by Michael Rosenberg

I have to admit, his questions took me off guard initially; but like all great questions, these really got me thinking. There are a lot of companies that treat their people like cattle and (at least in the short term) still make money. The idea is to churn and burn. In other words, squeeze every last ounce of energy from people and then, when they burn out, bring in the next set of people. One hundred people out the door, another 100 in!

There are always people who need jobs. For these organizations, talent management, training, etc. means “the floggings will continue until morale improves.” Heck, if the company is making enough money I am sure there will be hundreds of consultants, academics and business writers touting that way of doing business as “the future trend in organizational development,” selling the “X company way” to hundreds of other businesses looking to make money. Don’t believe me? Go back and read how many articles around 2000 touted the “Enron way.” Remember the phrase “re-engineering”? All you had to do was tell 10 people to do the work of 30, and Voila! you were making more money.

by Barb Blashki

Employees care about their job titles.

The job titles that you give your employees will greatly affect how they see themselves – and how others see and treat them too. Get their titles right and what follows is increased self-esteem, job satisfaction and productivity. Getting them wrong can have a dire effect - on your employees and on your business.

Recently I read an article, in The Age newspaper here in Melbourne, entitled “Job title inflation”. It wasn’t a particularly good article but it did get me thinking about how most small business employers and managers continue to underestimate the importance that we place on our job titles.

by Bruna Martinuzzi

“I have come to realize that, for me at least, the quest for ‘authenticity’ is really a new spin on an age-old quest to find meaning and do the right thing. It’s a journey not a destination; a process not an answer.” − Hugh Mason

Some time ago, I heard a young woman say, “I am enough.” I was struck and intrigued by the expression, and so I set out to research it. It originated with Carl Rogers, the psychotherapist, who was asked how he did what he did, so successfully. His response was, “Before a session with a client, I let myself know that ‘I am enough.’ Not perfect—because perfect wouldn’t be enough. But I am human, and there is nothing that this client can say or do or feel that I cannot feel in myself. I can be with them. I am enough.”