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Managers

Addressing the Skills Gap from Within

The “skills gap” has received a great deal of attention recently, particularly in the years following the Great Recession. In a nutshell, the skills gap refers to the difference between the skills employers want or need and those that the available workforce has to offer.

4 Steps for Engaging with a Professional Mentor

Mentoring relationships can be extremely effective in the business world. Working closely with, taking cues from, and being guided by the knowledge and experience of someone who has spent a lot of time and achieved great success in your industry or your company can really boost your career—not to mention the potential networking opportunities that […]

Employee Handbooks: Rule Banning Employee Fraternizing Gets Struck Down; What Employers Need to Know

To lower the risk of getting sued for sexual harassment, many companies have adopted nonfraternization policies, often focused on ensuring that romantic relationships, particularly those involving supervisors and their subordinates, don’t create a conflict of interest. Sometimes these policies are designed to avoid conflicts of interest with customers.

Considering the Importance of Hiring Multilingual Staff

In an increasingly global economy, having staff who can effectively communicate across borders and cultural spheres can be beneficial for engaging with customers, business partners, and local staff. Even within the United States, companies recognize the benefits of bilingual and multilingual staff in an increasingly diverse nation where English is not always the first language […]

maternity

Modern Family: Baby on Board

As a long-time fan of Modern Family, it has been interesting to watch the characters develop over the last 10 seasons. Haley Dunphy (portrayed by Sarah Hyland) has grown from an image-obsessed high school sophomore to a hard-working professional. On November 7th, the show revealed that Haley is unexpectedly expecting. As Hyland joked in a […]

FMLA

Practical Guidance from Recent FMLA Abuse Cases

In a recent opinion, the 4th Circuit held that an employee failed to show that his former employer’s stated reason for discharging him was a pretext, or excuse, for retaliation based on his use of leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

productivity

Increasing Employee Productivity Without Impacting Morale

Open office layouts were introduced a few decades back as a means to increase employee productivity. When employees come out of their designated cubicles and work alongside colleagues in a collaborative environment, they are likely to be more productive—or so was the objective.