Planning for growth or adding new services inevitably leads to “we need more people!”. But before you dig out those job advertisements, or call your favorite recruiter, ask these 4 critical questions: 1. Do you have a management problem or a hiring problem? Did the last person leave because of their manager? 2. Do you have a turnover problem or a not-enough-turnover problem, or a little of both? 3. Full time? Part-time? Or is there a productivity problem that could be addressed…

The first time — Over one thousand CEOs were asked, “How important are the following sources of competitive advantage in sustaining your growth over the long-term?” Nearly 100% said “Finding and keeping key people.” Notably, the next three most important concerns were: Ability to adapt to change Strength of branding and reputation Quality of…

When you have a difficult employee, it may be tempting to ignore the problem and hope the issues go away. But chances are, it will only get worse. The longer you wait, the more the employee may have a negative impact on your entire team’s morale, overall productivity, and the…

Learn to embrace change — Before 1978, the Swiss had 50% of the world watch market, but within the next ten years, they lost nearly all of it because they didn’t embrace change. In 1978, their scientists developed quartz technology, an extremely accurate means of keeping time that required just over half the moving parts…

A process to get those who are reserved about change onboard with it — Change — some thrive on it, while others resist it. Why is it that two individuals can look at the same thing and think totally different thoughts? Some see change as essential, while others fear the worst. Half-full versus half-empty — possibilities versus consequences. …

For many of us, things are tough and not likely to get better anytime soon. Though you can’t change what happens to your business, you can control your response. Your best response is continuous improvement, and the most important approach to continuous improvement is: involve everyone. …

Much has been written about communication, particularly a leader communicating expectations to his or her team and colleagues. It’s always been important, but now it’s vital to your success. Because of the pandemic, concepts like “remote worker” went from being experimental for many organizations to the new normal all at…

How you should be managing your millennials — As noted in our earlier two blogs about Millennials, STM completes comprehensive assessments on job candidates every day, and many of these candidates are Millennials. There are lots of myths floating around about managing them, and it’s critical that you as the owner or senior manager understand Millennials. …

Interviewing Millennials — In my first article on Millennials, I “busted the myth” that all Millennials are lazy, or all expect an enormous compensation package. While Millennials share qualities like learning, avoiding conflict, and a modest ROI with other generations, they are much more team and relationship-oriented and tend to have a higher…