Using Technology to Build Workplace Culture

This app is a great idea – giving companies the tools to gather their own data on the value of workplace culture may go a long way towards convincing them that psychologically safe workplaces are good for business. The Faas Foundation’s Emotion Revolution in the Workplace initiative with Yale University is also seeking to gather substantive data on the benefits of positive workplace cultures, but wrapping that goal in an easy-to-use app is another step in the right direction. Read more about Culture Amp on Mashable.

Image: Getty Images via Mashable

How Surprising: Another Volkswagen Indiscretion

Volkswagen’s continual dishonesty is barely surprising anymore. Even after the emissions scandal, they have insisted on deleting data routinely despite Department of Justice requests for them to stop. They dismissed a whistleblower who tried to make VW’s consistent lack of cooperation with investigators public. You would think that diminishing trust and sales would encourage VW to attempt changing their culture of deceit, but it appears that it’s difficult to teach an old dog new tricks. Read more at Fortune Magazine.

Photo Information: Jens Meyer/Associated Press via Mashable

Thoughts on Massey Energy's Massive Negligence

Massey CEO Don Blackenship

This report from 60 Minutes is infuriating, saddening and worth watching. The disaster in the Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia, which claimed 29 lives, was entirely preventable. Forcing miners to work in conditions where the air is so thick with coal dust that they can’t see their own hands in front of their faces is one insult, but the reports of a culture built on falsifying safety records in the interest of profits adds insult to injury. The miners, who remain un-unionized, only have federal mine inspectors to turn to, but an environment of bullying and fear of retaliation prevented reports of the rampant safety violations in place at Massey Energy’s mines. The corporate culture of disrespect, greed and a blatant disregard for employee wellbeing is completely attributable to Massey Energy’s CEO, Don Blackenship, who can only be sentenced to one year in jail for his deadly and willful negligence. One victim’s family member called that a “perversion of justice,” and I think, if anything, that’s an understatement. Watch and read at CBS News.

Photo Credit: Don Blackenship from Getty Images

WestJet and Sexual Assault

This situation is twisted, and entirely too common in a variety of industries. After having to come through the experience of sexual assault, this flight attendant was then fired for trying to find out why her attacker was not punished for previous sexual harassment claims. Issues of a sexual nature should be taken as seriously as any other workplace harassment claims, but far too often they result in indifference, ignorance and denial. Read more at The Globe and Mail.

Canine Therapy

I love this article. I know firsthand how dogs can help heal someone, and have advised many people I’ve met with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to consider canine therapy. Canine therapy, and any kind of contact with therapy animals, can make a substantive difference for people suffering from a variety of conditions. Check out more at The New York Times.

Art Credit: Paul Rogers for NYT

360 Reviews and Workplace Bullying

In my opinion, 360 reviews can very easily turn into workplace bullying. These kinds of reviews consist of anonymous feedback from supervisors, peers and subordinate employees, and this combination sometimes leads to perceived “payback” in the form of severe or unfair commentary. It’s a feedback mechanism used by thousands of organizations, and in toxic workplace cultures, it leads to vitriolic bullying most of the time. Read more about these reviews at The New York Times.

Art Credit: Jacob Reeves for NYT

Comparing Entertainment Scandals Through Time

The more I learn about the BBC sex abuse scandal, the more I am reminded of the 2014 CBC Jian Ghomeshi scandal, which I’ve written about before. Both cases involve sex abuse, fame and what appears to be willful ignorance on the part of upper management. The practice of allowing star employees are allowed to harass others with impunity is a horrible tendency that some workplace cultures seem to be taking on in the entertainment industry. The only true substantive difference between these two cases is the time in which they took place – Saville’s abuses happened decades ago, while Ghomeshi’s are more recent. This is an ongoing problem that entertainment industry leaders cannot ignore, and need to take a firmer stand against. Read more on the Saville case at the New York Times.

Thai Workers on Israeli Farms

The conditions on these Israeli farms, if true, constitute modern day slavery. These Thai workers are forced to work unconscionable hours, and much of their pay is “sent back to Thailand” by their employers – though they have no way of verifying that. Additionally, they’re paid far less than the minimum wage, and are oftentimes forced to sleep in former animal shacks and containers that used to store chemicals. Workers feel like money-making objects for their employers, and have no recourse to ask for help or a fair shake. This is a horrible way to treat workers, and deserves more investigation. Read more at BBC News.

Photo Credit: BBC News

Bullying: One Of The Greatest Risks To The Organization

I recently wrote a featured piece for Directors & Boards about workplace bullying's harmful impact on organizations. Here is the first paragraph:

Rarely a day goes by when there is not a story in the media about abuse of power, inappropriate behavior, and corruption and greed on the part of leadership in every segment of our society worldwide. Whether it is business, industry, government, military, police services, education, law, social services, health care, sports, journalism, media or religion, none have been immune...

Read the rest here!  

Emotion Revolution in the Workplace

Dr. Marc Brackett, Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, announcing the new initiative.

I'm proud to announce a joint initiative with The Faas Foundation and the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence to create the Emotion Revolution in the Workplace. In order to build positive work climates, this groundbreaking initiative between business and academia will investigate the role emotions play in the work environment, including:

• How employees feel about their work
• Why they feel the way they do
• The impact emotions have on individual and organizational performance, overall health, and well-being
• How to effectively build positive workplace climates

"We are excited that The Faas Foundation has decided to partner with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence to bring emotional intelligence into the workplace. Last year, we successfully launched the Emotion Revolution in school settings with the Born this Way Foundation, founded by Lady Gaga and her mom, Cynthia Germanotta. Now with support from the Faas Foundation we can launch the Emotion Revolution in the Workplace in order to promote psychologically safe and healthy workplaces for all employees," said Dr. Marc Brackett, Director of Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.

The project's mission is to empower employees at all levels to increase their engagement, productivity and wellness through identifying and reducing unnecessary stressors in the workplace. To accomplish this, the Emotion Revolution in the Workplace will conduct a survey of 10,000 employees across North America beginning May 2016.

The need for an Emotion Revolution in the Workplace is greater than ever before.  Gallup reports that 70 percent of American workers aren't engaged and a Stanford University study indicates that more than 120,000 deaths may be attributable to workplace stress. Up until now, it's been difficult for business, industry and politicians to gauge the perspective of the working class. Because of that it's been difficult to break the code in order to quantify the value of workplace culture.

By collecting anonymous data about these conditions, this initiative will be able to further the scientific understanding of how to effectively build positive and productive work climates and connect workers with the emotional tools they need to reach their potential and achieve healthy and happy lives.