For over 25 years as a workplace litigator, Jathan had a ringside seat to what goes wrong in the employer-employee relationship. As the founder of a law firm and chief administrative officer of a non-profit organization, he found himself inside the ring. Now, he trains and coaches managers to avoid the pitfalls and develop employees who are high performing, accountable and add value. He has turned the teachings from his books, best practices research and years in the ring into lessons that are compelling, interactive, and stick. Programs include:
“The 8 Deadly Sins of Mismanagement & 8 Leadership Virtues”
People who manage and lead others often trust a natural, intuitive and seemingly self-protective instinct – which is wrong! This program shows how to convert this instinct (which is to avoid confrontation) into a trigger to do the opposite, thereby improving your effectiveness at leading others, while at the same time reducing your stress and increasing your sense of satisfaction.
Acquire specific communication tools that will improve your effectiveness as a manager and as a leader.
“The Star Profile”
Star Profiles capture the heart of successful supervisor – employee relationships in as few as two sentences. They cut through the clutter to promote positive, productive and collaborative relationships.
Learn how to create Star Profiles for employees in your organization and why they will improve hiring, retention, promotion, succession planning and performance management.
“The Performance Review – Making It Work For Someone Other Than A Lawyer”
Performance appraisals have long been cross-examination favorites of plaintiff’s attorneys. By contrast, they haven’t been much good for anything else, such as … performance. However, this doesn’t have to be so. Drawing on best practices research, this program shows you what employers have done to make performance reviews good for their employees - and bad for their employees’ lawyers.
Learn steps by which, instead of making you vulnerable to claims, reviews will improve performance and employee relations.
“Jerks at Work & Speed Limit 55”
Every organization can create a work environment centered on dignity, respect and professionalism, one that prevents harassment while improving morale and performance. Adopting “Speed Limit 55” will not only prevent claims, it will create conditions where all employees feel safe, secure, respected and valued, and hence able to contribute the best of their abilities to your organization’s success.
Acquire a set of tools, steps, and sample policy language that will avoid the three workplace surprises and create a jerk-free zone in your workplace.
“Why Executives Hate HR – and What HR Can Do About It”
The relationship between HR and the C-Suite often goes sideways. Yet mistrust and antagonism can be replaced by cooperation and respect. Drawing on best practices research, this program shows how HR can move from “compliance cop” to “compliance coach”, and how it can combine legal compliance, claim prevention and human capital ROI to form a winning strategic partnership with management.
Develop an approach to interaction by which HR moves from tolerated compliance officer to management’s trusted coach, advisor and partner.
“Soft Skills Save Hard Costs”
When managers and supervisors fail to communicate effectively with their employees, the cost often extends beyond lost productivity. The failure also causes legal and labor trouble. This program equips managers and supervisors with the communication tools necessary to prevent such trouble – but without sacrificing performance, accountability or adaptability to change.
Develop communication skills that will enable you to maintain high expectations without incurring labor or other workforce trouble.
“Neither Fight Nor Flight – Constructive Conflict Resolution”
Growth is often dependent upon conflict. Yet conflict can quickly become destructive and cause lasting damage. This program shows how to handle disagreement in ways that promote trust, understanding and constructive resolution of differences. Subjects include effective listening skills, confronting the “elephant in the room,” developing greater self-awareness, mediating conflicts of others, the difference between a healing and a “but” apology, and responding to verbal attacks with “Aikido” versus “Karate.”
Learn how to turn disagreement and conflict away from destructiveness and toward interpersonal and organizational growth.
“Navigating The Workplace Claim System”
What really happens when a disgruntled employee decides to take legal action against an employer? What paths do claims take – state/federal, agency/court, attorney representation/pro se, and why? How are they typically investigated, negotiated, mediated, arbitrated, litigated, adjudicated and resolved? In addition to providing a primer on claim evolution, this program provides insights into HR’s four key roles in the process: Prevention, Valuation, Response and Management.
Learn the various ways claims get generated and resolved, and what you can best do to help your employer in the process.
“Disconnect Your Stupid Switch”
Combining humor with substance, this program identifies the Big Five “stupid switches,” which get flicked on whenever we’re led astray by our “gut feelings” in hiring, promotions, and personnel problems.
Learn the Big Five stupid switches and how to disconnect them.
Follow Jathan on Twitter @jathanjanove.
Experience
Before shifting from “fire fighting” to “fire prevention,” Jathan litigated workplace disputes for 25 years. Before moving to Portland, OR, he established an employment law boutique firm, Janove Baar & Associates, in Salt Lake City, Utah, which defended employers in harassment, discrimination, retaliation, wage/hour and whistleblower claims.
Over the years, Jathan tried lawsuits, argued motions and appeals, took depositions, and mediated and arbitrated cases from Oregon to New York. His current work involves organizational leadership, management training, claim prevention and early claim resolution. Representative examples of experience include:
- Conducting workshops and webinars to help an international corporation create and implement “Star Profiles” for every job position.
- Helping a corporation make “The 8 Deadly Sins of Mismanagement & 8 Leadership Virtues” the center of its leadership development program.
- Conducting a workshop for the HR team of a multi-state corporation on the subjects of: (a) internal investigations; (b) early claim detection and prevention; (c) claim response; and (d) partnering effectively with management to prevent claims and improve performance.
- Using the “Speed Limit 55” program as court-approved trainer for a large fire department in the aftermath of multi-party, multi-year sex harassment and discrimination lawsuit.
- Averting a class action, pattern and practice EEOC lawsuit against a large employer based on “English only” rules.
- Coaching a top-level executive on how to overcome an “Emperor Without Clothes” problem.
- Conducting an investigation of a top government official who was the subject of a complaint of harassment and retaliation.
Oregon
Idaho
New York
Utah
Washington
U.S. District Court, Districts of Oregon, Utah, Idaho and Wyoming
U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth and Tenth Circuits
Education and Honors
- Phi Beta Kappa
- Gold Medal winner, Independent Publisher Book Awards, Book Expo America May, 2009 - The Star Profile: A Management Tool to Unleash Employee Potential, (Davies-Black Publishing 2008)
- Library Journal recommended selection: Managing to Stay Out of Court: How to Avoid the 8 Deadly Sins of Mismanagement (SHRM and Berrett-Koehler Publishers 2005) - “an extraordinarily useful book that will benefit managers and workers.”
- Employment Lawyer of the Year, Utah State Bar (2005)
- Citizen Lawyer of the Year, J. Reuben Clark Law Society, Salt Lake Chapter (2006)
- Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, (since 2002, Utah then Oregon)
- Best Lawyers in America (since 2003, Utah then Oregon)
- Mountain States Super Lawyers (2007)
- Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America
- SHRM, Preferred Speaker List
- Martindale-Hubbell AV Rating
Professional Activities
- National Speakers Association (NSA) (professional member)
- American Society of Training & Development (ASTD)
- Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
- Editor, Oregon HR Specialist
- Management Labor & Employment Roundtable (MLER)
- Frequent columnist for HR Magazine
- 2012 SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition - "The Performance Review - Make it Work for Employers, Not Lawyers" - Atlanta - June 26, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins Workplace Strategies - "The 8 Deadly Sins of Management & 8 Leadership Virtues" - Phoenix - May 9, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins - "The Three Keys To Accountability" - Raleigh, NC - May 2, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins - "The 8 Deadly Sins of Management & 8 Leadership Virtues" - Marion County, Salem, OR - April 10, 2012
- Portland General Electric - "The 8 Deadly Sins of Management & 8 Leadership Virtues" - Wilsonville - April 4, 2012
- Labor and Employment Advanced Practices Symposium - "Performance Review - Making it Work for Employers, not Lawyers" - Las Vegas - March 22, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins - "The Three Keys To Accountability" - Portland, OR - March 20, 2012
- Portland General Electric - "The 8 Deadly Sins of Mismanagement & 8 Leadership Virtues" - Wilsonville - March 15, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins Employment Law Seminar - "Three Keys to Accountability" - Las Vegas - March 9, 2012
- Ogletree Deakins Employment Law Conference - "The Star Profile" - Greenville - February 28, 2012
- Executive Networks - "The Star Profile" - Teleconference - February 21, 2012
- 1-800-CONTACTS - "The 8 Deadly Sins of Mismanagement & 8 Leadership Virtues" - Draper - February 14, 2012
- Neutron Interactive - "Speed Limit 55" - Salt Lake City - February 13, 2012
- Williamette Valley Higher Education Human Resources (WVHEHR) - "The Star Profile" - Portland - February 3, 2012
- Colliers International - "Speed Limit 55" - New York City - January 24, 2012
In The News
- October 2011 - HR Magazine - "Economic Analysis of the Law"
- August 2011 - HR Magazine - "Become a Compliance Coach"
- June 2011 - HR Magazine - "The Performance Review - Good For Anything?"
- July 2010 - HR Magazine - "Before You Switch Horses"
- July 2009 - HR Magazine - "A Story Is Worth A Thousand Lectures"
- May 2009 - SHRM website - "Downsize with Dignity"
- June 2008 - HR Magazine - "Can’t Beat ‘Em, So Join ‘Em"
- April 2008 - Washington Healthcare News - "Sexual Harassment: Don’t Be Surprised by the Three Big Surprises"
- 2008 - Davies-Black Publishing - "The Star Profile: A Management Tool to Unleash Employee Potential"
- July 2007 - Oregon Business Magazine - "Hope for the Best; Document for the Worst"
- May 2007 - HR Magazine - "Jerks at Work"
- October 2006 - HR Magazine - "Retaliation Nation"
- August 2006 - HR Magazine - "Turning Right in a Left-Brain World - Creating a Star Profile"
- March 2006 - HR Magazine - "A ‘Sorry’ Strategy"
- 2006 - SHRM - "HR Magazine’s Guide To Managing People"
