articles 11 to 25 of 138
iPerks: Apple, Like Others, Takes Steps to Woo Employees
According to a press report last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook has brought something to the company that many employees may not be familiar with: perks. These include new discounts on Apple products and a program that lets some employees dedicate a certain amount of time to a favorite project. How effective are these perks, and what should companies take into account when deciding which menu of perks to offer?
From: November 20, 2012
High-powered Women and Supportive Spouses: Who's in Charge, and of What?
At a time when issues like gender inequality in the boardroom and the dearth of women in corporate America continue to make headlines, it is worth asking: How important is the role of a helpful partner in the life of a high-powered female executive? One leadership expert says that most successful women "tell me they could not have gotten to where they are without their incredibly supportive husband.... At least the ones who are still married say this."
From: November 07, 2012
E-mails Ignored, Meetings Denied: Bias at the Search Stage Limits Diversity
The process of obtaining a particular job or gaining admission to an educational institution often starts long before a candidate turns in his or her application. Many candidates spend months or weeks researching their options and seeking advice and encouragement from people associated with each potential opportunity. This "pathway" stage in the application process is often the place where women and minorities face the first signs of workplace or institutional bias, according to recent research by Wharton professor Katherine Milkman. Milkman and her co-authors examine how this type of early-stage discrimination plays out in the world of academia.
From: September 26, 2012
Race, Gender and Careers: Why 'Stuffing the Pipeline' Is Not Enough
Does having a female supervisor help women get ahead in their careers? New research by Wharton professor Katherine L. Milkman and a colleague shows that it does, but also points out an unintended side effect of many corporate diversity efforts: In offices with a large number of female and minority junior-level employees, these underrepresented workers tended to leave in greater numbers because they believed stiff competition for a limited number of promotions would hurt their chances for advancement.
From: August 29, 2012
Why Do Women Still Earn Less Than Men? Analyzing the Search for High-paying Jobs
Despite some successes in the workplace, women continue to earn less money than men, in part because they tend to work in different kinds of occupations and industries, a phenomenon known as "gender segregation." Wharton professor Matthew Bidwell and colleague Roxana Barbulescu study the cause of gender segregation by looking at the decisions that individuals make when beginning their job search. They present their results in a paper titled, "Do Women Choose Different Jobs from Men? Mechanisms of Application Segregation in the Market for Managerial Workers."
From: August 01, 2012
Going Boss-free: Utopia or 'Lord of the Flies'?
The bossless office: Is it the wave of the future or an idea that will always be a utopian dream, given the inevitable intrusion of human nature? Recent articles in the business press have extolled the benefits of environments where there are no bosses and no titles, and where employees decide among themselves which projects to pursue and which people to hire and fire. Wharton faculty and other experts weigh in with their views on whether, and how, this can work.
From: August 01, 2012
What's Driving Americans to Retire Abroad? Money -- or Lack of It
In the aftermath of the global financial meltdown that ravaged 401(k) accounts and decimated home values, a growing number of Americans are stretching their savings by retiring abroad to countries like Thailand, India, Ecuador and Portugal. But the lure of lower costs of living, more affordable health care and warmer climates can mask some of the other, less obvious expenses that expats face when they make the move, according to Wharton faculty and other experts.
From: July 18, 2012
Remaking the Workplace, One Night Off at a Time
The title of Sleeping with Your Smartphone: How to Break the 24/7 Habit and Change the Way You Work is no hyperbole: A 2010 Pew Research study survey found that 65% of adults keep a handheld device at or near their heads while sleeping. Are the tools designed to make us more efficient and more productive actually making us less so? That question is the initial point of departure for author Leslie A. Perlow in her new book, the story of a modest experiment with unexpectedly profound consequences.
From: July 03, 2012
Why Good People Can't Get Jobs: Chasing After the 'Purple Squirrel'
Wharton management professor Peter Cappelli's most recent book -- Why Good People Can't Get Jobs: The Skills Gap and What Companies Can Do About It -- has inspired a reaction from just about every group with a stake in today's workforce: employers, employees, recruiters, academics and media commentators. Cappelli debunks the oft-repeated argument from employers that applicants don't have the skills needed for today's jobs. Instead, he puts much of the blame on companies themselves. In this interview with Knowledge@Wharton, Cappelli talks about his book, the current labor market and how the job hunting process can be vastly improved. (Podcast with transcript)
From: June 20, 2012
Declining Employee Loyalty: A Casualty of the New Workplace
If loyalty is defined as being faithful to a cause, ideal, custom, institution or product, then there seems to be a certain amount of infidelity in the workplace these days. The 10th annual survey of employee benefits, trends and attitudes released in March by MetLife puts employee loyalty at a seven-year low and says one in three employees plans to leave his or her job by the end of the year. Wharton faculty and others look at the evolving relationship between employees and employers.
From: May 09, 2012
Hold That Password: The New Reality of Evaluating Job Applicants
Reports that some employers are asking job candidates to provide their Facebook logon information has generated intense outrage from some circles, along with a bevy of legal and privacy-related questions. But these recent events only highlight a new reality: The identity that individuals create in the world of social media is quickly becoming an important factor in hiring decisions and in people's broader professional lives.
From: April 11, 2012
'Restorative Niches': Author Susan Cain on the Need for 'Quiet'
Business leaders often look to social activities to generate ideas and innovation, from group collaboration and brainstorming to large meetings and open-format offices. Those who are highly verbal, bold and outgoing often thrive in these environments. In Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, author Susan Cain challenges the "Extrovert Ideal" and many common business practices in which the ideas and leadership potential of introverts are often overlooked. Among the researchers she cites is Wharton management professor Adam Grant, who recently interviewed Cain for Knowledge@Wharton. (Podcast with transcript)
From: April 04, 2012
Why External Hires Get Paid More, and Perform Worse, than Internal Staff
Here is some research sure to rankle every employee who has applied for an internal promotion and been passed over in favor of someone brought in from the outside. According to Wharton management professor Matthew Bidwell, "external hires" get significantly lower performance evaluations for their first two years on the job than do internal workers who are promoted into similar jobs. They also have higher exit rates, and they are paid "substantially more." His research is presented in a paper titled, "Paying More to Get Less: The Effects of External Hiring versus Internal Mobility."
From: March 28, 2012
Want to Improve Customer Service? Treat Your Employees Better
Staffing levels and customer service training often fall victim to companies' efforts to cut costs and meet quarterly earnings targets. At the same time, however, consumers expect higher-quality treatment than ever before, and can easily let the world know if they don't get it. So how can firms ramp up their customer service efforts on the cheap? It's as simple as treating employees better -- so they will do the same for customers, experts say.
From: March 14, 2012
Why the Job Search Is Like 'Throwing Paper Airplanes into the Galaxy'
"Wanted: smart, creative, dedicated individual to design efficient system that matches companies' job listings with people looking for work. Contact the HR industry." It's a tough assignment: Job seekers often feel that sending out resumes is a mind-numbing exercise in futility, while companies are inundated with applications from too many unqualified candidates. Wharton faculty and other experts weigh in on today's challenging job market.
From: February 29, 2012
