A recent Ankura survey found that 48% of employees wish that workplace technology performed as well as personal technology. This high number indicates a broad divide between employee expectations for information usage and what employers are actually delivering. While data-driven apps, mobile-ready devices, and search engines like Google offer people near instantaneous access to information in their personal and social lives, as employees they continue struggling when at work to access basic information regarding time off accruals, hours usage, and scheduling. Furthermore, they frequently find themselves tethered to non-mobile points of access. These technology impediments are also expensive for employers, since excess time, energy, and costs are continuously expended when employees have to waste time seeking basic information and answers.

A couple years ago, Gallup conducted a survey that categorized employee engagement into three levels. The results showed that, in any given organization, 30% of employees are actively engaged in propelling the company along, half of the employees are just coasting on the efforts of the others, and 20% are actively attempting to disrupt progress within the business. Do you know which of your employees fall into which categories? More importantly, do you know how to improve these conditions?

We can’t be excited to go to work every day, and sometimes we may even drag our feet getting there. That's just normal. But when you feel stuck in a bad or toxic workplace culture, you start to dread the beginning of each workday, and that can take a serious toll on your outlook and work ethic.

It’s not often a single thing that makes or breaks an organization’s culture. A combination of leadership, traditions, values, attitudes, beliefs, interactions, and behaviors together set the overall tone of the work environment. From an employee's perspective, rarely does a bad workplace culture start out that way. Little by little, things that seem insignificant in the moment can start to add up until one reaches the proverbial last straw. By the time employees feel overworked, under-appreciated, and burnt out, it’s probably too late to go back and reset the culture of the office. Instead, it’s important to proactively build the culture and make appropriate changes and tweaks as needs arise.

Rule #1 - It’s okay to admit you don’t have all the answers. Nobody does!

Most people have experienced both good and bad managers along their career path. When someone goes from being managed to managing others for the first time, they often reflect upon what has and hasn't worked in their own experience. Ultimately, everyone has their own style and methods of leadership, since managing people takes a lot of time and has its ups and downs. So what makes a successful manager? Whether you are a new manager or someone who is looking to get into management, following is a list of basic management skills to get you started.