Where Did we go wrong?

If we review recent news items we see all kinds of reported stories that make me wonder how we got here. Consider these examples:

• Volunteer coach and teacher is dismissed from her job. Her crime--she had an athlete who was upset that he was not going to the prom. He was also on the verge of failing English class which meant he would be suspended from the team until he got his average up. The teacher/coach made a deal with him-- she would be his "date" for the prom on the condition that he worked to get his English grade up. They danced one slow dance and spent the rest of the night playing video games.
• Co-worker is upset about something Another worker tries to lend support by putting their hands on the suffering employee's arm or shoulder and ends up being charged with sexual harassment.

I can vividly remember teachers that I had that gave the students hugs when things were going wrong or they had some great success. When I was teaching, it was not uncommon for my students, who lived in the same neighborhood to stop by my home and ask questions on weekends or right after dinner. They were there because they knew I cared about them as persons. I also challenged them in class with real critical thinking exercises, not test based chores.

Let's turn to the corporate side. Managers continually complain they can not find engaged employees. But flip the coin. Management institutes varying procedures and rules which tend to discourage the very act of caring. I fully realize that some can take it to extremes. I would be upset too if a child got into a sexual relationship with a student. I would be upset if a fellow employee began to stalk another employee. But we are not talking about extremes. We are talking about all being part of that global village that we hear of. It requires a population that feels comfortable openly showing that we care for each others health - mentally and physically. If an individual is uncomfortable let them feel willing to say so. But do not shut off the tendency of humans to demonstrate their feelings for others.

We will only come together as humans when we shun the politically correct and feel comfortable enough with our village that we can show compassion for the trials and tribulations for our fellow passengers on this ship we call Earth. We can deal with the rotten apples in the barrel while not turning ourselves off from the world at the same time.

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Am I Missing Something Here?

I was watching the morning news this morning and across the bottom of the screen was a running display of the latest news. One such headline stated that the TSA had patted down an 89 year old man in the airport the other day. When you see the rest of the story at the end of this post you will understand the rest of the post more clearly.

 When I was in HS nearly 50 years ago, we were required to take a wide assortment of classes and have involvement within our local community. We totally understood who the players were and what their roles were. On the same broadcast the state of Florid was reporting a dramatic cut in the passage rate on the written part of the state assessment exam. I then hear employers who are telling us that they can't find qualified employees in the US.

I suspect that in the name of fiscal responsibility we have systematically over the years cut the very programs which make us viable parts of the community. Students today no longer get taught civics ( a fact that drove the actor Richard Dreyfus mad), we have watered down the history that is taught in order to meet the demands of right wing activists who dislike the teaching of real history or science and not made up theories of where we came from.

Unless we turn around the curriculum of this country to widen the knowledge of the students that are following us, they will not be able to function in a vital role within this country.

Now the rest of the opening scenario: the 89 year old man who was subjected to the pat down by TSA - Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of State of the US.

Was the TSA patting down everyone who went through the airport, or was the education of the TSA agent so lacking in background that he or she did not recognize who this was and therefore probably not a security risk. Considering i would believe that he still holds high security clearance from the government.

What are your thoughts? Are we giving our students the education they need to function in the global workplace?

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Am I Missing Something Here?

I was watching the morning news this morning and across the bottom of the screen was a running display of the latest news. One such headline stated that the TSA had patted down an 89 year old man in the airport the other day. When you see the rest of the story at the end of this post you will understand the rest of the post more clearly.

 When I was in HS nearly 50 years ago, we were required to take a wide assortment of classes and have involvement within our local community. We totally understood who the players were and what their roles were. On the same broadcast the state of Florid was reporting a dramatic cut in the passage rate on the written part of the state assessment exam. I then hear employers who are telling us that they can't find qualified employees in the US.

I suspect that in the name of fiscal responsibility we have systematically over the years cut the very programs which make us viable parts of the community. Students today no longer get taught civics ( a fact that drove the actor Richard Dreyfus mad), we have watered down the history that is taught in order to meet the demands of right wing activists who dislike the teaching of real history or science and not made up theories of where we came from.

Unless we turn around the curriculum of this country to widen the knowledge of the students that are following us, they will not be able to function in a vital role within this country.

Now the rest of the opening scenario: the 89 year old man who was subjected to the pat down by TSA - Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of State of the US.

Was the TSA patting down everyone who went through the airport, or was the education of the TSA agent so lacking in background that he or she did not recognize who this was and therefore probably not a security risk. Considering i would believe that he still holds high security clearance from the government.

What are your thoughts? Are we giving our students the education they need to function in the global workplace?

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Am I Missing Something Here?

I was watching the morning news this morning and across the bottom of the screen was a running display of the latest news. One such headline stated that the TSA had patted down an 89 year old man in the airport the other day. When you see the rest of the story at the end of this post you will understand the rest of the post more clearly.

 When I was in HS nearly 50 years ago, we were required to take a wide assortment of classes and have involvement within our local community. We totally understood who the players were and what their roles were. On the same broadcast the state of Florid was reporting a dramatic cut in the passage rate on the written part of the state assessment exam. I then hear employers who are telling us that they can't find qualified employees in the US.

I suspect that in the name of fiscal responsibility we have systematically over the years cut the very programs which make us viable parts of the community. Students today no longer get taught civics ( a fact that drove the actor Richard Dreyfus mad), we have watered down the history that is taught in order to meet the demands of right wing activists who dislike the teaching of real history or science and not made up theories of where we came from.

Unless we turn around the curriculum of this country to widen the knowledge of the students that are following us, they will not be able to function in a vital role within this country.

Now the rest of the opening scenario: the 89 year old man who was subjected to the pat down by TSA - Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of State of the US.

Was the TSA patting down everyone who went through the airport, or was the education of the TSA agent so lacking in background that he or she did not recognize who this was and therefore probably not a security risk. Considering i would believe that he still holds high security clearance from the government.

What are your thoughts? Are we giving our students the education they need to function in the global workplace?

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Truth, Justice and Your Organization?

I can just hear some of you now, but in watching TV and reading the news I was hit with several points which made me question the direction our organization's are headed in. We strive to speak the philosophy that we want our employees to have full transparency into our organization. We expect our employees to be engaged in the processes. The we flip the coin and see stories like the following:

1) Local TV station ran a story about customer service. The owner of the business tells the reporter that if a customer complains directly to the company, they get less attention then if they post the same complaint on social media. In the same breath, we as organizations tell us that it is paramount that we cut off the conversation by limiting employee access to social media during work hours.

2) I for the most part shy away from discussing politics but there were several reports of misguided acts by politicians which had direct impact on the society in which we live. But in each case the acts were essentially thrown under the carpet.

3) The reports surfaced this weekend about the actions of the trade office of JP Morgan Chase. The CEO said that the Dodd-Frank legislation  was too restrictive yet they did exactly what caused the 2008 downturn in the first place. It was primarily caught because of the financial reforms put in place because of these types of actions

As leaders of our organizations, the expectation is there that we will function in an ethical manner with our customers, our vendors and just as important or employees In this 21st century it is no longer possible for us to expect that our employees will do what we expect when we tell them one thing and then do just the opposite.

Our organizations rely on our clients to provide the mechanism to keep the organization running. When we tell them "Hey if you broadcast to the world your problems with us, we will give it more weight then if you just call or write about your problems what picture are you delivering?

 We need to remind ourselves that shortly our organizations will be run by a different generation and for the most part the lack of  transparency and ethical behavior will not be tolerated.

So tell me, are you abiding by truth and justice or is your organization operating behind a set of smokey mirrors? Are you telling your human capital and your customers one thing while doing the exact opposite under the nomenclature of getting things done faster, better and cheaper?

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Truth, Justice and Your Organization?

I can just hear some of you now, but in watching TV and reading the news I was hit with several points which made me question the direction our organization's are headed in. We strive to speak the philosophy that we want our employees to have full transparency into our organization. We expect our employees to be engaged in the processes. The we flip the coin and see stories like the following:

1) Local TV station ran a story about customer service. The owner of the business tells the reporter that if a customer complains directly to the company, they get less attention then if they post the same complaint on social media. In the same breath, we as organizations tell us that it is paramount that we cut off the conversation by limiting employee access to social media during work hours.

2) I for the most part shy away from discussing politics but there were several reports of misguided acts by politicians which had direct impact on the society in which we live. But in each case the acts were essentially thrown under the carpet.

3) The reports surfaced this weekend about the actions of the trade office of JP Morgan Chase. The CEO said that the Dodd-Frank legislation  was too restrictive yet they did exactly what caused the 2008 downturn in the first place. It was primarily caught because of the financial reforms put in place because of these types of actions

As leaders of our organizations, the expectation is there that we will function in an ethical manner with our customers, our vendors and just as important or employees In this 21st century it is no longer possible for us to expect that our employees will do what we expect when we tell them one thing and then do just the opposite.

Our organizations rely on our clients to provide the mechanism to keep the organization running. When we tell them "Hey if you broadcast to the world your problems with us, we will give it more weight then if you just call or write about your problems what picture are you delivering?

 We need to remind ourselves that shortly our organizations will be run by a different generation and for the most part the lack of  transparency and ethical behavior will not be tolerated.

So tell me, are you abiding by truth and justice or is your organization operating behind a set of smokey mirrors? Are you telling your human capital and your customers one thing while doing the exact opposite under the nomenclature of getting things done faster, better and cheaper?

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

What is your Gay Index?

The term Gay Index was coined by Richard Florida in Fast Company severl years ago, but it brings up an ongoing issue I hear in the marketplace. When we are writing policies and procedures regarding discrimination aand harrassment in the workplace we know that we have a group of protected classes that are singled out in thesse policies as having their rights protected in the workplace.

Yesterday the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission just made your job a little bit harder. In a case which pitted and employee against the Department of Justice, the EEOC rulled that transgender employees are a covered class under Title VII.

In a landmark ruling, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced that Title VII, the federal sex discrimination law, protects employees who are discriminated against because they are transgender. In its unprecedented decision, the EEOC concluded that “intentional discrimination against a transgender individual because that person is transgender is, by definition, discrimination ‘based on … sex’ and such discrimination … violates Title VII.”

Based on this ruling it would be in the best interests of your organization to review your policies to ensure that you have updated them for the new requirements.

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

That's Just the Way We do things here

I was watching the local news herein Tampa Bay the other night and a story came on that made we stop to think about how we do things within the HR arena everyday.

There is a local man who was scheduled to fly to NJ to be with his daughter who was undergoing a medical procedure. The problem is that he has been fighting cancer for a number of years but he went to an airline and purchased a non-refundable ticket for the trip. Then during a conversation with his doctor, he was told he could not only not fly but he had only about two months to live. He went to the airline and explained the situation and offered full medical documentation. The airline's response was if you died we would give you a partial refund, barring that our policy is that the ticket you bought is non-refundable.That's our policy and we will not make any changes.

I am a strong advocate of our policies and procedures having a standard of work, a set number of steps required to complete the process. But I also realize that in between we have migrated to a world which thrive on flexibility. This leaves us with two options within our organizations. One is to be like the airline and state that this is our policy and we are sticking to it. Or we can introduce the policies and procedures as guidelines and allow your organizations and its managers to use some judgment as to whether the organizational stability is really harmed by inserting some common sense to how we deliver those policies and procedures.

Being lock step into this is the way we do it within this organization does not service the organization nor your human capital assets. Within every policy and procedure, there should be room for some creativity in how we utilize them to resolve issues in the workplace.

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

That's Just the Way We do things here

I was watching the local news herein Tampa Bay the other night and a story came on that made we stop to think about how we do things within the HR arena everyday.

There is a local man who was scheduled to fly to NJ to be with his daughter who was undergoing a medical procedure. The problem is that he has been fighting cancer for a number of years but he went to an airline and purchased a non-refundable ticket for the trip. Then during a conversation with his doctor, he was told he could not only not fly but he had only about two months to live. He went to the airline and explained the situation and offered full medical documentation. The airline's response was if you died we would give you a partial refund, barring that our policy is that the ticket you bought is non-refundable.That's our policy and we will not make any changes.

I am a strong advocate of our policies and procedures having a standard of work, a set number of steps required to complete the process. But I also realize that in between we have migrated to a world which thrive on flexibility. This leaves us with two options within our organizations. One is to be like the airline and state that this is our policy and we are sticking to it. Or we can introduce the policies and procedures as guidelines and allow your organizations and its managers to use some judgment as to whether the organizational stability is really harmed by inserting some common sense to how we deliver those policies and procedures.

Being lock step into this is the way we do it within this organization does not service the organization nor your human capital assets. Within every policy and procedure, there should be room for some creativity in how we utilize them to resolve issues in the workplace.

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

The Global Marketplace changed, but did your organization?

I recently posted a blog entry entitled "open letter to the CEO" and one of the readers took me to task for posting something with a misspelling because I used the term Stakeholder instead of Shareholder.

While we might be talking semantics here, I thin for every organization there is tremendous potential to change the focus from shareholder to stakeholder. It encompasses a greater audience for the success of the organization. But assuming we are talking just semantics only let's look at the definitions of the two terms.

According to Dictionary.com, a shareholder refers to one who holds or owns shares of a company. In essence this means that the individual or organization holds a financial interest in the organization and looks at all decisions from a return on investment perspective. Every decision that is made is from the view of the effect on the bottom line.

According to Dictionary.com again, the stakeholder is a person or group that has an investment, share, or interest in the organization.

So here is where I part ways with the comment writer. The global marketplace has changed. Our success as organizations is now dependent on a rapidly growing resource base for our success. The correct term in the new arena is that of stakeholder. The investment does not have to be in the form of shares of stock. Consider these stakeholders and see how they differ from shareholders:

• Employees
• Vendors
• Customers
• Community
• Your industry
• Your competitors
• Potential talent resources
• Suppliers

Stakeholders look at our organizations to determine what is necessary for the organization to make them more competitive in the marketplace. We do this through our policies, our products, our customer service levels, the way we treat employees and how we treat the community in which we function everyday. The stakeholder has a vested interest in the success of our organization. Unlike a shareholder, if we are not meeting their needs they can easily pick up and abandon our efforts for someone who will meet those needs. This global marketplace we are now in demands transparency with all parties to the operations from the floor person to the executive suite to the customer and vendor. It demands a new focus on what makes all better not just one segment of the equation.

So next time you are reviewing the operation of your enterprise, consider broadening your focus to encompass the entire market rather then just those who have put their money where their mouth is in the form of a monetary investment within your organization. Consider that those individuals who help you make, sell and service your product or service are just as important as the shareholders.

Posted via email from hrstrategist@Net-Speed

Daniel Bloom SPHR,SSBB,SCRP
Performance Institute and DBAI partner to bring Driving HR 500 seminar to Washington, D.C.

Daniel Bloom & Associates, Inc. has introduced a proprietary course entitled Driving the Human Resource 500: Achieving HR Excellence through Six Sigma. It is designed to show HR professionals how to utilize continuous process improvement to enhance their human resource processes and explain HR in terms of organizational strategy. The class lasts for two days and has been pre-approved for 13 strategic continuing education by the Human Resource Certification Institute. In addition all successful participants will receive certification as a Six Sigma Yellow Belt.

Performance Institute classes are scheduled for:

June 12-13, 2012 and October 24-25,2012 For more information visit http://ping.fm/Mpinc

We are also bringing the class to the St Petersburg College Corporate Training Center on April 26-27, 2012 in Clearwater FL
More information visit http://ping.fm/3Pvtq