Category: Employee Retention
CareerBuilder Leadership Series: Spotlight on Jon Luther of Dunkin’ Brands
June 22, 2009
What exactly is the key to great leaders’ success? What do strong and successful leaders know that we may not — and how can we learn from them and apply those findings in our own businesses?
In the weeks to come, we will feature leaders in industries spanning from sales and marketing to health care. We will share their answers about their business insight, leadership strategy and philosophy, methods of finding and retaining top talent, and much more.
CareerBuilder recently interviewed Jon Luther, executive chairman of Dunkin’ Brands, and picked his brain a bit about his leadership philosophy, his role in Dunkin’s talent strategy, the secret to being a great leader, and how he balances inspiration versus reality in today’s economical environment.
Read the full interview:
Taking the Bull#*$% out of Work: Cursing and the Workplace
June 2, 2009
Britain’s Got Talent’s Susan Boyle is just the latest in a string of public figures to bring profanity into a place of business. However, not all profanity in the workplace stems from extreme anger or, as in Boyle’s case, apparent stress and exhaustion.
On the contrary, many places of business weave cursing into lighthearted banter or jokes and consider it an accepted part of the job. In fact, in some workplaces, one may feel out of place not to join in on the forbidden-word fun. I came across a recent Chicago Tribune article about cursing in the workplace, and although the article brought up some interesting points, it was the comments that really made for some great debate.
One commenter, “Hoofty,” wrote:
I worked for a company in which the “F-Word” could be used as a noun, adjective and verb all in the same sentence and was done so on a regular basis. And this was in the office!
I didn’t think much about it, until my wife brought up the fact that when I switched jobs, my language had cleaned up 1000%.
I guess the moral of the story is that profanity in the workplace can spill into private life. Question – WHY are they cursing? Out of anger, frustration, or in jest? Does it matter? What kind of example are you setting as a leader? What if you take away the meaning behind the words? Is using “fudge” really any better?
“Hoofty,” among others, brings up the idea that not only can cursing in the workplace environment spill over into one’s personal life, but that using a replacement such as “fudge” or “Nutter Butter” for a profane word or phrase while in the office is conveying the same idea and emotion as the original word (and in my opinion, the latter may simply serve to make workers hungry). So does this really solve the profanity problem in the workplace — if swearing in the workplace is even a problem to begin with?
Many think that profanity has no place in the workplace, and that it leads to toxicity, hurt feelings and hostility, and will lead to bigger issues as a result.
Other commenters, however, say that cursing is the symptom, not the disease — and that it points to a larger issue in the workplace. In their view, employers should be taking stock of their employees. Workers are likely frustrated, angry, experiencing low morale — or all of the above — and cursing is simply the outward expression of those feelings. The problem itself must be solved, they say, and the cursing likely will, too.
Positive effects of workplace profanity
- Categories: Employee Engagement, Employee Retention, Employer Advice
Are Your Workers Among the 30 Percent Burned Out Post-Layoffs?
May 28, 2009
Do you count yourself as a survivor? No, I’m not talking about your obsession with the Beyoncé video (and you should probably keep that to yourself), but about company layoffs. As a leader, if you are a survivor of a layoff, you have a unique perspective on its effects on the employees who remain — after the employee boxes have been packed up, goodbyes have been exchanged (if that’s even an option) and the dust has settled.
Results of a new CareerBuilder survey of more than 4,400 workers nationwide have revealed that workers who have survived layoffs within their organizations are facing new challenges in the forms of increased workloads and heightened stress.
- Categories: Economy, Employee Engagement, Employee Retention, Generational Hiring, Leadership Development
Management Lessons from “American Idol”
May 26, 2009
Experiencing a little withdrawal now that season eight of “American Idol” has ended? Not that tweeting @RyanSeacrest every half hour isn’t a constructive use of your time…but might I suggest channeling some of that lingering “Idol” fan energy into something a wee bit more productive?
Say, uncovering the hidden employee management lessons Paula, Simon, Randy and Kara unknowingly provided us all season? Yes? Okay, then.
- Categories: Employee Engagement, Employee Retention
More Employees Calling in Sick? Don’t Let H1N1 Flu Fears Infect Your Office
May 6, 2009
With yesterday’s sad confirmation that the first U.S. resident has died while infected with (though not necessarily directly because of) swine H1N1 flu, your employees may be more anxious than ever to come in to work, or let their children go to school, forcing them to stay home.
According to a Wall Street Journal online article, should cases of swine flu penetrate the workplace, and it does in fact, become the global pandemic once feared, U.S. businesses could face a major challenge in maintaining operations, with up to 30 percent of the work force possibly becoming ill.
- Categories: Employee Engagement, Employee Retention
Ageism and the Workplace: How Bad Is it?
April 16, 2009
Top Chef versus Julia Child. Real Housewives of Orange County versus The Golden Girls. The Jonas Brothers versus… The Beatles??? Okay, scratch that last one. The point is, generations may differ on what’s great in TV shows or music or clothing, but in the workplace, generational differences add up to more than just entertainment preferences — and the consequences can be dire. Until Gen Y came onto the scene, generations mixing in the workplace wasn’t as big of an issue. Or rather, the issues were simply different. Fifty or sixty years ago, we were still dealing with extreme female inequality in the workplace.
Fast-forward to today’s technology-filled world, and we are seeing the effects of “Sally,” tech-savvy, new-on-the-scene Gen Y worker, sitting down to a project with “Bob,” baby boomer who’s been with the company for 20 years and still writes people actual letters (non-electronic!). We are seeing these workers clash. They complete tasks differently. They demand different things. Their communication methods are vastly dissimilar. And Bob is afraid he’ll be pushed out of his job any day now due to “not fitting in with the company culture.” After all, companies are cutting back — and layoffs abound.
Although the recent economy has brought about tough times for many of us, older workers have been hit particularly hard in their attempts to rebound from the recession. Between 401 (k) troubles and rising health care costs, these workers have had a slew of problems to deal with. On average, workers over the age of 45 are experiencing longer periods of unemployment; many have been out of work for six months or longer. According to the New York Times article above, even when older workers do finally find employment, many suffer a much steeper drop in earnings than their younger counterparts.
In addition, over the last two years, the number of Americans age 55 and older who are still working has climbed by nearly 1.5 million to over 26 million in March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Even worse, the number of people 55 and older who want a job but can’t find one has more than doubled over the same period to nearly 1.8 million. Joblessness is lower among older workers than the general labor force, but it’s growing much faster.
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