Job Loss Care Packages
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersRemember those care packages your family would send you when you were in college or summer camp? They were often balm for the soul when extended absences from home led to loneliness. As we’re stuck at home these days, the absence from home isn’t the problem. What many of us are experiencing in our new shelter in place existence is the loss (permanent or temporary) of a job that gave us daily connections with people in 3-D and a sense of purpose, a reason to get up. While still others are adapting to a new work-from-home routine that might mean a shorter commute but extended disconnections from our three-dimensional colleagues. Care packages can still hold an important place in our […]
Arts, HR, and the Art Career Cafe in the Time of Covid-19
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersThe Art Career Cafe was started in the midst of the Great Recession and when jobs were hard to find. It was borne of a personal desire to create something that inspired people and helped them maybe feel less alone while looking for work in a jobless market. At least today, unlike then, there is more financial help on the way in the form of first ever unemployment for contractors and the self-employed, in addition to money for organizations to keep their workers working. In the last few years, I’ve been expanding my creative workforce knowledge and skills to include the practice of HR . To that end, the last year has been spent in training, getting certifications in various […]
Managing Up: A Consultant’s Guide
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersManaging up applies whether you’re an employee with a difficult manager or a consultant with a difficult client. Dana Brownlee’s new book inspired us to think about how her recommendations can be applied to the work of independent consultants.
Podcast of the Week: Dear HBR on Workplace Issues
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersThis week I’m excited to tell you about one of my go-to human resources podcasts. Dear HBR is one of several well-produced podcasts from Harvard Business Review which takes listener questions about workplace issues. What’s the Concept? For the last year, hosts Alison Beard and Daniel McGinn have been taking workplace questions from listeners and answering them with the help of expert panelists. In each themed episode they respond to three questions thoughtfully and with candor. Episode topics have included negotiating raises; how to engage in difficult conversations with co-workers; and making lateral moves. The experts include career and executive coaches, HR specialists, organizational psychologists and B-school professors. Which Ep Do I Recommend First? I think the episode I found […]
Thoughts on Employee Retention
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersHow much do you think about employee retention in your organization? We all know those organizations that seem they have a revolving door. While at others, it seems, staff never leave. Employee turnover can cost between 25% and 200% of an employee’s salary. When you add up the cost of replacement (recruitment to hiring); training; lost productivity while the position is vacant (including the cost of existing employee’s filling in for the vacancy when they should be doing their own job); and the cost of an un-motivated employee prior to departure…it is not an insignificant expense. An organization loses time, productivity, money, and worker morale when employee turnover takes place. Plus, in a small arts and culture community, getting a […]
Beyond the To Do List: Podcast of the Week #2
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersHi Everyone: Here is the second in my Podcast of the Week (POTW) series in which I share cool podcasts I’ve found that fit with creative careers, our workforce and all things related. Beyond the To Do List is hosted by Erik Fisher, a Productivity Author, Podcaster, Speaker and Coach who examines productivity and career success from a practical perspective. What is the premise? Each week he has a different interviewee on the show. Most of them are creatives and all of them are thought leaders in their particular area of expertise. But most importantly, each one talks about how they’ve become more productive despite being human. They talk about trial and error and how they’ve found better integration of […]
Strategic Human Resource Management
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersNonprofit arts organizations would benefit from considering a more strategic approach to HR management
Podcast of the Week: Working at MoMA
By Victoria Plettner-SaundersOur new series – Podcast of the Week (POTW) – gives me a chance to share with you the great podcasts out there for learning HR, getting advice on workplace issues, or hearing stories of people who are pursuing their passion like you. First off, MoMA makes an appearance in an unlikely way on Slate Magazine’s Working podcast series. What’s the premise? Every week a Slate reporter interviews a different person about their work. One week it could be a tattoo artist, another week it could be an immigration lawyer. Many of their interviewees however are in creative careers like yarn dying, stand up comedy or music education. Which one do I recommend first? The one I’ve been into this […]
Thoughts on Equal Pay and the Law
By Victoria Plettner-Saunders2019 employment laws and support for equal pay.
Work and the Meaning of Life
By Victoria Plettner-Saunders“I’ve always marveled at the phrase ‘work/life balance’ – as if the two things are opposing entities fighting against each other, rather than work (or rather how you seek meaning) being an integral part of life.” Recently I read this quote by Tom Sharp, founder and director of the London creative firm The Beautiful Meme in reference to a new co-working space he is working on in London. As to the first part of his statement I am right there with him – work and life are not, for me, opposing entities. My husband and I are both arts consultants and we share an office (although not a business) in our home. Much of my leisure time is spent going to […]