By being kind, we give those around us hope and inspiration
Mindfulness is a hot trend in organizational effectiveness, with employee programs popping up in innovators like Google and stalwarts like General Mills (Why Google, Target, and General Mills Are Investing in Mindfulness, Harvard Business Review). The demonstrated benefits of mindfulness practices, such as meditation, are mounting. As good and important as mindfulness is (I am…
Team spirit can quickly disintegrate as individuals who feel that they are being discounted simply withdraw
You are brought into a room to play a computer game. On the screen you see your avatar, a computerized graphic that represents you in this virtual environment. You also spot the avatars for two other players, both of whom you assume are physically located with their own computers in similar rooms. At first it…
Putting in the effort to document, implement and analyze processes results in fewer headaches, less stress and better results
You started your business with an incredible idea, some initiative, creativity and likely cash. Probably the first thing you did was put together a plan. That’s great. But did your plan envision growth, and the need for systems: the procedures, principles and processes that both describe and dictate how your business actually gets things done?…
As a leader you must make it a routine part of your decision-making process to ask the question: Will this be perceived as equitable?
Let's play a game. Here are the rules: We'll be asked to split a sum of money. I get to make the split and you get to choose whether to accept or reject the split. And if you reject it, both of us will walk away empty-handed. Rationally, I should realize my advantage and offer…
How to create a training program that builds relationships and increases sales
There is a lot of on-the-job training required when it comes to creating an effective sales team. A massive amount of information, after all, is needed to learn the job if it is to be done well. But in addition to book knowledge, sales skills require a lot of practice if your team hopes to…
25 per cent of people who move into a new job will fail. Paying attention to these six common mistakes will help make sure you are not one of them
What happens when leaders take on new roles or responsibilities in their company? 'Onboarding' – the process of acquiring, accommodating, assimilating and accelerating new team members, whether they come from outside or inside the company – has focused almost exclusively on employees who join from the outside. But there is usually a lot more internal…
Every growing business must, at some point, bring on help, but you need to know when the time is right
When you start building your business, long hours are expected. But no one can – or should – keep up that pace forever. It’s a drain on your personal, mental and physical health, and it will kill your business growth, too. “When I first started out, I did do everything,” says Sarah Picciotto, founder of OnPoint…
You don't engage your employees by handing them a report card like they are grade-school students, but by helping them paint a picture of their future
The dreaded performance review is quite possibly the most detested human resources program ever invented. It doesn’t matter what process, form or technology is in place to accomplish this task, it is always bad. And it doesn’t work – ever. The reason I know this is because I spent a year thumbing through job descriptions…
You may have come across the phrase 'must be comfortable with ambiguity' in a job description and thought to yourself, 'Isn't that a bad thing?
You may have come across the phrase 'must be comfortable with ambiguity' in a job description and thought to yourself, 'Isn't that a bad thing? How can a company acknowledge ambiguity exists within their system without taking steps to correct the situation?' Ambiguity, which often is defined as 'vagueness,' can also mean directions that can…
Leaders who advance to a new echelon often underestimate the challenges they are about to confront
In the U.S. military, they call them 'Mustangs' – personnel who have advanced from the enlisted ranks to positions of leadership. Some of them have gone all the way to the top, winning general's stars and recognition as history's finest leaders. The same thing can happen in the business world. Outstanding men and women, rewarded…
Sometimes the only way to deal with a truly difficult boss is to change jobs
Some bosses are gems and others ... not so much. While every person's personality can, on occasion, clash with another's, some supervisors seem to make a habit of making life miserable for the rest of us. But what can you do when the person in control of a large portion of your life (and your…
So why aren’t we making use of this important human resource?
By Linda Silas Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions and Ivy Lynn Bourgeault University of Ottawa You can be forgiven if you’ve never heard of nurse practitioners. Most Canadians haven’t – and most don’t know their value to our health-care system. You may be even more surprised to learn that nurse practitioners could be the innovative…
It is time for a new social contract between employers and employees
It's time for a new social contract between employers and employees. Chances are, if your organization is like many others described in numerous studies, half of your workers are doing just enough to get by, 25 per cent are totally turned off and only one quarter are usefully engaged in building your organization and helping…
Robert Half survey says employee appreciation is a powerful motivator
Two in five workers in Canada have quit their jobs due to a bad boss, according to a new survey. The research was released on Wednesday by global staffing firm Robert Half. “Managers set the tone for the office and have a considerable amount of influence over the daily experiences and satisfaction of their employees…
If you want to motivate people, setting a good example is a good place to start
Motivating yourself can be difficult at times, but motivating other people offers a different kind of challenge. Short of standing behind them with a pitchfork and an evil grin, or offering them a gazillion dollars, what can you do to get the best from others, be they employees or colleagues or even family (although that’s…