Employee happiness used to be considered an important business goal. People thought that happy employees make organizations more successful. Maybe they were wrong. The idea certainly has fallen out of favor in recent decades, and it has largely been replaced with a broader emphasis on “employee engagement.” Some people might even suggest that the pursuit of employee happiness isn’t […]
Some people think very highly of themselves. They are “the best.” They always win. They’re Narcissists. With all that confidence, a person can seem completely shameless. You would think that they could face any challenge or criticism. So why do some Narcissists seem so overly sensitive, so fragile, so defensive? A new series of studies provides us with […]
There are many factors that determine the effectiveness of a leader. One of the most important is assertiveness. Leaders who aren’t assertive enough are ineffective. Leaders who are too assertive are disliked. The most effective leaders are somewhere in between. That’s overall leadership style. But when it comes to making specific decisions, fairness is often what matters the most. What […]
Many industries are increasingly moving toward a “knowledge economy.” The stock-in-trade is ideas. Creative solutions to problems can be as important—sometimes even more important—than physical goods and services. How can organizations foster creative innovation? A recent large-scale analysis of employee creativity, including more than 50,000 workers from all around the world, has identified 3 key factors. 1. […]
How do you motivate employees? We tend address this question in the most general sense. What increases people’s motivation? What decreases motivation? In that case, you might want to think about effective management styles, rewards and incentives, or an employee recognition program. But it’s not quite that simple. After all, there are different types of motivation. To find out […]