Gone are the days when students of Delhi University were satisfied with the theoretical learning gained through slaving over books during their time at college. College is now about expanding one's horizons and imbibing soft skills to enhance character (and resumes!). SearchMyCampus recognized the desire for work experience and created a campus based classifieds platform that students can use to obtain this.
Students are always on the lookout for jobs to get some work experience as they study, and of course, earn a little additional pocket money. SearchMyCampus gives them the option to upload their resumes and describe their requirements to employers for fresher jobs, part time jobs, internships and even volunteer work. Employers from a number of industries visit the website to view these resumes and select students that meet their requirements.
Apart from companies that hire freshers on a regular basis, students on SearchMyCampus are likely to find employers that have a temporary need for manpower or have only a limited number of openings. Thus they can get access to employers that they would not meet through placement consultants or campus hiring. SearchMyCampus has had openings listed by large organizations like Microsoft, KFC, UTV, BigAdda, and Subway among others. There have also been several smaller organizations offering some very interesting profiles on the website.
SearchMyCampus also provides students with a platform that they can use to get support for more enterprising ventures. Several students advertise their services as tutors, language coaches, music teachers, translators, writers, and even software designers and developers on a freelance basis. This gives them the opportunity to get some work experience without compromising on the flexibility of working from home and at their own convenience.
Delhi University students have found their own ways of using the website to express their innovation and creativity. There have been advertisements from students looking to make a movie and even start their own bands. Students are proactively using the website to find other students from their campus area to support them in their ventures.
SearchMyCampus offers a win-win situation for both employers and students. While students can get the work experience to enhance their character and resume, employers can also hire more effectively through SearchMyCampus. The website's campus based filtration allows employers to recruit students from specific universities that train students in the skills that these organizations need. Access to part time manpower means they can get their simpler functions done by students at a lower cost rather than hiring full time staff.
SearchMyCampus is a free service that is accessible through the internet, mobile and to an extent print. Apart from jobs, it can also be used by students and student service providers to find an effective solution to several other basic campus needs including housing, carpools, roommates, tutors, books and secondhand merchandize of all types.
Feedback has become the f-word of the working world. Many cringe when they hear the word because they know what's coming - criticism, unfairness or lip-service. What we crave is genuine and beneficial feedback. Recognition is an example of this.
Have you ever played the children's game 'Hunt The Thimble'? This is where a thimble is hidden in a room and the seeker is guided by calls of 'warmer' or 'colder' as they approach or move away from the target. Sometimes things get 'very hot' or 'freezing'!
The fun comes less in locating the thimble - after all you can't sell it, wear it or eat it - and more in the feedback itself. The real engagement is engendered by the guiding shouts. As seeker, you know you are involved and what you can do next.
At work we want to know we are making a difference. We don't like to see our efforts apparently disappearing into the ether. And we only know we are making a difference by getting feedback.
So how can we get the recognition we want?
The key is to increase the level of feedback you get. Genuine feedback is delivered in a way that 'feeds forward' so we learn from our experience and modify our actions as appropriate. As you get more feedback of this quality, some of it will be the recognition you want and the rest will be useful in other ways.
Here is a 3 step approach you can use:
1. Create a climate of feedback. While we can't change the culture single-handed, we can make it quite clear that personally we invite feedback. As part of your preparation in doing something, you can ask someone to supply feedback.
Suppose you are delivering a presentation in the near future. Ask a member of the audience beforehand to give you feedback. This works much better if you ask for it in specific areas - eg. 'first impressions, the attention of the audience is held and how the questions at the end are answered'.
Alternatively you could ask for feedback after you have completed a task. Here the giver is not pre-warned so the coverage of the areas you are particularly interested in may be more partial.
2. Get feedback from a wide range of sources. Frequently people are frustrated because the feedback from their boss is inadequate or missing (Implementing step 1 will inevitably influence this situation but in the final analysis you can't force someone to give feedback). So open up and tune in to feedback from less obvious sources - colleagues, customers, suppliers, affiliates, visitors, recruits and so on. What difference are you making here?
3. Experiment with new approaches and attitudes. When something is not working very well, so we are not getting the feedback we want, it is tempting to redouble our efforts and do the same thing again but harder. This is especially true with recognition. When getting in early and leaving late doesn't get it, we come in even earlier and leave even later!
We don't need to see feedback as a threat. We can influence both its source and quality to get more of the recognition we want.
Both Vidha Jain & Trevor Hill are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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