Here are some questions that have come to me from events and via email. If a company has grown organically, how do you start to grow through acquisitions? I worked on the HR/M&A side of the house at a company called Kemper Insurance. I was the only HR kid who understood the internet, so that…
Ever since I entered the workforce as a kid, owners have been trying to find a way to pay people less. I don’t mean cutting salaries. Paying people less looks like this: Paying less than minimum wage. I had this happen to me at an ice cream store. I was fourteen and wanted a job.…
I spent some time with entrepreneurs and CEOs, last week, at a collaborative forum where executives can learn from one another in a tweet-free, blog-free zone. It was super fun and interesting. I can’t give you a ton of details from the off-the-record sessions, but I can tell you about my sessions that I chaired.…
I hate it when business travelers are all like, “The road sucks, man. You go to boring meetings in cities that have no soul. You never get to see anything, and if you’re lucky, you get a bite to eat before boarding a flight home. Business travel used to be exclusive and now it’s for…
Whenever people in human resources feel alone or stressed, they will say something like, “People in my town just don’t get it.” Let me give you some examples. “I live in Sacramento, and these HR people just don’t get it. It’s still all about compliance.” “Cleveland is a wonky town. They just don’t get social…
Lots of talk on Huffington Post and Medium—and in the HR blogosphere—about happiness at work and in life. “Just do seventeen things and you will be rich, content and happy. You might do better at work, get a raise, be more attractive and have more sex.” I think some of that’s okay, but it seems…
I work with three generations of HR professionals. There are people over the age of 45 who feel as if they’ve changed human resources. Sure, HR has a bad reputation. But Josh Bersin and Dave Ulrich would approve of their new HR practices. In fact, screw Josh and Dave. A lot of their ideas are…
I remember being single for a hot minute in my 20s. Everyone at work assumed that I had time (and emotional bandwidth) to stay at work, listen to their problems, and step in on projects when their lives were overwhelming. I didn’t have a husband or kids. Who needed me more than my co-workers? Plus there…
A few years ago, I asked a colleague if he had ever been to Barcelona. He responded, “I am well traveled throughout Western Europe.” Good grief, HR people are so insufferable. But since that time, I have been looking for a reason to visit Barcelona. I finally found one—and it’s not a human resources conference,…
Back in the day when I was a newbie blogger with a good URL and an accidental audience, a friend offered a smart piece of advice. Quoting Kurt Vonnegut, he said, “Be careful who you pretend to be.” Whenever I think I know something, and whenever I’m about to present myself as an expert on…
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