SHRM Blog

EEOC Commissioners "Chat" at SHRM Conference

It was a privilege for me to attend and speak at SHRM’s Employment Law and Legislative Conference in  Washington, D.C.

 

For me, one of the high points was listening to the presentation by EEOC Commissioners Chai Feldblum and Victoria Lipnic.

While not quite the same as being there, I wanted to share with you what I tweeted during and after their presentation, which actually was  a  “chat.”

When I begin with “Segal,” these are my thoughts. It is not...

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Hard Look at Recruiting Process Can Counter Soft Labor Market Conditions

Savvy recruiters know that even in periods of elevated unemployment, there are no guarantees that they’ll land the perfect candidate for their open positions. In fact, many would argue that they have to work even harder to land top talent when faced with soft labor market conditions and the disparities between the workforce skills that are available and the skills that are needed to fill available jobs.

Now it seems that job seekers are growing more critical of job availability, as well. In a random sample of 1,015 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, a February 2013...

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Should Women 'Lean In' More in the Workplace?

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg is catching a lot of grief for her new book, “Lean In,” and for her public appearances suggesting that women need to be more aggressive in the workplace. Her recent interview on “60 Minutes” seemed to raise the level of criticism to historic heights.

After all, how can a woman like Sandberg--who is rich, successful, married, a mother, cute as a button and well spoken--dare to tell mere mortal women how they should deal with their struggles in the world of work? She has always had it so easy, some critics suggest, that she...

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#Nextchat: Collective Leadership: Getting Everyone Involved

Today’s companies recognize that every individual on their team is important and that their contributions have an impact on the company as a whole. At the same time, in the age of big data, more information is widely available to all stakeholders, shaking up the traditional, top-down communication style. These changes bring about a state of collective leadership – where individuals can easily collaborate to make decisions that improve performance, at both the personal and business-wide level.

Organizations that embrace the idea of collective leadership early on will be more strategic and agile, fostering an open and...

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How to Terminate an Employee

There are a lot of people who cringe at the thought of terminating someone. And when I say terminating – I mean firing. Not a layoff because in most cases, employees don’t have control over a layoff decision. My philosophy is employees play an active role in the decision to get themselves fired.

That’s why I never (let me repeat that) never feel bad about terminating an employee. Because I didn’t tell them to do whatever they did to get themselves terminated.  I didn’t tell them to show up late for work.  I didn’t tell them to surf porn...

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Collective Leadership: Getting Everyone Involved

Today’s companies recognize that every individual on their team is important and that their contributions have an impact on the company as a whole. At the same time, in the age of big data, more information is widely available to all stakeholders, shaking up the traditional, top-down communication style. These changes bring about a state of collective leadership – where individuals can easily collaborate to make decisions that improve performance, at both the personal and business-wide level.

Organizations that embrace the idea of collective leadership early on will be more strategic and agile, fostering an open and collaborative...

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#Nextchat: What's the Real Deal on Resumes?

In today’s competitive job market, the importance of crafting a resume that’s clear, concise and compelling is more important than ever.  It’s the critical, first step to getting a foot in the door,  and it's imperative that job seekers get this part right.  Errors, omissions and confusing language will jeopardize the likelihood of an interview -- and so will a dated resume style.

Incorporating the latest developments in resume design conveys acumen of the latest business and workforce trends.  This is desirable in any industry.

So Many Questions

  • Should I create a headline, a summary or
  • ...
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Marissa Mayer's Big Play for Good Reason

At the risk of adding to my reputation as yesterday’s man, I’m fully supporting Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer’s ban on working from home. Frankly, there aren’t many of us out there applauding this controversial big play. Several journalists, tech pundits, and business leaders have called her gambit regressive, old-school thinking, anti-family, and a giant step backward. However, none of the naysayers seem to realize that she is faced with a turnaround situation. Ms. Mayer was hired away from Google to reverse four years of eroding revenue. Radical change is required. To fulfill any turnaround mandate, a leader has no choice...

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