Daniel Aldrich is a professor of political science and public policy at Northeastern University, where he’s also Co-Director of the Center for Resilience Studies. Aldrich specializes in disaster recovery, Japanese politics, nuclear power, and NIMBY politics. He has a Ph.D. in government from Harvard University. Skye Learning was thrilled to feature Aldrich’s expert commentary in its online course HR in Times of Crisis.

Formerly, Aldrich has taught at Purdue University, the University of Tokyo, and Tulane University. He has published five books, including Building Resilience and Black Wave, has authored more than 55 peer-reviewed articles, and has written op-eds for media outlets like The New York Times, CNN, and HuffPost.

Adjusting to a remote work schedule and environment can be challenging. Though there are some advantages to a remote work setup—namely, no commute—there are also many obstacles you wouldn’t normally face in an office setting that may keep you from working to your highest level of productivity.

Many in-office roles switched to remote work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because the pandemic is ongoing, you may not know when in-person work will resume. For that reason, developing good work-from-home habits in the midst of so much uncertainty will only benefit you in the long run. For those who will continue working remotely even post-pandemic, finding ways to increase productivity while maintaining a healthy work-life balance is essential.

Dismissing an employee is always a difficult task, and it can negatively affect both the employee and the employer—especially if it is mishandled. Most employers will try to avoid dismissal and will employ progressive discipline (warnings and other disciplinary acts) in an attempt to improve the situation.

In the United States, the doctrine of employment-at-will allows employers to fire employees without giving a reason (as long as the reason isn't illegal, such as discrimination based on age, gender, or race). Most companies dismiss a worker for a specific reason.

Christopher Plummer is a Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. He is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and a member of Cyber Health Working Group (CHWG), FBI InfraGard, Crimedex, and the New England Healthcare Information Security Forum (NEHISF).

Plummer has worked across a wide spectrum of organizations and industries, now specializing in healthcare information security. Before moving to Dartmouth-Hitchcock, he worked as a Senior Cybersecurity Analyst for Catholic Medical Center. He also spent nearly 10 years working as an Information Systems and Security Manager for the U.S. Navy. Skye Learning is thrilled to feature Plummer’s expert commentary in the online course Cybersecurity for Healthcare Professionals.

While organizations spend a lot of time and resources working to protect their digital assets, the physical security of the workplace is just as critical and just as subject to attack as is a network.

Physical security involves securing the site, building, office space, servers, computers, and other assets from being compromised at the actual location, rather than electronically over networks. It includes site design and layout, intrusion detection, fire protection, surveillance, physical access control, and emergency response.

It's important to remember that physical security consists of protecting against man-made threats, like intrusion or internal sabotage, as well as natural disasters, severe weather, and accidents that can cause floods, fire, and other problems.

Priya Prabhakar is the Director of Compliance at Beth Israel Deaconess HealthCare. Formerly, she was the Corporate Compliance Officer at Walden Behavioral Care. Skye Learning was thrilled to include her expert commentary in Skye’s online course Nonprofit Ethics and Compliance.

Prabhaker has earned her MBA, Master of Public Health (MPH), and Doctor of Medicine (MD). In addition to her compliance-related roles, she was a physician for more than six years at both Jackson Park Hospital and Inlaks Medical Hospital, served as a visiting faculty member at Boston University, and was the Associate Director for the Foundation for Research and Education in Eating Disorders.

Most people know that the field of marketing changes quickly, but the real topic on marketing professionals’ minds is, “How do I keep up?” Adapting to this growing, changing industry requires a lifelong-learning mindset and a commitment to continuously upskill.

Here are five skills that are crucial for sustaining a successful marketing career:

The most fundamental ethical obligation for any nonprofit organization is to avoid conflicts of interest. Because nonprofits rely on donated funds, it is essential that they be able to demonstrate that this money is being properly spent—and that none of it is being used improperly to enrich the organization or its leaders.

Conflicts of interest most often involve the organization's executive director or members of the board of directors, because they are the people with the most direct influence over the organization's activities and business dealings.

Corporate governance is the way by which businesses are directed and controlled.

For the most part, by law and tradition, the board of directors (representing the shareholders of the company) is tasked with ensuring the business is properly and honestly managed. Board members, the CEO, and managing partners have a fiduciary duty to protect the interest of shareholders.

Several board committees (the audit committee and the compensation committee) are generally involved in oversight of some of the most significant governance issues: whether the enterprise complies with accounting and ethical standards, and whether its leaders are being properly compensated and provided financial incentives for improving performance.

This week, Skye Learning is spotlighting Lloyd Schwartz, an award-winning poet, critic, and teacher. Lloyd Schwartz is currently the Poet Laureate of Somerville, MA. For nearly 40 years, he taught poetry at UMass Boston, where he helped to establish a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program.

Schwartz has authored five books of poetry, including Little Kisses and the forthcoming Who’s on First (New and Selected Poems). His poems have been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Best of the Best American Poetry, and other prominent journals. In 1994, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism regarding his work on American poet Elizabeth Bishop.