Employees may not always feel comfortable reporting organizational problems through internal systems, but leaders can take a variety of steps to ease their discomfort, starting with preparing managers to respond appropriately, writes Carrie Penman of NAVEX.

A recent report noted that people were more than 10 times as likely to quit a job due to an unpleasant work environment than a lack of satisfaction with their pay. Micromanagement, failure to recognize staff achievements and toleration of unprofessional behavior are some of the toxic workplace factors that can lead to employee dissatisfaction.

Sean Fahey, CEO of VidCruiter, offers tips on how to conduct successful video interviews, including how to prepare technology and the environment. Combine behavioral and situational questions, consider using prerecorded interviews to avoid Zoom fatigue and make sure to follow up with candidates, Fahey advises.

Washington state lawmakers are close to passing a bill that would require companies with at least 15 employees to reveal pay and benefits to job applicants. Internal candidates for transfers and promotions would also receive that information under the bill, which is headed back to the Senate for approval after an amended version was passed in the House.

David McNeff, author of "The Work-Life Balance Myth," suggests that instead of striving for work-life balance, people should instead allocate their time into seven domains, or slices: family, emotional, spiritual, professional, intellectual, physical and personal. Doing so allows us to break free from the either-or mode of thinking when it comes to balancing our lives and inspires us to get creative in allocating time toward activities that satisfy multiple slices.

“Kanoe, I wanted you to hear this from me.”

It was Matt, one of my favorite sales reps. Young, smart and energetic, Matt dove into his work with enthusiasm and vigor. I always enjoyed working with him on campaign projects. And now he was telling me that he had accepted a job with another company.

I was crushed. I remember hanging my head, already feeling the loss of him on the team. But, B2B ad sales is a competitive employment market and guys like Matt get scooped up. I was honest and told him that I would miss him terribly but that I’d always be rooting for him. He thanked me and promised to keep in touch.

Fast forward six months. It was the beginning of the year and my publisher and I were discussing goals and personnel changes. He also told me that he had good news. “Matt is coming back,” he said. I could hear the smile in his voice as he delivered the words.

I was elated. “That’s wonderful!” I squealed. “When?” Within a couple weeks, Tom promised. I’d see him at a show I would be covering in Texas.

I was visiting booths on the exhibit floor when a tall young man, in a beautiful navy suit, walked up to me. It was Matt. His smile lit up his face and he laughed when I gave him a crushing bear hug. We walked the floor together and caught up on the events of the recent months.

Losing good folks is tough, but if you handle it well and they aren’t happy with their new gig, there’s a good chance they’ll return, as we see in today's Leadership & Development story. We kept the door open for Matt and he came back. And he came back with even more fire than he had when he left. He continues to grow in his role and is an enormous asset to the team.

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