HR Soapbox Blog

(Published February 8, 2010)

Most articles on office romance revolve around what HR should do when Cupid's arrow strikes employees and managers.  Usually not addressed: What HR should do when they are the one bitten by the office love bug.

On the one hand, there are those who feel that it is inappropriate for HR to date anyone in their company due to the fact that HR deals with confidential information and employee relations issues that require impartiality.  Thus, either HR should not get involved with the person, or one or the other should work elsewhere.

There's no denying that some individuals' ability to handle their HR responsibilities would be affected by an office romance.  But if they aren't professional and mature enough to refrain from relaying confidential information to a lover, it's probably not the only situation in which they lack discretion.  They probably should not be going out to lunch or to happy hour with platonic colleagues, either. 

On the other hand, there are plenty of individuals who would continue to handle their HR duties with integrity, so is it fair to punish them?  Top brass is privy to certain confidential information, but you don't read as much (if anything!) about any furor caused by those in the C-suite involved in an office romance, beyond the standard superior/subordinate romance issues.  So can't the same standards be applied when HR is part of the happy couple?  In other words, HR should not date anyone in their direct chain of command; there should be a process in place for dealing with potential conflicts of interest; and any issues that do arise should be handled accordingly.

However, it doesn't necessarily come down to how the HR employee behaves.  Even if they can keep confidences and remain impartial, there is also the issue of how others perceive their ability to keep confidences and remain impartial.  Perception itself can affect HR's effectiveness and can hinder career growth, if, for example, employees don't feel comfortable going to them with a complaint or top brass decides they lack good judgment by engaging in an office romance.

There's no one right answer.  Personally, I wouldn't want to be put in a position of knowing that my paramour was on the layoff list weeks in advance of the news being announced.  But it's easy for me to say that when I don't have an office paramour!

Happy Valentine's Day to all…especially if you're making an office romance work!
Gloria Ju
Editor in Chief

(Published February 1, 2010)

In the movie Groundhog Day, Bill Murray finds himself reliving the same day over and over again.  Ever feel like that at work? 

Admittedly, I like sticking to a work routine.  What can I say, I am a creature of habit.  But even I like to shake things up a bit every once in awhile.  Granted, I'm nowhere near as wild and crazy as my husband who will actually drive different routes to work to break up the monotony of his commute (and to try to avoid traffic!).  In fact, truth be told, I'm the exact opposite when it comes to driving to work; I'll gladly sit in traffic because I find that much less stressful than the thought of getting lost on the road less (okay, never!) traveled.

For me, it's the little tweaks that I make to my workday that keep me from feeling like I'm starring in my own production of Groundhog Day.

Change the order of routine tasks.  There are some tasks I usually perform in the pre-noon hours and others that I never tend to until after lunch.  Simply swapping the time of day I perform these tasks can really invigorate me.

Listen to music.  Generally, all I listen to while working is the hum of the building's heating/cooling system and the tapping of my fingernails on my keyboard.  Some days, though, I'll listen to my iPod.  Nothing spices up my workday quicker than '80's stars like Toni Basil, Rick Springfield, and Steve Perry singing to me!  

Take lunch at a different time.  While my tummy would like me to take lunch by 1 p.m. at the absolute latest each and every day, there are some days I purposely wait until 1:30.  Finishing lunch later than normal gives the rest of my afternoon an entirely new feel.

Do something different on lunch.  I normally read on my lunch break (I literally just finished the ninth book in the Sookie Stackhouse series!).  Sometimes, though, I shop online, poke around Facebook, or kick up my feet, close my eyes, and enjoy a power nap.

Embrace flex-time, if you have it.  This is a hard one for me, but sleeping in an extra 30-45 minutes gives me a new outlook on an otherwise ordinary day.

Get a new pen or use different colored inks.  I'm serious!  Using black ink or a particular pen every single day is boring.  That's why I switch things up and use different colored inks and pens.  (Don't even get me started on the joy highlighters and colored pencils bring me when organizing my planner and calendar!)  If you don't believe me, try it. 

Melissa V. Pomerantz
Editor