Our Secrets for Reducing Stress
We have an arsenal of tips we use to beat back stress — and we’re sharing them with you.
Human Resources
How Disruptive is the Prima Donna to the Team?
Joan Sutherland (1926 – 2010) is considered by many to be one of the greatest female opera singers of all time (if not the greatest). She was a true diva – from the Italian for “goddess”; the very embodiment of a prima donna – a “leading lady”. Yet Sutherland “was the most self-effacing of primaRead… Read more »
9 Things Not to Say to an American Indian/Alaska Native and Why
In Celebration of American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Month. Indian Giver Definition- A person who takes a gift back after giving it to someone. Historical Context- To Native people, the giving of gifts should be reciprocated with a gift of something of greater value. Europeans interpreted these “gifts” as things that required no commensurate or biggerRead… Read more »
What is In a Name?
American Indian and Alaska Native peoples and governments have been an integral part of the North American landscape. Against tremendous odds, they have endured great hardship and tragedy and yet remain a viable cultural, political, social and moral presence. They have taught the world diversity and inclusion values that are now ingrained in the humanRead… Read more »
Healthy Eating at Work
I have an accounting degree and a (dusty) nutrition degree, and sometimes it’s more fun to talk about food instead of financial statements! In order to achieve optimal performance at your job, you want to ensure you are properly fueling your body. A healthy diet can lower the risk of many chronic diseases, elevate mood,Read… Read more »
How To Manage Difficult Personality Types
You’ll find all types in an office, right? As a manager with a team ranging from the type A worker bee who’s more detail-oriented than even you are to the brilliant-yet-frustrating creative who’s full of fantastic ideas but lacks follow-through, your communication style needs to be flexible. A good manager understands that each employee requiresRead… Read more »
Cultural Diversity and What It Means to IT Managers
Recently I sat in on a meeting between a group of IT developers (contractors) and Federal program managers. Just a routine project review. As I looked around, it struck me that we were really quite a diverse crowd. In the room were people from China, Viet Nam, India, Russia, Somalia, Brazil, Puerto Rico, and Iran,Read… Read more »
Surefire Methods for Working Better With Teams
by Mary Schwarz, ICF Interactive Interdisciplinary has always been one of those words that bothered me. Not the actual intent of interdisciplinary – approaching work by involving practitioners from several areas of knowledge – but what it sounds like. So many ways to be disciplined or punished … will it be writing lines, scrubbing gumRead… Read more »
Federal HR Performance Management – A Way Out of the Abyss
If you oversee the human resource (HR) group of a federal agency or are heavily involved with HR performance management for an agency, you can be forgiven if it sometimes feels as if you’re stuck in the 20th century with no way out. Ingrained Federal Performance Management Problems Here are just a few of theRead… Read more »
Help Your Fellow Federal Employees – Sign The Petition for a December 26, 2014 Holiday
Hope you all are enjoying a nice autumn season wherever you live in the United States – or around the world. I encourage you to take a look at this We the People petition below that was recently submitted to the White House: Federal Employees have dealt with pay freezes and furloughs over the pastRead… Read more »