Workplace of Choice

It is summer time once again and that means it's internship season! I was thrilled (as were my parents), given the economic climate, that someone...anyone...let alone a company in my field of choice, was willing to hire me.   Now, how to make the most of the experience?

Internships are meant to be an educational and career development experience for you, the intern. They are not supposed to only benefit the employer through cheap labor. Before I even walked in the door on my first day, I thought about what I wanted to accomplish this summer. For example, as you may have realized since this blog is posted through an HR consulting firm, I want to go into human resources and probably consulting upon graduation. My main goal for the summer is to be exposed to as many facets of Human Resources as possible. If you are doing an internship that you are not sure is in the right field for you, then try to help out with as many different projects as possible. Don't forget to keep an open mind! Maybe you wanted a finance internship but got a marketing one instead. Look out for opportunities to flex your finance skills. Opportunities do not always just fall into your lap; you have to go look for them.

Try to meet with your manager, within the first week, to discuss your goals for the internship and your short term career goals. Confirm who you'll report to and that someone is keeping an eye on your workload and projects to ensure that you do not have too much or too little to do and that there is some meat to the work. As the new intern, the company is probably excited to have some extra help and may put too much on your plate.  Knowing who your main contact is will give you someone to go to should this happen.  Throughout the internship, keep the lines of communication open with your manager. This will keep you sane and guarantee that the work that you are doing is at a higher level of competence.

Since this is an educational experience, don't be afraid to ask questions! You are not expected to know everything. As much as you may like to think that that one accounting class has made you a master accountant, you probably do not know as much as your coworkers. That is okay! Take advantage of their years of experience and learn something new.

Take ownership of a project, if possible. By taking responsibility of a whole project, from start to finish, it will show that you are mature and capable of handling the work and the associated deadlines. It is also a good test for yourself to prove that you can accomplish real work. And think of what you'll be able to write on your resume!

Sit in on as many meetings as possible. Many interns may not be pulled into more strategic meetings, but try to get into them! You will learn the process of preparing for a meeting, going to it and the follow-up.  You may even be able to share your opinion which will also show that you are a contributing team member.

Finally, think ahead! Internships open up the doors for possible fulltime positions after graduation. Even if you do not think that you are at your employer of choice or in the right position, your coworkers may be able to help you in your job search or recommend you for future internships.  Leave a good impression!

Now, will you hire me after May 2011? Please?

Do you consider employee communication a high priority? Studies show that companies with highly effective internal communication programs are more likely to provide a significant return to shareholders and are also more likely to have higher levels of employee engagement and lower employee turnover rates.

But, how do you begin?  Start at the top by assessing your senior management team - they set the tone for establishing organizational culture and cascading daily consistent messages to employees. Ask your employees what they think - do they feel communication is aligned with the mission, vision & culture of the organization?  Is it consistent?  Timely?  Facilitate focus groups to hone in on the common threads.  Once you have determined what the issues are - take a look at your budget to determine what sort of communication vehicles you can afford to implement. Depending on the timing, location and sensitivity of the message there a number of vehicles from which to choose.  The Employee Handbook, Monthly Newsletters, Town Meetings and Social Media are all commonly used.  Choose your communication channels carefully.  Think about your audience and how to best communicate with them.  We tend to turn to e-mail first, but keep in mind that this is often the least effective way to get your message across.  When possible, face to face communication tends to be the most effective because we receive an immediate reaction, are able to clarify any confusion and people tend to listen more closely.

The key to a strong employee communication strategy is planning, followed by implementation and follow-up. Taking the time to communicate with your employees will help increase employee productivity, boost employee morale and ultimately improve the bottom line.

Do employers have a pulse on what their employees are thinking or doing in the midst of this changing and unpredictable economy? Are employees staying put and excited to be rewarded for their allegiance? Maybe they've been holding on, just glad to have a job, and as the economy turns around will run to the next new opportunity.

Now is a excellent time to do an Employee Survey - conducting an Employee Survey is a great tool to get a pulse on your employees, understand employee morale and employee motivation,  but there are a few tips for making sure it's useful.

• Be prepared to do SOMETHING with the results - asking employees to go through the exercise and then doing NOTHING is guaranteed to reduce participation next time and disgruntle employees!
• Be honest about why the survey is being conducted and equally honest that, although the data will be carefully assessed, it's an unfortunate fact that not every issue will be addressed. Confirm that the company is committed to hearing employee concerns and acknowledging them even if they all can't be addressed.
• Make sure employees know that all the data is confidential - if employees think that their answers are going ‘into their files' - their responses are likely to be less than honest.
• Conduct the survey onsite or online with access at work. If a survey (or even a focus group) is held off-site, it conveys a message that ‘it's not safe to be honest or critical at work'. That message would clearly undermine any value from the results.
• Employees should either all be included or randomly selected - it's unwise to allow employees to self-select for participation. When you allow self-selection, you'll generally find that less satisfied or very satisfied employees sign up for the group. Or, your more communicative employees are more comfortable expressing their opinions in a group. Your less communicative staff is guaranteed to be unrepresented.

On a day to day basis, does everything seem to run relatively smoothly at your organization or do you feel like you're constantly putting out employee related fires?  Your answer to that question may vary based on your organization's Human Resources Strategy.  In short, your HR Strategy is your approach to how you treat your employees and will affect your strategic thinking for the business as a whole. There isn't a one-size-fits-all and your HR strategy may change as the business evolves. 

Although one organization's strategy may be vastly different from another's, in determining your HR Strategy, consider the following:

• Compensation - Where do your employee's salaries fall with respect to the marketplace?  Do you pay at the 50^th percentile, higher or lower and why? What is your philosophy on salary increases?  Does incentive pay play a significant role in compensation?  You should be able to effectively articulate to your employees your compensation philosophy, the salary guidelines and practice it on a regular basis.
• Employee Benefits - Do you offer premier benefits to your employees or just enough to stay competitive with other companies in your space?  Employee benefits may include time off, medical, dental, life insurance, disability, tuition reimbursement and other fringe benefits such as commuting reimbursement or concierge services.
• Communication - Developing a plan for employee communication is vital to employee morale and will also affect your corporate culture.  How do you want to disseminate information?  What is going to be most effective based on the company size, locations, and hours of operation?
• Training & Development - What is the value you place on training and development and at what expense?  Training can come in the form of tuition reimbursement, on-site training, on-the-job training, succession planning and many other formats.  How much money and time are you willing to spend?
• Recruiting - Developing a recruitment philosophy that supports your HR Strategy will help ensure that new employees are on the same page with your goals and objectives. The on-boarding process is another consideration you'll want to think about.
• Work Environment - What sort of workplace have you created? Highly-structured with limited flexibility?  More casual with greater freedom for employees to work as they like as long as the job gets done?  Planned time for fun to relieve stress and to show appreciation for a commitment to the business?

In short, does your HR Strategy enable your organization to hire and to keep the talent it needs to achieve the goals of the business?

Ultimately the value you place on your human resources (i.e. your employees) may dictate the success of your business, so understanding and living your strategy is essential. 

It's the end of a long, stressful year and your employees deserve a reward for all their hard work.  The holiday season reminds us that a party is a great way to show employee recognition and let employees relax and enjoy some leisure time together and with management.  Company parties take on many different forms - during the day in the conference room for pizza, after work at the boss's house, or on a Saturday night at a function hall ballroom.  Perhaps you've conducted harassment training recently so feel you've covered all the bases, but whether you're hosting a casual or more formal event, there are some additional topics you should be mindful of to ensure the company and the employees enjoy themselves in a safe and legal way.

Be sensitive to the fact that there are many religious holidays that occur at the same time, don't focus the party around any specific religion.  Also, company parties should be voluntary; employees shouldn't feel pressured to attend or discriminated against for not attending. 

Alcohol can increase the chance of negative behaviors and liability.  If you are serving alcohol, consider serving beer and wine only, distribute drink tickets or consider a cash bar to decrease the chance that someone might imbibe too much.  Note the ages of any younger employees to be sure you aren't serving minors.  Serve plenty of food and non-alcoholic beverages.  Arrange for a cab service to be available to drive anyone home who should not be driving.

Assign one or more persons to abstain from alcohol and "monitor" the party at all times.  This person can be on the lookout for someone who shouldn't drive or they can spot a potential harassment issue.  Remind employees that your anti-harassment policy is in place at all times, regardless of the time of day or the location.  Just because they are not "working" does not mean that they shouldn't remain professional during the party.  If employees are welcome to bring a guest, be aware that guests may not understand the company's policy guidelines and that employees are responsible for their guests.

January is a popular time for legal HR issues to arise coming out of the holiday party season.  But if you're aware of potential risks and assume a heightened sense of employee behaviors, everyone is sure to have a great, risk-free time!

Tell us your ideas on creating on fun, safe and legal holiday party.

 

 

Are your compensation programs ready for when the pendulum swings from an "employers' market" to an "employees' market"?  How can you best retain key talent that has helped you weather the storm?  Below are some suggestions to help your company prepare for the shifting market. 

- Take inventory: Do you know who your key performers are? Do you know what skill sets you need to retain and/or recruit for? Conduct a "Skills Inventory" to be sure you retain those employees with critical skill sets and begin recruiting for those skill sets you need to staff for. If you need to provide training to employees in order to increase skills or for career development, identify which training programs they need and consider offering them as "brown bag lunch" sessions or ½ day sessions.

- Performance Management: Giving employee feedback is free and it sends a very strong message that you value their contributions during these difficult times and want them to stick around for the better times to come. If you haven't given your employees an annual performance review, you need to do it now! You want them to know where they stand, especially when the market starts to come back. Remember, Performance Management is a two-way process, so if your Manager hasn't given you your Performance Feedback, it's perfectly acceptable to ask for it!

- Spend your bankroll wisely: While the market is showing signs of strength, many companies may not have a "pot-of-gold" to spend on employee investments. You can still make the money go a long way by making sure you spend it wisely:

• Focus on your key performers: Who is critical to retain?
• Average performers: If they're meeting "average expectations" they may not necessarily need a salary increase if they're keeping pace with the market
• Needs improvement: Take the time to work with those employees that need to improve their work. Document a Performance Improvement Plan to help them get back on track.
• If you can afford to do merit increases for your "key performers", but can't do it all now, try 6-month increments. This will send them the message that while you can't make up for lost time, you can give them smaller merit increases more often.

- Career Pathing: Be sure that employees know their next level in their career ladder. For key employees, put together a career development plan to help them get the training, skills and support they need to keep moving. An employee who is challenged may be less likely to start "shopping around."

- Set Goals: Use a cascading goal setting process to communicate the company's goals. Be sure to use a company-wide venue (all company meeting, webcast, e-mail, etc.) to share the goals.

- Open Door Policy: As the market shifts, encourage Managers and Employees to check in with each other...a simple question along the lines of "How are things going" can facilitate an honest and open conversation between an Employee and their Manager.

- Get Creative: Maybe now is the time to implement some of those programs you've been thinking about doing. New programs can send a message to employees that the Company is will to try new employee programs to retain employees.

- Communicate, communicate, communicate: Now, more than ever, is the time to communicate honestly and openly about current company business conditions. Employees only know what you share with them...prevent the company "grapevine" from growing by communicating honestly and openly with employees. This will also help build trust which is a must in creating a positive working environment.

- Say Thank You: The last 12 months have been trying times at work and home for employees and their families. A simple "Thank You" can go a long way to recognize the stress and difficult conditions all employees have endured. Consider hosting a company luncheon or ice cream sundae party whereby the Executives "serve" the employees; a personal "thank you note" to each employee from the CEO; or a small token gift (Dunkin Donuts gift card, Cafeteria gift card). Employee incentives can go a long way towards employee motivation!

How is your company preparing for the changing markets?

While many managers and supervisors stress out about giving feedback - receiving feedback can be equally as delicate a task.  Although the information on performance review forms should NEVER be a complete surprise, there are a few tips on how to receive your own performance feedback - whether it's glowing or not!

1. Be prepared.  When you're working in the thick of it, it may seem like you'll never forget the details of what's happened, but it's always a good idea to take some time before your review to go over the last year to revisit the highlights and some opportunities for improvement.  Be critical about your own performance throughout the year, but also pat yourself on the back for areas in which you excelled and grew. Preparation will allow you to avoid being ‘blindsided' by some instance that you would just as soon forget - and if you can approach any items like that proactively, you are less likely to act defensively.
2. Try to take constructive criticism as just that, constructive. While it might seem like the criticism is an attack - try to remember that it is typically a reaction to a single incident - and it's also just one perspective. If you are aware of the perception, you are more likely to be able to address it and turn it around more positively in the future. Look at constructive criticism as an opportunity for growth.  
3. Don't Argue.  Arguing, sulking, or repeating reasons why it wasn't "your fault" only portray you negatively. If you wish to disagree - it would be helpful to take a step back and put together a thoughtful response. Be sure to back up your response with facts and not feelings.
4. Accept praise, but don't gloat! A simple thank you is more humble and appealing.
5. Lastly, try to see feedback as a gift and a way to continually improve and grow professionally.  As Benjamin Franklin said: "Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning."

Why do Managers shy away from giving performance feedback, both positive and negative?  Constructive feedback is crucial to career development, employee satisfaction, employee retention and employee motivation.  Employee feedback should be given as frequently as possible; both formally through the annual performance review forms and ensuing discussions, but also informally through ongoing conversations and coaching.  Managers really lose a golden opportunity to motivate their employees if they forget to praise an employee on doing a great job, or ineffectively praise the employee by providing no personalized examples of how that employee performed well.  On the other hand, there is nothing quite so disheartening as learning for the first time during an annual review that some aspect of your performance has been lacking for the past 6 months, but you were never notified.  Feedback gives employees the opportunity to change behavior and also to charge forward, but if they don't know what worked and what didn't, how can we expect them to perform to their full potential?

Giving feedback doesn't really need to be that scary - being prepared up front can take much of the fear out of the meeting and set the stage for a constructive and productive discussion.  Where you will be holding the discussion, what you will say and when to have the conversation are all important to the ultimate success of the message.  Feedback should not be a one-sided conversation; Managers should be prepared to allow the employee to provide their input into the situation and to actively listen as they do so and ask appropriate questions.

Remember, the goal of performance feedback and counseling conversations is always to work with the employee to improve their performance, in a dignified, constructive manner and to reward them for a job well done!

Now is the time of year that employees begin to look at their vacation and PTO balances and realize that they have three weeks of vacation to take before the end of the year, or they'll loose it.  Do you allow them to take it all in one block?  Do you require them to break it up into shorter amounts (i.e. a week at a time) or do you make an exception and allow them to carry time over?  On the flip side, maybe you have an employee that already has a planned vacation but has already taken too much time this year and has no additional time to take...

Time Off is one of those HR policies and employee benefits that is very close to an employee's heart and therefore issues around time off can often be contentious between the employer and employee. Whether you have a vacation or PTO policy, having a well-defined and market competitive time off policy can help promote employee retention and employee motivation.   Your employee handbook should outline the policy and all the specifics around taking time, balances and the logistics.  When writing your policy consider the following:

• Eligibility - When are new hire eligible to begin taking time?
• Pro-rated time - What is the threshold for part-time employees to take time and how is it pro-rated?
• Accrual amounts - How does time accrue?  Does it increase based on length of service, position or some other measure?
• Approval process - What is the process for requesting time off?  Who keeps track of this?
• Taking time - Are there requirements around how much time an employee can take in a row?  Do you limit employees to only a week at a time, or maybe 2?
• Use it or lose it - What happens to unused time at the end of the year? 
• Carryover - How much time can an employee carryover at the end of the year?  Are they required to take this carried over time during the first 3 or 6 months of the year?
• Payout - Do you have a policy to payout employees for unused time?
• Negative balances - What will you do if an employee wants to take time they have not yet accrued?
• Termination - Keep in mind that any unused accrued time must be paid out to the employee upon termination.  You'll want to write your policy in a way that will not result in excessively high balances that require payout upon termination.

Once you've written and published your policy, the most important thing you can do is, STICK TO IT!  An employee policy that is constantly having exceptions made is not an effective policy and only breeds dissatisfaction among the employee and employer!

 

The President (and we’re not talking about Obama), or other C-level management figures, cannot be everywhere, which means they may have limited face time with employees.  The President can be an intimidating figure, the one who bears the weight of the entire company on his or her shoulders and is seen by most employees only when there is an all staff event. 

In times of economic stress, companies of all sizes know the importance of communication from the top down to ensure employee satisfaction and confidence in the company’s missions.  Often, communication will break down somewhere in the hierarchical process, similar to that of a game of “telephone” in which one message can be repeated differently over the course of several explanations.  Misinformation is heard and then repeated, making for a confused, nervous and often angry group of employees.  Although management encourages employees to ask questions so that information can be corrected or confirmed, more often than not, employees are just too intimidated to raise their hands. 

A wonderful ice breaker for any member of management is to host a lunch.  Simply getting a group of employees together once a month to have solid face time with the President, or other executives, can do wonders for the communication process.  Employees will realize that the President is a normal person too by eating lunch and talking with coworkers about their day.  Provide a themed meal and create a quiz or game show format to go along with it to help break the ice and encourage people to talk. Think about giving out small prizes, but most of all have fun!  The goal is to get employees comfortable with management so that they feel they have a right to speak up with questions and comments.  In turn, management may learn a few things about the people who work for the company and by hearing their concerns and ideas, can relate directly to them.