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A question-and-answer newsletter addressing some of the most common and most obscure HR dilemmas.
Dear Workforce: How Do We ‘Train’ Our Trainers?
Make sure you have proper context before launching into identifying trainers and building content. Any training initiative needs to clearly articulate the result your organization wants.
Dear Workforce: How Does 1,000-Hour Rule Apply to Non-Retirement Benefits?
The 1,000-hour rule is best known in retirement circles but also applies to group welfare plans, with respect to nondiscrimination testing. Unfortunately, it is not applied on a consistent basis and does not apply to all benefits.
Dear Workforce: How Should We Fill Vacancies: From Within or With External Candidates?
This is an important question that too few HR pros consider.
Dear Workforce: Is Our Forced Ranking System Still Valid?
Using a 'rank and yank' approach requires managers to differentiate performance, but also can have a negative effect on employee engagement. Consider a performance management system that requires managers to set clear performance expectations, defines what 'high performance' means, uses feedback as data, and features ongoing discussions around development.
Dear Workforce: How Does the Stimulus Bill Change COBRA Provisions?
The most notable development: It provides a temporary subsidy that covers 65 percent of the COBRA premium charged to former employees for up to nine months if the employee was involuntarily terminated and the event occurred on or after September 1, 2008, and before December 31, 2009.
Dear Workforce: How Much Attrition Is Acceptable?
Your recruiters, trainers and managers all share responsibility for retention.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Pre-Empt Counteroffers?
Honor employees and their families, and use this technique to brand your company as different from competitors. Eschew counteroffers, but if you develop career maps for employees, be sure to stick to them.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Persuade Management to Spend Money on Data Integrity for Recruiting, Hiring?
You’ll get nowhere unless you first demonstrate how your project shows up on the company’s balance sheet.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Raise the Issue of Coaching to Our Boorish Boss?
First off, make sure you have your facts straight before approaching the boss. If so, you have to take a lead role in organizing sit-down discussion, along with other interested parties—no matter how painful or uncomfortable it is.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Measure Whether Our Work/Life Programs Make Employees More Productive?
Satisfaction with work/life is highly correlated with employee engagement, which in turn boosts productivity and retention.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Overcome Provincialism Among Our Workforce?
Your solution cannot be imposed by HR or other outside groups. But HR must take an aggressive role in helping co-workers collaborate to understand how exclusivity harms your company, and encourage them to collaborate on solutions.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Remedy Sinking Morale After Layoffs?
It’s important to realize that avoiding layoffs may backfire by giving employees an expectation of permanent job security. To help employees, it’s important to “over-communicate,” be transparent in your dealings with them and zero in on retaining your top people especially.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Restrain a Bully Senior Manager?
Without the support of your top executive, any effort to retrain behavior is doomed.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Reliably Assess Our Corporate Culture?
When developing questionnaires, focus on those business issues that are critical to organizational success.
Dear Workforce: What's the Secret to Productive Yet Cost-Effective Induction of New Employees for a Globally Dispersed Workforce?
Identify content that can be delivered online and segregate it from information that is more effectively delivered in person. Don't forget to monitor the effectiveness by asking employees for periodic feedback.
Dear Workforce: What Role Does Training Play in Overcoming Employee Discontent With Supervisors?
Do a better job of training people well in advance of their promotions. As to equipping current supervisors, focus on ‘behavior steps’ that help them learn and apply skills in real-life situations.
Dear Workforce: When Does the Income Limitation on a COBRA Subsidy Apply: Before or After Termination?
The limitation applies to the income a person received in the same taxable year in which the subsidy is received.
Dear Workforce: What Impact Does the Stimulus Bill Have on Payroll/Benefits Administration?
Among key changes: To comply with the stimulus-package provisions, employers must implement rebate/credit for their workers by April 1.
Dear Workforce: What Lessons Could We Learn From Other Companies About Holding On to Older Workers?
Encourage boomers to tap their unused talents, raise their competency level, explore professional development, prepare for future challenges and transfer skills/knowledge.
Dear Workforce: Why Are Companies Taking an Interest in Health Audits?
Eligibility audits could help companies spot areas of abuse concerning their insurance payments.
Dear Workforce: Why Don't Our Managers Complete Performance Reviews on Time?
Performance assessments cause stress, and many supervisors procrastinate as a result. Feedback and various types of reinforcement can help you win them over.
Dear Workforce: Which Questions Are Best to Ask Employees During Follow-Up Discussions About Performance?
Focus on the performance goals, solicit their feedback early on and be supportive.
Dear Workforce: Shift Work Is Harming Morale. How Do We Make Amends?
Examine two primary contributors to low employee morale: breakdowns in communications and distrust of management.
Dear Workforce: Quelling Anxiety About Job Evaluations
Here’s an explanation for employees: Job evaluation primarily is to ensure that people are appropriately paid for their responsibilities. Performance evaluations judge a person’s contributions to the job. The two share nothing in common.
Dear Workforce: We Are Overwhelmed With the Task of Workforce Planning. What Does It Mean and How Should We Begin?
Workforce planning can dramatically “smooth out the pains” associated with volatility and ensure your organization’s talent capability and capacity are always aligned to drive performance.
Dear Workforce: Our CFO Is Granting Unequal Pay and Forgoing Performance Reviews. How Do I Persuade Him to Rethink This Dangerous Precedent?
You must make a case for how HR can help manage cost by being in charge of salary administration.
Dear Workforce: Our Management Insists on Keeping Pay Changes Secret. How Do I Argue for Transparency?
Secrecy breeds mistrust. Arm yourself with market data but be sure to lobby for openness as a key to retention and high morale.
Dear Workforce: What Are Some Techniques to Hire People Whose Personal Values Best Fit Our Company?
Organizational 'soul searching' is the place to begin. This can be a complex task if your company has many divisions or locations.
Dear Workforce: We Don’t Have the Budget to Boost Salaries, So How Do We Still Retain Top Employees?
Money alone rarely is the reason employees leave.
Dear Workforce: We’re Expanding Into Eastern Europe. What Are the Recommendations for Launching a New HR Function?
Learn as much as possible beforehand about the region by talking to natives, local leaders and others. If possible, it would be a good idea to visit the region and get a feel for local customs and characteristics.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Ease Our Employees’ Transition to Retirement?
Phased retirement is a good starting point among the numerous actions you could take.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Determine Whether We Are Getting Optimum Effectiveness From Our HR Processes?
You cannot effectively measure and improve a process until you clearly understand it.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Ensure Employee Evaluations That Avoid Subjective Measurement?
This can be accomplished with some upfront planning.
Dear Workforce: How Can Our HR Department Elicit Useful Feedback on Its Performance?
Make sure any surveys include a representative sample of your workforce. Give plenty of notice to employees and encourage them to participate.
Dear Workforce: How Do COBRA Changes Affect Companies That Fall Below the Employee Limit?
The COBRA subsidy applies to companies, but only if the there is a comparable state COBRA-type law and the plan is insured.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Use Employee Probation to Effectively Assess Newcomers?
Use introductory periods as a 'test drive' to find out if the person is a fit with your organization.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Reward Employees Who Decline Our Health Coverage?
The choices you make about coverage should be influenced by the organization's view of its workforce. Consider what your employees value most and what you can afford to offer.
Dear Workforce: How Could We Show Our Appreciation to Employees Who Don't Use Sick Days?
'Cash-out' of unused balances is a little-used option, but be thoughtful should you decide to implement the practice. It may result in unforeseen accrued liability.
Dear Workforce: How Do I Counsel My Company's Morale-Killing CEO (and Not Get Fired)?
Start by having a confab with the head of your company about this assignment. It's critical that you obtain his unwavering support for this challenge.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Teach Our Managers to Become More Effective Communicators?
The fundamentals of active listening should help supervisors and managers emerge as respected, forceful and trusted leaders.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Reverse a Trend of Tapping People as 'Interim' Leaders Who Are Not Adequately Prepared?
Take out any guesswork by creating a pool of individual contributors who show an interest in advancing to leadership roles. Build a complete success profile that includes a person's knowledge, experience, competencies and personal characteristics. This process will move you from taking the easy and convenient route to one that is more sustainable.
Dear Workforce: Which Interview Questions Will Help Us Understand the Emotional Intelligence of Applicants?
If using an interview, be certain that it asks standardized, structured, behavioral questions relating to the work. If using a test, choose one that is documented to measure emotional intelligence.
Dear Workforce: How Do Professional Services Firms Tie Pay to Performance?
Done properly, this type of compensation can be designed to directly support the overall business goals of the firm, and can provide for appropriate and effective employee motivation.
Dear Workforce: Our New Career/Mentoring Programs Are Falling Flat. How Do We Salvage Them Before It's Too Late?
Top leaders need to champion the cause. Managers also have to be convinced the development programs add value. Then they need to be held accountable.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Get Employees to Take Advantage if We Offer Wellness Programs?
First, determine how the program benefits your employees and your company. You'll also need top management to set the tone and lead by example.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Get Better Information From Our Exit Interviews?
Stress confidentiality to departing employees. Follow up with them three or six months after they leave to give them time to fully process the reasons they left.
Dear Workforce: How to Go Beyond a Pat on the Back
Use the 80/20 rule to determine levels of employee performance. This refers to the idea that 80 percent of employees are middle-of-the-pack performers.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Determine Objective Criteria to Recognize Top-Performing Police Officers?
Avoid subjective criteria. Rely on objective measures built around your organization’s core values.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Formalize Job Rotation to Boost Retention?
Clearly define objectives, obtain institutional support, select which jobs are to be rotated, tie the effort to career development and pay, and track your results.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Improve Our Performance Evaluations?
Look for causes of grade inflation and stop them in their tracks.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Help Employees Understand All Our Benefits, Both Tangible and Intangible?
Use printed and online tools to communicate a total rewards approach to your benefits.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Help Retiring Employees Make the Transition?
Offer resources on financial planning and various aspects of 'lifestyle planning' to make the passage less stressful and help hardworking employees ease into their new existence.
Dear Workforce: How Do I Work With a CEO Who Thinks He Knows About HR, but Doesn't?
What the CEO claims to know is less important than what you can promise and deliver, both to the CEO and to other clients.
Dear Workforce: How Do I Pre-empt a Workplace Affair?
Professionalism, performance, workplace environment, credibility and lack of judgment are five issues you must address head on.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Combat Swine Flu Outbreaks at Work?
Education and a review of policies are in order.
Dear Workforce: How Do I Handle an Employee's Drinking Problem?
When you face circumstances like this, solutions are not always crystal clear. Nevertheless, there are strategies to deal with the situation.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Curb Sexual Harassment Against Men?
This appears to be a growing problem. CEOs and HR directors can’t afford to pretend it doesn’t exist.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Correct Misclassifications Under FLSA?
The statute-of-limitations period is normally two years but could be as long as three years.
Dear Workforce: How Do We Create a 'Refresher' Course on Conducting Performance Evaluations?
Don't rehash old news. Instead, your training should deepen your managers’ understanding.
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See the recruiting strategies of top companies and get the resources for effective recruiting.
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Monthly trends, strategies and resources for training and developing your workforce talent.
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