Even though I sometimes grow weary of the whole “are men or women better leaders?” debate, I do think there can be value in paying specific attention to the development of women as leaders. Recently, I read a book that offers very concrete suggestions to help women discover their unique talents as leaders. It’s called…
The Snowball Effect: When Small Workplace Offenses Grow Out of Control
In my blog post, Avoid Snappy Comebacks with Snarky Comments, I advised workplace professionals to resist the urge to lob snarky retorts in response to a co-worker who’d just dished up the same. Human Resources executive Jay Kuhns remarked, “Small comments can turn into big problems so quickly. Great advice, Jennifer. ” Jay’s comment brought…
Making the Most of Leadership Assessments
I was talking “leadership assessment” with two colleagues the other day. Both are employed by large organizations well-known for their people development practices. We were exploring the merits of assessing for leadership qualities, both as a pre-employment screening tool and for development purposes after the leader is hired. Not surprisingly, there were varying opinions—which assessments…
Want Some Cheese with that Whine?
Suzanne Lucas, blogger for the Evil HR Lady (and the founder of the HR Carnival) is hosting a food-themed HR Carnival in early February. So, I put on my thinking cap and got to work. Hmmm. . . . HR + Food = Wine-y Employees! My post below is a nod to all my colleagues in…
How to Deal with People Who Suck
People are programmed to help each other out. Social psychologists call this socialized behavior reciprocity and it’s evident in all human civilizations. In the United States, we have familiar phrases to describe this aspect of human behavior: “he gave as good as he got”, “one good turn deserves another”, and “you scratch my back, I’ll…