Tag Archives: team management

Active Listening: Essential Guidelines to Improve Your Conversation Skills and Learn Effective Communication Techniques

March 31, 2020

Hi! My name is Katherine Hartvickson of Quantum Ascendance, an HR Consulting & Leadership Development company. We help you develop your People and create sustainable Processes so that you enjoy a Profitable and Winning Culture. This is the second tip in my video series on business communication. If you missed the first tip, watch it here. Effective listening is essential to clear communication and management success. Choosing the right words,…

Embracing Workplace Appreciation: Empowering Organizations by Recognizing Employees

March 28, 2020

Is your business suffering from communication breakdowns? My name is Katherine Hartvickson of Quantum Ascendance, an HR Consulting & Leadership Development company. We help you develop your People and create sustainable Processes so that you enjoy a Profitable and Winning Culture. Today’s business world is filled with an overwhelming amount of social media, texts and emails, yet I’ve found there is still a lack of clear and compelling communicating happening.…

How Diversity & Inclusion Strengthens Your Business

March 6, 2020

A strong diversity and inclusion strategy isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s also an important strategic business move. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that organizations that are more diverse and inclusive drive innovative results and attract top talent. First of all, let’s define what these terms mean. Diversity is comprised of the things that differentiate us. It encompasses the characteristics that make one person or group different from others. Things…

Looking Ahead at 5 HR Trends for 2020

January 8, 2020

At the end of each year, I like to look back at what I’ve accomplished: what went well and what didn’t. There are valuable lessons in understanding this before you start planning the next year. It’s also important to look forward—no matter what field you’re in—at what you’d like to focus on in the upcoming year. For me, it’s to launch my new HR training program for small business owners…

5 Ways to Reward Employees When You Can’t Give Raises

June 4, 2019

Whether you have two employees or 200, it happens to almost every leader at some point: a person asks for a raise and you have to say “No.” For many small business owners, turning someone down is not a matter of poor performance or miserly management; they simply can’t afford to raise wages. While money is obviously ideal for your workers, there are some other ways you can show your…

How Managing Millennial Employees is Different

May 6, 2019

What do you think of when I say, “millennials in the workplace?” Are you reminded of a hardworking child or grandchild, or do you think about entitlement and avocado toast? Although their age range varies depending on who you ask, generally the consensus is that they’re the people who were born between 1981 and 1996. Gallup estimates that there are approximately 73 million millennials in America. They’re already the largest…

How to Deal with Difficult Employees Before They Do Damage

March 4, 2019

Almost every leader or manager I’ve worked with has a story about an employee (or more than one) who is hard to work with for some reason (or reasons). These challenging people can totally drain the emotional energy of your entire workforce if you don’t address the issue. Of course, as a manager you want to avoid hiring them in the first place, but if they’re on your team, you’re…

How to Avoid 7 Common Employment Law Violations in 2019

February 7, 2019

Can you believe we’re into the second month of 2019 already? Each year brings changes in employment law and reminders to familiarize ourselves with the ins and outs to avoid fines, damage to reputation, loss of employees – or even our business. Let’s take a look at some of the top workplace violations so that we can move forward in 2019 informed and prepared. Remember: ignorance is not an excuse…

3 Small Changes That Can Revitalize Your Employees after a Crisis

October 16, 2018

It could be a lawsuit or a slump or just plain fatigue, but most businesses will at some point hit a wall and need to recover. The biggest loss from a crisis is often company morale. If you see your employees losing their enthusiasm, it’s time to be a leader and pave the way back to the environment you enjoyed before the issues arose. If you’re a small business owner…

A Sexual Harassment Policy from Us Could Have Saved This Client 6 Figures and 7 Months

September 14, 2018

I am a small business owner and encountered a problem I didn’t think would ever impact me. I’ve been in business for 12 years and employ over 35 full-time employees. I run a nice service business where everyone gets along fine. Or so I thought. One day I opened the mail and found a sexual harassment and discrimination charge had been filed with the EEOC claiming that the company had…