The Manager's Resource Handbook
Tools, Resources and Guides for Managers and Business Leaders. Real Advice from Real Bosses.
Should I Let Employees Work From Home? Compared to just 15 years ago, the widespread availability of Wi-Fi, tablets, video conferences and smart phones have made the world our office. Many jobs no longer require employees to be housed within the same four walls since they can connect virtually, just as if they were sitting at a desk in a high-rise office
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Humility. It’s the emotion you’ll feel the first time one of your employees resigns. You’ll likely ask yourself a few pointed questions: Did I do something wrong? Can I persuade them to change their mind? Are they just using this as leverage to get something they want? All good questions. When an employee gives their notice that they will be leaving,
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7 Steps to Building a Successful Team: People, Purpose, Performance The opportunity doesn’t come often for us, but getting the chance to build a brand new team from scratch is one of the most enjoyable experiences a manager will ever have. After all, building a successful organization requires planning, creativity, execution and oversight…all at once. For me, the first such opportunity
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Making Organizational Changes in Support of Your Future Success A college professor of mine once told me “There is no book on that. Sometimes you just need to get in and figure your way out.” Knowing when to restructure a business is one of those things. Though there are books on organizational theory and team dynamics, there is no textbook out there telling us exactly
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Questions for Building a Business Case Any manager who has hired new employees has dealt with challenges related to wages. Why else do recruiters ask for a candidates salary as part of the initial screening process? What they’re really asking is “can I afford you?” I actually had one hiring manager tell me “This guy is making more than I do, we could never
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7 Steps to Organizational Preservation Though it is far more common than we would like to admit, our businesses and organizations are filled with what I like to call “single persons of failure,” or SPOF. In my company, for example, we have a department manager who is nearing retirement in the next 18 months, yet we have no one identified as his
» Read more A Detailed Account of Downsizing a Team By One Manager at a Fortune 500 EDITOR’S NOTE: The following comments chronicle a layoff event that occurred at a Fortune 500 Company, as recorded by a manager in the organization. This is the second part in a 3-part series. Click HERE for Part 1, HERE for Part 2 or HERE for Part 3. Key details
» Read more A Detailed Account of Downsizing a Team By One Manager at a Fortune 500 EDITOR’S NOTE: The following comments chronicle a layoff event that occurred at a Fortune 500 Company, as recorded by a manager in the organization. This is the second part in a 3-part series. Click HERE for Part 1, and HERE for Part 2. Key details are omitted to
» Read more A Detailed Account of Downsizing a Team By One Manager at a Fortune 500 EDITOR’S NOTE: The following comments chronicle a layoff event that occurred at a Fortune 500 Company, as recorded by a manager in the organization. This is the second part in a 4-part series. Click HERE for Part 1, and HERE for Part 3. Key details are omitted to
» Read more A Detailed Account of Downsizing a Team By One Manager at a Fortune 500 EDITOR’S NOTE: The following comments chronicle a layoff event that occurred at a Fortune 500 Company, as recorded by a manager in the organization. This is the first in a 4-part series. Key details are omitted to keep it anonymous, however the timing, details and commentary are factual.
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Regardless of whether its your first management gig, or just a new team for you to lead, every manager has a their first meeting with a new team. And while your new employees are likely to be generally cordial and kind, they’re still getting to know you, just as you’re getting to know them. You want to get past this period
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What it Takes to Become a Great Boss and a Great Leader It goes without saying that managing a team and leading people comes with a lot of responsibility. And while many managers are successful and have great careers, there are other managers who simply knock it out of the park. They get results, meet their budget and seemingly don’t break
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The Art of Interviewing Job Candidates One of the most difficult and important decisions you will make as a manager of people is selecting who to hire and planning how to staff your team. Such decisions should not be taken likely – as the boss, you are responsible for the getting results. Additionally, hiring the wrong people is tremendously disruptive
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The Most Inspiring Question I’ve Ever Heard from a Job Candidate Times were tough. We were working around the clock in response to a major product recall. My team was exhausted. Our customers were furious. We had been at it for months. Even though it was December, many of us knew we would have to work through the Christmas holidays
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Congratulations! You have a New Employee!…And it Just Happens to Be Your Boss. The idea of it sounds ludicrous. You have a large staff, countless projects and relentless customers to take care of throughout your day. And then you realize you have to add one more load on top of it: managing your own boss. Sad but true, if you
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Remember when your Project Manager came in the conference room last month, his forehead pulsating, as if he were just itching for a fight of any kind? We’ve all had those people in our office, reminding us of the great scene from Monty Python – “The Argument Clinic.” Maybe there is pressure from higher up to get results, or perhaps it
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8 Workplace Remodel Tips for Managers Doing it Themselves A workplace is more than just the four walls that surround people. Rather, a modern workplace is an environment in which ideas are born, where breakthroughs are made, and where profit is generated. Impressive campuses likes those of Apple or the trendy refurbished factory that now houses a Brooklyn start up
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How to Be a Boss and a Friend A former mentor of mine once told me that there are two highly uncomfortable relationships that one inevitably encounters in his or her management career. The first of these relationships was the one you have when your former boss ends up working for you. That is, the person from whom you once
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9 Ways You’re Hurting Morale… And Don’t Even Know It Every manager among us is busy. We have a job vacancy to fill, we have expense reports to approve, we have a staff meeting to run…and after all that, we have our own work to do. So, where in all of that do we keep employees motivated, performing at a
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Overcoming the Legacy of Your Predecessor Maybe they retired. Perhaps there was some restructuring. Maybe they left the firm, or simply got promoted. In any case, the old boss left, and you were hired to take over. Even for experienced managers, the transition into a new management role is tough and may feel like an uphill battle to win over
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