December 2023

I manage a habitual phone checker

A reader writes: One of the people I supervise is a good, solid employee. He does his work on time and to deadline, juggles multiple projects, and supervises some temporary workers. I have no complaints! However, he has a terrible habit of being on his phone during larger presentations and trainings. On two recent occasions […]

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update: my coworkers want me to turn down my raise

It’s “where are you now?” month at Ask a Manager, and all December I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. There will be more posts than usual this week, so keep checking back throughout the day. Remember the letter-writer whose coworkers wanted them to turn down their raise? […]

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update: my coworker misinterprets all my facial expressions

It’s “where are you now?” month at Ask a Manager, and all December I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. There will be more posts than usual this week, so keep checking back throughout the day. Remember the letter-writer whose coworker misinterpreted all of their facial expressions? Here’s […]

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update: laser tag for team-building

It’s “where are you now?” month at Ask a Manager, and all December I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. There will be more posts than usual this week, so keep checking back throughout the day. Remember the letter-writer who was being required to participate in laser tag […]

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the worst boss of 2023 is…

The final votes are in, and the CEO who tried to fire an employee after a DNA test revealed they were half-brothers won the Worst Boss of 2023 Award, with 60% of the vote in the final match-up. Coming in second, the company that wouldn’t do anything about an employee who was angry about an […]

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