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Employee Relations

… You need to enforce the rules

09/27/2017
No matter how “casual” or “creative” your people and workplace are, you’ll eventually need to enforce some basic work rules. Here’s how to lay down the law without turning into an ogre or demotivating your team.

Use your ‘poker face’ when hearing complaints

09/14/2017
When listening to employee complaints of potential discrimination or harassment, your brain may be thinking “You’ve got to be kidding me!” but your face and voice need to say, “I hear your complaint and will investigate it fully.”

Are you obligated to investigate before firing? For at-will employees, you have discretion

09/12/2017
What kind of investigation, if any, is required before an employer can fire a worker for what it believes is some kind of misconduct?

Employers like open space, employees don’t

09/12/2017
Wide open spaces aren’t all they’re cracked up to be in the office, a new survey of workers shows. Employees polled by staffing firm Robert Half said open floor plans are among the least productive and most stressful work environments.

How one company saw the light on stay interviews

09/10/2017
What will you do today to find out if your best employee is thinking of leaving you?

Meet the new boss: How to approach an existing team

09/09/2017
Whether you’re managing a new team as a result of a promotion, job change or an organizational restructure, stepping in to lead a pre-existing team—and the established dynamics, group norms and expectations they tend to possess—demands a thoughtful management strategy. Here are some tips on how to manage a new staff.

A rock-star employee leaves: Now what?

09/09/2017

The hole left when an outstanding employee departs can seem big enough to swallow up the productivity of that person’s whole department. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are four tips to maintain order and productivity when a top employee moves on

The 4 essential skills of a master manager

09/07/2017
Studies of top managers have found it’s hard to be an effective team leader without having some mastery of these skill sets.

Should you ‘write up’ an employee?

08/23/2017
When it comes to negative employee behavior, should you jump to write a formal written warning? It depends. Start with a face-to-face meeting to discuss issues and set expectations, but if that doesn’t work, draft a written warning.

Time spent texting counts as absenteeism

08/17/2017
Workers who waste time on their personal electronics may be present physically but otherwise absent.