Posts by Liz Richards
Trying to Hold Your Employees Accountable? You Have to Make It a Process, Not a Slogan
Accountability is a hot watchword in just about every business. But what does it really mean? Simply put, accountability means having to answer for one’s actions. When business leaders chant the slogan of “accountability,” what they are trying to do is spread the following message to employees: behave knowing in advance that you will have…
Help! How Do I Increase Employee Productivity?
If an employee doesn’t get “enough” work done—they need to increase productivity—then there are only three logical possibilities: that employee needs to work either more, faster, or both. Simple, right? Just keep that employee in their chair and keep a fire lit under it. But it’s rarely quite so simple. Here’s what usually happens: Assuming…
Become a Great Delegator: Ask the Right Questions When Handing Off Work
Micromanagement, when it occurs, is usually the result of an anxious manager who wants to make sure that everything is getting done the right way, at every step of the way, by overseeing the project from start to finish. The thing is, managers should make sure that everything is getting done the right way, every…
The Value of Leadership Training
Leaders in organizations of every shape and size can probably list a number of ways their businesses could improve. Employees do their jobs the wrong way. There is too much firefighting and not enough work getting done. Low performers are hiding out under the radar. High performers are thinking about leaving. Resources are wasted. There…
Help! I’m Responsible for an Entirely New Team
It’s difficult enough being the new manager. But it’s twice as hard when everybody is new to you and to each other. You haven’t met each other yet. You may not have had any say in who was chosen for the team. As far as you know, nobody on the team has ever worked together…
Are You Ready for Gen Z?
by Alexandra Levit Millennials have captured the global workforce’s imagination. And Millennials are important, of course, as they are our current and rising leaders. But what about Generation Z, born 1996-2012? This year, the oldest Gen Zers will enter the professional workforce, and they are very different than what we’ve come to expect from the…
Hiring Gen Z: Takeaways for Today’s Talent Wars
When it comes to hiring, there’s a lot of advice out there about how to attract the best young talent. Make sure they have access to technology, pair them with a workplace friend, offer flexibility – these solutions make sense on the surface, but they aren’t necessarily specific enough for employers to know which steps…
What Equality and Inclusivity Mean for Generation Z
When it comes to work, Gen Z is all about the human element. Supportive leaders and positive relationships with coworkers support Gen Zers in their own careers, but what about everyone else? Isn’t Gen Z supposed to care about equality and inclusivity? Our data shows that the answer is yes – Gen Zers do care…
The Human Element is Key: What Our Research is Teaching Us about Gen Z
When we brought in four young interns this summer at RainmakerThinking we realized we had a great opportunity to have Gen Zers interview their peers. We’ve been studying young employees since our founding in 1993, when Gen X was the focus of our generational research. Since then, we have kept our finger on the pulse…
Five Ways to Take Advantage of the “Development Investment Paradox”
When it comes to being an employer with a strong reputation for training and development, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you can successfully build a culture of learning on your team or in your organization. The bad news is that if you do manage to get employees engaged…