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Addressing Emerging Skills Gaps in a Tight Labor Market

While fears of a 2023 recession linger, the American economy continues to hum along, and that includes the tight labor market that has left companies around the country struggling to find enough qualified workers to keep their operations running. That adjective “qualified” is an important one. It’s not necessarily the case that companies can’t find […]

Empathy from Leaders Lifts Company Performance and Helps During Layoffs

Whenever there are mass layoffs, organizational PR teams scramble to find a spin on the announcements. HR professionals fumble the exit planning. Leaders butcher the communication. It is bound to happen. What I wish we would do more of is think about how organizational culture can lead to improved performance and perhaps help us avoid […]

When Recruiting Takes Longer and Costs More, Leaders Must Alter Their Approach

“Permacrisis,” Collins Dictionary’s 2022 word of the year, is defined as “an extended period of instability and insecurity” and captures what many business leaders are feeling given the still-high inflation rate, rising interest rates to combat inflation, and forecasts of a recession in 2023. And it definitely describes the current state of recruitment. So how […]

Is Quiet Constraint the Latest Headache for Employers?

Every company wants to minimize turnover and improve employee engagement. But along with the recent media buzz about “quiet quitting,” there is an even bigger threat to employee engagement and productivity: “quiet constraint.” Game-changing innovation and ideas exist in the minds of your workforce. But what if your employees are holding back, not speaking up, […]

10 DEI Metrics That Matter

What gets measured gets done. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are top of mind for companies large and small, but making notable progress on long-standing challenges around DEI requires a plan to set goals and then collect timely and relevant data to track progress. Companies have invested millions into DEI initiatives. When a company spends […]

Case Study: Postal Worker’s Retaliation Claim Comes Up Short

It’s not uncommon for employees who allege discrimination to drop the claim later and focus solely on a retaliation claim against their employer. Courts often dismiss discrimination claims as baseless, only to find the employer retaliated against the employee who made the allegations. Although employers aren’t required to suspend previously planned acts (e.g., investigations or […]

Mastering the HR Pivot During an Economic Slowdown

Over the last several years, HR teams spent a lot of time battling over talent. Work-from-home trends expanded the marketplace of potential employers for many workers, helping to drive a Great Resignation that stressed HR’s ability to attract the talent their organizations needed to operate effectively. And don’t forget that even the company faithful were […]

Non-Linear Workdays

One of the biggest buzzwords in work culture in the COVID era has been “flexibility.” Workers demand it, and employers are under constant pressure to provide it. Most readers are surely familiar with the classic COVID-era pillar of flexibility—remote work—even if they haven’t personally been able to enjoy the arrangement. A New Way of Working […]

Planning for H-1B Visa Season

It’s that time again. The H-1B visa season has arrived, and employers that are considering petitioning for H-1B visas should start planning for the registration process now. Here’s some general information about H-1B visas, the process, and changes from last year. H-1B Visas in Demand When recruiting or hiring candidates for “specialty occupation positions” employers […]

Faces of HR: Kristen Kenny on Empathy, Building Culture & Instilling Values

In undergrad, Kristen Kenny studied teaching and business management. She was still considering her options one summer when she started working as a Recruiting Coordinator at Fidelity Investments. Although she had found the role via a temp agency, Kenny would soon find out that there was nothing temporary about her serving in HR. Suffice it […]