Companies have long sought actions they could take to increase engagement and retention and keep good people. Among these strategies – above market compensation, stock options, long term incentives, work flexibility, work from home, lunch subsidies, comprehensive and fully-paid benefits packages and a really cool and hip workspace – all these help support retention efforts. But one overlooked strategy is …
Addressing the Side Hustle
I recently listened to a podcast of one of my fellow FOT team member’s Let’s Fix Work podcasts (which are awesome Laurie, by the way) that was titled Why the Side Hustle is Failing You. The premise of the episode is that side hustle is something that’s been inappropriately glorified by Gary Vee and others, and that it actually can …
Treating Employees Like Your Kids
Because I’m reaching the “vintage” where the most junior employees I work with are now the ages of my own kids, I’m now recognizing this management phenomenon in the workplace more than ever before. Do you treat your employees like your own kids? On the surface it sounds preposterous. But then again, I treat my own kids pretty well. I …
Rethinking Retirement
How much have you thought about retirement? If you’re a generation Y or Z-er then your answer is probably “not much”. But if you’re an X-er, an old X-er like me, then it’s probably been on the regular playlist in your mind for a while. After all, some of the most fortunate in our generation are retiring. So playing …
Diversity of Thought, Not Look
Let me start by saying that I’m a big advocate for diversity. And this post isn’t suggesting otherwise. In fact, quite the opposite. I’ve seen the power of diversity first-hand many times – assembling a diverse group of folks attacking a problem or issue from every possible angle and dimension, one goal in mind, collectively architecting a solution that broaches …
A Lesson on Letting Go
Sometimes I learn things from my personal life and can apply that learning to situations I encounter in my work life. Sometimes it’s the other way around. I’ve personally never been able to keep my home life separate from my work life. I’m a continuous learner on both fronts. And I’m just not wired that way. One such lesson that …
Is Profit a Must for Great Culture?
When I take a quick scan of any Best Places to Work list, I pessimistically always wonder whether these places would be on the list if they weren’t profitable. Do you feel having a great culture mandates that you must also have a healthy bottom line? Does big profit always precipitate enviable culture? While I haven’t taken the time to do …
Throwing out the Bad Apples
Everyone’s heard the phrase “a bad apple spoils the bunch,” but in my work experience, this hasn’t been true. In my experience, it isn’t the bad apple that spoils the bunch; it’s the semi-bad apple. That apple that you think is just as good as the rest (or pretty close), until you realize it’s not just as good, and that …
Hire the Overqualified to Maximize Talent ROI
Virtually all companies want to hire the very best talent available. Most have some version of this statement proudly displayed on their careers page. But we all know that there are constraints in terms of the price you can afford to pay for that talent. That’s the crux of achieving your company’s talent strategy, maximizing the talent you bring into …
Bosses Behaving Badly: When Integrity Matters Most
How many of us have seen our leaders (C-Suite, bosses, the ivory tower, “the brass”) abandon their integrity when the going gets rough? Maybe they decided to cut salaries to shed costs without cutting their own, or they identified a sacrificial lamb to take the fall for what was their mistake. Perhaps they simply elected to flat out lie to …