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Recent Articles from Karen Natzel
The challenge of navigating big emotions in the workplace
“Nothing personal; it’s just business.” Otto Berman, an accountant for organized crime in America in the 1920s and 30s, coined that phrase. Regrettably, it has remained in the corporate vernacular for far too long. It’s time we banish that organizational ghost for good! When we invest in being human at work, our relationships are deeper […]
Creating a sense of community in the workplace
I recently returned from a 2,500-mile road trip. The two original objectives: attend the Red Ants Pants Music Festival in Montana and return to the Wind River Range in Wyoming for some climbing adventures. But as road trips tend to go, the gems were more than the expected experiences, and even the expected events brought […]
How to tap into the source of inspiration
I have had clients tell me, “Karen, it’s work. It’s not supposed to be fun.” I have heard employees lament, “Work is a 4-letter word.” And we have all heard the refrain “TGIF!” When I speak of fun in the context of work, I am not talking about happy hours or team-building activities (although, for […]
Going deep: The price of entry for cultural transformation
Leading an organization, especially during turbulent times, requires clarity of vision and the changes required to manifest it. A vision isn’t just about where an organization is going, but what it is becoming. Changes might be strategic shifts in services, clients, or geographical coverage. They might be internal process refinements. But the change that addresses […]
Grind to glory: Breathe new life into your work
Operating in the day-to-day work world can conjure up more dread than desire. Clients have shared they find it harder to stay focused; they fear dropping the ball; and they have experienced diminished capacity in handling difficult situations or people. Work seems to take more energy to produce results with less fulfillment. In a recent […]
Giving ourselves productive space: 12 five-minute, value-added habits
The end of the year is a perfect time to pause and reflect on what has transpired — the impacts made and the insights discovered. You may find you pivoted from the original plan by experimenting with hybrid work environments, wrestling with uncertainties, or just trying to create a “new normal.” As we wound down […]
Examining retention strategies during ‘Great Resignation’
There’s considerable consternation around the “Great Resignation.” This past spring, we witnessed job openings at an unprecedented 9.3 million. In August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that “4.3 million Americans, or 2.9 percent of the entire workforce, quit their jobs,” according to National Public Radio. One common thread in this workforce movement is […]
Decide how you want to show up, then commit
When you think about the kind of professional you want to be, what comes to mind? What kind of impact do you want to make as a leader? As we navigate out of this pandemic and into our next chapter, we have an opportunity to reflect, refine and reinvent a way of showing up that […]
The cost of not paying attention, and payoffs of doing so
When your to-do list runneth over, the idea of giving someone or something more attention may seem like a luxury you cannot afford. After all, as a mentor once told me, “Your work will expand to the time you give it.” Wise words indeed, but I offer that the presence you bring will create a […]
So how do we work together now? Reimagine workplace collaboration
There’s been a buzz about post-pandemic work environments – establishing hybrid work models, using new collaboration tools, and finding ways to engage and connect that build a meaningful and satisfying organizational culture. While reading a recent article – “A Once-in-a-Lifetime Chance to Start Over,” by Arthur Brooks – in The Atlantic, it struck me that […]
Reimagining work: a post-pandemic strategy
The seeds of this article were planted during a discussion about the overwhelming number of meetings via videoconferencing. To be fair, it has been impressive what businesses have done to rapidly pivot during this pandemic. For the remote worker, we’ve generated makeshift home offices complete with laptops, microphones and cameras; we’ve built proficiency in Zoom […]
Building a ‘smart growth strategy’ for 2021
As this wild year comes to a close, you may find it fruitful to take inventory of what transpired. What challenges did you face? What did you accomplish? What strengths emerged? What became apparent to you? Under chronic stress we might rely on autopilot to get through the day. That might serve us temporarily, but […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Plaintiff injured in crash with oncoming vehicle — $235,000 settlement
- Driver killed in rear-end collision with tractor-trailer — $1.5M settlement
- Man died from pancreatic cancer after delayed response — $1.8M settlement
- Worker fell off roof, rendering him a paraplegic — $1.25M settlement
- Driver sustained permanent hearing loss after traffic collision — $240,000 settlement
- Plaintiff suffered concussion in rear-end collision — $81,000 verdict
- Builder misrepresented home status to buyers — $675,000 verdict
- Low potassium led to cardiac arrest, death of patient — $1M settlement
- Excessive propofol caused death in dialysis patient — $850,000 settlement
- Pedestrian struck in crosswalk in hit-and-run incident — $300,000 settlement
- Navy veteran killed in collision with box truck — $1.85M arbitration award
- Motorcyclist ejected from bike in collision with SUV — $1.5M settlement
Opinion Digests
- Company owner dodges breach of contract suit
- Employee’s own allegations doom minimum wage claim
- Federal government defeats former employee’s claims
- Principal wasn’t entitled to exclusively remote work
- USPTO properly redacted info in responsive documents
- Untimely lawsuit allowed to proceed
- Engineering consultant dismissed from suit
- Rule 60 motion was filed too late
- Nonprofit directors immune from ex-employees’ claims
- City, employees immune from whistleblower claims
- Experts excluded in condemnation damages suit
- Judgment entered against company for horse’s death
