Human Resource Management:

Human resource management (HRM) is the strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organization's most valued assets - the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the business. In simple words, HRM means employing people, developing their capacities, utilizing, maintaining and compensating their services in tune with the job and organizational requirement.
Human resources management involves several processes. Together they are supposed to achieve the above mentioned goal. These processes can be performed in an HR department, but some tasks can also be outsourced or performed by line-managers or other departments. When effectively integrated they provide significant economic benefit to the company.
• Workforce planning
• Recruitment (sometimes separated into attraction and selection)
• Induction, Orientation and Onboarding
• Skills management
• Training and development
• Personnel administration
• Compensation in wage or salary
• Time management
• Travel management (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM)
• Payroll (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM)
• Employee benefits administration
• Personnel cost planning
• Performance appraisal
• Labor relations

Sum a range of cells:

If you insert a row directly above the Excel SUM function, the new row may not be included in the SUM. It may continue to sum cells A1:A4, and ignore A5. To ensure that new rows are included in the total, you can use the OFFSET function with the Excel SUM function.
1. Select cell A5.
2. Enter the following formula:
=SUM(A1:OFFSET(A5,-1,0))
3. Press the Enter key to complete the entry.
4. Insert a row above row 5
5. Type a number in cell A5, and it will be included in the total in cell A6

How to reduce the size of the mail box:

To reduce the size of your mail file, you have a few options.
What do you want to do? Procedure
Automatically archive unused messages 1. Open your mail, select Actions > Archive > Settings > Criteria, and either edit existing criteria or create new criteria. This criteria will tell Notes which documents to archive and what to do with them.
2. After editing or creating, select the desired criteria from the list and click Enable.
3. If you have access, set an archiving schedule on the Schedule tab. Click the check box next to Schedule archiving, and then choose a time to run archiving. You must leave your computer on at the time you schedule.
Manually archive unused messages Follow the first two steps for automatically archiving unused messages.
During step one, for Selection Criteria, select Selected by user. Make sure to enable this criteria.
At any time after this, select the messages you would like to archive, and then select Actions > Archive > Archive selected documents.
Automatically delete unused messages Follow the steps for automatically archiving unused messages.
When you create or edit the archiving criteria, select Just clean up this application without archiving.
Manually delete unused messages Follow the steps for manually archiving unused messages.
When you create or edit the archiving criteria, select Just clean up this application without archiving.
Automatically reduce unused messages Follow the steps for automatically archiving unused messages.
When you create or edit the archiving criteria, select Reduce the size of documents in this application, and make a selection from the corresponding drop-down list.
Manually reduce unused messages Follow the steps for manually archiving unused messages.
When you create or edit the archiving criteria, select Reduce the size of documents in this application, and make a selection from the corresponding drop-down list.

Traceability Matrix:

In a large testing project, it is easy to lose track of what has been tested and what should be tested. The question often arises, "Is the testing comprehensive enough?"
A simple way of determining what to test is to go through the source documents (Business Requirements, Functional Specifications, System Design Document, etc.) paragraph by paragraph and extract each requirement. A simple matrix is built, with the following format:
Source
Document Section Requirement Test Case
Func Spec 3.1 An account number must be entered, of 8 digits and a 1 digit checksum. Invalid account numbers must be diagnosed with an appropriate error message. 147
Func Spec 3.1 The account number must exist in the Customer Database; if not, an appropriate error message must be displayed. 148
Func Spec 3.2 Given a valid account number, the customer details must be retrieved from the Customer Database and displayed on the CD-102 screen form. 149
Basically, the Traceability Matrix relates each functional requirement to a specific test case. Thus if someone says, "Did we test that the account numbers must be valid?", the matrix indicates which test case does that test.
The Traceability Matrix is created before any test cases are written, because it is a complete list of what has to be tested.
Sometimes there is one test case for each requirement; other times, several requirements can be validated by one longer test case.

Telephone Etiquette:

Presenting a professional image, both in person and on the telephone, is very important in the Office Skills profession. Taking care of your customers over the telephone and making them feel well informed and appreciated is essential.
Answering Calls

1. Speak clearly. A picture paints a thousand words but the caller on the other end of the phone can only hear you. They cannot see your face or body language. Therefore, taking the time to speak clearly, slowly and in a cheerful, professional voice is very important.
2. Use your normal tone of voice when answering a call . If you have a tendency to speak loud or shout, avoid doing so on the telephone.
3. Do not eat or drink while you are on telephone duty. Only eat or drink during your coffee break or lunch break.
4. Do not use slang words or Poor Language. Respond clearly with “yes” or “no” when speaking. Never use swear words.
5. Address the Caller Properly by his or her title. (i.e. Good morning Mr. Brown, Good afternoon Ms. Sanders). Never address an unfamiliar caller by his or her first name.
6. Listen to the Caller and what they have to say. The ability to listen is a problem in general but it is very important to listen to what the caller has to say. It is always a good habit to repeat the information back to the client when you are taking a message. Verify that you have heard and transcribed the message accurately.
7. Be patient and helpful. If a caller is irate or upset, listen to what they have to say and then refer them to the appropriate resource. Never snap back or act rude to the caller.
8. Always ask if you can put the caller on hold. If you are responsible for answering multiple calls at once, always ask the caller politely if you may put them on hold. Remember that the caller could have already waited several minutes before getting connected to you and may not take lightly to being put on hold. Never leave the person on hold for more than a few seconds or they may become upset and hang up.
9. Always focus on the call. Try not to get distracted by people around you. If someone tries to interrupt you while you are on a call, politely remind them that you are on a customer call and that you will be with them as soon as you are finished.
Making Calls
1. Always identify yourself properly. When calling a client or customer, whether in person or when leaving a message, always identify yourself properly by providing your name, company name and contact telephone number. For example, "Good afternoon Mr. Brown, this is Ms. Brown from Officeskills.org. My telephone number is 408-555-1212." Always be aware of confidential information when leaving messages. Also, be aware of people around you while talking on the phone. Be discreet! Someone next to you might overhear confidential information that could negatively affect your business.
2. Avoid leaving long winded messages. Remember, someone has to listen to your message, write it down and then act upon it. Your message may be just one of many messages that need to be handled. It is often a good habit to write down or type out your message in advance. Keep it brief and to the point.

Customer-Supplier Partnership:

Customer-Supplier partnership is a long-term relationship between a buyer and supplier characterized by teamwork and mutual confidence. The supplier is considered an extension of the buyer’s organization. The partnership is based on several commitments. The buyer provides long-term contracts and uses fewer suppliers. The supplier implements quality assurance processes so incoming inspection can be minimized. The supplier also helps the buyer reduce costs and improve product and process designs.

Labor Scheduling Software:

A computer software program that creates weekly work schedules for employees and departments. The software program inputs company parameters such as vacation, holidays, work availability, hours of operation, peak sales periods, etc.

Enter Data in Multiple Cells:

1. Select all the cells in which you want to enter the same value or formula
2. Type the value or formula in the active cell
3. Hold the Ctrl key and press Enter

Think Win! – Win! Act Win! – Win!:

There once lived a great mathematician in a village outside Ujjain. He was often called by the local king to advice on matters related to the economy. His reputation had spread as far as Taxila in the North and Kanchi in the South. So it hurt him very much when the village headman told him, "You may be a great mathematician who advises the king on economic matters but your son does not know the value of gold or silver."

The mathematician called his son and asked, "What is more valuable - gold or silver?" "Gold," said the son. "That is correct. Why is it then that the village headman makes fun of you, claims you do not know the value of gold or silver? He teases me every day. He mocks me before other village elders as a father who neglects his son. This hurts me. I feel everyone in the village is laughing behind my back because you do not know what is more valuable, gold or silver. Explain this to me, son."

So the son of the mathematician told his father the reason why the village headman carried this impression. "Every day on my way to school, the village headman calls me to his house. There, in front of all village elders, he holds out a silver coin in one hand and a gold coin in other. He asks me to pick up the more valuable coin. I pick the silver coin. He laughs, the elders cheer, and everyone makes fun of me. And then I go to school. This happens every day. That is why they tell you I do not know the value of gold or silver."

The father was confused. His son knew the value of gold and silver, and yet when asked to choose between a gold coin and silver coin always picked the silver coin. "Why don't you pick up the gold coin?" he asked. In response, the son took the father to his room and showed him a box. In the box were at least a hundred silver coins. Turning to his father, the mathematician’s son said, "The day I pick up the gold coin the game will stop. They will stop having fun and I will stop making money."

The bottom line is...
Sometimes in life, we have to play the fool because our seniors and our peers, and sometimes even our juniors like it. That does not mean we lose in the game of life. It just means allowing others to win in one arena of the game, while we win in the other arena of the game. We have to choose which arena matters to us and which arenas do not.

Getting your message across:

Project sponsors are busy people. Project sponsors are senior managers in a business and that means they could well be managing several projects at once. It’s not easy to juggle sponsoring multiple projects. Added to this is the likelihood that they won’t ask questions when they don’t understand something. Some senior managers are happy to admit that they don’t know or need clarification, but many would rather not confess that they don’t have a clue what you are talking about.
It’s up to project managers to make project sponsor’s lives as easy as possible. There are lots of communications tips to use when dealing with senior people. Here are some to try with your sponsor:
• Don’t use vague email subjects. What do you think is more likely to be read: ‘Project ABC news’ or ‘Project ABC within 2% budget’? If you label your emails in a way that makes it clear what the content is they are more likely to be read in a timely manner.
• Write short emails. Anything that requires scrolling down is too long. Use bullet points. Write your email and then give yourself the challenge of reducing the word count by 50%. It can be done!
• Use color. Use RAG (Red, Amber, and Green) statuses. You can put text in color and use cell fills in spreadsheets and tables. It does make a difference – sponsors will be able to see the red bits (the bits you want decisions on) quickly and will be reassured that everything else is going to plan if it is green.
• Don’t send files that the sponsors can’t open. Not everyone has Microsoft Project. There are alternative Gantt chart viewers available that can make your project plan more accessible to people without the software, like Seavus Project Viewer. And not everyone can understand a Gantt chart, so be careful what view you make available to sponsors. The day-to-day project team management view of 1200 lines is not the one to send to senior management! Roll the milestones up and change the calendar so they don’t have to scroll too much.
However, this works both ways, If your sponsor is too vague you need to find a way to get the information you require.
If you need to get information from your project sponsor, try some of these tips:
• Make an appointment. Some sponsors will be more than happy for you to knock on their door and interrupt. However, they might take this as an informal chat and not a formal project meeting. Other sponsors will require you to make an appointment. Get to know their preferences, and their PA. Don’t book an hour when you only need half an hour, and make sure that they know why you are coming. Email a brief agenda or the questions you have in advance, so they can prepare. This helps you get more out of the time and they won’t feel ambushed.
• Parrot it back. “Let me just paraphrase to see if I have understood.” Use this technique for your own benefit to ensure that you really have got the message.
• Clarify in writing. It’s not everyone’s favorite project management style, but sometimes you do need to clarify the outcome of a discussion in writing. It doesn’t have to be formal minutes. It will suffice to put a few sentences in an email to the sponsor summarizing the salient points. This is particularly useful if the sponsor has made a decision. You don’t need to send them a copy of your project decision log, but you could mention that you have recorded their decision in your project files.
• Ask if it’s convenient. If you ring the sponsor, check it is a suitable time to talk. You’ll get a better quality response if they aren’t just about to go in to a Board meeting. Actually, it is polite to ask anyone you have just rung up or dropped in on. Just because you have the time to speak doesn’t mean they do.
Project communications are challenging, but they are 80% of project management, so getting them right is essential. You can improve your communication skills with practice – whether you are a sponsor or a project manager – so keep working on them!

Content-Recognition:

You're in line for a movie when a great song plays over the sound system. Although you like the song, you have no idea what it's called or who sings it. You pull out your cell phone, dial a number and hold the phone toward the speakers. In a few seconds, you receive a text message with the name of the song, the artist's name and even a link you can follow to buy a copy.
The service you called uses content-recognition software to identify the song. These programs are helpful if you want to learn about a song playing nearby. They can also help to curb copyright infringement, which is a huge issue for independent artists and corporations alike.
In order to ensure that content-recognition software identifies songs no matter what format they're in, programmers concentrate on only analyzing sounds that are within the human range of hearing, just like MP3 files. One of the reasons MP3 files are relatively small is that only the sounds within human hearing are encoded -- everything else is ignored. Content-recognition software doesn't rely on the full range of sounds that might be present in the original recording because it might then overlook MP3 versions of the audio track.

Peer-to-peer networks, file-sharing services and heavy hitters like YouTube provide people with lots of opportunity to access content without paying for it. Until recently, companies had to rely on a human being to detect copyright violations and then take action. Sites like YouTube normally count on users to report inappropriate material, but some don't consider clips that violate copyright law to be inappropriate. At the moment, most companies have to rely on employees to uncover proprietary video footage and log a report. It's a tedious, inefficient process that may soon become unnecessary thanks to content-recognition software.

Why does a function display #NAME:

The function may point to an add-in function that is not available to this Excel. Most frequently it's an Analysis ToolPak function; choose Tools > Add-Ins and check that there are checks against Analysis ToolPak.
Unlike Excel's built-in functions, Add-in functions do not translate themselves to regional language, so American add-in functions are by default unavailable on a Norwegian computer and vice versa.

Human Capital Management:

In recent years there has been a dramatic shift in the way labor is pooled across the globe. The influences of technology and growth have effectively caused industry leaders to have to change their focus from the brute force of labor to the actual quality of the workers available throughout the world. This has produced a shift in tactics for those who manage Human Resources. Instead of gathering up workers in a huge net and sending them off to the fields and the factories, it is now necessary to nurture the working population by educating them and developing their technological skills so that they will be able to contribute to the needs of the enterprises they work for.
It is important today that companies understand the value of increasing a laborer’s output capability by investing in, and adding worth to, his or her abilities, rather than finding a mass of laborers who are willing to work yet who are unqualified to excel in today’s highly technological business environment. Simply put, the idea is that, contrary to the old HR theory that emphasized people as the most fundamental asset to a company, Human Capital Management, or HCM is focused on the right kind of people to get the job done.
Indeed, the theory behind Human Capital Management is first and foremost the transformation of a worker into a resource that is competitive.

Working Capital:

Definition: Liquid assets available to build and grow a retail business. It is measured by current assets minus current liabilities. A positive working capital is needed until the shop can produce a profit.
Also Known As: Operating Funds, Liquid Capital
Examples:
Our after-Christmas sale was intended to optimize inventory levels to free up working capital.

Strategy for approaching a new Problem:

There are three main strategies for approaching a new problem in software development
1. Integrate into the system existing software product, component or service – commercial or open source (for example, Payment Gateway as PayPal, Blog Engine as WordPress, CMS as Drupal, UI Components as Telerik and so on)
2. Imitate good enough solutions and adapt to your problem (Architecture Patterns as MVC, available code examples and guidelines as MSDN, borrow ideas from blogs, open source projects, Starter Kits, SDK and so on)
3. Innovate and create new solutions or make significant improvements to existing approaches
Strategy comparison
Integrate Imitate Innovate
Time to market Fast, if effort to integrate with other system components is low Slow, but predictable, if not many hidden pitfalls or adaptation problems are encountered Unpredictable as any innovative work
Cost Low, if components are reasonably priced and not much integration work needed More expensive and depends on complexity and adaptation effort Unpredictable
System integrity (with system architecture and environment) Acceptable if new components don’t screw and over-complicate core architecture Good, if developers adapt ideas to existing architecture Solution is built to match core architecture and customer needs
Required Expertise Not much specialized expertise is required, usually external support is available for integration Good developers can effectively adopt good ideas that are explained well High level expertise, creativity and specialized knowledge are required for good innovative solution
Control over code and future development Little control and you are on mercy of external developers Good control if ideas are applied well and not over-engineered Full control
Competitive advantage and uniqueness Not much for the standard solution that many can use Depends on quality and creativity in adaptation Innovation is an excellent opportunity to gain advantage
Maintenance, support and improving capabilities Work is outsourced to dedicated external developers who fix, support and improve the product Your effort is supported in original source of ideas if you are lucky Completely your own effort
Learning curve, tacit knowledge, help Usually supported by help, tutorials, training and community involvement Partially supported by original source, however can drift far as the result of internal implementation Should be covered by you to enable effective support and future development by existing and new developers

A short answer to dilemma: maximum integration and minimal innovation.

Adjust the space between bullet points and text:

To finely adjust the space between the bullet point and the text, sometimes you just cannot get the spacing just right between the bullet point and the text. And when you adjust it, it's either just too much or too little.
To adjust it finely:
1. Turn the ruler on, by selecting the "View" menu
2. Make sure there is a tick next to "Ruler" to display the ruler
3. Select the text object that you want to adjust
4. On the ruler move the lower part of the paragraph indentation. It's called the "Left Indent". It looks like a small house. But to adjust it finely. . . . Press and hold the CTRL key while moving the paragraph spacer on the ruler

Automatically remove cancelled meetings from your calendar:

When a meeting gets cancelled, it will either be automatically removed from your calendar or automatically marked as cancelled (you decide which). The cancellation notice will not come to your Inbox. One really great perk of this is that it keeps your free time up-to-date, but you don't have to keep an eye on your Inbox for cancellations. People looking for your availability will see the newly freed-up time.

To set this preference, follow these steps:
1. Click File > Preferences, and then click Calendar and To Do.
2. Click the Display tab (if it is not already open), and then click the Views tab.
3. Select "Process cancelled meetings automatically," and then select whether to remove cancelled meetings from your calendar, or to show them as cancelled in the calendar

Activity Based Costing (ABC):

A form of cost accounting that focuses on the costs of performing specific functions (processes, activities, tasks, etc.) rather than on the costs of organizational units. ABC generates more accurate cost and performance information related to specific products and services than is available to managers through traditional cost accounting approaches.