Author Archives: Rusty Rueff

About Rusty Rueff

Rusty Rueff, author of purposed worKING. Rusty Rueff is the former Chairman Emeritus of The GRAMMY Foundation in Los Angeles. He most recently completed the successful 16 month leadership role as Coordinating National Co-Chair for Technology for Obama (T4O) for the reelection of President Obama and ten-years of Board service and President of the Board of Trustees of the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Corporately, most recently Rueff was the Chief Executive Officer at SNOCAP, Inc. until the acquisition of the company by imeem, Inc. in April 2008. Before joining SNOCAP in 2005, he was Executive Vice President of Human Resources at Electronic Arts (EA) from 1998 until 2005. He was also with the PepsiCo companies for more than ten years, with the Pratt & Whitney division of United Technologies for two years, and in commercial radio as an on-air personality for six years. Rusty holds an M.S. in counseling and a B.A. in radio and television from Purdue University. In 2003 he was named a distinguished Purdue alumnus, and he and his wife, Patti, are the named benefactors of Purdue’s Patti and Rusty Rueff School of Visual and Performing Arts. He is a corporate director of Glassdoor.com and runcoach. He is the co-founder and Executive Committee Member of T4A.org, serves on the Founding Circle of The Centrist Project and a founding Board Member of The GRAMMY Music Education Coalition. He is also the co-author of the book Talent Force: A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business. Rusty and his wife, Patti, reside in Hillsborough, CA and Charlestown, R.I.

day 568: Pay

purposed worKING No Comments

This is the time of the year when companies are looking at salary data to see what other companies will be providing in this coming year as it relates to pay increases. The most recent data shows that the median increase this year will just under 3%, if a pay increase is given at all. In a recent survey only 45% expect that they will receive an increase this year. The past three years have seen the Great Recession causing companies to cut the pay of employees to make the numbers work and also try to keep as many people employed as possible. These reductions have employees across the country making less money than they did a few years ago, while they are performing the same or expanded job in the same company. We all know how frustrating this could/can feel. But now companies are beginning to recover and we see year over year positive results and corporate America’s balance sheets are flush with cash. So, now we will watch and see if employers will begin to restore what was taken away or continue to focus on growth of profits. Will America’s employees be first out and last back in? That is likely not going to be an equation that will work well for long. Some of us reading this are in positions where we are making these decisions for our company or our team. While God does not tell us how to specifically run our businesses, He gives us enough direction and examples that we can discern what is right and wrong. In Leviticus we read; “Show your fear of God by not taking advantage of other. I, the Lord, am your God.” As we make these decisions, or any other decision where we have to question ourselves how others are being treated, then we should reflect back to what God tells us and ensure that we are not taking any advantage of anyone else.

Reference: Leviticus 25:17