HR Girl 4'11" Blog

Stay There Til You Get It Right

Sound familiar? You may have been told that as a child, but it does not always apply as an adult. If you have ever been in a position that doesn't allow the slightest amount of brain power, or if you have been overwhelmed with an assignment, then you are familiar with the amount of frustration that some of your employees may be facing. 

 If you have a staff member who is obviously having some difficulties with their position to the point where they are struggling to adjust, grasp new concepts, or their frustration has almost reached boiling point here are some options:

A. Analyze the situation. See how long the employee has been in their current position. They may be too green for an accurate performance evaluation, therefore they may have a minor adjustment issue. Make sure that they have been given proper training and the tools needed for their position along with a clear understanding of what the company expects. If the employee has been with the company for several years, they may be experiencing burnout, so it may be time for them to expand their knowledge & skills in order to apply them somewhere else within the company.

B. Employ mentorship. Having an experienced member available to answer questions and provide insight can make a huge difference. Some employees need a little extra time in order to familiarize themselves with the functionalities of their job. Having someone there as a professional guide can take a load off of their immediate manager. Three (3) months is long enough for a person to get the majority of their questions answered through their mentor.

C.  Offer them the option of transferring to a different position or department (if available). The employee may have a set of skills that aren’t a match for their current position. This could occur if you have heavily relied upon outdated assessments to place candidates in certain positions. If transferring is an option, make sure that they not only qualify, but have the drive to make it work. At any rate, they still have to prove that they are capable of assuming a new role, so first make sure that they are evaluated properly through the use of personality profiles and skills assessments before recommending them for a new role in the company, “show me the money”.

D. Wait another 6 months so they will have a poor performance evaluation. Besides the proof is in the pudding. Once they've shown that they are incapable of doing their job and it is well documented, then you can't be sued. (Many companies do this all the time.)

E. Just fire them because they can't get it together. There are thousands of other people who can replace them right now. You don't have time, everyone that comes on board should be able to hit the ground running. (Nice mentality, don’t you think?)

Let's face it, ruling your employees with an iron fist is out. But retaining good talent is in and will be here to stay for a while. If you selected D or E, I really feel sorry for your employees, because they will be joining the 60% of workers who are waiting for the economy to pick back up so they can leave.

Remember, every employee contributes to a company, through their position. Giving them the right tools and a reasonable amount of time to do their job, is a small step in the right direction towards retaining good talent. Avoid at all cost forcing an employee to stay at a dead end job, because it's a sure fire way of showing that you really don’t care, and therefore they won’t either.

Longevity Doesn't Equal Contribution

Finding a candidate with some staying power is such an awesome thing. There are a lot of candidates out there who are willing to stick with a good employer, and there are others who are just looking to build their resume.

Though you may find candidates who have been with a company for several years. They may appear to have staying power, or they could have a bad case of the "Warm Body Syndrome". 

Before your recruiting campaign kicks off, look at your current employees to see what their track record has been and how much they are contributing to your business. Think about it:

• When was the last time your employees were evaluated for performance?
• When were they held accountable for the things they do?
• Does your company have an invisible grandfather clause?

Ask them for some feedback on how they enjoy their job and what could happen in order to make their job a little better. Besides there is always room for improvement. Some of your old timers may not like the fact that you are asking questions, however, it is critical to your bottom line. Be brave and just do it! You both will have a lot to gain from it.

The idea here is simply to slow down the hiring mistakes. You don't want a warm body migrating from another company, to sit in your chairs for another 15-20 years. It doesn't necessarily mean that an employee who has managed to stay under the radar for a long period of time without any spots, has the capability to make a contribution to their employer.

Here are some critical questions to ask your candidates:

1. When you participated in a team project, what position are you normally nominated for?
2. When was the last workshop / seminar you attended? Was it mandated or voluntary?
3. What are some of the goals that you foresee setting in this new role?
4. How would you like to grow with this company?
5. How do you stay on top of your field?

The goal here is to hire staff with some staying power, along with the ability to contribute and grow. The bottomline is you have a business to run. Though there is no such thing as a perfect person or candidate, you still should strive towards a contributor and steer away from the warm body.

Employee fired for looking at guns..; on the Web - Was He Really A Threat?

Everybody wants a safe place to work in, for the most part. This particular article touches on a couple of sensitive subjects. But here are a few warning signs of a person who really could become a threat to your workplace:

1) He/She says absolutely nothing!

2) He/She has expressed what they will do in the event that they are to lose their job.

3) There is a noticeable search trail and visited sites on the internet for weapons or supplies

4) They have solicited the fact that they do not like their job, and encourages others to hate their job and boss along with them.

In this case, the employee openly spoke about having guns and used the company resources to search for weapons. But does this necessarily mean that he is a threat? He was actually looking for skeet guns.

However, this employee lost his job due to the gun search internet trail, but attempted to sue the employer for another reason. Clearly he broke the company's internet policy...(do you have one? I will discuss in a later post), but sued the employer for a different reason and lost.  He had already missed a lot of days from work which caused his performance evaluation to fall short of the company standards. But my 2-cents on this matter, they were just looking for a reason to terminate him anyway!

Read the article here. Tell me what do you think.

Social Networking Profile = Character Reference

While there is still a small percentage of HR professionals who use social media, there is a growing number of Recruiters, Business Owners and Hiring Authorities who use the various tools available to screen out candidates.

Current job seekers have been warned on many occasions to be careful with the information and pictures they put out there in virtual space. And Hiring Authorities have been cautioned regarding the legal backlash that could result in using social media as a screening/selection tool for candidates.Discrimination being the top possible claim, and who wants to take that one home for the team? No one! 

Like with any activity done outside of the workplace, it should be the candidates and your employees personal business, not yours. So why continue the act of snooping? It's easy to say, "Well it's out there for everyone to see". But on the same token, social media has to be used in moderation, not out of obsession.

So here is what I say to Recruiters, HR, Business Owners and Hiring Authorities across the globe, use it as a Character Reference. If you want to cruise social sites and Google candidates for information, make it a part of the character reference portion of the process.

Once they apply to your business for a job, they will give you their professional references. You should consider having them fill out an authorization for a background screening with a subsection that outlines the possibility that social sites will be utilized in the verification process. Not doing so is comparable to calling someones' distant relative who wasn't included in the personal reference section of the application. That person could jeopardize their candidacy.

So stay clean and be honest, and let them know that you will be using social sites in the verification process. This will allow them time to clean up their act. And it will provide a paper trail for your company in the event that a candidate files a claim against you because they didn't get the job. Some candidates may even save you the trouble by providing their site url, at the least the one they want you to see.

As with all things, use Social Media in moderation. Don't get overly obsessed with reviewing profiles of the candidates. The information is out there for you to use, not to abuse.

Sick, Hurt, Family Emergency....Certified Faker!

If you've caught an employee fibbing about where they were on their day off due to sickness, or even caught them online on the day when they couldn't even open their eyes due to a severe headache, then you will be relieved to know that this is becoming a growing trend amongst employees who play "sick". Playing around on the internet and posting messages on social networking sites during sick days, is a sure fire way that your employees can be caught in a lie. And you don't even have to spy on them, because the proof is going to be there indefinitely. If you've been awake for the last 2 years, you will know that social networking is exploding, and it's not even close to being a fad that will fade in the next century. The most popular (8)  joints are:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Ning
• Myspace
• Plaxo
• Hi5
• Bebo

Now another issue regarding days off is a valid reason.  They will not only lie about not coming in, but they will also lie with proof.  I am talking about fake notes. Yes fake doctors notes and obituaries, just to get out of going to work. Here are a few websites who offer this service:

• www.jumptags.com
• www.phoneyexcuses.com
• www.myexcusedabsence.com
• www.thefakedoctorsnote.com
• www.bestfakedoctornotes.com
• www.scumdoctor.com

Hopefully you will never have to use any of these resources that I have provided for you here. But this is one blog post that you should keep in mind for your next faker.

Girl Bullies in the Workplace

The fact that 40% of workplace bullies are women, should make you wonder who's really getting their work done. That victim has to put up with a lot of crap from a bully, while maintaining their quality of work. The reality is, bullies are a drain to your business, and could cost you thousands down the road. Even though the person doing the bullying is a manager or a top performer. So what should you do at this crossroads?   

If your company doesn't have a culture, now is the time to get one established along with a set of behavioral standards. A policy has to be written and signed off by all employees, even those out in the field. This policy will fall somewhere in between harassment and hostile workplace tolerance. Which actually should be ZERO. It should cover all the events that are considered bullying, i.e. screaming, shoving, setting traps, nagging, scheming and physical contact etc.

Now wouldn't it be nice if women solved problems similar to men? Like either dukeing it out followed by a handshake and a beer. But this isn't the case. What we have here is simply one woman picking another woman to pick on who appears to be a little weaker or presents some sort of threat to her position. Other factors could include stress on the home front, or just the need to be evil.

But if you would like to hear my opinion, i think that if a woman is taking her career seriously she wouldn't have time to worry about what other women are doing and if she poses a threat, so MYOB.

No body likes a bully, and no business owner wants their profit to suffer because of a bully. Nor wanting to end up in court or face an act of violence in their place of business as a result of retaliation from the victim. At any rate, action should to be taken immediately in order to exterminate the fire so everyone else involved can get back to work.

Here Comes GINA

No, she's not your long lost cousin, however, it's the EEOC's cousin, and certainly something you should be concerned about if you are an employer. Effective November 21, 2009 there will be a new regulation in place which "will protect Americans against discrimination based on their genetic information when it comes to health insurance and employment".

GINA stands for Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, and the bill was finalized back in 2008. It's a very simple rule that applies not only to employers, but also to the health insurance providers. As an employer, make sure that your group health insurance provider is not requesting genetic information from your employees, this will certainly keep you out of hot water.

You may order a poster from any compliance poster provider such as www.laborlawcenter.com or www.complianceposter.com. In the meantime, you can utilize this pdf for your reference http://www.eeoc.gov/self_print_poster.pdf For more information go to http://www.genome.gov/Pages/PolicyEthics/GeneticDiscrimination/GINAInfoDoc.pdf

Oldie But Goodie

Now that the playing field is wide open with cross generational competition, employers need to be cautious in their selection processes. Why? Well, in order to avoid being sued, a new way of making things more fair and less discriminative should be in place right now.

Older workers (watch my mouth), 50 plus are finding themselves at a disadvantage because of their level of experience. In a study done by the AARP, they found that "the same resumes got more calls for interviews if they appeared to come from a 32-year-old than from a 57-year-old." That's right, apparently employers are reluctant to consider older workers. Smells like a strong brew discrimination cooking, if you know what I mean.

At any rate, older workers should not be made to dumb down their resume and throw out all of their experience and hard earned time out the window. Keep your head up gang!

Employers, look alive, because these seasoned professionals have a lot to offer. And so what if their next boss may be young enough to be their child, they still deserve respect, and they still have seen things that no one fresh out of college could possibly relate to or provide input.

Here are a few adjustments to make it a little better:

1) Stop discarding the resumes that are more than one page.

2) Don't narrow your educational requirements. Not everyone with a major followed in that particular career path.

3) Using social networking sites to find pictures, is a no-no.

4) Viewing them as a liability for your health insurance plan is absurd.

5) All interview questions should be the same, including the one that allows them to share their scenarios.

6) Stop being so easily intimidated.

7) Younger doesn't always mean cheaper labor.

All-in-all, make sure that you have your organization's best interest at heart. Will this person be able to adjust and represent your company culture? Will they be able to contribute effectively for your company? And by the way, remember, you won't be in your 20's forever.

Job Title Change

I created a poll in LinkedIn that is open for discussion for both employer and employee. I'm curious to see how much a job title really means, is it a confidence booster?

Is there an emotional connection to what your title is? Does it really matter what your title is, just as long as you do a good job? How far off the mark is your current job title, to what it is that you really do on a day to day basis?

Take the poll here: If your job title were to change, would it affect the way you felt about your job? http://polls.linkedin.com/poll-results/61636/yodqj

The HR Quarterback

Everyone knows how vital the HR Department can be for an organization. Just as within a football team, every team member has an important role to play. But without the Quarterback, the leader, it would be impossible for the team to succeed. Therefore the key player within an organization, should be the HR Quarterback.

Call it… my imagination has ran a little wild, but here is a different way of looking at your HR department. Let me set up the playing field:

• The Ball = The Objective

• Team Members = All Departments and their Employees within

• The Coach = Company President

• Yard Lines = Charts the progression of the Objective

• Line of Scrimmage = The place where management meets on a regular basis to document the progress of the project at hand

• Center = The designated member within the organization who is responsible for giving the ball to the HR Quarterback

• End Zone = The ultimate Goal or final destination of the Objective

Ideally every organization should be running in offensive mode. If not, then there is no control over the Ball, in fact the Ball is in the hands of the enemy and the organization is in defense mode. But all members must work together to get the Ball back under control. Once you’re in offensive mode, then you have a place for the HR Quarterback.

The HR Quarterback has spoken directly with the Coach and knows what is expecting out of the team members within the organization. The Coach hands the Ball to the Quarterback and expects a report at the end of every Quarter. The HR Quarterback takes the Ball to the Line of Scrimmage where the snap is to take place. It’s time to play ball!!

Notice, the HR Quarterback is out on the playing field because he/she already knows the needs of the organization. The old strategies and techniques have been studied and the new ones are being analyzed on a regular basis. He/she has a good idea of what will work by utilizing a variety of technologies available.

The HR Quarterback is well informed about the new legislations that affect the organizational structure, and ways of retaining the top performing employees through various mediums. Therefore, taking care of the employees is paramount, because without them, there is no company. Strengths and weaknesses of the employees are constantly monitored prior to their annual performance. Regularly scheduled rewards and recognitions are given to employees who have gone above and beyond their individual duties. If there are members who are in need of a little more training, then the HR Quarterback arranges time for the training to occur, realizing that there is no room for a weak link.

When a strong performer is noticed, then they can be place strategically within the organization in order to effectively drive the company closer towards the goal. And if all fails, the HR Quarterback is willing to drive the objective all the way into the end zone alone.

Well, that’s my football rant for today. Hope you all enjoyed reading. By the way, do you know an HR Quarterback who you would like to recognize?