Commonality in Economic Woes

One of the many joys of writing this Web site over the past eight years and blogging here since 2003, believe it or not, has been the joy of my frequent interaction with readers and site visitors. Not all questions come from Human Resources staff either; questions and comments come frequently from line managers and employees, too. In the past month or so alone, I have received emails from:

• a Human Resources staff person in Iran asking about employee motivation,
• several questions from our Canadian neighbors,
• three questions from various places in Africa including Nambia and Cape Town,
• questions from India, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Germany, Holland, Belarus, Dubai, and, I think, Jordan,
• numerous questions and comments from all over the United States.

What is striking over time is the similarity of the questions; we all work with people and, if you read my site, you probably are looking for ideas to improve your workplace or your relationships. I started answering the question from the HR person in Iran, as an example, and found I would say something so similar to a North American HR person asking the same question, that my response moved me down this thinking path.

Troubling Trend of Note

Another trend I am noticing in my reader email is an increasing number of people who state that they are writing me because they are not comfortable approaching their own HR people. This is troubling but also understandable. When layoffs, low raises, fewer customers, and other economic woes loom, many employees want to fly under the company radar. If you work in HR, please be aware of this and encourage employee confidence. My uptick in emails with this concern expressed has been striking. What are you experiencing in your interaction with employees? Respond in "comments" or send me email.

In recognition that we are all experiencing tough economic times this year, these resources should help.

Resources for Tough Economic Times

• Recession Planning for Employees.
• Will You Be Fired or Laid Off? How Can You Tell?
• Motivating Employees Remaining After Layoffs.
• Best Practices in Employee Layoffs.

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