Productivity / Performance

Beware hasty discipline for FMLA leave-takers

02/15/2011

Even legitimate discipline against a lousy employee can spell FMLA trouble if somehow that discipline happens more quickly than it did for other employees with similar disciplinary problems. Advice: Take your time when disciplining workers who have taken FMLA leave. It’s better to be right than fast.

How can I discipline exempt staff for poor work?

02/15/2011

Q. After the holidays, our hourly employees returned to pre-holiday productivity. But our exempt employees didn’t. What can I do since their salaries aren’t dependent on how many hours they work?

The 6 biggest retention mistakes … and how to fix them

02/14/2011

With unemployment still floating above 9%, it’s a bit easier to find good employees. But keeping the best people never has been and never will be easy. What can you do to keep them around? A recent Harvard Business Review pointed to these key retention mistakes and solutions to fix them:

Document efforts to help employee improve

02/11/2011

Nothing makes an employer look better in court than clear proof that it tried to help a struggling employee improve her performance. That’s why you should keep track of those efforts.

Offer reasonable ADA accommodations–but you don’t have to provide full-time helper

02/11/2011

It can be devastating when an employee becomes severely disabled in the prime of life, especially if it’s clear the disability means she will never be able to perform her old job without substantial assistance. Well-intentioned, compassionate employers try their best to help. But the tough question is how far they should go to accommodate the disabled employee’s restrictions.

Injured employee may have returned too soon: Can we require him to take more leave?

02/10/2011

Q. We’re afraid that a previously injured worker returned from medical leave too soon. Can we require him to take additional leave if it’s obvious that the injury is still hurting his job performance?

Has the recession changed productivity expectations?

02/04/2011

A full 86% of U.S. executives say their company demands more time and commitment from employees now than when the recession began, according to Deloitte’s 2010 Ethics & Workplace Survey.

Addressing performance problems: 7 steps to success

02/01/2011

Talking with employees about performance problems can be uncomfortable for any manager. But it’s also a crucial part of the job and, if done well, will ultimately make a manager’s job much easier. Feel free to pass along these seven performance-improvement tips to your organization’s managers.

Block inadvertent bias from creeping into reviews

01/31/2011

When drafting performance reviews, every manager aims to be fair and consistent. But research shows that, too often, a concept known as “rater bias” can subtly—and inadvertently—influence a manager’s ratings. Here are the six most common types of bias to be aware of when drafting reviews or other types of feedback:

Track potential disciplinary problems as they occur

01/21/2011

For most problem employees, deteriorating behavior and performance is a gradual process. Smart employers track the downward trajectory along the way.