smelly essential oils at work … or what to do when employees’ medical needs conflict by Alison Green on February 28, 2017 A reader writes: I have a question about a colleague (not one of my employees). She wears a highly potent blend of essential oils, and has been moved to another floor in an attempt to mitigate the impact on another employee’s asthma. She firmly believes this treatment cured her of cancer and continues to keep […] Read the full article →
my boss keeps coming to work sick by Alison Green on February 28, 2017 A reader writes: My supervisor is constantly sick. She comes to work ill, and claims her young son has gotten her sick. She coughs into her hand and touches the phone and other desk items we share, effectively spreading her germs far and wide. Our team works close together, which puts the rest of us […] Read the full article →
my coworker’s husband gets annoyed when our meetings run over by Alison Green on February 28, 2017 A reader writes: I work with a coworker, Jane, whose husband, Fergus, also works at the same company. Fergus works on the production side of the building, which means his schedule is very rigid — work 7-12, lunch 12-1, then work 1-4. Jane works with me, on the business side of the company. Jane and […] Read the full article →
old coworkers who won the lottery want to come back to work, a credible company has a fake-seeming website, and more by Alison Green on February 28, 2017 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Old coworkers who won the lottery now want to come back I’m a divisional manager. I manage several smaller teams and report to the manager of our entire department. Several years ago (long before I worked here), one of the teams won the lottery as […] Read the full article →
how can we screen out micromanagers when hiring a new manager for our team? by Alison Green on February 27, 2017 A reader writes: I am part of the interview team in finding a replacement for our ex-manager. And our department would reeeeally like this person to not be another micromanager. Any ideas for questions I could ask? Or any red flags in the interviewee’s answers/demeanour to watch out for? Often when this topic comes up, […] Read the full article →
the psychology behind the office candy dish by Alison Green on February 27, 2017 The Washington Post has a pretty fascinating piece about the psychology behind the office candy dish, centered around their own two-month experiment tracking one candy dish in their office. An amusing excerpt: The most fascinating part was watching how people behaved around the jar, which sits on a cabinet less than three feet from Kevin’s […] Read the full article →
I won’t be considered for a promotion unless I promise not to leave if my coworker gets the job by Alison Green on February 27, 2017 A reader writes: I work at a very small organization. Over my time here, I’ve steadily taken on more and more responsibility. I’ve tried to negotiate raises on several occasions, usually just after being assigned a new responsibility. In my opinion, when my job description and level of responsibility change significantly, I should have the […] Read the full article →
can you bill for your time after a long interview process, bringing in baked goods on your first day, and more by Alison Green on February 27, 2017 It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Can you bill for your time after a long interview process? A friend recently sat for 29 — yes, 29 — half-hour interviews (company size ~180) for the position of senior director. The interviews included the CEO, President, COO, CFO, etc. The company’s hiring manager […] Read the full article →
weekend free-for-all – February 25-26, 2017 by Alison Green on February 25, 2017 This comment section is open for any non-work-related discussion you’d like to have with other readers, by popular demand. (This one is truly no work and no school. If you have a work question, you can email it to me or post it in the work-related open thread on Fridays.) Recommendation of the week: Major Pettigrew’s […] Read the full article →
should I hire an overqualified candidate? by Alison Green on February 24, 2017 A reader writes: I will be interviewing people for an entry-level position in an engineering company, but the job is an analyst position, not an engineering position. As such, it will pay significantly less than an engineering position. One candidate is an engineer with over 20 years of experience, only a little of which is […] Read the full article →