I’ve been a workplace investigator and anti-harassment educator for thirty years. I am known for my apolitical, pragmatic approach to helping people understand the value of civil workplace conduct and to get them there without shame or blame. I have always said that we should recognize that any of us are capable of offending others, and we should have humility enough to take feedback well. In other words, I don’t suggest for a moment that women are singularly vulnerable or that all harassment is intentional. Nevertheless, the vigorous defense of Fox Chief Roger Ailes, and ridiculous suggestions that women who are harassed are either at fault or weak calls for an immediate response.

Several years ago, I was visiting some students in a college residence hall.  One sat at her desk drinking a beer. Surprised,  I asked if beer was allowed in the residence hall, and she stated it indeed was, for students over 21.  She noted that she, however, was only 19 and had been cited the previous week for underage drinking.  She reported that she was at her desk taking the online training course on alcohol use that assigned by the college to first offenders.  I had my doubts about the effectiveness of that training.

In September of 2015, I had the honor of testifying before the EEOC’s Select Task Force on Harassment. On Monday, June 20, the Co-Chairs of that Task Force will be presenting their report, “Rebooting Harassment,” to the full Commission, and I have been invited to testify once again.

While conducting a recent climate assessment, I was questioning a supervisor about their oversight of the work environment.  How did they take stock of employee morale and engagement?  What were the cultural imperatives?  The response was a shoulder shrug and an assertion that “If employees have a problem they need to come to me.”

Writing investigative reports is never anyone’s favorite part of investigative work.  After the dynamic processes of interviewing, document review, analysis of evidence and overall analysis of credibility and clarity, writing a report can feel like drudgery. There are many ways to approach the writing of a report, but minimally an investigative report must contain:

When you spend the better part of your professional life examining employee complaints, the subtleties of handling those complaints become a big deal. I have written often in this blog about the importance of handling these complaints properly; listening carefully, not debating or pressing; avoiding laying blame and asking open-ended questions. Most importantly, I have described the importance of accepting the “gift” of a complaint by thanking the employee for their trust and willingness to bring it to your attention. These fundamental practices can make the difference between an employee who remains engaged and one who becomes an adversary.

I had the honor of speaking at HR West today. It is one of the best HR conferences in North America, filled with energetic keynotes, informative breakouts, and entertaining exhibitors. Today I delivered “The Fairness Quotient and Why it Matters,” an evolving talk about the power of fairness to create resilience and loyalty in employees. Today was special for me because I got to roll out my newly commissioned infographic.

On Martin Luther King Day, it is appropriate to consider where discrimination and bias sit in our own lives.  More often than ever, I find the subjects of privilege, income inequality and social segregation entering into my conversations.  Thanks to the bravery, persistence, and pluck of groups like Black Lives Matter, issues previously visible only to those negatively affected are showing up in unavoidable ways to everyone.  As a progressive of goodwill, I ask myself how I can make a difference in calling out institutional racism and discrimination.  I try to listen more than talk and to be mindful of seeing the world through the eyes of others.

It is sometimes the simplest ideas that bring about real culture change in organizations.

It’s been some time since I’ve posted. It has been a busy year of travel, speaking, fact-finding and immense professional growth. Last week, I had the honor of traveling to Washington, DC to testify before the EEOC’s Select Committee on Harassment as part of a panel of fact-finders. They asked us to comment on industries and organizations most susceptible to harassment.