Effortless HR
The Importance of Employee Management
A 2006 study conducted by Cornell University associate professor Christopher Collins, Ph.D., in effect showed that small businesses could grow if they are more effective in managing their employees. As a small business owner and a Human Resource Generalist, I agree completely. That is one of the reasons I have been so actively supportive of strong employee management programs for small businesses, and why I developed EffortlessHR.
Time to vote – Bloggers Choice Awards 2009
Hey guys and gals.. I usually don’t ask for anything from you, but if you enjoy this blog, please vote for us in the Blogger’s Choice Awards!
What is the “State” of your Employee Handbook?
With the New Year approaching and upcoming changes to laws regarding the Family Medical Leave Act, Military Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), it’s timely to review your handbook to make certain that it is current.
Why an employee handbook?
Final Rules – Newborns’ and Mothers’ Health Protection Act
Effective December 19, 2008, the final rules on complying with the Newborns’ and Mothers’ Health Protection Act of 1996 take effect.
The law provides protection on how long mothers and their newborn infants may stay in the hospital following childbirth. Group health plans and health issuers may not restrict benefits for a hospital stay following childbirth to less than 48 hours (96 hours following a cesarean section).
Small Business Economic Bailout Plan
No, we don’t have $700 Billion earmarked for small businesses. We can’t go hand out to our legislatures for financial assistance. We don’t make the 6:00 pm news as a “business in trouble”. We are small businesses who have to provide our own bailout.
How do we do this? We look at ways to support one another and our customers and our employees. We check our budgets, roll up our sleeves and get down to work.
1. Check Budgets
Have I Got a Deal for You… — Business Ethics and Conduct
A few years ago the news was all about Enron and how the “books were cooked”. Today we are going through an economic downturn with a major issue in sub-funded home loans. Many home owners will not only lose their homes, but will be faced with financial issues for years to come. In addition, many mortgage companies have folded and employees have lost their positions and it has gone on to affect banks and financial institutions.
November is National Flu Awareness Month
Flu is a serious contagious disease. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 200,000 people are hospitalized for flu complications each year, 20,000 of these are children under 5, and 36,000 people die from flu annually.
What can employers do to reduce health care costs and protect employees from contacting the flu?
Read More…
From Employed to Engaged
Mary Weather is one of your key employees. The customers ask for her by name and she is one of your best team leaders. Today she comes into your office and tells you that she has accepted an exciting opportunity. You are taken aback. What happened, you ask yourself? Of course, you’ll have an exit interview, but it’s too late to save Mary,
Turnover is costly:
- At least one and a half times an entry level employee’s salary – much higher for management level staff.
- Affects other employees – someone will have extra work until the new person is hired
- Delays the company in meeting its goals
- Upsetting for the customers – they don’t like to “train” new people
Commissions should produce the right sales
Oftentimes, employers build compensation plans to incent their employees to sell their product or service to obtain better sales results. What they often omit is ensuring that there is a balance between new sales and retention, both of which we will discuss. If you have a variety of products/services, and offer an incentive for a designated dollar amount of sales, then your salesperson can sell any level of product as long as they get to or exceed that designated dollar amount.
It is a more profitable system to determine, in advance, what is your highest margined product/service and be sure that there is enough goal to ensure that the salesperson focuses the right amount of attention on that segment. An example would be:
Product A: 55% gross profit
Product B: 45% gross profit
Product C: 35% gross profit
If Product C is “easier” to sell and your salesperson only has to reach that dollar goal, they will naturally lean towards selling Product C. However, if they have to have a minimum dollar sales of Product A, they will be encouraged to sell more of this product in order to qualify for their commission.
Along with this, it is critical that retention be built in whenever possible. This could be accomplished by paying the salesperson a residual incentive for retaining clients they brought in. This could also be managed by profitability goals. This would show that the company’s net profitability for this salesperson’s portfolio is growing. It doesn’t benefit a company to have a “super” salesperson who doesn’t retain clients because sales are probably their major focus; and therefore the new sales only marginally cover lost business.
Net/net, the company loses money in this scenario because they are paying a salesperson when the net profitability doesn’t increase enough to even cover the commission. The average cost to replace an existing client with a new one is 3 times the cost of retaining one!
Finally, it’s okay and even advisable to have qualifiers in your plan. Your sales staff have to adhere to things like representing the company’s vision and mission. They have to be a team player, closing a sale generally involves working with others in the company. If you have someone that loves to go out and bring in the business but can’t work well with those that actually have to get the backshop part of the process done, the system breaks down. You may think of other qualifiers that will ensure that you have an all around star employee, internally and externally.
Commission sales can propel your company forward, hopefully this will help you hire the right sales people to ensure the overall success for them and for you.
Political Discussions in the Workplace – Danger Zone
Discussions regarding the Presidential Campaigns seem impossible to avoid. The media is bombarding us with information as this election year there are many “firsts” in our history. Freedom of speech is our right – but is it right to discuss politics in the workplace?
Politics, personal finances and religion are topics that are best avoided in the workplace. You cannot assume that because a person may share your views on sports, entertainment, books, etc., that they also share your political views. If you are unsure of your colleague’s views, it is best to avoid political discussion
Dealing with Reality in an Economic Downturn
In my July company newsletter, the Employer’s Advantage, I highlighted stress and how to deal with it in the workplace. There can’t be anything more stressful in today’s marketplace than coping with an economic downturn. Gas prices are sky high, which impacts the cost of goods and services in all industries; large corporations are laying off workers; the housing market is struggling to rebound; and employees are wondering what will happen next.
Human Resource or Personnel departments are dealing with management teams planning on how to be more cost effective and looking at budgets to determine where they can trim costs. Employees are looking at how to balance their home budgets against rising costs in all commodities, while dealing with organizations who are not in a position to give increases to accommodate the cost of living increases.
All of this creates STRESS. What is the answer? There is no quick fix but there are ways companies can assist employees looking at monetary crisis.
-
Talk to your insurance broker and ask if they have any programs you can present in-house to your employees to discuss:
-
- Wellness and health cost saving techniques
- Financial planning
- Budget preparation
- Access to financial assistance
-
-
Communicate with your employees to make sure they are comfortable and aware of what is going on. It stops rumors and makes the employee feel a part of the process.
-
Survey your clients to let them know you care and you are looking to be a resource to them during the rough times.
-
Look at your budget and see where you can effectively save time and money, without compromising quality and service.
One area that might be beneficial is looking at your HR programs. The last thing you need or want is stress over a possible lawsuit. Make sure you are in compliance where needed and if you don’t know for sure, get someone with experience to do an audit to make sure you are doing all you should be doing. If you have an Employee Manual, make sure you are following your own policies. If you don’t have a Manual, look into putting one in place.
Finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help or guidance. Stress will continue to be there – you just need to learn to manage it.
Privacy Compliance – Disclosing Health Information Has its Consequences
Some businesses are unsure how to handle privacy compliance in regards to HIPAA regulations.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 has created more work for businesses in that they have to spend endless hours researching HIPAA regulations, training employees, rewriting contracts, internal documents, patient forms and policy and procedure manuals. If office administrators, practice managers or physicians are unsure how to handle privacy compliance, then there could be consequences which can include hefty fines.
Checking and Giving References – Both Sides of the Coin
Many HR professionals and training/business coaches tell their clients that they need to check references on all new hires. The problem is that due to the fear of lawsuits, companies are told they should be cautious in giving references. Because of these two diverse thoughts, we are caught in a on-going circle of debate – to reference or not to reference.
Providing inaccurate or inappropriate information or asking inappropriate questions may provide grounds for discrimination, defamation, or invasion of privacy lawsuits. Employers may not ask about or give out information about any of the issues protected by state or federal law. These issues include age, race, religion, national origin, or disability. Also, employers may not give false statements that damage a former employee’s reputation; nor may they provide any embarrassing personal facts.
However, it is important that employers understand they have an obligation to provide information about harmful tendencies and failure to provide that type of information can lead to negligent hiring issues by the new company and lead to claims of misrepresentation.
Many companies skirt the issue by only providing “Name, Rank, and Serial Number”, which is only a verification of title, date of hire and salary or earnings. This approach cannot help the company seeking information and may in fact harm the chances of good employees finding a good job. If the employee cannot find a job, they may file for unemployment, which may affect the old company and add to their unemployment taxes.
What is the answer? Employers can limit their liability and still provide useful information by:
- Develop and follow a written policy on reference checking that specifies who may give references, what information may and may not be given, to whom may information be given.
- Limit the number of people in your organization who may give references and make sure they are trained in how to give information to others.
- Always make sure you have the written consent of the former employee to provide a reference, and if possible indicate that the reference could be based on past performance reviews.
- Ask for a written release of liability from the employee (usually provided through the new company) before a reference is given.
- Give only truthful, job-related information based on your documented facts.
- Do not give references with prejudices or malice and never, ever, make statements about the character of an employee.
- Make sure the person you are giving the reference to is authorized to receive it and has a legitimate need for it.
- Train those who give and receive reference on how to do it legally and correctly.
- Document all reference requests and what information you provided.
Finally, when in doubt, check with your state to see if you are immune to civil liability for good-faith references and if necessary, ask legal counsel for guidance. This would be especially true if there are issues that may seem to be “delicate”. No matter what side of the coin you are on, do your due diligence and check and give references when needed.
ERISA 401(k) Violations Can Include Both Civil and Criminal Penalties
According to the US Department of Labor, The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a federal law that sets minimum standards for retirement and health benefit plans in the private industry. ERISA requires that those who establish plans must meet certain minimum standards. ERISA requirements provide that those individuals who manage plans must meet certain standards of conduct. The law also contains detailed provisions for reporting to the government and disclosure to participants. There also are provisions aimed at assuring plan funds are protected and that participants who qualify receive their benefits.
The Past, Present and Future Workforce
As a “seasoned” Human Resource generalist, it is interesting to listen to all the pundits and professionals talk about the generational differences in the workforce. That is not to belittle the fact that there are generational differences, but I believe most of those differences could be captured and utilized effectively if organizations would look to the past and the present to determine how they will get to the future.
According to business surveys, there are currently 4 generations in the workplace. Those born before 1945 (called Veterans), those born between 1945 and mid-1960 (called Boomers), those born between 1965 and 1980 (known as Gen Xers), and those born after 1980 (either Nexters or Gen Yers). This creates a minimum age span difference of at least 35 years.
This may not seem to be significant by itself, but I remember when I turned 21, I thought 35 was ancient. Now that I am a part of the seasoned generation (also known as the middle of the road between the Veterans and Boomers), 35 is a youngster. What I believe business owners need to understand is how the past that employees and clients bring to the marketplace influences the present and which in turn will influence the future.
The life span of the average individual is much longer today than it was 100 years ago. Moreover, some experts say it is not beyond the realm of possibility that the life span over the next 50 years will increase from the current 75 or 80 years to 100 to 120 years. What does this mean to the workforce of the future? Most likely, it means that individuals will be extending their work years, so the workforce may include not just the 4 generations of today, but 5 generations working together.
If, we as business owners, can prepare our businesses and our staff for the changes in the workplace, the impact on our revenues, our hiring, and our client retention will be better understood. I believe we get to this understanding by remembering where we came from.
The Past
The Veteran generation came out of the depression era and a world war. It was a time when radios ruled the airwaves, telephones were party-lines that you shared with your neighbors, where reading was the norm, and communication was through writing letters. In an office, typewriters were the predominate office equipment and there were no copiers, you made carbon copies when you typed a document. Telephones where managed through the cord systems and most jobs were held by men. Few women worked and usually only before they married. Self-sufficiency was the norm as you learned to make due with what you had. I grew up “poor” but I didn’t know it because everyone else was in the same boat.
The war (WWII) brought the first major changes to the economy and to the workforce. With the men off fighting the war, women became a predominate feature of the workplace. They found they could do the same jobs as the men they replaced and still be a wife, mother, sister, etc. They were the start of the multitasking need in the workforce. WWII and its aftermath brought other changes, such as television, time saving appliances like refrigerators, electric stoves and ovens, washing machines and dryers, mixers, etc. Why were these important? They gave the homemaker free time and with that time came the need to do something – like work. I asked my Mother, on New Year’s Eve 1999, “What was the most important invention of the 20 Century?” I thought the answer would be the computer, microwave, or air travel. Her answer surprised me, as she believed it was the invention of the electric washer and dryer. Laundry day used to be an all day chore with ironing and hand washing. The electric washer and dryer freed up time for the busy homemaker to pursue other avenues, such as working outside the home. Thus the Boomer generation was born.
The Boomers came from a more affluent time, when technology was starting to blossom and that technology brought more time for work and more time for leisure. Vacations, education, and volunteering were a part of the landscape, where they were only for the rich and famous before. This time also brought unrest. Civil rights, politics, assassinations, and riots were also part of the scene. Changes in music – from the Andrews Sisters and Glenn Miller to Elvis made it difficult for parents and children to communicate. Flower Power was in – much to the dismay of many parents. Reading was still important, but television and movies were there to bring the stories to life. Writing letters was still important to the communication process, however.
In the workplace, the Boomers brought technology to a high place – electric typewriters made life much easier, copiers provided instant renditions of documents without the pain of multiple carbon copies. The old cord switchboards were replaced with PBX systems and at the outer fringes was the unknown computer.
From about 1965 to 1980 saw the biggest technological changes since the Industrial Revolution. These changes are still being felt today. Not only did we set foot on the Moon, we started to look at our quality of life – both in the home and in the office. It was the start of the “Instant” or “Now” generation. We had instant coffee, instant juice, instant news.
The era from 1980 to the new Century brought huge changes – both in our home and work lives. At home, we saw both parents working so the youngsters became self-sufficient and in some cases, selfish. Fast food and fast music became a part of their generation. The technological advances included cell phones, video recorders, television 24 hours a day and most important, the immergence of the computer as a staple in our lives and the introduction to the Internet.
Reading was not as important, as we became a more visual society with block-buster movies and made for TV dramas. Moreover, the art of writing became lost with the use of text messaging and email and Internet websites. This generation of workers saw more family disharmony, less family togetherness and thus, in my estimation, became more self-centered. They wanted to know what was in it for them. They also wanted more “free” time to do what they wanted to do while not at work. Work was not as important to them as having the freedom to take a trip when they wanted. They saw companies lay-off and let go their long-term employees without any obvious concern so they decided they wouldn’t care either.
In the workplace, technology also changed the landscape. Now, typewriters are outdated and computers sit on every desk. Even in the manufacturing environment, computer kiosks are available to check policies, benefits, and other company information. Voice mail and automated telephone systems now rule and even sales clerks in department stores are now Service Centers where the customer goes to get help instead of the sales clerks/representatives seeking the client out to help them.
The Present
All of these generations bring us to the here and now – the Present. How we interact with one another, both from a family perspective and from a work perspective, are part of what generation we are coming from. Veterans and Boomers are more inclined to tell stories and listen carefully. GenXers and Yers are more self-centered and independent. One generation wants to tell the other generation how to do something (like it use to be done in the past) and the new generation doesn’t want to take advantage of the past history – they want to do it themselves.
The biggest problem is that while the new generation will probably find their way to get it done, and will get it done beautifully, if they would just take time to listen to the older generation they might get it done more timely and efficiently.
The present workplace is full of technological advances. These advances have allowed workplaces to become more flexible and to even provide opportunities for working from home (in some cases). The Internet has changed our approach to sales and marketing as more and more people use the Internet for their personal shopping mall. It has also brought frustration in that you can find it difficult to speak to a real person as you keep pushing numbers to try to get customer satisfaction.
Because of the generational differences in the home and workplace, there doesn’t seem to be as much loyalty as there was during the Veterans and Boomers era. Employment during those years was for life, while the average time with a company today is anywhere from three to 5 years. Workers today may have as many as three different careers in their life. There is more emphasis put on the work/life balance than ever before.
The workers of today are more concerned about the environment and what they and their organization need to do to go green. While we are not in a worldwide war, we are in conflicts around the world. Both sets of parents probably still need to work, but the care of the children and the home are being shared by the parents.
The Future
The education of the youth of today, who will become tomorrow’s workforce, is in dire need of an overhaul. The reading, writing and arithmetic philosophy need to be reestablished. Text messaging a report in the office will not cut it. Technology will continue to change the environment in which we live and work. However, in order to succeed, the generations need to stop and talk to one another and to understand where they are coming from.
Business owners need to be able to identify the different skills that the generations have and to utilize them more efficiently and effectively. This will not only benefit the organization, but will help the workers get along better and thus be able to help one another adjust to the changes they encounter.
The GenXers, GenYers and the Newbies (those born after 2000 that are not yet in the workplace) have to keep in mind; someday they too will be the seasoned worker, dealing with those pesky youngsters. And, those pesky youngsters will have the opportunity to learn from the past as they deal with the present and get ready for the future.
