First, we measured "employee satisfaction." Then, business became obsessed with tracking "employee engagement." Now there's a new measurement in town: "employee involvement."

Employee involvement has been shown to drive success in companies and organizations around the world. Learn what this means for you in this article (pdf)  by Andrew Atkins, published in Rotman Magazine. Read it here.

What are some of the key takeaways from the recent Building Trust in Business best practices study?

The Matrix is back. Leaders at the helm of many companies know that it's not another movie sequel to the edgy thriller staring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne. Matrix management, that once-popular organizational structure, has many leaders facing a common challenge: How to make the matrix work?

First: How Did We Get Here?
Matrix management was widely embraced in the 70's and early 80's by companies looking to improve business decisions by convening cross-functional expertise to create better solutions.

A recent Psychology Today article on workplace kindness examines a number of views and demonstrates how the word kindness itself can seem soft to many people in business. Perhaps with a precise definition and some important context, more people would agree that there's strategic value in workplace kindness. Let’s take a closer look.

Motivating employees and keeping them productive and engaged is difficult even in the best of times. Nowadays, with economic fears and pressures, and having to do more with less, it's harder than ever. But there are proven ways to increase engagement in your organization, at low cost. The result is harder-working employees who bring their best selves to work.

Kelley Holland’s recent article, Improve Morale by Knowing your Employees, (Under New Management, New York Times, 12/26/08) explores techniques for building teamwork as a means of improving morale in tough times. The article explores both "feel good" techniques typical of traditional teambuilding exercises and Jon Katzenbach's recent work on employee pride.

An economy in distress, recession, lay-offs and cut backs, investment markets in turmoil - times are tough and getting tougher for lots of people in lots of industries. Business climates like these present us two big questions:

- How can I deal with the personal consequences difficult times may cause me as an individual?
- How can I, as a leader of my company, help the organization continue to fulfill our mission?

This Industry Week article, "Just How Socially Responsible are Corporations Today?" reveals a critical disconnect - and opportunity - for US corporations.

According to a recent study conducted by The Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG), 62.5% of companies are not engaged in corporate social responsibility programs. The reason cited: a lack of interest or priority.

Talent - the natural ability to advance to an above-average skill level with minimal or no effort - is overrated. Yet many organizations hire for talent, and place "talent" at the top of the list of preferred employee attributes. The problem with emphasizing talent over other factors is this: talent merely determines where you begin at a certain point in time, not how you improve towards mastery of a skill over time.