BUSINESS ARTICLES
Considering a move to reduced work hours?
Published in The Briefcase Diaries column at www.weewelcome.ca, February 14, 2006
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Statistics indicate that Canadian companies will face a serious labour
shortage in the next 5 to 10 years. A sizeable portion of the population
will retire and there aren’t currently enough people in their 30s and
40s to fill the vacancies. The problem will be exasperated as a
staggering number of professional women continue to leave the workforce
because of the difficulties of managing work and family
responsibilities.
Lessons learned from bad HR bosses
Published in the Canadian HR Reporter, May 9, 2005
Next to the CEO, the leader of the HR function can be the most
influential and important person in an organization. While other leaders
typically manage one or two discrete functions, this role works across
all functions touching every manager and employee.
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Creating a culture of feedback
360-degree feedback can be a way of
life, not a program you impose
(Published in the Canadian HR Reporter, September 13, 2004)
Formal 360 degree feedback
processes can help create effective management and leadership cultures
but HR professionals often struggle to obtain the resources — including
senior leadership’s commitment — required to implement them. Small to
mid-size organizations, often find it particularly difficult to get the
go-ahead to invest in a 360 feedback program....
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Connect with line managers and open the firm up to HR:
To play a lead role in
organizational effectiveness HR must first gain manager’s trust
(Published in the Canadian HR Reporter, November 8, 2004)
"For HR professionals, the greatest opportunity for influence lies in
performance consulting- helping to diagnose problems and develop
solutions. Because HR crosses every business function, the HR leader has
a unique perspective, perfect for the delivery of this key strategic
service. It’s also what CEOs would like HR to be doing. So why aren’t
managers clamouring for HR’s expertise to help them and their
departments be more productive?... "
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Executive Assistants must use power, influence wisely
(Published in the Executive Assistant Update newsletter – December 2004)
"Several
years ago, as an HR professional in a large Canadian financial
institution, I supported the most senior group of executive assistants
in the organization... "
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Tell employees why they’re not getting promoted
Feedback can help staff avoid bitterness and maybe even get the next
posting
(Published in the Globe and Mail, Career Section, September 15, 2002)
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“Once Upon a Time…”
Tell a Story Instead
(Published in York University Human
Resources Student Association’s The Network Newsletter, Edition 2, March 2005)
Your CEO is heading out on the road to deliver her annual employee
presentation in each location across the country. She’s armed with her
usual collection of PowerPoint slides filled with numbers and graphs.
You’re thrilled she wants to ensure all employees know what’s going on
in the business, and have a common understanding of the goals for the
coming year, but this methodology just isn’t getting employees as
excited and passionate as they need to be to deliver this year’s tough
business plan.
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Very promising, very demanding
High potential
employees often avoid lateral moves that would help them in the future
(Published in the Canadian HR Reporter, September 22, 2003)
"Every
executive knows the importance of finding and developing great leaders.
But as any seasoned manager will tell you, high potential individuals
can also be the most difficult to manage..."
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Planning an Employee Meeting:
Model the future you’re trying to create
Few corporate strategic plans involve doing more of the same thing. For most organizations, the strategies and tactics that have been developed to ensure the organization remains successful, involve change. Most change can be characterized as either technical change or adaptive change. Learning a new software package is considered technical package. If the new software changes the way in which an employee does business, that’s adaptive change.
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Mat Leave not Mat Left
Published in The Briefcase Diaries column at www.weewelcome.ca, November 25, 2005
As a manager, I’ve groaned when a valued team member announced she was pregnant. As a human resources professional, I’ve talked many other managers through their “what am I going to do?” concerns.
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