Meghan M. Biro, Author at TalentCulture

Hybrid Work: Transform Your Workplace with Security and Collaboration

The future of work is hybrid–with over 50 percent of people saying they’d prefer to work from home at least three days per week. But many workplaces don’t have the tools in place to make the transition to this new working style. To implement hybrid work successfully, organizations need streamlined communication and security for safe collaboration and inclusive communication. By selecting the right tech tools and organizational strategies, hybrid work can be a boon for productivity, employee engagement, and even DEI. Our Guest: Jeetu Patel, Cisco’s Executive VP and General Manager of Security and Collaboration On the latest #WorkTrends podcast, I

On-Site Employee Benefits: Bringing Dental Care into the Workplace

Employee expectations are changing, with many looking to their workplaces to provide better benefits and wellness solutions. Employees want to feel valued, and in turn, they value employers who take the initiative to make sure their workers are healthy. In recent years, workplaces have been offering on-site health services, including massages, counseling, eye-care check-ups, and more. Bringing benefits to employees makes their lives easier and gives them a greater chance of staying healthy. Organizations that prioritize comprehensive benefits not only make themselves more competitive in the job market, but also show that their brands are flexible, forward-thinking, and that they care

Work Culture Lessons Learned from the Space Shuttle Columbia

Leadership plays a significant role in work culture and organizational strategy. Yet many who are in charge seem unprepared for the responsibility. Seventy-six percent of employees agree that management sets the tone for workplace culture. But 40 percent say that managers fail to engage them in honest conversations, 36 percent say that their managers don’t know how to lead a team, and 58 percent cite their managers for their reasons for leaving their jobs, according to SHRM’s 2019 Culture Report. Moreover, businesses lost nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars over the last five years due to employee turnover triggered by

How to Stop the Great Resignation with Employee Recognition [Podcast]

The “Great Resignation” has organizations everywhere in strategy mode. They’re brainstorming ways to keep employees happy and in turn, keep them on board. So what’s making people want to quit their jobs en masse? The main cause is burnout. A recent Microsoft survey indicates that one in five people don’t feel like their employers care about burnout or work-life balance. Also, 54 percent are overworked and nearly 40 percent are out-right exhausted. With these kinds of stats, it’s easy to see why people would look elsewhere. Fortunately, there is something employers can start implementing today that can help increase retention: employee

Managing Employee Uncertainty to Help Them Thrive [Podcast]

Employee uncertainty is bad for business. When people don’t feel their work situations are stable, they get anxiety, depression, and have a tendency to catastrophize. They also become disengaged with their work. Because of this, productivity wanes, and so does financial success. Gallup estimates that 22 million employees are disengaged, resulting in $350 billion lost each year due to absences, illness, and other unhappiness-related issues. It’s up to leadership and HR professionals to manage employee uncertainty before things get out of control, especially in these unprecedented times spurred by the pandemic. It is up to managers to get ahead of uncertainty

How to Develop Leadership Skills When Building Diverse Teams [Podcast]

At this point, it’s well known that building diverse teams of employees offers a competitive advantage to organizations everywhere. It’s hard to argue with the stats. For example, research shows that inclusive teams outperform peers by 80 percent in team assessments. Ethnically-diverse organizations are 35 percent more likely to financially surpass their peers. And companies with more women in top management experience higher returns on investment than those with less. If leaders want to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), they need to hone their skills to get the best results out of their current employees and attract diverse candidates. Not

Using the ‘Conscience Code’: Leading with Your Values at Work [Podcast]

As human rights activist and businesswoman Anita Roddick once said, “Being good is good business.” Today, many working people seem to foster that belief. Seventy-five percent of employees say they’d take a pay cut to work for a socially responsible company. And 64 percent say they won’t even take a job if an organization doesn’t have corporate responsibility practices. Businesses that want to stay competitive and attract candidates have to realize that people have high expectations for organizations. Many people now champion the act of leading with your values and standing up for what you believe in. And if businesses aren’t

Trends That Define the Post-Pandemic Workforce [Podcast]

The pandemic taught us a lot about ourselves. Like how many of us don’t need to go into an office to be productive. That flexibility and benefits are more valuable to employees than a pay raise. How talent management doesn’t actually have to happen in person, but that HR can bridge the remote work management gap with technology. While it can be difficult to predict what else we’ll learn in a post-pandemic world, facts like these require businesses to adjust and grow right now. As we watch a new work landscape unfold before our eyes, HR professionals are readying themselves to

Freshen Up Remote Culture for Work and Play [Podcast]

Eighty percent of employees say they want to work from home at least part-time. And three in four consider remote work the “new normal.” In an attempt to stay competitive, organizations everywhere are offering totally remote and hybrid work options to current and potential employees. While it’s great that companies are accommodating employee needs, a new issue is arising: How do we maintain a remote culture that keeps employees engaged, even from afar? Our Guest: Creative Entrepreneur Jeremy Parker On the latest #WorkTrends podcast, I chatted with Jeremy Parker. He’s an entrepreneur who was named to Crain’s Class of 2020 NY

Turning Mistakes into a Business Model [Podcast]

Most of us want to have a perfect business model out of the gate, but that’s a pie-in-the-sky attitude. As much as we all want to avoid mistakes in business, they’re pretty much inevitable. Everybody makes them, and many try to hide those mistakes because they’re worried they’ll be judged for them. But what a lot of people don’t realize is that in business, there are often happy accidents that lead to a successful business model. In fact, one could argue that mistakes are the lifeblood of a strong business. And those who are willing to admit to their mistakes and

How to Build Employer Value with Better Benefits [Podcast]

Salary isn’t everything. As a matter of fact, eighty percent of employees say that they’d choose additional benefits over a raise. Sixty percent say that benefits are a huge deciding factor in whether candidates take a job at all. And HR professionals report that the benefits are what’s leveraged most often to retain top talent. To put it another way: Employees are vocal about the swaying power of offering better benefits. And employers will want to listen. With this in mind, to stay competitive, organizations need to know how to tailor benefits to both the employees they have and the candidates

The 3 Pillars of Hybrid Workplaces [Podcast]

It’s irrefutable: Hybrid workplaces are in, and inflexible employers are out. The data is astounding. In some studies, 80 to 90 percent of employees report wanting to stay remote after the pandemic. And 84 percent of working parents with children under 18 find that the benefits of hybrid workplaces outweigh the cons. We know now that overall job satisfaction is tied to flexible working models. And we’ve seen that many people are jumping off the “talent cliff” in search of greener pastures that offer full- or partially-remote work options. The future of hybrid workplaces is now, especially as we all transition

Navigating Your HR Career Across Multiple Industries [Podcast]

The landscape of HR is rapidly changing, especially due to the pandemic. With WFH culture escalating and employee needs constantly shifting, HR professionals need to be ready to adapt to the times at a moment’s notice. Now more than ever, organizations are turning to HR to create a culture of flexibility and adaptability. They recognize that company culture needs to not just welcome change, but thrive in it. Thus, employers need HR departments with individuals who seek to fully understand the industries they work in and make them shine. Because of the recognition of HR’s value, especially over the past year,

The Languishing Issue: Help Employees Move from Stuck to Strong [Podcast]

Ever get that blah feeling? That surge of listlessness you can’t explain? The thing that keeps you in bed watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer until 8:13 am when you have a work Zoom meeting at 8:15? Well, that blah feeling is called languishing, and it’s what some are calling the dominant feeling of 2021. Languishing is a newly discovered mental health state that encompasses a sensation characterized by apathy, dissatisfaction, and loss of interest in most things. And it can dramatically affect your success at work. With 85 percent of employees reporting that they’d take a $5,000 pay cut to feel

3 Days, 3 ThinkPad X1s: Test-Driving the Lenovo Fold, Yoga and Nano

Editor’s Note: This post, sponsored by our friends at Lenovo, represents the authors’ views. There’s no question that work, especially since the pandemic began, has become multifunctional. Like so many people I know, I’m continually moving between meetings and research, emails and team collaborations, running webinars, brainstorming, and so much more. In addition, my remote team members and I switch functions constantly. As a result, I now realize that while I do have an office, it’s no longer my professional hub; it isn’t the center of what I do. Now, more than ever, the work happens wherever I am. This reality means

Avoid the Workplace Talent Cliff [Podcast]

The talent cliff is a phenomenon where businesses lose employees at a rapid rate. It isn’t a new problem, but it regularly appears in times of crisis, such as the 2008 stock market crash, and of course, the 2020-2021 pandemic. Because of the present WFH lifestyle, people are reconsidering their options, keeping their eyes open for new and better career opportunities. Meaning the talent cliff is a constant threat to business success, especially right now. Many organizations are in a position to suffer losses of key people who fill critical roles aligned with the organization’s overall business strategy. Finding and filling

Loneliness and Isolation: Fighting New Forms of Employee Burnout

Employee burnout is real. According to a Gallup poll, a staggering 76% of employees experience some form of burnout in their careers. In a survey conducted here at TalentCulture, only 5% said they had not experienced any feelings of burnout since the pandemic began. So, what’s causing this? The usual suspects like heavy workloads are, unreasonable deadlines exist, of course. The absence of direction and feedback from supervisors and lack of upward mobility remain near the top of the list. But two other reasons for employee burnout surfaced during the pandemic: Isolation and loneliness. And here’s the thing: Feelings of loneliness

Talent Acquisition Requires Better Candidate AND Recruiter Experience

As we start to put the crushing impact of the pandemic behind us, businesses — and the talent acquisition function of HR in particular — continue to face a dilemma. On the one hand, the hiring process must be efficient. On the other hand, it’s difficult to make hiring personal — more human — when so many potential candidates apply for every job. Any lack of efficiency means your business is trailing the competition. But a lack of personal touch may drive away candidates. Winning the war for talent depends largely on striking a balance in this all-too-gray area. This episode

How Your Approach to Employee Well-being Impacts Business [Podcast]

Thus far into the COVID-19 crisis, mental health and well-being have dropped a staggering 33 percent. As a result, many employees are no longer content with basic health benefits as a perk. Instead, now more than ever, they think of wellness as a critical element of their overall compensation package. As many employers are learning: The pandemic didn’t just revolutionize remote work. It is also driving a pivot in how organizations approach employee well-being. So in this week’s episode of #WorkTrends, we’re discussing how an organization’s post-pandemic approach to employee well-being impacts so much more than just performance. Let’s get started!

Recruiting Today: How to Humanize a Digital Hiring Experience [Podcast]

A recent analysis by McKinsey found that the pandemic has transformed how we work for good. Yes, some of us will return to the workplace. Many others, though, will become part of a hybrid team or remain remote contributors. Some of us may never return to a traditional office setting. This rapid change has hit many HR functions just as hard. Recruiting today, after all, is not what it was a year ago. And it isn’t going back to the old normal ever again. Recruiting — I know from experience — can be slow to change, though. It’s not that hiring

After the COVID-19 Crisis: The Inevitable Evolution of HR [#WorkTrends]

Few global events have dramatically transformed the world of work as the COVID-19 crisis. Perhaps the most critical issue to the modern workforce, its impact will be felt for some time. Along the way, the pandemic placed our HR teams in the middle of enormous change. And today, HR departments lie at the heart of the transformation. Indeed, we’re watching and living the evolution of HR — in real-time. While keeping dispersed teams motivated and engaged, how will HR teams keep up with the change still happening in workplaces every day? How will HR work with leadership to drive oh-so-needed successful

5 Essential 2021 Workplace Soft Skills (And How to Recognize Them)

Yes, workplace soft skills still matter. In fact, amid our ever-changing “new normal,” the intangible qualities that focus on behavior, personal traits and cognitive capabilities are more in-demand than at any other time in the modern workplace. They are also more challenging to recognize. According to Deloitte, 90% of organizations are redesigning roles and teams. Perhaps no surprise, traits like adaptability continue to be in high demand as businesses adjust their operations to embrace remote work and other hybrid workplace models. At the same time, many job seekers are looking to make career transitions. Along the way, they’ll leverage the transferable,

Strategies for Managing Workplace Reintegration [#WorkTrends]

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, one question has been on everyone’s minds: When can we go back to normal? Of course, many areas are seeing cases and hospitalizations drop. And more of us are getting vaccinated. So that question has become: When can we go back to work? Or, from the perspective of employers: How will the best companies safely begin the workplace reintegration process while reducing risk and taking good care of employees? Unfortunately, this issue comes with a great deal of gray area — especially among workers that remain concerned for their safety. So on this episode of #WorkTrends,

The Secret to Healthy Living: Work Well and Play More [#WorkTrends]

For more than a year now, many of us have been enjoying our work at home experience. On the surface, this has been an opportunity for better integration of work and life commitments. We’ve enjoyed being more available to family and friends (including the furry variety). We’re also eating at home more often and, with much lower commute times, perhaps sleeping more. That seems like healthy living to me. But in a recent poll here at TalentCulture, nearly half of you said your employer expects you to be available at all times. So do we really have greater balance? Are we

Financial Literacy: Current State and Impact on Post-Pandemic Workplaces

The pandemic has altered almost every aspect of our lives. It has exposed fault lines in our country, workplaces, and at home. Many of us didn’t realize one area would significantly impact us as it has: financial well-being. This is why it is more important than ever to talk about financial literacy: According to a survey from the National Endowment for Financial Education: 88 percent of Americans say the COVID-19 crisis has caused stress on their personal finances 89% believe that lack of financial education contributes to larger-scale social problems in America And 83 percent of HR professionals report that personal

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Meghan M. Biro