The early approaches to studying leadership focused on identifying patterns of leadership behavior that resulted in superior performance. Such behavioral studies placed leaders' behaviors on a spectrum ranging from job-centered to employee-centered behavior.

In job-centered leader behavior, a leader focuses on the actual work of subordinates (e.g., explaining specific tasks and monitoring output), and her primary concern is the subordinates' performance. On the other end of the spectrum, employee-centered leader behavior seeks to elicit superior performance from subordinates by focusing primarily on the human aspects of the group (e.g., motivation, job satisfaction) rather than the subordinates' tasks.

Stress can be a major factor in job-related illnesses and poor performance. When a high-stress situation arises or an employee appears to be at risk of stress-related illness, managers should be prepared to handle the issue with care and confidence. Employers can offer proactive and reactive stress management advice to their workers to help prevent small issues from growing into larger problems, and employees can also learn to manage their own stress by using several proven techniques. Check out our latest infographic for ten tips to help you manage stress.

New managers should expect a learning-curve when transitioning into a leadership position for the first time. The process of adapting to new responsibilities, goals, and challenges takes persistence and determination, along with support from our peers, mentors, and superiors.

Moving From Peer to Boss

Moving from peer to boss can be challenging because you will need to establish a new relationship with friends who were peers and draw upon the boundaries of that new relationship when making decisions.

Working women are often confronted with double binds caused by gender stereotypes and norms about gender roles, which can hinder women in business from successfully occupying positions of authority. A double bind is a situation in which a person making a decision receives conflicting messages that make it the case that no matter what the person does, they'll be doing something that will be thought of as wrong. The contradictory nature of these situations is not always immediately apparent, so other people may not see the dilemma caused by the double bind. Also, for a dilemma to truly be a double bind, the person making the decision must not have the ability to control the undesirable consequences that each option presents.

Not all interviews are the same. When evaluating applicants, it's important for members of the interview team to agree on a strategy and to carefully design questions to best accomplish the goals of the evaluation. Sometimes different interview strategies may be employed during the evaluation of a single applicant. Check out these six different interview types and the circumstances in which they might be used.

Working women are often confronted with double binds caused by gender stereotypes and norms about gender roles, which can hinder women in business from successfully occupying positions of authority. A double bind is a situation in which a person making a decision receives conflicting messages, and no matter what the person does, they'll be doing something that will be thought of as wrong.

It has been more than 100 years since women started entering the workforce, and they are still fighting for equality. Research highlights a lack of women in higher positions, pay gaps between women and their male coworkers, and discrimination against women who are married, women who have children, and women in general. Take a look at our latest infographic for a brief history of women in the workplace.

Women are an invaluable part of the workforce, making up nearly 47 percent of all working adults. Women are athletes, academics, actors, and accountants; politicians, pilots, plumbers, and police officers; scientists, school teachers, sanitation workers, and security guards. Few jobs have never been held by a woman.  

In many ways, we are far from the days in American history in which women were told their place was either in the home or in particular roles doing "woman's work."

Active listening is a way of listening and responding to another person that improves mutual understanding. Active listening can be employed in varied organizational settings, in discussions between managers and employees, in interviews of all types, and in mediation and conflict resolution. Check out these ten tips on how you can improve your active listening skills.

Business ethics should be at the forefront of every organization’s culture. Unethical behavior can be costly from both a legal and public relations standpoint. Learn about the six frameworks for ethical decision making in our latest infographic.