Professional careers have always had a tinge of uncertainty. However, the digital age has amplified it significantly with efficiency no longer being the mainstay of human excellence as advanced automation and autonomous functioning have steadily reduced the commission of errors….
Retention & Engagement
What We Can Learn About Engagement From Video Games
I sometimes joke with those who ask me what I do that I get paid to play video games. It’s actually half-true. As a behavioral scientist who specializes in understanding human motivation and emotion, my colleagues and I cracked the…
C-Level Burnout: A Problem No One Talks About
When Fiat Chrysler chief executive Sergio Marchionne recently passed away, the corporate world mourned one of the greatest turnaround leaders of the modern business era. Marchionne was one of the auto industry’s most tenacious and respected CEOs, who took over…
Anxiety Is a Killer. Here’s What to Do About It
40% of America’s employees experience persistent stress or excessive anxiety in their daily lives. 72% of them says it interferes with their lives and performance. Globally, anxiety is the sixth-leading cause of disability (and growing). I’ve seen this trend growing…
Could Mobile Technology Be the Answer to Retail’s Engagement Crisis?
There’s little that’s more important for HR strategy than addressing low levels of employee engagement. Engagement — or an employee’s emotional commitment to a company — has proven links to everything that matters from a human resources perspective, from productivity…
The Problem With Incentive Plan Cliffs
Triggers and hurdles and cliffs, oh my! To be clear, I’m talking about pay plan mechanics and in particular about the kind of cliff that plays an unfortunate starring role in many pay programs. Specifically, the incentive plan with the…
HR 101: The Importance of Workplace ‘Recess’
The old adage, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,” may seem like a silly childhood chant. Yet, it’s an idea that just may save today’s HR manager from one of the biggest headaches: turnover. Giving employees…
The 5 Keys to Employee Engagement
Engaged employees fully invest their best selves in the work they do. But what is employee engagement and how is it created? Employees and leaders intuitively know that when we find a place where we can throw our hearts, spirits,…
3 Tips for Maintaining Morale If You’re Changing Benefits Again
It’s open enrollment season again, and if your benefits are changing considerably, it could cause an engagement dip! A Towers Watson benefits study found – perhaps not surprisingly – that employee health and retirement plans are strongly correlated with engagement and retention….
Reimagining Pay for Today’s Workforce
Comprised of four or even five generations, today’s workforce is a melting pot made up of employees of all ages and demographics. It’s more diverse than ever, and as a result, can pose challenges for HR professionals and employers when…
Five Easy Cures for Information Overload
“Our brains would melt if they tried to process and store even a fraction of the information they are exposed to.” Tim Pollard, American communications professional Face it: we’re drowning in information. There’s too much to do and see every…
Autonomy is Key to Building an Entrepreneurial Culture in a Large Enterprise
The great paradox of success is that as enterprises get bigger and more established, they have a natural tendency to lose the very entrepreneurial edge that made them successful in the first place. It’s a tendency that leaders in large…
Using Job Embeddedness Theory to Improve Employee Turnover
A common concern across all industries is employee retention. Though various factors may contribute to turnover among personnel, recent research may shed new light on practical means of improving retention and reducing the costs associated with excessive employee turnover. Human…
Motivating Staff the Triple ‘A’ Way
Motivating staff can be a bit of a mystery. Managers are often confused about what actually does motivate employees and even employees themselves might find this hard to pinpoint. This leads to an assumption among some that money is a…
How to Overcome 5 of the Worst Hits to Productivity
Productivity at its most basic, signifies the rate of output per unit of input. The phrase echoes an era where people were seen as elements in a production line, measured by the amount of time it would take them to…
Do You Know the Real Reasons Your Employees are Quitting?
Note: This article is part of an occasional series dedicated to exploring the contribution of human capital assets (people!) to the valuation of a business. Welcome to The New ROI: Return on Individuals. Previous articles in the series can be found here. ∼∼∼∼∼ 60% of the U.S workforce…
Stop Making Comp Offers Like a Car Buying Negotiation
In today’s incredibly tight labor market, it’s harder than ever to attract top notch talent. The majority of candidates are interviewing with (and receiving offers) from multiple companies. Counter-offers are more common, time to hire is increasing, and offer acceptance…
Retaining Your Top Talent Starts before They’re Hired
When you’re recruiting your next employee, you’re making first impressions and discovering prior experience to find out if they are a match for a role. How long they’ll stay at your company before moving on is probably not something you’re…
HR 101: 5 Simple Keys to Keeping Your People Engaged
Your people leave for various reasons. However, thanks to Gallup Research which collected data from more than 195,600 U.S. employees, we now have a #1 reason people say, “Peace, see ya later”: They don’t feel they are encouraged or supported to…
How One Company Is Helping Employees Cope With Caregiving
As a parent, daughter and human resources director, payroll and benefits for Boston Private, I understand firsthand how difficult and stressful it is for employees to care for loved ones and still work effectively. Managing the special issues of children…