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March 3, 2014
Elizabeth Barber, writing for the Christian Science Monitor, quotes Dave Mayer on the importance of prioritizing ethics in the workplace:
“Of course, just having an ethics and compliance program is not enough – such programs can be little more than varnish to otherwise seedy operations.
“‘It takes a little bit more work than an ethics and compliance program,” says David Mayer, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and a researcher at EthicalSystems.Org, an online hub founded last month to help businesses bolster their ethical performance.
“That additional work includes ensuring that such programs are ’embedded within an ethical culture,’ says Dr. Mayer. To do so, companies must prioritize ethics, hiring and promoting ethical employees, he says.”
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March 3, 2014
By: Adam Grant
Ask people what they want in a job, and meaningfulness looms large. For decades, Americans have ranked purpose as their top priority—above promotions, income, job security, and hours. Work is a search “for daily meaning as well as daily bread,” wrote Studs Turkel after interviewing hundreds of people in a striking array of jobs. Yet all too often, we feel that our work doesn’t matter. “Most of us have jobs that are too small for our spirit. Jobs are not big enough for people.”
What makes a job meaningless? After more than 40 years of research, we know that people struggle to find meaning when they lack autonomy, variety, challenge, performance feedback, and the chance to work on a whole product or service from start to finish. As important as these factors are, though, there’s another that matters more.
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February 28, 2014
By: Christopher Myers
“I’m not a huge fan of surprises, particularly when I’m flying. I’m the guy who bookmarks the flight status page on his phone, only takes carry-on luggage, and still gets to the airport way too early. But on a recent trip home from a conference in Texas, the airport had a surprise in store for me that showed a great example of positive deviance – defined in research by CPO faculty Gretchen Spreitzer and Scott Sonenshein as an intentional behavior that departs from expectations or norms in an honorable way.”
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February 27, 2014
By: Jenny Simonson
Have you ever spent the ENTIRE day sitting at a desk, yet you come home feeling as if you just ran a marathon through streets of molasses wearing cement blocks as shoes? Then read on. There is a better way!
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February 26, 2014
By: Margarita Mooney
“Ever since I met Martin Seligman, one of the founders of positive psychology, at his home near Philadelphia last fall to discuss what movement for positive sociology might look like, I’ve been pondering:
What unique opportunities exist to build a new positive sociology movement focusing on human flourishing and the common good? How can positive sociology build on the successes and shortcomings of positive psychology? What are the next steps in launching in a positive sociology movement?
To delve into these questions, in November of 2012, I convened a group of eight sociologists (and one psychologist) to meet with Seligman at the University of Pennsylvania’s Positive Psychology Center.”
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February 25, 2014
By: Emma Seppala
“The Pursuit of Happiness—it’s an inalienable right and U.S. Constitution. You see it everywhere you look from sitcoms to couples walking by. Yet…have you ever had that gnawing feeling, or gloom and doom sense, that happiness is just…well…not for you?
Well you’re absolutely right. Science agrees. It’s not, and here’s why.”
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February 24, 2014
By: Adam Grant
“Last year, before the launch of my first book, I promised my publisher that I would send an email about it to my friends, colleagues, and former students. I spent hours agonizing over the wording of the first draft, wanting to make sure that I wasn’t spamming the people close to me, but sending something they’d be happy to read. After several days of tinkering, I finally sent it out.
A few weeks later, I was in for a surprise. A colleague had written a book, and he sent an email announcing it to his network, using the text from my message… verbatim.”
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February 20, 2014
By: Camille Piner
It’s easy to know a high-quality connection when we see it, but how would we describe them or seek them out?
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February 19, 2014
By: Margarita Mooney
“How can the concept of resilience be applied to atonement between victims of crime and perpetrators of crime? Last week, I visited a class at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor called The Atonement Project where we discussed that very question.”
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February 18, 2014
Convergence of business executives and academics offers first-of-its-kind conference experience
Ann Arbor, Mich. – Feb. 18, 2014 – The University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business today unveiled the roster of high-profile speakers that will address attendees at its inaugural Positive Business Conference, which will take place May 15-17, 2014 at the Ross School of Business. C-level executives from companies including Whole Foods Market, Ford and Procter & Gamble will take the stage to share the most inspiring and practical positive business practices currently in place at their organizations. With a number of academics presenting and conducting workshops alongside world class business leaders, the breadth of business topics that will be addressed will make the conference a unique experience for all attendees.
The three-day Positive Business Conference will bring together the diverse perspectives of business professionals, academics, students and industry luminaries. The conference will host sessions with both practical examples of positive business practices being implemented, as well as workshops based on the cutting-edge research underlying the practices. Select Ross faculty will lead interactive workshops on specific approaches to building positive businesses across a range of disciplines.
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February 18, 2014
By: Emma Seppala
“Did you know that most of us live our lives according to outdated (or even false!) happiness theories? It’s a new year and that means a new opportunity for you to make small choices that will help you make the best of everything you have and experience a big boost in your health and happiness!”
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February 17, 2014
By: Adam Grant
“A few times a week, I get requests for advice on negotiating a job offer. They usually start like this: I’m in the recruiting process, and I just received an offer from the organization that I want to join. I’d like to sign, but I was hoping for a higher salary. What should I do?
According to conventional wisdom, the best way to boost your salary is to get an offer from a competing employer with a higher salary. It’s true that a competing offer gives you leverage, but many people find this strategy distasteful. If you’ve already decided where you want to work, and you’re not well along the way with other employers, it’s disingenuous to start interviewing elsewhere, not to mention a waste of your time.
In many cases, I’ve proposed a different strategy. It requires no hardball negotiating and keeps your integrity intact.”
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