Posts by Mark Weaver

Yes, it’s that time of year.  Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Ramadan, Kwanzaa or merely the end of the year, this is an excellent time to say thanks to employees.  You’ve undoubtedly heard a financial planner tell you that it’s not how much you make that’s important, but how much you get to keep.  Same…

Welcome to December!  About this time of year, many employers wonder what they can and cannot do related to their holiday of choice.  Advice varies; sometimes based on the personal preferences of the advisor rather than on the law or common sense.  Read more…  The Second Absolute of Quality “An ounce of prevention is worth…

Ever wonder why we call the people we work with “employees” and where the term came from?  Here’s a quick history:  Over time, the word has lost meaning.  People we work with have been reduced from those who were involved, connected, and engaged, to a transaction.  To make it worse, we use tired phrases such…

I remember the mission of Philip Crosby Associates even though it has been a few years since I worked there.  I suspect the other 299 or so people who were part of the team back then could too.  “The mission of Philip Crosby Associates is to provide lives for our associates and to improve the…

Quality Guru Phil Crosby got famous off his first best-selling book, “Quality is Free.”  His premise was really pretty simple – organizations spend a lot of time and money doing things wrong; prevent errors and defects from the start and you have quality.  To do that, you have to engage employees, educate everyone on a…

Culture… every organization has at least one.  It is created by what the leader says, does, promotes and tolerates.  Culture can change from great to mediocre quickly.  It takes more time and a whole lot of intentionality to go the opposite direction – from mediocre to great. Why should you care?  Couple reasons: Ask yourself these…

This week, I was at an event where I heard a few successful business leaders sharing their recipes for success.  One commented that you have to have 3 things:  a good idea; a great team; and $$$. I love a good idea.  I love brainstorming good ideas with entrepreneurs.  I love hearing their dreams and the…

Ok, I’ll admit I was never a Beatle’s fan… of course, I was a small child when they were around and I had an older cousin who was one of those teenagers screaming and fainting at Beatle’s concerts which I thought was really stupid.  That said, you couldn’t grow up in the 60s without hearing…

One thing I learned in my first HR Management role at Philip Crosby Associates is that there are all kinds of things that employers can do to improve quality…for free.  Over time, I realized that the same can be said about morale, alignment, engagement, and culture.  Too many employers don’t get this.  If you want…