Every day, managers make decisions that shape how their teams feel, work and talk about their organization. Most of these decisions aren’t huge. They aren’t “headline moments.” They’re things like:

- choosing who attends a meeting

- assigning work

- giving feedback

- responding to a team member who has "real life" affecting their work

But those "small" decisions can ripple far beyond the moment - shaping trust, engagement, performance, turnover and sometimes, yes, legal risk.

Having been a lawyer (in addition to HR), I’ve seen how decisions made in the moment can sometimes end up in court. Recently, I've been covering the lawsuit against the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) brought by a former employee alleging discrimination and retaliation at work. There's been a lot to cover, including the trial finally happening last week, ending in an $11.5 million jury verdict against SHRM and a wave of national media attention. (For those interested, the case is Mohamed v. SHRM, 1:22-cv-01625 (D. Colo.), and I break down the backstory, and lessons for managers and HR, in this video.)

Thankfully, most employers will never face that level of exposure. But it does highlight the impact of individual decisions at work - the kinds I talk about in this week's video. They can show up in Glassdoor reviews, in someone’s performance that day, in whether they stay or leave, and even in whether they refer others - all ripple effects of a single decision.

In my upcoming book, The Manager Method, I talk a lot about the power of a simple framework: Pause-Consider-Act. Before you decide anything that affects someone’s job - even something that feels minor - these three steps protect you, your team and your organization.

In this week's video and below, I walk through the three groups every manager needs to pause and consider when making decisions, with examples from the SHRM lawsuit and from other industries, so you can see how easily things can go sideways (and how to help them stay on track).

1. Consider the Individual Employee

Before you make a decision, ask yourself: “How will the person receiving this interpret it?”

It sounds obvious, but when we’re moving fast, this is the step many managers skip. 

SHRM Case Example: “You don’t need to attend - and if you do, don’t speak.”

In the SHRM lawsuit, the plaintiff shared that her manager told her she didn’t need to attend a recurring team meeting. And if she did attend, she could just listen.

Now, maybe the intention was to reduce pressure or limit unnecessary time spent in meetings. But without context, the message reads as exclusion. It makes most people think:

- Am I being pushed out?

- Do they not value my input?

- Why me?

This example was cited by the judge in his order sending it to trial. And this type of decision - and lack of communication - isn't unique to SHRM.

Example from Healthcare:

A hospital manager tells a nurse, “Don’t worry about the morning huddle anymore - just focus on charting.”
The manager means well, thinking it would reduce stress on the nurse's busy schedule. But she doesn't explain that or ask the nurse for her thoughts. So the nurse interprets it as:

- I’m not trusted to communicate in front of the team.

- My input must not matter.

- They're setting me up to fail.

How does this nurse then show up for patients and their families? Do they bring extra "care" to that patient care? Or do the bare minimum, since (without context or a conversation) they don't think their own leader cares about them? 

Example from Retail:

A store manager stopped copying a sales associate on merchandising reports, thinking, “I need them on the team and they already have so much on their plate. They don't need one more email - I’ll just share any updates when we talk.” To the associate, it felt like: “Everyone gets the information except me.” Soon after, that much-needed associate found another job.

Takeaway:

Even simple decisions impact how an employee feels about belonging, trust and fairness. If you don’t want that feeling to be negative, give context and have a conversation.

2. Consider the Rest of the Team

You’re never leading in a vacuum. Every choice you make about one person is observed by others - in real time. Often that's people thinking that someone else is being treated better than them. And sometimes it's seeing someone treated worse.

SHRM Case Example: A teammate spoke up - loudly and repeatedly

In this case, a colleague observed what she believed was a pattern of differential treatment, where she felt that their manager was treating her more favorably than the plaintiff. She flagged her concerns to leaders, to HR and eventually wrote a sworn declaration that played a significant part in the lawsuit. She even drove across the country in December to testify on behalf of the plaintiff, someone she wasn’t particularly close to at work - she said she spoke up simply because it was the right thing to do.

Ultimately, that colleague likely played a meaningful role in how the jury decided whether SHRM was liable, and what to award. This wasn’t just one person feeling mistreated. It was someone openly saying, “I see what’s happening, and it doesn’t feel right to me.”

Example from Tech:

A software engineering lead gives the same high-visibility project opportunities to the same two team members repeatedly. The intention is efficiency - “They’re the fastest.” But the rest of the team sees it as favoritism. Soon:

- One person asks to transfer teams

- Another decides not to refer a (very qualified) friend of theirs for an open role

- A third writes a scathing engagement-survey comment that reaches the executive team

The fallout doesn't always come from the decision itself - it can come from how the team perceives the pattern.

Example from Hospitality:

A restaurant supervisor always grants schedule swaps for one server (their personal friend, who they often vacation with) but denies others. The team notices. Then:

- Two servers quit

- New hires are told that “management has favorites”

- Guest satisfaction scores drop because staff complain to each other about it while serving tables

Again, perception drove the real damage.

Takeaway:

Your team is always paying attention. If something would feel unfair from their vantage point - even unintentionally - that’s a signal to pause and reconsider.

3. Consider How It Looks to an Outsider

This is the step managers often forget. But it matters — a lot.

Ask yourself: “If someone with zero context saw this email, this tone, this decision... would it make sense?”

SHRM Case Example: A jury with no insider knowledge made a very big call.

The SHRM case went to trial. Nine jurors, likely with no background in HR, SHRM, instructional design or workplace context, reviewed:

- testimony confirming that the world’s largest HR organization assigned someone with no experience investigating discrimination claims to handle the investigation.

- emails revealing that senior leaders asked the investigator to help the plaintiff's manager write communications to her while also conducting the investigation.

- transcripts of the manager saying she felt “bullied” when accused of discrimination

It’s safe to say the jury didn’t view these facts favorably. Consistency and fairness matter, especially when outsiders won’t automatically give you the benefit of the doubt.

Example from Finance:

A financial-services manager documents performance concerns only after an employee files an internal complaint. Even though the performance concerns are legitimate, the timing makes it look retaliatory.

From the outside, it felt like: “You complained, now you’re punished.”

At the urging of the court-appointed mediator who billed $750 an hour, the organization agreed to settle.

Example from a Nonprofit:

A nonprofit was interviewing for a development role and asked one candidate to complete five rounds of interviews and present a 90-day strategy proposal. The hiring manager planned to move forward with them, but at the last minute, the Executive Director insisted the manager interview - and ultimately hire - a referral from a board member. The Executive Director meant to follow up with the original candidate, but felt so frustrated about the situation that they didn't know what to tell the candidate... and never reached out.

That candidate later shared the experience in a Glassdoor review that picked up 27 likes, along with a LinkedIn post comparing their candidate experience to the nonprofit’s stated mission - a post that went viral. The issue wasn’t (just) the lengthy process, but the lack of consideration and closure. The organization tried to apologize after the fact, but commenters were already saying they wouldn’t donate again - all stemming from decisions made during a search for a fundraising role.

Takeaway:

If an outsider wouldn’t understand your reasoning, it’s worth slowing down to consider or communicate differently.

Bringing It All Together: Pause-Consider-Act

You don’t always have hours to make better decisions. And you don't need them. You just need a moment - truly a pause - before you act.

Ask yourself:

1. How will the person receiving this interpret it?

If you don’t know, ask a question.

2. How will the rest of the team interpret it?

If it could feel unfair, rethink the approach.

3. How would this look to someone with no background or context?

If the answer is “not great,” adjust before you act.

When managers take these three considerations seriously, they avoid misunderstandings, resentment, favoritism and all the other issues that drag down performance and push good people out the door.

When you instead pause to consider and act, you create an environment where you can lead, support your team and make decisions you feel confident about - both today and years from now.

Want more tools like this?

If this formula resonates with you and you want to go deeper, you can pre-order my book, The Manager Method, where I break down Pause-Consider-Act and show you how to bring it to life in real conversations, decisions and team dynamics.

If you want something you can start right now:

- Manager 101 is available for individual managers - you can grab it now, or explore Manager 201 and Employee Success.

- Our Leadership Platform is for organizations that want to train a group, with toolkits, diagnostics, courses and an optional kickoff session where I walk your managers through Pause-Consider-Act and how to apply it consistently - you can schedule a call to explore how to bring this to your organization in 2026 (or secure it now with remaining 2025 budget). 

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