Candice Gottlieb
I am very excited to announce that I will be a featured speaker at
the Professionals in Human Resources Association (PIHRA) Talent
Management Conference this May. To get more information or to attend,
click:
Did
you catch our last newsletter? The topic for Tips and Tools was "7
Steps to Communicating Effectively with Your Boss." That article was recently
featured on Top 7 Business, an online business e-zine (periodical). To read our article, click the link below:
______________________
|
Q & A with Candice
Q. My company is being hit by the downward economy and we're facing the need for structured lay-offs. How do we keep the staff we retain from reacting poorly to this change?
A. One of the biggest challenges of corporate down-sizing is managing the staff that remains. Poor planning can destroy morale and lead to unexpected turnover. Anger or anxiety causes other problems that create jeopardy for the business as a whole. The best strategy is to communicate openly with your employees. Help them to understand the reasons behind the lay-offs and the plan that lies ahead. Which departments will be affected? How many staff will be let go? How will the additional work-load be distributed among those who remain? Are additional lay-offs likely? Answering these and other questions is essential if you want staff to feel loyal, secure and willing to work harder than ever before.
Have your own question?
Send us an email and we'll get back to you with an answer promptly. You may even see your question featured here in an up-coming edition!
__________________________
|
|
Was this newsletter helful or informative? If so, please share!
___________________
Thank you for reading our Newsletter! If you have any comments or questions, please contact us!
Mediating Solutions
11684 Ventura Blvd., Ste 239
Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 400-5670
Check out our blog:
Link to Blog
|
|
Hello Valued Business Partner,
This edition of our newsletter focuses
on the value of mediation in preventing employment lawsuits. The tips and tools section addresses the
challenges of email communication, and our Q & A column centers on issues
related to down-sizing.
Each quarterly
edition will include a fresh article, helpful tips and tools, and other
information vital to businesses and employees who value a healthy and
productive work environment.
We hope you find this edition to be
inspirational and thought-provoking.
Please feel encouraged to share this email newsletter with your friends
and colleagues. Wishing you business success! Candice
Gottlieb
President,
Mediating Solutions
|
|
______________________________________________________
A new forum of Business
Mediation
Top Shelf Ideas that affect
the Bottom Line
There are two types of business mediators, those who work to
end the lawsuit, and those who work to prevent it.
Most businesses think of mediation as an adjunct to their
legal services - and it certainly can be.
Mediation can quickly and confidentially resolve pending litigation from
claims of harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, etc. In this capacity I myself have negotiated
agreements that saved businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawsuits
and attorney's fees. And while this area
of mediation is valuable and important, it is just the tip of the mediation
iceberg.
Mediation can also prevent the expensive lawsuit. When used as a routine part of a company's
strategy for handling issues between partners, executives, and general
employees, problems are addressed in the early stages, when they can still be
peaceably resolved. Likewise, this forum
of mediation helps businesses retain their best workers, improve teamwork and
morale, and increase productivity. And,
if an issue is not resolved, evidence of attempting mediation all but
eliminates the threat of a wrongful termination lawsuit.
Businesses are often surprised by the speed of the
result. Why does it work so well when
in-house remedies and efforts do not? In
part, the answer is in the question.
Mediation makes use of an outside and impartial person. Further, the process is confidential. Together these build a high degree of trust
in both the process and the helper, and with trust comes honesty - the key to
working out any issue. Likewise, a
business that addresses issues in this manner demonstrates to those involved
that their concerns have value. When people
feel heard, they are more willing to resolve their issues. Putting
it together, when people are honest and willing to resolve their issues, a lot
gets done quickly.
If you'd like to learn more about how Mediation can help
your business, please contact me to set up a free consultation.
|
|
Tips and Tools
Email Contributes to Conflict. What can I do?
- Say
it clearly - Just this week a colleague and I exchanged emails about
an event that we were both expected to attend.
After confirming my plan to attend she checked with me, "Do you
have the address of where the meeting is tomorrow?" I replied "Yes". Unfortunately I later learned that she did not have the address, and
in fact missed the meeting. Saying
it clearly, or in this case asking it clearly, could have easily resolved
this issue.
- Don't
make assumptions - It's easy to jump to the wrong conclusions when you
don't have the benefit of visual or auditory information. While email is convenient, it limits our
ability to "read" a situation. For example, writing in all caps doesn't necessarily indicate yelling, and a delayed reply might be caused by a technological issue, not
rudeness.
- Consider
the situation - Was that curt reply you just received sent via
Blackberry? Was the sender of that
muddled note out of town or responding at an odd hour? In our world of instant gratification
we've become accustomed to giving and getting information almost
immediately. The problem is that at
times this leads to a hasty reply, an incomplete thought, or worse. Consider the other persons situation before you react,
and clarify any concerns or issues right away.
- Tell
them how you feel - Forwards, chain letters, and other email nuisances
are often sent by those we love the most.
I've found that those who are new to email or who use it strictly
for social purposes are the biggest offenders. Simply let these persons know that while
you appreciate the sentiment, you don't have the time (or inclination) to
read such emails, and that you'd like them to limit their correspondence
in kind.
- Find
another way - Email is quick, but it creates barriers to our
communication. It removes
information that we need (such as tone of voice and information on the other persons
environment), and replaces it with flat dialogue that is both cryptic and
permanent. It's like taking a
3-dimensional object, changing it to a 2-dimensional one, and expecting
the same product. Whenever
possible, address issues, clarify misunderstandings, and handle pertinent
or time-sensitive information by phone or in-person. While it may seem
more time-consuming to exchange information in this manner, it saves time
and energy by greatly reducing the likelihood of any issues or problems
developing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
