5 tips for hr to survive march madness

HAVE A GAME PLANCan employees participate in contests as long as it does not inter-

fere with work duties? How about using company computers to access the games? Or would you rather employees use their

personal media devices?

PROVIDE TIMEOUTSThe games during the day present a major issue. Obviously, you don’t want employees watching games in their entirety. Consider

allowing short breaks.

ENCOURAGE TEAM SPIRITOne easy way to participate is to allow employees to decorate their work areas with their team’s colors. Consider allowing employees to dress casually on the first two full days of the tournament, as

long as they are dressed in their college’s apparel. As many employers do during Halloween, you can even have a contest for

the best display of school spirit.

ALLOW SIT OUTSA small number of employees may be so into March Madness that it makes sense to allow them to take vacation days. Communicate to employees that all time-off requests need to be submitted as soon

as possible and are subject to management discretion.

INCENTIVISE HIG H SCORESIf your company uses standard productivity measures (e.g., aver-

age speed to answer, units produced), you might try creating a goal for your workforce to meet during March Madness. If the

target is achieved, you can provide some type of reward (e.g., a party, a drawing, credit added to a PTO bank).

TO SURVIVEFIVE TIPS

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