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Productivity / Performance

How to write performance goals: 10 sample phrases

09/02/2015
Well-written performance goals help energize employees and point them in right direction. But some managers and HR pros have trouble finding the right words. Here are 10 phrases to adapt, from 2600 Phrases for Setting Effective Performance Goals by Paul Falcone.

Back to school: 4 teacher tactics to use with your staff

08/28/2015

Teachers are some of the first “managers” that people ever encounter. Teachers organize each day to get maximum results from their charges, and they must deal with a wide variety of skills levels, motivation levels and communication challenges along the way. Here are four ideas worth borrowing from teachers to bring to the workplace.

How employers respond to the big productivity killers

07/30/2015
Technology keeps finding ways to distract, making employers find ways to get people back on task. Here’s a snapshot of those distractions and the workarounds some are attempting.

‘Kinetic’ furniture: A long walk to nowhere?

07/30/2015
It’s showing up in more workplaces, but are the benefits just an illusion?

Documenting discipline: The 3 cardinal rules for managers

07/16/2015
Managers should make documentation of employee performance, behavior and discipline a regular habit. HR can help limit the organization’s legal liability by counseling ­managers to keep three basic principles in mind when documenting discipline.

Tips to help bosses manage 3 kinds of problem employees

06/26/2015
There’s no shortage of negative employee behaviors that can have an ill effect on the entire workplace. The problem is when the behavior is not so bad where discipline or termination is in order, but managers must do something. And that something isn’t to drop the problem employee in HR’s lap! Help managers overcome some of the most griped about employee behaviors themselves with these tricks of the managerial trade.

6 tips for turning your slugs into sprinters

06/15/2015
Dealing with underachievers requires using your judgment and some knowledge of human psychology. Here are some ways to get your underachieving employees moving in the right direction.

Dealing with employee attitudes: 10 guidelines

06/08/2015
With some employees, the problem isn’t a matter of ability; it’s a matter of attitude. This can manifest itself in everything from quiet disobedience to outright insubordination.

Employees more engaged when the boss is a woman

05/27/2015
Only one-third of U.S. workers have a female boss, but they are the nation’s most engaged employees. It could be some companies’ hidden advantage.

6 tactics to light a fire under work teams

05/26/2015
Management consultant Laurence Haughton offers this advice to managers who want to turn ordinary groups into what he calls “hot teams.” Pass it along to managers and other leaders who direct team activities in your organization.