The HR busybody. You’ve seen (or worked with!) the caricature: clipboard in hand, cardigan-clad, casting disapproving glances at the unhealthy food in the vending machine and keeping suspiciously close tabs on when you leave for lunch. It’s a trope that
Things I Miss about Going to the Office
I miss the cakes. Chocolate sheet cake with buttercream frosting for someone’s birthday. King Cake during Carnival season. Caramel Doberge with too many layers to count and just enough sugar to spark a workplace-wide coma by 2 p.m. There was
The Tyranny of Mandated Merriment
Shannon stood in the fluorescent-lit conference room, a paper plate of stale cookies in one hand and a name tag proclaiming “Holiday Elf #7” in the other. The air was thick with forced cheer and the faint desperation of middle
Making Friends at Work When You’re in HR
Working in HR often feels like being the workplace equivalent of airport security: no one’s exactly thrilled to see you, everyone assumes you’re about to ruin their day, and yet you’re an essential part of keeping the whole operation running
