Ira S Wolfe, Future of Work, TEDx Speaker

MEDIA MENTIONS AND ARTICLES

Ira S Wolfe is a “Millennial trapped in a Baby Boomer body” and the world’s first Chief Googlization Officer. He is president of Poised for the Future Company, founder of Success Performance Solutions, a TEDx Speaker, Top 10 Global Thought Leader on Future of Work and HR (Thinkers360), host of Geeks Geezers Googlization podcast, and frequent presenter at SHRM and business conferences. His most recent book is Recruiting in the Age of Googlization, now in its 2nd edition, is recognized as one of the best HR and Recruiting books of all-time by Book Authority. He is the founder of the Googlization Nation community and a frequent contributor to HR and business blogs including CornerstoneonDemand’s ReWork. He is also the author of 5 more books including Perfect Labor Storm and Understanding Business Values and Motivators.

To schedule Ira for TV/radio/podcast interviews and conferences, click here or call 800-803-4303.

digital employee experience

New Study Reveals Impact of Digital Employee Experience

Published on WGVU Public Media
 
July 8, 2022

A new survey reveals that employees rely on tech to be productive and happy on the job. Shelley Irwin, host and producer for The WGVU Morning Show, talks to IVANTI CEO Jeff Abbott and best-selling author Ira Wolfe, America’s Chief Googlization Officer about the results and action items.

Listen here.

NTD Business, Ira S Wolfe, Online Education, Pandemic

Students to Receive $1.65 Million After Suing School

Published on NTD Business
 
May 14, 2022

University students who sued their school for making them take online classes during the lockdowns have kind of won. The school has agreed to a settlement of $1.65 million.

What does Future of Work Global Thought Leader Ira S Wolfe think about the settlement and the quality of education received during and post-pandemic.

Watch here.

Five Business Benefits Of Growth Mindset: How To Thrive In Today’s Competitive Environment

Published on Forbes
 
May 5, 2022

What if we’re wrong? What if the future is one big crapshoot and we’re all doomed to make mistakes? It’s a scary thought because the future is constantly changing. It’s hard to anticipate what will happen. The good news is that doesn’t mean we need to live our lives at the mercy of change. We just need to see these challenges and setbacks as stepping stones, not roadblocks.

Continue Reading

6 questions to ask yourself after a job rejection

Published on Fox Business
 
May 2, 2022

Here are six questions you should ask yourself after a job rejection and how you can rise above it.

1. Ask yourself how your salary requirements match up with your experience, and if you requested too much.

“You could ask, ‘Was it the money or was it my experience?’” said Ira Wolfe, president at Success Performance Solutions – an employee testing service based in Pennsylvania.

“If it was the money, you can ask if the managers undervalued you,” Wolfe continued. “Or you can self-reflect on whether you were you asking for higher compensation because you need that much money to live on… but you’re really not worth that much compared to other candidates and employees.”

Continue Reading…

16 Key Things To Consider Before Hiring An Overqualified Job Candidate

Published on Forbes.com

May 2, 2022

It might seem like a no-brainer to say that the more qualifications a job candidate has, the more well-suited they would be to fill a position. In reality, however, some candidates are overqualified, and this can become an issue if they accept the position.

If you’re considering hiring an overqualified candidate, it’s important to make sure you consider the decision from all angles. Here, 16 members of Forbes Coaches Council share key things they would advise their clients to think about before hiring someone with an overabundance of skills, education, experience and/or credentials.

Here is Ira S Wolfe’s contribution at #16

16. Their Adaptability

It’s simple. Drop “overqualified” from your vetting process. It’s not only a poor filter, but it also holds little value. The number of degrees and years of experience no longer is a valid predictor of future success. The No. 1 skill for future employability is adaptability, according to McKinsey, Deloitte, and others. And I’m not sure in today’s never-normal world you can be overqualified in adaptability.

Click here to read more.

Forbes coaches council, overqualified candidates, Ira S wolfe, adaptability

The Future of Working in 2022 and Beyond

By Tony Bradley
Published in The Sunday Mail

This will sound crazy, but we actually used to go to offices to work. Like, people woke up, showered, got dressed, and fought through rush hour traffic and the challenge of finding decent parking so that they could sit at a desk in a building to do work.

Now, people work from everywhere.

Click here to read more.

The New Collars: Blue-Collar Workers Upskill

It’s not just blue-collar and white-collar anymore. Now there’s also the “new collar.” It refers to blue-collar workers who upskilled during the pandemic to get better-paying jobs, like tech jobs, with no college degree necessary.

Click here to watch.

new collar jobs, ntd news, ira s wolfe

12 Strategies To Turn Your Customer Service Into A Five-Star Experience

The adage “the customer is king” will always ring true, no matter what industry you’re in. A negative customer experience can lead to the demise of a business if its leaders can’t figure out how to fix it.

Fortunately, there are plenty of things you can do to improve your customer support. Below, 12 members of Forbes Coaches Council discuss the best ways for businesses to transform their customer service into a five-star experience.

Click here to read.

forbes coaches council, Ira S Wolfe, customer service

Workers’ Positive Drug Tests at 20-Year High

​With so many jobs available, getting hired is supposed to be easy—but not if you start by failing the drug test.

A new study shows positive drug tests among U.S. workers are at their highest levels in decades.

Click here to watch.

Drug Testing - Ira S Wolfe - NTD Business

Americans Would Rather Work ANYWHERE Other Than the Office!

The pandemic has changed the way we work… forever! A new study confirms that it’s no longer about the type of work we do but “where we do it” that matters to most employees these days. And you might not believe what they’re willing to give up to work from anywhere! Watch the video and interviews with David Shepherd, Global VP of Ivanti and Ira S Wolfe, America’s Chief Googlization Officer for some interesting insight and what it means for employers!

Click here to watch.

eveywhere workplace ira s wolfe

More Retirees Go Back to Work

Many companies are raising pay because of inflation, and it looks like that wage increase, along with other factors, is bringing back some workers who went into retirement earlier in the pandemic. According to Indeed Hiring Lab, 2.5% of retirees made a U-turn and re-entered the workforce in October 2021. Ira S Wolfe told NTD Business what’s behind this trend. Higher vaccination created a safer environment. Virtual work and the need for money contribute too.

Click here to watch.

retirees back to work ntd news ira s wolfe

Record 4.4 Million US Workers Quit in September

Americans are quitting their jobs in record numbers. The Labor Department’s latest figures released Friday show that 4.4 million workers quit in September. A hiring consultant, Ira S Wolfe, told NTD Business what’s behind this trend.

Click here to watch.

quits rate, jobs, JOLTS, NTD News

69 Percent of Remote Workers Have Multiple Jobs: Report

You might think working from home would give you more free time or a lighter lifestyle. But apparently over two-thirds of remote workers in America are working two jobs, and half of them say they’re actually more productive.

Click here to watch.

Remote workers, Ira S Wolfe, NTD NEws

Trades Could Attract Workers Amid Shortage

If you’re considering a new career path and want to help ease some of America’s shortages, a new report says people working skilled trade jobs like carpenters and electricians are pretty happy. The report says these industries have a great opportunity to attract more talent as people reevaluate their future.

Click here to watch.

Construction Jobs, Trades, Ira S Wolfe

How to Find the Right Leadership Training for Your Company

Builtin.com

October 5, 2021

Few talent development decisions have a bigger impact on your company’s future success than which leadership training program you invest in.

The right one can set your company up for success, filling your talent pipeline with leaders who are prepared for both the business challenges they’ll encounter and the needs of their employees. The wrong one is not only an expensive waste of time, it can end up causing a leak in your talent pipeline, according to Ira Wolfe, president of the leadership assessment firm Success Performance Solutions.

“The biggest cost to an organization is losing talent,” Wolfe said.

Irrelevant training can cause leaders to become disengaged and unmotivated. Eventually, they’ll quit, Wolfe said.

Click here to read the full article.

6 Tips to Improve Your Leadership Development Strategy

Builtin.com

October 5, 2021

While almost every HR leader recognizes the importance of leadership development, it can be incredibly difficult to get right. Despite companies spending $3.5 billion on leadership development, just 11 percent of HR leaders believe they have a strong pipeline of talent, according to leadership consulting firm DDI’s most recent Global Leadership Forecast.

So what’s clogging the pipeline?

Much of it has to do with the way leadership has evolved in the past year. Twenty years ago, companies would’ve said that a leader needs to be confident, autocratic and task-oriented, according to t-three, a leadership training firm. That may have worked when life and work were separate. But after a global pandemic, a transition to remote work, economic uncertainty and social unrest — not to mention generational changes in the workplace — employees require more from their bosses.

How do you develop those leaders? Here’s what you need to know.

Before you start creating a leadership development plan, it’s important to understand what being a leader in your company looks like.

In general, effective leaders today need to be prepared to deal with constant change — or its common acronym VUCA, which stands for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, said Ira Wolfe, president of Success Performance Solutions, a leadership assessment and consulting firm. Leaders have to be able to solve complex problems quickly, mentor employees and have the skills to relate to employees across multiple generations.

Those core skills form the foundation of most leadership training plans today, Wolfe said.

Click here to read more.

75% Of Small Businesses Would Fire Workers For Not Complying With Vaccination Policies

September 28, 2021

In the latest sign of the importance many companies are placing on having employees vaccinated against Covid, 75% of small businesses said in a survey they would fire workers for failing to comply with their vaccination policies.

Ira Wolfe, president of Success Performance Solutions, said, “Whichever decision an organization makes will have benefits and fallout. The first question one might ask is “can the employee work remotely?” If yes, you’d need to answer why a universal vaccination mandate would be necessary. It will undoubtedly shrink your talent pool.

“But the decision to exempt remote workers from the mandate may motivate in-person employees to request remote work options. What happens if the remote worker is required to participate in occasional in-person meetings or meet with customers? What if the customer requires proof of vaccination and/or a negative Covid-19 test? Does the employee get an exemption for this too, even if it impacts his/her performance?”

Click here to read more.

Why Can’t We Fill Jobs? Openings Are at a Record High

September 4, 2021

America had a record 10.1 million jobs openings in June, but businesses are struggling to fill these open positions, CNN reported. So what’s causing this mismatch between worker supply and demand?

“The labor participation rate has been declining for years, especially for men, while the participation for women nearly doubled from 1950 to recently,” said Ira Wolfe, president and chief Googlization officer at Success Performance Solutions, an employee testing provider. “The reality is women drove the U.S. labor force until recently. But then the pandemic hit and women left the workforce in droves, [we experienced a] ‘SheCession.’ Women still hold the role of caregiver in most families. When push came to shove, they had a choice — take care of their kids or parents, or their career. Kids and parents won out. The female participation dropped from just a little over 60% to approximately 52%.”

Click here to read more.

Detroit Unemployment Rate at 25 Percent According to New Study

According to a new University of Michigan study, an estimated one-fourth of Detroit’s labor force is unemployed. Why is Detroit’s unemployment rate so high. According to Ira S Wolfe, the trend is reflective of labor market trends everywhere. But because Detroit is so dependent on the automotive industry, chip shortages have slowed production too, hampering businesses in the supply chain and local businesses that depend on worker traffic and consumer spending.

Click here to watch.

Detroit unemployment rate, NTD News, Ira S Wolfe

Experts On How To Get Back Into The Workforce

“There was not a single attendee at #SHRMTalent who said ‘we have too many candidates!'”  Ira S Wolfe joined host Paul Greaney and Adecco’s Head of Customer Success to offer tips for workers reentering the workforce post-pandemic or changing jobs. 

Click here to watch.

Ira S Wolfe, re enter workforce, jobs, unemployment

​Adaptability Critical to Questioning Our Thinking

Not everyone is at ease hearing from others that there is a better way of thinking and conducting process. Being asked to examine and question their way of thinking and doing things is not easy to hear. We’re emotional. We have egos. Yet there are ways we can personally develop, not only for the good of others, but ourselves too to benefit significantly.

What do you think about the following quote about two professionals who were accomplished in their profession?

“…never were afraid of someone challenging them, and when they realized they might be wrong, admitting so.”

“There’s a lot to unpack here. Let me frame this within the context of adaptability — making change work,” says Ira S. Wolfe, President and Chief Googlization Officer at his company, Success Performance Solutions.

Read more!

Receptiveness to Listening, Learning and Adjusting

A smart quote in an article I read last week inspired an idea on which to seek sources to write a story. That idea however inspired such a strong response to my query that the next thing I knew I had multiple sources and a series on the topic.

What was that topic?

How do we get to a point where we are mature, poised and able to hear people question our ideas and process, or propose a different way of thinking and doing things — and we listen without being triggered emotionally and we show receptiveness to making adjustments in our minds and actions, and then get even better at what we’re doing?

Ira S. Wolfe provided me — unintended — a condensed master class in our conversation about adaptability, unlearning, and learning and how to personally develop beyond ego, reframing a mindset, and how to more skillfully think and communicate with ourselves to get to “right” sooner.

I’m not kidding, I felt I learned years’ worth of insight in our dialogue. I’ve told myself I have to reread what he communicated. There is gold in what he expresses.

Adaptability Critical to Questioning Our Thinking

Communication Intelligence Magazine, Ira S Wolfe, Adaptability

#1 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Future of Work (August 2021)

Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on HR (August 2021) Here’s the Thinkers360 live leaderboard for our top 50 global thought leaders and influencers on HR for August 2021. Congratulations to all our thought leaders and experts who participated!

Success Performance Solutions Founder Ira S Wolfe was listed as #1.

Thinkers 360 #1 Global Thought Leader Future or Work

Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on HR (August 2021)

Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on HR (August 2021) Here’s the Thinkers360 live leaderboard for our top 50 global thought leaders and influencers on HR for August 2021. Congratulations to all our thought leaders and experts who participated!

Success Performance Solutions Founder Ira S Wolfe was listed as #4.

Thinkers 360 #1 Global Thought Leader Future or Work

​Workers are walking out on the job.

Here’s how to avoid employee turnover and becoming another headline.

Published on The Business Journals

August 13, 2021

Fed up workers are simply walking out — and making big headlines.

The labor shortage that has gripped small businesses has not just been a behind-the-scenes affair of pay raises and hiring bonuses. It has also taken on a public face in the increasingly digital age, as workers fed up with what they say were bad conditions or poor pay simply get up and leave during their shifts, often leaving the store empty.

Employees at a Nebraska-based Family Dollar walked out of work, leaving a sign that simply said “We all quit. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

​EMPLOYERS’ LATEST HIRING TACTIC: TUITION-FREE DEGREES

Published on foodinstitute.com

August 10, 2021

Hiring and retaining employees has been a battle throughout the coronavirus pandemic, so companies are upping their game, waving perks like signing bonuses at workers.

Now, the latest trend entails major employers like McDonald’s offering tuition reimbursement programs that not only advance employees’ personal development but groom a company’s next crop of leaders.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

U.S. EMPLOYERS’ NEXT CHALLENGE: HANDLING THE ‘GREAT RESIGNATION’ WAVE

Published on foodinstitute.com

June 16, 2021

A strange thing happened as the U.S. started emerging from the pandemic: Rather than workers debating whether they wanted to go back to the office a few days a week or full-time, many just decided they didn’t want to go back at all. They quit.

The percentage of U.S. workers quitting their jobs in April rose to 2.7%, up 1.6% from April 2019 and the highest level since at least 2000, Labor Department data indicate. And job openings numbered nearly 9.3 million in April. All this with a 5.5% unemployment rate that rose to 5.8% in May

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

teambuilding.com, top 16 recuriting books

​16 Best Recruiting Books to Read in 2021

Published on teambuilding.com

May 3, 2021

Recruiting books are guides to attracting, interviewing, evaluating, and hiring new employees. These resources cover topics like data-driving hiring practices, interviewing strategies, technology’s role in recruiting, and best practices for assembling offers. These books are also called “hiring books” or “recruitment books.”

Among the Top 16 Recruiting Books to Read in 2021 is Ira S Wolfe’s Recruiting in the Age of Googlization.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Top 50 Podcasts to Listen to in 2021

Dec 11, 2020

Thinkers360 selected 50 podcasts on business and technology from Thinkers360 member thought leaders and Geeks Geezers and Googlization was among them!

CLICK IMAGE TO READ MORE!

Geeks Geezers Googlization, Thinkers 360

Top 50 Books to Read in 2021

Dec 3, 2021

Thinkers360 selected 50 recent and upcoming books (bonus picks) on business and technology from Thinkers360 member thought leaders and Recruiting in the Age of Googlization, 2nd Edition, was among them!

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE!

Recruiting in the Age of Googlization Ira S Wolfe

​How Small Businesses Can Attract and Retain Talent In a Tight Labor Market

Published on Business Unplugged

February 11, 2020

Right now, the labor market is very tight and small businesses are really feeling the brunt. Since attracting and retaining employees can be such a challenge in this market, we have sought the advice of our incredible CarolRoth.com contributor network of business owners, experts, advisors and entrepreneurs to find out their best tips. Their answers are presented below in no particular order. One of those contributors was our very own Ira S Wolfe.

40. Googlize Your Recruitment

The simplest solution for better recruiting might be just a few clicks away. Remember that a job listing is a web page, just like every other page on your company website. Make sure each job and your career page is search engine optimized, beginning with job titles that job seekers might use to search. Don’t forget about Google. 75% of job seekers start their search on Google and over 90% use mobile devices. Even your job application must be mobile-friendly, responsive, and load fast.

Read more tips to attract and retain talent.

​Who Is Hiring? 5 Industries to Start Your Job Search

Published on U.S. News & World Report

November 20, 2020

Millions of people have lost their jobs in the months since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and entire industries have ground to a halt in the wake of government shutdowns and restrictions. Now is not the time to find a job in the tourism or hospitality industries, for instance.

However, that doesn’t mean all jobs have disappeared. “We have two economies,” says Ira Wolfe, president of Success Performance Solutions, a firm providing pre-employment and leadership assessments. While the pandemic has accelerated automation and eliminated jobs in some sectors, it has ramped up demand in others.