HRComatrix

I have to admit that I missed SHRM13: the meeting of course , and Chicago ....and sadly, I missed a great opportunity to see Hillary Clinton talking to SHRM people! Among other things, I like this part of her speech: ... " Secondly, it’s important to take criticism seriously but not personally. If you’re in the public eye or even the HR department, you get a lot of challenges and questions and conflicts you have to resolve. You are going to be criticized. I learned you do need to listen to the criticism; you might very well learn to get better. But it can’t be so personally absorbed that you can’t get out of bed the next day." ( Bill Leonard & Kathy Gurchiek, in Clinton Feels at Home in Chicago and with HR , SHRM, 6/16/2013 ) How true! You cannot be better if you are too self-absorbed, too focused on "doing well," and ridiculously badly (poorly) doing what is supposed to be your job...In other terms you are underperforming. So You Know That Yo...

© 2013 AR_HRCom _ARPic_ HumanHR A few weeks ago, I came across a quite refreshing post from Everyday People . Steve was talking about the rewards of field work, of being close to and exposed to everyday people who often commute to walk into your office, people that you interview, those that you hire and dismiss. Do you " Remember When " it last happened to you? It could have been yesterday if you are still in operations, or a year or two ago, or even more if you have evolved to another position. Have you forgotten what makes you a "people person"? Do you think that you are less of a professional in your chosen field now? Think again. Meet "Lisa" , an incredibly vibrant professional. She is one of those people who get to be on and off the field. She is the heart of the company . Well, she can make things positively happen for the company. She makes the best out of bad situations, mitigates risks. She listens to everyday people whenever needed and co...

© 2013 AR_HRCom _TedPic_ Engagement Have you ever seen negative people? They are not fun-loving.  I LOVE positive people. They make me feel good, they enlighten my day, and they bring me some fresh air. I just love them! I admire the inspiration that they are able to instill, just because they are beautifully positive! They find ways of bringing warmth out of cold days. Positive people are beautiful. There is something about them that is different, special. I have met a few of them. And its seems that, more and more, quite a few of us, older and younger, have redefined what matters most to us.  The latest Gallup survey shows that out of all employees, the category of service workers is the only one that shows a drop in engagement from 2009 to 2012. This marks a 3%  decrease versus a 6% increase for manufacturing and production workers. Interesting enough however, transportation and manufacturing workers are the most " actively disengaged " at 28% and 26%...

Why is it that any time somebody presents a situation you think that they are complaining and are upset? Why on earth does the word "upset" come to you so easily?   © 2013 AR_HRCom Insights You - any lucky, blessed manager or leader who escaped any upheaval of any sort despite low morale -  have not lived what the word "upset" would mean to employees. By the way, they are too scared of retaliation to show you that they are upset. Sad thing. And, no, you have not seen a large group of employees coming to your office to complaint about the leadership style in the organization. You have not lived one single meeting with unhappy union representatives. You have not seen one single senior executive walking out of the board meeting. You have neither seen nor heard some of your employees telling a corporate leader that your favorite partner is "worthless." You have always defused any attempts of complaints by giving empty promises and counting on fear o...

I love sleek designs. I love Apple. So I couldn’t help but notice the changes at JC Penney, even without mention of its then new CEO. That is now old news . They were exciting changes! JCP looked cleaner, more avant-garde should I say, definitely closer to my taste of design. Then I got excited about the new check-out system. I was a little bit concerned about the idea that by 2014 all human check-out points were to disappear…but I could have been totally misinformed. However, I am no unconditional JC Penney customer who defected to a less favored store. In fact, I am not what one would call a loyal customer of any store in particular. I am just an “observer”. So I could tell that as the aisles got neater and wider, signs clearer, prices more defined, customers made themselves less visible. Products didn’t seem to have changed drastically however, beside the new Martha Steward addition. (that is also old news by now ). But again, I probably missed something and tradition...

The other day, I had an interesting discussion with a Millennial about change. They give you a different perspective of things and situations, no doubt about it. They can make you reassess your thoughts. They also get irritated because you are not so adept at technology use, or they jokingly make fun of you. They move fast, act fast, change fast .... Some perceive them as a threat. They are just different. But different is not necessarily bad, right? Dare to be different . Sounds familiar? Well, I like to keep an open mind. Not too long ago, I overheard a conversation among coworkers commenting on "To what extent do we have to accept diversity?" Ha ha!! It was a group of baby boomers and Xers talking about some new hire: a Millennial. Talking about generational conflict. Not always expressed out loud, always present. As for me, I was having a direct insight on Millennials ' approach to business in general. On organizational structure, or restructuring: my argument...