When is the last time you did something for the very first time?

When we were children, firsts were a way of life!  From our first word, first step and first time eating with a spoon, our parents watched for, tracked and celebrated our firsts.  First day of school, first report card, first time attending a sporting event, first time participating in a sporting event, first band concert…you get the idea!  Somewhere along the line, in my life anyhow, the firsts start to slow to a leisurely, perhaps even sloth-like pace and when they do come, we may not celebrate them with the same vigor we once did.  
 

Thanks to the brilliant work of neuroanatomist Dr.Marian C. Diamond, we know that successful aging of the brain involves five core elements:  Diet, Exercise, Challenge,Newness and Love.  I don’t know about you, but I’ve gotten a little lax with a few of these over the years!  To help rectify that, I am challenging myself to experience forty-five purposeful firsts before my forty-fifth birthday.  

This started as a 10 firsts project and has since grown as friends, family and clients have recommended different events, challenges and opportunities for firsts!  As challenge is another of the elements, why not take it up a level?

For those of you who are wondering what kind of timeline I’m working with, my 45^th birthday is November 30, 2013.  That’s twenty-five weeks from this past Saturday, and approximately thirty-three weeks from when I first considered taking on this project.

In future blog posts I will share with you my experiences with the “45 Firsts” Project and welcome your insights, suggestions and personal experiences with introducing newness and challenge into your life as an adult!  

May all Your Endeavors be Insightful,

Nora A Burns, SPHR

Insightful Endeavors International, Inc

Magnetic South

I am directionally challenged.  Seriously directionally challenged.  My internal compass is, at best, magnetic south.

In my hometown of Denver, CO I stand a chance --- with the Rocky Mountains to the west of town, I have a significant landmark that I can see at least seventy percent of the time.  I also have the benefit of a digital compass built into the rearview mirror in my car.

Here’s the thing – rental cars – at least the frugal end of the selection – rarely involves a compass.  Given the nature of my job, I travel a fair amount.  With travel come rental cars --- rental cars without digital compasses in communities that don’t have the Rocky Mountains as a directional aide. 

Yes, I use a GPS.  Here’s the challenge – my GPS uses directions like “head north”. 

You can see the problem. 

If I knew which way was north I probably wouldn’t be reliant on a GPS. 

Having made more than my fair share of U turns this week, I’ve been thinking more and more about “head north” and how it translates to providing directions to members of our team. 

Are we providing instructions to others in way that makes them wonder if they really understand our problem, question or concern? 

Something to consider.

Too Old to Preside Over Age Discrimination Case?

A man in New York City is suing non-profit Young Concert Artists under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act for limiting the age of competitors to musicians between the ages of 19 and 26.  The claimant, Martin Stoner, is a 60-year old violinist with a long career in the music industry. 

Bizarre you say.....you don't know the half of it!

The case was dismissed and the claimant has now requested that the 88-year old judge assigned to the case recuse himself because he is too old.

More on the case here and here.

Fall Back!

It's that time of year again -- Daylight Savings Time comes to an end this weekend.

It's the one time a year that you get to go back in time! It's also the one time of year I find Cher's "If I Could Turn Back Time" stuck in my head. 

This weekend, at 2am November 6th, Daylight Saving Time ends, and we revert to Standard Time. Well, most of us will -- there are some areas of the U.S. (namely Arizona and Hawaii) as well as some areas of the world that do not recognize Daylight Saving Time.

iPhones and other new technology will change automatically - any 'old-fashion' gadgetry will require some assistance.

Not a bad idea to post signs near time-clocks in your facilities to remind employees of the pending time change.  A - it's a nice touch, and B - it's much easier to take this proactive step than to address a plethora of "can I get an hour of overtime if I punch in now" requests when employees arrive early Monday morning. 

Enjoy the extra hour of sleep, play or work -- however you choose to make use of the "fall back" change!

May all Your Endeavors be Insightful,

Nora A Burns, SPHR







Nora A Burns, SPHR is founder of Insightful Endeavors International, Inc a Denver based firm specializing in team selection and development.  She has over twenty years experience in human resources and organizational development and is committed to helping organizations large and small build and develop effective teams to drive bottom-line results.  She is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA), the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) and The Center for Association Leadership (ASAE) and is a sought after speaker for conferences as wall as corporate training opportunities.

Mouse in the House

There is a mouse in my house.

As I sat in my living room talking with a friend I saw it scamper behind the bookshelf. 

Yes, I understand conventional wisdom that if I have seen one mouse there are several more in hiding.  I, however, am focused on the one mouse that showed its face in my space. 

It’s late – most stores are closed – to Amazon.com I go.

I type “mouse trap” into Amazon’s search engine and receive 2,789 results.  

It’s unlikely Hasboro’s Mousetrap game is going to be of much use in this situation, so I opt to narrow the search. 

Under “Home & Kitchen” there are 595 results for “Mouse Trap”. 

I must say, after nearly five years without spotting a single mouse or any sign of mice, I have been unaware of innovative ways people have created to catch and/or kill mice. 

Live capture traps, electronic traps, glue board traps, standard/classic snap traps as well as sonic pest chasers if you simply want them to move to the neighbor’s house.

Apparently a lot of people have taken to heart Emerson’s quote, “Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door”.

The traps selected have arrived.  I have set three and am hopeful this will be a short-term project. 

Why am I sharing this with you? 

A self-professed HR geek, I realize that I want to get rid of these mice in much the same manner that many managers want to get rid of “problem employees”.

• I don’t want to see them suffer.
• I don’t want others in the space (in this case, my dog) to be negatively impacted. 
• I don’t want to handle the messiness of it all and would like very much if someone else would do the dirty work.
• I really wish they would just go live somewhere else.

The thing is – while I can find a no-view, no-touch mouse trap, not getting actively involved in proactive performance management with direct reports is definitely not the way to go in the workplace!

Would love your thoughts!

May all Your Endeavors be Insightful,

Nora A Burns, SPHR

Twitter:  @NoraBurns

Nora A Burns, SPHR is founder of Insightful Endeavors International, Inc a Denver based firm specializing in team selection and development.  She has over twenty years experience in human resources and organizational development and is committed to helping organizations large and small build and develop effective teams to drive bottom-line results.  She is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA), the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) and The Center for Association Leadership (ASAE).

Legal Discrimiantion Based on Religion

This week the US Supreme Court declined to hear a case that pitted three former employees against World Vision Inc.  By refusing to hear the case, the Justices have essentially affirmed the lower court's decision allowing World Vision to use religion as a component of employment decisions.

Yes, you read that correctly.

At the heart of the case is the fact that World Vision is a faith-based humanitarian organization and as such reserves the right under the Civil Rights Act to hire and retain only those employees who hold the same religious beliefs.  The organization doesn't keep this practice a secret, on the "careers" section of their website it states:

"Who You Are:
You are a committed Christian eager to put your faith into action every day as you use your life to make a tangible difference for children in need. ...... 

You are an experienced, results-oriented professional excited at the prospect of using the unique gifts and talents God has given you to help children and families in need. World Vision U.S. hires only those who agree and accept to its Statement of Faith and/or the Apostles' Creed."

 As a faith-based humanitarian organization, World Vision has the court's permission to discriminate in hiring based on religious affiliation.  This is not something you should consider as a private organization as you would not have the same dispensation.  Furthermore, just because an organization can legally discriminate, I personally wouldn't recommend that they do so.

First, this could be a PR nightmare for World Vision.  Time will tell what the overall effect of the press on the case is.  

Secondly, it could result in a loss of funding for the organization as non-Christians who have donated in the past opt to put their financial resources to use within other organizations that do not have the same employment practices. It's possible - I'm uncertain how large of an impact this will have.  May be an interesting case study for people in the non-profit arena who study such things.

Thirdly, I absolutely, fundamentally believe in building a diverse and inclusive workforce.  By bringing together people who look at the world through different filters we are able to create more innovative solutions.  An inclusive workforce brings out the greatest brilliance of employees as fear isn't keeping ideas in the shadows.

As such, I find some irony in this portion of their "Who you are" statement on the career page:
 "You recognize the importance of working together with diverse partners--including individuals, churches, corporations, and governments"

It's worth noting, that there are faith-based humanitarian organizations the do not choose to utilize their right under the Civil Rights Act to discriminate based on religious affiliation.  Habitat for Humanity, for example.

As a long-time volunteer with Habitat, I am well aware that while they are a Christian-based organization, you do not need to be a Christian to (a) Be a Habitat Homeowner, (b) Volunteer with Habitat or (c) Work for Habitat as an Employee.

Volunteering with Habitat I have worked alongside Christians, Buddhists, Agnostics, Atheists and Jews and those are only the religious affiliations I've been made aware of - I am certain others have been present on builds as well. 

Similar circumstances - different approaches.

What do you think?  Would love to hear your insights as a hiring manager, job candidate, supporter of non-profit organizations and member of the community at large!


May all your Endeavors be Insightful,

Nora A Burns, SPHR
Insightful Endeavors International, Inc

Lessons from a Black Swan.....

Two unpaid interns who worked on the wildly successful movie 'Black Swan', are lead plaintiffs in  a class action lawsuit related for the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).  Simply put - they weren't paid and they believe they should have been.  

It seems to me this happens quite a bit.

I cringe whenever I hear business people talk about adding summer interns to do filing and other front-line admin tasks. 


Interns are not meant to be free labor.  They are meant to provide a meaningful educational experience for the student. 

The intern experience is carved out by the Department of Labor for the benefit of the student....not the employer.   This means, for example, if an intern is simply running for coffee and lunch orders, doing filing and sweeping floors they are truly an employee and should be paid at least minimum wage.

While all the facts of the 'Black Swan' case have not yet come to light, if the interns truly were only doing 'menial tasks' the studio could be on the losing end of this suit.  Truly, the DOL doesn't care if you're fetching coffee for Natalie Portman or Bob in accounting .....such tasks, if the majority of the role, do not meet the expectations of an unpaid intern. 

Employers should tread very carefully if deciding the use of unpaid interns - please call your employment attorney.  If you don't have one, please send me an email or give me a call and I'll gladly recommend one that I know and trust. 




More on the 'Black Swan' case:  New York Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/business/interns-file-suit-against-black-swan-producer.html ; ABC News: http://abcnews.go.com/US/black-swan-unpaid-interns-file-lawsuit-fox-searchlight/story?id=14632803