As Hurricane Florence barrels towards the coast your mind may be overwhelmed with thoughts about the safety of your employees, insurance policy coverage, inventory concerns, incoming shipments, and securing your property. Of all the important things that are on your mind and all of the items that are vying for your attention in the hours leading up to the storm, what you do not want to be thinking about is fielding calls from employees who are calling out because they need to secure their Great Aunt's Best Friend's beach house. While most employees will call out because they truly need to be out of work, there are certainty those that will take advantage of the situation. However, before you take action, think about the following:
- Most people are telling you the truth. Unless there is a history of deceitful behavior and absenteeism, now is not the time to uti...
Communication is perhaps the most important part of any reduction in force planning. It is important to know your message, understand your why, and be able to articulate it to your company. Following are just a few of our top tips on how to communicate during a layoff.
- If at all possible, deliver the message 1:1 and face to face. People want and need a personal connection, as well as the privacy to process the information. In some instance it is simply not possible to provide 1:1 communication due to the number of people impacted. In those instances, it is even more imperative that it be face to face. Sending a memo, like Microsoft did in 2014, not only risks misunderstanding and unanswered questions, it can create a hostile environment where employees feel they are simply numbers to an organization, t...
