A small medical equipment manufacturer had a great deal riding on the completion of their next-gen medical device. Engineers, technicians, and marketers were stressed and exhausted from setbacks and long hours. Yet, no one dropped offline or stopped showing up for work. Why? Because this company had worked hard to develop a culture that resembled a family more than a workplace. Management recognized and responded …
Stop, Think, and Plan Before Mandating a Coronavirus Vaccine!
Finally – the long-awaited fix for the devastating COVID-19 is here! Businesses large and small are breathing a collective sigh of relief with the hope that when all their employees are inoculated, everyone can get back to congregating and collaborating in person. You might be writing that company-wide memo even now, telling people how, when, and where to get …
Tips and Resources to Help Working Parents to Weather COVID Classroom Closures
The one thing we parents can all agree on is how much we will miss the rumble of the school bus as it whisks our kids away to school each Fall! With most states relying on local school districts to decide when they feel safe enough to open, parents are bracing for disruption. Even if your child’s school is in one of the …
An Effective Diversity Policy Means Never Having to Say You are Sorry
It hasn’t been a good year for Goodyear. COVID concerns disrupted operations, second-quarter sales were down 41% from a year ago, and to add insult to injury, last week, company officials found themselves in crisis management mode. A slide from a Topeka diversity training session, labeled “Zero Tolerance,” itemized two columns of permitted and banned symbols and phrases on apparel worn at work. Among …
How to Inspire Serendipity Despite a Remote Workforce
Talking with a friend about the advantages and disadvantages of remote work, I was struck by his observation that what he missed most about working with colleagues in the office were the serendipitous ideas shared during face-to-face interactions. While isolation does not necessarily dampen creativity, smart companies have worked hard to create novel, highly interactive, work environments to foster connections between …
