Welcome to the Retorio Blog

According to a working paper series by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, motherhood may be an indicator that a person may be particularly productive at the workplace. Mothers around the world will likely won’t be surprised to hear this. Between child rearing at home, leaning into their own personal development in private, being a competent team member at work, and other roles, mothers are in a constant balancing act. The St. Louis study analyzed the productivity habits of both female and male academic economists. Thus far, their conclusion: “unconditional effect of motherhood is zero”.

With the COVID-19 pandemic stopping the economic and social life of entire countries, researchers wanted to know which leaders made a difference in delivering a (more) positive outcome. From hiring, pre employment assessments, to travel, the results may affect how organizations attribute leadership in times of crisis. The University of Liverpool conducted a statistical analysis of 194 countries. Their conclusions: countries with women leaders performed better. Their countries suffered half as many COVID-related deaths.

What’s the big deal in attaching a CV photo? 

In case you haven’t noticed, the world is changing. Working from home is normalized. Interviews don’t mean a suit and an in-person, pre-employment assessment. So, businesses becoming health care centers? Not too much of a stretch.

Understanding greater racial equity begins with acknowledging a racial wealth gap.

Let’s talk about bullying in the workplace. With the recent news of Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez calling out the bullying behavior of fellow Congressman Ted Yosho, it’s time to talk about bullying in the workplace.

One may argue that nearly everything has been made gender-specific. Electric cars, invented in the early 20th century, were originally marketed to women. Grills and trucks are commonly marketed to men. Even razors are marketed to women and men separately---despite being the exact product. However the society (and the workforce) is evolving to more gender-neutral products, language, and company cultures. A pre-employment assessment can’t be used to help employers become gender neutral...or can they?

Today’s workforce is the most diverse workforce in history. Modernity ushered in a special concoction of people of different races, ages, genders, ethnic groups, religions, and lifestyles to work together. The goal of any organisation is to synchronize how these varying pieces of talen move together in a harmonious,coordinated way. Hiring managers look to utilize and leverage the abilities, talents, and perspectives of each employee to give the organization a competitive advantage. Research conducted by McKinsey highlights diversity is substantial for a business’s bottom line: ethnically diverse companies were shown to be 35% more likely to have financial returns above the national industry median.

A fair recruitment and hiring process is just what the doctor ordered during these times companies are rethinking their internal processes. Remote work, racial equity, and other changes to the workplace are occuring. 

The New York Times calls it a “universal phenomenon”. When it occurs, women must often gather ample willpower not to be combative, roll their eyes, or in general show an *gasp* emotional reaction. So, what is the prevalent experience that women experience twice as much as men? Being cut off in a conversation, or the “manterruption”. One study shows when men were talking with women they interrupt 33% more often than with men. Research reveals that this phenomenon is widespread, from casual conversation, decision making, corporate offices, the United States Senate, and job interviews. 

With increasing gender diversity on teams, this is a counterproductive habit. Women in leadership roles is a strategy to grow a healthy company. For example, the stocks of the twelve F500 companies with female CEOs rose an average of 50% in 2009, compared to 25% for the S&P 500. And yes, this was during one of the most historic financial meltdowns in history. 

But to attain those positions, women need to nail the interview---and learn how to navigate around any interview "manterruption". 

Companies are investing more in how they create and build teams. What’s interesting about team building today versus the past is how much it focuses on the individual. Investing in individual development and growth is key. Fortunately, science sheds light on how teams can perform and grow together. To create the ideal team, science shows that a high-performing team has essential personalities.

Employees are the principal resource for a successful company. Full stop. Therefore it is absolutely crucial companies select the right people for their teams. From skill and value set to complementing the goals of the company culture, hiring managers build a company.

Facial expressions play an important role in recognition of emotions and are used in the process of non-verbal communication. Just like you hear your mother’s certain tone of voice---yes, *that* voice---you can quickly indicate a person’s feelings via their facial expression. This helps describe a person’s emotional state. Facial expressions assist us in ascertaining a person’s emotions and frame of mind. 

Researchers and scientists utilize facial expression detection in exploring the field of emotion  recognition.  Much of the research focuses on recognizing  seven  basic  emotional  states:  neutral,  joy,  surprise, anger, sadness, fear, and disgust.

The police killing of George Floyd in Detroit, Michigan sparked peaceful demonstrations around the world. Thousands gather in cities across the world to show solidarity with US demonstrators, protesting racial injustice within the US police system.

“Push yourself, because no one else is going to do it for you”
“Don’t stop when you’re tired, stop when you’re done”
“Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Till your good is better and your better is best”

But does this go the same for choosing candidates in the workplace?

Till now, diversity referred to legally protecting underrepresented groups in the workforce. Now that much of those groups make up larger percentages of the global workforce, ethnic diversity has become a fixture, rather than an exception. The change in demography has ushered in the new workplace policies, but most importantly it enhances and streamlines HR functions and beyond. 

Influenced by the emerging conversations of exclusion and injustice within society as a whole, creating a diverse and inclusive workforce has rapidly become a top priority for companies. After all, it can only lead to more a healthier bottom-line.