Free IBM report on The Future of the IT Department

IBM has developed a report titled - The Future of the IT Department - which talks about how cloud is transforming the way in which IT shops operate.  This is an important read for any small business leader since it reinforces that cloud computing is more than just technology and there are changes that must be anticipated and planned for your workforce.

Below is an excerpt of the free report from IBM and a link to download the full report.


Introduction

It doesn't take much of a trawl through the volume of media articles written about cloud computing before you come across an article suggesting that cloud computing spells the end for the internal IT department of the enterprise. After all, you just use a service provided from somewhere else by someone else don’t you? What possible need would there be for an IT department?

Cloud computing engagements with clients however tell a very different story. It is plain to see that most organisations will still very much need an IT organisation. It may well be smaller in size; the standardisation and automation that clouds provide saves cost by removing or reducing the number of IT organisation employees; and what that department will be called upon to do will change considerably from today.

The need however still remains. This then raises the question: what will the IT department of the future look like?

Read more and download the free IBM Report - The Future of the IT Department at:

https://app.box.com/s/hp45jspyoxea1145qirbdn69rim763k2

How Salesforce is encouraging people into coding

How Salesforce is encouraging people into coding

Clare McDonald

Business Editor

19 Jul 2016 14:00

 

Trailhead initiative is targeting people of diverse ages and backgrounds to take up coding

 

Over the last five years, efforts have been stepped up to get young, and sometimes older, people to learn coding skills.

It is now compulsory in UK schools for children between the ages of five and 16 to learn computational thinking and coding concepts.

But employers still say this does not teach people the combination of skills required to fill technology vacancies for skilled workers.

The UK is suffering from a skills gap, with firms unable to find candidates with the technical skills to fill roles. Salesforce says there has been growing demand for applications developers as companies seek to create apps for particular business needs.

Will Coleman, who heads part of Salesforce’s developer relations team in EMEA, says: “We can see there is a massive demand for apps within business and there is a massive backlog of app requests in the enterprise.”

 

To help businesses develop apps, Salesforce offers Trailhead, an online learning platform with free resources that provides a number of “trails” to learning how to develop apps.

Coleman says the idea is to “open up the spectrum of people who can create applications” by offering free resources and encouraging people of different skill levels to create and develop apps.
“It is open to everybody,” he says. “We are very much in the enterprise, so we want to make sure our customers can create apps.”
People who use the online tools to complete training modules earn Trailhead badges to show they have completed the course.
Coleman adds: “We are seeing partners in our ecosystem look at a candidate’s Trailhead badge collection to see if they are up to speed on the latest tech.”

Developer diversity

Salesforce is using its world tours to give people of different backgrounds an opportunity to try out Trailhead, while providing content about driving diversity in organisations.
Coleman says Trailhead modules can be completed at any time using online tools, which attracts people who may not otherwise learn coding skills, such as those who need a flexible working environment.
“The flexibility really helps and we even have content around driving diversity within your organisation, as well as inclusion,” he says.

Sharing the right skills?

Firms are currently looking for people with soft skills as well as technical skills to fill technical roles that involve collaboration.
But Coleman stresses that companies need app developers, and by drawing people in from as many walks of life as possible, employers are more likely to find people with communication skills as well as technical skills.

“Our ecosystem is definitely asking for more app builders and developers, and the recent parliamentary report on the digital divide said over 12.6 million adults lack basic digital skills,” he says.

Many resources are available on the web to help learn apps development, says Coleman, which opens up a “great opportunity”.

Salesforce hopes that providing free educational resources to as many people as possible will persuade more candidates from different backgrounds to enter the industry.

“Getting as many people into app development as possible from all walks of life will end up creating a more healthy and diverse ecosystem,” says Coleman.

“There is definitely a need for digital skills in the UK and in Europe at large.”

source:  http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450300479/How-Salesforce-is-encouraging-people-into-coding

 

A top 20 skills list for (mostly developer-centric) freelancers

Adrian Bridgwater

19 July 2016 9:12

 

A top 20 skills list for (mostly developer-centric) freelancers

Freelance work website Upwork has released a list of (admittedly US-based) skills in what appear to be mostly technical and highly developer-centric fields. If the US job market (and its technical skills development progression) is any reflection of Europe and the rest of the world (which it largely is), then this list could prove interesting, encouraging or at least mildly diverting.
Key takeaways include the notion that software application development skills account for one-third of the top 20 fastest-growing skills. From web development (AngularJS) to eCommerce development (Shopify) to mobile development (Android, iOS), developers are in higher demand than ever.

Also here… we see that future technologies are driving demand for skills such as data mining, Java and MongoDB competency. Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence and robotics are also (somewhat unsurprisingly) on the rise.

In the less technical (but still related) fields we see areas listed including proofreading, SEO writing, animation and video editing.

The list for Q2 2016:

1.User experience design
2.ASP development
3.Shopify development
4.English proofreading
5.SEO writing
6.Animation
7.Virtual assistant
8.Lead generation
9.Data mining
10.Video editing
11.WordPress development
12.AngularJS development
13.Java development
14.Accounting
15.Android development
16.iOS development
17.Zendesk
18.MongoDB
19.Data visualisation
20.AutoCAD

“We’re releasing this skills data to serve as a resource for professionals, educators and policymakers,” said Upwork CEO, Stephane Kasriel.

source:  http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/CW-Developer-Network/A-top-20-skills-list-for-mostly-technical-freelancers

Do you know the Cloud Return on Investment for your business?

Do you know the Cloud Return on Investment for your business?

A common problem that faces many businesses is the desire to select a tool to fix a problem without properly knowing what problem actually needs fixing.

Having a cloud service recommended for your business requires more work than simply paying for a new service and expecting it to solve your problems.  A proper Cloud ROI requires that you understand the problem or opportunity that your business is facing and then evaluating the options for the business.

This generally means that you must know what abilities you require from a service and then be able to calculate its cost to be managed.

A cloud service can introduce more than just a financial value to your business such as cost savings. 

A cloud service can introduce other aspects such as the ability to react faster to changing market conditions and allow your staff to innovate easier.  Sure, these can become part of a financial calculation related to the overall performance of your business but their immediate value is tied to speed and agility.

Determining the costs of cloud can also be attributed to more criteria than simply the payments that you send to companies like AWS or Salesforce.com.  Does your business need to continually invest in training?  Is the cloud service not widely accepted by your staff and organizational processes have not matured or modified to efficiently include the transformation that cloud brings to your business?

Remember that in order to determine the Cloud Return on Investment for your business then you must properly account for the value that cloud brings to your business and the cost of the cloud service and the related transformation that it brings.

CareerEvolve.com is introducing the Cloud Adoption Framework for Small Business.  It identifies the key questions and activities that a small business should address as it moves toward cloud computing as a consideration for its business model.

"48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" is an online course that outlines the cloud adoption framework and explains it in business language so that small business owners can readily apply it as a new tool for their business.

If you would like to learn more then register for our upcoming online course "48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" from CareerEvolve.com!

http://careerevolve.teachable.com/courses

www.careerevolve.com  :  support@careerevolve.com  :  @careerevolved 

Do you know the Cloud Return on Investment for your business?

Do you know the Cloud Return on Investment for your business?

A common problem that faces many businesses is the desire to select a tool to fix a problem without properly knowing what problem actually needs fixing.

Having a cloud service recommended for your business requires more work than simply paying for a new service and expecting it to solve your problems.  A proper Cloud ROI requires that you understand the problem or opportunity that your business is facing and then evaluating the options for the business.

This generally means that you must know what abilities you require from a service and then be able to calculate its cost to be managed.

A cloud service can introduce more than just a financial value to your business such as cost savings. 

A cloud service can introduce other aspects such as the ability to react faster to changing market conditions and allow your staff to innovate easier.  Sure, these can become part of a financial calculation related to the overall performance of your business but their immediate value is tied to speed and agility.

Determining the costs of cloud can also be attributed to more criteria than simply the payments that you send to companies like AWS or Salesforce.com.  Does your business need to continually invest in training?  Is the cloud service not widely accepted by your staff and organizational processes have not matured or modified to efficiently include the transformation that cloud brings to your business?

Remember that in order to determine the Cloud Return on Investment for your business then you must properly account for the value that cloud brings to your business and the cost of the cloud service and the related transformation that it brings.

CareerEvolve.com is introducing the Cloud Adoption Framework for Small Business.  It identifies the key questions and activities that a small business should address as it moves toward cloud computing as a consideration for its business model.

"48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" is an online course that outlines the cloud adoption framework and explains it in business language so that small business owners can readily apply it as a new tool for their business.

If you would like to learn more then register for our upcoming online course "48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" from CareerEvolve.com!

http://careerevolve.teachable.com/courses

www.careerevolve.com  :  support@careerevolve.com  :  @careerevolved 

Are you a small business trying to figure out how to utilize cloud?

Forbes reiterates that small business owners will largely transition to cloud computing by 2020.  Cloud computing has become a means for many small businesses to exist in a competitive global marketplace that dictates speed and innovation as fundamental characteristics for a business to succeed.

"78% of U.S. small businesses will have fully adopted cloud computing by 2020  more than doubling the current 37% as of today."-Forbes.com

Any business owner can simply purchase a cloud service for their business but just like any tool in order for it to be a benefit  -  its purpose must be understood.

The tool must serve a need for the business or help to create an opportunity.

Does your small business have an approach for validating an investment and expense related to cloud computing?  Are you optimizing the benefits for your small business?

CareerEvolve.com is introducing the Cloud Adoption Framework for Small Business.  It identifies the key questions and activities that a small business should address as it moves toward cloud computing as a consideration for its business model.

"48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" is an online course that outlines the cloud adoption framework and explains it in business language so that small business owners can readily apply it as a new tool for their business.

If you would like to learn more then register for our upcoming online course "48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" from CareerEvolve.com!

http://careerevolve.teachable.com/courses

Cloud Adoption Framework for Small Business

Avoid these 3 cloud mistakes within your Business

The great enterprise cloud migration is in progress, but if you make these mistakes you will die along the way.

You can find lots of studies that show the cloud is growing by leaps and bounds in the enterprise. That’s not surprising. What is surprising are some of the dumb mistakes being made that are killing cloud progress. Let’s look at a few of my top 10.

Cloud mistake No. 1: Lack of funding

This is so high in my screw-up-o-meter! You can’t change IT on the cheap. Consulting, training, cloud instances used for testing, and even money to fix screw-ups are absolute requirements — so budget for them.
Enterprises try to migrate to the cloud as if it were a zero-sum game. That doesn’t work. You will get the cost savings, but you have to spend some money first to get to the more efficient and agile states that will save you the real money. If you won’t spend the money up front, you’ll die the death of a thousand cuts.

Cloud mistake No. 2: Failure to win over hearts and minds

People who push back on cloud for sound reasons provide a certain degree of healthy skepticism. However, if the majority of the team does not get the advantages of cloud, you won’t have a team that’s motivated to get the things done that you need done. Also, they are unlikely to have the right skills.
The people issue is sensitive. In many cases, they don’t want to be retrained, and management does not want to swap them out. Thus, they may remain as roadblocks to progress. If that’s the case, you’re unlikely to succeed.

Cloud mistake No. 3: Letting tools and technology lead the day

In my consulting work, the key questions I get revolve around Amazon Web Services versus Microsoft, or what are the best devops tools. That technology tool set is a very small part of the game.
Holistic planning is more important. You need to understand your own business and its requirements. Then and only then do you select the technology.
I know, I know: What fun is that? Most IT shops go right for the research and pick technology that it thinks it’ll need. But this leads to bad solutions and no understanding of the core requirements. You can certainly have your fun with the technology itself — but only after you know what you need to do with it.
No matter how well you plan your cloud migration, you’re likely to make some mistakes. That always happens. But these three mistakes will kill your cloud plans — or make you hit the reset button, and lose all that time and money. Instead, be smart and avoid these problems in the first place.

This article originally appeared on InfoWorld under the title 3 dumb mistakes that will kill your cloud initiative

Will the UK change how it delivers technical education?

Skills minister Nick Boles has announced an overhaul of the delivery of technical education in the UK, including introducing new courses and a focus on creating skilled workers

An overhaul of the UK’s delivery of technical education will be introduced to create a more skilled workforce in the future, skills minister Nick Boles has announced.

As the result of an independent report into technical education chaired by Lord Sainsbury, the government has developed a Skills Plan to tackle the current education system, which was labelled “outdated”.

 

To produce a more modern and skilled workforce, the Skills Plan suggests introducing 20,000 new courses provided by 160 organisations which will offer 15 routes into industry. The content for these routes will be developed by employers.

Boles said: “Britain has all the ingredients needed to compete with other skilled nations, but we must create a technical education system that can harness that talent.”
The UK currently has a skills gap, whereby students are leaving education without the skills they need to fill science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem) jobs.
Collaboration between the government, the education system and industry has been suggested to ensure young people collect the skills they need for the roles available. It's also hoped it will tackle the complexity of the current system in the UK, where those wanting to be an engineer have 501 possible courses to choose from without knowing whether they will leave equipped for the job.
“This cannot be the government’s job alone; we must work with employers and post-16 providers to unlock the potential in this country,” said Boles.
In light of the vote to leave the European Union, the Stem sector encouraged a focus on ensuring the UK is improving its home-grown talent pipeline.
The Skills Plan’s proposed routes into technical careers will be available from 2019 for students who have finished their GCSEs, and will be provided through a combination of time at college and work placements or apprenticeships.

Microsoft gives businesses a free tool for online meetings

Skype Meetings is a gateway drug to an Office 365 subscription

  

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By Blair Hanley Frank

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IDG News Service | Jul 5, 2016 12:13 PM PT

Microsoft is giving small businesses a new way to hold meetings online with the launch of a free Skype Meetings product that's aimed at providing professional communication tools for free.
Skype Meetings is free to use, and people can launch meetings for up to 10 people during their first 60 days of using it. After that, they're limited to only hosting meetings for three or fewer people. Those meetings can take advantage of a bunch of features, including the option to bring in participants using a hyperlink and present a PowerPoint slide deck live.
The new service is something of a gateway drug to try and get people hooked on Skype for Business. That's why Microsoft imposed its user limit restrictions -- super-small businesses can use Skype Meetings without paying, and growing companies are encouraged to buy an Office 365 subscription to hold big meetings.

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Microsoft is facing tight competition in that arena, with Google pushing its Hangouts chat and calling software, and Slack quickly developing calling capabilities for its popular chat app.

Skype Meetings will give users a professional space to coordinate their work with one another and present to people outside their business without having to pay for Office 365. The ability to upload a PowerPoint presentation to a meeting and do things like wave over it with a virtual laser pointer and draw on it with digital ink ought to be of particular interest for people who do a lot of online presentations.
Microsoft says that users can join a meeting from any device that has a microphone, camera, speaker and web browser. It's not clear if this product is only browser-based, or if it will also work with client applications like Skype or Skype for Business on smartphones and tablets.
Skype Meetings will give users a taste of Skype for Business's more robust functionality, which includes the ability to host meetings with up to 250 participants and functionality that lets users instant message their coworkers through the system all day long.

 

Blair Hanley Frank — U.S. Correspondent

Blair Hanley Frank is primarily focused on hyperscale cloud providers, Microsoft and its competitors for the IDG News Service.    

The Real History Behind Game Of Thrones - Part 1

Watch historians, along with George R.R. Martin, explore the interweaving inspirations of the actual players in the era known as “The Wars of the Roses” and other historical events in this two-part series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sc_FkoSFwNM

An Actionable Guide to Getting FedRAMP Certified

A woman-owned small business takes us inside the FedRAMP process and provides tips for navigating the road to certification.

 

by Laurel Fielding

Laurel Fielding, chief technology officer of NetComm, has more than 15 years of experience in IT and is responsible for NetComm’s overall product design and direction, technology, security and infrastructure strategy, and technical operations.

Achieving a Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) certification can be a daunting and expensive task. The recently proposed modifications to the process would potentially trim the overall approval time to six months, which means that demonstrating mature security practices and documentation readiness are more important than ever.
With the government IT landscape moving rapidly toward cloud adoption, it's very likely that FedRAMP will become a must-have certification for all solutions providers in government.
Often, organizations find that getting started and setting the right expectations with government customers and internal stakeholders are the most challenging parts of the process. Since cloud solutions vary greatly in architecture and system boundaries, there is no one-size-fits-all recipe for success. However, learning the following lessons can help cloud solution providers (CSPs) take the right initial steps to effectively navigate the evaluation.

Submit to a Robust Readiness Audit

When undergoing the FedRAMP process, preparation is key, and a readiness audit by a third-party assessment organization (3PAO) can be invaluable in identifying gaps and areas for improvement. Technical leaders need to define the roles and responsibilities of each person within their organization, clearly outline system boundaries and determine what services are “out of system bounds.”
Organizations should not modify the core FedRAMP templates. Changing the templates would likely cause significant delays in the security evaluation, due to the automated processes that ingest the FedRAMP documents. If the CSPs modify the templates, the FedRAMP automation routines fail, which means that the reviewers need to map back to the original templates in a piecemeal fashion.

Use Best Practices Around Multi-factor Authentication and System Boundaries

To ensure the FedRAMP accreditation goes as smoothly as possible, all internal and external authentication processes should use multi-factor authentication. Many government agencies are looking to implement stronger identity and access management practices, so multi-factor authentication is becoming a matter of basic hygiene.
To further accelerate the process, companies should also construct a system boundary around only their most popular offerings rather than around the entire technical stack.

Bring Together a Cross-Functional Team to Develop Your Package

It is critical to engage with industry experts and partners, such as a 3PAO auditor, with proven experience to minimize unknown risk and accelerate the compliance timeline. Identifying organizational knowledge gaps early will allow the company to execute a focused optimization of internal and consulting resources. For example, since FedRAMP has prescriptive documentation requirements, CSPs may need to find technical writers who are experienced in properly articulating security controls and risk-mitigation processes. The documentation component of securing accreditation is not trivial, and it’s important to address it properly to avoid delays.
The comprehensive standards, policies and processes required by FedRAMP can be overwhelming. Educating the entire leadership team about the program and the high baseline requirements is key for marshaling the right resources to successfully navigate the accreditation. Last but not least, it’s important to take advantage of publicly available FedRAMP tools, tips, and recommendations. The program officials are actively promoting industry best practices and disseminating recipes for success that shed light onto the direct and indirect requirements.
For its Beacon SaaS, which has an agency authorization through the National Institutes of Health, NetComm is the first women-owned small business to achieve FedRAMP compliance in 2016.

pavlinec/ThinkStock

Are you a Business leader that needs to learn about Cloud?

Career Evolve can help you better understand how to plan for cloud computing and maximize its benefits for your business.  

If you are looking for cloud computing training that is aimed at a business audience then browse our course offerings made available through a dynamic online course platform.

Learn more at our Career Evolve Course Catalog.

48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business - Part 3

Welcome to our 3rd blog post within our six part series on "48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" from CareerEvolve.com!

We will outline an approach for Business leaders to follow so that they can better leverage cloud computing and maximize their investment.

The series of blog posts will discuss the following topics:

Part 1 - Questions business owners should be asking.

Part 2 - The importance of People, Process and Tools.

Part 3 - 9 Common Pitfalls to Avoid With Cloud Computing.

Part 4 - Pizza As A Service Cloud Analogy.

Part 5 - When is Cloud Computing Not A Fit For Your Business?

Part 6 - What is a Cloud Architect?

In this post we will discuss 9 common pitfalls, or problems, to avoid with cloud computing. Properly planning for cloud computing within your business requires that you do analysis before you even start to actively use any cloud services.  "What is the problem that we are trying to solve?" is the fundamental question that you need to ask within your business and if you are not prepared for that discussion then we recommend that you revisit your strategy toward cloud computing. 

1. Acquiring cloud technology without understanding what business problem it will solve
1. This is the most important question that you must be prepared to answer in order to maximize the benefits of cloud computing within your business.  You do not want cloud computing to simply be another technology within the ever growing toolbox of tools and business expenses.
2. Popularity often determines a cloud solution choice, and runs the risk of the wrong cloud technology being applied
1. Being able to communicate the problem and requirements that you are seeking to fulfil will enable you to have information to help compare comparable cloud service providers and their solutions. 
3. Letting cloud computing create more silos and complexity
1. Cloud computing is another capability for your business to use towards solving its business problems.  Every cloud service can be categorized into a specific need or a capability that it provides.  Make sure that your business does not create duplication within either the cloud services that it creates or consumes.
4. Inability to create metrics to define the success of the cloud project
1. Being able to measure the performance of your business is a key enabler for a mature business organization.  Identify what are the key success factors or key performance indicators that you want your business to achieve and then track therir progress.  When the metrics are showing that the performance is not as expected as set intervals then examine possible reasons why this may be true.
5. Inability to locate the right cloud computing talent
1. Expertise in cloud computing is a growing skill from both a Business and Technical skill set.  Make sure that you are able to actually manage your investments within cloud computing by either training your existing staff or having a sufficient pool of resources that can support your cloud service selection.
6. Too much focus on the technology, and not enough on requirements
1. Never pick the solution first before identifying the problem that your business is trying to solve.  Selecting the technology first can quickly turn into a problematic series of comprimises and skipping valid business requirements.  The analogy of a placing a square in a round peg hole holds true for cloud computing.
7. Goals like improving business agility, scalability, and productivity are well-meaning but too vague to be measured in any meaningful way
1. If you are having a challenge with identifying key business focused metrics to measure your progress with cloud computing and its benefits to your business then you should take a pause and revisit the objectives that you want to achieve.  Most teams want to track metrics related only to technology focused service level agreements, however you want to ensure that your business has its cloud planning and strategy rooted in business focused benefits.
8. Another pitfall that cloud projects fall into is trying to go too big too fast instead of breaking the project into bite-sized pieces with realistic milestones
1. Approaching your projects with an Agile methodology and continuous deployments anchored in DevOps provides your business with the continous monitoring of its progress toward realizing project requirements.  Cloud computing will transform all aspects of your business so it is recommended to phase in the changes that are required and the new capabilities that it will introduce.
9. Without a clear understanding of how IT services are currently being utilized (how much, how often, and by whom), it’s almost impossible to plan a proper cloud strategy
1. Cloud computing services can be seen as an additional service line that must be managed within your business.  Cloud services transform the view of traditional IT services management because of the greater involvement of business stakeholders.  It is important to have an understanding of your business demand for cloud services from a volume and utilization consideration, and it is also important to know what service types and capabilities are required.  Having your business understand these elements will only further the level of depth and maturity that can be applied within your cloud strategy.

If you would like to learn more then register for our upcoming online course "48 Hours To Better Manage Cloud For Your Business" from CareerEvolve.com!

http://careerevolve.teachable.com/courses

@careerevolved

3 Ways To Set Work-Life Boundaries With Your Overbearing Boss

Your boss's outsize expectations don't have to doom you to failure or hold your personal life captive.

Amanda West, The Muse 06.28.16 5:00 AM
                       
No one wants to disappoint his or her boss. Even if you’re not always in agreement with your manager, if you respect him and generally want to do good work, you probably want to avoid doing anything that’ll make him unhappy with you. But what if this person has such high expectations that you think there’s no way you can live up to them? What happens if you start to feel like his growing expectations are setting you up for failure?

It’s important to note that there’s a fine line between a supervisor with high expectations who challenges you to do your best work and a boss with unrealistic expectations. The trick is to know which one you’re dealing with before taking action.

 

There are a few ways to spot the differences. A boss with high but manageable expectations often has a record of successful employees that have advanced in their careers and moved into leadership roles. A manager with unrealistic expectations often has high turnover rates within his department and doesn’t do a good job of preparing his employees for advancement opportunities.

Whether your boss expects you to work with total disregard for work-life balance or expects high-quality work delivered in an unrealistic timeframe, these pressures can cause a lot of stress and will eventually (or not so eventually) lead you to look for a new job.

Once you’ve determined that your manager’s expectations are truly unrealistic, you can take action—without putting your job on the line. The key is to "train" your boss to lower his expectations to a reasonable, sane level.

Your goal is to try and actually change your boss’s bad behavior. It’s all about setting boundaries and being confident, firm, and consistent in your approach.

1. Respond To Late-Night And Weekend Emails With Timelines

Instead of staying up all night or missing a weekend getaway . . . request to have a colleague team up with you on the project.

Many managers today expect their employees to be tuned into their work email at all times. If this is the case with your boss, there’s probably not much you can do about it. In fact, I recommend always responding to emails outside of work hours if that’s an expectation that’s been set early on.

 

However, my advice is that you don’t respond with actual answers or completed work—unless you’ve been given an unmistakable, urgent deadline. Instead, give a reasonable timeline for which you’ll complete the assignment; lay out a clear plan to avoid any subsequent confusion or further emailing. Try this:

I reviewed your email and the assignment details. I will be able to have X deliverable completed and sent to you by 2 p.m. on Monday afternoon. I’ll let you know if I have any questions as I’m plugging away.

Reply like this enough times, and your boss will start to recognize your boundaries. An acknowledgment of the request and a stated timeline provides peace of mind for your manager (you received and read the email) and reduced stress for you (you’re available outside work hours to read and answer her emails, but you’re not working 24 hours a day).

2. Don’t Wait To Be Told What To Do

If you have a boss that routinely waits until Friday afternoon to assign tasks that are due on Monday, take notice of this trend and work to change it. Instead of waiting for your assignment at 2 p.m. on a Friday, make a point to ask if there is anything you can get wrapped up before the weekend on Thursday afternoon. You might even suggest something to help things along.
Here’s what you can say,

I finished X and Y, and I’ve got some time left today to start looking at anything pressing for Monday. Let me know if I can begin working on [insert name of potential project].

Not only does this approach allow you to clear up your weekend and make it work-free, but it also shows that you are taking the initiative in asking for additional projects instead of surfing the Internet while you wait for him to present you with your next task.

3. Team Up

When your boss gives you a deadline that you know cannot be met during reasonable work hours, instead of staying up all night or missing a weekend getaway you’ve had planned for two months, request to have a colleague team up with you on the project.
This allows you to further put boundaries in place and enjoy life outside of work. It can also have the added benefit of helping you build leadership skills. Suggest pairing up with a newer colleague or even an intern who is eager to prove herself. If you get the green light from your manager, you can delegate tasks and be the point person throughout the project. The next time you receive an assignment that threatens to take over your Saturday and Sunday, approach your boss with this:

This is a meaty assignment, and I’m happy to be heading it up, but if Monday is the hard deadline, I think it’d be great to loop in [your coworker's name] so we can divide, conquer, and turn in the highest quality work before the end of the workday.

Having a "can-do" attitude and putting in extra hours at work when needed is important and likely to happen from time to time, but when your boss’s expectations are extreme and detrimental to either the quality of the work or your personal wellbeing, it’s necessary to speak up and modify what’s expected so that you can thrive and make your manager happy. Never underestimate going the extra mile to prove yourself, but also be confident in your ability to draw clear lines between work and personal life.

July 4 — On a hammock or stuck at work?

By Mike Causey | @mcauseyWFED July 4, 2016 1:00 am

 

We hope you’re reading this from a hammock, surrounded by beautiful or nubile admirers who are feeding you dainties while they grill your lunch. Good for you. A nice little break is always good for your mental health.

And, if today finds you at work, that’s good too. Maybe not for you, but certainly for us. Because what you are doing and where you are doing it is probably good for our health, safety and security. Even if we can’t see you.
Most media outlets find that readers, listeners and viewers drop off on holidays, which makes sense. So we are saving the good stuff for next week, when lots of us will be back to work. Enjoy today and check it out tomorrow.
Happy holiday. Check this space next week.

Nearly Useless Factoid

By Michael O’Connell
Columbus and his men may have been the first Europeans to encounter a hammock when they discovered widespread use of them by the Taino people of the Bahamas.