Manager Method

  • Home
  • Manager Method
Website Contact the school

Manager Method Welcome to Manager Method! Your go-to for practical tips and real-world advice on managing teams.

Sign up for our emails to get weekly insights that make your leadership journey easier and help you lead with confidence and impact.

10/10/2026

When the world’s largest HR organization loses an HR lawsuit…

SHRM put out a statement before the jury verdict has even been published online.

This is a different case from the $11.5 million race discrimination verdict they lost last year (that SHRM is currently appealing).

This is about service dogs and ADA accommodations - and plenty of lessons for HR, employees and applicants.

Stay tuned for the breakdown - and also the full verdict.

Case cite: Torres v SHRM, No. 1:25-cv-02360 (ED Va.).

08/10/2026

SHRM Trial Update - Day 3

If you know the background - skip to the 1:02 mark.

Torres v. SHRM, No. 1:25-cv-02360 (ED Va)

07/10/2026

“Don’t just bring me problems, bring me solutions.”

If you’ve said this as a manager, what do your team members hear?

This video gives a perspective you might not have realized - and a way to say what you mean, in a way that’s actually heard.

If you're in need of practical tips as a manager - you can get mine every week. You'll get my years of employment law, HR and management, in a way you can use today: https://www.managermethod.com/newsletter

06/10/2026

SHRM’s trial is about service dogs - but it has lessons for everyone at work about how emails can read.

I’ll be curious how the jury reads this as the ADA trial starts this morning in federal court - and the rest of the evidence coming into trial.

Case cite: Torres v. SHRM, No. 1:25-cv-02360 (ED Va).

05/10/2026

“What if an employee is allergic to another colleague’s dog at work?”

This is a common question when it comes to service dogs as accommodations. And there are often things that can be done to support both - it takes having open conversations and approaching from “what can do we do?”

I also explain a situation where a court found that a dog couldn’t come to work due to undue hardship - this case (Maubach v. City of Fairfax, No. 1:17-cv-921 (ED Va.) was cited by SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, in its ADA lawsuit going to trial October 6.

But the plaintiff pointed out differences in the two cases - and that in the SHRM case, where dog was a trained service animal, not an emotional support animal, and they weren’t working in the enclosed space like the one in the case cited by SHRM.

We’ll see how it plays out in court - this one has lessons for every organization, and applicants and employees, too.

02/10/2026

Disclosing a disability in the interview process…

Why it’s such a struggle for jobseekers - and a free resource I recommend (no affiliation, but have used them for years) - AskJAN.org.

Because a first step on the employer side can be understanding how terrifying it can be for that candidate or team member on the other side - and what you can do to put them at ease.

01/10/2026

SHRM is going to trial next week, in another case with lessons for all employers - and employees, too.

On Tuesday, October 6th, SHRM - the Society for Human Resource Management - is scheduled to start an ADA trial in federal court to argue a diabetic alert dog wasn’t a necessary accommodation for an office job.

They offered her the job. She accepted and said she needed her service dog. After nearly six weeks of back and forth, the offer was gone.

Here’s a breakdown, plus lessons to take away, including the question every HR professional should ask your managers this week.

Timestamps:
0:05 Case background and key updates
2:14 Lessons for other organizations
2:50 If you’re in HR: a question to ask your managers

Cases: Torres v. Society for Human Resource Management, No. 1:2025cv02360 (E.D. Va., trial Oct 6) and Mohamed v. SHRM 0/2026cv01142 (10th circuit, $11.5M verdict Dec 2025, on appeal from D. Colo).

We promote our best performers into management.Then we hand them... nothing. And that doesn’t tend to work out like we’d...
30/09/2026

We promote our best performers into management.

Then we hand them... nothing. And that doesn’t tend to work out like we’d hoped. But specifically, what’s the impact?

We asked 301 organizations how they promote, support and measure their managers. The results? Most are winging it. And we confirmed - that’s not working.

Swipe for what we found and 3 ways to start fixing it.

Get the full report and our webinar replay where we broke it all down here: https://www.managermethod.com/2026-state-of-management-replay

29/09/2026

“Where do we legally HAVE to train our managers?”

That’s a question that gets asked - but as I explain in this video, it cost one employer dearly.

And it also doesn’t reflect reality - managers aren’t going to just get complaints where state law requires training. Training managers on what they truly need to know - from hiring through end of employment - not only helps the organization stay out of trouble, but is what can make your organization hit the goals you’ve set… and create a lasting impact on your team members’ careers and lives.

Case: Graham v Phillips Feed Service, Inc., No 4:20-CV-20 ND Ohio

manager

28/09/2026

“Why do we need to train about a policy? Isn’t their signature enough?”

This is a question that has two answers - a legal one and a practical one.

The legal case I mention in the video is Graham v Phillips Feed Service, Inc. No. 4:20-CCC-00020 (ND Ohio) - the court held that the company’s lack of training (aside from California) on their anti-harassment policy arguably rendered the policy “ineffective.” An important one for HR to know.

But practically, people don’t always read - or take time to consider - what they sign. And when it comes to things like managers knowing what to do when someone brings them a complaint, you want to make sure - not just to avoid getting in trouble, but because that person bringing a complaint is a team member who’s likely terrified to do it.

This is one of those lessons that’s much better learned from a social media video than a real life experience. I’ve seen it both ways - and why giving managers training on the topics they need to know is so critical.

Address


93101–93103, 93105–93111, 93116–93118, 93120–93121, 93130, 93140, 93150,

Website

, ,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Manager Method posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The School

Send a message to Manager Method:

Shortcuts

  • Want your school to be the top-listed school/college?

Share