Employee and Workplace Communications -

Most American workers are workaholics and refuse to take time off work. Studies reveal that more than half are leaving their vacation time unused. While most businesses appreciate the dedication and commitment of hardworking employees to their companies, employers need to encourage their workers to take time off and enjoy a fun summer vacation. It will do wonders not only for their physical and mental health but their overall job-performance in the company.

I have always been skeptical of corporate culture. When I hear the word, what comes to mind is those cheesy inspirational signs from the 90s featuring high-def photos of jungle animals and waterfalls. You know the ones. My dad used to have one that said, “LEADERSHIP: Staying in front of the pack.”

Having spent the majority of my working life in companies with more than 180 years and 350 years of history respectively, I’ve heard my fair share of “But we’ve always done it that way!” internally.

The summer holidays are nearly upon us. This is the time for vacations, outdoor bar-be-ques, traveling, sun, and fun. Today, corporate culture is forgiving of summer vacations, usually around July 4th and mid-August. The time is now to gear your employees up between their vacation times.

Employee benefits and compensation have started to become less important in the changing job marketplace, but they still remain a top reason why employees stay with an organization or leave. Making it easy for employees to use their benefits improves engagement and performance.

Our organizational alignment research found a strong and aligned culture accounts for 40 percent of the difference between high- and low-performing teams and organizations in terms of revenue growth, profitability, customer satisfaction, leadership effectiveness, and employee engagement.

Summer is underway and for a lot of businesses, it is also slow season! With slow season comes more time to revamp your brand message and bring on new employees for a fresh perspective. Whether it be new college grads or someone changing careers or direction, Employee Onboarding in the summer season can present opportunities for both parties.

On Thursday, May 17, in downtown Greenville, the NEXT organization sponsored an evening with Paul Singh, of ResultsJunkies.com, as well as Brooke Navarro and Ben Freeland, both of whom are investment bankers at Barclay’s. All three came to share their thoughts about what makes companies attractive to investors.

Every article you’ve ever read about bosses starts with this quote:

“Employees don’t quit jobs. They quit bosses.”

After the now-famous meeting of the 17 people who would build the Agile Manifesto in 2001, their revolutionary ideas have infiltrated not just the world of software development, but also all facets of business organization, Human Resources, and corporate culture. How has culture and management improved since the advent of Agile, and how can you use the Agile Manifesto to improve your workplace culture?

BOSTON (CBS) — As a software engineer, Anish’s Smith’s coding skills are in high demand. But she wanted something more than staring at her computer screen all day. She found it at ezCater, an online catering app for businesses. “Each member of the team is bright, driven, and curious and also kind,” she said.

Should employee benefits include summer vacation as a matter of course? The data says ‘yes.’

Real #MeToo incidents in the workplace aren't happening in a vacuum. Whether they are the most egregious examples of sexual harassment and abuse, or more subtle acts of unconscious bias, they all happen within a culture that somehow sanctions them.

That is, of course, something of a trick question. Retaining employees is a major part of building a strong operation, but retention of employees is not the primary goal of a business or other organization. Apple Computer may be good at retaining employees, but its top priority is to generate a profit for shareholders, and it does so by producing technology people want to buy. Because it is successful at making a profit with nifty iPhones and such, people like to work there. Yet, I am certain that there is a manager somewhere at Apple who has driven down morale and has lost some good people owing to a management style that does address employee retention.

A boss’ job is to direct and lead his team towards a common goal that is consistent with the overall business message. A boss’ job is to instruct and give necessary feedback to improve the workings of employees. Most importantly, a boss’ job is to ensure the belief in what the company stands for and encourage others to become as passionate as he/she is.

Everywhere you turn in 2018, people are talking about politics. That includes your workplace. Since President Donald Trump’s election in November 2016, it seems like you can’t escape the constant drumbeat of other people’s political messages. With so much political talk in the air, what can an employer do to ensure that its employees’ speech is appropriate without violating their rights?

If you want to make your workplace more attractive to today’s workers and keep them happy once they’re hired, your employees should feel a sense of inclusion. Because feeling a strong sense of belonging and comfort is so vital to a healthy company, recruitment and retention skyrockets when employees feel like they work in an office of inclusion.

Everything from Nordstrom to Jeep, Amazon to SoundCloud – from Walmart to Skype – from Expedia to Delta, companies have all moved to an agile development process, which has radically changed delivery cycles – and the focus on the user experience is unprecedented.

Some companies view on-boarding as something to do that has little impact on the company other than allowing new-hires the opportunity to fill out numerous forms or read company policies and history. But employee onboarding is much more than this.

One by-product of workplaces spreading beyond office walls and to the coordination of many workers around the globe all at once is increasing diversity in workforces. Now, workplace diversity is a necessity for many companies. How can the Human Resources department help support everyone spread all over the globe be more productive and understood?