According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), 88,778 charges were filed in 2014. 31,863 of those alleged illegal harassment in the Private Sector; 15, 226 were within the Federal Government. Add in other Public Sector employees (state and local governments, school boards, universities), retaliation claims, and some other charges and you get to the grand total. Scary, isnt it? Of course, there are about 150,000,000 employees in the U.S., meaning a whole lot of them never file with the EEOC. Or file a lawsuit. ... Read More

This week all kind of people are talking about our Founding Fathers; what they said, what they meant, what they codified, what they didnt. Americans of every age, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, political party, and any combo or mix thereof, will all join one another watching civic demonstrations of patriotism. Well eat, parade, watch fireworks, talk politics, and eat some more. The bold souls may cross state lines to get contraband. I meant fireworks; not weed. This week almost everyone is patriotic; we look like we are in... Read More

Thats what Philip Crosby called the traditional forms of Quality Improvement in his day. As a best-selling author and Quality Guru, Phil approached quality from a whole different perspective from Acceptable Quality Levels, and an attitude of Thats Close Enough. He spoke of Zero Defects and an attitude of Do It Right the First Time. He also taught that a common language and education, employee education, and culture change were the way to make lasting change. Thats the environment I learned to do HR in. HR people werent talking like that... Read More

Schools out, the weathers great, the mountains beckon, and employees want time off. For many employees, time off is one of the most important benefits an employer can offer. Companies that provide attractive time off benefits have a distinct advantage in recruiting and retaining todays workforce. Following are 5 things to look at right now regarding your paid time off policies. 1. What are you rewarding ? Every new generation entering the workforce wants more time off than they get. Maybe thats because younger workers start at the... Read More

Culture is like an organizations identity; its who they are. On an individual basis, knowing your identity; knowing who you are will determine your destiny. The same is true for organizations. If you think about it, your organizational culture is as much a part of your brand as your logo. You have to protect the culture just as you would your logo if there was a trademark infringement. Unfortunately, many organizations dont. Earlier today, a business strategist and consultant asked me if I knew what was happening at a particular company... Read More

ouve heard it said that, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I guess that means that the one being copied should feel flattered about having their original ideas copied. But what does it suggest about the flatterer? When it comes to your organizations culture, imitation can make you sincerely wrong. Employers love a good best practice. When an organization creates an enviable employment brand and culture, others read about it, pay good money for books and seminars about it, and then try to replicate it hoping to get the same... Read More

I love chocolate. Really love chocolate. I can do without other sweets, but theres just something about chocolate that screams to me. Layla would eat chocolate if I let her. All of it. But I let her have zero because Layla is my yellow lab. What works for me is toxic to her. Some organizations can appear toxic to some people. Some people can appear toxic to some organizations. What can seem healthy to one person can suck the life out of another. Think about it Wall Street has a dog-eat-dog environment that some might find to be toxic. And... Read More

Ask anyone around you to name their favorite Opera star. Other than the occasional Opera fan, few can. Ask anyone around you to name their top five favorite Rock stars, and many will have difficulty limiting their answer to only five names. Why is that? Opera stars have perfect, well trained voices. They should be the model of how vocalists sound the best practice right? Wrong. Most of us dont like perfect voices. We like flaws. Whether it was Streisand in my fathers day with her nasal sound, or Dylan with his well, Dylan sound that my... Read More

Many companies start up with a sense of adventure, passion, and comradery. Vision, Mission, and Values get articulated and everyone part of the new company lives them and believes the same dream. Growth comes, which is exciting. But often with the influx of revenue, customers, regulations to comply with, and new team members, some of the original luster gets buried in the growth. It can be difficult to maintain a distinctive culture. Here are some steps your growing company can take to keep and even enhance its culture; regardless of how... Read More

In a time and a society where so many people are change resistant, its funny that people think organizational culture change is easy. Or quick. It takes a while to change an organizations culture - not unlike how it would be changing the direction of a large yacht. It takes time and a little space, but it can be done. Quality improvement is a great reason to embark on culture change. So is improved customer satisfaction. There are many others, including the need to reduce costs, to increase sales, to create a new product line, to fend off... Read More