Workplace of Choice

Competencies serve as the barometer for evaluating employees' skills and are the building blocks for a quality performance management program.  Competency modeling, when completed effectively, will help support the strategic thinking and objectives, as well as the business priorities and organizational environment of an organization - the very things that are continuously changing. Because the organization is continually changing, it is imperative that companies make certain that the competency structure also evolves to keep up with those changes.

Adjusting and reviewing your core competencies periodically is paramount because it will:

• Allow you to gather new research to build and improve your existing model.
• Allow you to maintain what is effective from the existing model.
• Allow you to better evaluation your employee's performance.
• Allow you to recognize the degree of change in the organization and sum up the spirit of new business priorities.

The main drawback to updating your current competencies is the time  and associated cost investment required from management to do so, however, the benefits of a good core competency program far outweigh the drawbacks.

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?

The greatest asset of any organization is their people, but the job of managing our human resources is often forgotten and not a priority.  This may be due to cost, lack of resources and/or lack of knowledge.  Outsourcing, under the right circumstances, can often be an effective and cost efficient solution in such circumstances.  For companies where the cost of bringing Human Resources in-house is prohibitive, outsourcing offers an alternative allowing companies to have quality HR services without the expense.  Due to cost, often times companies don’t have any HR presence.  Operating without a quality Human Resources function exposes a company to risks with respect to employment law compliance and without any real HR strategy, can hinder the company’s growth.  Additionally outsourcing also allows companies to gain access to experts in the field of recruiting, coaching, training, compensation, compliance, employee relations and HR strategy.  These experts might otherwise not be available if the company was relying solely on their in-house department.
 
Take the case study of NOHR, Incorporated.  NOHR has been in business for 10 years and now employs 55 people in MA with a satellite office in CA with 6 employees.  For years, the CFO has been overseeing his assistant who is responsible for what might be labeled as the HR functions (benefits and payroll).  Performance Reviews are never done because there is no one championing the process, there is no employee handbook, no recruiting or onboarding process, compensation isn’t equalized through out the organization and when employee issues arise, the Manager takes action without guidance.  For years NOHR has struggled with whether they need an HR presence, but due to a lack of money and a real understanding of the impact of HR, they haven’t acted.  After a string of bad situations with terminating employees, they have hired an outsourced HR Manager.  In a short period of a time, the outsourced resource has been able to look over all the compliance issues and take care of a number of risk areas.  The outsourced HR Manager has also put together an Employee Handbook which eliminates many gray areas and answers questions for employees, such as PTO and workplace policies.  Additionally because NOHR decided to go with an outsourced solution instead of an in-house HR person, they also received the advantage of an expert in the area of compensation and another in recruiting.  These additional resources have been hard at work setting up procedures in their areas of specialty and have already added great value to the organization.  Outsourcing allowed NOHR to get all this for approximately 60% of the cost of if they had hired their own HR Director.

Outsourcing the HR function gives management the time and opportunity to focus on the business while the consultant concentrates on Human Resources.  With an outsourced solution this is achieved at a lower cost, with experts in the field and with efficiency and quality.   Tell us your experience with using an outsourced HR solution.