Recently, workplace expert Tory Johnson was interviewed about how women can succeed in a challenging job market (smartblogs.com/workforce). She talked about what she believes is the biggest challenge for female managers, but the advice could easily apply to anyone. Here’s what she said:
No evidence could be found in the latest rail volume reports of the federal government’s recent predictions that the economy would improve soon. The grim news about rail volumes follows by days a congressional hearing during which Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he saw “green shoots” indicating the economy is on the upswing.
While you may not have been partying much at the office lately, some employers see summer as an ideal time for an all-staff get-together. Instead of spending a lot on flowers and glassware rentals, though, they’re getting creative with summertime themes. Here are ideas that assistants posted on the Admin Pro Forum.
At Progress Energy’s quarterly “compliments and concerns” meeting, senior administrative assistant Amy Finelli uses a template for minute taking. As a result, she can quickly send out notes after the meeting “because I don’t have to figure out how to organize the topics,” she says. Here are a few more of Finelli’s power tools for meetings:
At some point in their careers, most people end up in the position of being left to do the work after flaky colleagues drop the ball. Anita Bruzzese (www.45things.com), who writes about workplace issues, offers these four tips for handling co-workers who drop the ball, and how to get them to pull their weight:
Catch a second wind by tackling a task on your “Mind Like Mush” list … Is your boss an ‘allergic-to-details’ type? Keep project files handy that contain details he or she is likely to need … Find travel deals by booking later … Spruce up your administrative “portfolio” by adding a dash of visual material.
You may have noticed more people than usual lurking outside your executive’s door. That’s because economic fears are prompting more employees to eavesdrop and gossip about what might happen next at their workplaces. The solution? The times call for stepped-up communication, says Steve Williams, director of research for SHRM.
With employees fretting about layoffs, or reeling from recent workplace cuts, now’s a great time for team-building. You don’t need an expensive round of paintball to gain the benefits of team-building exercises. But you do need to squeeze the most out of them.
If your boss is typical, he’s looking for ways to tell the team “thanks.” Appreciation is one of the few, affordable ways to retain and motivate. Help him put sentiments down on paper with these tips: