This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. A reader writes: I have a friend, Jane, who I used to be close to, but in the past few years she’s been very hot and cold, going through periods of being almost clingy and then turning on a dime to become unresponsive or even kind of annoyed that I’m talking to her. This has been...

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. A reader writes: My company has a very small number of permanent employees but we employ a large number of entry-level seasonal workers at a couple of points in the year. We don’t have landlines, only company cell phones. The phone number on our website, brochures, etc. is my...

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. It’s the Thursday “ask the readers” question. A reader writes: Outside of my regular job I hold a volunteer board position for the local chapter of a national philanthropic organization. A large part of our mission is to provide leadership opportunities and mentoring for college-aged...

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go… 1. Should I correct a service person’s grammar? Our family held a special event, and the staff at the venue were excellent, all very helpful and competent, they know their jobs well and I have nothing but good to say about the...

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. A reader writes: I recently started my dream job — amazing start-up, coveted industry, huge promise, incredibly competent management (a gift I do not take for granted). However, I’m working in arguably the most expensive metropolitan city on earth, one that is notorious for...

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. The Federal Trade Commission yesterday banned non-compete agreements for most U.S. workers, saying that they stifle wages. The ruling not only makes non-competes illegal, but it also requires employers to to inform employees with existing non-competes that they are null and void....