This is a guest post by Stella Fayman of TransFS.com.

Accepting credit cards is critical for most businesses. For many, it is the most important financial service.

Unfortunately, most business owners pay much more than they should for the service. According The Merchant-Acquiring Side of the Payment Card Industry: Structure, Operations and Challenges (a Federal Reserve publication), businesses with less than $1M in credit card receipts per year pay between 0.69% and 1.82% more than the wholesale (interchange) price that Visa and Mastercard pay for transactions. Here are some tips to make sure your business gets the best deal:

1) Know what you’re talking about

Do some research early on to get a handle on industry language. Know exactly what your business needs are. This will help screen out salespeople incapable of dealing your situation–who would end up costing you more anyway. For example, if you plan to use a certain POS system or need a certain internet gateway, be sure to mention that in the beginning of the process.

2) No cancellation fees allowed

Make sure to read the fine print from your credit card processing contract. You may be surprised to find a cancellation fee from at least $250 to several thousand dollars. This fee is a way of guaranteeing your loyalty to the processor, regardless of your satisfaction with their service. The good news is that getting rid of this fee should not be a problem–most salespeople have the authority to waive it. To avoid this problem, talk to your salesperson. Make sure the fee is waived in writing either in the contract or as an amendment.

3) Only use interchange-plus pricing

The bulk of a credit card’s processing fee goes to Visa and Mastercard. This fee is called “interchange” and is set in stone. Interchange-plus pricing is the fairest form of pricing structure for your business, meaning that you pay the interchange fee plus a constant markup which goes to the processor as a service charge. Having this structure ensures there are no tricky fees or hidden costs, unlike tiered pricing structures.

4) Comparison shop

Research shows that the best deal can be found by comparison shopping between at least five processors. However, make sure to compare on an apples-to-apples basis, and be sure each processor knows that you are actively shopping. You can easily make your bids more competitive by leveraging the power of comparison.

Stella Fayman blogs for TransFS.com- the comparison shopping site for credit card processors. Much like plane ticket prices are compared on Expedia, TransFS lets business owners compare processors on an apples-to-apples basis. TransFS only includes processors without cancellation or hidden fees, and only interchange-plus pricing. Learn more about credit card processing on the TransFS blog: Financially Speaking.

This is a guest post by Sency’s Evan Britton.

Many new technologies have launched over the past 5 years to improve the search engine experience. None of the new technologies were able to offer something both new and useful, however. For a while, a new way to search never caught on.

Then the real time web came along. It is different, and has spawned on a handful of new companies and technologies.

When you search a real time search engine, you are able to see what people are saying right now. You can see the public’s thoughts in respect to any given keyword, a useful ability. These can be great searches for perform for business purposes as well, as you can get a glimpse into what the public is saying about a particular product or service. A prime example is a sports fan-oriented business, which uses real time search to see what people are saying about a given team or player during a big game.

Every day, real time search results change, so a search for a keyword today will reveal entirely different results compared to a similar search the following day.

In addition a new and exciting way to search, the real time web brings tons of tools to webmasters and bloggers.

This article highlights 7 free real time web tools for publishers. By implementing these tools, you will end up adding value to your website while making your pages more sticky. These tools will allow you to have fresh, automatically updates, content and resources in your given niche. And, as time passes by, more and more companies will be developing these types of tools giving webmasters more options and tools to choose from.

While the real time web opens doors for webmasters, it also can be of use to small businesses. A real time search engine can be a great monitoring/tracking tool for businesses.

If you’re running an ad campaign, or launching a new product, a real time search engine will give you a window into customer’s thoughts and opinions. Also, these customers will be talking to their friends and colleagues, so their opinions are usually natural and unbiased. This is invaluable data. It can be gathered for free via Sency or any other real time search engine.

In addition to data, real time tools can be implemented into business websites. For example, if your company uses Twitter for updates, you can implement a script that will automatically update your Tweets on your site. These types of tools will boost retention while giving your site an added resource.

Evan Britton founded Sency in 2009. The goal of Sency is to bring real-time content, links, and tools to internet users in an organized and simple fashion. Evan has been published several times online in sources such as Business Insider & Website Magazine.

This is a guest post by Michelle Strassburg, co-founder of the company Wood and Beyond.

Is you business website attractive? If so, congratulations, you’re halfway there. In today’s hypercompetitive environment, looks alone won’t cut it on the Web. Functionality–the ability to share content, be available in real time, generate leads, and more–is key in a Web 2.0 world. Here are seven functional features you’ll need on your website to both serve existing clients and win new business.

1. Sharing Your Content and URL

Your business website has to offer an easy way to share content, products and its url with others. The days of coding a script to provide ’send to’ functionality are long gone. Simply embed one of the sharing services into your pages, for example addthis, and give users an easy way to share your website with others.

2. Share Your Availability

If your website goal is to sell your services, for example you might be a freelancer or a consultant, let users know your availability. One option is to simply add a message such as ‘hire me now’ or you can embed a Google Calendar in a dedicated page.

3. Accept Online Booking

Allowing users to book your services online is easy for you and for them. Booking your services does not always imply a paid service, it could also imply a free 15 minute consultation service. You can create a very simply booking form using Google Docs and embed it on a dedicated page.

4. Accept Online Payments

For businesses selling a product it goes without saying that the key is to take payments, a feature which comes with any shopping cart software. However, businesses that offer a service could also accept payments online even if their CMS does not support payments. Services such as e-junkie will allow you to create a shopping cart widget to embed across your pages. A ‘product’ within the widget in this case could be ‘30 min consultation’, ‘program review’ etc.

5. Use Lead Generation

For many users the booking or buying process will start with research and in many cases it’s in your interest to talk with the user so you can deal with objections, answer questions etc. If your CMS allows you to create forms great, otherwise consider using a service such as wufoo to create a lead generation form.

6. Allow Contact Us

Beyond the standard email and telephone options, offer ways to allow users to communicate with you via Skype, Twitter and even consider using an online chat functionality. There are plenty available, some are paid and some are free.

7. Offer Newsletter Subscription

These are fantastic to keep in touch with users, customers and suppliers and to especially communicate promotions, offers and new services. Most CMS I know don’t come with a newsletter functionality. Luckily, there are plenty of 3rd party newsletter services. Some, like MailChimp, even offer free plans.

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This guest post was written by Michelle Strassburg, Co-Founder at Wood and Beyond, sellers of engineered hardwood and oak worktops. Michelle has over 10 years experience managing online marketing and is an active blogger.

It has probably happened to you before, but now it is getting worse. If you have ever made an impulse buy of a no-name “productivity tool” from the end-rack at the checkout lane at your local office superstore or some random website on the Internet, you know what I am talking about.

After investing your time installing and then trying to use the program, you realize the product doesn’t work as advertised–or worse, you encounter unexpected error messages or other technical problems. You find no support number to call and the Support FAQs are of no help if they even exist at all. But then, what did you expect? How many support call minutes does $10 bucks buy you? You could take the package back, but chances are you agree it’s too much trouble and there is no guarantee that you will get your money back, let alone your pride. So you write it off.

Now, with the advent of the Software as a Service (SaaS) model, the cheap software ditch has gotten steeper with tons of free software now available. Many free software products work really well, and as advertised. For example, Google yields search results, often finding just exactly what you were looking for in zero seconds.

But just try to get some customer support when things go wrong or if you can’t figure out how to get something to work the way you’d think it would. Facebook doesn’t offer a way to talk directly to a customer service person. And features and functionality change over time with no warning or guarantees that any investment you made in understanding or using the software will pay off in the future.

Many free SaaS offerings (such as RememberTheMilk.com, but there are hundreds of other examples) have a fee-based upgraded service level which offers priority support. The free service level is offered as an effort to get you hooked, but always with the view toward selling the service, not just giving it away.

Since satisfying customer support needs beyond an FAQ generally costs money, you can pretty much count on getting what you pay for. Downloading a free game is low risk–what have you really lost if the game doesn’t work? But for office productivity software/services, online data storage or mobile connectivity services, “free” services may not be the most cost effective in the long run, as errors, learning curve breakdowns, service interruptions or data loss can be costly. As a result, assessing the cost of a software package must include, not only the purchase or license fee, but also the learning cost in time and frustration in order to obtain maximum benefit from the product.

Which products and services require great customer support? How do you feel about community based support? Have you been a victim of extremely poor customer service personally? Share your story and ideas with us. We appreciate your contributions.

Elmer blogs primarily at ThinkingSerious.com which focuses on programming, design, business and productivity content for tech entrepreneurs living in a 2.0 world. That is, when he is not tickling his entrepreneur itch or consulting.

This is a guest post by Resource Nation’s David Liu.

Yahoo has announced that it will end its paid inclusion program, formally called Search Submit Pro, by the end of 2009. The move comes after complaints against the search engine that claimed that having paid advertisements included in organic search results generated biased results for online marketing campaigns.

Search Submit Pro (SSP) allowed users to pay for page inclusion but not page rank, which allowed Yahoo to both guarantee page results but steer clear of offering a higher ranking. Having guaranteed page inclusion does, however, still allow web designers to optimize their pages for better search results.

The result allowed Yahoo to monopolize their search engine results, which turned key searches into full page ads for Yahoo SSP clients. Key searches for words like “refinance” on Yahoo came up with an entire page of SSP results, making it impossible for non-clients to show up on Yahoo’s top 10 results. Also, of the first 100 results for “refinance,” 80% were Yahoo SSP clients as well.

An additional search for “home mortgage” yielded 80% of SSP clients on the first page, allowing only 20% of Yahoo’s organic results to be listed. Complaints against paid inclusion had mainly focused on Yahoo’s SSP results taking over traditional SEO practices like pay-per-click ads and keyword manipulation.

Yahoo’s decision to end the use of paid inclusion had nothing to do with PR, however, and instead focused on their merger with software behemoth Microsoft. At their July press conference, Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz had originally declared that they would “decide on that later.”

Of all the search engines interested in the new merger, the smaller web developers are probably the happiest to see the demise of paid inclusion. While most of these search engine developers were in Yahoo’s corner in 2003 when SSP was first introduced, the Yahoo’s monopoly quickly showed that Google would still be king.

Many people in the search engine field have declared that getting rid of SSP can most likely bring back some life to smaller SEO practices. Yahoo knows this better than anyone, having said that their official SSP stop date of December 2009 was chosen to to allow their advertisers time to adjust.

While the merger between Yahoo and Microsoft seems to be on the verge of revolutionizing some factors in the search industry (BingHoo, perhaps?) many talking heads still claim that Google won’t see any competition for the next two years.

Resource Nation provides free tools, tips, and purchasing advice for business owners and entrepreneurs in over 100 business categories ranging from phone systems to credit card processing. Whether it’s connecting businesses with local and national pre-screened vendors, or offering easy service comparisons on a VoIP service, Resource Nation empowers business decision makers by providing the information they need to make smart choices.

David Liu is a writer and comedian based in San Diego, California. He writes extensively for Resource Nation and VoIP service, an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

There’s been a lot of conversation lately about how “free” is the future of business. Companies across all industries are figuring out ways to make a profit without actually charging for a product. For start-up company owners and new entrepreneurs, this is great news. Who doesn’t like free stuff? Here’s a quick list of some free tools for business owners.

Fileguru

This site is a one-stop shop for free software downloads. Need POS software, an inventory management program, accounting, or scheduling systems? Fileguru probably has it. The site is easy to browse. Each program has a quick summary on what it should be used for, and downloading is simple and fast for most simple software offerings. Most programs are designed open-source style, so free upgrades are available, too.

SnapPages

A simple website builder that allows even the most technologically oblivious entrepreneurs to build a flashy, functional website. The user interface is similar to that on a Mac computer–think drop-and-drag features, intuitive functionality, and simple, clean lines. The basic service, which allows you to build a simple site, is free, a paid, upgraded version is also available.

Firefox

Okay, so this one you’ve probably already heard of. If you haven’t switched to this free, downloadable browser, you’re missing out: add-ons allow you to do everything from shortening URLs to speeding up browsing to managing alerts and news feeds. Still need convincing? Programs like Xmarks allow you to access bookmarks, unread sites, and other “marked” pages from any mobile device.

OpenOffice

Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) is still the gold standard for most big companies, and is the one program that nearly everyone on the planet knows how to use. Licenses (which typically allow for non-simultaneous use on up to three machines) can run into the hundreds of dollars- a price that might be out of reach for many startups. OpenOffice provides an easy, flexible alternative to programs like Google Docs (which earns an honorable mention as a great free product in its own right).

Google Analytics

Google is the king of free offerings, and Analytics is often cited as one of the most valuable free tools there is. Using this program, you can track activity on your website (traffic, conversions, visitor behavior) easily and in real-time. The best part is that the information is presented in an easy-to-understand format (think simple graphs and visual aids). You can also use it to track e-commerce website sales, marketing campaign efficacy (even if you don’t use a Google advertising program, like AdWords) and just about any other valuable statistic.

Resource Nation

Finding an accounting service, a phone system, a background check service, or any other highly specialized business service vendor can be tough. For example, asking Google for the “top payroll processing providers” can return literally thousands of results to sift through. Resource Nation screens these vendors for you, and returns results based on your specifications (local companies, those that serve smaller businesses, etc.). While you’re looking for a vendor, check out the free guides on everything from setting up a payroll company account to forming a business entity.

MediaFire

This is a great tool for hosting and sharing large files. It’s easy to use, doesn’t require a lengthy signup or registration, and allows you to manage (send, save, catalog) files easily.

Dimdim

Web conferencing for up to 20 people that works seamlessly-for free? That’s what you’ll get using this free service. Dimdim also offers paid versions that are more advanced (Enterprise and Webinar features) in addition to the cost-free service offering.

FreshBooks

This invoicing, time-tracking and expense-monitoring program is available for smaller businesses (those with three or fewer clients) for free, offering an upgraded version for companies with lengthier client lists or more advanced billing requirements. FreshBooks software allows you to manage client billing easily without an accountant or bookkeeper, and send professional-looking invoices to clients. The program can also be integrated with PayPal, Microsoft and Mac time tracker programs, and other commonly used programs.

So there you have it… a few tools that are easy to use and easy on your wallet. Any I missed? Please let me know in the comments section, or contact me. A good bargain always deserves to be shared!

Merrin Muxlow is a writer, yoga teacher, and law student based in San Diego, California. Merrin writes extensively for Resource Nation, an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs. She frequently contributes to several sites and programs that offer tools for business owners, including Dell, BizEquity, StartUpNation, and bMighty.

1. Buying too soon.

Brand new businesses can usually get by on bare-bones equipment and upgrade as needed. A good rule of thumb: if you’re not going to use it tomorrow, don’t buy it–you might not really need it in the future.

2. “Bargains” that aren’t.

Purchasing heavily discounted software programs and industry-specific hardware, such as POS equipment (touch screens, scanners, etc.) at a liquidation sale or auction can seem like a great deal…until you realize that your “bargain” purchase isn’t compatible with any of the equipment you already own. Some deals really are too good to be true.

3. Impulse buys.

Don’t get talked into a purchase by an overzealous salesperson, or go on a new office furniture spending spree because you’re frustrated with your same old surroundings. Smart business owners only make strategic purchases.

4. Not negotiating.

You can negotiate a deal on almost any business service, and most products, too. Most phone systems vendors, POS systems salespeople, payroll services reps, and other vendors will often throw in extras, especially if you buy at the end of the month, quarter, or year, where your purchase will make the difference in their final sales numbers.

5. Not asking for references/referrals.

Always ask for references before making any significant business purchase, especially if it’s for an ongoing service. Ask other businesses for recommendations, and request reference information from prospective vendors- get a local reference if possible.

6. Skimping on research.

You should know a few basics before you start to shop: your price range, your basic requirements, the names of a few vendors, and how long the purchasing process usually takes. Don’t waste your time contacting vendors that only offer services for big companies if you’re a small business.

7. Being a know-it-all.

While research is great, getting your heart set on a particular technology or product isn’t always a good idea- you might miss out on an offering that’s better suited for your business. Be open to suggestions, even if you have a fairly firm idea of what you want.

8. Buying based on price alone.

The cheapest product or service isn’t always the best- or even the cheapest! For example, many payroll services vendors charge a very low per-check fee, but then add charges on for changing employee information or performing mandatory payroll tax deposits. Evaluate all costs to make sure you’re really getting a deal.

9. Not considering long-run costs.

Many business necessities can be leased or hosted (software, voip phone systems equipment, etc.) instead of purchased. This might cut down on the initial outlay, but will be more expensive overall. For example, many credit card processing companies sell processing terminals for a few hundred dollars, or lease them for $20/month or more- buying is clearly the better bargain in such cases.

10. Overextending yourself.

Even if a specific purchase is absolutely necessary, it might be out of your current price range. Overextending yourself is never a good idea- try buying a cheaper version that can be upgraded or even traded in as your business grows.

The most successful business owners know that good judgment and common sense can go a long way- Only buy what you need, do your homework, and don’t spend to your limits. Remember, a “good deal” is a purchase you’re satisfied with, no matter how much the actual cost.

Merrin Muxlow is a writer, yoga teacher, and law student based in San Diego, California. Merrin writes extensively for Resource Nation, an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs. She frequently contributes to several sites and programs that offer tools for business owners, including Dell, BizEquity, StartUpNation, and bMighty.

As a career blogger, I often receive emails from businesses asking me to write about their products or services. Usually these companies are small web-based start-ups that are looking to get free exposure on the internet, so I was surprised to receive an email from someone representing Deloitte Consulting asking me to share a video they had produced to entice prospective employees.

Deloitte is one of the one of the top auditing firms internationally and I’m sure that tens of thousands of the top students from top business schools around the globe are dying to land a job there. With such prestige and resources at their disposal, I was flattered that they would bother reaching out to a meager blogger like me to help market them–that is, until I actually watched the video.

Centered around the company’s “Born to Consult” theme, the video follows several job candidates, all young, all head of the class at top-ranked universities, through their interviews at Deloitte. The catch is that the interviews are conducted by a twelve-year-old boy who grills the candidates with such demanding questions as,

“How many ping pong balls can you fit in a 747?”

“Would you rather have a head twice its normal size or half its normal size?”

“Do you get the team pizza or Thai for lunch?”

For two minutes and thirty seconds I got to witness candidates responding either in bewildered earnest or thinly veiled frustration. They didn’t understand why they were being interviewed in such a way, and frankly neither do I. The most successful candidate seemed to be your classic frat guy who initiated high-fives and literally acted like a monkey. Is this the kind of person Deloitte is trying to hire? If I interview at Deloitte will I be asked questions about the price of nougat in China by a twelve-year-old?

What exactly is the message they are trying to send here?

I often ask myself the above question when watching advertisements on television today. Whatever happened to talking about the product you are selling? When did advertisers stop trying to appeal to us on an intelligent level?

Noam Chomsky, famous MIT professor, claimed during a speech in Santa Fe, New Mexico back in January 2005 that

“the main purpose of advertising is to undermine markets. If you go to graduate school and you take a course in economics, you learn that markets are systems in which informed consumers make rational choices. That’s what’s so wonderful about it.”

In a perfect world, advertising would be utilized by consumers to make intelligent, rational choices about which products to by or services to use. But in an effort to stand out from the competition, many advertisers are now turning to so-called “shockvertising” and it online companion, the “viral” video. Characterized by surreal fantasy, these ads can encompass anything from a man in a chicken suit dancing around his living room (aka Burger King’s Subservient Chicken) to the “No Stank You” public services ads warning kids about the dangers of smoking by showing them dancing on giant, smoke-stained, rotten teeth that are floating in space.

Huh? Are consumers so impressionable that they can be influenced to by a burger based on a man in a chicken suit rather than a picture of the actual burger they intend to purchase?

Apple’s long-running Mac ads are a great example of how advertising can be both cool and smart. The backdrop is a simple white background, the product highly conceptualized (represented by “Mac” and “PC”) and the message delivered primarily through dialogue and the occasional sight gag. The products are never shown per se, but the two hip representatives actually talk about the product and tell us what it can do. They represent the product’s simplicity, edginess and capability, which appeals to Apple’s elite core users, those “smart” enough to look beyond what everyone else is using.

What I want to know is when did we as consumers abdicate our responsibility to judge a product based on its merits?

Does this signal a decline in the intelligence of our population? Or is our appetite for the bizarre a side-effect of years upon years of constant media saturation? I’m not sure. But I do know that I’m saving up to by myself a MacBook for Christmas.

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Jacqui Tom is a young professional working her way up the corporate ladder. Launching her career with a series of internships at America Online (AOL) and Amazon.com that helped her learn the ropes of the internet business, she now works as a web writer for a Seattle non-profit.

Her blog, The Office Newb, offers a newcomer’s perspective of office life. Typing furiously from her cubicle, she shares lessons about life, business and everything in between.

Feel free to contact Jacqui at officenewb at gmail dot com

Chances are you’ve seen the news by now reporting that there are upcoming changes to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But I’m not here to talk about the ADA…your friendly local employment attorney can give you all the details.

I want to talk about employees who have chronic or reoccurring medical conditions. According to Wikipedia nearly one in two Americans (translation: about 133 million) has some sort of chronic medical condition. Examples of common chronic conditions are arthritis, asthma, diabetes, and high blood pressure. And, these conditions may or may not be covered under the ADA. So if you’re approached by an employee who wants to discuss a reoccurring medical condition, how should you handle it?

The answer? Like a person. Let me tell you a story…

Long before the ADA, FMLA, and a handful of other laws that probably end in “A”, and just three weeks after I was married, I was involved in an auto accident. I had several injuries but the worst was a broken back and temporary loss of movement from the waist down. I spent the first nine months of my married life in a full body cast and then had to learn how to walk again.

Now you’re probably saying that sounds pretty catastrophic so how does this relate to a chronic condition like migraine headaches. Well, think about it this way: both conditions involve regular doctor’s visits, accommodations on the job, and a whole bunch of time off work. So, here are 3 tips to consider when dealing with employee medical situations.

1. Make sure your employees know their benefits package. Giving your employees knowledge about how their benefits work will not only help them to appreciate that benefit but it will allow them to focus on feeling better (and returning to work). I’ve seen employees pay for covered services or pay higher fees just because they didn’t understand a pre-authorization process. Also, employees should know the proper way to question payments and ask for an expense reconsideration from their insurance company. BTW, you might want to make sure you fully understand them first.

2. Keep your employees engaged. Whether they’re out for a day or a month, call them to follow-up and see how they’re doing. A simple phone call just to say hello allows you to keep employees connected and informed about what’s happening at work. (And, if you need to sneak in a little question or two to keep things running smoothly at the job…I’m sure they wouldn’t mind.)

3. Be flexible with work assignments. This is a biggie. When I returned to work, I wasn’t able to do the same job. My employer found another position for me…one that I was good at. My manager needed someone for a writing project which ended up being my first instructional design work. In the end, he arranged to have me transferred to HR.

Yes, folks, I’m in human resources today because my employer cared enough to find me a position when I couldn’t do what I was originally hired for.

Oh, and before you immediately dismiss a request to work ‘light duty’ or some other accommodation, think for a second to see if it’s really a hardship. I’ve heard all too many times that there’s “nothing available” only to find something when a manager gets pressured.

So, I hope the next time an employee comes to you about a reoccurring doctor’s appointment you remember these tips. Even better…think about how you would want your spouse/child/parent treated if they were the one needing the time off. It’s a no-brainer.

Nothing can sour the employee-employer relationship more than an employee feeling like the company doesn’t care about their health. We’re all fully aware that companies have goals to achieve, profits to make, and shareholders to answer to. But the companies that get it – those who really understand that happy employees create happy customers – will be the ones that see their happy customers spend more money and build long-lasting customer loyalty.

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Sharlyn Lauby, SPHR, CPLP is the voice of HR Bartender, a friendly place to discuss workplace issues. When she’s not tending her blog, Sharlyn is president of Internal Talent Management (ITM) which specializes in employee training and human resources outsourcing. Her off-hours are spent searching for the best hamburger on the planet, fabulous wines that cost less than $10 bottle, and exotic martinis.

Just in case you’ve missed it, there is a major change happening in the workplace and it will end up affecting all of us. It turns out that the next generation of workers, Generation Y, is made up of 75 million folks who are between 16-29. Their arrival in the workplace means that all managers need to (1) be aware of it, and (2) start to change the way that they mange. Are you ready?

Many managers tell me that they don’t have time to worry about getting ready to manage Gen-Y’ers. Oh oh – this is no longer an option. In 2007 the Gen-Y crowd accounted for 25% of the work force and their numbers will only grow as the baby boomers start to retire.

Before managers start to despair about having to learn a new language in order to communicate with their staff, everyone needs to understand that Gen-Y brings a lot of benefits to the workplace. Specifically, the Gen-Y crowd comes to the workplace with tech-savvy skills, multitasking skills (hmm, is this good?), and networking skills. What this means is that Gen-Y has the opportunity to introduce real innovation into every workplace.

So what’s a manager to do? In order to both attract and retain the Gen-Y workforce, a manager is going to have to create new training and reward programs. Because of the way they have been raised, constant feedback is something that the Gen-Y worker is constantly looking for.

Motivating Gen-Y employees can be as simple as giving them more control over their jobs. Whereas previous generations of workers (myself included) were more than willing to sell their soul and put the workplace before friends, family, and personal health. Gen-Y workers will not be putting up with any this. Instead they are going to insist on being able to maintain a work/life balance.

Finally, having the ability to make an impact is critical to Gen-Y staff. The Gen-Y team wants to be able to see that their work is changing their world (in a positive way!) This goes hand-in-hand with the Gen-Y employee’s need to be constantly learning new things. If both of these needs can be satisfied at the same time, then a manger has a better chance of holding on to his/her staff.

It won’t be easy to be a manger who is in charge of Gen-Y’ers. However, every generation has had to deal with similar issues. The most important thing to remember is that Gen-Y has already landed in the workplace and so managers have the responsibility to change. The future is looking so bright that we may all have to wear sunglasses…

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Dr. Jim Anderson has spent over 20 years working with a wide variety of IT firms from the very big to the very small. His insights into how to bring the separate worlds of business and IT together offer hope to firms everywhere who are struggling with this challenge. Dr. Anderson offers his insights on how to get these two different groups to work together for the betterment of the firm and its employees.

Get more information on both Dr. Anderson and this topic at www.blueelephantconsulting.com and www.thebusinessofit.com.