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VEGAS INC COVER STORY VALUABLE EMPLOYEES, FROM PAGE 1 All can make an employee memora- pink slips to the least senior members of a team, or they trim or close depart- ble to the boss and valuable to a com- ments. pany. And being a valued employee is important; it can propel a worker up the corporate ladder in flush times and help employees keep their jobs in tough times. The latter was particularly impor- tant in Nevada in recent years, as the more likely be spared or offered a chance to transfer within the com- pany. state and nation struggled in the reces- sion. Nevada led the country in unemploy- ment for two years. But the economy appears to be improving, and some of the largest employers in the state say they now have jobs to fill. Companies once again are beginning to hire, and 23,000 fewer people were looking for jobs last month than a year ago. Whether a person is trying to get hired, move up internally or protect a current position, a positive attitude is vital. "Attitude is the No. 1 thing we look for," said John Bibby, vice president of human resources for Sunrise Health. "A person who shows up enthusias- tic every day? That is someone a man- ager looks at and says, 'That's someone I can see in my operation,'" said Eloise Scavella, regional director for employ- ment and training at Caesars Enter- tainment. Enough people come to work surly, tired or late that those who show up on time and smiling stand out, UNLV business professor Joe Gilbert said. "Part of being a good performer is just showing up on time," Gilbert said. "And then showing up ready to work, not impaired or hung over or tired. That can really go a long way." Employees should make a point to show their bosses that they want to be a part of the company, according to Christopher Henry, vice president of human resources strategy and measurement for MGM Resorts In- ternational, the state's largest private employer. "A high level of excitement and en- gagement always makes you stand out," Henry said. "During the inter- view process, that's what snags the deal for you, and if you're able to main- tain that, that's something that's going to continue to make you valuable." If times get tough, that can help a worker keep a job. Companies like to keep layoff de- cisions simple. Either they hand out | 30 JULY 2012 | "This is where people can protect themselves by being an outstanding performer," Gilbert said. Gilbert said one of the best ques- tions employees can ask themselves is: make them more valuable because they are willing to increase their per- sonal knowledge base." MGM Resorts "What does my manager need?" In the business world, it is known as "manag- ing up." bert said. "They can actually imagine themselves in the position of their bosses and they ask: What could make their lives better? Then, they do that. They make sure their bosses get no surprises." That might include a worker going beyond her specific job duties. It's also a great way to get noticed. Even small gestures can catch the atten- tion of people in executive offices. "One of the main things I hear that stands out is guests saying they asked someone where the restroom was and the employee actually walked them there," Scavella said. "Those are the kinds of things we hear about." Bibby recalled a nurse who helped admit a homeless woman to the hos- pital. The nurse went to a store and bought the woman pajamas so she would be more comfortable during her stay. "Nobody told her to do that, and it wasn't in her job description," Bibby said. Employees also can help them- selves by performing necessary tasks that few others can do. An employee's value rises, for example, if he's the only one who knows how an essential computer program works. Workers also can distinguish themselves by being willing to learn new skills or volunteering to take on new responsibilities. Scavella calls it stretching out of a comfort zone. "Even when we look at candidates for positions such as regional vice presidents, every person's path to suc- cess is not a straight one," Scavella show up with a smile, ready to work and learn, will land the positions. "You can tell if someone has pas- just by the way they talk," sion ... Bibby said. "There are four things we look for: attitude, competence, service, and safety. Everything else, we can teach." International, like "These are not just butt-kissers," Gil- many companies, offers training to help employees learn new skills. That in turn can boost employee enthusi- asm and engagement. "We're firm believers that you al- ways have to keep learning and grow- ing, no matter what level you're at," said Patty Coaley, MGM Resorts In- ternational director of diversity train- ing. "There are always new things to learn, and that keeps you fresh and engaged." MGM offers courses ranging from basic computer classes to leadership training for managers. "We are training our employees not just at the level of our own MGM standards, but on much of the same things other Fortune 500 companies are looking for," Henry said. "We want people to blossom here, but we also want to have them learning things so they can grow and blossom in any en- vironment." Companies are always looking for good employees. During the reces- sion when hiring was at a standstill, human resources directors keep promising resumes on file. Now, they are filling actual jobs. Caesars counted 500 job openings in July. Sunrise had 75. MGM report- ed 450. Most likely, the applicants who We weren't, at times, in alignment. What we were doing in work force development and education didn't necessarily match up with what the real opportunities are in the economy. It's easy to forget that a large reason for that is that we didn't need it. I moved here 25 years ago and for the first 20 years I was here, it was pretty hard not to make money and have a good job. We didn't need to do these things and there- fore, we didn't. That period of time was terrific, but it's gone. If we're going to have a vibrant economy going forward, we're going to have to think about it differently. CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE 15 "One of the most impressive things I've heard was that one of our em- ployees wanted to know how a de- partment budget works," Scavella recalled. "That's something only man- agers usually deal with. But by know- ing about those kinds of things, it can There's little a worker can do if lay- offs occur by seniority. But if a com- pany cuts back or closes an office or department, employees may have a chance to save their jobs. Those who have proven themselves essential are said. "They've always taken different directions to get there. But it's because they've usually been willing to stretch out of the box and do different jobs that got them where they want to be." Experts recommend that workers volunteer to learn parts of an opera- tion not usually associated with their jobs. KEY INDUSTRIES TARGETED FOR IMPORTATION AND GROWTH HILL, FROM PAGE 1 chairman of Service 1st Bank of Nevada. Hill recently sat down with VEGAS INC to update the state's economic devel- opment efforts and reflect on the nine months he has spent in his job. What were the biggest mistakes in past economic development efforts? One was that the economic develop- ment efforts of the past have largely been focused on simply recruiting businesses from out of state to move to Nevada. A real economic development effort cludes that, but there are several other parts of the economic development job description that we weren't paying atten- tion to: helping businesses who were al- ready here to stay in business and grow, commercializing technology out of the university systems, helping companies start up and looking more globally. in- We export a lot out of Nevada, but that's largely due to being a center for mining, and the gaming industry is really an ex- port industry because it provides services and brings money into the state. Outside of that, we have anecdotal exporting, but things like announcing that the gov- ernor is going to go to China and Korea in September is something that hasn't been done in decades. What we're finding when we do things like that is that oppor- tunities start to appear, and we think that broader effort in economic development is important.