One of the best things about being the boss is that no one tells you what to do. Scratch that: Your investors tell you what they expect, and you had better meet those expectations. Your mentors tell you where you’re screwing up. And your employees? They should be
Lots of companies have an annual performance review that goes along with the calendar year, which means right now it’s probably on your mind. If you’re a manager, you’re dreading writing them. And unless you own the company, you’re probably dreading receiving yours — no matter if you’re
Learning how to be a leader can happen through a seminar, or through living life. Often, though, lessons in leadership happen everywhere, and sometimes against our will. My first mistake was having a late night meeting, leaving my husband and children home alone. By the time I got
You want to protect your business, so you listened to your attorney and you implemented a policy of only “neutral” references. That is, you only confirm dates of service and title. This is a great policy, and the one recommended by many attorneys. In fact, last week, I
Nordstrom’s famously has the shortest employee handbook ever. Here is the entire handbook: Welcome to Nordstrom We’re glad to have you with our Company. Our number one goal is to provide outstanding customer service. Set both your personal and professional goals high. We have great confidence in your
When you enter college, you do so with the hope of learning a few things that will lead to a fabulous career. Looking back, the courses that helped us the most may not have been the ones we’d thought would be important when we were in school. I
Every job has its downsides. Perhaps it’s too many hours, or an annoying co-worker, or a nit-picky manager, or something else that just annoys you. The grass always looks greener on the other side, but it isn’t always. The reality is, all of us work in an imperfect
Have you ever looked around and wondered why you’re working a lousy job while someone else has a much better job, and therefore, a lot more money? Who hasn’t. But still, it makes you wonder: Is it simply luck? Was the other person born into better circumstances, or
What items gathered during the recruitment process can I share with others? We require approval from several parties before making an employment offer, and I am concerned that we may be sharing confidential information when “check complete” should be enough. The following items are obtained during our pre-employment
Your company may have non-compete clauses, and in some cases, I support those. After all, you don’t want your top widget salesman to leave today and go to the competitor widget maker and take all your clients with him, but what about the guy that makes your sandwiches?
