I'm excited to tell you, my first book, Uncomplicating Management will be out this fall. This book uncomplicates the art of managing people and provides a blueprint for success in managing. In this book you will get practical, easy to understand ideas, real life examples and ready-to- use tools to make your job easy.

You will learn how:

• Nypro turned the owner's vision into a billion dollar company
• Quaboag On The Common filled a critical nursing shortage by holding a Halloween party
• Gritty McDuff's Pub made having fun a huge customer draw

Call me if you would like to receive more information, including a free download of the book's Introduction. In the meantime, watch for notices in the Dacri Report and my website at http://www.dacri.com.

The swine flu pandemic is expected to hit all regions of the country and employers must get ready now. Many companies are doing three things to prepare. First, employers are informing employees about the virus and encouraging them to take precautionary measures to keep themselves, their families and their co-workers healthy and safe. 2) they are assessing all company policies that might be affected by the pandemic. For example, attendance policies are being relaxed so that people with flu-like symptoms are not penalized for staying home. And 3) employers are developing or updating business continuity and disaster plans.

Other things you can do include: provide resources and a work environment that promotes personal hygiene, such as readily accessible tissues, no-touch trash cans, hand soap, hand sanitizers and disposable towels to clean work surfaces. Make available personal protective equipment, such as surgical masks or respirators. Provide employees with up-to-date information and training on influenza risk factors and protective behaviors. Schedule work tasks in a way that minimizes exposure levels by reducing the number of employees who must be at work simultaneously or in one specific location, such as flexible work arrangements; staggered shifts; and greater usage of telecommuting. Consider postponing nonessential travel to locations with high illness transmission rates.

When addressing possible illnesses, send employees home who are showing flu-like symptoms (e.g., fever, headache, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose) and encourage them to stay home until they provide medical certification clearing them to return to work. Require employees to report if they (i) are experiencing flu-like symptoms; (ii) have been diagnosed with any communicable illness; (iii) believe they may have been exposed to a person so diagnosed; or (iv) recently have visited a location where there has been a significant outbreak of swine flu. Inform employees that such information will be kept confidential to the extent possible, but that full confidentiality cannot be guaranteed. Avoid penalizing sick employees.

Put together a plan now. Prepare for large numbers of absences. Have operational contingencies in place. Make sure you have up-to-date phone numbers and contact information of all key staff.

We don't know how bad the outbreak will be, but you should prepare for the worst. For up-to-date information on the swine flu, visit the Center For Disease Control's web page.

How would you respond to the following situation? Are you confident your supervisors would do the right things?

John, who has a private office, gets to work each morning before most of the other employees. He will often go onto the Internet and check the sport scores, the stock market and occasionally some adult pages. He is very discrete when doing this. On some occasions, he has downloaded some pictures and has e-mailed them to Fred, his friend. Fred does not object to this. On one morning, Mary happened to walk into John's office and saw some of the pictures on John's screen. She said nothing and quickly walked out of the office. Is there an issue here? You are John's supervisor. What action, if any, should you take? Could this be construed as sexual harassment?

This is just one of the scenarios outlined in the Sexual Harassment Prevention Toolbox Training Program, available for you. This program outlines everything you need to train your workforce in harassment prevention. It contains 10 scenarios, similar to this one, along with facilitator notes on how to respond to these real cases. Make your required training relevant and ensure that you have a workplace free of harassment.

Introducing our new online bookstore. The store was developed to provide you access to training programs, toolboxes and guides. Our goal is to provide the best management advice for you and your business. Included in the store:

• Sexual Harassment Prevention Toolbox
• Manager's Guide To State & Federal Employment Law (download immediately)
• Guide On Economic Downturn & Layoffs (download immediately)
• much more

Browse the bookstore. Buy with confidence using Paypal or by check.

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