IBM is cutting about 10,000 to 13,000 jobs or 4% of its workforce, mostly in Europe as part of its new restructuring plan.

This email was sent to all Microsoft employees on Friday, April 22, 2005, and approved to be posted publicly by PR.

Steve Ballmer wrote us all a note this afternoon about the anti-discrimination bill. I wish he’d post this publicly.

Adobe acquired Macromedia for $3.4 billion in stock. What’s interesting about this deal is how the combined company has two web platforms, .pdf and Flash, and neither are web friendly.

Pilots, mechanics, dispatchers and simulator engineers of Continental Airlines have ratified new collective bargaining agreements with the airline.

A major problem for employers today is attracting the best talent, and then retaining key employees. Research shows that the key ingredient for retention lies within the manager’s ability to understand what employees really want.

While some big companies have already taken a step into the public blogosphere with executive blogs, Intel isn’t one.

CNET News: “Oracle appears to be adding insult to injury in its merger with PeopleSoft – taking the unusual step of notifying workers of their termination by sending pinks slips via express mail to their homes.

Some interesting data about which search engines are used by search engine employees. Not surprisingly, a lot of Yahoo and Microsoft employees use Google.

Sophos conducted a poll of more than 1,000 computer users at small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) regarding the issue of spam.

You should always be available to counsel and guide employees, but don’t let them drop every little problem on your doorstep. Here’s how to turn staff members into problem- solvers:

Employers have become so concerned about seeming “unfair” or worse becoming the victims of lawsuits by unhappy ex-employees that they’ve stopped requiring minimum standards of employees. This can only lead to poor individual and eventually poor company performance. Your best employee performers will resent the fact that you use company money to pay people who aren’t up to standard and will reduce their own level of performance or leave.

Hiring good employees is not only important to business, it’s essential. Employees are the heart and soul of a business; they are the mechanism that makes a business run; they are the breath of life that enables a business to be something more than an idea. A business cannot run unless someone (employees, in this case) is doing the work. Any intelligent business owner should want good employees.

Even in today’s still uncertain economic times, there are companies who are doing extraordinarily well. Why is it that some companies are thriving while others are barely making it? You can always blame the economy, but is that the only reason? The answer could be as simple as how respected and appreciated your staff feels.

“If a man with money meets a man with experience, the man with experience will gain some money and the man with money will gain some experience.”

If you go to the doctor with a headache, do you demand a particular treatment before she examines you? Of course not! Well then, why do managers send their employees for customer service training — before they know what the problem is? Another common mistake is to bring in a motivational speaker to talk to staff that has to fight dysfunctional work processes day after day. It’s like putting a band-aid on a cancer. Even the best employees can’t do their jobs if the job itself is an obstacle course!

In the present day scenario, every organization dreams to create a niche that is beneficial for both the organization and the employee. With the changing times, the need for keeping oneself abreast with the latest in the industry impacts the actions and strategies an organization may employ to survive. Day to day variations in the industry in turn sets the pace of change that an organization sees in every sphere or area of its functionality.

What’s a McJob?

Judging by McDonald’s response to one of the 10,000 additions to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, managers now have a new yardstick by which they can determine if their employees will honestly say “i’m lovin’ it”(sic) or not, with regard to employment satisfaction.

Dear Susan,

How do I motivate people/ co-employees to come to work on time?

J.

In every company I have consulted or coached, there exists personnel problems. Natural, you may say, and assume nothing can be done about it. But I have found a pattern behind these personnel issues, and an easy, effortless, and effective way to shift employees who are seen as “problems” to become employees with whom it is a delight to work. It is not necessary to “write off” problem employees when solutions are available that will benefit them personally and the company for whom they work.

In many companies, work has become a place of disillusionment. Employees start with enthusiasm and creativity, but day after day they feel more and more helpless, as if they don’t have any real choices anymore. Employees are overwhelmed, exhausted and bored. They feel like they have been shot down. Complaining and ridiculing others becomes the norm. The “romance” is gone. If this scenario sounds like your company, don’t despair. Deep down, employees are begging to gain a sense of hope and enthusiasm again, but they need your help. If you make a genuine effort to follow these ten tips, you will not only notice attitude shifts, but real changes in behavior among your employees. Give it a shot, and watch the work environment improve and where employees want to come to work!