I just returned from a conference at which Meg Wheatley spoke about her new book: So Far From Home. Some would say the picture she paints of our global situation is bleak, dark even. I feel that it is accurate, even if it is difficult to face. But her book is not really about what …

A while ago I wrote an article about “reading minds” for this blog site. Now, of course, you and I know, we can’t really read minds, but we can be observant and notice when someone needs assistance–that would especially be true of the hospitality or travel vacation businesses where customer service most definitely is its …

If you’re struggling with your workload or with a particular task, it can be difficult to ask your boss or your colleagues for help. If you admit that you can’t handle everything, will they think that you’re not capable? After all, you should be able to do your work on your own, right? Asking for …

Hurricane Sandy brings a wide range of dangers, many that persist after the storm has moved on. Please heed these after-storm survival warnings from FEMA, and don’t forget to share them with relatives, friends and neighbors! CPSC, FEMA and USFA Warn About Deadly Dangers After Hurricane Sandy Passes WASHINGTON, D.C. – Hurricane Sandy is a …

here are a number of scary things in the world and in business. In honor of Halloween week, below is a list of some of the scariest things about HR....

“I was totally surprised when one of our top people quit. I thought he was satisfied with his job. I don’t want to get sandbagged again. What are some early warning signs of someone leaving?” That was said to me by an accounting supervisor. Yes, you can expect a certain amount of turnover, even in …

I read an article in a colleague’s newsletter that got me thinking. This may be a little back to the basics, but it is what we do and it is easy in this day of off-the-shelf training programs to let the program, especially one involving technology, take over for us. June Melvin Mickens of Executive …

Have you ever hired someone who did not live up to expectations? I’m sure many of us have at one time. The purpose of the interview is to gather information to make an accurate selection decision. A successful interview will help you decide is there’s a match between the job seeker and the position. The …

I have written multiple times about he ever hated performance review. This dreaded ritual in many companies is also often tied to the annual salary increase. An increase that often times is given within a tight budget constraint somewhere between 2-4%. It also often called a merit increase or a pay for performance compensation system. Those who are top performers may get a 4% increase while the poor performer may get the 2-3% increase. The result of this system actual keeps employees at very close salaries. And my guess is that if the top performer in a particular position or team has a little less tenure than the bottom performer, the bottom performer could still make more money.

Modern technology creates crisis management risk While our never-ending quest for modernization has simplified many common tasks, it’s also spawned a new breed of crises related specifically to vulnerabilities in technology. The most common involve computer hacking, either as straight out attacks or a means of professional or amateur espionage, but it’s easy to forget …