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The Sexual Harassment Saga Continues…

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In this era of social media, and the sheer power of all manner of media, it is hardly surprising that sexual harassment has become a big issue, created the #metoo movement, numerous resignations, and an ongoing engagement depressant for companies that are unaware of the scourge of sexual harassment within their companies.

On various HR and company sites, for many years, some of us have written about the ineffective routine once a year sexual harassment training. It was ineffective then, and it is just as ineffective now. In many organizations, training is a mere perfunctory action for a living and evolving issue. The once a year or occasional training merely created an opportunity for lawyers to make money, from the inevitable claims that arose from such a limited and worthless training strategy. Training should change things. the structure of most sexual harassment training is full of laws. The trainings on sexual harassment are usually punitive, and based on law, warnings and outcomes of engaging in improper conduct.

It is obvious that it did not, and does not work as it should…

You cannot “train” employees once a year with warnings and laws, and expect that it takes care of all sexual harassment questions or issues.

In our society sex is pounded at us in everything (movies, online, magazines etc,) and in every imaginable way and women and men are brazenly objectified sexually, it is not enough to scream consequences of being improper at work. Incredible as it may seem, over years of research, and countless investigations, we have found that some people really DO NOT understand the blurred lines of normal and unacceptable conduct. Thus, the distinction between acceptable and unacceptable conduct should be provided in the same dynamic steps, without the punitive and law focused one shot type training alone.

I was at a pharmacy a while back, and a female attendant was searching for more bottles of distilled water for our rowing team. The manager, who was friendly at first, started making every improper sexually harassing comment imaginable to her. He was laughing loudly at his imagined jokes, and she laughed uncomfortably along with him. Since there were six of us present, he obviously did not think he was doing anything wrong.

I later spoke with him, and he was genuinely perplexed that his remarks about watching her “fun bags jiggle” were remotely improper.

Fast forward one year later. Our organization was hired to create a strategy for sexual harassment training for this pharmacy. Our training strategy was created after a needs assessment, a review of the continued issues that occurred within similar companies etc. It worked.

This occurred many years ago. This our large client, to date, has not experienced any of the problems that other similar organizations have experienced at this time in the #Metoo era. As many people are being terminated, and investigated for all manner of sexual harassment issues, they heave a sigh of relief. They are functioning without the public relations nightmare of being exposed as a payout machine, and perceived “enabler” of sexual harassing conduct. Their proactive and scientific approach to sexual harassment management and eradication has paid off.

There is an ongoing knee jerk reaction by companies that do not want to be part of the sexual harassment media blitz. They are terrified of the public relations problem such media exposure could create, and are getting folks to sign NDA’s up to the sky and back.

In addition, as part of the reactivity and knee jerk response, people are being fired, or forced to resign without due process of law. Fundamentally, however, the foundational problems of sexual harassment are not being properly addressed for the long term. “Gagging” the problem of sexual harassment only results in a hostile environment, sexual improprieties, and disengaged staff. It is not a good solution to throw investigations and NDA’s at everything.

Sexual harassment is typically not an issue of unbridled sexual desire by men or women. It is an issue of power. Everyone who has worked as an executive within in-house HR, knows that the C-suite executives set the tone at the top, and HR starts from the base with training and oversight.

There have been good outcomes from the interest in sexual harassment problems which have been ignored for so long. But the worst outcome is the “nothing lasting” part. Nothing is in place for long term solutions for this issue in many companies.

The only great news from this sexual harassment chaos, is that there are professionals and organization that are well versed in creating effective strategies that prevent, recognize and eliminate sexual harassment. Many executives are well aware of the problem of sexual harassment in many companies, but some justify its prevalence or their lack of knowledge about its depth, by explaining that they cannot be everywhere at the same time.

Use the dynamic solutions from professionals and organizations to create a robust solution to the problem of sexual harassment. It starts by understanding that although cases are not being reported to HR, it does not mean that an organization does not have a sexual harassment problem which needs solutions now. It is also bears repeated that a strategy to end sexual harassment is required to contain, manage and end it.

I wish you well.

 

By Sonia Johnson Esquire

California Bill Tweaks Sexual Harassment Law To Account For Venture Capital

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Following numerous public revelations about bad behavior in the tech industry, a Golden State senator wants to ensure that founders and funders are in line with the law.

Last week, Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson introduced a bill to the California legislature that targets sexual harassment in venture capital, several instances of which have recently made waves across the state and country. The proposed SB 224, which was re-purposed from a previous bill, would seek to tackle the inappropriate, sexually harassing behavior that many women founders and entrepreneurs endure by adding a single word to the state’s current law in this area: “investor.”

Jackson, who represents California’s 19th District, commented by phone that the bill would “clarify the language” in California’s civil rights act by updating its list of specific relationships that are subject to sexual harassment protections. “We simply want to add investors to that list, and acknowledge that this simply unlawful behavior is subject to claims of sexual harassment and damages,” Jackson said.

The state’s civil rights act already establishes certain behavioral boundaries for employers, teachers, lawyers, social workers, real estate agents, dentists, and various other professional roles–all of which frequently create unequal footing between parties, the senator pointed out. “These are relationships where there is an imbalance of power that could result in sexual harassment,” she said.

As the nation’s startup- and funding-rich tech industry has grown up, imbalances have also appeared in the numbers for the industry’s men and women, with regard to both headcounts and capital. “We’ve been asking for some time, ‘Why is this industry so male-dominated?'” Jackson said. But neither company reps nor algorithms could fully account for those gaps.

This article is by Janet Burns @ Forbes

Why Training Fails: 11 Truth That Most Good Leaders Don’t Even Know

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Article By Shawn Doyle

Culled From, Inc.com

I’ve been involved in training, speaking, and consulting for 28 years–and the issues have been the same since I started. The shocking truth is that a ton of money gets spent–but it’s all wasted because of the unintentional barriers organizations have in place around training.

Hopefully, you can learn from my experiences. Here are the 11 main reasons why training fails:

1. No one tells trainees why they’re training.

When I am facilitating a training program and I ask people why they are there, the number one answer by far is “because my manager told me to be in the training”. In the majority of the cases they are not told why.

Solution: Mangers should tell people the reason why they are in the training.

2. Training is as boring as watching paint dry.

In today’s world of instant entertainment, if people aren’t entertained, they check out quickly. People tell me all the time that most training programs are very boring.

Solution: Train internal people how to facilitate great training or hire an outside expert.

3. Training is a legal requirement or policy driven.

Many organizations have certain training programs that are required, like safety training and sexual harassment avoidance. Because they are mandatory people feel like they are being punished and resent being there.

Solution: Each manger should explain to their team how the training will help them and the company. If people understand why they are much more likely to go along with it.

4. Not enough time gets allotted for training.

When I am talking to a client about training and they ask me how long a program is and I say a full day, they want me to do it in a half day. If I say half day they want me to do it in two hours. There are no effective shortcuts to effective training.

Solution: Budget the time as an investment to help people learn.

5. There’s no actual training taken place.

I am simply amazed that there are so many organizations that don’t train people at all. They use the world famous “just follow Fred around for a week” and rely on other people to show people the ropes.

Solution: Every new employee should have an initial training program for orientation.

6. Using a subject matter expert for the training.

Just because someone is an expert doesn’t mean they can teach their expertise to others.

Solution: Be careful who you select for training. They need to be an expert in their field–and an expert at training.

7. Thinking that education is training.

Education is learning about something. Training is learning how to do it. I can learn all about feeding lions at the zoo, but if I’m going to do it, I need to be trained how to do it or face dire consequences.

Solution: Make sure the outcome of training is that people can do what they need to do.

8. Restricting training to a classroom.

There are many different ways to train someone, and it doesn’t have to be a classroom. We can mentor, coach, have on the job training, we can rotate job assignments to cross train, or someone can study a “how to” guide.

Solution: Find other creative ways to train people.

9. Using training that’s too goofy.

I’ve seen some activities in training that, to me, belonged in a kindergarten class. When training exercises are too juvenile, people will stop learning.

Solution: Know your team and don’t have exercises that are too childish.

10. Failing to follow up post-training.

Many people attend training and then they are done. Their manager doesn’t meet with them to see how the training went and discuss what they learned. The retention or information goes way down when they only talk about something once.

Solution: Every manager should talk with their direct reports within two weeks of the training to discuss what they learned and develop an action plan.

11.Thinking that training is an event.

Many people think of training as an event. The reality is great training should be a process with many elements involved. This helps organizations implement changes as a result of the training.

Solution: Have better training plans and determine how they all relate together.

Thinking about all of these elements and how they fit together will make sure that you don’t waste your training dollars.

This Is the Real Reason Startups Succeed–and No, It’s Not Money

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The number of self-employed people in the U.S. has grown by nearly 150,000 since 2014 to 8,751,000. This number is up from 8,602,000 at the end of 2016. That data, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is in many ways exciting, especially for a business coach. Yet I can’t help but think about the failure and disappointment that lies ahead for the majority of small-business owners who are included in this data.

According to Bill Gross, founder of Idealab, it’s not idea, plan, business model, team, or surprisingly, even the money that’s the most significant factor in a startup’s success. It’s all in the timing. Gross studied 100 companies and discovered that a startup’s timing accounted for 42 percent of the difference between success and failure.

In this Ted Talk, Gross uses one of Idealab’s startups as an example. Z.com was an online entertainment company. They raised enough money, had a great business model, and even signed well-known Hollywood talent to join the company. The problem for Z.com was that broadband penetration was too low in 1999-2000. Do you remember trying to watch video content online back then? It was miserable. You had to put codecs in your browser and find workarounds for all sorts of issues. These challenges forced the company out of business in 2003. A mere two years later, YouTube launched a similar platform that would quickly grow into the insanely popular video-sharing website it is today. The difference? The codec problem was solved by Adobe Flash and broadband penetration quickly crossed 50 percent in America.

You may have a brilliant idea, but if the timing is off you are likely to fail. Here are some important things to consider.

Are you personally ready?

One of the top things entrepreneurs talk to me about is exhaustion. They’re overwhelmed on a number of levels, and guilt is especially high for parent-entrepreneurs. Not to mention the costs associated with starting a business. Too many new entrepreneurs take out an equity line on their home, only to find themselves in perpetual debt. Frankly, it’s difficult to circumvent some of these problems, so you have to be prepared for them. Is this the best time in your life to start a business? How will you balance the sacrifice, keep yourself healthy, and maintain a strong, supportive mindset as you invest yourself in your new venture? Be honest with yourself and your family. If you’re not prepared to put many aspects of your life aside for hours a day, this may not be good timing for you.

How’s the competition doing?

When I owned my coffeehouse, people assumed I would despise Starbucks for creating such competition. But there’s much to learn from the giants, and companies like Starbucks are responsible for creating a culture that can pave the path for smaller companies. Today, independent coffeehouses have a significant opportunity; I don’t think that would be true if it weren’t for Starbucks.

Examine your prospective competitors. What are they doing well and what are they lacking? How will you be different–even better? Is there no competition because your idea is groundbreaking and innovative? If yours is an emerging market, test the idea rigorously, and not just with family and friends.

What’s the market research say?

What are the barriers to success? How do you know there’s a demand for your product or service? What evidence is there to show you will succeed? What problem do you solve and what opportunity or experience does your idea present to consumers or businesses? Have others attempted something similar and failed? These failures are a perfect learning opportunity for you. How do you differentiate yourself in the market?

Have you gained enough traction to attract funding?

Gross points out that acquiring funding is “easy” if a company has gained enough traction in the market. People often believe that if they have a great idea, someone will come along to back it. That’s a rarity. On the other hand, not all investors look for significant profits before they consider funding a startup. You can de-risk your investment opportunity by demonstrating market engagement. Since timing is everything, don’t be too slow or too fast in entering the market. Your timing is evidence of your ability to make smart decisions and evaluate risk.

Small business makes the world go round in my opinion. Time it right, and you’ll enjoy the ride.

Author: Marla Tabaka