Productivity / Performance

Let them butt heads! How to inspire healthy conflict

07/01/2014

Good managers want employees to constructively challenge their ideas because it produces better decisions and problem-solving.

Even legal marijuana takes a hit among co-workers

06/24/2014

Regardless of marijuana’s legal status, 46% of U.S. workers would lose confidence in colleagues who smoke pot on their own time. That’s according to a new poll by Workplace Options, a wellness consulting firm.

Changing job assignment soon after hire? That may be deemed a demotion

06/16/2014

Here’s a cautionary tale about changing a new employee’s job duties soon after hire. He or she may claim the real reason is discrimination if the change happened soon after a new boss discovered the employee belonged to a protected class.

Happiness matters: The 10-step prescription to a more content, productive workforce

06/10/2014

A recent Healthways Gallup Well-Being Index study showed a direct connection between employees’ well-being and their performance. The key tenets to a positive culture: Invest in employees’ relationships with managers. Celebrate strengths. Build a culture of positivity. Here’s how to do it.

Out of sight, but not out of mind

06/03/2014

Telecommuting can offer employers some potential advantages, but successful management of off-site employees takes some special consideration.

Former superstars aren’t immune from scrutiny

05/19/2014

The best approach to dealing with declining performance is careful and meticulous record-keeping showing expectations and how the employee isn’t meeting them. Objective facts trump the employee’s feelings that she is being discriminated against for some reason.

How to keep trouble-makers from ruining your meetings

05/15/2014

You’ve prepared the meeting agenda and presentation materials and secured all the necessary participants. But how do you keep the meeting on track when a few bad apples threaten to derail the gathering? Here is how to swiftly and professionally handle disruptive meeting attendees.

What to do when a rock star leaves

05/08/2014

The hole left when an outstanding worker departs can seem big enough to swallow up the productivity of your whole department. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Is team leadership actually important to team success?

04/14/2014

Po Bronson—The New York Times best-selling author of Top Dog: The Science of Winning and Losing—is a big fan of using small teams to tackle big projects. But surely the smaller the team, the more critical the role of the team leader, right? Wrong.

Treat every workday like it’s a Tuesday!

04/07/2014

We reported last year that 39% of HR managers think their organization’s employees are most productive on Tuesdays. How can you get workers up to speed the other four days of the workweek? Pass along these tips.