What really counts at the office

The following studies show little things really can make a big difference in the workplace.

Courtesy wins jobs

Remember the old-fashioned thank-you note? A lot of job seekers may have forgotten, suggests a recent survey of executives. While 76 percent of respondents said they consider a post-interview thank-you note of value when evaluating candidates, only 36 percent of job applicants actually follow through with this simple courtesy, according to executives polled.

The survey was developed by Accountemps, a Boston-based temporary staffing service.

Cleanliness keeps workers

Corporate America could use some cleaning up - of its workplace, that is. A study of managers and employees conducted by HLW International LLP, an architecture engineering firm, found that:

*39 percent of managers said that employee retention is adversely affected by cluttered and rundown office space;

*73 percent of employees felt their former workspace did not promote productivity;

*8 percent often complained their former work spaces were too noisy for them to concentrate on their work. found that:

(c) Copyright 1999. The Christian Science Publishing Society