Put you hand up if you have one of the following accounts; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Tumblr, blogger, Google +, YouTube, or MySpace? I hope that everyone reading this article has their hand up to one of those accounts, because social media is a large part of our generation. According to Next Advisor, an independent research firm, 89% of people aged 18-29 years old are using social media in some capacity. This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, as daily we see people in class distracted by their phones, tablets and laptops, communicating with everyone who isn't in the room. And it also shouldn't shock any one that businesses and employers are taking notice and jumping on the band wagon. They are using social media for marketing, recruiting and reviewing staff engagement on new levels. Gone are the days when your personal and professional lives are separate, and we need to keep ahead of them. 

We all have to find employment at some point, whether during school to make ends meet, or after our degrees to make use of the skills we spent the last 4 years investing in. In this process, we have to find the job we hope at least pays “well”, and then go through vast array of applications, interviews, and judgement from people who will allow us to share our knowledge and skills. It can be hard to put yourself out there, especially when you could be rejected for a multitude of reasons, but let me help you with that process by providing some tricks of the HR trade. I have been on both sides of the process, as an candidate and an interviewer, and there are some simple actions you can take to set yourself apart from your peers. I believe that Concordia has some powerful individuals studying within the institution, and we can show that to the world. Let’s begin!

McDonald’s is the one of the greatest successes to come out of our parent’s generations. It has done so much to shape the Baby boomers, and connect us all through “value-priced” items that we all enjoy. Starting out with just one burger stand in 1948, the fast-food chain’s emphasis on quick service and a standardized menu has helped it to grow to more than 35,000 outlets across the world, with over 30 of those locations in Edmonton alone. It has always been profitable: after a wobbly period in the early 2000's due to the weight loss crazes and Super-Size Me documentary, the firm’s share price went from $12 in 2003 to more than $100 at the end of 2011. But now McDonald’s is failing. Global sales have been declining since last July. When the company announces its annual results on January 23rd, analysts think it will reveal its first full-year fall in like-for-like revenues since 2002. What have they done wrong?