Can you imagine how rewarding it would be, each day, to truly enjoy going to work? Most people spend the better part of their waking hours in jobs they do not enjoy. The happiest, most productive employees are those who have either found a job they truly enjoy, or found ways to make their current jobs more enjoyable. If we can get more pleasure and satisfaction from our work time, it would immeasurably improve the quality ofour lives. For more than 30 years, authors Joan Goldsmith and Kenneth Cloke have worked with teams and employers to create positive work environments in which communication between all levels is respectful, creativity is encouraged and people are acknowledged and supported. Thank God It's Monday provides real-world examples and exercises to stimulate employees and employers into creating better work lives. Thank God It's Monday identifies 14 core values that will make any work more stimulating and satisfying, including: Inclusion of everyone; Celebration of diversity; Open and honest communication; Risk taking; Opportunities for personal growth; Thank God It's Monday will be valuable to employees seeking to increase satisfaction in their current jobs, displaced employees searching for the work situations that are best for them, and employers and organizational leaders looking to keep their best employees by creating energetic and vibrant workplaces. Thank God It's Monday provides scores of ready-to-use activities, worksheets and exercises that will help transform the workplace into a second home that everyone wants to return to each day.

In our increasingly competitive, uncertain, complex world marketplace, multinational companies, unions, and governments must rethink and adjust their human resource strategies and legislative policies again and again. Cooke and the contributors to this wide ranging volume provide case studies and original analyses of present and coming human resource issues and problems. Offering a balanced, objective understanding of what they are, they thus succeed in giving HR executives and public policymakers a way to devise more creative and workable coping strategies. Among the book's major points: MNCs usually underestimate the influence that differences in industrial relations systems, workplace cultures, and local resistance to certain HR policies can all have on their operations. Unions too often fail to develop effective transnational and inter-union strategies to better serve their memberships in other countries and cultures. And public policy makers are torn between policies meant to respond to a need for workplace efficiency, against other policies meant to promote worker equity. The book addresses these and other issues hitherto explored minimally or not at all and provides analytical, practical insights that have long-term generalizability and applicability. Unique in its depth of ideas representing a vast range of expertise, the book is a compelling addition to the literature on human resource management, and a necessary resource for executives at all levals in all types of global organizations.

The contributors examine, first, the foreign direct investment configuration strategies of multinationals, then the transnational diffusion of human resource and labor relations strategies. Among the topics they cover are, how MNCs choose to diffuse the policies of the domestic parent company into their foreign subsidiaries, or how they decide to adopt policies and practices that originate in the host countries. They take up the issues of organized labor's generally diminishing relative power in a rapidly changing global workplace, then focus on transnational collective bargaining strategies and sociopolitical action. Finally, by recognizing recent multilateral agreements governing workplaces across borders, the contributors are able to assess the European Union Directive on transnational works councils and the labor aspects and agreements of NAFTA.

"If you want to learn how to bring the best performances out of the people who surround you, then this straightforward guidebook on human resource development provides you with the tools you need to cause positive change.People new to the field as well as industry veterans will find practical information and guidance, including how to: facilitate dynamic adult learning experiences; help people develop confidence, vigor, and zeal to meet challenges; write the best performance criteria; establish an atmosphere where learning is always promoted.All supervisors must take responsibility in helping their employees meet expectations and become successful professionals. This also applies to ministers, rabbis, imams, and other leaders who encourage people to lead more productive and satisfying lives.Regardless of whether you are a human resource professional, it's imperative that you rise to the challenge and take the necessary steps to help others rise to their potential. Learn how to do it step by step with A Mini Course in Training Design. It provides guidance on how you can become a motivational force. Through human resource development tools, you can develop qualities such as expertise, empathy, and enthusiasm that will help you to develop training methods specialized to your purpose and to your people."

Exiting OZ is an eye-opening book about leadership as it must become for organizations to survive in today's rapidly changing world. It is a must read for leaders interested in building a sustainable organization and populating it with dedicated, high performance people, and for high performance people interested in avoiding the perils and pitfalls of OZ organizations.OZ is a metaphor for Organizational Zeal, the notion that the organization is more important than the people that keep it alive. OZ organizations are full of ineffective leaders and each is exposed in this book through clever comparisons to the characters from L. Frank Baum's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.Exiting OZ takes you on a fascinating journey through the world of typical organizations and explains in colorful analogies why business-as-usual is a formula for failure as the newer generations move into the workforce majority and reject standard management practices.Giving organizations a ten to twelve year window to get it right, the authors explain, and back their assertions with plenty of data, why organizations of every kind, from corporations to governments, to academic, religious and other institutions must adopt new leadership strategies if they are to survive and thrive.

This monograph provides theoretical and practical perspectives on competency management as a key resource for producing competitive products. The authors develop and substantiate a law of dependence between competencies and emergence of new markets, and describe the practical aspects of developing competencies in high-tech companies. Further, they develop economic and mathematical models for managing the competitive advantages of a company based on competencies. Using these models, they present a method for evaluating and ranking core competencies, as well as for multi-criteria ratings of human potential efficiency. The book also discusses the mechanisms of competitiveness management based on a conceptual model of a competence center network.

The proper use and dissemination of information among stakeholders, organizations, and societies is crucial for the development of productive and prosperous communities. Governance, Communication, and Innovation in a Knowledge Intensive Society gathers current research on knowledge management in governments, organizations, and institutions, and presents a compilation useful to academics, professionals, politicians, and policy makers invested in knowledge-intensive societies. This book investigates the impact of knowledge and information technologies on fields as diverse as education, culture, science and business, in order to provide an effective framework for effectively navigating the nuances of an information-pervasive world.

The blockbuster bestseller now in a manga edition--fully illustrated and fun to read
Beautifully illustrated by Kensuke Okabayashi, this enthralling edition of Patrick Lencioni's massive bestseller gives readers a new format in which to understand the fascinating, complex world of teams. Kathryn Petersen, Decision Tech's CEO, faces the ultimate leadership crisis: Uniting a team in such disarray that it threatens to bring down the entire company. Will she succeed? Will she be fired? Will the company fail? Lencioni's gripping tale serves as a timeless reminder that leadership requires as much courage as it does insight.
Throughout the story, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions that go to the heart of why teams--even the best ones--often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team. This is a compelling fable with a powerful, yet deceptively simple message for all those who strive to be exceptional leaders.
Kensuke Okabayashi (Jersey City, NJ) is a working illustrator, a graduate of the School of Visual Arts, and an instructor at the Educational Alliance Art School in New York City.

Rarely discussed in courses on ethics is the topic of excuses, but in McDowell's view, excuses offer the most illuminating way to understand the true nature of ethical problems in the professions. He looks at excuses that professionals give when accused of acting unethically, and asks, when are they valid and when not? Problems of professional ethics are really problems of compliance, he argues, not ignorance of expectations. The study of excuses can help us understand what these problems are and offer insights into ways to solve them. Banks maintains too that our ethical expectations may need overhauling, given substantial changes that have occurred in how professionals do their work today. They can be easily persuaded that what they are doing is not unethical; it depends on the excuses they give themselves as well as others. Professionals know what's expected of them, but social and economic pressures make compliance difficult. Professionals in all fields, who struggle to be both successful and ethical, will find the book challenging, provocative, and yet sympathetic and reassuring too. It will also be an important resource for graduate students in courses exploring the relationship between business and ethics.

Excuses may be ways of avoiding professional responsibility, says McDowell, but they may also be the way in which general ethical principles are adapted to particular contexts. They may also indicate that ethical codes need to be reformulated to adapt to changes in how professional services are delivered. Specialization, urbanization and the systematic breakdown in community relationships, the globalization of the economy, system, and market pressures for success--for all these reasons, professionals today face problems much different from those faced by their counterparts earlier in the century. Excuses also raise the problem of whether any system of voluntary compliance, like professional ethics, can function when the decision on whether an excuse is valid or invalid rests with the actor, who can rationalize almost any self-interested action he or she might take. McDowell explores these issues and others in a fresh, readable style, with numerous anecdotal examples, and with evidence from many sources that the crisis is real and demands quick but lasting remedies.

Pension funds are big business. They are important to employers, employees, governments, and society at large. With the increasing concern over dwindling retirement benefits and the effect on public awareness of recent pension fund crises, managing pension plans has never been more critical--and the pressure on those who are responsible for them has only intensified. Destined to become the classic resource on pension plan management, Managing Pension Plans explains everything you need to know for successful management of any pension plan--from how pension plans help sponsors manage their workforces to the latest in investment and risk management. With concise and practical guidance on ways for achieving optimal finance performance, Managing Pensions Plans is an indispensable resource for pension fund trustees, boards of directors, managers, and administrators of both public and private pension plans as well as for the money management firms, consultants, actuaries, and accountants who serve the pension fund industry. Logue and Rader, two of the world's leading experts on the subject, explain all the financial, legal, economic, accounting, and managerial issues that those who make pension fund decisions must juggle--in language that non-financial managers can understand, yet with sufficient depth to be useful to financial managers as well. The authors synthesize the latest in capital market and financial economics research to help those involved in pension management improve their decision-making in all the critical areas, including: choosing the optimal form of pension plan, formulating and implementing the plan's investment strategy, selecting and monitoring pension plan managers, measuring the plan's performance, and managing financial risk. In addition, the book describes in detail the responsibilities of fiduciaries, revealing how to be both a prudent fiduciary and a capable decision maker. Additionally, Managing Pension Plans offers candid advice on how pension managers can improve fund performance by being more effective shareholders. As pension fund management and performance increasingly affect the success of organizations as a whole, this book will be indispensable to anyone--from fund analysts to board members--who influences pension fund decisions.

This book covers the main issues on the study of competencies and talent management in modern and competitive organizations. The chapters show how organizations around the world are facing (global) talent management challenges and give the reader information on the latest research activity related to that. Innovative theories and strategies are reported in this book, which provides an interdisciplinary exchange of information, ideas and opinions about the workplace challenges.

First ever, all-in-one, practical resource for evacuating people of all ages and health conditions from all kinds of workplaces, including small offices, skyscrapers, business and college campuses, industrial plants, stores, hospitals, and schools. Based on the Business Continuity Institute's proven 6-Phase Business Continuity Lifecycle Model that encompasses development, delivery, and maintenance of organization-wide plans -- to ensure that your methodology aligns with best practices, relevant regulations, sound governance, and corporate responsibility. Comprehensive package of 600+ pages of book and downloads containing tools, templates, case studies, sample plans, forms, checklists, articles, and practical tips. Authored by an internationally acclaimed consultant in Business Continuity Management, with 35+ years' experience in 24 countries and recipient of the Business Continuity Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award. Thought-provoking discussion questions requiring application of principles to solve problems, numerous real-life case studies and examples, comprehensive index and detailed glossary facilitate both college and professional instruction. This comprehensive package of 600+ pages of book and downloads offers the first ever, all-in-one resource -- packed with globally researched, innovative, and field-tested plans, tips, and tools for workplace evacuation, including: - Comprehensive approach covering all kinds of personal conditions and facilities. Provides full details on how to deliver an effective evacuation solution for people of varying ages, health conditions, and special needs, including how to develop Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) for employees who need them. Shows how to develop plans for evacuating a variety of facilities ranging from small offices, skyscrapers, business campuses and industrial plants to stores, hospitals, schools and colleges. - Practical and compassionate insights for dealing with emotional reactions and physical difficulties, both pre- and post-event. Includes planning for and managing both the immediate reactions and, very importantly, any long term care for employees that may be required in the wake of major trauma. - Tools, templates, case studies, sample plans, forms, checklists, articles, and practical tips that will spare you pitfalls and costly mistakes in designing your own evacuation plan. Burtles has literally "been there, done that" over many years, so take advantage of his hard-won expertise and field-tested tools to enhance the plan you have or create one from scratch. You are responsible for your people's safety. Put emergency evacuation on the top of your priority list. Use Burtles as a guide to practice (and practice and practice and practice) realistic evacuation drills and procedures, create strong policies, and get management buy-in with clearly understood and agreed-upon methods to increase the chance of survival for those at risk. With this book and accompanying EEP Toolkit, you now have the tools to develop and implement a comprehensive Emergency Evacuation Plan. "You MUST have a plan. You MUST practice it, "says Burtles. "But most importantly, at that critical moment, your people MUST be able to get out "

Every manager of a professional firm realizes that generating leads and landing new clients are critical components of any successful business venture. But transforming accountants, architects, attorneys, consultants, engineers, and other professionals into client-generators is not always easy to do.
Divided into two comprehensive parts-The Rainmaker Model and The Elements of Rainmaking-Creating Rainmakers outlines all the steps you should take to turn your professional staff into a powerful team of sales winners.
Filled with in-depth insight and practical advice, this book will show you how to:
* Generate leads
* Build a strong network of contacts
* Master a variety of sales techniques
* Develop capable successors to current rainmakers
* And much more
Based on more than 100 interviews with the principals of professional firms, including many of today's preeminent rainmakers, this valuable guide has the information you need to help your company succeed.

This book exposes the reader to a comprehensive overview of instructional design using the Instructional Systems Design (ISD or ADDIE) model and project management techniques based on the framework and standards of the Project Management Institute and the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) Guide best practices. Throughout the book, ADDIE and project management are united in a "four-step combo." Readers are taught to groove two disciplines to one beat.

Project Management Skills for Instructional Designers is intended to captivate the interest of the following audience: instructional designers, training managers and directors, training consultants, human resources managers, performance consultants, and project managers. This practical guide uses the creative approach of storytelling to present the content in a way that is realistic and sequential to the way an instructional designer may work. A case scenario where an instructional designer is given a mandate by the boss to design, develop, and deliver automated sales management training is the story line around which the two disciplines are applied in the "four-step combo."

Take an innovative approach to a climate of change within your workplace or organization with this guidebook on diversity and inclusion.

Author Maura G. Robinson, an authority on diversity and inclusion, has been helping companies create systemic process of change for more than twenty years. In "the Inclusion Revolution Is Now," she explores as you can

create an environment of inclusion where all employees are accountable for their behaviors, and able to work together to accomplish the organizational goals.

recognize that civil diversity impedes systemic processes of change to occur. So diversity is viewed as an initiative or a program with no sustainability at the organizational level.

ensure employees willingly practice inclusion regardless of personal beliefs.

While there is still racism, prejudice, sexism, and other exclusionist attitudes among people in the workplace, organizational leaders have the power and responsibility to mandate a climate of inclusion. Supporting diversity and inclusion is also a prerequisite for capitalizing on the ideas that diverse people can bring to your organization.

Most diversity practices used by organizations do not actually promote inclusion, and exclusion continues to exist. There's a better way to achieve inclusion, and it starts with "the Inclusion Revolution is Now."

Education and training are important in nation building and development. Properly articulated, implemented, and operated, educational and training programs can help develop the necessary human qualities and skills required for economic development. Although many African countries have paid a great deal of attention to and invested significant resources in these programs, they have been unsuccessful in developing the caliber of people needed. This failure is due to the fact that the programs pursued have focussed primarily on human capital acquisitions. Yet with human factor, human capital alone is not sufficient to make development happen. This work is an exploration of the reasons for the failure, and it discusses how African countries can develop the type of labor force needed to initiate and manage the development process.

Not only are performance and human resources management (HRM) bound tightly together, but Sims even goes so far as to say that the way people are managed in coming decades will be the most important determinant of organizational success. He shows how success is determined by a firM's skill in attracting, developing, and retaining its human capital; how a firM's people are what give it a measurable advantage over the competition; and how an organization's commitment to developing its people's abilities and skills is an obligation at all levels. Sims focuses on practical, real-world human resources problems and activities emphasize the need for managers to prove themselves excellent people managers as well, and covers the traditional HRM tasks and responsibilities in ways that will give them new meaning and urgency. By focusing on current challenges, emerging issues, and HRM innovations now on the horizon, Sims' book is essential for managers and executives throughout the organization, and indeed throughout all sectors of the economy.

Sims provides a firsthand understanding of the importance of HRM and lays out the tools to help managers do it well. He emphasizes repeatedly how important it is for organizations to understand that their success depends on their ability to attract and keep talented employees. With its persuasive discussion of the trends and emerging issues in the development of proactive human resources policies and practices, the book shows how to anticipate and work towards the development and retention of the right people. It emphasizes the importance of taking a strategic approach to all of the various human resources activities, and proves throughout that for an organization to prosper and earn a profit, goals must be set and initiatives taken in all areas of HRM and by all people, whatever their levels of responsibility may be.

This fully updated and expanded second edition of Human Resource Management examines the role of human resource management in the hospitality and tourism industry. The subject is approached from four perspectives: * the social psychology of managing people * the economics of labour * the practical techniques * strategy. The author argues that labour costs, labour utilisation, labour market behaviour and pay are inseparable from the skills of managing people. The book contains an important analysis of the labour market for this industry and now, in its second edition includes, among others, chapters on attitude measurement, customer-employee relations, questionnaire design and organizational change. Human Resource Management in the Hospitality and Tourism Industry is written in a clear, user-friendly style and offers a challenging view of the subject and an opportunity to learn an important aspect of management in an applied context. It is appropriate for degree level students and practitioners in the industry.