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Articles by Alan Sklover

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26 articles by Alan Sklover · showing 26

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By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Bonus or Raise Disappointing? Consider These Alte ative Forms of Compensation

CASE HISTORY: An employee, we will call Brad for the purposes of this article, called us in late December, "fuming," to put it mildly. Two weeks earlier, he had received word that his annual bonus for the recently-completed fiscal year would be 20% lower than his last year's bonus, despite his business group's "numbers" being up 40%. In his six years with his employer, a top-shelf investment banking firm in Chicago, he'd never been treated this way before. To Brad, this was inexplicable, and a serious breach of faith. He could barely contain his anger.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

6,295 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

When Office-Negotiating, Put the Power of Purpose in Your Pocket

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Edward, a 59-year-old insurance executive, came to see me with two tremendous problems: of greatest immediacy, he was being pushed out of his job by an acerbic, dishonest boss who wanted to give Edward's job to one of the boss's buddies from a different insurance company. Day in and day out, Edward's boss would set him up to fail, and then publicly humiliate him for it. Edward was becoming a nervous wreck. At home, though, Edward faced a problem of even greater magnitude: his wife was battling both cancer and depression. The weight on Edward's shoulders was crushing.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,657 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Facing Merger or Sale of Your Employer? Here's Fourteen Smart Steps

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: I left my last law firm employment about 25 years ago. I left because I just didn't see the law firm having much of a future. The reason was that younger partners were not permitted to bring in their own clients. Instead, they were assured that they would "inherit" the significant clients of the law firm when they became senior partners, just as the then-senior partners had done. It didn't make sense to me, and I didn't trust it. That was one of the major reasons I left to form my own firm.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,342 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Twelve Steps to Negotiating a Bridge to Retirement

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Alex had been employed in the Information Technology ("I.T.") department of a large insurance company for 20 years. At 54 years of age, he was looking forward to retirement in just a few years. His wife, Barbara, had recently retired as a school teacher in a private school, and the two looked forward to traveling and spending more time with their grandchildren.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,819 views5/5 (1)

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

With Your Boss, It Pays (and Pays Big) to Be Tactically

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Martin, a senior manager of computer sales, was in a quandry: through a recruiter, he'd been offered a position as a Regional Sales Director by his company's direct competitor. Though the position was clearly a step up, and offered a higher commission structure than he had, he felt a strong loyalty to both his mentor, Harold, and to his company, as he'd always been treated well, and with honesty.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,057 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Hidden Handcuffs - Watch Out for Buried and Disguised Non-Compete Agreements

CASE HISTORY: "Objection!" I bellowed, "My client is not an atto ey, and so his understanding of the law is irrelevant to the issues before this arbitration panel." "Objection overruled," the arbitration panel chairman immediately shot back. "What is in writing, and therefore binding on your client is, indeed, relevant. Now, Ms. Downey, proceed with your questioning." I sat down.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,854 views3/5 (1)

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

When Leaving Your Job, How to Take Your Colleagues With You

CASE HISTORY: Martina's skills, education, experience and personality all combined to elevate Martina into an enviable position. A naturally outgoing personality, an MBA in Marketing, and a background in biology together formed a rock solid platform for her role as Chief Innovation Officer at a growing biotechnology firm. For Martina, her job was fun, fulfilling and full of future growth potential.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

3,707 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Expatriate Assignments - The 18 Mandatory Requests

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Dennis was considered a rising star in the field of financial management software. At 39, he'd risen steadily over the years, and now worked for the third largest financial management software distributor in the U.S. As his company's National Sales Manager, he had taken company sales higher and higher for four years straight. He'd also expanded sales into the area of financial management for non-profit organizations, a fast-growing niche. His future seemed very bright.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,934 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Negotiating Employment With a Private Equity Firm - 7 Surprises to Expect

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Fourteen years of hard work had paid off for Enrique: he'd risen to Executive Vice President of a privately-held firm that was one of the country's largest providers of continuing medical education for surgeons. He was number two to the firm's founder, and the only non-family member among the senior-most executives. Enrique was considered by all to be a good prospect to run the company one day. The founder, who was 64, had been speaking of retiring for some time.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,890 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Negotiating Stock, Options, Etc., in a Very Relative Way

CASE HISTORY: Evan, a biomedical research scientist with a large pharmaceutical company, was recruited by a fellow biomedical scientist to join him in running a start-up biotech firm. The biotech firm, funded by venture capitalists, was engaged in cutting-edge research on two promising drugs. The work was interesting, the pay was good, but something they offered was especially enticing: an ownership interest in the firm. This was the first time Evan had been close to an opportunity to really "make it big" if things went well.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,233 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Commissions: What Happens When You Leave?

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Walter was a 41-year-old ophthalmologist who'd previously worked for a large New Jersey hospital for nine years. He'd recently moved on to open his own private practice. In his hospital job, he'd worked especially hard the last six months, so he'd have a cushion of extra income when he started his own practice. He came to us with a fairly common problem: after leaving his former job, he'd encountered difficulties getting paid the "commissions" the hospital owed him. Though he tried on his own to get the hospital to pay him, he now sought our help.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,250 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Kids Are the Best Negotiators - Learn From Them

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: A few weeks ago, my son, Sam, 13, called me at the office with an urgent tone to his voice. "Dad," he said, "you know that hiking watch we saw at the ski shop... the one that costs only $120? Well, I really want it" "Oh, really," I responded, "I want my own jet airplane, too...I don't have that, do I?" Sam is not someone who's easily deterred, "Well, you can always fly on a regular airplane... I don't even have a watch that's waterproof that I can use for hiking. I need that watch." My next response was automatic: "I need a vacation, too.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,376 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Chief Continuity Officer Titles Reflect the Times, and So Much More

"I am not supposed to be an expert in every field. I am supposed to be an expert in picking experts." - Moshe Dayan

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

910 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Change in Control at the Office? Here's 10 Ways to Keep Your Job

ACTUAL "CASE HISTORY": Stephanie was the HR Director of the Reinsurance Division of a large, international insurance firm. Because of the recent downtu in the economy, business throughout the industry was slow. For this reason, the CEO decided to pursue the increasingly commo "consolidation" business strategy. In fact, he decided to attempt to purchase the company's largest competitor, in this way eliminating competition and gaining overall market share.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,275 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Beware of Temporary Assignments to Special Projects

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Maureen was thrilled to be hired into the world's third-largest travel-services company as a Senior Vice President of her own division, with profit-and-loss ("P&L") authority. Finally, she would have, in effect, her own distinct business to run, and could show the world her ability to make a mediocre-performing business into a rising-star enterprise. This was surely a solid stepping-stone to her eventual goal: consideration for a CEO position.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

2,088 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

At-Will Employment - What Exactly Does That Mean?

IT HAPPENS TO US ALL THE TIME: People come to us for consultations about workplace problems and opportunities from every state in the U.S., and from many other countries, as well. Commonly, the counsel sought is related to job stability, either in seeking new employment or in departing from present employment. This is what they so very often tell us: "I've spoken to several atto eys. They've all told me that, since I'm an 'at-will' employee, there's really nothing anybody can do to help me."

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,581 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

For a Raise or Promotion, Use Triggers of Value

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Like so many others at year's end, an employee we will call "Nichole" for purposes of this article, was hoping for a solid raise in January. She was hopeful, too, that the promotion she'd sought for two years would finally now come through. For six years she'd led the marketing team of the nation's third-largest office furniture manufacturer. The past year had been a good one from the marketing perspective: two new product lines had been successfully launched, and strategic partnerships had been formed with three major architectural-design firms.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,578 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Hiring, Promotion, Raises - The Three Decisive Factors

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: InterActive Corporation is an internet giant, often mentioned in the same breath as Google, Ebay and Amazon.com. It's headquartered in New York City, has over $2 billion in annual revenue, and represents a stock market capitalization in excess of $16 billion (Nasdaq stock symbol IACI).

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,690 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

How To Negotiate Your Welcome Aboard Letter

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: In his Welcome Aboard letter at a large securities firm, Lou was promised a base salary of $100,000 and a "minimum guaranteed" bonus of at least $250,000 after his first year on his new job. After his first year ended, he was told he would be receiving a bonus of only $100,000. When he asked his boss about the "obvious mistake," he was referred to Human Resources. When Lou brought the "obvious mistake" to HR's attention, they referred him to his written acknowledgement of having received a copy of the Employee Handbook.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,907 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Navigating Yourself to Self-Employment: Your 10 Critical Steps to Going Out on Your Own

CASE HISTORY: For over twelve years, Diana had been employed in the executive recruitment field. She found the work both challenging and rewarding. By a combination of perspiration and perseverance, she'd worked herself from entry-level researcher to become a highly-respected and well-connected recruiter with a specialty in the placement of healthcare executives.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,167 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Your Employer's Speak Out Policy May Give You a Mini-Employment Contract

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Stacey was a retired New York City police detective. At 44, she'd given 20 years to "The Force," as she called it, and was now considering attending law school. There were, though, two young mouths to feed, and a monthly mortgage payment to contend with. With her background in the security field, she put out feelers among friends, placement agencies, and security firms, looking for something in the security field that was "9 to 5."

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,281 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

10 Questions You Need to Ask About Change Of Control Provisions

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Thomas, 51, was the Chief Operating Officer of a New England-based manufacturer of electronic switches used primarily in the defense industry. He'd been recruited to the position three years earlier from a large defense contractor that was a large customer of the company. Though the company was publicly owned, with its shares traded on a major exchange, most of the company's stock rested in the hands of the grandchildren of the company's original founder.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,457 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Retaliated Against At Work for Doing What’s “Right?” Courts and Juries are Now on Your Side

Important Intro Note: On May 27, 2008, the United States Supreme Court issued decisions in two related cases that raised this fundamental question: When Congress granted employees rights to fair employment practices, did Congress also mean to grant employees protections from retaliation from employers for exercising those rights? The Supreme Court’s answer, to the surprise of many “Court-watchers,” was a resounding “YES.” It appears that, when it comes to the protection of fundamental, individual rights, “very conservative” and “very liberal” can sometimes mean the same thing.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,906 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Sign a Copy Today... Just in Case You Are Not Around Tomorrow

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Maurice, 64, had been the Director of Mergers and Acquisitions for a large pharmaceutical firm for 17 years. During that time he had overseen the purchase of nine smaller drug firms, and their incorporation into his company's operational, financial and management structure. After mergers take place, downsizings are a common occurrence. In this last merger, it was Maurice's "turn" to be downsized, but he really didn't mind one bit.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,150 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Use No Less Favorable When At Impasse in Your Office Negotiations

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: In 1995, Petra joined a small St. Louis-based software development company as its 10th employee. She was hired to assist one of the three partners in his dealings with prospective customers. Over the next seven years, Petra worked hard, and grew in responsibility as the company grew in revenues. Seven years later, in 2002, there were 185 employees, with offices in four cities. While rising to the position of Senior Vice President of Business Development, Petra had helped build the customer base from 38 to 174. Unfortunately, her compensation hadn't grown nearly as much.r

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,223 views

By Alan SkloverRecently published1 topic

Your Employment Values - Why Take (or Stay in) This Job?

ACTUAL CASE HISTORY: Robb, 48 and Deputy General Counsel for a world famous media conglomerate, was asked by his boss, the General Counsel, if he might be interested in succeeding him. His boss was 66, and approaching retirement; he could, if he chose, recommend Robb for the slot. And his recommendation would carry a lot of weight. He asked Robb to think about it, and get back to him in the next month or two.

Primary topic: Employee Motivation

Employee Motivation

1,238 views

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