It's the Manager summary

What’s the point of your company? Or, to put it another way, do you know its purpose, or why it exists? If you’re a leader in your organization, chances are you know the answer. But don’t assume that’s the same for everyone. According to Gallup only just over a quarter of employees understand their firm’s purpose.

This disconnect between leaders and staff is a big problem. Without a value-based culture that’s shared by everyone, it’s much harder to create a strong brand and deliver great experiences for your customers.

Most leaders understand the importance of bringing talented people into their teams. When they hire the right person for the job, that person integrates easily, develops skills quickly, and becomes a great brand ambassador for the company.

But while managers may want to bring the best people on board, that doesn't mean they’re always successful. Like the rest of us, managers are only human and, like the rest of us, that means they can sometimes show certain levels of bias during the recruitment process.

When it comes to hiring the right person for the job, you can’t rely on gut instinct, assumptions, or even your previous experiences to get the best fit. What you can put your faith in is a tried and tested recruitment process that reveals the abilities, personalities, and work styles of your candidates.

If creating this type of hiring process sounds daunting, don’t worry, there’s good news. The hard work has been done for you. Gallup has reviewed over 100 years of recruitment research from the field of business psychology, to find the methods to help you identify the best candidates.

You’ve probably heard that the secret to a great relationship is good communication. But when it comes to the relationship between managers and their juniors, communication can be sorely lacking.

Gallup’s research shows that only around a third of employees believe their bosses know what projects they’re working on, and nearly half report that their bosses give them feedback just a handful of times each year.

In the wake of the international campaign against sexual harassment and abuse, known as the #MeToo movement, it’s easy to assume that the world of work has changed for good. But, for many women, the march toward equality in the workplace is far from over.

According to Gallup’s research, more than 40 percent of American women have experienced sexual harassment at work, and almost 70 percent of all Americans believe that sexual harassment is still a major problem in the office.

In the wake of the Great Recession of 2008, a new type of economy has emerged, and ruffled a few feathers in the process. Some observers hail this new economy as flexible and worker-friendly; others call it exploitative. One thing’s for sure, the so-called gig economy is controversial.

The gig economy is made up of independent workers who aren’t in a typical contract with their employers. This economy is also broad, encompassing everyone from contract nurses to substitute teachers, and Uber drivers to freelance graphic designers. It’s big too – it’s made up of more than a third of working Americans.