Workplace of Choice

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."

A good friend lost her job. A manager at a well known retail vitamin store, she asked her supervisor if she could work part time as she was going back to school in the fitness and nutrition field. They said “no”, full time or bust! What?! (I won’t even comment on my thoughts about that company philosophy, I’ll save that for my next post!) Another friend was recently told in a meeting that his department will be outsourced. Not what he expected either, and is worried about how long he has until he is without a paycheck (and no, the company did not tell him that little detail). A third friend, a neighbor, was venting that she “needed something more” with her career.

What my friends have in common, perhaps with you too, is that they do not feel prepared physically, financially, or emotionally to be unemployed, and they definitely are not sure how to start looking for a job (their words, not mine)! Most people do not have the luxury or courage to plan a job or career change with the current market and hiring conditions and tend to hang on to their current position.

Big changes in our lives, like a job change, can leave us feeling of insecure, fearful, and even depressed. BUT, if you allow it, change can also bring new life, energy, opportunity and yes, passion to your professional life. There are many things you should think about when approaching a job search, and one of your first thoughts will no doubt be about your resume. In the recruiting world your resume will be the one piece that will differentiate and help market the real and fabulous YOU!

Why are resumes important?

1. Resumes are the standard marketing piece for a job search.
2. Resumes advertise your skills and experience.
3. Resumes generate interviews.
4. Resumes are an inventory of talking points for meetings and interviews.
5. Resumes are an agenda for interviewers.

Remember, recruiters & HR staff review a lot of resumes so make it reader friendly, clear, concise, and most importantly, effective. Best Practices for your resume include: 

•  Focus on your accomplishments and results
• Use strong action words
• Have a clear, easy to read format
• Large margins -plenty of white space
• Reasonable type size
• Include only relevant information
• Do not use the word "I"
• Include a Summary
• Maximum 2 pages
• No gimmicks
• No spelling or grammatical errors

It only takes a simple action plan to get started towards your goal of creating job opportunities for yourself. Think about starting with the following first steps:

• Compile the information for your resume
• Create a first draft – do not worry about length
• Review and edit for concise language, results, and action verbs
• Edit back to a 2-page maximum
• Ask others to review and provide feedback Like my friends, you may find yourself forced to make a change you were not expecting.

So, believe you have the ability to make your change a positive one and know you can start today by dusting off that resume!

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!

 

Summer is over, fall is in the air, and the leaves are changing; all which means flu season is just around the corner!  Last June the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the worldwide alert level to a pandemic alert with the outbreak of the H1N1 virus (a.k.a. swine flu).  So what does "Pandemic" mean and what, if any, are the implications to business?  Wikepedia defines a pandemic as "an epidemic of infectious disease that spreads through human populations across a region."  According to the CDC, the H1N1 flu outbreak will continue throughout the fall season in conjunction with the seasonal flu and potentially make for an even worse flu season than last year.  So is this all hype?  Do we really need to worry about a pandemic or is it just being blown out of proportion by the media? How can we adjust our HR policies to prepare for a pandemic?

The simple answer is, yes, you do need to prepare.  As a business owner or executive you need to have policies in place that will help you deal with how your business will react should a large number of employees become sick or are absent.  Having a plan will ensure a faster return to business as usual as well as fair treatment of employees.   There are many sources to help you prepare.  You can access the government's site at http://www.pandemicflu.gov/professional/business/smallbiz.html. 

Some key points to keep in mind when developing your plan are:

• Assess how your company functions, both internally and externally, to determine which materials, staff, procedures and equipment are essential to keep the business operating.  How will you reorganize in the event such resources aren't available?
• Identify suppliers, shippers and other vendors you deal with on a regular basis and set up contingency plans should their operations be interrupted.
• Plan what you will do if your building, store or plan isn't accessible.  Are people able to work from home?  If so, are they currently set up to do so?
• Plan for payroll continuity.
• Define crisis management procedures and who should play a role in these procedures.  Review these plans annually to ensure they are up to date with the times.

By doing some leg work up front and designing your HR policies with a preparedness plan in mind, you will save a lot of headaches should they need to be implemented.