where are you now? (a call for updates)
It’s mid-year updates season! If you’ve had your question answered here in the past, please email me an update and let us know how your situation turned out. Did you take the advice? Did you not ...
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two of my employees won’t speak to each other
A reader writes: I’m managing a department of eight people and two of them won’t speak to each other. I’m new to my position and it took me a couple of months to figure out that ...
should I penalize candidates for not sending thank-you notes?
A reader writes: I am interviewing for two positions currently. So far I’ve interviewed six people and not one has sent any kind of follow-up or thank-you note. I can tell from the virtual meeting ...
is it a problem to give my employee only positive feedback?
A reader writes: I have a truly excellent employee on my team, “Dave.” He is bright, diligent, always volunteers for extra tasks and responsibility, and his work product is very high quality. I’m ...
are there red flags I’m missing at my new job?
A reader writes: I started a new job abroad. It’s a small country, and I’m adjusting well. I lived as an expat for six years prior to this in a less developed country, working in a much ...
should I have told my employee I figured out she was pregnant?
A reader writes: I work for a small organization that prides ourselves on being very good with our benefits, including paid parental leave. We’ve never had a pregnant staffer, so all of our ...
will my employee be blindsided by an improvement plan?
A reader writes: Over the past year, I have been coaching my employee, “Mike,” on various performance issues and it has gotten to the point that we need a formal performance ...
my new employee is “disappointed” with his job
A reader writes: I’m a new-ish manager in a small company. I have two direct reports. One is professional and a joy to work with. The other is a recent hire (he’s been here two months) ...
a job candidate tried to give us a presentation we didn’t want
A reader writes: I’m a manager at a large organization and am almost always in the midst of a recruitment process for one role or another. Our hiring and interview guides are built to stop ...
what to do before you quit your job: a checklist
If you’re getting ready to quit your job, you’re probably thinking a lot about how to tell your boss and your team that you’re leaving. But before you give anyone a heads-up, there are some things ...
am I too old-fashioned about employee lateness?
A reader writes: I feel it is non-negotiable that — except for cases of emergency, sick kids, or traffic jams — employees should be at work on time the vast majority of days. This means getting to ...
how to say “that’s not OK” at work
A reader writes: Is there a professionally acceptable way to push back when someone apologizes for causing problems at work? For example, this morning, my colleague slept through a meeting we had ...
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