but not everyone
does. And, yes, whether held in the office cafeteria or the hottest
night club in town, the annual company holiday party is considered to
be an extension of the workplace.
“Sexual harassment in the workplace has been illegal for over 40
years, but we still keep having problems with it,” says Angela Deitch.
While the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the first law to make sexual
harassment illegal, there have been many amendments and changes to
both state and federal laws concerning harassment over the years. One
recent change in California law forecasts coming changes in other
states, including New Jersey, Deitch says.
Deitch, through her company, Angela Deitch Consulting, offers training
programs to businesses on sexual harassment and other types of
discrimination. The new California law, which takes affect in 2005,
requires California companies with 50 or more employees to give sexual
harassment training to supervisors and managers.
The goal of her 10-year-old company, says Deitch, is “to help
businesses to thrive by increasing the effectiveness of human
capital.” She offers training programs on avoiding sexual and other
forms of harassment. Deitch began her work in the harassment area
several years ago when she worked with the State of New Jersey to
design a sexual harassment program for state employees.
The new California law is “an exciting and interesting change,” says
Deitch, because companies often put training on the back burner,
“particularly if the economy is not at its best, until the training
becomes absolutely necessary.”
While current federal law does not mandate training for supervisors or
employees, the United States Supreme Court “advises” employers on ways
to defend against sexual harassment claims. Training is a large part
of that defense.
There are two basic types of sexual harassment, says Deitch:
Quid pro quo harassment. This type of harassment occurs when a
supervisor or manager requires sexual favors for hiring or other job
benefits. “When quid pro quo harassment occurs, the company has
absolute liability according to the law,” says Deitch, “because the
supervisor is an agent of the company, and when the supervisor speaks,
the company speaks.”
However, the Supreme Court does say that companies can defend
themselves in other types of sexual harassment cases where they can
show “reasonable care to prevent and correct harassment and
discrimination,” Deitch says.
Hostile environment harassment. This second type of sexual harassment
includes a variety of behaviors, such as “unwelcome requests for
sexual favors or dates, demeaning comments or ethnic slurs, leering or
comments about a person’s body, suggestive conversations, jokes,
graphics, and E-mails and faxes,” Deitch says.
Hostile environment sexual harassment can occur not only between two
co-workers or employees, but between a non-employee and employee. This
might include a workman or repairman who is making repairs in the
workplace or a contract worker. Sexual harassment can also take place
between a customer or client and employee, Deitch says. It can occur
in a number of places, including the workplace itself, the workplace
parking lot, at a company event, or at an off-site seminar or
conference.
How does an employer protect himself against claims of sexual
harassment? “Mounting an affirmative defense,” is the best protection,
Deitch says. The “affirmative defense” is carefully spelled out by the
Supreme Court. “The best way to defend against a sexual harassment
suit is by having and distributing a sexual harassment policy, by
training supervisors in that policy, and by showing evidence of
appropriate handling of situations that may have occurred,” Deitch
says.
“If an employee harasses a co-worker through hostile environment
sexual harassment, then it is the employer’s responsibility to take
appropriate action as soon as the employer knows about it. The
affirmative defense can also be used by the employer if the target of
the harassment does not report it to a company manager or supervisor,”
she adds.
What should sexual harassment training include? It is important for
supervisors to have information on current federal and state laws,
Deitch says, as well as a discussion of “what sexual harassment looks
like.” This may include role playing and scenarios to help supervisors
better understand the issues, she explains. Supervisors also need to
know “what to do if they see or hear about sexual harassment. Most
organizations want the supervisor to involve the human relations
office,” she adds. “It takes skill to investigate a sexual harassment
claim and it is not to be taken lightly.”
Supervisors also should know that retaliation against someone making a
sexual harassment claim, or against someone participating in an
investigation (such as a witness to the harassment) is also illegal.
“The most important thing for supervisors to understand is that the
first line of defense against a sexual harassment suit is to be
pro-active,” says Deitch. “Informal and formal training for staff
members should occur and managers need to keep an open door policy” so
that their employees feel they can come to them if there is a problem,
says Deitch. In addition, supervisors should “always remember to treat
people with respect. If someone comes to you with a sexual harassment
claim, don’t jump to conclusions.”
Another important point for employers to remember is that supervisors
cannot take sides in a sexual harassment complaint between two
co-workers. “They also can’t allow other co-workers to become
partisans,” she said. “Supervisors need to lead by example”
In general, the current federal laws regarding sexual harassment apply
to companies with 15 or more employees or smaller companies that hold
contracts with the government, says Deitch. And while the new
California law requiring mandatory training for supervisors is a state
law, not federal, it will have both direct and indirect effects on New
Jersey companies, she says. “New Jersey companies who have employees
in California will be affected by the law. Also, California companies
with employees in other states, such as New Jersey, will need to have
training for all of their supervisors, no matter where they are
located.”
Connecticut has already had mandatory sexual harassment training for
several years. Now California also has it. “New Jersey has always been
at the forefront on issues like this. It is only a matter of time
before training is mandatory in New Jersey, also,” Deitch predicts.
Her work also requires that she keep in touch with area attorneys who
deal in sexual harassment cases. “I’ve talked to attorneys about
recent cases in the state and many of them see New Jersey moving in
the direction (of mandatory training),” she says.
Companies should not look on mandatory training for supervisors as a
burden. “Mandating training is very helpful to companies,” says
Deitch, because a company “can’t protect itself legally if its
supervisors have not had training. Companies need to seriously
thinking about taking sexual harassment training off the back burner
now, because it is just a matter of time before it becomes the law
here.”
-Karen Hodges Miller
Top Of PageToastmasters: Speaking with Ease
Studies have reported that public speaking is the number one fear of
most people, even ahead of death. Or, as Jerry Seinfeld put it: “That
means that at a funeral, the average American would rather be in the
casket than doing the eulogy.”
Quite possible. The average American, in the safety and comfort of the
weekly department meeting may challenge, persuade, or try to convince
his business colleagues that one course of action is better than
another without even thinking about it. But put that same soul in
front of a room to challenge, persuade, and convince, and he may be
become overwhelmed by nervous ticks, stammers, and um, well, let’s
see, they’ll, uh…forget their name, the blood will…um, rush to
their faces and they’ll, um, be a quivering mess.
If you’re in business and you fear public speaking over death (or if
speaking is running a close second to death), the cost to you can be
immeasurable. The ability to give an effective presentation, run
committee meetings, represent the company, and explain to clients why
they should sign on with you or your company is a key leadership
competency, and without it, you might find yourself suffering a death
of another sort. The death of your career aspirations.
Most experts agree that the way to confront a fear is to face it, and
Toastmasters(www.toastmasters.org) is a well respected place to face
the number one fear. Toastmasters is a non-profit educational
organization whose mission “is to provide a mutually supportive and
positive learning environment in which every member has the
opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in
turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.” With seven Princeton
area open-to-the-public Toastmaster’s groups (known by TMs as “clubs”)
to choose from, and a number of in-corporation employee-only clubs as
well, the Route 1 area is bursting with opportunities to confront that
number one fear and turn it on its head.
Eddie Donohue, a reporter for McGraw-Hill in Hightstown, is vice
president of education for Kingston’s Singles Speak Up group, a member
of Princeton Toastmasters, and a visitor to the corporate club at
McGraw-Hill in Hightstown.
“I’d heard about Toastmasters, but I’d never actually sought it out,”
Donohue says. Unlike the majority of the population, this brave soul
thought he might actually enjoy public speaking, so when the McGraw
Hill club had a membership drive, Donohue took the plunge. However,
when he got up in front of the room, “I found I was terrified,” he
laughs. “But now it’s different. I still get anxious, but it’s sort of
like basketball. It’s the last quarter, the game’s close, but I still
want the ball.”
Speaking is not a slam dunk for Donohue, but Toastmasters’
learn-while-doing style has helped him to make progress, as it has for
beginners and seasoned speakers for 80 years. (Toastmasters
International just celebrated its 80th year in October.)
“There’s something unique about every club,” says Donohue, but each
meeting follows a similar pattern, so a meeting in Princeton would
look very similar to a meeting in Nebraska, Luxembourg, Zimbabwe or
Fiji (all places where Toastmasters has clubs).
At first glance the meetings feel pretty formal, particularly when
“Thank you Mr./Madame Toastmaster, members, and welcome guests” is
being said by just about every person who winds up at the podium, but
the formality and structure serves the safety and learning of the
group. At each meeting, members either give prepared speeches on
topics of their choice, or they are chosen to speak “off the cuff” for
brief “table topics,” which are usually themed – sometimes according
to national events or holidays.
Table topics are the “wind sprints” of Toastmasters, helping members
develop their impromptu speaking skills, because however important it
may be to deliver a prepared presentation to a group, the ability to
collect your thoughts and speak coherently without breaking out into a
cold sweat is a great skill to have too.
New members of the group receive a manual that walks them through the
basics of composing and presenting a successful speech, beginning with
an “Icebreaker,” which is a six-minute talk in which the speaker
introduces himself to the group. More experienced Toastmasters, called
“evaluators,” provide feedback to the featured speakers on their
strengths and how to improve. But don’t start quaking in your shoes
about the evaluations; although members can get slightly zealous about
catching speakers who mutter too many “um’s” and “uh’s”, the general
mood at a Toastmasters meeting is incredibly supportive and helpful.
“People all around you are actively engaged in your advancement,”
Donohue says.
The Singles Speak Up group in Kingston is unique, according to
Donohue. Composed primarily of singles (but not exclusively), the
group meets on Friday nights and the atmosphere is casual and laid
back. After most meetings, “members usually go out for a late dinner
at Good Time Charlie’s.” Although “it’s a great place to meet people,”
Donohue doesn’t think any Singles Speak Up members have found their
perfect match through the group, but he’s quick to point out that that
isn’t its purpose. “It’s friendly and relaxed, and it’s a great social
network,” he says, “but it’s not designed as a dating group.” Members
may be single, but they’re there primarily to improve their public
speaking and leadership skills.
Once a member has delivered the 10 speeches in the beginners manual,
he receives a CTM, or Competent Toastmaster distinction. After that, a
member moves on to an advanced manual where he can work on more
complex skills, such as presenting longer speeches with a humorous or
dramatic bent, or speeches that center on business presentation skills
with a focus on public relations, educational, or technical issues.
Donohue has been involved in Toastmasters for five years, and he has
received his ATM (Advanced Toastmaster) Silver distinction – which
means he’s delivered over 30 speeches – and he is working towards his
ATM Gold. The highest level of distinction a Toastmaster can achieve
is a DTM, or distinguished toastmaster, and to do that, he needs to
have achieved ATM Gold, and also to have completed the Toastmasters
Leadership series.
A lot of people come to Toastmasters because they’ve been promoted and
their new job requires making presentations, says Donohue. Or they may
have been downsized and are trying to develop a new skill during their
job hunt. But for Donohue, the big test came last year, when he was
the best man at his brother’s wedding. “I had to deliver a toast. I
was critical of myself, but my brother and sister-in-law couldn’t
believe it. The people closest to me were surprised by my skill.”
Donohue cites these positive benefits of Toastmasters:
Social networking. “Everybody talks about a declining sense of
community,” he says, “but Toastmasters groups are a real community. It
gives you the sense of a small town. You get to know these people and
they get to know you because you get up in front of them week after
week.” Sharing stories about your life, and delivering speeches about
things that matter to you is a great way to shortcut through small
talk, he says. “It’s consistently exhilarating being in front of
people, and reaching out to them.”
Personal and professional development. Membership in Toastmasters
costs under $60 a year and the professional development is
extraordinary, says Donohue. “You learn skills, you gain confidence;
it’s like going to college and the tuition is minimal.”
Developing entrepreneurial skills/creating a learning environment.
“There’s a real sense of entrepreneurship about the clubs,” Donohue
says. Every member is responsible for creating the environment of the
club, and each member takes on roles to keep the club growing and
thriving. “We belong to an international organization and you have to
maintain club goals and support people in their advancement,” he says.
Toastmasters “teaches the art of motivating people.” By being involved
in the organization, he says, you gain in leadership skills, marketing
and teamwork skills.
And you learn how to wow crowds at weddings.
If you want to go, Princeton area Toastmaster groups, all of which are
open to the public, are:
Singles Speak-Up Club. Kingston Presbyterian Church, 4565Route 27. 609-448-6434. First and third Friday, 7:30 p.m.Princeton Club. Princeton United Methodist Church,Vandeventer Avenue and Nassau Street. 609-799-4445. First, third andfifth Thursday. 7:30 p.m.Lawrenceville Club. Bristol Myers Squibb, 206 & ProvinceLine Road. Debra Pillo-Plank, 609-252-4000. First and third Tuesday.NoonETS Club. Educational Testing Service, Rosedale Road.609- 734-5157. Twice per month, varies. NoonCUH2A Toastmasters Club. CUH2A, 1000 Lenox Drive,Lawrenceville. 609-791-7255 First Tuesday and third Thursday. Noon.Becoming Masterful Speakers. Bristol-Myers Squibb,Building 2, 777 Scudders Mill Road, Plainsboro. 609-897-5149 Secondand forth Tuesday. Noon.Union Public Speaker’s Club. Mercer County CommunityCollege, James Kerney Campus, South Broad Street, Trenton.609-731-1880. First and third Wednesday. 6 p.m.– Deb CoopermanTop Of PageNew Career Boosters at MCCCMercer County Community College’s Center for Continuing Studies is nowenrolling for its non-credit Spring Semester business classes.According to Yvonne Chang, director of Community Education, theseprograms are designed for a variety of audiences, including small andlarge businesses and career changers. Areas of focus include nonprofitmanagement, marketing, business communications, real estate, projectmanagement, human resources, small business management, financialplanning, and computer literacy – from the basics to advanced coursesin programming.New this January is “Human Performance Improvement (HPI) in theWorkplace,” which outlines the principles of this systemic approach tosolving organizational problems, and is a prerequisite for subsequentHPI courses. The five full-day sessions meet on Tuesdays from 9 a.m.to 4 p.m. beginning January 18. Tuition and fees of $795 includecourse material, breakfast, and lunch.Another course offered for the first time will be “Know Thy Enemy &Thy Ally,” taught by Mary Evslin of Evslin Consulting, which exploresbusiness competitors and customers. The class meets two Tuesdayevenings beginning February 1. Tuition $84.In the computer realm, new certification prep classes will be offeredin “Microsoft Word XP” and “Microsoft Excel.” These daytime courseswill meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for sixsessions each, and are taught by a Microsoft-certified instructor.Word begins on February 15; Excel begins April 5.The “Certified Financial Planner” program will be taught by BrettDanko, CFP, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. The programhas two components: “Investment Planning” and “Retirement Planning &Employee Benefits.” Classes meet on Monday evenings beginning January24. Fees for tuition and testing are $360; course materials are $400.The registration deadline for noncredit classes is two weeks beforethe course start date. For more information call 609-586-9446 or visitwww.mccc.edu.Top Of PageFor Jobseekers, Holidays Are GoodIf you are unemployed – or stuck in a job you dislike – the holidayseason may be the best time of year to find a new job, according toCareerJournal.com (www.CareerJournal.com), the executive career sitefrom The Wall Street Journal.”Don’t stop job hunting because you assume that no one is hiringbetween Thanksgiving and New Year’s,” says Tony Lee, editor in chiefof CareerJournal.com. “When their work load declines in December, manymanagers use the down time to interview candidates. And thanks to thenew budget year that begins in January, those managers often have themoney to hire candidates again to fill positions that have been openfor many months.”Full-time positions also open up as transitioning employees quit theirjobs to move to new positions that start just after the New Year. Andcompetition is lighter as many other job hunters focus onholiday-related activities.CareerJournal.com offers these tips for job-hunting over the holidayseason:Be social. Accept every social and business invitation to attend asmany holiday parties as you can, since networking is the key tofinding a job.Send out holiday greeting cards. And enclose an update letter aboutyour job search. You also can thank people who have been helpful inyour career through the past year and let them know the status of yourjob hunt.Be your own postal service. Hand-deliver resumes so they don’t getlost in the holiday rush.Research new developments. Track news of companies’ 2005 plans thatmay indicate job openings.Keep on keeping up. Don’t stop your job search, even for a couple ofweeks.”Searching for a new job is a full-time job in itself when done right,so use holiday vacation time and a slower workload to network inperson and by phone,” Lee says. “It’s a great way to make sure thatyou start the New Year in a new job.” For more job search informationand guidance, visit www.CareerJournal.com.Next StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
