When Stress Shows Up at Work
This time of year can bring a lot more than work into the workplace. Year-end deadlines. PTO. School schedules and childcare. Travel. Caregiving. Financial pressure. Grief. Holiday expectations. Short-staffed teams. And sometimes just the exhaustion that comes at the end of a long year. Managers often see the impact before they know what is behind it. Someone who is usually reliable starts missing deadlines. An employee seems distracted or less engaged. Attendance changes. Patience gets shorter. Work
Before You Finalize Your 2027 Benefits, Look Beyond the Renewal
By this point in the year, many employers are already deep into benefits renewal conversations. You may have renewal numbers in hand. You may be comparing carriers, deductibles, contributions, or plan designs. You may already be close to a decision. Before you finalize it, there are a few things worth looking at beyond the renewal percentage. That matters more this year because employers are facing unusually high cost pressure. Marsh is projecting an average 8.2% increase in total health benefit cost
The Work Still Has to Get Done: Leading People Through Stress and Hard Times
Life doesn’t stop when the workday starts. Whether you own a business with six employees, manage a team of 20, or support hundreds of employees through HR, sooner or later someone you work with is going to go through something hard. Sometimes you’ll know about it. A parent dies. A marriage ends. A child is struggling. Someone becomes a caregiver. There is a serious illness or financial crisis. Other times, you won’t have any idea what is happening. You’ll just see that something has changed. A great
The Data Behind Business and Community Decisions May Be Changing: What to Know Before October 13
Most business owners probably do not think about the U.S. Census very often. But they may rely on it more than they realize. Population and demographic data influence market research, workforce planning, economic development, public infrastructure, grant funding, community needs assessments, site selection, and decisions about where organizations invest time and resources. That is why a proposed change to the 2030 Census is worth understanding now. On September 10, 2026, the U.S. Department of
The Growing Business Problem No One Assigned to Anyone
Most businesses start by dividing up the work that needs to get done. Someone handles payroll. Someone keeps track of employee paperwork. The owner hires people and answers most of the questions. An insurance broker helps with benefits and workers’ compensation. Maybe someone creates or updates a handbook when it becomes necessary. At first, that may be all the business needs. Then more people get hired. One employee becomes five. Five becomes ten. Ten becomes twenty-five. Or maybe the number of
Florida’s Minimum Wage Is Going to $15. Is Your Pay Structure Ready?
If you’re only checking which employees make less than $15 an hour, you may be missing the bigger issue.On September 30, Florida’s minimum wage increases from $14 to $15 per hour. For employers with people currently earning below that threshold, the first step is obvious: make sure those employees are brought into compliance.But that may be the easiest part.I have worked through enough compensation changes to know they rarely affect just one pay rate. When the floor moves, it can create ripple effects
