By Steve M. Cohen bio For many, spring is baseball or soccer season, a time to start getting out and enjoying life. But in your workplace, you will also find team sports that can impact your bottom line or organizational effectiveness. If someone in your organization is not playing ball the way they should, it's also a three-strike situation (or a red card, if you … [Read more...] about How managers can avoid tripping on due process safety net
Managing staff
Are you misleading job applicants during the interview process?
Six in 10 employees say they've found aspects of a new job different from expectations set during the interview process, according to a survey conducted by jobs and career marketplace Glassdoor. Areas where job reality differs from employee expectations include: Employee morale Job responsibilities Hours expected to work Boss' personality Career advancement … [Read more...] about Are you misleading job applicants during the interview process?
Five bonus tips from our readers
1. One manager sets a positive theme for each staff meeting and lists it at the top of the agenda. Staff spend the last 15 minutes of the meeting discussing it. The theme can be anything. At one meeting it was Do you really know what this person is doing? Then each staffer explained her duties to the group. Sometimes the theme is used to correct a problem without hitting people … [Read more...] about Five bonus tips from our readers
With the right effort, even difficult employee issues can be solved
By Steve M. Cohen bio An employee who had been terminated from one of my client organizations later called the whistleblower/action hotline. She was using the hotline in an attempt to retrieve her job or, at least, to vent her anger and frustration at the situation. I listened and discovered that she had been terminated for frequent violations of the office dress … [Read more...] about With the right effort, even difficult employee issues can be solved
4 steps to take now so your practice is ready for ICD-10
By Judy Monestime bio Now that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has confirmed October 1, 2015 as the go-live date for ICD-10, providers must focus on making their ICD-10 implementation strategy a top priority. The vast majority of healthcare providers expect to encounter a wide range of barriers to the ICD-10 implementation within the first six … [Read more...] about 4 steps to take now so your practice is ready for ICD-10
Culture, psychology complicate many office issues
By Steve M. Cohen bio You are probably tired of hearing about it, but some people never seem to understand that sexual harassment is not OK. "No" really does mean "no," and the workplace is not a singles bar. Sexual harassment can also be a form of bullying or predatory behavior. Regardless, sexual harassment is not acceptable and organizations that fail to deal … [Read more...] about Culture, psychology complicate many office issues
5 HR issues to review and keep on your radar
A medical office manager has a wide range of responsibilities, which can make it difficult to keep every potential staff-related issue top of mind. Nevertheless, there are five HR issues about which you should remain vigilant. 1 Discrimination Here are various types of discrimination, as identified and defined by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Note: … [Read more...] about 5 HR issues to review and keep on your radar
What’s in your employee handbook?
Emerging issues are emerging in employee handbooks. Paid sick leave tops the list of emerging issues most commonly addressed in employee handbooks, with 79.4% of respondents addressing this new legal trend in their handbooks, according to an XpertHR survey. Data privacy is the second most common issue addressed (67.2%) and social media is a close third (64.2%). The survey … [Read more...] about What’s in your employee handbook?
Recognition and rewards increase productivity at Maryland practice
"As an office manager for over 12 years, I started to see some burnout in our long-term employees, who I did not want to lose," says Denise Genuit, practice administrator at University of Maryland Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Associates. She tells Medical Office Manager she needed to find a significant way to improve productivity and get staff to exert more effort. At the same … [Read more...] about Recognition and rewards increase productivity at Maryland practice
Dealing with employees who aren’t there
By Steve M. Cohen bio One of the most mundane manager challenges can be dealing with employees who suddenly "aren't there." These are instances where workers arrive late, leave early or entirely miss a day. Obviously, a "perfect" employee would never do that, but this is not a perfect world and employees are not perfect, either. They have health issues, family … [Read more...] about Dealing with employees who aren’t there