Teresa Daniel, Gary Metcalf: Books

Books

Toxic Leaders and Tough Bosses: Organizational Guardrails to Keep High Performers on Track , Teresa A. Daniel, Published by De Gruyter , March 18, 2024

Toxic work culture is driving away 1 in 5 employees at an annual cost of US $44.6 billion to American organizations. Yet ironically, toxic leaders often achieve stellar financial profits, continue to get promoted and remain in their leadership roles. In Toxic Leaders and Tough Bosses – Organizational Guardrails to Keep High Performers on Track, employment law attorney Teresa A. Daniel JD, PhD, draws upon numerous studies and interviews to show the real, devastating impact of toxic workplace culture and why leaders must care.

This book discusses what signs to look out for in a toxic workplace, factors that promote toxic behavior, types of leaders and how they impact their organization, the role of HR in managing employee wellbeing, and what to look out for in exceptional leaders. With evidenced-based strategies for building stronger workplace culture, including tools to help organizations develop better leaders and managers, it makes a compelling case for eradicating toxic leaders as a priority.

Toxic Leaders and Tough Bosses is for organizational leaders, mid-level managers, supervisors, HR practitioners and anyone else invested in implementing new, tried and tested ideas to improve their organization’s culture to create and sustain its optimum success.

 

 

A Dark Matter of Memory, Amazon Publications, June 2, 2021 by Dr. Gary Metcalf

A Dark Matter of Memory is a love story set in a future beyond nation-states. Alfred Medupe, a young scientist from the African Region, is exploring the possibility of finding memory in dark matter. Then a tragedy makes his search more personal. Is it possible that what happens in life leaves imprints in the universe that can be found again? What could that mean for humans living beyond just here and now? The potential of the research catches the interest of powerful people, who would like to use it for their own purposes. It sends Alfred into dark and dangerous places as he tries to find the only things in life that matter to him.

Organizational toxin handlers: The critical role of HR, OD, & coaching practitioners in managing toxic workplace situations. New York: Palgrave Macmillan (2020).

This book examines the important role of HR practitioners acting as toxin handlers within their organizations and the dangers they face when dealing with toxic workplace emotions caused by difficult organizational decisions, such as mergers and acquisitions, staff reductions, and restructurings. Exploring what they do, why they do it, and the personal and professional rewards created by the work, it also examines the dangers that await them in terms of risks to their personal well-being.

More information is available at Organizational Toxin Handlers

Stop Bullying at Work: Strategies and Tools for HR, Legal & Risk Management Professionals (Second and Expanded Edition) (co-authored with Dr. Gary S. Metcalf). Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management Books (2016).

Although it is not yet illegal, workplace bullying can poison your organization by undermining employee motivation and by eroding any sense of loyalty or teamwork, and it can ultimately destroy trust at all levels. Bullying affects not just the targets of the abusive conduct, but also their co-workers who cannot understand why senior leaders would tolerate such bad behavior or, worse yet, personally engage in its use. In a nutshell, bullying is bad management at its absolute worst—and it represents a real risk to your organization if left unchecked. Stop Bullying at Work helps HR professionals, legal professionals, and business leaders understand * what workplace bullying is * the harm done to organizations that ignore or minimize bullying behavior * the differences between a workplace bully and a tough boss * the differences between workplace bullying and hazing and harassment

Social Systems and Design, Metcalf, Gary S. (Ed.) 2014 (Springer site)

Social Systems and Design, Metcalf, Gary S. (Ed.), 2014 (Amazon)

• Summarizes and compares the ideas of a number of systems theorists who incorporated design principles into their work through the latter half of the 20th century
• Provides current thinking about systems design theories by the original authors and other professionals who worked directly with them
• Demonstrates how systems design is being applied to projects around the world, creating democratic and sustainable structures in organizations and communities

We live in the worlds that we help to create every day. Every activity either supports an existing system or effects some change, however small. But is it possible to consciously create the worlds in which we want to live?

This volume brings together systems theorists and practitioners who have worked on that question for decades. It explores connections between design and systems ideas to explain why some efforts have been more successful than others, and what is needed if we are to move forward. It offers reflections on early and large-scale attempts at impacting societal systems, as well as proposals for taking those ideas into the future. Examples date back to the Club of Rome in the 1960s and look forward to the creation of ecologically sustainable systems in the future. They address the need for collaboration and inclusion in settings from communities to corporations. And while theories are presented as support for the examples, they are explained in practical ways meant to be accessible both to students and to general readers.

Stop Bullying at Work: Strategies and Tools for HR & Legal Professionals. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management Books (2009).

The nature and impact of workplace bullying is addressed in this comprehensive overview. From the perspective of the human resources (HR) department, this practical guide provides the tools to both investigate interpersonal conflict and eliminate the problem. Policy models that not only tackle harassment issues but also implement strategies that comply with legislation are also presented. HR practitioners will learn to handle harassment at all levels of employment and, as a result, create productive work environments.

• SHRM #9 Top Best Seller for 2012
• SHRM Book of the Week: September 2009 and February 2010
• SHRM #7 Top Best Seller for 2010

The Management of People in Mergers and Acquisitions (co-authored with Dr. Gary S. Metcalf). Westport, CT: Quorum Books (2001).

Financials alone don’t make an M&A deal work. Equally important is what’s behind them–an organization’s people. How to understand this reality and benefit from it is the thrust of this unusually comprehensive, practical, readable, but conceptually rigorous book. Daniel and Metcalf see HR executives as change agents during the delicate maneuverings before a deal is done, and then after, when it’s time to tackle the fine-grained problems of integrating disparate corporate cultures and the people who vitalize them. They examine the recent and ongoing waves of mergers and acquisitions across industries, setting them in the broader context of organizational change. With concepts, theory, and real-life examples drawn from their long, impressive experience as consultants and executives, Daniel and Metcalf provide step-by-step guidance through the stages common to all corporate combinations. They define and explain the roles to be played in the process by HR professionals and executives elsewhere in the organization, and show how, by interacting productively with each other, they will thus maximize the total contribution to the success of any corporate transaction.

Cash Balance Pension Plans: A Practical Primer. Brookfield, WI: International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (2000).
Nominated by the publisher for the 2001 SHRM Book Award.

Book Chapters

Daniel, T.A. (2021). Invisible heroes: The mission critical role of HR during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Malka, C. & Tiell, B. (Eds.), Back to a new normal: In search of stability in an era of pandemic disruption—Insights from practitioners and academics. Information Age Publishing, Inc.

Mergers, acquisitions and wellbeing in organizational life: The critical role of human resources. In Wall, T., Cooper, C.L., & P. Brough (Eds.), The SAGE Handbook of Organisational Wellbeing. London: SAGE Publications, Ltd. (2021, forthcoming)

Toxic leaders: Who they are, what they do, and what you and your organization can do about them at work. In Belak, T. & Wilkin, L. (Eds.), From Discord to Harmony: Making Your Workplace Hum (pp. 3-16). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc. (2020).

The era of #MeToo and #Time’s Up: A spotlight on sexual harassment at work. In Belak, T. & Wilkin, L. (Eds.), From Discord to Harmony: Making Your Workplace Hum (pp. 151-169). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc. (2020).

The Role of Human Resources in the Prevention of Workplace Bullying and Mobbing. In Duffy, M. & Yamada, D.C. (Eds.), Workplace Bullying and Mobbing in the United States (pp. 235-284). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, an imprint of Praeger (2018).

Cash Balance Pension Plans, Encyclopedia of Retirement and Finance. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing (2003).

Privacy Issues: Employer Practices and Policy Concerns (co-authored with Richard K. Griffith, Esq.). Kentucky Employment Law Deskbook. Lexington, KY: UK/CLE (1992).